"OLD TO-MORROW." the Memorial Committee on Monday. As to the
extraordinary ability of the man there can be no doubt. Lord Dufferin rightly sees proof of that ability "in the even tenor with which during recent years Canada has pursued her successful way, in the absence from her history of all serious political complications, and, above all, in the freedom from all anxiety on our part in regard to her progress amongst the Dependencies incor- porated within the British Empire ; and that, too, in spite of the peculiar delicacy of her geographical position, the ethnological diversities among her population, and the consequent conflict of interests which those diversities must have engendered." "What might have happened," adds Lord Dufferin, "had the destinies of the country been confided to the hands of a less prudent, less cautious, less skilful, or less patriotic pilot, only those who are acquainted with the intricacies of Canadian political problems can adequately appreciate." With the praise here conferred on Sir John Macdonald we heartily concur. There can be no question that his action tided over a very dangerous time in the history of Canada. And by en- abling the policy of Federation to score a success, as in the case of Canada, Sir John Macdonald did more than secure peace and prosperity in the Dominion. The success of the Canadian experiment has made Federation possible in Australia. If the Dominion had begun its national life by a period of storm and stress, in all probability the task of forming a single Commonwealth out of the various settlements of the island-continent of the Pacific would have been looked on as entirely out of the range of practical politics. Still, as we have said above, we greatly disapprove of the means by which Sir John Macdonald secured himself in power, and we cannot with any hearti- ness join in the eulogiums that are pronounced upon him as a statesman.
But though we would rather avoid discussing Sir John Macdonald's political career on the present occasion, there can be no objection to saying something of his personal characteristics. Considered from this point of view, Sir John Macdonald no doubt possessed a very interesting and in many ways a very pleasing personality. Friends and foes alike agree in applauding his charm of manner, and the universal bonhomie with which he confronted the ups and downs of life. A story is told in connection with one of his political opponents, which well illustrates this happy faculty of good temper. The opponent in question, who was a Member of the Canadian House of Commons, suffered from a severe attack of illness, and had to abstain from attendance in Parliament for many months. When he returned to work, as so often happens, he found his old colleagues and leaders too much occupied with their schemes and plans to spend much time on congratu- lating their convalescent adherent. Not so his political enemy, Sir John Macdonald. The Premier at once noticed his opponent's return to the House, shook him warmly by the hand, inquired as to his exact state of health, assured him how concerned he had been to hear of his illness, and, in fact, welcomed him back in so hearty and friendly a manner, that the opponent, though he remained an oppo- nent, had always from that day forth a warm corner in his heart for "Old To-morrow." The spell of Sir John Macdonald was not less when exerted in more difficult cases. It might have been said of him, as of the lady celebrated by Congreve :— "Whom she refuses she treats still With so much sweet behaviour, That her refusal through her skill Seems almost like a favour."
Men who went to see him about a grievance, even when they did not get their grievances squared, are said some- how or other to have come away satisfied, or, if not satisfied, "at any rate in a better frame of mind." Sir John had, in fact, the happy faculty of saying " No " without making the recipient of the negative feel irritated and humiliated. He always contrived to break a man's fall as he knocked him down. It may be said, perhaps, that the bonhomie and softness of speech for which we have praised Sir John Macdonald do not really deserve our commendation. They were simply put on, it may be argued, on the principle that plenty of butter makes the wheels of life run smooth. We cannot agree with this view of Sir John Macdonald's character. To begin with, it is always a bad plan to demand certificates of origin in regard to a man's good qualities. Besides, real kindliness of heart is by no means so easy a virtue to assume as people often seem to imagine. Napoleon, for example, was quite aware of the practical advantages to be gained by amiability; yet, though he could be amiable on occasion, he never managed to give a general impression of good-nature. Good-nature of the kind displayed by Sir John Macdonald was beyond even the most consummate acting. It was part of the natural man, and not a mere veneer. Lord Dufferin recognised this when he spoke of the " loveable " character of the man. I cannot," said Lord Dufferin, "help desiring to bear my personal testimony to those engaging and loveable qualities which endeared Sir John Macdonald to every representative of the Crown that was sent over from this country to assume the reins of government. His equable and genial temperament, his delicate courtesy, his genuine kindness, his ccnsiderate frankness, rendered him one of the most charming and satisfactory public men with whom I have ever had the good fortune of being associated in the conduct of public business." Another personal quality which Lord Dufferin singles out for eulogium must not be omitted from this attempt to estimate his character. This quality was his loyalty. We do not, of course, mean loyalty in the sense of fidelity to the Crown, but in the wider sense of faithfulness and trustworthiness in regard to those with whom he acted. He was not the man to sacrifice a colleague to obtain a mere personal advantage, to desert a friend under fire, or to throw responsibility which belonged to him personally on the shoulders of subordinates. Lord Dufferin had plenty of opportuni- ties for observing Sir John Macdonald's conduct during the first five years of the Dominion's life, a period of no little difficulty and embarrassment ; and this is what he says :—" Above all things, this must be placed to the record of his great qualities, that he always showed a proud eagerness to take upon himself the responsibility of what- ever line of action the head of the Canadian Government may have pursued on his recommendation, to shield him from any popular resentment to which that action may have given rise, and at the same time to show a most scrupulous anxiety to avoid the slightest appearance of sheltering either himself or his party behind the prestige or the authority of the Crown." This is a eulogium of which any leader of men might be proud. The tempta- tions towards disloyalty to colleagues are exceptionally strong in political life, and the statesman who triumphs over them has the right to no inconsiderable meed of praise.
