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Tous les autres exemplairer> originaux sont filmAs en commenpant par la premlAre pege qui comporte une empreinte d'Impression ou d'illustration et en terminant par la dernlAre pege qui comporte une telle empreinte. Un dee symboies suivants apparattra sur la darnlAre imege de cheque microfiche, selon le ces: le symbols -^ signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbols ▼ signifie "FIN ". Les cortes, planches, tableeux, etc., peuvent l^tre filmte A des taux da reduction diff Arents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atra raproduit en un ssul ciichA, 11 est film6 it partir de I'ongle supArieur gauche, de gauche A droite. et de heut en bes, en prenant le nombre d'imeges nAcesseire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent le mtthode. 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 "iT*^ T'mm^. House oi Commons debntts FIFTH SESSION-EIGHTH PARLIAMENT. SPECCH or MR. HE.NRI BOURASSA. M.l' OK SUITLV-THE SOITH AFIMCAN WAR OrrAWA. TtKSDAY. M ARC 11 li, lUUO .Mr. HENltl BOlIt.VSSA (l.alH>llei Mr. Spofikcr, I fully rcalizt.' the di^idrauiage of ui.v iirosiiit iiojsitiuu at this juni-iurf. 1 «-oiiio nitlior liUf in tho B08.«^ion to give explana- tions iliat wore o\pt>otf«l at the t>|H'ii- lug. Tbo Mibjt'tt whioL I have t-> treat ha** already excite*! niueh diiiou. takiug from it a goi)d deal of the interest wlileh would otherwise be attached to it. Tiien. 1 kiiow my position i» uoi popular, ai least. at tlie presiut. I.ut. Sir. all these disadvan- tages and lucouvenlences affei-t lue in no way. Wnitiiin for the ultimate n-sults of the pidley that has been adopt«-«l. I f'-el that I can stand liie fair ami iiu|>ariial judgment of my follow-cltlzens of all orlKlus :ii thi» respect, id' tho.se, at len«t. who think that one may lie. at the same time, a b-yal Bri- tish subject, a thorouuh Canadian and « ••vii stittitlonal Liberal. I have already given to the House the reasons why I did not projwise this motion on a previous ocea!«lon. I simll now enter upon the merit* of the case without any further Introduction. It has been often Mated that tne InterveJi tion of Canada In the South African war originated in the motion which was adopt.Ml lu thlH House in tlie month of July la&t. It liHH been even nssertinl that the adop- tion of that resolution uave a mandate m the goTornment allowing— nay. i-uui|>elling thorn to give armed help to Great Britain H B-1 when war 'vas declared. Tlio lion, leader of ilu" opposition (Sir t;iiarles ruiUM-r) gave us a little of the inside history wiiicii pre- ce«lt-d tlie introdiiciioii of tliat. nioiion. lie told us tliat its adoption had been urged ti|>on parliament by a represeiiliittve of ilie Trans\a:il litlamb-rs. If the lion, g' nlle man had despreseiiiaiive as the at'ei-.t (d" the Houth African (Jharteied Citinpany, or. in other words, jis Mr. Cecil Uhoth'.v's aiient, seni lieie by Mr. rhamlier lalii-1 think he would liave come closir lo th.' reality. 'l\> any one ,\lio iias folloWHl the course of the (Vil.uiial Seci'elar.\ on this question, the neitlon adopted lasi si-ssion Ix-ars the uii'iilsiakable c\ ideiirc . i Mr ('hamberlaln's inspiration Tliai n'ference to the suzerainty of Her Ma.jesty over the Tiaontaal is r«uiiificiii iu ciniNe ii.s io tlU- derstatul whert> the molloii conies f'oni. linve already explained to the House how Mr riiamberlaln. alone amonu'^t nil Mriti-.li stJitesmen. restored that suzerainty out of his own free will atid iinagliiallnn thirteen vears after It had been abolished \>y the British government. Another proof of the origin of the motion Is the discreet but straight approval of Mr. Chnmberlaln's \uA- ier which Is contained In the motion. But. fir. whatever opinion we might have of th«» nnn»*»**' und"rlvlng the motion nnil of its tval oHthor, I do not seo how It can be ns- I "J 00 (70) «4>rti'ri\<' tliciii ai mifi' 111' mif of tlirlr fow i>xi-ti8«-B for not liaviiij; iiilli-(l itarllaiiifiil. auii for Ititv- iliK UUfii piilillc inoiu-y willimil tin- nutlior Irailoii iif ilii> n'|ii>'si'iiiailv«'H oi" tii«> |H><)|ile nil tilt' prciciisc iliai li was an unf(iri'««'a t'liK'rjft'nr.v. If \v(> iiii'aiit ^,■"ln^.' in war iL July, linw funld war in (>ct(.ln>r Ii4' iinri»r»'- r«M'n V I llnd in tin- 'rorur<< |i«rltaiiiciu at Its last sfsaiun. Atid (hm imrliuinciit ailnptflit ri-nuliitiona cf nvnipathjr with thi> t°iilan a new di-parturc in that ruiipect; but It U a very itrca! iiacxlinn iii'lecd whethar a govern- n.cat ahuiilil lalii* tliat doparturo without ron- ■iillinR the r(>pr('a<:«'r lo ai» point di'l('Kiii<'M lo a I'oininission of ai'l>itr:i tioii, .MoiM'iiM'i', ilit> llaitnc conli'icnfc liad altont cloMcd liM niooiliiKS. Ii had n ii Imou .HnrcHMftil III all its aliiirt ; Inif one i>r.acipl<" ;il ii'ii.^i was ciiipliaih-ally pim la;in«"l. llianlis lo tlio Ki'i'tit inllui'iiiM- of tlio ItrtlUli i>'prcsi'iiiaiiv<>. Lord raiinr< foic. and iiwit was thi> prliK l|ili> of arlillraiioii iu all In- ti-riialloiial ilispnii's whli'li dol iiol iiivuvi the hoiiiiiir of .stales this ci rtalnly was one 4»f those cast's which I'oiild he ■i'luiiltteil lo jirhitraiion. The ilKl'ereiices lieiw«>eii tir-.ti Uriialn and the I'niied States over Mie Venezuela alTaIr \> ere jnsl alioiit io Im> ^'^i- lied hy arliiiratis with tile I'nlted stales over I hi> \laskan lioiindiirj .natter. Whoconid h.ive tliou'.rlit at the last sesidiin of this parlliiMidil Mult Mi' t'lianiherlain would u'o hack on hU own woi-«ls and refuse nrlil'ratloti with ihp S.oiili .\frlcan Iteiinlille '' A thor-iuf'i Hrlt IhIi I.iheral siich m« I am I would not h.tT«> lielleved for mv part liiai we ,!•• epted nr liltnitloii when we had to deal with jrri'.nt I iiatiuus. hut that we refUHtil or repii.i'.atvhl .'irldi ration when we had to deal wiMi snia!! I stutifi. Mor»»oviT. It was not ihe tlrst tinic that I iliis. parliaiii.Mit had adopted riftolutions of iliat KitMl wiihoui ever tliinklnu of enforcini; th. ni hy ariiied saudion In ISH'^. it motion was. pa-ssed nuanlninisiy hy 'his llciix' fav.iininK the adopiion of llonn* Jtiile for in-land ; .iiid. if 1 reiei'tnh.'r well, it l>rou«ht hack from the Uriiisli itovenme-nt ;, lejdy. the plain translation of wliieh -.va.-- : .Mind jonr own him.ncss. In ix*«i, .Mr. HI. ike ni .ved a siniil.ir resolution which did luj' meet with tlw s;iin" unanimous siiiiport. Uelercnces were then made lo ilu' reiily of the Mritish I >;ovirnni.-nt of ISSll. .Mf. HIake eoiiteiidod and rinhtly ttK>--lhat all IhltiKh citizens In any pan oi' tlie einpisc liad llio ri«iit of |H-iition and lenioiistriince to llie Crown. Hut. Sir .loliii riioinpson repliol that, iriio as .Mr Hlake's ihcor> was. yet. the llo;iie !{iih' tinestioii w!is a bone of contention h-.'- tweeii the iwi> political |iarties of Kn;:laud. and iliat we slimihl avoid playing' iiit.i the lianils of the one or the oilier of llies«> p.ri- ie8. Mr Hlake s Million jiasseil, only .after !f had IxH'ii atiieiid-'d in that sense. In IHJU. another lleinc Kiile rcsolinltiii was IniroiUie- cd hy Mr. Oevlin Im" never pressed lo a vot»» In this Iloii.xe. I «ive all this to show , thai tiie !niicli-i.ilki'd-of Iniperialistic fe«»l- iUK. that f«*elin;: of soliihirlty : or. as I would put it. th.ai (^cellnjr of Inicriiilxiure h- - tween all Hiitlsli «elf->{ovel has not yet lieeii very conspi so far as the Irish i|Uestloii However, on none of these any ire. we lijid Hie Iniciiihiii of up- holdiiiK hy armed force the piindple we ha resohMiuns. oii ! hut I am m siakeii ! S.iine op,- did pro|iose jioinif !o war. .\ uieiiiher of the Canadian liovern- in'MJt at tin- time did offer to ^ive armed htdp to the people nf Tlslcr slliillld thej relnd .isainst ili> Ivritlsh Crown. I think If was tlu' then Com roller of Customs, and now plain memlier for West N Ork :Mr Uallacet who oll'efed thai armed help ak'ninst Ihe Crown of KiiKland. I fully iiii derstand Ihe present Iniperialistic zeal of the hon. irenlleinan (Mr. Wallacei. He waifs to make up for his pa>it ilisloyalty. Mtii he should have more iiidiilirenec for the feelinjrs of hiuiest I'itizens, who, liavlii>{ no s»c!i crime to expiate, i|o not pr(i;)os4' to follow him In his pllu'rliiiaue (owards the MiH-ni rliillsiii Ihe case ,if the lion. monilN>r (Mr. W'lillnce) was then liroiitrht to the attention nf the lioiiHo ; :t irave rlap to a deliaie in which several memlKTH. amoiitfsl whom, | helleve, the then h'^n. meinher for Kasi York i.Mr .Maclenni. a n;imt>««!ike of the present meinher tor !liaf consiilueiiey (Mr. Maeteani d;cl.ir- tnl. that the <^'rtniiiliaii parMaineuf had I enoumli to do with Canudliin affairs ami sliuuld nor auy iiiori' j,'t»t uilxfd up witli Irish or oihcr oiiisidt' (im'stioiis. <>f course, Mr. Speaker. I am uot. tlio huge Britisher that the present member for East York war. Macleani is, but 1 have never betm the puny (anndian that his predecessor (Mr. Ma(-lean) was. At least I am referrlUK to his predetiKsor. for allhout'h 1 have been tohl it is the same Kt'Utlenuiu who reprt- seutt'*! lOast York then as now. I cannoi believe it wlien I read the speeth he auide In tile House tlien. and when I lead the pro- Brllisli Imiierialistic .irticles he writes now in tli«> Toronio Wurhl. 1 eaniiot believe it Is the sami> K^Ktli'miiii. .An hoii. .MIOMKKH. It is the very same u)au. Mr. HorU.VSSA. a stantlal '. ^^'hat Latin proverb says : and aliliou;:li 1 do in tliat si^'usc, ! pri'fi Is it really V Oh '. wliai a oonversioi. : As the • In lueilio Stat virtus." not pose as tile virtue ■r In remain where 1 am. 1 believe with .Mr. Ulake. that we liave the riKlit In this pariiaiiient. or outside ot It. to expr»>ss our sympathy witli any elass or .iny ;;niup of our fellow Uritisit eltizeus seekinj: lor redress In any part of tlie world. Hilt 1 believe also witli Sir John 'I'hompsiUi. tiijil we sliould avoid playiii;: into tlie liaiii-4 of any i)oliti<-al i>arty in Hn^'land. .\nd I confess frankly. I ft-lt liumlliaied as a Liberal of the British sdiool. wlicii I re.id .Mr. Cluiiuberlaiirs famous Leicester speecli. wlilidi called for .so many exitlanatioiis :iiid rejoinders from the British press, and even from colleaKiu-s of t, »' Colonial Secretary. I felt liumiliated. I repeat, when I lead tliat Mr. ("h.imberlain boasied of iiavlnj: with him, aKaiiist the Liberal party of Kn>rliind. not only the inu- Jority cif ilie British |)eople, but also the inuinlinous support of all Itritish coloni(>s. For my jiart, .Sir. I would have voted against .atiy motion of Incense to .Mr. tMiam- berlain. but in faviuu- of ,iuy motion of sympathy lor the TransMnij IMtianders In their struKjile for the redress of real h'riev- ances : Just as I wouiil have voted for any motion in favour of Home Hiile for Ireland. But vvliai lliis country was mit prepared to do for the Irish tenants, claiming humane ti-eatment, bearable la.xatloii and self-vdvernment In their native hind, a part of t'.ie I'nited Kliurdom, I was still less ready to do for men of all eounlrles nolni; of their own free will on a foreiKU soil to seek Kold and build fortunes. After parliament was pr<>roi;ued, events went lui. until It came to the p;. I think this is ;i f.ilr ri^sumf' of the position taken by tlie ri^ht lion, gentle- man in his often-quoted interview with the (ilube. The leader of the oppcral papers and b g Winnipeg Fri< I'nss people should leave could study const Itu- slie»'t excused me of constitution on tlie I'n'iicli Canadian. I and small men. The said that the LaNdle me at luune sn that 1 tioual laws. ' Another my ignorance of the ground that I wa>. a must sjiy. Iiowever. iliiit m\- contciitlnii was ably presented and frankly admitted to be true jind cominendable liy ilie Toronio (H'lhe. the Hamilton TiiniH. tlie Woodstock Snitinil. the Toiouln W'likhi Sun, l.n I'lilrir, l.f Mf>mlv Ciiiiiitliiii. the Quebec T< Injraitli. the Pioinirr of .Sheibruoke. and a number of other papers. Knglish .and Kreiicii. CnU 8ervallV(> and Liberal. I liad the lesijmony of the ,Solieltor <;eiieral (Mr I'il/.patrick). who admitted that the course of the govern- ment, technically speaking. «;is iiiijustitl- able. Of course, the lion, geutleiiiaii ap- proved of the giivernment's action on senti- meutal and religious grounds. But on tliost grounds 1 iliink 1 can dilTer with the lion, gentleman without lu'lng taxed with too much self coiiildem-e. On the legal groiitul. I fully acluiowledge his great superiority, and tlie more willingly, tno, that he sides with me. Then I had the testimony of the Prime Minister hiun kui only surprlB«Hl that he has not yet been v<'ii tlieii ilie restrictions of oiM' Militia .\ct !ire not in the h>ttei-. There is no special articl(> of the law wldi'li i)ro- hlbits the sending of oiir militia oiitsid(> of Canada. Hut iliiii restriction is laid at liie bottom of its spirit. I liad prepared a somewhiit comi)lete record to jirove that the spirit of our xarlons Militiji Acts, in- cliidlntr th(> |ir"sent one, was to provide for the defence of Canada, and not to no be- yond this ciiuntry. .Vnd ilils w.as done, not oidy with the consent but under the in- spiratioti of Mrillsli military and colonial autlioritles. At timt time of old. seltlsli l,iiilr I'lnirlaiid and Millc C.inMd.a policies. they believed, in llngliiiid as well ,•)■; here, in the sound principle nf decentralization and complete self govcMument. wiii<'h has built tip the British l']mpirf>. Hut all reason- able men. I think, admit the f.ict I spare the artfument to the House. 