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, 1872. The entrance of Mr. Mathieu into political life dates from that period, when he entered the lists and was elected to the House of Commons over his opponent, George Isidore Barthe, who, in turn, defeated him in 1874. In the following year he was elected by acclamation member of the Legislative Assembly of the province of Quebec for Richelieu county; and again, on the 1st of May, 1878, by a majority of 186 over Pierre Bergeron, a physician of St. Aimé. Mr. Mathieu always wielded a powerful influence in his county, and was mainly instrumental in securing the election of L. H. Massue to the House of Commons at Ottawa in the election of the 1st of September, 1878. In politics he is a Conservative, and has always been a faithful adherent and a strong supporter of the late Sir George Etienne Cartier and Sir John A. Macdonald. On the 11th of October, 1880, he was made a Queen’s counsel, and on 3rd October, 1881, he accepted the position of justice of the Superior Court of the province of Quebec, and removed to Montreal, where he resides at the present time. Until his elevation to the judicial bench, he was one of the directors of the Montreal, Portland and Boston and of the South-Eastern Railway Companies. He also publishedLa Revue Légalefor many years. Of undaunted energy, and possessed of sterling capacities, Hon. Mr. Mathieu always took a deep interest in the advancement of his native town, and occupied its civic chair during seven years, from 1875 to 1881. He was also one of the founders of the College of Sorel. As a private citizen he is esteemed for his affability and kindness of manners to all who require his advice, or have business to transact with him, and his courteousness has made him hosts of friends everywhere. Justice Mathieu was twice married—the first time, on the 22nd of June, 1863, to Marie Rose Délima Thirza, a daughter of the late Captain St. Louis, of Sorel; she died on the 23rd of March, 1870. By his first marriage he has three children, one son and two daughters, living. On the 30th October, 1881, he married Marie Amélie Antoinette, a daughter of the Hon. David Armstrong, member of the Legislative Council of the province of Quebec, and of Léocadie de Ligny. The fruit of his second union was one son, living. Madame Mathieu’s name is always to be found among the charity workers of the city of Montreal, and she is blessed by the poor.
Johnston, Hon. James William, Judge in Equity, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. The late Judge Johnston was by descent a Scotchman, and by birth a West Indian. His grandfather, Dr. Lewis Johnston, was born in Scotland, and claimed to be entitled to the now long dormant title of Marquis of Annandale, but never pressed his claim in the courts. He married Laleah Peyton, a lady of Huguenot descent, and settled in Savannah, Georgia, then a British colony, where he owned an estate called Annandale. Previous to the rebellion, Dr. Johnston filled the office of president of the council and treasurer of the colony of Georgia. On the breaking out of the revolutionary war his sons all entered the British army and fought on the side of the king. His eldest son, William Martin Johnston, the father of Judge Johnston, held the rank of captain of the New York volunteers in the year 1775. He was engaged in the defence of Savannah, was at the capture of Fort Montgomery on the Hudson, and took part in various other engagements during the war. At its close Dr. Johnston returned to Scotland, and Captain Johnston, who had lost all his property in consequence of espousing the cause of Britain, studied medicine, and graduated in the University of Edinburgh. He married Elizabeth Lichtenstein, the only daughter of Captain John Lichtenstein, of the noble and ancient Austrian family of that name. Captain Johnston subsequently removed to Kingston in the island of Jamaica, where his son James was born on the 29th of August, 1792. He was early sent to Scotland for his education, and was placed under the care of the late Rev. Dr. Duncan, of Ruthwell. The family afterwards settled permanently in Nova Scotia. James William Johnston studied law in Annapolis in the office of Thomas Ritchie, afterwards one of the judges of the Common Pleas, and was admitted to the bar in 1815. He commenced the practice of his profession in Kentville, the shire town of Kings county, but shortly after removed to Halifax and entered into partnership with Simon Bradstreet Robie, at that time the leading practitioner in the province. Mr. Johnston rose rapidly in his profession, and soon attained the highest rank, which he continued to hold unchallenged until his elevation to the bench of the Supreme Court. In cross-examination he displayed peculiar tact and skill, extracting from the most reluctant and perverse witness the minutest facts within his knowledge. Among the intellectual features that marked his professional career may be noted a strong and comprehensive grasp, a memory that seemed ever obedient to his will, together with a rapidity of perception, that gave wonderful readiness at repartee, seizing like lightning on the mistakes or unwise or weak arguments of an opponent, and turning them to the disadvantage of the opposite side, and to the manifest advantage of his own. This mental superiority, aided as it was by untiring perseverance and industry, was alone sufficient to win the highest honours of the bar. Few, if any, of Mr. Johnston’s forensic efforts have been preserved; but in cases where the battle was to be fought against wrong and oppression, he was especially powerful; rising to the occasion his bursts of impassioned eloquence swept with the force of a tornado carrying all before it. In the year 1835 Mr. Johnston was appointed solicitor-general of the province, which office was then non-political; but in the year 1838, at the earnest solicitation of Sir Colin Campbell, then lieutenant-governor of Nova Scotia, he entered the Legislative Council and commenced his political life, and at once became the acknowledged leader of the Conservative party. On the elevation of the Hon. S. G. W. Archibald to the Court of Chancery as master of the rolls in 1843, Mr. Johnston was appointed attorney-general, and at the general election held in that year, resigned his seat in the Legislative Council, and stood for the important county of Annapolis, for which he was returned by a large majority, and which constituency he continued uninterruptedly to represent in the House of Assembly until 1863, when he took his seat on the bench. One of the first acts he placed on the statute book was the Simultaneous Polling Act, which provided for the holding of elections throughout the province on one and the same day, instead of being as theretofore held at different times, and the polls moved round in different places in each constituency, entailing large additional expense and much loss of time. He also successfully advocated the introduction of denominational colleges, and their partial endowment by the state. Hon. Mr. Johnston was one of the delegates selected to meet Lord Durham, the high commissioner for settling the difficulties in Canada, and to confer with him on the contemplated changes in colonial government. Hon. Mr. Johnston might justly have claimed the honour of being the first statesman who in the halls of legislature advocated the union or confederation of the North American colonies. In the year 1854, on the floor of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly, in a speech which for breadth of conception, deep research, fervent patriotism, and glowing eloquence, has rarely been equalled, and which by many has been considered his greatest effort, Hon. Mr. Johnston moved: —
That the union of the British North American provinces on just principles, while calculated to perpetuate their connection with the parent state, would promote their advancement and prosperity, increase their strength and influence, and elevate their position.
