HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1958-07-23, Page 43... •_.
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wEDNESDAY MIN 3Qi 9513
A rLii
Years
rizatrIPA• •
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im-LucKNow.smausmii, Lupacncm, onArtio
(..P.Y.w. v 11P4AstoP, scr bl d
• The following, article, Itpro
dueed*.ble're in Part, W4,4 Written
g5. years ago. by Dr, W V, Iohn-
sten and was published in .1983
in•the Canadian JoUrnal,
Dr, J. H, -Garnier fOr
nearly forty yolars'the Vfliage.
I.4ucknOw; and. Was One" Of the
• Most :interesting figures. ii tile
-history of Western Ontar,i6:. He
• had, .one of ,the: largest general
Practices ohi 4im6
that part Of thd• province and en-
pyed e. reputation • as
.a consultant ,over a. large. part of
three :•-:counties. Hrark.
*•:—Iiigl•i7•4S:: riataralist,'h was '••
:writer of considerable merit, and
last, , but not •least, I 'assure you
•he made Such an impression on
• • his coMMUnity,both by.'his abil-
ities and, his eccentricities f
, Irltrr is al-
, most as fresh today , as when he
*as He' died:op February
• 1st, 1098; at the age' of 75.•
• Dr.. •Garnier's n4other. was •
French Roirkan •Catholic. His fath
er.was a, :Huguenot a.nd a mein
iri
tier of Tong line of distinguiStie
:military men. .ljecauSe. of relig
sous. perseCution he fled with hi
wife : from' France: to SCotiand
• where he,. obtained •a. cominissie
• ..aS, ColOngl in the English 'airily
'The •family.• "was one .of'• Wealt
• and CUlttire, and. intO. it 182
the subject. Of this address' wa
• .bern. • This yboy On growing 'u
was; sent to' Dublin. to receive hi
medical education, He -was •al
: •Sk*S. 'arder4, •Orangegran; .an
•• 'While in'. Ireland He became •wel
• acqUaintecl* with • Daniel. O'Con
nen, and in his 'later yeart •Wa
Very: .fond.• of relatingl..'irieiderit
•.from the life. cif that distingdishe
He was. sent I to Par)
:Par)
'for :further 'study. thi
' h, .spent Seyerail years travelling
• visiting • nianY lands,: including
:India 'and'sSolith Africa
,. He Carrie to catiad,aand.ettabliSti
•ed a Medical 'prac'tice at Hagers
_Ville, Oki did not ',satisfy
him, so in , 1860 he moved to th
• village ' LuelcnoW, •
, carne to • 1..icictiOw. only four
f'. .years after •.the .'first 'settlers *had
arrived, there This ' .Was an'un-
broken streteh/ forest, full'of
• .•g.ainei'• With a: few scattered. set-
tleineritS being, carved out of.. the
liiiciOdS: The: early' settlers ,were
crofterSifroin •.the
•, lands. of:, Scotland:. and the : Isle
Of Skye, with a. few immigrants
from Ireland and .England.„.. In
such' a locality and at such A tirrie
Dr.Garnier CheSe to live' hisHlife.
IkrhY: as:rnan' of..his training and
culture: should lease :the home-
land.: to • dwell in a wilderness
ha‘ remained. a MYstery.
has itthat he: left Ireland as the
result Of:: a: duel. •
.He was very vigorous ,in mind
:,.,•and • body. • personality: 144s:
remarkable and -is rather, difficult
• to deseribe. • .was. impettiouS;
• hoMerripered,...very brusque in his,
and! fond. :Of , practical
AtikeS.,•Jie 'was very- prOfane th
;his language and used , alcohol
MOst...oceasiOtis.
.lt is no. exaggeration to say' that
his::Mannerisms were :.extra-
ordinary that, many did not' ufl,.
derstarid, hint ;The children were
terrified. of the doctor' whore •ifteY
Would.see 'the. earik:merriiug
going about• town 'With a gun on
liis shoulder. and warning them, to.