1 will simply remind the House that the Militia Mill of 18(11! was re.iected by parliament on the jrroimd thai lOngland was more interested to preserve <'aiiada as lier cidony than Canada was to be Mrltish : that fJreal IJrl- tnin (!ould cause war to Canada, and that Canada could not and would not ciiuse war to Kntiland. The same spirit fonglit to a less degree agiiiiiHt the Hills of 18(1.T and ISCiS : but they passed anyhow, without any one Intimating that Canada could be called to other wai-s than (hose which might tlirealeu her t(>rrltory. The dillldence of Lower Cnnadians especially h.'il been great ly removed by the repeated assurances of Sir (^eorKo Etlenne Cartler. that the Cana (llRn militia wan organized for the defence of Canada and for tliat purpose only. When the Hill of IWI'2 was introduced b.v air George Ciirtler, one of the members of that schooi of loyalty which the hon. mem- ber for Iveui, N.B. (Mr. Melnerney» has al- ready iilluded to. Sir Hector I.angevin, said tliat one of the reasons why Canada should li ivc a militia wjis iliat Canada was before long to beeotne an indei)enduut country, and should orgaui/.e it> territorial defence. Now, great stress Is laid upon the fact that instead of sending 2.(MK) enlisted men, tiie governi'-eut enli.sted 2.IMH) men and sent them to Siiilh Africa. 1 confess the dis- tinciion is loo line for my rude peasant's intellect. t)h : but they say : We don't pay. ilie men in Africa ; they are incorporated in die Hriiish army and receive British pay. TliMi disiiucf.on is (luite wiped out now thai it lias been decided to make up the dlf- ferenc(> betw.'en Hriti;li and tlanadlan pay. 1 was taxed with miserable niggardness, because 1 proposed to strike off that dif- ference and h'ave our volunteers on the saiue fodtiiig as Mrilisii .-oldiers. But none the less that same dilTer' lue, let it be lai-ge or small, was given as ;i reason for avoid- ing the .Militia Act, and imt calling parila- iiK'Ul. If liie dilTen-nce was so small, when I proiiosed to suiipress it, iiow could it be ,so liig as to autimri/.e the govcinment to accomplisli what iliey .•idniltte of a regular sessiiui. They who are ready to tax tiiis coiinlry by the millions, and "to call upon tlie farmers and labourers of Canada to be.M' tlie burden of militarism. wotdd liave gladly sacritlced a little of ilieir lime lo consider the problems in whicli we liave been luvidved willioiit knowing either the terms or the res'dts of those prob- lems. Bui. supposing, it \MMild liav(> meant the cost of an extra sessi.tn, what is that compared «ith the broad constitutional (|iieslions raised by th(> iiclion of the government ? .\t a time when we are so swelled with enormous Imperial- istic Ideas, when we are ready to conipier the whole of this little planet, land and water, and are begiuiilug to think a little of hoisting the Briiisli (lag in the moon. I think that w.is a rather petty Canadian point of view to take. .lust Imngine Car- tier, Ma<'donaId, Brown, and all the Little Cnnadians who made confederation, i)repar- Ing the pro|)(med National Charter of (!nn- ada by private letterH, and Hending It by mall to the Colonial Ofllce, In order to save to lliis cmiiury tlie Oust :roup of persiual advisers to the <'i()wn. The two gre.-it powers were the Sovereiirn and parlinnie' t. (Jradually. the strenu'lh of the cahinei became increased at the expense of botli tiie Crnwu ;in> forget that they are but the executive committ(>e nf parlia- ment : we should not alh>w them to dis- count too larfj;ely the subserviency (d" a par- tisan ma.j(U'ity ami adoi»t, by orders in coun- cil, nieiisiires of the deepest imporiaiu-e. w liich shotdil uol be iidiiaied without ilie actual participation of parli.iment. Now. was this a case of uru nt necessity ? Where was the lu'cessity '; And wliere the urgency V , .Vs re^ranls the necessity. 1 need not re- |)eat all the artrtinieiits tl;at h;ive lieen fully Kiven lo this llousi'. pro\ ing that our troops were noi lU'cded in South Africa. British atdhorities expected oidy '>0<) meii frcun ('amidii. Shall any one pietend 'hat the fate of British arms reli»'d n]i(ui those ,".(HI men 7 Shall any one preteml. that evpn now. the preseui'e or the absenee of our 'J.OiMt sol, Hers ran ehange the course of events ? The Trlme Minister himself, in his speech at Sher- brooke as well as In this House, has pro- perly refused to slander the British army, by sayliur that (Jreat Hrlt.aln needed our help. .\nd a terrible sland<'r it would bo. to iiretend. that a country of Kl,d to crush down two ituny countries, the whole lioer population of which according to all authorities, ini ludin« ilu' member for North Norfolk, is inferior to tluit of the city of Montreal. .Vnd this disposes. I think, of the sentinu-ntal argument, that when fire is .at our motln"-".* house, it is no time for flue theories and red tape. I think this pretty sentence is taken from a letter of my trood frieml, the juni,>r im tuber for Ot- tawa (Mr. Belconrti, ;ind I take this oc- casion to beg Ins p.ardon for ui t having re- plied to It sooner. The cl;ing of arms, the sound of drums and trumpets, were so ,leafening th.at I hardly heard his sweet ,111(1 symiiathetie v public men ami all the newspaiier writers wlio favoureil or opP'"^'"'' '''e seiidiiiL: of tliuse tr()o|)s. They disjiosed of u when they proclaiiiH'd that this greai dis]djiy of lm|>erial mililiirism is lud intended fiu' the purpose of this war, Imi is being organized to give an example and a wiirning to the world. I iiin tree to .idmlt that tlio'e Is an (d( lueiit of grandeur in this argument ; but could not this examjile and tliis warning lm^•e been given .Inst as well a month lattT '.' In (un- cjise. wmild Iliey md have been as strikini: and .as prolit.able with the sanction of ptirllament. as wlieii sigidlied by order in council '! Of course, the lesson Is. 1 think, two- sided. It litis gi'-on to this war a signili- cance whhdi Is not de|)rlv(>d of danger fiU' the iircstlge of the future emi)ire. You tuny give !o the lesson the meaning yon like, but the world to which yiui lilve it may Interpret that lesson the way it likes. There is no doubt as to the tlnal results of this wiir ; but Ita bcglnnlni^ hare been slow nud arduous ; and that world wlileU you defy Ixmuts at the idt-a thai tlie two lilth- Boor republics liavf checked for four months * u vaster empire than has been.' But whatever maj- be the result of the les- son for Great Britain in her relations witli other peoples, its actual conseiiueuci^ lor Canada Is a stralnht accusation aKuiust the government, for not having calhnl i)ar liament. If they intended really to give a lesson and a warning, they meant tlu' les- son to be fruitful and the warning to be serious. Wliat is the conse.iiieucc ? II' we seuil 2.0(H) men, and spend $2,0(MMW»(» tn fight two nations, aggregating a population of 1.'.">(>,0(K) souls, how many men shall we send, and how many millions shall 'a .'ex- pend to fight a ttrst-class powi»r or n coali- tion of powers ".' And it is, no doubt, m flr8t-ropiT to share in th(> teaching. It must mean tha' we are ready to share in tlic aciicm when the lime comes of iipi)lying the lesson. Tlien. It is the starling point of a new policy whicli opens a serious point of view on tlie future of this country. The point of view may be ;rlorious for those wlio aspire after military honours. It may In spire to rhetoricians tine soiunling pe.i- ods or lyric stanzas to lyric rliyniers. Hut it prepares a gloomy future for tiie I'ani'i.'i;.' and labouring cia.sses of tliis eonniiy. li threatens them witli tlie unltearai>le burden Willi whicli are crushed tiie peasantry ami the working masses of lOui-opciin nations. It is tiiat burden wlilcli Liille Knirlanders and Little Canadians liad lieretMfni-e sparr'd to Knglaml and to ("amidii. No wonder that this gove.-nmeiit liesit;i!ed befure oi)en- iiig the dooi' (lu siicli a diirk tniliuown I Hut Would it nol h.Mve beeil .'nh is;ilile In jiausc soinewliat longer and to lei the people know the possiltle coiiseipiences liefore pushing us tt)wards tliat unknown by a mere order In council V Of course. I am met here by the ' no pre- cedent' clause eoiilained in ilic order in council. I am free to say that lliis clause Is I lie only tldng whicli 1 can approve of in the whole Course of the go\ern'neni ; but 1 am afraid it is a frail liarrler in (ip)>ose to the eiirreni of noisy militarisin wliich is carrying us all over British possesslon.><. it Is that fear wliicli I exiu'cssi-d in my letter to the I'rime MiiiisliM- wiien 1 said": 'The lirecedeni, Sir. Is ilie aecomplislied fiicl.' Let us see now in whiit way tlie action of the governnieiii \\as interpreted by those who ap|)ro\ed o!" It. as well as by those who condemned it. I had iM-epared a wliole Inmcli of tpiota- tions taken from uewspa|ieis and perlodi cals to prove that the ainmsi unaiiiii.ous voice of Hie press. Brilisli. Canadian and foreign, Interpn'ted the government's action the san; ' way as 1 did. AVe heard a few feeble voices 1o the contrary coming from Liberal papers In Quebec anxious to cool down the anxiety of the people. 'I'he London Outlook, to my mind, sum- med up the whole situation In the clearest and shortest way— Just four words : This is Imperial Federation. 1 sjtare the other ipiutatlons to the House ; the comments of the press are well known to :ill of us. But we should not minimize tiielr Importance ; It is upon the voice of the press as an expression of public opinion, that the government baswl their action ; the jiterpretatlon of such action by tlie same vo|et« must have some weight. I will devote some attention, however, to the interpretation given to the action of the governimni liy the C. liist The deaitt' thus exhibited lo sh*re in tlie risks and hiirdetis of the empire has been welcomed, not only as a proof of the staunch loyalty of the Dominion :uid of its sympathy with the policy pursued by Unr .Majesty's governm -nt in South .\frii.i. but also as an cxprtssioii of that kpo-.v- InK feeling of the uniry and s )lidarity of the en pire whi-h has ii.arked the r.datlms of the mother country witli the colonies durine recent year.". .Mind yon. ilicre was notliing >aid in the order In connell about sliaring in tlie bur- dens of the emiiire. alioMt tinlly and soli- d.'irlly. T.Mke otf ihe diplonnitic ornaments of these two statements ; put Hieni in plain Knglish and tell me ii' iliey do not read as follows; 'We .send you ihose men. Inn we do not promise to do li again In tht> future.' Mark my words. I do not say : • We shall not do it '— Imt simiily : ' Wi'. do not l>romlse to do it.' And the reply : • I accept it as a proof ilial yon are ready b> do it agiiln anil every time.' I say. Sir, that under diplomatic retieeiie»s and line forms of lan^jiifv'e. ihls Is tlie most insolent niessaije tliat a i '!iiiiidlaii govern- ment lias reeeived from l)owning Stie.'t since the time the Duke of Newcastle asked from Ihe Macdonald-Sieotie governmeni. to put the militia exitenditnrc above jiarlla- ment's action. But at that epoch of Little Canadlanisni we knew how to rejily to eolonial secretaries, and the reply of' the Canadian government contained such an .is- sertion of solf jiovoniinent thnt it brougbt l»a<'k iniai tin- uol)lo I)iik«> the most exqiii- sito apoliifirics iiiid txjillcit ithHljtes to not try it ut'iUri. i n-Rrt't tlint Mr. Chamberlniii has not Ix'cn made to vindorstund tl'at wlien tlie <'aiiadi;iii siovcriiment spoali'*. it moans exactly what it says and not wiiat Mr. ("Iiamiifrlalii or any oUipr' Colonial Secro tary may clioosf to nean. .Vow. what ahoiit rcijrcsentatlves of the Crown lu'ii'. .\t the doparture of the ii'-*t .•oniln^'ent at (iiiehec. fonr speeclies were madi'-roiir remarlle si>et'cliv>. a-; ih'' Montr,-al star put it. 1 leave aside the SI .les made l.v the Prime Minister and l.y tile .Minister 'of Militia. The point 1 wisli to malie now is the earnestness of Im- perial authorities in the matter. What did (teneral lliitttm say V Thl8 !* '.:; its way a matter of satisfaction, but, goiillo:iien, what, after all. Is the contribution of 1,01)0 iiK'ii 111 itii rt'iiuirtvnents of a great empire? This Is, numerically, nothing, ami wnat Canada lias lo look to. if sh(> is to fulfil her role as :i portion, atul one of iho greatest por- ti.'ns of the great confederation of the mother loiiniry ami her colonl-s, called the British Em- pire, is (hat the time may come when not 1.00<) men. Imt ."lO.OflO or lO'i.non .nay be required to maintain the 'inity. the intexriiv. nay. the very existence nf our empire On other oecasions, the Major (Jenerai liad spoken of oruanl/.inu t\\\^ country on a military footini;. of arniini: ."