Elliott, John Campbell, D.C.L., M.L.A. Middlesex West (Glencoe, Ont.). Son of George Campbell (Irish descent), and Jane Elliott (Scotch descent); both parents were born in Canada. Was born at Ekfrid Township, Middlesex County, on July 25, 1872; educated at Ekfrid Public School, Glencoe High School, and Trinity University, B.C.L. 1898, and Toronto University, D.C.L. 1905. Mr. Elliott’s early days were spent on the farm where he was born; he took a third-class certificate in 1890; second-class in 1891, and Matriculation 1892, and was called to the Bar in 1898, having taken a high standard at the Law School at Osgoode Hall. First elected to the Ontario Legislature at the general elections in 1908; re-elected 1911-1914. He is a member of the Ontario Club, and the Masonic Order, of which he was Past District Deputy, Erie District; of the Sons of Scotland and the I.O.O.F. He is a member of the Baptist Church, and a Liberal in politics. Mr. Elliott is recognized as a clever lawyer and an able speaker, and enjoys the confidence and respect of the members on both sides of the House. He is unmarried.
Bronson, Hon. Erskine Henry, was born at Bolton, Warren County, New York, September 12, 1844. He is the son of the late Henry Franklin and Edith (Pierce) Bronson, the one man who, coming to Ottawa, Canada, in 1852, understood the feasibility of converting the large lakes and furious and foaming falls of the Ottawa River into a channel for the driving of saw-logs, and erecting mills on its banks, placed in operation a lumber industry that soon had in its employ hundreds, and afterwards thousands of employees. Having received a good education at Sandy Hill, N.Y., and at the Grammar School, Ottawa, when quite a youth, the Hon. Erskine Henry Bronson, joined his father’s company, The Bronson-Weston Lumber Company, and in 1867 acquired an interest in the company. In 1870 he became a member of the Ottawa City Council and chairman of the Finance Committee, and continued as such until 1878, when he retired. For fourteen years he was a member of the Ottawa School Board. He is ex-Trustee of Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario. Unlike his father, who never interested himself in politics, in 1882 Mr. Bronson was an unsuccessful candidate to the House of Commons for Carleton County, Ontario; but in 1886, having had presented to him a petition signed by thousands of the best and most influential residents in the Capital urgently soliciting him to become a candidate for the local Legislature, he consented to run and was elected by a large majority, and re-elected at every succeeding election until 1898, when he retired from active political life. In 1890, September 10, four years after he was first elected, he joined the Mowat Government without Portfolio and held a similar position when the Hardy Government was formed. Had he so desired he could probably have remained a member of the local Legislature even to this date, as few, if any, in Ottawa were or are more appreciated or ever received more popularity than the same Hon. Erskine Henry Bronson. The poor of the city, to whom his firm in winter time never failed to extend the helping hand in furnishing them with winter fuel and in other ways, could never forget, nor overlook, his kindly and substantial consideration of their needs and his name was, and is to-day, cherished in every home. To others, with whom he came in contact, he was always a valuable friend and counsellor, and his advice on financial and other matters was eagerly sought and freely given. On his father’s decease Mr. Bronson succeeded him as President of the Bronson-Weston Lumber Company, in 1889. He was one of the inaugurators of the Ottawa Electric Company. Mr. Bronson is President of the Bronson Company, Water Power and Manufacturers of Ground Wood Pulp, 150 Middle Street, Ottawa; President, Ottawa Improvement Company; Vice-President, Ottawa Light, Heat & Power Company; President, Ottawa Power Company, and a director of the Ottawa Electric Company. In 1874 Mr. Bronson married Ella H. Webster, of Norfolk, Va. He has one son and one daughter. In religion he is a Presbyterian. In politics, a Liberal. His residence is 75 Bronson Avenue, Ottawa.
Bain, John, Journalist, private secretary, civil servant, promoter, and now financial broker and departmental agent and customs specialist, Castle Building, Ottawa, came to Canada in 1888 and engaged in law and newspaper work. Later he was engaged as expert shorthand writer in the New York law courts. When the Liberal Party was returned to power in 1896 he was appointed Private Secretary to the Minister of Customs, Hon. Wm. Patterson, and accompanied the Minister to England in 1902, doing the secretarial work there connected with the trade questions that were discussed at the Colonial Conference. His services were also utilized in connection with the trade negotiations with the French Government at Paris. He held the position of Assistant Commissioner of Customs of Canada for five years, and was Secretary of the Tariff Commission of 1906-07. He promoted and organized the Canadian Western Natural Gas, Light, Heat and Power Company, Calgary. He was appointed Imperial Trade Correspondent for Ottawa District for the British Board of Trade in 1909. Although one of the old, steadfast and prominent Liberals in the capital, he joined and became active in the ranks of the Unionist Party during the general elections in 1917, and, as publicity director, rendered valuable service to the Unionist cause. His pithy paragraphs and pointed questions, such as “How would the Kaiser Vote?” which were printed in the campaign literature and in the press throughout Canada, attracted widespread attention and were used with telling effect by the various public speakers during the campaign. Mr. Bain is the son of Robert and Agnes Bain and was born at Paisley, Scotland, June 8, 1869, where he received his education. April 5, 1899, he married Maude Buckley, daughter of P. Buckley, Paris, Ontario, and has two daughters—Audrey Maie, born 1900, and Alison Muriel, born 1903. In politics Mr. Bain is a Liberal, in religion a Presbyterian. His residence is 167 James St. He is a member of the Laurentian Club, Ottawa, and the Ranchman’s, Calgary.
De Celles, Alfred Duclos, LL.D., F.R.S.C., C.M.G., Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, General Librarian of Parliament, was born at St. Laurent, near Montreal, in 1844, and was educated at Laval University, Quebec, where he graduated in letters. He is the son of Augustin D. De Celles, a prominent notary, and Agnes Holmes, an American lady. Abbé John Holmes, a noted preacher in Quebec, related to O. W. Holmes, was his uncle. In October, 1876, he married Eugenie Dorion, daughter of Eugene Dorion and Mary Panet, and has one son, Alfred Eugene De Celles. He is a distinguished Canadian litterateur and publicist. For a time he was a member of the Board of Civil Service Examiners. In 1867, Mr. De Celles, on account of ill-health, left the Laval University to take up the editorial chair of “Le Journal de Quebec” during Mr. Cauchon’s absence in Europe. On the return of the latter he remained connected with the paper until 1872, when he entered the “Minerve”, chief Conservative paper of the province of Quebec, as editor-in-chief. He remained there until 1880, when he was appointed assistant librarian of the Parliamentary Library of Ottawa. In 1886, he became joint librarian with Mr. Martin J. Griffin. For several years after he entered the Library he had charge of “L’Opinion Publique,” a weekly paper published in Montreal, chiefly devoted to literature and history. Mr. De Celles, in 1896, published a History of the United States under the following title: “Les Etats-Unis, origine—institutions—development.” For this work he received a prize from the Academie des Sciences Morales et Politiques of France. A few years later he wrote in English, the Life of Papineau and Cartier, in “The Makers of Canada.” This work was subsequently published in French, in an enlarged form, together with a Life of Cartier, the three volumes forming a political history of Canada. Reviewing Mr. De Celles’ Papineau, the London “Outlook” (Jan. 13, 1906) summed up this work as follows: “Mr. De Celles has traced this out through the quarter of a century in which Papineau was the most brilliant, if not the most wise figure in French-Canadian politics, with the natural sympathy of a compatriot, though by no means without due recognition of his hero’s failings. . . . He has given us an admirable picture of a strange and picturesque career. Everyone has heard of Papineau, and most Canadians have some idea of his achievements, but little probably of his personality.” Mr. De Celles has also contributed to “Canada and Its Provinces,” a synopsis of the History of Quebec under Confederation and an extensive history of colonization under this title: “The Habitant”: and an outline of the municipal system in Lower Canada. He has contributed to The Chronicles of Canada the “Patriotes of 1837,” a history of the Canadian Rebellion. In 1904, he was named Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur, and in 1907 received the title of C.M.G. In 1884, he was received Member of the Royal Society, and since 1903 he has occupied the post of President of l’Alliance Française. Mr. De Celles is in religion a Catholic, and he resides in Ottawa.
Evanturel, Gustave, M.P.P. for Prescott Co. (Alfred), was born March 19, 1880, at Ottawa, son of the Hon. Alfred Evanturel and Louisa Lee. Father was Speaker of the Ontario Legislature from 1898 to 1902 and Minister in the Ross Government from Nov. 22, 1904, to Jan. 25, 1905. Educated at Bourget College, Rigaud, and Seminaire de Ste. Therese, P.Q., and Laval University, from which latter institution he graduated with the degree of B.L. Married, Sept. 26, 1910, Marie Emelia, daughter of the late Paul Chevrier, of Vaudreuil. Notary public by profession; was President of L’Alliance Nationale, a mutual life insurance company of the Court of Alfred, which is called “Cercle Evanturel.” Mr. Evanturel has taken an active part in politics since the age of 17 years, especially in the County of Prescott, which his father represented from 1884 until 1905, being the first French-Canadian to enter the Ontario Legislature, the first representative of that race to be Speaker of the Ontario Assembly, and the first French-Canadian to enter the Ontario Government as Cabinet Minister. The subject of this sketch was first returned to the Ontario Legislature to represent the County of Prescott on December 11, 1911, with a majority of 284, and re-elected on June 29, 1914, over two opponents by an increased majority of 350, defeating the Conservative candidate by over 1,000. Was Civil Servant in the Privy Council Department in 1908, and, on his election as a member for Prescott County, when he succeeded his late father, was the youngest member of the Assembly. He is an eloquent speaker in both French and English, and has been a strong supporter of bi-lingualism on the floor of the Ontario Legislature, being the first member of the House to open the discussion on the bi-lingual school question during the Session of the Legislature in the years 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1916. He has all the fire and dash of his race and is extremely popular on both sides of the House, and throughout Eastern Ontario, where he is well known.