Skip to content

Chapter XXII: Part 22

Text size

=Hodgetts, Col. Charles Alfred, C.M.G., M.D.=, sanitary specialist, is the third son of the late George Hodgetts, of Toronto, and a grandson of the late Lt.-Col. Thomas Hodgetts, of His Majesty’s 24th Regiment, and was born in Toronto, August 23, 1859. In 1896, Dr. Hodgetts married Elizabeth B. Salter, daughter of W. T. Salter, of St. John’s, Newfoundland. She died in March, 1909. He has two sons and three daughters. He was educated at the Provincial Model School, Toronto, and was awarded the Dufferin Medal at the Ontario College of Pharmacy, graduating with honours in 1875, at the Victoria University, graduating in 1886 as an M.D., C.M., and subsequently received the membership of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. Dr. Hodgetts was house surgeon at the Toronto General Hospital 1886-7, and resident assistant surgeon at the Stafford Infirmary, England, 1888, and received his L.R.C.P., London, 1889. He received the first D.P.H. of Queen’s University in 1912. From 1891 to 1904 he was Medical Inspector of the Provincial Board of Health and Secretary and Deputy Registrar General of the Province of Ontario from 1904 to 1910. In 1910, he was offered the M.O.H. of the city of Toronto, but declined the appointment; subsequently he was appointed Medical Adviser of the Public Health Committee of the Commission of Conservation, with headquarters at Ottawa. Dr. Hodgetts has held the Honorary Treasurership of the St. John Ambulance Association, and is at present Honorary Secretary; also the Honorary Secretaryship of the Canadian Branch of the Red Cross Society from the time of its organization, and was most active during the war in South Africa, 1899-1900, in carrying out the work in Canada. He resigned from the office in 1910, and was elected the first Honorary Life Member. Sup. Presdt. Sons of England Ben. Soc., Canada, 1900-1; a Fellow Royal Sanitary Institute, 1905; an examiner, Royal Sanitary Institute, 1906; Fellow Royal Institute of Public Health; Fellow of the Society of Medical Officers of Health of Great Britain; Hon. Vice-President Association Public Vaccinators, Great Britain; Member, International Commission on Bovine Tuberculosis, 1909; Member, Ottawa Commission to investigate the best source of water supply for Ottawa, and to suggest a plan of sewage disposal for that city, 1911; Life Member of the British Red Cross Society. He has served as 3rd, 2nd, and 1st Vice-President, American Public Health Association; Hon. Asst., 1903, Esquire, 1910, and Knight of Grace, 1912, Order of St. John of Jerusalem; Past President, Conference Executive; Officer, State and Prof. Boards of Health, Washington; President, Canadian Public Health Association of Canada, 1911-12; gazetted Lieut. A.M.C., present rank, Lt.-Col.; a founder and charter member of the Canadian Red Cross Society, St. John Ambulance Association, and the Canadian Public Health Association; author of numerous contributions to the press and of several pamphlets on public health. Represented Canada at International Congress on Tuberculosis, Washington, 1909; International Congress on Maternity and Child Welfare, Berlin, 1911; Conference on Pollution of International Waterways, Cleveland, 1912; and British and Overseas Dominion Conference on Child Welfare, London, England, 1913. The only medical member of the Trustees holding the charter of the Toronto School of Medicine for the Ontario Government. He is credited with being one of the foremost public health authorities in Canada and, as the “Montreal Gazette” has wisely pronounced, is “regarded everywhere as an authority on all subjects dealing with public health.” He was prominent with the Conservation Commission in urging the creation of a Dominion Department of Health, and carried out a campaign for the better housing of the people and for town planning. Dr. Hodgetts is thoroughly British, and believes that the maintenance of British connection is essential for the continuance of Canada’s progress. On mobilization, at Valcartier in August, 1914, O.C. in charge of Inoculation Column. Nearly 30,000 troops were inoculated, being the largest number ever inoculated on mobilization. In October, 1914, Dr. Hodgetts was appointed Hon. Canadian Red Cross Commissioner overseas, with the rank of Colonel, and left for the front. From London he organized and directed the activities of the Society overseas in England, France and the countries of the Entente. He was elected a member of the Joint War Committee of the British Society and Order of St. John of Jerusalem for the full period of his residence overseas. In September, 1917, among the birthday honours conferred by King George at Buckingham Palace, the C.M.G. was given to Dr. Hodgetts in appreciation of his work, he having been mentioned in despatches for distinguished service. In April, 1918, he resigned the Commissionership of the C.R.C.S., and the Imperial authorities appointed him to the post of deputy Commissioner of Medical Service under the Imperial Ministry of National Services—one of the highest positions in the medical services of the Empire, and he subsequently served in Ireland as Assistant Commissioner. Dr. Hodgetts returned to Canada the following December, and was enthusiastically received by the members of the Great War Veterans’ Association, to whom he had rendered such attentive and efficient service overseas, that it had received the personal praise of the Commanders-in-Chief of the British and French armies. He received a personal letter of thanks from Queen Marie of Rumania, and the badge of membership of the Serbian Red Cross for his services to those allies. Dr. Hodgetts is a Protestant in religion, and his residence is 238 Argyle Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Member of the Rideau and University Clubs.

