^^J 
 
 
 
 IMAGE EVALUATION 
 TEST TARGET (MT-3) 
 
 ^/ /f^^. 
 
 <m>.. 
 
 
 *4w 
 
 ^. 
 
 '^ 
 
 i.O 
 
 I.I 
 
 1.25 
 
 ■it lU |2.2 
 
 
 1. .. 
 
 11£ 
 
 
 1.4 
 
 X6 
 
 O^ 
 
 V] 
 
 <^»' 
 
 >> 
 
 
 /; 
 
 ^ 
 
 7 
 
 >^^ 
 
 4 
 
 ??' 
 
 Photogrdphic 
 
 Sciences 
 Corporation 
 
 m 
 
 \\s» 
 
 <^ 
 
 V> 
 
 iV 
 
 <^A. ^\ 
 
 ^ vek 
 ^^^.. <^'.^ 
 
 SS 
 
 
 23 WEST MAIN STREET 
 
 WESSTER.N.Y. 14S«0 
 
 {->\b) 872-4503 
 
 
 ^<i> 
 
^B 
 
 CIHM/ICMH 
 
 Microfiche 
 
 Series. 
 
 CIHM/ICMH 
 Collection de 
 microfiches. 
 
 Canadian Institute fp Historical Microreproductions / Insiitut Canadian de micr^ reproductions historiques 
 
 \ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 1981 
 
Technical and Bibliographic Notes/Notes techniques et bibiiographiquee 
 
 The institute has attempted to obtain the 'awt 
 original copy available for filming. Features of this 
 copy which may be bibliographically unique, 
 which may alter any of the images in the 
 reproduction, or which may significantly change 
 the usual method of filming, are checked below, 
 
 □ Coloured covers,^ 
 Couverture de couleur 
 
 Covers damaged/ 
 Couverture endommagde 
 
 Covers restored and/or lai 
 Couverture restaurie et/ou peiliculAe 
 
 Cover title missing/ 
 
 Le titre de couverture manque 
 
 Coloured maps/ 
 
 Cartes giographiques en couleur 
 
 Coloured ink (I.e. other than blue 
 
 Encre de couleur (i.e. autre que bleue ou noire) 
 
 I I Covers damaged/ 
 
 rn Covers restored and/or laminated/ 
 
 I I Cover title missing/ 
 
 I I Coloured maps/ 
 
 I I Coloured ink (i.e. other than blue or black)/ 
 
 I I Coloured plates and/or illustrations/ 
 
 D 
 
 D 
 
 n 
 
 Planches et/ou illustrations en couleur 
 
 Bound with othe; material/ 
 Reiid avec d'autres documents 
 
 Tight binding may cause shadows or distortion 
 along interior margin/ 
 
 La raliure serr^e peut causer de I'ombre ou de la 
 distortion le long de la marge intirieure 
 
 Blank leaves added during restoration may 
 appear within the texv Whenever possible, these 
 have been omitted from filming/ 
 II se peut quo certaines pages blanches ajoutAes 
 lors d'une restauration apparaissent dans le texte, 
 mais. lorsque cela 6tait possible, ces pages n'ont 
 pas iti film^es. 
 
 Additional comments:/ 
 Commentaires supplAmentaires: 
 
 L'Institut a microfilm^ le meilleur exPTiplaire 
 qu'il lui a *t6 possible de se procurer. Les details 
 de cet exempiaire qui sont peut-Atre uniques du 
 point de vue bibliographique, qui peuvent modifier 
 une image reproduite. ou qui psuvent exiger une 
 modification dans la methods normale de filmage 
 sont indiquAs ci-dessous. 
 
