|
Historical Archivist of the Dominion, was
born in Greenock, Scotland, in the year 1823. He is the fourth son of
Alexander Brymner, banker, originally from Stirling, where the family held
for many years a prominent position. The ender Brymner was a man of fine
intellectual attainments, an enthusiast in letters, and refined in his
tastes and feelings. He had great influence over his children, and took
every opportunity to instill into their minds a hearty love for literature
in all its branches. They had the additional advantage of frequent
intercourse with living men of letters, and their acquaintance with the
writings of the most eminent and esteemed authors of the time soon became
extensive. The mother of Douglas Brymner was Elizabeth Fairlie, daughter
of John Fairlie, merchant in Greenock, who died at an early age, leaving
his widow and family in comfortable circumstances. The subject of our
sketch was educated at the Greenock Grammar school where, under the
skilful tuition of Dr Brown, he mastered the classics and higher branches
of study. After leaving school, Mr. Brymner received a thorough mercantile
training. He began business on his own account, and subsequently admitted
his brother Graham as partner, on the return of the latter from the West
Indies, where he had been engaged for some years. The brothers were highly
successful, the younger filling, in later years, several important
offices, such as justice of the peace for the County of Renfrew, and
chairman of the Sanitary Commission for his native town. He died in 1882,
from typhus fever, contracted in the discharge of his duties as chairman,
universally regretted by all. In 1853, Mr. Brymner married Jean Thomson
(who died in 1884), daughter of William Thomson, of Hill End, by whom he
had nine children, six of whom survived. The eldest of these is William, a
rising artist of an excellent school, who has studied for several years in
the best studios of Paris, and whose recent exhibits have received general
praise. The second son, George Douglas, is one of the accountants in the
Bank of Montreal, and James, the third son, is in the North-West. Two
daughters and a son are at home. In consequence of ill health, induced by
close application to business, Mr. Brymner was compelled to retire from
the partnership in 1856. Complete withdrawal from mercantile cares for a
year having restored him to something like his former self, he removed to
Canada in 1857, and settled in Melbourne, one of the Easter Townships.
Here he filled the office of mayor for two terms with conspicuous ability.
On both occasions he had been elected without contest, and without having
solicited a single vote from any one, his belief being that an office of
this sort ought to be conferred by the unasked suffrage of the
constituency. He declined to serve for a third term, although earnestly
requested to do so. While mayor, he introduced various improvements in the
mode of conducting municipal business. Like many other immigrants
possessing capital, he found his means vanishing before the financial
crisis of 1857. Mr. Brymner drifted into what seemed to be his natural
calling - literature, for which his early training and continuous study
well qualified him. On the acceptance by Dr Snodgrass of the office of
Principal of Queen's College, the post of Editor of the Presbyterian,
the official journal of the Church of Scotland in Canada, became
vacant. It was offered to Mr. Brymner, his fitness for the position having
been recognized by the leaders of the church, he having been an active
member of the Church Courts as a representative elder, and his numerous
contributions to the discussion of important religious topics being
esteemed and valuable. Under his guidance, the editorials being written in
a straighforward, independent spirit, the paper at once took a high place.
Many of Mr. Brymner's articles on ecclesiastical question were in
particular much admired, and leading religious journals often made
lengthly quotations from them. About the same time he joined the staff of
the Montreal Herald, where in a little he was appointed associate editor
with the Hon. Edward Goff Penny. Often, owing to the severe indisposition
of Mr. Penny, Mr. Brymner had sole editorial charge of the Herald. He was
noted as one of the most efficient and hard-working members of the Press
Gallery at Ottawa, and in 1871, the Presidency of the Press Association
devolved upon him. A year later, in 1872, it having been resolved to
establish a new branch of the Civil Service, namely, the collection of the
historical records of the Dominion and its Provinces, Mr. Brymner, with
the approval of men of all political shades, received the appointment.
Before leaving Montreal for Ottawa, an address, signed by leading men in
the professions, in business, and of the different nationalities, was
presented to Mr Brymner, accompanied by a munificent testimonial. No
better selection could have been made for the office of Archivist than
that of Mr. Brymner. He had peculiar fitness for the task imposed on him.
His extensive historical knowledge, unwearied industry, patience, and love
for research, his power of organizing and arranging materials for
reference, etc, were all admirable qualifications, and these he possessed
to a remarkable degree. His reports are models, and present in clear and
terse language the results of his labours. The story of the origin of the
office, and the important part played in its construction by Mr. Brymner,
will be found in the Archivist's report for 1883. In 1881, the Public
Record Office (London) authorities republished the whole of Mr. Brymner's
report as part of their own, owing, as the Keeper of Records, Sir William
Hardy, said to the importance of the information it contained. Every year
since then, copious extracts have been made from Mr. Byrmner's reports.
Perhaps it will not be out of place to insert here the following excerpt
from the preface to the admirably annotated publication of "Hadden's
Journal and Orderly Books," by General Horatio Rogers, who says:-
"I cannot refrain from referring to the unweared zeal and unfailing
courtesy of Mr. Douglas Brymner, the Archivist of the Dominion of Canada,
in affording me the fullest and most satisfactory use of the Haldimand
papers and the other manuscripts confided to his charge. Would that all
public officials in custody of valuable manuscripts might take a lesson
from him!". Mr. Byrmner is an adherent of the Church of Scotland, to
which he has always belonged, and he has been one of the most formidable
opponents of union. His evidence before the Sentate Committee, on the 24th
and 26th of April, 1882, which is substantially the argument of the
non-contents on the union question, was presented with great power and
skill. It can be found in a pamphlet of over forty pages, published by
Hunter, Ross & Co., Toronto, 1883. The greater part of his literary
work is anonymous. He posseses a fund of caustic humour, some of which
found vent in his letters in Scotch, under the name of Tummas Treddles, an
octogenarian Paisley weaver, originally contributions on curling to the
Montral Herald, but afterwards extended to other subjects in the Scottish
American Journal. These have ceased for some years, doubtless from the
pressure of other and more serious occupations. His translations of the
Odes of Horace into Scotch verse were happy Imitations. A favourable
specimen "The Charms of Country Life" is in the Canadian Monthly
of 1879, the others having appeared in newspapers, and, so far as is
known, have never been collected. He is another illustration of the
fallacy of Syndney Smith's statement, that it requires a surgical
operation to get a joke into a Scotchman's head. |
