Part 140
=Prior, James=, Manager of the Lybster Cotton Mills, Merritton, Ontario, was born in Toronto, on the 12th November, 1849. His father, Richard Prior, was a British soldier, who settled in Canada about the year 1847. James was educated in the common schools of his native city. Shortly after leaving school he went into a grocery store, where he served about four years, and then into the warehouse of Gordon, Mackay and Co., wholesale dry goods merchants, Toronto. Here he remained about a year, when in 1868 he was transferred to that firm’s cotton mills at Merritton. Here he began his upward career, and worked in a subordinate position until 1878, when he was appointed manager. Since then he has steadily devoted himself to the business, and we can say there is now not a more competent manager of a cotton mill in the Dominion. For several years Mr. Prior has travelled through the New England States to visit the New England mills, and pick up all the new ideas introduced, and by this means he has been able to produce in the Lybster mills the finest cotton fabrics in the Canadian markets. Mr. Prior has been a temperance man from youth, and has in consequence exerted a good influence among the employees in the mill and in the neighborhood in which he resides. He has in his day taken a lively interest in the Liberal-Conservative cause, especially in its protective policy; does not favor commercial union with the United States. In religion he is an adherent of the Episcopal church. He was married in October, 1878, to Sara Ann, daughter of Alexander and Mary Winslow, of Thorold, Ontario, and has a family of four children, two boys and two girls.
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=Lemieux, François Xavier=, Barrister, M.P.P. for the county of Levis, province of Quebec, is the leading criminal lawyer of the district of Quebec, and well-known throughout the Dominion as the principal counsel for the defence in the Riel case, in which he was associated with Messrs. Fitzpatrick, of Quebec, and Greenshields, of Montreal. His connection with this great _cause célèbre_, and the popular excitement to which it and its tragic sequel gave rise throughout the country, but especially in the province of Quebec, made his name very familiar at the time. Mr. Lemieux was born at Levis, on the 9th of April, 1841. His parents were of the farming class, but his uncle, the late Hon. François Lemieux, was a man of great public note in his day, a leading member of the Quebec bar, member for Levis county in the Legislative Assembly of Canada, and one of the commissioners of crown lands and public works before confederation. His memory is still warmly cherished by the people of Levis. Our subject was educated at the Levis College and Quebec Seminary, and studied law at Quebec with Hon. M. A. Plamondon, then a prominent practitioner and now resident judge of the Superior Court in the Arthabasca district, whose daughter, Diana, he afterwards married. Called to the bar in 1872, he soon distinguished himself, especially as a criminal pleader, and his fame in that branch of the profession has since risen to such a pitch that no prisoner arraigned for trial before the criminal courts of the Quebec and surrounding districts considers his interests at all safe unless Mr. Lemieux has been retained for the defence. This popular confidence in his abilities is undoubtedly warranted by his wonderful success in the great majority of the cases with which he has been connected. It has almost passed into a proverb among the French Canadians of the Quebec district, that if any man can cheat the gallows of its due, François Xavier Lemieux is the man to do so. Indeed, as in the Boutel poisoning case, he has been known to save his client from the last penalty of the law, even after the gallows had been actually erected and within a few hours of the time fixed for the execution. A man of rare eloquence and knowledge of human nature, deeply versed in the criminal jurisprudence of the country and always armed at all points for the fray, and endowed with marvellous energy and versatility, he may be said to have no equal, and certainly no superior in his specialty at the Lower Canadian bar to-day. The secret of his forensic triumphs must unquestionably be looked for in his skill in cross-examination and his power to sway juries, and it was these characteristics which pointed him out as the fit and proper person to lead for the defence in the Riel case at Regina. It was thought in Lower Canada that if any one could snatch the half-breed leader from his perilous position, Mr. Lemieux was the man, and, when he volunteered