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Toronto, Ontario
July 21, 1926
Frontier College Instructor
c/o Supt. Horn's Office, CNR.
Kenora, Ontario
Dear Spock:
We have received your letter of the 12th and note that you are somewhat discouraged in the effort you are making on the gang. I cannot give you any ready receipt for success, but one thing, I would suggest that you do not make the holding of a class the whole estimate of your work.
At the same time I do not want you to draw away from the Galicians and other foreign-born, As mentioned to you at different times, the foreign-born on your gang have no conception whatever of Canada other than that imparted by influence of an instructor such as yourself. Too frequently these men spend years simply as labourers, ignored by any agency that would bring a cultural influence into their lives. As you know by now, the foremen and the railway officials look for efficiency in the day's work. It is only the instructor who can give them a broader view on questions of everyday concern and widen their horizon as future citizens in the country.
The men on your work group shift so frequently that it is not simply what is done with the first group, but rather what influence you have with the whole turnover during your sojourn as a labourer. You have at least the opportunity of tempering or shaping, even to a small degree, some of these itinerant workers when en route.
Either by visiting in the different cars of by blackboard talks that will attract, endeavour to prove helpful to the men on the gang. These general talks could relate largely to current events, personal hygiene, saving and thrift, homesteading, or any other subject intimately connected with the hopes and aspirations of the men.
Let me impress on you, Spock, that this is the real test of your ability as an instructor, and it is a try-out that will give you the most satisfaction.
Yours sincerely,
E.W. Bradwin
Director of Instructors*
(Bradwin would later become Principal of Frontier College.)
Benjamin Spock, by his own admission, was not a sterling Labourer-Teacher, As a twenty three year-old in 1926 the man who would later become the world famous pediatrician almost allowed a freight train to wipe out his crew mates along the CPR line at Kenora, Ontario. It was lunchtime and Ben, who'd been sent from Yale by his parents up to Canada to take on "the toughest summer job possible," left his post as flagman to take his break. In so doing, he failed to pay attention to the fact that the noon cattle train was running late that day and soon would be barrelling down the tracks toward his unsuspecting workmates, When it did, they had only seconds to dive for cover and safety, leaving Spock a much-chastened young man.
This misadventure notwithstanding, Spock's stint with Frontier College provided a coming of age for a life whose further endeavors would demand character and hard work, The same was the case for numerous other young people who would make their marks later in life in many fields Norman Bethune later became famous providing medical care for the guerilla army of Mao Ze Dong in China. Escott Reid went on to a career in diplomacy and was present at the creation of the United Nations, and Francis McNaughton became a distinguished neurologist. Three men who were to become high officials in the United Church of Canada, Moderators J.R. Mutchmor and Stanley McKay (the church's first Aboriginal moderator) as well as General Secretary George Morrison, were all Labourer Teachers. The list also included future politicians Roy McMurtry, David Peterson, David Kilgour, and Svend Robinson These four men ended up in three different parties, but shared the experience of Frontier College.
In each case, as such prominent individuals might later reflect back on their life's formative moments, the broadening of the world and the challenges offered and met through their experiences with Frontier College were character building life lessons.
Selected Frontier College Letters
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