Chapter M: C. Baillairgé, Quebec (3)

=MacCoy, William Frederick=, Q.C., Barrister, M.P.P. for Shelburne, Nova Scotia, Halifax, is a native of Ireland, he having been born at Lysrian, in the county of Longford, on the 15th May, 1840. His father, Thomas MacCoy, emigrated to Nova Scotia when William was only eight years of age. His mother, of whom he has no personal knowledge, died a few hours after giving birth to her boy; and his father died about twenty-four years ago. William Frederick MacCoy commenced his educational studies at the National School in Halifax, and graduated at Sackville Academy, New Brunswick. He adopted law as a profession, and was called to the bar of Nova Scotia, in 1864. On the 11th October, 1880, he was appointed a Queen’s counsel. He practised his profession in Shelburne for about nine years, and then removed to Halifax, and is now the head of the firm of MacCoy, Pearson, Morrison, and Forbes, barristers, notaries and solicitors in Admiralty. The firm does a large and lucrative law business. He was elected one of the aldermen of the city of Halifax, in 1881, and in 1882 was offered the position of attorney-general in the Liberal government of that day, but declined the honour, considering that his colleague had a prior claim. Mr. MacCoy was an unsuccessful candidate for a seat in the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia at the general election of 1878, but at the next general election, he succeeded in securing his election by 247 of a majority, and in January, 1887, he was again elected to his old seat. He is a Liberal in politics, and in religion an adherent of the Methodist church. In 1864, he received a commission as captain in the militia, and takes a lively interest in our citizen soldiers. The year after he joined the Masonic order, and is now a past master of St. Andrew’s lodge, Halifax. He, we are glad to say, is a strong temperance man, and for years, has taken a deep interest in the advancement of temperance legislature, and is the author of the present Temperance Act of Nova Scotia. He is a member of the Independent Order of Good Templars, and his eminent legal knowledge renders him a very useful member of his lodge, when constitutional questions come up for discussion. In the legislature he has won a position of prominence, and has aided in shaping to a great extent the progressive measures introduced of late years, and is one of the recognized leaders of his party. On the 14th July, 1868, he was married to Maud L., daughter of Robert P. Woodill, merchant, Shelburne, and has a family of two children.

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=Whidden, Charles Blanchard=, ex-M.P.P. for Antigonish, Nova Scotia, was born at Antigonish, on the 5th June, 1831, and still resides in the place of his birth. He is the youngest son of John Blair Whidden, who was born in Stewiacke, Colchester county, N.S., in 1791, and great grandson of James Whidden, who immigrated from New Hampshire and settled in Truro in 1760. His mother, Harriet Elizabeth Symonds, was a daughter of Nathaniel and Elizabeth Symonds, who came from New Hampshire in 1804, and were among the first settlers in Antigonish. Mr. Whidden, sen., when a lad of ten years of age, having lost his father, spent some years with an elder sister in the district of St. Marys, and afterwards came to Antigonish in 1807, where he purchased a small property in what is now the town of Antigonish, and in December, 1816, married the mother of the subject of this sketch, the lady alluded to above. C. B. Whidden’s father was ordained to the Baptist ministry in 1834, and continued to labour for that denomination in the destitute parts of Nova Scotia until his death, which occurred on the 19th July, 1864. His wife survived him a number of years, and passed away to the higher life in May, 1878, wanting only two months of reaching her eightieth year. Charles was educated at the Grammar School and at the Academy in Antigonish. After leaving school, he continued on a farm for some time; but in 1863 he began business on his own account on a small scale, and devoting all his energies to what he had undertaken, soon became independent. He at one time was largely interested in shipping, and is still to a limited extent. In 1883 he retired from active business pursuits in favour of his two sons, David Graham and Charles Edgar. Mr. Whidden is a member of the Baptist church, and in politics a Liberal-Conservative. He ran as a candidate for a seat in the House of Commons at Ottawa in 1878, but was defeated by a small majority. Again, in June, 1882, he made another attempt to gain a seat in the Commons, but met with defeat. However, in September of the same year, he became a candidate in the local election, and was chosen to represent his native county in the House of Assembly of Nova Scotia. In this house he sat for four years, until the general election in 1886, when he suffered defeat on presenting himself for re-election, in consequence of the repeal cry, he being opposed to any change in the political status of his province so far as the Dominion is concerned. In 1866 and 1867 he showed himself strongly in favour of the confederation of the provinces, and worked hard in its favour. He is a strong believer in our common country, and predicts a great future for it. He always places country above and beyond all minor interests. In December, 1856, he was married to Eunice C. Graham, second daughter of the late Captain David Graham, and Mary Bigelow, his wife. The fruit of this marriage has been seven children, four of whom have been carried away by death. Two of his sons, as will be seen above, have succeeded their father in business, and his youngest son, Howard P., is now taking a college course at Wolfville.

