Chapter 17
William Finlay was immediately dropped from work. The Governor tried to convince Finlay about the errors of his thinking, but he would not change from his original position. His mind was made up.
Without a jail to confine someone breaking the laws of the camp, MacDonell had a single hut built to place Finlay in custody. Finlay was also told he could not continue on towards the settlement once the ice broke. This, for all of us at the encampment, seemed much too severe a punishment.
“MacDonell has not made a just decision,” Papa started one night after dinner. “To be true, this Finlay maybe should give a little, but to place a man in prison is a dangerous thing. And now he is to be sent back to Scotland after everything that has happened. MacDonell goes too far!”
“A man must stand up and act like a man,” Mr. Docherty said. “This Finlay fellow, though I have spoken to him only a handful of times, is doing what he needs to do to feel like the man he left behind in Scotland. Although I do not agree with him, and I disagree even more with his punishment, it reminds us all that we need to remember who we are and where we’ve come from. We are sons and daughters of Scotland, not animals.”
“We all feel that way from time to time,” Papa replied. “Never in my life have I been ordered around so much by others. But you have to take it and keep thinking about the future. Sacrifices have to be made now for later: a new life in Red River with a home and some land to plant crops. This is what we have to live for. We’ve come so far, and now this young man, this Finlay, is being forced to turn back. I’m afraid something bad might happen.”
“The other men in his cabin are pissed beyond belief,” Willie stated bluntly. “I would be careful about walking around the camp. Those bloody Irish are bad enough, but now the Orkneymen are getting mad beyond reckoning. They won’t stand to see one of their own dealt with so harshly.”
It did not take long for Willie’s words to come true. The first night of Finlay’s detention in the holding cabin, I was awoken by loud shouting outside our cabin. Startled, I lifted myself up to see what was happening. The entire cabin was awake, and the mood was tense. Papa and Mr. Docherty stood by the door, while the boys with huddled with Mama and Mrs. Docherty in the corner.
“Molly,” Papa whispered, “Go to your mother, and for goodness sake, do not leave this cabin. You were a brave girl on New Year’s Eve, but tonight you stay put.”
“Where are Uncle Willie and the other men?” I asked. “What’s going on?”
‘Don’t you worry, your uncle is not out to cause any harm. He’s outside to see what is going on.”
“What’s going on? I asked impatiently.”
“The Orkneymen are trying to free Finlay,” Papa said. “Some of them are probably drunk too. You don’t know what these men might do. This is open rebellion against MacDonell, Selkirk, and the Company. This could be dangerous.”
A loud knock was heard at the door. Before Papa could find out who it was, Willie burst through the door, panting like a dog in heat. He was covered in soot, and he was coughing uncontrollably. As Papa shut the door, I could see a bright light flickering in the distance, and then I knew what the Orkneymen did to free their imprisoned friend.
“This is open rebellion,” my uncle started. “The men from Orkney and Glasgow, about thirteen of them in all by my count, have burnt down the cabin with Finlay inside of it.”
“Did he not burn alive inside it?” asked Papa.
“I don’t know about his condition. The cabin is still burning to the ground, but Finlay is no longer there.” Willie started to cough and hack and seemed unable to catch his breath. Mama put her hand on his back to sooth him, and she brought a cup of water to his lips.
“Take it easy Willie,” she said. “Try to calm your breathing. You’ve taken in a great deal of the smoke. Please don’t tell me you were part of the rescue?”
Willie looked wide eyed at Mama. “Fiona, don’t worry. Although I was there, I didn’t lift a finger to help. It’s true I know Finlay, but he is not a friend of mine.” Willie took a moment to calm his breathing down and said “I am not sad to see that he has been freed from his prison.”
“Those who saved Finlay carry more than just torches?” asked Mr. Docherty.
“There are at least five or six guns in the rebel’s possession. With muskets raised, they were able to walk across camp and free Finlay without any opposition. And who would dare to oppose them? Except for Mr. MacDonell and Mr. Hillier, everyone disagrees with the sentence passed down. Things have been bad since the beginning of the New Year, but now I fear things might become much worse.”
The noise outside started to lessen. Soon all that could be heard was the wind moving the tops of the trees, faintly off in the distance. All was quiet in our cabin, everyone lost in their own thoughts. Too tired to care, the boys started to fall asleep, their breathing calm and steady, but there was worry and concern written on the faces of all the adults. This open rebellion would lead to many problems for MacDonell and for us as well. Eventually, too sick with exhaustion to care, I closed my eyes and thanked God at least I could forget everything while asleep.