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PROVINCIAL POLITICS.

1890.

REPORT OF THE SPEECHES

DELIVERED BY

HON. MR. MOWAT,

HON. GEO. W. ROSS,

MR. EVANTUREL, M.P.P. "

IN THE

LEGISLATIVE ASSEJWBLY.

APRII^ 3rci, 1890.

ON THE

Proposed iiiK^ndmoiits to I he School AH |n relation to

the iteo «ft' the rr«>nt'h Laiigua«fe iu the

Public idchouls.

Copies of this ^-pfech. mn be.had b^^ adJrtaidng^ B^.T.lJt '■f'-reoton
Secrelart^ l^ivvincial lietomi Aseo^Aation, Torovto.

• • • .

®orotit«> : |i

PRINTED BY HUxNTER, R03E & CO.

ISIM).

• •»^

« •-, •■■•,

' ».».♦»

FRENCH SCHOOLS.

sp^eech:

DELIVKUKD BY THE

HON. GEO. -W. ROSS,

m THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY,

APRIL 3rd, 1800,

IN REPLY TO AfRT.D. CRAIG, MEMBER FOR EAST

DURHAM.

The MiniateV of E<Jucatiori who rose at eleven o'clock amifl
hearty applause from his friends, be^^an his reply with the remark
that if the emiorsation which the hon. gentleman predicted for
his party were similar in character to that which he had received
from hia conatituonts, it would be quite satisfactory to this
side of the House. (Go/ernment cheers.) Mr. Rosa then pro-
ceeded to comment upon the importance of the ijuostion that had
been thrust upon the House last year and this by his hon. friend.
He had remarked last year, in reply to the hon. gentleman's stric-
tures, that composed as we were in Cana<la, of different races
and of different creeds, we should be careful not to arouse racial
ur creed differences which would imperil or di-sturb the harmony
of feeling that should exist in a 3'0uni( country like Canada. He
had emphasised this view and iiad endeavored to show that in
the history of Great Britain and the United States, and several
countries of Europe, they had abundant evidence that the way
to build up a national sentiment and to unify a people was to bo
kind and tolerant to all races and creeds that rec< gniised a common
Government. He held that view still. It was the view of the
Liberal party. He charged the hon. gentleman, intentionnlly or
otherwise — he did not know which — with fomentin'j the race
agitation that was at present disturbing the people of the coun-
try. Such an agitation was injurious to their well-being, and

wmm

4 FRENCH SOHOOLS.

the hon. gentleman's own constituents so fully recognised this
fact that they were not prepared to send hiiu back to the IIoumo
Again. (Cheers.) ^

BACE AN IMOSIIY A CALAMITY.

, He repeated that such a condition of things as the hon. gentle-
man would have brought about would be most calamitous to this
.young country. Just look at it. Canada was only 2'i or 24
years of age, and one-third of its population was of French oii-
«in. What would be the effect on the million and a quarter of
French people in Quebec, on the thousands of French people in
Nova Scotia/ New Brunswick and Manitoba, if the impression
went abroad that theio was anything like unkindness or unfair-
ness, or any want of magnanimity on the part of Ontario in deal-
ing with the race minority of the Province ? Such a condition
would be most disastrous from a national, and a ndigious
stantlpoint. It was impossible to deprecate too strongly the
views expressed by the hon. gen*^Ieman and by the press of his
party. It would be most injurious to us as a young people if
the discussions that went on from time to time in this Uouse
should have the effect — as he feared, they already had to some
extent — of creating religious and racial animasitios. Carlyle yaid
that " History is Philosophy teaching by experience." New let
us briefly review the history of this question.

HISTORY OF FUENCH SCHOOLS.

French schoools were established years ago in Essex, Pres-
cott and Russell. The founder of our school system had to do
with them as we had now. Everybody admitted the prudence
au'l foresight and statesmanship in educational matters of the
late Dr. Ryer.son. Hon. gentlemen opposite were as loud in
their eulogies of him as they were themselves. Did he deal
harshly with them ? Did he attempt to make Engli.sh the only
language in the schools? He gave them the fullest liberty
as to the langua'ro to be used in the schools and as to the
character of the teaching that should be permitted. He need
hanlly wait to point out how unfair it was for hon. gentlemen
opposite to direct their attacks against him for wliat he had
dotiH, without a word of censure on Dr. Ryers on during tho 30
years of his administration and withoufi a word of censure on
the four years' admitiistration of" John Sindheld Macdonald. He
would not wait to dilate upon that, but would simply remark

FflKNOH SCHOOLS. 5

that one of the ])eafc educators of the Continent — a man whose
famo had crossed the seas — a man of eminent ability and fore-
thought had permitted this system to grow up without eny
of the jestrictiona as to teachers, and text- books, and language,
such as he had imposed. Dr. Ryerson had applied the same
rule to German Schools as to French. His expectations were •
that the two races, surrounded as they WDuld be by an over-
wliehning English majority, would become Anglicised by English
teachers and English institutions, and that in this way a social
revolution would take place, v/ithout any iriitation or agitation
whatfeoever. Dr. Ryerson was wise in his time. Early in the
history of Waterloo county there were nearly 100 schools in which
German only ' as taught, and a large number of schools in Pres-
cott and Russell in which French only was taught. The rovolu-
tion whii^h Dr. Ryei-son desired had been aceoniplishod so far as
German Sciiools were concerned.

RESULT OF DR. RY'-llSONS POLICY.

When he (Mr. Roi^s) came to deal with this question he found
there were no German schools in which English was not taught,
and only twenty-seven French schools in which there was no Eng-
lish taught. It was evident, therefore, that by Dr. Ryerson's calm
and peaceable policy the schools were becoming anglicised.
Now, this was true philosophy — it was the teaching of experi-
ence in Canada, and it was the teaching of experience else-
where. Could his hon. friend say that the measure now pcoposed
to the House would have brought about a better state of thing's
than the silent growth resulting from social surroundings to which
Dr. Ryerson trusted so much. As a philosopher, — if the hon,
gentleman is a philosopher, — he will admit that the strongest
force in national growth is that which works gradually and Irom
within. There is a genius of action as well as a genius of waiting,
and the genius of waiting is the rarer gift. ])r. Ryerson had this
genius ; he had the courage to wait and he lived to see a social
revolution brought about without irritation or disatiection just
because he had the courHgo to trust to the natural effect of the
Anglo-Saxon institutions whidi surrounded the French and Ger-
man people in Ontario. (Cheers.)

SHIRKING THE RESPONSIBILITY.

His hon. friend was very anxious to impress upon the House
that he did not desire to raise a race cry. Was his hon. friend

6 FREN'CH SCrtOOLS.

sure that ho had not laiscJ a race cry already ? Was l)o siiro that
hiH Hpeech last year was not irrit-atinpand disturbing? (Hear, hear.)
If he road the papers he would find that it was regarded hy the
French people an an atuck upon their language, and he was sure
the hon. gentleman would regret some day that he had made that
speech and had projected in this country such a disturbing elerhent.
His hon. friend had said tluit the time given for the study of Eng-
lish in the schools of Prescott and Russell was not sutticient, and
states that six hours a week was the time prescribed by the regu-
lations. The hon, gentleman is quite mistaken as to the time
recommended to be devoted to the study of English. In the in-
structions to the teachers of French schools issued in Sept., 1885,
it was distinctly stated that at least two hours per week should be
given to classes 1 and 11, and four hours per week to classes 111
and IV, or twelve hours per week in all, and that circular was in
the collection of papers he had on the desk in front of him. His
hon. friend in his Bill proposed to allow one hour a day for the
teaching of French. What evidence had the hon. gentleman that
one hour was not too much in some crises and so limited a time
in other cases as to be utterly useless ? Could an arbitrary rule
such as he proposed, be drawn successfully ? He thought not. The
instructions sent out by the Department in October last contakied
the only directions that a man with any pretensions to be an
educator would adopt in de.iling with this question. They said
in effect that the teachers should be governed by the cucumstan-
ces of the school. There might be circumstances under which
half an hour would be sufficient ; but the matter was one that
might very well be left to the trustees. (Cheers.)

Bi-Hiujual Headers.

There was one other matter to which he wished to refer before
dealing with the Bill of his hon. friend, and that was the policy
of the Government with respect to the Bi-lingual Readers. The
leader of the Opposition in his London speech declared himself
oppo-sed to Bi-lingual Readers on the ground tliat their use
would tend to perpetuate the French language. His hon. friend
froiu East Durham, however, had said nothing with refer-
ence to that. The poli2y of the Government with regard to
the use of Bi-lingual text-books had the highest sanction that a
policy could have. Take for example the case of Wales. It
had long been a grievance there that the children were un-
able to study Welsh in the elementary schools f the extent
desired. The matter was inquired into by a Royal Commission,

FREKCH SCHOOLS. 7

who reported upoH the subject last year, recoraaienditig the use
of Bi -lingual readora in Wales. That Commission consisted of
many distinguished men — Lord Cross, Lord Harrowby, Lord
North brook, Sir John Lubbock, Canon Gregory, Canon Smith,
Cardinal Manning, the Bishop of Ix)ndon, Dr. Dale, and others.
In the code adopted by the Education Department in 1881), Bi-
lingual readers vere recomra^mdod for Weluh schools. He had
therefore the sanction of the British Royal Commission for his
policy and also the smiction of the Education I)opartment of
Great Britain.

POLICY IN GREAT nRITAIN.

before
policy
The
limsolf
eir use
friend
refer-
Bravd to
that a
les. It
ere un-
extent
lission,

The Scotch code of 1888 allows one shilling extra t6 be ))aid for
every pupil in the elementary Reader who is partly taught
by Gaolio teachers, and further, it allows Gaelic to be taught
dunng the ordinary school hours cither by the regular teachers
or any person Hficciall}' employed for the pur^pose. The code also
provides for an examination of teachers' in Gaelic reading,
translation and composition.

The Commissioners on National Education in Ireland have
authorised for the use of Irish schools a series of Bi-lingual
Readers. From the annual report of 1888-9 of the Society for
the Preservation of the Irish Language, it appears Irish was
taught in 41 schools. Teachers are also subjected in certain cases
to an examination in Irish-Gaelic, and an extra allowance is
made by the Govern iiient for the pupils who pass a .satisfactory
examination in Irish. It will be seen, therefore, that the British
Govt'mment, which has had some experience in forming a
national character, so far from prohibiting the use of Welsh,
Gaelic or Irish, rather encourages the study of these languages;
and there was no complaint made, so far as he knew, because
public funds were emploj'ed for this purpose. Surely the honor-
,able gentleman is loyal enough to admit that the example of
Great Britain i? a reasonably safe example to follow.

POLICY IN THE UNITED STATES.

Then what do we gather from the United States ' In order
that there might be no doubt as to the policy of the Americans
on this vexed question, he communicated with Mr. W. T. Harris,
Chief of the Bureau of Education at Washington, from whose
letter under date of February 8th, with the permission of the
House, he would make a few quotations :

rilENCH 8CBOOL8.

Department of the iuterior,
Bl'kiuu or EbuuATUH, Wamuikutok, O. 0.,

February 8, 1890.

Jlon. Otorge W. Hobs, MmuUr of Education, Torontu, Gatuuia.'

My Dkak Sia,--I havo the honor to acknowledge thu receipt uf your lette
of the 2Uth ult., in vrbich ynu re']uett to be furnished a " itatHinent abdW-
ing the various States uf the Union in which any other language (and what)
than Kiiglish is alluwod by the luw of the tSlute or by usage to be taught in
any of the elementary schools."

Tu enable me to auswor respecting State laws, I have caused an examina-
tion to bu made, and find that there is no legal provision, either prohibitive
oT permissive, of foreign languagfs in Aluhama, Arkansas, Gunnectiout, Dela-
ware, Florida, Qeorgia, luwa, Louioiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mii-
sisnippi, MissoDiri, Nebraska, Nevada, iSew JBami>shire, JSew York, North
' Carolina, Oregon, Rhode IdancJ, and Vermont.

