Bluevale's Poet and Artist - Glimpses of the Past with Karen Webster

The little village of Bluevale was once the home of a young man by the name of Clayton Baxter Duff. His early life was likely similar to those of other boys his age, but, as he grew into manhood, the course of his life had an abrupt change.

 

Clayton was the second-youngest of the seven children of Robert Nelson Duff (who ran grist- and sawmills in Bluevale) and Annie Jane Elliott. From newspaper accounts, it is learned that he did well in his school studies and, in 1898, he was off to Toronto to attend a short course at a business college there. He secured employment at John Kerr’s general store in Wingham in 1899, but health problems soon began to plague him.

 

Even though Clayton was in and out of both the Listowel and Stratford hospitals for the rest of his life, he still took part in the life of his community. He was often in the public eye as part of the entertainment at social functions. One of these functions was a patriotic concert in March of 1900. 

 

This was the era of the Second Boer War (1899-1901). It was at this time that more that 7,000 Canadian volunteers served alongside British forces in Canada’s first major overseas military expedition. At the concert, Clayton, aged 16, led a drill executed by 12 youngsters. Some of the other items on the program were “Take the Muzzle off the Lion” and a lecture by a Mr. Wightman on the history of the Union Jack, which was Canada’s flag at that time. Another facet of Clayton’s abilities was musical talent, as was noted when he and his brother Donald played a violin duet at a community concert. 

 

Even though Clayton did not enjoy physical health, he did serve his community in many ways. The Christian Endeavour Society of the Presbyterian Church had him as the vice-president of the group. In addition, he was the corresponding secretary of the Literary Society of Bluevale.

 

However, it is because of his literary and artistic abilities that Clayton’s name and talents live on. One of his first accolades came from the Young People’s Corner of the Saturday Mail Empire newspaper, in which his fictitious young child’s letter won first prize. The Toronto Saturday Night paper published his sketch of a “robin who came too early” shivering in a late spring snow. 

 

A publication called East and West published a humorous essay of Clayton’s that detailed his first paying job: that of hoeing turnips in the summer for his schoolmaster. He was enticed into the venture by having it called a botany lesson. In fact, it did teach him how long a day in July could be and just how much space a 10-acre field could occupy. 

 

In 1915, he drew a series of sketches, which received wide distribution, promoting recruitment in the First World War. Before his death, Clayton was working on a series of critical articles on Canadian poets, but was unable to finish when his strength failed him.

 

Throughout his years of being an invalid, he was cared for by his older sister, Mary.

 

And in all those years, he found joy in some of the simpler things in life: birds, flowers and the friendship of the children of the village. In his obituary, it was stated “the little people gathered around his sick bed and brought to him their triumphs and their sorrows. Though he could not join them, he planned their games and amusements from his window…. He was an optimist, who despite years of ill health could look upon the world with a kindly smile.”

 

When Clayton passed away on April 24, 1918, he was just 34 years old. The doctor who signed his death certificate attributed the death to tubercular enteritis. This condition is caused by mycobacterium, and is a condition often contracted by swallowing infected sputum. Some people with tuberculosis suffer from this condition. His final resting place was in Bluevale cemetery.
The community sought to keep Clayton’s memory alive. The Bluevale School Fair awarded prizes in his name for students with the best in the flower classes and for artwork. In addition, his family presented silver communion plates to Bluevale United Church in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Duff and their sons William J. and Clayton B. Duff.

 

The following poem was one of many that were published in local and national publications. 

 

Thoughts of Home
 by Clayton Duff
“O ye, who hear our name in roaring cities
Or plant it on the prairies lone and wide.
What dream of this blue vale to you is dearest
When homeward turn your thoughts at eventide?

“And up and down home lights beam and beckon
Oh, should I wander far over land and sea
Those days of love would guide my roving spirit
And light me home, dear little town to thee.”

 

For a person who did not know Clayton’s story, it would appear that the writer was one who had travelled far and wide. Perhaps he did see all those places, but only in his imagination.