* * * * *

=Macdonald, Sir Donald Alexander=, the oldest Major-General in the Canadian Army, upon whom fell the work of equipping the Canadian Forces during the continuance of the war of 1914, is now on the retired list. His responsibilities covered a wide field, embracing the clothing and equipment of all branches of the service, and in addition the housing, feeding, transport, of the mounted and postal services. Having served his country faithfully and with marked ability for fifty-four years, Major-General Sir Donald Alexander Macdonald, I.S.O., C.M.G., K.B., in January, 1918, retired from active service loaded with honours, decorations and distinctions, and carrying with him the high estimation of the Canadian people and of the Empire at large. The record of his devotion to duty and his ability to do those duties that fell to his lot will ever hold a prominent place in Canada’s military history. In 1863, Major-General Sir Donald Alexander Macdonald first became a member of the Canadian Militia when he joined the Rifle Company of Cornwall as Ensign. In 1865 he became Lieutenant of the 59th Regiment, and in 1866 Captain, in which capacity he served during the Fenian raids of 1866. In 1869 he became Adjutant, and in 1870 served in the Red River Expedition, and was awarded a medal and two clasps. In 1871 he became Major, and in 1877 was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel. Then came in 1885 the North-West Rebellion, in which he distinguished himself, and was awarded a medal. In 1900 he was promoted to Colonelcy, and, having for some time been Chief Superintendent of Military Stores, in 1903 was appointed Director-General of Ordnance for Canada, and received the honour of I.S.O. In 1904 he was appointed Quartermaster-General of the Canadian Militia. In 1908 he was promoted to Brigadier-General, and in that year received his C.M.G., for his services in equipping the South African Contingent. In 1912 he was made a Major-General, and in January, 1918, was knighted by His Majesty King George V. In addition to the other distinctions that were accorded him, Sir D. A. Macdonald holds the Long Service Decoration and the honour of being the third military member of the Militia Council. Major-General Sir Donald Alexander Macdonald is the son of the late Alexander Eugene Macdonald, Deputy Clerk of the Crown and Registrar of the Surrogate Court of Cornwall, Ontario, and was born October 31, 1845, in Cornwall, and educated at the County High School. In 1876 he married Mary, the second daughter of Hon. Justice Hugh Richardson, formerly of the Superior and Supreme Court of the Canadian North-West Territories. He has one daughter, the wife of Lt.-Colonel C. L. Panet, Secretary of the Department of Militia and Defence. He resides at the Chateau Laurier, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

* * * * *

=Davidson, William McCartney, M.P.P.= (of Calgary), is one of the leading editors and public men of Alberta. He was born at Hillier, Prince Edward County, Ontario, on November 12, 1872, the son of James C. Davidson, a farmer, and Sarah McCartney Davidson, and was educated at the public school of his district, Picton High School, St. Catharines Collegiate Institute, and the University of Toronto. From the latter institution he graduated in June, 1893, with the degree of B.A., and decided to enter newspaper work. His first experience was as a reporter on the staff of the Toronto “World” under W. F. Maclean, M.P. A year later he was invited to join the staff of the Toronto “Star,” then in the early stages of its career, and shortly afterward became its representative in the press gallery of the Ontario Legislature. Mr. Davidson showed a grasp of public issues beyond the ordinary, and during the seven years he remained with the “Star” made its legislative reports a definite feature of the newspaper. In 1901 the Canadian West was just on the verge of the tremendous development which has marked the first two decades of this century, and Mr. Davidson resolved to try his fortunes there. In 1902 he established himself at Calgary, then a town of about 3,000 inhabitants, and founded the “Morning Albertan.” From comparatively humble beginnings it has developed into one of the most widely known newspapers in Canada. Throughout its career Mr. Davidson has retained the position of editor-in-chief and proprietor. He soon became prominently identified with the Liberal party in the province, and at the Alberta general elections of 1917 was elected to the Legislature for the riding of North Calgary. Few members of that body have as deep a knowledge of public questions and of parliamentary procedure. Mr. Davidson has travelled extensively, and one of his favorite pastimes is mountain-climbing. He is a member of St. Andrews Golf Club, of the A.F. & A.M., and the I.O.F. He is a Senator of the University of Alberta, and a Presbyterian in religion. He has been twice married: first, on June 6, 1899, to Christiana Constance Robertson, daughter of Rev. James Robertson, D.D., of Toronto, Superintendent of Missions for the Presbyterian Church of Canada. She died in March, 1904, and on September 10, 1913, Mr. Davidson married Ethel M. Heydon, daughter of George Heydon, of Yarmouth Centre, Ontario. He has three children, James R., William M., and Marian C. R. Davidson.

* * * * *

=Parent, Hon. Simon Napoleon, K.C.=, who was Chairman of the National Transcontinental Railway Commission from 1905 to 1911, is the son of Simon Polycarpe and Luce (Belanger) Parent, of Beauport, Quebec, and was born there September 12, 1855. His education was had at the Quebec Normal School and Laval University, and between 1881 and 1902 he was awarded the following degrees and honours: Laval University, LL.L., with Lorne Gold Medal and Tessier Prize, 1881; LL.D., 1902; D.C.L. (Hon.), Bishop’s College University, Lennoxville, 1902. In 1881 Mr. Parent was called to the Bar, and was created K.C. in 1899. In October, 1877, he married Marie Louise Clara, daughter of the late Ambroise Gendron. Four sons and four daughters have blessed the union. At present Mr. Parent is President of the Quebec Streams Commission for the Province of Quebec. When admitted to the Bar, Mr. Parent successfully practised his profession in the city of Quebec, and from the start was looked upon as a practical man and a good and reliable lawyer. He served as an alderman in the Quebec City Council from 1890 to 1904, and was Mayor of the city from 1894 to 1905, during which time he built the new City Hall. Largely through his perseverance and energetic work, the splendid Quebec Bridge was built, and it was he who originated the park at St. Roch, between St. Roch and St. Sauveur. Quebec city streets were improved and the finances of the city placed on a better footing. Mr. Parent sat in the local legislature for St. Sauveur in the Liberal interest from 1890 to 1905, and served in the Marchand administration as Commissioner of Crown Lands, Mines and Forests from 1897 to 1900. On Mr. Marchand’s death in the latter year, Mr. Parent was called upon to succeed him as Prime Minister of the Province, and held that position up to 1905, when he resigned at the request of the Right Hon. Sir Wilfrid Laurier to accept the position of Chairman of the National Transcontinental Railway Commission, with headquarters at Ottawa, which Commission had charge and control of the construction of the Eastern Division of the Transcontinental Railway, extending from the city of Moncton, N.B., in the east to the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, in the west, and the operation thereof until completed and leased to the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway Company. Mr. Parent was President of the Quebec Bridge Company from 1897 to 1908, was formerly a director of the Quebec Railway, Light and Power Company and the Quebec and Lake St. John Railway. During his whole public career, Mr. Parent has held the reputation for being an honest and able man; as one of the most industrious administrators of modern times; as a man of decision, business and legal ability, and rare enterprise in public matters; unassuming, courteous, and practical. A Roman Catholic in religion, Mr. Parent has ever been a staunch Liberal, and one of the late Sir Wilfrid Laurier’s best and most influential supporters. He is a member of the Rideau, Laurentian, and Ottawa Hunt Clubs in Ottawa, and of the Garrison Club, Quebec. His Ottawa residence is at 485 King Edward Avenue.

