IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 1.1 11.25 ■tt Ki 122 ^ U& 12.0 u IIHs^^ mi 1.6 1 1 ^ til ^1 w "1 rk)b)gra[jiic ScMioes SI 23 vnST MAM STtllT WnSTn,N.Y. 145M (71.4)172-4563 ' r .V 'ii CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVI/iCMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microraproductions historiquas Technical and Bibliographic Notaa/Notaa tachniquaa at bibllographiquaa Tha Inatituta haa attamptad to obtain tha baat original copy availabia for filming. Faaturaa of thia copy which may ba bibliographically uniqua, which may altar any of tha imagaa in tha raproduction, or which may aignlficantly changa tha uaual mathod of filming, ara ohackad balow. 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T P o f C b « a o fi s o T si T VI iW d e^ b< ri< r« nn 10X 14X 18X 22X 26X 30X y 12X lex 20X 24X 2BX 32X Th« copy ffilmMl h«r« has bMn r«produe«d thanks to th« ganarotlty of: Library of tha Public Archiva* of Canada Tha imagaa appaarlng hara ara tha baat quaiity poasibia considaring tha condition and lagibiiity of tha original copy and in icaaping with tha filming contract apacifications. Original ^opias in printad papar covars ara fllmad baginning with tlM front covar and anding on tha last paga with a printad or illustratad impras- sion, or tha bacic covar whan appropriata. All othar original copias ara fllmad baginning on tha first paga with a printad or illuatratad impras* sion, and anding on tha last paga with a printad or illustratad impraasion. Tha last racordad frama on aach microficha shall contain tha symbol —»-< moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha aymbnl y (maaning "END"), whichavar appliaa. L'axamplaira film4 f ut raproduit grica A la gtoArositA da: La bibiiothAqua das Archives publiquas du Canada Laa imagaa auivantas ont it* raproduitaa avac la plua grand soin, compta tanu da la condition at da la nattat* da l'axamplaira film*, at an oonformit* avac las conditions du contrat da filmaga. Las axampiairas originaujt dont la couvartura an papiar ast imprimis sont film*s an commandant par la pramiar plat at an tarminant salt par la darniira paga qui eomporta una ampralnta d'imprassion ou d'illustration, soit par la sacond plat, aaion la cas. Tous las autras axampiairas originaux sont filmis an commandant par la pramiira paga qui eomporta una ampralnta d'imprassion ou d'illustration at an tarminant par la darniira paga qui eomporta una talla anriprainta. Un daa symbolas suivai.ts apparattra sur la darniira imaga da chaqua microficha, salon la cas: la symbola -^ signifia "A SUIVRE", la symbols ▼ signifia "FIN". Maps, platas, charts, ate, may ba fllmad at diffarant raduetion ratios. Thosa too larga to ba antiraly includad in ona axposura ara filmad baginning in tha uppar laft hand cornar, laft to right and top to bottom, as many framas as raquirad. Tha following diagrams illustrata tha mathod: Las cartas, pknchas, tableaux, ate, pauvant Atra filmia A das taux da rAductlon diff Arants. Lorsqua la document ast trap grand pour Atra raproduit an un saul ciichA. il ast filmA A partir da I'angia supAriaur gaucha. da gaucha A droita, at da haut an bas. an pranant la nombra d'imagas nAcassaira. Las diagrammas auivants illustrant la mAthoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 CANADA. S P E K C H or E, S. CAYLEY, ESQ. M.r. ON THE DIBATF. ON 3RIN0ING IN A BILiL "TO MAKE TEMPORARY PROVISION FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF LOWER CANADA." Wbdnesdat, 17th January, 1838. LONDON: PRINTED BY PERMISSION OF THE PROPRIETORS OP » THE MIRROR OF PARLIAMENT." 1838. , r J 8 if London : Printed by A. Spoitiswoode, New-Street-Square. MOUSE OF COMMONS, WednevSday, Januaky 17. 1838. t > CANADA. Mr. CAYLEY. — Notwithstanding the Honourable Member who has just sat down, at the outset of his speech, pro- posed to limit himself to the question im- mediately before the House, and to award neither praise uor bljuiie fo any of the parties concenud in Canadian transac- tions, I was quite sure he would deviate from the course he had laid down. In the present anxious state of the public mind, and of the House, at this moment, on the subject of the affairs of Canada, it is not only not surprising that we should not confine ourselves in the debate to the immediate question at issue, but it is right that we should be permitted to go into a more general line of argument, both with respect to the conduct of the colony itself, and to the policy which has been pursued by the parent country towards it. I am one of those who entertain an opinion different from that which has been expressed both by the extreme party, on this side of the House, and by those who, in general, oppose her Majesty's Govornn ent, on the other side. Little weight can be attached to my indiv'uhial opinion ; but seeing the condemnation attempted to be cast upon her Majesty's Government, bv some Ho- nourable Members on this side, and the faint praise awarded to them from the other, I feel it to be my duty, as a Mem- ber totally unconnected