his services for the purpose, his offer was accepted with an enthusiastic burst of gratitude from a great body of his fellow-countrymen. For these hopes on the occasion, the result of the trial proved disastrous, but the effort he made to save Riel from the scaffold, as well on the trial as afterwards, only served to increase Mr. Lemieux’s popularity and to intensify the bitterness of the agitation which followed the rebel leader’s execution. In that agitation Mr. Lemieux took a most active and prominent part, figuring and speaking with his impassioned eloquence at nearly all the great meetings at Quebec, Montreal, Levis, etc., to protest against Riel’s hanging and the oppression of the half-breeds. In fact, few men contributed more to the success of the so-called national movement, which overthrew the Ross administration and brought the Liberals and Conservative bolters into power under Hon. H. Mercier in the province of Quebec after the general election of October, 1886. For some years before the Riel trial, Mr. Lemieux had been a member of the Quebec Legislature. He had been an unsuccessful candidate for Bonaventure during the Joly administration in 1878, and again for Beauce at the general election of 1882; but in November, 1883, on the resignation of Hon. T. Paquet to accept the shrievalty of Quebec, he was returned after a hard contest as the representative of Levis county, and re-elected for the same constituency at the last general election, when he passed over with his friends from the Opposition to the treasury benches in the Legislative Assembly on the defeat of the Ross and the formation of the Mercier government, during the session of 1887. In the house, Mr. Lemieux is a ready debater, and few of his adversaries care to cross swords with him. He belongs to the Roman Catholic faith; and in politics is a Liberal.
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=Jolicœur, Philippe Jacques=, Q.C., Assistant Provincial Secretary, Quebec, is one of the prominent figures of official life at the ancient capital, and a gentleman who has made his mark in the profession of the law. He was born in Quebec, on the 30th April, 1829, and was educated in the classics at the Quebec Seminary, which has turned out so many eminent men in the church and the learned professions. On the completion of his classical course, in 1849, he began the study of the law under Sir N. F. Belleau, then a prominent practitioner at the Quebec bar, and afterwards first lieutenant-governor of the province of Quebec, and on his admission to the bar, in 1854, the two entered into a law partnership which was only dissolved in 1858, when Sir Narcisse entered actively into politics. Down to 1867, Mr. Jolicœur continued to divide his attention between his extensive law practice and his duties as a member of the city council of Quebec, in which he occupied a seat for a number of years with honor to himself and advantage to his fellow-citizens. During his career in the council, he was elected by his colleagues to act as pro-mayor for the city in the absence of the regular incumbent of that office, and gave public satisfaction in the position of chief magistrate. A sound lawyer and one of the most respectable and self-respecting practitioners, with talents rather of the solid than the brilliant order, he was elevated to the silk and created a Q.C. in July, 1867, and later on in the same month, on the organization of the provincial departments at Quebec, at the outset of confederation, he was offered and accepted the important post of assistant provincial secretary, which he still holds, though he has been tempted to accept more exalted appointments. The position of resident judge of the Superior Court at Gaspé was in this way tendered to him, but family bereavements and failing health compelled him to decline. As an official, Mr. Jolicœur is noted for his efficiency, urbanity, and assiduity and generally esteemed by all who come into contact with him officially or otherwise. Though he never took a very active part in politics before he entered the civil service, he was always an adherent and supporter of the Conservative party. In religion he is a Roman Catholic; and as a French Canadian he has ever taken a deep and intelligent interest in the advancement of his race, holding office for years in the St. Jean Baptiste Society of Quebec, and filling for some time, also, the position of president of _L’Institut Canadien_ of that city. In 1858, he married Honorine Matte, of Quebec, by whom he has had issue eleven children, all of whom except four boys were carried away by the hand of death while still young.
