The Narrative Of John Wilson's Life

Sgt. John Wilson of the RNWMP abandons his family in Scotland only to find his past is not as easy to leave behind as sailing across the Atlantic Ocean. His past history of lies start to catch up to him and soon he finds himself on the wrong side of an interrogation. The secret lives of Sgt. John Wilson is a biography researched and written by Lois Simmie. What follows is an examination of the authors purpose for writing this biography, whether or not the purpose is worthwhile in regard to time and money spent by the author and reader, and whether her purpose for writing this biography is accomplished or not.
The author’s purpose in writing this biography is to record, “this fascinating piece of Saskatchewan history,” (p. 215). Furthermore she writes

it, “because [she] felt at home in it,” (p.

216). As a first generation Canadian Jack Wilson’s story of struggling to make a life in a distant land with its unexpected weather is a major part of Canadian history. Jack’s failed attempts at raising a tomato crop due to an unpredictable hailstorm is something many farmers still to this day know all too well. Jack’s battle with the Spanish flu and tuberculosis were frightening realities that took many lives before cures were discovered. Lois Simmie recounts the advertising and combat for citizens in the early days of Saskatchewan cities that captured Jack’s heart. Saskatoon was advertised as, “The Fastest Growing City in the World and The Eight-Year-Old Wonder of the British Empire” (p.12). John Wilson’s involvement in the RCMP varied from Lunatic Detail in Saskatchewan to undercover work in Vancouver. He then worked for the Military Police where he was offered the position

of chief inspector. However his success was short lived. John Wilson is, “the only member of the RNWMP, including the RCMP, to ever be tried and executed for a crime,” (p. 215). A member found guilty of murder. As the author writes the story memories pop up of her grandmother, who like Polly was a Scottish seamstress making the voyage over the Atlantic to an uncertain future (p. 216). The author while writing compares facts she uncovers with evening stories told so elegantly by her father of Saskatchewan and RCMP history he found so interesting (p. 216). The author’s purpose in writing this story was worthwhile.
The purpose is worthwhile not only for the time and money spent by the author but also by the reader. The author uncovers a wealth of information concerning her own heritage and the reader will be swept away by a story that rides like a rollercoaster. The author says she feels at home in the story and rightly so. Born and raised in small town Saskatchewan the backdrop of prairie wheat fields was Lois Simmie’s backyard. She feels a connection to Polly who had an upbringing much like that of Lois’ Grandmother. As she travels to Ottawa and Scotland she uncovers a wealth of information that could have easily been left in the dark. This information then goes into this true account of Saskatchewan and RCMP history, a history that like Lois says her-self, “had all the elements of an intriguing film,”(p.215). For the reader the first pages introduce a style of reading that chills the reader as a murder goes unnoticed by the chief inspector of the RCMP. Then a love story is introduced in stark contrast to the previous gloom. The reader is then taken on a rollercoaster ride of emotion, broken trust, and abuse of power. The reader gasps picturing a child’s heart being broken seeing his father abandon him, a husband blatantly lie to his wife, and an officer of the law dishonestly pocketing MSA fines during the Great War. The author’s purpose in writing this story was accomplished.
The author sets out to accurately record the story of John Wilson, a piece of history close to her heart. She accomplishes this with competence, elegance and descriptive language. For Lois, searching through the John Wilson files in Ottawa was a break as it held crucial information (p. 215). Letters discovered there give readers a clear example of the network of John’s lies, as well as the faith and love Polly maintains towards John, and the final hunt for Polly. Lois’ passion to visit Scotland provided a basis to write some of her creative work in that setting. Her description of the Windmill Brae and the Tinto Hill (p. 15) come from a personal knowledge of the terrain as she was there (pgs. 216-217). Readers run alongside RCMP investigators as they follows clues, question witnesses and search for Polly in case 6020, the investigation into Sgt John Wilson. Readers can feel the small town atmosphere through Lois’s description of the flow of gossip so prevalent to small town culture; “Aware of the other patrons’ interest in their conversation, they kept their voices low…‘people said that his wife died very conveniently for him,’” (p.132).
The secret lives of Sgt. John Wilson is a biography researched and written by Lois Simmie. The author’s purpose in writing this biography is to record, “this fascinating piece of Saskatchewan history,” (p. 215). Furthermore she writes it, “because [she] felt at home in it,” (p. 216). The purpose is worthwhile not only for the time and money spent by the author but also by the reader. The author uncovers a wealth of information concerning her own heritage and the reader will be swept away by a story that rides like a rollercoaster. The author sets out to accurately record the story of John Wilson, a piece of history close to her heart. She accomplishes this with competence, elegance and descriptive language.