.n% .^\% IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // ^s «^- i-P^ i/i % 1.0 I.I 1.25 WIIIIIIM „.il21 IIIIM 136 1.4 2.2 112.0 1.6 P7 ^ /a OM /y e. m VI m #T / ^1 M Photographic Sciences Corporation # L17 A< \ \ 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 .^ a? Kj> ^ P? signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbole V signifie "FIN". Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Stre filmds 6 des taux de reduction diff^rents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour §tre reproduit en un seul clich6, il est film6 6 partir de Tangle supdrieur gauche, de gauche 6 droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m^thode. by errata ied to ent une pelure, fapon d 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 Ft CANADA FIRST. BV KEV. GEORGE GRAXT, Princi^l Quttn't Univtrtity, Re,u/ btfort the Canadian Club of New York. HAT is meant by the phrase " Canada F"irst?" It means that Canada — though still nominally and officially in the col- onial position— is really a nation, and therefore that its interests and honor must be regarded by all true Canadians as first or supreme. In 1867, the Act of Confederation constituted the Maritime Provinces and the old Upper Canada and Lower Canada into the new Dominion. Immediately thereafter societies sprung into exist- ence in different centres that took the name of '• Canada First." These societies did not last long. I do not know of one that is in BiBLi:. a: A Ottavi^ins^a 24S New Papers on Canadian History^ existence at the present time. Their fate too has been held up as a proof that there is no national sentiment in Canada, and that Canada is not a nation. Is such a fact sufficient proof, or even the slightest proof of any such thin^ ? Certainly not. It is only a proof that a club or society, if it is to exist, nust have some definite object to accomplish. An}- one may at any time be called upon to testify his affection or his loyalty or adherence to a creed, but here testifyinj^ becomes monotonous, and men will not meet regularl)- merely to cr)" " \'ea, yea,'" or " Nay, nay." There are no Scotland First or Wales First or England First societies. In Ireland, there arc societies enough to accomplish national work of some kind or another, but I have not heard of even Ireland First societies. 'I'he weakness inherent to political organizations that have no definite work to do is seen in the difficulty that has beei\ found in forming and maintaining in existence branches of the Imperial Federation League. I am a member of that League, but it is evident that it will soon vanish into thin air, unless some scheme of cc)mmercial or political union is agreed upon, for the carrying of which its members may work. Is there, then, a common national sentiment in Canada, independent of the vigorous Provincial contingent that we find in each Province? Is there a common life thai binds these Provinces and Territories together ? V\ e have a political unity, but, does that represent any underlying sentiment ? 1 believe that it does, though the national pul.se is weak and is all but overpowered by the currents of Provincial interests, which fac- tion uses in the most un.scrupulous way, and by the cross cur- rents of racial and religious prejudices, too often sedulously J,rti,|n*l.l-tVT,r. Art, Science, Literature, and Commerce. ^49 fostered for selfish purposes. This common life is made up of three elements: North-American, PVench and British. The at- mosphere, the soil, the climate, and all the physical conditions under which a people lives, determine to a great extent its char- acter and place in history. All these are North-American, and very far North at that. In the centre of the Dominion is the Province of Quebec, French to the core, French in language and in heart ; nourishing, too, the .sentiments, songs, laws and institutions of the 17th rather than of the 19th centiir>'. The.i, Canada, as a whole, has inherited from Britain, not merely what the United States have inherited, — language, literature, laws, blood, religion and the fundamental principles of civil and re- ligious liberty, that are at the basis of modern States, but also continuity of national life That means a great deal. It in- cludes the same traditions, the same political and constitutional forms; the same history, sentiments and affections; a common f^ag. a common allegiance, and a common citizenship*. These things make up a great deal of our life. Every one knows how much the flag represents. And this Jubilee year will demon- strate the extent of the loyalty that all citi^ens feel towards the head of the whole Mmpire. We have undertaken to build up on this continent a Franco-British-North-American state, believing that the.se three elements can be fu.sed into a common life ; the experiment is being tried. Should there be success, Canada may be the link that shall unite the great mother and her greatest daughter, the United States of America. What pro=?pect is there of the experiment succeeding .