The North-West Mounted Police

Term Paper Title	The North-West Mounted Police
# of Words	1059
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	4.24

The North-West Mounted Police

Like many Canadians I have a image of what a Mountie looks like and how they act.  I picture a stern faced man wearing the scarlet coat, puffy pants, and straight brimmed hat.  I remember the unofficial motto "The Mounties always get their man".  However after reading National Dreams by Daniel Francis, and Nobody Said No by Jeff Sallot, my image of the Mounties will be forever changed.
     The North-West Mounted Police was created by the federal government in 1873.  The job of the force was to keep order between the Natives which resided in what is now Alberta and Saskatchewan, and the whites who were moving west .  The Mounties did their job of keeping the peace in the west, however the stories that where told about the experiences are more of a fairy tale.  There is one story in Frances' book that tells of a band of Cree warriors  who blocked a railway  track to try and obtain food for their people.  The story goes on to tell about two Mounties who arrive on horseback, and give the Cree fifteen minutes to remove themselves from the tracks.  The fifteen minutes pass and the Cree do not leave the tracks.  Then one of the Mounties, Corporal William Brock Wilde dismounts his horse and begins to knock over the Crees tents they have set up.  The story ends by telling how the Cree realize what they are up against and retreat.  There are many stories like this one which contribute to the mythical Mounties that we all picture in our heads.  It is amazing that the Mounties have been able to keep this public image, after all the contravercial things they had done.
     However the real story of the Mounties is also told in both of these books.  They tell about spying, violence, and illegal acts that were performed by the Mounties.  There are examples in both books to back these allegations up.  The example with stands out the most from Frances' book is about the Red Scare.  During the First World War, Canada became paranoid of a Bolshevik Russian Revolution.  Almost everyone was suspected of siding with the Russians to over-throw Canada.  The federal government became worried and imposed a number programs to protect themselves.  These programs included press censorship, mail tampering, deporting of "troublemakers" and spying on suspected supporters of the Russians cause with  undercover agents.  The most outlandish policy created was the one that restricted the use of "alien enemy" languages.  This meant  anyone that spoke a foreign language in public was in danger of facing a stiff fine or a jail sentence.  The major role of the Mounties during this time was stopping anyone who was suspected of  promoting the Russian movement.  The Mounties would infiltrate union meetings of suspected Russian sympathizers, to see if the leaders were planning for a revolution.  The tension finally broke in the spring of 1919 in Winnipeg.    A general strike had been called, which escalated into 30 000 workers, virtually closing the city.  The Mounties played a major part in this.  The normal twenty-seven man...

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