Ballantyne's Life: Hudson's Bay Part 2

October 29, 2009

To read Part 1 of this article, click here

It was in June of 1845 that Robert hit the road, bound once more for Norway House. The below letter is a peek into Ballantyne's superiors' perspective on his work and character, written the day before his departure for Norway House.

Mr Ballantyne is just about starting for Norway House. . . In reply to your enquiry regarding that young gentleman[']s habits and character I feel bound to speak of both in favorable terms. He came very young to the country and was at first stationed where he had comparatively little work to do; and, in consequence, had made little progress in a knowledge of business when he was sent to this place. - Since he came under my orders I have every reason to speak well of his application, improvement and docility. - He is not yet fitted to take charge of any important trust in business or accounts; but under a superintendant, who would set him a good example, I am certain that he would give satisfaction. - The worst feature in his character, that I have observed, is youthful thoughtlessness which time & reflection are sure to remedy. - At first there was also about him a little of what characterises most town bred boys forwardness and flippancy. - York discipline however I believe has withered all such; - and on the whole, I beg to speak of him as a young man well fitted to become useful in the service under proper tuition and a bourgeois who would take pains to render him so.

Yours most faithfully

  J[ames] Hargrave [1]

It's nice to find an unbiased, honest report of Ballantyne's character, as displayed in these early years. At this time he appears to be entering the stage of manhood, as more responsibility is placed on his shoulders. He was a very sturdy lad who enjoyed a good romp, but could buckle down to business.

Ballantyne did not stay here long. Instead, he began a trip in August across nearly 2,300 miles of Canadian wilderness, bound for the town of Lachine. The average canoe at that time, which Ballantyne would have used, was an amazing vessel capable of holding a number of men, along with many pieces of cargo, while being light enough to be carried on a few men's shoulders. This was often necessary, as portages, (going overland from one river or lake to another) were often. The journey was arduous, but he made it at last and arrived on October 25, sixty-six days later.

Winter came, and with it a new assignment. It was in January of 1846, Ballantyne's fifth year in Rupert's Land, when he was assigned yet another excursion. This time he was to travel to Tadousac, one of a series of places known as "King's Posts." It seems that his entire time with the Hudson's Bay Company was one of constant motion, partly due to the small number of men covering such a vast area.

He arrived at Tadousac on February 7, but not much of interest occurred, and Ballantyne was sent sixty miles further in March, to Isle Jeremie. He spent some time here, and used Isle Jeremie as a base for a few short journeys as well. In April he spent some time at a post called Seven Islands, and in August he journeyed back to Tadousac. It was during Ballantyne's fifth year in Canada, June 1, 1846, to be exact, that his contract expired. He notified the company of his wish to return to England. To his great surprise, he learned that he could not leave for another year! A certain clause in his contract stated that he must give a year's notice before leaving the company, thus providing time to send out a replacement.

The clause, which cost Ballantyne a year's extra service, is below:

. . . he shall omit to give notice to the Governor or Officers of the said Company in North America one year [and] upwards before the expiration of the said Term of Five Years of his intention to [unintelligable] services and return to Europe, than that he hereby promises and engages to remain one year longer . . . [2]

The company was willing to forgive Ballantyne's oversight, and to allow him to return to England, but not until a replacement arrived. Due to inconducive travelling conditions, it turned out to be an extra year of service, anyway. The below letter relates to the issue.

Dunn. Finlayson Esq. London August 18th 1846 La Chine

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 27th . . .

There is no wish on the part of the Governor and Committee to enforce the rule of the service against Robert Ballantyne. They will send out an apprenctice Clerk to take his place and as soon as he shall arrive, or sooner if his services can be dispensed with, Mr Ballantyne may be allowed to retire . . .

Your obedt. Servt.

A[rchibald] B[arclay] Secy. [3]

In this case, you might say, the moral of the story is to read the fine print. Make sure you understand the entirety of a contract before putting pen to paper and giving your word of honor. If Ballantyne had done this, he would have returned to England before the death of his failing father, who passed away days previous to Robert's belated arrival.

