Chapter M: C. Baillairgé, Quebec (9)

=Baillairgé, Louis de Gonzague=, Queen’s Counsellor and Chevalier-Commandeur of the Illustrious Order of St. Gregory the Great, is a son of the late Pierre Florent, city treasurer of Quebec under the magistrates, and of Marie Louise Cureux de Saint-Germain, daughter of the late Antoine Cureux de Saint-Germain, captain of transatlantic mercantile vessels. This pious and venerable lady, whose mortal remains rest beneath the vaults of the Basilica, died at Quebec, at the advanced age of ninety, on the 16th of July, 1859. Pierre Florent, her husband, was one of the writers of the _Canadien_, wherein he published some satirical articles in verse, although he was not a poet, against the administration of Sir James Craig, the governor-general, who on that occasion ordered the seizure of the type and entire plant of the printing office, on the 17th March, 1810. His excellency, at the same time, issued an order to arrest him, together with his friends, Judge Bédard and Lefrançois, who were both imprisoned. Florent, however, escaped imprisonment through the influence of one of his friends, Mr. Young, a magistrate. L. G. Baillairgé now occupies the building, the door of which was burst open by a squad of soldiers armed with rifles and fixed bayonets, under command of Capt. Thos. Allison, of the 5th regiment of infantry, who was also a justice of the peace, where they seized the _Canadien_ printing office, machinery and papers. Mr. Baillairgé is the grandson of Jean Baillairgé, architect and engineer, who was born at Saint-Antoine de Villaret, Poitou, France, on the 30th of October, 1726, and emigrated, in 1748, to Quebec, Canada, where he acted as assistant to Viscount de Léry for the construction of the city gates connected with the fortifications which still surround it. He fought in the battle of the Plains of Abraham, on the 13th September, 1759, and served in the army during the blockade of Quebec in 1775-76 by Montgomery and Arnold. He and his son François, who had studied painting, architecture, and statuary at the Royal Academy of Paris, are the artists who decorated the interior of the Basilica, and designed and executed the “baldaquin” which surmounts the main altar of the sanctuary, and is so much admired. Six of the twelve surrounding statues were sculptured by them; those of Saint-Ambroise and Saint-Augustin, in the lateral chapel of Sainte-Anne, were executed by Thomas, the son of François, who also sculptured the basso-relievo representing the Supper of Emmaus, on the front of the central altar in the church of Sainte-Anne de la Pocatière, respecting which he was highly congratulated by Lord Dalhousie, who took great interest in works of art. The statues of Saint-Louis, king of France, and Saint-Flavien, on either side of the principal altar of the Quebec Basilica, and the two others in the lateral chapel of Sainte-Famille, were executed by artists in France. These specimens of Canadian and European art are such that even the experienced eye of a keen observer can with difficulty decide which of them displays the greatest artistic skill. François Baillairgé’s studio and workshop were in the building now occupied as a livery stable, on St. Louis street, by Mr. Driscoll. Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, father of Queen Victoria, paid frequent visits to the artist in this studio, and gave him orders for the execution of various artistic works, as a proof of his appreciation of his ability, and in order to give him all the encouragement he could. He also induced him to organize a club of young men to give theatrical performances, and afterwards invited them to play a comedy in the casemated barracks of the citadel near St. Louis gate. Jean Baillairgé, his son François, and Thomas, the son of the latter, may be justly considered as the fathers of Canadian architecture, sculpture and statuary. Louis de Gonzague Baillairgé, the subject of our sketch, is the uncle of George Frederick, deputy minister of Public Works of Canada, and of Charles, the city engineer of Quebec, chevalier of the order of Saint-Sauveur de Monte Reale, in Italy. He completed his classical course of studies in 1830, at the Seminary of Quebec, and afterwards studied law under the Hon. Philippe Panet. When the latter was appointed judge, he continued his legal course under the Hon. R. E. Caron, and was admitted to practice at the bar on the 12th October, 1835. In 1844 he became the partner of the latter, who was then the mayor of the city of Quebec, and was later on appointed as successor to Sir Narcisse Belleau, as lieutenant-governor of the province of Quebec. In 1850 Mr. Baillairgé was appointed, together with Mr. Caron, his associate, as joint attorneys of the corporation of Quebec. In 1853, on his partner being appointed one of the judges of the Court of Queen’s Bench, the partnership was dissolved, and the entire practice of the firm, one of the most extensive of the bar of Quebec, remained with him. He continued to act for the corporation of the city until the 22nd of February, 1861, when the council passed a resolution containing the following:—“That L. G. Baillairgé, attorney of the corporation, having efficiently contributed to the economical administration of justice by means of his legal advice, laborious application and praiseworthy disinterestedness, and having also by means of his persevering energy, ensured the collection of considerable sums of money which the city would have lost by the extinction of its mortgages if he had not acted in such energetic manner; he is entitled to the respect of this council, and to the confidence of the public.” Pursuant to this resolution, Mr. Baillairgé was nominated sole attorney and legal adviser of the corporation, in which capacity he continued to act until the 9th of October, 1885. He then requested the city council to grant him an associate for the transaction of city affairs, in the person of the Hon. A. P. Pelletier, of whom he was the patron, and who practised as a lawyer in his office for more than twenty years. The city council readily assented to this proposal, and accordingly passed the following resolution on the same day:—“That this council, taking into consideration the letter of L. G. Baillairgé, Q.C., most willingly avails itself of the opportunity to express its high appreciation and its gratitude for the eminent professional services rendered by Mr. Baillairgé to the city of Quebec during so many years, for the honour and advantage of the city, and accedes with pleasure to Mr. Baillairgé’s request.” In 1885, the government having decided to appoint assistant judges for the Superior Court during the existence of the Seignorial Court, offered him one of the appointments. In 1856, the government tendered him the recordership of the city of Quebec, which had been created, for the first time, by the Act 19, 20 Vict., chap. 106. In 1860, when Chief Justice Bowen retired from the bench, he was invited to replace him during the time of his retirement. In 1860-61, he was called upon to fill the seat rendered vacant in the Superior Court by the death of Judge Power on 1st July, 1860. However lucrative and honorary these appointments might be, he declined accepting any of them; their value, in his estimation, could not, he thought, compensate him for the loss of his personal independence. In 1863, he was appointed Queen’s counsellor, under the Dorion administration. In 1873 he became _bâtonnier_ of the bar of Quebec, and was considered as one of its most trustworthy and distinguished members and one of its most eloquent orators. In 1882 he conceived