down of murderers and other law
violators provide the excitement for
the lay reader. His brief reference to
the history of the force, and, towards
the end of the book, his comments on
its growth are, however, of particular
interest.

The force was first formed on May
23, 1873, he points out. At first 1t was
intended to be a newly made law
enforcement body—the Northwest
Mounted Rifles. Due to alarm in the
U.S.A. at the prospect of having their
northern border patrolled by armed
forces the word “police” was sub-
stituted for rifles, so the name became
the Northwest Mounted Police.

“The purpose of this body of men
was to bring law and order to the
vast stretch of land between the Great
Lakes region and the West Coast

Rockies,” the author recalls. He de-
scribes how the prairies in the west
had reached such a state of lawless-
ness that settlers lived from day to

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day in fear of their lives. For the law-
abiding citizen it was a reign of terror
unequalled anywhere.

New settlers were reluctant to risk

. their lives in this great, unorganized
“northwest.

The mounted police played an
historical role in Canada right from
the time of its inauguration. It made
the building of the railway possible
and opened the country for early
settlers. In the far north it kept a close
watch over the wastelands of the
Arctic.

‘To the pioneers of Western Canada
the mounted police were known as
“The Riders of the Plains.” They
made it possible for people to settle
on their homesteads, make homes and
raise families.

In addition to keeping law and
order and fighting prairie fires, they
were called upon to fight plagues
such as smallpox, scarlet fever and
diphtheria among the Indians and
early settlers.

The writer quotes from historical
records to show what an excellent job
the force did in upholding law and
order in the Yukon during the hectic
days of the 1896 Klondike gold rush.

Officers of the force were called
upon to carry out every official duty
in regard to the administration of the
country. They issued licenses, in-
spected weights and measures, acted
as postmasters, collected custom duty,
were commissioners of oaths and did
numerous other duties besides hand-
ling criminal cases. They performed
duties of justice of the peace, coroner
and sheriff. The force still carries out
these duties in some of the remote
areas of Canada.

The right to use the word “royal”
was bestowed on the force by King
Edward VII in 1904 in recognition
of the work of the force in maintain-
ing law and order in the west among
the railroad builders, half-breeds,
trappers, fur traders, cowboys, settlers

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Manufacturers of

QUESNEL, B.C.

Dimension

With Compliments

The
Wells Club

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WELLS, BRITISH COLUMBIA

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QUESNEL, B.C.

PHONE 142 -

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Improved Properties, Farm Lands, Town
Lots and Business Properties of all types

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QUESNEL, B.C.

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Phone 36
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Phone 57 QUESNEL, B.C.

and Boards
Phone Quesnel 390

Page Thirty-one