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=Cuthbert, Edward Octavian J. A.=, Seignior of Berthier, ex-M.P. for the county of Berthier, province of Quebec, was born at the Manor House, Berthier (_en haut_), on the 3rd December, 1826. His father, the late Hon. James Cuthbert, was a scion of the Cuthberts of Castle Hill, Inverness-shire, Scotland; seignior of Berthier, province of Quebec; for many years a member of the Special Council of Lower Canada; and in his lifetime rendered valuable service to the state. His mother was Mary Louise A. Cairns. His grandfather, the first Hon. James Cuthbert, was seignior of the seigniories of Lanoraie, Berthier, and Maskinongé, and in his early days served in the Royal navy as a lieutenant. He was on board the flagship at the bombardment of Carthagena, and was selected to carry home to Britain the tidings of the capture of that stronghold. On his retirement from the navy he was appointed to the command of one of the independent military companies formed in Inverness, which afterwards was called the “Black Watch,” and is now known as the 42nd Highlanders, and for some time served in that regiment. While in Inverness he was presented with a handsome piece of plate by the citizens for special services. He afterwards joined the 15th regiment of foot, and assisted at the taking of Louisburg. He was also with General Wolfe at the battle of the Plains of Abraham, and had the honour of being selected by General Murray, to whom he acted as _aide-de-camp_, to carry to Britain the news of the fall of Quebec. On his return to Canada he again joined General Murray’s staff, and in this position he remained until peace was fully restored, when he retired from the army. He was then appointed by Lord Dorchester one of the members of the first Legislative Council formed after the conquest, and became one of the first permanent British settlers in Lower Canada. During the American revolutionary war he was particularly active in suppressing insurrection, and instilling into the minds of the Canadians sentiments of loyalty and attachment to the British Crown. Edward, the subject of our sketch, received his first education at the Berthier Academy, and then at Chambly College, at Chambly. Soon after leaving college he began to take an interest in public affairs, and was afterwards elected mayor of Berthier, and president of the County Agricultural Society. In 1867 Mr. Cuthbert entered the field of politics, and at the general election held in 1872 he ran in the Conservative interest, but was defeated. A few years afterwards his political opponent, Mr. Pâquet, having been called to the Senate, he again presented himself to the electors, and was returned by them as their representative in the House of Commons at Ottawa. From this time until the dissolution of the house in 1886 he occupied a prominent position in the legislature, when he was forced, through failing health, to abandon political life, and retire to his quiet home at Berthier. Mr. Cuthbert took a lively interest in the construction of the North Shore Railway; and has also done a good deal to improve the live stock in his native county. In politics he always sided with the Conservative party; and in religion is a member of the Roman Catholic church. On the 1st December, 1853, he was married to Mary, eldest daughter of Augustus Bostwick, who in his lifetime was an advocate and Queen’s counsel at Three Rivers, province of Quebec, and Georgiana Cuthbert (Mr. Cuthbert’s cousin), who was a daughter of the late Hon. Ross Cuthbert, seignior of Lanoraie and Maskinongé. Mrs. Cuthbert died in February, 1885, leaving two sons and twin daughters.

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=Baby, Hon. Judge Louis François Georges=, Judge of the Court of Queen’s Bench of the Province of Quebec, was born in the city of Montreal, on the 26th August, 1834, and is descended from one of the oldest and most respected families in Quebec province. The founder of the family in Canada was Jacques Baby de Ranville, a nobleman from the south of France, who was an officer of the celebrated regiment of _Carignan-Salieres_, and arrived here in 1662. By the family records and papers it can be traced up to 1375 without interruption. Representatives of the family have distinguished themselves on the battle-field, as well as in the councils of the state both here and in France. Several of them have been knights of Malta and of St. John of Jerusalem. The last governors under the French régime, had many a time occasion to call the special attention of the king of France to the meritorious deeds and gallant actions of members of this notable family. Several of the distinguished men who bore this name were killed in these early days in battle. The grandfather of Judge Baby was the Hon. François Baby, an executive and legislative councillor of the province of Quebec, and in 1775, adjutant-general of the same province, who with his brother-in-law Charles Tarieu de Lanaudière, then _aide-de-camp_ to Lord Dorchester, took a very active part in the stirring events of the time. His grandmother was Marie Anne de Lanaudière, a descendant of M. de Lanaudière, governor of Montreal in 1664, and of Madelon de Verchères, the heroine of “La Nouvelle France.” Judge Baby’s father was Joseph Baby, a colonel in the militia and long a notary public and prominent citizen of Joliette, where he died in 1871. His mother, Caroline Guy, was a daughter of the Hon. Louis Guy, in his lifetime king’s notary, and a member of the Legislative Council of the province of Quebec. The subject of our sketch, Judge Baby, was educated in St. Sulpice College, in his native city, and also at Joliette College. After leaving school, where he had attained high distinctions, he chose the law as a profession, and studied in the office of Drummond and Loranger, of Montreal, both of whom became ministers of the Crown and were afterwards made judges. However, previous to his admission to the bar, he entered the civil service of Canada, in the attorney-general’s department for Lower Canada and for several years occupied the position of clerk, under the government, but was invited by the late Sir G. E. Cartier to relinquish this position for a more extended field of usefulness. He was a