-. ' ' Wednesday, Apﬂdﬂ

when] held the appointment of Private Secretary to His Honour the. Lieutenant- Governor. The personalities of this soldier, diplomat, and humanitarian, and the dynamic and vivacious Madame Vanier impressed me tremendously. Their .genuine human qualiﬁes of humility and dignity, coupled with their great moral fibre 1m- mediatsly captured the respect and affection of those around them. On this par- ticular occasion I, and the other members of the staff, brought our children to meet their Exeellencies and we saw at first hand the well-known way they had With children. It was equally obvious how the children were attracted to them. The Vanier’s succeeded in removing the office of Governor-General from its aloof formal- ism and made that office representative of Canadian living. At the same time, Mr. Speaker; the nation applauds the appointment of His Excellency the Right Honour- able Roland D. Michener as his successor.

The new Governor-General has had a distinguished career in many fields of endeavour and we, in Canada, can look forward to the third Canadian to preside over the affairs of State at Rideau Hall.

I would also like to refer briefly to the recent death of Senator Thomas' V. Grant. I did not know Dr. Grant intimately, but I did have several very delightful conversations with him on a number of occasions. However, I do know the member of his family, particularly Dr. Byron Grant, who is my next door neighbour, and Dr. Raymond Grant was a classmate of mine at St. Dunstan’s University. A daugh- ter, Helen, Mrs. Leo Killorn, was a classmate of mine at Prince of Wales College. A great legand developed around Dr. Grant’s political exploits. I understand he was a formidable political warrior, loved a political battle, and at the same time, ably presented his constituents. ~

I believe, Mr. Speaker, I should make reference also to the election .oflers. B. Earle MacDonald as President of the National Liberal Federation of Women. I am of the opinion that this is~a distinct honour not only to Mrs. MacDonald, but also to this province as well. (Applause) Her late husband, the Honourable B. Earle MacDonald was an outstanding member of the Government of this province for many years. Previous to that, he served as City Councillor and Ma or of the City of Charlottetown for several terms. Mrs. Jean MacDonald was a 1 candidate in the Sixth District of Queens in the last provincial election, and made a valiant eﬂort to win 'the seat. At the present time, Mrs. MacDonald represents Prince Edward Island on the Ottawa District Commission, and was also one of the founders of the IODE movement in this province.

Since the election in May, 1966, the Junior Member from Third Kings lost the sight of his left eye through an unfortunate accident. I suffered a similar loss of sight in 1953, just two days after being admitted to the Bar of the Province, and therefore“ Sir, I can appreciate the gravity of this loss. But I can assure you that, during this period of adjustment you may feel that you have a great cross to bear, but you Will find that you will get so used to using one eye that you will almost forget in time that you once had the benefit of the sight of two eyes. I am sure that the members of this House will agree with me, Sir, when I say that we were all very sorry to hear of this unfortunate accident, and we offer Mr. MacLure our personal regrets. (Applause).

Preston MacLure: I would like to thank the gentleman kindly. (Applause). Honourable J. Elmer Blanchard: You are quite welcome, Sir.

Mr. Speaker, this venerable Province House was commenced in the year 1848 and it has been the meeting place of one hundred and twenty-four successive annual sessions of the Assembly. It was in this very Chamber that the fight for Respon- sible Government was waged and won in 1851. It was also in this very Chamber that the great issues of the Land Tenant System, Confederation, and all the other Issues, large and small, have been debated and the pattern of our laws moulded.

With this historic tradition flowing through this Chamber, it is with some bewilderment and awe that a new member takes his seat for the first time. But it is with even more hesitation that he rises to deliver his maiden speech, because he is reminded of the great political orators of the past, and the great parliamen-

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