That the union of the British North American provinces on just principles, while calculated to perpetuate their connection with the parent state, would promote their advancement and prosperity, increase their strength and influence, and elevate their position.
And though before the union was consummated he had retired from public life, and was therefore in no way responsible for the details of the scheme, yet his advocacy of the measure on its broad basis tended in no slight degree to create and educate public opinion, and smoothed the way for those who eventually succeeded in effecting the important change in the constitution he was the first to advocate. In the year 1857 Hon. Mr. Johnston, then attorney-general and leader of the government, pursuant to a resolution passed in the House of Assembly, proceeded to England to adjust the differences that for years existed between the province and the General Mining Association, who, as assignees of the Duke of York, to whom they had been granted, claimed the exclusive right to the mines and minerals of Nova Scotia, and who, by virtue thereof, possessed a practical monopoly of the coal trade. After a protracted negotiation, a compromise was effected and an agreement entered into by which the General Mining Association ceded to the government all their right and title to, and over, all the unworked mines and minerals. Thus was a grievance of long standing amicably settled, and their right to the great wealth hidden in the bowels of the earth secured to the people of Nova Scotia. In the year 1863, after a labourious and active professional life, and a somewhat turbulent political career, Hon. Mr. Johnston accepted a seat on the bench as judge in Equity and judge of the Supreme Court. The duties of his office were discharged with assiduity and the strictest integrity, and his decisions were received by the bar as clear, logical, and exhaustive expositions of the law. In the summer of 1872, Hon. Mr. Johnston obtained leave of absence, and proceeded to the south of France in the hopes that a milder and more genial climate might remove a bronchial affection from which he was suffering, but the beneficial results anticipated did not follow. He was offered in the following year the lieutenant-governorship of his adopted country, vacant by the demise of the late Hon. Joseph Howe, but this position the state of his health compelled him to decline. Early in life Mr. Johnston connected himself with the Baptist Church, and to the end continued a member of that communion. For years he devoted his time, energies and talents to the advancement of that body, socially, politically and educationally. The Baptist Academy at Wolfville, as well as Acadia College, owe their existence in a large measure to his personal labours, influence, and untiring exertions both in parliament and out. Of the latter institution he was one of the first governors, and continued to hold the office uninterruptedly, by repeated re-elections, to the time of his death. He was several times elected president of the Baptist Convention of the Maritime provinces, who, on his leaving the country, marked their great appreciation of his character and their sense of their lasting obligations to him by the unanimous adoption of the following resolution: —
This convention, having learnt that the health of our esteemed brother, Hon. Judge Johnston, a member of the Board of Governors of Acadia College, has induced him to seek a residence in Europe,Therefore resolvethat we take this opportunity to tender to him the tribute which his high character, and long continued and important services in the cause of education seem to demand, by thus recording the sense we entertain of the value of those services, his devoted and consecrated talents, and of his great worth as a man, as a Christian gentleman, and especially as a Christian legislator and judge, the influence and grateful memory of which we trust will not be effaced; and although at his advanced age it may almost seem to be hoping against hope, yet this convention would still trust that a perfect restoration to health and strength may yet, in the good providence of God, return our valued brother, as well as his excellent lady, to their former position and relations in this country.
This convention, having learnt that the health of our esteemed brother, Hon. Judge Johnston, a member of the Board of Governors of Acadia College, has induced him to seek a residence in Europe,Therefore resolvethat we take this opportunity to tender to him the tribute which his high character, and long continued and important services in the cause of education seem to demand, by thus recording the sense we entertain of the value of those services, his devoted and consecrated talents, and of his great worth as a man, as a Christian gentleman, and especially as a Christian legislator and judge, the influence and grateful memory of which we trust will not be effaced; and although at his advanced age it may almost seem to be hoping against hope, yet this convention would still trust that a perfect restoration to health and strength may yet, in the good providence of God, return our valued brother, as well as his excellent lady, to their former position and relations in this country.
Hon. Mr. Johnston was twice married. His first wife was Amelia Elizabeth, daughter of the late William James Almon, surgeon, who was assistant surgeon to the Royal Artillery in New York, in June, 1776, and Rebecca Byles, granddaughter of the Rev. Dr. Byles, of Boston, Massachusetts. By her he had three sons, the eldest of whom is now the judge of the County Court for the metropolitan city and county of Halifax, and three daughters. Of these, two sons and one daughter are alive. His second wife was Louise, widow of the late Captain Wentworth, of the Royal Artillery, by whom he had one daughter and three sons; the daughter and two sons are living. Mr. Johnston’s physicians advised that his state of health would not permit of his return to Nova Scotia, and he determined to pass the winter of 1873 at Cheltenham, England, where, on the 21st day of November, in that year, at the ripe age of eighty-one years, and in the full possession of his mental faculties, he died, full of honours, leaving behind him a name untarnished, a character above reproach, and a reputation as a statesman, jurist and judge worthy of emulation by those who shall hereafter fill the places vacated by him.
