Jany. 23rd

The mail does not go out until tomorrow, so I have another day of grace. I gave Ferland my Hospital Sargt. Leave for two or three days, to go down to Fort Kipp to visit some of his friends. Consequently I have to do his work and my own. I am writing now in the Hospital. It is nearly 12 o’clock. The morning has passed rapidly and uneventfully. Brooks is this morning worse than he has been since he came up from Kanouse’s. His heart is fearfully weak. Poor fellow. It does seem so lonely and so hard for him, suffering as he does and bearing it so patiently. He lies quietly in bed as a sleeping child. His two words with which he answers nearly all questions of his welfare are ‘middling’ + ‘not so well’. I wish that I could hold out some hope of his ultimate recovery, but I am afraid that I cannot. I was here called away by the entrance of the orderly office Capt. Jackson, + the Regimental orderly Sergeant, going their rounds. I had ‘no complaints’ + he expressed himself satisfied with the appearance of things. I heard to day that the Indians very nearly had a fight amongst themselves, up the River. But it turned out to be all blow. The Indians however threw off their blankets + put the squaws away + begun cocking their pistols, etc when the Trader in whose Fort this scene was taking place jumped over his counter with his 7[?] shooter already cocked + with some threats + persuasive language cooled down their belligerent feelings and they began to smoke the pipe of peace.

To day has been like a spring day, a heavy mist has come over the prairies + the cold has turned the mist into minute crystals, which drive past you glistening glittering in the sunlight like as many diamonds. The thermometer was -20º but it did not feel cold in the least. The sun is now shining very bright + the melting snow is dripping quicker from the roofs of our buildings, + disappearing from the ground. The Indians too taking advantage of the warm sunlight, come out like flies to warm + stretch themselves. I have seen a good many of them around today. To give you an idea of their laziness, one was sitting on the Hospital yesterday when I came in I found him + stood about 4 feet from him, he put out his hand for me to shake + would not get up to reach me. I held out mine and motioned him to come – he would not – so as I was not particularly anxious to shake, I turned away. If they are sitting in arms length of a fire, they will give you a match or a piece of paper + motion you to light it + hold it to their pipes, when they could perhaps do it more easily than you.

The Orderly room bugle from prisoners has first sounded and I am afraid I will have to go there as there is a case coming on of a man feigning sickness and I will have to be present. I hope soon to have more letters from you.

The men who are going to take this mail in are going to come right out again + bring what little they can. So it will not be more than a month till I again hear from you. These months January and February are the two bad ones, we had always heard about, in which little or no communication was kept up with the outer + civilized world. Summer or Spring will soon be here, and with it bring many discomforts + many luxuries, most of all an uninterrupted communication with you. I expect that a mail will be established weekly or fortnightly from here during the Summer.

Now my darling, don’t you be anxious on my account. I begin to think that perhaps my telling you, in my last letter of that dark cold side, may make you more anxious + trouble you more than there is any necessity for. The backbone of the Winter is now fully well broken, of course we will have storms + some cold weather, + there is also no use in shutting our eyes to dangers that do + will menace us. But the very knowledge of such danger is our greatest safeguard for we are careful.

The most we have to fear from the Indians is the loss of our horses. In the spring when the Indians begin to move, they take every opportunity to steal a horse + then pack off to the mountains, + are no more seen. Our presence here has had a most salutary effect upon them, they used to lay their hands upon anything that was left carelessly around, now they pass them by, or return them to their owners. And now I must say good night for the present, I anxiously look forward to another Mail from Benton. Remember me most kindly to the Cameron’s + give my love to all at home. How does Sallie like water colours? She used to distain them having a preference for Crayons. I want you if you can to send me one or two good French Novels. I am keeping up my French + can understand almost any conversation, + also to a very small extent speak the language.

And so Good night.

I am your Barrie.

Dec. 24th.

