Letter from C. Mortimer Bezeau to William Lyon Mackenzie King, July 20, 1937

Description
Creators
King, William Lyon Mackenzie, Recipient
Bezeau, C. Mortimer
, Author
Media Type
Text
Item Type
Correspondence
Description
Typewritten letter from C. Mortimer Bezeau to William Lyon Mackenzie King on July 20, 1937. Bezeau congratulates King on his recent radio broadcast. Bezeau states that his wife has been bedridden for several months.

Additional words in pencil by C. Mortimer Bezeau
Notes
William Lyon Mackenzie King (1874-1950) was Canada's longest serving Prime Minister with a total of 22 years (1921-1930 and 1935-1948). King was born in Berlin, Ontario (present day Kitchener) on December 17, 1874. He graduated from the University of Toronto and went on to study economics at Harvard and Chicago University. In 1900 King was named Canada's first Deputy Minister of Labour, and became Minister of Labour in 1909. In 1921 King was elected Prime Minster of Canada. King was a member of the Liberal Party of Parliament for over 30 years, 22 of those years were spent as Prime Minister of Canada. William Lyon Mackenzie King died on July 22, 1950 in Kingsmere, Quebec.

C. Mortimer Bezeau (1871-1964) was a politician in Kitchener, Ontario and a long-standing member of the Liberal Party. He held positions in local government in 1925-1926 and 1928, and was mayor of Kitchener from 1931-1932. Bezeau made many contributions to the 'Letter to the Editor' portions of The Globe and Mail regarding various political matters and opinions. C. Mortimer Bezeau died in 1964 and is buried in Woodland Cemetery, Kitchener, Ontario.

Throughout William Lyon Mackenzie King's career the two men corresponded via typed or handwritten letters and exchanged gifts.

Transcribed by Danielle Hughes in 2017.
Date of Original
July 20, 1937
Dimensions
Width: 21.5 cm
Height: 27.8 cm
Subject(s)
Local identifier
S718_1.2.36
Collection
William Lyon Mackenzie King collection
Language of Item
English
Geographic Coverage
  • Ontario, Canada
    Latitude: 43.4501 Longitude: -80.48299
Copyright Statement
Public domain: Copyright has expired according to Canadian law. No restrictions on use.
Recommended Citation
William Lyon Mackenzie King collection, Wilfrid Laurier University Archives & Special Collections
Reproduction Notes
S718 Disc 1
Contact
Wilfrid Laurier University Library
Email:libarch@wlu.ca
Website:
Agency street/mail address:

75 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON Canada N2L 3C5

Full Text

July 20/37

Right Honourable W.L.M.King,

Prime Minister of Canada,

Ottawa, Canada.

Dear Mr. King:-

Mrs. Bezeau and I listened with more pleasure than I can express to the splendid address broadcast by you last night. Your speech made a profound impression on the minds of all with whom I have since come in contact. Some pronounced it the greatest of the many great speeches you have delivered; and some declared its author to be the greatest statesman in the British Empire. It is my opinion that in the sentiments to which you have recently given expression you have laid the foundation of a movement which will ultimately resolve itself into a permanent world peace.

Mrs. Bezeau listened to you from her bed to which she has been confined for almost four months. Although deprivedof the power of speech she showed by the light in her face how much she appreciated all that you said.

Yours very sincerely,

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