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Note: BMS2000 v.16 ID : 3787169 Class : 9 Responsible : SGCF Role Name First name Deceased Groom POITRAS Félix Father Poitras Charles Mother Lacelle Marguerite Ex-spouse - - Bride DEGUIRE Denise Father Deguire Gabriel Mother St-Louis Marguerite Ex-spouse - - Parish Location County Province Country Sts-Anges Lachine Ile-de-Montréal QC Canada Date Note 1871-10-03 - a butcher.. Marriage Lachine 1871-10-03 Drouin Collection record : poitras, felix Subject Residence : LACHINE age maj Mar. st. single deguire, denise Subject Residence : LACHINE age min Mar. st. single poitras, charles Father of the groom Residence : INDETERMINE death deceased lacelle, marguerite Mother of the groom Residence : INDETERMINE deguire, gabriel Father of the bride Residence : RIGAUD stlouis, marguerite Mother of the bride Residence : RIGAUD Copyright © 2011 Drouin Institute , All rights reserved A BUTCHER FOR 75 YEARS Many thanks to the newspaper reporter of "La Presse" on the following article about Felix Poitras, 97 years old, residing at 394 Saint-Joseph in Lachine. Mr Poitras owned a butcher shop which was located near the locks of the Lachine canal. he sold suet to the shipowners so they could grease the side of their boats in the era where the horses pulled the barges down the canals. Papa, here is the "Presse" (local paper which still exists today)..... A dry cough, steps that drag on the yellow pine floor, rapid heavy breathing, Mr Felix Poitras appears wrapped in a light blue Indian blanket. He sits in his well cushioned chair near the fire and begins to reminisce. Words come out in a whistle. A voice of 96 years now fears the mediocre things in life. The Philosophy Of A Humble Man. * Gooday Sir. His voice declining somewhat....We're all not as well as we once were but one must go on. I have nothing to reproach God; He has kept me long enough and you know one gets tired of not being able to sleep. * You sleep little? * Approximately 30 minutes per night and this has been going on for many years. I have plenty of time to visualize death and I am not afraid-it is almost a friend. How sublime this nightly vigil is, preparing without fear the vigil of eternity. One would surmise that an elderly peson's bed is like a tomb, is it not? Indiscreetly we enter his room. On his pillow lies a tuque(woolen cap), too nice for the 1930's, made of heavy country wool of steel gray color which reminds one of the bleak December afternoon. On the one and only chair there is a clay pipe and this small white and brown halo shaped pipe reminds us of one that belonged to Pastor Labelle. His pipe is well filled and Mrs. Freeman sell enough cigarettes to buy a poind of "Petit rouge" every month(a brand of tobacco in those days). How Long Ago! * What year were you born Mr. Poitras? * Oh! I was never concerned about that. His daughter smiles and says: * February 16, 1834 * That's a long time ago, isn't it? Grandfather scratches his thigh, bones against bones, he weighs less that 90 lbs. His hands are leathery and his joints enormous, the result of living too long. * Yes, and I remember just about everything throughout my life. I was born in Long Sault north of Cornwall. My father had contracts for building horse wagons. At five years old we left for Beauharnois where I started to work in a butcher shop. At 13 years old I was earning 25 cents a week and I slaughtered cattle by myself. Cigarettes In 1847 * You probably didn't spend a lot of money? * Mister, i put money aside. First of all cigarettes made from tobacco were not on the market. When we wanted to act "fresh," we rolled birch or cherry bark real tight, which once lit would make smoke which smelled good. When we were in the woods, the find moss which grew near brooks and swamps served as tobacco; it was just as curly and mild as what we have today. Those were the good old days! People lived better then than now. No theaters, no fancy clothes; women stayed home and any outing were family ones. Everyone left in a buggy or a sled and we would visit Albert or Baptiste and we had such a good time. In this day and age, the more money people have, the more they spend and the poorer they are. * You said you slaughtered cattle when you were 13 years old? * Yes, I am happy to say to all the butchers in Montreal that I was one of them for 75 years. There was not one person like me who could guess the weight of a bull. Once my brother-in-law made a bet of $100.00 with Jos Briere, Jos Versailles and Pit Lanctot on the weight of three western bulls; he won. I still remember...The red one weighed 1,600 lbs; the sand one 1,340 lbs. and the black one without horns 1,480. I was only out by 20 lbs. of the exact weight. I would just feel their ribs and take