^ What proofs are there that the three elements are fusing or will fuse into a common Canadian national sentiment? 2SO New Papers on Canadian History, The formation of the Canadian Confederation showed that the people of the different Provinces had the national instinct. Autonomous Provinces are not willing to give up any portion of their power, even to constitute a nation. Any one will admit that, who knows the reluctancy of the thirteen colonies to surrender to the central authority the smallest portion of their independence. And, in our case, the geographical diffi- culties in the way of union seemed well nigh insuperable. To begin with, the Intercolonial Railroad had to be built along the St. Lawrence, involving a detour of two or three hundred otherwise unnecessary miles. Commerce demanded that the connection between Montreal and the maritime Provinces should be across the State of Maine, and the road by that direct line is now being built.. So, too, commerce demanded that the connection between Montreal and the Northwest shore be by the Sault St. Marie and along the south of Lake Superior. And commerce made no demand for a railway across the Sel- kirks to the Pacific. But in all those cases, political necessities predominated, and the people have consented willingly to the enormous cost of building the Intercolonial and the Canadian Pacific railways as political roads. All that is now required to make the Dominion perfectly independent, by land and water, so far as means of communication from one part of the Domi- nion to another is concerned, is a canal on the Canadian side of Sault St. Marie ; and its construction has been determined upon. The cost will not be excessive. There nature is on our side. If there was to be only one canal, it is quite clear to the most careless observer that it should be on the Canadian shore. The adoption of the National Policy, c i the protection Arl, Scicnrc, Liieraiurc, aiui Covimcrce. i'-j/ of our own manufactures a^^ainst all other countries, lirilain included, was a (Ji^tinoi declairXt'on of commercial indepen- dence. that has bcr?n rcnlfunu;d again and again \>\ thti people of Canada. The outburst of patiiotic feeling, when the re- cent rebcllit;n broke out in the N'orthwesi. v,as still more sig- nificant. Tliough the French Canadians identified the cause of the rebels with their own nationality, or rather with the up- holding of French influence in the Territories. rej:jiments <^i Quebec militia marched to put the rebellion down. And pa- triotic feeling was not deeper in Ontario tlian it was in Nova Scotia, where various causes i\ad combined to make Confede- ration unpopular. For twenty years, the Canadians have con- tinued their resolute effort to accomplish cc^mplete national, political, commercial and national unitv. in spite of the o- graphical and other difficulties in the way. that might well have appalled them. The present calm determination to protect our fisheries, and to waive no jot of our rights, although all our interests and feelings lie in the direction of unfettered commer- cial intercourse, and the preservation of friendly feelings with the United States, is another proof that we have become one people. The nsheries along the maritime shores do not directly concern Ontario ; but the feeling there against surrender to anything like encroachment is as decided as 'n\ Nova Scotia. The symptoms of restlessness, on account of our position being merely colonial, and the discussion of plans, whereby we ma\- emerge into a position of recognized nationality and stable poHtical equilibrium, also shows that we arc nearing that point in our history when we must assume the full responsibilities of nationhood, or abandon the experiment altogether. ^5^ New Papers on Canadian History, I have said that there is such a thing as Canadian national sentiment, but the fact that the question can be