Although petitions for clemency poured into Ottawa from across Canada re Louis Riel, the Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald stated: "He shall hang, though every dog in Quebec bark in his favour." This petition was of a different kind, being from the Orangemen themselves.

HON. J.A. CHAPLEAU, Secretary of State, Ottawa.

WESTERN DISTRICT ORANGE HALL, TORONTO, 2nd November, 1885.

DEAR SIR, -- The Orangemen of this district would respectfully approach you, as our representative in Parliament, concerning the case of Riel, now under sentence of death, for his recent acts of violence, bloodshed and treason.

We regret that in so clear a case it should be necessary to remind the Government of their duty in the premises, and express our unanimous feelings on this question, but the fact that public meetings have been called in favor of Riel, and in defence of his conduct, in the Lower Province, and expecially by the Roman Catholics, and that the most strenuous efforts are being put forth by these parties and by Riel's friends to secure a commutation of his sentence, renders it imperative upon us as a loyal and Protestant association, that we should express to the Government our views and deep convictions on this subject.

The pardon of Riel was resorted to before. The exile of Riel from Canada was tried before. The honor of Riel was tried before, when he promised never to set foot in Canada again, and all have miserably failed.

His murderous intentions have only been intensifying. The pardon but emboldened him to treat British laws and British leniency with contempt, and the slaughter of loyal and law-abiding British subjects has been ten-fold more appalling than on the former occasion. Men lie buried there of whom even that country, good as it is, is not worthy - some of the best, the noblest and truest of Canada's noble and loyal sons.

We would, therefore, most urgently and earnestly request you to use all your influence with the Government to have the sentence passed upon Riel by his countrymen confirmed by the Supreme Court of the Province, and sustained by the Privy Council of England, carried into effect.

We trust that you will entreat of the Government not to allow any petitions, requests or influences from Riel's friends, or from any other source, to prevail on them to commute the sentence, postpone the same, or in any way alter the just sentence that now hangs over this self-doomed man.

And your petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.

JAMES BODDY,

District Secretary, on behalf of the Loyal Orange Association of West Toronto. To JAMES BEATY, Esq., M.P., West Toronto. [Beaty was a member of L.O.L. 137]

Reverend David Parsons Rowland

David Rowland was born in Dublin, Ireland on September 23, 1908. One of a family of ten brothers and sisters, he emigrated to Canada as a young man, continued his education while at the same time engaging in a variety of manual occupations. During this time he heard the call to the Christian ministry and enrolled at Knox College in Toronto, where he graduated and was ordained into the ministry of the Presbyterian Church of Canada in 1935. While attending college he was greatly interested in athletics and played for the University of Toronto and Knox College soccer teams. While still a student at college, he organized the congregation at York in the west end of Toronto in 1934 and was called and inducted as its first minister on June 8, 1936. He continued in that service until his death in the summer of 1965.

In 1938 the first phase of the church building was opened and dedicated. When war broke out he resigned from his congregation to accept a commission as Chaplain of the Irish Regiment of Canada and went overseas and served with distinction during the conflict. He was decorated with the Military Cross and mentioned in despatches. When war ceased, he returned from active service and was again called by York Presbyterian Church. Through his suggestion the name of the church was changed to York Memorial Presbyterian Church as a tribute to Canada's war dead. Through his capable and zealous leadership the congregation grew rapidly and the church proper was completed and opened in 1952. His personal dedication to the youth of his community resulted in the opening and dedication of the Christian Education building which was named the David Parsons Rowland Youth Centre as a tribute to his excellent leadership and service. The same year, Knox College honoured him by conferring on him the degree of Doctor of Divinity.

Major Rowland continued to take a keen interest in the Irish Regiment and was Chaplain of the peace unit until the time of his death. He was also a leader in the fight against the government's decision to submerge the Militia Regiment in the National Defense reorganization. He was Chaplain of the Silverthorn Branch 57 of the Legion, the 36th Ulster Division Old Comrades Association. He was an active Orangeman and served as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Ontario West, Past Imperial Grand Chaplain of the Imperial Grand Lodge of the World. [He was a member of Aughrim Rose of Derry, L.O.L. 2159, Toronto]

In community life, Dr. Rowland gave of himself in assisting people of all creeds and classes. Having served as Chairman of the Parole Board of Ontario, he was ever considerate of those who were in difficulty and the facilities of the Rowland Youth Centre were available as a community centre. Subsequent to the upheavel in York Township's municipal affairs, Dr. Rowland decided to run for municipal office and was elected Deputy Reeve where he served as an effective and well respected administrator and public representative for four years.

In the church at large he was much sought after as a preacher. He served on many boards and committees of the church. At the time of his death he was Chairman of the Chaplaincy Committee and also the Chaplaincy Committee of the Canadian Council of Churches. He was the first Moderator of the Presbytery of West Toronto. Seldom has so great a tribute been paid to a minister of the gospel. At his funeral the church proper, the basement of the church, the Youth centre and the grounds around were filled beyond capacity. A public address system had to be installed so that the service could be heard by all. In the Acts and Proceedings of the Ninety-Second General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Canada the tribute was best stated:

"Wherever his work took him he was always devoted to the cause of Christ whether on the playing field, the battlefield, in the fraternal lodge, the council chamber, the congregation or the church at large. He enlisted the lives and services of men and women in the work of the Kingdom. Multitudes of people can testify that he was behind many of the good things that happened to them. He was an ardent Christian, a wise counsellor, a loyal friend and a kindly pastor."

Barry D. Rowland - "The Padre"

Wellington Bartley Willoughby was born in the hamlet of Charleston, Peel County, Ontario on July 10, 1859. He was the son of John and Margaret Willoughby and was christened Wentworth and was known to the family as 'Went' but later in life adopted the first name of Wellington. He was educated at Orangeville High School and attended the University of Toronto where he received a B.A. in 1883 and LL.B. in 1888. He was called to the bar of Ontario in 1886 and was to practice law all of his life.

He was married in 1892 to Susan Smedley whose family were from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1895 he was nominated as the official Conservative candidate for the federal riding of Cardwell in Peel County. This election was mainly fought over the Manitoba Separate School Remedial Bill and many Tories, led by the Grand Master of the GOL of Canada, N.C. Wallace had broken ranks with the Conservative Party over their handling of the affair. The Conservatives wanted to impose public funding for separate schools on the Province of Manitoba even though the province had rejected the idea.

This made for a wild election and in many ridings saw Conservatives fight it out with each other. In Cardwell the unofficial Conservative candidate was William Stubbs, a long-time Peel County Orangeman. He was supported by N.C. Wallace and Dalton McCarthy and by the majority of Orangemen in the riding. Willoughby, also an Orangeman, and a member of Cedar Mills L.O.L. No. 148, had the unhappy situation of watching most of his fellow Orangemen vote for Stubbs who was elected to represent the riding in the House of Commons.

Soon after this, in 1897, Willoughby moved to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, where he set up a law office. He was appointed as the City Solicitor of Moose Jaw in 1908 and in 1911 he served as the President of the Law Society of Saskatchewan. He was elected to the Saskatchewan Legislature as a Conservative in 1912 and was re-elected in 1917. In 1917 he was appointed to the Canadian Senate and in 1929 he became the Conservative leader of the Senate, a post that he held until 1932 when he resigned because of ill-health. Willoughby died on August 1, 1932.