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 LITERATURE IN CANADA. 
 
 GEO. S7'ElV.4JiT, Jr., 
 D. C. L., F. R. G. .¥., F. R. S. C. 
 
 A'ead before the Canadian Club 
 of Neiu York, 
 
 EING deeply sensible of the honor 
 which the Canadian Club has paid 
 me this evening, in asking me to be 
 its guest, I beg of you to accept in 
 return my heart-felt thanks. I thank 
 you also for the very flattering invi- 
 tation which has been given me to 
 address you on a subject, in which all 
 Canadians must, I am sure, take a 
 warm and appreciative interest. To have my name inscribed 
 on your list of guests, is an honor which I need not assure 
 you, I value most highly. The Canadian Club of New York, 
 
IJO 
 
 New Papers on Canadian Histoj'y, 
 
 
 Lb '•,, 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 is an institution of which we Canadians feel justly prou'd, 
 because we know that it is a credit to our countrymen 
 in every way, that it is continually extendin|j and broadeninj 
 its influence and importance, and that its roll of mem- 
 bership represents all that is best in the political, social and 
 commercial activity of Canada's sons in the j^reat American 
 metropolis. But admirable as its character for hospitality 
 unquestionably is, the Club is more than a means for supplying 
 a place of pleasant resort for resident and visitinjj Canadians 
 in New York. It is an educator, in a certain sense, and the 
 present series of literary and social entertainments, will do 
 much to stimulate Canadian sentiment, patriotism and aspira- 
 tion. The pleasure of these meetings too, is materially 
 heightened by the happy manner in which your Committee 
 considers the claims of that element in our population which 
 is always fair and gentle, and to whose refining influences 
 the sterner sex owes so much. With such sharers of your 
 exile from your native land, as I see before me to-night, 
 radiant and charming as they all are, I am forced to the 
 conclusion that your self-imposed banishment cannot be so 
 very hard to bear after all. You do right, Mr. President, in 
 opening your splendid rooms to the ladies on occasions like 
 the present one, and it is an example which I think ought to 
 be followed, and no doubt will be, by other clubs. 
 
 But, you have asked me to address you a few words on 
 the subject of literature in Canada. As you are aware, ladies 
 and gentlemen, Canadian authorship is still in its infancy. The 
 plough has proved a mightier engine than the pen, and author- 
 ship has been followed feebly and precariously by men and 
 
 ' 
 
 I 
 
 / 
 
 ^ J 
 
Art, Science, Literature, and Commerce. iji 
 
 tly prou'd, 
 )untrymen 
 >roadcninf; 
 of mem- 
 social and 
 American 
 lospitality 
 snpplyinj^ 
 Canadians 
 ;, and the 
 s, will do 
 nd aspira- 
 Tiaterially 
 ommittee 
 on which 
 influences 
 of your 
 to-night, 
 d to the 
 ot be so 
 sident, in 
 ions like 
 ought to 
 
 ivords on 
 e, ladies 
 cy. The 
 1 author- 
 nen and 
 
 women, who have never lost heart in their work, but 
 whose labors have been rewarded in too many instances, I 
 fear, by those soft words, which, however sweet to the ear, 
 fail entirely to butter our parsnips. No one has been able, 
 in Canada, to make the writing of books his sole means 
 of living. We have had to write our books under our breath, 
 as it may be said, and the marvel is that we have been able to 
 produce, under such depressing circumstances, so many works 
 of even respectable merit. The Canadian author is either a 
 professional or a business man, and his literary work 
 must be done, almost as an accomplishment, during the leisure 
 moments which may be snatched from the exacting occupa- 
 tions of real life. Of course, authorship prosecuted under such 
 disadvantages, must suffer, but notwithstanding many draw- 
 b.icks, the mental output of the Dominion is not inconsiderable. 
 At the recent Indian and Colonial Exhibition, in London, no 
 fewer than 3,000 volumes, all by native authors, were show n in 
 the library of the Canadian section, and this exhibit, as you 
 know, by no means exhausts the list of books actually written 
 by Canadians, during a century of time. The collection repre- 
 sented Canadian authorship in every department of its literature, 
 science, history and poetry being especially large and note- 
 worthy, while the other branches were not neglected. 
 
