The Clan Fraser in Canada Part 5

MR. E. A. FRASER said: Mr. Vice-chairman, Chairman and Clansmen, although hailing from the other side of the line, I am a Canadian-born clansman, my native place being Bowmanville, near this beautiful Queen City. I pa.s.sed my younger days in this province, attended the schools here, and am as familiar with the affairs of the country and with our clansmen in the country as those who have not left it to reside under another flag. I can therefore speak with confidence to this toast, but you will excuse me if I speak briefly, as the honor was unexpected, and I do not wish to make it appear that any words of mine that may come on the spur of the moment would be sufficient to lay before you, in proper form, what our Clan has done for Canada and the position which it occupies to-day in the affairs of the country. It is easy to speak of Louisburg and Quebec; it is easy to dilate on the names of distinguished clansmen familiar to us all for the prominent positions they have taken among their fellows, but the work performed by the Clan in Canada would not then be half told. We must go back to the h.o.a.ry forests, to the backwoods, where the early settlers bent their energies to the opening up of the country. That n.o.ble pioneer work in which our clansmen shared, and shared in large numbers, it seems to me, has an importance that is not as often recognized as it ought to be. It is difficult for the imagination even to grasp the peculiar task that lay before the early settlers of this vast, heavily-timbered, unbroken, unopened, untravelled country. Now that we can take a seat in the railway car at Halifax and leave it at Vancouver, we can form but the very faintest conception of what this country was one hundred years ago, when those hardy mountaineers ranged themselves alongside the Lowland Scot, the Englishman, the Irishman, the German and the Frenchman, to hew down the lords of the forest, to turn the wilderness into well cultivated fields, to turn the log cabins into the mansions that now adorn the plains, and to form, as they do, a st.u.r.dy peasantry second to none in the world.

When the pen of a genius has dealt with those times, a chapter will be written for the civilized world more interesting, probably, than any yet penned. We have to leave the high places of military fame and statesmanship and enter the factory and the counting-house to trace there the career of the pioneers of industry and commerce, and among them we find our clansmen performing those duties which the necessities of the country demanded. If we turn to the professions, our Clan is found to hold its own. To the church, to law, to medicine, to art, to politics, we have given men of whom we are proud. The walk of life in Canada that has not been trodden by a clansman would be only an undesirable one for any man to tread. If I may be permitted to say it--coming as I do from the great State of Michigan--I would say that in that State, where our clansmen are very numerous, they not only hold their own, but have attained to eminence in business and in the professions. We have men of distinguished ability at the head of the legal fraternity of our State; we have men whose genius in business has secured them wealth and position; we have men who in humbler spheres have rendered patriotic services to the State, and who, one and all, show that they have not lost the characteristics of the Clan in new a.s.sociations and callings. Before sitting down I should like to express the great pleasure I have experienced at this gathering of clansmen. I would have come twice as far to be present, and trust that the organization, the formation of which will undoubtedly be sanctioned here to-night, will be the means of bringing us together frequently to enjoy ourselves as we are now doing.

MR. G. B. FRASER, of Toronto, followed, in response to the same toast.

He said: Mr. Vice-chairman, Chairman and Clansmen, I frequently have to regret my lack of ability to discharge a duty of this nature to my own satisfaction. The subject allotted to me is one with which I cannot claim to be unfamiliar. It is a subject of great interest, and on such an occasion as the present, a subject which ought to be treated with some detail in order to perpetuate the names and deeds of clansmen who have done their duty n.o.bly and well by this the land of our adoption. I find myself, however, not lacking in material, but in that ability--which seems to be born in some men--to place my information lucidly and briefly before you. Some speakers have already referred, and others will, later on, refer to the origin of the Clan Fraser in Canada.

I shall not trespa.s.s on that part of the subject, but coming down to this century we find a clansman whose name will ever live in Canada. I refer to Simon Fraser, the discoverer of the Fraser River, whose life, when it comes to be written, will certainly shed l.u.s.tre on the Clan name. He was descended from a cadet family of the Lovats, came with his parents to Canada from the Eastern States, and settled at Glengarry. His worthy relative, Fraser of Fraserfield, sits here on my right, and proud I am to welcome him to this feast. John Fraser de Berry, the founder of the New Clan Fraser, was a man of extraordinary personality, whose acquaintance I first made at the time of the Trent affair. I happened to be in Montreal at that time, and received a telegram from De Berry that he wished to see me. He came from Quebec city, and we met in the St.

