Part 26

Mr. O’Connor held membership in St. Anthony’s Catholic church and in politics he was a conservative. In his habits and tastes, he was most domestic, finding his greatest pleasure in administering to the welfare and happiness of his family. The most envious could not begrudge him his success, so honorably was it won and so worthily used for the benefit and assistance of others. His nature was one of extreme generosity and his example is worthy of emulation.

His sudden death on April 15, 1909, left a widow, a son and two daughters. James O’Connor is a resident of Montreal; Margaret resides at home; and Laura Esther is now Mrs. G. F. Hemsley. Mrs. O’Connor previous to her marriage which took place in St. Patrick’s church, Montreal, was Miss Catherine Curran, a daughter of John Curran, a prominent and distinguished citizen of this city.

HARRIS VINEBERG.

Among the mercantile institutions of Montreal is that of H. Vineberg & Company, clothing manufacturers for the trade, the inception and building up of which business is entirely due to the indefatigable efforts of H. Vineberg. The firm occupies what is known as Vineberg’s building, eight stories in height. Hundreds of young men have learned their trade and received their start in this establishment, and that many of them today occupy creditable positions in life is in a measure due to the lofty principles which are the policy of the firm. Many have profited by Mr. Vineberg’s kindly advice, who took an interest in each employe of his large enterprise and who, moreover, often helped them to begin their career in the right direction. Mr. Vineberg has aided many men who are today prominent in professional life in the city and has ever taken a deep interest in charitable and church organizations, having particularly given his aid to those who came to this country in straitened circumstances in order to enjoy the privileges of British freedom, British institutions and the prosperity held out to all who but want to grasp it in the vast Canadian commonwealth.

Harris Vineberg was born in 1855, on the 25th of December, a Jewish feast day called Chanuka, in Zidugira, Russian Poland. Zidugira means Jewish bush, and his ancestors owned the vast forests in Poland from which this name is derived. It may be mentioned in this connection that the cable address used by the house of H. Vineberg & Company today is “Zidugira,” perpetuating in a manner the memory of that place which gave birth to him and whence he sallied forth into the world to build his fortune. It seems that this reverent attitude toward his birthplace, toward his parents and toward his people has been the guiding star over Mr. Vineberg’s career, the star which has led him to the goal. His parents were Lazarus and Malca Vineberg, the former of whom died in Palestine in 1901 and the latter in 1882.

Their son Harris received a strictly orthodox education from private teachers. After having mastered the curriculum he assisted his father in the lumber business for the last two years which he spent in his native land. However, the young man could not content himself with the limitations which hedged him in on all sides under Russian rule and, coveting the opportunity of a wider sphere of action, he made up his mind to seek that country under which the greatest personal liberty, the greatest freedom of thought, the greatest tolerance of religious views prevailed. With an eye to the practical, he selected that part of the empire which seemed to him to hold out the greatest opportunity.

In September, 1872, Mr. Vineberg came to Montreal on the steamship Sarmatian. A brother had broken the home ties with him and with this brother he worked one year in Glengarry county, where he acquired a fair knowledge of English. He then made for Montreal in order to profit by the opportunities which the fast growing center of population held out and for seven months he worked in a humble capacity, earning but two dollars a week. On Saturdays and Sundays he instructed two boys in the Hebrew language and in this manner earned sufficient to pay for his board. Quickly accommodating himself, however, to the new conditions of life, Mr. Vineberg never lost sight of his purpose and, husbanding his small resources, he strove eagerly to establish himself in business. He opened a small store at No. 662 Craig Street, near St. Peter, and devoted his whole time for one year to that establishment with such good success that at the end of that period he had to seek larger quarters on McGill Street, where he remained until 1876, when removal was made to Lancaster, Ontario. Careful of his profits, he was there enabled to establish a general country store of considerable size which he conducted for four years,--years which brought him added prosperity. Mr. Vineberg has ever held a warm place in his heart for the little village of Lancaster, to which he largely credits his commercial education. There he had already attained such prominence that he was moving in the best of circles and was associated with and sought out by the foremost men of that county. In 1880 Mr. Vineberg returned to Montreal, having definitely decided to engage in the manufacture of clothing and, beginning in a small way in a private house, he formed a partnership with G. Burnett under the firm style of G. Burnett & Company. Although the firm’s policy was such that it should have resulted in success, it was forced to close out in 1891 and liquidated in that year. Such means as Mr. Vineberg had acquired up to that time were swept away by this unfortunate venture, and when he started again in 1892, tenaciously holding to his purpose, he had to begin practically without capital. However, he enjoyed a good reputation and among his personal following were many who had utmost confidence in his integrity and ability. He secured the assistance of Mr. Westgate of the H. B. Knitting Company, and it was this combination which formed the beginning of Progress brand clothing, under which name the output of H. Vineberg & Company is favorably known to the trade in all the Dominion. His thorough understanding of the business, his capacity for detail, his executive ability and understanding of human nature led him to the position which he now occupies at the head of one of the leading establishments of its kind in the city. The firm was incorporated in 1908 and in 1912 was transformed into a joint stock company, of which Mr. Vineberg became the president.