On the 25th of May, 1847, Ballantyne boarded a ship for England, thus ending his Hudson's Bay era. He had faithfully sent letters to his mother, in addition to journalizing his experiences, and it was with the help of these that he published Hudson Bay in 1848. Although this book was never incredibly successful, it did introduce his name into the world of authors, and attracted some notice. Ballantyne was approached about writing a boys' novel set in Canada, which produced The Young Furtraders, elements of which were shaped by the young author's own experiences.

The years that Ballantyne spent at Hudson Bay helped to weld together his character, his love for outdoor exercise and his tremendous work ethic. The countless miles he covered in Rupert's Land are a demonstration of the vast, unexplored space that existed in Canada at that time. To better display his various travels, I have collated a short catalogue of his journeyings while in North America. They are as follows:

• June 6, 1841 - sailed
• August 21, 1841 - landed at York Factory
• August 31, 1841 - departed by boat for Red River
• Spring, 1842 - departed for Norway House
• June 4, 1843 - departed for York Factory
• June 23, 1845 -started by canoe for Norway House
• July 4, 1845 - arrived at Norway House
• August 20, 1845 - departed for Lachine - distance of nearly 2300 miles!
• October 25, 1845 - arrived at Lachine
• January, 1846 - departure for Tadousac
• February 7, 1846 - arrived at Tadousac
• March, 1846 - departure for Isle Jeremie
• March 16, 1846- arrived at Isle Jeremie
• Six weeks later - sent back to Tadousac
• Soon after - back to Isle Jeremie
• April, 1846 - departure for Seven Islands
• August 25, 1846 - departure for Tadousac
• May 25, 1847 - departure for England!

I have been able to peruse a significant amount of material regarding R. M. Ballantyne's time in the Hudson Bay area thanks to Ballantyne's autobiographical works, Personal Reminiscences in Book-Making, and Hudson Bay, as well as Eric Quayle's biography Ballantyne the Brave. I would also like to thank the staff of the H.B.C. Archives, located in Canda, who provided me with copies of letters and journal entries related to and by R. M. Ballantyne.

What were Ballantyne's religous feelings at this time? I will let him answer in his own words.

"During all the six years that I spent in Rupert's Land I was 'without God.' He was around me and within me, guarding me, bestowing upon me the physical and mental health by which alone I could fully enjoy a life in the wilderness, and furnishing me with much of the material that was to serve as my stock-in-trade during my subsequent career; yet--I confess it with shame--I did not recognise or think of, or care for, Him. It was not until after I had returned home that He opened my eyes to see myself a lost soul, and Jesus Christ--'God with us'--an all-sufficient Redeemer, able and willing to save me from sin, as He is to save all sinners--even the chief." [4]

It is not until the next era of his life, during his early literary endeavors, that the seeds of the gospel begin to root in Ballantyne's heart. My next article in this series will speak of this time.

Tutela ex Vulnero,

John

[1] Hudson's Bay Company Archives, Governor George Simpson loose inward correspondence, D.5/13, fo. 371,

[2] Hudson's Bay Company Archives, Servants' contracts - Ba-BI, A.32/21, fo. 77,

[3] Hudson's Bay Company Archives, London Outward Letter-book copy, A. 6/27, pp. 85 and 86

[4] Personal Reminiscences in Book Making by R. M. Ballantyne

Posted by John Horn at 09:02 PM | Permalink

Recent Comment

October 26, 2009

Every week we receive many great questions and comments from readers of this blog. Here is just one of these, coming from an excited Ballantyne reader.

I just finished the book Fighting the Flames. This book displays true heroism, true courage, and true godliness. It is the fourth Ballantyne book I have read, and I found it competing for first as one of my favorites. I would recommend this book to anyone! Jayne

Jayne, I'm very glad that you enjoy Ballantyne's books. I would agree that Fighting the Flames is a great book, and I hope you have the opportunity to read many more! Thanks for your comment! -John

If you have something particular you are interested in learning more about, please contact us, we'd love to hear from you!

