Alexander Charleson Manson is well known and since the 19th
of April, 1912, he has been pastor of the Taylor Presbyterian
church of Montreal, one of the largest organizations of the
city. A native of Thurso, Scotland, he pursued his education in
the schools of Edinburgh and of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Studying
theology, he won his Doctor of Divinity degree at the University
of Chicago and he first served as superintendent of missions of
North Dakota. Later he accepted a pastorate in Duluth, Minnesota,
and afterward became pastor of the Eleventh Presbyterian church
in Chicago, Illinois. From that city he went to Detroit,
Michigan, in response to a call from the Second Avenue
Presbyterian church and left that city to come to Montreal on the
19th of April, 1912, where he entered upon his duties as minister
of the Taylor Presbyterian church, which was organized July 23,
1876, with Rev. J. J. Casey as its first pastor. He continued in
that position until March 16, 1882, and was succeeded by the Rev.
Thomas Bennett, who remained in charge from the 1st of December,
1885, until December 31, 1897. His successor was the Rev. W. D.
Reid, who continued in charge until 1912, when Rev. Manson became
pastor. The present edifice of the Taylor Presbyterian church
was erected in 1893, at a cost of about sixty thousand dollars.
There is a membership of nine hundred and thirteen, with a
Sunday school of four hundred and fifty members, and the Junior
Christian Endeavor Society is the largest in the city. There is
a strong Sunday Afternoon Club, a First Company of Montreal Boys
Brigade and a Ladies Athletic Club as auxiliary organizations
to the church. In fact, the church work has been thoroughly
systematized in every department, and splendid results are being
accomplished. The church is in touch with the broader idea that
the best Christian service can be accomplished with better
physical and mental as well as moral development. Much attention
is paid to the social life, and yet nothing for a moment
overshadows the foundation work of the organization, which is the
salvation of souls. Rev. Manson is a fluent, earnest speaker, who
studies life and its problems and with notable clearness shows
the relation of modern day conditions to the lessons that have
come down to us through the ages from the moral teachers of the
past.
Rev. Manson was married June 24, 1889, to Miss Mary Elizabeth
Ferguson, of Hamilton, Ontario, and their children are: Berith
Du Val, of New York city; and Vera Charleson, Allena Conklin,
and Leslie Worden, all at home. At this point it would be almost
tautological to enter into any series of statements as showing
Rev. Manson to be a man of broad intelligence and genuine public
spirit, for these have been shadowed forth between the lines
of this review. Strong in his individuality, he never lacks
the courage of his convictions but there are as dominating
elements in this individuality a lively human sympathy and an
abiding charity, which, as taken in connection with the sterling
integrity and honor of his character, have naturally gained for
him the respect and confidence of men.
REV. THOMAS JOSEPH MACMAHON.
One of the most able Catholic educators in Quebec province, a
man sincere, straightforward and reliable in the discharge of
the duties and obligations of life, most earnest and consecrated
in his work as a priest of the Society of Jesus, is Rev. Thomas
Joseph MacMahon, rector of Loyola College in Montreal. He has
been connected with this institution since 1912 and, constantly
following high ideals and guiding his actions by sound and
practical judgment, has been an important factor in its later
development and growth.
Father MacMahon was born at Hamilton, Ontario, December 12, 1874,
and received his primary education at the Catholic separate
schools in that city, later attending Hamilton high school and
St. Mary’s College, Montreal. Entering the Society of Jesus in
1895, he was sent to St. Louis, Missouri, where he received a
long Jesuit training in philosophy and theology, after which he
returned to Montreal, where he was ordained to the priesthood in
1910. Father MacMahon then went to England for further training
preparatory to taking the position of prefect of studies at
Loyola College, a post which he assumed in May, 1912. He proved
a capable educator and an excellent disciplinarian and in 1913
was advanced to the position of rector of the college. This
is a large and growing institution conducted by the Jesuit
Fathers for English-speaking Catholic boys and has an enviable
reputation throughout eastern Canada for the thoroughness of its
training and the comprehensive courses of study offered. The
high standard of efficiency, traditional in the school, has
been maintained under Father MacMahon’s able management and the
institution has made a creditable growth during the period of his
incumbency. He has made himself thoroughly conversant with the
affairs of the college and is rapidly pushing forward the work
on the construction of the new buildings at Notre Dame de Grace,
Sherbrooke Street, Montreal West, where the institution will be
moved within the next two years.
Besides being an able educator and a farsighted and reliable
business man, Father MacMahon is known also as a preacher of
rare ability and power and has filled most of the pulpits in
Montreal and the vicinity in a creditable manner. He has made
his talents, powers and abilities forces in the spread of the
Catholic religion in this province and has accomplished a great
deal of beneficial and lasting work among the students of Loyola
College and the people of the city. He has their love in large
measure, while his upright and honorable character and his life
of service has gained him the respect and esteem of people of all
denominations.
