ARTHUR E. CHANT.
 




	Arthur E. Chant is the chief accountant in the government depart-
ment of telephones, with offices in the parliament building of Regina.
While the occupations of accountancy, bookkeeping and kindred employ-
ments are commonly supposed to be of a sedentary nature, offering little
variety from the monotonous columns of figures, in Mr. Chant's life
exactly the reverse has been the case. It is doubtful if any one in Regina,
or even in all western Canada, has traveled so extensively as has Mr.
Chant, or visited so many out-of-the-way corners of the world. He began
his travels at the extremely youthful age of eight, when he ran away to
sea as a stowaway on a brig out of Liverpool and since then has sailed the
seven seas and transacted business in almost every important country
of the world.
	Born in Dorsetshire, England, Arthur E. Chant is the eldest of the
four children of Walter and Mary (Moore) Chant, both of whom were
born in England, but the mother was of Irish descent. Walter Chant was
a master builder and erected churches all over the world, among them a
church edifice at Schenectady, New York, He was killed in Liverpool in
1885, by a fall from the top of a large warehouse. In Conservative poli-
tics he was a prominent figure and the head of the party in Liverpool
for years prior to his untimely death. The religious affiliations of the
family were with the Church of England. The mother lived until 1911
and is survived by two of her children.
	Arthur E. Chant spent most of his boyhood in Liverpool and was
educated in Liverpool College. Like most boys who have the good for-
tune to grow up in a big port where ships from all parts of the world
are unloading their fascinating cargoes, Mr. Chant's childish fancy was
captured by the seafaring life he saw all about him.  He managed to
escape parental vigilance long enough to stow himself away on the bark
Return, and was out at sea for twelve months on his first voyage. When
the runaway came home he was promptly sent back to school to complete
his interrupted education. Oddly enough, the little fellow was not daunted
by the hardships he must have suffered on board the bark, nor was the
romance taken out of ships and sailors. As soon as he was free to do
what he wished, Arthur Chant shipped on the bark John Lockett, bound
from Liverpool to South America, and sailed on this vessel for three
years, until the boat was smashed at sea.
	Some time after he reached Liverpool following the destruction of
his ship at sea, Mr. Chant became associated with Colonel North, the
"nitrate king," visiting Chile and Peru with him and making the trip
from England to South America and return several times during the two
and a half years of their relationship. His next situation was with the
concern of W. J. Lockets, the millionaire merchant of Liverpool, in whose
interests he traveled the world over. When he left that service at the
end of seven years, he was the accountant of the firm. From this mer-
cantile business Mr. Chant went to the old established firm, known in
both hemispheres, the West India Steamship Company, and was actively
engaged in its trade in the West Indies, Newport News, Ceylon and
Mexico. At this time the French were trying to cut the canal across the
Isthmus of Panama and Mr. Chant became connected with the construc-
tion work under the de Lesseps Company. While he was engaged in this
work he went back and forth across the isthmus on the railroad and
traveled up and down the coast to Colombia an~ other near-by Spanish-
American countries.
	Mr. Chant left the canal project in 1902 to come to Canada to install
the accounting system of the Canadian Pacific Railway at the time that
company bought the steamship line from Liverpool to Canada.  While
he was employed by the Canadian Pacific he went to Iceland to bring
immigrants from that country to the Dominion. He also conducted par-
ties of people coming here to study the conditions in the cattle raising
industry.  In 1908 he resigned his position to embark in business for
himself as a general merchant and to become, at the same time, the rep-
resentative of New South Wales and Victoria as immigration agent for
the people coming to Canada from the Antipodes.  This work necessi-
tated many trips from Canada to Liverpool and from Vancouver to
Australia. In fact, Mr. Chant has gone around the world three times.
The outbreak of the Great war in August of 1914 found him in Germany,
a very poor place for a British subject to be caught. After various ex-
citing adventures in trying to get away from Hamburg, he offered his
services to His Majesty's government and went to England, where he
carried on work for the government and looked after his own affairs as
best he could until June of 1916. His adventures were not over, however.
Setting sail from Liverpool on the Canadian Pacific liner, Mission Abbey,
he was aboard the ship when on Tuesday the 6th of June, 1916, she en-
countered and sank an enemy submarine.  The boat arrived safely in
Quebec on the 15th of the month, no doubt to the great relief of all on
board. The following year Mr. Chant entered the employ of the interna-
tionally known firm of chartered accountants, Marwick, Mitchell, Peat
& Company, as senior accountant in the Toronto branch. During the 
twoyears he remained with this concern he traveled extensively in North
America as the representative of the company in much important busi-
ness. When in the fall of 1919 the government of Saskatchewan required
the services of a first-class accountant in its department of telephones, it
applied to Marwick, Mitchell, Peat & Company to recommend a man
whom the firm could vouch for as being thoroughly competent.  Mr.
Chant was suggested as the right man for the place, with the result that
in October he arrived in Regina to take charge of the accounting in the
department of telephones. Later he was joined by Mrs. Chant and their
three children.
	In 1897 Mr. Chant was united in marriage to Celia Revell, daughter
of Ebenezer Revell of Liverpool, a well known government employee, be-
ing the superintendent of the board of trade in Liverpool for sixty years.
George Arthur, the oldest in the family of Mr. and Mrs. Chant, is now
twenty-four and is an accountant in the office of the attorney-general in
Regina; Frederick Revell, a young man of twenty-two, is employed in
the department of telephones in this city; while the youngest member of
the family is a daughter, twelve years of age, Celia Irene, who is now
attending school.
	The family is identified with the Anglican church. Mr. Chant is a
Mason and has been a member of the blue lodge for more than twenty
years. He is very fond of his home and family and takes an especial
pleasure in his garden, which he cares for himself, deriving much enjoy-
ment from spading and weeding out his flower beds and vegetable patch,
as well as gaining some wholesome exercise in the fresh air. While he
is not unmindful of the amenities of life and enjoys the pleasures of
friendly companionship as only one can who has had long exiles from
home and friends, Mr. Chant is not a clubman nor is he particularly
interested in clubs and societies. He devotes his best efforts to his work,
which he finds takes most of his time and attention. With the work of
thirty-four subordinates to direct, he carries a large responsibility and
feels that if he is to serve his government well he cannot dissipate his
energies. Therefore the department of telephones has greatly benefited
in the past four years as the result of his excellent work.


Bibliography follows: