The Final Chapter: George Butcher's books and papers fill his life...
but municipal officials say it's dangerous hoarding

IRWIN BLOCK
The Gazette Friday, January 26, 2007
CREDIT: JOHN MAHONEY, THE GAZETTE

George Butcher, 86, treads a path through stacks of books and papers that line the hallway of his downtown apartment. Tenants' rights activists are helping him get rid of the worst of the clutter.

His passion is books, and they fill every available corner of his compact 4 1/2 - except the bathroom. George Butcher's kitchen, bedrooms and hallways are stacked floor to ceiling with books covering every conceivable subject, especially art history, erotica and politics. These are the raw materials for a lifetime of research on an eventual book. One has to walk sideways to manoeuvre through the book-lined hallway to get into the apartment, off Cote des Neiges Rd. downtown, where Butcher has lived for 12 years.

It all came to a head this month when someone complained the huge number of books - Butcher, 86, says 15,000 is a fair estimate - was a hazard. On Jan. 11, a Ville Marie borough inspector ordered Butcher to leave "until further notice." At that point, tenants' rights activist Arnold Bennett intervened because Butcher was led to believe the evacuation order was tantamount to an eviction. "The way officials handled this is appalling," Bennett said this week.

Things cooled down somewhat on Wednesday, when a borough inspector allowed a social worker and officials from Bennett's Housing Hotline to help clear some of the books and newspapers. They were also given an extension on the evacuation if progress is made. Butcher, who was born in Seattle and has lived here as a dual citizen since 1967, is unapologetic about the mess. "These are the research materials for my book, which I have been working on since I visited India in 1949," Butcher said. The book is about erotica and politics, and seems to grow in scope the more he reads. That partly explains why there are so many books and materials in the apartment.

Another 100 boxes of books are stored elsewhere in the building, he said. There is no manuscript, yet, and there is no working title or thesis. "The book is on erotica and politics and a lot of other things. I have transgressed academic disciplines," Butcher said, recalling that he ran in the 1994 provincial election for the Canada! Party in Mount Royal riding. The broadening of his intellectual interest partly explains the growing mass of printed material. Asked point blank if he is obsessive, Butcher replied: "I am in this situation, because I am adapting to my available resources, financially. I wouldn't normally live this way if I had a choice."

Because of failing eyesight, Butcher can't read smaller print, so he has to make enlarged photocopies of some of the material so it's legible. Starting this week, Butcher is trying to get rid of what he called "dangerous piles of newspapers that I no longer need." Asked if he could survive without his books beside him, Butcher said categorically, "No, I'd rather be dead. My only purpose in life is to get my book written, and if I can't, I'd rather be dead now." He later softened that position when the Housing Hotline found a heated 1,000-square-foot loft in St. Henri for the same rent he is paying now, and close to a storage facility. Finally, Butcher relented, saying he prefers to stay where he is, but would move "if I have to."

iblock@thegazette.canwest.com © The Gazette (Montreal) 2007

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