Posted by John Horn at 07:23 PM | Permalink

Ballantyne's Life: Hudson's Bay Part 1

October 23, 2009

This post is part of a chronological series upon Robert Ballantyne's life, which was introduced here.

'One day my dear father was reading in the newspapers some account of the discoveries of Dease and Simpson in the neighborhood of the famous North-west Passage. Looking at me over his spectacles with the perplexed air of a man who has an idle son of sixteen to start in the race of life, he said--

"How would you like to go into the service of the Hudson's Bay Company and discover the North-west Passage?"--or words to that effect.

"All right, father," said I--or something of that sort.' [1]

With this rather abrupt determination which Robert Michael Ballantyne quoted in his Personal Reminiscinses upon Book-Making, this young sixteen-year-old began the next era of his life. To many today, this would seem a rash decision for a father to make, sending a young son across the ocean to a wild and dangerous continent. However, the Ballantyne family was experiencing drastically reduced circumstances due to "Sandy" Ballantyne's financial ruin that occurred with the Ballantyne Press collapse. (To read more of this, click here). Thus, Robert's father had no good directions in England to send his son for a career.

Hudson Bay is an enormous body of water in Canada discovered in 1611 by the explorer Henry Hudson, after whom it was named. The "watershed," so to speak, of Hudson Bay, is an extensive area of ground, which during Ballantyne's time was termed "Rupert's Land." A trading venture called the Hudson's Bay Company owned this area and carried out their business of fur trapping. The Hudson Bay area being vastly larger than the entirety of the British Isles, canoes were the main means of transportation over the necessarily long distances.

The normal method of acquiring furs was to trade European goods with the Indians in return for the desired skins. Rupert's Land was dotted with small, desolate trading posts, which they often called forts, where the Indians came to exchange goods. Temperatures in this harsh land were extreme in winter, often going to forty or fifty degrees below zero!

On May 31, 1841, Ballantyne signed his contract with the Hudson's Bay Company, accepting a beginning salary of £20 a year for the post of "Apprentice Clerk". Five years was the agreed time of service, and his wages were to increase each year in the following manner: £20, £25, £30, £40, £50. In 1841, each British pound was worth around $5.

Following preparations for this new adventure, on July 6, 1841, Ballantyne set sail in the Prince Rupert, bound for North America. His destination, York Factory, was a major post in Rupert's Land through which all sorts of supplies and trading goods passed. It was not until August 21 that Ballantyne and his fellow passengers arrived, much to the joy of York Factory's inhabitants whose circle of acquaintances was small, owing to its sparse population

Ten days after his arrival, Ballantyne set off in one of four boats bound for Fort Garry in the Red River Settlement. He began his first real work for the Company here, keeping records of expenses, purchases, etc., along with a number of other young clerks. The work was dull, but it was enlivened by spirited hunts in the fresh air, and, once winter arrived, moonlit sleigh rides. The young men at Fort Garry were a rambunctious lot, who called themselves the "Fraternity of Quill-Drivers." Most of the young men in the service of the Hudson's Bay Company were a hearty, reckless lot, much enamored with tobacco, of which all smoked tremendous amounts.

Spring came, and along with the new season came orders for Ballantyne to shoulder his belongings and move on, this time to Norway House, a smaller trading post. This was a pleasant place, allowing for many fishing and hunting expeditions, but with less human association than Red River. Except for the drudgery of work which Ballantyne did not enjoy, he spent an exhilarating year at Norway House. It was not until June of 1843 that orders came for Robert to return to York Factory.

Ballantyne's descriptions of work, summer activities, winter inactivities, and everyday life are quite interesting. You can find an autobiographical account in his first book, Hudson Bay. It was while at York Factory that he wrote an interesting poem concerning the area, a portion of which can be seen in my article about poetry, here.

