Huntly Ward Davis, member of the firm of Hogle & Davis, architects, was born in Montreal, October 22, 1875, a son of M. and Lucy (Ward) Davis, the latter a daughter of Hon. J. K. Ward, M. L. C. Huntly Ward Davis attended Eliock school at Montreal and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, from which he was graduated as Bachelor of Science in June, 1898. He prepared for and has always followed the profession of architect, working in early manhood under A. T. Taylor, who became senior partner of the firm of Taylor, Hogle & Davis, but has since withdrawn, leaving the firm Hogle & Davis. Mr. Davis is a conservative, and his membership relations are with St. James Club and with the Church of St. James the Apostle. On the 26th of October, 1910, in Montreal, he was married to Evelyn St. Claire Stanley Bagg, daughter of the late Robert Stanley and Clara (Smithers) Bagg, and they have a daughter, Evelyn Clare Ward Davis.
FRANCOIS XAVIER ROY.
This is an age of specialization. It is the unusual rather than the usual thing for any man to attempt to gain proficiency in the various departments of the law; on the contrary he usually concentrates his efforts upon a single branch of jurisprudence, with the result that he reaches a position which otherwise he could not hope to gain. Following this general course, François X. Roy has devoted his attention to commercial law, in which connection he has a large and distinctively representative clientage. He has been a lifelong resident of the province of Quebec, his birth having occurred on the 13th of August, 1863. His educational training was received at the College of Nicolet and in Laval University. He also spent a year in special study at Sherbrooke in 1886, was for a year under the direction of the law faculty at Bishop’s College, and then passed the usual examinations that secured his admission to the bar.
Choosing Montreal as the seat of his labors, Mr. Roy here began practice in association with the late Hon. C. A. Geoffrion, and later was with D. R. Murphy, K. C. He had become so well established in practice as a successful commercial lawyer that in 1909 he was created king’s counsel. He has become a recognized authority in the department of law in which he has chosen to specialize, and as such is called to all parts of the province, his opinions being largely received as authority upon points of commercial law. He is now attorney for the Williams Manufacturing Company, Henon-LeBlanc, Ltd., and several other commercial firms of Montreal. He readily grasps the relation of cause and effect, and in the preparation of his cases his analytical power is strongly manifest. In presenting a cause before the courts he is logical, and his deductions follow in orderly sequence.
Mr. Roy is a liberal in politics and in all his political interests is actuated by a spirit of progressiveness as affecting both provincial and Dominion affairs. He has ever stood for improvement, reform and advancement, and for many years has held the office of treasurer of the Reform Club. Aside from this he is a member of Le Club Canadien, L’Alliance Nationale, L’Alliance Française, La Société St. Jean Baptiste and other societies. He stands as a high type of the French element in the citizenship of Montreal, combining with the admirable and strongly marked characteristics of a French ancestry the progressive spirit of the modern age, a spirit which falters not in the accomplishment of a task until success is achieved.
NAPOLEON URGEL LACASSE.
Napoléon Urgel Lacasse, attorney at law practicing in Montreal as a member of the well known firm of Bastien, Bergeron, Cousineau, Lacasse & Jasmin, was born at St. Vincent de Paul, in the county of Laval, P. Q., July 11, 1877. In the early records of the French families it is found that there are several variations to the family name which appears also as Casse, Cassé and Du Tertre. Angelique Lacasse was born in 1715 and died at Beaumont, August 22, 1738. Antoine Lacasse, who was born in 1706, married Marguerite Sionnaux and died November 27, 1778. The parents of Napoléon Urgel Lacasse were Zéphirin and Rose Delima (Fortier) Lacasse. Under the parental roof he spent his boyhood days while studying in St. Mary’s College and Laval University of Montreal, winning his Bachelor of Arts degree on the 15th of June, 1898, and that of Bachelor of Laws on the 21st of June, 1901. Following his graduation he entered immediately upon the active practice of his profession and was alone therein until the 1st of July, 1912, when he entered into his present partnership relations. He is recognized as one of the strong and able members of the bar among the younger practitioners, and his experience and study are continually promoting his knowledge and ability. Aside from his profession he is financially interested in several joint stock companies and has extensive real-estate investments.
Mr. Lacasse has been married twice, on the 28th of September, 1903, to Eugénie Barbeau and on the 31st of March, 1913, to Miss Yvonne Barbeau, daughter of the late Godfroy Barbeau, a merchant of Ste. Geneviève county, P. Q. The four children of Mr. Lacasse are: Jean François Bernard, Jacques Vincent Ferrier, Joséphine Hélène Marcelle and Suzanne Andrée Victoire. The religious faith of the family is that of the Catholic church. The military experience of Mr. Lacasse covers more than three years’ service as commanding officer of St. Mary’s College Cadets from 1896 until 1898 inclusively. He was one of the winners in the cadets contest in 1893 for the Duke of Connaught prize, also in 1894 and 1895.