the noble and philanthropic idea of getting a church or missionary’s chapel constructed in each of the five parts of the world, under the name of one of the members of his family, together with a Canadian oratory, under the name of his patron saint. These churches are either completed or in course of construction, one of them being in Southern and the other in Equatorial Africa. The one erected at the southern end of lake Victoria, Nianza, is named, “St. Pierre de Bukumbi,” and is the first church which has been constructed of stone, in the centre of Africa. The journal of _Les Missions Catholiques_ contains the following, in regard to this church: Monseigneur Livinhac, vicar apostolic of Nianza, has selected this church for his cathedral, and blessed it accordingly, on All Saints day, in 1886. It excites the admiration of the natives, who come from afar in great numbers to examine it, and afterwards return to their homes to speak of the marvellous temple they have seen. They all say that they never saw such a wonderful edifice, it being the first architectural structure ever erected in these regions, in honour of the Divinity. Another of these churches is in course of construction in the province of Nouba, in Central Africa, as agreed upon with Cardinal Sagaro, through the Reverend Father Bouchard, who accompanied the Canadian contingent of Voyageurs to the Nile; and another has been constructed at Rapid Creek, near Palmerston, in the Pacific Ocean. As regards the oratory at Jerusalem, Mr. Baillairgé has not yet succeeded in obtaining the requisite “firman,” permitting its construction from the Turkish government. Objections have been made, but hopes are entertained that they will be finally overcome. Mr. Baillairgé is one of the members and founders of the National Society of Saint-Jean Baptiste of Quebec. He succeeded Sir Narcisse Belleau as “Commissaire Ordonnateur” of the society, and afterwards was elected as its president, in which capacities he acted during a term of fifteen years, until 1859, when he resigned on account of the pressure of professional duties, but remained a member of the society. During this long period, Mr. Baillairgé spared no efforts to establish the society on a solid and lasting basis, and to establish and strengthen its connection with the other national societies of the city. He was also one of the founders of the “Institut Canadien,” whose _début_ was so humble in its origin, but which is now flourishing, and may at present be considered as the focus of learning and of the national aspirations of Canadian youth. In 1873, he was chosen as one of its honorary presidents. He is one of those who first conceived the idea of collecting and afterwards depositing, in June, 1854, in one grave, the scattered remains of the brave warriors of the 78th Highlanders, and of the French “Grenadiers de la Reine,” who were slain during the battle, on the heights of Ste. Foye, between Generals Lévis and Murray. To his exertions and those of his friend, Dr. Robitaille, we are chiefly indebted for the construction of the monument, “Aux braves de 1760, érigé par la Société St. Jean-Baptiste de Quebec, 1860,” which now stands over the graves, in order to commemorate the victory won by the French, on the 28th of April, 1760, six months after the battle of the Plains of Abraham. The solemnity of the proceedings, on this occasion, was never surpassed, except during the official reception of Cardinal Taschereau. The event was witnessed by about 12,000 persons. The British military authorities graciously assented to all the requests of the St. Jean-Baptiste Society, in connection with the inauguration of this monument, and furnished two regiments of the line with a company of artillery and its guns, who placed themselves next to a detachment of the French navy from the Imperial corvette _La Capricieuse_, then visiting Quebec. The monument consists of a bronzed iron column, resting on a pedestal of masonry, surmounted by a bronze statue of Bellona, which was donated to the Society of St. Jean-Baptiste by Prince Napoleon Bonaparte. The name of “Murray,” with the arms of Great Britain, is inscribed on the side opposite the city, and that of “Lévis,” with the arms of France, on the opposite side of the pedestal. The inscription, “Aux braves de 1760, érigé par la Société St. Jean-Baptiste de Québec, 1860,” with its surrounding laurel wreath, is upon the face fronting the Ste. Foye road; on the opposite side, facing the Laurentides, there is a _bas-relief_ representing the windmill, one of the most contested points of the battle-field; a bronze mortar rests on each corner of the pedestal. Before the departure of Prince Napoleon from Quebec, Mr. Baillairgé met his friend, Dr. Bardy, ex-president of the society, who requested him on behalf of the society to visit the Prince at the Russell Hotel, and to request him to grant a statue for the crowning of the monument. The Prince, after conferring with Baron Gauldrée de Boileau, graciously assented to the request. The design of the monument, which is about 90 feet in height, was made by Chevalier Charles Baillairgé, the city engineer. The country is indebted to Mr. Baillairgé for the possession of the “Standard of Carillon.” This ancient relic of the past, whenever it appears in the ranks of the procession of St. Jean-Baptiste, awakens the memories of the valiant deeds of their forefathers during the memorable day of the 8th July, 1758. He searched, during more than ten years, with incredible perseverance, for this old standard, and finally succeeded in finding it in the abode of an old friend of his family, Frère Louis Bonami, of the order of Saint François d’Assize, at Quebec, beneath a mass of old articles half reduced to dust by decay, at the bottom of an old trunk. Father Berry, superior of the Recollets at Quebec, was one of the almoners of the army of Carillon under Montcalm. After the campaign of 1758 he took charge of the standard, and brought it back to Quebec, where it was suspended to the vault of the Recollet Church, and remained there until the church was destroyed by fire on the 6th of September, 1796. Frère Bonami and another rushed into the church to save what articles they could, threw them into a trunk, and were hurrying out with them at the moment when the standard dropped near their feet, from the vault of the nave, and, picking it up, also threw it into the trunk, which he carried off, with his companion, to a place of safety, and afterwards sent it to his dwelling, where it was found by Mr. Baillairgé, after a lapse of more than half a century. (See _Revue Canadienne_ of 1882, vol. II., page 129). On various occasions, and especially in 1857, he was invited to present himself as a candidate to parliament for Quebec, but always declined the proffered honour. He was one of the founders of the _Courrier du Canada_, at Quebec, and helped it out of numerous difficulties which generally attend the establishment of a new journal. The _Courrier_ has been in existence ever since, and will, it is hoped, continue to prosper for many years hereafter. In 1863 he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the 2nd battalion of the militia of Quebec, under Lord Elgin. On the 24th of February, 1885, Mr. Baillairgé founded a chair of sacred and profane eloquence in connection with the faculty of arts of the Laval University at Quebec, known as “La Chaire Baillairgé.” On the 26th of July, 1886, his Holiness the Pope Leo XIII., addressed an autograph letter to his Eminence Cardinal Archbishop Taschereau, respecting the newly founded professorship, which contains the following:

We have learned with great pleasure that we are indebted to the
generosity of a distinguished advocate of Quebec, Mr.
Baillairgé, for a new chair, which has been created in addition
to the chairs already existing in the Laval University, over
which you preside as Apostolic Chancellor. We are greatly
rejoiced on account of this new endowment, the object of which
is to benefit studious young men who wish to perfect themselves
in literature and eloquence.

Our beloved son, whom we have already named, has thus, in our
estimation, not only contributed to the development of arts and
letters in his native land, but he has also erected a lasting
monument in his own honour, and is worthy of the praise of his
contemporaries and of the commendation of posterity.

The distance which separates us, prevents us from expressing
personally to the illustrious founder, our feelings of paternal
affection and our ardent desire that he may receive from God the
ample reward due to his worthy deed. We, therefore, request you
to do so in our name.

His Eminence Cardinal Taschereau accordingly addressed the following letter to Mr. Baillairgé, on the 21st of August, 1886:

SIR,—You will receive herewith the Latin text and French
translation of the letter I have just received:

His Holiness the Pope Leo XIII., wishing to give unto the Laval
University a proof of the interest he feels in this institution,
bestows his praise on the chair of eloquence which you have so
generously founded, and commends your action as an example to be
followed by those who desire to make a noble use of their
fortune. A monument of marble is an object of interest only to a
few, and any interest which may be attached to it, seldom lasts
beyond one generation. The founder of a work such as yours, sir,
will be known and loved by all those whom it will benefit
directly or indirectly, until the end of time.

The deep interest I take in the Laval University and in the
education of the youth of our native country, will enable you,
sir, to estimate the vivacity and sincerity of the gratefulness
with which I have the honour to subscribe myself,

Your very devoted servant,
E. A., CARDINAL TASCHEREAU,
_Archbishop of Quebec._

To L. G. Baillairgé, Esq., Advocate.

The Hon. Mr. Fabre, who published this letter in the _Paris-Canada_, a newspaper which is printed at Paris, adds:

Mr. Baillairgé belongs to one of the most genuine French
families of Canada. The high distinction by which he has just
been honoured is the worthy reward of his generous act, and an
acknowledgement of the exalted sentiments by which he has been
guided.

Cardinal Taschereau’s letter was followed by his “Pastoral Letter” of the 8th of December, 1886, respecting the Laval University, and alluding to the chair founded in that institution by Mr. Baillairgé. On the 18th of May, 1887, his Holiness the Pope Leo XIII., nominates Mr. Baillairgé “Chevalier-Commandeur of the illustrious order of St. Gregory the Great,” by Apostolical Letters-patent of the same date. These Letters-patent were presented by order of his Eminence Cardinal Taschereau to Mr. Baillairgé, by Monseigneur Légaré, the Grand Vicaire, and by Monseigneur Marois, secretary of his eminence, acting as his special delegates on this occasion. His Eminence Cardinal Simeoni, chief of the Propaganda, is said to have contributed to this nomination. The uniform and insignia of a Chevalier-Commandeur is as follows:—Uniform—A dark blue, long-tailed dress-coat, with silver embroidery of laurel leaves, and silver buttons on the front; collar, facings, and the lower portion on the back, also embroidered with silver; long white chamois pantaloons, with a silver band on the sides; small black boots; black cocked hat with short black spiral plumes and silver clasp. INSIGNIA:—Maltese cross of gold with a circular medallion at the centre, containing the miniature of Gregory the Great; gold-hilted sword at the side, etc. In 1887 a statue of the Saviour was presented by Mr. Baillairgé to the Grey Nuns of Quebec. It was blessed by his Eminence Cardinal Taschereau, and placed on the summit of the tower above the main entrance of the Grey Nuns’ Church, on the 18th of September of the same year. The statue is about fifteen feet in height, is plated on the outside with gilded sheet lead, and weighs about 4,000 lbs. It was sculptured by Mr. Jobin, an artist of the old capital.

