By Gary Fife
The following is part two of a poem written by Gary Fife, the Great-Great Grandson of David Fife.
Section V – Canadian Confederation, July 1, 1867
In 1867, the Dominion of Canada was created
Political deadlock issues with Great Britain were placated
Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia joined the
unification
The new country focused on economic development and diversification
In 1870, Manitoba became a member of the Dominion
In 1871, British Columbia joined the union
In 1873, with a ferry link promise
Prince Edward Island became
the seventh province
In the Prairies it would be necessary to forgo
The idea and dream of one province called Buffalo
In 1905, the vast Prairie became Alberta and Saskatchewan
“King Wheat” was the dominant crop on this new land
In 1949, Newfoundland joined the country
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee
Section VI – Expansion of the West
In 1870, a decade of improvements to flour-milling began
A technical revolution that facilitated a wider wheat growing plan
The invention of the first flour-milling purifier created a huge
demand
Spring wheat production had to expand
To meet this growing need
Minnesota supplied Manitoba with Red Fife seed
Transportation problems proved to be a bit of a kink
In 1878, this was solved by a rail line to provide a direct link
In 1871, Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald proposed a
transcontinental railway
With the Pacific Scandal, there was a major delay
The railway contract proved to be a great temptation
Allegations of bribes led to Macdonald’s resignation
In 1874, the Liberals were voted into power
Prime Minister Alexander Mackenzie was the man of the hour
With an economic depression, the Liberals reigned for just four
years
The Liberals free trade policy was rejected due to economic fears
In 1878, Macdonald’s Conservatives won the election
At the time, his National Policy was deemed perfection
In this era of defensive expansionism
High tariffs on manufactured items were considered necessary
protectionism
The National Policy focused on increased immigration
To increase the Western Canada population
During this economic expansion, threats to Canadian independence
abated
Corporate concentration emerged by monopolies that were created
The latest flour milling processes were adopted by William Watson
Ogilvie
With the Canadian Pacific Railway, he formed a monopoly
Ogilvie’s grain elevators were competition free
Built on valuable land it was plain to see
In 1895, WW Ogilvie was the world’s biggest individual flour miller
In business and financial and philanthropic circles, he was a pillar
In 1880, the CPR received a loan of $25 million and a federal grant
of 25 million acres of land
An incentive for westward railway construction to meet increasing
demand
A decade of delays must be overcome
CPR took the incentives and then some
$25 million was a deposit but they needed more
Another $25 million or so doubled the score
The Dominion of Canada footed the bill
For an impressive feat of engineering and political will
In 1885, the transcontinental railway to BC was completed
With the final spike, threats of BC secession were defeated
The promise of a railway link enticed BC to join the federation
Years of delay and scandal had created some resignation
In 1886, Vancouver received its first train
From Winnipeg, it was loaded with grain
Bushels of wheat for export so the world could be fed
Red Fife Wheat satisfied the world’s need for bread
Section VI – Marquis Wheat
Since railway construction required a major government subsidy
Improving wheat production became a necessity
In this agricultural country, wheat was the shining star
Its contribution to the economy led all others by far
In 1886, the government established the Dominion Experimental Farm
Controlled experiments under ideal conditions could do no harm
Initial studies concluded Red Fife was critical to any test
Its attributes were superior to the rest
Hard Red Calcutta from India matured 20 days prior to Red Fife
With early frost ruining crops, early maturity would ease the strife
In 1892, Red Fife and Hard Red Calcutta were crossed
Markham, an early maturing new strain may avoid early frost
There would be a delay in new wheat development however
It would take several years to re-start this endeavour
In 1903, Charles Saunders re-examined cross bred strains of previous
years
Proving that discoveries are made if one perseveres
In musty bottles, he discovered Markham filed away on a shelf
His brother, Percy, had determined the discovery routine in and of
itself