Ballantyne suffered from the swampy climate which surrounded the post in summer, and spent a large portion of time in the sick bay, both in the hot months, as well as the following winter. He persevered in his work, however, and the company took pity on his indisposition by transferring him to Norway House the next year.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this article, which explores the rest of his career in the Hudson Bay area!

Tutela ex Vulnero,

John

[1] Personal Reminiscinses upon Book-Making by R. M. Ballantyne.

Posted by John Horn at 09:06 PM | Permalink

New Book Review! With Roberts to Pretoria

October 19, 2009

Calico Zak has just written a review of G. A. Henty's book, With Roberts to Pretoria. This is a fascinating tale of the Great Boer War, the same war in which Winston Churchill executed his famous escape from the enemy-held province of Pretoria. (In case you were wondering, "Calico Zak" is the internet identity of a Henty/Ballantyne fan who runs this blog.)

To read Calico Zak's book review, click here. If you have written a review of any of Henty's or Ballantyne's books, please email us. We'd love to see it on the Articles page!

Tutela ex Vulnero,

John

Posted by John Horn at 10:15 AM | Permalink

Special on This Day Note: John Brown Takes Harpers Ferry

October 16, 2009

Today and tomorrow are rather important days (historically speaking) because this is the 150th anniversary of John Brown's raid on the arsenal at Harpers Ferry, and the 17th and 18th are the anniversary of Brown's capture.

It can be argued that Brown is responsible for many of the events leading up to the War Between the States. And there is a great deal that could be said of John Brown, but, to sum it up, this self proclaimed "man of God" who firmly believed that the ends justify the means, was no less than a terrorist, murderer, traitor, lier, and thief -- not fighting for the real freedom of mankind, but rather for his ultimate agenda.

Brown was already widely know as the leader of the terrorists in what was then called "bloody Kansas". He had came to Kansas with six of his sons in 1855. They targeted a number of families in the region and in the middle of the night, Brown and his gang took swords and slashed several fathers and sons to death. Several other fights took place in which one of Brown's sons died.

Brown than returned east to try and gather more help -- and ammunition. Towards this end, he decided to capture the arms stored at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (what is now West Virginia.)

On the Morning of the 16th of October, John Brown and his men took the armory at Harpers Ferry. As soon as the government was alerted to this, Robert E. Lee, future general of the Confederate army, and a company of Marines were sent to take Brown and his men. Once they arrived, Lee gave orders to the Marines to hold their fire on the fort because he did not want to harm the hostages being held within, one of whom was Colonel Lewis Washington, a grandnephew of President George Washington.

J.E.B. Stuart, U.S. Army lieutenant, was also there, acting as Lee's aide. He was given the duty of presenting the terms of surrender to Brown. Brown's response was to say that if they weren't going to accept his terms, he "prefer[ed] to die here!" (His terms were that he and all his men were to be allowed to come out, weapons and all, and that they were to have "a specified start on the pursuit".

Obviously, this was not going to work. Stuart promptly leapt back and gave the signal to Lee by waving his feathered hat. (Being a dashing bloke, no other way to signal would have been appropriate.)

The battle then began. Lieutenant Israel Green cried to his men to take up a ladder which was lying on the ground, and to use it as a battering ram against the doors of the fort. By the second shock, the right hand door splintered open. Green and Stuart led the charge into the building. Brown was captured and the fort was taken. The next day Brown talked on and on -- mainly lies about his role as a peaceful man and the "purity" of his motives.

J.E.B. Stuart was the only man who could identify "old Brown" as the "Ossawattomie Brown" of Kansas due to his previous time spent with Colonel Sumner's cavalry in Kansas. It is recorded that Stuart asked Brown point blank, "But, Captain Brown, don't you believe the Bible?" Brown could return no answer! He only remarked that, in Kansas, he could have "killed [Stuart], just as easily as I could kill a mosquito" but that he simply chose not to. (JEB Stuart, John Thomason, pg. 55)

It is very important for us to take note of events such as these and to remember that even if we believe we are fighting for a just cause, the ends never justify the means. It is also interesting to note that, even though the sound of war was approaching, America as a nation still understood that what Brown had done was wrong. After a week long trial, on November 2, 1859, John Brown was found guilty on three counts and was sentenced to death by hanging.

