Formidable Heritage - Manitoba's North and the Cost of Development 1870 to 1930

In a convincing conclusion, Mochoruk ties together the various themes that he has explored in detail throughout the book. He blames the monumental greed and shortsightedness of private developers and governments for the environmental and economic problems in the area. He argues that "Capital, be it represented by the monopoly mercantile capitalism of the HBC [Hudson's Bay Company] in the seventeenth century or by the industrial capitalism of the HBM&S [Hudson's Bay Mining and Smelting] in the twentieth, had always been able to convince political leaders to give it rights and privileges that superseded those of all others."3 Some reviewers have criticized Mochoruk for being ahistorical on this point. They have argued that Mochoruk judges historical actors by today's standards. I would argue that Mochoruk presents the past with great regard for the historical context that shaped the events that unfolded in this period. However, he does not shy away from claiming that the "cost of development" was extremely high and that it was the greed of the private developers and the complicity of various governments that created many of the economic and social problems that still trouble northern Manitoba. For this reason, Mochoruk's book is timely and relevant. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the socio-economic, constitutional, environmental, or political history of Manitoba.