Macdonald, Charles John, Post Office Inspector for the Province of Nova Scotia, Halifax. Lieut.-Colonel Macdonald, the subject of this sketch, is of Scotch descent, his father, the late Robert Macdonald, having been a native of Dornoch, Sutherlandshire, Scotland, and for many years a resident of Halifax. Charles was born at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on the 4th April, 1841, and received his education at Dalhousie College. He studied law in the office of the Hon. J. S. D. Thompson (now minister of justice at Ottawa), and was called to the bar in 1872. In 1878 he presented himself for parliamentary honours, and was returned a member of the Nova Scotia legislature as representative of the city and county of Halifax, and occupied the position of member of the Executive Council in 1878 and 1879 without portfolio. Lieut.-Colonel Macdonald, commander of the 66th battalion Princess Louise Fusiliers, served as major in the Halifax Provincial battalion during the North-West rebellion, having had under his command a detachment of one hundred and eighty men from the 63rd Rifles and Halifax Garrison Artillery. He occupied the position of paymaster for the volunteers from 1872 to 1878; and has been an alderman of the city of Halifax; president of the North British Society; deputy grandmaster of the Grand Lodge of Freemasons; grand high priest of the Grand Chapter, and representative of the Grand Lodge of Ohio. In 1879 he was appointed to the office of inspector of post offices for the province of Nova Scotia, and this position he still occupies. In politics he leans towards Liberal-Conservatism, and in religion he is a Presbyterian. The colonel has been twice married—first to Mary Tamson, daughter of William Evans, and second to Annie, daughter of James McLearn.
Berryman, Daniel Edgar, M.D. C.M., and A.R.S. (Edin.), is a native of New Brunswick, having been born in the city of St. John, on the 16th of August, 1848. His father, John Berryman, sen., was born in 1798, in the parish of Castle Dowson, Antrim county, Ireland, where his ancestors, who came from Devonshire, England, with the army of Oliver Cromwell, settled in the seventeenth century. He emigrated to this country about the year 1816, and settled in St. John, and died on the 2nd January, 1880. His wife, the mother of the subject of this sketch, whom he married in February, 1826, was Maria Wade, grand-daughter of Colonel Ansley. Her father was a merchant in St. John, and her mother came as a child with her parents, who were U. E. loyalists when St. John was first settled. The dates and particulars of the family history were destroyed in the great fire of 1877. To this worthy couple were born a family of thirteen children, eight sons and five daughters, and of those nine still survive, and are filling important positions in various parts of the world. Daniel E., who was the youngest son, was educated at the High School of Edinburgh, under Drs. Bryce and Smidtz, and also at Acadia College, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, where he attended the art classes. In 1868 he again went to Edinburgh, and entered the university of that city as a medical student, and during the curriculum he took honours in several classes, besides receiving a special honorary diploma from the professor of midwifery and diseases of children (Simpson). Dr. Berryman was then appointed house surgeon to the Royal Infirmary, and also acted as private assistant for over a year to Sir Robert Christison, baronet, D.C.L., professor of materia medica, Sir Robert having at that time been physician to H.M. the Queen, for Scotland. He also acted as, and held the position of, hospital surgeon and physician, assistant to Dr. Joseph Bell, surgeon to the Eye and Ear Hospital, and was besides surgeon to the Edinburgh Maternity Hospital for nine months, and Hospital for Children, and held temporary appointments under Sir Joseph Lester and Doctors Gillespie, Saunders, and John H. Bennett; and also occupied the position of class assistant to Professor A. R. Simpson, professor of midwifery and diseases of children. On his return to his native city he began the practice of his profession, and has succeeded in building up a lucrative business. In 1880 he was appointed police surgeon for the city; in 1883 he was gazetted coroner; and in 1886 he was made a justice of the peace. Outside the practice of his profession, Dr. Berryman has devoted considerable time to other matters, and we find him occupying the position of member of the Canada Medical Society; St. John Medical Society; treasurer of the New Brunswick Medical Society; a provincial Medical Examiner; a member of the executive of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; the corresponding secretary of the St. John Agricultural Society; a member of the St. John Historical Society; a member of the order of Oddfellows, and a member of the Masonic fraternity. The doctor is a Liberal in politics, being corresponding secretary of the St. John Liberal Society, and in religious matters is an adherent of the Baptist church.
Bell, John Howatt, M.A., Barrister, M.P.P. for the Fourth District of Prince, Summerside, Prince Edward Island, was born at Cape Traverse, Prince Edward Island, on the 13th December, 1846. His father, Walter Bell, emigrated from Dumfries, Scotland, in 1820, and settled at Cape Traverse. His mother was Elizabeth Howatt, daughter of Adam Howatt. Mr. Bell received his education at the Prince of Wales College, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, and at Albert University, Belleville, Ontario, at which latter institution he took the degrees of B.A. and M.A. He studied law as a profession with Thomas Ferguson, Q.C., Toronto, and was called to the bar of Ontario in 1874. He then went to Ottawa, and in partnership with R. A. Bradley, practised his profession for eight years in that city. In 1882 Mr. Bell removed to Emerson, Manitoba, and was admitted a member of the bar of Manitoba, in 1882, and practised in Emerson for two years. In 1884 he went to Prince Edward Island, and having passed the necessary examination, he became a member of the bar of that island, and has since resided at Summerside successfully engaged in his profession. At the last general election held in Prince Edward Island Mr. Bell was returned to represent the fourth electoral district of Prince in the island House of Assembly. In politics he is a Liberal, and in religion he belongs to the Presbyterian church. On the 7th July, 1882, he was married to Helen, daughter of Cornelius Howatt, of Summerside, P.E.I.