 Territorially, our country is extensive, and our literary 
 sons and daughters are to be encountered, now, from British 
 Columbia to Cape Breton, doing work which is good, and some 
 of it destined to stand. Frechette, the laureate of the 
 French Academy, not long ago, said, " Be Canadians and the 
 future is yours." " That which strikes us most in your poems," 
 
.1 
 
 ? 
 
 ri * 
 
 fl 
 
 
 n''^ 
 
 ^.?^ 
 
 AV?t^ Papers on Canadian History, 
 
 said f)nc of the F^'orty Immortals to the poet, "is that the 
 modern style, the Parisian st)le of your verses is united to 
 something; strange, so particular and singular it seems an 
 exotic, disengaged from the entire work." This i^erfume of 
 originality which this author discovered was at that time 
 unknown to Fr<ichette. What was it ? It was the secret of 
 their nationality, the certificate of their origin, their Canadian 
 stamp. And it is important never to allow this character to 
 disappear. There is much in this. Our country is full of 
 history, full of character, full of something to be met with 
 nowhere else in the world. A mine of literary wealth is to be 
 had in every section of the dominion, and it only awaits the 
 hand of the craftsman. Hret Harte opened up a new phase of 
 American character as he discovered it in wild California. Miss 
 Murfree found the Tennessee mountains rich in incident and 
 strong in episodes of an intensely dramatic color, and Mr. 
 Cable developed in a brilliant and picturesque way life and 
 movement among the Creoles of the South. Have we no 
 Canadian authors among us, who can do as much for us? 
 Lesperance, it is true, has dealt with one period of our history, 
 in a captivating way. Kirby has told the story of " The Golden 
 Dog " with fine and alert sympathies. Miss Macfarlane's " Chil- 
 dren of the Earth " depends on Nova Scotia for its scenic 
 effects. Marmette has presented, with some power, half a 
 dozen romances of the French regime, while Frechette has 
 dramatized the story of Papineau's rebellion. 
 
 But Canada is full of incident and romance, and the poet and 
 novelist have fruitful themes enough on which to build many a 
 fanciful poem and story. In history, we have much good writ- 
 
 I 
 
'is that the 
 is united to 
 it seems an 
 perfume of 
 ■ that time 
 le secret of 
 ir Canadian 
 character to 
 y is full of 
 e met with 
 Ith is to be 
 awaits the 
 vv phase of 
 •rnia. Miss 
 -ident and 
 ■, and Mr. 
 V life and 
 ve we no 
 n for us? 
 ir history, 
 le Golden 
 e's - Chil- 
 its scenic 
 r, half a 
 ^ette has 
 
 poet and 
 3 many a 
 3od writ- 
 
 
 Arty Science y LitcraturCy and Commerce, rjj 
 
 ing, and I trust you will permit me to say, that I think our young 
 historians would do well not to attempt to do too much. 
 I would advise them to deal with periods rather than to write 
 complete histories of the whole country. Mr. John Charles 
 Dent has been most successful on two occasions, giving us the 
 history of old Canada, from the Union of 1841 to the present 
 time, and following up his labors with the " Story of the Upper 
 Canadian Rebellion." Mr. Edmund Collins has written of 
 Canada under Lord Lome's administration, and in the Life 
 ami Times of Sir John A. Macdonald he has discussed, with 
 considerable independence, Canada's political and economical 
 progress during a burning period of our history. The Abb^s 
 Casgrain and Kaillon, Judge Gray, Mr. Globensky, Mr. Tur- 
 cotte, Mr. George E. Fenety and Mr. de Gaspe have also dealt 
 with epochs, and so have Messrs. David, Carrier, Bryce and 
 Adam. 
 
