John A. Macdonald, the first prime minister of Canada, was born in 1815. Some years ago, as the bicentennial of Macdonald's birth neared, some civic-minded residents of the Ontario county in which I spend summers decided to mark the occasion by raising a statue in his honor. Macdonald arrived at the county seat of Picton in 1833 to train as a lawyer. The law would ultimately enrich him and enable him to enter politics. Yet he had not reached his 20th birthday when he nearly wrecked his career before it started. Macdonald got into an altercation with a prominent local doctor. Politics may have been a factor: The doctor was a Reformer; Macdonald already a Tory. Alcohol may have been a factor too'it so often was with Macdonald. Both men were charged with assault. The doctor was convicted. Had Macdonald been convicted as well, he would likely have lost his right to practice law. The Prince Edward County statue commemorated that early turning point in Macdonald's career. The sculptor,...
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