Mackay, Norman E., M.D., C.M., M.R.C.S., Eng., etc., Surgeon Victoria General Hospital, Halifax, Nova Scotia, was born in Upper Settlement, Baddeck, Victoria county, Cape Breton, in March, 1851. His father was Neil Mackay, and mother Catharine McMillan. The family were among the first settlers in the district, and farmed a considerable portion of land. Dr. Mackay received his primary education in the Baddeck and Pictou academies, and for some time taught school. He then chose the medical profession, and in the winter of 1875-6 began to study with this end in view. He applied himself diligently to his allotted tasks, and in the second year was chosen prosector for his class. At the end of his third year he was awarded the prize for passing the best primary examination. In April, 1879, the Halifax Medical College conferred upon him the degree of M.D., C.M., and the University of Halifax, that of B.M. in May of the same year. After graduating, he began the practice of his profession with success at North Sydney, Cape Breton, and after residing in this place for a year, he removed to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, where he remained for three years. In April, 1884, he was appointed surgeon to the Prince Edward Island Hospital. In 1883-4 he took a post graduate course in the London (England) hospitals and medical schools, and was admitted a member of the Royal College of Surgeons in January, 1884. He began to practice medicine in Halifax, N.S., in January, 1885, and was appointed surgeon to the Victoria General Hospital of that city in October of the same year. In January, 1886, he received the appointment of physician to the Halifax Dispensary; and in October following was elected a member of the Provincial Medical Board. In politics Dr. Mackay is a Liberal, and in religion a Presbyterian. He was married on the 9th July, 1884, to Isabella, eldest daughter of Lemuel Miller, principal of West Kent School, Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Proudfoot, Hon. William, Justice of the Chancery Division of High Court of Justice of Ontario, Toronto, was born near Errol, a village in Perthshire, Scotland, on the 9th of November, 1823. He is the son of the late Rev. William Proudfoot, who for many years was superintendent of the Theological Institute of the United Presbyterian church, at London, Ontario. The Rev. Mr. Proudfoot was one of the earliest missionaries sent out to this country by the United Secession Church of Scotland, as it was then called, and reached Canada with his family in 1832, and after a few months spent in Toronto (then Little York), he removed to London, where he organized a church, in which he officiated until his death, in January, 1851. This old secession minister was a staunch Reformer, and naturally came under suspicion, when almost everybody who dared to differ from the dominant party during the troubles of 1837 was suspected. He, however, boldly met the aspersions of his political enemies, and secured himself from molestation. The subject of our sketch, the Hon. Vice-Chancellor Proudfoot, is the third son of this venerable minister, and he received his educational training under the paternal roof, never having entered a public institution of learning. Having resolved to adopt law as a profession, and having passed his preliminary examination before the Law Society of Upper Canada, Mr. Proudfoot entered the office of Blake & Morrison, barristers, Toronto, Mr. Blake afterwards becoming chancellor of Upper Canada, and Mr. Morrison a justice of the Court of Appeal, both now deceased, where he remained the five years prescribed as the period of study for an articled clerk, and during the Michaelmas term in 1849, he was called to the bar of Upper Canada. He then entered into partnership with the late Charles Jones, and practised his profession with this gentleman in Toronto until 1851, when he was appointed the first chancery-master and deputy-registrar at Hamilton. This appointment was rendered necessary by the thorough re-organization of the Equity Court, accomplished on the representation of chancellor W. H. Blake. After retaining this position for three years, Mr. Proudfoot, preferring to return to the active work of his profession, resigned his office, and entered into partnership with Freeman & Craigie, under the style of Freeman, Craigie & Proudfoot, barristers. This firm stood at the head of the Hamilton bar, and Mr. Proudfoot had charge of the equity practice. In 1862, he left the firm and practised with other partners until 1874, when he succeeded Vice-Chancellor Strong (who had been promoted to the Supreme Court) upon the bench. In 1872, he was appointed a Queen’s counsel by the Ontario government. Prior to his elevation to the bench, he was an active Reformer in politics; and he still remains true to the church of his fathers, as a member of a Presbyterian Church in Toronto. As a lawyer and judge, Hon. Mr. Proudfoot is deeply read, and continues still to be a devoted student of the great authorities on equity. Being very conversant with the Latin and French languages, he is well-grounded in the Roman and civil law, and his judgments are models of lucid expression and technical accuracy. He is, what is supposed still better, thoroughly judicial in the extent of his mind, and has proved himself a distinguished ornament to the Ontario bench. In 1853, Judge Proudfoot married Miss Thomson, a daughter of the late John Thomson, of Toronto, and by this lady he had a family of six children. She died in 1871. He married his second wife in 1875. She was Miss Cook, daughter of the late Adam Cook, of Hamilton, and she died in 1878, leaving one son.