* * * * *

=Rutherford, John Gunion, C.M.G., V.S.=, Ottawa, Honorary Associate of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, Commissioner, Board of Railway Commissioners for Canada (Ottawa, Ont.) born at Mountain Cross, Peeblesshire, Scotland, on December 25, 1857, son of Rev. Robert Rutherford, M.A., and his wife Agnes Gunion. In 1887, he married Edith, daughter of Washington Boultbee, of Ancaster, Ont., by whom he has three daughters. He was educated at the High School of Glasgow, and later spent several years in the practical study of agriculture in the counties of East Lothian and Selkirk. Coming to Canada at the age of seventeen, he attended the Ontario Agricultural College in 1875 and 1876, being one of the earliest students at that institution, and later gained valuable practical experience in agriculture on the famous Bow Park Farm at Brantford, Ontario. In 1879 he graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College with honors, winning the gold medal for the best general examination, and numerous other prizes. He practised veterinary medicine for several years in Ontario, the United States and Mexico, and returning to Canada in 1884, settled at Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, where he engaged in general practice and horse breeding operations. He served as Veterinary Officer with the North-West Field Force under General Middleton during the Riel rebellion in 1885, and holds medal and clasp for that campaign. During his residence in Portage la Prairie he was for several years President of the Horse Breeders’ Association of Manitoba and the North-West Territories; President of the Manitoba Veterinary Association; President of the Manitoba and Lakeside Agricultural Society; the Island Park Racing Association, and the St. Andrew’s Society of Portage la Prairie. In 1884 he was appointed Veterinary Inspector for the Manitoba Government, an appointment which he held until 1892, when he was elected to represent the constituency of Lakeside (Portage Plains) in the Manitoba Legislature, in which body he was Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture. He was re-elected by acclamation in 1896, but after one session resigned to enter Dominion politics as representative for the constituency of Macdonald, which then comprised over one-sixth of the province of Manitoba. He sat as member for this constituency in the Dominion House until 1900, and in 1901 went to Great Britain as special Quarantine Officer for the Canadian Department of Agriculture. In 1902, he was appointed Chief Veterinary Inspector, and in 1904, after organizing the Health of Animals Branch, he became Veterinary Director-General. In 1906, he also took over the office of Live Stock Commissioner, and in the same and the succeeding year organized the present Meat and Canned Foods Inspection Service. During his tenure of office many original and radical departures were made in connection with the control and eradication of contagious diseases among the live stock of the Dominion, the results achieved being eminently satisfactory. Under his direction, the work of the Live Stock Branch was very considerably extended, and brought into close correlation with that of the Health of Animals Branch, joint supervision over the work of both branches being in a number of cases exercised by the same officers, especially in those provinces farthest from Ottawa. In 1908, he went twice to Rome as delegate for Canada to the International Institute of Agriculture, and in the same year was appointed to represent the Dominion at the International Congress on Tuberculosis at Washington, D.C. He was President of the American Veterinary Medical Association in 1908-09, and Chairman since its inception of the International Commission on the Control of Bovine Tuberculosis. He was for several years President of the St. Andrews Society of Ottawa, and from 1909 to 1911 President of the Civil Service Association of Canada. He was created a C.M.G. in 1910. In May, 1911, he resigned from the Dominion service, but at the request of the Government retained office until March, 1912. Immediately thereafter, he was engaged by Lord Shaughnessy, then President of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company, to undertake a campaign for the general development of the live stock industry and the encouragement of mixed farming in the three prairie provinces. In the organization of the campaign he found it advisable to co-ordinate this special work with that of the Company’s Department of Natural Resources at Calgary, Alberta, and in the following spring (1913) he was appointed Superintendent of Agriculture and Animal Industry, a position involving full responsibility for all the agricultural operations of the Company, including the educational and experimental activities in connection with its irrigation projects in Alberta. From 1913 to 1919, he was President of the Western Canada Live Stock Union, an organization in the creation of which he was largely instrumental, and which comprises in its membership all live stock associations and other bodies interested in the production of live stock in the four Western Provinces. In December, 1918, his portrait in oils was added by the live stock men of Canada to the collection of similar pictures of live stock celebrities in the Saddle and Sirloin Club of Chicago. He was a member of the Dominion Economic and Development Commission, as also a member of the Saskatchewan Royal Live Stock Commission, and has since its inception been Chairman of the Joint Committee on Commerce and Agriculture. While resident in Alberta he was Vice-Chairman of the Provincial Board of Agricultural Education, as also President of the Alberta Thoroughbred Horse Breeders’ Association, besides holding office in numerous other live stock and kindred organizations. He has had exceptional opportunities of acquiring a practical knowledge of Canadian agriculture, having actually farmed, more or less extensively, in every province of the Dominion except Prince Edward Island, his own farm being situated in the Chilliwack Valley in British Columbia. He was appointed to the Board of Railway Commissioners for Canada in November, 1918, and assumed office in February, 1919. Dr. Rutherford is a member of the following clubs: Ranchmen’s (Calgary), Rideau (Ottawa), University Club (Ottawa), Royal Ottawa Golf Club (Ottawa), and his home address is 218 MacLaren Street, Ottawa, Ont.