particular friend of the late Chief Justice Harrison, who was also a clerk in the civil service at the same time as he. In 1857 he was called to the bar, and practised his profession in Montreal, in partnership with the Hon. Louis T. Drummond, when his health becoming impaired, he removed to Joliette, where he continued his practice with considerable success, in partnership with the late Hon. L. A. Oliver, who was appointed a judge in the superior court, in 1875, having been previously a legislative councillor and a senator, and was also mayor of that place for four or five terms. Though long deeply interested in politics, Mr. Baby did not enter public life until 1867, when he became a candidate for Joliette in the Dominion parliament. At this time, however, through the over confidence of his friends and supporters, he failed to be elected. Five years later, at the general election of 1872, he was returned by acclamation; was re-elected in 1874; unseated on petition on the 28th October of that year; was re-elected on the 10th December following, by a much larger majority; and again, at the general election in September, 1878, he was returned by a still increased majority. On the 26th of the next month, on the return of the Conservatives to power, he entered the cabinet with his friend the Hon. L. R. Masson, and was made minister of Inland Revenue. During the time he held this portfolio, he displayed great tact and firmness, and gave great satisfaction to the public. In 1875 he had the honour of introducing the bill for the abolition of the death penalty in cases of assault with intent to commit rape—a bill which was subsequently taken up by the Hon. Mr. Blake, the then minister of Justice, and carried through parliament. During his term of office, he successfully carried through the House of Commons acts for the consolidation and amendment of the weights and measures, the excise laws, stamp act, tobacco laws, etc., and took generally a very active and patriotic part in the affairs of the nation; in 1880 he retired from political life, and was made judge of the Superior Court of Quebec, and subsequently, in September, 1881, promoted to the Court of Queen’s Bench, which position he fills with dignity, and is very much respected by his _confrères_ on the bench. Among the many praiseworthy deeds of Judge Baby’s life is the valuable assistance he rendered in the founding of the Montreal Historical Society, of which he has been an efficient member since its formation. He is himself a historian of some repute, having, like the late Chief Justice Lafontaine, devoted a good deal of his time in researches of a historical character, particularly with reference to Canada, and has brought together, not however without considerable expense and trouble, one of the finest collections of Canadian manuscripts in existence, and the historical department of his extensive library is especially rich and attractive in Canadian literature. He is an honorary member of the Institut-Canadien of Quebec, and also of Ottawa, and a member and the president of the Antiquarian and Numismatic Society of Montreal. For this last branch of study Judge Baby seems to have a passion,—having devoted more or less time to it for a number of years—and his collection of coins and medals, foreign and domestic, is one of the best in Canada. He is a member of the Roman Catholic church, a prominent and much respected citizen, and a notable figure in literary and religious circles, and appears never to forget his family motto, “_Dire vrai; faire bien_.” In July, 1873, he was married to Maria Helene Adelaide, daughter of the late Dr. Berthelet of Montreal (knight of the order of St. Sepulchre of France), and Dame Helene Guy. They have no children.

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=Ritchie, Hon. Joseph Norman=, Judge of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia, Halifax, was born on the 25th May, 1834, at Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. His parents were Hon. Thomas Ritchie, judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Nova Scotia, and Anne, daughter of I. N. Bond, M.D., Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. Judge Joseph Norman Ritchie was educated at King’s College, Windsor, Nova Scotia, where he took the degree of M.A. He afterwards studied law, and was called to the bar of Nova Scotia on the 30th November, 1857; was made a Queen’s counsel on 26th September, 1872; and was raised to the bench as a judge of the Supreme Court on the 26th September, 1885. For several years previous to his elevation to the bench he acted in the capacity of recorder for the city of Halifax. In 1859, on the organization of the volunteer militia in Nova Scotia, Judge Ritchie joined the force and continued in it and the active militia of Canada until 1879. He holds a lieutenant-colonel’s commission, bearing date 17th March, 1876. For several years he was also one of the directors of the Merchants Bank of Halifax. In religion the judge is and always has been an adherent of the Church of England. He has for wife Mary, daughter of John Cochran, of Newport, U.S.

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=Lorrain, Right Reverend Narcisse Zephirin=, Bishop of Cythera and Vicar Apostolic of Pontiac, with his residence at Pembroke, Ontario, was born the 13th June, 1842, at St. Martin, county of Laval. His father, Narcisse Lorrain, is a descendant of that sturdy stock of pioneers who settled the northern district of the province of Quebec, and have representatives in the counties of Terrebonne, Two Mountains, Argenteuil, etc., and is considered one of the well to-do farmers of the rich county of Laval. Mr. Lorrain, sr., was married to Sophia Goyer. In 1855 Mgr. Lorrain was sent to the seminary of Ste. Thérèse, in the county of Terrebonne, where he commenced his classical studies. That institution, which had been founded some forty years before by the Rev. Messire Charles Ducharme, a venerable priest whose memory will for ever live in the hearts of the people of that district, was then under the direction of Messire Dagenais, superior, and Messire Nantel (an elder brother of the M.P.P. for Terrebonne), as prefect of studies. Messire Nantel is well known as a _littérateur_ of no mean order, one