Wilkinson, William, of Bushville, Chatham, New Brunswick, the present judge of the County Courts of Northumberland, Gloucester, and Restigouche, son of John and Catherine Wilkinson, both now deceased, was born at Liverpool, England, on the 11th February, 1826. He came out to New Brunswick in 1840, arriving at Chatham on the 11th September, after a long passage of forty-nine days, by the encouragement of, and to be with his half-brother, the late James Johnson, who had arrived in the country about six years before, and who had then lately entered into business as a merchant on his own account. He remained with his brother as apprentice clerk for two years, and then with the sanction and good will of all friends, he entered the law office of the late Hon. John M. Johnson, jun., as a law student, and was entered as such in Michaelmas term, 1842. In the same term of 1847, having satisfactorily passed the necessary examinations as to his fitness, he was duly sworn in and enrolled as an attorney of the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, and also received his commission to act as notary public. In Michaelmas term, 1849, he was duly called to the bar. For a few years after his admission he practised alone, but on the 20th December, 1852, he entered into partnership with the late Hon. John M. Johnson, jun., which partnership continued up to the time of Mr. Johnson’s death, November, 1868. During its continuance they were engaged in many very important and interesting causes, and always had the reputation of being very careful, successful, practitioners. The first governmental office Mr. Wilkinson received was that of surrogate and judge of Probates for the county of Northumberland, which was on the resignation of the office by the late Hon. Thomas H. Peters, on the 8th July, 1851. This office he resigned in the spring or summer of 1870, with the view of becoming a candidate for the New Brunswick legislature. And it may be mentioned that during all the time Mr. Wilkinson held the office, no appeal was ever made from any decision or judgment made by him in any cause before him. In the spring or summer of 1852, Mr. Wilkinson was appointed (under the first Education Act of New Brunswick authorising inspectors, passed in the previous winter) inspector of schools for his county, Northumberland, which office he held for several years, until, fearing that the increasing professional demands on his time and attention might induce a less careful and thorough performance of his duties as inspector, or interfere with professional duties, he resigned the office into the hands of the government, stating these reasons. But his resignation was much to the regret of the then superintendent, Marshal D’Avary, who was most desirous that he should continue in office and become a district inspector under the new act then, or about to be, passed. On the 8th November, 1870, he was appointed by the commissioners of the Intercolonial Railway for examining and reporting upon the titles of lands taken for railway purposes through the county of Northumberland, and later by the railway authorities to perform a similar duty in regard to many unsettled and disputed cases in the adjoining counties of Gloucester and Restigouche. And at intervals for several years after his first appointment as railway solicitor, he was appointed one of the appraisers with one or other of the paymasters of the Intercolonial Railway, for the time being, to appraise and (after the preparation and execution of the proper transfer of title) pay the land damages for rights of way, water courses, and conduits taken for the railway purposes through all these counties. In the fall of 1872 he was appointed by the Dominion government immigrant agent for Northumberland, on the resignation by John G. G. Layton. This office he held for a few years, when, on a change of government, a new policy in regard to immigration was inaugurated. But on the cessation of the office, courteous and full acknowledgment was made by the then government of the ability and zeal with which the duties had been performed. On the 2nd April, 1873, he was appointed by the Dominion government one of Her Majesty’s Counsel Learned in the Law. On the 6th March, 1877, he was appointed surrogate of the Vice-Admiralty Court of New Brunswick, by the Vice-Admiralty Court, and on the 11th March, 1881, on the resignation of Judge Williston, he received the appointment of judge of the County Courts of Northumberland, Gloucester, and Restigouche, and on the next day was duly sworn in and held his first county court at Bathurst, Gloucester county. On the 12th February, 1884, he wasex-officioappointed first commissioner under the Liquor License Act of 1883, for the several license districts of Northumberland, Gloucester, and Restigouche, and held the same till the decision of the Privy Council declared the actultra vires. On the 26th October, 1885, he was appointed under separate commissions the revising officer of the electoral districts of the counties of Northumberland and Restigouche respectively, under the Electoral Franchise Act, passed in 1884. Judge Wilkinson is a member of the Church of England, adhering strongly to the views developed by the Oxford movement. For thirty years, and without a break, he was the vestry clerk of the church corporation in Chatham, where he has always lived, and only resigned the office a few years ago, because of his necessary frequent absence from home, to fill judicial appointments. For a like period, with very rare exceptions, he has been a delegate to the Diocesan Church Society, and to the Diocesan Synod at, and ever since its formation, and on several occasions has been elected by the Diocesan to the Provincial Synod. At the formation of the Diocesan, he strongly espoused the right of concurrence of the bishop in all acts of the synod, so in the Provincial he was with those who held and voted that the House of Bishops should have a veto power on all nominations to the episcopate, both of which views, though not without much opposition, ultimately carried. On St. James’ day, 1850, he was married to Eliza Lovibond, only child of the Rev. Samuel Bacon, D.R. (the first rector of Chatham, and who continued such for the long period of forty-seven years, dying at his post on the 16th February, 1869), and granddaughter of the celebrated sculptor, the elder John Bacon, by whom he has had six children, only three of whom are now living: namely, Eliza Bacon, wife of John P. Burchill, M.P.P.; the Rev. William James, rector of Bay du Vin; and Mary Edith, the wife of William R. Butler, B.E., professor of mathematics at, and vice-president of, King’s College, Windsor, Nova Scotia. It is said that after the marriage of the latter, it was observed by the Bishop of Fredericton, the present Metropolitan of Canada, that he could say in this instance what, perhaps, could not be said by any other in Canada of any one else, that it had been his great happiness to marry the mother as well as her two daughters.
