Letter of Alexander MacArthur, 1868
Letter of Alexander MacArthur to his sister Bella concerning his intention to set up a wholesale fur business alongside a partner and his wish to visit Scotland. The letter also deals with the assassination in Ottawa of Darcy McGee, a cabinet minister in the Canadian Government. McGee was a Catholic Irish emigrant who worked towards the integration of different creeds and nationalities in Canada, Montreal 17 April 1868:
My Dear Bella,
I do not think I have any letter of yours to answer at present. I wrote on the 20th of last month enclosing a remittance from Peter which I hope has reached you all right. I meant to have sent my own remittance by this Mail but have forgotten until too late for the Bank. I will however send it in my next. We have Newspapers recently but no letters from Peter. I am afraid I must disappoint you all about going home this year. Since I last wrote You I have been thinking very much of going into business on my own Account here. I have not yet finally decided but I think the chances are that I will conclude to do so. I would select the Wholesale Fur business and would begin about the first of June.
I could not therefore think of leaving until the business was fairly established. But by next year it would be necessary for me to go to London so that I would take that opportunity of going North. I will have a partner who can take care of the business in my absence for three months or so. Fortunately too the dullest time of the year in that trade is the early summer months so that I would be with you at the pleasantest time of the Year. I am very sorry that you should all be disappointed but of course I must look after such an important matter as a change of this nature.
Duncan has told me the news in Your last letter and I suppose has told you that I quite approve of your intended change. I am sorry I cannot be at home on the occasion. I hope you may have many many happy years together. As Duncan has alluded to other matters connected with this change I need not speak of them.
I was very glad to hear of James' re-engagement at so liberal a salary. I think it is likely John Anderson will come out here so that their will be an opening in the bank for David. Mr Hopkins has been asking me about his (John Andersons) qualifications as he applied to a bank here for a situation for him and I think it is very likely he will come out although the salary at first will be small.
We have been very much agitated here for the last ten days about the Assassination at Ottawa of one of our foremost public men the Honourable D'Arcy Mc.Gee by a Fenian. I have sent James two papers containing all the news about it. There has been nothing like the excitement here since the Kent Affair or the Fenian Raid or Abraham Lincolns Assassination. McGee was a warm-hearted genial Irishman with the most be-witching eloquence I ever listened to. There was music in his every word. I never heard any one with a sweeter pronunciation. The words flowed in a continuous stream from his lips. He was well known in Great Britain as he was a prominent rebel (although only 22) in Ireland in 1847-8. He has since been home as a Canadian Cabinet Minister and was held in high esteem by the leading English Statesmen with whom he came in contact. He has changed about a good deal in politics but this has been the result of an ardent poetic temperament rather than anything else. Although a Catholic he was exceedingly popular among the English & Scotch. What adds to the interest of his life is that up to the late election in Montreal when that riot took place he was very intemperate. He had taken the pledge three times & broke it and used to be seen the worse of drink even in Parliament. But he made a vow at the last election that if he was returned he would again take the pledge. At that election Presbyterian Ministers were canvassing for him which shews what power he had over men. Well people did not think much of his new pledge at first but by and by they saw he was in earnest. Three Doctors during a long illness he had last winter recommended Wine to him and said they would not answer for the consequences unless he took it. He said he could not help it. He would run the risk. I suppose he thought it better to die than to go back to his old habits. He was first recovering from this illness when he was taken off. In a Country like this where we have as many Creeds and nationalities he was a most invaluable man in creating good feeling between them. There has never been a funeral like his in Canada. In the Catholic Church where the funeral services were conducted there were besides the Priests, Church of England Clergymen, Presbyterian Methodist, Baptist, Congregational, German and other ministers. All the soldiers and volunteers lined the streets through which the procession passed. I was in it among the St. Andrew Society. The Government is going to give a pension to his Widow and Children. I never felt so sorry for the death of any person who was not connected to me as did for McGee. I did not even know him. This is the general feeling. A Monument will be put up to his Memory. The river is open this morning and the first Steamer was lying in the harbour when I Came down to the Office. Tell David to write me. It is a long time since I have heard from him.
Your affectionate brotherAlexander