• keep at'..a :Safe' 'Cliatance.: The far-,
iriers-rrideting :him, on, the road
Would as 11101y. as not receive a.
• 'cut his.blaek snake ,Whip across
their shouldeps.• All learned to.
:make allowances for-•tlib.. actions
of the .doctor. Perhaps: few
from his life will convey
•those .clearly to you', than mere
gerleralizations the imPression he
• •Inade ;tin those .h4oUfhlin.
While diiVing-albrig. the road
one morning. he. ga:ve' a ''''S79.11Hg
woman a' ride in his .huggy,,
warned her that . he Was, subject.
to fits and. if one should come on•
Ile'Was'',:ribt'tti alartriecl.• Soon
•eattie to•• a: river and the
doter drove hitt) the, Water so
'AO the horse Might' a
clritilt While it was drinking a
;$01,ed.•Iiiiii. and he Made- it
so realistic that the. wdfrian
a
,•
3
5.
p
s
d
s,
ft*
s
wheel and waded to shore.
. ,
• Whirnialcing a call a.eoun,
try home benoticed sorne fine
geese in at -field and offered to
• buy .one, The housewife refused
to sell., The doctor went -to get
his' horse, but before leaving he
took his •gt.in,. whleh he always
,carried .With him, °and s.49t 'a
goose, Ile, retUrned 'to the house
With it and the woman was, no*
•forced to Sell it to him. Again,
Wbile'J•hUoting in the' woodspne
rre—grrddeniY caine Upon an-
other' hunter by the.name of Ross.
With an oathhe ed.„.1.1is_ gun,
-at • Ross jilt:eat-ening to shoot *him.
Ross: il4rOPecl behind a tree :and
the ,dector proceeded to chase
him, from 'the cover of one •tree
•
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of Dr. Garnier's Genius
brusqueness,to 'those Who 'Ji4
him' well:. ,was kind -heart
and, always•a • gentleman. .'1'0
patient critically ill he was„ very
'attentive; and if be w:ere not im-
proving •he would frequentlY,
weep• at 'the • bedside, feeling
•keenly his own: responsibility
and his inability •to, effect 'a 'cure:
His friends :respected and loved•hth, hint, and in return his affection
was most sincere: and entli.iring.
• . He wa,si French t,rarislator for,
seveialzOanadian JeuTii-
als and: these •translations from.
foreign, 'papers and, 'from.. sport-
ing- ":arid scientific.• journals, "-'fer
ArneriCan periodicals kept the
old •gentleman busy. He read a
great deal Of medical and seien-
tific literature: He was a diligent
worker, often eading'‘apd work-
ne, a ei. the Manner Of.
ed Robt, Irigersoll'S 'writings, though
a more philo.ophical •
• !Prince •Pedro" is' an historical
drama of 18Qpges, published in
1877, and dedicatetrto the GOV
ernor-General- Lord Dufferin
The plot is: laid in Portugal at
the time of the Moorish wars.
"Prince Pedro"., Was produced
in Haymarket 'and Drurylatie'
•Theatres. in London, • England,"
and ivate pr.eseittation.--Was-
given for Her/ Majesty • Queen
•DR'. V..• JOANSTON •
trunk to another. Such was the ,
reputaidn' ofthe doctor that ftess
•really* believed •he :was iii..,clanger
of losing'. his' life. The doctor end-
. •
ed the sport by ,callin$ upon Ross
'tO stop 'like. a •;monkey,
and for the rest Of his days • he
was known as Monkey 'Ross.
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• A•pparently in those.days doc-
tors had', difficulty iri collecting 1
some •of their accounts.' It is
knOwn that on. looking : °Ver. 'his s
, -found his most congenial work
among hiS floivers•, birds and rep-
tiles. Athis. hotrith he had a beau-
tiful one-half acre .plot •of
flow-
ers, Shrubs. and' grape -vines. He
spent mone„y: lavishly, in procUr-
ing. from abroad plants for his'
garden and' was: one of the .eari-.
lest importers of" bulbs Trito this
• cd'untry.: A.S• an ornithologist he
was: well He knew' in-
timately nearly. all Our speCies of
birds-....McIllwrgith, frt. his book,.