with the Govern- ment, and as one who has gone into the subject anxiously, dispassionately, and with a determination to do justice to all parties, to offer them the humble tribute of my thanks and approbation tor the course they have pursued. A 2 m Sir, the Honourable Gentleman (Mr. ^Vard) who addrcsHcd the House last but one, seemed to thhik that nothing had been done for the colony of Lower Canada by the Governments of this country ; that h(!r Majesty's present Ministers had, like their predecessors, before 1828, done nothing to redress the grievances of the colony in question. Nothing can be further from tne fact. Previous to 1828, in Canada as well as at homo, but especially in Ire- land, it is notorious that jobbing, exclu> sivcness, and favouritism prevailed ; the discontent on account of which had gained such a head in the Canadas, as to give rise to the committee of 1828, — a com- mittee which entered into the merits of all the alleged grievances with the greatest assiduity and fairness, and whose Report gained for the members of the committee a high tribute of com- mendation even from the House of As- sembly in Lower Canada. My Noble Friend the Secretary of State for the Homo Department entered, last night, into a most comprehensive, just, and generous history of what had been done for this colony. My Noble Friend referred to the King's proclamation of 17G3, promising the newly-acquired colony equal rights with British subjects at home ; to the further privileges of the Act of Parliament of 1 774 ; and, lastly, to the Constitntion of 1791. Concessions were granted to Canada at a time when they were refused at home ; when they were refused to Ireland, although her complaints were loud, and the grievances imder which she laboured pressed heavily upon her. The French Canadians, by the Constitution of 1791, viere left in peaceable possession of their own reli- gion and their own ecclesiastical re- venues ; all the advantages of the English criminal law were bestowed upon them, while their civil laws, out of pure respect to their prejudices, remained the same. How different was Ireland treated, which. was both stronger and nearer home ! In conseciuence of the great complaints B made by the colony previous to I8ii8, a committee was grnnteu, and justly granted, to inquire into the complaints of the Ca- nadians ; but what concessions, at that time, had been made at home ? Had the people of this country obtained the re- moval of the various grievances under which they laboured ? Had we, at that time, when the committee was granted, obtained either the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts, Catholic Emancipation, or the Reform Bill ? The Canadians, then, at least, have had equal justice, if nov much more. The Honourable Mem- ber for Bridport (Mr. Warburton) says, that every body agrees that the Canadians have now great grievances to complain of. No such thing. Every body knows that they 'lad great grievances previous to 1828. What I contend for, and of which there is irrefragable evidence, is, that the committee of 1828 entered into the inquiry, and made its Report, with the full intention of doing justice to the colony, and that the various Govern- ments of this country, since then, have endeavoured to carry into effect the re- consmendations of that committee. These recommendations have been carried into effect in Upper Canada ; and have only failed of success in Lower Canada, be- cause selfish popular leaders have con- jured up an entirely new set of grievances, so as to obstruct the removal of the old ones. The House of Assembly in Lower Canada has itself to blame for any delay in the redress of real grievances. The Honourable Member for Kilkenny said, last night, " Conciliate, — do not shed blood." No human being can be more averse to the shedding of blood than I am ; but, on the very score of hu- manity, the measures now pursuing by her Majesty's Ministers must be carried out. If the colony were set free from the mother country, at this moment, in the present temper of the parties there, and with all the acerbity of feeling be- tween the races, which has been wickedly fostered and encouraged, the inevitable uoiisoqiUMicu would be, un thu showing of the partii's themselves, wholesale con- fiscation and a war of extermination. The people in Upper Canada are alto- gether in favonr of the continnunco of British connection. The late elections incontestably prove this. It was the main question on which the elections turned. In Lowt-r Canada, althoufjh nearly two thirds of tiie populaticm is of French extraction, the shares held in canals, railroads, banlis, and other public investments, are nine tenths in the hands of British settlers ; whilst nineteen twentietiis of the maritime commerce of the colony is also in the hands of the Britii-h. In fact, I believe there is only one instance of a eonnnercial house being carried on by French Canadians ; and oven though that is noniinally in the hands of French Canadians, I un IIonour> able Member for Kilkenny calls