((t.dno men for peace and KMi.OOit for war. He neclected to say if he ititended waitinji for ))arliament's antliorization. Street irossips. wliieli seii- enilly lie. l)iit sometimes say the truth, went as far as to \vlii>iper tliat the jrallant officer boasted ot havim: smashed a gov- ernnient in Australia and of helnt' ready to do the same liere. Fortunately for the government and for tlie ratepayers of Can- ad;i, lliat liellicose warrior will now oxert his military spirit .'ii-'ainst ilie liners. Wliat dill Ills Kxcelleney the Governor (leneral say on the same occasion : I'.-inacla has freely made her (iffcrinRS of this iuilltary contingent to the old country, and la so iloiiiK has accepted the difficulties which she knows must f illow. The people of (Canada have no desire to con- .-siiler the ipiihliles of color.ial responsibility. Wl'at they have done Is to Irislst that their loy U iiffers .■*luiuld be made kn-iwn, and they heartily rejoiced when they were graMously accepted. The day before. His Kxcellency j;ave a dinner attiie Citadel, wiiere he is reported by the Quebec Chnniirlr ns havlnp .said : This c'lulnRent I'" the first present which Can- ada kIvcs 111 the great Imperial rausc. It Is a new deparM'.re. lun' the future Is full of possibl- llties. Th" present exprisslon of Imperial union was more crjprissive i!i.\n any ivrlticn consti- luilon could be. Tlie sculinc iif these troi;)S nay raise the (pie'tlon nf Imperial federation: be was not here to discuss thit (piestlon. He has always been opposed lo written constitution. He woulil prefer to tri'.xt it-e feelings of the bcart. 1 have compared this report with those of the Toronto GMk. of the Montreal ilazette, and of the Montreal .S'far, and they are almoflt identical. It i< not my intention to mike remarks that would show any .lisrespeo. towards the representative of the Crown— even should the rules of this House not forbid me doinj: so. I have the sreatest consideration for His Excellency, not f.nly because he re- presents here the noble woman whom every true Hrltisher is proud to call the Queen : I admire also the pliant soldier tlutt has already given pnx>fs <»f his brav(>ry. But public men and newspai)ers have used those words in ortler to support their con- tention ami attain their political ends. They have uiven to His Kxcellency's words a sipniflcaiice which neither he nor we can accept as the true expression of his thought. Of course, if His Excellency meant, whru lie said that he was opposed to written <-on8titutlon. that Creat Britain was far Itetter without a written constitution, I fully agree with him. But in this country we liave a written constitution. And that con- stitution is not only the legal form of our government : it is also a solemn :iud sacred compact between the various provinces of British North America. It was framed with great care and solicitude by tiie best men of those i)roviuces. Thos»' men belonged to dif- ferent religious creeds, to different races, to difTerent piditical parties. They united their efforts and their goo«l will to frame that document, in order to pu: a stoji to dan- gerous rivalries, and to offer to the world the comforting and glorious spectacle of a broan>. as it stands. It stands as it is. to be r".-pected by all citi- zens, high or low. rich or jKtor— by those who lia\e charge of its application as well as by tliose who have to submit to It. A too rlgiil inten»retatioii of it miglit properly l»e calleal A gentleman named Mr. Honald MacMaster, a lawyer by profession. 1 believe, presented ills rompliiuents to His Excellency, and found the occasion proper to give vent to hiK U'gal science. Ho vcutured the opinion tliat aecoidini? to oiii Militia Act. tlic (Jov- ernor Cieneial of Ciiiindii coiil(i coiniiiand our adlitla in person and scimI it wlierever and whenever it pleaBCH IdJii Tlic re- port does not say wliat His Excellency thought of the learned barrister's ad- vice. But knowiuK. as we all do. the un- bounded re.spect that all our ;;overnors liave had for tlie last ttfly years towaids rei'i'e- seutative institutions, l am siiif tliat His E.xcelleney liad of thai advice the same opinion as 1 have myself ; That it is a Tory interpretation i>i' ilie law. At the time of Charles I. tlie KInu; was ilie Ivinj:. witiiout and above parliament. Hut tlie unt'd.'innatc mi>uaif!i, and all lii-i '^iirccs-;ors to come, weri' inai'o to nudci-stand thai par- liament meant i!!-.' i;..\crniiieiu i^l' tlie peo- ple, by tlie jieoplt' and for tlie people. .\nd In the.se days of ours, ilie Kin;;, or the Queen, or tlie (ioveiiior (Jeneii.l. eviM-y where their au>:nst names appear on siatuie- books. should always read : The f;(ivernor fleiieral. or the Queen, or the Kin;r "tliromrh their advisers' that is. ilirouuli tiie execu- tive committee of iiailiameiit. n sponsihli itself to the pt>opIe. Seientilic interpreters of the !aw slionid never foiiret that. When the "no precedent ' clause lias lieen so totally iie>:Iec!ed. rorji'itten. or even con tradicteil liy tlie liivrhesi authorities. I tiilnk. Sir it is altoiit time tliat it slionld be re- called by parliament to the memory of those atuiiorities. and it Is wiiat 1 shall ask the House to do lo-ni;;ht. Now. a word about the famous artfumeiit tliat public opiniun (iemanded this action My hon. friend from l-apraiiie am! Napier vlllo (Mr. Moneti has shown pretty conclu aiveiy llnit puiilic opinion was not so unaiil mous as many peojile think, or rather say. The member for St. .lames I >i vision. .Mont real (Mr. Desmaraisi lias compleied the evi- dence in ir< eioipiein address, whicli, I am sure, the 10n;:lish-K[ieakinn members of tills House regret deeply not to have under- stood. Without referring to a past debate. 1 may be permitted to say tiiai those two speeches have built tipau IrrefriiKable testimony rliat the almost uminlmoiis voice of tlie press in the province of (.Quebec. npreseutiiiM; ail shades of public opiidon from the old Roupre (dement to the ileepest ItliMie sciiool now iiuarlered at Three I{i vers -spoke in unmistakable terms auainst the participa- tion of Canada in tlie Tr!Uis\;i;il war. and more especially against tlie iniiierialistic movement. 1 need not add anything to that evidence. Of cotirse, newspapers change like times and men. The servile orK'nns of both pur- tles have been made to liriuu: their voice to the rl^ht tune; but there are still sevi ral newspaiu-rs which resist enerKctical.y ilie JliiKo movement or give way to it most reluctantly. And those papers are nd con- tinenl to the province of Quebec. Take the looks and do not a newsp.'iiier by if such an ab- of y;iniKin'«' pub- iirciiliitiou of uewspaiteis, Imliiil walk out of power Toronto iVnklu ^"'i ; take the Vimiitrif ninl Citi:ni, orpin of tlie trades' unions ; take /../ 1 ( ri^' of Quebec ; take the W'rstmiiiKlir of Toronto, the Presbyterian orjjan : take [if I'iiiiiiiiir, (U">:an of one of the most dis- tinjrtiislied Coiiservathe members of the (Quebec lejrislalive assemldy. Mr. Chy- coine ; t;i!ie l.r Mniiilf Cnitnitirn. organ Mop. Mr. Nantel. Commlsshuier of rub- lie Works in the late Conservative ad- ministration of t/uebec, and still mem- ber for Terrebonne In the legislature ; take even to a le.ss tiegree, Ln I'alrir of .Moiiireiil. the Itnilii Sniliiirl nf WcHul- stock, the (iuebee Trlnivdftli. the llnmiUon Timi's. the Toronto Star, and even the To- roniti tHiilir. Surely, all those iiapers repre- sent siMiietlilng 111' piiliiie opinion. It may be objected that most i>f them, those especi- ally that sh.ire more completely the views 1 :ini expressing, linve :i limited clrciil.-itioii, and ilierefcU'e rei)resent a much smaller por- tion of public t-piiiiou tli;in the '.'real d.allii s. l>o not judge ;i man by hi ;lppreci:ile tlie intluence of its clrcui.itioii. \\ liy. Sir. ^urd tlll'ory \vas Jleeepli d. lie opinii II liy til" this goveriimeilt without del.'iv : for the two papers which hav<> by far ilie iai'gi-si <'ir(iilalioii In < iin ada. fjii Prism and the Montreal Klar. are both oppised to this govt rnnn-nt. Ii should not be forgotten ih;it iieople buy tliose papers, tlie l.'ttter esitecially. for news, ctir- tooiis iiiid seiis.Mtional reports. Whoever thought of reading the Montreal .^^tur for .•in ide;t or ii priiielple ■.' .Inst as well to .study t'liini'se wiiii a •Jermau grammar ■ iml a i''reiif!i cliciioniiry. .\nd then, thi-re lire two kinds of luibllc opinion : Tiiere is Ilie opinion of the men who talk and crow, and there is the opinion <>( tliosi! wlio think, who study, who wi>ik and who pay. That opinion may he heurd later on when md- lions upon millions will have iiceumtdated in the l>uilget Uh- war purposes in Africa, .Asia, Oceania and everywhere I'Ise, especi- ally if the party which Is ruling now in Kngland remains at ;iie head of affairs. 1 hopt' for tlie future of this country, that the time is not far otT" when the I,iiiic Ilng- landers who iiave made Kngland wlutt she is, will liJixc come biick to power In Kngland. liui. >uuposing the wave of public opiniiiU would How in any ilireciioii, does i; i'(dlow that a gii\erniiieiii must of necessity give w;iy to ilu' eiirrent ■.' It is tiiie tlial under dem icratic institu- tions, we are ilie servants of ihe people, but we must also Inform and ins.ruei the peo- ple. .Vud there lies tlie difference between sound democracy and unprincipled di ma- gogy. The charge 1 m;ike against this gov- t-rnnieiit is not so much that they acceded at last to what they ciiU public opinion, but that they neglected, through their organs and tlieir ftUiuioiti'is, lo fiuighieu ijubiic opiuion. Till' SkiuI) Atiiciiii probk'ui \.jis a ques- tion entirely f'eejalists ami scholars, knew aiiytliluK alioiit tiie 'J'nms\aal some fexv uioutlis av:o ': Tin' iiowspapers Hint 1 liiivo alivady riaiiuHl pub- lished several ariiflt's- some very nood ami some h.ili heai ted - a;;aiiist ("inaila's inter- veiitidii. Itiit lor weelis and for mouths th'..' yellow ))r( ^s, headed by the Muntieal .S'<«>', were (illiii;, their eoliniiu.- wi^li hi- tlaiiied !Uii<;es and leprodtietioiis I'miii the .luijro ])ress ol IOiii:l;in(i— ^vllilst tli • coiuitei-- part so iibiy presented in er;il oricans wjis never or viry little >;iven l)y iMir ICnv'lisli LII)eiMl p.-iin-rs. Will' Mrunnieiiis were ;j:iven I'or all classes of opinion. The Monlrinl stdv. ihe 'I'o- ronio S'liiH. iind others of their kind went as far as .-ippealiuy; l>; I-'reneh Caiiadian- aiid lo Irisli I ailiolles on religions ^rounds, telbn^' ihem wlih a delmre of eroeodile tears how b.-ully Catholie.s were treated by the Uoers. It Is very fi musing to comparr ilios" (levDiit sermons \y\\\\ the ottit-ial documents. ''"r'',i for examnle, the report of I lie Hloeni fouit in ronfueme whieb tilled niiU' eoin- pnet eolnmns. small text, of the Londou Tiniis. 'I'he sittiims lasted live or six days : many tinestions were treated : The fran- chise, the leprt sentatioii In the Vtdksraad. the conscription laws, the dynamito luon opoly. tin.' ;:ijld taxes Inii not ,1 word i^f 111 Ireaiment of Catholics. Forlunalely for the '"oman Catholic L'itlanders. some jio./d t'anadiati Tories rhouKht of them. No doubt, when tlie war is over, ilie Itritisli povernm"nt will send for .Mr. Ualb.v. or per- hiips for the member for West York (Mr. Wallace) to act as si)eelal coinmissloiiei-s for the redress of Itoman t'aiholie gv:e\- iiiices in the Ti'ans\aal. I :im only snr|n'i.-etl tlnit. iifter tin- idniost one-sided frantic e:im|iaisn of the press, to which oiir iieople li-ive been s\d)iei'ted. the display of .jlti.i;i>ism was not far sironuer. It can be explained only by the asseriion I have already made that largely circnl.ited papers, eovi'red with earloons and biir liead- Inps. have less intlm-nce wiih ilie p<'ople than with lue'i.o.-. >• of parliament or of goverimn-nts. A Kood. little paper- neither Frei,ch nor Freneli Canadian— an Kmrlish naper iniii- lished In Ontario, tl'.e Ho'teayfreon liiti'- IKiiiliiil. i>alntcd the sliuatii.n In a most plc- tnresqne and strlkin^r way. ilie very day the order in eounell was adopteinK rdlned about seinliiiR a little army Vt t\n\\i. the lioer.s. .Vir. I.aurier says that any one who !s anxious to get hlii.selr perforated wlUi Boer bullets ]n welcome to ro. but si far as the i.'ivertiment ImurrlnR the expense of send- 1 lag au nraiy to Africa, It Is (pilte impossible 1 for It to be d ^ne without the sanction of the peoples reprtsentatives. Mr. Laurier speaks perfectly good sense C^inaila, at the (trostnt luoaient. Is in urgent neeil of u cooling douse, or i; will be iu the ihroes of a military hysteric, from the effects of which it will not recover for niuuy years. If .Mr. Laurier Is the statesman that he is credited witn beins, he >', IU h Id a i-lo^k of ice to the bacli of Ca.i-^ ada's neck, and no uia'ter how vigorously she a. ay kb;k and claw, hold lirm. Itnt L'rantin;;. for the sake of argniuent-- ^vhieli I do not otherwise— that the .Montreal Slur and its erew of noisy imitiitors repre- senteil public opinion, are we to he told that in a free Mritlsli eonstitntlonal coiniiion- we.'tlih. ;:ove.iii!ients m:iy .,r must act tipun lU'wsptip r .irtieles and cartoons ? I know iliai in the new |Mii!cy. InauKurated by .Mr, Chainb -rlain in Knylanil. and In Canada by till 'on. lesider of the opposition iSir Char. '- Ti.ppen. p.