of his principal works being a translation into French of Ollendorf’s English Grammar. These gentlemen soon discovered that the youth was an unusually bright pupil, and they resolved to spare no endeavour to further his studies, thinking, and not without good grounds, that in the future he would be an honour to the seminary. The career of Mgr. Lorrain has proved that they were not wrong, as he has taken a prominent place among the scores of other men of note who have graduated at that institution; among others the Hon. Théodore Robitaille, ex-lieutenant-governor of the province of Quebec; Hon. Gédéon Ouimet, superintendent of public instruction, Quebec, and many members of parliament and senators, besides many lawyers and doctors. To a quick and perceptive mind, Mgr. Lorrain joined a sound judgment, with more than his share of energy, the latter quality being in fact one of the distinguishing traits of his character. It is to the knowledge of the writer of this sketch, who was a school mate of Mgr. Lorrain, that at the end of each month, when the notes were read by the director of the seminary, his conduct was always marked down as “exemplary.” One year he carried eighteen prizes in his class. He entered on the study of theology at the end of his classical course, teaching a class at the same time, and was beloved by the pupils under his charge on account of his kindly disposition and gentle manners, which were not, however, without an admixture of firmness. He knew how to instil the love of discipline which he himself possessed in such an eminent degree. In 1864, Mgr. Lorrain graduated at Laval University, where he received the degree of Bachelor of Sciences, and he was ordained priest on the 4th of August, 1867, being then appointed assistant director at the Seminary of Ste. Thérèse, which position he filled until the 15th of August, 1869, when he was appointed pastor to the congregation of Redford, Clinton county, in the state of New York. On the 3rd of August, 1880, he was promoted and appointed vicar-general of the diocese of Montreal. His appointment caused some surprise to a great many people who did not know him intimately; but the ability he displayed in the management of the affairs, and in the liquidation of the debts of the episcopal corporation, then in financial troubles, soon justified the choice the bishop of the diocese of Montreal had made of his person for such an important position as that of vicar general. And the surprise changed to wonder when two years later, being barely forty years of age, on the 21st of September, 1882, he was consecrated titulary bishop of Cythera and vicar apostolic of Pontiac, with place of residence at Pembroke, he being the first bishop of that diocese. In this new field of labour Mgr. Lorrain has distinguished himself, doing his utmost to concentrate the scattered elements of his extended but sparsely-settled diocese, and the energy and strong will which had characterised his student life were displayed on a larger scale, an instance of which may be cited from the fact of his having travelled, in 1884, a distance of 1,500 miles, in a bark canoe. And here we cannot do better than reproduce the account of this trip, which appeared shortly after his lordship’s return, in the Pembroke _Standard_, and is of great interest:

His lordship’s tour has been an extended one of some sixty-four
days. His up voyage to Abbitibi has already been described in
our columns. The story of the trip from Abbitibi northwards will
be narrated in a series of articles containing, besides the
description itself, copious and reliable information on the
agricultural, mineral and timber interests of this vast expanse
of virgin soil. Suffice it to say now that the Temiscamingue
region is represented as waiting colonization; and that from the
height of land northwards, a stretch of 150 miles across,
extending indefinitely east and west, gains, by lowness of the
situation, a mildness of temperature that probably lasts long
enough to mature the luxuriant growth of early vegetation.
Around Hudson Bay and for a considerable distance southwards,
the land is low, swampy, and impoverished; the soil unproductive
and the timbers dwarfed. Geological specimens have been brought
back by the party, and sketches of the more picturesque points
have been taken by the master hand of Father Paradis. Travelling
through these northern wilds, while it may have its interest for
the geologist or the artist, is by no means the embodiment of
physical happiness. On water and on land the inconveniences are
many and annoying. To paddle over rough waves and through
beating rain, to portage a hundred rapids, some of them three
miles in length, over rocks and ravines and fallen trees,
through wet and tangled grass and brushwood; to camp in swarms
of mosquitoes and sand-flies, on swampy ground, where more than
once after the tents had been beaten through by nights of
falling rain, a half a foot of water has flooded the tent-floor,
branches and blankets; to wade knee deep for a mile or even two
miles through sharp cut stones and slough and water, in the
endeavour to reach the shore and wait the tide that alone can
give sufficient depth on certain parts of James Bay, to bear
along a laden canoe; to endure all this and more, is but a
specimen of the hardships gone through by travellers to these
northern districts. Though the Indians are cool intrepid guides,
the most provoking shortcomings have to be accepted from their
hands, no matter how reluctantly, still with silence and
patience. On the water they work well, but once on shore, to
camp for the night, or to get out of catching gales, or at the
posts where missions are given, it is almost impossible to get
them under way again; teasing disappointments and delay, an axe,
a blanket, a tin pan left behind prolong the stay, and time is
killed, and programmes spoiled, and patience tried. The fiercest
storm encountered, perhaps, was on the 24th of June, the day
after the party left Abbitibi, when the thermometer fell 43°,
and the north-western extremity of the lake rolled mountain high
before the sweeping hurricane. To advance was impossible; the
camp was pitched, and beneath the swaying trees, and storming
rain, the day was passed wretchedly beyond description.