asked, whether there is or not, proves how weak that sentiment must be. No one would ask such a question with regard to the United States or the smallest of European kingdoms or republics. Outsiders may think that it would be better for Belgium to be incorpora- ted with France, or for Holland to cast in its lot with Germany; but in each case national sentiment is too unmistakable to make such a fate likely. Canada covers half a continent, and her great neighbor is certainly not as unscrupulous or as mili- tary a power as France or Gci-man}-. Vet, it would be inac- curate to say that she occupies as distinct and unanimous a po- sition with regard to her future as Belgium or Holland. The fact must be admitted that Canadian patriotic sentiment is weak. Why is it so' Simply because we have had to do so little for the common weal. Our national sentiment has never been put to the test. Not once have we been called upon to choose between the nation and all that as individuals we hold dear. We have not been tried in the furnace, and the dross o{ .-elfishness is in us. Few of us have had to suffer, few of our children have had to die for the nation. Far otherwise has it been with the United States. The thirteen colonies had to fight for their freedom to begin with. Rather than submit to infringement on their political liberty, they ventured to stand up against the disciplined soldiers of the mother country. It was a great resolve. It was a great thing to do. The)' succeeded, and so proved their right to be a nation. It has been said that they nearly failed. It has been proved over and over again that they would have failed, had Art, Science, Literature, and Onntnerce. J^J it not been for this, that, or the other accident. The geese cackled, the ass brayed or the dog barked. But the mere cackling of geese never amounts to much. Depend upon it. there must be Roman hearts somewhere near, as well as geese, \i anything is to be done. Even if the thirteen colonies had failed, failure could have been only temporary in the case of such a people. U has been said that Washington was not a perfect character, that his officers were jealous, his men intract- able and mutinous, and Congress selfish and incompetent. But, supposing all these charges true, what has been proved ? Simply that the hero is not a hero to hi.-^ valet, and that an heroic epoch under mundane conditions i.^ n»)t wholly celestial. But, at a little distance, the pxture is seen to better advantage. The mountain side is rough to the man who is climbing it, but to him who looks at it from a distant point of vanlagc, it is .soft as velvet. It is seen under a haze, or rosy or purple light. So the events of the lievolutionary war became glorified to the generations following. The>- saw them through a golden haze, which concealed everything mean and pctt\-. These events constituted an inexhaustible rc-servoir, from which the nation drank for nearly a century. Inculcnts of all kinds, love .stories, tales of intrigue and danger, of desperate but successful valor were woven round ever) battie-ne!d. The Revolu- tionary struggle made a deplorable schism m the blnglish- speaking race, but at the same time it made a nation, and it taught the mother country a lesson that she has never forgotten. Nearly a century afterwards, just \^hen people were becoming slightly tired of Fourth of July firc-cracker celebratio.ns, a still greater thing was given to the American people to do. They were ^54 -V/tv Papuson Canadioif Uisiory, forced to choose bomeen the- life ol the ,)ation at.cl ^■.^ o,-aMiz.^nal"\.^.lih were .n its hands. The)- had to grapple with and strangle slavery or let the nation be cleft in twain. The choice was a hard one. bm they chose well. It involved an expenditure so nnmense that no calculation of it can be made, but the invest- ment uas wise. There is no nation on earth so shrewd as re-ards all manners of investments as the American, and never did it make an mvestment so p of^table. Literature and art, morals and religion, .son^r. music. poetr> and eloquence, all have' flowed from it and will continue to flow from it for generations. These things are more precious than gold or anything that gold can buy. They arc life. Sentiment and the almighty dollar came into conflict, and fortunately for the American people sentiment proved the mightier. No wonder that Abraham Lin- coln's name has eclipsed that of George Washington. Who now dreams of dwelling on the