Geoff Corfield
Geoffrey Corfield has been active in Conservative politics in Canada since 1976, both federally and provincially. But he won’t always write about politics because he has more experience with writing history and humour. He lives in London, Ontario, frequents used book shops, swims lengths, drinks beer, plays croquet, has his own town in north-central Queensland and six books published, and would very much like to find a publisher for this New Zealand book and its companion one for Australia.
Statues: Part 2 – Good Statues
Canada is not a great country for putting up statues of people. All
the more then that we should try to keep the ones we have. Especially
the good ones. But these days there seems to be people around who only
want to pull down statues. Even the good ones. Even statues of Sir
John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first and founding prime minister. If your
first and founding prime minister isn’t a good one, what is?
John Alexander Macdonald was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1815;
brought his parents to Kingston, Ontario, Canada age 5; grew up in
Kingston; articled with a Kingston lawyer age 15; managed a branch law
office age 17; opened his own law office in Kingston age 19; and had a
law office in Kingston until 1874 (age 59).
He served as an alderman in Kingston age 28-31; was elected for
Kingston to the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada (now
Ontario/Quebec) age 29; became a cabinet minister age 30;
joint-premier of the Province of Canada age 41; was the leading figure
in drafting a federal system for Canada, knighted and chosen as
Canada’s first prime minister in 1867 age 52; and was prime minister
1867-73, and 1878 until his death in 1891 age 76.
Among his other accomplishments were adding five provinces (Manitoba,
Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Prince Edward Island), to the
original four (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia); and
completing the Canadian Pacific Railway (1885, 7,000 miles). Not bad
going was it?
Kingston, Ontario is quite an historical little city (pop. 115,000).
It has some fine buildings, a great stone fort (Fort Henry), one end
of the Rideau Canal (125 miles north to Ottawa); and it’s where Sir
John A. Macdonald is buried, has his house open to visitors, and a
statue. You’d think Kingston would be proud of Sir John A. They are.
But some of them arn’t.
Kingston city council is considering removing his statue and his name
from a train engine and a bridge. All because of his involvement with
Canadian “Indians”.
Like the Maori of New Zealand and the Aborigines of Australia, the
North American Indians never had a collective name for themselves,
other than Indians. Now it seems it’s not good enough for them. It’s
good enough for the Indians of India, and the West Indians of the West
Indies; but it’s no longer good enough for the North American Indians.
They were originally called Indians because the people who first saw
them thought they were in India. (Lachine, Quebec near Montreal, was
named because they thought they were in China, La Chine in French).
Now they seem to have a confusing variety of names: “Indigenous” (an
adjective not a noun), “Natives” (everybody’s a native), or “First
Nations” (who said they were first?).
Anyway, Sir John A. Macdonald is under attack. Who are these Philistines?
Next: Bad Statues. Sir John A. and the Indians
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