What is not understood by many
non-native Canadians, North Americans and Europeans is the
nutritional, educational, social and total cultural dependence
we have as aboriginal people on the use of what non-native
people call wildlife resources. To us, these resources are our
agriculture base -- a base that we have harvested for thousands
of years.
More importantly, we have adopted
the scientific tools of animal husbandry developed in the 20th
century to ensure these valuable resources are there for our
use, the use of our children and for future generations. Modern
society's concern over environmental pollution, access to clean
water, protection of animal and sea mammals, and the wise use of
the land are our concerns as well.
We are anticipating that the
consequences of prolonged boycotts of sea mammal products and
the effects of the anti-fur lobby will be disastrous to the
aboriginal peoples of the Canadian Northwest Territories.
We ask that you consider our side of
the story in detail and that you question the value of
supporting emotionally-based anti-sealing and anti-fur boycotts
and lobbies in light of their effects on other cultures which
depend upon the harvest of animal and sea resources for their
way of life."
Jim Bourque
Deputy Minister of Renewable Resources
Northwest Territories, Canada
For more
information about Mr. Bourque please
visit the
Fur Institute of
Canada web site.
Some
information and graphics used on the this site are from the
booklets
"This Land Is Our Life" and "Our Daily Bread"
These Booklets are publications of
The Gov. of Northwest Territories and are available through The
Fur Institute of Canada.
Photo of Ralph
Bice receiving the Order of Canada from Governor General Jean
Sauvé
This Special
Tribute is dedicated to Ralph Bice (1900-1997)
The following is printed with
permission from the author Bill Steer, written in the fall of
1988
Friends of Fur is
proud to post this exclusive memorable tribute; to honor Ralph
Bice's lifetime commitment and contribution toward the
betterment of trapping, wildlife management practices and the
social/economic benefits of fur.
A special Thanks
to the Canadian National Trappers Alliance for their Seed
Fund donation that made it possible to present this special
tribute to our late and sadly missed Friend of Fur.
"No person is ever honored for what
he received. Honor is the reward for what one gives."
Ralph always shared with us the priceless benefits of his
incredible skills, vast knowledge, remarkable wisdom and
treasured experience.
Ralph Bice - Wilderness Legend
A man's reputation is the opinion
people have of him; his character is what he really is.
There are many people in wilderness
areas that have both reputation and character, and it is a
combination of these that create lasting legacies for others to
honour and follow. These are people of substance, who have
survived, carved out their own existence, overcome hardships and
carried on a tradition.
Ralph Bice is an old timer, like a
Jack Rabbit Johannsen, he has spent his 88 years close to nature
epitomizing that vanishing breed of outdoorsman. He is a
trapper, a true conservationist who uses and respects nature for
what it is, who understands how man can change the delicate
state of our natural resources. He has authored five books
related to wilderness themes, and is the only trapper to receive
the prestigious Order of Canada-the highest honour any citizen
can attain. Ralph has received many international and national
awards for his dedication to conservation, educating the public
on the ways of trapping, wildlife and nature appreciation.
Ralph's Setting
He lives where he has always lived,
in Kearney (south of Burk's Falls, Ontario) on the edge of his
beloved Algonquin Park, a place he has spent 80 years trapping
and guiding, and as Ralph explains with a smile, "doing what I
always wanted to do-being close to nature." He knows history,
and has made it, and the stories he tells with humor and
vitality give you a better understanding of life many of us will
only try to understand.
The name, Ralph Bice, is synonymous
with Algonquin Park. People in the know, recreationalists,
tourist operators and politicians have come to know and respect
the long-term efforts of Ralph Bice, not as a government
employee, but as a contributing citizen. His help has made the
park a model for the preservation and development of many
national and provincial parks.
"It seems as if I have known about
Algonquin Park as long as I can remember. The park was
established in 1893 and my memories go back to very early in the
century," recalled Ralph, sitting in his home nestled on a point
of land on the Magnetewan River. "It took some time for a young
man to understand that this (then) far away place would some day
be part of my life forever."
