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The stories told in this collection, though tragic for many, also
illustrate the steadfast determination and courage of people in the
face of misfortune and extreme distress. From the lesser-known weed
outbreaks and tornadoes to the world-wide influenza outbreak in
1918 that devastated many Calgary families, these stories focus on
the human side of these disasters. It may be a heroic individual or
the collective response of a community, but what is truly
remarkable in these stories is the human response to the world
being turned upside down by famine and disease, by flood, fire, or
rock slide, by wind and cold, by dynamite or gas explosions, or
even by the seemingly mundane threat of weeds upon crops. It is the
resolution to continue to fight and the persistence of the human
spirit and its adaptability to challenges that is the true story of
a century of development in western Canada.
To Canadians of this century the name of Henry Alline is almost
unknown. This biography introduces him to the general reader.
Through the story of his life it also recreates the early
settlement of the Maritime provinces, and examines the origins of
one of the most dominant and continuing themes in Canadian life,
evangelical pietism. Henry Alline emigrated from Rhode Island to
Nova Scotia with his parents in 1760. Following his religious
conversion during adolescence, he became an evangelical preacher
and travelled throughout Nova Scotia spreading the gospel. But
Alline was more than an itinerant preacher. Drawing on British (and
indirectly on German) mythical writings, he rejected the tenets of
Calvinism in favour of universal salvation and human free will. He
emphasized Christian asceticism and mysticism. His writings, and
his attempts to develop an intellectual rationale for his
evangelical position, made him Canada's first metaphysical and
mystical philosopher. In the history of early British settlement in
Nova Scotia the name of Alline stands out because of his
participation in the process and problems of settlement and his
leadership during the trying times of the American Revolution. His
career embodied a rejection of both the United States (by a
rejection of Puritanism) and of Britain (by a rejection of church
and state in Nova Scotia), and put Alline in a classic Nova Scotia
position, neutrality, which could be justified by the importance of
Christ and the relative unimportance of government. The years in
which Alline lived were particularly critical ones for Canada, and
his career both mirrors and dominates a period of pioneer
hardships, political crises, and spiritual concern born of the
uncertainties of human existence.
The most accessible and balanced text for introductory Canadian
history courses This fascinating introduction to the history of
Canada from pre-contact to the present weaves together social,
political, cultural, and economic histories in a seamless narrative
to help readers appreciate the remarkable people and events that
have shaped this country.
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