the peo- ple of England being with him 1 And now. Sir, a few words on the con- duct of her Majesty's present Govern- ment in the transactions which have lately occurred in Canada. I have read all the despatches which have lately been laid before us, with no other disposition than to find the truth, and no other wish than to be able to take my hum-b!o share in dispensing justice to all the parties en- gaged in the jC transactions ; and I do not hesitate to avow my conviction that the impartial inference to be drawn from the correspondence between Lord Glenelg and Lord Gosford is, that, keeping in view his conciliatory mission, there was every Inclination and determination on the part of Lord Gosford to protect life and property in Lower Canada, as well as every necessary preparation to secure that protection. The Noble Lord the Moniber for Cornwall (Lord Eliot) says, tlu! Govornmt'ut have jeopardised the colony. And the Right Honourable Ha- ronet the Member for Tainvvorth (Sir R. Peel) insinuated, that there had been neglect on the part of Lord (jlenelg in sending out military force to Canada. But what is the fact, as we gather from the dcHputchea which I hold in my hand ? That Lord Glenelg, in the beginning of the year, so early an March, took steps to increase the military force in Lower Canada. He writes to Sir Colin Camp- bell to send as many of the troops under his command to Nova Scotia, New Rrnns- wick, or Prince Edward's Island, as Lord Gosford might require of him. Of course Lord GleneTg did not wish Lord Gosford, whose office was to pacify and conciliate, to mako any conspicuous demonstration of military force. The Right Honour- able liaronet (Sir R. Peel), however, sa^s, that *' Lord Gosford had no objection to demonstrate." What, ther., was the meaning of Lord Gosford's refusal to the application of a large body of men in Quebec to enrol themselves as a volunteer corps, and this even so late as October ? The conduct of Lord Gosford, taking the whole of the proceedings of the last year into consideration, shows that his inten- tions were to attain his ends by moral influence rather than by any demonstra- tion of physical force ; and the whole tenour of the despatches shows that this policy in relation to Canada was also ap- S roved by Lord Glenelg, as well as Sir ohn Colbornc, Sir Francis Head, and Sir John Harvey. What was the language held by Sir Francis Head in answer to an application from Sir J. Colborne for a supply of troops from Upper Canada, October 31. ? He sends him the whole of his troops from the seat of Government, not excepting his own sentry, and his letter proceeds to say, — This province is, as far as my experience goes, more luyul and more tran(|uil than any par^ of England ; however, this does not matter to Mr. M'Kenziu, provided he can get up a few sets of 10 violent resolutions, which you know, very'w eli, are easily efTccted. Now, what 1 desire to do is, completely to upset Mr. Papineau, so far as Upper Canada is concerned, hy proving to the people in England that this province requires no troops at allj and consequently that it is perfectly tratwvil. I consider that this evidence will be of im- mense importance, as it at once shows the con- duct of Lower Canada to 'oe factious ; whereas, could it, under colour of a few radical meetings here, be asserted that the two provinces were on the brink of revolution, it would, as you know, be arj^ued as an excuse for granting the demands of Mr. Papineau. 1 consider it of immense importance, practically, to show to the Canadas that loyalty produces tranquillity, and that dis- loyalty not only brings troops into the province, but also involves it in civil war. To attain the object I have long had in view, I deemed it advisable not to retain, either for my- self or for the stores, the few men we have been accustomed to reqtiire; for I felt I could not completely throw myself, as I wished to do, on the inhabitants of the province, so long as there remained troops in the garrison. Sir John Colbonie, in reply, says, " Your determination of liberating the 24th regiment will produce the best effect. Sir Colm Campbell will act on a similar principle." Sir J. Harvey writes to Lord Gleneig from New Brunswick, stating the ardent loyalty of that province, and that he could spare all the regulars and a large force of militia for the protection of Lower Canada. With the knowledge of these facts of the loyalty of the Upper and Lower pro- vinces, and that not only the regular mili- tary could be spared from them, but also a large force of militia and volunteers, how can Lord Gosford be charged with in- attention to the safety of Lower Canada, when he had been making preparations almost the whole year, in conjunction with the Commander-in-chief, Sir J. Colborne, so to distribute the forces as to enable them to act efficiently whenever the urgency of thy circumstances de- manded it ? Sir, the policy of her Majesty's advisers was not that of an early and gratuitous appeal to military power ; it was one of a totally