'Birds:Of: Ontario", depended
largely, on E.or,:•"Garnier for •infor-
rnation on the birds •-of Western
Ontario....Fle•*as Well and favor-
ably known gt the SinithsOnian
InstitUte! of Washington, D.C. • •:
•
He
always had his . gun with
him and was • an' excellent shot...
Each year in, the spring and 4iit-
Limn he visited the'S. Clair flats
'for a • few dayS' -shooting,. and.
many of the specimens" obtained:
were t brought 'home :and preser7
ved: When hunting he Ware 'a
special coat vOth a tight -fitting.
waist; where.: it. spread out like
a skirt, inside :of which Were
sewn large podketS •catiable , of
holding as rriank•as five turkeys.
• In.•his garden. he had-, sunken
pools Water. in which he kept
ePitie•S 'for:,observation a ri d
tudy: • He exchanged specimens
With 'friends in Varions parts :of
he World: On: one • occasion 'he
ent to the .South 'ea• Islands for:
• Wheiyit arrived he Was
o.:.•cliagriried• .to find it• *as not
he one he: • wanted , that ' he
rOmPt Y returned It. He report,'
d that :this transaction cost' hire
books at tile end 'of the, yean
:and con -ling; to:•the name of a
*patient, who, had died -penniless
and still 'wing him he ..would,
Write 'in . the 'ledger' 'Gone
Hell". • .• • -
He made Most extensive notes.I P
Of the habits ancl characteristics e
:t
s
the".'birds, mammals and rep- $
Ele: WaS the forernbst auth-' 'e
, on cold -biocide verjebrates t
anadain .' He CarefuliY. C011ected S
and .riibunted.the plants.and "floW T
:er,s of thedistricf. Ile carriedon
eXtensi've, 'medical practice— •a
s�: extensive that 1---aniJeld the b
street* in.• front 'of his house on sP
Sunday 'afternoons looked like to
village fair. He hadan internat- a
conal , ,reputation,, of • an , expert h
operator cataraCt: would
remove • the ,'.eataract,• with And; _,0
Patient sitting in a chair, in his
•offee„ . Place .0f. the spud he :6d
had Avhittle.c1' smail, ooricave ,y1
piece of wood • '1,vliich he laid la
across the "'eye • and by :gentle m
preistire extracted 'the: cataract. sq
ytt.as 'quite expert in' the use la
of:. this. simple:, contrivance. He „y",.
Was-knOwn throughout*the dis-
trict as.. being :skilled mid- 12
wifery: • He prObably was the am
'earliest' doctor in that part Of: 40
the country to' own a -pair •Of lib- au
Stetrieg forceps. ,'They • Were. a
piir'f pehneal foi-ceps and he •et
usually Carried theM, •in his hip ,,,41.1
'H • lw • ke t "himself an
.scrupulously clean, • ..Wasbing• his••
instrunts : and forceps in
whiskey bdtiVe using theiti, His,
hafi'ds being censtantly in meth-
Ylatecl: spirits used , tor prpServing
his biological' •specimens' •were
equally 'cont '•
' general practice Was lim-
ited to some extent by e,ccen-
400:00:*It is known. that on 'Sew..
r"1 . occasions during. his'.
e het': was in receipt ef large
Inns :of rrioriey .froTri Scotland':
his. money as well as the income
rorn ' hi S . Practice-, Was,
11 spent iri the . interests of .hiS
eloved muSeurn. His Museum
e'en/lens:, were numerous. enough
•• room' in:the local' sChOol„
s Weil as. several rooms, in his.