petty skirmishes of the Revolutionary war r- Every Anierican citizen is now a better and richer man. because he shares in a grander national life. He feels its' pulsations in his own veins, and he knows that his children and children's children will share in an inheritance beyond all price and that can never be taken from them. Now, what has Canada done to show that she values na- tional existence and national honor more than anything else ? r have already gone over the record, and it must be admitted that more could not have been expected in the circumstances, and that there is promise and potency in it not unworthy of the' stock from which we nave sprung. We have no right to expect from man or nation more than the duty of the hour, and on ^UM Art, Science, Literature, and Commerce, 2$^ the whole, Canada has not been unfaithful to that. Fortu- nately, or unfortunately, according to the point of view, wc are not likely to be called upon to pass through the valley of tears and blood in order to obtain the crown of complete national freedom. On the one hand, it is perfectly clear that Great Britain will not repeat the mistake of the last century. In every conceivable way she has declared that our destiny is in our own hands. She gets nothing from us. yet she hold^. herself pledged to defend us, if necessan,-. again.st all comers and at all hazards. In making ever>' commercial treaty, she ^ives us the option whether we shall be included in it or not. She facilitates our attempts to negotiate treaties for ourselves. She never di.scri- minates against us or anybody else. Never, in the histoiy of the world, has a mother country been so generous. We have imposed heavy duties upon her manufactures, utterly rejecting the doctrine of free trade, which to her is commercially the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, that 19th century gospel, of which she considers herself the apostle to stiff-necked nations and colonies ; yet, she lias uttered no word of official remonstrance, 1 believe that we may discriminate against her manufactures; may declare ourselves politically in- dependent, or openly annex ourselves to the United States, without one shot being hred by her in protest. On tiie other hand, the United States are certain not to repeat the mistake of 1812-15. The armies that entered Canada then, to give us free- dom, found the whole population determiJied not to be fi'ee ; at any rate not to accept the giU on liiat !in'^ Tlicrc is M'- more likelihood of Canada attacking the United States than there is of a boy attaekmn a fall-gi-.r,\:i an 1. And \^e aic 2^6 New Papers on Canadian History, quite sure that the man has no intention of trying to murder the bov. We are able to distinguish the bluster of individuals from the strong will of a great nation. We believe that, if a political party brought on a war of aggression against Canada, it would simply be performing the happy despatch for itself. We may protect our fisheries, p.nd build canals and railroads where we like. The Gloucester fishermen may get angry and Billingsgate fisheries, and newspapers may solemnly warn the country that Canada is constructing forts, summoning gunboats from the vasty deep, and calling out her militia!' Congress may pass retaliatory acts, and the President may even see it to be his duty to decree non-intercourse. But there will be no war. The United States believe that they have enough on their hands already. A still larger number are convinced that the general well-being and the grand old cause will be served by there being two English-speaking States on this continent working out the problems of liberty under different forms. No doubt, many would like to .see one flag from the gulf of Mexico to the Pole, but they know well that it would be better to wait for generations for such a consummation than to try to bring it about by force, or at the expense or the honor of either con- tracting party. It appears, therefore, that our future will not b? precipi- tated or determined for us fr^m without. We must settle it for oufselves. And we are taking matters so coolly, that some think we have little interest in it, and are satisfied to drift or to remain indefinitely in the merely colonial position. to murder ndividuals that, if a it Canada, for itself, railroads mgry and warn the gunboats Congress I see it to ill be no ough on iced that ei-ved b}- ontinent US. No Mexico • to v^'ait bring it her con- precipi- le it for t some to drift Jsition. Art, Science, Liter ahire, and Commerce. 