-irliainents are >;oin;r to be educed to the condition of smok- iufi concerts where the rein-esen':i^ives rf 'he peo(de will be .-ailed to ar oland oi- .0 ss a .aried ! c^frtimme of ;icroip.iMc pcr- .orm.iiMes. r., comp.anied with deitfening war cli;ini- >!.d coon siiiigs. ■vhich will lie .u'iwn by tut . .'tors enjjaKed f Crown mnler which the Hiliisb ntitlon "ujoys \t.< freedom of government / II' it is, let this l.iber.al .jrnvernmenl and the Lib eriil nia.iorlty of this House declare it to- night by cjiposini: this motion. lint I sa.v that should they adojit such a course, they would los(« every ri;;ht to call tbctnselves l.ioerjils. They mi,:;ht retain the label, but it wouhl be a fallacious sign; they won'.d have renounced Ihe vei-y principle upon which British I.ibcr.illstii was founded, trample down the principles upon wliicli tilisin is based, and for wh. h the pi litical ani'cstors of the received from the pi oplc the this country for the years. I 'anadi.'in I.ibi fouubt so loll'. n\cn who h.ave right to irovern I .•Mil net alone to talk, ami f;ir less alone to rliink :is I do now. On November -t. Ihe r.iroiito (ll'ihf pnblished an artb'le (>n the ' I'uture of Canadit.' which to my mind is Ihe best .justitication of my attitude. In fact, after Inning read it, 1 wrote to the editor of the dlnhr. tind had he been present at some of my meetlmrs in Labelle, I would chiirvre him with phiglarism. The !ir(lcl(> is a lotej; (1110 : I shall content myself \y\\\\ retiding the most reiunrkable p!issag<'s : If a giM'ernnieiit to-d.iy usurps the powerj of parliament the ellect may be felt af^er the pre- 10 9^at situation has passed into histdiT^ Krcfr Canadian who desires the honour *.. 1 prospensy of his country is interested in the pjwer aad icdependence of parliaruent and in the frecdoa of its discussions. One of the most s^rioas dsjigers which threatens the parliair faiary sys- tem here, as in Great Br;:ain. is je teadeacy to increase the strength of the eiecutire at the expense of parliament. ... It wjall be dan- gerous, too to allo-.v the gjvemmea; :o fall into the habit of acting on expressions cf public opinion. It may be said thit to-diy those ei- pres'-ions are so hearty and spontaneous that there is no daager o' straiaing the cosstitatioo. But all of us. Liberals and Coaserritire*. caa (.onceive of an unscrupulous goTeraiaeat — on tte other side of politics, of course — mahiag a very cunning and dangorous us* of the power to an upon public o?ini->n as expressed in B«»«- papers ani public meetings. ' Suffer not the old kings under any na-ne.' Parliaoaeiit is the place for the discussion, the place where great publ'v' questions can be decided with effeetire guaratjreps of freedoTi ani order. . loy- alty to the Queen does no: me.in loyalty to Glad- stone r Salisbury -o Chatpberlain or Mor^e.'-- to tren who may be remoTe*riJ or CotiserratiTe party of Great Britalti. Ot:r tninlsters must look for their in!>trucrlons. not to ministers at We^tacia- ster. but to the parliament ^f Caca-la. of whieh they ATP .-1 cmimittee. and to which alt-ae they are resp'jnsible. 1 otniiot iH'liove that pnblic opinion »o irrepiilarl.v luanifestt^tl. loulj J>e the only, or even tlj«» maiu njotiv»» whioh fjroed this porernniont to siuh smUlen cfaan{:e of policy. What hnpp^-iHHl l>t>tw.t>n the .".rJ and tLe i:>th of iVtoixT ? .V di»s|>atch was n-cetved from Mr. riianilH'rlain. We have now— or at K'ast wo are sup|K>s-^l to have now— the whole oorresi>onden(v In^twetfn the British and :\w ooloiiinl authorities, and whnt do we find ? We liud tliat no offers were made b.T Tanada to i;r>at Britain, any more than by Victoria. .\ew Si>uth Wales." S»ath Aus- tralia. Tasmania, and Western .\ustralia. In fact, only two governments, i.r two parlia- ments of ilu" self->ii>vernina cdonies. had made offers, uauifly. New /.ealand and QtH^'iisIand. and w« will s-e later on. what liap|»enetl there aftcrwan1.« In Canada, a private ciflfer '.vas made l-y rol>tnel Htich*"*. and traii>mltt»H| t«> the British covfm'nent. and polltel.v deelineil by Mr «"Uamlierli:n : a further evidence that help was wx nee«led. Then, a despafih is sent to the ranaditn ii'iv.rnment by Mr rhan',b«M*l.iin. aoc^tinit offers titat had never lH»«»n made, srivinr the reirnlatjens for iiilistnient. the date of em- barkation. A:-'.. &e .\ stranire system <>f cvr- res|xmden«e. indt^^I. Sy whi^'h the rep'y is sent iM'fore t!ie letter was written, btn I sup- pose till this fortns part i^f the new l»ollcy and new- diplomacy. The Min- ister of Public Works (Mr. Tartei. ha« term«Ml that stranire di>i*nnient an It>- ritatinn to scnratl .ns. and. theref.^ir. I ?o one b)>tter than the lion. centl>^man psL I admit that the word ' demand " is nft actually there, but there are flue ways f'f doin? thin^rs n these days of new policy and new •ijploinacy. After the agent of Dt'wning Stree' has extorted from parlia- ment a rushe*l expression of opinion : the public pr-ss- the reptile press, I should say- is set at work : the feeliujis of the people are arousfl : private offers are sought for. and refijseil. and tlien a letter is sent to the Canadian povernraeut. after having been pubiisheil in the Loudon pap ts, accepting offers that had never been iiiade, and putting the 'late so short, tliat it left uo time for calling iiarliauH'Ut. It left no time eveu for due reflection, and. therefore, the govern- ment was placiHl heiweeu tlie alternatives of immc«liate ami <-ouiplete obedience ; or ••f refu>!ng the dt iiiand at tlie risk of l>eiug aeciiseh Em- pire a> :i traitor liovernineut. I say. Sir. that this iKdicy may be new iu form, but it is the same old spirit ut goveiuuient from I'ownjug Street : and I. for oue. dv> not want atiy more of it. .Vnd. when tlie Cstua- dian governiiicnt sent their deed of oln-tli- ent-e emtainiug the restrictions upon wh'ch the.v rould tell the people of Canada that they Jiad ptvserved tlie itidepeudenee of par- liament, no care wliatever was taken of tht*e restrictions. Tli.' t a!i:uliaa otiier m •-ouncil is mixed up with the other d'>cii- nieuts. making the offers of the .Vustraliaa colonies, with the sauetion of parliament. .Vn protty sure to be fasily cot at any time. Wliat was wtuited were offers fr.'.ui the self-i.'Overning eolotiie<-- not prlvat,- offers, miii I \ou. Privae liters ua>» l«e«-n a«NVie«llt;ou : but ttiis time iliey were refus.Hl. They wen- refus(>d from Canada : they were rvfus4'd also froui Vieiorla and Ne,v South WaU-*. What was wanted, was not men «.r troops, but wli;tt was wanted was a dire«t committal i"rnin tlie government of ever.v self-governing llritlsh eolmy. to supply arms every time iliey would he r»>- qalrvd by the British governmeui. Th"re are other facis not contained In the corres- ;><>nden<-e. biit \\ lii'-li 1 li:\ve li>o) nd- infcof the .Kustmliau contingents, tind which are worth while being known in this coun- try. I ne«>d not say how dlfTiTent our posi- tion Is from the i)oslilon of New Zealand, and the other .\tistrnlian colonies. First. these >^>l»»nies have never been involved In any wars, whilst Canada has been Involvd. o 11 through bad Hritish policy, in two expensive wars with the United States. Second, th»- Australian colonies may be easily ntiackeil by various European countries, whils-t outside of the United States we can- not be attaclved, and I think the navy of England would be a far smaller protection for us. than It would be for Australia. 1 know that the Austral- ian colonies have contributed to a certain extent to liie Uritisb tiavy, but, if I am well infornu'il. that contribution is confined to a certain appropriation for the building of ships, which cannot go out of .\ustralian waters, or ai least that I'an be used only for Tile ih-fence of Australia. Now. that is an important consideration. That contribution of Australia is. to my mind, nothing com- pared with the heavy sacrlticcs we liave impiisi'd on ourselves, lu the buililing of the Canadian I'acllic Uailway, and in the help that we are ready to give to the I'a.itic cable for the benetit of Imperial defence. Fiuiilly. Australia has a great deal of com- mercial intercourse with South .Vfri'-a. The Trausvjial litlanders, for which this war is suiiposcd to be raging, include a fair pro- |M)rtiiin of .Vustr.'ilians. nud. therefiire. from every point of view, .Vustriilia is far more interested in this w.-ir than Canada «;»n pos- sibly be. Let us sec how some of »he .\us- tralian "olonlcs dealt with the question. When tlu' Tr.'iusviial iiubroglin beirati to be aoutf. the lirst offer wiis uuule. not by the New Zcal.MDd government, as often siate.V but by the (Juecnsluml government. uuM'T date .Tn!y lltli hist. When it <-.\mk> for rati- fication by the Queensl.Miid parliament, tlir'e months later, -a hoi disctHsiiiij toxk p'.aee. and Mr. HrjiKe. iiie Icadi'r el' (lie opj'osition slid: Ttiat the Dpfcnop Forcii .Art rloarly lalil dmrn that tlif Queenstowii defeme force i-ould not ')e sent beyond Australia for active service .\ r 'solutioti was moved censuring the co^■■ erumeiit, for iiiniiig iiitide the ulTer. without the .•iutli()ri/,!itioii of )iarli!iiiieiit. ,nid in this, in spit(> (if the tint that llie utTer h.-.d b-.n-n imnle sub.h'ct to the aiiilierl/.aiieu of jiarlia- meiit. This vote (if censure was moved, and !t w!is defeated mily b\ 11 of a miijority. the vole standing .'{'» lo I's. nud three oi- fmir suiipei'tcrs of the gii\ ei'iiiuetit stood up aiid said, that till hough iliey hljimcd the govern- ment .'uitl were ill favour id" the motion of censure, their only fear wii.s- pt>rhiips it is a fear tliiit Is to be found in Ibis Mouse to- night- their only fear wns thai the go'.ern- niciit would go out of ))ower. and so they vided agiiiust the motion of censur". There- fore, we iiuiy fairly say that. In Queens- laiul, the majority of ilie representatives of tile people was agiiliisl piiiticlimtion In thl« war. In New /eiilnud, the offer wms nimle by parliament Itself in Septei.iber, live men.- bers only voting against it. The reasoti given by the rrime Minister In favour of the measure Is worth while being noteil : , •The movement." he said, was a step to- wards a federated empre." In New South Wale.* and Victoria, the gov- ernors. Lord Reauchamp tind Lord Br.issey, seem to have headed the movement. They eommunicatiHl to the home government pri- vate oflfers which, like the private otters made here, were ackuowlc>lged with great polite- ness by >fr. Chamberlain, but not acted u|>on. The governments of those two colonies made no offers. From South Australia, no offers whatever, either private or otlicial. were made, and the attitude of itarliament larer ou proved what was ilic sentimenr of tue people there. Nevertheless, on tln> .Snl of Octi'ber. Mr. (.'hainberlain aeiepted gratefully from those three colonies offers that had not been made otticially by two of '.hem. and no; made at all by one of them. Tuai desjwitch bears the same dtile as the de-^patch sent here. The people were sur- prised there, just as here, at the form of the letter. Strange to say, that de- sf,>atch was not sent to Tasmania .itid West- ern Australia, wliich had .Act made no of- fers either. In fact, they seem to be the only two colonies where things were ctm- dueted r»»gHlarly. That is probtibly the rea.>ion why they have been treated with ab- solute dei*ency. rerhaps. also, .Mr. Cli.im- berlain was duly informed that it was not retinired to put the screws on theie. In fact, they are the only coh.nies where tue offers of the legislatures seem to have passed without trouble. .Vnyliow. the olTi'rs were not made by the governments, but by the parliaments, and tli(>y wt>re tlien ac- cepted by the t'olonial Othce. in ex.'ictly tlie same terms as v.ere accepted the offers that we h:iil ntu m:ide ;— with the exception that Tasmania ■:otisidered it was a stiilici- ent evidence of loyalty to send SO men in- stead of a full unit of T_'.">. and told it jdain- ly t>i Mr. Chambeilaiii. In Victoria and New South Wales, things did not go by themselves. Sir (Jeorge 'l"ui- ner. Premier of Victoria, as well as .Mr. Lyne. Premier of New South Wiles, were ehar.ired. like our o>vn governmeur, witli liesi'tincy. Sir tieorge Turner said, ou Oc tolHT 'J : There 1» one thing to be borne In mind, and tha' '«. that tlio empire is nut iiicnaci'd In the sMk^'*"*! (lonree. nnj she cannot, iheref .re, he In neeJ of assistance. . . . .Mt'anwhilr-. I take U. all that Is wanted is to deiiioiistrati' that »p stand s;ilid with the mother country In thi.s affair: and to :nake a siilLilile dcnion^tration. 200 men "HI serve the purpose at wi"ll as 2,000. Mr. Lyne snid the same day thut : He had received 'luny letters »UKi;esiliiK that he »as disl.tjral for rot rushing into ilie imblc prints it this Jun-'ure. sayliiR that h" uo'iM «;;<"■. 