N U M B E R 4 2 ■ Summer 2014 ■ $ 2 . 0 0 ■ NEW TEATIME ACTIVITY AT THE MORRIN CENTRE ■ THE QCT: CONSERVATIVE TO LIBERAL AND BACK AGAIN ■ MEET OUR SUMMER GUIDES The Morrin Centre is managed by the Literary & Historical Society of Quebec. Society Pages are published with the assistance of Canada Post. CONTENT Jessica Kelly-Rhéaume LAYOUT Patrick Donovan NUMBER 42 ■ SUMMER 2014 PROOFREADING Louisa Blair ■ PUBLISHER Literary & Historical Society of Quebec CONTENTS 44 chaussée des Écossais Quebec, Quebec G1R 4H3 PHONE 418-694-9147 FAX Letter from the President 1 Sovita Chander 418-694-0754 GENERAL INQUIRIES From the Executive Director 1 Barry McCullough [email protected] WEBSITE Transactions www.morrin.org ■ Life of a President: 2 Jessica Kelly-Rhéaume LHSQ COUNCIL Jonathan Sewell [email protected] Sovita Chander, President Ladd Johnson, Vice-President The Ideological History of Gina Farnell, Treasurer 3 Charles André Nadeau Shauneen Furlong, Secretary the Quebec Chronicle-Telegraph Donald Fyson, Honorary Librarian Barry Holleman, Member at Large Library Pages Bruce Laurie, Member at Large Peter Black William GK Boden Book Quest—Create! 6 Jack Bryden Katherine Burgess New Acquisitions 7 Diana Cline Jacob Stone Hélène Thibault Events & Activities David F. Blair, Ex-Officio Meet our Tour Guides 9 ■ Two Centuries of Tea 11 Elizabeth Perreault DIRECTOR Barry McCullough Miscellanea Executive Director [email protected] Music Review 15 Barry McCullough FULL-TIME STAFF Gail Cameron Accounting & Financial Clerk [email protected] Rosemarie Fischer Administrative Assistant [email protected] Stefanie Johnston LIBRARY HOURS Guided Tours Coordinator [email protected] Jessica Kelly-Rhéaume Library Manager Sunday 12:00PM-4:00PM [email protected] Elizabeth Perreault Program and Communications Director Monday CLOSED [email protected] Mathieu Tremblay Tuesday 12:00PM-8:00PM Rentals and Events Coordinator [email protected] Wednesday 12:00PM-4:00PM ■ Thursday 12:00PM-8:00PM The mission of the Morrin Centre is to share and foster English-language Friday 12:00PM-4:00PM culture in the Quebec City region. The Morrin Centre is administered by the Saturday 10:00AM-4:00PM Literary & Historical Society of Quebec. ISSN 1913-0732 Front cover: New Teatime activity at the Morrin Centre (Photo credit: Barry McCullough) SOCIETY PAGES LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear members and friends, location for business meeting rentals. I encourage you, our members, to consider the Centre for your next At the start of this summer meeting or press conference. There are beautiful and season, I am pleased to report that inspiring spaces available for meetings of all types and your efforts for our membership sizes. For more information, contact Rentals campaign are paying off. Thanks to Coordinator Mathieu Tremblay at the Centre. the work of the Membership Committee and you – our After a highly productive strategic planning session in supporters – we have never had as many members as March, staff and Council have been busy furthering the we do right now. This is a very encouraging development of our three pillars of Heritage, Education development, and we want to see this number continue and the Arts. There are many interesting projects to grow. A one-year membership for new members is currently being established that we hope to announce only $20, an offer that will last for the entirety of 2014. over the next few months. I am confident these Think of the people in your life who love heritage, projects will continue to cement the Morrin Centre’s literature, and culture. Membership is an ideal gift for a status as an institution for all to cherish. birthday, wedding or, even Christmas…in July! Wishing you a great summer, The Morrin Centre is now a well-known venue for rentals, particularly Christmas parties and weddings. Our Executive Director even held his own wedding Sovita Chander here in April. The Centre is also becoming a prime President FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Dear members, Now that the flowers are in bloom, We are proud to kick off our 10th annual Book Quest. the winter that would never end The launch party, which was held on June 14, was a seems like a distant memory. I am great success. With education as one of our three sure I do not need to tell you how pillars, Book Quest is an important outlet for kids aged glad we all are that summer is here. 5 to 12 years old to explore a thematic summer reading club. This year’s theme is “Create” and it’s not too late The Morrin Centre is a buzz every summer and 2014 to enrol. Those interested should contact Library will be no different. We launched Teatime at the Manager Jessica Kelly-Rhéaume. Morrin Centre on June 7. We are excited to work with our partner, Sebz, who is generously providing the teas June 20 marked the beginning of Program and for the activity. The