act was carried by very large majorities—more than two to one voting in its favour; but on account of the vagueness of the meaning of some of its provisions in reference to counties in Manitoba, and the impossibility of getting it amended, it still remains a dead letter. In politics, Mr. Sifton is a Liberal. In 1878, he received the unanimous nomination of the Liberal party for the Commons for the county of Lisgar, and organized and carried on the campaign up to the memorable day, the 17th of September, 1878. The 18th being nomination day in Manitoba, and the news reaching there of the defeat of the Mackenzie government, his committee had a hurried meeting on the morning before nomination, and decided that it would be better for the county if he would withdraw, and allow a supporter of the Macdonald government to be elected by acclamation, and this he consented to do. In the fall of the same year he received the nomination for the Local House for the electoral division of St. Clemens, and was elected by a large majority, and on the assembling of the house he was elected speaker. During the sitting of this parliament a redistribution bill was passed, giving the new settlers something like fair representation, which they had not hitherto enjoyed. At the next general election he ran for one of the new electoral divisions, and was defeated. In 1881, when the province was enlarged, he ran for the division of Brandon and was elected. In the general election of 1883 he was defeated; and again at the last general election for the division of West Brandon he met the same fate by a small majority. Mr. Sifton was reeve of Oil Springs and a member of the County council of Lambton during the years 1867, ’68 and ’69. He was chairman of the school board of same place in 1868–69, and was reeve of the municipality of Cornwallis for 1885–86, but declined the nomination in 1887. He has been a justice of the peace for the province since 1875. He has travelled over the whole of the Dominion of Canada, and is familiar with all parts of the United States north and south, and as far west as Omaha. Mr. Sifton is a member of the Methodist church from choice. Before the union he was a Wesleyan Methodist, and since then his opinions have not changed much on religious subjects, except that he has more confidence in those who differ from him in church affairs than he had in his younger days, and now has a greater love for and confidence in the teachings and doctrines of the church of his choice. He was a member of the General conference of 1882, and a member of the committee appointed by that conference to confer with committees appointed by other branches of the Methodist church on union. He was strongly in favour of union, and was a member of the conference held in Belleville when the union was consummated. At the conference in 1882, he took the leading part in having Manitoba and the North-West set apart as a separate annual conference, which was agreed to at that conference. He was also a member of the General conference held in Toronto in 1886. He is now a member of the general board of missions of the Methodist church, and has been a member of the local board of missions in the Manitoba and the North-West conference since its formation. He has also been a member of Manitoba and North-West annual conference since the admission of laymen, and is president of the Brandon branch of the Upper Canada Bible Society. He has always been actively engaged in Sabbath school and church work, and is superintendent of the Brandon Sabbath-school. And as for temperance work, he has spent much time and labour in this direction, and has spoken in almost every section of the country on the subject. He was married 1st October, 1853, to Kate, third daughter of James and Sarah Watkins, of Parsonstown, King’s county, Ireland, and has three children living. His oldest and only daughter, Sophia, was educated at Hamilton Female College, and is married to A. N. Molesworth, civil engineer, now construction engineer for the St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Manitoba Railway Co. His oldest son, Arthur Lewis, graduated from Cobourg University in arts, studied law in Manitoba, was called to the bar in 1882, and is now practising law in Prince Albert. His youngest son, Clifford, graduated from Cobourg, and is a gold medallist; he studied law in Manitoba, was called to the bar in 1882 in his twenty-second year, and is now practising law at Brandon.