Disappointments like this have often to be encountered on the
trip. They are annoying in more ways than one. Even the
provisions stand a chance of running short, the more so as the
Indians, during these delays, pass the time in gorging, being
content with nothing less than half a dozen meals each day. The
portages from Abbitibi to Moose Factory are twenty-one in
number; some of them may be run in a canoe, but the greater
number have to be footed. From the 25th to the 27th of June the
voyage was agreeable enough, excepting that at times, and for a
distance, during these days, of fifteen miles, the oft repeated
feat of wading waist deep through water and struggling along
rugged banks, had to be resorted to through sheer necessity of
making any headway. On the 28th the hair-breadth escape of the
journey occurred. It was the _Rapide de L’Île_. Ordinarily the
rapid is run without imminent risk by keeping aloof from the
whirling eddy half way down its course; but the bowsman did
slovenly work, and before the approach of danger was realized
the canoe was sucked into the engulfing seething pool, and was
spun twice around as on a pivot, in the very centre of the rapid
where the broken waves leaped high, and the foam splashed
fiercely, blinding the paddlers and filling the boat. Two feet
more and the canoe was beyond all rescue. It was a thrilling
moment. Death, swift and sure, was but the moiety of a minute
off; but the long-made resolves of coolness in case of such an
accident stood well to the occupants of the boat. The
steersman—the most intrepid perhaps on the northern
waters—muttered one short monosyllable, and in the twinkling of
an eye every paddle was in its position, and the canoe leaped
forward, rocked in the hollows of the waves and forced sideways
up the billows to be hurled down again below, till the main
current was reached, one stroke of the brave steersman swung it
half round and sent it dashing down to the more placid waters at
the foot of the rapids. “God be blessed,” went up from the
hearts of the bishop and his missionaries; and flowing bowls of
strong tea rewarded the proud Indians. On the 29th June the
party arrived at New-Post, a fort of the Hudson Bay Company,
some 150 miles from Abbitibi, and 120 from Moose Factory. Here a
mission was given during the day, and at evening the start was
made for Moose Factory. Four portages more are passed ere the
party reaches Moose Factory on the 2nd July. This fort is the
headquarters of the company, and is by far the most important on
the whole route. The following morning the canoe heads for
Albany, another post of the H. B. Company, situated on the river
Albany, which flows into James Bay. But neither the heavens nor
the sea was propitious, and nine miles from the Factory the
canoe was brought to a stand-still by a face-beating wind, and
by a low tide, whose influence is felt even twenty-five miles up
the Moose river. For three days the camp is pitched on the river
bank, the wind blows, the rain pours down, a tempest rages, it
hails and even snows; till a consultation being held, the whole
party picked up their effects and put back to Moose. This was on
Sunday, the 6th July. On Tuesday a new and more successful
departure is made for Albany, which is reached on the 11th of
the month. A mission, most gratifying in its results, was given
here till the 15th, when the home trip was begun. At Albany
there is a magnificent wooden church, 50 feet by 26;
tower-crowned, gothic style, and bell-decked. Some 500 Indians
are attached to this mission church. On the 18th July, Moose
Factory was reached on the home voyage. The next day the canoe
is off again for New-Post, but more disappointment is ahead. A
high tide coming in at night submerges the canoe and cargo lying
on the river shore; and for the following days so strong is the
current that 15 miles have to be tramped on foot before New-Post
comes in sight. To walk 15 miles is nothing in itself, but to
walk 15 miles, up to the waist in cold water, piercing one’s
feet with the sharp cornered pebbles of the river bottom, and to
drag along a boat and its effects through the opposing stream,
all this is something. New-Post is entered on the 25th, and is
left the next evening, a large number of Indians accompanying to
15 miles from the post, where, after a portage of three miles in
length has been made, mass is celebrated for the crowd on Sunday
morning. On the 2nd August the return party arrives at Abbitibi,
where a large congregation of Indians are assembled to attend
divine services on the following Sunday. On Monday, the 4th
August, the prow points towards Temiscamingue, which gives glad
welcome to the party on the 7th. The three following days are
devoted to the mission; and on Monday afternoon a start is made.
The next day, after running five rapids and portaging over
three, the party paddled into Mattawa at 8 o’clock in the
evening. The voyage home, and reception, we have referred to in
the beginning of this article. The trip has been fraught with
spiritual blessings for 1,400 Indians, that are proud to be the
subjects of the zealous and hard-working bishop of Pembroke.
_Non recuso laborem_, “I flee not work,” we read on his
coat-of-arms two years ago, when he took possession of his See
in this town. His heart, even then, when he devised this motto,
must have beat love for the poor Indians of Hudson Bay.

In 1887, Mgr. Lorrain travelled 1,700 miles on his pastoral visit to the Indian missions on the Upper Ottawa, Rupert’s Land and the Upper St. Maurice. His route was from Ottawa, _via_ Pembroke, to Lakes Temiscamingue, Obaching, Kepewa, etc., thence to the source of the River du Molhe; from here through a chain of lakes to the “Lac Barrière” mission, now on Lake Wapous; thence to Lake Wassepatebi, lying between the province of Quebec and Rupert’s Land; through Cypress Lake, River Pekeskak, by a chain of five lakes, the Laloche river to Lake Waswanipi. The return trip was made by the same route as far as Lake Waswanipi, to the Mekiskan river and the upper waters of the St. Maurice; thence through various lakes, Lake Long, Lake Coucoucache and others to the Grand Piles. This involved a trip of 1,700 miles, mostly by water in bark canoe, occupying two months and six days, and 1,172 miles being travelled by canoe. The portages were from an arpent to four miles long, and there were 157 of them. During the five years Bishop N. Z. Lorrain has been in Pembroke he has paid an old debt of $11,000 on the church; built a magnificent episcopal residence at a cost of $18,000, upon which sum $8,000 has been paid; bought twenty-nine acres of land for a graveyard; purchased plots of sixteen acres of ground in the most beautiful part of the town, as sites for charitable institutions in the future. Mgr. Lorrain is an eminent English scholar. There is no doubt he is destined to do a great work for his country, and that his wise counsel will always have weight in the periodical councils of his church.