His grandfather, father and uncles
had been connected with the area as trappers and lumbermen as
early as the 1870's, and it was in 1912 that Ralph took his
first trip with his father-a park ranger- into the area that had
excited his thoughts through many years of boyhood stories as
told by his relations.
"I caught my first trout during that
trip. The tackle was what nearly all the Indians used at the
time, a hand line, heavy enough to be a chalk line, explained
Ralph, as though it was only yesterday. They stayed in a log
cabin that belonged to his grandfather and the same place his
father had stayed in 1888 to shoot deer to supply meat for a
nearby lumber operation. "Pay was four cents per pound."
As a young boy he trapped his first
beaver and it was the start of a livelihood and a career helping
other trappers of wild fur learn and appreciate their craft.
"Trappers never have to apologize for their occupation. It is
through their efforts that we have an abundance of animals and
suitable habitats."
It is more than 70 years since Ralph
Bice took his first trip as a guide, and the start of a lifetime
that would see him take hunters, anglers and vacationers into
the woods, it was an initial experience that he has never
forgotten.
"I was asked to be a replacement and
to meet a party already in the bush. Since I had never been on
any of the lakes and streams I was a little skeptical about
making it to may destination before dark. I was using my own
board canoe (easier to paddle than the wider canvas covered
canoes of the day, but heavier to carry) and as I paddled, up
came a strong wind and heavy swells reducing my time to reach
the unmarked portage."
As the sun sank on the horizon Ralph
decided to stop for the night on the sides of a marshy creek
with an absence of high ground. "I just rolled into my blankets
and fell asleep, tired and hungry. Several times during the
night I heard the wolves howl right at the edge of the timber,
and to a 17 year-old boy it seemed like the whole pack was
headed my way." As he says, it was a time when the exuberance of
youth made way for the initiation of developing a lifetime of
knowledge, skills and attitudes, of what Ralph calls "bush
sense."
It was also during this trip that
Ralph saw what was to be some of the last great stands of white
pine, later logged by operations of the lumber baron, J.R.
Booth. "The trees were enormous, I doubt if there was a finer
stand in Ontario. Most of the trees were three feet in diameter
and there didn't seem to be any small ones. I was fortunate to
see such a stand as there are no such forests of pine to see
now." It is these memories that allow him to formulate opinions
about the present Temagami wilderness controversy.
Ralph Bice in his "natural habitat"
Realizing the resources
In most states and provinces the
natural resources belong to the people, including local and
traditional users. Recently in Ontario hunting and trapping
restrictions have been imposed in area parks. In Temagami it is
a confrontation between loggers, who need the stands to timber
for local sawmills and environmentalists and tourist operators
that see the ruination of a wilderness area if logging access
roads are extended into the remote areas.
He says the Temagami area-like
Algonquin-is unique and special for its history and geographical
makeup, and that all contesting groups (lumber, mining, native,
tourist, recreation and trapping) must realize the legitimate
claims of each other.
"Multiple use within the area will
become a reality when all the concerned groups will appreciate
planning ahead for the continued use of our wilderness. Trappers
have to get involved in these issues, not only to protect their
own vested interests, but those of the animals and their
habitats."
Knowing History
One of the joys of interviewing a
man of Ralph Bice's stature is that he has lived and touched
history. Some of Northern Ontario's most colourful figures have
been part of his life. It is part of the trapping heritage he
would like to see preserved.
Ralph tells the story of the
powerful Canadian Pacific Railway telegraphing Mr. Booth with an
offer to buy his tiny Canada-Atlantic Railway which ran from
Arnprior through Algonquin Park to Georgian Bay. "J.R. was never
a man to be outdone, he sent a wire back to the C.P.R. stating
he would like to buy them out!"