Although Mr. Vineberg’s mercantile interests are large, he has found time and opportunity to prove himself one of those men to whom the progress of the city and the welfare of its people is of foremost importance. Deeply grateful for such success as has come to him--and in his modest way not at all ascribing it to his personality, his energy, his patience, his judgment and industry--Mr. Vineberg welcomes the opportunity of giving to charitable institutions and of aiding those who strive to make a success of life. He has never forgotten how he once started himself--a poor Jewish boy without means and friends--and how he had to struggle to obtain a place in society. It is therefore but natural that he shows the deepest understanding and the greatest sympathy for those who today find themselves in similar conditions, even if these are not so trying as those which the young emigrant from the Sarmatian met. Mr. Vineberg is a director of the Jewish Colonization Institute, engaged in Jewish communal work. He was president of the Young Men’s Benevolent Hebrew Society from 1888 until 1892, during which time Baron de Hirsch sent the first ten thousand dollars with which the Baron de Hirsch Institute was founded. Before being president of this society, Mr. Vineberg was a director and in that capacity wrote to the famous Jewish philanthropist calling his attention to the needs of such an institution, and it was he who was largely instrumental in founding the institute at St. Elizabeth Street. In addition to his duties in connection with the Benevolent Hebrew Society for Young Men and the Baron de Hirsch Institute, Mr. Vineberg was one of those who were most active in promoting its religious school and he was chairman of the committee having charge over that department for many years. He is a member of the Spanish-Portuguese Synagogue and also of the English and German Synagogue on McGill College Avenue, in which latter he held the position of secretary for four years. He was one of the leading and most energetic spirits in moving the synagogue to McGill College Avenue from St. Constant Street, being at that time the secretary. He also is a director of the Hebrew Free Loan Association and a member of every Jewish charitable institution in Montreal. However, that his charity and his interest in those who are afflicted is not limited by creed is evident from the fact that he is a governor of the Montreal General Hospital.

During his long business career Mr. Vineberg has been the mentor of many of the leading merchants and manufacturers of this city who began their careers in his employ and who learned their trade in his place and there laid the foundations of their fortunes. Hundreds of well-to-do families in Montreal have been able to establish themselves in comfortable circumstances through their connection with the house of Vineberg & Company. There are a number of professional men who occupy an honored place in their spheres of activities and who are indebted to Mr. Vineberg for timely help and advice and there are many who are well known in the city today who reached these shores as emigrants with small means, and friendless, and who found in him one who was willing to assuage such troubles as beset them.

Mr. Vineberg is devoting much of his time to the care of his wife, a sufferer, and it is therefore but natural that he does not give so much of his time to the active operation of his large business interests, the management of the house of H. Vineberg & Company being entrusted largely to the husband of his eldest daughter. Yet he is still active and his advice is highly valued and often sought in commercial circles. He is a member of the Board of Trade and in that connection has always stood for things which would promote progress and prosperity in Montreal. He is a member of the Canadian Manufacturers Association and a director of the Canadian Credit Men’s Association. Although he is interested in all movements that make for efficient government of city, province and Dominion, for the highest type of sanitary system, the best health conditions, the beautification of the city, he has never actively entered the political arena.

