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SPEECH ^"^

OF THE

HON. GEORGE BROWN

IN THE

CANADIAN SENATE, MARCH 21 , 1878,

The Public Finances of the Dominion.

THE FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS

or THE

MACKENZIE AND MACDONALD GOVERNMENTS CONTRASTED.

SENATOR MACPHERSON'S PAMPHLETS.

HAiyilLTON PUBLIC LiBRARV

PRINTED AT THE OFFICE OF THE GLOBE NEWSPAPER,

1878.

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MR. BROWN'S SPEECH

THE FINANCES OF CANADA.

Ottawa, 21.st March, 1878.

The order of the day having been called for resuming the debate
on Mr. Macpherson's notice, " That he will call attention to the public
"expenditure of the Dominion, especially that portion of it which is
"largely within the control of the Administration, and will inquire of
''the Government how it is proposed to restore the equilibrium be-
" tw^een income and expenditure."

HON. GEORGE BROWN said :— I rise to make a few observations
on the subject that has been brought under oi;r notice hy the Hon.
Senator opposite (IMr. Macpherson), and which was inidev discussion
when we adjourned last night. But, before proceeding to do so, I
trust the Senate will bear with me for a moment while I say a few
words in regard to the form in which this matter has been presented
to us by the hon. Senator, and the peculiar character of the debate
which has arisen from it. The notice given by the hon. gentleman
was of a definite question to be put to the Secretary of State. Now,
as the rules of the Senate do not debar discussion on initting a ques-
tion to the Government, of which notice has been formally given, I
take no exception to discussion having b en raised now. I think our
rules should be amended on this point, but this is not the time to con-
sider that. But what I do desire to call the special attention of the
Senate to is the inconvenient and unjust use that has been made of
this laxity of order on the present occasion. Under cover of this
notice of a question that might have been put and answered in two
minutes, the hon. gentleman rises to discharge a furious phillippio
against the Administration ; rambles over the entire field of party
politics ; drags in every conceivable or inconceivable matter that he
supposes will serve his purpose of detraction ; indulges in errors and
misstatements without end ; and fulminates wihl charges of waste and
extravagance that have been again and again shown to be utterly
groundlogs. Nay, the hon. gentleman venture I to go still further

than this — ho ventured to insinuate, without name, place, or date
being given, \\4iat he must have known amounted to a charge of fraud
on the part of the Administration —

Mr. Macphersox- In what instance did I do that?

Mr. Brown — The hon. gentleman did it more than once. "VVlien
referring to the deficit on the Receipts and Expenditures of 1877, he
tried to cast al)road the insinuation that the Public Accounts were not
truly made up or the deficit would have been greater. He said that
he had been told by somebofly or other that accounts were purposely
kept back, so as to force a balance and lessen the dolicit of the year.
He deplored the unreliability of Committees of the House of Com-
mons, and hinted at a Royal Commission as the only mode of getting
at the facts, j'^nd this onti'ageous insinuation he accompanied with

the intimation that he could not vouch for tiie truth of the story he
had been uttering, and would not be held res])onsi])le for it. In all
my knowledge of Parliamentary discussion I have never knoivn so
grave a cluirge preferred against the (lovern.nent of the day, without
fact or pri)bal)ility to sustain it, and with so mean a loo|ihole of escape
from responsibility coolly attaciied to it. And the hon. j^oiitleman in
his statement was as reckless of the interests of liis counti'y as he was
unjust to the Government. I am conhdent I am within bounds when
I say that a hundred char^^es of greater or less magnitude wure dis-
chirged or insinuated by the hon gentleman against the Administra-
tion — one or two of them probably based on lacts as to which difterence
of oi^inion might honestly exist, but the great m.ass of them utterly
baseless. For example, only think of the hon gentleman bitterly as-
sailing the Administratiim because, as he alleged, eveiy immigrant
who arrived in 1875-() cost the country §2(5 05, when iu fact it was
but $8 85 in that year, and $4 08 in 1870-7.

Mr. Macpherson — My statement was strictly correct, and I shall
prove it.

Mr. Brown — The hon. gentleman may strive to escape by a play
upon words — by pleading that he only meant the immii^rants arriving
at Quebec — but this plea cannot be entertained. He well knew that
25,0;i3 immigrants arrived at all points in the Dominion in 1875-0, and
what excuse can he pretend for placing the whole cost of this large
number on the 7,00li of them who ariived via Quebec, and represent-
ing the average cost per capita thus obtained as the average of the
whole number? 1 heard distinctly that the hon gentleman said — we
all heard it— and I defy him to find one 2)ei'son who heard him, or one
person who has read his ijamjjhlet, who did not understand his charge
to be that every innnigrant coming into the country in 1875-0 had taken
$20.05 from the jjublic chest. Now, then, I ask the Senate, if it is
reasonable, if it is just, if it is for the public benefit, that the members
of the Government for the time being in this House, and indeed the
whole of us — for we aie all interested in repplliiig unjust accusations
against tho Governmentof otir country — should be ex[)ected to riseatthe
moment and refute on the spot such a precious conglomeration as this,
at the risk of piling blunder upon blunder and confusing the public

mind ? We have been diacussing this niattei" for n number of tlaya^
and with ko boundluss a fiukl to range over, we may go on tUscussing
for a month withtait getting nearer a solution than we are to-day. I
can understand how the diseussion of two, or even three, points of
public policy may bo c ndueted together prohtably in this Chamber —
but I cannot, 1 confess, comprehend how a hundred points of detail
that have never before been discii.><sed here, either openly or in Ci>m-
mittee, can be usefully considered together in open debate across the
floor. The J)riti.sh ]iarliamentary system wisely provides that the con-
trol of the details of money Bdls — that the jiower which makes and
unmakes Ministries— shall rest with the popular branch of the Legis-
lature. It does not admit of two Chambers ecjually powerful and pos-
sibly discordant with each other. Two sei)arate bodies cannot speak
the well understood wishes of the people, nnless they happen to be in
harmony. The power of the purse-strings is, theiefore, most wisely
lodged with the rej)resentalives of the ])eople. We are not elected by
populai vote ; we are ai)jtointed by the Crown on the nomination of the
Dominion Ciovernment of the day ; we are ai)pointed for life ; we can-
not be removed except for cause ; our numbers cannot be increased
except with our consent ; — practically we are directly responsible for
our acts as legislators to our own consciences only. 1 ask the Senate
then, if this Chamber is a fitting theatre for such wholesale railing
discussions as the present I The Lower House has all the ai>piiance3
for rigid examination into the details of money expenditures — but
we have not. Every shilling of i)ublic expenditure must be authorized
before the money is paid — and for criticizing tiie Estimates closely and
wisely the Commons have ample facilities that we do not possess. The
Minister of Finance sits in the Lower House ; he is practically conver-
sant with every transaction of the year ; he opens the Budget ; he
frames and proposes all changes of tariff or taxation ; he discloses
the financial policy of the Government ; anil he stands prepared
to defend at any moment every feature of that policy. Then come
the Committees of Ways and Means and of Supply, in which the
estimates of the year and all proposals of revenue changes are over-
hauled critically and severely for many days in succession, and ques-
tions are put and answered on the moment on every doubtful point
with a degree of freedom and plain speech that coubi hardly be sur-
passed. And then, auain, at the opening of the following session
the Public Accounts Committee is hard at work comparing the sums
granted with the sums spent, narrowly criticizing every item, and
gathering full information on evt-ry point for the coming debate on
the Supply Bill. I ask the Senj,te if it is convenient that we
should set up here rival Finance Ministers and Finance Com-
mittees to control the action of the popular branch on such mat-
ters ? 1 ask if it is not wandering beyond our province ? — if it
will add either to the usefulness or the dignity of this House ? If
I am rightly informed, this reckless raid into the territory of our
neighbours is the first thing of the kind that has happened for many
years ; and I respectfully submit for the consideration of the Senate
whether it ought not to be the last. With these remarks I rtt'nni to
the bill of comjiianit of the hon. gentleman oppohite. The hon.
gentleman is full of compbdnts and btmentations. He don't like the
present Ministry ; he has no faith in Cojiumittees of the Commons ;

he has no faith in the Public Accounts ; he has no faith in anybody
or anything. Tho whole world is ngee with him. Why, he actually
started his speech the oHior evening with a wail of lamentation that
his speeches and pamphlets had not been answered V)y anyone— had
not been touched. Now, though I was not fortunate enough to bo
present last session when the lion, gentleman began his attack, I rea<l
tho speeches of my hon. friend the Secretary of State (Mr. Scott) and
those of other able members of this Ifoiiso in rejdy to the hon. gentle-
man, and I confess it appeared to me that nothing could be more
effective or convincing than those replies. As to his ])amphlets, 1 do
think that if the brilliant and witheiing sjieeches of Mr. Cartwright
and Mr Mackenzie in the West did not satisfy him, the hon. gentle-
man must indeed be hard to please ; but had any vestige of him been
left after jiassing through their hands it nnist certainly have disap-

f)eared nnder the scathing comments of the press. In my own
Muuble way, I was jjrepantl to say a woid when the hon. gentleman
nuide his first niotit.n in the early ])art of this session ; but when it
came on, the hon. gentleman so modified his tone, he Avas so mild of
speech, so careful in making charges, so laudatory of the Premier and
the Finance Minister and everyltody else- the whole poison of the
thing had .so completely oozed out of it — that there was very little left
to reply to. lint spite of all this, here is the hon. gentleman again
with all his fallacies and his oft-rejieated charges fresh as ever. True,
there is a change. Last session the hon. gentleman came to us in the
garb of the righteous uum grieved to the heart at the wickedness of
the world around him ; now he comes to us as the avowed partizan,
satisfied with nothing, distorting everything, and calling down fire to
consume the men who govern the land. And I am free to confess that
the hon. gentleman has special caiise for this extreme indignation in
1878 that he did not possess in 1877. Not only have the retrench-
ments of 1876-0 been steadily continued in 187(»-7 and large reductions
of expenditure eff«cted, but the revenue begins to take an upward
turn, and the national balance-sheet is much less unsatisfactory than
under all the circumstances was fairly to have been anticipated. It is
so hard to have all (uie's projjhecies and piognosticatit)ns ruthlessly
knocked on the head. Who can wonder that the hon. gentleman is
cross, querulous, and wild in his statements ? He takes in one hand
a list of the expenditux*es ( f 187r)-6, and in the other a list of those of
1876-7 ; and he reads aloud tlie several items in each and compares
them together. Does he come to an item in which the disbursements
of the latter year exceed by a few dollars those of the former year,
he exclaims, Oh, such wickedness ! Ruin and desolation ! Has he to
confess a saving of say $50,000 on the next item, at once he becomes
philosophical. "Ah! reductions are not always sound economy."
*' Penny wise and pound foolish." He " don't value such a reduction
at much" — but "if he did, who is entitled to the credit of it ? Why,
who but the hon. Semitor himself — "I, said the sparrow, wath my
little arrow, I killed Cock Robin ! " Is a saving of half a million dis-
closed on a single item, he i's horrified. What, half a million in one
year ! scandalous ! disgraceful ! He cares not who does it, or how it
is done, such a reduction is utterlj' unjustifiable ! In short, nothing
will please the Hon. Senator, and I shall not try to please him ; but
if the Senate will give me its attention for a brief space, I think

it Tfill not be rery difficult to show the utter grf»nnfl1e««ne^9 of the
hoii. gentleman's >^ot-np case a<^ainst the present (ioveriinient. One
great fallacy — shall I call it a fallacy or a wicked nxisropresontation ? —
underlies all the financial calcidations and accusations f>f the hon.
gentleman. His entire fabric rests on the pretence that Sir John A.
Macdonahl's CJovernment was respcmsible for the expenditure of the
c(nnitry (tnly up to ',\()t]\ June, IHl'A, and that the present ( {overnment
are responsible from that date. But what are the facts i Why that
Sir John Macdonahl's Ciovernmeut was in office until November, IHT.'i,
— that in Ajml, I871i, his (jovernment proposed andcarrioil the Supply
Bill for the entire hnancial year commencing 1st July, 1H73, and eml-
ing on J{()th June, 1H74 — that the Mackenzie Government took otiice
late in that year, and had no choice but to carry out the lu-ogramme
framed by their predece3.sor3 and ad«»pted by Parliament; and that
before the elections were over and Parliament could be called again,
the financial year was near its close. The pretence that the present
Government is responsible for the expenditure of 1H73-4 is so i)re[)os-
terous and mendacious that it i.s amazing any sane person could bo
found to set it uj) for a moment. Why, then, is the hon. <{entleman so
daring as to do this, and to cling to it, and re-assert it, in defiance of
common .'sense ? Why, simidy because the Legislative and Executive
action in 1H73-4 caused a complete revolution in the financial affairs of
the Dominion. The Macdonald Government in that year capi)ed the
climax of its reckless administration, and the country has ever since
been weighed down by the pressure of the enormous responsibilities it
left as a legacy to its successors. The Macdonald Government was
formed in 1807 and controlled the public finances until 3()th June,
1874 ; let us see then how the annual public expenditures increased in
their hands. They were : —

In 18f)7-8 9i3,48(),092

In 18()8-9 14,0;J8,084

In 18()fl-70 \i,:i\,\r^o\)

In 1870-71 ir>,()2:3,081

In 1871-2 17,r)80,4(;8

In 1872-3 li),174,(!47 ami

In 1873-4 23,316,316

It will thus be seen, that in the four years from 1867-8 to 1870-1 the
annual expenditure rose two millions of dollars ; that in the suc-
ceeding two years it rose three millions and a half more ; but that in
the next succeeding year — that of 1873-4, which the hon. Senator (Mr.
Macpherson) so indecently seeks to fasten on the present Government
— the annual expenditure went up at one jump the enormous additi-
onal sum of $3,708,300. And to show clearly how this vast increase
arose, and how entirely the late Government were responsible for it, I
have taken from the Public Accounts, comparative lists of each item
of expenditure in the years 1872-3 and 1873-4 respectively, and will
now read them : —

1872-3 1873-4 Incr. Deer.

Interest 5,209,205 5,724J3() 515,231

ClmrKOBof nmnagcment of debt.... 17^981 238,003 (m.0J2

SinkiiiK Fund 407,82() 513,920 10(i,0!)4

Discount exchanged 5,7()3 Sd.dSO 21,017

Sulmidics to rrovincos 2,921,39!) 3,752,757 831,3.-8

Civil (i.)vernnujnt 750,874 883.(185 1;}2,8II

Admiri.stration of Justice 308,9t)f{ 459,037 (50.071

Police 49.81.'} 5().387 ().57»

Venitentiaries 270,(;(il :{95,551 124,890

Legislation (514.187 781.048 l()9,5(il

(ioological Survey ()4.()3l 97,824 ;{8,183

Art!*, Agriculture and Stati.stics. . . 10,()90 19,091 8,401

Census 57,7(!<) 39,470 18,006

Emigration and (juarantine 287,3()8 318,572 31,204

Marino Hospitals 48,150 ()(i,4()2 18,;512

Pensions 49,204 50,458 7,249

Superannuation 53,02(5 (54,442 11,41(5 ..

Miktia 1,248,(;()3 077,37(i 271,287

PublicWorks 1,597,(514 1,82(5,001 228,387

Ocean and River Steam Service. . . 45(5,190 407,701 48,489

Lighthouses 480,375 537,057 5(5,(582

Fisheries 97,878 7(5.247 21,(531

Steamer Inspection 13,266 10,292 2,974

Insurance Inspection •

Miscellaneous (53,849 102,160 3S,:ilI

Indian (Jrants 63,777 146,6(58 82,291

Dominion Lands 237,(576 28;i,l(53 45,487

Dominion Forces, Manitoba 147,368 209,1(59 61,801

Mounted Police, N. W 199,159 199,1.59

N. W. Organization 12,2(52 12,2(52

boundary Survey, U.S 89,293 79,29:5

Boundary Survey, Ontario 2,430 2,4.30

Military Stores 144.906 144,006

Customs refunds former years. 69,330 69,330

Settlers' Relief, Manitoba

Customs 567,7(56 658,299 90,533

Excise 171,705 206,935 35,230

Weights & Measures

Inspection of Staples .,...

Adulteration of food

Culling Timber 69,692 82,886 13,894

Post-Offiee 1,067,866 1,387,270 319,404

Public Works 1,495,185 2,880,679 893,494

Minor Revenues 22,263 11.371 10892

Total $19,174,6*7 23,316,316 4,141,669, 373,369

I call the attention of the Senate to three facts that are established,
by this comparison : — First, that out of the 39 items that con.stitute
the entire exjjenditure of the year 1873-4, 33 of them were largely in-
creased by ihe late Government beyond the sums paid for the same
service the previous year ; second, that the increases on these thirty-
three items came lo $4,141,219, and the'decreases on the remaining six
items of expenditure to $373,369, showing the net increase of expen-
diture in that one year to have been $3,768,300 ; and third, that the
great mass of the increases were of such a character that they could
not have been reduced by the incoming Administration. And as illus-

trative of tho stylo of nottxd of those lai'ge increasos, lot mc recall to the
attention of tho House tho cnormouH creations of new offices and ad-
(l.tions tf> existing salaries that were nuule by Sir John A. Macdonaltl's
Government in tliat year— just before they were ejected from otlice,
and while already in the throes of dissidntion. I hold in my hand tho
(ttHcial rt'turn, and I find that iukUt these scandalous circumstances nf»
fewer than (129 new appointments were made in the Dei)artmental
ofHces alone, with salaries attached to them of .^:J22,!)43 per annum ;
and that additions were made in the same manner to the salaries of
I,;i81 employees in t,ho same Departments, amounting to f ir)2,;ir)0 per
annum. Tho annual burden involved in these 2,010 transactions
amounted to the eiionnous sum of .i!!l7r),2;i{) per annum, or the annual
interest on more than ton millions of iloUars ! Hero is tho official
return :— '

Department. Appoint- Increases. Total.

ments.

No. Amt. No. Amt. No. Anit.

Oovernor-Oenciars Office .. — Nd. 3 350 3 350

PrivyCouncil 1 700 6 820 7 1,520

Secretary of State 9 4,(ifl0 9 l.^'w'O 18 fi,340

Publio Works 28 2\,r>U\ 171 1!),074 10!) 40,ti20

.lustico 75 77,800 11 l,7(»0 8() 70,5(iO

Interior 10 14,070 25 r>.OlO 44 19,080

Customs Ill 58,076 63() 07,185 747 125,2(;2

Militia 6 5,(i00 IS 2,<i77 24 3,277

Inland llevenue 84 30,515 9fi 10,550 180 47,0(!5

Finance 17 15,400 24 2,o50 41 18,050

Receiver-General 2 1,()00 7 1,200 9 2,800

Agriculture 41 35,025 15 1.178 50 37,203

Marine and Fisheries 159 21,900 40 9,025 208 30,925

PostOtfice 77 3H,020 311 22,220 388 58,240

Totals 629 322,943 1381 152,350 2010 475,293

Every one of chese new appointments and increases of salary were
the work of the Macdonald Administration — but in order to throw
the oilium of these acts on their successors, the lion, gentleman
audaciously represents them as responsible for all financial transactions
after the 1st of July, 1873, instead of the true date, 1st July, 1874.
And as with the annual public expenditures, so also as to the puldic debt
— has the hon. gentleman' resorted to the same disingenuous contrivance.
When the Macdonald Ministry assumed office in 18G7, the public
liabilities of the Dominion amounted to $93,040,051, less assets
$17,317,410— or a nett Public Debt of $75,728,641. The following
figures show how the debt increased in their hands :

Gross Debt. Assets. Nett Debt.

July, 1867 $93,046,051 $17,317,410 $75,728,641

July, 1868 96,896,666 21,139,531 75,757,135

July, 1869 112,361,998 36,502,679 75,859,319

July, 1870 115,993,706 38,783,964 78,209,742

July, 1871 115,492,682 37,786,165 77,706,517

July, 1872 122,400,179 40,013,107 82,187,072

July, 1873 130,778,098 30,929,636 99,848,462

July, 1874 141,163,551 32,838,586 108,324,965

It will be seen from these figures that, in the first five years of the
Macdonald Ministry's existence, the nett Debt increased !$2,000,000 ;
bnt that in the sixth year it lose $4,500,000 beyond what it had ever
been before ; that in the seventh year it rose no less than $17,700,000
beyond the high point of the previous year ; and that in 1873-4 — for
which the hon. gentleman pretends to hold the present Ministry re-
sjionsible — it rose $8,500,000 still higher than the swollen figures of
1872-3. " Behold," exclaims the hon. gentleman, "what the public
debt and the annual expenditure were in July, 1873, when the Mac-
donald Government resigned — and now see what the present men have
brought them to, in July, 1870 ! " — thereby placing on the shoulders of
the present Ministry $8,500,000 of increased debt and $3,768,300 of
annual expenditure for which they were in no manner responsi))le.
But the hon. gentleman had a still stronger reason than even these I
have named for manipulating the record. Here is a list of engage-
ments the new Ministry found awaiting thc-m when they came into
power : —

Canals $43,800,000

Intercolonial Railway 10,000,000

Pacilio Kailwav 30,000,000

N. S. and N. B. Hailways 2,000,000

P. E. I. Railway 2,500.000

Minor works ... 4,500,000

Improvements, St. Lawrence 2,ri00.000

Advances 1,000,000

$9G,000,OUO

In addition to these enormous undertakings, the new Ministry
foun<l $35,000,000 of Public Debentures matxiring immediately, for
which no provision whatever had been made by their predecessors.
And yet, with the perfect knowledge that these vast expenditures
were forced on the new Government by his own friends ; that they
could not esca))0 from executing a large portion of the works begun ;
and that the public debt and annual expenditure must consequently
be greatly increased thereby ; the hon. gentleman ventures to speak
of that increase as a heinous crime on the part of the present Govern-
ment and denounces them for it. 1 say then, that the whole of the
hon. gentleman's calculations and accusations rest on groundless pre-
tensions ; and that his entire structure falls to pieces when placed on
a just basis.

Having thus established the true position of affairs at the time
the present Ministry took othce, I now proceed to show the results
of their administration in the three years of their reign for which
we have returns. And fix'st as to the Public Debt. On 1st July last

the nett debt was $13.3,208,699

On let July, 1874, it was 108,324,969

Total increase $ 24,883,735

Now, the question at once arises, how this great increase occurred ?
Well, Ihold in my hand an ofiicial return that solves that question

very distinctly. It shows that in those very three years there was ex-
pended on public works for v;hich votes had been taken by the MacAon-
old Government in tlie estimates of 1873 — the sum of $24,361,920, or
within half a million of dollars of the entire amount. Here are the
items :

CHARGEABLE TO CAPITAL.

St. Lawrence Canals $2,133,7fil

Welland Canal 4,816,560

Ottawa Works 1,207,645

Baie Verte Canal 576

Public j^uildings, Ottawa 716,156

Nova Scotia and N. B. Railways 1,204,263

Intercolonial Ivailway 5,248,509

Pacific Kailwav 6,58.3,958

Prince Edward I. Railway 288,632

IMPROVEMENT OF RIVERS.

St. John, N. B 13,866

Red River, Manitoba 200

St. Lawrence, chains and anchors 49,008

Fraser Kivcr, B. C 7,360

Richelieu River 29,234

Red River Route 292,076

PUBLIC BUILDINGS.

London Immigration Station 1,989

Hamilton Post-Office 7,935

Toronto Customs House 138,990

do Savings Bank ,

do Inland Revenue Office 17,889

do Examining Warehouse 223,338

do Postoffice 5,933

QuelK'c do 5,339

Ottawa Post-office 160,218

Grosse Isle Quarantine Station 16,029

Three River Custom House 7,981

Montreal Post lice 212,460

St. John, N,B., Post-office 109,884

Pictou Custom House 24,780

Manitoba do 72,654

do Penitentiary '. 136,140

British Columbia Public Buildings 166,963

HARBOURS AND PIERS.

Collingwood " 267

Meaford 8,502

Inverhuron 5,093

Kincardine 18,857

Port Albert 6,000

Goderich _. 252,886

PortStanley 8,158

Cobourg 47,325

Presqu 'He 10,292

nAKBOcns AND PIERS — Continued.

Kingston $10,647

Toronto 20,919

Owen Sound 9,240

l'.iiy(ield 41,516

Cliiuitry Island 138,981

liondeau 30,965

Shannonville 2,992

Saguenay 6,065

Baie St. Paul 15,085

Bathuist, N.B 3,876

Richibucto 28,411

Dipper 12,239

St. John 141,369

Petitcodiac 1,194

Hillsboro' 1,500

Macraie's Cove 5,004

Tracailie 7,564

Liverpool 26,831

Mabou ■. 12,176

Yarmouth 1,000

Oak Point 20,042

Ingonish 78,668

Ports George and William 5,000

Cow Bay 80,115

Salmon River and Plympton Harbour 1,200

Big Pond 500

Maitland 1,061

Total $24,361,921

So then, if the Public Debt was largely increased in the three
years of the present rejjime, it was solely in consequence of contracts
for Public Works left to them as a legacy by their predecessors ; and it
is not snrely from the lips of the friends and eulogists of those jiredeces-
sors that reproach for it should come. So much for the Public Debt ;
and now let us see how it has been with the Annual Expenditures
during the same three years. I hold in my hand a comparative state-
ment of the several items of expenditure in the year 187.3-4, (the last
year of the late Ministry) and in the year 1870-7, (the last yeai of the
present Ministry of which we have Returns) and very far from finding
jnst caurie of denunciation of the men now in jiower in the facts it dis-
closes, I find only ground of rejoicing that they have held the reins
with so tight a hand, and were able to restrict the expenditures within
so reasonable a compass. In spite of a constantly increasing popula-
tion, the opening up of new territories, the extension of civilized
government into many remote districts, the admission of Prince
Edward's Island into the Confederation, immense public works going
on from the Atlantic to the Pacific, all entailing large additional
annual burdens, and many heavy incidental expenses besides thatt
were not borne by their predecessors, this Return shows that large
reductions were effected on the ordinary annual expenditures as con-
trasted with those of their opponents in the year they were driven from
office. Here is the statement : —

1873-4. 1876-7. Inc. Dec.

Interest $5,724,436 6,797,227 1,072,791

Charges on debt 238,003 172,454 54,459

Sinkingfuncl 573,920 828,373 314,453

Discount 26,680 24,.331 2,349

Subsidies 3,752,757 3,655,850 96,907

Civil Goveinment 883,685 812,193 71,492

Adm. of Justice 459,037 565,,5&7 106,560

Police 56,387 11,365 45,022

Penitentiaries 395,551 .303,168 92,383

l-egislation 784,048 596,006 188,042

(u'ologioal 97,814 95,558 2,256

Alts, Ag. and Stat 19,091 65,767 46,676

Census 39,470 7,546 31,924

Emig. and Quar 318,572 353,951 35,379

Marine Hospitals 66,462 62,408 4,054

Pensions 56,453 112,531 56,078

Superannuations 64,442 104,826 40,384

Militia 977,376 550,451 426,925

Public Works 1,826,001 1,262,823 563,178

Ocean and River Steam Service 407,701 462,335 54,634

Lighthouses 537,057 471,278 65,779

Fisheries 76.247 96,348 20,101

Steamer Inspection 10,292 13,073 2,781

Ins. Inspection 7,512 7,512 ,.

Miscellaneous 102,160 105,507 .3,347

Indian Grants 146,068 301,596 155,528

Dominion Lands 283.163 90,521 192 642

Dominion Forces Manitoba 209,169 29,969 179,200

Mounted Police, N.W 199,159 352,779 153,500

K W. Organization 12,262 12,262

Boundary Survey, U.S 79,293 79,293

Do. Ontario 2,430 2,430

Military stores * 144.906 •... 144,906

Cus. refunds 69,.3.30 69,330

Settlers Relief, Manitoba

Customs 658,299 721,604 6.3,305

Excise 206,935 211,157 5,778

Weights and Measures 111,085 111,085

Inspection of Staples 648 648

Adulteration of food 4,903 4,903

CullingTimber 82,886 68,171 14,715

I'ost-otBce 1,387,270 1,705,311 318,041

Public Works ; 2,389,679 2,351.832 38,847

Minor Revenues 11,371 20,181 8,810

$2.3,316,316 $23,519,-301

It thus appears that the entire expenditures of the Dominion
were —

In the year 1876-7..!.. .......;.... ...:. $2.3,519,301

And in 1873-4 23,316,316

Increase in three years . $202,975

But this increase was merely nominal. There was in fact a largo
teduction on the controllable expenditure of 1876-7 in comparison with
tliat of 1873-4. During the intervening three yaarg money had to b«

borrowed to pay for the vast obligations undertaken by the late Gov-
ernment, and interest on the money so borrowed accrued in the year
1876-7 to the amount of $1,072,701 in excess of what had to be paid
for interest in 1873-4. In 1870-7, too, the sum of $;828,:}73 had to be
paid into the sinking fund for the extinction of the public debt, while
in 1873-4 the sum i)ayable into that fund was but $673,920, creating a
compulsory increase of the exjienditure of 187G-7 over that of 1873-4
of $314,453, Then, again, in 187G-7 the sum of $301,r)9() had to be
paid towards the extinction of Indian titles in the North-west, or
$156,028 in excess of the charge for that service in 1873-4. These and
other similar charges, which had to be paid ; which could not be cut
down ; which were not the act of the i)resent Ministry ; created a
charge of over $2,000,000 in 187G-7 that did not exist in 1873-4. Tlie
present Ministry retrenched so severely in 1870-7 on the charges within
their control, that notwithstanding these great additions to the expen-
ditures beyond their control, the total charges of the year were kept
within $2(52,98") of what they stood at in 1W73-4. I repeat then my
conviction that the peo2:)le tif Canada have sincere cause of tliankful-
ness that men are at the helm in these difficult times, who have coui'age
and streu'^th to hold it with so firm a grasp. But Mi\ Macpherson
is not satisfied with this reduction of nearly two millions of dollars.
He growls still — and he attempts to make some special points
of objection which, with the leave of the House, I now propose
to examine seriatim. The first objection he makes 1 have already
noticed incidentally, namely, that the Public Accounts of 1876-
-77 were not correctly made up — that he has strong suspicion that
accounts were kept back in order to force a more favouiable balance
than the truth woidd warrant. Now, I repeat that it Avas utterly un-
justifiable on the part of the hon. gentleman to send abroad such an
insinuation unless he was prepared to formulate his charge so that it
could be met promptly and decisively ; and I call upon the hon.
gentleman to rise now and state clearly what his charge is, what are
the facts, who are the criminals, and move for a Committee of Impiiry
into the truth of his insinuations. ( Loud cries of " Hear, hear !")
Does the hon. gentleman luiderstand tlie gravity of his charge ? Does
he estimate the eflect on the credit of the country of a pxiblic statement
by a member of this Chamber that the Public Accounts have been
falsified l Will it be known abroad, as is well known in every corner
of Canada, that the men who compose the present Government are
utterly incapable of such a deed, and that the thing, come from
whom it may, is a foul and groundless slander ?

Mr. Macphkrson— I told the House what I had heard, and heard
repeated so fretpiently that I had strong reason to believe it. 1 said
it was not in the power of a Counnittee sitting in Ottawa to get at the
facts, so systematically and so persistently was the thing done.

Mr. Brown — Well, then, I repeat that for an hon. gentleman of the
experience and position of the hon. member to make such a statement
here without being prepared to prove it, is entirely unwarrantable.

Mr. Macphkrson — It is the North-west accounts I refer to.

Mr, Brown — I do not care what accounts the' hon. gentleman re-
fers to. Let him tell us whose accounts they were, and who it was
that systematically kept them back, and what he is prepared to pruva

before a Committee. I appeal to hon. m61nbers on both sides of the
House if it wiis right to throw broadcast an imputation of this nature
without being able to substantiate it. For myself I do not believe one
word of it. The hon. gentleman objects to the expenditure for Mounted
I'olice in the N<n'th-wt;st. When he did so it was said across the floor
" Your friends (lid it." " Oh yes," replied the hon. Senator, "they
passed tlie Act, but they did not put it in force." He is mistaken ;
I hold in my hand a copy of the Order in Council sigucd by Sir John
A. Mac(U)nald, and it sets out every detail of the Force, the number
of men, salaries, and so forth, precisely as now in operation.

Mr. MA('PrrER.soN — Was tlie proclamation issued by the iate
Government ?

Mil. Brown — The Order in Council was passed by them.

Mr. Scott — The Mounted Police Force was brought into existence
by an Act passed in 1873.

Mr. Macphkrson — My statement was with regard to the weights
and measures. I said the Mounted Police had been organized by the
late Govcrnuient.

Mr. Brown— Ah, then this objection is wholly withdrawn from the
budget of complaints. Next comes the item of weights and measures,
8111,08"), and at this the hon. gentleman holds up his hands in indig-
nation. He was reminded that his own friends were the authors of
that measure — and he admitted that they passed the Act ; but claimed
that they did not i)ut it into o2)eration. But this is a mistake — for
they not only were the authors of the measure, but the Department
had begun their preparations for putting it in force before they left
office. The hon. gentleman says it was a bad Act — and 1 am free to
admit that as originally framed it was harsh and unpopular ; but it has
been greatly improved for the better by the Amendment Act of the
present Administration, and [ am told that the objections to it are now
greatly moditied. The advantage of securing a uniform system of
weights and measures over the Dominion, and of diminishing if not
preventing fraud by false balances, can hardly, I think, be over-rated
— and if this can be secureil by the expenditure of a moderate sum it
will be an inestimable advantage. The hon. gentleman complains,
however, that so large a sum as .>jilll,()85 should have been spent, and
he says the hxte Government never expected it to cost over ^50,000 a
year. Well, it did not cost more than that in 187(5-77. The hon. gen.
tlero^Mi omitted to state that the sum named inclmled the entire cost of
gas inspection as well as of weights and measures ; and that over §50,-
000 of fees were received last year.

Mr. Macpherson — I stated that.

Mr. Brown — Well, that left the entire cost of the measure just
what was anticipated by its authors. The hon. gentleman was a mem-
ber of this Hov.se when the Bill passed. His friends were completely
supreme in both Houses then. Did he object to its passage ]

Mr. Macpherson— I did not.

Mr. Brown — Why then does the hon. gentleman complain so
fiercely against that which he himself and his own friends did ? Is it
because their successors did not at once cast it overboard without trial
or attempt to amend its imperfections 1

Mr. Macpheeson — The question is, What Government pUt it into
operation ]

Mr. Brown — I apprehend it was Mr. Brunei who put it into operr,-
tion. The hon. gentleman's next objection is to tlie item of $4,003 for
the prevention of adulteration of food. He says ho cannot see the use
of it ; but I fancy that no cme who takes the tr<mble of reading the
report of the Commissicm will agree with him. The public benefit that
has already risen from it is very great. Some f)f the ex2)osure3 made
by the examin.ations of the Commissioners have been most salutary.
The next objection the hon. Senator niakcs is with regard to the Public
Works Department ; and what does he say as to that ? ^Vhy, he is
obliged to admit a large reduction, but he says, " as far as he can see,
after looking through it, the whole of the reduction is in manual labor.
The salaries are not in the least altered ; the reduction is all on wages. "
And how else coid<l it be ? The hon. Senator knows well that in
carrying on great natif)nal works a regular stafi' of skilled men must be
always retained, and that when the lack of work or lack of revenue
compels redactions the effect must fall first on the supermuneraries.
It is easy to fill an order for labourers, but you cannot easily get up an
efficient staff of skilled overseers and foremen. Does -the hon. gentle-
man attempt to point out any member of the staff who could or ought
to have been disjjensed with I Nothing of the kind. Had ho done so
some weight might have attached to his indignation. But when he
brings a mere vague railing such as this, it looks more like an anxious
desire to hunt uj) an electioneering cry than anything else. The hon.
gentleman then passed on to the item of Contingencies — and I wonder-
ed what he would say about it ; for I had analyzed this item for six
years past — three oi them under the reign of the late Ministry and
three \inder the present — and 1 found that in the old reign the .amount
ran rapidly up every year, and in the present reign it ran as rajjidly
down. Here are the figures :

"O'

Tory Keign 1871-2 $153,293

1872-3 189,174

1873-4 222,803

Reform Reign 1874-5 208,707

1875-6 172,548

1876-7 151,479

Well, what said the hon. gentleman as to this item ] He said that
there was here a " gratifying reduction" — but " he hojied t^ore wei'e no
postponements in this case" — that is, that payments had not been syste-
matically left out, and the accounts thereby cooked ! And this though
the hon. gentleman cannot name a single instance in which .any account
.however small, was ever postponed by the present Government.

Mr. Macpheeson — Not likely !

Mr. Brown — '* Not likely" ! — why, then, do you permit yourself to
make insinuations that you cannot sustain, and that you cannot be-
lieve yourself ] Then comes the Administraticm of Justice — .and here
the hon. gentleman tires up fiercely at the increase of $106,560 on that
item. The increase at this moment is undoubtedly to be regretted ;
but the hon. gentleman knows perfectly well it arose, first, from the
establishment of the new Court of Appeal in Ontario, over which the

Dominion Government had under the Act of Confederation no control ;
and second, from the estalilishnient of the Supreme Court of the Do-
minion, which was anticipated at the Union, which was urgently-
wanted to give uniformity to the jurisprudence c f the whole Dominion
and had been too lonj^ deferred. We all recollect how often the late
Government promised this measure to the country, and as often post-
poned it from sheer want of tirmness to deal with it. By every Gov-
ernment, by ever^' prominent j,olitician, and by every leading jurist
the absolute necessity f(jr a Supreuie Dominion Court has been admitted,
and I am amazed that the hon. gentleman ventures to condemn it. The
hon. gentleman's next complaint is as to the increased expense of the
Customs Department. It amounts to $63,305 in c imparison with
1873-4, and that any inciease should have been necessary la undoubt-
edly to be regretted. But it must be remembered that Prince Edward
Island in the three years' interval has joined the Union, and that her
Customs establishment had to be added to the annual cost of the Depart-
ment. Great changes, too, have occurred on the Upper Lakes and
throughout the North-west and the Pacitic coast, rendering needful
efficient arrangements for i)rotecting the Customs revenue. Then, too,
it must be ke])t in mind that we have had for some time past very
severe times, and that during such i)eriods extreme vigilance is de-
niandid from the Customs Department, smuggling showing itself at
such times in its most daring attitudes. The enormous skrinkage in
the values of goods, too, must have demanded constant watchfulness at
every port to i)revent the under-valuation of importations — and that
could not be done without extra expense. Hon. gentlemen opposite
have had much to say of late about Canada being made a slaughter
market for foreign goods ; but what would they not have said had
those " slaughter-gooils" been ])ermitte(l to be brought into the country
without the closest inspection by efficient officers ?

Mr. Macpherson — What of the Montreal Custom House ? "Will
the hon. gentleman say nothing about the decline of revenue and the
increase of expenditure there ]

Mr. Brown — I am glad the 1 on. gentleman reminds me of that.
What one place loses another place gains ; and I notice that though the
revenue at Montreal went down, at Toronto it went up. I cannot
pretend to judge as to the exact strength of staff necessary to be
maintaine<l at ^lontreal — but probably the customs authorities antici-
l^ate an early recovery from the severe commercial depression that has
unhappily existed at that point — and with that a corresponding recovery
of Customs revenue. It was of the Montreal Customs House, I think,
that the hon. gentleman ventured to speak as a " sink of corruptic^n."
He said that the Customs Department of the United States was rotten
to the core, but it was not worse than we had here.

Mr. Macpherson — I spoke of the New York and Boston Custom
Houses. These are the only Custom Houses in the United States I
know anything about.

Mr. Brown — But be that as it may, it was utterly unwarrantable
of the hon. gentleman to apply such words as he did to the Montreal
Custom House as now administered, or to any other public department
of Canada. It was as totally unwarranted as the insinuation of the hon.
gentleman in regard to keeping back accounts to affect the ainnual

•

balance, which he must have known was a direct impeachment of the
integrity of the Auditor General.

Mk. Camimjell — I think it was not with" respect to keeping back
of accounts by the Government ; it was with reference to accour.ta in
the North-west — certain jmrveyors wliohad spent large sums of money,
and ol whom the h<m. Senator had hear<l they had kept back their
accounts. It is not the accounts the Auditor had anytliing tt) do
with.

Mr. Brown — The hon. gentleman must not attempt to put that
colour on the change now. It is to(j late.

Mr. Macpherson — I stated it at the time ; I did not dream of
anything else.

Mr. Brown — The hon. gentleman spoke of Northwest accounts,
after I had rei)eatedly urged him to explain — but his charge was
direct and unmistakable, and repeated more than once.

Mr. Camphell — The charge was not with reference to cooking the
Public Accounts ;■ it was with reference to the transactions of jertain
officers in the North-west.

Mr. Brown — I perfectly understood the hon. gentleman latterly
to refer to accounts in the North-west ; but his original charge, and the
one he insinuated more than once, was that accounts were kept back
at the end of the year to reduce the deficit which lumest book-keeping
would have shown.

Mr. Macpherson — I did' not intend to reflect on the Auditor-
General.

Mr. Brown — Whatever you meant, you certainly did reflect on all
connected with making up the Public Acctnints, and you are bound
now to say what accuuntfi have been kept back. The hon. gentleman
has no right to make sweeping accusati(jns lagainst the Government and
evade the distinct speciflcation of what his cluu'ge is. But enough of
thi.s fur the present. Let us pass on to the hon. gentleman's indict-
ment of the Emigration Department. And here he has not only fallen
into the most palpable errors, but the calculati<nis and conclusions lie
has sent abroad in his pamphlets as well as in his speeches are utterly
wrong and mischievous. For example, he selects three years as his
basis — 1872-3, 1874-5, and 1875-G — and he states the entire expendi-
ture in these years to have been as follows : — -

In 1872-3 $277,.368

In 1874-5 302,770

In 1875-6 385,845

Now, why did the hon. gentleman state the cost in 1872-3 to have been
$277,308, when the piiblic returns show the actixal sum to have been
f287,3G8 ? — and why did he omit altogether the year 1873-4, when
they were $318,572 ? His friends were in oflice these years — surely
that coald not aflbrd an explanation of it ? And why did the hon. gen-
tleman omit to tell that these were bnt the gross disbursements of the
Department — that in every one of these years there were large sums
received back that ought to have been deducted ] Why did he omit to
tell of the Quarantine deductions, the repayments by the Provinces,
and the repayments on the Icelandic and Mennonite advances ? And

why did he ignore entirely the emigrants ftiriving by Suspension
Bri<lge, Portland, and Punil)lna, and at Halifax and St. J«jhn — av.d
cotdly asHUuie that no en»ij,'rant3 came to Canada except those by
Quebec ?

Mr. MAcriiERSON — I stated that I referred to tho emigrants by the
St, Lawrence.

Mr. BiiowN — Yes, the hon. gentleman dropped that incidentally at
the end of his ai'giinient— but why did he conceal the fact that Avhile
lie assiuiied the imniigratiou of 1872-3 to have been 30,901, his friends,
who were then in othce, returned it as 50,050, of which 25,i)20 came by
the St. Lawrence ? Why did lie state that the immigrants of 1874-5
were bxit 1(5,038, when the ollicial return of the Department shows 27-
382 to have arrived, of which 12,043 came by the St. Lawrence I What
right had he to state that the immigrants of 1875-0 were cmly 10,001,
when the official returns show that 25,033 arrived in the Dominion, of
which 7,003 came by the St. Lawrence? The hon. gentleman may
ixjssibly know moi-e abtmt the matter than anyone else — but why did
he omit to tell that his ligiues were in entire oi)pt)sition to the ofhcial
record, and tliat they assumed a wholesale falsification of the emigra-
tion returns by the officers of the Government ? And could anythinJ?
mere reprehensible be imagined than for the hon. gentleman, having
thiis settled his figures for himself, to ignore all deductions and pro-
ceed to aveiage the whole gross cost of immigration on his own
assumed numbers, and send that abroad over the haul as the cost per
capita of each immigrant ? The result of this manipulation by the
hon. gentleman will lie seen by the following contrasts of the hon.
gentleman's statements and the Official Keturns of the Department.
And first as to the annual nett expenditure for emigration : —

Mr. Miicphi'rson. Official Ilclurn,

1872-3 8277,3fi8 $2.%,fil7

1S74-5 302,770 .-... 241,000

1875-G 385,847 228,077

1876-7 110,670

And now as to the cost j^cr capita : —

Mr. Macplicrson. Official lift urn

1872-3 $ 7 70 ^5 90

1874-.5 18 00 8 82

1875-6 26 05 8 85

1876-7 4 08

Mr. Macpheu.son — My statement v/as strictly correct. The hon.
gentleman is reading from -the figures handed to him by the hon.
Minister of Agriculture yesterday, which are entirely opposed to the
Public Accounts. My statements are in strict conformity with the
Public Accounts. The hon. Minister of Agriculture said yesterday my
figures were incorrect ; that my figures included quarantine. That
was incorrect. He said I did not deduct refunds from the Provinces ;
that also is incorrect. They are in the Public Accounts.

Mr. Pelletier — But not in your statement. t ■ '-^^ -

Mr. Brown — The hon. gentleman incurred a serious responsibility

in sendinj? such inaccurate statements abroad, and making charges
against tlm (iovcrnmcnt utterly inconsistout witli tlie fucts. Tlie Hrst
tl)ing we shall have coming to us across the Atlantic will ho a news-
pajjor announcement that we i)ay Iti^'JIi (5"» for every emigrant we get
from the Mother Country. The next siibject of attack is the militia
expen<liture, which shows a reduction of !i?42<»,!):ir) from the year 1H73-
74. The hon. gentleman says it is (juite impossible that such a redtic-
tion can be right. The change as I luidcrstand it, is simply this :
that heretofore 40,000 militia were drilled every year ; but by this
curtailment it ispro]>osed, while the 2>resent tinancialstiingency exists,
that the 40,000 n)ilitiamen shiill be divided into two bodies, and one-
half drilleil yearly in idternate order. We all, I am sure, earnestly
desire that the militia force of the Donunion shall l)e maintained in
full elliciency ; but in such times as the present how can this tem-
porary modification of the jiractice l)e made just subject of indignant
complaint, es]»ecially from the mouths of such ardent economists as
the hon! gentlemen opposite i The next item in the hon. senator's
bill of comi)laint was tlu; reduction of ^192, (542 cm Manitoba land sur-
veys. " \Vh;it "duction," the hon. gentleman exclaims, "is there in
that J You lia\e reduced the snrveys by that amount — is that
economy ? You will stop them next year altogether — will that, too,
be a saving ? And if any one is entitled to credit, to wIkjui should it
go but to those that drove tlie Government to it I" Ah, it is ao hard
to please the hon. gentleman ! If you don't retrench he abuses ycAi,
and if you do retrench ho is worse than ever. The next item is one
aboixt which the hon. gentleman raised a terrible hullabaloo — the item
of Departmental Telegraphing. He reail from the Public Accounts
the statement that the co.st of this service in 187^3-4 (the hist of the
Macdtmald Government) was but $20,925, while in the tirst year of the
jiresent Government it was Si8,507. And how excited the honourable
gentleman did become about it, to be sure ! \Vell, this did appear to
me a very large sum, and so I dropped into the Finance Department
and asked sin explanation of it from one of the othcers of the Depart-
ment. He went at once and looked into the matter, and 1 am sure
the hon. gentleman will be relieved and delighte<l Avhen he hears that
in 187;}-4 there were only three-fourths of the year's telegraphing in-
cluded, and that in 1874-5 thei'e were five quarters charged. (Loud
cries of hear, hear.) It so happened that the qmirterly bill of the
Telegraph Company was delayed so long that the (xtjvei-nment accounts
for tiie year were closed before it could be certified, and it had, of
course, to go to the next year's accounts. The effect of this correction
of the hon. gentleman's figures entirely changes the aspect of the tele-
graphic complaint, and 1 call the hon. gentleman's attention to the
great economy effected by the present Ministry on the lavish disburse-
ments of his own friends. The contrast now stands as follows :

1S73-4 $32,107

1874-5 19,326

1875-6 19,421

187()-7 15,255

There is another charge that the hon. gentleman preferred against the
Administration, and it is the last left for consideration. I refer to the
trans£^Qt;on lyiowfl, as thje Xntevcolonial Suspense AcQount — ai^d a very

21'

Bimplo matter it pecms to be when clearly explained. Tlio 50,000 tons
of >'*t'el raiJH bought for llio Pacific Hailway, as wo all know, were not
all want»'<l for that road at once, antl it was put to capital accnnnt. 'Ihe
money vin^ paid, and of course wi'nt at once into the Public Accounts.
So fai' as the caHh is cnncorued, no wron;^ is alleged. The Htatenu'tit of
the hon. Senator dot-snot afluct the nioimy in the least, or the acciu'acy
of the Public Accounts ; only, he alle;i«3S, it affects the balance of last
year of IJevoniie and Kxpenditure. An account was opened in the
ledger for this iron, and it was stored iit certain places. As fast as
j)ortions of it were api)lied to any service, the value was deducted from
the eapital account and charged to the special service to which the iron
went. In regard to the Intercolonial Railway it was determined — and
I fancy we will all admit wisely deterndned — as soon as possible to take
up the iron rails and put steel rails down. We all know the saving
etfecteil by substituting steel rails for iron ones— and it was deterndned
by the present Adnnnistraticm from the very moment they came in, that
the IntercoloTUal Railway should bo re-steeled, not all at once, but that
in the places most worn the ti'ack sliould be renewed to the extent of
$200, 0(10 every year. That went on. In the year ending 30th June,
1873, the re-laying was (tarried out to the value of $80,522 — and this
amo\nit was duly credited to the Paciiic Hailway iron account and
charged to the Intercolonial Hailway. In 1874 $210,538 of steel rails
were thus obtained and re-laitl on the Intercolonial track ; in 1875,
1202,382 ; an<l in 1870, $215,289. In 1877, as I understand it, it was
supposed desirable that there should be a larger (piantity used than
had been done before. It was thought very tlesiralde that some i)arts
of the road should be relaid at once ; and the (question came up.
.dioidd they adhere to the system of charging the Intercolonial at the
rate of $200,000 a year, or charge the whole $')43,000 (tf iron that was
wanted iu one year against the road. The former course was decided
ujxm. Now, this decision of the Department may have been right, or
it may have been wi'ong ; that is certainly a matter of opinion ; for my
own jiart I think it was the reasonable ccmrse t(j take. When the In-
tercolonial Railway accovuits are published abroad it is not desirable
that the cost of maintaining it should appear any more unfavourable
than the facts justly demand L": hi well known that the Great Western
l^ailway Co. charge three guuieas per ton to capital account for every
steel rail they put upon the track. We know, too, the Grand Trunk
Company charge the whole of the steel re-laying to capital account ;
and there is an Act of this Legislature declaring that this shall be so.
Til at Act was passed by the House of Ct)mmons and by this House — •
and the lion, gentleman himself voted for it.

Mu. Macpheksox — Does that Act apply to the Intercolonial Rail-
way ?

