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André Pratte: Indeed, Laurier truly championed compromise: between English Canadians, French Canadians; between Protestants and Catholics.

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For him, compromise was the only possible path in a country so divided, in so many different ways.

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And he took… Laurier followed the example of Abraham Lincoln whom he admired greatly.

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In one of his most important letters, Lincoln was asked “Why do you not free all the slaves?

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” This was years before Laurier would become Prime Minister, several decades even.

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And Lincoln’s answer to one of his correspondents was: “My priority is to save the Union.

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If I could save the Union by freeing all the slaves, I would.

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If I could save the Union by freeing no slaves I would too.

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” Not because Lincoln felt that freeing the slaves was not important; but the first thing to do, including eventually freeing the slaves, was to maintain the American Union.

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For Laurier, the situation in Canada was similar.

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It was important to embrace principles and values of note, but it was also important to take into account opinions, different trains of thought, preconceptions, and even different regions.