A POLITICAL SEED-TIME.
From the arrival of Sir Charles Bagot in January, 1842, up to the
departure of Lord Metcalfe in November, 1844, was a period chiefly
remarkable for the struggles of political leaders for power, without any
very essential difference of principle between them. Lord Cathcart
succeeded as Administrator, but took no decided stand on any Canadian
question. And it was not until the Earl of Elgin arrived, in January,
1847, that anything like violent party spirit began again to agitate the
Provinces.
In that interval, some events happened of a minor class, which should
not be forgotten. It was, I think, somewhere about the month of May,
1843, that there walked into my office on Nelson Street, a young man of
twenty-five years, tall, broad-shouldered, somewhat lantern jawed, and
emphatically Scottish, who introduced himself to me as the travelling
agent of the New York _British Chronicle_, published by his father. This
was George Brown, afterwards publisher and editor of the _Globe_
newspaper. He was a very pleasant-mannered, courteous, gentlemanly
young fellow, and impressed me favourably. His father, he said, found
the political atmosphere of New York hostile to everything British, and
that it was as much as a man's life was worth to give expression to any
British predilections whatsoever (which I knew to be true). They had,
therefore, thought of transferring their publication to Toronto, and
intended to continue it as a thoroughly Conservative journal. I, of
course, welcomed him as a co-worker in the same cause with ourselves;
little expecting how his ideas of conservatism were to develop
themselves in subsequent years. The publication of the _Banner_--a
religious journal, edited by Mr. Peter Brown--commenced on the 18th of
August following, and was succeeded by the _Globe_, on March 5th, 1844.
About the same time, there entered upon public life, another noted
Canadian politician, Mr. John A. Macdonald, then member for Kingston,
with whom I first became personally acquainted at the meeting of the
British American League in 1849, of which I shall have occasion to speak
more fully in its order; as it seems to have escaped the notice of
Canadian historians, although an event of the first magnitude in our
annals.