 In works relating to parliamentary procedure and prac- 
 tice, we have the notable contributions of Alpheus Todd, 
 John George Hourinot and Joseph Doutre. And in books of 
 purely antiquarian character, we have the investigations of 
 Scadding, Hawkins, Lemoine and Lawrence, while our annals, 
 from day to day, have found an industrious exponent in Mr. 
 Henry J. Morgan. Our larger historians are chiefly Ferland, 
 Faillon, Garneau, VVithrow, Campbell, Suite, Beamish Murdoch 
 and McMullen. In biography we have the names of Fennings 
 Taylor, Alexander MacKenzie, Charles Lindsey, P. B. Casgrain 
 and William Rattray. In poetry we have a good showing, but 
 I need scarcely name more than Reade, Roberts, Mair, Murray, 
 Heavysege, Miss Machar, Mrs. Harrison ("Scranus") among 
 
o 
 
 134 
 
 Ncxij Papers on Canmhan History, 
 
 the Mii^lisl\ ; and Crcmazic, I'rcchcttc, Lc May, Lcuciulrc and 
 Kouthicr ainoti^ the French. The hst would not be complete 
 were I to omit a few of our essayists and writers on special 
 topics, such as Col. G. T. Denison, whose history of Cavalry 
 won the ^reat Russian prize, Principal Clrant, Chauveau, 
 Le Sueur, Samuel Dawson, Oxley, Jack, Griflfin, Ellis, Faucher 
 de St. Maurice, Harper and George Murray. To studies on 
 j)olitical economy and finance we have contributed no promi- 
 nent names as writers of treatises on those subjects, but George 
 Ha^ue and the late Charles F. Smithers of Montreal have 
 presented the banking; side of the argument, in sound, practical 
 papers of jrreat value. In almost every department of scientific 
 investigation and thought we have an array of men of whom 
 any country might be proud, some of them having a fame 
 which is world-wide. Briefly, I may mention a few of these, 
 such as the Dawsons, father and son, Drs. Wilson, Hunt, 
 Hamel, Selwyn, Bell, Laflamme, Lavvson, MacGregor, Bailey, 
 and Messrs. Sandford Fleming, Matthews, Murdoch, Carpmael, 
 Johnson, Hoffman, Bayne and Macfarlane. Of course, this 
 list, by no means, includes all. 
 
 The education of the French Canadian is much more 
 literary than scientific. His taste for letters is cultivated at 
 quite an early age, and oratory, bcllcs-lcttrcs and the classics 
 form by far the stronger part of his mental outfit on leaving 
 college. Higher thought and scientific research have few 
 charms for him which he cannot withstand, and he turns, with 
 passion almost, to poetry, romance, light philosophy and 
 history. He is an insatiable reader, but his taste is circum- 
 scribed and narrowed, and following the bent of his inclinations, 
 
 :v^ 
 
o 
 
 « 
 
 9', 
 
 ^'Mcnclrc aiul 
 L><-' complete 
 »■« on special 
 K «)f Cavalry 
 . Cliauvcau, 
 "is, Faucher 
 studies on 
 cl no promi- 
 but Gcorj^re 
 "treal have 
 id, practical 
 of scientific 
 ;n of whom 
 "k' a fame 
 V of these, 
 on, Hunt, 
 :or, Bailey, 
 Carpmael, 
 Hirse, this 
 
 uch more 
 tivatecl at 
 le classics 
 1 leaving 
 bave few 
 irns, with 
 phy and 
 i circum. 
 inations, 
 