For some reason, Markham caught Charles’ eye
He thought he would give it a try
This strain was plucked from obscurity
He renamed it Marquis due to its strength and early maturity
Charles did not have a proper lab, an oven or a mill
He chewed a few grains, testing them at will
Although it may sound somewhat uncouth
Chewing grains created dough in his mouth
Based on this crude test, he took a stab
At flour and bread qualities later confirmed in the lab
It supplanted Red Fife and is remembered still
It could be considered grist for the mill
In 1910, Charles Saunders was named Dominion Cerealist
The first of many titles on his list
He received honorary doctorates and degrees
In 1934, he was on his knees
King George V bestowed on him a knighthood
For his contribution to agriculture and all things good
Canada became known as 'granary to the world'
As the details of history are unfurled
There is one obvious certainty
Without Red Fife, there would be no Marquis
Section VI I– The role of Senator JJ Duffus
In 1929, it was Senator McGuire
Who created quite a fire
A David Fife Memorial he dared to propose
Most listeners did oppose
With hard times and a major war, it fell on deaf ears
He soldiered on for many years
In 1938, a roadside cairn was on the slate
For a House of Commons debate
“Totally inadequate and
unbecoming such an outstanding achievement”
Stated MP Mr. JJ Duffus in his speech so eloquent
In 1954, Senator JJ Duffus
Created quite a ruckus
In his speech titled, A Debt Unpaid
He was warming up to the best speech he ever made
Canada became “the greatest wheat producing country in the world”
He continued to praise David Fife as his
speech unfurled
Red Fife Wheat was not only good for
one’s health
It “added millions of dollars to the
national wealth”
In 1955, he achieved notable success
In his speech to the Senate, he made a formal address
Recommending a Memorial to the late David Fife
For the unbending efforts of David and his wife
He “revolutionized world wheat farming”
It is rather alarming
The Senator declared
That we have erred
“Canada owes more to David Fife than anyone can tell”
The Senator went on to explain it very well
Without Red Fife, Canada would have been put to the test
“There would have been no rush of settlers to the Prairie West”
“The importance of Red Fife
In the development of our economic life
Cannot be exaggerated”
The Senator deftly orated
“It is time the debt was given national recognition”
He further advised he was seeking permission
To construct a school and a hall
And that was not all
He proposed that it be called Fifeville
A fitting tribute to a man of iron will
11.5 acres next to the Indian River
Senator Duffus could not
deliver
The Senator made a vivid proclamation
He described the sought after memorial in his great oration
“As practical as was the great discovery of this sagacious pioneer”
In reality, the tribute was delayed year after year
Senator JJ Duffus made his final plea
On deaf ears again, it was plain to see
In 1957, he came to the end of his life
Without achieving recognition for David Fife
Finally, a roadside cairn was unveiled in 1964
The Senator had wanted so much more
His words echo as a tribute to his stamina
“Has he not been just about the most forgotten man that ever lived
in Canada?”
Section VIII – Tributes to David Fife
In the words of Senator Duffus, “What of David Fife”
And what of Jane, his wife
In 1959, the David Fife Memorial School opened in Otonabee
In 1990, the David Fife Elementary School closed and is now a faded
memory
In 1963, David Fife’s portrait was unveiled at the Canadian
Agricultural Hall of Fame
There was little fanfare and little acclaim
Duffus declared a cairn to be “totally inadequate” in 1938
In 1964, a cairn was unveiled, a case of too little, too late
The cairn was erected on the side of the Trans Canada Highway
Only local traffic had an interest in this display
David Fife’s log cabin was considered great heritage
In 1967, it was moved to Lang for the opening of the Lang Pioneer
Village
In 1977, the roadside cairn found a new place to dwell
The David Fife Memorial Cairn was moved to Lang as well
And so with much chagrin
Tributes to David Fife are rather thin
Stay tuned for part 3 next Tuesday, August 11!
Duffus, J.J., Debates of the Senate of Canada (Ottawa, 1955)
Jill Chapman is the Visitor Experience Coordinator at Lang Pioneer Village Museum. She has been a member of the Lang team since May of 2012. Jill is a passionate advocate for education, the arts and fitness. When not at work, Jill might be found running through the North Cavan foothills or on one of the County’s rotary trails.