On October 23, 1876, Mr. Vineberg married Miss Lily Goldberg, daughter of the late Rev. Hyman Goldberg, who for a number of years was assistant minister of the Spanish-Portuguese Synagogue. Mr. and Mrs. Vineberg became the parents of three daughters: Libbie, who married Isidor Cohen, a member of H. Vineberg & Company; Eva, who married A. J. Hart, president and general manager of the Hart Manufacturing Company; and Malca, who is the wife of A. Z. Cohen, a member of the firm of L. Cohen & Sons.

Mr. and Mrs. Vineberg have twelve grandchildren, and it may be mentioned as illustration of his deep affection for his family that the pictures of these children adorn the walls of his private office. When deeply engaged in business thoughts, these children’s faces, no doubt, smile to him encouragement and fill him with satisfaction in the knowledge that around him are growing up generations of his own blood who appreciate and love him for what he is to them and will honor him for what he has done to lighten their life’s burdens when they will occupy the stage of life’s activities.

PHILEMON COUSINEAU, B. A., LL. D., K. C., M. L. A.

As a member of the firm of Bastien, Bergeron, Cousineau, Lacasse & Jasmin, Philemon Cousineau, K. C., occupies a foremost position among the legal fraternity of Montreal. Moreover, he has gained a reputation as a legislator and is considered today one of the foremost authorities on constitutional law in the province. He has important commercial interests, and his career has had in its various aspects a lasting influence upon the growth and development of the city. He was born at St. Laurent, Quebec, on October 25, 1874, and is a son of Gervais and Angelique (Grou) Cousineau.

Philemon Cousineau was educated at Sainte Therese College and Laval University, from which he graduated in 1896. Being called to the bar, he began the active practice of law in July of that year and has ever since continued with increasing success. He is professor of constitutional and municipal law at Laval University, which institution of learning conferred upon him the degree of LL. D., after he had presented a thesis on Corporations. He has also been for some time king’s counsel and enjoys a profitable and representative practice.

Mr. Cousineau is extensively interested in industrial and financial projects which have had to do with the city’s progress, among them being the Mount Royal Telephone Company, of which he was president, and previous to its absorption by the Canadian Light & Power Company he was a director of the Saraguay Light & Power Company. He is also president of the St. Lawrence Tobacco Company. He was mayor of the town of St. Laurent from 1904 to 1908 and both as an official and citizen has had no little to do with the progress of that flourishing town.

In 1897 Mr. Cousineau was united in marriage to Miss Helmina Gendron, and they have four daughters. In politics Mr. Cousineau is a conservative and in 1908 was elected to the legislature of the province of Quebec from the county of Jacques Cartier and reelected in 1912. He is a trusted counselor of the party and has done far-reaching work on committees as well as on the floor of the house. Public-spirited in the most noble sense of the word, he has ever stood for that which is best for the greatest number. In 1913 he was delegate of the Canadian government to the general meeting of the International Institute Of Agriculture at Rome, Italy.

EDOUARD NAPOLEON HEBERT.

The house of Hébert has been one of the foremost families of the Dominion since the early dawn of Canadian history. One of the first Canadian farmers, Louis Hébert, arrived in Quebec with his family in 1617. Tradition has it that previously he passed some time in Acadia, where he “was the first to utilize the salt-water marshes of the Bay of Fundy by building dikes to keep out the tides.” He continued to cultivate the soil at Quebec and on February 28, 1626, as a reward to him and an encouragement to others, the Duc de Ventadour, viceroy of New France, issued a patent granting Hébert “in fief noble to him and his assigns forever” a seignorial domain on the River St. Charles, near Quebec, and confirming to him a concession made by the preceding viceroy, the Duc de Montmorency. It was expressly stated in the deed that these grants were made in consideration of Hébert’s “long and painful labors, perils and expenses, incessantly supported in the discovery of the lands of Canada and that he is the head of the first family which has settled and dwelt there since the year 1600 till now * * * having left his relations and friends to go and form this commencement of a colony of Christian people in those lands * * * which are deprived of the knowledge of God.” Charles Lecroix Hébert, a rich trader and the first farmer on the island of Montreal, built a residence in 1655 on Jean Baptiste Street, which is still standing and which is shown in one of the illustrations of this history. Hébert, named Larivière, was born in 1633 and was a companion in arms of Dollard and present at the massacre of Long Sault in May, 1660.

