Many of my experiences with these people were
situations straight out of the textbook. I had to ask myself whether or not
some of them had studied Anthropology and were pulling my leg. Given the
history of the area, and the remoteness of the location, I had to assume what I
encountered was in reality a validation of the textbooks. One aspect of
Cultural Anthropology I had been very aware of is what happens when two cultures
collide.
I spent an extra month in the area after the other
team members left. The Native Community of LaLoche, population 350+, consisted
of a Hudson's Bay Store, an independent General Supply Store, a DNR post, a primary
school, an RCMP post, a Roman Catholic Church, and 27 residential homes. At the time 1968, LaLoche
Saskatchewan had the highest birth rate in the entire world, with an average of 14 children
per family.