.' ‘I Q The scene oi these events was in

I England.

. <9

IlI/lblell washed out to sea.

ocrosaa s. 19oz’

Edrly Acadiifn" l HistoricallMemories

(fly Mrs. John Pond)

(By MRS. sour: soup)

i Prince Edward Island. the lllll” , , Province bl’ the 3"- h“ m“ mm m, “we oi three unique celebra- tions which have recalled to $110 mind, o; mimy of the older inhabi- tants the ltirrliii tales oi their Fmdpu-Qngo, the first settlers. The "out; referred in were, the Cen- tennial Celebration of Bt. John's Anglican Church at Bt. Eleanors on [my 10th; the first Acadia Congress held at Egmont Bay on July 20th: and the first Eucharistic‘ Congress on the Island on August 16-17 at tliscouche. The places chosen for these me- lndrable occasions are very closely linked together in theoarly hlslvrf of the province and the still‘? °l their origin makes interestlllfl Wad“ hs- a The struggles oi the French who remained on the Island after the iii-rival oi the English, is a stow full of pathos, of undaunted courage and perseverance against over- whelminB odds, without the clastlolll‘ Ind glory oi the battlefield. A talc \ of a quiet, inoffensive, industrious ' people. whoronly asked to be let alone to make homes for themselves in the land of their adoption. The celebration at St. Eleanors was attended by\l~lis Grace, Arch- bishop Worrell, Primate of All Can- ada, and five oi the six sons oi the Parish who took Holy Orders. The history oi’ the Church of England at 3t. Eleanors must be treated in a separate article but the history oi the village is interwoven with the ’ history oi the Acadian settlers. Many prominent men attended the first Acadia Congress at Egmont Bay including Rev. A. Lacerte of the Jesuit Order at Qllebee 811d Rev- Louls Guertln, 0.5.0., of St. Jos- sph’s College, Memramcook, N. B. ‘Attending the Eucharistic Con- gress at Miscouche was 1-lis Excel- lency Most Rev. G. Courchesne, Bi- shop of Rimouski, RQ. This event marked an epoch in the Roman Catholic religion on the Island and was attended by Catholics from all over the Province as well at natives from abroad. _

- History oi-‘aio Acadians

County of Prince in Lots l7 and

5, within a radius of twenty-five miles. _ In the brave days of _old when the lilies of France waved over the pro- vince, which was then called Ila 5t. Jean, the Acadi and French pop- ulation was divided into several parishes, wherein the simple fisher farmers dwelt in peace and in the fear oi God. Their religious neces- sities were ministered to by mis- sionary priests, provided by that far seeing policy which aimed at Chris- tianlzing as well as colonizing the American possessions oi His Most Catholic Majesty of France. In the year 175B the stronghold of Louisbourg was taken by the English under General Wolfe and i763 saw the signing of the treaty of Fontainbeleam-by which Canada, Ile Royale (Cape Breton) and lle fit. Jean were formally ceodcd to

Aaesrlv as i765 ihci-o had come scross the Straits oi Northumber- land dread rumours of barbarous treatment undergone by the Acad- lans on the Mainland, in that tcr- ritory which had been fondly-term- ed "Acadia the Happy." It was fear- 94- m“ the tflliedy of Grand Pre would be extended to Ile St. Jean and the dwellers in the little fishing llama“ alone its (‘oust left their “mussels to so to Quebec and lllhm taklne to the woods.

All)!!! the curving shores oi “Mal- Dec" now called Richmond Bay, on the northern coast oi Ile st. Jean were the farms oi many hundred Alllldlm who had iietiicd in mo parish °f Mlilpcc. The [33113]] church which was dedicated to the "ml-ll Family. Was situated on Low "l!" 01' Point aux vleux, and his. W’? Rives us the name oi L'Abbo basque as its last cure. The 511,, o; ‘til; church can be easily (listing;

ed as well as the old burying “"1"! e twat part or which has

"I" 1733 W"!!! Peace was proclaim- "lll the panic subsided, many of

‘ they extended their friendship to

mission .1 priests who occasionally visited the Island in vessels on their way to and from the Acadia villages on the mainland.

No cemetery was ever ,ened near this church, the poor Acadians burying their dead on an Island opposite to that part of the shore now owned by a family named In- man. The distance from the shale being iound inconvenient, in i794 a cemetery was opened up on high land north oi the St. Eleancrs road, in a locality which afterwards wok a name ‘from an old store, built by an English firm for trading with the vessels which called there. This place for many years afterwards was called "la vieux rnagasin."

