There are stupid people in this world who think they can upset long-standing statues with impunity. My favourite statue at Queen’s Park in Toronto is that of King Edward VII astride a horse. It is one damn fine horse. And as far as I’m concerned, the guy on the horse is just another horse’s ass.
I mention this as the Ontario government has wasted public money on a statue of the late Queen Elizabeth II. Why they should waste money on this is beyond me. I am confident there was no hue and cry saying; you must do this. It is not even a decent statue. I would swear that a man posed for the face. Queen Elizabeth had much softer features. I have always thought of her as something of a nebbish. Not as much as her son Charles but he was a prince only a mother could love.
And in this time of reminding Torontonians of our country’s colonial past, we have poor old John A. Macdonald all boarded up to protect him from the stupid people who would try to splash paint on him and tear him down. Tearing down Sir John because of the residential schools is a particularly dumb move. This is the guy that pointed the way to creating the Canada that exists today. If it had not been for Sir John, Canada would just be the back lot for the American or British Empire. Toss a coin for which one.
For my part, I suppose I should spring to the defence of Oliver Mowat. His statue is on the west side of the legislature building at Queen’s Park. He is an early relation. My paternal grandmother was a Mowat. Everything I have ever heard about that side of the family tells me not to expect much from my Mowat genes. My late friend Keith Davey had a laugh on me one time when he and wife Dorothy where at the Aberfoyle Market out in Puslinch Township. They found an 1893 copy of the front page of the Saturday Globe. It had a large picture of Sir Oliver Mowat, honouring how long he had been premier of Ontario. Keith gave it to me and said now he knew where my big nose came from. That front page was preserved for me and framed. It hangs on the wall today above my computer screen.
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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry
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