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=Dionne, Narcisse Eutrope=, S.B., M.D., Quebec, Co-Editor of _Le Courrier du Canada_, was born at St. Denis, county of Kamouraska, province of Quebec, on the 18th of May, 1848, from the marriage of Narcisse Dionne and Elizabeth Bouchard. Dr. Dionne received his education at the College of Ste. Anne de Lapocatière, and after completing his classical course, studied theology two years at the Grand Seminary of Quebec, returned to Ste. Anne for another year, and completed his theological studies at Levis College. He then chose the medical profession, and for that purpose entered Laval University, where he graduated M.D., in 1873, and removed to Stanfold, county of Arthabaska, and practised his profession in that place until 1875. Then he removed to Quebec, where he found a wider field, not only in regard to his profession, but to follow his inclinations to literary pursuits. He has lived in that city ever since. In 1876, the Cercle Catholique, of which he was one of the founders, was established in the city of Quebec, and he was elected on the board of directors and librarian, a position he held until the year 1883; he was then elected vice-president, and still holds that position. He was also one of the founders of the “Presse Associée de la province de Quebec,” with other journalists of the city of Quebec. This association was incorporated by an act of the legislature of Quebec, in 1883. Dr. Dionne has been acting secretary of the society since its foundation, and took a most prominent part in the reception accorded the Canadian Press Association, on the occasion of the latter body’s excursion to the Saguenay in 1883. In token of their gratitude, the Ontario pressmen gave him a splendid gift in recognition of the courtesies extended them. In August, 1886, he was also elected secretary to the Quebec Conservative Club, and in January, 1887, was appointed to the same position, which he filled during the Federal elections of the 22nd of February, of the same year. Dr. Dionne holds a high rank among the _littérateurs_ of his native province, the first work which brought him to prominence being a pamphlet, published in 1880, intituled, “Le Tombeau de Champlain.” The year previous, his Excellency the Count de Premio-Real, consul-general of Spain in Canada, had offered two prizes for the best essay on a series of questions relating to Canadian history, and Mr. Dionne was the winner of both. In 1881, he published a pamphlet on agricultural societies, and then-value to the farmers, intituled, “Les Cercles Agricoles dans la Province de Québec,” and delivered many lectures throughout the province on that important subject. In 1882 appeared the report of the excursion of the Canadian Press Association to the United States, Manitoba, and the North-West, also due to Dr. Dionne’s pen; and still later, in 1883 he published the report of the French-Canadian convention, held at Windsor, county of Essex. As a political writer, the doctor is in the foremost rank of the Conservative journalists of the province, having been editor-in-chief of _Le Courier du Canada_, a daily paper published in Quebec, from April, 1880, until the 1st of February, 1884. He also filled the same position on the staff of _Le Journal de Québec_, from February to May, 1886. On the 22nd of February, 1887, he resumed the duties of co-editor to _Le Courier du Canada_, a position which he still holds. The first editors of the latter newspaper had been Dr. J. C. Taché, deputy minister to the department of Agriculture, and Sir Hector Langevin. In addition to his medical practice and journalistic duties, Dr. Dionne was chief license inspector under the Federal Act of parliament, from the 19th February, 1884, until December, 1885; and visiting physician to the Quebec Marine Hospital since the 17th February, 1882. In 1885, he visited New Orleans, during the World’s Exposition. He is corresponding member of the Institut-Canadien, of Ottawa; L’Union Catholique, Mauritius Island; and titulary member of the Académie des Muses Santonnes, France. He was married on the 13th of October, 1873, to Marie Laure Bouchard, second daughter of the late Pierre Victor Bouchard, of her Majesty’s customs, Quebec, and Julie Huot. He has issue ten children, five sons and five daughters.

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=Archibald, Peter S.=, Moncton, New Brunswick, Chief Engineer of the Intercolonial Railway, was born at Truro, Nova Scotia, on the 21st March, 1848. His parents were William and Elizabeth Archibald, and were both natives of Nova Scotia. Peter S. Archibald received his education at the Truro Model and Normal schools, and joined the railway service in 1867, when scarcely out of his teens. Since then he has gradually risen, through all the grades from rodman, until he now occupies the position of chief engineer. He joined the volunteers as a private, and served in that capacity for three years, and was afterwards promoted to a lieutenancy in the 73rd battalion. Mr. Archibald is a member of the American Institute of Civil Engineers. As a living example of what can be done by a young man who sets his mind on rising in his profession, he is a good example, and deserves a great deal of praise for his pluck and perseverance, and his example is well worthy of imitation by our young men who wish to get on in the world. In April, 1874, Mr. Archibald was married to Clara G. Lindsay, daughter of T. S. Lindsay, of Rockland, Maine, U.S.