2^j Charles Roberts, our most promising poet, represents Canada as standing among the nations " Unheeded, unadored, unh\tnned With unanointed brow." and he asks reproachfully : " How long the ignoble sloth, how long The trust in greatness not thine own. " There is certainly nothing of the heroic in our national atti- tude, in his indignation, Roberts ranks us " with babes and slaves," and he seems to me to speak something like sober truth. A baby, when attacked, runs to its mothers apron-strings, and tliough the fault may be wholly its own, the responsibility is principally the mother's. When our newspapers hear of non- interc< urse bills, they assure their readers that there is no dan- ger ; that Canada is bound up with the British Empire, and that the United States cannot discriminate between parts of an Ijlmpire, one and indivisible. When there is talk of the possibi- lity of war, they hint of the havoc that British men-of-war could work on the undefended wealthy cities that lie along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. But, let there be a proposal of Federation for the defence of common interests, and the same papers adopt a different strain. They point out that Britain needs her fleet for her own protection and the maintenance of her commercial supremacy, and that it is Utopian — that is a favorite word— to expect that we should contribute towards making it efficient. Is not Roberts right ? Is not that the baby's attitude? So, New Foundland is indignant at present with the mother country, because she was not ready to quarrel with ^ss New Papei's on Canadian History, France for her sake. But not so very long ago, the same an- cient colony paid no more attention to the stronj^ly accentuated Imperial policy in favor of the confederation of all the British American colonies, than if that had been the policy of Russia, or a selfish scheme of the mother country that the children should consider only from the point of view of their own im- mediate interests. There has been too much of the baby atti- tude. We l.noAv what the mind of a slave is. He would like liberty, if it meant idleness coupled with the good things of Ejjfypt. But Kgypt to him is better than the desert, without food and water. To be stuffed with pork and beans, and to lie in bed or swing on a gate all day long, with nothing to pay and no master or no winter to come, is bliss unalloyed. When 1 read editorials reminding Canadians of the advantages of their present position — the protection of the mother country, no matter where they go or what they do, and not a cent to pay — \ am reminded of Sambos ideal of Paradise. Alas, if they only knew it ; they are paying a price far greater than their fair share should be, according to any principle of com- putation I If this is a true picture of our present position, is it any wonder that national scntimi-^nt is weak ? What have we to be proud of? The wars of Champlain and Frontenac with the Iroquois ; the raids into New York and Maine ; the campaigns of 1K12-15 h".ve receded into the dim distance as completely as the w.irs of New- Kngland with the Indian Sachems, or the strug- gle? of Virginia with the French for the Ohio. We Canadians have !v>t boon idle. We havo subdued the forest : have built .sr;>ooi-5. ■:o!Lges, cl urches. cities, and, as sons of those hardy Art, Science^ Literature, and Commerce. ^57 Charles Roberts, our most promising poet, represents Canada as standing among the nations " Unheeded, unadored, unhyinned With unanointed brow." and he asks reproachfully : " How long the ignoble sloth, how long The trust in greatness not thine own. " There is certainly nothing of the heroic in our national atti- tude. In his indignation, Roberts ranks us " with babes and .slaves," and he seems to me to speak something like sober truth. A baby, when attacked, runs to its mothers apron-strings, and though the fault may be wholly its own, the responsibility is principally the mother's. When our newspapers hear of non- intercourse bill.s, they assure their readers that there is no dan- ', no matter where they go or what the}- do, and not a cent to pay — I am reminded of Sambo's ideal of Paradise. Alas, if they only knew it ; they are paying a price far greater than their fair share should be, according to any principle of com- putation ! If this is a triu. picture of our present position, is it any wonder that national sentiment is weak ? What have we to be proud of ? The wars of Champlain and Frontenac with the Iroquois; the raids into Nc>v York and Maine ; the campaigns of 1 Si 2-1 5 hiVe receded intu the dim distance as completely as the \v.