ROBERT WARD SHEPHERD.
An age of intense commercial activity calls forth the powers
of men who can grapple with new conditions and utilize the
opportunities that come with successive changes. Adequate to the
demands of the hour, Robert Ward Shepherd occupied a central
place on the stage of business activity at Montreal for more
than a half century. The high ideals which he cherished found
embodiment in practical effort for their adoption. He was
no dreamer, for his theories were such as could be put into
successful execution and his business record balanced up with the
principles of truth and honor. As the president of the Ottawa
River Navigation Company, he was known to thousands of people in
Ottawa valley and he also figured in financial circles as vice
president of the Molson Bank.
Of English birth, Mr. Shepherd came to Montreal immediately
after his arrival in Canada and soon entered into active
connection with the Ottawa River Navigation Company, then under
the presidency of Sir George Simpson. For some years he was
captain of one of the boats of the line but was called into the
office to fill a position demanding executive force and keen
discrimination. He was made manager and from that post rose to
the position of president, in which connection he continued until
his demise. Under his guidance the business of the Ottawa River
Navigation Company continuously developed along substantial
lines, and progressiveness was as manifest in the care of its
patrons and the equipment of its vessels as in any other line
or field of business. Those who met Mr. Shepherd found him
genial, courteous and obliging, and at the same time he possessed
the keen sagacity and clear reasoning so indispensable to the
successful conduct of any enterprise. Becoming interested in
Molson’s Bank, he was elected vice president and director,
filling the former position for more than twenty years. In all
business affairs he was clear-headed, farsighted, and the record
which he left behind him for integrity and sterling worth is one
which might be envied by all.
Mr. Shepherd was married to Miss Mary C. de Les Derniers of the
province of Quebec, and they became the parents of nine children:
Robert W., who died in 1912; Miss F. A. R.; Dr. Francis J.;
Sherringham A.; A. Maude M., who is the widow of Haldane Haswell;
Esther E., who married Dr. W. A. Molson and is now deceased;
Beatrice H., who married Arthur Henshaw; Mary R., the widow of
George R. Robertson; and de Les Derniers. The mother passed away
in 1902, having for seven years survived Mr. Shepherd, whose
death occurred August 29, 1895, when he was seventy-six years of
age.
Mr. Shepherd was a member and one of the founders of St. George’s
church and in his Christian faith was found the root of his
activities in behalf of his fellowmen and of the principles which
governed his life. He belonged to the St. James Club and was
greatly interested in art, acting as vice president of the Art
Gallery of the city. He was one of the committee of management of
the Montreal General Hospital; was a member of the committee of
management of the Mackay Institution, and a generous supporter
of the Protestant Hospital for the Insane. He gave freely of his
means to various charitable institutions which seek to ameliorate
the hard conditions of life for the unfortunate. Duty and honor
were his watchwords and justice one of his strong characteristics.
JUDSON ALBERT DECEW.
Judson Albert DeCew, chemical engineer, whose identification with
leading chemical societies in this country and the United States
attests his higher professional standing, was born in Waterford,
Ontario, on the 14th of December, 1874. He is descended from
Captain John DeCew, a United Empire Loyalist, who served in
the War of 1812 and in whose house, at DeCew Falls near St.
Catharines, Ontario, Lieutenant Fitzgibbon and his soldiers were
quartered, when Laura Secord gave the warning which enabled them
to capture the United States forces under Colonel Boerstler.
Mr. DeCew’s parents are Thomas Howard and Valdora (Beemer)
DeCew, both of whom are living at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. He
was married on August 20, 1913, to Mabel Marshall, daughter of
John Marshall, educationist, of Weyburn, Saskatchewan. She is a
graduate in arts of Queen’s University with the class of 1910.
After finishing his early education at Woodstock College, he
attended the School of Practical Science of Toronto, graduating
in 1896. After spending four years in practical work he held a
fellowship in the University of Toronto in 1901 and took the
degree of Bachelor of Applied Science with the class of 1902.
In the same year he took a position as chemical engineer with
the Canada Paper Company, which he held until 1905. In 1906 Mr.
DeCew came to Montreal and established himself as a consulting
chemical engineer. In 1913 he organized the Process Engineers
Company, of which he is the president. He is the leading member
of the chemical engineering profession in Canada and one of its
most eminent representatives on the American continent. He is the
inventor of a number of important chemical processes, and his
name has become widely known as the author of articles relating
to the manufacture of paper, which have appeared from time to
time in technical journals. Mr. DeCew has delivered lectures
on the manufacture of paper and has been appointed on advisory
committees for technical researches. He has been a member of
the American Institute of Chemical Engineers since 1908 and an
associate member of the Canadian Society of Civil Engineers since
1906. He is also a member of the American Society of Testing
Materials, the American Chemical Society, the Society of Chemical
Industry, and the American Wood Preservers Association. Mr. DeCew
is a member of the Chemists Club, New York, and the Outremont
Golf Club and the University Club of Montreal.