‘ By 11cc the population had in- creased to such an extent that a new church was found necessary and one forty feet long was erected near the cemetery; beside this church they built o. modest

presbytery. In the year 1799 L’ Abbe de Calonne and L’ Abbe Plchcard arrived from France iind Pichard empowered with orders from the Bishop of Quebec undertook the charge of the French Missions on the Island. L‘ Abbe Pichard look up his residence at Rustico in the eas- tern part of the Island. L’ Abbe de Calonne resided at Fort la Joie. but after a short time took charge oi the parishes oi Malpec, Tignish, Oascumpec and Fortune Cove in the west of the province. It was his custom to reside part of the year alt the little presbytery in the parish oi St. Jean Baptiste, and when Col. Harry Compton, who was given Lot i7 in recognition oi his services in the Irish Rebellion oi i798, arrived in 1803 to take ossessioii oi his grant, he found this priest, a scion oi one of the oldest and proudest

families of France, residing there.

were Protestants, but evidently not} unfriendly to the Roman Church: as on the voyage out they became} very friendly with a young priest,‘ named Boussin, who later became a l priest of 8t. Sulpice, MontrcaLl Finding upon their arrival one oil the most cultured clergyman oi the i Catholic Church almost at his door

him. This friendship terminated only at the death oi the good Abbe in 1822. Colonel Compton always showed great interest in his Catholic ten- ants and they gradually moved iii from the shore and took up farm- ing on o. larger scale.

"The Pavilion"

Their cottages“ clustered round the Colonel's mansion, called “The Pavillion" and with some English farmhouses, the owners oi which were mostly Loyalists there sprung up a pretty little village which was callcd St. Eleanors.‘ This was made the County Seat and in 1833 a Court House and Jail were erected by the Government and for the next forty years justice was dispensed there, until Bummerside became the capital. fillllblllldlng was carried on vcry extensively at St. Elesnors in those BMW days, by well knowli families from Bideford, England, and Mol- pec harbour was the scene of much activity. The ships built in the dis- trict were hauled down to the bay, launched and loaded with farm pro- duce for the Old Country, as Eng. land wns called. Fifty years later the trade was diverted to Summer- sidaat first called “Green's Shore," when trade between Boston and the Maritime Provinces opened up. speaking oi the first schooner that was hauled from St. Eleanors to Bummerside, the grandson of Col. Comptoli describes the scene thus: ‘The first ship to be launched in Summerside Harbour was built by James Sharp and hauled by several teams oi oxen in the winter time down to the ice to await the open- ing oi Spring. The fully rigged ship complete in every detail caused a good deli oi excitement in the vil- lage, especially among the school children. The sinewy oxen strain- ing at their task and the graceful ship, seemed like a poetic concep- tion oi a cartoonist portraying a kindred connection of the land and sea."

the Acadisn exiles returned and settled along the mom or mm. "llllld 31W. some who had not left the Island but had hidden in the "will. slsoreturned. Those who came back to the parish oi the I'M! Flmlly settled hither south cf the original village of uflpQg "Pun Lot 17 on land which: subse- quently passed into the uno. of Col. Gflmilton. .

"mi-o about 1m they built their "We 011mb, which was of lags and WM val! twsllmieet in length,

‘Phil tins sanctuary dedicated to 8t. John the Blfltllt was situated‘ between the River Platte and North

op Donut of "Quebec, Milli/Xvi‘ a ‘priest for hisAcsdisn parish, stated

Colonel Compton and family;

horses to bring us to the Pavillion."

story that when Col. Compton came from England, he brought with nim a very handsome carriage, which

days was sent back to England for the very good reason that there were no roads in Lot i7 on which to drive it.

on July 3rd, i812. was attended by Acildiims from Tignish (called by the Bishop "Tagunicha") from Cape Klldiire mid Cescumpec, the Mic- liuics from Lennox Island and the Scotch from Lot l8. The Bishop re- lnics that Father Beaubien confes- sed iliosc who spoke French, Father MCERCHOPI] heard in Scotch (Gae- lic) and Father Painchaud, the In- diiins, willie Father McGuire at- tended to those who could explain themselves in English.

and the Sunday which concluded the Mission saw assembled such a crowd three times too large to be contained “in the miserable chapel, remarkable not only for its small- ness, but much more for its total destitution oi ornaments and linen." The Bishop goes on to say “that the useless displacement oi the church, the uncertain tenure oi the land upon which it stood, the want of a

Things went along very h ppily in the little village for some t e.

In i804 L‘ Abba ccitnuo returned to England. One old Acsdian tells a story oi him, that when on the Island he wore wooden sabots and that when he became excited in the course of his sermon, he would lump up and down, the wooden shoes making a great noise upon in: wooden floor. This story was told fifty years ago by sii old man nine-_ ts velrs o! m. .