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=Mathews, Rev. George D.=, D.D., Pastor of Chalmer’s (Presbyterian) Church, Quebec, one of the best known of our Presbyterian divines in the old as well as the new world, was born in the town of Kilkenny, Ireland, in 1828. As in the case of others of our distinguished men in America, the three nationalities of the motherland are to be found represented in him, for, though born in Ireland, he had for his father a true-hearted Scotchman, while his mother was a native of England. The subject of our sketch spent his earliest years in the city of Dublin, where he received his education at the hands of private tutors who prepared him for entering Trinity College as an undergraduate in arts. His career at this celebrated seat of learning was in every sense a most satisfactory one, so that he took his degree in 1848. It is needless to say that the classical and literary tastes which he acquired at college have never left him, as those who have had the pleasure of his acquaintance, or who have had the opportunity of sitting under his ministrations as a pastor, can readily bear witness. After leaving college he devoted himself for a time to the study of law, but that profession becoming more and more distasteful to the young student, as his mind matured on social questions and the solemn responsibilities of life, he subsequently forsook the pathways which Coke, Blackstone and Hale have in vain endeavoured to make smooth, for a more peaceful retreat with the school of the prophets. Entering the United Presbyterian Hall of Divinity at Edinburgh, he there had the privilege of receiving instruction from such distinguished theologians as Dr. John Brown, Dr. Eadie, and a number of other teachers, whose lives and characters have moulded the history and polity of the U. P. Church in Scotland. Under such men Rev. Dr. Mathews felt more and more the serious mission he had to perform in life. With zeal he entered upon the examination of the theology of the times, fortifying himself with the most careful study of mental science, and obtaining for himself the credit of being a devoted investigator in the realms of thought, and a keen observer of the many paths into which advanced thinkers are ever leading their fellowmen. Yet, never for a moment did the young student deviate from the faith; and never, throughout his long career as a minister has he had to endure the scorn of those whose chief delight it often is to rail at the ministers of advanced opinions. His preaching has ever been thoroughly orthodox, notwithstanding the wide scope of his knowledge and scientific attainments. Possessed of a remarkable fluency of speech, his discourses are generally given _extempore_, being marked at the same time with an eloquence which is all the more attractive from the simplicity of the language he employs. In December, 1853, he was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Glasgow, and immediately thereafter was ordained at Stranraer, a town of about eight thousand inhabitants, in Wigtonshire, Scotland. No more delightful locality could have been selected for a man of such tastes and predispositions as the subject of our sketch. The town of Stranraer, as is well-known, stands upon an arm of the sea at the head of Loch Ryan, and for the beauty and natural sweetness of its surroundings is all but unequalled by the other towns in the south of Scotland. Here the young preacher found his first charge among a people kindly disposed and hospitable, and here his efforts to do good were well received, not only by those of his own congregation, but by the whole community. No duty was overlooked, public or pastoral; and yet amidst the pressure of work which always falls to the lot of a young and conscientious pastor, the literary spirit did not forsake the youthful clergyman during his spare moments from pulpit work and pastoral ministrations, as many of the old numbers of the “Dublin University Magazine” can bear witness. For several years he continued to contribute to this and other periodicals, and it need hardly be said that his contributions even then gave promise of the literary and administrative abilities which have brought the Rev. Dr. Mathews’ name so prominently before the denomination of which he is a minister. At length, in 1868, while on a visit to the United States, the U. P. minister at Stranraer received a call to one of the city charges in New York. In the following year he reluctantly gave up his charge in Scotland, and to the universal regret of his people and fellow townsmen, set sail for America. Nor did the feeling in his favour fail to show itself in a tangible form. A beautiful testimonial was presented by the community to the retiring pastor with many and valuable accompanying presents. Shortly after his arrival in New York, Dr. Mathews undertook the editorship of “The Christian Worker,” a monthly magazine devoted mainly to religious topics. This duty he performed in addition to his pastoral work. Under his management the periodical rose into favour until at length its circulation brought the editor into prominence all over the continent. The editor of the “Worker” also took an active part in all church affairs, expressing an influence in the church courts and on church problems which has always been respected. As an evidence of this growing influence, in 1873, when the proposal was mooted by Rev. Dr. McCosh, of Princeton, and Rev. Dr. Schaff, that the various Presbyterian Churches throughout the world should come into close relationship with one another, Dr. Mathews was chosen secretary of the first committee formed for the carrying out of definite plans to promote such brotherly alliance. Two years later, he was sent to London by the Presbyterian Church in the Northern States as one of its commissioners to confer with the representatives from other Churches as to the feasibility of a union of Presbyterianism throughout the world. This was the origin of the Presbyterian Alliance, which has since become a household word in the Presbyterian church. The first important conference was held in London, England, where it was agreed to form an “Alliance of the Reformed Churches holding the Presbyterian system,” and at the first meeting of this new association of Presbyterians, Dr. Mathews was appointed American secretary—a position which he has held for many years, and which through his energy and administrative skill has become one of the most influential in the Presbyterian church of to-day. While performing the duties of this office, Dr. Mathews has been engaged from time to time in preparing many new and reliable tables of statistics together with a series of concise and tabular sketches of the Presbyterian Churches of the world. In 1879 he became associate editor of the _Catholic Presbyterian_, the organ of the Alliance, and a periodical of the highest literary dignity and style. At the meeting of the Alliance in 1884, at Belfast, he was further appointed by its general council to edit the record of its proceedings, filling a volume of no less than seven hundred pages. Included within this volume, there is to be found a very valuable and exhaustive statistical report, or rather series of reports, compiled by the painstaking secretary, a work for which he has received the highest commendation from his brethren and others who have carefully examined it. As the fruit of prolonged labour and original enquiry, it carries within it information of the most interesting kind, not only to Presbyterians but to all Protestant churches. In recognition of Dr. Mathews’ great services to the Presbyterian cause, and the prominent position he had attained to in church affairs, the Western University of Pennsylvania conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Divinity. At the present writing, the secretary of the Pan-Presbyterian Council is pastor of Chalmers Church, Quebec. Some years ago he was chosen one of the governors of Morrin College, being at the same time professor of systematic theology in that institution. Since 1883 he has also taken charge of the classes in moral philosophy. In ordinary educational affairs he has always taken a deep interest, having been for years a member of the Council of Public Instruction for the Province of Quebec. As with many other men of business habits, Rev. Dr. Mathews has a favourite recreation. His is in numismatic research, and possessing a very valuable collection of coins: he published, in 1876, a volume on the “Coinages of the World,” which has had a large circulation. He was married, in 1856, to Maria F. Irvine, of Dublin, by whom he has had a family of two sons and a daughter, all of whom survive their mother, who died in 1880.