[Illustration: JUDSON A. DECEW]
FISCHEL SHIP.
A position of leadership is accorded Fischel Ship in Jewish
circles in Montreal because of his active and prominent
identification with commercial, educational and benevolent
projects. He was for many years a very successful business man,
and as he has prospered he has given generously in support of
measures tending to the intellectual progress of his people, and
generous aid to those in need of assistance. He was born January
6, 1853, in Paranshoff, Poland, a son of Abraham Jacob and Pearl
(Leah) Ship. The father engaged in the tailoring business in
Poland, and it was in that country that Fischel Ship pursued his
education. He was a young man of nineteen years when he crossed
the Atlantic, making his way to Montreal in 1872. He had received
business training under his father and had become thoroughly
acquainted with the tailoring trade. Following his arrival in
this city he established a merchant tailoring business and as the
years went on won a liberal patronage, bringing him a gratifying
competence. At the time that he entered trade circles of Montreal
there were only five merchants in his line of business in the
city. Throughout the succeeding period up to the time of his
retirement he always managed to keep in the front rank among
the merchant tailors of Montreal, receiving a liberal patronage
from the best class of citizens, because of excellent style and
workmanship, which were features of his shop, and his thoroughly
reliable business methods. He always carried on business on St.
Lawrence Main Street, but about eleven years ago retired from
active connection with commercial interests to enjoy a well
earned and well merited rest.
Mr. Ship, however, continues his activities along other lines
resulting directly in the benefit of his fellowmen. He is
chairman of the building committee, governor, trustee, and
member of the relief and cemetery committees of the Baron De
Hirsch Institute. He is a life governor of the Montreal General
Hospital. For a quarter of a century he has been a trustee of
the McGill College Avenue synagogue, was vice president of the
synagogue for four years and has always been chairman of the
building committee. He is most loyal to his religious belief and
at all times has been generous and helpful toward the unfortunate.
On the 10th of February, 1869, Mr. Ship was united in marriage to
Miss Flora Blumenthal, a daughter of Phillip Blumenthal, who was
the first owner of the coaches in Ozerkoff, Poland. Unto Mr. and
Mrs. Ship have been born three children: Leah, now the wife of C.
Sisenwain; Ray, now Mrs. S. P. Myers; Abe Phillip, who is engaged
in the practice of medicine in Montreal and who married Leah
Sessenwain, of this city. In politics Mr. Ship has always been a
liberal, nor has he sought office as a reward for party fealty.
However, for the past sixteen years he has been justice of the
peace for the island of Montreal and has discharged his duties
with promptness, fidelity and impartiality. He is a veteran
of the Odd Fellows Association and also a member of the Royal
Arcanum. He has never had occasion to regret his determination to
come to the new world, for here he has found the opportunities
which he sought and has gradually worked his way upward until he
has won place among the substantial and highly respected citizens
of Montreal.
RENE HEBERT, M. D.
Dr. René Hébert, successfully engaged in the practice of medicine
in Montreal, in which city he was born October 2, 1869, is a
son of Charles P. Hébert, one of the founders of the wholesale
grocery house of Hudon, Hébert & Company. He was educated at
Plateau Academy, Montreal College and Laval University, being
graduated from the last named with the degree of M. D. in 1892.
During the succeeding year he was an interne at Notre Dame
Hospital and then went abroad for further study, spending two
years in study and research work in Paris, specializing in
diseases of the heart and lungs.
In 1895 Dr. Hébert began active practice in Montreal, opening an
office on St. Denis Street. He is superintendent of St. Paul’s
Hospital, physician to Notre Dame Hospital, and a professor in
the medical and dental departments of Laval University. His
professional connections are important, and it is recognized
that he is a thorough and discriminating student and most
conscientious in the performance of his professional duties.
Dr. Hébert married Miss Alice Auger. Their religious faith is
that of the Roman Catholic church. Aside from his professional
interests, Dr. Hébert is a director of the wholesale grocery firm
of Hudon, Hébert & Company. In strictly professional lines he is
connected with La Société de Médicine and Officier d’Académie.
At all times he holds to high standards, and wide reading is
constantly augmenting his skill and efficiency, manifested in the
successful manner with which he copes with the intricate problems
that are continually confronting the physician.
CLEMENT ANTOINE GUERTIN.