Lawrence Hall. I was very much impressed with the singular interview which took place between us. Of course he was full of the project of his Clan Fraser, full of the history and genealogy of the Clan. He was an enthusiast, and in common with many enthusiasts could look but with impatience on the practical, prosaic side of things. With due formality, acting by what he believed to be his authority as a chieftain of the Clan, he invested me with power to raise a company of Frasers, in an allotted district in Western Ontario, which was delineated on a military plan in his possession. I could not do otherwise than accept the commission, which was that of captain, from this venerable-looking and earnest chief. Had I been able to withdraw from business, I have no doubt that I should have been, in a very short time, at the head of a company numbering at least one hundred stalwart clansmen, who would have given a good account of themselves in the field. But, as you are aware, the occasion for defence quickly pa.s.sed away, and no more was heard of the proposed regiment of Frasers, of which my company was to have formed a part. The most remarkable fact which impressed itself upon me then, and one that I yet consider remarkable, was the manner in which De Berry had the Province divided into military districts on his maps, the exact information which he had regarding the locations in which the clansmen resided, and the ma.s.s of details with which he seemed to be perfectly familiar. I could not understand how he acquired all this information, but have been informed since, by some who were a.s.sociated with him, that he spared no means to trace out every Fraser in the country, through the voters' lists, the township registration books and the village directories. The amount of work involved in such research must have been enormous, and I can well believe that for many years De Berry devoted his time, as a man of leisure, to this project. He also appointed me as one of the one hundred and eleven chieftains of the New Clan, the chief of which was a descendant of a cadet of the Lovat family, residing in Nova Scotia, but the organization was too unwieldy, and its objects were rather vague for practical purposes. For a number of years meetings were held in Montreal of a very interesting character, but with De Berry's death and that of a number of those more prominently a.s.sociated with him interest died out, and now we hear of the New Clan no more. We can profit by their experience in our own undertaking, and doubtless we shall be able to form an organization which will live, and which will perpetuate the name and traditions a.s.sociated with the name and with this new country. I have practically confined myself to De Berry's name, not because there is a lack of clansmen on my list, whose memories deserve to be perpetuated, such as, for instance, the founder of the Fraser Inst.i.tute, in Montreal; John Fraser, the author; John A. Fraser, the artist; Judge Fraser and Colonel Fraser, of Glengarry; but because some of these will doubtless be alluded to by other speakers, and, because having devoted so much time to a man whose name and personality I cannot but regard as of peculiar interest to us, I have left myself but little time to refer to those clansmen whom I held, and still hold, in high esteem, and in whose name I thank you for the toast proposed and honored in such a fitting manner.

"DISTINGUISHED CLANSMEN."

MR. R. L. FRASER, the Vice-chairman, then proposed the toast of "Distinguished Clansmen in Art, Science, Literature, Theology, Arms and Politics." He said: I had almost concluded that all Frasers are distinguished clansmen, and distinguished in the highest sense of the word, though it were better, perhaps, to be more modest, and hence the division into which this toast has been divided. While we rightly draw much of our inspiration from the seat of the Clan across the sea, it is well that we should remember, and remember generously, those of our Clan in this country who have secured high positions in life. Among our artists the name "Fraser" takes high rank. Some of the Fraser artists I have known personally, and can bear testimony not only to their fame, but to their personal qualities. Canadian art owes much to Mr. J. A.