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=Coleman, Arthur Philemon=, Ph.D., Professor of Geology and Natural History, Victoria University, Cobourg, was born on the 4th of April, 1852, at Lachute, province of Quebec. His father was the Rev. Francis Coleman, a minister of the Methodist Church of Canada, and his mother, Emmeline Maria Adams, was a descendant of John Quincy Adams. His early education was obtained in various public and high schools of Ontario, according to the station occupied by his father, as an itinerant Methodist minister; and this ended in a course of two years in Cobourg Collegiate Institute. In 1872, he matriculated in Victoria University, Cobourg, and after four years’ residence, graduated in 1876 as Bachelor of Arts, taking honours and a gold medal. On the advice of Dr. Haanel, whose eloquence and ability as a professor had inspired him to study science, he sailed for Europe, and in 1880, matriculated in the University of Breslau, in Prussia, Dr. Haanel’s _alma mater_. During four semesters he studied geology, mineralogy, botany, histology, chemistry, etc., under such distinguished men as Roemer, Cohn, Goeppert, Dilthey, Poleck, Liebisch, and others. His dissertation which was on the “Melaphyres of Lower Silesia,” and demanded hard work in microscopic petrography, as well as some months geologizing in the Giant Mountains, on the border between Silesia and Bohemia, was accepted, and after examination he was admitted to the degree of Doctor Philosophiae (_cum laude_) in 1882. While in Europe, Professor Coleman made numerous geological expeditions in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy and Scandinavia, and most of one summer he spent in Norway, wandering on foot over the mountains and fields collecting specimens, and observing the results of glacial action. The most notable points in this journey were the ascent of Galdhoepig, the highest mountain in Norway, and a voyage along the coast to Hammerfest and the North Cape, to see the Lapps and the midnight sun. At Knivskjaerodden, a few miles from the North Cape, the ship on board of which he was, _The Nordstjern_, went ashore in a fog, and became wrecked on that bleak coast. The misfortune occurred at about two o’clock in the morning, but aided by the perpetual daylight, the passengers and crew succeeded in reaching shore, and within twenty-four hours thereafter, they were rescued by another steamer and landed at Hammerfest. After a short visit to France and England, he returned to Ontario, and towards the end of 1882, was inaugurated as professor of geology and natural history in Victoria University, Cobourg. Since that date he has continued in the same position, varying his life by journeys with geological ends in view; in this way he visited the Rocky Mountains, the valley of the Columbia, and the Selkirks, before the Canadian Pacific Railway was built, travelling by pack pony, canoe or on foot. The professor belongs to the Methodist church, and in politics is a Liberal.

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=Macdonnell, Rev. Daniel James=, B.D., Pastor of West St. Andrew’s (Presbyterian) Church, Toronto. This popular minister was born at Bathurst, New Brunswick, on the 15th January, 1843. His father, the Rev. George Macdonnell, who was born in Kirkcaldy, Fifeshire, Scotland, came in childhood to Halifax, Nova Scotia, received his early educational training in the schools at Halifax, and finished his course of studies at the Edinburgh University. He afterwards was minister of St. Luke’s Church, (Church of Scotland), at Bathurst, from 1840 to 1851; spent two years in Scotland; came to Upper Canada in 1853, and was settled successively in Nelson and Waterdown, Fergus and Milton, and died at the latter place in 1871. His mother was Eleanor Milnes, who was born at Pictou, Nova Scotia, and belonged to a branch of the family of Milnes, of Derbyshire, England. Daniel James Macdonnell, the subject of our sketch, began his education at Bathurst when but a lad of six years of age,—the study of Latin being included in his course at this unreasonably early age. He was afterwards sent to Scotland, and pursued his studies for some time at Kilmarnock and Edinburgh, and on his return to Canada, at Nelson, under the care of the late Dr. Robert Douglas, of Port Elgin, who taught at “The Twelve,” while he was prosecuting his studies. Mr. Macdonnell was then taken in hand by the late Dr. Tassie, then head master of the Galt Grammar School, who prepared him for the university. In October, 1855, when in his thirteenth year, he entered Queen’s College, Kingston, and he held the first place in classics and mathematics during his course there. In 1858 he graduated B.A., and two years later M.A. Some time after he took a portion of his theological course in the Queen’s Divinity Hall, Kingston, under Principal Leitch and Professor Mowat, and spent the session of 1863-64 in Glasgow, where Dr. Caird was professor of divinity. He completed his course in Edinburgh, having attended the classes of the late Professor Crawford and Robert Lee, and received the degree of Bachelor of Divinity. The winter of 1865-66 he spent in Berlin in acquiring some knowledge of the German language, and picking up whatever theological instruction he could gather from the imperfectly understood lectures of Professors Dörner and Hengstenberg. On the 14th June, 1866, he was ordained by the Presbytery of Edinburgh (Church of Scotland); and returning to Canada he was inducted to the charge of St. Andrew’s Church, Peterboro’, Ontario, on the 20th November, 1866, where he spent four years. He was then called to St. Andrew’s Church, Toronto, and inducted on the 22nd December, 1870. The advent of Mr. Macdonnell was the signal for an immediate revival of the condition of the church. He was young, energetic, and more than all, earnest and original in his preaching. Within a few years it was found that the old building was inadequate for the purpose, and a new and imposing structure was built at the corner of King and Simcoe streets, at the cost of $86,000 for building and $14,000 for additional ground. It is one of the finest and most complete in all details of the many fine church edifices in Toronto, and is built of stone in the Norman style, with a massive tower on the south-west angle. Mr. Macdonnell’s popularity has steadily increased year by year since he came to Toronto, and although some are inclined to consider him, from “the Westminster Confession” standpoint, rather liberal in his theological views, yet his large congregation listen with great satisfaction to his gospel of common sense, and are most sincerely attached to him. Rev. Mr. Macdonnell was one of the most cordial supporters of Presbyterian union, and contributed largely to its consummation in 1875. He is a member of the Senate of Toronto University, having been appointed by the Ontario government. He also takes an active part in works of charity, and indeed in everything that has a tendency to help and elevate humanity. During his college career, Rev. Mr. Macdonnell taught for about three years; was head master of Vankleek Hill Grammar School for six months, when only seventeen years of age; was assistant to Mr. Campbell (now Rev. Robert Campbell, D.D., minister of St. Gabriel street Church, Montreal) for a year in the Queen’s College Preparatory School, and head master of the Wardsville High School for a year and a half. While a student in Scotland, Mr. Macdonnell, during vacation, took a couple of walking tours with fellow students through Switzerland and parts of Germany, and since he settled in Canada he has taken several trips to Great Britain. On the 2nd of July, 1868, he was married to Elizabeth Logie Smellie, eldest daughter of the Rev. George Smellie, D.D., of Fergus. Rev. Dr. Smellie was one of the pioneer Presbyterian ministers of Western Ontario, and although now in his seventy-sixth year, he still preaches every Sunday to the people to whom he has ministered for forty-four years. There are four sons and a daughter in St. Andrew’s manse. Mr. Macdonnell’s eldest boy, George Frederick, aged fifteen, is attending Upper Canada College, and, taking after his father, occupies the position of head boy in his form.