Cargill, Henry, Manufacturer of Lumber, Cargill, Ontario, M.P. for East Bruce, was born in the township of Nassagaweya, Halton county, on the 13th August, 1838. His father, David Cargill, and mother, Anne Cargill, were natives of the county of Antrim, Ireland, and having emigrated to Canada in 1824, settled in the county of Halton, Ontario, over sixty years ago. Henry received his primary education at the schools in his native county, and afterwards took a course at Queen’s College, Kingston. He commenced the lumber business in 1861; and in 1878 removed from Nassagaweya to Guelph, and in April of the following year to Greenock township, east riding of Bruce county, where he still resides. Although the manufacture of lumber has been Mr. Cargill’s chief business, he has engaged, to a limited extent, in mercantile pursuits, and has done some farming. He has also a flour mill and a sash and door factory, and on the whole has succeeded very well in all he has undertaken. He was for some time the postmaster at Cargill; and for the last three years has been the reeve of the township of Greenock. Mr. Cargill has been an active politician for many years; and in 1887, on presenting himself for parliamentary honors, was elected to represent East Bruce in the Dominion parliament. In 1879 he generously gave to the Wellington, Grey & Bruce (now the Grand Trunk) Railway a piece of land on which he built a station, and this was the starting of the village of Cargill, which is named after him. In politics he is a Conservative; and in religion he belongs to the Presbyterian denomination. On the 11th March, 1864, he was married to Margaret Davidson, daughter of William and Anne Davidson, of Halton, and has a family of four children.
Stennett, Rev. Canon Walter, Cobourg, Ontario, was born in Kingston, Ontario, in 1821, of English parents, who had emigrated, in 1811, to the West Indies, and in 1817, at the close of the American war, passed through the United States and settled in Kingston. His father was a typical Englishman, whose politics were never swayed by considerations of advantage to himself; hence, though always a staunch Conservative, he neither sought nor received any government office or emolument, but through a long life continued true to his principles of loyalty and integrity, unrewarded. In 1837, when the “American sympathizers” (as they were then called) aided the rebellion of Mackenzie, he commanded a body of provincial artillery opposite Navy Island, and he will be remembered by many still living as president of the officers’ mess of the militia on the Canadian shore. His son, the subject of this sketch, a boy of sixteen, was just ending a successful career at Upper Canada College, where he won many prizes, both in classics and mathematics. On the opening of King’s College University, young Stennett was one of the first to matriculate, and soon proved that his early promise in Upper Canada College would not disappoint those who expected somewhat from him. Amongst these was the Rev. Dr. McCaul, with whom young Stennett soon became a great favorite, and who especially recognized his talent for Latin and English verse. It was in mathematics, however, that his highest development showed itself, so much so that the then professor of mathematics, on leaving for England, wished young Stennett to enter Cambridge, in which English university he assured him of a high wranglership. While still pursuing his student career in King’s College, the vacancy of third classical master in Upper Canada College occurred, and Mr. Stennett was immediately chosen as one very fit to fill it. Hence he commenced his course as master in the institution in which he had received his earliest classical training. After a few years, and while still completing withéclathis course at King’s College, and reading in divinity under the late Rev. Dr. Beaven and Professor Hirschfelder, he received his degrees of B.A. and M.A.; but was prevented from proceeding to B.D. and D.D. by the abolition of the chair of divinity, and with it the power of King’s College to confer degrees in that faculty. Meanwhile, by the lamented death of the Rev. W. H. Ripley, Mr. Stennett was made second classical master in Upper Canada College, and afterwards, by a series of events which caused the retirement of the then principal—the late F. W. Barron, M.A.—Mr. Stennett was, without the least solicitation on his own part, promoted to the vacant post, as one fitted in every way, by his talents, disposition, and acquirements, adequately to fill the position of principal of the Eton of Canada. A few years before, in 1852, Mr. Stennett had married the daughter of the then Ven. Archdeacon of York, and, on returning from his marriage tour, was, while in London, commissioned to obtain from Downing Street, and to bring out with him, the Royal Charter of Trinity College, Toronto. Though always by his feelings naturally inclined to the Church University, Mr. Stennett has never taken anad eundemdegree in Trinity College, but his name still continues on the roll of what has ever been to him the rightful representative of his own university. Thus has the onward tide of things not increased his academic honors. While principal of Upper Canada College, Mr. Stennett had the honor of personally presenting the address of that institution to his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, then on a visit to this country. About the sixth year of Mr. Stennett’s prosperous conduct of Upper Canada College, contentions unhappily arose with the Senate of the University of Toronto, the leading spirits of which desired alterations in the classical scheme of teaching, and changes in the mode of discipline, of which changes Mr. Stennett, from his experience, did not approve. Under the worry produced by conscientiously resisting these changes, and honestly upholding a system under which some of the finest minds in the country had had their training, Mr. Stennett’s health broke down. His honest efforts to resist what he regarded as amongrel and loweringsystem brought on a serious brain affection, which demanded his resignation in self-defence, and this resignation was, greatly to the indignation of Sir Edmund Head, the then governor-general (himself a scholar and a gentleman), accepted, though he offered Mr. Stennett a special Royal commission. To recover from this affection of the brain (the effects of which have never entirely left him), Mr. Stennett retired to a small property on Lake Simcoe, where, after an interval of needful rest, he built, and for some time conducted successfully, the private school known as “Beechcroft.” From this Mr. Stennett was, in 1866, at the especial desire of Bishop Strachan, promoted to the important rectory of Cobourg, then about to become vacant by the election of its rector to the dignity of coadjutor bishop of Niagara. For now over twenty years Mr. Stennett has ably and successfully conducted the affairs of the parish of Cobourg; but for some time a return of some of the symptoms which caused his retirement from Upper Canada College, has prevented him from actively discharging parish duties, which he has been obliged largely to delegate to his assistant, the Rev. Dr. Roy. It must not be