A Cyclopaedia of Canadian Biography: Being Chiefly Men of the Time by Rose
1873. And Laval again, in 1878, presented him with the degree of LL.D.
17277 words | Chapter 51
He adopted law as a profession, and in September, 1873, he was called to
the bar of Quebec, and has ever since continued to practice as
barrister, etc., in the ancient capital. Previous to this time, he, from
1867 to 1869, held the positions of deputy-registrar,
deputy-prothonotary, deputy-clerk of the Circuit Court of the Crown and
of the Peace, for the county of Gaspé, conjointly with that of
secretary-treasurer of Percé municipality. He has been a professor of
Roman law in Laval University since 1874. From the 29th of October,
1879, to the 31st of July, 1882, he was commissioner of Crown Lands for
the province of Quebec; commissioner of Railways, from the 11th of
February, 1884, till July, 1885, and solicitor-general from 12th May,
1885, till the 20th of January, 1887. The Hon. Mr. Flynn was made a
Queen’s counsel in 1887. He has taken an active part in political
affairs for the past fourteen years, and has been a candidate at eight
different elections for Gaspé county. First in 1874, when he presented
himself as a candidate for a seat in the House of Commons at Ottawa, but
afterwards withdrew from the field when he was made a professor in Laval
University, considering it incompatible to hold both offices. Again in
1875 and 1877, for the Quebec legislature, when he was defeated after a
very severe contest, there being only small majorities against him,
especially in 1877. This election he contested, and unseated his
opponent; and the following year, on the 29th of April, he was elected
by acclamation. On his entering the Chapleau cabinet in the fall of
1879, as commissioner of Crown Lands, he was again elected by
acclamation. At the general election held in 1881, Mr. Flynn was once
more elected by acclamation. On his accepting office in the Ross cabinet
in 1884, which necessitated an appeal to the electorate, he was stoutly
opposed by Major John Slous, but he beat this gentleman by a majority of
988 votes. At the general election held in October, 1886, he once more
presented himself for election, and was returned by acclamation by his
old friends at Gaspé. The Hon. Mr. Flynn has always been in principle a
Liberal-Conservative. By his struggles in the county of Gaspé, he has
succeeded in securing for the electors complete freedom and independence
in the exercise of their franchise, which had been affected by the
interference of certain large commercial firms. In the legislature the
part played by Hon. Mr. Flynn has been most prominent as regards
constitutional questions in particular. He has won for himself the
well-deserved reputation of being a strong and energetic upholder of
constitutional liberty; in proof of this it will suffice to refer to his
noble and manly defence of the liberty of the press in the case of the
_Nouvelliste_, in 1885, and his most eloquent speech on the question of
Home Rule for Ireland, etc. His attention has been given to many other
subjects of importance, such as that of colonization, which he has
always and ever endeavoured to promote. He is the author of a homestead
law for the benefit of settlers. His administration of the crown lands
was marked with an increase in the revenue, increase in the value of
timber limits, mineral lands,—and by many useful rules and regulations,
calculated to promote colonization and the welfare of the many persons
in the province who are occupiers of crown lands. Many other important
measures were framed by him and carried through the legislature through
him, namely: The Quebec General Mining Act of 1880; several acts
concerning the crown lands, railways, the protection of forests, and
encouragement of planting of trees, etc. He has also always taken a most
lively interest in the question of the construction of a railway from
Metapedia, on the Intercolonial Railway to Paspébiac and Gaspé Basin.
Grants in land were secured in 1882, whilst he was commissioner of Crown
Lands, and the same were converted into money grants under his auspices
as commissioner of railways. He believes that in the construction of
this line rests the future welfare of the population of the Gaspé
peninsula. His travels have been always directed towards the acquisition
of a complete knowledge of Canada, and the different parts thereof. In
religion he is a Roman Catholic. He was married on the 11th May, 1875,
to Maria Mathilde Augustine, daughter of Augustin Coté, editor of _Le
Journal de Québec_, and niece to the late Hon. Joseph Cauchon,
heretofore lieutenant-governor of Manitoba, etc. He has had eight
children, of whom six are still living. He resides in Quebec city.
* * * * *
=Hanington, Hon. Daniel L.=, Q.C., M.P.P. for the county of
Westmoreland, residence, Dorchester, New Brunswick, was born at Shediac,
N.B., on the 27th June, 1835. His father, Colonel Hanington, was for
long years a member of the Assembly and Legislative Council of New
Brunswick; and his mother Margaret Peters, a daughter of William Peters,
a U. E. loyalist, who for years represented Queens county in the New
Brunswick legislature. Daniel, the subject of this sketch, received a
Grammar School and academic education at Shediac and Sackville, in his
native county. After leaving school he commenced the study of law with
Charles Fisher, attorney-general, of Fredericton, and finished with
Judge A. L. Palmer, of Dorchester; was called to the bar of New
Brunswick in 1861; and on the 11th November, 1881, was appointed a
Queen’s counsel. Mr. Hanington has been very successful in his
profession, and has a large practice in the courts of his native
province, and as counsel in Nova Scotia and in the Supreme Court of the
Dominion. From 1867 to 1870 he occupied the position of clerk of
circuits and clerk of the county court of Westmoreland, when he resigned
those offices to contest the election of that year, and was chosen to
represent the county of Westmoreland in the New Brunswick House of
Assembly. He sat therein until the summer of 1874, when on again
appealing for re-election, he was defeated on the “Bible and religious
instruction in the Common Schools” question, which he advocated.
However, he was again chosen at the general elections of 1878, 1882, and
1886, to represent his old constituency. In July, 1878, he was appointed
a member of the Executive Council; and on the 25th May, of the year
1882, he became premier. In February, 1883, he resigned office with his
colleagues. Mr. Hanington has always taken a deep interest in
educational matters, and for about seventeen years was a school trustee.
In politics he is a Liberal of the old New Brunswick school of
politicians; is a supporter of the Liberal-Conservative government at
Ottawa, and took an active part in the last Dominion election. He is an
adherent of the Episcopal church, which he represents in the Diocesan
and also the Provincial Synod. In October, 1861, Hon. Mr. Hanington was
married to Emily Myers, daughter of Thomas Robert Wetmore,
barrister-at-law, and judge of probate, Gagetown, N.B. The fruits of
this marriage have been seven children, three sons and four daughters.
* * * * *
=Mellish, John Thomas=, M.A., Halifax, Nova Scotia, was born at Pownal,
Prince Edward Island, on January 26th, 1841. He is the eldest son of the
late James Lewis Mellish, of the same place, and Margaret Sophia, his
wife, daughter of John Murray, formerly of Tullamore, Ireland; grandson
of Thomas Mellish, known in his day as “a most loyal British subject,
and a devoted adherent of the Church of England;” and great grandson of
Thomas Mellish, an officer of the British army, and member of an old and
highly respectable English family, who settled on Prince Edward Island
in 1770. Captain Mellish was for many years provost marshal or sheriff
of the island, collector of customs, and a member of the Legislative
Assembly. An interesting trial took place at Charlottetown, in the early
part of 1779, arising from his seizure of the convoy ship _Duchess of
Gordon_, for smuggling. He took an active interest in the defence of the
colony during the American war, and was on military duty, assisting in
raising troops at Halifax and Fort Cumberland, during the winter of
1779-80, returning to the island in the following spring. James Lewis
Mellish, the father of John Thomas Mellish, died on the 14th June, 1886,
in the seventy-ninth year of his age. His mother, a native of New York,
was a daughter of the late James Lewis Hayden, J.P., a loyalist, who
removed from Shelburne, N.S., to the island in 1785, having left New
York in 1783. A newspaper extract says: “We have to record the death of
one of our oldest and most highly respected citizens. James L. Mellish,
Esq., late of Pownal, departed this life on the 14th inst., at the
residence of his son, Stewiacke, N.S., whither he had gone a short time
before on a visit. His remains were brought home for interment. In his
death the community loses a most worthy and upright citizen. Energy,
strength and integrity were united in his character. From his youth up
he was a devoted and active member and office-holder of the Methodist
church. He spent his life for the most part on his farm at the place of
his birth. Mr. Mellish married, March 25th, 1840, Miss Margaret Sophia
Murray, a lady of strong mind and superior attainments, of whose
companionship he was deprived by death about ten years ago. Their
married life was blessed with ten children, each one of whom is to-day
occupying a position of usefulness and responsibility.” John Thomas
Mellish, the subject of our sketch, was educated at Prince of Wales
College, Charlottetown, and Mount Allison College, Sackville, New
Brunswick, and holds from the latter the degrees of B.A. and M.A. On the
opening of Cumberland County Academy, Amherst, Nova Scotia, in 1865, Mr.
Mellish, who had been teaching at Guysborough, was selected to fill the
position of head master, but resigned in 1870, in order to accept a
situation in Mount Allison College and Male Academy, and was head master
of this academy from 1871 to 1874. In the latter year, he was appointed
on his own terms to the principalship of Albro Street School, Halifax,
the largest school in the province. At the close of 1880, the strain of
constant school work on Mr. Mellish’s health compelled him to place his
resignation in the hands of the Halifax school commissioners, although
that body the year before had raised his salary for the third time, and
designated him to the position in the High School, vacated by the late
Dr. H. A. Bayne, on his appointment to the Royal Military College,
Kingston. Official records and reports testify to the great value of Mr.
Mellish’s services in the cause of education. The Superior School grant
was awarded to him when at Guysborough, his school being ranked as best
in the county. While in charge of the academy at Amherst, he prepared a
large number of students to matriculate in the different colleges, and a
still larger number to pass the examinations for teachers’ licenses,
from the academy or grade A license down. The last year he was at Mount
Allison, it was found necessary to add six additional dormitories, in
order to accommodate the increased number of boarders in the academy.
Mr. Mellish has in his possession not less than a dozen complimentary
addresses and quite a number of pieces of plate, books, &c., presented
to him by his pupils, on anniversary and other occasions. In the summer
of 1874, he made the tour of Great Britain and Ireland, and has since
delivered on many occasions a lecture entitled, “My Visit to Scotland.”
He frequently lectures on different subjects, and contributes to the
newspaper press; is the author of various papers and pamphlets on
educational and kindred topics, and of several papers on scientific
subjects, published in the Transactions of the Nova Scotia Institute of
Natural Science; is a member of the institute, and was associate
secretary with the Rev. D. Honeyman, D.C.L., in 1875-80; has been
president of the Teachers’ Institutes, at different places; is a
magistrate, and a local examiner of the University of London; was for
several years a vice-president of the Halifax Young Men’s Christian
Association; and is a lay preacher of the Methodist church. Mr. Mellish
married, July 18th, 1867, Martha Jane, only surviving daughter of the
late Benjamin Chappell, of Charlottetown. They have six children
living,—Arthur, Alfred Ernest, Mary Sophia, Anne Elizabeth, Martha
Louise, and Frances, and one, John Thomas, died in infancy. All the
children old enough are going to school. Arthur belongs to No. 3 Co.,
82nd battalion militia, and with his company was called out and ordered
to proceed to the front during the North-West rebellion. Every
preparation was made to start, but after the company had been in
barracks about a fortnight, the order was countermanded on account of
the capture of Riel. Mr. Mellish has four brothers and five sisters:
Rev. I. M. Mellish, Methodist minister, Nova Scotia conference, formerly
captain in reserve militia; H. Pope, farmer, Stewiacke; James Roland,
chief agent British American Book and Tract Society, Halifax; Humphrey,
mathematical master, Pictou Academy, B.A., of Dalhousie College,
matriculated with honours, first division in London University; Anne,
wife of J. L. Archibald, J.P., of Halifax; Catharine Douglas, wife of
Philip Large, Charlottetown; Mary (widow of the late A. N. Archibald, of
Halifax), chief preceptress Mount Allison Ladies’ College, Sackville,
New Brunswick; Martha Janet, and Margaret Elizabeth, unmarried.
