Oil Pastel, Chalk Pastel, Graphite and Acrylic on 200 lb. Rag Paper

41” x 65”

( 106cm x 167cm)

2010

In Private Collection

“Sandy” Keith from Halifax Nova Scotia was the nephew of the brewer Alexander Keith and added the name Jr. to capitalize on the famous name even more. He had been a Confederate Army secret agent during the American Civil War where he and his friend Luke Blackburn came up with the infamous plot to send infected yellow fever blankets to the northern states to kill civilians and their army.  Later, his diabolical plan was also infamously carried out by the Government on some of the native population, killing hundreds at the hands of chemical weapons as a result.


Later, he swindled some well-to-do associates out of large sums of money. Forced to go on the run from his former friends, he married a German girl under an assumed name, one of many he used, and he and his wife lived the high life. Hobnobbing with Europe’s wealthy socialites under the alias William King Thomas (who makes up an alias with King in it) the couple eventually began to run out of money. He concocted yet another devious plot, this time blowing up passenger ships with dynamite hidden in shipping crates and then collecting on insurance claims. In reality all that was ever inside these packages he had aboard these ships was the dynamite that destroyed them and killed many in the process.


After carrying out this dastardly deed as many as 10 times, as well as being responsible for dozens of deaths, he watched the ships at a distance as his next package was being loaded aboard one that was docked in the harbour. But the explosion went off prematurely and this time he had seen his destruction first hand. He went directly to his fancy stateroom and unsuccessfully tried to kill himself with a shot to the head. He died in terrible pain a week later as arguably the worst mass murderer in Canada’s and possibly the world’s history.


1827-1875