William H. Atherton

“ The end came to Colonel Whitehead September 7, 1912. He seemed 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. ”

“ Ouimet is a successful lawyer in the truest sense of the word, a man unusually broad-minded and intelligent, tolerant and of wide experience, never mercenary or grasping, believing in something greater than mere material wealth, who in the course of a distinguished career, spent simply and unostentatiously, has been a factor for good along various lines. His public-spirited citizenship has been a boon to Montreal, who proudly claims him as one of her citizens, and Mr. Ouimet returns the honor which the city’s people entertain for him by a loyalty which could not be more devoted. ”

“ Angus ably administers the affairs of a vast industrial enterprise, and his career bids fair to rival that of his distinguished father. He is deeply interested in all that pertains to progress and trade expansion and can always be found among those men who are the most forceful exponents of advanced measures inaugurated to exploit the vast resources of the Dominion. He bends his genius to create new markets and increase trade facilities and gives of the best of his ability so that the Dominion of Canada may march in the van of the great industrial nations of the world. ”

“ The history of a country is no longer an account of wars and conquests, but is a record of notable business activity, of intellectual, aesthetic and moral progress and political management and control. While never active in the field of politics, Joseph Bowles Learmont was not only highly successful where his tastes led, but was as well one of the foremost merchants of the city, and well known in the business community of Montreal. ”

“ By the death of Senator Forget a man of affairs has been lost to Canada. A man of wide vision who saw far into the future and who modeled his career accordingly. A glance through the financial district at the half-masted flags at once conveys an idea of the number and the prominence of the institutions that Senator Forget had been interested in. Senator Forget stood out in Canadian finance, but more than that, he was a true Canadian citizen and had done his share towards the public weal, forgetting not his duty towards the state in the midst of tremendous private enterprises. ”

“ Settling in Montreal, in 1866, he became one of the city’s foremost business men, his name being engraved high on the roll of those who contributed most largely to the commercial greatness and consequent prosperity of the city. He was for forty years the senior member of the firm of Wilson, Paterson & Company, importers and general manufacturers’ agents, continuing in active business until his demise. The volume of trade developed with the growth of the city and had its inception in the progressive methods, initiative spirit and undaunted enterprise of the partners. ”

“ In any list of citizens whose financial power must be reckoned with in predicting the course of supreme events in this country, the name of James Ross would have stood near the top. Many of his fellow citizens will think of him, however, as a generous and discriminating collector and exhibitor of art. At a time when Montreal had not many men who both appreciated and possessed the financial ability to purchase splendid specimens of the best art which the old world has produced, James Ross entered that field, and soon made his private collection one of the things of which Montrealers were proud. ”

“ A good many shrewd Montreal merchants smiled when Mr. Meighen came from a small Ontario town to this city as the promoter of a great industry, but many months had not passed before they discovered that both in commerce and finance a rival worthy of their keenest steel had taken his place amongst them and ever after, when any important subject was up for discussion on the floors of the Board of Trade, the opinions of the man from Perth, uttered with characteristic Irish eloquence and wit, invariably commanded respect and attention. ”

“ He was very fond of his family and found his chief delight in the home circle, being a loving and kind husband and father. As a business man he was alert and energetic, ready for any emergency and he seemed to pass by no opportunity that pointed to honorable success. Contemporaries and colleagues had the highest respect for him and more than that, he gained the warm friendship and esteem of a large majority of his acquaintances. Although a later arrival in Montreal than many of his business associates, he gained prominence among them and attained an enviable position in the business world. ”

“ Before the grave, which opens to receive his mortal remains, criticism will disarm, no doubt, to render homage to the splendor and power of his intelligence, his political genius, to the energy of his character and the sincerity of his patriotism. ”

“ Gadbois is a conservative, stanchly upholding the principles of his party, although he has not yet become connected with public life. As a member of the Canadian Club he can be found in the ranks of those men who have at heart the development and progress of the Dominion, and he is ever loyal to his city. His faith is that of the Catholic church. On the threshold of a successful career, he has ever moved in the right direction toward fame, and a distinguished future may be prophesied for him, a future which will bring new luster to the old family name which he bears. ”

“ 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. ”

“ He regarded it as a sacred privilege and obligation to discharge the duties of his profession and his life embodied the thought of the philosopher who has said: “Not the good that comes to us but the good that comes to the world through us is the measure of our success.” ”

“ He is now past the eighty-ninth milestone on life’s journey, but in spirit and interest seems yet in his prime. The Canadian American has truly styled him, “A high-minded Christian gentleman, public-spirited and always at the front in every philanthropic movement ..., never knew a fairer man or one more actively unselfish.” All this indicates that his life was never self-centered but has reached out along lines of constantly broadening usefulness and activity for the benefit of the people, seeking rather the welfare and benefit of the many than the advancement of self. ”

“ We have assembled in this House of God from all parts of the city to mourn a great and grievous loss which we have sustained by the untimely demise of two most virtuous, most pious and most respected members of the community, a father and son who under the most pathetic circumstances found their graves in a strange land. ”

“ Ogilvie spent a lifetime and spared neither time, labor or expense in bringing his product to the very acme of perfection. By steady industry and indomitable energy and most of all the superior quality of his products, upheld at all cost, the business grew until it not only became the largest of its kind in the Dominion, but the most extensive flour business in the world controlled by one man. ”

“ He has all the elements of a man in whom to have confidence, dependable in any relation and in any emergency. His quietude of deportment, his easy dignity, combined with an innate courtesy and politeness, all contribute to a strong personality. The splendid use he has made of his time, talents and opportunities has equipped him for the important and valuable work he has been doing and which has given decided impetus to the city’s progress and improvement, upholding as well its legal, political and moral status. ”