Mr. Broww — No — of course not — but I am showing that what was
done as to the "^ntercolonial was a reasonable thing to do. This side
of the House, iu discussions that have taken place on this question,
differed from the late Govei'ument, who agreed with the (Ji'and Trunk
Railway, and held that the re-laying of steel rails on Government
roads shoidd be charged to capital account. This side of the House
did not hold that ; and what has been done on the Intercolonial was a
mere compronuse between the two plans. Had the system been,
carried out on the Intercolonial as contended for by hon. gentlemen

npposiko, then tho Government would not havo fonnd it hetioRnafy to
charge this at all ; it would havo gonu to capital account. Hut what
thoy did was this : tlioy took ^riiiJ.OnO worth of rails from cajtital
account, chargcxl ^2(H),()(»() (tf it~tho rca'i»nal»le projutrtion which thoy
had been in the habit «»f charj^ing yeaJy — direct to tho Intercolonial
Railway, and put the balance honestly and sipiarely in tho l'ul)lic Ac-
counts as an Intercolonial Railway suspense account — to be wiped out
this year and next year.

Mr. Maci'HKrson — Did they not use tho whole quantity last
year ]

Mr, Brown — I did not ask that question. I do not know.
Mr. Maci'Herkon — Is it done in accc»rdanco with tho resolution of
the Government to chai'go everything as expenditure on revenue I

Mr. Brown — Tho hon. gentleman is tighting a shadow. What
difference does that make /

Mr. Macphkrson— It is evident that .$543,000 worth of rails have
been used in renewal^, which according to tho resolution of the (gov-
ernment really shouM have been charge<l to revenue. Instead of that,
only .$200, 000 is charged, and the balance is put as a blind in a suspense
account.

Mr. Brown— Tho hon. f;entlenian should not use that word "blind."
It was perfectly straighf.irward, aiid wasfjilly explained in the Public
Accounts Comiiiittoe. i admit the hon. gentleman may hold the opinion
that ths rails having been handed over to tlie Intercolonial oflicers,
tlio full amount should have been entered against that Company. But
the Intercolonial Railway belongs to the people of Canada — the rails
are there — the transfer does not all'ect the security — the rails are as
much at cai)ital account as they ever were— and there is not one single
shilling less to-day to met't the public dobt than there was before tho
raili were transferred from one locality to another. Will any<me say that
it makes the slightest diifoi'once to the country whether those rail." Ho
in a heap at capital account or lie in the track of a Government vail-
way at an Intercolonial suspense account? Had any " blind " been
intended, why open a suspense account at all ? Why not have left tho
capital account a3 it was, and havo credited it merely with the usual
annual proportion of $200,000 I

Honourable gentlemen, I have now gone through tho entire chai'gos
and objections of the hon. Senator (Mr. Macpherson) ; and I put it to
every hon. member of this House whether there is one single item in the
whole of the hon. gentleman's indictment for which tho slightest moral
reproach can be cast upon the gentlemen on tho Treasury benches.
Will any hon. gentleman say that one instance has been shown of cul-
pable neglect on the part of the Government ? Can any h(m. gentle-
man say that the slightest proof has been given of even thoughtless
waste on the part of the Government? Nothing of the kind has been
shown. Honoiirable gentlemen, the men who govern this Confedera-
tion — be of what politics they may — have no light burden on their
shoulaers. We are eight separate Colonies, brought suddenly together ;

wo havo a vast oxtont of country, strotoliinoj from ocean to ocean ; we
aro of (liftoriMit rac(i«, wo speak difrcrcnt lanj,nmf^os, wo havo flitlor-
eiit foniiH of ruli^'ioiiH faith ; anti wo are all in tho early 8taj,'oa of luatorial
and social dcvolopniont. Our roitrosontatives in Parliament come up
from all sections of our wide domain eager to d(» well for their special
conHtituencies, and too apt to forget the interests of the whole.
Tho urgent solicitations for concessions— reasonable concessions if the
pnhlic chest were exhiiUBt!"Hs--that are ctnstantly coining up fr(un all
tlirections to the Ministry of tho day, aro withoxit end ; and the men
who have tho tirinnoss and tho ahility and tho tact to promote right,
resist wrong, and seek to mould tho discordant elements iiito a har-
monious whole, deserve and might to receive the cordial sympathy and
support of every moml)cr of this Chamber. It is utterly imposail)le
that tho wi^ of man could avoiil errors in the ii<i ministration of ati'airs
so vast and mullifarious, but 1 confess I have risen from an earnest
and thorough examination of the public aflairs and accounts of tho
Dominion with high giatilicati(»n at the ability, tho uprightness, the
economy, and the marked success with which my hon. friend and his
colk'gues niiw governing the country have fullilled their difficult tusk
since they assumed (dlice. "Ah, but," exclaims the hon. gentleman
" there is a deficit ! " Yes, there is a deficit — unfortunately there is a
deficit. But it is because the right men are in the right place that that
deficit is not infinitely greater. It is because men of ability and saga-
city are at the helm that, in spite of two consecutive deficits, every ob-
ligation of the (country has been met to the hour, — the credit of tho
country was never before so high in the money markets of the world,
— and the Canadian people have unshaken confitlence that tho revenue
and expenditure will be speedily equalized without undue pressure on
the industry and commerce of the country. When the leaders of tho
Lii)eral i)arty wai'ued you [turning to the Conservat've leaders across
the floorj in 1873 of the coming tinancial storm, you scorned their advice
and Went on counnitting the country to enormous obligations. When
you were tiriven from power for your corruption and incapacity, and
they asked in 1874 for increased supplies to meet that coming storm —
you treated their demand with derision, you denied its necessity and
opposed it at every turn. When Mr. Cai-twright negotiated hie first
*amous loan in Loudon — that stands unequalled as a tinancial success
in the history of this or any other colony, that raised the credit of Can.
ada higher than ever it stood before, and that carried the country
safely through the enormous difficulties you had created — you decried
the great public service he achieved, and maligned the negotiator. And
when the Finance Minister struck the happy time— not one moment
too soon — achieved tiis second successful loan, and carried the ship of

state safely into harbour — again you maligned the man and vilified his
good work ! And now, when the storm has well-nigh passed, when
the clouds begin to break, when the commercial barometer begins to
rise, when brighter and better days are near at hand — you ! — you who
caused all the trouble — glory that the revenue is reduced, glory that
there is a deficit, and call on my hon. friend to rise on the instant and
tell you, forsooth, how the Government mean to equalize the balance-
sheet ! With commercial and industrial depression all over the world ;
financial embarrassment everywhere; immense shrinkage in the value
of all property, real and personal ; two bad crops within the three
years ; stem economy forced on the masses of every land ; an open
winter to add to the embarrassment; you, in the face of all, pretend
astonishment that there is a deficit ! You cannot cloak your smother-
ed delight that there is a deficit ! "Well, what, after all, does this fear-
ful thing amount to ? Why, in the three yearrf the present Ministry
have been in po\<rer the total expenditure amounted to —

S71,720,744
And the revenues to 69,295,576

Total deficit in three years $ 2,425,168

But let it not be forgotten that in these same years there was paid
fromthe revenues of the country into the Sinking Fund for the ex-
tinction of the National Debt, no less a sum than $2,207,099 — or within
two hundred thousand dollars of the entire deficit. The deficit, in fact,
was caused by reduction of the Public Debt. Is that a balance-sheet
in such times as the present to alarm any one 1 Far from it. One step
up the ladder of retuniing prosperity would put a totally new aspect
on the picture — and good cause hav^e the people of Canada to rejoice
that the men they have now presiding over their affairs, come storm or
come calm, will be found equal to the occasion.