Fraser and Mr. W. Lewis Fraser, now sojourning in Europe. Literature claims the names of James Lovat Fraser, the distinguished cla.s.sical scholar, of John Fraser, of Donald Fraser, and others well known in Canada. Science also has its devotees and distinguished students, especially medical science and theology. Frasers both in Canada and in the old land have taken front rank in the profession of arms, and have distinguished themselves from the time of Sir Simon Fraser, the compeer and companion of Wallace and the savior of Scotland, down to the present day. In politics the Clan has certainly won its share of such honors as the public delight to bestow. The reply to this toast has been entrusted to a splendid array of able clansmen. For clansmen distinguished in arts, Ex-Mayor Fraser, of Petrolea, will reply; for those in science, Dr. J. B. Fraser; for those in theology, Dr. Mungo Fraser; for those in literature, Professor W. H. Fraser; for Frasers in war, Mr. Alexander Fraser (Fraserfield); and for those in politics, Mr. W. P. Fraser.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Ex-MAYOR JOHN FRASER, 2ND VICE-CHAIRMAN.]

EX-MAYOR FRASER, replying for the "Frasers in Art," said: Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen,--Your committee, in selecting me to speak for our clansmen in Art, acted of course on the a.s.sumption that I possessed the necessary qualifications for the task. At the outset, however, I must, in justice to all concerned, but more especially to the Frasers who have won distinction in art, confess that my attainments in that department are hardly such as to ent.i.tle me to a hearing in response to this important toast. But I am to some extent emboldened and sustained by the reflection that, as this is in a sense a family gathering, the shortcomings of a Fraser will pa.s.s, if not un.o.bserved, at least without provoking unfriendly comment. Permit me then, on behalf of the artists of our Clan, to thank you for the cordial and enthusiastic manner in which you have received this toast. Among the many distinguished clansmen who have, in almost every sphere of human endeavor and usefulness, shed unfading l.u.s.tre, not only upon our Clan, but upon humanity in general, our artists have secured an honored place. Of necessity, those of our Clan who have excelled in art are few in number; indeed, the artists of the world and of the ages might almost find standing room in this banquet hall. But our Clan has perhaps produced its quota, and some of them have taken high rank. It is not my purpose to mention the names of all; in fact, I am unable to name more than two, viz., Charles Fraser and John A. Fraser. The former was a distinguished portrait painter of South Carolina who died in 1860 at the age of 78 years. He left a large number of portraits, all of which are said to have much artistic merit, and some of which have acquired considerable historic value. Of Mr. John A. Fraser it is hardly necessary to speak here. By his works we know him. A collection of Canadian paintings without one or more of his masterly representations of Canadian scenery would a.s.suredly be incomplete. Let that suffice for our modern artists.

It occurs to me, as it must have done to us all at one time or another, that our Clan must have produced great artists in the bygone ages.

a.s.suredly Greece and Italy did not produce _all_ the old masters. The Fraser Clan nourished then and was of course represented in art; but, just as in the newspaper--the product of the "art preservative"--there is to be found an occasional artist who, impelled by modesty or an exaggerated regard for his personal safety, uses a _nom de plume_--for instance, "Junius," _Vox Populi_ or "A Disgusted Subscriber"--so there were, I fancy, in the days of long ago, Frasers in art who unmindful of posterity or perchance distrustful of their own powers, as genius so frequently is, worked under cover of such names as Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Michael Angelo, Canova, etc. A slight effort of the imagination will enable a Fraser to accept this theory.

The Fraser has ever been great on the "tented field." There, indeed, he has won renown, for his "fierce, native daring" has never been surpa.s.sed. But there are still victories to be won, infinitely greater than any achieved in battle. The grandest painting is yet to be painted, and we who are the first in Canada to a.s.semble in honor of our ancient and beloved Clan shall ever fondly cherish the hope that the first place in art will be occupied by a Fraser. But from whatever clan or country the master shall come, the Frasers will be among the first to do him honor.

I thank you, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, for the patient hearing you have given me.

The reply to the part of this toast referring to "Science" was made by DR. J. B. FRASER, M. D., C. M., R. C. P. and S. K., Toronto. He said: Mr. Chairman, Vice-chairman, and Brother Clansmen, it gives me a great deal of pleasure to meet such a representative gathering of the old and distinguished "Clan Fraser" as we have here to-night. It arouses one's enthusiasm to think of the leading position our forefathers took in the history of Scotland, and the many deeds of valor performed on the battle field; and although they were pre-eminently noted as warriors, still we have many instances in which they shone in the realms of science. In replying to the toast of "The Frasers in Science," allow me to give you a few brief biographical sketches of a few of our ancestors.

