The Precious Seed
A story of the Scottish pioneers in Upper Canada in the 1830’s.
Hugh Templin (1896-1970) was a conservationist, a newspaper man, and an author. He was also my grandfather, although my memories of him are few and faint. Most of what I know of him comes from stories told about him, and stories he wrote.
So it is with our ancestors. They live on, not only through their descendants, but also through the traditions and stories they pass down. “The Precious Seed” is one such story, told by my grandfather about his great-great grandfather, Hugh Black, and the other Scottish settlers who founded the town of Fergus, Ontario. Reading the novel now enables us to clearly imagine what it would have been like to live back then, and what moved and motivated our ancestors.
My grandfather had previously written “Fergus: The Story of a Little Town” as a history of Fergus on the occasion of its 100th anniversary in 1933. By that time, he had gathered many stories about the early years and about the town founders. Not all the stories made it into that book, either because there was
not enough room, or because the stories were pure legend. These had no place in a history book, but they could make for a lively historical fiction if the tales were woven together and brought to life by the author’s imagination.
And so Hugh Templin began weaving the story threads together into what would become “The Precious Seed.” He worked on it for many years, finally finishing it in 1967.
Unfortunately, he never saw it in print. One publisher’s rejection suggested that the novel did not have enough sex in it. His sons Jack (my father), Peter and Bill always found this funny, as will the reader who understands that the staunch Presbyterians featured in this story would consider that part of
their personal lives to be nobody else’s business. If that is what it would take to have the story published, they likely would have preferred that nobody read it at all.
His sons tried again to have the novel published for their father posthumously, but with no success. So it lay dormant until Bill came across a copy of the manuscript again in 2006. His daughter, Laura, brought it to my father in Ottawa. Most of the grandchildren had never even heard of the novel, and
we were intrigued. Bill sent me an electronic copy, scanned from the original typewritten manuscript. This is what I used to have the novel edited and formatted in its current form. Bill, like his father, would have loved to have seen this in print, but sadly he too has passed away. Nevertheless, he managed to do enough to ensure that the story would be passed down, and it is now up to my generation to keep it going.
The Templins, especially Peter’s family, have endured more than their share of tragedy in the years since my grandfather died. But this story he has given us offers many lessons to strengthen us in times of sorrow. First, we are reminded that although we have lost many loved ones, they live on through
their children and through the traditions and legacies they pass along.
“The Precious Seed” also tells us how the early settlers had to summon all their perseverance and faith to survive the harsh conditions of their new life, demonstrating an amazing triumph of the human spirit over great adversity. May we be encouraged to call upon the strength of character we have
inherited from those determined pioneers to face the challenges of our times.
Finally, the title itself gives us a clue to one of the main themes of the novel. We learn early on that the title “The Precious Seed” comes from Psalm 126. The wisdom of the founders of Fergus reminds us that when we face difficult
times, we can always find hope in the psalm’s promise: “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.”
May you enjoy this novel, be inspired by it, and pass it on.
Mark Templin
September 2008