>rs of New ICngland with the Indian Sachems, or the strug- gles oi Virginia with the French for the Ohio. We Canadians have iT't been idle. We have subdued the forest ; have built .sf.Jjoois. Colleges, ciurches cities; and. as sons of those hardy r •^.i'^tlf^^tai^>,A«JK>^!*^tMSt^'Sil3S^ ^ssssm mk ArL Science, LiteraiMrc, and Commerce. s^g Norsemen, whose home was on the deep, have made ourselves the fifth maritime nation in the world. We own great ocean-going steam fleets, and have constructed canals and railroads as won- derful as any to be found on the planet. All this work, done most of it from "pure unvexed instinct of duty." is good. The man who has spent a lifetime clearing a hundred acres of solid biush on the wooded hillsides of Cape Hreton, or along the shores of Brie or Huron, is of the same kin as the northern farmer who " stubbed the Thornaby waste." From such an in- dustrious, duty-doing stock, heroes are apt to spring. But the heroes must come, or we shall have only a community of bea- vers, not a nation. '* We have something to be proud of," re- marked a venerable gentleman to me not many years ago, "we have the best oarsman in the world, and my son owns a cow that gives thirty quarts of milk a day, and he has refused ten thousand dollars for her. " Very good. We have not a word against Hanlan or the cow. But we cannot live on them. W^hat must be done ? We must rise higher than the cow. We must make up our minds with regard to the future. Drifting is unworthy of grown men. Drifting means unbelief in ourselves, and abandonment to chance or to the momentary exigencies of party leaders. It means almost certain disaster. We must become a nation in reality, with all the respon- sibilities and privileges of nationhood. There are only three directions that can be taken, and the mind of the people has not yet laid hold of the question, with the determination to settle it, which is the right direction. We have before us : First, a closer political and commercial union with the mother colonies, and the rest of the Empire. This has been called Imperial 26o NeiK.* Papers o i Canadian History, Federation, but it might also be termed Imperial Union or even Alliance. It would be satisfied in the meantime with a recognition of the rij^ht of the great self-governing colonies to be consulted on i)eace, war and treaties, and with an inter- Imperial tariff of discriminatory duties against ail the rest of the world, s a means of raising a common imperial revenue. Secondly, the proposal, made in whispers, of an independent Canadian Republic, formed with the consent of the mother country : and, Thirdly, the suggestion that the best way out of our debt and difficulties with the French-Canadians as well as with secessionism in Nova Scotia, and disallowance in the Northwest, would be by annexation to the United States. So far, the people have not seriously considered what should be done, or whether anything needs to be done, much less have they ciystatlized into parties on the subject. Consequently* not one of the three possible forms that we may assume has many representatives openly connected with it, although the conviction is deepening that any one of them would be better than the continuatice of our present position for an indefinite!)' prolonged period. Now, I am not going to argue for or against any of these possible issues. We are likely to evolve peacefully, in my opinion, into one or another. As long as revolution is avoided, the movements of nations are regular anil in accordance with antecedent causes — prophet is he who can see into those antec dent causes so clearly that he can predict the outcome. I do not pretend to have this prophetic gift. The question is too complicated .uul too big for me. Notwithstanding all the tiglit that has been \ ouchsafed to us by men who speak Art, Science, Literainrc, and Commerce. 