 Ah, Science, Literature, and Commerce. IJ5 
 
 he eschews all the troublesome parailoxes of literature, avoids 
 speculative authors, and reads with delight and appreciation 
 the books which furnish him with the most amusement. He 
 seeks recreation in his readin}; matter, and, sympathizing with 
 F.merson, though he scarcely knows a line of that author, he 
 makes it a point to read only the books which please him the 
 best. He likes clever verses and a good novel, and as the 
 printing-press of I'Vance furnishes exemplars of these in 
 abundance, he is never put to straits for supplies. Naturally 
 enough, when the French Canadian attempts authorship, he 
 writes poetry, romances, cliroHUjucs ami history. The latter he 
 does very well, and exhibits industry and skill in the arrange- 
 ment of his materials and the grouping of his facts. His work 
 varely fails in artistic merit, and its strength lies in the easy 
 flow and elegance of its diction, and the spirit in which the 
 author approaches his subject. Quebec's list of poets is a long 
 one. Almost every fairly-educated young man can, at will, 
 produce a copy of well-turned verse, but fortunately all do not 
 exercise their power, nor do those who print poems in the 
 newspapers always make volumes of their lays afterwards. 
 Strange to say, Quebec is singularly badly-off for female poets. 
 I know of but one or two ladies who have courted the muses 
 and printed their verses. We must not forget, however, that 
 a poem is often emphasized in the tying of a ribbon, in the 
 arrangement of the hair, and in the fashioning of a bow, and it 
 would be unfair to describe Quebec's young women as unpoeti- 
 cal merely because they have not seen fit to put their 
 thoughts into song. There are many male poets in the 
 province, but it will be unnecessary to concern ourselves, at 
 
I 
 
 / 
 
 h 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 II K 
 
 I 
 
 ^/^. 
 
 'Ik 
 
 
 .1 
 
 
 mm 
 
 \ I 
 
 136 
 
 New Papers on Canadian History, 
 
 this time, with more than half a dozen of the better-known 
 ones. These are Cr6mazie, Frechette, Le May, Garneau, 
 Routhier and Suite, each distinct from the other, in style, 
 touch and motive. Joseph Octave Cr^mazie deserves, perhaps, 
 the special title of national poet of French Canada, but Louis 
 Honors Frechette, whose versatility and fancy rise to great 
 heights, is not far below him. There are few prominent 
 novelists, as 1 have said, of either French or English origin. 
 The name of James de Mille, a New-Brunswicker, stands out 
 prominently, but his fiction is little tinctured with the Cana- 
 dian flavor. Among the French, we have only Chauveau, 
 Marmette, Bourassa and Le May. 
 
 Literature in Canada, owes much to the various literary 
 and historial societies, which exist in nearly all the chief 
 towns of the Dominion. The parent of them all is the 
 old Literary and Historical Society of Quebec, which was 
 founded in 1824, by the Earl of Dalhousie, then Governor- 
 General. This institution owns many rare manuscripts and 
 printed books, relating to the early history of the country, and 
 every year its treasures are explored and investigated by 
 historians and enquirers from all parts of the Continent. The 
 Society has published some valuable memoirs, transactions 
 and manuscripts in French and in English, and these are held 
 in high repute by scholars everywhere. In Montreal, Toronto, 
 Halifax, St. John, N. B., and Winnipeg, similar societies enj\)y 
 a flourishing and useful existence. Four years ago, the 
 Marquis of Lome, founded the Royal Society of Canada. The 
 membership was limited to eighty men, and the objects of the 
 society may be thus described : firstly, to encourage studies and 
 
istory, 
 
 Art, Science, Literature, and Commerce. ijy 
 
 the better-known 
 e May, Garneau. 
 e other, in style, 
 deserves, perhaps, 
 Canada, but Louis 
 ^ncy rise to great 
 few prominent 
 r English origin, 
 icker, stands out 
 d with the Cana- 
 
 only Chauveau, 
 
 ■ various literary 
 ■Jy all the chief 
 hem all is the 
 bee, which was 
 
 then Governor- 
 manuscripts and 
 the country, and 
 investigated by 
 Continent. The 
 ir.s, transactions 
 I these are held 
 ntreal, Toronto, 
 
 ■ societies enjoy 
 years ago, the 
 )f Canada. The 
 - objects of the 
 age studies and 
 