Col. Compton in a latter to Bish-

lllm wlo st that time over

ltrllsancrs. It was attended by

twiuhundred Acadiaus in his village

presbytery and of a inrm for the use oi the priest, were the reasons for not leaving Father Beaubien there as had poied, Malpec tral point of the "‘ ions to be con- fided" to him.

(‘mitten had not been ss good as his word in providing for a priest; Dsrheps he was annoyed at the Acsdisns for moving Without asking his permission, but the poor Acadlans were mt without I resident pastor.

THE CHARLOTTETOWN GUARDIAN i}

and Mass had only been said oucs since the departure oi L‘ Abbe Ca- lonne.’ Col. Color/Ln as an lmlllce- mcnt for a priest to come offered six acres of land for his use. .

There is no record oi L’ Abbe Plchard's leaving the Island, but he must have left before L‘ Abbe Ca- ionne, as in i807 a petition on be- half of the Acadians was drawn up by Col. "Compton and addressed to Lieut. Governor Des Barres asking for a passport for a French priest.

1n e. letter to Bishop Plessis Col. Compton says, " There has been no priest at my village for three years;- when your predecessor was here a few years ago, he directed the Aca- dians to repair their church and put a wall round their burying ground- This was cheerfully complied with, but the church is'far too small and I have promised them one hundred pounds towards a new church and to assist their priest upon his ar- rival." In the letter Col. Compton suggested a Rev. M. Merlin but he never arrived, as in a letter from Bishop Plessis to Father McEaoh- ern, he stated that Father Merlin had been detained in London on important business.

Parish Details

Many interesting details of the parish oi St. Jean Baptiste are re- corded in manuscript, evidently written by an Englishman about fifty years ago, and are here record- ed by the kind permission oi Pro- fessor Henry Blanchard of- Prince oi Wales College, Charlottetown.

Behind the altar in the old church there hung for many years a coil oi rogfe about three fathoms in length.

This rope had been used to save the liie of Father Roux, afterwards Superior of 5t. Bulpice, in Montreal, who on the voyage from the Mag- dalen Islands fell overboard and was rescued by the‘ crew with the nbove mentioned rope.

About the year 1607 or 1808 the Acadians without consulting Col. Compton lock it upon themselves one fine winters morning to yoke up their oxen and haul their church over the snow about a mile and a half, getting it up in an open field near the Pavillion. Their idea in doing this was partly to have the benefit of a spring of water, a great boon to those who came from a distance, and. partly because they thought ii the church was nearer the residence oi Col. Compton they would obtain greater concessions from him. However they could not come to terms and the church re- mained most inconveniently situ- ated, about a mile and 'a half from the cemetery and the same distance from the old presbytery, which gradually fell to ruins.

In 1812 the Bishop oi Quebec and five priests visited Malpec. Their schooner the "Angelique" dropped anchor in Bedeque Bay and her passengers landing in what is now the flourishing town oi summer- side, walked to Bt. Eleahors a dis- liflllee of about three miles.

They were the guests oi Col. Compton who sent carts for their baizcaeo and, as the Bishop says in his diary, “came to meet us as we approached his house, surprised that We —had made the journcy on foot and making a_thousand ex- cuses for not having sent saddle

This incident brings to mind the

after being on exhibition for some

The Mission opened by the Bishop

Fifty-six persons were confirmed

oqnginally been dis- be g the most cen-

"rhus it would appear that Col.

e church

gpay (resident on the Island) if they

of his appointment are now in the possession of his great grandson Hon. Adrian F. Arscnault. a member

ing to make as much profit as pos- sible from his grant, brought out from England s. number oi wealthy farmers, who took up large holdings in and about St. Eleanors, and soon erecttd comfortable homes and had well cultivated farms.

Col. Compton at this time con- ceived an ardent desire to return to England and became anxious to sell the land to those who had hitherto paid him a yearly rent. He gave the French the opportunity oi buying their holdings but fixed the prices at one hundred pounds for one hundred acres oi land. This was al- togethertoo much for their slender means and they decided to betake themselves to free lands in Lot i5. Accordingly in the spring of 1813 a long procession of "pirogues" or dug-out canoes, might have been seen passing along the southern shores oi Prince Edward Island; the procession doubled Cape Egmont (so called because Lot l5 was once owned by the Earl of Egmontl and landed upon the low land west of that_ promontory. . They at once set to work and cleared land and put in a crop of potatoes oi which the mice lite every vestige. They appear to have taken very little oi their possessions with them to "La Roche" as they called their new village and much which would have added to the comfort of their home liie WES lacking, and they suffered great hardships and prlvatioris. They- lived under great handicaps for a loiig time. Thcy would have to go in their unwieldy‘ craft to Bedeque when they wanted an axe sharpened or a bushel of corn ground. One old lady relates, that when she and her husband first went to St. Jacques de la Roche they built a rough log shanty as a tempor- ary shelter and would put their young children to bed at an early hour, so that they might go in their pirogue to Cape Egmont for a load of stones; returning with it to their clearing. 'I'lley would make several trips every night and if it was

hours, sometimes until dawn. In this manner they obtained the ne- cessary stone for the cellar, hearth oven and chimney oi their new home. One could‘ picture the proud feelings of these hardworking Aca- dlans when the result oi their strenuous _labours took definite shape and they once more had a comfortable dwelling.