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=Bentley, Hon. George Whitefield Wheelock=, Kensington, Commissioner of Public Works for Prince Edward Island, was born at Margate, Prince county, P.E.I., on the 21st December, 1842. He is the youngest son of Thomas Bentley and Hannah Smith. His father, Mr. Bentley, sen., emigrated from Yorkshire, England, to Prince Edward Island, in 1817; and his mother, Hannah Smith, came to the same island in 1800 with her parents, she having been born on the passage out from England. The father of this lady was the youngest son of a family of twenty-two children. The Bentley family first settled in Cavendish, one of the oldest settlements on the island, and afterwards removed to Prince county, and took up their abode at a place they named Margate, after the celebrated watering-place in England. George, the subject of our sketch, received an ordinary English education in his native place. After leaving school he devoted himself to agricultural pursuits, and in 1874 removed to Kensington, his present residence, where he has since carried on business as a merchant and as a farmer. In 1879 he was elected to the House of Assembly of P.E.I., by the electors of the 4th electoral district of Prince county; again at the general election in 1882, and again in 1886, he was each time returned at the head of the poll. In January, 1887, he was appointed a member of the Executive Council, and in the following month was chosen commissioner of Public Works. This appointment necessitated another appeal to the electors, and he was again returned in spite of determined opposition. Mr. Bentley has been a life-long advocate of temperance, and has for the last twenty-five years been connected with the order of the Sons of Temperance. He has held the office of grand worthy patriarch of the Grand Division of Prince Edward Island, and is now a member of the National Division of the Sons of Temperance of North America. He has travelled through all the provinces of British North America, and many of the states of the neighbouring republic. Politically Mr. Bentley belongs to the ranks of the Conservative party; and in religious matters he is an adherent of the Methodist church. On the 9th February, 1870, he was married to Emma Jane, daughter of William Dennis, of Margate, P.E.I.

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=Jack, William Brydone=, M.A., D.C.L. The deceased Dr. William Brydone Jack was born in the parish of Tinwald, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, on the 23rd November, 1819. He received his elementary education at the schools of the parish, and was afterwards sent to the academy of Hutton Hall, Caerlaverock, where he was prepared for entering college. In 1835 he went to St. Andrews, and became a student in the United College of St. Salvador and St. Leonard’s. During his course he was distinguished for proficiency in mathematics and physics, carrying off the highest prizes in these departments of study. Shortly after graduating with the degree of M.A. in 1840, he was offered the professorship of physics in the Manchester New College, in succession to the celebrated Dr. Dalton, and about the same time the position of professorship of mathematics, natural philosophy and astronomy in King’s College, Fredericton (now the University of New Brunswick), was tendered to his acceptance. Sir David Brewster, who was then principal of the college at St. Andrews, and with whom Dr. Jack had been a favourite pupil, thought that the duties and responsibilities of the situation at Manchester would, at the first outset in life, be rather hazardous and trying for one so young and inexperienced. Accordingly, in deference to Sir David’s advice and that of other friends, Dr. Jack accepted the professorship in New Brunswick, and assumed its duties in September, 1840. As King’s College was at first under the management of the Church of England, it failed to command the confidence and sympathy of the general public, and consequently it was never so prosperous as it should have been. Many and violent attacks were therefore made upon it both in and out of the legislature, till after much worry and struggle it was, in 1860, re-modelled and named the University of New Brunswick, over which all denominations were admitted to an equal control. In 1861 Dr. Jack was appointed president of the university, and for many years he laboured and laboured successfully in bringing the college into repute, and securing the general acceptance and confidence of the public. He spent his vacations largely in travelling about the province, and by public addresses making the college known and the benefits of the higher education appreciated. On the inauguration of the Free School system he was made, _ex-officio_, a member of the Board of Education. In 1885, after a service of forty-five years as professor and president, failing health induced him to resign his appointments, and seek the ease and quiet of private life. In 1886 the government was pleased to appoint him a member of the Senate of the University, in whose progress and prosperity he continued to take the warmest interest. Dr. Jack was always a devoted student of astronomy, and after the establishment of lines of telegraph communication, he was among the first to make use of them, determining distances of longitude. By connection with Harvard Observatory, Mass., the true longitude of Fredericton was ascertained. Taking Fredericton as the starting point, he obtained, at the instance and expense of the local government, the longitude of St. John, and afterwards of some places on the boundary survey of the province. The determinations were of service to Sir William Logan in the construction of his geological map of Canada. Dr. Jack died at Fredericton, New Brunswick, on the 23rd day of November, 1886, on his sixty-sixth birthday.

