The Mouat Family on Salt Spring

Continued

In retrospect one of the sad things to remember was the loss of so many brothers' of comparatively young years, having inherited the lung weakness which our father had developed. With the medical skill and drugs available now he and they could have had many years more. He was an excellent farmer and raised cattle, sheep, also chickens, enabling him to have a highly profitable income from the farm at St. Mary’s Lake. At the first agriculture exhibition held in the Gulf Islands we entered a lot of exhibits and won a number of prizes. It was my first meeting with Dr. Tolme, the fine citizen who was to become later Premier of B.C. I recall with some amusement that on this occasion Dr. Tolme questioned the exhibitors and asked my father about the stock shown, he would refer to me for details causing the good judge to remark that Willie seemed well briefed. The death of my father in October of 1898 was perhaps the greatest sorrow to over take me in a long time. To lose such a fine parent and his wise guidance at the comparatively early age of 45 was one of the major sorrows that came to my sisters and brothers and now in my 90th year I am the last of six brothers. With sisters Mary and Jessie we are the last of our mother's 10 children. It was a fortunate matter that she possessed a strong and sturdy constitution to enable her to cope with the tragic loss sustained in the death of her husband. Her deep Christian belief helped her greatly in adjusting to the loss of the head of the home. To me it was the first major misfortune I was to suffer in losing a greatly loved father when I was only fourteen. One little incident I shall always remember which illustrated this trait of his upright and affectionate character; I had committed some small breach of good behavior and was given some punishment, though not severe, being then sent to bed in tears that night. Before I slept he came upstairs to the room where I was and kissed me. The memory of this is one that I shall always cherish as an affectionate gesture from a parent I was fated to lose. When his presence and help was taken from us it fell to me to shoulder the responsibility of carrying on the operation of fairly large cleared portion of the farm. It is a matter of much satisfaction to me now that I did not fail the trust reposed in me.Some few years after his death I had an urge to improve my education, at that period grade eight was the limit available to pupils at the various scattered schools on the island. In 1905 I went to a Methodist boarding college in New Westminster to take a commercial course duly receiving the diploma which I had earned. In 1907 the family moved from the farm to a site near the Ganges wharf where the CPR steamer came regularly . Brother Gilbert was then working for a Mr. Purvis who because of the illness of his partner and brother in law, Joseph Malcolm wanted to dispose of the business and property. Gilbert and our mother took over the ownership and continued to extend the scope of it. Unfortunately too many people were buying goods they could not or would not pay for, the result being that a financial crisis loomed ahead of G.J. Mouat Jr. I was then at Columbian College, taking high school classes in preparation for entering a law office to read and study in anticipation of finally obtaining a license to practice the profession. At this time this could be done but not since, as it now requires about seven years to qualify as a practicing lawyer. An urgent call came for me to return home and help the family in the dilemma which confronted them. The situation was desperate and my mother and brother Gilbert could raise no further money but hoped I would be able perhaps to obtain a loan to put the business back on the rails. We had an elder brother of my father's, in Spokane, Old Uncle Gavin, who was not wealthy but was comfortably well off. From him I borrowed $2000.00 simply on my note to repay. Sometime soon after I was able to send him $1000.00, and in a most generous and kind gesture he canceled the debt. With the money matter settled we got down to building up the firm which with my entry became Mouat Brothers Co. and afterward Mouat Bros Ltd. We had a long association over 30 years, Gilbert as President, and me as Secretary and Treasurer. Unfortunately at the age of 28 he was stricken with infantile paralysis on the first day of January 1915, and for several months tried to get help from the local doctors but to no avail. When he realized that he would never walk again he determined not to be idle and continued to manage the company from a wheelchair. This was the period during the First World War and demand for goods and equipment was high and as a consequence it was necessary to increase the number of our staff and employ to approximately 40.

When the Second World War started in 1939 there was again an up serge in commercial activity and employment. Son Ivan was attending Normal School in Victoria and wanted to enlist at once. However his mother and I insisted that he obtain his certificate so that if and when he graduated he would have something tangible to start from on his return. He obtained his wings at Yorkton Saskatchewan in 1940 from the RCAF and was assigned to flying the heavy Hawker Typhoon whose job was to attack and destroy barges, railways and other targets in Belgium and Holland. On the last of his forages he was attacked by two German planes and struck with some shrapnel and had to bail out at 900 feet, the minimum for safety. With the aid of the parachute he was able to land safely. The Belgian peasants tried to give him shelter but the Germans knew that a pilot was down and he was soon picked up and interned at Stalag Luft 3 for nearly two years. While in Germany he had contracted pneumonia and was kindly and efficiently treated by a German doctor. He convalesced in England and from there soon returned home to be joyfully received by his mother and myself. He still at times has a little pain in one of his knees. Ivan was one of the fortunate ones, only 50% of those who trained and graduated from Yorkton in 1940 survived and many of these are amputees. After getting back to Canada in he married Susan Greig of Royston in 1946.

He then continued teaching at various places and later was selected as Supt. Of Indian and Eskimo Affairs and Northern Development, although at the time of writing was in Ottawa on official business for the Province of Alberta. It will probably be some years before he thinks of retiring as he will only be 54 on July 16. I have every good reason to be proud of such a fine son-Susan is busy just now clearing and improving the 11 acre property which Mary and Jennifer own at Fulford, which includes a house, a really valuable estate.

As I write on this 23rd day of March 1974 Ivan is in Ottawa and I expect on official business. The Minister who heads the Department, has been to Salt Spring and I have a picture of him taken with a Liberal from Nanaimo, a Dr. Zorken, and myself.

For myself in my twilight years I am hoping to leave an accurate account of the lives of the Mouat family here, the first of them arriving on the 4th day of February 1885. I was then about 6 months young and this wonderful island has been my home ever since. I have travelled considerably, having been to the Shetlands twice, and met the Mouat’s who live at Netherton, Levenick. One of these- Miss Annie Mouat has been here once and I am inviting her to join us on the occasion of my 90th. We correspond fairly often, the last letter I had from Annie was dated June 2nd. She said then that she expected to leave for Vancouver on the 13th of August to reach here for my 90th birthday.



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