C A N A D A
Cold Danger
'Friends Not Forgotten'
This is a short essay in
two parts about the RCMP which takes place in the North West Territories,
Canada in the early 1900’s. Both
incidents recall the arduous conditions under which members worked and the life
threatening dangers our four heroes faced. Cold danger.
Part II speaks of a murder
case in which very unusual circumstances played out in ‘court’. Readers will be
in disbelief how the story ends.
PART I. Constable J. W.
Phillips joined the North West Mounted Police (NWMP) on June 1, 1898. His first
transfer took him to ‘K’ Div. (Alberta). By all accounts, Phillips was an above
average sort as he went about his daily police chores. At first, nothing stood
out about him thus leading one to surmise that he, like others, had their usual
‘ups and downs’.
Phillips was among other
NWMP who represented Canada and fought in the South Africa War (1900 to 1902).
On July 30, 1903, for the
first time, Phillips found himself in Service Court. He was charged with ‘...accepting
money from a prisoner’. I suspect the
money was to be used to purchase cigarettes but we are not told his story. He
was fined $5.00 by Superintendent Wilson. His ‘walk down the hall’ had little effect on
his career as Phillips was promoted to the Commissioned ranks on April 1, 1913.
As Officer O.173, Phillips was transferred to ‘G’ Division (Northwest
Territories).
For a spell, Phillips
stayed clear of Service Court. But, about five years later, on April 1, 1913, he
took another stride ‘down the hall’. This time he had been charged with being ‘...
found with liquor in barracks’. He was fined $5.00.
On July 22, 1918, while
stationed in the North, Phillips made a routine patrol for the mail which
turned into a life threatening episode. He left Herschel Island on a boat with Reg.#4396, Cpl. William A. Doak and
Reg.# 5369, Cst. Eric H. Cornelius. Their boat was wrecked in floating ice during a sudden storm. The three members were forced to abandon the
boat and jump from one tipsy iceberg to another, endeavouring to reach solid
ice. Eventually, they came to open water and had to swim in the frigid ocean to
reach shore.
Later, it was decided that
Constable Cornelius set out, in soaking clothes, to Herschel some 12 miles (19 kilometres)
away. Phillips and Doak sought shelter in driftwood on the shoreline. By the next morning, Doak was delirious but
they had the good fortune of attracting the attention of a whale boat passing
by and the pair was rescued. When Cst. Cornelius
was found, he was still struggling valiantly, in frozen clothing, towards
Hershel Island. In the end, all three members were saved but only with good
fortune, timing, good luck and perseverance.
PART II. After the ice skipping incident, Phillips
continued to meet new challenges which only the North could present to members
of the Force. In 1920, Phillips made a lengthy patrol to the Belcher Inlands ( southeast
Hudson Bay) accompanied by Reg.# 4919, Sgt. Alfred H. Joy. They were to
investigate a murder. Phillips and Joy
found that ‘Tukautouk’ had murdered ‘Ketaushuk’ who was known to be insane and was
threatening others in the Band.
In his capacity as Coroner, Phillips held an
Inquest. In his final pronouncement, he found that ‘...Ketaushuk was killed for the
common good and safety of the band...’ and ‘...owing to the primitive existence
and total absence of all knowledge of law’. No criminal charges were laid.
On the surface, it may
appear that Phillips’ decision would tax the democratic notion of the rule of
law that ‘...everyone is equal before the law’, however, extenuating circumstances
and human judgement determined otherwise.
Officer Phillips was given
this honour. ‘Phillips Channel, Northwest Territories in the Mackenzie River
Delta (Lat: 67·52·00N Long: 135·04·00W) was named after him.
What became of Phillips?
He continued to lead a very successful career in the NWMP, RNWMP and the RCMP. In
addition to serving in ‘K’ and ‘G’ Divisions, he served in ‘O’ and ‘A’
Divisions (Ontario).
Eventually, O.173,
Assistant Commissioner John Willett Phillips was transferred to ‘E’ Division
(British Columbia), where he retired on December 31, 1935 as the Commanding
Officer.
All heroes who overcame
cold danger!
O.173, A/Comm’r. J. W. Phillips
died in 1959. He is buried in Ontario.
Honour Roll # 45, Reg.#4396,
Corporal W. A. Doak was shot and killed on duty in 1922. He is buried in Tree
River, NWT.
Reg.# 5369, Corporal E. H.
Cornelius died in 1922. He is buried in Nova Scotia.
0.221, Inspector A. H. Joy
died on duty from a heart attack. He is buried in Ottawa, Ontario
‘Maintain Our Memories’
Appreciation: Story line
and research by Vet. Jack White
Editing and rearranging by
Vet. J. J. Healy
September 27, 2011