The law expressly requires that the schools be taught in the Bnglish
language in California, Colorado, Indiana, and Kansas.
Several States have special provisions, viz. :

Indiana. — German shnU be introduced as a course of study In any schools
where tlio parents of 25 or more pupils demand it.

Euutuoky. — In any district wnere one-third of the pupils are children of
other than English-speaking parents, their respective lurfguages may be added
to the course oF study.

Maryland. — VVhore there is a conf-iderable German population, school oom-
missioiiers may cauRC German to be taught.

Ohio. — The School Hi>Rrd of any district shall cause the German language
to be taught when a demand is made in writing by 75 resident freeholders
representing -10 pupils.

With your permission I will add here the substance of a letter which I
wrote on January 3rd to Mr. H. E. Clark, a member of your Legislature, in
reference to permitting instruction in a foreign language in the Public
Schools. I said :

*' It u a snbjuot on which I have decided convictions and much expedi-
ence. It ia the question of assimilating in the best manner a foreign elemefft
found in the community, either as the remnant of a once conquered people,
Uke your Canadian French, or the residuum of a wave of immigration like
tho German population in our ^Northwestern States.

" I am decidedly in favor of a plan that has proved equal to the emer-
gency in our Northvvoat. I inaugurated it in St. Louis, Mo. I gave instruc-
tion in the writing and speaking m ihe German language one lesson a day to
all German pupils and to all Antrlo-American pupils who desired to learn
German. This provision was carried out in all schools where there were
enough pupils to w.-\rrant the appointment of a teacher for a half or for a
whole day. (By the word 'school.' as technicilly understood by ns, is
meant an organization under one head teacher assisted by from one to thirty
assistant teachers, and having from one hundred to fifteen hundred pupils or
more.) The result in St. Louis was to bring all German children into the
Public Schools, and to break up entirely the private schools which had ex-
isted before. M my Anj/lo-American children availed themselves of the
opportunity to learn Gorman. A great advantage was found in thia in the

FRENCH 8CH001-S. 9

fact tiiat tho foiling of caste was rapidly obliterated by tho niiituaJ reapoct
vn^eiidorod amonK the pupils by uarncKt ctt'urts to Kiarn coch the other's
native laii(;uage.

*' I have no qiinstioti that this is a policy that vrould have tbe same results
ill the Ficnch proviuoe in Canada. Tench them good Parisun French, and
at the earuu tiuiu f' qinro thoin to learn the majority of their luasons in Kiw*
linli, and the results would be ioon to have an entire population of Hu^luk-
ape u king people.

*' Very rtispeotfuUy, your obedient servant,

" W. T. liAnKlM, CummUsiomr,"

This is tho experienco of one of the l)e«t edurntora in the
I7nit<'d Statt'H and who was Hclected by Fiesidcr '-farrison for
the highest educational position in the gift in tlie /Veruraent.

TUK UKllMAM LANtJUAOiil.

On the s£. fv ;ubject Dr. Peaslee, late superinU-ndo- of Public
Schools in Cincinnati ia answer to liie objection Ji.x the stud/
of Genuan should nc i be allowed, savs :

'* But,'* It Is said, " this is America, and therefore, ihe Eiiglish langu /<*
only should be taught in tho Public Schools ; teaching the (lornian la'iL'Uage
tendA to make our citizens Ifsn patriotic, less American. ' " Are," 1 atk. *'Gea-
Curl ScliufB, Gen. Frank Si^el, and the tens of thousiiiids of other Cn<rniarui
who fought in the Union Army, in tho last war, any loss true Ainericau cit-
izens, any less pit riotic, bvcauae they \\«re educated lu the Germai. UTipruet
\re our Geruian fellow-citiz-na any len y^atriotio than the Biigliah whose
mother toiivue ia that of our country, are the (Germans in their native coun-
try, aie the Germans in their native land any le»B devoted to the institutiona
of Germauy, because tho French language is tau^ht in thousaixhi of their
schools 2 " Mo one, I ttiink, would answer these qutstions in the affirma-
tive. And until they can be »o answered it is idle to say, that a knowledge
of, or the teaching of Gixman or any other foreign lan;j:uagQ, is adverse to
patriotism. The truth is, that our German ft'llow-ci'izons are noted foi^
their attachment to the free institutions of America, and are among our most
patriotic citizens, as a class much more so than the Kngltsh."

THE FRENCU LANUUAaE.

Even French is permitted a place in the United States. The
Legislature of Louisiana at ita session in 1888 provided by Aet
No. 81,

"that the elemenfary branches may be taught in the French lan^ua^e ia
those parishes in the State or localities in i^jiid parishes whnre the French
language predominates, if ro additional expeii'^e is incurred."

Will the hon. gentleman contend that these American States
are entirely wrong in their educational policy ? He will surel/

r?vrM?«?I r

FKIiNOH SCHOOLS.

admit that the Americans are a progressive and far se*^lng people
and that in the last hundred years they have made gigantic
strides as a nation. How did thoy assimilate the millions of Ger-
man, French and Italian immi^jrants that settled within their
borders during the present century? Was it by arbitrary legis-
lation such as is advocated in certain quarters in this Province,
or did they trust to the assimilating powers .of the dominant race ?
(Cueers.)

POLICY IN EASTERN' PROVINCES.

Then we have the example of other Provinces of the Domin-
ion : — In Now Brunsk.vick the Bi-lingual Readers, which wo
have just authorised are used by 287 schools ; in Nova Scotia
by 73, and in P. E. 1. by 33, and their use is recomme'^ded by some
of the most prominent educationists in Manitoba. With sucli
weighty precedents he (Mr. Ross) could not be far astray in re-
commending the introduction of the Bi-lingual Readers into the 98
schools in Ontario where the French language is spoken. Then,
what is the situation in the Protestant English schools of Mont-
real ? There the French language is compulsory in every form.
On the 0th Sept, 1889, E. W, Arthy, Soc. of the JProtestant Board
•of Commissioners, wrote him as follows : —

"The study of French is compulsory in every Department of the Protea-
■" tant Public Schools of Montreal, except the preparatory classes of the
" Common Schools, which consist of infants G au<\ 7 yeara old — who attend
"half the day only. No French is taught in these classes, but in all higher
" classes French is taught and the study is compulsory."

