EDWARD NICHOLAS HOPKINS. 


	Edward Nicholas Hopkins, the newly elected member of the Legisla-
tive Assembly of Saskatchewan on the Progressive ticket, has been a
leader in the agriculturist movement of this province for many years
and is widely known for his constructive work in behalf of the farming
and dairy interests. Coming to Saskatchewan as a homesteader in 1882,
he took up a tract of land eight miles west of Moose Jaw, which he pre-
empted and improved, bringing it under a high state of cultivation. On
this farm he lived for twenty-five years, during which he successfully
cultivated his land and came to be known as one of the progressive and
prosperous farmers of this part of the province.  As one of the "dirt
farmers" who have made the Canadian west one of the best agricultural
regions in the world Mr. Hopkins has always had a keen interest in all
the problems of his industry and in his own community has been among
the foremost in organizing to protect and advance the farmers' interests.
Thus he was one of the early members of the Grain Growers Association
and the second president of the association. After he retired from that
office, at the end of five years of continuous service he was elected hon-
orary president of the organization for life.  Mr. Hopkins was also a
pioneer in the movement to organize the dairy industry and as one of the
first presidents of the Dairymen's Association of the Northwest Territory
before the province was formed, he toured the country in an effort to
bring this society to the attention of farmers and cattle raisers every-
where. In recent years he has made his home in Moose Jaw, where he
has extensive property interests, but he has never given up his large
farm holdings and devotes much of his time and attention to their man-
agement. While he is a Progressive, politically speaking, and was elected
to the Dominion House of Commons on that ticket, on the 10th of April,
1923, Mr. Hopkins can be justly considered a spokesman for the agricul-
tural interests of his province and has a strong political following in
that industry.  He believes in taking into politics and government the
same open-minded willingness to adopt new methods that will promote
efficiency that he has shown in the operation of his farm. The criterion
by which he tests all public issues is the simple question, "Will this pro-
posal, if adopted, promote the prosperity and moral welfare of the people
of the province, or increase the efficiency of the governmental machinery?"
Judging by his past record, there is every reason to believe that in Mr.
Hopkins the people of this district have a representative who will con-
scientiously watch over their interests and lend his support to such legis-
lation as will materially promote their well-being.
	Mr. Hopkins is one of those successful men whom we call, for want
of a better term, "self-made." Judged either by the amount of wealth he
has accumulated or by his influence in the community, he must be placed
in the ranks of the few who stand out above their fellows in ability and
accomplishment. Yet he started out in life as a poor boy, with a limited
education. He was born in Oxford county, Ontario, in 1855, the son of
Benjamin and Margaret (Loucks) Hopkins.  Benjamin Hopkins was
born in Ireland and came to Canada with his father in 1843.  The pa-
ternal grandfather, James Hopkins, took up one hundred acres of land
in Ontario, cleared it of its primeval bush and improved it by degrees
until he had a fine, well cultivated farm. His son, the father of Edward
N. Hopkins, spent his entire life on the farm and became a leading citi-
zen of his neighborhood. A Conservative in politics, he was reeve of his
county for a quarter of a century, was warden for two terms and a con-
spicuous figure in building the roads and carrying out the other improve-
ments in his county. At one time he stood for election to the Provincial
Legislature as the Conservative candidate, but was defeated.  His re-
ligious faith was that of the Methodist church, in which he and his wife
were both active.  Margaret (Loucks) Hopkins was the daughter of
John Loucks, a native Pennsylvanian, whose father was one of the United
Enipire Loyalists who settled in Ontario in Revolutionary times. Mr. and
Mrs. Benjamin Hopkins became the parents of ten children, five of whom
are living today, Edward Nicholas being the third child.
	Brought up on the paternal farm, Edward Nicholas Hopkins obtained
his early education in the nearby rural schools and later took a com-
mercial course in London, Ontario.  He helped his father on the farm
until he was fourteen years old, when he engaged in the business of manu-
facturing cheese.  in 1882, when he was twenty-seven years old, the
young man came to western Canada and entered upon a career that has
proven an exceptional one in many respects.
	In 1889 Mr. Hopkins was married to Miss Minnie Latham, who was
born in England and there educated.  Two children have been born to
them: Margaret, the wife of Norman Bellamy, one of the most success-
ful of the younger Moose Jaw business men; and Edward Russell, who
is in school.  The family are affiliated with the Methodist church, of
which Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins are both active members, and formerly Mr.
Hopkins served on the board.

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