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=Cowperthwaite, Rev. Humphrey Pickard=, A.M., Pastor of the Queen Square Methodist Church, St. John, New Brunswick, was born in Sheffield, New Brunswick, on the 30th of November, 1838. His father was Hugh Cowperthwaite, and his mother, Elizabeth Ann Hunter; she was of Scotch descent. His grandfather, on his father’s side, was a United Empire loyalist, and came from New Jersey in 1783. His great-grandfather was an officer in the British army, during the American revolutionary war of independence. Humphrey received his education in the parish school, and afterwards at Sackville College, where he graduated in arts in 1867. He adopted the clerical profession, and is now an active minister of the Methodist church, in connection with the New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island conference. For several years he was chairman of the Prince Edward Island district, and secretary of the conference for two terms. On two occasions he visited the province of Ontario, on matters connected with his church, and attended as a delegate the conferences which met at Hamilton and Belleville a few years ago. On the 19th of July, 1867, he was married to Annie S. Buchanan, of Glasgow, Scotland, youngest daughter of W. M. Buchanan, editor of the “Practical Mechanics’ and Engineers’ Magazine,” and for some time lecturer on geology in the Glasgow University.

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=Lachapelle, Emmanuel Persillier=, M.D., Montreal, was born on the 21st December, 1845, at Sault-au-Récollet, province of Quebec. His parents were Pierre Persillier-Lachapelle, and Marie Zoé Toupin. Dr. Lachapelle received a classical education at the Montreal College, and took a course in medicine and surgery at the Montreal Medical and Surgical School, and after passing very brilliantly his examination, was admitted to the practice of medicine in 1869. In 1872 he was appointed surgeon to the 65th battalion, and held that position until 1886. In 1876 he was elected, and is still, a governor and treasurer of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of the province of Quebec; and in 1885, during the small-pox epidemic, he took a leading part in the working of the Central Board of Health, and was appointed president of the first Provincial Board of Health recently organised. Dr. Lachapelle was the promoter and one of the founders of Notre Dame Hospital, one of the most useful charitable institutions of Montreal to-day. In 1884, wishing to free the hospital from debt, he, together with friends and the board of management, organized a grand _kermesse_ which netted about $15,000 in one week. When the establishment of the branch of Laval University in Montreal was decided upon, he became one of its most ardent supporters and contributed in a great measure to its formation. He was elected general president of the Saint Jean Baptiste Society in 1876. As a journalist, Dr. Lachapelle is favourably known, having been the proprietor and editor of _L’Union Médicale_ from 1876 to 1882. He is doctor in medicine of Laval and Victoria Universities, secretary of the Medical Faculty of Laval University, professor of general Pathology and Medical Jurisprudence, and an associate member of the “Société Française d’Hygiène,” Paris. He commenced practising in Montreal in 1869, and took a foremost rank in the galaxy of young men who about that time were entering on their professional life, and have since risen to high positions in Canadian society. Dr. Lachapelle enjoys the confidence of the general public, and through his genial disposition, has made a host of friends. He has been closely identified with all the scientific, national and political movements of the day, and his influence and advice have great weight and are highly appreciated.