What an example of tolerance and good sense is here presented
to the hon. gentleman. The Protestant minority living in the
midst of a French and Catliolic community have such perfect
confidence in the English language that they are not afraid of
its being di.«;placfd even if their children do acquire a thorough
mastery of French. (Cheers.)

ACTION BY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT.

It became liis duty as soon as ho took oifice to ask the House
to consolidate the School Act and Regulations, and in dealing
with the latter he ])ropo8ed that English should be taught in
<iveTy school in Ontario, The words of the regulations are as fol-
lows : —

"The programme of studies herein provided shall be followed by fha
toachcr as far as the circumstances of his school permit. Any modifications

FRENCH SCHOOLS.

g people
gigantic
1 of Ger-
ia their
7 legis-
*rovince,
nt race ?

Domin-
hich we
a Scotia
by some
ith such
7 in re-
o the 98
Then,
if Mont-
ry form,
t Board

e Pro tea -
)8 of the
ho attend
11 higher

resented
\ in the
perfect
Praid of
borough

e House

dealing

Light in

e as fol-

1 by the
ifications

-deemed iicceasary should bo made only with the concurrence of the inspector
and trustees. In French and German Schools tJm authorized Headers shixiUd
he used in addition to any text boolcs in either of the languages aforesaid."

His hon. friend had said so many censorious things that one
would have thought he had been living upon sour grapes during
his absence last summer from Canada. He had nothing but
bitter words for the government, the Attorney- General, anc^ for
himself (Mr. Ross). lie was not magnanimous enough to spend
one moment in paying him a single compliment for making Eng-
lish compulsory in all the schools of Onturio. Why this want of
generosit)' ; surely it cannot be necessary for purely party pur-
poses to be ungenerous towards an opponent. What is the hon,
gentleman to gain by declining to recognize what the country
knows to be the case, what every member of this House knows
to be the fact, that he (Mr. Ross) was the first to make the study
of English in every school the unmistakable policy of the Educa-
tion Department. In the face of such conduct on the part of
the hon. gentleman, he must not be surprised if he is told he is
not the exponent of a broad policy, but is the representative of
parti7.auship and intolerance in its most contemptrble form. The
hon. gentleman says that the regulations of the Education De-
partment are inoperative, are disregarded and wotild be disre-
garded in the future. Wliat justifieition has he for the state-
ment i Does not the correspond L'nce before the House show that
the number of schools in which English was not taught is steadily
decreasing since 1H85, the date of the regulations ? that while in
I8S7 there were 27 departments in which no English was taught,
in 1888 there were only 6, and in 1889 English was taught in
overy school. What did the Commissioners say on this iwint ?
Aftor having visited every school in which French was taught in
Prescott and Russell, they say : —

I. That some Eugliah is taught in every Bchooi.

II. That the Ontario Headers ha/e been introduced into every scbool.

III. Tnat the pupils are usually well supplied with English reading books.

IV. That in at least twelve schools the work done in English is much be-
ycnd the amount prescribed.

V. That in 24 sohooU n>ore time is (liven to English than that prescribed
ia the circular; in (> '.he time preacribul is given, and in 28 less th m the time
prescribed is given.

VI. That in very few schools has sufF.clent attention been given to collo-
quial exercises.

MISTATEMKNT COKllECTED.

The hon. gentleman argues on the assumption that he (Mr.
Ro&«i) had sail that every pupil was learning English and learil-

FREN'CH SCHOOLS.

ing it thorouglily. He never made such a statement. He wn-»j
aware that English was not tauo;ht to every pupil. He was not
aware noi* had he assumed that English was well taught in every]
instance. The words he used on that occasion were : —

"It is not to bo assumed that English is aa well taaght in the BchoyiB of]
Eastern Ontario aa in some of the older counties. Due allowance must U-
made for local conditions in considering a matter of this kind. Jn fact, in a
Province extondiug over an area so great, no fair comparison can be madt I
at least between counties remote from each other.- There are poor school:
fven in i!;g <)lder counties; there are poor schools in the northern parts (<)
the counties of Frontenac, Hastings, Haliburton, &c,, etc., and to say thin
some of the schools in Prescott and Rus'^ell are in a backward condition is!
merely to assert what perhaps may be said of many schools iu the county O"
York, or Miidleaex, or O-^iford."

It had become the practice of hon. gentlemen on the opposit..
side of the House to quote very largely from newspapers. Theiv
were a great many reports last year as to the condition of thf
schools in Prescott and Russell. They had reports from the Mail
and the Telegravn,, and there was some uncertainty as to the true
condition of affairs, and he felt it was desirable, in the lace ot
so many conflicting statements, that he should know authorita
tively how matters stood. The hon. gentleman said they were
compelled to appoint a Commission to inquire into the condition
of the Prescott and Russell schools. The hon. gentleman never
nude a greater mistai:o. They were compelled by their sense o!
dut}^ by their desire to ascertain the truth, just as they had ap-
pointed Commissioners to inquire .into other matters. They wer*.
anxious that there should be no doubt as to the true facts in the
case and the Commission was appointed accordingly.

HIGH CHABACTEll OF COMMISSION.

The Commission consisted of Rev. Prof. Reynar, of Victoria
College ; the Rev. D. D. McLeod, of Barrie, and Mr. J. J, Tiiiey,
men of the highest standing in their various walks in life — and
men who could not be approached with a view to induencin«^
their judgment and he ventured to say they had not prepared u
partial or »mesided report. The hon. gentleinan ssays — reiteral
ing a statement made by the Leader of the Opposition in his Lon
don speech, — th-t the Commissioners were very anxious to shield
the Minister of Education.

What right has the hon. gentleman to impugn the character ol
these Commissioners ? Two of them are leading men in their
respective denominations, one a Methodist and one"a Presbyterian.

iil

FRENCH SCHOOLS.