Edouard Napoléon Hébert was born in Montreal on March 10, 1874, and is a son of J. Napoléon Hébert, who was born January 14, 1850. His father, Louis Hébert, the grandfather of our subject, was born in Quebec in 1810 or 1812 and from that city removed to Montreal, while his father was the proprietor of the Boulangerie du Roi (bakery of the king) at Quebec. This establishment was subsequently continued by one of his sons, a brother of the grandfather of our subject.

E. Napoléon Hébert, in the acquirement of his education, attended Montcalm school of this city and subsequently improved his advantages by a commercial course. He entered upon active business life in connection with Hudon & Hébert, engaged in the grocery business, for whom he made customs entries and acted as assistant cashier. He is now treasurer of the “Twelve Companies” and largely engaged in the real-estate business, being a young man of very great ability, pleasant in manners and of sound judgment. In two years the “Twelve Companies” with which he is connected have disposed of properties to the value of eleven million dollars, which gives an indication of the magnitude of their transactions. Mr. Hébert is considered one of the best informed men as to realty values here and his advice and judgment are often sought by large investors and he has in many ways been instrumental in promoting the growth and furthering the welfare of his city. He is also interested in a cigar box factory which gives employment to eighty men.

On July 7, 1891, at Montreal, Mr. Hébert was united in marriage to Miss Cécilia Drolet and they have become the parents of twelve children, four sons and eight daughters. The eldest son, Charles-Edouard, is married and the other three are Armand, Charles and Jean. The daughters are Gabrielle, Herminie, Adrienne, Cécile, Marie-Thérèse, Germaine, Gilberte and Paulette.

In his political affiliations Mr. Hébert is a liberal, stanchly upholding the principles of his party. He is well known in fraternal orders, in most of which he has held important offices, being connected with the Independent Order of Foresters and the Canadian Order of Foresters. He is a member of the L’Alliance Nationale, of the Club Canadien and the Club St. Louis. His religious faith is that of the Catholic church and he is prominent in the church of the Immaculate Conception, in which for twenty-five years he has been organist. A man of great energy and vast information as regards his business, Mr. Hébert occupies a high place among the business men of Montreal and can ever be found in the front ranks of those who have at heart the welfare of their city. Although he has never cared to participate in official life, he gladly supports worthy public enterprises and enjoys the high respect and regard of all who come in contact with him in business or social relations.

CHARLES SAMUEL JOHN PHILLIPS.

Many of the organized efforts for benefiting the general interests of society have felt the stimulus of the cooperation and indorsement of Charles Samuel John Phillips, whose position in the business world is that of head of the firm of Morton, Phillips & Company, stationers and printers. He was born in Quebec on the 13th of October, 1844, and is a son of the late Thomas Osmond Phillips, of Quebec, and his wife, Agnes Ritchie Leslie, a daughter of Dr. S. W. H. Leslie, of the army medical department. He was but a youth of thirteen when he accompanied his parents to Montreal, where he has made his home continuously since 1857, being, therefore, one of the older residents of the city in years of continuous connection therewith.

It was in Montreal that Mr. Phillips was married in 1873 to Miss Jessie Amelia Thomson, a daughter of the late William A. Thomson, and her death occurred in May, 1910.

With the attainment of his majority Charles S. J. Phillips entered business life and gradually advanced to the position of head of the firm of Morton, Phillips & Company, stationers and printers, which business was established in 1869. His activities have been exerted with energy, force and effectiveness along other lines, some of which have been of a semi-public and others of a public character. He was formerly president of the Montreal Citizens League and of the Montreal Dispensary and is now a director of the Citizens Association. He is likewise a member of the Business Men’s League and is a director of the Mount Royal Cemetery Company. He belongs to the Natural History Society and is deeply interested in the Boys Home, of which he is honorary treasurer, and the Boys Farm and Training School at Shawbridge, Quebec. He has been a student of the important political, economic and sociological questions and has investigated conditions which bear directly upon the interests of society at large in its relation to citizenship and the opportunities which are placed before the individual for his normal development and advancement. His religious faith is that of the Baptist church, and his political belief that of the conservative party. He is well known as a member of the Montreal and Canadian Clubs. While the winter months are spent in the city, he has an attractive summer home, Mes Délices, at Notre Dame du Portage on the St. Lawrence.

ALEXANDER GEORGE CAMERON.