* * * * *
=Moody, Rev. John Thomas Tidmarsh=, D.D., Rector of Yarmouth, Nova
Scotia. This deceased divine was born at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on the
25th of March, 1804. His father, John Moody, who was one of the earliest
merchants of Halifax, was born in New York, June 19th, 1779. His great
grandfather, John Moody, was born in London, and also his grandfather,
Thomas Moody, were loyalists. The family came to Nova Scotia about the
year 1783. His mother was Mary R. Tidmarsh, of Halifax. His parents were
married in 1800, and both lived to a great age, Mr. Moody to his 92nd
and Mrs. Moody to her 86th year. The Rev. Dr. Moody received his
education at King’s College, Windsor; took his B.A. degree in 1824; M.A.
in 1833, and had the degree of D.D. (hon.) conferred, at the Encœnia of
1883, only a few months before his death. He was ordained deacon by the
Rt. Rev. John Inglis, D.D., bishop of Nova Scotia, who also ordained him
priest in the following year. Immediately after his ordination as
deacon, he was appointed to the rectorship of Liverpool, N.S., where he
succeeded the Rev. W. Twining, the first rector, and had charge of this
parish for nearly twenty years. His work was largely of a missionary
character throughout the county of Queens; and he was also chairman of
the board of school commissioners during that time. Before leaving
Liverpool he had the satisfaction of seeing his parish church much
enlarged, two chapels and several school-houses erected in the rural
districts, and the communicants increased from 19 to 200. Rev. Dr.
Moody’s second appointment was that of rector of Yarmouth, in 1846. This
position he held to the time of his death, which took place, suddenly,
of apoplexy, on the morning of the 18th of October, 1883. During this
period he saw the number of communicants in his parish more than
trebled, and baptized, during his ministry of fifty-one years,
considerably over 2,000 persons. The present parish church, which bears
the name of Holy Trinity, was consecrated in 1872 by the late Rt. Rev.
Hibbert Binney, D.D., bishop of Nova Scotia. It is a very handsome brick
structure, in the early English period of architecture, and will seat
about 700 persons. There are also two handsome school-houses in this
parish. The church property is valued at about $40,000. One of the most
pleasing events of his later years was the celebration of his golden
wedding, on Tuesday, 14th of September, 1880. His surviving children
were all present on that occasion. His parishioners and other friends
took that opportunity of presenting him and his estimable wife with a
cordial address, accompanied with a valuable present, as a slight token
of their affectionate respect. We quote the following from his obituary
notice, which appeared in the Yarmouth _Herald_ of Oct. 25th, 1883:—
Surrounded by his sorrowing family, his sainted spirit passed
into the eternal sunlight before sickness had weakened his
frame, or age had dimmed his faculties. He died in the eightieth
year of his age, beloved and honored not merely in the church of
which, for thirty-seven years continuously, he had been pastor,
not in the wide family circle with which he was connected, but
universally wherever he was known, by people of all ages,
classes, and creeds. A well-rounded, complete, and in many
respects beautiful life had come to its close. Nothing was
lacking to the completion of his work. Dr. Moody was, in many
respects, a unique and singularly attractive character. As a
preacher his manner was expressive of sincerity of thought, love
for his people, and a deep desire to do good, which impressed
alike the thoughtless and the reverend. His discourses were
simple in outline, clear and unambiguous in expression, and
pervaded with the profoundest piety and love for souls. His
manner was singularly benignant and attractive, and his presence
amid scenes of sorrow and suffering was always effective and
consoling. His rendering of the noble ritual of the church has
ever been marked for its power and pathos, his voice being rich,
full, harmonious, and exquisitely modulated, without the least
appearance of study or affectation. There seemed very little
alloy of human passion in his humanity; the closer the
acquaintance the more complete, happy and more fully
satisfactory appeared the soul of the man as thus revealed to
the observer. He was firm in his adherence to the rules and
principles of his own communion, and conscientious to a degree,
in insisting upon their observance by all who sought his advice
or his sympathy, but he was broad in his sympathies and generous
in his charities, as well. Among all denominations he was
beloved and reverenced for his high-mindedness, his courtesy,
his unvarying avoidance of all unseemly controversies, and his
evident anxiety to promote affection and harmony among men of
all creeds. His manner was dignified, but winning; old and young
alike were attracted to him, recognizing instinctively, that he
was a Christian and a gentleman, and that his kindly interest in
them came from the sincere depths of a genuinely good nature.
He joined
Each office of the social hour
To noble manners, as the flower
And native growth of noble mind.
Dr. Moody was married on the 14th of September, 1830, to Sarah Bond,
eldest daughter of the late Henry G. Farish, M.D., of Yarmouth. His
widow survived him, but entered into her rest on the 20th of May, 1887,
universally beloved and revered. They had a family of nine children,
only four of whom; three daughters and one son, survive them. Their
eldest son, John T., rector of Tusket, N.S., died on the 4th of October,
1864, leaving a widow and three children. Their second son, Henry G.,
was a graduate of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of New York,
and died on the 30th of July, 1873, leaving a widow. James C., the only
surviving son, is a graduate of the University of New York, and is
engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery at Windsor, Nova Scotia.
* * * * *
=Crinion, Rev. James Eugene=, Pastor of the Roman Catholic Church,
Dunnville, Ontario, was born on the 13th of April, 1859, in the parish
of Slane, county of Meath, Ireland, and came to Canada in 1874. He
received his primary education in St. Finian’s Academy, Navan, Meath
county, Ireland, and continued his studies at St. Michael’s College,
Toronto, completing his theological course at the Grand Seminary, at
Montreal. The Rev. Father Crinion was the youngest of the thirteen
students brought over from Ireland in 1874, by the late Bishop Crinnon,
the year that right rev. prelate was consecrated bishop. After leaving
Montreal, Mr. Crinion went to Hamilton, and was ordained a priest by
Bishop Crinnon on the 30th June, 1881, in St. Mary’s Cathedral, who then
appointed him assistant priest of the parish of Arthur, Wellington
county, Ontario. In this charge he remained two years, and then
revisited the scenes of his youth, in Ireland. On his return to Canada,
he was appointed curate of St. Basil’s Church, Brantford. From this
place, on the 8th September, 1886, he was transferred to Dunnville, and
made first resident pastor of that parish. Here he has done good work,
and succeeded in erecting a handsome new church, which is a credit to
him and his congregation, and an ornament to the village. Its foundation
or corner stone was blessed and laid on July 1st, 1886, by the Right
Rev. Dr. Carbary. The style of architecture is Italian. The building
consists of a nave seventy feet long by thirty-five feet wide, with
chancel eighteen feet deep by twenty-one feet wide, having on the east
side a beautiful Lady chapel, and on the west side a commodious
sacristy. The chancel arch is ornamented with pilasters, surmounted by a
rich classic moulding. The Lady chapel and entrance to sacristy have a
similar finish. The ceiling is covered with rich mouldings. Over the
front entrance is a good-sized gallery, calculated to accommodate over
one hundred persons, and exquisitely finished in front. The high altar,
the gift of Bishop Carbary to the church, is a splendid specimen of
classic design which adds a grace and beauty to the entire structure. It
consists of the altar proper, with super altar and tabernacle. The
reredos presents a large ope, with circular top, for picture of the
crucifixion. It is supported by two Corinthian pilasters, with
richly-carved capitals, supporting a frieze and entablature. On the
frieze is the inscription, “Gloria in excelsis Deo,” and in the pediment
of entablature is a dove, emblem of the Holy Ghost, surrounded by rays.
Then the entire altar is surmounted by a floriated cross. The altar was
painted by Mr. James, of Dunnville, in a flat white, with the carvings
and enrichments richly gilded. The work was executed by Cruickshank, of
Hamilton, and reflects great credit on the skill and taste of the
artificers. The pews, designed by R. Clohecy, the architect of the
building, were made by Messrs. Bennett, of London, and finished in their
usual careful manner. The entire appearance of the interior of this
church has a finished and pleasing effect. The front of the church has a
large circular window, with smaller windows at each side, and a great
door for principal entrance. On the east angle of the front is a
beautiful campanile rising to the height of seventy feet. In this
companile, or tower, is another entrance to the church for winter use.
It also contains a solid stairway to the gallery. The sides of the
church are pierced with windows, filled with ornamental glass. Between
the windows are buttresses, which give an air of strength and
massiveness to the structure. The greatest credit is due to the
accomplished architect, R. Clohecy, who has thus given a solid proof of
his high culture and good taste, and has produced a monumental work for
the good catholics of Dunnville mission. The entire cost is about
$8,000. The building was taken up by Father Crinion in September, 1885.
The care and watchfulness he bestowed on the work is now amply rewarded
by having one of the most beautiful churches of its size in the province
of Ontario in which to administer to the spiritual wants of his faithful
and devoted people. A new presbytery is now in course of construction,
which will be ready for occupation during the winter of 1888.