He wtJ
I« was not

it in every

10 flchugis of I
!co iniiHt be
u fact, in aj
n be mail(
I>oor schools
ern parts of I
to say thai j
condition is
le county o

opposite
ra. Thei.
ion of th.
the Mail
o the tru<
;he face oi
aiUborita
ttiey weit
i conditio!)
mnn nevci
ir sense o(
jy lud ap-
rhey wer x
lets in tho

Vietorit;
J. Tiliey,
life — and
iHuendn*;
prepared m
— reiterat
a his Lon
» to shield

[They were selected because of their experience, education and
[their high standing as citizens. Bepause tliey did their duty,
[because their report contained the facts as they found tliem and

because these facts did not serve the purpose of the hon. gentie-
itleraan, he is unkind enough to intimate that they were partial
I jind unfair and tried to sliield the Minister of Education. The
! opinion which he seems to have formed of their report is at vari-
fance with the one formed by competent judges elsewhere. For

instance :

The Ca)wdian Baptint said "This evidently impartial report, while it does
not perhaps add largely to the infonuaiion already p )38e88od by those who
havo followed up tho discussiou in the Legislature and in the press, will be
of great service as tjivinc;, in cmcise form, a reliable basis for iufereuoe and
uotion. Most unprejudiced persons will, we think, agree that the recom-
niendationa of the couiinissiun are mninently judicious. They include about
all the action timi< seems neot^'saary and desirable."

The Caiiuduin Prenhyleriau said, " As was to be expected from men of
their churaoter and standing, they did their work with diligdiico, th' rough-
ness aud impartiality. Their report has just been issued and it is strictly
correct to say that it ia untin^ed by political coloring. Tne report is valu-
[.uble because it presents a clear and unbiu8.std Btatement of the actual state of
ait'airs iu iheae schools domiuaied, as ilioy largely an-, by French Roman
Oatuolic influences ; i^. will aho, doubtless, lead to tho adaption of thw cor-
rections ueoessary to preserve the integrity and usefulness of the Public
Scho'il system in Ontario."

77<« trti>b[iier'\an htxitw said, "With the refort we are much pleased. It
is full, onrelul'y prepitred and clear. '1 he CininiiPBioners have den** their
woik well, Hud we are happy to a^ree to the recoiiiinendatious they make."

Thi-, I hruttian Ouarduin said, " As fur as wo can jtidue, the Oommissioners
have dont* their work with great thorcut:} ntes and fuirnese "

The I'vrinito Mail said, •' On tiie wholo the Corjimihsioners appear to
"have d<»ne their work thornuyhly and conscientiously." ,

T/ie o^^awa C'i/ia^n (Tory) said, "It was hinted in some quarters that the
'* lep- rt ot the Ctiniuiissioiitrs aj'poiiited by the OntaTio Depariment of Ed-
" n Cation to investigate the condition of the Public Schools of the Province
''in Connies wheie the Freiich-Cnnadian itfiulation ia ntimerous would
i'l)r'>ve a nhitewatihinu one, and that the oljtot aimed at wouhi not be
'.'attained; but a careful eX>imiiiation of the report, biitfly summarized
.' in ye8terda>'8 Citiztn, shows that the C 'mmiseioiiera performed th© duty
• 'a-ioigutd to them in a most caieful and thorough manner."

The hon. gentleman claimed that a Conservative should have
been on the Coininis-^ion. Why ? Did the hon. gentleman serious-
ly CDiitetid that the truth was only to bo obtaineil from Conserva-
tives ? (Uear, hear.)

FKFNCH AND GEllMAN SCHOOLS.

aractof ol BTho hon. gentleman bronoht him to ti«k for havinir said in his

in their Hiipuecli iu i'orouto la^t June, that the German schools were pre-

Jbyterian, ^

FRENCU SCHOOLS.

oiaely in the same condition as the French schools, and in answer to
this invention of his own brain, ho quotes from the report of
the Oommifisi'oners to show that there was no similarity in
the condition of the two schools. What led him to this con-
cJu.'ion no one could tell. The words used by him (Mr. iloss;
on that occasion were —

•'I come next to consider that most disturbing of all questions — Frencl*
"and (lerman schools — and I bracket these two because every oLjectiou
"that applies to one applies to tlje other. From an Anglo-Saxon sland-
" point they ire both foreign lan|(uages, and national charucteriativ:^ have
"very little to do with the question."

lie was then discussing the French and Geitnan schools from a
racial stauJpoint. He argued that if French was a foreign lan-
guage so was German, ana that Anglo-Saxonizing was as much a
necessity in the one case as the other. He was discussing the
question whether under certain circumstances it was not desir-
able and proper that French should be used as a language of in-
struction in addition to English, so as to teach the French chil-
dren English through French, just as German children would be
taught English through German. From a national standpoint
they were in the same position. It was natural that the French
child who learned French should bo taught English through the
medium of that language, just as a German or Gaelic child
should 1)0 taught English through the instrumentality of hist
native language.

MK. CRAIG'S plagiarism.

He came now particularly to the Bill introduced by the hon.
gentleman, and first he would mentiim that every clause in it
which IS of any value Wfis stolen fiom the regulations of the
Education Department, and those that were not so stolen were
worse than useless. By the first section of his Bill he declares
tliat Engli.'^h shall be the language of e\(iry Public and Separate
School in tliis Province. Where did he get this section? As
everybody knows, he got this from the Regulations ot August,
1885, amplified by the Jlogulations of the 10th of February last
as follows : —

■*(I'^) It shall be the duty of the teacher to conduct evrcry exercise and
recitation 'rum tlje t<rxtbo<.kf* prescribed tor I'ublio Schoo'H, in the English
layuiiat^e, and all cnrnmni i ;atuiii between teaclu r and pupil in regard to
matters of (iitoiplino and m tiie nianaj^emont of the schocd shall he in
Eujjlish, except so far as this is iuipracicable by rea-^ou of the pupil not
understjinding Ennliah. IlMcitatinna in French or German may be conducted
in the language of the text-book."