I have been so busy lately that I have not been able to talk with you for a long time. On Tuesday I went down again to Kanonsis and also came back. In the evening we had a Mess meeting for the purpose of organizing the officers mess. A committee was appointed consisting of Capts Winder & Crozier & myself. Winder was President and I am Secretary – we pledged ourselves to have dinner in the Mess Room tomorrow (i.e. the 25th) at 6 P.M. To do this it was necessary to work like slaves the next morning. Our Room had to be lined & cleaned – the stove had to be put up, the kitchen utensils, the table service & the rations from the various troops & many other little things. Then too in the morning I was engaged in moving all my goods and chattels from Winder’s to another troop officers quarters. Then in the afternoon I had to go down to Kanonsis & then dinner & immediately after dinner I had to go down again to Kanonsis & did not get back until 11 o’clock. And now this morning I hear that a mail is going to Benton and it closes at 12 and I have been so busy in the Hospital in the morning that it is eleven o’clock before I have a chance to sit down and finish my letter. So you must excuse all inaccuracies and illegible parts and if you can’t make out al I mean to say, you must imagine what I am trying to say. I am writing on the Mess table now – and a great deal of talk and laughter is going on around me. I received a letter from Mother dated the 22nd Nov. from Savannah. I have been much more fortunate than the other members of the force in regards to letters. To day there is going to be a great Pow-wow. All the Indian chiefs from far and near have been invited to come and yesterday & this morning – the place has been alive with Indians in gay & festive attire – all painted and stained & dressed in brilliant blankets and feathers & porcupine quills & skins. They are to have a big feed & the power of our guns & mortars are to be demonstrated to them. Time is up and I must close. Give my love to all, and remember me most kindly to the Cameron’s. Tell Jack I will write to him as soon as possible.

Your own
Barrie

St. Mary’s River, October 9th 1874

My dear Lizzie

I wrote to you from Fort Benton giving you some slight idea of the course we had travelled the hardships we had undergone the sufferings we had endured or rather that the horses endured we most fortunately have nothing to complain of at times no water & perhaps short of flour occasionally. The men were sometimes left with short rations [&] grumbled of course. Some people will grumble in any case. The Buffalo have supplied us with meat – our pork rations have run out for some time but the Buffalo have supplied us with beefsteaks & roasts in profusion. On our way to Fort Benton we saw some few Buffalo perhaps 6000 would cover the number, but since leaving there within the past few days – for miles and miles as far as we could see on a level plain the ground was black from the enormous bulls close to us the tiniest speck in the far distance[;] for nearly two days we have been passing through the herd. The advance guard of the force has to stop every now & then to allow a body of buffalo pass in front of them otherwise they would rush through the train and overturn it. Since leaving Benton I have had a case of surgery on hand – one of the men had a portion of his finger blown off by the explosion of a gun. I will have to amputate the finger – my first operation. I hope & have every reason to believe tht it will turn out well, fortunately for him it is only the first joint not much to call an operation, but it is just as well to begin in little things and so go on to greater. My things in Fort Edmonton are likely to remain there until next summer. They will be fully 300 miles from us here and the worn out condition of our horses the lateness of the season with all prevent our even making an attempt to communicate with Edmonton. We expect to build quarters & stables for the winter. I will have a Hospital and will I hope be able to make the sick comfortable. Poor fellows it is pretty hard on them to be on a lengthened trip like this & to have such poor comforts. We expect to have quite a settlement up here. A man from Benton is going to build a trading post just near us – there are several settlers there already. Half breeds will congregate around us and I should not be surprised but what the Hudson’s Bay Company also start a post. The married officers & men are talking of bringing up their wives & children. These with the Indians will make the nucleus of quite a city. The country they say is excellent, the climate admirable since we have approached this St. Mary’s River the grass & vegetation has been improving – in the river bottoms – quite luxuriant. The climate must be wonderful – here we are in the middle of October and the weather fine & clear at noon quite hot – of course the nights are cool. We are liable to occasional storms – but they say this fine weather will continue until late in November. The winter does not regularly set in until January. They travel on wheels nearly all winter. What do you think of such a country? How would you like to live in it for a while?

