MURDO CAMERON.
 

	The Municipal Associations seem to be a quick road to responsibility
as demonstrated by the fact that officers of these associations are, with
increasing frequency, being chosen as Members of the Legislature, Minis-
ters, Members of the Federal House and Premiers of provinces. Murdo
Cameron was president of the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Munici-
palities at the time he was appointed to the chairmanship of the newly
formed assessment commission of Saskatchewan.  Of his appointment a
contemporary writer has said:  "Mr. Cameron's position as a Reeve of
long standing, of a rural municipality bounding the city of Saskatoon and
very much interested in the subdivision problem, gives him an unusual
angle on the assessment and taxation difficulties of both urban and rural
municipalities.  .  .  .  Mr. Cameron has a long record of fighting beasts
at Ephesus behind him and enough victories over circumstances to give
him confidence in himself. He is taking over his new responsibilities with
gravity, it is true, but with courage and characterstic thoroughness and
concentration." He was appointed to his present position' in 1922 and has
proven to be the right man for the place.
	Murdo Cameron was born in Sutherland county, Scotland, on the 24th
of February, 1863, a son of John and Henrietta (McKay) Cameron, like-
wise natives of that county, where they spent their lives. Mr. Cameron
was engaged in road contracting and also operated an extensive sheep
farm. He was a man of liberal education. To the union of Mr. and Mrs.
Cameron seven children were born, four of whom are living, Murdo, whose
name introduces this review, being the seventh in order of birth. Mr. and
Mrs. Cameron were consistent members of the Free Presbyterian church
and he gave his political allegiance to the Liberal party.
	In the pursuit of his education Murdo Cameron attended the Free
church schools and was graduated from high school. He served as a pupil
teacher for four years and during that time completed his high school
work. He was tutor in an English family for some time and traveled on
the continent for three years.  For eighteen years he was in the civil
service and he left his position with this recommendation: "Mr. Cameron
resigned his position after eighteen years of good and faithful service."
In 1903 he came to Canada and located in Saskatoon. He acquired some
land in that vicinity and engaged in farming from 1903 to 1919. He still
owns two sections of land, one section near Saskatoon and the other near
Kerrobert. In 1922 he was appointed chairman of the assessment com-
mission of the province of Saskatchewan and has since been active in this
important capacity. As before stated membership in the Municipal Asso-
ciations seems to be but a stepping stone to public office and for years Mr.
Cameron was active in the associations. During his fairly long residence
in the west Mr. Cameron's shoulders have borne a number of public and
semi-public burdens and offices that would have been daunting to a man of
less stern fibre. Upon accepting his present position, however, he dropped
them all in order to be perfectly free of time and single of eye for the
immense task of his maturer years.  Among the bodies from which he
resigned was the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities. Of
the seventeen conventions of the association, Mr. Cameron has been present
at sixteen. For some years he was an active member of the executive com-
mittee, was elected vice president in 1915 and succeeding years and presi-
dent in 1921. He shared in the related Hail commission responsibilities
and was one of the moving spirits in the establishment and carrying out
of the commercial cooperative phase of the association known as the Sta-
tionery Supplies committee. And Mr. Cameron has likewise been a mem-
ber of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan, being a member of that
body from 1917 to 1921, elected by the Liberal party, of which he is a
stanch supporter.
	In Glasgow, Scotland, on the 17th of July, 1888, Mr. Cameron was mar-
ried to Miss Ellen Collins, a native of Oxford, England.  To them five
children have been born, four of whom are living: John Cameron is a
graduate of the University of Saskatchewan and is now in business in
San Diego, California; Thomas is engaged in farming near Saskatoon;
Charles Neil Cameron, M.A., Ph.D.~, is teaching in the University of Sas-
katchewan; Henry George, B.A., M.D., C.M., has just completed his medi-
cal study in McGill University and has been appointed on the staff (dem-
onstrator). All of the sons saw active service in the World war, three of
them serving in the Princess Pat Regiment, and two of them served four
and one-half years. John was severely wounded three times and Thomas
and George were both wounded twice.  The only girl in the Cameron
family, Ellen, died of influenza, contracted while nursing the sick.
	Mr. Cameron has ever held and lived up to a high ideal of public service
and he well deserves the position of prominence accorded him. He is a
combination of sound common sense and sudden droll humor and his
friends are legion. He is straightforward, fearless and constructive and
Regina is indeed fortunate in numbering him among her adopted sons
and representative citizens.






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