 □ Coloured pages/ 
 Pagsft de couleur 
 
 ^ 
 
 Pages damaged/ 
 Pages endommag^es 
 
 "yl Pages restored and/or laminated/ 
 XJ Pages restaurtes et/ou peilicul6es 
 
 r~y| Pages discoloured, stained or foxed/ 
 
 D 
 
 Pages d6colordes, tacheties ou piqu6es 
 
 Pages detached/ 
 Pages ditachieM 
 
 Showthroughy 
 Transparence 
 
 Quality of prir 
 
 Quality inigaie de I'impression 
 
 Includes supplementary materit 
 Comprend du materiel suppldmentaire 
 
 Only edition evailabie/ 
 Seule Edition disponible 
 
 I I Pages detached/ 
 
 QShowthrough/ 
 T 
 
 I I Quality of print varies/ 
 
 I I Includes supplementary material/ 
 
 I I Only edition evailabie/ 
 
 Paces wholly o» partially obscured by i^rata 
 slips, tissues, etc.. have been refilmed to 
 ensure the best possible image/ 
 Les pages totalement ou partiellement 
 ob^curcies par un feuiliet d'errata, une pelure, 
 etc., ont 6t6 filmies i, nouveau dG fa^on A 
 obtenir la meilleure image possible. 
 
 This item is filmed at the reduction ratio checked below/ 
 
 Ce document est filmA au taux de reduction indiqu6 ci-dessous. 
 
 10X 14X 18X 22X 
 
 26X 
 
 30X 
 
 y 
 
 12X 
 
 16X 
 
 20X 
 
 24X 
 
 28X 
 
 3iX 
 
The copy filmed here has been reproduced thanks 
 to the generotfUy of: 
 
 Library of the Public 
 Archives of Canada 
 
 The images appearing here are the best quality 
 possible considering the condition and legibility 
 of the original copy and in keeping with the 
 filming contract specifications. 
 
 Original copies in printed paper covers are filmed 
 beginning with the front cover and ending on 
 the last pago with a printed or illustrated impres- 
 sion, or the back cover when appropriate. All 
 other original copies are filmed beginning on the 
 first page with a printed or illustrated impres- 
 sion, and ending on the last page with a printed 
 or illustrated impression. 
 
 The last recorded frame on each microfiche 
 shall v-:ontain the symbol — ► (meaning "CON- 
 TINUED ;. or the symbol V (meaning "END"), 
 whichever applies. 
 
 Maps, plates, charts, otc . may be /limed at 
 different reduction ratios. Those too large to be 
 entirely included in one exposure are filmed 
 beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to 
 right and top to bottom, as many frames as 
 required. The following diagrams illustrate the 
 method: 
 
 L'exemplaire film6 fut reproduit grflce A ia 
 g6n6rosit6 de: 
 
 La bibliothdque des Archives 
 publiques du Canada 
 
 Les images suivantes ont 6t<& reproduites avec le 
 plus grand soin, compte <;enu de la condition et 
 de la nettetd de l'exemplaire film6, et en 
 conformity avec les conditions du contrat de 
 filmage. 
 
 Les exemplaires originaux dont la couverture en 
 papier est imprimie sent film6s en commengant 
 par le premier plat et en terminant soit par la 
 dernidre page qui comporte une empreinte 
 d'impression ou d'illustration, soit par le second 
 plat, selon le cas. Tous les autres exemplaires 
 originaux sont filmte en commengant par Iq 
 premidre page qui comporte une empreinte 
 d'impression ou d'illustration et en terminant par 
 la dernidre page qui comporte une telle 
 empreinte. 
 
 Un des symboles suivants apparattra sur la 
 dernidre image de chaque microriche. selon le 
 cas: le symbols — ► signifie "A SUIVRE ", le 
 symbole V signifie "FIN". 
 
 Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre 
 fiim^s d des taux de reduction diffirents. 
 Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre 
 reproduit en un seul cliche, il est film6 d partir 
 de i'angle supdrieur gauche, de gauche d droite, 
 et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre 
 d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants 
 iliustrent la m6thode. 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 
 1 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
< 
 
 Ch 
 mil 
 
 rie 
 ga 
 at 
 po 
 mi 
 an 
 thi 
 Mi 
 obi 
 on 
 inl 
 api 
 
 r. 
 
 alt 
 
 in 
 
 mf 
 
 Go 
 
 ua 
 
 C01 
 
 sta 
 coi 
 as 
 
-^--r'Vv*!"^ - 
 
 
 SPEEIOHE 
 
 OF 
 
 HON. DR. TUPPER 
 
 ON THE 
 
 PACIFIO RAILWAY. 
 
 (Hansard Eeport.) 
 
 HOUSE OF COMMONS. 
 
 Saturday, 2lst April, 18T7. 
 
 SUPPLY. 
 
 CANADIAN PAOITIO RAILWAY 
 
 Mr. CAETWRIGHT moved : 
 
 "That Mr. Spieaker do now leave (iie 
 Chair fbr tb<? House to go again into Com- 
 mittee of Supply." 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: Mr. Speaker, in 
 rising to make the motion of which I 
 gave notice to the House, I may say, 
 at the outset, that I intend, so fhr as 
 possible, in the remarks I shall have to 
 make in refei-ence to this very import- 
 ant question, to endeavour to pursue 
 tiiti <jour«o which the hon. the First 
 Ministi" ' larked out for himself in the 
 observf?,'; ^!aa he addressed to the House 
 on this su^jeo^yesterday. He said he 
 intended to t \aL,r.n''ui the subjoct, 
 apart from V'&riiamfoijrations of a 
 
 farty or poli\ aoter. Now, 
 
 am afraia it w tbio Ui ?e in my poww 
 altogether to pti© "onc^ia* eonrse ; but 
 in dealing witb'n. L'^iTffgtion of snch 
 magnitude as ng aa^nlicy of the 
 Gavernment in ft rai I vi io the great 
 national work of tnu oo«d^, I will 
 confine myself, tn much as I can, to a 
 statement of the fkcts in nK*rd to the 
 coarse pursued by the w>vwDiilent 
 as they pi'esent themselvM to my 
 
 mind, andy so far a» may be pos- 
 sible^ without drivWing into the con- 
 sideratioQ of the qjuestion any- 
 thing oaloulated to tarn the atten- 
 tion of the House aside from the real 
 iherits of the su%r)oot under discussion. 
 It is fbrtunate that) ut the outset, both 
 parties are able to agree as to one 
 point'^-that is, not dnly 1o the import- 
 ance, but, I may add, the nooessi^ of 
 the construction of the Canadian Paci- 
 fic Railway. The hon. the First 
 Minister has himself, on more 
 than one occasion, gi^n to the 
 House his own emphatic opinion 
 that the eonstriiotion ol this werK was 
 a matter of the gravest public neoes- 
 dity. It is quite impossible for any 
 
 Serson to look at the position that 
 anada occupies without arriving at 
 that conclusion. Wo had obtained 
 possession of a vast and magnificent 
 country—the fertile prairies of the 
 Notth- West — aikd it became at once 
 apparent that if that boundless field 
 for cultivation and for settlemeat^ a 
 country in e^te^it and jfortility not to 
 be surpassed by any country on the 
 fajc of the globe, were to be utilized 
 and made to subserve the interests of 
 Canada as it oi^ht to subserve tiiem, 
 means of rapid and easy intercommuni- 
 cation between the old and settled 
 portions of Canada and that 
 fertile section of country, the prairiea- 
 of the North-West should be estab- 
 

 lifihed as early as possible. Then, 
 when we came to look at the position 
 which British Columbin occnpied, the 
 necessity became still greater. The 
 importance of adding ii.itish Columbia 
 to the consolidated British North 
 Amsrioan Provinces comprised in the 
 Dominion of Canada, requires no argu- 
 ment at my hands. It ^as only 
 necessary to' look at the position 
 Columbia occupied, extending along a 
 considerable portion of the Pacific 
 coast, and lying in proximity to our 
 neighbours to the south of the line, to 
 860 that, if we were to derive the 
 advantages desirable, that if this 
 country was to obtain the consolidation 
 thai was necessary, it was certainly 
 necessary that, at as early a period 
 ■&S pousible, a line of railway should bo 
 •establiehed from one end of this coun- 
 try to the other, uniting and consoli- 
 dating it. It was under that 
 impression that the construction 
 Oi a Canadian Pacific Bailway became 
 a part of the policy of the late Grovem- 
 ment. It is quite true that measures 
 had been suggested, and suggested by 
 parties from that Province, which, 
 while involving the necessity for the 
 construction of the Canadian Pacific 
 Eailway, deferred to a more remote 
 period the accompliehment of the 
 work ; but wh«n the Grovernment came 
 to examine and investigate the whole 
 of that question, they came to the 
 conclusion that the most economical 
 mode— the mo.lo most advantageous 
 to the interests of British Columbia, as 
 well as of all Canada — ^would be to 
 ■enter upon that work, and, if 
 possible, secure, as far as the means of 
 the country would permit, the con- 
 struction of that railway as promptly 
 as was possible. A great deal has oeen 
 said with regard to the arrangements 
 made on that occasion. It would not 
 have been necessary for me at this time 
 to direct the attention of the House for 
 a single instant to the legislation which 
 has taken place, or to the proceedings 
 in Parliament in reference to this 
 question, but for a statement, which, I 
 am sure, was inadvertently made by 
 the hon. the Piriit Minister on a former 
 occasion, — that down to 1873 no scheme 
 for the construction of the 
 Canadian Pacific Eailway had 
 been propounded. The House 
 
 will remember that on the 1st of 
 April, 1871 (and I will only turn to 
 ])ublic records in regard to these 
 matters, if hon. gontloraen should 
 question the statement I am making 
 to the House), tlio address containing 
 the tenns of Union between British 
 Columbia and Canada was passed in 
 this House. Hon. members will re- 
 member that during the progress of 
 the discussion on the question of the 
 terms upon which British Columbia 
 should be admitted as a part of this 
 Dominion, groat exception was taken 
 to the undwtaking, that the surveys for 
 the railway should be immediately 
 commenced, -^gorously prosecuted and * 
 the road itself constructed within ten 
 years. After a good deal of controversy 
 in regard to this matter, tho late 
 lamented Sir George Cartior, who was 
 then leading the House in tho absence 
 of the right hon. member for Kings- 
 ton who was then in Washington, with 
 a view to set iit rest all doubts on that 
 point, and to remove from the minds of 
 every person any raisapp"ohension or 
 fear that the financial position of the 
 country would be too seriously in- 
 volved by undertaking to carry out so 
 great a work, moved a resollition de- 
 fining the terms and limiting distinctly 
 the engagement we were undertaking. 
 That resolution declared that the road 
 should only be constructed as a pri- 
 vate undertaking, that all the Govern- 
 ment had to do was to provide a grant 
 of mone_y and of land such as the ability 
 of the country would enable it to give, 
 and that the construction of the work 
 should not involve an increase in the 
 rate of taxation. I will read the 
 resolution to the House, in ordcfr that 
 its terms may bo distin under- 
 stood. It is as follows : — 
 
 *'That the railway 
 Address to Her 
 Union of Britie 
 adopted b^ this 
 of April, instant 
 worked by priva 
 Dominion Gover 
 aid to be given 
 should consist of 
 and such Bub3id> 
 unduly pressing oa 
 
 I'erred to in the 
 
 concerning the 
 
 la with Canada, 
 
 Saturday, the lat 
 
 be constructed and 
 
 .rise and not by the 
 
 and that the public 
 
 re that undertaicine 
 
 jeral grants of land 
 
 juey or other aid, not 
 
 the industries and 
 
 resources of the Dominion, as the Parlia- 
 ment of Canada shall hereafinr determine." 
 
 Now, although a good many points 
 were the smyects of controversy 
 
 ^^39S' 
 
^between the two sides of the House, 
 between the late Government aud hon. 
 gentlemen who wr 3 in opposition to 
 that Government, this question was 
 not one of them. The policy pro- 
 pounded in the resoltition submitted by 
 Sir George Cartier commended itself not 
 only to the judgment of the supporters 
 •of the Government, but to both sides 
 •of the House, without a single excep- 
 tion. The only objection takon by 
 hon. gentlemen opposite to the reso- 
 lution, which seemed to be suflSciently 
 distinct in its terms, was, not any 
 •doubt as to the policy proposed, but it 
 was held that the terms were not 
 strong enough in declaring that the 
 road should not be constructed by the 
 Dominion Government; and Mr. 
 Dorion, then a member of this House, 
 moved in amendment to ad ^ to the 
 motion, not to alt«r a word in it to 
 change any part of its terms, the 
 ■words " and not otherwise." The ob- 
 ject was to make it stronger. We held 
 that the resolution which declared 
 that the railway should not be con- 
 structed by the Dominion Government, 
 but that it should be constructed by a 
 