261 with somewhat of prophetic authority on the subject, the people still crave for more light. Any one of the changes, it is felt, will involve a great leap in the dark. Therefore, the man who attempts to argue for one or another should be a wise man ; one who has meditated upon the subject in all its phases and who is not swayed by any selfish views ; who combines a master>' of details with insight into principles; who is sensible of the gravity of the issues that are involved and who has estimated the cost for Canada of the position he takes ; above all, who is too conversant with the difficulties connected with any solution to think that an epigram will settle it. or to insult by any kind of misrepresentations or rich name those who cannot see eye-to-eye with him. All that 1 propose to do, in the conclusion of this paper, is to mention the stand-point from which I submit that we should argue the subject, and to consider briefly the recently proposed closer commercial relations between Canada and the United States. 1. Our stand-point should be that indicated in the title of this paper, of "Canada First." This means the settled convic- tion that Canada is not merely a string of Provinces, fortuitously strung together, but a single nationality : young, but with a life of its own : a colony in name, but with a national spirit, which though weak, is growing stronger dail\- ; a country with a future and worthy of tlie loyalty of its sons. It means in the next place the settled conviction that the honor of Cimada must always be maintained, no matter what the cost, and that Canadian interest;, are of hrst importance. Any '"nan who is animated by these convictions i - a true Cr.nadian, no matter 262 A>a, Pap..rs on Ca,u,,,„„ ,,.^,^^.^,_ ^hat his views may be -„ ,„ „ "-"i-ion i, „ei,„,,,,^ ,^ ;^^_^^^J'"= Po'.tical fo™ that ,he "maybe asked .How ran ,-' , "0 -"ore fha„ ,,„ i„^, ^^^J ■ ' answe,- that a countn- « -ce. but. „„t„ it does so t TT'" ^•^''-'-''on ";t-ns only by courtesy, a's hi T ' "''"" '""«"S tl-e of independence was „,ade n, c , ' '"'"^''' "'^ ^ar «';e wonid have been, f.ot hj JT '"*'^"" "- ■' other, colonies though, i.seif ,up,-l/ ' ""''' "< ""^ '"ir.een J-n .hat war for bare >^Z^J:lj;^:, T"" '^•^°"^->- Union was necessary to consti.u '"■'"" "'^^ ^ ■'•^hI ^--s of deadiocks before r:;:;",^"' ^'^^'^ " too. so.e ^Vecan see how weak .he bon r""'"""" ''^^^''"P'-'- was fel, to be_for a long ti^e el , "'' ""'"'■■' '"S^'-er "-■on of S.a.e Legislature "T;;;"" T'^"^ -= ■' ■» "-e »nd Canada, threatening secessio ?' '"'"'^''">^ ^"'■^^ Britain '-- subsequent attends :;;,:; ":'-"S'<"otas of troops. . ;o">Po.i.ica,co,npro,„iLand ::::: '''""" ^"^ ^^o-O : a las,, from the great war of Seces on """ "■"•^^ '^ -"^. '"^- Lee and Jacl^son. „,ho car,fd 1 ?. '"' "' "' "''" ' " -tf- than fight against heir ' '''''"'■ '""S'" for -r/y a century for thereat «;:„:;'" "'''"'' =^'^'- '' took «a..d that its ,i,e u-as a a rLl "■■"''"■ '■'^'''^' '" ""^er- ;i.atsoe.er stood in the w^ ' ^1^ '"" '^"-«- or development „,ust be swept'out J I """' "'^ '^g'«">«e "e necessary task. Consequen ,! i tl "'■ '' ^«°-"P"-^"ed t stands out before the world a LI """"' ''™"'' P"^"'-- Harclly conceive of a force, .nternaf r:::!:;^"'^' '"' ^'^ ^^ ^exteina],great enough to Ari, Science, Liieratnrc, and Commerce. 26j threaten it. Wei!. Canada stands now about where the United States stood a century ago. The circumstances arc different, for though history repeats itself, it does not do so slavishly. We have had a different historical development. We have more radical racial diversities. We have a less genial climate. and larger breadths of hmd of which nothin- can be n»ade. Hut. we are near where the Republic stood a century^ a^o. Canada is in its infancy and must expect infantile troubles. It must go through the hard experience of n^easles, teething, calf-fears and calf-bve; must be expected to spend its pocket-mones foolishly, suffer from explosions ..f temper, get slight^ that are hard to bear and abrasions of the skin that u ill make it think life not worth living. Hut. it is a big health)- child, comes of a good stock, has an enormously large farm, which is somewhat in need of fencing and cultivation, and 1 think it may be depended on t.; pull through. U is growing i>p under stern conditions, and. as a Scotch-Canadian. taught in his youth to revere .Solomon and t tor Kmpire. i- ach Province has attractions for its duldreu. One would \^c.:>\ u. live in it ig*fwwi»'«w 26^ ^\-'/Vn-.„,,w,«.^,:,,,,^, y- live ,.„„« „, c„u,4.'; ;, ';:r"^ "'• ^''•'3- -he, ^'"dy. or in a ,„,,, ^„ *-^^ '""^ ^ man ,.„n lives j„ ,,,, ""'""' ability -utt,,,!,, . •'• '"»y— no mat- P";v.nce o,. nation and the vig " ^ ;"'";""'-■ "-' ^P'>.. of .-. '" '- for a tin,e i„ a,,„„,, .