supposed, however, that Mr. Stennett, while principally engaged in teaching, neglected the higher duties of a Christian clergyman. Called to the diaconate in 1847, and to the priesthood in the year following, he was immediately appointed assistant minister in the church of the Holy Trinity, Toronto, the congregation of which church he worked hard in building up, and for five years he served that congregation without fee or reward. He was afterwards chiefly instrumental in building, and in collecting the congregation for, the church at Carlton, near Toronto. He served for long periods, in the absence of their own clergy, the church at Norway, and the three churches of the Rev. Mr. Darling, in the township of Scarboro’, all this without compensation of any kind. Finally, on his retirement to Lake Simcoe, he built, and served gratuitously for several years, the beautiful little stone church of Christ’s Church, Keswick. In fact, until he was inducted into the rectory of Cobourg, Mr. Stennett had never received a penny in the way of stipend. To the efficient manner in which the affairs of his parish in Cobourg have been managed, the records of the church can testify. Large returns have been regularly made for all the purposes for which the synod required collections. A beautiful chancel has been added to St. Peter’s Church; one of the best organs in the diocese has been placed therein, and many other improvements are in course of being made. Canon Stennett having had the great misfortune to lose his estimable wife by a lingering illness, was, early in 1882, married by the Bishop of Toronto to Julia Veronica, daughter of the late Norman Bethune, of Montreal, and niece of the late Dean Bethune, of Christ’s Church Cathedral in that city. Her tact, energy and ability have been prominently shown in those parts of parochial work which need the skilled guidance of an accomplished lady. This slight sketch would be left imperfect, did we fail to mention that Canon Stennett’s labors were not confined altogether to the routine duties of his own parish, but that under three successive bishops his scholarly and theological attainments were utilized to the benefit of the diocese at large, in his conducting, periodically, the examinations for holy orders, until the brain malady, from which he still suffers, obliged him to resign this portion of his duties into the hands of his bishop.
Bélanger, Rev. François Honoré, Curé of the Parish of St. Roch, Quebec, was born at Montreal on the 26th April, 1850. He is the son of François Bélanger, who was manager of the Queen’s printer’s establishment during many years, and Elmire Chalut, a member of a family having numerous representatives in all parts of the province of Quebec. Mr. Bélanger, sen., died in September, 1857, and Mrs. Bélanger, in September, 1859. Having completed a course of classical and theological studies at the Seminary of Quebec, he determined to enter holy orders. He was ordained priest on the 28th of May, 1876, and was appointed vicar at the Basilica, Quebec city, on 29th of May of the same year, a position he held for nine years and a half. On the 4th of October, 1885, he was given the charge of the important parish of St. Roch, succeeding the Rev. Mr. Gosselin, and the Rev. Mr. Charest, whose memory will forever survive, chiefly in connection with the signal services he rendered his flock on the occasions of the disastrous conflagrations Quebec has so often been visited with, and also of the riots, when his presence and his voice quelled the most turbulent as by magic. Rev. Mr. Bélanger has built the St. Roch’s School, probably the finest building held by the Christian Brothers in the Dominion. This school is the property of the parish of St. Roch.
Joseph, Abraham,—The late Abraham Joseph, Merchant, of Quebec, was born on the 14th of November, 1815, at Berthier, near Montreal. He was the son of Henry Joseph and Rachel Solomon. After the death of his father, who succumbed to the cholera plague of 1832, he removed to Quebec, where he continued to reside up to his death, which occurred on the 20th of March, 1886. The other branches of the family have all settled in Montreal. Mr. Joseph married in 1846 Sophia David, daughter of Samuel David and Sarah Hart, of Montreal, and she died in 1866, leaving a family of eleven children, four sons and seven daughters. Of these all but one have survived their father. Mr. Joseph was a successful man of business throughout his long career; his name was identified with almost every commercial enterprise of his time, and in most instances appeared among their active directors. As president of the Quebec Board of Trade, he appeared for several years at the head of the business community, and in his turn presided over the then flourishing Dominion Board of Trade. He was one of the original directors of the Banque Nationale, where was seen the unusual spectacle of eight men, all middle-aged or more, sitting at the same board for over eleven years without change. The first break in the board (since, however, much changed), was made when Mr. Joseph resigned his position, to take the presidency of the Stadacona Bank, then being established. This institution had a fairly successful career, but after passing through the greater part of a period of commercial depression, was put into liquidation by a vote of the shareholders. The president himself never lost faith in the institution, and his assertions of its complete soundness were amply proved by the fact, that in spite of the losses and expenses incidental to liquidation, the shareholders received back the whole of their capital. Mr. Joseph’s public services, however, were not confined strictly to commercial life. Proud of his English descent, he was a life member of the St. George’s Society, and more than once its president. He sat in the city council, and once stood for the mayoralty, being only defeated by a small and very questionable majority. He took a lively interest, but no prominent part, in politics. He served in the Quebec light infantry, during the rebellion of 1837-8, and in time attained the rank of major in the militia. He held the position of vice-consul for Belgium for over thirty years. A Jew by birth and conviction, he brought up his large family, with the assistance of his revered wife, as long as she lived, in all the teachings of their religion, both ceremonial and moral—a task of no slight difficulty in the absence of anything like an organized community. Though truly religious, however, he was as far removed as possible from any taint of bigotry, and his integrity, kind-heartedness and intelligent sympathy, made him the friend alike of Catholic and Protestant, rich and poor, English and French. It is doubtful, indeed, whether in his long career he made any enemies. It is very characteristic of the man’s liberal views, that of the only two public legacies left by his will, one was for a Christian object, the other for a Jewish. His habits were thoroughly domestic and sociable, and his residence, Kincardine Place, was long known as one of the most hospitable residences in Quebec city. He was never happier than when surrounded by the young friends of the family, or by his grandchildren, eight of whom he lived to see.