Of old and distinguished pioneer stock of French extraction
Clément Antoine Guertin upholds the traditions of family
prominence as one of the most able legal representatives of the
Montreal and provincial bar. Although he has been in practice
for not many years he enjoys a reputation second to none, as he
has proven his ability in connection with important interests.
Not only is Mr. Guertin well versed in the letter of the law and
the principles that affect its administration, not only is he
a deep thinker and logical reasoner, but he has an insight into
the conduct of human beings which permits him to clearly define
cause and effect in human actions, and he therefore readily
penetrates to the root of such problems as demand legal help for
solution. He has long been recognized as one of the able general
practitioners in the city, and his services are in large demand,
resulting in a gratifying measure of financial returns.
Clément Antoine Guertin was born at St. Antoine, in the county
of Verchères, province of Quebec, on the 22d of November, 1870,
a son of Léon Guertin, an agriculturist of St. Antoine, who was
born in 1817 and passed away in 1876, and Marie Louise Euchariste
(Geoffrion) Guertin, a native of Varennes. The first of the
family in Canada was the famous and well known Guertin, called
Louis Le Sabotier, who was born in 1635, a son of Louis and
Georgette (LeDuc) Guertin, from Daumeray, near Angers, France.
He married first at Montreal on January 26, 1659, Elizabeth Le
Camus, and second, Catherine Roy. Among his children were Louis,
Pierre, Paul and others. Paul Guertin, alias Chertin, alias
Diertin, was a son of Louis, born in Montreal on the 2d of May,
1680. At Contrecoeur, on the 19th of March, 1702, he married
Madeleine Plouffe and among their children were Pierre, Paul and
François. The latter married Catherine Dudevoir at St. Antoine
in 1745 and among their children were Pierre, Joseph, François
and others. Joseph, born March 6, 1755, married Marie Louise
Circé, called St. Michel, at St. Antoine in 1777 and among their
children was Pierre, born October 9, 1781. He married Marguerite
Duhamel, who bore her husband the following children: Pierre,
Noël, Léon, Marguerite, Flavien, Alexis, Calixte, Zoé and Louis.
Léon Guertin, third son of Pierre, was born March 12, 1817. His
first union was with Théotis Brodeur, who bore him the following
children: Octavie, Pauline, Léopold, Stanislas and Mélanie.
His second wife was Marie Louise Euchariste Geoffrion and the
children of this marriage were Joseph, Louis, Marie Louise and
Clément Antoine. Léon Guertin, the father of our subject, is the
sixth in direct descent from Louis Guertin, Le Sabotier. Pierre
Guertin, the grandfather of our subject, and his sons, Pierre,
Noël and Léon, took part in the battle of St. Denis, November 22,
1837. Louis Guertin, a brother of our subject, is father of the
Holy Cross Congregation, a director of Memramcook University of
New Brunswick, and took in Rome in philosophy and theology the
degree of Doctor cum maxima laude, also taking scientific work
at Harvard. A brother of the mother of our subject, Father L.
Geoffrion, of the Holy Cross Congregation, was for fifteen years
director of St. Laurent College, near Montreal.
Clément Antoine Guertin received a thorough and varied education.
He attended the St. Antoine village school, the St. Denis
Commercial College and also took courses in commercial English,
French and classical studies at St. Laurent. He received the
degree of B. L. in 1893 from the law faculty of Laval University,
in 1896 became LL. B. and in January, 1897, was made an advocate.
He has ever since followed his profession successfully in
Montreal and as his experience has expanded has become one of
the few successful lawyers whose reputation marks them for
distinction.
On the 24th of April, 1901, at Montreal, Mr. Guertin was married
to Miss Marie Anne Josephine Lamontagne, a daughter of G. A.
Lamontagne, a merchant tailor of Montreal and Malvina (Beauchamp)
Lamontagne. They had one daughter, Simonne, born April 16, 1902,
who died July 2d of the same year. The mother passed away on June
26, 1912.
From September, 1910, to May, 1912, Mr. Guertin was a member
of the Montreal council of the bar and from May, 1911, to May,
1912, a member of the provincial council. His club relations
are with the St. Denis, Délorimier and the Union du Commerce of
Montreal. His faith is that of the Roman Catholic church. He has
secured one of the most exclusive and representative practices in
Montreal, his success being the best evidence of his capability.
His pleas are always characterized by terse logic and lucid
presentation, and he always has a decisive conviction as to the
rights of the question he represents. It is his ambition to
make his native talents subserve the demands of the social and
business conditions of the day, and he stands today as a splendid
representative of a lawyer to whom personal prosperity is but
secondary in importance and who considers many ideal elements
more vital in the making up of human existence. His industry and
energy have found a reward which is based on a distinguished name
and accomplishments rather than incidental prosperity.
WILLIAM SUTHERLAND MAXWELL.