The famous Canadian Group of Seven
artist, Tom Thomson, was a frequent visitor to the park in the
early 1900's and Ralph confirms that Thomson did have a
"drinking problem." It is well known he didn't have many close
friends in the park area, and although he liked the outdoors,
"didn't have many skills as a woodsman." Although it is thought
the artist might have been a victim of foul play, Ralph will
tell you that the undertakers from nearby Kearney informed the
public there were no marks on the body. As for the fishing line
wrapped around Thomson's leg, "it was thought he sprained his
ankle and wrapped a compress around it for protection." Mr. Bice
says that many guides and tourist operators from the Algonquin
area believe Tom Thomson was simply drunk, fell out of his canoe
and drowned.
The famous English renegade, Archie
Belaney-later to become known as Grey Owl when his writings
became popular-was a close friend of Mr. Bice's brother Arthur.
They fought together in the First World War and accredit each
other for saving one another's life.
Ralph says Archie Belaney also had a
problem with alcohol. Because of his moodiness he often didn't
get along with people and he recalls the time when Grey Owl
became in the disfavor of the local minister.
"Archie climbed up the nearby hill
in Bisco and during the Sunday service proceeded to ring the
church bell with his expert marksmanship which he was known for.
We knew he was only having his own sort of fun, but it was
enough for the local residents to send for the police and force
Archie to take a self-imposed exile into the woods until
everything cooled off!"
Ralph was one of the guides chosen
to take the Governor General, the Duke of Devonshire, into
Algonquin Park in 1918.
Ontario Trappers Association
As a founding member of the Ontario
Trappers Association (OTA) Ralph realizes the importance of
belonging to an organization that will help market wild furs and
help fur harvesters enjoy the reputation as being "the true
caretakers of nature."
He recalls the 41-year heritage the
OTA has enjoyed. "In 1947 a small group of Northern trappers,
with similar concerns, banded together to form a trapper's
association. The two principal areas if concern for all of us
were the price the trapper received for his fur and the
conservation and continued abundance of furbearers.
One of Ralph's concerns, and that of
all trappers, is acid rain.
We know what acid rain is and the
long term effects it has on our environment, and Ralph can
remember the initial clues when in the 1950's the superstack
(smelting of nickel) was erected in Sudbury Ontario.
Trappers are always in the bush and
many of us began to notice some signs in nature that were not
the normal. "We saw the tops of maple trees with no foliage and
the deer began to look sickly. Animals that would usually browse
on saplings tended to stay away from their favorite source of
food. It was as if they knew it didn't taste right because of
the pollution that was affecting the vegetation."
Ralph believes acid rain is an issue
all trappers should be aware of for it's impact on nature. "It
if found throughout North America and affects all the habitats
that our members manage through their traplines."
As a trapper he would like the
public to realize that wild fur harvesters are "the true
caretakers of nature." One of his books is entitled "Fur-The
Trade that put Upper Canada on the Map" and outlines the
conservation role played by wild fur producers. "We harvest only
a small percentage of the available wild furbearers and help
species control their numbers while saving their aquatic and
upland habitats."
"If you want to know what can be
done about effectively managing our natural resources ask a
trapper. We're the ones who are in the outdoors and have a real
understanding of the balance of nature."
His Own Legacy
Apart from his "ability to make the
best pancakes and fish dishes over an open campfire" and as
"Algonquin Park's greatest cribbage player" Ralph Bice wants to
be remembered as an outdoorsman who used and respected nature
throughout his career as a trapper and guide.
"Nature has given me the greatest
joys of my life and I hope I have done the same for its
continued existence."
As he paddles in the sunset of his
life, Ralph has won his serenity, like the peace and beauty of
the outdoors he has always known.
He likes to quote a verse from the
Bible, "God looked out upon the world and all that he had made,
and saw that is was very good." I am sure Ralph Bice is
referring to the wilderness he has always known and loved
"Animals,
fish and sea mammals we harvest