activity has already received Communication Director Elizabeth Perreault’s impressive media coverage in all formats; television maternity leave. On behalf of staff and Council, I wish (Radio-Canada), radio (CBC) and print (QCT, her all the best and look forward to seeing her back at QuébecHébdo). Check out the article on page 11 for the Morrin Centre in summer 2015! more information. I wish all of you, our loyal members, a fantastic summer. This spring and early summer has seen more student groups than ever before come through the Morrin Centre. Not only are guided tours an important self- I hope to see you around the Morrin Centre for tea or generated revenue stream, but they are at the core of a tour. our Heritage Pillar. It is our mission to share the unique history of our building with as many people as possible and we are thrilled to see people visiting the Centre in Barry McCullough record numbers. Executive Director PAGE 1 SUMMER 2014 TRANSACTIONS LIFE OF A PRESIDENT JONATHAN SEWELL By Jessica Kelly-Rhéaume Jonathan Sewell was one of the early presidents of the Quebec three years later. He temporarily became Literary and Historical Society of Quebec (1830-1831). Attorney General of the province the year after, which Along with Dalhousie, he was instrumental in launched his long and prolific career in law and politics. establishing the LHSQ and wrote the first paper for the In 1795, he was appointed permanent Attorney General Society on French civil law, which and Advocate General. He worked he mastered as well as British on Lower Canada legislation, Common Law. His involvement prosecuted in criminal and civil law with the LHSQ was neither his first cases and defended British nor his last cultural contribution to interests. Quebec City. Indeed, he was a patron of the Société Littéraire de Sewell was very fair, even lenient in Québec, with which Aubert de some cases, in criminal Gaspé was involved, in 1809, and prosecutions that did not involve was a violinist. He possessed an the Crown. Indeed he adopted impressive library of close to 1500 different views on punishment than books and owned the Théâtre most of his colleagues. He focused Royal on Rue Saint-Stanislas in the more on prevention than 1830s. He was an important punishment, and this translated into benefactor of the Anglophone occasional manipulation of the law community and funded the and of evidence to avoid certain construction of the Anglican Trinity convictions, mostly in cases where Chapel on Rue Saint-Stanislas in the death penalty was a possible 1824. outcome. Some of his legislative work aimed at reducing the Born in Massachusetts, Jonathan number of crimes punishable by Sewell is best known for having Jonathan Sewell death. He believed that severe been Chief Justice of Lower punishment was not necessarily the Canada. He was also a politician and an author. He strongest deterrent. He felt that the certainty of a spent the majority of his life in Lower Canada and was conviction and a smaller punishment could be just as very influential in government. Throughout his career, effective in preventing crime. he remained loyal to England and the Crown. Sewell fought against the power of the Catholic Church in Sewell’s involvement in politics was extensive. As Lower Canada, fearing the influence of the Catholicism Attorney General, he composed countless regulations over the population. He also used the education system and legal opinions for the government. He defended the to help promote and maintain British rule. political interests of Britain and became close to Lord Dalhousie, Governor of Lower Canada from 1820- When Sewell was eight years old, his Loyalist father 1828, acting as his advisor. He was a constant and took the family to England, fleeing upset in America. devoted member of the Executive Council, giving There, Sewell explored his many artistic talents as a Dalhousie great influence over the Executive Council young man, delving into the theatre as well as into and vice versa. painting and music. He had a natural flair for the arts and was later a member of an amateur orchestra in One year after being appointed Attorney General, Quebec City. Sewell married Henriette Smith. They had sixteen children. Sewell died in 1839 and was laid to rest in In 1785, at the age of 18, Sewell returned to North Holy Trinity Cathedral, leaving behind large estate and a America to study law in New Brunswick. He came to host of descendants. ■ PAGE 2 SOCIETY PAGES TRANSACTIONS THE IDEOLOGICAL HISTORY OF THE QUEBEC CHRONICLE-TELEGRAPH By Charles André Nadeau Most histories of the Quebec Chronicle Telegraph, which of Quebec under the banner of the Parti Canadien. The celebrates its 250th anniversary this year, revolve around Quebec Gazette/La Gazette de Québec reflected of course the changes, and in particular the mergers, that have its political ideology.