The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
"Vote for Al the farmer's pal" was a favourite saying in the West during the elections of 1962 and 1963. Al of course was Alvin Hamilton of Saskatchewan, considered by many as the best Minister of Agriculture that Canada ever had. Born in Kenora in 1912, Hamilton had a tough early life. Orphaned at 15, he was sent to work on a relative's farm in Delisle, Sask. Painfully shy with a severe stutter, he was taken under the wing of a Sunday school superintendent who just happened to be a Conservative MP, and who convinced the young man to take up public speaking as a cure for the stutter. Alvin did this so well that in a few months he won a Saskatchewan-wide public speaking contest. He also became very interested in the provincial Conservative party, working for them in the 1929 election and meeting candidate John Diefenbaker for the first time. Alvin went on to teach for three years in a one-room rural school. He became an organizer for the Conservatives, graduated from university in 1938, and then served as a navigator and flight lieutenant in WWII. He returned home to run in the 1945 federal election and lost. He subsequently ran four other times and was soundly defeated each time. In 1949 he was elected provincial Conservative leader and was hugely unsuccessful, running seventh in the 1956 election in which his party received less than two per cent of the vote. Things would change, however, and the next year he was part of Diefenbaker's amazing victory and finally won a seat, becoming the member for Qu'appelle, which he held until 1968 and later for 16 more years beginning in 1972. Appointed as Minister of Northern Affairs and Natural Resources, Hamilton went on to become Minister of Agriculture, where he really shone. Taking over the portfolio in 1960, he spearheaded the sale of wheat and barley to China, clearing out the millions of bushels of surplus grain and tripling farm income. He became the darling of the farmers, and held the farm vote in the '62, '63 and '65 elections, denying the Pearson Liberals a majority even though the Diefenbaker government had fallen apart. Hamilton, who had a habit of making misstatements on important issues, often causing great problems for the government, was described by Dief this way: "If you let Alvin loose in a 40-acre field with just three cow pies in it, Alvin would step in all three." In spite of many dressing downs by John, Alvin remained intensely loyal to the Chief, stopping a cabinet revolt in 1963 by rallying caucus members. He did run for leader in 1967, but only after consulting with John. I met him a few times during that campaign and found him to be very charming and interesting even though he constantly smoked cheap cigars and a pipe. He received quite a respectable vote, not being eliminated until the fourth ballot . In the Trudeau election of 1968, Alvin foolishly ran in a Regina seat, losing to the NDP. Then in 1972, he went back to his old seat, holding it until his retirement in 1988. In 1987, he was recognized by Parliament for his 30-year contribution. In 1992 he was given the rare honour of the title "Right Honourable' by the Queen for his service to Canada. Who's George? None other than the charming George Hees, a Toronto guy who was also in Dief's cabinet. Born into a rich family, Hees attended military college and university, plus played football for the Argos, winning a Grey Cup in 1938. He was a super athlete, becoming heavyweight champion of the British armed forces. In WWII he became a battle honoured infantry major. He was determined to become a successful politician and made it happen. He was appointed Minister of Transport and Minister of Trade and Commerce, and through hard work was considered by many as the most successful of Dief's cabinet members. George had a falling out with the leader over the Bomarc nuclear issue and resigned in 1963, but he returned in 1965. He was constantly reelected and eventually became a Mulroney cabinet minister at the age of 74. Hees ran for leader in 1967, a job he had always yearned for, but it wasn't meant to be. George was quite a guy, a most unconservative-like conservative, and very successful in virtually everything he did. Roger's Right Corner runs Wednesdays.