 investigations in literature and science ; secondly, to publish 
 transactions containing the minutes of proceedings at meetings, 
 records of the work performed, original papers and memoirs of 
 merit, and such other documents as might be deemed worthy 
 of publication ; thirdly, to offer prizes or other inducements for 
 valuable papers on subjects relating to Canada, and to aid 
 researches already begun and carried so far as to render their 
 ultimate value probable ; fourthly, to assist in the collection of 
 specimens, with a view to the formation of a Canadian Museum 
 of Archives, Ethnology, Archaeology and Natural Historj-. 
 The society is divided into four sections; i. — French Litera- 
 ture, with history, archaeology and allied subjects; 2.^ 
 English Literature with history, archaeology and allied 
 subjects ; 3. — Mathematical, chemical and physical sciences ; 
 4. — Geological and biological sciences. The sections meet 
 separately for the reading and discussion of papers, or other 
 business, during the annual session of the society, which has so 
 far assembled at Ottawa in the month of May. These 
 meetings have been most successful, in point of attendance 
 and work actually performed, and the usefulness of the society 
 has been greatly extended by its catholicity and liberality 
 towards kindred institutions, almost every one of which, in 
 Canada, has been invited annually to send delegates to the 
 Royal. These representatives have the privilege of taking part 
 in all general or sectional meetings for reading and discussing 
 papers. They may also communicate a statement of original 
 work done, and papers published during the year by their own 
 societies, and may report on any matters which the Royal 
 Society may usefully aid in publication or otherwise. The 
 
ijS 
 
 New Papers on Canadian History, 
 
 Dominion Government aids the Royal Society by ;in annual 
 grant of §5,000, which is set aside for the publication of the 
 transactions and proceedings. Thus far, four large volumes 
 have been published, and a glance at their contents affords 
 convincing testimony of the value of the work which the 
 society is doing. Its weak point, doubtless, rests in the literary 
 sections. But even those departments may be made valuable and 
 eminently useful in time. In arch.-eology, history and ethnology 
 the field is wide, and it is satisfactory to note that the two first 
 sections are already devoting their energies to their special line 
 of work with vigor and zeal. I n one branch of study, in particu- 
 lar, that of ethnology, the Royal Society has an important duty 
 to perform. The Indian population is fast disappearing. In a 
 few yeais, the characteristics of the red races will be wholly 
 lost. It is necessary to preserve these, while the tribes remain, 
 and this work is being done by the second section of the Royal 
 Society, and it is a work which possesses a value that cannot 
 be over estimated. Of course, in historical research, and in 
 archaeological investigation, the extent of the society's labors 
 is practically unlimited. Royal societies, with similar objects 
 in view, exist in various quarters of the globe. Canada surely, 
 is old enough and advanced enough to have one also. 
 
 In a paper such as this, some reference should be made to 
 the really admirable Department of Archives, which is main- 
 tained by the Dominion Government at Ottawa. It is under 
 the charge of that competent and zealous officer, Mr. Douglas 
 Brymner, whose tastes and training well fit him for the duties 
 of his oflfice. He has really created the department and made 
 it one of the most efficient in the public service of Canada. 
 
Art, Scietice, Literaiure, and Commerce. ijg 
 
 Fifteen years ago the historical records of Canada had scarcely 
 an abiding place. We had no regular system by which letters, 
 pamphlets, printed books and documents and manuscripts 
 relating to the commercial, literary and political activity of the 
 country could be preserved, and rendered accessible to the 
 student. Thousands of valuable papers were in imminent 
 danger of being lost ; many undoubtedly did perish. In 
 1 87 1, a number of literary men of Canada, petitioned the 
 legislature to organize a branch of the public service by means 
 of which historical data might be preserved. Parliament 
 promptly acceded to this request, and the Minister of Agri- 
 culture added the Archives branch to his department. Mr. 
 Brymner was placed in charge, and he began his work of 
 collecting absolutely ah ota, not a single document of any sort 
 being in hand when he commenced. To-day, the shelves of the 
 Department contain upwards of seven thousand volumes of 
 historical papers on every conceivable subject of interest to 
 Canadians. The work of indexing these enormous collections 
 goes on daily, and fresh matter is constantly being added, Mr. 
 Hrymner's aim being to make the Archives truly national in 
 every respect and as complete as possible. 
 
 Much has been written about the law of copyright. Canada 
 passed a fairly good act in 1875, but as it contravened the 
 Imperial statute, it was not long before the authorities in 
 London declared the act ?///r(7 vires, and our publishers have 
 been in a most unhappy frame of mind ever since. In a word, 
 the business of publishing books in Canada is at a pretty low 
 ebb, and publishers find little encouragement in extending 
 their trade. The Canadian author is not so badly off, just now. 
 
