Michigan historical collections . but we lived through it nevertheless. Such were things before the canal was built. The different appear-ances then in the town, shore and vessels were not more marked thanthe difference betwen our dress then and now. We hardly ever worecoats, but hickory shirts in summer and flannel shirts in winter, and•occasionally we had blanket coats, with capote, but more usually ifwe were cold we put on one or more shirts. Most housekeepers oftoday woud be greatly surprised at the thickness and beauty of thefive-point blankets, which was one of the annual treaty payments
Michigan historical collections . but we lived through it nevertheless. Such were things before the canal was built. The different appear-ances then in the town, shore and vessels were not more marked thanthe difference betwen our dress then and now. We hardly ever worecoats, but hickory shirts in summer and flannel shirts in winter, and•occasionally we had blanket coats, with capote, but more usually ifwe were cold we put on one or more shirts. Most housekeepers oftoday woud be greatly surprised at the thickness and beauty of thefive-point blankets, which was one of the annual treaty payments tothe Indians, one to each adult. Such a blanket was nearly as stiffUS a board and wonderfulh warm. When pay-time came, besides the blankets enough money was dis-tributed to make either eighteen or twenty-two dollars to every Indianman, woman or child. I do not remember whether the Indians were•ever paid at the Sault, but I have seen 10,000 or 12,000 paid at onetime at Mackinac, and the whole beach full of wigwams for SAINTE MARYS FALLS toward Lake Superior. SAULT STE. MARIE AND THE CANAL FIFTY YEARS AGO. 353 Thq inhabitants were very willing to have them with their attendantdraw-backs as it made trade. But all the northwest furs came downthis way by flotilla from Fort William. Before the canal came, theLake Superior country was the land of romance, but otherwise closedexcept to the limited traffic we have meritioned. But commerce wasboth the key that opened it, and the result of the opening. Enterpris-ing as were the great French explorers, no trade but that of fur wasimportant to their eyes. It was to their interest as they saw it to keepthe country wild, a fur-bearing country. The canoe and the bateauxwere big enough for them. They never thought of displacing the In-dians by large settlements. But when the lumbermen, the miner, theheavy freighter came, the canal became a necessity, but from ourpresent standpoint its original projectors would have b
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Keywords: ., bookauthormichigan, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, bookyear1876