* * * * *

=Breithaupt, John C.=, of Kitchener, Ont., is one of the most widely known business men of Canada, and has been particularly identified with the leather industry. He was born at Buffalo, N.Y., on February 27, 1859, the son of the late Louis and Catherine (Hailer) Breithaupt; but his parents removed to Kitchener, then known as Berlin, Ont., when he was very young. He was educated in the public and high schools of that thriving manufacturing city and later at the North-Western College, Naperville, Ill., of which despite his Canadian citizenship, he has in later life been a Trustee for upwards of twenty years. In Berlin, Ont., he became associated in the tanning business of his father, which of late years has grown to great dimensions. He is Secretary of the Breithaupt Leather Company, Ltd., with tanneries at Kitchener, Penetanguishene and Woodstock, Ont., and President of the Hastings Tannery Company, Ltd., with head office at Kitchener and tannery at Hastings, Ont. In addition to his widespread commercial interests Mr. Breithaupt has shown unselfish activity in public affairs. While his city was still known as Berlin he was a member of the Municipal Council for six years, first as Councillor, then as Reeve, and later, in 1896-7, as Mayor. He has been a member of the Board of Water Commissioners of the city since 1899 continuously, and Chairman for every year of that period but one. He held the office of President of the Local Board of Trade for a term, and is also a member of the Toronto Board of Trade, with which he has been connected since 1891. In all municipal movements for the betterment of civic government he has been a leader, and his voice has frequently been heard in the cause of progress in the province at large. He was President of the Berlin and Waterloo Hospital for several years and takes a deep interest in religious matters. He is a member of the Evangelical Association, and has been a member of various Boards and Commissions of the Church, having been delegate to the General Conference in 1911 and again elected in 1919 in a similar capacity. He is a member of the following clubs: Lancaster, Grand River County and Golf, and Ontario Club (Toronto). In 1892 he married Caroline C., eldest daughter of the late J. S. Anthes, furniture manufacturer of Kitchener, and has six children: John Edward, chemical engineer of the various Breithaupt tanneries; Louise Catherine, Carl Louis, who early in 1919 returned from overseas after two years’ service with the Canadian Engineers in France; Freida Caroline, Walter Hailer, and Helena Esther Breithaupt.

* * * * *

=Cronyn, Hume, M.P.=, who represents the city of London, Ont., in the House of Commons, was born in London on August 28th, 1864, the son of Verschoyle Cronyn, LL.B., K.C., and Sophy Cronyn. The latter was a daughter of the late Hon. William Hume Blake, and a sister of the late Hon. Edward Blake, formerly leader of the Liberal party in the Canadian House of Commons, and later one of the ornaments of the British House of Commons as member for Longford, Ireland. The subject of this sketch was educated at Dr. Tassie’s famous grammar school, Galt, Ont., and at Toronto University, from which he graduated with the degree of B.A. He qualified for the law, and in 1889 received the degree of LL.B. from the same institution, and in that year was called to the Bar. He at once commenced the practice of law at London, and continued therein for the next eighteen years. In 1907 he gave up practice to take up the post of General Manager of The Huron and Erie Mortgage Corporation, a position he still holds in combination with the office of Vice-President. He is also General Manager of the Canada Trust Company, London, and a Director of the Mutual Life Assurance Company of Canada. Though long identified with the Liberal party, both from conviction and family association, Mr. Cronyn always declined public honors until the political crisis attendant on the adoption of the policy of conscription by Sir Robert Borden arose in 1917. Mr. Cronyn was one of many Ontario Liberals who decided to support the Prime Minister in forming a Union Government to carry out that policy, and when the general elections were announced on this issue, accepted the nomination as a Unionist candidate for the riding of London. The Laurier Liberals decided to make London one of the chief arenas of their battle against conscription, by nominating Mr. George S. Gibbons who had also been prominent in the politics of that city. After one of the most hotly contested campaigns of that momentous election, Mr. Cronyn was elected by a majority of over 4,000. In his younger days, he had been prominent in military circles; while a student at Toronto University he had enlisted in the Queen’s Own Rifles and served with that famous regiment in the North-West Rebellion of 1885, taking part in the engagement of Cut Knife Creek, for which he holds the medal and clasp. On returning to London, he joined the 7th Fusiliers, and served as Major in that battalion from 1899 to 1907, when he retired. During the late war he was active in promoting all patriotic causes. He is a member of the following clubs: London; London Hunt and Country; Toronto; Rideau (Ottawa); Royal Societies and the Zeta Psi fraternity. In religion he is an Anglican, and on September 6, 1892, married Frances A., second daughter of John Labatt, of London. He has three sons and two daughters, and his residence is at 580 Dundas Street, London, Ont.