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=Cabana, Hubert Charon=, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Prothonotary of the Superior Court for the province of Quebec, district of St. Francis, was born on the 14th of June, 1838, at Verchères, a parish situate on the south side of the St. Lawrence river, about thirty miles from Montreal. He is the son of Lambert Charon Cabana, a well-to-do farmer, of Verchères, and of Marie Louise Endfield, granddaughter of Colonel Thomas Endfield, who came direct from England to what is now the province of Quebec, in 1760, and died in 1812, being eighty-two years of age. The subject of this sketch was educated at the College of L’Assomption, in the town of L’Assomption, a classical college, incorporated as such over fifty years ago. He took a full classical course, leaving the college in June, 1858; entered on the study of the law in October, 1858; was admitted to practice on October 7th, 1862, at Sherbrooke, and practised there as advocate, solicitor, and attorney, until the 17th September, 1885, when he was appointed prothonotary. On the 3rd October, 1880, the degree of _Law Licentiate Magister_ was conferred on him by Lennoxville University; has been professor of civil law at the Lennoxville University since 1880; made Queen’s counsel on the 26th June, 1883; elected _bâtonnier_ of the bar, district of St. Francis, on the 1st May, 1884; elected member of the city council of Sherbrooke, for the first time, in January, 1876, and was continued in office until his appointment as prothonotary, which appointment rendered him by law unable to act any longer as councillor, when he was unanimously elected mayor of Sherbrooke, in January, 1880, and again in 1885. On the 13th October, 1866, he established the _Pionnier de Sherbrooke_, it being now the oldest established French newspaper published in this part of the province of Quebec, known as the Eastern Townships, in partnership with L. C. Belanger, now practising in Sherbrooke as advocate. He bought out Mr. Belanger’s interest in the paper on the 24th July, 1874, and continued to publish it till April, 1878, when he sold it to “La Compagnie Typographique des Cantons de l’Est,” of which company he was chosen president, and continued to act in that capacity until September, 1885. In September, 1883, he went to Europe, and in the course of his tour visited the principal cities and places of interest in France, Belgium, and Italy. He is a Roman Catholic in religion. On the 13th July, 1866, he was married to Marietta, eldest daughter of Francis Carr, a well-to-do farmer of the township of Compton, about twelve miles from Sherbrooke, and who had become a Catholic some time before her marriage, her family being Protestant.
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=Botsford, Hon. Bliss=, Moncton, N.B., was born on the 26th November, 1813, at Sackville, N.B. The Botsford family have taken a prominent part in New Brunswick and Canadian history. He is the seventh son of the late Hon. William Botsford, who was speaker of the New Brunswick Assembly, and one of the judges of the supreme court of the province. His grandfather, Amos Botsford, was a United Empire loyalist, from Newton, Conn., and was the first speaker of the New Brunswick Assembly after it became a separate province, and held that office for twenty-eight years. Hon. Lieut.-Col. Amos E. Botsford, senator from New Brunswick, is an elder brother of the subject of this sketch. Hon. Bliss Botsford was educated at King’s College, Fredericton; studied law with the late William End, of Bathurst; was admitted as an attorney in 1836; called to the bar of New Brunswick in 1838; and practised his profession at Moncton from 1836 to 1870. During those thirty-four years he had a fair share of criminal as well as an extensive civil practice, and gained well-merited distinction at the bar of his native province. He was brought into special prominence by the celebrated Albertite suit, in which he was the defendant’s attorney, and won the case. While at the bar, his vigorous, earnest, and persuasive style of delivery always made a favorable impression on a jury, being, like most of the members of his family, of commanding presence, with a personal magnetism that was often irresistible. He sat for Westmoreland in the New Brunswick Assembly, from 1851 to 1854, from 1857 to 1861, and from 1865 to October 24th, 1870, when he was elevated to the bench. As a judge, he is held in high esteem by the profession, being very painstaking, carefully weighing in his mind all cases presented for his consideration, and is logical and concise in his charges to the jury. He is not over-exacting in his requirements of younger members of the profession, generally allowing them considerable latitude and freedom; but when called upon to decide any point of a relevant or irrelevant character, he is prompt and firm in his decision. He was appointed surveyor-general in 1865, and was a member of the executive council during the administration of the late Hon. Sir Albert Smith, and speaker from 1867 until the general election in 1870, his politics being Conservative. Judge Botsford was married in 1842, at Moncton, to Jane, daughter of John Chapman, from Cumberland, England, and has had five children, three daughters and one son living, all married, and another son who died. Sarah L., the eldest daughter, is the wife of William J. Croasdale, civil engineer, Moncton; Eliza is the wife of George C. Peters, son of Dr. George Peters, deceased, St. John; Robert L. married Emily C., eldest daughter of Lewis Carroll, and is a physician and surgeon, practising at Richibucto, N.B.; and Florence is the relict of the late Thomas Byers, Moncton.