Armstrong, Rev. W. D., M.A., Ph. D., Pastor of St. Paul’s (Presbyterian) Church, Ottawa, Ontario, was born at Cavan, Durham county, Ontario, on the 28th of July, 1845, and is the son of John D. Armstrong, yeoman, of that place. After a preliminary education in the schools of his native place, he entered Upper Canada College, and soon attained to a front place in his classes. At the close of his term he carried off the Governor-General’s prize, and the classical, the mathematical, and modern language prizes. He then entered the Toronto University, and graduated from that institution in 1870, the silver medallist in metaphysics and ethics, and prizeman in Hebrew, Chaldee and Syriac. During his course in the university he also obtained a number of scholarships and prizes in various departments. After leaving Toronto University he took a course in theology in Knox (Presbyterian) College, Toronto, where he likewise distinguished himself. On the 14th of May, 1874, he was ordained pastor of his present charge, and has continued ever since (with one short break, when he was sent to Great Britain in 1883 for a few months, in the interest of the French Canadian missions), as the faithful exponent of Christ’s message of love to the world, greatly appreciated and esteemed by his congregation. In 1886, the Boston University conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Rev. Dr. Armstrong has a strong liking for literature, and amidst his various arduous parish cares and duties, has found time to contribute a good many articles to the newspaper press, and publish several sermons. On the 29th of September, 1886, he married Jean W., daughter of Henry J. Johnston, of Montreal, a very accomplished lady, and one who has proved a true helper to him as minister of a large congregation.
Guthrie, Donald, Q.C., M.P.P. for South Wellington, Guelph, Ontario, was born on the 8th May, 1840, in Edinburgh, Scotland. His father was Hugh Guthrie, and his mother, Catharine Macgregor, sister of Patrick Macgregor, M.A., barrister-at-law, Toronto, a distinguished Gaelic and general scholar. Mr. Guthrie received his early education in his native city, and, when about fourteen years of age, he left his fatherland. He reached Toronto in August, 1854. Here he entered the office of the Hon. Oliver Mowat, as a junior clerk; and afterwards became managing clerk for John Helliwell, barrister. In 1859 he left Toronto and settled in Guelph as managing clerk for Fergusson & Kingsmill, barristers. The Hon. Fergusson-Blair, one of the partners of the firm, having retired in December, 1863, Mr. Guthrie was admitted into partnership, and the name of the firm was changed to Kingsmill and Guthrie. Under this style the business was carried on until Mr. Kingsmill was appointed judge of the County Court of Bruce, in January, 1867, when Mr. Guthrie became head of the firm, and has continued such ever since, the firm now being known as Guthrie and Watt. Mr. Guthrie was admitted an attorney in 1863; barrister in 1866, passing his examinations with distinction; and, in March, 1876, was created a Queen’s counsel by the Lieut.-Governor of Ontario, and by the Governor-General of Canada, October, 1885. In December, 1882, he was elected a bencher of the Law Society, and was re-elected for five years in April, 1886. Since 1863 he has been solicitor for the county of Wellington, and also for the same period he has been solicitor for the city of Guelph, and acts in this capacity for several other municipalities, banks, etc. He has been president of the Guelph Gas Company since its incorporation in 1870; is a director of the Guelph Junction Railway Company, and of the Wellington Hotel Company. He occupied the position of treasurer of the St. Andrew’s Society of Guelph, from 1862 to 1869, and in 1870 was chosen its president. Mr. Guthrie was elected a member of the House of Commons in 1876, as representative for South Wellington, and served until the general election in 1878, when he presented himself for re-election, and was returned by 303 majority. He continued in the House of Commons until the general election of 1882, when he voluntarily retired from active political life, with the view of devoting his whole attention for some years to his professional duties. However, in 1886, he once more sought parliamentary honours, and the sturdy Liberals of South Wellington sent him to the Ontario legislature as their representative on the 28th of December in the same year, by the handsome majority of 671. Mr. Guthrie was selected in February, 1877, to move the reply to the speech from the throne in the House of Commons; and on the 2nd March, 1887, he moved the reply to the Lieut.-Governor’s address in the Ontario legislature. While in the House of Commons—1876–78—Mr. Guthrie was a supporter of Mr. Mackenzie’s government, and was an active member of the special committee appointed to inquire into the affairs of the Northern Railway Company. This committee sat for several weeks, took an immense mass of evidence, and made an exhaustive report, which enabled the government to secure from the railway company a large sum in place of moneys improperly expended in elections, etc. Mr. Guthrie was also an active member of the Committee of Privileges and Elections at the time when it investigated the charges against Mr.