 '■V"''-*!*' ■ :*-'^iiB'.>:jr '-»'^"'5s«»»*,, 
 
140 
 
 New Papers on Canadian History, 
 
 Under the old British act, a very good rule only worked one 
 way. Thus, the English author who copyrighted his book in 
 England was fully protected in every colony flying the British 
 flag. The Canadian or Australian author, however, could only 
 obtain copyright in the colony or province where his book was 
 published. The other day, an amendment was made to the 
 act by the Imperial Parliament, and by its terms, any work 
 published in the Queen's dominions is fully protected all over 
 the vast empire. The various colonial governments were 
 communicated with on the subject, and all but New South 
 Wales replied favorably. That far-off dependency remains to 
 be heard from. Meanwhile, the act was passed, and for the 
 benefit of New South Wales a clause was inserted exempting 
 any colony from the operation of the measure, should it prefer 
 to keep to the old order of things. 
 
 And, just here, is a good place to ask, do Canadians read 
 the productions of their own authors ? What encouragement 
 do they give the writers of Canadian books? It is a fact that 
 Canada cannot support a really first-class magazine. The 
 experiment of magazine publishing has been tried in all the 
 chief cities of the Dominion, but it has failed in every instance, 
 though the trial has been made honestly and at considerable 
 sacrifice on the part of the promoters of the enterprise. Every 
 now and then we hear the question : Why does Canada Qot 
 have a magazine ? The Canadians read magazines, and pay for 
 them. This is true ; but it is also true that they want the best. 
 Their standard is high, and unless the publisher can supply a 
 publication which can compete with the important old world 
 and United States serials, they will not have it, no matter how 
 
Art, Science, Literature, and Commerce. i^i 
 
 patriotic they may suppose themselves to be. Of course, the 
 day is coming when Canada will have its great monthly and 
 still greater quarterly, but the time is not yet ripe. In the 
 meantime, the question which presses for solution is, what are 
 we doing, in a helpful way, for our own authors in the 
 Dominion ? Are we encouraging them to write and publish ? 
 We know that men like Dr. Daniel Wilson, Prof. Clark Murray 
 and Mr. Grant Allen, and some others who could be named, 
 never think of publishing their books in Canada. They have 
 something to say, and expression to their views is always given 
 in the largest possible field. They find it to their advantage 
 to publish in England or in the United States. Small editions 
 of their books are sometimes sold to Canadian booksellers, 
 either in sheets, or bound up within cloth covers, but the copies 
 so disposed of, yield scarcely a tithe of the remuneration which 
 reaches the successful author, from the sale of his books in the 
 great markets in which they first see the light. The Canadian 
 author cannot be blamed for making the most of his opportu- 
 nities, in this way. The market in Canada is limited, and, as 
 a general thing, if a Canadian book is published in Canada, little 
 can be realized out of the venture. There are exceptions to 
 every rule of course, and a few Canadian books, written and 
 published in the Dominion, have repaid their authors very 
 well. Mr. Dent's Last Forty Years and his Story of the Upper 
 Canadian Rebellion, Principal Grant's Ocean to Ocean, Mr. 
 Bourinot's book on Parliamentary Practice, Picturesque Canada, 
 Mr. Bengough's amusing Caricature History of Canadian 
 Politics, Mr. Lemoine's historical sketches, and perhaps, 
 half a dozen other books, have yielded handsome returns to 
 
 ,,, «■ ;.^v«#s'- '3i'^^K?lW««l6'1tifi*r . 
 
142 
 
 New Papers on Canadian History, 
 
 their authors, but the great majority of our Canadian books 
 have hardly paid the publisher in his outlay for printing and 
 binding. Mr. John Lovell, whose experience in the business 
 of book-publishing has been varied and extensive, used to call 
 the fruits of his enterprise, his " housekeepers." Eventually, 
 thousands of these volumes found their way to the trunk- 
 makers and the auction shops. And the same thing is still 
 going on. Now what can be said on the subject ? We cannot 
 force the public of Canada to buy and read the works of 
 Canadian writers. Our people are a reading community, and 
 judging from the collection of books which may be seen in 
 most houses, their literary taste is good. It might be said 
 that Canadian books are not bought because the style of their 
 authors is not of the highest excellence, that crudity and not 
 elegance is their chief characteristic, and that in point of topic 
 and treatment they possess little that is calculated to commend 
 them to the book-buyer. But is this true ? 
 