FRENCH SCHOOLS.

mswer to
report of
lanty in
thi.s con-
Mr. iloss;

as — Frencli
y objection
ixon Bland-
rutics have

ols froni a
)reign 1 an-
as much a
jussin^ the
3 not desir-
aage of in-
reach chil-
n would be
standpoint
the French
[lirough the
aelic chiW
ity of hit?

by the hon.

ause in it
Lioiid of the
stolen were

he declareti
,nd Separate
ection ? As
s ol August,
cbruaiy last

exerciBe aiiJ

n the English

il m regard to

ahall tQ in

the pupil not

y be conducted

By (jec. 3 of his bill he provides that no teacher is to be employed

permitted to teach unless he is capable of speaking the Eng-

, hianguago. Another case of petty larceny, as the following

Bgulation of the Education Department passed in l^h5 provided

an examination in English and covers the same ground.

|155. In addition to the examination conducted in the French or the Qer-
111 language, ever]^ candidate for a teacher's certificate bhall be required to
hs such examinations in English grammar and in translattoa from French.
[German into English, as may be prescribed by the Ri)ard of Examiners.

By sec. 4 of his bill the teacher may use any language under-
)od by the pupils in imparting instruction in all cases where
pupils do not understand English. This section was also
i]en from the Regulations of the Department, and is strangely
[variance with the statement made by the hou. gentleman last

ir.

)n the 9th of March, 1889, as reported by the Empire, he
[r. Craig) said : —

I* Ho had shown that the situation was a very serious one. Were they wil-

ig to have two languai^es in this Province ? In the Public Schools of

)ntario, if such were not the desire of the people, the Englinh lant,'uage

hj should be taught." ***** "He did not wish to speak a

roid against the French language, bat as this was essentially an Ensclish

Deaking Province, they could ojily have one languaije in their Publio

jhools. That was the great proposition whioii he wished to l«y down."

mt has become of the GREAT proposition laid down by the hon.
itleman last year ? It. has vanished into thin air,
5y sec. 6, the teacher who violated the provisions of the hon.
itienian's bill, should it become law, is to be dismissed appar-
^ly without .]^<^gf<^ or jury. This clause was not stolen from the
hilationsof the Department. By sec. 7 the use of French is to
|allowed for one hour per day until Parliament enacts other-
^0, So we are going to postpone the great panacea of the hou.
^tleman for making us a united people until Parliament gets
(ly. Why such procrastination. By sec. 8 the privilege of using
French language in the instruction of pupils who know no Eng-
i.H to be withdrawn absolutely, in case the provisions of the
gentleman's bill are wilfully violated. If a teacher violated
section the children would be deprived of instruction in
Inch altogether, and consequently would not be taught at all.
would visit upon the heads of the children, not the sins of
ir fathers — that would bo according to Scripture — but the sins
ihe Board of Trustees. 8uch a measure could not be passed

rzmimamBm

1«

FRBKCH SCHOOLS.

through any legislative body anywhere, not even in Japan. (Ap.
plause.) One serious omission in the bill, in spite of all the stolen
sectionij it contained, was that it made no provi«ioa for the
training of teachers in English. This omission he reQfarJed nsj
fundamental. The Commissioners stron'jly rec<»m mended the
establishment of a training school for French tejichers. Howl
were we to introduce English into the schools, except through th«
medium of teachers qualified to use it properly in the school-
room ?

BILL MUST BE REJECTED.

He asked the House to reject, the second reading of the
Bill, and i\» so doing he hoped that the la^t had l)t.en ho»iid
of this question. It' they were going to keep before their
minds the purpose of those who founded ConCederatioM, it I
would not do to have the public agitated by discus-inns
that f( stered a cleavage between French and English. The
French had been as loyal to Canada as any other pni t.oii of tho
population. They hud defended it against attack frtj i within
and without, and we had a right to respect their language and
even their prejudices, for were they not our own kith and kin?
If they would build up here a great nation they must look be-
yond the narrow horizon of a school secunn, or of a few counties,
or even be^'on 1 the horizcm of the Dommion itself, and the further I
they looked the more thiy found the policy of the Government
sustained by the great countries of the woild. It was that policy
which had helped to make England the mistress of the seas,
which had enabled Switzorhind for centuries Lo maintain hLT>elt'
in her Alpine retreat, and which had helped Germany and Austria, I
ra spite of internal strife and conflicts with other nations, to bo-|
come- two of the great Powers of Europe. Such a p"licy, too.
would lielp to build up a great nation in Ontario and in Canada. ]
(Applause.)

Ak'. Meredith replied to the Minister of Education and was|
follo^ved by the Attorney-General : —

TUE ATTORNEV-GENERAL

The Attorney-Gonrral, on ruins? shoitly before two o'oloclc, yrxt ^(Sfh*d\
urUh louii cheers. He said that at that lute hour it wonld not b« beooiui i J
on his part to occupy the attention of the D[i»UBe very long, nor did thtif
Bpeech of hia hon. friend, heated although it was and excited, aitd iajpas-'
sioned aa its delivery no doubt was, contain much that r» quired an answer, ,
It was absurd for the leader of the Opposition to say that the G iveru'iient
did not desire the French population to learn English. If his hon. trienJ

FRENCH SCHOOLS.

m. (Ap.
ihe sullen
, for the
GfarJed as I
iided the
ra. How j
roufjh tho
be bcliool-

g of the
•en hoard I
fore their
ratioM, itl
ii.scua-ir»ns
ish. The
ou of tho
i 1 within
,aago and

and kin I
b look be-
T coun'.ios, I
,he f lU'r.her
)vernm(!nt
hat policy

the aeas, i
lin hLTnoll I
ui Austria,
ons, to bc-
edicy, too.
.a Canada.