* * * * *
=King, Edwin David=, M.A., Q.C., Barrister, Halifax, was born at Onslow,
Colchester county, Nova Scotia, on the 26th of December, 1841. His
father, John King, was a Scotchman by birth and parentage, and, on his
mother’s side, was first cousin of the distinguished Scotch philosopher,
Thomas Carlyle. When an infant, he removed with his parents to Nova
Scotia, where he continued to reside until his death in June, 1887, in
the eighty-second year of his age. For a long period he had been an
active justice of the peace, having at one time, for some ten years,
filled the office of stipendiary magistrate, for the town of Truro,
where he resided at the time of his decease. In November, 1828, he
married Sarah Ann, only daughter of the late Nathaniel Marsters, of
Onslow, and the mother of the subject of our sketch. She is still living
at Truro. Mr. Marsters was a loyalist of English descent, and with his
parents removed to Nova Scotia at the time of the rebellion of the New
England colonies. He represented the township of Onslow for some years
in the House of Assembly of Nova Scotia. Edwin David King early
manifested a fondness for study, and could read very well (so we have
been told) when four years of age. He attended such schools as Onslow
provided, until the summer of the year 1856, when, being in feeble
health, he was sent to be a clerk in a store at Antigonish, with the
promise, however, that if at the end of two years his health improved,
and he still desired it, he should receive a legal education. He
accordingly left Antigonish in 1858, and took the high school course at
the Provincial Model School, Truro. Subsequently he studied at Acadia
College, Wolfville, where, in 1863, he graduated, taking the B.A. degree
in course, and in 1866, on submitting a thesis, he received the degree
of M.A. In September, 1863, he entered upon the study of the law, and
removed to Wallace, Nova Scotia, where he was articled as a law student
with Henry Oldright, barrister. He studied with Mr. Oldright two years,
during which time having acquired a knowledge of phonography, he spent
the winters in Halifax, as assistant reporter to the Legislative
Council, Mr. Oldright being the official phonographic reporter for that
body. In 1865, his articles of clerkship were transferred to James Royer
Smith, Q.C., an English barrister, registrar of the Court of
Vice-Admiralty, and practising at Halifax. He was admitted to the bar of
Nova Scotia in December, 1867, since which time he has practised his
profession at Halifax, and has also been a member of the Barristers’
Society, of Nova Scotia. He is now the senior member of the firm of King
& Barss—W. L. Barss, LL.B. (Harvard), having been admitted a partner
with him in January, 1877. In October, 1875, he visited Bermuda, on a
special retainer, as leading counsel for defendant in the celebrated
burial case of James _vs._ Cassidy. (This was an action of trespass
brought by Rev. Mr. James, rector of the parish of Hamilton, against
Rev. John Cassidy, then pastor of the Methodist Church there, for
reading the Methodist burial service, and officiating at the burial of
one of his own congregation, in the parish church yard, and, at the
time, was the occasion of intense excitement throughout the island). In
1884, he was called within the bar, and received letters patent,
appointing him a Queen’s counsel. Since 1875, he has been retained as
counsel in many important cases growing out of the Liverpool Bank
failure; insurances cases; actions involving the title to the
Shubenacadie Canal, etc. He has a large practice in the Supreme and
County Courts of Nova Scotia. Mr. King became actively associated with
the Nova Scotia militia in 1863, and in 1864 was commissioned as
adjutant of the 4th Cumberland regiment, with the rank of captain. On
removing to Halifax in 1865, he took command of a company in the 11th
Halifax regiment, and remained actively connected with that corps until
the re-organization of the militia, under the Dominion statutes and
regulations. He is a member of the Senate of the University of Acadia,
having been elected in 1882, and he is also a governor of Acadia
College, to which position he was elected in 1883. In 1876, he was
appointed one of the directors of the Halifax School for the Blind, and
held the office for one year. In 1872, the Halifax School Association
for promoting the efficiency of the public schools was formed, and he
was its first secretary, occupying that office for three years. He has
always been a total abstainer from alcoholic drinks, having joined the
cold water army when a child. In 1863, he first became a member of the
order of Sons of Temperance, and in 1865, was initiated into the Grand
Division of Nova Scotia. For some time past he has, however, ceased to
be an active member of this organization, owing to the pressure of other
duties. He is a prominent member of the Halifax Young Men’s Christian
Association, and is one of the six trustees in whom its property is
vested, having been first elected to that office in 1875. He has also
been a member of its executive committee for many years. In 1871, the
Sunday School Association of the Maritime provinces was formed, and he
has ever since been an active promoter of that work, and has thrice
filled the office of president of the association. He was also chairman
of its executive committee from 1872 until 1885, when separate
associations for the several provinces were organized. Since 1885, he
has been chairman of the executive committee of the Sunday School
Association of Nova Scotia. He is a Liberal-Conservative in politics,
and helped to kill repeal in February, 1887. He takes an active part in
elections, both Dominion and local. On the college question he is
opposed to “consolidation,” and in favour of placing higher education
outside the pale of state support or control. He believes that the
smaller, fairly well equipped colleges in our country, managed and
sustained by denominations or other independent agencies, can better
secure the guards and checks, and afford facilities for the mental,
moral, and Christian culture, demanded of the youth of our country. On
several occasions he has publicly supported these views. He is a
Baptist, as were his parents. He united with the Baptist Church at
Wolfville, in 1861, and since 1868, he has been a member of the first
Baptist Church in Halifax. He is one of its deacons, superintendent of
its Sunday school, and chairman of its finance committee. On the 6th of
February, 1869, he was married to Minnie S., eldest daughter of John W.
Barss, who is a banker and justice of the peace, residing at Wolfville,
Nova Scotia. This gentleman is well known in the Maritime provinces, by
his generous benefactions for benevolent purposes. Acadia College,
Wolfville, has been, perhaps, foremost among the objects of his bounty,
having received donations from him amounting in the aggregate to $10,000
and upwards. Mrs. King, who is a native of Halifax, received her
education there and at the Ladies’ Seminary, Warren, Rhode Island,
United States. They have no children of their own, but have adopted as
their daughter, a niece of Mrs. King’s, who lives with them at Halifax.
* * * * *
=Antliff, Rev. J. Cooper=, M.A., D.D., Montreal, was born at
Huddersfield, England, on the 1st February, 1844. He is the eldest son
of the late Rev. W. Antliff, D.D., who for fifty years enjoyed the
distinction of being one of the bright and shining lights of Methodism
in England. In 1862 he was made editor of the _Connexional Magazine_,
and for five successive years held that post; he was then called to take
charge of the Theological Institute opened at Sunderland, and for
thirteen years he acted as its principal. Rev. Dr. W. Antliff, we may
here add, held during his lifetime nearly all the positions of honour in
the power of his denomination to bestow. He was a forcible and effective
preacher, possessed of great natural force of character, of unbending
integrity, good literary ability, and possessed of administrative
talents of a high order. The Rev. J. Cooper Antliff, the subject of our
sketch, received his educational training in Haslingden Wesleyan School,
and at Edinburgh University. When only eighteen years of age he became
his father’s colleague to whose counsel and example he owes much of the
success that has so far attended his life work. After spending sixteen
years in the ministry in the British conference, in 1878 he was sent out
from England to take charge of the Primitive Methodist Church, Carlton
street, Toronto, for five years, when according to the arrangement of
the Conference he was to return to England. But owing to the union of
the Methodist bodies in Canada in 1883, he abandoned his home-going, and
was appointed to the office of secretary of the General Conference by
the united bodies, and thereby became custodian of the public documents
of the church and keeper of its records, an honour that has been highly
appreciated by his numerous friends. After a ministry of six years in
the Carlton street church, Dr. Antliff removed to Montreal to take
charge of the Methodist Church on Dominion square, where he is now doing
good work for the Master. While in Toronto he took part in every social
and moral reform, and was generally a favourite among all who had the
good of humanity at heart. For four years, from 1879 to 1883, he was
editor of the _Christian Journal_, the denominational paper of the
Primitive Methodist church in Canada. He was one of the founders of the
Ministerial Association, and was its secretary for two years, and
afterwards its president for one year. He had the degrees of M.A. and
B.D. in course conferred upon him by the University of Edinburgh, and in
1887 Victoria University conferred upon him the honorary degree of D.D.
He is a member of the Board of Regents of Victoria University, and of
the Senate of the Wesleyan Theological College at Montreal; and is also
a member of the court of appeal of the Methodist church, which consists
of six clergymen and six laymen. The Rev. Dr. Antliff is possessed of
good natural abilities, and has a highly cultivated mind, brimful of
knowledge. As a preacher and a lecturer he is highly popular, being
blessed with good oratorical powers, and a voice both sweet and
powerful. Matter, however, is of greater importance than even voice, and
of this he has an abundance. It is varied in character, being both
secular and sacred, ancient and modern, scientific and scriptural, and
he deals it out with no sparing hand. The style of his sermon varies: he
can handle a subject well, either textually or topically, while as an
expository preacher—perhaps partly the result of his five years
residence in Scotland—he shines with considerable lustre. His platform
utterances are generally excellent, and at times powerful, especially
when dealing with the cause of temperance. In politics he advocates
Liberal measures; but owing to his ministerial duties he does not give
prominence to his political views. Dr. Antliff has been twice married;
first, in Derby, England, to Fanny Holden, daughter of John Holden, of
Dalbury Lees, Derby. She died in Toronto in February, 1880, leaving
three children, two boys and a girl. Second, in Toronto, 1882, to Mrs.
Ray, widow of Dr. Ray, and daughter of the Rev. E. Gooderham.
* * * * *
=Robinson, Samuel Skiffington=, Barrister, Orillia, Ontario, was born in
the city of Montreal, Quebec province, on the 6th January, 1845. His
father, Arthur Guinness Robinson, was a civil engineer, and
superintended the works on the Lachine Canal, at Montreal, when they
were first being constructed. His mother was Mary Mulock. His uncle,
Charles J. Robinson, is now county judge for Lambton county. The mother
of the Hon. Edward Blake and the widow of the late Judge Connor were
half-sisters of Arthur G. Robinson. The grandfather of the subject of
our sketch, Samuel Robinson, M.D., belonged to Dublin, Ireland, and in
July, 1832—along with his son Arthur G.; William Hume Blake, his wife,
mother and sisters, and his brother, Rev. D. E. Blake; the late
Archdeacon Brough, who had married Miss W. Blake; the late Justice
Connor; and the late Rev. Mr. Palmer, archdeacon of Huron—sailed for
Canada. The vessel which they had chartered for the voyage—the _Ann_,
of Halifax—had scarcely been at sea three days when one of the crew was
seized with cholera and died, and the body before morning was thrown
overboard. In consequence of this untoward circumstance, the party felt
inclined to return to Ireland, but owing to the sanitary measures
adopted by Dr. Robinson the plague was stayed. After a voyage of seven
weeks they reached the St. Lawrence, and found that cholera had become
epidemic in Canada. They were subjected to a short quarantine at Grosse
Isle, and were then permitted to pursue their journey to Toronto (Little
York), where they remained about six weeks, and here the party
separated. Mr. Brough went to Oro, on Lake Simcoe, Dr. Skiffington
Connor to Marchmont village, Orillia township, and the Blakes to the
township of Adelaide, of which the Rev. D. E. Blake had been appointed
rector by Sir John Colborne, the then governor of the province. Dr.
Robinson returned to Ireland, taking his son Arthur G. with him, who,
the following season, returned with his brother Charles (now county
judge of Lambton), and settled in Orillia township, Charles going
farther west. Samuel Skiffington Robinson received his education in
Upper Canada College, from which he graduated; and having adopted the
law as a profession, he entered the office of Blake, Kerr, Lash &
Cassels, in Toronto, where he remained until he was called to the bar.
He shortly afterwards moved to the beautifully-situated town of Orillia,
which he has had the satisfaction of seeing rise from a backwoods
village to a thriving town of four thousand inhabitants. He has
succeeded well in his profession, and is at present solicitor for the
Dominion Bank agency there, and holds several other important positions.
Mr. Robinson has not entirely confined himself to his professional
duties, and as a consequence his fellow citizens have honoured him by
electing him mayor of the town, which position (1887) he now occupies.
