Contents Preface xi Part 1 Discovery and Early Exploration Vinland 2 Johan Day's Letter (1497) 5 Jacques Cartier Visits the Funks (1534) 7 The Letter of Stephen Parmenius (6 August 1583) 8 John Guy's Encounter with the Savages (1612) 11 John Mason's Account of Newfoundland (1620) 13 A Letter from Ferry land (18 August 1622) 16 Sir Richard Whitbourne's Description of His Newfoundland Adventures (1623) 18 Robert Hayman: 'Composed and Done at Harbour Grace' (1628) 21 Vaughan's 'Golden Island' Reconsidered (1630) 22 Part 2 Transatlantic Outpost James Yonge: A Plymouth Surgeon in Newfoundland (1663) 28 Abbe Jean Baudoin: The 'Winter War' of 1696-7 33 Government and Religion (1762) 37 Jens Haven: 'Here is an Innuit' (1764) 38 Griffith Williams: An English View of Irish Settlers (1765) 42 Joseph Banks, Scientist and Gentleman (1766) 44 George Cartwright: 'Too Many Houses, Too Much Smoke, Too Many People'(1772-3) 48 Lawrence Coughlan: 'A Precious People' (1776) 55 John Hoskins: A Methodist Missionary in Trinity Bay (1774-84) 57 David Buchan's Expedition to the Interior (1811) 60 Patrick Morris: A Plea for Reform. The Case of James Landergan(1818) 66 vi Contents William Cormack Reaches the Interior of Newfoundland (1822) 70 William Wilson: Shanandithit, the Last of the Beothucks (1823) 72 Part 3 The Colonial Era Edward Wix: Wrecking (1835) 78 Joseph Jukes: 'Overboard with You! Gaffs and Pokers!' (1840) 80 Thomas Talbot: 'A Baptism of Violence' (1840) 86 Richard Bonnycastle: The Class Structure in Newfoundland (1842) 89 Philip Tocque: Drowning a Dog (1846) 93 John Grace: The Petty Harbour Bait Skiff (1852) 95 Robert Lowell: An Official Examination from Which Something Appears (1858) 98 Julian Moreton: A Parson and His People (1863) 107 Daniel Prowse: 'The Poor Man's Road' (1880) 110 Frederick Lloyd: Winter Scenes from the Great Northern Peninsula (18824) 111 Moses Harvey: The Great Fire of 8 July 1892 113 Henry Beckles Willson: Loiterers (1897) 118 Part 4 North Atlantic Dominion Norman Duncan: Reflections on the Death of Solomon Stride, Fisherman (1902) 122 Dillon Wallace: Prisoners of the Wind (1903) 123 James Connolly: The Drawn Shutters (1905) 132 Norman Duncan: 'A Great Lottery of Hope and Fortune'(1905) 141 Daniel Carroll: Arthur. In Memoriam: Captain Arthur Jackman (1907) 149 Wilfred Grenfell: Adrift on an Ice-Pan (1908) 150 Horace G. Hutchinson: Outport Man Refashioned (1910) 156 Fishermen's Protective Union: 'Forty Thousand Strong'(1913) 157 Joshua Stansford Calls on Friends (1910,1916) 159 John Devine: The Badger Drive (c 1915) 161 Henry Gordon: Spanish 'Flu in Labrador (1918) 163 Nicholas Smith: Coming Home from Labrador (1919) 170 George England: 'Man's Mark and Sign and Signal in the North'(1922) 174 Contents vii Edwin Pratt: 4An Edge for Human Grief (1923-32) 178 Bob Bartlett's Boyhood (1928) 181 Sir William Coaker Bows Out (1930) 184 Part 5 Breakers Ahead Joseph Smallwood: Newfoundland Today (1931) 190 Arthur Scammell: The Six-Horsepower Coaker (1940) 196 Margaret Duley: The Healer (1941) 198 Peter Dalzel Job: 'White Bread and Canned Food' (1947) 209 Arthur Scammell: Hard Cash (1950) 213 Ron Pollett: Memories of Didder Hill (1951) 218 Farley Mowat: This Unquiet Seaboard' (1958) 223 Paul West: A Lullaby Too Rough (1963) 225 Franklin Russell: The Island of Auks (1965) 229 Harold Horwood: Tomorrow will be Sunday (1966) 238 Edward Russell: Uncle Mose Begins His Chronicles (1966) 243 Alfred Purdy: Beothuck Indian Skeleton in Glass Case (1968) 248 Eugene Cloutier: 'What Do the Young People Dream Of?' 249 Paul O'Neill: Iceland Poppies (1968) 251 Selected Secondary Material on Aspects of Newfoundland Literature 254 To our parents, Newfoundlanders who belong to Conception Bay.