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=Hunton, Sidney Walker=, M.A., Professor of Mathematics in the University of Mount Allison College, Sackville, New Brunswick, was born in the city of Ottawa, Ontario, on the 4th July, 1858. His father, Thomas Hunton, was for a long time a leading merchant at the capital, and died a few years ago. His mother, Amelia Hunton, is still alive and resides at Ottawa. Professor Hunton was educated at the Collegiate Institute, Ottawa, where, in 1875, he won the two medals offered by Lord Dufferin for mathematics and classics. In September, 1876, he entered McGill College, Montreal, where he studied for two years, and won first scholarship in each year. In September, 1878, he won the Canadian Gilchrist scholarship of the value of £100 stg. per annum, tenable for three years, and then proceeded to London, England, where he studied at University College, making a specialty of mathematics. In June, 1881, he won the Rothschild scholarship of the value of £56, which was awarded for the greatest proficiency in mathematics in University College. He graduated at the University of London, in Oct., 1881, and was appointed assistant to the professor of mathematics in University College, and held the position for two years. In 1882 he became lecturer on mathematics in the Electrical Engineering College, London, which position he resigned in 1883, on being appointed to the professorship of mathematics at Mount Allison College, N.B. During his stay in Europe he also studied at Cambridge, England, and Heidelberg, Germany. He was married on December 25th, 1884, to Annie Inch, daughter of J. R. Inch, LL.D., president of Mount Allison College. Professor Hunton is a credit to “Young Canada,” and we hope many will be found imitating his example.

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=Kay, Rev. John=, Pastor of the First Methodist Church, Hamilton, was born in the town of Napanee, Ontario, on the 20th of May, 1838. His father was Enoch Kay, who was born in the county of Wicklow, Ireland, in 1812. His mother, Elizabeth Coulson, was a native of Stockton, near Hull, England, and was born in 1815. His grandfather, Joshua Kaye (the family name was originally spelled _Kaye_) emigrated with the family from Ireland many years ago, and settled in the eastern part of Ontario, where he followed the same occupation as he had done in his native country, namely, that of wheelwright. He was a man of small stature, but of marked intelligence and great amiability of character, and a leader among the Methodists of his day. The wife of this worthy man was a Fitzhenry, a name of some considerable note in Ireland. She was tall and fine looking, and evidently had her early training in an advanced circle of society. Both died in the village of Newburg, and their bodies rest in the small rural cemetery near the village of Napanee Mills. His maternal grandfather was a miller from his youth up, and for several generations some of the Coulson family have been engaged in this business, and in that of shipbuilding in England. The father and mother were married in 1837, the year of the coronation of Queen Victoria, and took up their residence on a farm a short distance north of Napanee Mills. Here Mr. Kay, sen., farmed, and also carried on the trade of carriage-building and blacksmithing, employing a number of workmen. The farm he afterwards sold, and moved into the village of Newburg, where he engaged in the lumber business. Here young Kay received the rudiments of his education, first in a private school and afterwards in the Newburg Academy. When he had scarcely reached his fourteenth year his father died at the early age of thirty-nine, leaving a widow and three children in poor circumstances, the subject of our sketch being the oldest. This necessitated his giving up school and entering on the battle of life for an existence, his mother with the other children returning to her father’s home until he could provide for them elsewhere. After a hard struggle of several years he succeeded so well as to be able to bring the family again together, and he made a home for them at Cramborne, a small village about five miles north of Cobourg. Here he was led to think more seriously of religious matters, and made up his mind to consecrate himself to the work of the church. He at once set about preparing himself, and acted in the capacity of local preacher for some time. Having been relieved soon afterwards of much business anxiety, he gave himself up to labour and study. After a hard struggle he succeeded, and to his surprise and satisfaction, in the spring of 1862, he was informed by the officials of the Methodist New Connexion Church of Baltimore, Ontario, with which he had connected himself a few months before, that they would gladly recommend him to the work of the ministry, and on his case being brought before the conference he was appointed to assist the late Rev. S. B. Gundy, in the town of St. Mary’s. This was a fortunate circumstance for the young preacher, for the Rev. Mr. Gundy was a man of excellent ability and one of the finest preachers in the denomination. The death of the superintendent some time afterwards was a great loss to Mr. Kay. He then took up the course of study prescribed for his work, which by no means was a light one. His studies were now chiefly directed by the late Rev. William McClure, who was appointed at that time to the chair of theology, philosophy and literature, for the student probationers of the church, and under his able tuition he succeeded in mastering the curriculum appointed by the Board of Education of the conference. Since then he has been successful in gaining some knowledge of Latin and Greek, with a little of German, but still thirsts