=Davis, Albert Mayno=, President of the McAuliffe-Davis Lumber Company, Limited, lumber manufacturers and dealers, with head office on Duke Street, Ottawa, and a capital of $300,000, has been in the lumber business in Ottawa for over twenty years, first with the Export Lumber Company, later as manager of the Chaudiere Lumber Company, and for seven years as manager of the McAuliffe-Davis Lumber Company, Limited, of which he is now President. Mr. Davis is not only recognized as one of the leading retail lumbermen of eastern Ontario, and one with entire knowledge of trade conditions in Ottawa and throughout the valley, but is known to be one of the leaders among the younger business element in the city. In the Company, Mr. Davis has associated with him Mr. W. Allen Taft, Jr., of Boston, Vice-President, who is also President of the Export Lumber Company; Mr. W. J. Armstrong, Secretary-Treasurer; and the following constitute the Board of Directors: Messrs. Albert Mayno Davis, W. H. McAuliffe, George I. Dewar, W. A. Taft, and W. Allen Taft. Mr. Albert Mayno Davis is the son of C. W. Davis, Burlington, Vermont, and Jennie Taft, of the same place, and was born at Burlington, October 3, 1878. He was educated at the Burlington High School and the University of Vermont. June 23, 1903, he married Adele Sylvain, daughter of L. P. Sylvain, of Ottawa, Chief Clerk in the Library of Parliament, with which he has been connected since 1878. Two daughters and one son—Margaret, Philip, and Adele—add joy and lustre to the home. Mr. Davis is a member of the Laurentian, Royal Ottawa, Rivermead and Rideau Tennis Clubs. His recreations may be classified as outdoor sports. His residence is at 24 Clemow Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

* * * * *

=Bâby, Wolstan Alexander Dixie=, Collector of Inland Revenue for the Division of Hamilton (Ontario), is one of the most widely known and respected of Federal Government officials. Moreover, he comes of one of the oldest of all Canadian families and his ancestry dates back almost to the beginnings of white settlement on the continent of North America. He is the son of the late William Duperon Bâby, attorney-at-law and sheriff of the County of Essex, Ont., and Christina Jane Wilson, daughter of Captain John Wilson, of H.M. Canadian Militia, Amherstburg, Ont., and was born at Sandwich, Ont., on April 13, 1858. As a matter of record it is important to say something of the ancestry and family history of Mr. Bâby. His forefathers came from France in the earlier years of French settlement, and settled at Fort Detroit in what is now the State of Michigan, but then part of the French domain of Canada. Later they moved across the Detroit River, and took up land in what is now the town of Sandwich, Ont. The founders of the family on this continent were Jacques Bâby de Rainville and his wife, Isabeau Robin, of Monteton, in the Bishopric of Agen, France. Jacques was an officer in the famous Carignan Regiment and with it came to America in the seventeenth century. Subsequently, in 1670, he was married a second time to Jehanne Dandonneau de Sables, of which union were born nine children. The eldest grandson of this couple was Hon. Jacques Duperon Bâby, who was born in 1731, and lived until 1796. While he was still a young man, the British conquest of Canada occurred, and Detroit falling into British hands in 1760, Jacques Duperon Bâby and his wife, Suzanne de la Croix Rheaume (who lived until 1812), became British subjects. In all they had twenty-two children. The name of Hon. Jacques Duperon Bâby is intimately interwoven with the history of the Essex peninsula. He played a prominent part in the defence of the Detroit district during the conspiracy of the Indian chieftain, Pontiac, in 1760. He was a man of great worth and integrity, who enjoyed the confidence alike of the French, English, and Indian population, and consequently was able to be of great assistance to the British government in the establishment of the new regime. Hon. Jacques Duperon Bâby was the eldest of his many children. He was born in 1762 and died in 1833, and held positions of honour and influence in the young colony of Upper Canada. Jean Baptiste Bâby, grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was a younger brother, and served as Treasurer of the newly-organized County of Essex. Two other brothers entered the British army, one, Daniel, rising to the rank of Major-General; while four of his sisters married British officers, one of whom was Lord Bellingham. The eldest son of Jean Baptiste Bâby was William Duperon Bâby, afterward sheriff of Essex, born at Sandwich in 1819; and the subject of this sketch was William’s sixth child. Since most of the various generations had large families, the Bâby family connection in Western Ontario, and indeed throughout America is literally enormous, and all have preserved the high tradition of “noblesse oblige.” Mr. Dixie Bâby was educated at the Separate Schools and at Assumption College, Sandwich, Ont., and at the Christian Brothers’ School, Toronto, in 1876. At the age of eighteen he was appointed to the Inland Revenue service, and detailed to Rae’s distillery as assistant officer to the late Pierre Ramon. He qualified himself so well as a vigilant watcher of the government interests in connection with the important revenue derived from excise that he has since served in many parts of Canada, including Paris, Woodstock, St. Catharines, Belleville, Brantford, Portage la Prairie, and Berthierville, Que. He was first stationed at Hamilton in 1886 as second officer to the late William Donaghy, and in 1890 transferred to Berthierville. In 1892 he went back to the Hamilton distillery, and was appointed officer in charge in October, 1898. On November 21, 1914, he was appointed Collector of Inland Revenue in charge of the entire Hamilton division. His duties have always been of a character which required expert knowledge as well as rigid probity, and during his forty-three years’ service he has won the unfailing confidence of the Department, no matter which party was in power. In December, 1880, he married Mary McDougall, of Belleville, Ont., who was born April 7, 1861. He has had seven children: Christina Caroline, deceased; Julia Fortier and Mary Louisa (twins, also deceased); Frances Jeanette, wife of Henri Bâby, notary public, Lachine, Que.; John Dixie; George Raymond; and Madeline Cecilia. Capt. George Raymond Bâby, M.D., C.M., who was born at Berthierville on April 1, 1892, went to France with the McGill University 1915 unit, Canadian Army Medical Corps, and was awarded the Military Cross for bravery and devotion to duty during the great British advance which began August 8, 1918, and only ended when the armistice was signed. The other son, John Dixie Bâby, is a civil engineer by profession, who assisted in building the Canton Hankow Railway, China.

* * * * *

=Bell, Hon. George Alexander=, Chairman of the Local Government Board for the Province of Saskatchewan, is one of the pubic administrators of the Canadian West, and in an unusual degree the architect of his own fortunes. He was born on a farm in Brant County, Ontario, on August 3, 1856, the son of David and Agnes (Melrose) Bell. He was educated in the public schools of Huron County, and continued on the farm until he was twenty years old, after which he learned the trade of blacksmith, which he followed for the next twelve years, four in Ontario and eight in Manitoba. He moved to the latter province in 1880 on the opening up of that province by the Canadian Pacific Railway. In 1888 he engaged in the agricultural implement business as agent for the Massey-Harris Company, and continued therein for the next thirteen years. In 1903, because of his exceptional knowledge of the country he was appointed by the Dominion Government Homestead Inspector for the Land District of Estevan, Saskatchewan, a position he resigned in 1908 to become a candidate for the Saskatchewan Legislature, and was elected as a supporter of the Liberal administration of Hon. Walter Scott. He was re-elected for Estevan in 1912, and called to the Cabinet and sworn in as Provincial Treasurer on August 19 of that year. The Government had established a system of Government-owned telephones, and this portfolio was shortly combined with his duties as Treasurer. In his second capacity of Minister of Telephones he was sworn in February, 1913, and continued to administer both offices until May, 1918, when he resigned from the Cabinet and Legislature to accept the post of Chairman of the Local Government Board, an important office, for which his administrative capacity and thorough knowledge of Western conditions eminently fit him. Mr. Bell is a Liberal in politics, and a Presbyterian in religion. He is a member of the Wascana Country Club, Regina (his favorite recreation being golf), and of the following societies: A.F. & A.M., I.O.O.F., and C.O.F. On December 6, 1883, he married Elizabeth, daughter of Johnston and Rachel (Cosgrove) Smith, of Elmwood, Bruce County, Ont., and has seven children, George Melrose, Ella Mabel, Gordon, Ethel, Grace Agnes, Lorne David, and Harold Alexander Bell. Mr. and Mrs. Bell reside at Regina, Sask.

* * * * *

=Martin, Hon. William Melville, K.C.=, Prime Minister of Saskatchewan, is a native of the village of Norwich, Oxford County, Ont. He was born on August 23, 1877, the son of Rev. William M. and Christina (Jamieson) Martin, both his parents being natives of Scotland. While he was very young his parents removed to Exeter in Huron County, where his father served as Minister of the Presbyterian Church for twenty-six years. The subject of this sketch was educated at Exeter Public School, Clinton Collegiate Institute, and the University of Toronto, from which institution he graduated with the degree of B.A. and honors in classics. He also attended the Ontario School of Pedagogy to qualify as a High School teacher, and subsequently acted as Classical Master at Harriston High School for two years, 1899-1901. This however he regarded but as a stepping-stone to the practice of law for which he qualified at Osgoode Hall, Toronto. On being called to the bar he went to Regina, Saskatchewan, and commenced practice in July, 1903. He developed great talent not only as a lawyer but as a public speaker, and soon became prominent in the Liberal party. In 1906 he was offered the Liberal nomination for the House of Commons, for the old riding of Western Assiniboia, in succession to Hon. Walter Scott (who had resigned his Ottawa seat to become the first Prime Minister of the newly organized province of Saskatchewan), but declined. At the general elections of 1908, however, he yielded to the requests of his friends and accepted nomination, being elected by a majority of 708. At the general elections of 1911, despite the fact that the Liberal party as a whole met defeat, he was elected by the increased majority of 1,730. In all he sat in the House of Commons at Ottawa for eight years and although one of its youngest members was regarded as one of the most brilliant. In 1916 Hon. Walter Scott was obliged to resign the Premiership of Saskatchewan owing to ill health and Mr. Martin’s party friends in the West urged that he resign from Federal politics and accept the Premiership. He assented and at a by-election on November 13, 1916, was returned for Mr. Scott’s seat, Regina City, by acclamation. He reorganized the cabinet and framed a programme of progressive legislation which proved so acceptable to the electorate that at the general election of 1917 his administration was sustained by a very handsome majority. In addition to the offices of Prime Minister and President of the Council he administers the portfolios of Minister of Education and Minister of Railways. His educational reforms, covering as they do many problems of extreme moment, have been very important, and have attracted wide attention throughout Canada, and in the United States as well. Generally speaking Saskatchewan legislation under his regime has won fame for progress and effectiveness. So widespread is his reputation that on the death of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, early in 1919, many, both in the East and West, suggested him as the best available successor to the Federal Liberal leadership. Many of his friends still predict a Federal career for him, although Mr. Martin himself prefers to see his own programme of legislation for Saskatchewan carried out before aspiring to a wider arena. He is a Presbyterian in religion and a member of the Wascana Country Club and the Assiniboia Club. On Sept. 26, 1906, he married Violet Florence, daughter of the late Walter Thomson of Mitchell, Ont., and has two sons, Walter M. and Douglas Martin. His home is at 2042 Cornwall St., Regina, Sask.

