The Icelandic Canadian - 01.06.1967, Page 27

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
25
native son Leif Eiriksson and his com-
panions had visited long before Chris-
topher Columbus made his first
voyage.
As their forefathers had done at the
end of the ninth century, the Icelandic
pioneers who came to Canada had no
sooner founded their New Iceland on
Lake Winnipeg than they set about
organizing their government, laws and
educational system. Also newspapers.
A devotion to literature and educa-
tion and to justice under law, and to
thrift and efficiency in all things, made
the Icelandic people happy and com-
fortable Canadians.
Those same qualities made it pos-
sible for them to make and continue to
make important contributions to Can-
adian life and progress.
It would be a pleasure to mention
some names of outstanding Icelandic
Canadians but I will content myself
with referring only to Eiriksson and
that Viking of a more modern day.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson, whose name
will forever be associated with develop-
ment of our Northern Arctic and who
was born near Gimli.
Stefansson’s name has been im-
mortalized and will be still further
honored as time goes by.
Meanwhile Eiriksson’s name and
deeds have been indelibly stamped on
the Canadian mind and permanently
set forth in a beautiful bronze plaque
in the auditorium-foyer of our new Na-
tional Library and Archives building
in Ottawa where all visitors will face an
account in English, French, and a fac-
simile of the actual saga in Icelandic
characters, telling of his voyages to the
new world.
That memorial was recently unveil-
ed through enterprise and efforts of
the Canadian (Icelandic) Centennial
Committee and will be a matter of
great interest and enlightenment for
generations to come.