opposite nature, namely, to red' ess real grievances, and to act in good faith, 1^1 in strict accordance with the Report of the Couimittee of 1828. To concede all the I'casonable demands of the Canadians, to act in a spirit of justice and con- ciliation, have been the means employed to produce content. Some Honourable Gentlemen, 1 know, are disposed to quarrel with this persevering etfort to conciliate on the part of her Majesty's Government. But, Sir, even if a con- ciliatory system were not sanctioned by dictates of the soundest morality and justice, in this instance, at least, according to the evidence before us, it would have been recommended by the coldest maxims of a Machiavellian policy. The enemies of the Queen's Government have put themselves in the wrong ; whilst the Go- vernment, by never deviating from the path of justice and conciliation until re- bellion forced th^m into arms, have be- come morally strengthened for any un- fortunate contest that may ensue. And here it is that I differ both with Honour- able Gentlenii n opposite and with the friends of Mr. Papineau's party in this House. From all the documents on the subject, to which I have had access, it appears to my mind that Lord Gosford has exactly pursued that course, both with respect to a perseverance in conciliatory measures and an efficient redress of griev- ances, as well as in the distribution of the military force, which he ought to have pursued, had he foreseen from the com- mencement what has actually occurred. With reference to the magistrates and the militia officers who were removed from the commission, it was impossible that Lord Gosford could act in any other way than he did — it was impossible that they could be longer permitted to remain in the Queen's service, attending and taking part, as they did, at meetings where sedition and treason were openly avowed, and disobeying, as they did, the Go- vernor's orders to publish his proclam- ation. These officers subsequently at- tended at the meetings which followed their dismissal by the Governor, and 1ft were there re-elected by the people, in defiance of the civil authority. It was after the dismissal of these officers, and after these meetings had taken place, that the outrages occurred. Certain parties had become amenable to the law : when the Queen's authorities attempted to seize some of the leaders and instigators of certain treasonable proceedings, and had succeeded in that object, they were, on their return, met by a large armed band, by whom they were attacked, and their prisoners forcibly rescued ; and it was only when the civil power was thus set at nought that the military were called out. It was said, last evening, that the Government had acted improperly, know- ing the discontented state ot Lower Ca- nada, in not having there a sufficient force to suppress the insurrection on its first appearance. I, however, am not prepared to admit that the military force in Canada was insufficient. The only proof that has been offered in favour of that opinion is, that in one attempt that was made by the Queen's troops, under Colonel Gore, upon St. Denis, bad wea- ther, wretched roads, and a circuitous route, to avoid some village in possession of the rebels, — these and other circum- stances combined to render a retreat an act of expediency as well as of humanity. But is this isolated fact sufficient to prove that the forces were insufficient in Lower Canada ? Was our force sufficient at first to quell the Bristol riots ? In the manu- facturing districts, in the neighbourhood of which I live, it is no uncommon circum- stance for the military in any given locality to find itself, at first, unequal to the sup- pression of a popular outbreak, and after some reconnoitring, they prudently await the arrival of a reinforcement. No later than the other day, at the fire at the Royal Exchange, great danger was con- templated by the pressure of the assembled populace on the building. The guard at the Bank came to assist ; it was found insufficient ; a reinforcement was sent for from t' e Tower. This addition proved 18 unequal to keep back the multitude ; and it was only after the arrival of a second reinforcement that anything like order could be maintained. But would any one infer from thence that there were not troops sufficient in London, or in England, for the purpose of security and protection ? The result of eve'"y aftair in which the Queen's troops hav ; been engaged, since the affair of St. Denis, has fully proved that sufficient troops were in the colony to meet the emergency. In none of the despatches from Lord Gosford is any complaint made of the insufficiency of the military force in those colonies ; on the contrary. Sir John Colborne, at an early period, expresses the strongest contidence that with the troops then under his com- mand, or at his disposal, he should be enabled to put down any insurrectionary movement that might occur in conse- quence of the violence of the popular leaders and the seditious meetings which were held. And Sir