The nickname "Old To-morrow" is a compressed description of the policy pursued by Sir John Macdonald. "Never do to-day what can be put off till to-morrow," was the polar star of his political creed. It must not be sup- posed, however, that the adoption of this maxim was due to dilatoriness of nature in the late Prime Minister of the Dominion. On the contrary, he was by nature eager and alert. Experience, however, had taught him the same cynical lesson that Bacon reads the world in his essay on "Delays." He realised that "Fortune is like the market, where many times, if you can stay a little, the price will fall," and that often "not to decide, is to decide ;" and again, that things often settle themselves if they are only put off. Statesmanship based on considerations of this sort may not command much of our respect, but it is of the kind naturally produced by opportunism. When a political leader's object is not to put certain principles into practice, but merely to keep himself in power, the policy of " To-morrow " may prove exceedingly useful in banishing troublesome problems.
It would not do to leave the subject of Sir John Mac- donald's personality without mentioning the extraordinary personal resemblance which he bore to Lord Beaconsfield. Sir Charles Dilke mentions how, when he saw Sir John Macdonald for the first time, "as the clock struck mid- night," at Euston Station, dressed in a Privy Councillor's uniform, "it required a severe exercise of presence of mind to remember that there had been a City banquet from which the apparition must be coming, and to arrive rapidly, by a process of exhaustion, at the knowledge that this twin-brother of Lord Beaconsfield, whom shortly before I had seen in the sick-room which he was not to leave, must be the Prime Minister of Canada." The author of "Greater Britain" goes on to point out that, except in face and figure, the two men were not much alike, and to contrast the buoyancy of the one and "the well-known sphinx attitude of the other." No doubt this is true on the whole, but there were points of mental agreement, as the following story told of Sir John Macdonald proves. A young shorthand-writer was once told to report a speech by Sir John Macdonald. Now, it happened that the Premier had come on to the House from a dinner-party, and his speech in matter and form was of a decidedly post-prandial character. The youthful reporter, however, could not believe it possible that Sir John should want editing, and took down every word. His editor, on seeing the copy, told him it would not do, and as it was not wanted for the next morning, he was advised to go and see Sir John, and to get him to correct it. The reporter, on being shown in, found Sir John, as usual, exceedingly affable. Having explained, the object of his visit, the re- porter was desired to read his notes aloud. This he did, while Sir John lay on a sofa listening with a face of extreme solemnity to his own incoherences, and correcting them as occasion required. When the notes were finished, the Premier rose, laid his hand on the young man's shoulder, and began in the most fatherly of tones :—" I see exactly what has happened. Now, my dear young friend, I am an old man and you are a young one, and you will therefore not mind if I give you a word of advice as to the practice of your profession. My advice is this,— Never attempt to report a speech unless you are perfectly sure that you are sober." With this, Sir John bowed out his astonished visitor. The story, for all we know, may be apocryphal, but if true, it certainly shows that there was a mental as well as a physical resemblance between Lord Beaconsfield and Sir John Macdonald. They both had the quality of resource under emergencies in a high degree.
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