almost to the last in the prime of life, his fine figure being
erect and soldierly, and the years rested lightly upon him. His
eye could still sweep down the long lines of the regiment, his
step was elastic and he was enjoying life in all the mental
riches that follow a career of activity and usefulness. The
Victoria Rifles felt great pride in his brilliant record and in
that regiment he was an outstanding figure, a symbol of duty
well done, while his memory will ever be to them an inspiration
for loyalty in the King’s service. In January, 1912, he was
the leading figure at the dinner given by the regiment to
celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of its organization. He had
been one of the first to spring to the colors when the corps was
organized and had carried those colors in many fields. Even as
in his youth, ready to fight for his flag, Colonel Whitehead was
as willing to go to its defense in later years, when it might
have been supposed that the fire of youth had died down. Years
rolled onward, changes came and brought with them the boy scout
movement. This appealed strongly to his military spirit and he
entered heartily into the work of supporting and furthering the
cause. Money was needed; he supplied it. He also raised the money
for the trip to Europe a few years ago. He had always loved boys,
the military had always been dear to him and in the boy scout
movement these two were combined.
[Illustration: Col. Whitehead]
Colonel Whitehead was a man to whom a worthy appeal was never
made in vain. His heart took in a great circle of friends and his
purse was open to all calls of charity.
In the field of sport he was well to the front. In early manhood
he was an excellent lacrosse player and old timers remember the
games in which he participated against the Shamrocks for the
Claxton flags in the early ’60s. He was also a splendid sprinter,
making a notable record in the hundred-yard dash. This love of
sport he retained to the last and he was a life member of the
Montreal Amateur Athletic Association, of which he at one time
served as president.
Trouble did not pass him by, but through all he was the same
kindly, upright gentleman, maintaining a high sense of duty and
honor. In 1899 death robbed him of his wife, Mrs. Elizabeth
Whitehead, daughter of William Newcomb, whom he had married in
1868; and his son, E. A. Whitehead, Jr., died in 1908.
Edward Ashworth Whitehead, Jr., son of Colonel Edward Ashworth
Whitehead, was born in Montreal in 1869 and acquired his
education in England and in Kingston, Ontario, where he was
graduated with honors at the Royal Military College. He was
connected with The E. A. Whitehead Company, Limited, and for many
years was a special agent for Montreal of the Phoenix Assurance
Company, Limited, of London and was as popular in business as he
was in social circles.
Mr. Whitehead, Jr., married Miss May Sicotte, a daughter of
Victor Benjamin Sicotte, district magistrate at St. Hyacinthe and
a granddaughter of Hon. Louis Sicotte, premier of Canada. Three
children were born to them: Edward Ashworth, who is the third of
the name to continue the business of The E. A. Whitehead Company,
Limited; George Victor, a student at Bishop’s College School; and
Margaret Whitehead.
ROBERT LINTON.
Robert Linton became well known in the business circles of
Montreal in connection with the manufacture of woolen goods. He
was regarded as a resourceful business man whose enterprise,
progress and laudable ambition were constantly manifest in
the success which he won. A native of Ireland, he was born in
Newtown-Limavady in 1834, a son of Samuel and Martha Linton, who
brought their family to the new world during the boyhood of their
son, Robert. Settling in Montreal, their remaining days were
passed in this city but both have long since departed this life.
Robert Linton acquired his education in the schools of Montreal
and received his business training with the firm of William
Stephen & Company. Of that firm Lord Mount Stephen was a partner
and eventually took over the business upon the death of the
senior member of the firm. Continuing in active connection with
the business Robert Linton grew in usefulness and capability, as
he thoroughly acquainted himself with the duties that devolved
upon him. After the death of William Stephen the business was
conducted by George Stephen & Company for some time and Mr.
Linton was admitted to partnership in 1857. Upon the retirement
of George Stephen, later Lord Mount Stephen, the business of the
firm of George Stephen & Company was combined with that of Andrew
Robertson under the firm style of Robertson, Linton & Company,
this connection continuing until 1898, when the business was
closed out.
Mr. Linton was married twice. At Three Rivers, Quebec, he
wedded Miss Margaret McDougall, and they became the parents of
six children, as follows: Robert M., deceased; Margaret M.,
who is Mrs. Denaston Breakey, of Breakeyville, Quebec; Ernest,
a resident of Ottawa; Agnes H, who is Mrs. F. N. Southam, of
Montreal; Percy L., deceased; and Alice L., who married Herbert
Carter, of Montreal. The second marriage of Robert Linton was
also celebrated at Three Rivers, Miss Margaret Paterson, daughter
of John Paterson, becoming his wife on the 20th of October, 1886.
Mr. Linton was ever actively interested in those projects and
measures bearing upon the progress, upbuilding and development
of the city as well as upon his business affairs. He was widely
recognized as an honorable and upright man, in whose life there
were no esoteric phases. He was a member of the Montreal Board of
Trade, a life governor of the Montreal General Hospital, and a
justice of the peace for a few years before his death. He passed
away in November, 1899, after having gained for himself a most
creditable position in business circles and in the regard of his
fellowmen.
ARTHUR O’CONNELL KAVANAGH.
A history of the insurance business in Montreal would be
incomplete without mention of Arthur O. Kavanagh, who for many
years figured prominently in connection therewith. He was one of
the city’s native sons, born April 12, 1860, and in its schools
pursued his education, while in the school of experience he also
learned many valuable and practical lessons, thus constantly
adding to his knowledge and ability. The family name indicates
his Irish lineage and he manifested the sterling characteristics
of the race. He was engaged in business with his brother, Walter
Kavanagh, and they became prominent figures in insurance circles,
representing the Scottish Union & National Insurance Company,
the German-American Insurance Company and the Rochester German
Insurance Company, of which they were chief agents. Arthur
Kavanagh familiarized himself with every phase of the business
and had gained a most creditable position as an alert progressive
man and one ready to meet any emergency in business, when death
called him on the 14th of September, 1896, when he was yet in the
prime of life.
He had been married in Montreal less than five years before,
having on the 7th of October, 1891, wedded Alice Mullin, a native
of this city and a daughter of Patrick Mullin, of whom mention is
made elsewhere in this publication. They became the parents of
three sons: Harold Henry; Arthur Patrick, who died at the age of
six years; and Walter John. Deep regret was felt at the passing
of Mr. Kavanagh, because of his comparatively early age and
because he had gained a firm hold upon the affectionate regard of
his business associates and his many friends.
PATRICK MULLIN.
Patrick Mullin had traveled life’s journey for more than four
score years when he was called from this life on the 14th of
August, 1913. He was a native of Tyrone, Ireland, and for
more than six decades was a resident of Montreal, arriving in
this city in 1850. He was associated with various business
enterprises. With his brother, James E. Mullin, he became
associated with another brother, John Mullin, who had, in 1845,
established a wholesale grocery business, which they conducted
on College Street, now St. Paul Street. There they built up
a very extensive and successful enterprise, their patronage
constantly growing, as their trade interests extended over a
wide territory. In the early years of the business there were
practically no railroads in this section of the continent, while
means of water transportation were but slightly developed. They
hauled much of their stock with teams and, notwithstanding the
difficulties involved, they were enterprising enough to compete
for business as far west as Toronto. Their merchandise was taken
from Montreal to that city by team, the journey requiring two
weeks. John Mullin died in 1853, after which the business was
conducted by James E. and Patrick Mullin, under the firm name
of J. E. Mullin & Company. Both brothers had great faith in the
ultimate growth and prosperity of the city and because of this
they made large investments in real estate, gradually acquiring
the ownership of the block upon which they conducted their
business, extending from the rear of the Grand Trunk offices to
the Haymarket. Patrick Mullin also invested in other real estate
until his holdings were extensive and important. The large block
which the brothers acquired on St. Paul and William Streets later
became the location of the present plant of the Canada Cold
Storage Company and Mr. Mullin became a pioneer in that line of
business in the city. He was a man of indefatigable energy and
strong purpose and as the years passed on he carried forward to
successful completion whatever he undertook.
Mr. Mullin was united in marriage, in Montreal, to Alice O’Neil,
a native of County Tyrone, Ireland. She died on November 29,
1903, the mother of seven children, as follows: Mary A., the
wife of Joseph A. Cloran, of Boston, Massachusetts; Margaret J.;
Alice, the widow of Arthur O. Kavanagh; John F., who died in
March, 1904, aged twenty-nine years; Patrick; Elizabeth M., who
is Mrs. Harry J. Trihey; and Emma M., wife of William J. Hart.
A long and useful life was Mr. Mullin’s. He was a man of quiet
habits, but greatly enjoyed a good game of forty-five. In manner
he was always courteous, kindly, and considerate to others.
In religious faith he was a Catholic and devoted much time to
increasing the usefulness of St. Bridget’s Home and of St.
Patrick’s Asylum, being a trustee of the latter institution. He
gave liberally to the church and did everything in his power to
promote its influence.
ROSAIRE DUPUIS.
Rosaire Dupuis, one of the rising young notaries of Montreal, is
a son of Louis Napoleon Dupuis and Melanie Panet Levesque. The
father is ex-controller of Montreal and one of the founders of
the well known mercantile house of Dupuis Freres, Limited. The
mother of Rosaire Dupuis is a daughter of the late Pierre Thomas
Levesque and comes from a family that has for generations been
prominent in the judicial and legislative history of the province
and Dominion. Mr. Dupuis was born in the parish of La Longue
Pointe on the 17th of October, 1888. He made his classical course
at L’Assomption College, from which he was graduated in 1908 with
the degree of Bachelor of Science. He then took up the study
of law in Laval University in 1908 and won his LL. L. degree
upon graduation with the class of June, 1911. During the summer
seasons of 1909 and 1910 he attended the famous Eastman Business
College at Poughkeepsie, New York, where he was graduated with
honors on the 30th of August, 1910. During the succeeding year
he traveled abroad, visiting the Holy Land and many European
countries.
[Illustration: ROSAIRE DUPUIS]
In January, 1912, Mr. Dupuis began practice and has met with
gratifying success in following his profession, in which he
is well versed. He is a conservative in politics and a Roman
Catholic in religious belief. He holds membership with the
Canadian Club, the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and
the Knights of Columbus, and for the past two years has been
secretary of the Anti-Alcoholic League. During the years 1909
and 1910 at Laval he was secretary of the Laval Students-at-Law.
He is a young man of promise as well as a credit to one of
Montreal’s best families.
DONALD ALEXANDER SMITH.
Donald Alexander Smith, Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal, whose
career has been so wonderful as to appear almost magical, was
born on August 6, 1820, in the ancient town of Forres, in
Morayshire, Scotland. His father, Alexander Smith, was a small
tradesman of Archieston and was born in the parish of Knocando.
He married Barbara Stuart, of Leanchoil, Abernethy, a capable,
thrifty woman, ambitious for her children. It was her desire that
her son Donald should prepare for the bar, but, though he did not
see fit to follow this wish, the mother heart never lost faith
in her son and it was said that after he came to Canada as a fur
trader she was frequently heard to remark: “They’ll all be
proud of my Donald yet.” It was said that in boyhood he was shy,
yet amiable, and displayed sturdy resolution and even hardihood
if circumstances called those qualities forth. After leaving
school he took up the study of law, his reading being directed
by Robert Watson, solicitor, for two or three years. At length,
however, he determined to enter the service of the Hudson’s Bay
Company, influenced somewhat by a previous suggestion made by
John Stuart, his uncle, who was then visiting Scotland. In 1838
he sailed for the new world and after a voyage of between forty
and fifty days upon an eight hundred ton vessel, one of the
largest on the seas at that time, he landed on Canadian shores.
The rebellion of Mackenzie and Papineau had just been suppressed.
Donald A. Smith at once entered the service of the Hudson’s Bay
Company, but in a minor position. He met various hardships, but
he proved his fidelity to the company as well as his capability
in performing every service intrusted to him. He was first sent
to the Labrador coast, where he spent thirteen years in a cold,
bleak, barren, desolate region, with no companionship save a few
employes, but during that period he learned the business methods
of the company, how to manage Indians and how to secure the best
returns. It has been said that power grows through the exercise
of effort and year by year Donald Smith became more powerful.
The hardships which he was forced to endure developed him. There
is probably no other country in the world where there exists
a longer or more dangerous postal route for men and dogs--two
thousand miles of land travel from Quebec to Ungava in the depth
of an Arctic winter, continuing from December until June--yet
Lord Strathcona covered that route not once but many times.
His apprenticeship was, indeed, a difficult one, but he was
undeterred by all obstacles he encountered and privations which
he endured. At length, however, his eyesight became impaired,
making it necessary that he go to Montreal for treatment. He
covered the journey from Labrador by dog sled and on his arrival
in Montreal he was greeted by Sir George Simpson, governor of
the company, with the remark: “Well, young man, why are you not
at your post?” “My eyes, sir,” came the reply, and he pointed
to his blue goggles; “they got so very bad I have come to see a
doctor.” But the governor thundered: “And who gave you permission
to leave your post?” It would have taken a full year to obtain
official consent, but when Mr. Smith was forced to reply, “No
one,” the governor answered: “If it is a question between your
eyes and your service in the Hudson’s Bay Company you will take
my advice and return this instant to your post,” and Mr. Smith
started almost immediately upon that return journey of nearly
a thousand miles. The weather became so bad that both of his
Indians succumbed to the cold and he arrived at the post more
dead than alive. He once remarked: “A man who has been frozen
and roasted by turns every year must be the tougher for it if he
survived it at all.” Donald A. Smith did survive and advanced
steadily. He learned the dialect of a number of Indian tribes
and he so managed business affairs that his services were ever
a matter of profit to the company. His advancement was slow at
first, but his worth was eventually recognized and promotion
came quicker. His duties were many and onerous because of his
remoteness from civilization. He was called upon to minister to
the sick and half a century later, when speaking to the students
of the Middlesex Hospital in London he described the antiseptic
which he used in Labrador in the ’40s, saying: “It was a
primitive and somewhat rude form of treatment that was practiced
in those days before Lord Lister introduced his discovery. For
the treatment of wounds, ulcerated sores, etc., a pulp was made
by boiling the inner bark of the juniper tree. The liquor which
resulted was used for washing and treating the wounds and the
bark, beaten into a plastic mass, was applied after the thorough
cleaning of the wound, forming a soft cushion, lending itself to
every inequality of the sore. Scrupulous cleanliness was observed
and fresh material used for every application.”
When in Labrador, at the age of twenty-nine years, Donald A.
Smith married Isabella Sophia Hardisty, with whom he traveled
life’s journey for sixty-five years, separated in her death,
which occurred in London in 1913. In the meantime he was
advancing from one post to another in the service of the Hudson’s
Bay Company, becoming trader and then chief trader, while his
splendid administrative ability won him further promotion to
factor and to chief factor. In 1851 he was transferred to the
Northwest provinces and became most active in their later
development. He eventually reached the position of supreme head
of the company, becoming the last resident governor of the
corporation that had its beginning under the Merry Monarch. The
year 1868 witnessed his arrival in Montreal, as chief executive
for the Hudson’s Bay Company. He is described at that time as
“a man of middle stature, rather slight in build, and looked
not at all the typical northerner, except when one studied his
countenance.” “The snow tan of the north had made him dark as
an Indian. He wore a full beard, black and wiry. Black brows
met above his eyes, enhancing the stern, uncompromising aspect
of his face. He looked what he was--a commander of men and of
forces, a man made strong by a life of struggle and conquest in
the wilderness.” He had not yet become a wealthy man, although
he had saved his money and had invested it in land at various
points in the northwest--land that many would have regarded as
valueless. With wonderful prescience he discerned something of
what the future had in store for that great country and with the
growth of its population and the onrushing tide of civilization
his holdings increased in value, making him one of Canada’s more
prosperous citizens.
While Donald A. Smith had reached the pinnacle of service
in connection with the Hudson’s Bay Company when he came to
Montreal, he was destined to gain equal eminence in other
directions. In the interests of the Canadian Confederation it was
seen that the title to the territory of the Hudson’s Bay Company
in Rupert’s Land must pass to the crown and a purchase was
arranged whereby the company received a million dollars and large
reserves of land, although the transfer was not made without
great difficulty and danger, culminating in what has been known
as the Red River rebellion, or the first Riel rebellion.
Discontented people of that region had been trying to produce
an agitation that would separate their settlement from that of
the Hudson’s Bay Company. The rapid growth of population in
Assiniboia was imperilling the company’s hold and its rule,
hitherto wise and practical, was denounced as arbitrary. A
contemporary biographer has written:
“Better representation was demanded and, by dint of much uproar
and noise, considerable sympathy was obtained from outside. To
understand fully the character of this Red River settlement it
must be explained that the population was considerably mixed.
In all there were about twelve thousand souls. There were
Europeans, Canadians, Americans and French half-breeds. With a
mixed population like this it was difficult to deal and when,
on November 9, 1869, the deed was signed in London, whereby the
company surrendered its interests in the northwest to the crown,
with reservations for the company, rebellion broke out. The
leader was the famous Louis Riel, a Metis, described as ‘a short,
stout man, with a large head, a square cut, massive forehead
overhung by a mass of long and thickly clustering hair and marked
with well cut eyebrows--altogether a remarkable looking face.’
“The Hon. William McDougall had been appointed lieutenant
governor of Rupert’s Land and the Northwest territories in
September, 1869, but when he went, by way of the United States,
to possess himself of his power he was turned back on the borders
of his domain by Louis Riel and his followers, the Metis of the
plains, who absolutely refused to recognize his authority on the
ground that they had not been consulted in the new arrangement.
Mr. McDougall found himself unable to cope with the situation and
was compelled to remain at a farm house several miles south of
the boundary line for six weeks.
“Meanwhile the armed resistance to authority had attained serious
proportions. Riel seized Fort Garry, made the editor of the local
paper prisoner and was issuing proclamations to the inhabitants.
So matters went on until sixty of Riel’s enemies were confined in
Fort Garry and the insurgents’ flag hoisted.
“Meanwhile in his office in Montreal Donald A. Smith was slowly
but surely studying the position. Understanding the character
of both McDougall and Riel, he saw how hopeless the situation
was. Understanding them better than they understood themselves,
he realized that what was needed was a man who knew the inner
mind of the company well and could clear its character of the
imputations cast upon it. He was the man--he felt it and although
the journey involved grave personal risk he resolved to go. The
government promptly accepted his services and he was appointed
special commissioner to proceed at once to Fort Garry.
“With characteristic courage he went unarmed and almost alone.
No sooner had he arrived at Fort Garry than he was treated as
a prisoner of ‘President’ Riel. That, however, did not check
his determination. He had made up his mind to avoid bloodshed
and yet to enforce the decision of the government. To quote
his own words: ‘The part I had to act was that of a mediator.
Not only would one rash or unguarded word have increased the
difficulty but even the pointing of a finger might, on more than
one occasion, have been sufficient to put the whole country in a
flame.’ But the unguarded word was never spoken, the finger was
never pointed in a wrong direction and the rebellion ended in
a bloodless expedition. Yet before Sir Garnet Wolseley marched
to the Red river many a heated discussion was held and probably
never before in history has a regularly ordained meeting been
held in British territory under such conditions. If the moral
atmosphere was warmly excited, the physical atmosphere was
depressed enough to chill the fiercest rebels.
“The first meeting was a memorable one. In the open air, with
the thermometer twenty degrees below zero, a cruel, biting wind
penetrating through the warmest clothing, there they stood, men
of all nationalities and ages. On the small, raised platform
were the four most concerned in the rebellion--Riel, O’Donoghue,
De Salaberry (a man beloved by thousands) and Donald A. Smith.
At first the meeting was wholly with Riel, who cleverly got
himself appointed French interpreter. But when things were at
their worst and men of the opposite sides glared at each other
with hate in their eyes, Mr. Smith rose to speak. His facts, his
practical wisdom and, above all, his reasonableness had their
effect upon the swaying multitude. If he did not gain much that
day, at any rate he averted bloodshed.
“In the open air, with the thermometer twenty degrees below zero,
in the teeth of a biting blast, this meeting was conducted with a
respect for decorum and ancient parliamentary methods worthy of
Westminster itself.
“The next day things went better. The proposition that
representatives should be chosen from both sides was accepted,
and when Riel agreed to disband the men at Fort Garry all classes
felt that the worst was over. However, matters were not so easily
arranged. Riel broke his word and the murder of a young man named
Scott complicated the situation. Nevertheless, the excitement
slowly cooled and there is little doubt that but for the tactful
courage of Mr. Smith a spark would have been put to the flame of
rebellion.