Pelletier, Hon. Honoré Cyrias, Puisné Judge of the Superior Court of the province of Quebec, with place of residence at Rimouski, was born at Cacouna, in the county of Kamouraska, on the 28th November, 1840, from the marriage of François Pelletier, farmer, and Françoise Caron, who lived in Cacouna, and removed later on to St. Arsène, county of Temiscouata. Justice Pelletier was educated at the Seminary of Quebec, and graduatedbachelier-ès-lettres et ès-sciencesat Laval University, where he also followed the law course for three years. He then entered the law office of L. G. Baillairgé, in Quebec, and was called to the bar of the province on the 8th of October, 1866. He practised his profession in Quebec, forming partnerships successively with A. Benoit, H. J. J. Duchesnay, and J. E. Bédard. In 1879 he was made a Queen’s counsel; and was elevated to the bench on the 12th of April, 1886, on the death of the late Judge Mousseau. Judge Pelletier was married twice, the first time to Tharsile Gourdeau, a daughter of F. Gourdeau, who was harbor master of Quebec, in 1869; and the second time to Célina Moraud, a daughter of J. B. Moraud, N.P., of Lotbinière, in 1877.
Fizét, Louis Joseph Cyprien.—This well known French Canadian poet was born in Quebec, on the 3rd October, 1825. His mother was Mary Powers, of London, England, daughter of an officer of the Royal navy; and his father the Hon. Louis Fizét,—descended from an old French family which left Dieppe, in Normandy, in 1656, and settled in Canada,—held several important official positions, including that of district judge for the district of Gaspé, and took an active and influential part in the political events that occurred in the district of Quebec anterior to the year 1840. He died in January, 1867. At a meeting of the bar of Lower Canada, held in the city of Quebec, on the 8th of that month, Hon. Charles Alleyn being in the chair, the following resolution, amongst others, was unanimously adopted: “Proposed by the Hon. J. N. Bossé, seconded by Charles J. Holt, Esq., Q.C., and resolved, that this section of the bar believes it to be its duty to render homage publicly to the memory of the deeply lamented Hon. Louis Fizét, to his virtues as a citizen, upright and honorable, who has given universal satisfaction in the fulfilment of the duties of the various public offices which he has filled, and who has deserved from all the highest testimonials of esteem in his public and private life by his constant affability, courtesy, and kindness of heart.” Louis Joseph C. Fizét, the subject of our sketch, received his education at the private school of the celebrated Doctor Wilkie, and subsequently at the Seminary of Quebec, where he had for professors, among others, the Rev. Alexandre Taschereau, who is now his Eminence Cardinal Taschereau; the Rev. Jean Langevin, now his Grace the Bishop of Rimouski; and the Rev. M. Bouchy, a distinguished French professor of rhetoric. At this latter institution he exhibited a more than ordinary aptitude and taste for literature, which evinced at this early period, that he was likely to shine as a literary man of ability later on, and which expectation has since been fully justified. As an instance of his early taste for literature, at the age of twelve years he wrote a story entitled “Vincent, le Naufragé,” the fruit of his young imagination, though distantly connected with Robinson Crusoe. When the manuscript was concluded, he would not be satisfied until he had illustrated it with colored designs, showing his hero in various adventures, and then bound it with his own hands. This early effort, though far from being a masterpiece, showed the bent of his mind at that early age. Mr. Fizét has travelled through Europe, and is well acquainted with all its more important cities, hence his natural talents have had the advantage of development through observation of the habits and customs of peoples of many different nationalities. While in Dieppe, in Normandy, France, he called on the mayor of that city, who courteously gave him an opportunity of consulting its archives. He there found the certificate of birth of the founder of his family in Canada, to whom he had traced his origin by means of certain documents and the registers of births deposited in the archives of Quebec. The certificate of birth of his ancestor, found at Dieppe, is in the following terms: “Le 31 août, 1635, est né dans cette ville Abraham, fils d’Abraham Fizét et de Catherine de la Brecque, nommé par Jacques de la Brecque et Catherine de Caux, lesquels ont signé.” This certificate satisfied him that his family name ought to be spelled thus: “Fizét,” and not Fiset. He studied law under the Hon. Ed. Bacquet, who was later appointed one of the justices of the Superior Court, and the Hon. Charles Alleyn, Q.C., and at one time provincial secretary of the united provinces of Upper and Lower Canada, and was duly admitted to the bar on the 24th of November, 1848. In 1849, like many of the young men of that time, he took an interest in politics, and was an ardent admirer of the late Sir L. H. Lafontaine, then at the head of the Lafontaine-Baldwin administration. On the day following the burning of the parliamentary buildings at Montreal, by an infuriated mob, he took passage for that city, then in the greatest agitation, and with many others, offered his services to the government to assist in the maintenance of order; but Lord Elgin, at that time governor-general of Canada, being averse to the arming of the citizens, his offer was not accepted. On that memorable occasion he wrote the following extemporaneous song which has remained in the possession of one of his then youthful friends, and which indicates the excitement prevailing at that period: