Mr. G. L. Bellingham, assistant to the land commissioner, hails from
Wales but he has been so long in Canada and has for so many years dealt
with H.B.C. farm lands that he knows his adopted country possibly better
than his native soil. Mr. Bellingham is so intimately in touch with the
Company's widespread land holdings that he can almost tell one the
value, topography, the soil and the tonnage of wild hay on any H.B.C.
parcel out of several thousand dotted over the prairie maps.
_Likes to See a "Square Deal" All Round_
Mr. Bellingham is keen, active and earnest, with a typical British
temperament, which often reminds one that he is a fighting man all
through--prepared to hold his own in any transaction. Those who know him
best admire his faculty for getting at the "root of things" quickly and
his insistence on absolute justice being meted out to all concerned.
_Insists on Clear Understanding_
Any arrangement made with Mr. Bellingham could not possibly be
misunderstood or confused. His mastery of details and clearcut
registering of all salient points--always followed by a careful
recapitulation--makes issues unforgettable, whether the occasion be the
sale of a section of land or the arrangement of a curling match. He is
as careful in even the most unimportant dealings as if making a legal
contract.
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Mr. Bellingham was born at Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales, June 17th,
1875. Educated in London and North of England, he entered a Lancashire
stockbroker's office in 1889, where he remained for two years. For ten
years, subsequently, he was in the employ of the town council, resigning
the position of assistant secretary in 1902, to embark for Canada.
_Has a Try at Tilling the Soil_
The desire to get "back to the land" had got a strong hold upon him, and
Canada's great West presented the most alluring prospects to the young
and adventurous agriculturist.
One week of the farm's hard labor sufficed. Mr. Bellingham's illusions
of the joy of currying the prairies as a means of enticing wealth broke
and died as the proverbial bubble. His first farm job was either too
"hefty" for Mr. Bellingham or he was not powerful enough for it.
_Joined H.B.C. as Clerk in 1902_
In Winnipeg, May 16th, 1902, he applied for and obtained a junior
position in the Company's land department, of which Mr. Montague Aldous
was chief clerk and Mr. C. C. Chipman, Commissioner.
_Faithful Effort Gains Promotions_
Mr. Bellingham applied himself earnestly to learning all there was to
know about land and H.B.C. methods of doing business. He was assigned
one duty after another and, as his good work came to the notice of his
superiors, "graduated" from each new position to a better one. To-day,
he is assistant to the land commissioner, Mr. H. F. Harman.
When the Company's Edmonton townsite sale of 1912 was inaugurated, Mr.
Bellingham was chosen to take charge of the Edmonton branch, in which
capacity he remained until June, 1916, being then recalled to Winnipeg
to deputize for the assistant land commissioner during the latter's
absence in France.