He held the office of churchwarden in the St. James Episcopal Church of
Orillia, for a number of years; and for several years was president of
the Reform Association. He, too, has devoted some attention to the
militia, and holds an ensign’s commission in the Simcoe battalion. In
politics Mr. Robinson is a Liberal; and in religion is an adherent of
the Episcopal church. On the 13th December, 1871, he was married to
Elizabeth Millar. Mrs. Robinson’s brother, Melville Millar, was the
first mayor of Orillia, which position he held for several terms.
* * * * *
=Baillairgé, Louis de Gonzague=, Queen’s Counsellor and
Chevalier-Commandeur of the Illustrious Order of St. Gregory the Great,
is a son of the late Pierre Florent, city treasurer of Quebec under the
magistrates, and of Marie Louise Cureux de Saint-Germain, daughter of
the late Antoine Cureux de Saint-Germain, captain of transatlantic
mercantile vessels. This pious and venerable lady, whose mortal remains
rest beneath the vaults of the Basilica, died at Quebec, at the advanced
age of ninety, on the 16th of July, 1859. Pierre Florent, her husband,
was one of the writers of the _Canadien_, wherein he published some
satirical articles in verse, although he was not a poet, against the
administration of Sir James Craig, the governor-general, who on that
occasion ordered the seizure of the type and entire plant of the
printing office, on the 17th March, 1810. His excellency, at the same
time, issued an order to arrest him, together with his friends, Judge
Bédard and Lefrançois, who were both imprisoned. Florent, however,
escaped imprisonment through the influence of one of his friends, Mr.
Young, a magistrate. L. G. Baillairgé now occupies the building, the
door of which was burst open by a squad of soldiers armed with rifles
and fixed bayonets, under command of Capt. Thos. Allison, of the 5th
regiment of infantry, who was also a justice of the peace, where they
seized the _Canadien_ printing office, machinery and papers. Mr.
Baillairgé is the grandson of Jean Baillairgé, architect and engineer,
who was born at Saint-Antoine de Villaret, Poitou, France, on the 30th
of October, 1726, and emigrated, in 1748, to Quebec, Canada, where he
acted as assistant to Viscount de Léry for the construction of the city
gates connected with the fortifications which still surround it. He
fought in the battle of the Plains of Abraham, on the 13th September,
1759, and served in the army during the blockade of Quebec in 1775-76 by
Montgomery and Arnold. He and his son François, who had studied
painting, architecture, and statuary at the Royal Academy of Paris, are
the artists who decorated the interior of the Basilica, and designed and
executed the “baldaquin” which surmounts the main altar of the
sanctuary, and is so much admired. Six of the twelve surrounding statues
were sculptured by them; those of Saint-Ambroise and Saint-Augustin, in
the lateral chapel of Sainte-Anne, were executed by Thomas, the son of
François, who also sculptured the basso-relievo representing the Supper
of Emmaus, on the front of the central altar in the church of
Sainte-Anne de la Pocatière, respecting which he was highly
congratulated by Lord Dalhousie, who took great interest in works of
art. The statues of Saint-Louis, king of France, and Saint-Flavien, on
either side of the principal altar of the Quebec Basilica, and the two
others in the lateral chapel of Sainte-Famille, were executed by artists
in France. These specimens of Canadian and European art are such that
even the experienced eye of a keen observer can with difficulty decide
which of them displays the greatest artistic skill. François
Baillairgé’s studio and workshop were in the building now occupied as a
livery stable, on St. Louis street, by Mr. Driscoll. Prince Edward, Duke
of Kent, father of Queen Victoria, paid frequent visits to the artist in
this studio, and gave him orders for the execution of various artistic
works, as a proof of his appreciation of his ability, and in order to
give him all the encouragement he could. He also induced him to organize
a club of young men to give theatrical performances, and afterwards
invited them to play a comedy in the casemated barracks of the citadel
near St. Louis gate. Jean Baillairgé, his son François, and Thomas, the
son of the latter, may be justly considered as the fathers of Canadian
architecture, sculpture and statuary. Louis de Gonzague Baillairgé, the
subject of our sketch, is the uncle of George Frederick, deputy minister
of Public Works of Canada, and of Charles, the city engineer of Quebec,
chevalier of the order of Saint-Sauveur de Monte Reale, in Italy. He
completed his classical course of studies in 1830, at the Seminary of
Quebec, and afterwards studied law under the Hon. Philippe Panet. When
the latter was appointed judge, he continued his legal course under the
Hon. R. E. Caron, and was admitted to practice at the bar on the 12th
October, 1835. In 1844 he became the partner of the latter, who was then
the mayor of the city of Quebec, and was later on appointed as successor
to Sir Narcisse Belleau, as lieutenant-governor of the province of
Quebec. In 1850 Mr. Baillairgé was appointed, together with Mr. Caron,
his associate, as joint attorneys of the corporation of Quebec. In 1853,
on his partner being appointed one of the judges of the Court of Queen’s
Bench, the partnership was dissolved, and the entire practice of the
firm, one of the most extensive of the bar of Quebec, remained with him.
He continued to act for the corporation of the city until the 22nd of
February, 1861, when the council passed a resolution containing the
following:—“That L. G. Baillairgé, attorney of the corporation, having
efficiently contributed to the economical administration of justice by
means of his legal advice, laborious application and praiseworthy
disinterestedness, and having also by means of his persevering energy,
ensured the collection of considerable sums of money which the city
would have lost by the extinction of its mortgages if he had not acted
in such energetic manner; he is entitled to the respect of this council,
and to the confidence of the public.” Pursuant to this resolution, Mr.
Baillairgé was nominated sole attorney and legal adviser of the
corporation, in which capacity he continued to act until the 9th of
October, 1885. He then requested the city council to grant him an
associate for the transaction of city affairs, in the person of the Hon.
A. P. Pelletier, of whom he was the patron, and who practised as a
lawyer in his office for more than twenty years. The city council
readily assented to this proposal, and accordingly passed the following
resolution on the same day:—“That this council, taking into
consideration the letter of L. G. Baillairgé, Q.C., most willingly
avails itself of the opportunity to express its high appreciation and
its gratitude for the eminent professional services rendered by Mr.
Baillairgé to the city of Quebec during so many years, for the honour
and advantage of the city, and accedes with pleasure to Mr. Baillairgé’s
request.” In 1885, the government having decided to appoint assistant
judges for the Superior Court during the existence of the Seignorial
Court, offered him one of the appointments. In 1856, the government
tendered him the recordership of the city of Quebec, which had been
created, for the first time, by the Act 19, 20 Vict., chap. 106. In
1860, when Chief Justice Bowen retired from the bench, he was invited to
replace him during the time of his retirement. In 1860-61, he was called
upon to fill the seat rendered vacant in the Superior Court by the death
of Judge Power on 1st July, 1860. However lucrative and honorary these
appointments might be, he declined accepting any of them; their value,
in his estimation, could not, he thought, compensate him for the loss of
his personal independence. In 1863, he was appointed Queen’s counsellor,
under the Dorion administration. In 1873 he became _bâtonnier_ of the
bar of Quebec, and was considered as one of its most trustworthy and
distinguished members and one of its most eloquent orators. In 1882 he
conceived the noble and philanthropic idea of getting a church or
missionary’s chapel constructed in each of the five parts of the world,
under the name of one of the members of his family, together with a
Canadian oratory, under the name of his patron saint. These churches are
either completed or in course of construction, one of them being in
Southern and the other in Equatorial Africa. The one erected at the
southern end of lake Victoria, Nianza, is named, “St. Pierre de
Bukumbi,” and is the first church which has been constructed of stone,
in the centre of Africa. The journal of _Les Missions Catholiques_
contains the following, in regard to this church: Monseigneur Livinhac,
vicar apostolic of Nianza, has selected this church for his cathedral,
and blessed it accordingly, on All Saints day, in 1886. It excites the
admiration of the natives, who come from afar in great numbers to
examine it, and afterwards return to their homes to speak of the
marvellous temple they have seen. They all say that they never saw such
a wonderful edifice, it being the first architectural structure ever
erected in these regions, in honour of the Divinity. Another of these
churches is in course of construction in the province of Nouba, in
Central Africa, as agreed upon with Cardinal Sagaro, through the
Reverend Father Bouchard, who accompanied the Canadian contingent of
Voyageurs to the Nile; and another has been constructed at Rapid Creek,
near Palmerston, in the Pacific Ocean. As regards the oratory at
Jerusalem, Mr. Baillairgé has not yet succeeded in obtaining the
requisite “firman,” permitting its construction from the Turkish
government. Objections have been made, but hopes are entertained that
they will be finally overcome. Mr. Baillairgé is one of the members and
founders of the National Society of Saint-Jean Baptiste of Quebec. He
succeeded Sir Narcisse Belleau as “Commissaire Ordonnateur” of the
society, and afterwards was elected as its president, in which
capacities he acted during a term of fifteen years, until 1859, when he
resigned on account of the pressure of professional duties, but remained
a member of the society. During this long period, Mr. Baillairgé spared
no efforts to establish the society on a solid and lasting basis, and to
establish and strengthen its connection with the other national
societies of the city. He was also one of the founders of the “Institut
Canadien,” whose _début_ was so humble in its origin, but which is now
flourishing, and may at present be considered as the focus of learning
and of the national aspirations of Canadian youth. In 1873, he was
chosen as one of its honorary presidents. He is one of those who first
conceived the idea of collecting and afterwards depositing, in June,
1854, in one grave, the scattered remains of the brave warriors of the
78th Highlanders, and of the French “Grenadiers de la Reine,” who were
slain during the battle, on the heights of Ste. Foye, between Generals
Lévis and Murray. To his exertions and those of his friend, Dr.
Robitaille, we are chiefly indebted for the construction of the
monument, “Aux braves de 1760, érigé par la Société St. Jean-Baptiste de
Quebec, 1860,” which now stands over the graves, in order to commemorate
the victory won by the French, on the 28th of April, 1760, six months
after the battle of the Plains of Abraham. The solemnity of the
proceedings, on this occasion, was never surpassed, except during the
official reception of Cardinal Taschereau. The event was witnessed by
about 12,000 persons. The British military authorities graciously
assented to all the requests of the St. Jean-Baptiste Society, in
connection with the inauguration of this monument, and furnished two
regiments of the line with a company of artillery and its guns, who
placed themselves next to a detachment of the French navy from the
Imperial corvette _La Capricieuse_, then visiting Quebec. The monument
consists of a bronzed iron column, resting on a pedestal of masonry,
surmounted by a bronze statue of Bellona, which was donated to the
Society of St. Jean-Baptiste by Prince Napoleon Bonaparte. The name of
“Murray,” with the arms of Great Britain, is inscribed on the side
opposite the city, and that of “Lévis,” with the arms of France, on the
opposite side of the pedestal. The inscription, “Aux braves de 1760,
érigé par la Société St. Jean-Baptiste de Québec, 1860,” with its
surrounding laurel wreath, is upon the face fronting the Ste. Foye road;
on the opposite side, facing the Laurentides, there is a _bas-relief_
representing the windmill, one of the most contested points of the
battle-field; a bronze mortar rests on each corner of the pedestal.
Before the departure of Prince Napoleon from Quebec, Mr. Baillairgé met
his friend, Dr. Bardy, ex-president of the society, who requested him on
behalf of the society to visit the Prince at the Russell Hotel, and to
request him to grant a statue for the crowning of the monument. The
Prince, after conferring with Baron Gauldrée de Boileau, graciously
assented to the request. The design of the monument, which is about 90
feet in height, was made by Chevalier Charles Baillairgé, the city
engineer. The country is indebted to Mr. Baillairgé for the possession
of the “Standard of Carillon.” This ancient relic of the past, whenever
it appears in the ranks of the procession of St. Jean-Baptiste, awakens
the memories of the valiant deeds of their forefathers during the
memorable day of the 8th July, 1758. He searched, during more than ten
years, with incredible perseverance, for this old standard, and finally
succeeded in finding it in the abode of an old friend of his family,
Frère Louis Bonami, of the order of Saint François d’Assize, at Quebec,
beneath a mass of old articles half reduced to dust by decay, at the
bottom of an old trunk. Father Berry, superior of the Recollets at
Quebec, was one of the almoners of the army of Carillon under Montcalm.
After the campaign of 1758 he took charge of the standard, and brought
it back to Quebec, where it was suspended to the vault of the Recollet
Church, and remained there until the church was destroyed by fire on the
6th of September, 1796. Frère Bonami and another rushed into the church
to save what articles they could, threw them into a trunk, and were
hurrying out with them at the moment when the standard dropped near
their feet, from the vault of the nave, and, picking it up, also threw
it into the trunk, which he carried off, with his companion, to a place
of safety, and afterwards sent it to his dwelling, where it was found by
Mr. Baillairgé, after a lapse of more than half a century. (See _Revue
Canadienne_ of 1882, vol. II., page 129). On various occasions, and
especially in 1857, he was invited to present himself as a candidate to
parliament for Quebec, but always declined the proffered honour. He was
one of the founders of the _Courrier du Canada_, at Quebec, and helped
it out of numerous difficulties which generally attend the establishment
of a new journal. The _Courrier_ has been in existence ever since, and
will, it is hoped, continue to prosper for many years hereafter. In 1863
he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the 2nd battalion of the militia
of Quebec, under Lord Elgin. On the 24th of February, 1885, Mr.
Baillairgé founded a chair of sacred and profane eloquence in connection
with the faculty of arts of the Laval University at Quebec, known as “La
Chaire Baillairgé.” On the 26th of July, 1886, his Holiness the Pope Leo
XIII., addressed an autograph letter to his Eminence Cardinal Archbishop
Taschereau, respecting the newly founded professorship, which contains
the following:
We have learned with great pleasure that we are indebted to the
generosity of a distinguished advocate of Quebec, Mr.
Baillairgé, for a new chair, which has been created in addition
to the chairs already existing in the Laval University, over
which you preside as Apostolic Chancellor. We are greatly
rejoiced on account of this new endowment, the object of which
is to benefit studious young men who wish to perfect themselves
in literature and eloquence.
Our beloved son, whom we have already named, has thus, in our
estimation, not only contributed to the development of arts and
letters in his native land, but he has also erected a lasting
monument in his own honour, and is worthy of the praise of his
contemporaries and of the commendation of posterity.
The distance which separates us, prevents us from expressing
personally to the illustrious founder, our feelings of paternal
affection and our ardent desire that he may receive from God the
ample reward due to his worthy deed. We, therefore, request you
to do so in our name.
His Eminence Cardinal Taschereau accordingly addressed the following
letter to Mr. Baillairgé, on the 21st of August, 1886:
SIR,—You will receive herewith the Latin text and French
translation of the letter I have just received:
His Holiness the Pope Leo XIII., wishing to give unto the Laval
University a proof of the interest he feels in this institution,
bestows his praise on the chair of eloquence which you have so
generously founded, and commends your action as an example to be
followed by those who desire to make a noble use of their
fortune. A monument of marble is an object of interest only to a
few, and any interest which may be attached to it, seldom lasts
beyond one generation. The founder of a work such as yours, sir,
will be known and loved by all those whom it will benefit
directly or indirectly, until the end of time.
The deep interest I take in the Laval University and in the
education of the youth of our native country, will enable you,
sir, to estimate the vivacity and sincerity of the gratefulness
with which I have the honour to subscribe myself,
Your very devoted servant,
E. A., CARDINAL TASCHEREAU,
_Archbishop of Quebec._
To L. G. Baillairgé, Esq., Advocate.
The Hon. Mr. Fabre, who published this letter in the _Paris-Canada_, a
newspaper which is printed at Paris, adds:
Mr. Baillairgé belongs to one of the most genuine French
families of Canada. The high distinction by which he has just
been honoured is the worthy reward of his generous act, and an
acknowledgement of the exalted sentiments by which he has been
guided.
Cardinal Taschereau’s letter was followed by his “Pastoral Letter” of
the 8th of December, 1886, respecting the Laval University, and alluding
to the chair founded in that institution by Mr. Baillairgé. On the 18th
of May, 1887, his Holiness the Pope Leo XIII., nominates Mr. Baillairgé
“Chevalier-Commandeur of the illustrious order of St. Gregory the
Great,” by Apostolical Letters-patent of the same date. These
Letters-patent were presented by order of his Eminence Cardinal
Taschereau to Mr. Baillairgé, by Monseigneur Légaré, the Grand Vicaire,
and by Monseigneur Marois, secretary of his eminence, acting as his
special delegates on this occasion. His Eminence Cardinal Simeoni, chief
of the Propaganda, is said to have contributed to this nomination. The
uniform and insignia of a Chevalier-Commandeur is as
follows:—Uniform—A dark blue, long-tailed dress-coat, with silver
embroidery of laurel leaves, and silver buttons on the front; collar,
facings, and the lower portion on the back, also embroidered with
silver; long white chamois pantaloons, with a silver band on the sides;
small black boots; black cocked hat with short black spiral plumes and
silver clasp. INSIGNIA:—Maltese cross of gold with a circular medallion
at the centre, containing the miniature of Gregory the Great;
gold-hilted sword at the side, etc. In 1887 a statue of the Saviour was
presented by Mr. Baillairgé to the Grey Nuns of Quebec. It was blessed
by his Eminence Cardinal Taschereau, and placed on the summit of the
tower above the main entrance of the Grey Nuns’ Church, on the 18th of
September of the same year. The statue is about fifteen feet in height,
is plated on the outside with gilded sheet lead, and weighs about 4,000
lbs. It was sculptured by Mr. Jobin, an artist of the old capital.
* * * * *
=Dionne, Narcisse Eutrope=, S.B., M.D., Quebec, Co-Editor of _Le
Courrier du Canada_, was born at St. Denis, county of Kamouraska,
province of Quebec, on the 18th of May, 1848, from the marriage of
Narcisse Dionne and Elizabeth Bouchard. Dr. Dionne received his
education at the College of Ste. Anne de Lapocatière, and after
completing his classical course, studied theology two years at the Grand
Seminary of Quebec, returned to Ste. Anne for another year, and
completed his theological studies at Levis College. He then chose the
medical profession, and for that purpose entered Laval University, where
he graduated M.D., in 1873, and removed to Stanfold, county of
Arthabaska, and practised his profession in that place until 1875. Then
he removed to Quebec, where he found a wider field, not only in regard
to his profession, but to follow his inclinations to literary pursuits.
He has lived in that city ever since. In 1876, the Cercle Catholique, of
which he was one of the founders, was established in the city of Quebec,
and he was elected on the board of directors and librarian, a position
he held until the year 1883; he was then elected vice-president, and
still holds that position. He was also one of the founders of the
“Presse Associée de la province de Quebec,” with other journalists of
the city of Quebec. This association was incorporated by an act of the
legislature of Quebec, in 1883. Dr. Dionne has been acting secretary of
the society since its foundation, and took a most prominent part in the
reception accorded the Canadian Press Association, on the occasion of
the latter body’s excursion to the Saguenay in 1883. In token of their
gratitude, the Ontario pressmen gave him a splendid gift in recognition
of the courtesies extended them. In August, 1886, he was also elected
secretary to the Quebec Conservative Club, and in January, 1887, was
appointed to the same position, which he filled during the Federal
elections of the 22nd of February, of the same year. Dr. Dionne holds a
high rank among the _littérateurs_ of his native province, the first
work which brought him to prominence being a pamphlet, published in
1880, intituled, “Le Tombeau de Champlain.” The year previous, his
Excellency the Count de Premio-Real, consul-general of Spain in Canada,
had offered two prizes for the best essay on a series of questions
relating to Canadian history, and Mr. Dionne was the winner of both. In
1881, he published a pamphlet on agricultural societies, and then-value
to the farmers, intituled, “Les Cercles Agricoles dans la Province de
Québec,” and delivered many lectures throughout the province on that
important subject. In 1882 appeared the report of the excursion of the
Canadian Press Association to the United States, Manitoba, and the
North-West, also due to Dr. Dionne’s pen; and still later, in 1883 he
published the report of the French-Canadian convention, held at Windsor,
county of Essex. As a political writer, the doctor is in the foremost
rank of the Conservative journalists of the province, having been
editor-in-chief of _Le Courier du Canada_, a daily paper published in
Quebec, from April, 1880, until the 1st of February, 1884. He also
filled the same position on the staff of _Le Journal de Québec_, from
February to May, 1886. On the 22nd of February, 1887, he resumed the
duties of co-editor to _Le Courier du Canada_, a position which he still
holds. The first editors of the latter newspaper had been Dr. J. C.
Taché, deputy minister to the department of Agriculture, and Sir Hector
Langevin. In addition to his medical practice and journalistic duties,
Dr. Dionne was chief license inspector under the Federal Act of
parliament, from the 19th February, 1884, until December, 1885; and
visiting physician to the Quebec Marine Hospital since the 17th
February, 1882. In 1885, he visited New Orleans, during the World’s
Exposition. He is corresponding member of the Institut-Canadien, of
Ottawa; L’Union Catholique, Mauritius Island; and titulary member of the
Académie des Muses Santonnes, France. He was married on the 13th of
October, 1873, to Marie Laure Bouchard, second daughter of the late
Pierre Victor Bouchard, of her Majesty’s customs, Quebec, and Julie
Huot. He has issue ten children, five sons and five daughters.
* * * * *
=Archibald, Peter S.=, Moncton, New Brunswick, Chief Engineer of the
Intercolonial Railway, was born at Truro, Nova Scotia, on the 21st
March, 1848. His parents were William and Elizabeth Archibald, and were
both natives of Nova Scotia. Peter S. Archibald received his education
at the Truro Model and Normal schools, and joined the railway service in
1867, when scarcely out of his teens. Since then he has gradually risen,
through all the grades from rodman, until he now occupies the position
of chief engineer. He joined the volunteers as a private, and served in
that capacity for three years, and was afterwards promoted to a
lieutenancy in the 73rd battalion. Mr. Archibald is a member of the
American Institute of Civil Engineers. As a living example of what can
be done by a young man who sets his mind on rising in his profession, he
is a good example, and deserves a great deal of praise for his pluck and
perseverance, and his example is well worthy of imitation by our young
men who wish to get on in the world. In April, 1874, Mr. Archibald was
married to Clara G. Lindsay, daughter of T. S. Lindsay, of Rockland,
Maine, U.S.
* * * * *
=Mathews, Rev. George D.=, D.D., Pastor of Chalmer’s (Presbyterian)
Church, Quebec, one of the best known of our Presbyterian divines in the
old as well as the new world, was born in the town of Kilkenny, Ireland,
in 1828. As in the case of others of our distinguished men in America,
the three nationalities of the motherland are to be found represented in
him, for, though born in Ireland, he had for his father a true-hearted
Scotchman, while his mother was a native of England. The subject of our
sketch spent his earliest years in the city of Dublin, where he received
his education at the hands of private tutors who prepared him for
entering Trinity College as an undergraduate in arts. His career at this
celebrated seat of learning was in every sense a most satisfactory one,
so that he took his degree in 1848. It is needless to say that the
classical and literary tastes which he acquired at college have never
left him, as those who have had the pleasure of his acquaintance, or who
have had the opportunity of sitting under his ministrations as a pastor,
can readily bear witness. After leaving college he devoted himself for a
time to the study of law, but that profession becoming more and more
distasteful to the young student, as his mind matured on social
questions and the solemn responsibilities of life, he subsequently
forsook the pathways which Coke, Blackstone and Hale have in vain
endeavoured to make smooth, for a more peaceful retreat with the school
of the prophets. Entering the United Presbyterian Hall of Divinity at
Edinburgh, he there had the privilege of receiving instruction from such
distinguished theologians as Dr. John Brown, Dr. Eadie, and a number of
other teachers, whose lives and characters have moulded the history and
polity of the U. P. Church in Scotland. Under such men Rev. Dr. Mathews
felt more and more the serious mission he had to perform in life. With
zeal he entered upon the examination of the theology of the times,
fortifying himself with the most careful study of mental science, and
obtaining for himself the credit of being a devoted investigator in the
realms of thought, and a keen observer of the many paths into which
advanced thinkers are ever leading their fellowmen. Yet, never for a
moment did the young student deviate from the faith; and never,
throughout his long career as a minister has he had to endure the scorn
of those whose chief delight it often is to rail at the ministers of
advanced opinions. His preaching has ever been thoroughly orthodox,
notwithstanding the wide scope of his knowledge and scientific
attainments. Possessed of a remarkable fluency of speech, his discourses
are generally given _extempore_, being marked at the same time with an
eloquence which is all the more attractive from the simplicity of the
language he employs. In December, 1853, he was licensed to preach by the
Presbytery of Glasgow, and immediately thereafter was ordained at
Stranraer, a town of about eight thousand inhabitants, in Wigtonshire,
Scotland. No more delightful locality could have been selected for a man
of such tastes and predispositions as the subject of our sketch. The
town of Stranraer, as is well-known, stands upon an arm of the sea at
the head of Loch Ryan, and for the beauty and natural sweetness of its
surroundings is all but unequalled by the other towns in the south of
Scotland. Here the young preacher found his first charge among a people
kindly disposed and hospitable, and here his efforts to do good were
well received, not only by those of his own congregation, but by the
whole community. No duty was overlooked, public or pastoral; and yet
amidst the pressure of work which always falls to the lot of a young and
conscientious pastor, the literary spirit did not forsake the youthful
clergyman during his spare moments from pulpit work and pastoral
ministrations, as many of the old numbers of the “Dublin University
Magazine” can bear witness. For several years he continued to contribute
to this and other periodicals, and it need hardly be said that his
contributions even then gave promise of the literary and administrative
abilities which have brought the Rev. Dr. Mathews’ name so prominently
before the denomination of which he is a minister. At length, in 1868,
while on a visit to the United States, the U. P. minister at Stranraer
received a call to one of the city charges in New York. In the following
year he reluctantly gave up his charge in Scotland, and to the universal
regret of his people and fellow townsmen, set sail for America. Nor did
the feeling in his favour fail to show itself in a tangible form. A
beautiful testimonial was presented by the community to the retiring
pastor with many and valuable accompanying presents. Shortly after his
arrival in New York, Dr. Mathews undertook the editorship of “The
Christian Worker,” a monthly magazine devoted mainly to religious
topics. This duty he performed in addition to his pastoral work. Under
his management the periodical rose into favour until at length its
circulation brought the editor into prominence all over the continent.
The editor of the “Worker” also took an active part in all church
affairs, expressing an influence in the church courts and on church
problems which has always been respected. As an evidence of this growing
influence, in 1873, when the proposal was mooted by Rev. Dr. McCosh, of
Princeton, and Rev. Dr. Schaff, that the various Presbyterian Churches
throughout the world should come into close relationship with one
another, Dr. Mathews was chosen secretary of the first committee formed
for the carrying out of definite plans to promote such brotherly
alliance. Two years later, he was sent to London by the Presbyterian
Church in the Northern States as one of its commissioners to confer with
the representatives from other Churches as to the feasibility of a union
of Presbyterianism throughout the world. This was the origin of the
Presbyterian Alliance, which has since become a household word in the
Presbyterian church. The first important conference was held in London,
England, where it was agreed to form an “Alliance of the Reformed
Churches holding the Presbyterian system,” and at the first meeting of
this new association of Presbyterians, Dr. Mathews was appointed
American secretary—a position which he has held for many years, and
which through his energy and administrative skill has become one of the
most influential in the Presbyterian church of to-day. While performing
the duties of this office, Dr. Mathews has been engaged from time to
time in preparing many new and reliable tables of statistics together
with a series of concise and tabular sketches of the Presbyterian
Churches of the world. In 1879 he became associate editor of the
_Catholic Presbyterian_, the organ of the Alliance, and a periodical of
the highest literary dignity and style. At the meeting of the Alliance
in 1884, at Belfast, he was further appointed by its general council to
edit the record of its proceedings, filling a volume of no less than
seven hundred pages. Included within this volume, there is to be found a
very valuable and exhaustive statistical report, or rather series of
reports, compiled by the painstaking secretary, a work for which he has
received the highest commendation from his brethren and others who have
carefully examined it. As the fruit of prolonged labour and original
enquiry, it carries within it information of the most interesting kind,
not only to Presbyterians but to all Protestant churches. In recognition
of Dr. Mathews’ great services to the Presbyterian cause, and the
prominent position he had attained to in church affairs, the Western
University of Pennsylvania conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of
Divinity. At the present writing, the secretary of the Pan-Presbyterian
Council is pastor of Chalmers Church, Quebec. Some years ago he was
chosen one of the governors of Morrin College, being at the same time
professor of systematic theology in that institution. Since 1883 he has
also taken charge of the classes in moral philosophy. In ordinary
educational affairs he has always taken a deep interest, having been for
years a member of the Council of Public Instruction for the Province of
Quebec. As with many other men of business habits, Rev. Dr. Mathews has
a favourite recreation. His is in numismatic research, and possessing a
very valuable collection of coins: he published, in 1876, a volume on
the “Coinages of the World,” which has had a large circulation. He was
married, in 1856, to Maria F. Irvine, of Dublin, by whom he has had a
family of two sons and a daughter, all of whom survive their mother, who
died in 1880.
* * * * *
=Bentley, Hon. George Whitefield Wheelock=, Kensington, Commissioner of
Public Works for Prince Edward Island, was born at Margate, Prince
county, P.E.I., on the 21st December, 1842. He is the youngest son of
Thomas Bentley and Hannah Smith. His father, Mr. Bentley, sen.,
emigrated from Yorkshire, England, to Prince Edward Island, in 1817; and
his mother, Hannah Smith, came to the same island in 1800 with her
parents, she having been born on the passage out from England. The
father of this lady was the youngest son of a family of twenty-two
children. The Bentley family first settled in Cavendish, one of the
oldest settlements on the island, and afterwards removed to Prince
county, and took up their abode at a place they named Margate, after the
celebrated watering-place in England. George, the subject of our sketch,
received an ordinary English education in his native place. After
leaving school he devoted himself to agricultural pursuits, and in 1874
removed to Kensington, his present residence, where he has since carried
on business as a merchant and as a farmer. In 1879 he was elected to the
House of Assembly of P.E.I., by the electors of the 4th electoral
district of Prince county; again at the general election in 1882, and
again in 1886, he was each time returned at the head of the poll. In
January, 1887, he was appointed a member of the Executive Council, and
in the following month was chosen commissioner of Public Works. This
appointment necessitated another appeal to the electors, and he was
again returned in spite of determined opposition. Mr. Bentley has been a
life-long advocate of temperance, and has for the last twenty-five years
been connected with the order of the Sons of Temperance. He has held the
office of grand worthy patriarch of the Grand Division of Prince Edward
Island, and is now a member of the National Division of the Sons of
Temperance of North America. He has travelled through all the provinces
of British North America, and many of the states of the neighbouring
republic. Politically Mr. Bentley belongs to the ranks of the
Conservative party; and in religious matters he is an adherent of the
Methodist church. On the 9th February, 1870, he was married to Emma
Jane, daughter of William Dennis, of Margate, P.E.I.
* * * * *
=Jack, William Brydone=, M.A., D.C.L. The deceased Dr. William Brydone
Jack was born in the parish of Tinwald, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, on the
23rd November, 1819. He received his elementary education at the schools
of the parish, and was afterwards sent to the academy of Hutton Hall,
Caerlaverock, where he was prepared for entering college. In 1835 he
went to St. Andrews, and became a student in the United College of St.
Salvador and St. Leonard’s. During his course he was distinguished for
proficiency in mathematics and physics, carrying off the highest prizes
in these departments of study. Shortly after graduating with the degree
of M.A. in 1840, he was offered the professorship of physics in the
Manchester New College, in succession to the celebrated Dr. Dalton, and
about the same time the position of professorship of mathematics,
natural philosophy and astronomy in King’s College, Fredericton (now the
University of New Brunswick), was tendered to his acceptance. Sir David
Brewster, who was then principal of the college at St. Andrews, and with
whom Dr. Jack had been a favourite pupil, thought that the duties and
responsibilities of the situation at Manchester would, at the first
outset in life, be rather hazardous and trying for one so young and
inexperienced. Accordingly, in deference to Sir David’s advice and that
of other friends, Dr. Jack accepted the professorship in New Brunswick,
and assumed its duties in September, 1840. As King’s College was at
first under the management of the Church of England, it failed to
command the confidence and sympathy of the general public, and
consequently it was never so prosperous as it should have been. Many and
violent attacks were therefore made upon it both in and out of the
legislature, till after much worry and struggle it was, in 1860,
re-modelled and named the University of New Brunswick, over which all
denominations were admitted to an equal control. In 1861 Dr. Jack was
appointed president of the university, and for many years he laboured
and laboured successfully in bringing the college into repute, and
securing the general acceptance and confidence of the public. He spent
his vacations largely in travelling about the province, and by public
addresses making the college known and the benefits of the higher
education appreciated. On the inauguration of the Free School system he
was made, _ex-officio_, a member of the Board of Education. In 1885,
after a service of forty-five years as professor and president, failing
health induced him to resign his appointments, and seek the ease and
quiet of private life. In 1886 the government was pleased to appoint him
a member of the Senate of the University, in whose progress and
prosperity he continued to take the warmest interest. Dr. Jack was
always a devoted student of astronomy, and after the establishment of
lines of telegraph communication, he was among the first to make use of
them, determining distances of longitude. By connection with Harvard
Observatory, Mass., the true longitude of Fredericton was ascertained.