a guess. Oh how I sold plenty of meat in 75 years! Also beautiful ladies were customers at my shop; I remember their compliments, "Mr. Poitras, when we want to please our husbands, we come to your shop for steaks." The old gentleman coughs, looks at us in a gentl manner with his dark brilliant eyes, last twighlight of a full life., And he continues... Barge Supplier * My shop was near the old canal and the blue barges belonging to the Americans consumed 8 to 10 cattle per week. The Yankees would come down the gangplank and the Indians would come in their canoes. Big logs would float by and reach as far as Quebec City and the Gulf. I can assure you we ate well in those days and great cooks like in my time do not exist anymore. Souvenir Of A Giant * No trains, no cars, no noise. What a great life! If we wanted to go to town, we would hir a driver with a horse and carriage and drive thrlough apple orchards to Place d'Armes(part of Old Montreal today) for the sum of 50 cents. One day a friend of Papa's, Gariepy, said: "Felix, you are coming with me to see joe Montferrant at Bonsecours market"(this place still exists in Old Montreal but is now a museum). I was 16 at the time...off we went. Once in town I noticed a giant of a man whose fur cap stood high above the crowd. Gariepy who was 6'6" tall only measured up to his shoulders. I will always remember this and visions of the yellow fur hat often light up my sleepless nights. What was Gariepy's name? Mr. Poitras immediately answers in a clear voice: * Louis. Mrs. Freeman replies: * Papa, he was your brother-in-law. * My daughter, how you are losing your memory! There were two Louis', the other Louis became my brother-in-law later on. Lachine Races The old gentleman made us laugh and continued: * If you could only have seen our great races. It's a sin there aren't any now. There were horses on the ice that could do 2.30 minutes to the mile. I was an amateur and I had some that could do 3 minutes. They were "broken in" but proud trotters; from Lachine to Ottawa return at a speed of 5 m.p.h. and $500.00 as prize money. Oh how they were fast! I often beat jim Price, a leather merchant, who bragged that he hade good horses. If you could only have seen the show? Beautiful buffalo throws at $16,00 each floating in the wind in back of the sleighs. Our racing sleds didn't cost much. jEveryone went into the Liesse woods and would cut the amount of wodd they needed. They were made of ash and the runners were not iron-shod which made them slide better. Voluntary Soldier * During the Secession war I enlisted at 19 years old. For a period of 4 months I stayed at the Beauharnois barracks. I had a beatiful silver medal but I lost it on my way to mass. The government gave us papers promising a pension of $100.00 per year. I received one payment of $100.00 and that was it. I still have the paper and it is my daughter Regina who has it. Do you think today's government would alow me my pension? A Convinced Liberal * What are your political colors? (ex: red-Liveral, blue-conservative) * I have always voted for Laurier all my life and I am not ashamed to say so. (Sir Wilfrid Laurier was prime minister of Canada for several years and many streets, bldgs., etc. have been named after him throughout Quebec). I believe I am the oldest voter in Jacques-Cartier county and I have never, never missed a vote. I would always arrive at the polls on time. There were times I would leave at 11:00 p.m. with my wagon and go to the Cote de Liesse area to pick up voters for the following day. Mr. Poitras Still Saw His Wood Mr. Felix Poitras married at the age of 36 and had 14 children. When the photographer from "La Presse" asked him to pose, he shouted to his daughter: "Get me my Sunday clothes." He wipes his mouth with a silk handkerchief while Mrs. Freeman makes a knot in his black tie. * don't tie it so tight, these styles choke me! After the picture was taken, a young lad entered with an armful of dry wood. Mr. Poitras picks up a piece and says: * Hey! This is beatiful. I carried all my heating wood from the river this fall; three cords of it. Weather permitting, I go into the shed, take my say andrelax my muscles by cutting wood. As the tramway travels through the snowy fields of the countryside, numerous thoughts are going through our heads. What a wonderful man! Almost a century passed doing his daily work with joy and no complaints. What an example to youth. A Canadian National train passes, casting arectangular shadow with red lights. this age of speed has not tired the elderly gentlman we just left. he is patiently awaiting death just as he lived, wisely. May the fighters of tomorrow follow a similar pattern if they want to conquer
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