^erv 1 T " '''' "'=- -y '"' "- •>- «hole dominion, a^', "; "" ''^'■'■— "" - "-">■ .^nd on f<,„,, ,„, , ^ZZ^. '"''-'"'''"■ - horse. •"•■•"'^ a remarkable ac.,„m., '" '"' ^"""«-' settle " "« avera,.e puri,,, „f ;„,,,,.; ^;', ' ' '"« -"• regard to them .- «-«h of national sent.ment , h "'''' -<* =• »'eady '""«■-'•" the coal mines of l-ieto, "r' "'"' "'^' "'-'^■-ed ness „,ade visible by the l.ttle a", u ''''' ''"■'"'"' ""^ "-^U. f-eheads ,• have worshiped .""'^ "":"''"' '""" "^-'^ -otv '" f-">c Slens and on I ,1" "^ "'•^'•'-"'<--- '" fog-hut^ -"ed on ,,rassy |,i|,,,e^, J^ '^'^ " ''^-'nbled thousands. - ;<< -■.:. -he hard,, marine.;; t T"" "••'^^' "^'-^ -<' ^^^t-'^ »o Causeau. a hon,e r ;;...■,"' ""'"^ '-''-• f-n, f--"«cline-s country, and „.-., d fr ' "" """^•'' "'^- "'•""- of -•' - a sea of npple-blosso „ :" Tt'"" '"■" ^"""' ■"»"»■ fishermen, farmers, merchants . 7 ""*' """ ^""^ ""»«. -^Pect .ny fel,o„..c„nntr me ' "d'':"*-^' -'' O-^' 'earned To' P-v,ncial life, and to .see , ha i! '*>''"''«'"^^ >nth their "-"•^^■'' 'o be the handm^d ;■•'" "" •^•"»^-"-- but i ^' »'• ■".ue nationalhfe. Go there -^^*S^??^S5a3SSSa^»..j»xr.i. Art, Science, Literature, iind Co}umcrce. 26 1^ I.* 'b' when -^selves. coiicep. ^ '" his "o mat- •'r't of a II my lot and to can to ^or.se- •iettie- *^ and tead_>' i, o r not altogether in the spirit of "Raddeck, and that sort of thing." Pass from Annapohs Royal into the Hay of lunuly. and then canoe up the rivers, shaded by the j^reat trees of New Hrunswick. Live a while with the liahitaitts of Quebec, admire their indus- try, frujraHty and courte.sy ; hear tiieir carols and sonj^s, that blend the forgotten music of Normandy and Brittany with the music of Canadian woods ; music and song, as well as lani^uajje and religion, rooting in tJiem devotion to " Our Language, our Laws, our Institutions." Live in historic Ouebec. and experience the hospitalit)' of Montreal. Pass through the Province of Ontario, itself possessing the resources of a kiiigdonv .Sail on lakes great enough to be called seas, along rugged I.aurentian coasts, or take the new Northwest passage by land, that the Ca- nadian Pacific has opened up iroin the upper Ottawa, through a thou.sand miles once declared impracticabk. for railways, and now yielding treasures of \\c>od, and copper and silver, till you come to that great prairie ocean, that sea of green and g their commercial interest, but the enrich- ment, purifying and uplifting of the national life. We cannot benefit the LCmpire by impoveri-shing ourselves. We cannot benefit humanity b\' doing wrong lo our country. The question of unrestricted commercial intercourse be- tween the United States and Canada has been discussed at one or two meetings of this Club. It nould not become me to take it up at this stage, save to say, that it too must be considered from the" Canada First" point of view. 1 am inclined to think that Canadians will say little about it until they have the terms of the proposed measure before them. The advantages of. v>!itestricted access to our^natural market are undoubted. Indeed, it scenis to me simply impossible to doubt that the advrjiit ages wouK! bo eoualiy i^rcat on both sides. We have Arf, Sfiarf, Lfleriitun, c.iui Comnur( * -•^. t always had the »»ilJ»factio»i of fcclinti thaf the fault h^s not been oun» that the intercourse has been restricted. NVe have never terminated reciprocity treaties, tliough wo have proved that \v<; could j^t alonji without Ihcin. There is, besides, a standin}; offer on our statute book that has never been taken advantage of for the Inwerinjj of duties all round. In the meantime, I trust that the liberal ofter which Great Britain, with the consent of Canada, has n\ade for a temporary adjustment of the fishery mibroglio will be accepted at once. Then, those possible c«miplications that, under the present ;state of tHinj;H, may arise at any moment, owinj; to the unauthorized action of individuals, will be averted, and the whole subject of our relations can be discussed calmly. No righteous man or woman in Britain, Canada or the United States, wishes any so- lution that is not fair and honorable. In this Jubilee year of our Queen, in a time when the power of the bonds that bind together the members of the English-speaking race is being felt all round the world, as it never was felt before, it would be an irretrievable calamity, a sin that posterity would never pardon^ .should there be a quarrel over fish. Unive mBLto 571-iLCA J Ottaviensia^/