Pioneer Conditions

For the first winter most oi the dwellings had unhewn logs placed side by side fol- floors. A story was told by an old lady that her moth- er brought many turnips from st. Eieanors, and in order to eke out the slender stock of provisions she would give the childreh the turnip tops to eat. Naturally they disliked this half withered salad and slyly dropped the leaves between the logs oi the floor where the irate mother discovered them in the spring. This same old lady related that the chil- dren oi the early Acadlan settlers were" never admitted to the table with their parents until after they llad made their First Communion.

Some of the settlers did not go as far as Cape Egmont, but landed on the east side, at a. place which after- wards took the name of Fifteen Point. Here a comfortable settle- ment sprang up. Until tllcy could build a church of their own they at- tended Mass in the log church put up at Egmont Bay by their friends. They would make the Journey by boat. ~

The chief man in this little band of Acadian settlers was Joseph Ar- senault, whose family had come from Nova Scotiaaiid settled along the shores oi Richmond Bay. Jos- eph Arsenault was evidently from a military family iis he was given a commission in tlic Priiicc Edward Island Militia on Julie 3rd, 1794 as Lieutenant in Captain Campbell's Company, which was under the command of Col. Joscpli Robinson mentioned iii liistoril.

It is significant that at that time England and France were at ivar and that a. short time previous tn Arsenault receiving his appointment as lieutenant, Lieut. Governor Fan- ning had asked all officers 0x1 half

desired to accept commissions in the Militia, as a preference would be given them, upon their signifying their willingness to render that pub- lic service in defense of the Island. Tho Island Militia was raised for the defense of the Island iii time oi war.

The desifohdimis oi Lieut. Joseph Arsenault have no records to show, whether or no he was in the Militia before receiving his aDPOlHl-menli- but there is no doubt that he was recognized as a“ man oi military ability. as on July a1, i804 he was appointed Second Captain in the Independent Volunteer Company oi Militia under Colonel Henry Comp- ion of St. Eleanors.

The original documents conveying to Joseph Arseiiault the knowledge

lllllllh Farmers Arrive

n

Q r

of the Executive Council of the pre- ‘ sent Government oi Prince Edward AboutthistimsrhnColmielwisl-i- iaiandandasonofitephenlir-

moonlight they would keep on foh

senault who lives at 8t. Chrysos- tome, a pretty settlement on the shore in the parish of Egmont Bay.

An interesting feature of the writing on the parchment is that the name of Arsenault is spelt "Arsenaux" and also that beside the name is "League and a Half" which was a nickname given to Arsenault under interesting circumstances.

The story of how he came by this nickname is, that at the time when the old settlement of “Malpec" was a prosperous shipping centre an English vessel bound for that port, put in at Rustico Harbour in search oi a pilot. Joseph Arsenault, who llflflpaned to be there on business, volunteered to conduct the vessel to its destination. He knew but very few words of English and oi these few lie did not quite understand the meaning. The captain and crew found the voyage longer than they had expected and kept asking the pilot, “Frenchman, liow far are we from Malpec?" to which Joc al- Wllys made answer, “A league and 8- llfllf.” The query was repeated scvernl times at different stages of l-lle Journey and invariably met with the same response.

The morning after their arrival at Malpec, the captain and a mer- chant were walking on the wharf when they met Arscnault. “Hello! Theres League and u. Half," ex- claimed ilie captain, and the name adhered tllenceforth to Joseph Ar- seniiult of St. Eleanors.

A Prominent Family

Good fortune attended the iam- ily at Egmont Bay and the comfort-

Hali" is remembered by many peo- pie. amongst them being several gentlemen from the capital, who have enjoyed his kindly hospitality. Descendants of this fine old Aca- diaii have figured very prominently in the history of the Island, espec- ially in t e political field. Hon. A bin E. Arsenault, Judge of

His father was Hon. Joseph Octave Arsenault who represented the third district of Prince County for thirty- one years and was made Senator in 1895. He died on Dec. 14, ‘i897.