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=Allen, Hon. John C.=, Fredericton, Chief Justice of New Brunswick, was born in the parish of Kingsclear, county of York, N.B., on the first of October, 1817. His grandfather, Isaac Allen, was a United Empire loyalist, and resided in Trenton, New Jersey, where he practised law. During the revolutionary war, which broke out in 1776, he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the second battalion of New Jersey Volunteers, one of the provincial regiments raised during the war. At the peace in 1783, he settled in Nova Scotia, and when the province of New Brunswick was established, he was appointed one of the judges of the Supreme Court, a position he held until his death, in October, 1806. His wife was Sarah Campbell, of Philadelphia. His son, the father of the present chief justice, was John Allen, formerly a captain in the New Brunswick Fencibles, a corps raised in New Brunswick during the war of 1812, and commanded by General John Coffin. This regiment was disbanded in 1817, and Captain Allen was subsequently appointed lieutenant-colonel and inspecting field officer of the militia of New Brunswick, and when that office was abolished, was appointed quarter-master-general of the militia. He represented the county of York in the House of Assembly from 1809 to 1847. He died in April, 1875, aged ninety-one years, and his wife died in 1822. Chief Justice Allen was educated at the Fredericton Grammar School; studied law with the Hon. John Simcoe Saunders, son of the then chief justice in Fredericton; was admitted as an attorney in October, 1838; and to the bar in Michaelmas term, 1840. In 1845 he was appointed one of the commissioners for settling the claims to lands, under the fourth article of the treaty of Washington, 1842. While the boundary between the province of New Brunswick and the United States was in dispute, the portion of the country known as “the disputed territory,” extending from near the Grand Falls of the river St. John to the head of the river, and including the whole Madawaska settlement on both sides of the river, was being occupied by settlers, principally Acadian French, who held by possession only, the government refusing to make any grants of the land. By the treaty, the channel of the river, from a point about three miles above the Grand Falls to the mouth of the river St. Francis, a tributary of the St. John, about seventy miles above the falls, was fixed as the boundary between the two countries, and the fourth article of the treaty provided that all equitable possessory claims, arising from a possession and improvement of any land for more than six years before the date of the treaty, should be deemed valid, and be confirmed to the persons so in possession. The commission was appointed to investigate and settle the claims of the persons in possession of that portion of the lands in dispute, which fell within the dominion of Great Britain. During the years 1845 and 1847, they heard and determined the claims of all the settlers between the Grand Falls and the St. Francis, and grants of the lands were afterwards issued by the government to the respective parties, in accordance with the report of the commissioners. The other commissioner was the late James A. Maclauchlan, who was formerly an officer in the 104th regiment, and served in Canada between 1813-15, and who had for many years acted as warden of the disputed territory, by appointment of the British government, for the purpose of preventing the cutting of timber upon it. The most valuable part of the “disputed territory,” the fertile valley of the Aroostook, was awarded to the United States by the treaty. Hon. Mr. Allen was appointed clerk of the Executive Council of New Brunswick in November, 1851, and held that office till January, 1856, when he resigned it, and in February following was elected a member of the House of Assembly for York county. In May following, was appointed solicitor-general, which position he held until May, 1857, when the government resigned, having been defeated at the general election of that year. In 1852 was elected mayor of Fredericton and continued to hold the office till 1855, when he resigned. In 1860 he was offered the position of Queen’s counsel, but declined. He was speaker of the New Brunswick Assembly from 1862 until that house was dissolved, in 1865, for the purpose of ascertaining the opinion of the people upon the question of confederation, as agreed upon by the delegates assembled at Quebec, in September previous. Having been again elected as a representative opposed to confederation, in April, 1865, he was appointed attorney-general, which office he held until the 21st September following. In June of that year he was sent by the Provincial government, with the Hon. Albert J. Smith (afterwards Sir Albert), as a delegate to the British government, for the purpose of urging the objections of New Brunswick to the confederation of the provinces. Soon after his return from England, on the 21st of September, 1865, he was appointed a puisné judge of the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, a vacancy having been caused by the resignation of Sir James Carter, and on the 8th of October, 1875, he was made chief justice of New Brunswick, as successor to the Hon. William Johnston Ritchie, who at that time was appointed a puisné judge of the Supreme Court of Canada. On the 8th of October, 1866, he was appointed vice-president of the Court of Governor and Council, for determining suits relating to marriage and divorce. By an act of the Legislative Assembly, passed in 1791, a court was constituted, consisting of the lieutenant-governor of the province and his Majesty’s council, for the determination of suits and questions concerning marriage and divorce and alimony, the governor to be president of the court. The governor was also authorized to appoint the chief justice, or one of the judges of the Supreme Court, or the Master of the Rolls, to be vice-president of the court, and to act in his place. In 1860, a new court for the trial of matrimonial causes was created by the Act 23 Vic., c. 37, and all suits pending in the court before the Governor and Council, except those in which evidence had been examined, which were to be proceeded with as before, were transferred to the new court. Justice Neville Parker was appointed the judge under this act, and we therefore presume Mr. Allen’s appointment as vice-president of the Court of Governor and Council was for the purpose of hearing some case commenced under the old law, in which evidence had been examined; but, so far as we can learn, he has never acted under his commission. In June, 1878, he was appointed, in the place of the late Governor Wilmot, one of the arbitrators for settling the North-West boundary of the province of Ontario. The other arbitrators were Sir Edward Thornton, the British Minister at Washington, and Chief Justice Harrison, of Ontario. The time appointed for the meeting of the arbitrators having been fixed for the early part of July, and difficulties existing in the way of a postponement, Chief Justice Allen was obliged to resign the appointment, as his judicial duties prevented him from attending to it, the trial of the Osborne family for the alleged murder of Timothy McCarthy, coming on at the Circuit Court then about to open, at which he was to preside. Among the most notable criminal cases which Chief Justice Allen has tried may be mentioned that of John A. Munroe, in 1869, for the murder of Sarah Margaret Vail and her child, at St. John; and in 1875, of a number of persons at Bathurst, in the county of Gloucester, who participated in the Carraquet riots, which originated in resisting the enforcement of the Common Schools Act; also that of Chasson and ten others, for the murder of one Gifford, who had aided the sheriff’s officers in arresting the Carraquet rioters mentioned above. He also tried the Osborne family twice for the alleged murder of Timothy McCarthy, at Shediac, in the county of Westmoreland. The first trial, in July and August, 1878, occupied six weeks. The jury having disagreed, the prisoners were again tried in November and December of the same year, the trial occupying nearly six weeks, and, as before, the jury failed to agree. In 1847 Hon. Mr. Allen published a book of the Rules of the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, and the Acts of Assembly relating to the practice of the courts. He has also rendered much valuable service to the legal profession, in the compilation and publication of six volumes of law reports, embodying the decisions of the court extending over a number of years. In his younger days the Chief Justice took an active interest in the militia of the province. About the year 1835 he joined a volunteer company of artillery, in Fredericton. In 1838 the several companies of artillery in the province, viz., at Fredericton, St. John, St. Andrews, and St. Stephens, were formed into a regiment called “The New Brunswick Regiment of Artillery,” under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Hayne, formerly of the Royal artillery, and in 1838 Mr. Allen was appointed second lieutenant in the regiment; afterwards first lieutenant and adjutant, and captain, in July, 1841. The militia law having been materially altered in 1865, he has not since that had any active connection with the force. In 1844 he was appointed Provincial _aide-de-camp_ to Sir William Colbrooke, the lieutenant-governor of the province, and continued so till he resigned the government, in 1848. In 1882 the honorary degree of LL.D. was conferred on Chief Justice Allen by the University of New Brunswick. Chief Justice Allen is a member of the Church of England, and for nearly forty years has been a member of the church corporation in Fredericton. He has also held the position of churchwarden in the parish church for over twenty-five years, and on several occasions has been elected delegate to the provincial synod at Montreal. In 1845 he married Margaret A. Drury, daughter of the late Captain Charles Drury, 29th Regiment of foot, who died at St. John in 1835. He has five children living—William, Thomas Carleton (the prothonotary of the Supreme Court), Edmund H., George W., and Henry.