* * * * *

=Henry, David Edouard=, founder of Henry’s Shorthand School, 209 Sparks Street, Ottawa, on January 2, 1913, was born at Clarence Creek, Russell County, Ontario, April 24, 1874, his parents being Jacques Henry, a farmer, and Aurelie Laviolette. He was educated in Ottawa at the Grey Nuns’ Convent and the Christian Brothers’ School. Building it on a sure foundation—according to the laws of economics, well equipped, and capably managed by experts—Mr. Henry made his school an enviable success. At the opening in 1913, the school was located at the corner of Bank and Gloucester Streets, and within three months, having outgrown its original premises it was removed to its present premises on the corner of Sparks and Bank Streets—the Capital’s busy corner—which from time to time have been enlarged as the requirements of increased attendance demanded until to-day they are some five times the original size, and are likely to be enlarged still further at an early date, although his school is to-day the largest in Eastern Ontario. When the school was transferred from the corner of Bank and Gloucester Streets to the corner of Bank and Sparks, Mr. Henry had but 40 day pupils. In 1918, the number had increased to 562, which students are to-day holding good positions in the Dominion Government offices, manufacturing and wholesale establishments, banking houses, etc., all of which bears tribute to the high standard of efficiency of the school. For eleven years before Mr. Henry went into business for himself, he was in charge of the shorthand department of the Willis Business College in Ottawa, when S. T. Willis was proprietor. In his school, his staff consists of experts in shorthand, typewriting, business penmanship, practical English, spelling, punctuation, transcription, correspondence, etc., etc., and those who receive instruction in any one of these receive the best that can be had. At the age of 16 years, Mr. Henry was awarded a Fourth Form Certificate and honours for composition, spelling and penmanship. He acquired a systematic course of self-instruction, studied shorthand (French system) and afterwards English, and made himself proficient in the Isaac Pitman, Ben Pitman, Graham, Munson, Scott-Browne, Beale, Calligraphy (a Canadian production), and the Gregg systems. He studied French, English, German, Greek and Latin, and received special study in penmanship at the Zanerian College, Columbus, Ohio. To acquire a practical business education, he had experience as stenographer and bookkeeper with big business firms such as Perkins & Fraser, barristers; Alexander Mutchmor, auditor, etc. From 1894 to 1896, Mr. Henry made a special study of scientific methods for imparting shorthand and typewriting, and during 1895-6 taught shorthand at the Capital City Business College, at Ottawa, and had charge of the Y.M.C.A. classes for several months. In 1896, he attended the Rochester, New York, Business Institute, to acquire a greater qualification for teaching, and, in 1899, established a shorthand school, which later he closed to join the staff of the Metropolitan Business College at Ottawa. For two years, he attended Rev. Dr. McMeekin’s “Ottawa College of Oratory,” and gave several successful recitals in the Albert Hall. In 1899, Mr. Henry corrected a text book on Pitman’s shorthand for Messrs. Powers and Lyons, of Chicago, Illinois. Mr. Henry is a graduate of the New York College of Phonography; the Phonographic Institute, Cincinnati, Ohio; and is the only personal graduate in Canada of the well known Gregg School of Chicago. He holds the Scott-Browne’s Certificate. In his examination for the Phonographic Institute Teacher’s Certificate, he made the highest record, viz., 97.2 per cent., thereby defeating more than 700 candidates. Mr. Henry is a member of the Gregg Shorthand Association of America, and is the author of two standard works in shorthand. Mr. Henry is a Roman Catholic in religion, a Liberal in politics, and, for recreation, spends his time motoring. He resides at 205 O’Connor Street, Ottawa, Ontario.

* * * * *

=Gibbon, Arthur Playford=, Principal of the Central Business College, Hamilton, Ont., is one of Canada’s leading commercial educationists. He was born on April 7, 1871, in a log house in the township of Nichol, Wellington County, Ont., the son of William and Susan (Reynolds) Gibbon. His early education was received in the rural school of his section, and later he walked four miles night and morning to attend the High School and Model School at Elora. From January, 1892, to July, 1894, he taught in rural ungraded schools, after which he returned to the farm for five years to care for his father and mother. Deciding to equip himself as a commercial teacher he took a course at Stratford Business College, and after graduation taught in that institution for six months. In 1901, he went to Woodstock, Ont., to take the post of junior commercial teacher, and after one year became senior in these subjects. In 1904, he became Principal, and under his guidance built up the institution into one of the most important of its kind in Western Ontario. In Woodstock he also took an active part in public and business affairs. He acted as auditor for several large commercial houses, and sat in the municipal council as alderman. In the latter capacity his business acumen and sound judgment made him one of the most useful of public servants. His faculty for acquiring knowledge of every detail of civic business made him very valuable in the consideration of measures for the city’s welfare, so that when in August, 1909, he decided to leave Woodstock, expressions of regret were universal. In Woodstock, also, he became very active in the temperance cause, and served as Secretary-Treasurer of the North Oxford Prohibition Association. As Treasurer of the local branch of the Y.M.C.A., he rendered very important service in connection with the erection of new buildings, and he was very prominent in church work as a member of the Methodist body. In 1909, he sold his interest in Woodstock Business College, and bought Clark’s Business College at Hamilton, Ont. When he took charge on January 1, 1910, the attendance at the institution was but 34 day and 28 night students. He changed the name to the Central Business College, and within a few years his powers of organization had built up the attendance to five times the original figure. Mr. Gibbon’s chief hobby is Sunday School work, and he has served as a religious teacher of the young for over thirty years, in the various places where he has lived. His spirit of enterprise and attractive personality make him an ideal influence on youth. He is a member of the Kiwanis Club, Hamilton, and of the following fraternal societies, I.O.O.F., A.F. & A.M., Royal Templars of Temperance, and the Orange Order. On November 6, 1901, he married Margaret H. Lacey, and has two children, Playford Sutherland Gibbon and Ada Margaret Gibbon.