Taking Fredericton as the starting point, he obtained, at the instance
and expense of the local government, the longitude of St. John, and
afterwards of some places on the boundary survey of the province. The
determinations were of service to Sir William Logan in the construction
of his geological map of Canada. Dr. Jack died at Fredericton, New
Brunswick, on the 23rd day of November, 1886, on his sixty-sixth
birthday.
* * * * *
=Cowperthwaite, Rev. Humphrey Pickard=, A.M., Pastor of the Queen Square
Methodist Church, St. John, New Brunswick, was born in Sheffield, New
Brunswick, on the 30th of November, 1838. His father was Hugh
Cowperthwaite, and his mother, Elizabeth Ann Hunter; she was of Scotch
descent. His grandfather, on his father’s side, was a United Empire
loyalist, and came from New Jersey in 1783. His great-grandfather was an
officer in the British army, during the American revolutionary war of
independence. Humphrey received his education in the parish school, and
afterwards at Sackville College, where he graduated in arts in 1867. He
adopted the clerical profession, and is now an active minister of the
Methodist church, in connection with the New Brunswick and Prince Edward
Island conference. For several years he was chairman of the Prince
Edward Island district, and secretary of the conference for two terms.
On two occasions he visited the province of Ontario, on matters
connected with his church, and attended as a delegate the conferences
which met at Hamilton and Belleville a few years ago. On the 19th of
July, 1867, he was married to Annie S. Buchanan, of Glasgow, Scotland,
youngest daughter of W. M. Buchanan, editor of the “Practical Mechanics’
and Engineers’ Magazine,” and for some time lecturer on geology in the
Glasgow University.
* * * * *
=Lachapelle, Emmanuel Persillier=, M.D., Montreal, was born on the 21st
December, 1845, at Sault-au-Récollet, province of Quebec. His parents
were Pierre Persillier-Lachapelle, and Marie Zoé Toupin. Dr. Lachapelle
received a classical education at the Montreal College, and took a
course in medicine and surgery at the Montreal Medical and Surgical
School, and after passing very brilliantly his examination, was admitted
to the practice of medicine in 1869. In 1872 he was appointed surgeon to
the 65th battalion, and held that position until 1886. In 1876 he was
elected, and is still, a governor and treasurer of the College of
Physicians and Surgeons of the province of Quebec; and in 1885, during
the small-pox epidemic, he took a leading part in the working of the
Central Board of Health, and was appointed president of the first
Provincial Board of Health recently organised. Dr. Lachapelle was the
promoter and one of the founders of Notre Dame Hospital, one of the most
useful charitable institutions of Montreal to-day. In 1884, wishing to
free the hospital from debt, he, together with friends and the board of
management, organized a grand _kermesse_ which netted about $15,000 in
one week. When the establishment of the branch of Laval University in
Montreal was decided upon, he became one of its most ardent supporters
and contributed in a great measure to its formation. He was elected
general president of the Saint Jean Baptiste Society in 1876. As a
journalist, Dr. Lachapelle is favourably known, having been the
proprietor and editor of _L’Union Médicale_ from 1876 to 1882. He is
doctor in medicine of Laval and Victoria Universities, secretary of the
Medical Faculty of Laval University, professor of general Pathology and
Medical Jurisprudence, and an associate member of the “Société Française
d’Hygiène,” Paris. He commenced practising in Montreal in 1869, and took
a foremost rank in the galaxy of young men who about that time were
entering on their professional life, and have since risen to high
positions in Canadian society. Dr. Lachapelle enjoys the confidence of
the general public, and through his genial disposition, has made a host
of friends. He has been closely identified with all the scientific,
national and political movements of the day, and his influence and
advice have great weight and are highly appreciated.
* * * * *
=Allen, Hon. John C.=, Fredericton, Chief Justice of New Brunswick, was
born in the parish of Kingsclear, county of York, N.B., on the first of
October, 1817. His grandfather, Isaac Allen, was a United Empire
loyalist, and resided in Trenton, New Jersey, where he practised law.
During the revolutionary war, which broke out in 1776, he was appointed
lieutenant-colonel of the second battalion of New Jersey Volunteers, one
of the provincial regiments raised during the war. At the peace in 1783,
he settled in Nova Scotia, and when the province of New Brunswick was
established, he was appointed one of the judges of the Supreme Court, a
position he held until his death, in October, 1806. His wife was Sarah
Campbell, of Philadelphia. His son, the father of the present chief
justice, was John Allen, formerly a captain in the New Brunswick
Fencibles, a corps raised in New Brunswick during the war of 1812, and
commanded by General John Coffin. This regiment was disbanded in 1817,
and Captain Allen was subsequently appointed lieutenant-colonel and
inspecting field officer of the militia of New Brunswick, and when that
office was abolished, was appointed quarter-master-general of the
militia. He represented the county of York in the House of Assembly from
1809 to 1847. He died in April, 1875, aged ninety-one years, and his
wife died in 1822. Chief Justice Allen was educated at the Fredericton
Grammar School; studied law with the Hon. John Simcoe Saunders, son of
the then chief justice in Fredericton; was admitted as an attorney in
October, 1838; and to the bar in Michaelmas term, 1840. In 1845 he was
appointed one of the commissioners for settling the claims to lands,
under the fourth article of the treaty of Washington, 1842. While the
boundary between the province of New Brunswick and the United States was
in dispute, the portion of the country known as “the disputed
territory,” extending from near the Grand Falls of the river St. John to
the head of the river, and including the whole Madawaska settlement on
both sides of the river, was being occupied by settlers, principally
Acadian French, who held by possession only, the government refusing to
make any grants of the land. By the treaty, the channel of the river,
from a point about three miles above the Grand Falls to the mouth of the
river St. Francis, a tributary of the St. John, about seventy miles
above the falls, was fixed as the boundary between the two countries,
and the fourth article of the treaty provided that all equitable
possessory claims, arising from a possession and improvement of any land
for more than six years before the date of the treaty, should be deemed
valid, and be confirmed to the persons so in possession. The commission
was appointed to investigate and settle the claims of the persons in
possession of that portion of the lands in dispute, which fell within
the dominion of Great Britain. During the years 1845 and 1847, they
heard and determined the claims of all the settlers between the Grand
Falls and the St. Francis, and grants of the lands were afterwards
issued by the government to the respective parties, in accordance with
the report of the commissioners. The other commissioner was the late
James A. Maclauchlan, who was formerly an officer in the 104th regiment,
and served in Canada between 1813-15, and who had for many years acted
as warden of the disputed territory, by appointment of the British
government, for the purpose of preventing the cutting of timber upon it.
The most valuable part of the “disputed territory,” the fertile valley
of the Aroostook, was awarded to the United States by the treaty. Hon.
Mr. Allen was appointed clerk of the Executive Council of New Brunswick
in November, 1851, and held that office till January, 1856, when he
resigned it, and in February following was elected a member of the House
of Assembly for York county. In May following, was appointed
solicitor-general, which position he held until May, 1857, when the
government resigned, having been defeated at the general election of
that year. In 1852 was elected mayor of Fredericton and continued to
hold the office till 1855, when he resigned. In 1860 he was offered the
position of Queen’s counsel, but declined. He was speaker of the New
Brunswick Assembly from 1862 until that house was dissolved, in 1865,
for the purpose of ascertaining the opinion of the people upon the
question of confederation, as agreed upon by the delegates assembled at
Quebec, in September previous. Having been again elected as a
representative opposed to confederation, in April, 1865, he was
appointed attorney-general, which office he held until the 21st
September following. In June of that year he was sent by the Provincial
government, with the Hon. Albert J. Smith (afterwards Sir Albert), as a
delegate to the British government, for the purpose of urging the
objections of New Brunswick to the confederation of the provinces. Soon
after his return from England, on the 21st of September, 1865, he was
appointed a puisné judge of the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, a
vacancy having been caused by the resignation of Sir James Carter, and
on the 8th of October, 1875, he was made chief justice of New Brunswick,
as successor to the Hon. William Johnston Ritchie, who at that time was
appointed a puisné judge of the Supreme Court of Canada. On the 8th of
October, 1866, he was appointed vice-president of the Court of Governor
and Council, for determining suits relating to marriage and divorce. By
an act of the Legislative Assembly, passed in 1791, a court was
constituted, consisting of the lieutenant-governor of the province and
his Majesty’s council, for the determination of suits and questions
concerning marriage and divorce and alimony, the governor to be
president of the court. The governor was also authorized to appoint the
chief justice, or one of the judges of the Supreme Court, or the Master
of the Rolls, to be vice-president of the court, and to act in his
place. In 1860, a new court for the trial of matrimonial causes was
created by the Act 23 Vic., c. 37, and all suits pending in the court
before the Governor and Council, except those in which evidence had been
examined, which were to be proceeded with as before, were transferred to
the new court. Justice Neville Parker was appointed the judge under this
act, and we therefore presume Mr. Allen’s appointment as vice-president
of the Court of Governor and Council was for the purpose of hearing some
case commenced under the old law, in which evidence had been examined;
but, so far as we can learn, he has never acted under his commission. In
June, 1878, he was appointed, in the place of the late Governor Wilmot,
one of the arbitrators for settling the North-West boundary of the
province of Ontario. The other arbitrators were Sir Edward Thornton, the
British Minister at Washington, and Chief Justice Harrison, of Ontario.
The time appointed for the meeting of the arbitrators having been fixed
for the early part of July, and difficulties existing in the way of a
postponement, Chief Justice Allen was obliged to resign the appointment,
as his judicial duties prevented him from attending to it, the trial of
the Osborne family for the alleged murder of Timothy McCarthy, coming on
at the Circuit Court then about to open, at which he was to preside.