Sir Alexander Fraser, of Philorth, was born in 1537, and died in 1623.

He succeeded his grandfather to the estates in 1569, and at once began to improve the estate and advance the welfare of his clansmen. At this time Philorth was the baronial burgh, and boasted of a commodious harbor; but after the improvements referred to he changed the name to Fraserburgh. Having conceived the idea of founding a university, in spite of the strenuous opposition of the town of Aberdeen, he obtained powers to build a university at Fraserburgh, with all the privileges of the older universities. The remains of this building still existed in 1888. On account of his interest in education and high scholastic attainments he was knighted in 1594. His motto was "The glory of the honorable is to fear G.o.d."

John Fraser, F. L. S., was born in 1750, and died in 1811. He was a noted botanist, and visited North America five times in search of new and unknown specimens. He collected a great many plants in Newfoundland and later on at Charleston, Virginia. In 1796 he visited St. Petersburg, where he was introduced to the notice of the Empress Catherine, who purchased his entire collection of plants. In 1798 he was appointed botanical collector to the Czar Paul, and by him sent to America for a fresh collection. As a tribute to his ability he was elected a Fellow of Linnean Society (F.L.S.)

Sir Alexander Fraser, M. D., belonged to the Durris branch of the family. He was educated at Aberdeen University, and having risen by his skill high in the ranks of physicians and surgeons he was appointed physician to Charles II., whom he accompanied in his travels through Scotland. Spotswood, in his history of Scotland, speaks highly of his learning and skill. He died in 1681.

Robt. Fraser, F. R. S., son of Rev. Geo. Fraser, was born in 1760, and educated in Glasgow University, where he obtained the degree of M. A., when he was but 15 years of age. He studied for the Church of Scotland, and was appointed in an official capacity to the Prince of Wales, afterward George IV. In 1791 the Earl of Breadalbane asked him to accompany him on a tour through the Western Isles and the Highlands of Scotland, undertaken with the view of improving the state of the people.

The Prince of Wales gave him leave, and at the same time stated his faith in his ability to plan some means by which the people would be benefited, and wished him success. He succeeded so well that he was chosen to conduct a statistical survey of Ireland, and was the means of originating several important works, among others the harbor of Kingstown, sometimes called Queenstown. He published several works on agriculture, mines, mineralogy, fish, etc. He died in 1831.

Simon Fraser was an explorer of some note, and was sent by the Hudson's Bay Company to establish new trading posts, and prospect for minerals, etc. He wrote many papers from 1806 to 1808. The Fraser river was named after him.[4]

[Footnote 4: See sketch of his life later on.]

Lewis Fraser was a zoologist of some note, and was appointed as curator of the Zoological Society of London. He travelled through South America, studying the character and habits of different animals and birds, and as the result of his travels published a work called "Zoologia Typica," or figures of rare and new animals. In 1888 his son was curator of the Zoological and General Sections of the Indian Museum of Calcutta.

William Fraser, LL. D., was born in 1817 in Banffshire, and was ordained pastor of the Free Middle congregation of Paisley in 1849. In 1872 the University of Glasgow conferred on him the degree of LL. D., on account of his scientific attainments. In 1873, in recognition of his long services as President of the Philosophical Society, he was presented with a microscope and purse of sovereigns. He died in 1879.

[Ill.u.s.tration: MR. WILLIAM A. FRASER, SECRETARY-TREASURER.]

Alexander Campbell Fraser, D. C. L., LL. D., was born in 1819. His father was a minister and his mother a sister of Sir Duncan Campbell. He was educated in the Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, and in 1842 won a prize for his essay on "Toleration." In 1859 he was Dean of the Faculty in Arts, University of Edinburgh, and in 1871 was appointed Examiner in Moral Science; the same year he received the degree of LL.

D. from the University of Glasgow. Later he was appointed Examiner in Moral Science and Logic at the India Civil Service Examinations. He was elected a member of the Athenian Club--without a ballot--for eminence in literature and philosophy. He afterward received the Degree of D. C.

L., Oxford University.