John Colborne's distribution of his troops appears to me to merit the highest commendation. And taking the whole circumstances of Lower Canada into the account, — considering the complicated crisis which had arrived, the impossibility of any satisfactory ar- rangement on rational grounds, in con- sequence of the impracticability of the parties, — if one may dare so to say. this outbreak might seem almost providential ; because, by starting, as it were, afresh, with more practicable materials, and with late experience before the eyes of the Canadians, we may hope to establish a really satisfactory state of things on the new foundation. The utmost attempt to conciliate and to do justice had been shown, and had been repudiated by the popular leaders : not by the colonists themselves, as a body ; for I look upon the late proceedings in the colony to have been the work of ambitious leaders, who at last stimulated their deluded victims to raise the standard of revolt. Is it not true. Sir, that those : ^en who called themselves the popular leaders 14 in Lower Canada did not seem to know where to stop in their demands ? All that they had asked and obtained, instead of satisfying them, but produced new de- mands, until it was obvious that the object sought to be obtained was not so much the redress of grievances as the fulfilment of their own ambitious designs, — their own personal aggrandisement, — which were connected with a separation from the mother country. Even the grievance which is now the most loudly complained of, when examined, in equity, amounts to nothing, and is one of their own making. The Crown gave up its revenues, in 1831, to the House of Assembly, in the full understanding that they were to grant a Civil List for the payment of the judges and till; other necessary officers of Go- vernment. The moment they got the revenues they refused to pay the judges, and have refused for three or four years. It was impossible this could go on.' The supplies were stopped for no grievance which could be remedied by the Consti- tution, but in order to effect a change in the Constitution itself. The crown re- venues would have been quite sufficient for this Civil List ; and therefore no money was really taken out of the pockets of the colonists for these just, and absolutely necessary, payments. We had oi ly done justice, while the House of Assembly had virtually broken faith with the Crown. What a different case is this from that of the United Colonies, to which allusion has so frequently been made, and which called for those memorable words of Lord Chatham, — "I rejoice that America has resisted." That was for taxation levied by the mother country for its own benefit ; this, a revenue appi'opriatert by the mother country towards a just and necessary co- lonial payment, — a revenue which did not come out of the pockets of the people. I repeat, Sir, since the appointment of the committee of 18-28, there has been a steady disposition, on the part of every Goverrment, to improve the condition of the people of Lower Canada ; and tlu 16 people of that colony expressed their ap- probation of, and coutidence in, the labours of that conmiittee. My Noble Friend, last night, quoted the terms in which they spoke of that committee. They described tho Report as one of high liberality and profound wisdom. The House of Assem- bly, on two repeated occasions, — in 1828 and 1831, — in addresses to the Crown, prayed that " the Constitution, as csta- blisnod by law, might be transmitted, un- impaired, to posterity ; " and, as I before stated, it has been the continuous effort of each successive Government, since 1828, to carry out the recommendations contained in that lleport. Such having been the feeling of Canada at that time, what has taken place since then to justify the measures of the popular leaders ? I cannot believe that the redress of griev- ances is the reel object that a party has in view, when the greater the disposition to conciliate that is evinced on the part of the Government, and the more the redress of grievances is effected, the louder be- come the complaints of the leaders of that party. Sir, in my opinion, the real grievance of the popular agitators in Lower Canada is, a jealousy of the rapid immigration which has, of late year?, taken place into the Canadas from Great Britain. By means of this great aug- mentation of British settlers, a speedy ex- tinction, they think, is threatened to that selfish influence which they now exercise over the happy and thriving, though easily deluded, habitans of Lower Canada. And their own words even justify this intei'pret- ation. Not long ago, the Minerve news- paper (the leading journal of the Papineau party in Montreal, and, I believe, at one time edited by M. Viger, the agent of the House of Assembly in this country in 1833), contains the following passages: — It may be seen, according to this, that there exist licre two parties, of opposite interests and manners, — the Canadians and the English. These first, born Frenchmen, have the habits and characters of such. They have inherited from their fathers a hatred to the English. 