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Daniel George MacMartin (9 January 1844 – 12 April 1923 (aged 79) was treaty commissioner for the
Government of Ontario The government of Ontario (french: Gouvernement de l'Ontario) is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of Ontario. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown—represented in the province by the lieutenant governor ...
for
Treaty 9 ''Treaty No. 9'' (also known as ''The James Bay Treaty'') is a numbered treaty first signed in 1905-1906 between Anishinaabe (Algonquin and Ojibway) and Omushkegowuk Cree communities and the Canadian Crown, which includes both the governme ...
in 1905 and 1906, along with two Dominion commissioners,
Duncan Campbell Scott Duncan Campbell Scott (August 2, 1862 – December 19, 1947) was a Canadian civil servant and poet and prose writer. With Charles G.D. Roberts, Bliss Carman, and Archibald Lampman, he is classed as one of Canada's Confederation Poets. A care ...
, of
Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
, Ontario, Esquire, and Samuel Stewart, of Ottawa, Ontario, Esquire. MacMartin was the sole commissioner nominated by and representing the province of Ontario under provisions which reads: "That any future treaties with the Indians in respect of territory in Ontario to which they have not before the passing of the said Statutes surrendered their claim aforesaid shall be deemed to require the concurrence of the government of Ontario." Under the provisions of this clause, the terms of the treaty were fixed by the governments of the Dominion and Ontario; Daniel G. MacMartin and the two other commissioners "were empowered to offer certain conditions, but were not allowed to alter or add to them in the event of their not being acceptable to the First Nations." MacMartin's role was to protect the interests of the Ontario government whose agreement to make the treaty had to be sought and in whose jurisdiction reserves will be chosen and surveyed. MacMartin was to ensure that no reserves were located in areas with water power or mineral resources with future potential. MacMartin's incomplete 1905 journal was donated to the Queen's University archives in 1968. Although the journal was accessed by other researchers its significance was not fully recognised until c. 2010. Until the contents of diaries were revealed, details about the signing of the constitutionally recognized agreement were known only through the accounts of Duncan Campbell Scott and Samuel Stewart, commissioners appointed by the Government of Canada. The journals of the other two – Samuel Stewart and Duncan Campbell Scott, both former employees of the
Department of Indian Affairs Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
, were easily accessible at the
National Archives of Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; french: Bibliothèque et Archives Canada) is the federal institution, tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is th ...
in
Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
. MacMartin's diaries provide another perspective on the Treaty 9 tracing the treaty's origins, negotiation, explanation, interpretation, signing, implementation, and recent commemoration. He was a miner from
Perth, Ontario Perth is a town in Eastern Ontario, Canada. It is located on the Tay River, southwest of Ottawa, and is the seat of Lanark County. History The town was established as a military settlement in 1816, shortly after the War of 1812. The settlement ...
and was considered to be an Indian Affairs outsider, albeit someone who was politically well-connected. It was suggested that he probably knew little about the process of treaty negotiations; however, from his journal entries, he seemed to realize that Treaty 9 was an anomaly. He had received the written Treaty prior to negotiations and realized that he had only fixed terms to offer and no authority to bargain. Toronto lawyer Murray Klippenstein, who earlier helped the Mushkegowuk First Nations of western
James Bay James Bay (french: Baie James; cr, ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, Wînipekw, dirty water) is a large body of water located on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean, of which James Bay is the southernmost par ...
to challenge the
Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a Canadian retired politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. During his time ...
government's workfare legislation and launch their Rupert's Land Protection Pledge suit, also discovered the journal. Klippenstein claimed that in MacMartin's diaries oral promises had been made that contradicted the written Treaties and supports Elders' claims. He quoted from Commissioner MacMartin's diary, "it was explained to them that they could hunt and fish as of old" and "they were not restricted as of territory" and "they could hunt wherever they pleased." Klippenstein argued that oral promises that are part of the Treaty should override legislation like the Far North Act.


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* * * * * Revised 1906. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Macmartin, Daniel G. Ontario civil servants 1870 births 1921 deaths Numbered Treaties