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=Bain, James William=, St. Polycarpe, Quebec, M.P. for Soulanges, was born at St. Polycarpe, Quebec, on the 22nd June, 1838. Mr. Bain is one of that very large class of French Canadians who, though thoroughly identified with their fellow-countrymen, are partly of Scottish blood. The father of the subject of this sketch was Daniel Bain, from Caithness-shire, a thorough Scot, having all the best characteristics of his race. The mother was Adelaide Lantier, a descendant of an old French Canadian family, sister of the late J. P. Lantier, M.P. for Soulanges. The son has the Scottish cast of countenance, and might readily be mistaken for a native of the “land of the mountain and the flood.” He was educated in his native town, where he has ever since resided. On arriving at man’s estate, he entered business with his father, who carried on a large trade as a merchant in Polycarpe. Though taking an active and prominent part in public affairs in his own district from an early age, he has continued to devote his attention to his business, extending it in every way, until it has brought him a large amount of worldly prosperity. Mr. Bain first devoted attention to school affairs, and when elected to the school board was soon made president of that body, a position which he has retained for ten years. At the death of J. P. Lantier, in 1882, the Conservatives of the county chose Mr. Bain as their candidate in the election which was to follow. The contest was a keen one, and resulted in the election of his opponent, G. R. S. De Beaujeau, by a majority of two votes. Mr. Bain protested the election, and an appeal being made to the Supreme Court, Mr. Beaujeau was unseated. A new election followed in February, 1885, and Mr. Bain was returned by a majority of twenty-six votes, and took his seat in the House of Commons at Ottawa. The lot of the French Conservative member of parliament was not altogether a happy one during the contest in 1887, owing to the prejudice stirred up in relation to the unfortunate Riel affair; but Mr. Bain did not shrink from the contest, and again accepted the nomination of his party. The struggle was one of the keenest ever known in the district; but the people had faith in their old representative, and so he still sits in the house as the representative for Soulanges. Though differing from the younger school of French Canadian politicians, in that he lays little claim to being an orator, and makes no effort to shine in the theatrical way so many of them affect, Mr. Bain performs the duties of a representative of the people faithfully and well. He is strictly regular in his attendance, and brings to bear upon the legislation of the house practical experience in business affairs, and good common sense. In 1877 Mr. Bain married Georgiana, daughter of the late J. O. Lantier, well known in Montreal for many years as a prominent merchant.