10 Again : — We repeat it, an itnincdiatc separation from England is the only means of preserving our nationality. Some tnne lience, when cnii<^ratii)n shall have made our adversaries our equals in number, more daring and less generous, they will deprive us of our liherlies. Itelicve me, this is the fate reserved for us, if we do not hasten to make ourselves independent. The followiiifi: extract from a speech of M. Rodier, a IMenibor of the House of Assembly, also confirms this view : — If I present to you so melancholy a picture of the condition of this country, I have to en- courage the hope, that we may yet preserve our nationality, and avoid those future calamities, by opposing a barrier to this torrent of immigration. Mr. Papincau's views are made pretty evident by the following short extract from a very long address of his to the electors of West Ward of Montreal, pub- lished after his last election to the As- sembly : — Your enemies are not numerous enough to injure you : you are sufficiently numerous to injure them. Ureak all connection in business and interest with those who separate their affec- tions and interests from yours Let those who are so presumptuous as to prefer their own opinions, learn, that, whatsoever be their titles to favours from the Administration, they have no claims to the confidence of the people. Presumptuous enough to prefer their own thoughts ! And these are repub- licans, too ! A pretty consummation for freedom and free principles to have arrived at, when republicanism on one side of the western world proclaims there shall be a continuation of the unrighteous system of negro slavery, — in other words, no liberty of person ; and, on the other side, not even liberty of thought and will ! If this be the ultimatum of liberal principles, I can only say, God protect us, at home, in the full possession of that really practical liberty afforded us by our happy Consti- tution ! These extracts show the spirit which animates these popular leaders. What is the /act, even with that which was the great and most crying evil in Ca- nada up to 1828, namely, the almost ex- 17 elusive anpointnient of British and place- rnon to the Legislative Council ? Why, that (according to Lord Gosford's de- spatches) the Council now consists, prac- tically, ot thirteen of British, and eighteen of French extraction. But 1 do not be- lieve that the people of Canada, as a body, are favourable to the views of the Papineau party, notwithstanding what has been said to the contrary at a recent meeting at the Crown and Anchor Tavern. I am per- suaded, that the people of Canada, takin^f it as a whole, so far from wishing a sepa- ration, are warmly attached to the Govern- ment of this country. The real grievance, I believe, of the leaders of the party I have described, is, the rapid increase, within the last few years, oi British emi- grants, and the growing strength of the British settlers. This is the true cause of complaint, I suspect, on the part of the popular leaders ; and it is obvious why it should be so, for it threatens, at no dis- tant day, a severe blow at their personal ambition. But this is a cause of complaint in which I feel confident the body of the people, even of French extraction, will not join, at the risk of losing the blessings they now enjoy. The Honourable Baro- net the Member for Leeds acknowledged, the other day, at the Crown and Anchor Tavern, what those blessings were. He said, he admitted that the mass of the po- pulation of the French Canadians were " well fed, well clothed, well housed, and little taxed ; " but, he added, the people will not be satisfied with these alone. I differ entirely with the Honourable Baro- net, and tell him he will find no people on earth possessed of blessings like these, who will run the chance of losing them for any other blessings he can promise them. A high and impartial authority from the United States, and one not mixecl up with political parties, Professor SiUi- man, one of the highest statistical and scientific authorities m the United States, thus speaks of the condition of the people in Lower Canada, after a personal .:xa- mination : — la I It h (|iiestii>nablo \slKatier uny cunqiierod foiintry was ever l)ultcr treated l»y its coiu|iier(irt thun Cuiiudu; the peopk- were h-ft in couipU'tu [mssussioii of their religion, nnd revenues tosu))- port it — of their pro|»erty, laws, ensloins, and manners; nnd even the deCencc of their country is without ex])ense to thetn It would seem as if the trouble and ex|)ense of (jovcrnnient was taken off their hands, and as if they were loft lo enjoy their own domestic comforts without a drawback. Such is, certainly, the appearance of the population ; and it is doubtful whether our own favoured coninmnities are, politically, ujorc happy. • • * ♦ • . Lower Canada is a fine country, and will hereafter become populous and powerful, espe- cially as the British and Anglo- American yo- pulation