“ His son, Andrew Joseph Dawes is now at the head of the mammoth business, which had its inception in the brain of his grandfather and took on material form through his efforts, and grew and developed through the labor of representatives of the family in intermediate generations to the present.
To accumulate a fortune requires one kind of genius; to retain a fortune already acquired, to add to its legitimate increment and to make such use of it that its possessor may derive therefrom the greatest enjoyment and the public the greatest benefit, requires another kind of genius. ”

“ A purposeful man, a deep thinker, a man of the highest principles, Mr. Angus is representative of the empire builders of Canada. Beginning his career in a humble station, he has climbed the ladder of success rung by rung until he reached the ranks of men like the late Lord Strathcona, and the present Lord Mount Stephen, with whom he labored in building the most important railroad lines in the Dominion and with whom he stood for all that which has made Canada the great empire that it is today. ”

“ In various connections the Doctor has made valuable contributions to hygienic science and the subject of medicine and several of the works of which he is the author enjoy a wide circulation and are considered standard by the profession. He is a public-spirited man, progressive not only in his profession but in regard to all subjects that affect his home city and is ever ready to give his warm support to worthy public enterprises. His deep knowledge assures him of a position of distinction, while his kindly spirit has gained him a place in the hearts of his fellowmen. ”

“ Manufacturing and financial interests in Montreal find a worthy representative in Charles Blair Gordon, practical, progressive and determined. His familiarity with the line of business in which he is engaged, his recognition of opportunities and his laudable ambition have gained him distinction and success, and material progress has been largely promoted through his efforts. Perhaps there is no other man in Canadian business life whose career so aptly illustrates the reward of conscientious business energy. Montreal has reason to be proud of the fact that he is one of her native sons. ”

“ At an age when most men throw off official cares and responsibilities to enjoy the leisure which prosperity has brought them Mr. Angus in his octogenarian prime took up as cheerfully as would a man of forty the principal position in Canada’s foremost financial institution. In November, 1913, on account of advancing [7] years and a desire to be relieved of all financial burdens of a public character, Mr. Angus resigned the presidency of the Bank of Montreal, but remains a member of the board and continues to give the institution the benefit of his ripe, wide and valuable experience. ”

“ Ludger Gravel is well known in business circles of Montreal as a dealer in carriage maker’s and blacksmith’s supplies, as president of Société des Artisans Canadiens-Français and also as a successful manufacturer’s agent, connected in this way with some of the most important industrial concerns in Canada, the United States and Europe. The industry and the spirit of enterprise, progress and initiative which have brought him success have also been factors in his conduct of his extensive interests and place him today among the men of marked ability and substantial worth in this community. ”

“ It would be difficult to determine how important has been the life work of Hirsch Cohen, for there is no standard whereby to judge influence, especially when it is exerted along lines of intellectual and moral progress. His worth, however, is widely recognized, not only by those of his own faith, but also by the Gentiles who respect him as a man and honor him for his loyalty to his belief and for his great work in behalf of his cause. ”

“ 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. ”

“ Young’s keen appreciation of the capabilities of engineering as a profession and his confidence in the application of education and trained reason to the overcoming of all natural and mechanical difficulties which always was noticeable in his intercourse with the professional men with whom his life brought him into contact, was beyond doubt one of the most effective means of securing consideration for this work and of urging on the genius of Stephenson to an achievement then supposed to be impossible. ”

“ When deeply engaged in business thoughts, these children’s faces, no doubt, smile to him encouragement and fill him with satisfaction in the knowledge that around him are growing up generations of his own blood who appreciate and love him for what he is to them and will honor him for what he has done to lighten their life’s burdens when they will occupy the stage of life’s activities. ”

“ The enterprise which has brought the western world to a par with the old world in all that touches business activity and progress finds exemplification in the life record of Isaac Gouverneur Ogden, now vice president of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company. It would be a partial view, however, if one were to consider his life record only from the standpoint of business advancement, as his labors have been directed with equal efficiency along lines which touch the general interests of society or have their root in a broad humanitarian spirit. ”

“ The world thrilled with the story of the heroism of the men, who, in the silence of the night, gave women and children over to the care of the few who manned the lifeboats and quietly awaited death on the decks of the steamship Titanic when it sank on its maiden trip across the Atlantic, April 15, 1912. Included in the great toll of human lives exacted by this catastrophe, was that of Charles Melville Hays, president of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railways and one of the foremost railroad magnates of his generation. ”

“ La Badie is of magnificent physique, his muscles as hard as iron, and he has the appearance of a man twenty years his junior. In his office is a long table, four feet wide, over which he can jump without touching it with his hands and he can lift a weight of one hundred and eighty-seven pounds with one hand. His interests have largely covered those things which are essential and valuable elements in life. He has been a student of many questions of public moment and has filled some offices, being now a commissioner of the superior court and a justice of the peace. ”

“ No phase of life affecting the political and local status of the province or its educational or moral development fails to elicit the attention and interest of John Stuart Buchan and seldom fails to receive his hearty cooperation and support. He is ever willing to divide his time between his profession and public service, recognizing ever the duties as well as the privileges of citizenship and the obligations which devolve upon man in relation to his fellowmen. He is well known as a practitioner at the bar and his reputation as a capable lawyer has been well earned. ”

“ Richard Hardisty, long a resident of Montreal and also for many years one of the trusted agents of the Hudson’s Bay Company in Labrador. She became the wife of Lord Strathcona when he was twenty-nine years of age. The early married life of Lord and Lady Strathcona was spent in the bleak winds of Labrador. It was a terrible country in those days. Winter comes early and stays late—and such a winter! A few short hours of frozen day, then night—a long uncanny night. Sometimes the snow falls through weeks on weeks and no man dares to move beyond the circle of the little settlement. ”