Professor Thos. Richard Fraser, M. D., F. R. S., was born in Calcutta, India, in 1841, and graduated in medicine in Edinburgh in 1862. In 1863 he acted as a.s.sistant Professor of Materia Medica, and in 1869 was appointed as a.s.sistant Physician in the Royal Infirmary. He was afterward appointed Examiner in Materia Medica in London University, and was elected Medical Health Officer for Mid-Cheshire; he was also appointed Examiner in Public Health by London University. He was Dean of the Faculty in 1880. He is a F. R. S., F. R. C. P., Edinburgh; member of the Pharmaceutical Society, Britain; corresponding member of the Therapeutical Society of Paris, and of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. When the International Medical Congress met in London in 1881 he was appointed president of one section, and again president of one section in 1885. His work has been chiefly in the direction of determining the physiological effects of medicinal substances, with the view of establishing an accurate and rational basis for the treatment of disease.

I have now mentioned some of the names recorded in history of Frasers that were distinguished in Science, and as I have occupied more than my share of time, I will take my seat, conscious that I have been able to mention but a few of the many clansmen distinguished for their scientific attainments. As I said at the outset I have enjoyed a great deal of pleasure in this gathering of clansmen. In looking over the record of a few of our brethren distinguished in science, so as to glean a few facts for this occasion, I recognized more than ever before the substantial services rendered to mankind by men bearing our name, and now that we have foregathered a small company, it may be, but a select one, I feel that you share with me the pride with which we regard our Clan and name.

PROFESSOR W. H. FRASER, in replying to the sentiment, "Distinguished Clansmen in Literature," said: Gentlemen,--I thank you heartily for the way in which you have received this toast, and for the honor you confer on me in asking me to answer for our distinguished literary clansmen living and dead.

Literature is the mirror of life. Life is action: literature is contemplation and words. My knowledge of the history of the Clan leads me to the conclusion that most of its distinguished members were men of deeds rather than words, and that they lived at times and under circ.u.mstances when deeds rather than words had value--men like Sir Alexander, who fought by Robert Bruce's side at Bannockburn, or that other Sir Alexander Mackenzie Fraser of the last century, described by contemporaries as "mild as a lamb and strong as a lion," who had said to him in public by his General, "Colonel Fraser, you and your regiment have this day saved the British army," or the Fraser who fought with Wolfe before Quebec, and a host of others. These men did not write literature, but perhaps they were better employed. I think they were, but at any rate they are the men who furnish the basis for literature--heroism, fidelity and devotion.

The Clan has, however, not been wanting in scholars and writers, nor in those who patronized and furthered learning. What think you of a Fraser--Sir Alexander of Philorth--who in the 16th century built a grand University? It is getting to be the fashion now for rich men to build and endow seats of learning, but a man with such foresight and generosity in those early times in Scotland is surely deserving of all praise.

Although not a few of the early Frasers won fame by the sword, some wielded to good purpose that mightier weapon, the pen. Such was James Fraser of Brea, in Ross-shire, who wrote copiously on theology, and who went to prison, by orders of Archbishop Sharp, as a preacher at conventicles. Another divine and scholar was James Fraser, of Pitcalzian, in Ross-shire, a son of the manse; a famous controversialist he was, and wrote a book against the Arminianism of Grotius that has kept its ground in Scotland till the present day, although he died as long ago as 1769.

These are some of our older literary celebrities. Time will not permit me to mention all those who belong to the present century, or whose lives extended into it. There was Archibald Campbell Fraser of Lovat, 38th McShimi, who died in 1815. As a school-boy he saw the fight at Culloden, and was afterwards Foreign Consul in Barbary, and was author of the "Annals of the patriots of the family of Fraser, Frizell, Simson or Fitzsimson." It must in truth have been a mighty book if it recorded them all. A curious piece of literature from his pen was the very long and very laudatory epitaph for his own tomb erected by himself.

Robert Fraser, of Pathhead, Fifeshire, lived up till 1839. He was an ironmonger, but of such remarkable literary and linguistic tastes that in leisure moments he acquired Latin, Greek, French, German, Italian and Spanish. His poetry, which I regret is not accessible to me, was, it is said, characterized by fine feeling and nicety of touch. Truly a remarkable man. His ruling pa.s.sion was strong in death, for he pa.s.sed out of life dictating some translations of Norwegian and Danish poems.