I and waal

bo btsuoiui ii{|
nor did the]
and ioipas-
1 Hii answtr,
G ivern'iiedll
I hoD. iriunJ

really aeriously meant any luob statement as that he muat be pretty nearly
lij'proaching abaolute idiocy. (Oheers and laughter.) Hifl hon. friend waa
not in that poaition — he knew very well bow the matter roally waa, but he
thought just now it waj in the interest of hia party to represent things as
being difl'erent to what they were. The Government were as anxioua as he
was to see their French fellow-snbjocts speak the English language; but the
difficulty was how to bring about that result. The plan propos. u by his hon. •
friend waa a very bad one, and if carried into efl'ect, not more EngUsh would
be loamed, but less. The Government wanted English to be learned by the
Fnnch portion of the population, but they wanted them also to be friends.
Nothing could be gained by proscribing the French language in the achoola,
but a great deal waa to be gained if they recognised to a certain extent the
use ol' that language in the schools. The French population contributed to
tho support of the schools, and the object sought could be secured a thona-
and times more effectually by respecting their prejudices, by respecting their
love for their language^ by respecting their desire that their children should
bo tAu^'ht their own tongue, than by adopting a coercive policy. (Cheers.)
He wanted the French children to learn their langutige, to study their lan-
guage, to read books in their language, and he wanted them all to study the
lati^;uage and literature of England. Ilis hon. friend had said that ho could
not imagine what the policy of the Government was, and challenged him (the
Attorney- General) to tell him their policy. The hon. gentleman couli be
, very obtuse when he wanted to be obtuse. The Minister of Education had
I already appealed to the '* Instructions for Teachers " for the purpose of show-
ling what their policy was. The member for London had read those instruc-
[ tiuna, and after reading them it vi as absurd for him to pretend that he did
not know what the policy of tho Government was. The hon. the Attorney-
Guneral then went through the instructions seriatim as regards the use of
I French in the schools and the directions for the teaching of Eaglish, point-
ling out that the French children were not to study French only but to study
[English also. The policy of the Government was to have English taught in
[the schools, and to adopt the best methods of teaching it and the best
n)et}iods of educationists elsewhere had been adopted. There no doubt was
[in some counties a scarcity of teachers qualiBed to teach English, and the
Government wanted to remove that state of things as speedily as possible.
Tho Government recogni8«d the necessit^y for doing something, and were
Itaking steps to provide teachers where that scarcity existed. The Govern-
^neut were anxious to have children thoroughly trained in English, and with
that object in view they were adopting the methods that experience had
:'roved to be the best. The object aimed at could never be accomplished by
exhibiting s. spirit of hostility tc the French population— certainly nqt by
jrosoribing the use of French in the schooh. The Attorney-General quoted
from correspondence previously used by him in his recent speech at Wood-
Itock to show that Dr. Ryerson and the whole Council of Public Instruc-
lion had regarded the use of French in tho French Schools in the East much
U they regarded the use of English in the English Public iSchoola, and
Ihowed how this condition had. gradually changed until the recent regula-
|ions of the Education Department had been issued, by which English was

be thoroughly taught and teachers thoroughly trained in English in every

'lool in those counties. (Loud applause.)

Mr. Evanturel.

It was nearly half-past two o'clock when the Attorney-General ceased
leaking. Mr. Evanturel rose for a moment and expressed his regret that

'Tm

FRENCTH SCHOOLS,

the lateness of the hour precluded his continuing the debate, and correcting
the nuDierous InaocuraoieB nrhicb, he caid, the speeches of Mr. Meredith and
Mr. Oraig contained. He felt bound, however, to jxiint out to the hon. gen-
tlemen thai thui " sjllabaire," which he and Mr. Oraig had condemned aa
vehemently on account of its alleged Roman Catholic teaching and prayers,
did not contain one single Roman Catholic prayer or doctrine. If the hou.
gentlemen had been able to read French they would have seen this, and the
fact that such a circumstance had esonped the attention of two Toronto Uni'
versity gr:u)uate8 who had examined the little volume lowered his estimate
of the Provincial University by fifty per cent. He would have bet^n happy
to translate the whole contents of the volume for the benefit of the House if
the hour had been earlier. (Oheers.)

■i!

FRENCH SCHOOLS.

M EMOR ANDTJM.

Since the delivery of Mr. Ross' speech the Empire has publish-
ed what appears to be an official report of what Mr. Craig said
m the debate on French Schools. In order that all matteiB
in dispute might be fully covered, the following auppleinen-
tary observations are aj)pended. Mr. Craig made a special effort to
fasten upon Mr. Ro.ss the charge of misrepresentation if not falsi-
fication in connection with the French Schools. The tirst state-
ment made by Mr. Ross in his speech last year ^hich Mr. Craig
challenged was as follows :

Ho (Mr. Robb) denied that the acboois of Eastern Ontario were inferior in
the seiide dijscribod by the iiieaiber for East Darham. The reports of the in-
spectors go to show that these schools are doing excellent work, even French
pupiU beating English pupils at departmental examinations. The member for
East Durham should have informed himself on the condition of the schoola
of PJastern Ontario before making a charge that they wer'i not in an elUciont
condition.

Ill L'Orignal English is taught, and there oould not beany complaint with
respect to the teaching of English in the schools in the extreme eastern part
of the province,

Anmver.

Tlie information on which this statement was based is contain-
ed in Mr. Summerby's report (Sessional Paper, No. 48, 1887) and
is as follows : ,

To give you an idea of the character of work done in English, in some of
our French Schools, I may here draw vour attention to the fact that I men-
tioned to you when I was iu Toroni" Ijttt month. Four pupils from one of
these schools passed the Entrance examination to the High Sctiool during the
year 1886, one in July and three in December. All four of these pupils
speak and write both languages ; two of them are the children of French
speaking parents ; two of them English-speaking parents, and one of them
is but eleven years of age. One of the French pupils made a perfect paper in
dictation, spelling every word correctly and beating all the EngliBh-speaking
pupils.

in the western part of the inspectorate there are no High Schools, and ad-
vanced work must be done in the Public Schools, or pupils wishing to go
forward in their studies have to leave home to attend school. Some of our
pupils attend Hi<j[h Schools in adjoinin>r counties, and as in some of these
schoola medals and scholarships are awarded pupils taking the highest marks
at the Entrance examination, we have thus a means of comparing our work
with that done in neighboring counties. Several times of late years jur pu-
pils have taken gold and silver medals at the Kemptville High School, and
tii(7 have also taken Bcholarships at Ottawa Collegiate Institute.

ilHMl

FBENCH SCnOOLS.