Ouse.' In- 1890: he gave to the
oyal • Ontario • Museum a large
ilection birds and reptiles.
isrecords Of this•were destroy -
by fire at the ilniyer'SitY, after,
arci;;thoUgh the s'pecirriens and
bels escaped. In: ,1•901, :the •re-
ainder,• was purChaied, ,by the
me niuSeutri and a brief tabu-'
tion shows that. the, collection
as 'made:up:of about too birds,
0/ mounted hirds, '126 niammalsi
5 sktills,Yef mammals, 170, sal -
ands, frogs and .,, toads, -
a ,4arrnie8g snakes,' 140 poison-,'
s, • snakes, and 360 • turtles,
We, Can marvel 'at theYin----
stry'‘of the man, for collecting
d caring for a museuni. was
a very arduous task in day.:
waS-, very'•accurate in.s
cataloguing. In •1804, in the Mail
Act Einpire, he '.published a ,iist
of 33 specieS of snakes': found in
Ontario, Ths list 18 still
oritative for 'Ontario for that per-
iod', „.' • '49
nr Gam erwas also a writer
••,
of consider ble. Two plays'
.ware • pu ished by him., entitled,
"Prince Pedro" and "Morgan the
.tricitics,•'whiCh. terrified. people,
ilovveiier, 'n general;•Way it
may be stated that, his; °anion in'
consuitatien was valued very
When called in serious
cases he would make 'the Test'
of his 'OPpOrttinities. by: telling
them that it no* was. a matter
•
Of •dcsperate •rernedies,--mediciries
to kill or 'cure, With all hiS
, • .
Jpv,ftf>,.
'Another book., "The Mistakes
of IVtases", was in process of1Sre-
paration at the :tithe of his death
It Was ..an :48Sly whieh, he
pointed .Out what he deemed to
be• the inaccuracies of the"
Victoria, ••
Dr Garnier was not- a- -business
man and suffered., rritich loss fin-
.aneially ,from •those whecimpos-
'ed upon ave away
•everything he „had, dYirig a poor
MIT4NNfAL',$MIAL:
•
t C
E
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man: Hi widow 4ied .in Luck-
• now in the spring of 1932„ The •
.wer.e • no children. 'by his mar
riage. 1)r. Will, Stevenson •of,
•,hLiosniclaosn,
tinw4istsezd. him and states
tdhuartinh:
made no,complaint; either lof life
itself -or tbe approach of cleattil,,,.•
:but loQkecl .'Q a :
sq.utohtt • •
Dr. Stevenson'sWords 'concerning
him? ..1"He:'*as a than whom r
loved'worShippecl„aS-1-was- •
Intimately: associated With hinl
from the time I wasa• child of. , •
eight until I saWhini pasS:Into••:•-•
the • Great 'Beyond,- 'and during
• •
that time he treated me with the
affection o a father, and 1 him
with the affection Of a son. I
visited • him as- frequently •as
•pos ible an
a• now 9 zoology;
•t•
• and I owe all •InY,Collection to his
encouragement; If he had been -
justly .unclerstbod -by. the • :public •
they Would. have esteemed him'
as highly 'as I did. The greate'st
thing 71 learned . from , him Was
• the 'observation of,small things, : ' •
because' in the differentiation of .• '
varieties in zOologY much; de-
'perids On the placing of scale
• or feather". ,
'I have tried here to ,Picture
physician who in the strenuous •
.piOneer.. days. of Ontario did* his, .,
professional work well, and found •
time to excel; as a naturalist and,,
to write several bboks. Though
his pecUliarities
• his .deviations .frorn the ;accepted
standards, of Conduct would ,be.
•frowned,.Upon: today, •yet I feel
sure 'we are .the' poorer ,for :not
having 'more men with, ' such
gtriking. personalities. •••
DR.' J H GARNIER
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:HARDWARE -..', • .
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and extend extend Best Wishes to the
• Committee for its Success .. .
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for th,e .
SUCCESS OF THE CENTENNIAL
• and a •
.111ARTT.WECOME.'
tp.Potrrie; icents and Visitors
" ALEX. NDREW, •'Prop„
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