1 a lot of g verninent money In «endinK troops to the Transvaal. . The Major (iene- ra! was at present ■IIscushIiik It In miMfer.'iice «f'h lh>> offlcers co:iiinand|nK In the o'.ner cofi- nips. In his opinion. If a contingent were sent, it should be an .\ustrallai) lontinKent. ami no Ausiraliaa c iony should send troops on its own I a< couuc. A{tpieciatiug these statements, tlie Aiiius. o( Melliourue. siiys iu ii suuiewliat nieliui cbolie toue : Sir George Turner does not appear to be at all enlhusiasiic upon tUo subject, but he is i eagerness couipared with Mr. Lyne. who wltli ; bia doubts and his delays, is praciicully tbrowluK as much cold water as possible ui)oa tliu move- , meet. , This does not seem to Imvp tiniildcil the : I'remiei- of New Soiitli \\ ales, lor a lew days afterwards \u- nilded tlitit lie was uu- wiUiug to commit Lis eoiouy to any c.itirse until parliament hns met.' It is riMiiarkable thai .Mr. Lyue. ihougli represeutinu: |iioliali!y ' the most loyal i-oh>iiy. the only colony tliat | had pivvii.iisiy < ontrihiited tn the Hritlsli , army, always reseived the ri;rhis of i>arli:i- ' uieuT. All his inessau'es ciuijiiued iliosi' ; words : •Sul.ijiH.'t to the approxal ol' ;);irll;;- ! meut." As you may liavi- iiuiicid also. .Mr. l.yiic speaks of a roiiferi'uee of I'oiiiniandanis. There, as here. Majors fJeneral. as will :is Governors General, took a most active liaiid in the uame. Their idea wtis to orj.'aiii>'.e one larsie Australian 'preseiitatives. I offer to the ureat loyal- ists of this House, who dellounre as Irnitor- my friend from Laprairie i.Mr. .MoneU and my.'elf. an extract fi'om a speech d"li\ered in" The House of .Vssembly at Sydney, not l>y a Trench ( anadian. Inn. 1 lulleve. liv a l>oru Entrlishutau. Mr. llolman : When Try country is fi^h; in? In a Just oause, I win he ready to applaud tier, hut this is the rao«' iul'i'iiti'im war that firont Britain lias evor undertakPB. and I h^'pe Kng!;lays. One cd' the inemlM".-s said he wotild rather "lake up arms for the IVhts than for ihe uiouey- Krabbini: riilnmlers.' The proposition was carrliil by (1 «)r a ina.iorlty. whilst In Ihe leirislntivp I ounell It passed, iliaiiks only to the castUiK vote of the Speaker. stiiried a siniihir It was met with ■j'urner. Ibit the Now. wliat about offers of a secoud cou- linm'Ui V At the bejtinulut; of N'ovt^iuber, just about tli«' same day -straujje coiud- li'iire iliat Lord Miiiio tele^;raphed to .Mr. I'liaiiiberlain. iliat his ;;overniiicut was uf- teriu;; a second coniin;.'eia, .Mr. i.yne niu\enuni iu .Vusirali.a, approval by Sir to'or.ice replies from t^tieensland Mild Sotilli Ausiralia were rather cold. .Mr. Uulcsoii. rnniiit'r of t^uccusiand. wired : We have already sufficiently shown our loyalty without d();r.^ anything more at pre.sent. The Treasurer of South .Vustralia replied, 111 the name of his jioveruuient ; We thipk oiir loyalty has been as fully deinon- .^iraied by t^e aetioa alreaily laktn as 't wuuM be tiy th<' (lespat.-h o' .i further eiintingeiit. for \ !ii' 'i uo nee;I has yet arisen. We therefore do not favnir Die su^Rested action. ■| :ose two jrovernments had enough. 1 be- lieve, with their recent experience in iheir i-espective parliaments. I think I have shown qiilti^ conclusively how false, how utterly false, is the Icireiid of tlie i-'rcat enthusiasm displayed in all the other colonies. It is true thai messages from iJovernors Cener.'il freiiuenil.v speak of that cnthiisi.'isiu. of patriotic feclinirs. and all that Hut speeches and v-.iles from i-e- spoiisible rciiresent.-ilives of the people are. to my mind, more indicative of the po|Hilar feellii;: than messasjes from GoAcrnors. Our ;:re:it p.ifriois here ai-e niucli mistaken, even from their imiieriallstic point nf \ie\v when they say that Canada stood behind the other colonies. If our j:*'vei'nmeiii came Inst in olTcriii;; the lirst coniiiment. they (•ain(> lirst In offcriuu' the seciuid. and lliey came lirst. I.isi ;ind alone iu tilferlMtf. e(|Uii>- plnu: and scudiujj both contiiiiteuts without the participation and the consent of parlia- ment. I Ihlnk I have succeeded also In showluj.' i the most extraordinary manner In which Ihe Colonial Secii'tary coiiducid the wlmle flilntr. and with what zeal he was seconded l)y lht> ri'iireseiitalives of the I'.ritish irov- eriimeiii in every colony. Should the secret corresjioudence between Iiownin^ SI reel and the Governors of all ilie colonies be made public, siranvrc Illinois would come to liirht. Hut lliere are siilllcieui liidicailons lo assert that Mi-. ("hamberlain has taken ad- vantage of an oulbuiNi of palrioilc feelinu all over British possessions to |>usli ahead ills lonu' cherished seiicme of colonial jiartl- elpatloii In Imperial wiirs, or. If you prefer, of a mililiiry federaticiu of (Jreat Hrltalu and her colonies. That oiM" ..'overnmeni hesitated. I ndmll. and 1 approve of lis li(>sltail(ui. No diuibt, Ihe leaders of ihe party and ilie poliilcal lu>irs of Ihe ^reai iiieii thai have foui^lil so loti'.; for the couipiest and preservation of (Muuplcte self li'ox eruiiient. did not gladly enter liic new movement. The I'riiiie Min- ister, In spite of the ' no precedent ' clause 13 < Oll- lllL'l, iiu'i- .Mr. ul- ..\ ue .'Ilia. I'outaiiU'i' ill III'' mdiT in <'iiiiu<-il. f dony tliiii till- iK'w moviMiieiit cxiistt'd. and that we wi'ic, inu.'i' oi k'.ss. ciurii'il iiway by it. lint lu' said that Canada slioiild al- way.s preserve licr indeixnidi'noc of action and jiidnf cadi ca.-ic on its nn'riis. 1 apphiiid to tiiosc words, and I iinow that tile rijrlil lK>n. (fiMiil<>nian is siuccrf wlu'ii he iiitfM's tliciii. 'I'licy are in con- formity witli till' ))rincii)lcs that ho iiiihcld all his life Ion;:. l?iit liow shall he resist iho inlliKMice of Downini;; .Street V He was sinccro, too. when he said, on the ;{rd of Oclolier. that lie would not jiarticipatc in this war. and ten days later liis ;.'overniiU'nt decided to participate. And tlien. vrovern inents chaiiu'c. If iIh' ri^'ht lion, jieiitleiiian wa.s not able to re.sist. sh;ill another be better able to resist ? Hill siiiiposiiijj we really .jiidue "" each case. how shall the case be eniered ami the judg- ment rendered V Shall it l)e treated in the same way as the present one V Shall the merits of the case be entered a Friday after- noon and decided witboiii pleas, the lU'.xt Monday iiiorniiifr. by a judmnent dictated by an a;:ent of lH)\vninir Street V And shall the jiid;;iiunt lie e.xeiniicd during tie- re■e^s by an or('<>r in conncil at the co-it of several millions taken wilhom authoriza- tion from the ]iiiblic chest of the country — leaviuK to parliameiii but to ratify the whole lliiim- after it is d(Uic '.' Are these lo be the terms upon which Great Britain and her sell'-uoverninu colo- nies are Koini; to enter Into that uloiioiis alliance of free nations closely united for the purposes of iteace and war ? I elaiin. Sir, that such terms are e(iually unwonUy of till" parent and of tlie olVsprin;r. 1 < laim they are an insult lo the intelllj.'ence, to the character and to the loyally of the free llrltisli citi/.ens who have made of '"anada the Jewel of the Hrltlsh Crown. It Is not my Intention to treat, at any lenjrlh. Hint iiiiestion of Imperialism. It Is a Ma (luestlon whicli eannoi be decided in the hish-handed M-ay In whicli the disciples of the yi'llow press In this House would like to settle it. For my pan, my opitdoii on this point Is pretty much that of Mr, Moiiey -and 1 nilsiht add of I he hoii. member for West KIgIn (Mr. Casey) 1 do not like the word 'empire.' It has a sound of Ca'siir Ism, of Nap(deMiism, of military domina- tion, of sword rule, whicli Is most dls- nu'feeable to my Hrltish I-ilier.il ear. He- sides it tlireateiis us v Itli the burden of nllltarlsni, the urea lest t>vil of modern Kiiropean countries. Wlial has made the wonderful development of the liilteil Stales V What has altraeled to them millions of Kuriipean farmers ami hibotirers. llyin;; conscript loll and war taxes V It Is the fact that the I'lilled States was a coiintrv free from thoH(> burdens and from the <'oiisianl rlvnlrles which are k<>epliiK suspended over lOnrope ii art, what result 1 would find- though I ihiiilv I would iio( be fai fron agreeing with the hon, the Minister of Trade and Commerce, tlial I'^ngiand owes more to Can.'ida Ih.iii t'anad.'i to Fiigland. KfrT"! know this much, that since Canada is a Hritish colony, she has never involved ( 'treat Xiltaiii in any conllict. wliiNt she lias been thrown into two wars with the Iniied Stales ami her territory made the theatre of hostilities, thanks to a Hritisli policy whicli was blllerly denounced by the L'l-eatest British statesmen. We "were ilireaiened witli anothei' coiitlict during the secession war. lliauks to depredations coin- milted by Urlilsli vessels ; and when the (liiari'el was settled, the damages were p;iid a good deal at our expense. At least. Sir .lohn Macdoiiald saitl so, ns recorded lu black and white in his biography and let- ters. On boundary malters, a good share of our territ leader of fiie opposition In tills House, his name is Sir Charles 'I'upper. Moreiiver, I contend that we have largely contributed to the Imperial (lefcnce more than nil the other colonies put together. I conlenil also that the best way to con- tribute to that defence Is not by sending our men, tlio bent of our blood, to the four cornerR of the world, but by fortifying our own territory ; by developing our own re- sources ; by keeping our population, and by bringing in foreign immigration. 1 am gliid to hud, in the speech jusi quoted, that th same eminent authority fully agrees w th me on ail those points. The quotation is rather lengthy, but it is so eloquent and convincing that 1 cannot reaiiy cut it short : I have a word or two more lo say with re- ference to tlie defence of the empire. Tliey say: Why should Canada, with her enormous morcantile marine, her sails whitening every sea, not contribute from her resources to the defence of the empire? I say she Joes. I say Canada is discharging that duty nobly and well. No person holds mors strongly than I do the unquesttonable duty of every British .subject, wherever he may be found, to contri- bute to the support of the defence of this great empire. If you are go;c§ to strengthen a for- iiiioation, what would you strengthen? The strongest or the weakest part? Of course, the ,veal\est. Where is the weakest part ? Is it in England, in the United Kingdom, or Can- ada, or .'Vustralia? No person can question that it England was engaged in war with any great power in the world, they would strike, not in Its strongest but weakest part, and therefore, if you wish to strengthen the defences of the ; empire, to increase the power to resist invasion, the best way to accomplish this. I have no hesitation in saying. Is by looking after Canada. Those who ay that Canada contributes nothing to the defence of the empire must be very igno- rant of facts, at all events, and I would recom- mend 'liem to peruse a little of that very In- teresting literature contained In blue-books. Then, after having reminde0(l and which he considered a direct contribution to Iinperia! defence, the hon. gentleman adds : Hut some might answer that this work was not done fur that purpose, but for commercial purposes. So much stronger our claim. The greatest, the most Important, the most vital (|iiestion in connection with the defence of Canatla, which means the defence of one of the most important sections of the great empire. Is to people it. This railway, although a commercial line, opens up thl.« magnificent future granary of the world for settlement by stout hearts and strong arms, not only from (ireat Ilritain, but by the best men from Scati- dlnavla ami (jerinany and Iceland, t.) become settler.s and as brave defenders of BrltlFh In- stitutions as native-born Canadians. Then the hon. gentleman counts in vhnt We expetul yearly on our militia and North- west mounted police, bringinir the whole thing. In his estimation, to an annual . magnificent lettlenient by )t only from n from Scan- 1, t.i become f Brlti.'h in- D*. wa iti vliat I anil Nort li- the whole annual cx- >e cuneludes 'fence of the Iributlng bet- ftlcal manner lly $10,000,000 tortance alike to Canada and Great Britain. I do not Intend to detain y.,u any longer than :o say I am quite sure it v.-is only right for me 'i seize aa oppor- tunity — the only one I have had ia Canada — to say something upon this question of imperial fede- ration, and of pointing out what, in my judg:ment, is the fallacy and the mistaken policy of those who have adopted the line of advocating the unity of the empire upon a ttasis calculated, in my judgment, not to protnote tliat unity, but to destroy it. With the exception of ilr. Morley. who told Mr. Chamberlain that he was takiu;: the proper means tu ruin the empire, no other British or Canadian statesman has hitherto more conclusively condemned the new move- ment thtm the hon. gentleman who is now followintr and supporrina. and even eu- de.nvouring to lead that movement in Can- ada. Of course, I fully realize the differenc-e of times and circumstances. In ISC Sir Cliarles Tapper was safeguard ins iLe inter- ests of Canada in Loudon : in l',*".". he is the loader of a wrecked party, fishing tor votes in Cauaila. I should be allowetl. however, to agree with the High Commissioner without l>c:it. LVt.ti engapeil going to Paris, or Herlin. or St. Petersburg— which may take nearly tis lnug as going to Pretoria - a ditliculty arises betwt^n the I'nited States and England : and war is declared. 