In iome of our Public Schools pnpils are prepared for the tetieher** exRm-
inations. During the past two years several have paused district examina-
tions ; three the third claas examination, and one the second cUbh exam-
ination. The secoii,! clans candidate was but fourteen years of age and had
passed the third class examination the previous year.

All of which is respectfully submitted.

(Signed)

W. J. SUMMERBY.

"School luHrjBCTOu's Offiok,

"January 4th, 1888.

Sir, — At the beginning of last year T asked my assistant, Mr. Dufort, to pay
special attention to this subject (English) when makin;^ his inspectoral visita.
The result is that we have reduced the number of purely French departments
from twenty-seven to six, and T hope to be able to report, at the end of the
present term, that these six have fallen into line. At last summer's exami-
nation for teachers for our French schools, all candidates totally ignorant of
English were rejected. I do not wish it to be thought that I am satistied
with our present attainments in this respect. As 1 have said in previous
reports, our weak point is a staff of teachers having an imperfect acquain-
tance with the English tongue. But I think we are going forward as rapidly
as can be expected under tlie circumsbances,

" Yours truly,

"W. J. SUMMERBY.

"Russell, 23rd February, 1889.
" Dear Sir, — Last year I had to report that we had six schools in whioh
English was not taught. Mr. Dufort has made a verbal report to rae that
these six fell into line during 1888, so that we can now say that English is
taught ia every Public School in the counties.

" Yours truly,

"W. J. SUMMERBY.

" CuRRAy, 25th February, 1889.
" Sir,— Last year according as I made my first visits I in8i8te<l on all the
teachers that they had to teach English, and also explained to trustees and
parents the necessity of having it taught. The result is that I now have the
pleasure of stating that English is taught in all the schools more or less.

*' Your obedient servant,

"0. DUFORT,

"Assistant I. P. S.

Tbe statements oC the Inspectors were confirmed by the Com-
missioners, as the following extracts will show :

" I. That some English is taught in every school.

" II. That the Ontario Readers have been introduced into every school.

•' III. That the pupils are usually well supplied with English reading books.

FRENCH SCHOOLS,

" There can be no question m to the fact that in all the French schoola in
the several counties visited, notwilhstanding pai ticuUr cases of backwardness
or ineflScienoy, an efTort is being made to impart a knowledge of the English
language ; and not only so, but this work is reoeiving a larger amount of
attention at present than in former years. Thero are some of these schools
in which English has been well taught for many yean, so that they are prac-
tically English schools. There are also some, as will be seen from the sta-
tistical atatf>ment forming part of this report, in which the Enjy^iish language
is largely used in the work of the school. This is the case more particularly
in the counties of Essex and Kent."

Unauthorized Text Books.

Mr. Craig states that Mr. Ross denies that unauthorized books
were used in the schools in Eastern Ontario. Mr Ross never
made such a denial, on the contrary, as reported in the Mail, ho
made the following admission : —

''There was a certain violation of the Regulations of the Department in the
French Schools in Eastern Ontario in that they used French text -books not
authorized but books authorized for mixed schools in Quebec. Ho bad ob-
tHined in the French language those used in the Maritime Provinces and had
sont them to the Central Committee for repoi*t. The prospect was, therefore,
that in a short time they would have French text-books as undenominational
as were tho books used in the Pnblic Schools."

From beginning to end the reports of the speech show that
what Mr. Ross said was true and is true, and that nothing has
been disclosed by the Commissioners, or by any other evidence
submitted so far, to show that his statements were inaccurate.

REGULATIONS OF THE EDUCATION DEPART-
MENT.

EESPECTING FRENCH AND GERMAN SCHOOLS.

Approved, February IQth, 1890.

(1) In school sections where the French or German language prevails, the
trustees, with the approval of the Inspector, may, in addition to the course
of study prescribed for Public Schools, require instruction to be given in
reading, grammar and ocmposition to such pupils as are directed by their
parents or guardians to study either of these langaages, and in all such cases
the authorized text-books in French or German sbaO be used.

FBENCH SCHOOLS.

(2) Tt Rhall be the diily of the te»cher to conduct every eteroiM and reoiU.
tion from the text books yirusuribed for Tublii; iSchouls, in the Kugliih
language, and all ooinmnnioations between teacher and pupil in regsrd to
matten of discipline and in the management of the school ahxll be iii Eng-
lish, except »<) far as this is iinpracticttble by reason of the pupil not under*
standing English. Recitations in ; French or GermaTt may be conducted in
the language of the text book.

(3) It shall be tho duty of the Intpeolor to examine carefully in English
every j "pil accoiding to the cotirse of stud'es prescribed for Publi« ScKodIs ;
but lie stiall be at liberty to use his own discreiiun m to what explanations
he will give in any other language that appears to be better known by the

gupil. Tho standard of efliciency rooognia»d in Public Schools where the
Inglish language only is taught shall be the standard for French and Ger-
man schools, reasonable allowance being made for pupils whose mother tongue
is French or German. Tho Inspector shall report at once to the Education
Department any scliool in which the regulations respecting the study and
use of English are disregarded by the te&cher or trustees.

(4) In C(juuticB where ihore is a soiircity of teachers qualified to toach Eng-
lish, the Board of Examiners for the county, with the approval of the Edu-
cation Department, may establish a Model School for the special training of
French or German teachers. S\ich schoojs sliall hold two sessions each year,
and shall, in addition t'tthe ordinary professional course required for County
Model Schools, give a full literary course in Eugliah in all the subjects pre-
scribed for Third Class Teachers' Certihcates, or for District Certiticates, as
the Board may direct. The final examination for certifi-ates to teach, shall
be conducted in the English language. There shall also be a final examin-
ation in the French or German language, in reading, grammar and composi-
tion. Boards of Examiners shall possess all the powers with respect to such
schools as they now possess with respect to County Model Schools. The
Regulations governing the inspection of County Model Schools by the
County and Depirtmental Inspector shall apply to these schools.

(6) Emblems of a denominational character shall not be exhibited in a
public school during regular school hours.