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=Chisholm, Mrs. Addie=, Ottawa, President of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union of Ontario, is a native Canadian, having been born in the city of Hamilton, Ontario. Her early life was spent there, excepting a few years devoted to study in the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, at Lima, New York, where she was distinguished for diligence, aptitude, and general proficiency. Both before and after her marriage she was known as an enthusiastic worker in every religious and charitable movement, and many benevolent institutions had the advantage of her wise counsel, gentle sympathy and bright encouragement. As an infant class teacher in one of the Methodist Sunday schools of Hamilton, she was remarkably successful in developing on right lines the tender minds that were entrusted to her care, and here she passed through just the training to fit her for the broader sphere of usefulness that was waiting her riper talents and attainments. Sympathizing very deeply with the temperance reformation, she could not but be drawn strongly towards the crusade work which was so successful in the United States some years ago, and when that great uprising of loving, ill-treated womanhood, was crystalized into the effective and permanent form—the Women’s Christian Temperance Union organization, Mrs. Chisholm at once came to the front as one of its enthusiastic supporters, warmest advocates, and most efficient directors. Mrs. Yeomans was the first president of the Ontario Union, and was succeeded by Mrs. Chisholm, several years ago, and has held the position up till to-day, being annually reinstated by the unanimous vote of her appreciative sisters. Her success in this sphere of responsibility must be judged by the facts already so well known in regard to the results attained by this great organization—results that were only possible through the united, prayerful, determined work of many loving hearts and heads, as well as a skilful leadership possessed of the faculty to govern, and guided and blessed by the wisdom and strength without which all labor is in vain. Not merely in the many organizations with which she has been connected, chief among which, of course, is the Union, has Mrs. Chisholm shown her genius and skill. For near four years she has been publisher and editor of the _Woman’s Journal_, the Canadian organ of the White Ribbon Army. She has also written tracts and pamphlets that have blessed and helped the temperance cause everywhere. She has visited, spoken, organized, and worked with an untiring energy that could only come from deep sympathy and fervent zeal; while every act has been characterized by Christian gentleness and kindness, that won where more openly aggressive methods would be sure to fail. We earnestly hope that our good sister may long be spared to aid with her tongue, her pen, and her brain, the cause that is so near to our heart, and that under the management and direction of such as she, and “the blessing that maketh rich and addeth no sorrow,” the Women’s Christian Temperance Union may continue a mighty power for good, until the end for which it was organized has been fully attained.
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=Noyes, John Powell=, Q.C., Advocate, Waterloo, Quebec province, was born at Potton, county of Brome, Quebec, on the 15th September, 1842. His father, Heman B. Noyes, was of English descent, coming to Canada from Tunbridge, Vermont, where six generations of the family are buried. His mother, Sarah Powell, is also of English descent, but was born at Potton, Quebec. The subject of this sketch was educated at Bangor, Franklin county, N.Y., and at Fort Covington Academy. In 1861 he settled at Waterloo, studied law first with Huntington & Lay, and afterwards with Hon. Mr. Laframboise; graduated at the law school connected with St. Mary’s College, Montreal; was admitted to the bar in October, 1866, and was created a Queen’s counsel in 1879. He has held the offices of secretary-treasurer of the township of Shefford and village of Waterloo, chairman of the Waterloo school board, special commissioner of Bolton lands, _bâtonnier_ of the Bedford bar, and is at present _bâtonnier-general_ of the bar of the province of Quebec. He has been secretary-treasurer of the Stanstead, Shefford, and Chambly Railway for more than ten years. In 1864 he became editor of the Waterloo _Advertiser_, and continued to be so until 1875, making the paper a strong exponent of the principles of the Liberal party, as well as a very readable general newspaper. He is a leading member of the Masonic Order in his district; was worshipful master of his lodge for three terms; first principal of the R.A. Chapter; and grand Z. of Grand Chapter of R.A.M., of Quebec, for 1885 and 1886. He has taken part in all political contests, and in municipal affairs, since 1860; has been secretary, and later chairman, of Shefford County Reform Club for many years; and this has kept him in politics a great deal, as it has been remarked that this county seems to have a political contest always on hand. As if to make good our words, a contest is now (February, 1888) going on, and Mr. Noyes has been selected by the Reform or national convention of the county as its candidate; but in a county where the parties are so evenly divided, it is always difficult to tell in advance who will be elected. In religion, he is Protestant, and belongs to the Church of England; has often been a delegate to the Synod, and a valued member of various committees there. He was married, in November, 1867, to Lucy A., daughter of Joseph Merry, of Magog, Quebec, whose father was one of the early pioneers there, by whom he had issue six children, only four of whom are now living. Mrs. Noyes graduated before her marriage, at McGill Normal School, with academy diploma, and is at present provincial superintendent of the department of physiology and hygiene of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union of the province of Quebec.
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