1 ask the loudest Imperialists : Where would be tiie Mritish ilag in North .Vm^-rica V I do not deny it, the new m -vement ap- pears to me as a huge m. calomaniac frenzy iompletely foreign tu all British traditions. What has made Ureat Britain what she is ': What has attached to h-^r all her great col- onies, if not a policy of iM>ace. of industry, of tiiide, of compli'te military and ivditical decentrnlization — leaving to each o>l«iny. the rlgl : and ixiwcr to develop its own n^sour- CCS according to its in^-ullar situation ? Oh ! but times change : Yes. times change, —and men also, by what I c:in *e«'. But, changes of liic. national or Individual, must be quiet, progressive, and especJally must be in strict conformity with the temperament of the iiidiviilual or of the nation. Kor my part. I still Indieve in the men and In the policy that maile of England the ■ lasslcal land of peace and of l!b»Tty. They will stand higher in the annals of history than the noisy, ambitious domlnators who want to make England share in the land- grabbing )n*actlce»l by other aatlona. As far as Canada is concerned, I stiH be- lieve in the men and in the policy that made of her a united country under oiir confeder- ated system. I do not ask for indepeiidouii now, nor at any i)eriod within ordinary toiesight. Not that independence is not, ui my mind, the most legitimate and natural aim to wliich any colony should tend. lUii wc are not yet enough imbued with the real British liberal spirit of self governincnt. And this whole question contlrms me slrniigly in that opinion. Should the constitution of our country be left entirely in the liaiids of our jtolitical parties as presently constituted. 1 ;im afraid they would play with ii, ■ a great- er football game th.'tii has been." I was asked where I stood ? The reply is short and straight. I stand on the con- stitution of my country as it is. and I siiy to those who are not satisdcd \\iU\ it ■ If you want a change, ull frankly what you want. Do not come in a iiioiueiit '<{ populai frenzy and try to set tire at llie coiner of the house. Mr. Chamberlain and iiis frantic disciples, and his unconscious followers, both K.ng- lish and Canadian, are leading us towaids a constitutional revolution, the consequences of which no man can calculate. — I have said elsewhere, and I repeat here : My olijectlons to any cliange in our rela- tions with tireat Britain, tire neitlier .stun born nor unrcisiuiable. I am open to con- viction. But I insist on this point : That we must know exactly wliere we are imw, and whither we ar<' led. Before ;iny change is made, we must lie sliown distliii-tly wli.at we are asked to give up, :iiid \\li;it we .-ire otfered in return. And. even this |)arlia- ment - and fiir less its executive cummittee - have no right to commit Ihe fntute of this country, without ascertaining exactly what is tlie true feeling of the people. 1 w;iiit to be well understood, on this ques- tion of popular sanction. I do not mean that it would be snillcient (m- any political ptirt.v to eiiiniciaie vague ideas on Iiii|ieiial- ism, and, lieing rctiiiiicd to jxiwer cu its general policy, claim that It is aullmrized by the people to ojx'rate a decj) cli.uige in our constitutional system, and in our cohui- ial st.'itus. Clejir propositions must be laid before par- liament and tliorotiglily disi'iissed aiul when the terms are agreed tipiui, ;i pleblselie must be taken upon the ( the people of eacli province must decide In favour of the new system, before it be- comes law. Now, a great many eloiiueiit w^rds have been thrown to the four winds. pral>^ing ihe British nile and its good effect. With most of those utterances 1 fully agree 16 Hut. llicrc lijivi- liftn iwo kinds of Britisli niK' for tlu' odciiiu's : Tlu' milit;»r.T rule, and tlic ('(iiisiituiioiial rule. Tlie Itriti>L cciistltutidiiMl rnlc. apiilicd to the coionios. Is Mil" ln'M iliai CM I- I'xistcil. Tl)f I'.ritisli militaiy rnli'. has l»"'ii iki l>«>itt>r :l>an tbc siniilaf rule oC otln'r Kiiri)|ii'aii powers. I Id inoilc'n tiiiifs »>iil.v. S(»l- .•lU, pi'i'tty iiiii>li tlit> >aiin' 'I'lic.N an- laun'tl liy tin- believe th«> sword to W the rnlintr. Tlic niihs.iry rule. wliiMi iipitlicil hy civilians ami S"Verii- lias iif.i(liici(l ^n-nicr dlsa-ters. i^er- constilutioual governors caiue to refer, of eonr.-^e, diei-s arr. after iindir .'ill I'aus. nword jiml tlu-y best inethnd uf even nieiil' Imps, lo Citat lii-iiain tlian ii> otb'T n:i tioux ; be< niise of the ei-att'iiug > f Bilti-h possi'ssions nmler .4II nUi's. aud btrans«> also of the stroiitr insiinet of individual lib*Tty wliic-b cliaraeloriy.es ilii' .Miido-Norui lu. ns well .IS tin' Scuteh and thi- l:ish Tlie miii- taf'- rule Uepi India f imeiitinir rel>t'll:on for a e' nttiry : the miliary rule has lost t • Entjland the thiffifn Ameriran eolouies : it sowiil aial ;;eriiiin.'iie(l tiie kernel of the Soiiili .Mrir.iii prulileni. The Transvaal aud Orange It. pulplies were eoiieeived in hatred nt iSchl.h liiers Nel<. when in ISl.".. live Duteb leaders wiTe handed by order >>( "he Uriiish niilU.'uy Kovei-iior d' ("ap" folony. The sub- stituliipii of ••onsiitniiniial rule by the broad and wise men, now e.ille*! Little Enjrlanders, cured Ilie woUIlds lujldc bv tile sw.ird ill Cape Colony and Natal. It made of re- bel hiiiili. loy.'il subjects of the Hritish Crown ; but it could not tame the old .\frikaiiders ulio luid eros.scd the \:i:il. during: tlie ;.'ieat trek jind before tlie intro- duelion id' llie new system. The rule t-f the sword sliall lia\c i" be .-iiiplied .luain a'l ..vev South .\friea. (Jld wounds will reop-.'ii. Let tia wiiit for the resiilt. In C;inada. we had al.so a milit;'ry rule for some lime ; tlieii a mixture of b >th rule^ was tried, or. :i' >mu pref-'r, .1 constitutional system duiuiiiatid by the sword ; a system by which the reiu'esentatlves of tie p»-ople were allowed to act just as far as the sword wouhl permit. Tliiii could not work. It broiiizlit disaffection and reliellion !u a «ouii- try where the most stilkiiic es.-imples of loyiilty liad been (riven by h conqueie.l for- eimi population. At l;ist. after a struculc (d' lifly years. Ibitish statesin-n were bi'ouirht lo uudcrsiaiid ih.'it C:inaple by till' speeches of thr« c or four I laycus and !)y rest)luti,)Us adopt* d in a few pidiiieal clubs. I regret to be now oblijied to weary the House wiih :\ few personal exjdanatlons ; not that I consider my itersonaliiy of any importance w hatever in the matter ; but I owe it lo my diynily as .-i man, 1 owe to the free citizens who have pui their coiitidence in me and reliinied me lo this House on tiiis very ()iicsiloii - to dispel iin- misinttr- liretaihius wlibdi have been placed ui>on my eondiiet. I h:ive alreaily stated tin ' 1 was absent wlien that Transvaal resol iou was rushed throiifiii a tliiii House, oiu' .Monday inornini: of last session, almost without dis.iissiou. 'the moment 1 was back I told the leader of the jioverniueiit whal I lhou;.'ht of it my aiii)reliension lliat ii was some tine scheme of Mr. Chamberlain to t.ike acess ;iiid In the advi'iit of war, consent to give way to Mr. Chamberlain's 1 would protest publicly and take means jiossible to make my protect pressure, the best good. When. Inter on, 1 saw that pome Liberal organs wliiidi had theretid'ore o|ii)osed the idea of iuierventioii were giving way. 1 c.ime to (Mtawji and renewed my protest with my leader. That was the very day the rlLTht holt. I'rime .Minister made bis declaration In the HIdIic. When I read thit siatement I was almost reassureit as a matter of fact, the Minister of Public Works was .absent In Paris, La Palrir, \\hich is con- sidered by many people as his organ, had uot yet written one line ou the matter, wheu I had discussed the (juesllou with the Frlnie Minister and expressed to him the same views that 1 hold now. But moreover, those who think I was in- Uueuced by tlie .Minister of Puldic Works during all thai crisis, or at any moiueuT of it. sinii)ly i)rove that tlu'y d.. n>,i know oitlier of us. The w-vy tiling which makes our muiual syaiiiattiy Is a peculiar disposi- tion of temj)erameut rominon to both of us. but whicli renders it imp(»s8ible, even for the Minister of Public Works, to rule me lu any way I mean an unbounded love for freedom of thuuglu, freedom of speech, freedom of action. The Montreal Star, the blufflug organ par excellence, called my action a " blufl:,' and insinuated that it was inspired liy the .Min ister of Public Works. The leader of tin- opposi;i eorde voulil lie. In their case : ' I>o not talk trea-iui In n nest of traitor^ ■ Meiug uoi ;ui ex iniiiNter of the C'owii. nor an e.xlligh Commissioner iiof I hi' leader of a great party, nor an aspiriiii:- leadei- ; belnc oiil.\- a free citizt'U and .'I mmlesl meinlier of this House, I dis d.'iin that kind of persdinil .•irgiimeiit. 1 lei fall where it should lie the vile .iceusatlon of ' pill up .loll," and 1 simply declare on my wiird of honour as a man that the coursi' I liave taken. 1 took It of my own free will. beeaus»> 1 thought it was my dui.\ to lake It. If I did wrong, I deserve the whole blame. If 1 did right, I claim tlie whole merit. ' Mon verre n'est pas grand nials jo bols dans mon verre ' Now, 1 hiive been asked by manv. Includ- ing the .Minister of FMibli.' W^rks : W!iy did you resign instejid of keepiim your sent and expressinsr your o|i|nloii In iKirlianient ? .My reply Is tills : H.ad we been treated In this country like every other Hiitlsh self goviTU- H K 2 Ing country has been treated, 1 wo'tld not have had recourse to such extreme means ot asserting my views. In (ireat l?ritaln. where the government have ilie ri;.'ht to declare war or to accept a declaration of war, they did not dare expend one pound on armaments without summnninu parliament. In New Zealand, in ail tiie .\ustralasian colonies, parliaments were consulted. We were the oidy exceptiou, .\nd the reason given for not calling parliament was that luiblic opinion was so unanimous th;'.t the government could legit iui.Heiy aidicipate the sai'clion yf pariiameiit. This theory I couhl not accept. 1 resigned so as to consult that portion of the public opinion which I repre- sented in this House. I imposed upon my self the burden of a by-election in a county where it re(piires Siki miles of a drive to come in contact with tli(> whole population. I did it, so as to be aide to sound the oiiiiiioii of my constituents on that very iiuestioii without having It eonpleil with otler poli- tical issues. Should 1 liiive waited lor tlie general elei-iions. some e".?ctors migbr hi.vc voted for me bei'ause they favoured some other iirticle of my programi; ? : otiiers be- cause they [ireferred me to tiny Tory, I hough biid I may be. I went to ihem straight on ihis issue and told them : ' 1 do uot ome here to discuss party politics. Von have eh-cted me for Ave years .as a l.il)eral. and this I am still. Wlieii the next general elections come, you will jiidi:e me and juiltre the lioverument on their administrative policy. To-day I have resigned and 1 come before you to get your »»pinion on this iiuestion. and on this ques- tion alone. Are you in favour uf partlci- p.-itim.' in this war. or in any war without at least lieJUir ■■onsulted througli your re- presentatives '.' If se, vote ag.'iiiisi me; if not, vote for me.' In (>ther words. I took a plebiscite lu my county. .Vnd lustcel ef 'oming lure to give you niy own opinion, presuming the approval of my const ;ruen<-.s on .'I <|uesiion wliieli luid never been sub- milled te iliein. I come here to give yoii the illiect iinswer of four or five thousand loyal subjects of IhM' .Majesty. It h.is been s;(id that Ihi-J was not an argu- ment. My go. id friend, the junior meinbrr for (tttawa i.Mr. Helcourti has written some- thing of the kind in the letter to which 1 have .ilready referred. Of eiuirse, I do no' know much of my friend's constituents He does lint se(Mii lo have a very high opinion of their judgment- unless he believes the people lit' I.abelle to be very niiieli i;if'erlor to ihose of Ottawa ; bur I would like hirn to unih'rstand that the people of I.abelle are very independent, tiiid perhaps It Is the reason I like them and they di> nor hate me. I wNli to be straight wlili them, as they lliive been with me. I ceuld beast, of course, of representing on this (luestion, the unanimity of my con- stliiients. Technically It N true. Hut really I know It Is net. \ certain gmiip of Lib- IS erals and a certain group of Conservatives did their best to secure a Ohamberlainl>iiosi'd me. Tlie CoiiiitriJ (tnd Citizen of Toronto, organ of the ialnnniu^ classes, thiit I am glad to count amongst the con- stant sui)porters of my views on tliis mat- ter, struciv the right key : if neitlier party fought me, it is because tliey thought they would rislv a good deal to iittaiu :i poor re- sult. In order to sliow tliat tin electors wlio liave s(>ut uir liere ai'e not so simple-mind- ed as my friend I'roin Ottnw.'i Itelieves them to be. 1 will jMiint :\ fact to the House. At my tlrsr nu'cting at rapin*'i»"^''"''- f^^'<' flnys after my resignation, tlie mover of the reso- lution approving of m.v coursi wsis a ("on- servative wlio fought me at thi l.'ist geiKM'al elections. Hel'ore moving tlie i solution he told me : 'Mind you. I was agiiii:si; you in ],S!)