 We often speak of Canadian literature, but let us ask 
 ourselves the question : Have we a literature of our own ? 
 Certainly, we have writers of books ; but does the literary work 
 which they perform constitute a literature, in the fullest mean- 
 ing of the term? Mr. Charles Dudley Warner has voiced the 
 idea that the lack of intellectual activity of the Canadians is 
 due to the fact that they have to put forth so much of their 
 physical energy in an endeavor to keep warm. But Mr. 
 Warner's delicious satire is often extravagant, we know, and 
 we also know that he is never quite so extravagant as when he 
 undertakes to deal with Canadian affairs. Mr. Carter Troop, 
 the other day, discussed Mr. Warner's views, in some sharp 
 
 / 
 
Ari, Science y Literature, and Commerce. 14J 
 
 paragraphs, in the New York Critic , but, at the same time, he 
 felt constrained to acknowledge that in Canada there was con- 
 siderable " literary feebleness." The cause of this he ascribes 
 to our "humble political status." "As a colony," he writes, 
 "Canada possesses neither the higher attributes nor the graver 
 responsibilities of national existence ; and where such attri- 
 butes and responsibilities are wanting, national life and feeling, 
 the source and inspiration of all literary achievements, will be 
 equally wanting." Of course, this simply means that the 
 colonial position is fatal to the development of our higher 
 intellectual life and movement, — literary genius in fact, — aid 
 that the panacea for our ills in that respect is independence 
 alone. I cannot go as far as that, though I must admit that 
 the idea is suggestive and may be discussed. American letters, 
 we know, during the colonial period, were feeble and insignifi- 
 cant. After years of independence came a literature, full of 
 promise and character. But has its present robust condition 
 been reached by independence merely? Must Canada pursue a 
 similar course of political advancement, if she would have a 
 literature of marked individuality, color and strength ? I should 
 be sorry to think so. Canada is still young in years, and time will 
 work a change. American literature has grown with the increase 
 in the ranks of the leisure class in the United States, and educa- 
 tion has done the rest. Only a few decades ago, the people of 
 the great Republic, were largely dependent on British and 
 European authors for their intellectual food. Even the serials 
 in the leading magazines of New York, Boston and Philadelphia, 
 were from the pens of English novelists. The literature which 
 we all admire to-day, is really almost of yesterday. Most of 
 
 !^»ite»i«pv"^> 
 
^. c... 
 
 
 144 
 
 New Papers on Canadian History, 
 
 us can remember when America had hardly more than three 
 or four fiction writers of repute, while half a dozen {rcntlemen 
 only were writing the ballads and poems of the nation, and of 
 the half-dozen, not more than four were distinctively American 
 in their treatment of scenery and incident. Give Canada a 
 chance. Give her time to have a large leisure class. Give to 
 her literary men and women, the incentive and encourage- 
 ment they need, and Canadian authorship will not lack in 
 individuality and robustness. Much has been done in the 
 way of education. Our wealthy men are endowing colleges, 
 and founding scholarships in the universities. Our schools 
 are practically free ; in some of our provinces, they are 
 entirely free. Perhaps, we are crowding too many men into 
 the professions, but in time, even this error, if it be an error, 
 will regulati itself. The country is beginning to pay attention 
 to what men of culture and of thought have to say about the 
 various problems of life and of human experience. Our lectures 
 attract larger and more appreciative audiences. The people 
 read more, and they are exercising greater discrimination in 
 their reading than they ever did before, and, from all these 
 signs, I feel that I am safe in predicting that the day of 
 successful Canadian authorship is not far distant, and that we 
 will yet have a literature of which we may feel reasonably 
 proud, and that too, without changing our allegiance or 
 altering our system of political and national life. 
 
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