MACKENZIE KING became a deputy minister only a short time after
he entered the civil service, and his duties changed greatly as his
experience increased. The later record fully confirmed the promise of
his early days. The Department of Labour (still under the Postmaster
General as Minister: Sir William Mulock until October, 1905; A. B.,
later Sir Allen, Aylesworth until June, 1906; and Rodolphe Lemieux
to August, 1911) expanded rapidly under King's guidance and its
position in the nation's economy became firmly established. Nor was
King's activity confined solely to departmental work. He showed a
noticeable willingness to step beyond the purely routine functions of
a deputy minister and he welcomed any additional tasks which the
Government might ask him to undertake. His gifts were even better
displayed here, perhaps, than in the Department; and the success
which followed these other efforts enhanced his reputation, not with
the public alone, but also with the Prime Minister and others with
whom he was associated. King could not, if he would, remain indiffer-
ent to this recognition. His political ambitions, as indicated in earlier
pages, were already strong; and every new success as Deputy Minister,
as a Royal Commissioner, as a representative on a quasi-diplomatic
mission, encouraged him to look ahead to the time when he would be
able to enter the halls of Parliament or even the Council chamber
itself.

Little need be added to the account given above of his conciliation
work, which continued to achieve remarkable success. Many disputes
arose, of course, where the Department was powerless because no
request for its intervention was made, but nevertheless forty-one inter-
ventions under the Conciliation Act occurred from 1900 to 1907. ¹ In
all but one or two of these cases (occasionally it is difficult to speak
with certainty) a settlement was effected through King's good offices.

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