(i, 1 will oppose you at rlie next j,-"nenil eleetlons, hut this time [ am witii you.' 1 could quote liundi,;!- of names nt intelli- gent men wlio tooii tlie siuiie stand. When it became evi(l«>nt fliat 1 would he ottered no opposition, jieople were au.Yioiis to e.\- press tlieir oi>iiiion in one way or .nnr.ther. A\'iihin a few (hiys my nouiinjition pjijier was signed by nearly a tliousand luiines. I Icnow of two or tliree parishes wliere all the electors came and signed tlie iiitiier— some from eight or ten miles distant : in fiut. in some places 1 iiad more names on t,h<' paper than I tiad votes In 18!XJ. I think this is tin expression of puhlie oiiinion cpiite as cniielusixc as articles from tlie Montreal Stm: .\iid 1 venture to say that sliould tlie siuue ))roe<>ss of testing i>ul)- lic opinion liiive been ;ipi)lled in most of tlie constituencies of the province of Que- bec, tlu reply would have betMi similar. It being six o'clock, the Speaker left tlie Ohair. AFTER RECESS. Mr. BOUUASSA. Mr. Speaker, Just a Word now about my Introduction in tliis House by the Minister of I'uhlie \Vorl;s. which the leader of the oiipoaition has char- acterized as one of llie gi'etitest scandals of pnrliiimentnr.v lilstory. \\ li.it would have beeouie of the touehy couselellee of the hon. gentleman, hail he Iieen itreseiii in the British (Commons wh(, he- lug a member of llie governiueiif, fought the slavery Rill, introduced by tlie govern- ment as a straight government measure V Lord Macaulay's attitude and speech were the cause of a vote against the gov.'i-nment wiiich was defeated by only seven of a ma- jority, and the real cause of the Bill being defeated in the House of Lords ; and still the government of which he was a member refused to accept his resignation. \\h«'n 1 came to Ottawa to take for the seconil time my oath of lidelity to the ("rown, I wanteil to present myself iilone, and to give my qualiticiitious to the House without any help. But 1 was told that this could not be done. 1 vainly endeavoured . to seduce the rigid interpreters of parlia- mentary procedure by asking tlieni to at- lacli to my eccentric introduction a "no pre- I'cdent' clause. .Fust .at that moment 1 hap- pened to meet tlie Minister of Public Works, who told me : "Why, I tim ready to intro- duce you. You resigned against my advice; hut 1 am a partisan of freedom , 1 will introerately ob- tuse for 1 confess I cannoc uiideistaud the argument of the hon. gcntleuien opposite. Why should I liave gone to the otlier side V Is it because tlie Iciider of the opposition lireaclied till over the l;ind th.at tiie Liberals did not go far enough in the direction in which I refused to follow tlu-m V Is it he- cause the member for Beanharnols (Mr. Bergeron) wanted to send 5,000 French Canadians to Soutli Africa '! Mr. BEUGEUON. I never said tliat. Mr. IIOIUASS.X. I iiiii glad the hon. gcntlemiiu iMr. Bergeron) goes back on the ie|H)ri, id' his sjieech. Is it because the rank iind tile of the Tory [iress denounced the goveiument as half irsiitors ami niyself as a doublu traitor '.' It is tru(! tiiat on tlie i|Ucsiiou of expendl- tufi' the two Iciiders liiiv(> met half wiy, or , as my friend from Laprairie and N'apier- i ville would say, lia\e divided between them- selves the apple of sin. But th.'it do >s fot make an ari-hangel of tlie hon. leader of the opiiosltion and clear him of ids long career. The very liesitaney which he !i;is bitr.'rly i(>- jiroaelied as a crime to the goverumeiit would be sulllcieiit to pre\eiit me from ''all- lug in* ) the lion's dcii. Tliiit hesitnn.^- is Just what wotild irive in(> some Indulgence for the government. When a man hesitates before misdoing, it is a sign thnt he bus si 111 some eonscl<>nc(>. Because I condemn the men who have .couuultted a sin, shall I throw my lot with lUL'ii burn and fed in the sin. Because I ' vliai'Ke tlie Kovornuiom with having perpt- triilod au act of Toryisia, shall I jjo and put myself uuder tlie very yuUe of Toryism V There are men on your left. Mr. Speaker, for whom I havf i^reat esteem and respect : as there are men on this side, for .vlu.m I liave not the san)e sympathy as I feel for others. In other words, tliere ar? Lib- erals to your left and Tories to your ri>;lit- ^.'iviuji to tlios(> words a muoli broader mean- iUK tluin they usually liave uuder the nar- row paity label. But the domiueeriuy: ele- ment of the opposition is the essence of the worst kind of Toryism. I heard tiie other clay my esteemed fiietid from Terrebonne (.\lr. Ciiauviu) eastiuale in a ftnv words rile member for NVest Y(u-k. 1 lieard some time previous I lie hoii. member for Three Rivers (Sir .\dolplie (,'arou) lecture with his usual tact and keeuness tliose people who talk despicably ol mocc-isin iroverumcut. That shows dearly tlie dilfi-rcuce b(>tweeii what 1 call the liiberals and tln' Tories to your left. I would iiave no objection to work hand-iu-hand witti the liberal-hearted Consorvatixes of all origins iind creeds, but I lutve the deepest born antipathy for Tfirles dyed in the wool. I am a Lii)eral of tlie British school. 1 am a disciple of Burke, Fox, Brij;ht. Gladstone, and of the other Little Enjihinders who made Great Britain and her possessions what they are. and I will not desert the ranks of their true I'ol- lowers because Mr. Cliamberlain. or other renepade Radicals miglit choose in tlieir nie>raloinaiii:ic ambition vo call tliose preat men blunderers. It may be said that Glad- stone chaiiired his mind on manv (luestioiis. Yes, he did. But-and tliis was the mark of his Renins, as well as of his liorii Lib'M-al- Ism-all his chautjes were from tlic narrower to the liroader. In churcli matters, lu state affair.s. in sociolo^'y. all his cliaii>;es weiu; a constant progress towards Lilieralisni. .\. Liberal 1 was born, anil a Lilieral 1 will die, A Liberal 1 shall remain, even tlirouu'li waves of Toryism wliich miglit swamp for a moment the fields of Liberalism. .\ud no king, governor or minister, i^vcn in my own party, and no blind crowd can force me to be anything else. In my letter to the Prime Minister, and in all my speeches in Labelle, as well as in my private utterances, I s.iiil that 1 still supported the present administration on its general policy, because I still believed It was a good one. Tlierefore. on general grounds, my natunil place was here in luy old seat. In fact, 1 may say. that I am the only man entitled to occupy his old scat lu this ITouse. with my lion, friend from Laprairle CMr. MonetK and perliat>s a few others whom we shall hear from to iiiv'lil. because 1 am the only man who is nplioldlug tlu" same principles and preaching tiie same doctrine that I held six months ago. Some hon. .MEMBKRS Hear, hear. Mr. BOURASSA. Hon. gentlemen oppo- site should not applaud so much. They should not forget the doctrine which their leader himself has preached so elotiuently and so strongly on many previous occasions. Besides my hon. friend from La prairie and the other lion, gentlemen who are going to vote with us to-night, U(j i-ariy in this House has the right to laugii at the expense of tlieir opponents. On this special question I comlemu the .'ictiou of the goveinuient ; .nnd I h.ive come here to tell them that my constituents ap- prove of my course, and have given me a mandate to warn them, in a fri<'ndly spirit, against an.v future attempt to iiass over the constitution and to commit the future of this country without the full knowledge and ' consent of parliament .and of the people, ! \ow. a word to the hon. member for I Beauharnols (Mr. Rergeroni. or rather to tliost>— iind tiie\ are ipiite numerous -wlio ; entertain the Ulea which he has expressed ' a couple of times, esiieciiilly once ben' In Ottawa. The hon. gentleiiitiii was reported I as saying that I'apineau liad smashi'd the ■ constitution, and that if I could I would ; do the same. Elsewhere he was re|)ort(Hl as saying that the Liberals, from Papineau down. Iiad no principles. I'irst. to lie.ar rlie I member for B(>auliarnois talking princ pies i makes upon me about the sjime impression ' that T would feel listening to selections from 'Faust' or '11 rrovat(n'e ' executed by a ohoir of deaf mutes. But when lie accuses me of being led by liereditary tendencies, I plead guilty to the charge, and I will take this occasion— the lirst and the last I will choose to do it— to intlict upon this House a short page of family history. I do it because I it is. to my miml, (piite illustrative of the developtneiit of British institutions in I French Canada. i Some hon. MEMBERS, Hear. heai-. i , Mr. BOIRASSA, Hon, gentlemen oppo- site, especially tlieir hon, leader, who is so mucli inclined to mix up the liistory of Can- ada Jiiid a good cliapter of tlie history of tlie empire willi his own biography, should easily p.ardon me this abuse of tlie patience of tlie House. ' In 1770, when Montgomery and .Arnold [were besieging tjuebec. wliere Generjil Carleloii w.as imprisoned with his little i sirmy. Important messages cniueto Montreal i addressed to the general. Two young ' French C,iuadi!ins offered to go and deliver tliose despatches. They drove, but mostly ' walked, the sixty leagues, that sep,iraled the two cities. They pa.s.sed through the American forces and tlie very few ilisaffected districts between the two cities. After a great dlsplny of siviii and cour- age, having had to pa,ss within gimsliot of i the lines of the Investing army, they entereil , lillebec. They delivered their messages to the governor, and lli^n served as free volun- , teers until the siege was r.ilsed. One of 30 those j-oiiUR men wns the Rreat-Rrandfatlier of our preseut Clerk of the Crowu in Cluiu- cery, Mr. Laiiiotlie, whose uoiniiiation the Ottawa Citi::eu denounced to the viudicatioti of the auti-iuoccasius. The other wa.s luy great-Krandfatlier ; his name was JosepL I'apiuean. In ITIM. wlien iiarliaiueutary inslltutions were jiranted to Lower Caiiada, Joseph I'apiiieau was elected as a representative of the people. IU> had fought for the Crown wueu the Crown was assailed liy foreisii fi>os. lie ftiusrht against the Crown as long as the Crowu stood against the people. He died tlCty year.s later, wliat lie liad lieen all his life h-)Ug : A loyal snlvject ol' tlie Crown of Eugliind. and a faitlifnl ddender of tlie Canadian people. In 1.Sl"..i. a young French Canadian lawyer, a nieniher of the legislative a.-seinWiy of yiiebec, al)andoiied liis legal and paiiianient- ary occui)aiious to go and iiglii fur the Brillsli tiag. om-e more assailed hy Anglo- Saxons. He served diu'iiig tlie whole cam- paign. When ilie lionour of the British flag was out <>( y iifly years of lyranny olTered to Ihem a> ;i reward for eighty years of stanncli loyalty. They listened id the in- flammatory words of tlie English rebel and disregarded I lie constitutional apjieals of the loyal I'renchman. This is the history of the men from whom I have taken my double sentiment of loyalty lo the Ci-own against foreign in triision. and of loyalty (o ihe jieople .'igainst Crowu Ol- faction abuses. 1 repeal I ba\e no reason to b(> ashamed of it. And many men who en.ioy now our free political Insti- tutions and even abuse them. ow<' tliem to those men they call traitors and nniirinci- jiled agitators. Sir, 1 have no Intention to iiroclaiiii once more the loyalty of tlie I''rench Canadians who virtually saverove that they lack all good faitli or that th^y aie compleiely devoid of any sense of com|)rehensiou. It is useless to try and ion\ince them. But I have read somewhere- I think in i!ie I'oronto .\ly beiausu they wanted lo preserve ilieir property. 'I'liat is rather a pretty bail re- ilectiou upon our American friends and dearest kinsmen. It would mean that they were nothing but barbarians, totally i;.;uoi- ant of the most eleiiieiuary rules of warfare between oivili/.ctl i>eoiihs. Fortunately, it is completely refuiiu by history, in 177.") t>. opceially, ihe American army occiipied .Montrejil and a good poriiou of Eowi'r Can- ada, anil far from making any depredation, they did everything possible to induce the Frendi Canadians to join them. They promised frei; government to the leaders ; they resiiectcd iirnate pro|)erty ; they bo'iglit farm products at a high price. The reiiiaikable faithfulness of French loyalty was made only more .-triking by the very few individuals wlio gave way to .Viiici iccn seiluclions. As the member for Three Riv- ers (Sir Adoliilie Caron), and the member for Terrebonne i.Mi'. Cliauviu). said very projieriy not so easy to swainji as nmny i)eople think. We follow to the letter the Biblicnl advlc(> : '(^rescife et inuliiplicamlni. ' We luive a remarkable I ilisjiosiilon for living on good terms with '.others, and it comes from this fact: JL 91 Tliougli deeply attached to our cuuvictious. Wo have the jji-eaicst toleratiou fur other people's couviotious ; without losiug our hinguage we Icaru ijuite easily to talk our ueighbour'N lau^'uaKe Tlie result is that, as a rule, Euglish-speakiug people wl- > live with us have uo idea of tludiug fault witli our reujaiuiiiiL' IMeueh. 1 aui sure that should the uieuiber for West York (Mr. Wal- lace) c'oiue aud reside iu yuehec, it would uot take two yeais before he would resij;ii his poutiUeate in ihe Orauije Association m become ■niarj;uilliei' of oue o:' our j^ood p.'ir ishes aud the jiresiih-ut of a Si. .le.-iu Bap- tiste Soci(>ty. Auyhow, 1 insist on this poiui, that, from a purely material iioint of view, it would have been far lietter for us to have become Americans. I am .uliid we did not do it, be- cause I prefer liriti.^h iuslitutiiuis as we \ conqueriHl them, to .Xniericau institution.-. And so loUft as ars of hard struggle, 1 want to be and our iieo- ple want to be faithful to our own wot'd. Ibit let the good faith be •■qual on both sides : Of I'ourse, I realize liow liard it is for some people to understand a point of honour like this. It mu.st be utterly incon- ceivable for the political descendants of the happy family compact and oligarchic rulers —of those great loyalists who shot and hang- ed honest ("anadi.-ins. both l''reiich and Kns- lish, who did not want to be treated as poli- tical helots on tlieir native soil. Those same loyalists were the men who rotten-egged the re)>resentiitive ,()f the ("rown when he want- ed to give in practice, as well as by law. equal justice to all classes and nntionali ties : they were also the only agitators for anne.vation lo the Unitt^l States when they, fotind <-iit that the luiblic chest was no more to be confotiuded with tlieir i)rivati' purse. From those higli-hearled and broad-minded patriots w!»s born tlie loyal Tory-Imperialist party. I have now to say something of Ihe par- liamentary significance of my proposition. aud to mo«^t l)eforehand the ob.iection that it implies a vote of want of coufldence iu the government. Not pretending to be au authority on inat- ters of i)rocedurc. I will not veniure weary- ing the Ilousi' with a cours(> of parliament- ary law. I will ,)iist seliM't from the annals of this House, a debate where tlie question w.as fully treated by Irgh niithoritios of both parties. The lesson should l«e ihe more fruitful, that most .if the teai hers are still niendiers of this House, or have rearhed the serene regions of the Tipper House— which. I liope. shall uot be considered as a nullifica- tion of their science. 1 have alluded already to the debat(> raised in this House in 1S!«. by Ihe rebel. anti- British speech of the Controller of Customs (Mr. Wallace!. On that oceasion. Mr. I'aw- son. member for Algoiua. moved in amend- ment to the governmenl's proposition of iro- Ing into supply, a motioQ which termed Itself ' severest ct n.sure ' of Mr. Wallace's action and si)et?ch. The first sappt>rter of the government to speak on the motion, was Mr. Kenny, mem- ber for Halifax. He repudiated tlie senti- ments expres.sed by the Controller of Cus- toms, but declared he would not vote for the motion, as he considered it a motion of want of coutidence in the goveriment. Mr. Mills. meml)er for Hothwfll. now .Minister of Justice, and therefore the legal adviser of the j.res>'nt government, replied as follows to Mr. Kenny : I tliink the hon. member (or Halifax, iu re- ferring to this motion as a motion of want of contiiletKe m the government, takes a wholly erroneous view. ... U is quite true. Sir, that a government may treat any motion, even a motion for the a'ljoummont of the House, as a mdtlon of want of confidence; but uo govern- ment is obliged to treat an ordinary motion as a motion of want of confidence; and. so tar as I know, no government has hitherto treated as such a 'notion in amendment to go into supply. Why. Sir, let me refer the House to a motion '.vhlch I myself made two or three years ago iin going into supply, with reference to the dis- tribution of public moneys for the construction of public works. The leader of the House, on tliat occa-oion. the laie Prime Minister, Sir John Macdonald. accepted that motion and supported it in opposition to the government's own propo- sition to go into supply. Let me refer to another I'asp A few years ago. on the proposal to go into supply, the late member for Niagara, Mr. F!umb. moved a mo-'on on the subject of the boundary award and the .government .supported ihar motion as.iinst their own proposition to go into supply. Mr. Foster, Minister of Finance, and lead- er of the House, replied to Mr. Mills, fought the motion, which he called ' a mischievous party motion, meant siiuply to embarrass the government.' but did not call it directly a .notion <>f want of confidence. Sir Ui'hard Cart Wright followed him. and referring to Mr Mills' remarks, he said : As my hou (ri'-nd pointed out, there are nunierous ca>fs wh'>a the government have rhosen to accept n;otlons on eoing Into Com- mittee of Supply: ard he might have added to the motions to whict he alluded a motion moved \ by myself, defining the authority nf the Com- mittee of Public Accounts, and which was ac- > (eptce. the uiotiim in amemlment !<• tile ministerial proposition to go into supply was. as stated l)y tlie Postmaster General, a direct vote of censure against one meinl)er of the government. It was, never- theless, supported by two members and sev- eral friends of the government on account of the principle of respect to law and consti- tution contained therein. In the present instance, my motion im- plies no (llrect l)lame or censtu'e upon the government. It is llie r!itiH<'ati()n by parliji- ment of the principles laid down in tlieir order in coimcil of Octolier last, tind re- asserted, though in a milder way. in their public statement of the ftame date. What does the order in council say V Such an expenditure, tuider such circumstances, cannot be regarded as a departure from ttio well known principles of constitutional govern- ment and colonial practice, nor construed as a precedent for future action. And what comment did the lion. Minister of I'Mnance i)Ut ui)(in tliat reservation in the ofllclal statement lie made tlie san.e day in the name of the cabinet : The sending of the contingent to the Transvaal involved not only the expenditure of considerable money, but the taking of an important step that had not been contemplated hv parliament, and which might possibly b(> regarded as a precedent, when In a matter of so much consequence pre- cedents ought net hastily to be established. Hence the first \'1ew that prevailed was that parliament should be summoned to confirm the action which was proposed. What did La Patrie, which Is often called the organ of the Minister of Public Works, add to the ministerial statement ; The resolution to which Sir Wilfrid and his colleagues have come, does not commit this country to any acti,)n in the future. I think I know that this point has been settled in such a way as to leave no doubt in the public mind. Tlie Prime Minister himself, at the opening of this sessittn. stated that he Intended preserving the legislative independence and freedom of action of this coimtry. If the government were sincere, as un- doubtedly they were, svlieu they gave the assurance, both to the (Colonial Secretary and to the Canadian [leople. thiit they did not intend creating a precedent, and committing this coimtry to any futiue acilon, they can- not refuse to support my motion. It may be objected, tliat my motion is use- less, that it is a sini[de repetition of what the government themselves have stated. Suppose it would be useless, there could be no nbjectir day to ratify their action. I now ask the House to sanction the i-eservation, and to uphold the principles whidi the government them- selves asserted in tlielr order in council, as well as in iheir otlicial declaration. My motion is the natural consequence of those documents, as well as the completion of the Hill, adopted by this House to ratify the unauthorized expenditure of the government. Vou have sanctioned the fact, now sanction the riglit. Hut, there is anotiier reason for making my motimi, not only useful, but absolutely imperative. It comes from the grave facts which I have put iiefore the House. Tlie whole of the reptile prey's, as well as a large portion of tlie decent newspapers of England and Canada, Liberal, Conservative, I and Independent ; and I may say the unan- Ibllshed. fas that Irm the called hVorks, md his liH this ]l think In such I mind. Jpeniug Uentled pee and is use- Wllilt rniiit'ut Hilt. I it do- of the 23 Inilty of till' fdipitfu press, have entirely overlooked the reserviitiou iiuule hv the gov- ernment in tli.'ir order in council. Either approving or condemning, tliey have given [ to the government's iictiou, the same in- I terpretation .is that which 1 gave myself. and that is : The accomplished " fact makes the precedent. But what is still graver and gives far mor- strength to my contention, is that the Brit- ish government. througli the offlelal medium of the Colonial Secretary, at whose reijuest we acted, lias given to that action the same slgnitlcance. He has accepted the sending of our trooi)s as a proof of our wniin>,ijo>;; to do it iu'aln. and lie h.as Ignor- ed entirely ilie reservation made hy the Canadian governineni and finally the .same Interpretation seems to have been ^Iven by the head of onr executive cimiuiiitee, h\ the representative of the (.'I'onii In Canada So that to-day, not only is thi' doubt of which Ln I'ntnr si>oke is still existing in the p'.i' 'lp mind, liut the overwhelming ccm- vlctlo fliat a precedent has been created. In ))i sence of sucli facts, should this House refuse to sanction the reservation made by the government in tiieir Order In Council and refuse to adopt my motion it would mean that we reject tiiat reservation and accept the genenil and offliial interprc tntion put upon the ministeri;il action. Such a course, on the part of the gov(>rn- ment, would constitute the htudesi stultlii- catlon of themselves. On our jiart, it would be the most emphatic and linmiliating .id- mlssion of subserviency tliat a free repre- sentative body could give. It would bring us back to the time of the Long P.irliament. I freely confess that should my motion be adopted, It would greatly miiiiiiii/.c the best of my argnmeni, which is that ihe ac- complished fact constitutes a ]>iece be laid down touching thf pidlcy that Is going to govern this country, neither the Colonial Secretary, nor any member of a British gov- ernment, nor any representative of the Im perini government in this country has the right to say what shall be the course of a free i)eople. It is onr duty, as a free parlia- ment, representing the free opinion of tiie peojile, to say what is to be tlie policy of the people. I am not gf>ing lo pass .ludg- ment on the action of the government ; I have not voted against their rosolntion, at the expense of wliat was called my logi''. I h.'ive been acciisiKl of coming back to tlie fold and of accepting again rlie yoke of tiie government. I do not mind that, because I wanted to give to tlie government a proof of my good faith. I do not mind the money that is asked, but I ask you to nM'eat liere what w;is declared in tlie order in council. and to tell the British government that this is a free parliament elected by the free opinion of the people. Therefore, I think my position is a right one. and slionld ii be accejited by this House at the expense of the views I have already given, .at the ex- pense of the stand i have taken In my county. I do not mind. I feel that I will be amply rewarded if I secure a dechiration tliat "there is still In existence the true Bri- tish spi'it of self-government and liberty, and therefore. I move : That all the words after th..t be struck out and that the fol- lowing be inserted : That this House insists on the principle of the ?overeien*v and the independenoo of parliament as the basis of !!ritish in Uit'it'ons .ind Iho safs- Kuard of the oivil an,1 political lihertles of Brit- ish citizens, and ref'isos conspaueiitly to consider tho action of the eovtrnment !d relation to the South African war as a precedent which should commit this i:ountry to any action in the f\it'ire. That this House further declares that It op- poses any change In the political and military relations which exist at present between Can- I'd.i and Grea! Britiln unless siic.h chaiiKP is initiated by the soverelKn will nf parliament and • sanctioned by the people of Canada