On December 2nd, Brown was escorted to the gallows. Everyone was there. This was a gathering to be remembered for a very long time. Because he had refused a minister, Brown was only accompanied by a sheriff and his men. He died still unrepentant for his murders.

This was the last time that so many leaders of these United States would stand together on an issue of such significance and controversy, before our national split. Many of the men on both the Southern and Northern side of the aisle stood behind Brown's execution. But there were those who thought Brown should have been given a place of immortality. Ralph Waldo Emerson (a unitarian) stated that John Brown would "make the gallows glorious like the Cross." It was all too soon after this that America would be completely split.

This is a sad note to end on, but this was the event that set the stage for the next 50 years. We must look to the past to prepare for the future. We must not copy the mistakes of past generations, but, rather, following their good examples.

VoD,
Joshua Titus

P.S. To read more on the subject check out the following books and links:
- The Secret Six by Otto Scott [Link]
- JEB Stuart by John Thomason [Link]
- John Brown: The Legend Revisited by Merrill Peterson [Link]
- Article by Bill Potter

Posted by Joshua Phillips at 02:22 PM | Permalink

Book Review of With Roberts to Pretoria [Henty]

By Calico Zak — October 14, 2009

The Harberton family experiences a terrible misfortune when the father's wealth is [Read more...]

And the Winner Is...

October 14, 2009

After a hard fought battle, we have the winner to last week's poll. The question was: Who is your favorite fiction author? And the winner is. . .

The great, the only -- G. A. Henty!!!

Second place is taken by the "Other" category, which is not surprising considering the relatively few authors covered in the poll. Third place was an aggressively contested position, mainly between authors R. M. Ballantyne and Douglas Bond. This afternoon, however, in a surprising turn of events, James Fenimore Cooper steamed past both of them to take the bronze!

I want to thank everyone for voting in the poll, the results of which were quite interesting to me as I hope they were to you. Below, I've included the final results as well as the number of votes for each author.

Tutela ex Vulnero,

John

Posted by John Horn at 05:30 PM | Permalink

My Favorite Fiction Authors

October 05, 2009

I thought that it might be of interest to you to list my top six favorite fiction authors. While not perfect men, I believe that a great deal can be gained by reading their books. They are, in order of preference from top to bottom, as follows:

• R. M. Ballantyne - Suprise! Obviously, you know who he is.

• G. A. Henty - You should also know of this man, and if you don't, get his books as quickly as possible!

• James Fenimore Cooper - American author, sailor, writer of the famous Leatherstocking Tales which includes the classic Last of the Mohicans.

• Jules Verne - Science fiction author, in the true sense of the word, allowing man to show practical technological dominion, not communication with alien worlds.

• Robert Louis Stevenson - Treasure Island, Kidnapped, David Balfour, and so many more.

• Douglas Bond - Probably an unfamiliar name, Bond writes historical fiction normally involving young men who are placed in difficult situations and must make important life descisions. He has written several books dealing with Scottish history.

All of these men except the last, Douglas Bond, are dead. Most are famous. While I have larger or smaller theological problems with all, excepting perhaps, Ballantyne and Bond, they provide interesting and enlightening stories, full of information, providing a great foundation of study for hopefully budding authors such as myself.

With this said, I'd love to know the name of your favorite author. For this purpose, I've included a poll in this post with a selection of great authors. Granted, there is only space for a small number of names, and your favorite may not be among them. Still, I think there are enough choices. So, without further ado, let the voting begin!

Tutela ex Vulnero,

John

[Note: If you choose the "other" category please take a second to send us an email with the name and time-frame of your preferred author. This will help us for future polls.]

Posted by John Horn at 09:10 AM | Permalink