=Webber, John A.=, Assistant Postmaster, Hamilton, Ont., was born in the township of Binbrook, Wentworth County, December 10th, 1861, the son of Esau Webber, contractor, Hamilton, Ont., and his wife Isabella (Ledmon) Webber. He was educated at the Hamilton Public Schools and Hamilton Collegiate Institute, was appointed to the Civil Service as a clerk in the Hamilton Post Office, October 24, 1881, advancing steadily till, in June, 1918, he was appointed to his present position by the Civil Service Commission, an appointment received with general satisfaction by the press and business men of Hamilton, and one of the earliest important promotions made by the Civil Service Commission. He married on June 1, 1886, Helena S. Murray, daughter of John J. Murray (M.D. Trinity College, Dublin), of Waterdown, and has two daughters, Ada A., wife of R. H. Moore, Cleveland, Ohio, and Charlotte I. Mr. Webber is a member of the Canadian Club, President Hamilton Horticultural Society, Vice-President Hamilton Garden Club, Director of Ontario Horticultural Society, representing Niagara District, member of the Executive Council Hamilton Scientific Association, member of the Canadian Order of Foresters, life member of Canadian Red Cross, and a sustaining member of the Hamilton Health Association (Mountain Sanitary). He is an Anglican, and a member of the Executive Board of St. Thomas Church. Outside of his agreeable manner, intense activity is Mr. Webber’s outstanding characteristic, and his principal recreation seems to be in always doing things, and doing them well and cheerfully. Alluding to his appointment, “The Civilian” (organ of the Civil Service), says: “In the appointment of Mr. John A. Webber as assistant postmaster at Hamilton, we have another instance of the application of the merit system as inaugurated by the Civil Service Commission. He was appointed to the staff on October 24, 1881, and has risen from junior clerk to almost head by efficient work, his standing in all Departmental examinations being very high. For ten years before his present appointment, he acted as Superintendent of the office, filling the assistant postmaster’s place during Mr. Matthews’ absence, and while in these positions his courteous and prompt attention to the needs of the public made him a host of friends in the business world with whom the appointment is very popular. As to the staff, the appointment is equally popular, every man knowing that under Mr. Webber any grievance is sure of a fair hearing and a just decision in the matter.” Mr. Webber’s father was a prominent contractor in the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, during which period he erected many public buildings and business blocks, among which were St. Mary’s Cathedral, Centenary Church, Masonic Hall, Lester Block and hundreds of stores, hotels and private dwellings. While carrying on the contracting business during the period of food shortage, following the Crimean War, he bought and operated a 200-acre farm in the county on which the subject of this sketch was born but only remained during infancy. During the Great War Mr. Webber took an active part in patriotic, Red Cross and Relief Work, and in his long connection as director, and for several years in succession President of the Hamilton Horticultural Society. Has contributed not a little to the beautifying of home surroundings throughout the city. In his connection with the Gordon Club and in the eight counties under his jurisdiction as director of the Ontario Horticultural Society he did much to stimulate the production of vegetables and other foods throughout the district during the war. His efforts in the direction received commendation from the President of the National War Garden Commissioner, Washington, D.C., for adding to the world’s supply of food during the war. Mr. Webber lives at 130 Stinson Street, where he delights in Horticulture.

* * * * *

=Irwin, William Nassau= (Toronto, Ont.), only son of Francis Irwin (Irish), for many years Treasurer of the town of Orangeville, county town of Dufferin, and Jane (Taylor) Irwin (Canadian). Born at Orangeville, Ontario, on November 14, 1863. Educated in the Public and High Schools of Orangeville, and Trinity College, Toronto. Studied law in office of McCarthy and Walsh, Orangeville, and afterwards with Mowat, Maclennan, Downey and Langton, and Maclaren, Macdonald, Merritt and Shepley, Toronto, graduating from Osgoode Hall, and called to the Bar in September, 1886. A member of the legal firm of Henderson, Irwin and Ungaro, Toronto. Married in September, 1893. His only son, James Carter Irwin, member of the Princess Patricia Canadian Light Infantry, wounded in action in Flanders, died at King George Hospital, London, England, July 31, 1916, from effects of his wounds, in his 18th year. Mr. Irwin was interested in bicycling, when that sport was at the height of its popularity, being President of the Athenaeum Cycling Club, and member of the Canadian Wheelmen’s Executive for several years. Member of the Church of England and the Orange Order. Interested in journalism. A Liberal-Conservative.

* * * * *

=Sinclair, Robert Victor, K.C.=, Barrister and Solicitor, the son of Robert and Elizabeth Morrison (Colville) Sinclair, was born in Forestville, New York, May 24, 1861, and at an early age came to Canada with his parents and settled in Ottawa, where he received his education in the Ottawa Collegiate Institute. He read law with Stewart, Chrysler & Gormully from 1880 to 1885, and was called to the bar in the latter year, when he went into partnership with Mr. Gormully under the title of Gormully & Sinclair, and remained there until 1894, when he retired to practise alone. In 1900, he formed a partnership with the late Sir Adolphe Caron, the firm being known as Caron & Sinclair, and remained there until 1907, when he again retired to practise alone. In 1908 he was created a K.C. Mr. Sinclair is recognized in the Ottawa legal fraternity as one of the Capital’s most successful barristers. In 1907, Mr. Sinclair was elected a member of the Ottawa Stock Exchange. August, 1887, he married Daisy King, daughter of James W. King, ex-M.P., Director of Penitentiaries. He has one son and three daughters. He is a member of the Rideau Hunt Club, and was a member of the executive committee in 1907. In religion he is an Anglican, in politics a Conservative, and he resides at 237 Wilbrod St., Ottawa, Ontario.

* * * * *

Comments

Log in to leave a comment.

A Cyclopædia of Canadian BiographyChapter XXII: Part 22

0%36 min left in chapter