Among the most notable criminal cases which Chief Justice Allen has
tried may be mentioned that of John A. Munroe, in 1869, for the murder
of Sarah Margaret Vail and her child, at St. John; and in 1875, of a
number of persons at Bathurst, in the county of Gloucester, who
participated in the Carraquet riots, which originated in resisting the
enforcement of the Common Schools Act; also that of Chasson and ten
others, for the murder of one Gifford, who had aided the sheriff’s
officers in arresting the Carraquet rioters mentioned above. He also
tried the Osborne family twice for the alleged murder of Timothy
McCarthy, at Shediac, in the county of Westmoreland. The first trial, in
July and August, 1878, occupied six weeks. The jury having disagreed,
the prisoners were again tried in November and December of the same
year, the trial occupying nearly six weeks, and, as before, the jury
failed to agree. In 1847 Hon. Mr. Allen published a book of the Rules of
the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, and the Acts of Assembly relating to
the practice of the courts. He has also rendered much valuable service
to the legal profession, in the compilation and publication of six
volumes of law reports, embodying the decisions of the court extending
over a number of years. In his younger days the Chief Justice took an
active interest in the militia of the province. About the year 1835 he
joined a volunteer company of artillery, in Fredericton. In 1838 the
several companies of artillery in the province, viz., at Fredericton,
St. John, St. Andrews, and St. Stephens, were formed into a regiment
called “The New Brunswick Regiment of Artillery,” under the command of
Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Hayne, formerly of the Royal artillery, and
in 1838 Mr. Allen was appointed second lieutenant in the regiment;
afterwards first lieutenant and adjutant, and captain, in July, 1841.
The militia law having been materially altered in 1865, he has not since
that had any active connection with the force. In 1844 he was appointed
Provincial _aide-de-camp_ to Sir William Colbrooke, the
lieutenant-governor of the province, and continued so till he resigned
the government, in 1848. In 1882 the honorary degree of LL.D. was
conferred on Chief Justice Allen by the University of New Brunswick.
Chief Justice Allen is a member of the Church of England, and for nearly
forty years has been a member of the church corporation in Fredericton.
He has also held the position of churchwarden in the parish church for
over twenty-five years, and on several occasions has been elected
delegate to the provincial synod at Montreal. In 1845 he married
Margaret A. Drury, daughter of the late Captain Charles Drury, 29th
Regiment of foot, who died at St. John in 1835. He has five children
living—William, Thomas Carleton (the prothonotary of the Supreme
Court), Edmund H., George W., and Henry.
* * * * *
=Chapman, Robert Andrew=, Dorchester, New Brunswick, was born in
Dorchester, county of Westmoreland, New Brunswick, on the 2nd of
February, 1835, where he has resided ever since. His father was Robert
B. Chapman, and his mother, Margaret Weldon. Both Mr. Chapman’s
great-grandfather and grandfather emigrated from Yorkshire, England, in
1775, and both represented the county of Westmoreland in the New
Brunswick legislature. The wife of the latter was Sarah Black, sister to
William Black, commonly known as “Bishop Black,” the father of Methodism
in the Maritime provinces. Margaret Weldon’s grandfather on the paternal
side, came to America from North Allerton, Yorkshire, in 1770, and her
ancestors on the maternal side—the Killams—were United Empire
loyalists. Robert A. Chapman received his primary education in the
public schools, and afterwards studied under an Irish teacher, who was
noted as a mathematician. When he grew up to manhood, he adopted
mechanical pursuits, went largely into ship building, and from 1860 to
1878 built upwards of thirty vessels, principally barques and ships,
varying from 600 to 1,500 tons burthen. Mr. Chapman holds a captain’s
commission in the reserve militia. He has been a justice of the peace
for a long time; and was high sheriff of the county of Westmoreland from
1879 to 1886. On the organization of the municipal council for
Westmoreland county, he was, along with Hon. P. A. Landry, elected a
member by acclamation for Dorchester parish, and continued to sit in
this body until he was made high sheriff; and again, in 1886, he was
elected to this council. He was an unsuccessful candidate in his county
for a seat in the New Brunswick legislature in 1872; and again in 1878,
against Sir A. J. Smith, for a seat in the House of Commons, at Ottawa.
On both occasions, however, he polled a large vote. In politics, Mr.
Chapman is a Conservative; and in religion, is an adherent of the
Methodist church. He was married on the 18th of October, 1859, to Mary
E. Frost, daughter of Stephen Frost, late of Chatham, New Brunswick.
* * * * *
=Steele, Rev. D. A.=, A.M., Baptist Minister, Amherst, Nova Scotia, was
born in the village of Barewood, Herefordshire, England, on the 17th
September, 1838, and came to America in 1845. His ancestry on the
paternal side came from Annandale, Scotland. He was educated at Acadia
College, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, from which institution he graduated
with the degree of A.M. He was ordained to the ministry there, on the
20th June, 1865. He took charge of the Baptist Church in Canso for two
years; and then, in 1867, removed to Amherst and took the pastorate of
the church which had for many years been presided over by the late Rev.
Charles Tupper, D.D., father of Sir Charles Tupper, finance minister of
Canada. The Rev. Mr. Steele was one of the promoters of the independent
foreign missions of the Baptist church in the Maritime provinces, and is
a member of the Foreign Mission Board. He is a member of the Senate of
Acadia College, and also chairman of the Board of School Commissioners
for Cumberland county. Rev. Mr. Steele has been an active worker ever
since he assumed the pastoral office, and has left his mark for good on
his adopted county. In 1865 he was married to Sarah Hart, the only
surviving daughter of Spinney Whitman, whose ancestors came from New
England to Annapolis on the expulsion of the Acadians.
* * * * *
=Flint, Thomas Barnard=, M.A., LL.B., Yarmouth, Barrister, and Assistant
Clerk to the House of Assembly of Nova Scotia, was born on the 28th
April, 1847, at Yarmouth, N.S. His parents were John Flint and Ann S.
Barnard, who were married in 1834, and were respectively descended from
Thomas Flint, of Marblehead, Massachusetts, and of Benjamin Barnard, of
Salem, in the same state. Thomas Flint, the ancestor of all the family
of that name in the western portion of Nova Scotia, came to Yarmouth, in
1771, and his descendants are very numerous in that part of the country.
Benjamin Barnard, of Salem, came to the same part of Nova Scotia, in
1770, and although his descendants in Yarmouth are numerous, yet the
family name has completely died out. It is however perpetuated in the
names of Barnard street and Barnard lane in the town of Yarmouth. Both
these families were, of course, thoroughly identified with the history
of Yarmouth town and county, which were mainly settled from New England,
and which still retain many of the New England characteristics. Thomas
B. Flint, the subject of our sketch, received his early education at
Yarmouth, and subsequently went to Wesley College, Sackville, New
Brunswick, where he took the degree of B.A. in 1867; and of M.A. in
1875; and in the same year he carried off the “Moore” prize for the best
essay on “John Milton.” He also took a course at the Harvard Law School,
Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1872, and received the degree of LL.B. from
that university. He adopted law as a profession, and studied in the
office of Senator (now ex-judge) Ritchie, and on being admitted to the
bar he began the practice of his profession in 1872. For years Mr. Flint
has taken an active interest in educational matters, and in the
temperance reform movement. For a long period he held office as a school
trustee, and was secretary of the High School committee several years.
He is a member and secretary of the Board of Governors of the Yarmouth
Seminary. He was appointed high sheriff of the county of Yarmouth in the
autumn of 1883, but resigned the same at the end of the year 1886. At
the opening of the session of 1887 he was elected assistant clerk of the
House of Assembly of Nova Scotia, in the place of the late assistant
clerk, who was promoted to the chief clerkship. Mr. Flint, a Liberal and
anti-Confederate in politics, was defeated as a candidate for the local
legislature in 1873, when he contested the county against a former
representative, who was declared returned by a majority of two votes.
Although the return was contested by Mr. Flint, his opponent was
confirmed in his seat. He was also a candidate for the House of Commons
in 1878, in opposition to Frank Killam. Mr. Killam was elected by a
substantial majority. As both gentlemen were supporters of the Liberal
party, merely personal and local issues were involved in the contest. He
was again a candidate for the local legislature in 1882 on the Liberal
ticket, but was unsuccessful, having been defeated by a small majority.
Mr. Flint was for many years engaged in shipbuilding; the management of
shipping and various public enterprises; a stockholder in the Western
Counties Railway Company, and other corporations. He is prominent in the
Masonic fraternity, and is a past master of Scotia lodge, No. 31,
R.N.S.; past district deputy grand master of District No. 3, and
secretary of Scotia lodge. Since 1872 he has taken an active part, in
the Liberal interest, in political discussions through the press and on
the platform, particularly on occasions of general elections, and
assisted in obtaining the Liberal repeal victory in Yarmouth county in
February, 1887, when, however, the province generally returned a
majority of representatives in opposition to the further continuance of
the repeal agitation. He married, on October 14th, 1874, Mary Ella,
daughter of Thomas B. Dane, of Yarmouth, who was also a descendant of a
New England family that settled in Yarmouth county in 1789.
* * * * *
=Wickwire, William Nathan=, M.D., Halifax, Nova Scotia, was born at
Cornwallis, Kings county, N.S., on the 18th November, 1839. His parents
were Peter and Eliza Wickwire. Dr. Wickwire received his education,
chiefly at Horton Academy and Acadia College, Wolfville, N.S., and
graduated at the latter in 1860, taking the degree of B.A. In 1863
Acadia College also conferred upon him the degree of M.A. He studied
medicine at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, from 1860 to 1864,
and there received the degree of M.D. In the autumn of 1864 he formed a
medical co-partnership with Dr. Tupper (now Sir Charles), at Halifax,
which partnership existed till Dr. Tupper took up his residence at
Ottawa, in 1870. For several years he was surgeon to a volunteer
company; from 1867 to 1872 he held the office of assistant inspecting
physician for the port of Halifax, and since that date to the present
time has held the position of inspecting physician for the same port.
For several years the doctor has been vice-consul for the Netherlands at
Halifax. He enjoys a good practice. In politics Dr. Wickwire is a
Liberal-Conservative; and in religion an adherent of the Episcopal
church. He was married in 1870 to Margaret Louisa, daughter of the late
Hon. Alexander Keith, of Halifax.
* * * * *
=Mathieu, Hon. Michel=, Judge of the Superior Court, Montreal, was born
at Sorel, Richelieu county, on the 20th December, 1838, from the union
of Joseph Mathieu, farmer, and justice of the peace, residing at Sorel,
and Edwidge Vandal. Mr. Mathieu the elder was a farmer of little means,
but had his son educated under the care of the Rev. Messire Augustin
Lemay, formerly curé of the parish of Ste. Victoire (which was founded
by the dismemberment of the old parish of St. Pierre de Sorel), where
Mr. Mathieu had resided. His ancestors were of an ancient French family.
The subject of our sketch completed his course of classical studies at
the college of St. Hyacinthe. Leaving that institution in 1860, he
matriculated, and was admitted to the study of the profession of a
notary in the office of Jean George Crébassa, notary public, of the town
of Sorel, and was admitted to practice on the 20th of January, 1864. In
1861 he had been also admitted to the study of law. He practised as a
notary for a year, when he was admitted to the bar of the province of
Quebec, and abandoned his former profession to engage exclusively in law
practice. On the 11th of June, 1866, he was appointed sheriff of the
district of Richelieu, in the place of Pierre Rémi Chevalier, who had
resigned in his favour, and held that position until the 14th of August,
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