for more knowledge, as he considers all possible lines of study are needed by the efficient and progressive Christian minister. The Rev. Mr. Kay first began his ministry, as will have been observed, at St. Mary’s, and here he spent one year; next he went to Manvers, where he preached for two years; then he went to Ingersoll, and spent two more years; in Milton he preached for three years; in Waterdown for three years; Tilsonburg, two years; London, two years; then he again spent two years in Ingersoll; and then moved to Waterford, where he spent three years; in Thorold, three years, and for the last three years he has been in Hamilton. In 1872, when the subject of Methodist union was a live topic in the churches, Rev. Mr. Kay was secretary of conference, and contributed by both voice and pen to bring about union, and when this great movement was accomplished he was removed from Tilsonburg to London by the conference of 1875, and during his stay there he helped to build the Wellington Street Church and parsonage, which is now one of the most prosperous churches in the denomination. This reverend gentleman has been several times financial secretary of the districts in which he has been stationed; and in 1886 he was a representative at the General Conference which was held in Toronto. He has found time, also, to attend to the temperance movement. From boyhood he has been a teetotaller, having joined the Cadets of Temperance in Newburg, and subsequently entered the orders of the Sons of Temperance and Good Templars; and later held for two years the office of grand counsellor, and for three years that of chaplain in the Supreme Lodge of the Royal Templars,—which holds its annual sessions in the city of Buffalo, where the order was first organized in 1870. As a natural consequence he is a firm and uncompromising prohibitionist, holding that the only way to elevate the masses and improve the financial condition of the country is the entire abolition of the traffic in intoxicating drinks. Mr. Kay also belongs to the United Order of Workmen, and did for some time belong to the orders of Oddfellows and Foresters, but a few years ago found it necessary to retire from them. As we have seen, the subject of our sketch was brought up in the Methodist fold, and he has seen no reason since to change his belief in the doctrines that were taught him at his mother’s knee; but, nevertheless, he is not opposed to a progressive theology, and can see no reason why a person should be compelled to follow all the old methods of reasoning and forms of expression. The words of modern use are often as expressive as those used aforetime, and some of the old ones are none the worse for being used before. The Augustinian school of theology finds no favour with him. He believes in a free will—without the necessitarian adjuncts of such limitations as affords it only to a few favoured persons—the free and full salvation for all, and the kindest and most gracious invitation to all to come to the fountain and drink. The gospel freely offered is God’s expression of love. He has also devoted some time to literature, and in 1871 published a very interesting “Biography of the Rev. William Gundy,” his father-in-law. This volume was very favourably received, and highly praised by the press. He is a diligent student, and has also on several occasions contributed to the columns of our newspapers and periodicals. On the 20th of October, 1864, he was married to Eliza, second daughter of the Rev. William Gundy, who for more than half a century was a preacher of the gospel, and though now dead for over sixteen years, yet speaketh. Six of a family have been born of the union, four of whom survive, two sons and two daughters.

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=Macdonald, Rev. James Charles=, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, is descended from an old Highland family, who emigrated to Prince Edward Island in the last century. His ancestors formed part of the gallant band brought out by the Laird of Glenaladale, in the _Alexander_ in 1772. His father, John Macdonald, of Allisary, and his mother, Ellen Macdonald, of Garahelia, were natives of Prince Edward Island. Their son was born at Allisary, in the parish of St. Andrew, in that province, on the 15th July, 1840, and was baptised in the old St. Andrew’s Church, built in that mission, by Bishop McEachern, in the early days of Catholicity in Prince Edward Island. After preliminary studies in a district school, Mr. Macdonald entered St. Dunstan’s College in 1866. He remained there for four years, and in 1870, went up to the Grand Seminary, at Montreal. After a three years’ course, he was ordained by the Bishop of Charlottetown, and at once proceeded to St. Dunstan’s College, to fill a vacant professorship in that institution. In 1875, Mr. Macdonald was appointed to the missions of St. James, Georgetown, and All Saints, Cardigan Bridge. In 1876, the mission of St. Theresa, Baldwin’s Road, was added to these; but in 1878, it was placed in the charge of another priest. In 1881, the late Very Rev. Dr. Macdonald was associated with Father Charles Macdonald, in the care of the missions of St. James and All Saints, to which was annexed St. Paul’s, Sturgeon. In September, 1884, to the great regret of his parishioners, Father Macdonald was removed from Georgetown, and installed as rector of St. Dunstan’s College, Charlottetown. During the period in which he has presided over that institution, St. Dunstan’s has prospered exceedingly, and now boasts a staff of eight professors, three clerical and five lay, and a roll of eighty-six students, several of whom give promise of doing great credit to their _alma mater_.

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