C Ihe Ladies c cu. V'VVAN - History and Classics, Department of

250 Notes to Page 31we had supper at the hotelBorn in Devon, England, the oldest son of Lewis Gilbert andAda Mary Conibear, Frank Conibear (1896-1988) moved toFort Smith in 1916. He built Conibear House and a store in1920 with his father and his brother Jack. In 1923, he built themulti-storey hotel. With his wife, Cecelia Powell (whom he metin Rochester, Minnesota on a hopeful trip in 1923 to treat hisloss of hearing, a complication from a bout of measles at theage of two), Frank Conibear operated the establishment forabout ten years. Like his Rhodes Scholar bother, Kenneth,Frank Conibear was also an author (Along the Banks 108, 109;Bevington; Conibear). Lewis and Ada Conibear operated thestore where, according to her field note for IlJune, Vyvyan"had soft drinks: rough place with Billiard Room attached: 'NoTreaty Indians allowed in.' 'No minors allowed.' 'No badlanguage.''' Kenneth Conibear suggests the signs were posted atthe insistence of his mother, who was a very successfulmerchant and trader (Conibear; Ellis, "Business").how old Murphy of Fort SiIllpson IIlissed the priesthoodVyvyan's field note for 6 June (a day before the anecdoteappears in the book) attributes the story to Harris of Simpson.Miriam Green Ellis' field notes from her trip in 1922 down theMackenzie River (M.G. Ellis Coll., Box 3-0 relate the samestory about Thomas William "Flynn" Harris, Indian agent atFort Simpson 1913-30 and at Fort Good Hope 1930-33(Fumoleau 203), and Vyvyan's field note for 18June repeatsthis identification. Jean Godsell found Harris a charactersketcher's dream when, like Ellis, she met him at Fort Simpsonin 1922:... Magistrate and Indian Agent, a unique character if everthere was one. Of medium height, powerfully built, he wasattired in a home-made khaki suit of semi-military cutwhich fitted where it touched, a pair of beaded moccasins,and a battered nautical cap which sat awkwardly upon hisglistening bald pate ....Fascinated, I gazed at his unbelievable, almostNeanderthal, homeliness, his frightful squint and low,receding forehead. So squint-eyed was he that his nosealmost touched that of the person whom he was addressing.A master of English, French, German, Spanish, Esperanto,Cree, Chipewyan and one or two other languages, he couldquote the classics verbatim, had gone to school with SirRobert Borden, ... and would-but for his addiction toJohn Barleycorn-have been one of the leading criminallawyers of his day. Now here he was-married to his secondChipewyan squaw, and the father of I don't know how manyhybrid progeny.Many were the stories told of him: of how he imbibedred ink, extracts, shoe polish, listerine-anything that washandiest, when his liquor permit was gone-and of how,when in his cups, he would conduct the business of theagency or the post office in his birthday suit, callingbetween splurges of work and copious draughts forCaroline, his wife, to slap him vigorously on the back and"bust me gall! "Earlier that summer Flynn was seated by the river at FortFitzgerald with an opposition official from Edmonton whowas bemoaning his bacchanalian indiscretions of the nightbefore when he suddenly shot his face forward and exclaimed:"That was a swell trade we made last night, George.""What do you mean trade?" George turned bleary eyesupon him. "You're crazy! We didn't do any trading."'We sure did. Look!" Flynn flashed a wide grimace andpointed to his mouth. "Don't you remember we/rodedfalseteeth? Yours are the best fit I ever had. Just try and get themback!" (Il2- 13)For the protection ofDene from the unavoidable increase inthe numbers of whites coming north once the railway wascompleted to Waterways. as early as 1914 Harris urged themaking of Treaty II. He witnessed the signing of it at FortSimpson on II July 1921 (Fumoleau 138,158,174), and negotiatedthe signing of it at Fort Liard (Echaot) Koe) on 17 July1922. Rene Fumoleau offers a recapitulation of this side of theman:he was well known for his understanding of the nativepeople and he always remembered the spirit of friendshipin which Treaty II was signed. The TerritorialAdministration complained continuously about "theleniency with which Mr Harris ... has dealt with Indians andHalf-breeds coming before him for contraventions of theGame Act." In his capacity as Justice of the Peace, "Flynn"Harris based his judgements not only on the letter of thewhite man's law, but also on the special promises made tothe Indian people at Treaty time. (203; see also 244-45)