There are other ways of making literature besides writing it yourself.

James Fraser, an Inverness man, was one of those who have made literature by proxy. Who does not know Fraser's Magazine? that pioneer publication in this field of literature, dating from 1830, with its famous contributors like Thackeray, Carlyle, J. A. Froude and Father Prout. This Fraser was also a famous publisher, a man of taste and judgment, and did more to advance literature than almost any man of his time, notwithstanding Carlyle's reference to him as "that infatuated Fraser with his dog's-meat tart of a magazine."

Contemporary with Fraser of the magazine was James Baillie Fraser, also an Inverness man and a famous traveller who explored the Himalaya Mountains, and who was the first European to reach the sources of the Jumna and Ganges. He came home, and wrote an account of his travels. A little later he donned Persian costume, explored the larger part of Persia, and wrote a two-volume account of his journey. Turning to romance, he wrote "Kuggilbas," a tale of Khorasain; and this was the first of a long list of Eastern tales, histories and travels, the mere enumeration of which would take us on pretty far towards to-morrow morning.

A beautiful and sympathetic literary figure is that of Lydia Falconer Fraser, the wife of Hugh Miller. Here are some lines from a poem of hers on the death of their first-born child:

"Thou'rt awa, awa, from thy mother's side, And awa, awa, from thy father's knee; Thou'rt awa from our blessing, our care, our caressing, But awa from our hearts thou'lt never be.

Thou'rt awa, awa, from the bursting spring time, Tho' o'er thy head its green boughs wave; The lambs are leaving their little foot-prints On the turf of thy new-made grave."

What gentleness and sweetness in these lines! One of her prose works, "Cats and Dogs," still holds its own as one of the minor cla.s.sics of natural history.

Rev. Robert William Fraser, a Perthshire man, succeeded Rev. Dr. Guthrie in St. John's Church, Edinburgh, in 1847, and was a learned and eloquent divine and a diligent pastor. He found time to write all but one of a dozen of important works on divinity, history, physical and natural science. He was a solid man.

I must not omit William Fraser, the educational reformer who helped David Stow to carry out his training system for teachers in Scotland, and who later investigated Scottish education, and wrote an important book on the subject of which the results were afterwards embodied in legislation. He died in 1879.

Along with him may well be mentioned the late James Fraser, Bishop of Manchester, a very famous man from Forfarshire, one of the Frasers of Durris, of whom it has been said that there has not been in this generation a more simple or n.o.ble soul. He interests us especially for his work in education, and forms a connecting link between our school system and English educational reform, for he visited Canada and the United States in 1865, and drew up a report which his biographer, Thomas Hughes, calls "a superb, an almost unique piece of work." It was the basis of the Foster Act of 1870, by which enormous changes were introduced in the direction of the American system.

Worthy of being put by his side was Rev. Donald Fraser, D.D., who died two years ago, of whom we should hear more under the head of theology.

He received part of his education in old Knox College, Toronto, and was pastor of the Cote Street Church, Montreal, from which he was called to Inverness, thence to London, England.

In my ma.s.s of material, I had almost forgotten Patrick Lord Fraser, who died only five years ago. He was a very great man of the law, one of Scotland's greatest, and wrote extensively on legal subjects.

The Frasers, however, were not all heavy writers. Many of us remember John Fraser, who met his death by accident in Ottawa in 1872. He was best known as "Cousin Sandy." He had been a chartist before coming to Canada. He was a tailor by trade, and laid aside the needle for that other sharp pointed instrument, the pen. Most of his work was controversial and sarcastic. Here is a sample of his rollicking verse, reminding one strongly of the Ingoldsby legends:

"William Blyth was a scape-grace--as many boys are-- Who with prudence and forethought was always at war; His genius was active; I've heard, or have read, That his grandma was nervous; his father was dead; And his mother, released from connubial vows, Brought home to her dwelling a second hand spouse, Who gave her a heart, somewhat hard and obtuse, In exchange for her furniture ready for use.