shall How in more extensively, and nnpart more vigour and activity to the conunu- uity. After such testimony as this, I cannot bring myself to the ijclief, that the Cana- dians are really suffering under the rule of Great Britain, or that we are guilty of the gross acts of injustice and illibcrality which are laid at our door ; and, in con- sequence, I have little confidence in the patriotism of those who, under such cir- cumstances, would excite a happy people to acts of rebellion ; exciting them, too, through their worst prejudices, and a hatred of the British race. It has been argued that the most pru- dent step, on the part of the Government, would be at once to adopt measures for dissolving the connection which exists be- tween the mother country and tln« colony. If the time had really arrived for effect- ing the separation, then I fidly conciu* with the Honourable Member tor Brid- port (Mr. Warburton), that the object of the Government ought to be to effect it in such a way as would secure for this country all the advantages to be derived from a friendly intercourse with the new state. But when I consider tliat even in Lower Canada the British settlers are at least one third of the entire population, comprising almost an entirety of the en- terprise and commercial wealth of the colony ; when I consider that the popu- lation of Upper Canada is almost ex- to clusivfly of IJritish origin ; and when it is ascertuincd from Htatisticul documents, emanating from the colony, that tho popu- lation in the two Canadns are in the fol- lowing proportions, — Lower Canada. French origin - 090,000 British origin - 210,000 600,000 Upijer Canada. 375,000 of which, probably, at least 350,000 an; of British extraction ; thus constituting u majority of 150,000 of British over French settlers, taking Canada as a whole ; and when I consider that this nuijority of 150,000 British settlers in the two Canadas (for in reference to a separation they cannot be taken apait), in addition to a great mass of the Irench CanadiaP", are favourable to a continuance, most anxious for the continuance, of the con- nection with Great Britain, — I am bound to affirm that the time for separation has not yet arrived. If, in 1 7G3, when Lower Canada first became a British colony, — its people had then said, " You have con- quered us from France, but we wish not to be governed by you ; we wish to be inde- pendent ;" what, in strict justice and right, ought to have been the answer of Great Britain ? " We do not wish to govern you against your wishes ; but you occupy a position wnich, if seized by a force hos- tile to Great Britain, may afford great facilities for the annoyance of the United Colonies to the south of the St. Lawrence. If you could prove to us that you were strong enough to protect yourselves from foreign aggressors, and could really form a strong and permanent independent Go- vernment, — then, if in a body you de- manded emancipation, we would grant it you." But the French Canadians never dreamt of making such an application, nor were they in a condition to have had it granted, being only 60,000 at the time of our acquiring the colony, in 1763. Since that period other elements of con- sideration have grown up. It is no longer '20 ii: a. French but u British culoiiy : British, by extent of popiihition ; British, by extent of enterprise and wealth. And to yield to a factious demand for separation, with- out reference to the interests of the Bri- tish settlers, would be the hei(^ht of base- ness, injustice, and bad fuith, on the part of the mother country. Sir, I entertain a stron^^ opinion as to the general policy to be pursued in regard to these North American colonies. A balance of power (and here I entirely also agree with the M«mber who last spoke) is wanted on that great continent, to th4. great and growing power of the United States. Here is the opportunity of form- ing that balance. Let the colonies be united by some sort of periodical inter- course of representatives from each, to meet at Quebec on matters of trade and commerce, or any subject of common in- terest to them all, under the auspices of one Governor General ; then would they be trained and educated to a feeling of dependence on each other, and to the ultimate desire of confederation when the just period of separation had arrived. Upper and Lower Canada, New Bruns- wick, Nova Scotia, the smaller islands, and Newfoundland, would then form an important and extensive territory, with a population in energy and numbers suffi- cient to sustain that balance of power in the western world which is so much to be desired. And I trust that the Bill now proposed by my Noble Friend, and the mission of Lord Durham, while they se- cure the truest freedom and the amplest justice in all respects, and to all ^rties in Canada, — for in the dispensation of liberty I can draw no distinction between Canada and Britain, — will tend to foster and keep alive that ultimate view to which I have now referred. '^' London : Prlnte%'v^-ifuimifmw'^\' iC^ ■i } r Xl