To day on our march we saw the evidences of Western hate[sic] Frontier crime and its speedy punishment – the body of an Indian lying along the road exposed to the weather the gaze of every passer by shot through the head & left, no thought of burial. We suppose he had been trying to get horses and was caught & that was the end of it. I have enjoyed the most thorough good health ever since I came out upon the prairie. I am feeling stronger than I ever did in my life. I do not know how much I weigh now but I expect not a great deal more than when I left Toronto. The large meat diet is not productive of much fat. I am sorry now that I did not get weighed in Benton. I might easily have done so. Did I tell you how well we are treated at Benton? Mr. Baker of the firm Baker & Conrad – insisted on our stopping at his place as long as we were in Benton and he fed us most royally – treating us in the most hospitable manner. I said to Major MacLeod that these could not be Yankees and as we afterwards found out Mr. Baker was from Missouri and the Conrads, old confederate soldiers from Virginia. So my prejudice did not carry me too far in that case. And my darling how are you? Oh if you only knew how I long for a letter from you I believe I would do any thing in the world no matter how bad only to get one line from you. I fancy all kinds of things have happened to you surrounded as you are by all this traummels of civilization how many accidents from which we are free could easily assail you. Amidst all my thoughts tho’ you must readily believe finds no place there – it never enters my head to believe or to think that you can be anything else than my own Lizzie. It would seem so strange if you did the bare possible of such a thing never crosses my mind – it would not be like you. As for me you know my feelings to well to think that I ever would grow cold to you and besides I have no temptation and even if I have I would still look up to you[,] my own darling. Has To day on our march we saw the evidences of Western hate Frontier crime and its speedy punishment – the body of an Indian lying along the road exposed to the weather the gaze of every passer by shot through the head & left, no thought of burial. We suppose he had been trying to get horses and was caught & that was the end of it. I have enjoyed the most thorough good health ever since I came out upon the prairie. I am feeling stronger than I ever did in my life. I do not know how much I weigh now but I expect not a great deal more than when I left Toronto. The large meat diet is not productive of much fat. I am sorry now that I did not get weighed in Benton. I might easily have done so. Did I tell you how well we are treated at Benton? Mr. Baker of the firm Baker & Conrad – insisted on our stopping at his place as long as we were in Benton and he fed us most royally – treating us in the most hospitable manner. I said to Major MacLeod that these could not be Yankees and as we afterwards found out Mr. Baker was from Missouri and the Conrads, old confederate soldiers from Virginia. So my prejudice did not carry me too far in that case. And my darling how are you? Oh if you only knew how I long for a letter from you I believe I would do any thing in the world no matter how bad only to get one line from you. I fancy all kinds of things have happened to you surrounded as you are by all this traummels of civilization how many accidents from which we are free could easily assail you. Amidst all my thoughts tho’ you must readily believe finds no place there – it never enters my head to believe or to think that you can be anything else than my own Lizzie. It would seem so strange if you did the bare possible of such a thing never crosses my mind – it would not be like you. As for me you know my feelings to well to think that I ever would grow cold to you and besides I have no temptation and even if I have I would still look up to you my own darling. Has Annie Taylor paid you her visit yet. Remember me most kindly to her when you write if she is not in Toronto now – give my kind regards to the Camerons and to all who care to inquire after me. I wrote to Ned Armom while at Benton. Do you ever see him. Paper is scarce here in camp and all my nice paper reposing in Edmonton. Give my love to the Stotesburgs and till then I will write when we get settled in winter quarters. I will have to close this with this sheet. By the time we get of Fort up paper will be more abundant. Take care of yourself my dear and when I hear from you let me hear of a bright happy time. Goodbye from your own

Barrie