 })rivate company, aided by a grant of 
 and and money, was sufficiently 
 :8tro -.g, and rendered it impossible for 
 «ny Grovernment, without the express 
 sanction of this House, to endeavour 
 for a single moment to depart from 
 these terms. The hon . the First Min- 
 ister has characterized the engage- 
 -ment made by the Parliament of Cana- 
 da, as stated by me to the House, in 
 very strong terms. He has, as will 
 be seen on reference to the debate in 
 1876, used the following language : — 
 
 " Let Boe S&7, so far aa the work is con- 
 cerned, thiMl bare alw&jra been an advocate 
 of the coastrt^ction of a railway acrosn the 
 •continent, but I have never believed that it 
 was within our mean^ to do it in anything like 
 the period of time within which the hon. 
 gentleman bound ParAament and the coun- 
 try." , 
 
 I am glad to be able to establish that 
 point which will be conceded by e^efj 
 one, that the hon. gentleman had 
 always been a strong advocate of the 
 ^construction of this railway across the 
 continent. So as to the main 
 4uestion regarding the necessity of the 
 work, it will be found that both sides 
 •of the House agree. The hon. gentle- 
 man continued : 
 li 
 
 " I believe the bargain was an act of maJ- 
 nesB— of utt»r insanity, and an evidence of 
 political incapacity that has had uo parallel 
 m this or in any other country, that I am 
 aware of." 
 
 The language contained in that stat^ 
 ment is very strong, and it will be- 
 come my duty in a few moments to 
 turn the attention of the House to the 
 position which the Government occa- 
 pied on that question, which the hon. 
 gentleman felt himself warranted in 
 characterising as an " act of madness 
 and utter insanity." It will be remem- 
 bered that the address passed the 
 House on the Ist day of April, and ou 
 the 11th the resolution which I have 
 just read was passed, preventing the 
 Government undertaking to construct 
 the Pacific Eailway until they could 
 obtain a private company, who, with, 
 such a grant of lands and money 
 as the country could afford, 
 without increasing the taxation of the 
 people, would undertake the work. 
 That last clause might, on the surface, 
 seem somewhat unreasonable, but I 
 will call the attention of the House to 
 this fact : That, during the first seveu 
 years of Confederation, as the hon. the 
 Finance Minister was able to prove by 
 public documents in London, we had 
 not only carried on liberally the pub- 
 lic service, and reduced the rate of 
 taxation $2,000,000 per annum, but 
 we had also contributed some-, 
 thing like $16,000,000 to capital* 
 expenditure, including the sink- 
 ing fund, causing the reduction of 
 the public debt to that amount 
 from the surplus revenue. K hon. gen- 
 tlemen will remember that, they will 
 see that it was quite within the power 
 of the Government to uudertake the 
 work without increasing the rate of 
 taxation at all. I may be aeked " What 
 reason have you to suppose that the 
 prosperity of the country would con- 
 tinue?" In reply, I will ask any hon. 
 member what he believes the result of 
 the accomplishment of the scheme of 
 the late Government would have been 
 in relation to the financial condition of 
 Canada to-day.' Suppose the late Gov- 
 ernment had succeeded in doing 
 that which they endeavoured to 
 accoro-plish — floating that scheme in 
 London for the construction of the 
 railway upon the terms stated — ^I would 
 ask any hon. gentleman what tha 
 
result would have been of bringing such 
 «n enormous amount of foreign capital 
 into the country, giving early, com- 
 plete and rapid communication with 
 the great fei-tile prairies of the North- 
 West, and pouring an enormous tide 
 of immigrants into that country to be- 
 
 -come taxpayers with ourselves, and 
 to lighten the burdens which now 
 r«3t upon our own shoulders. I think 
 ihat there is not an hon. member in 
 this House who would not be ready to 
 believe that, had it been possible to 
 accomplish what was proposed under 
 this scneme, and to secure the con- 
 struction of this railway on the terms 
 stated, that the steadily rising tide o? 
 Canada's prosperity would not ha,vo 
 stopped, or, at all events, that we 
 should have maintained the position 
 which wo then occupied. But.I may 
 be told that it was on the first ojf April 
 that the Address was passed, and that 
 it was not until the 11th that it was 
 qualified by this resolution. The 
 House must remember that we were 
 not dealing w^ith a foreign Power or 
 with parties who were prepared to 
 take any rigid or technical advantage 
 of the Government; but we were 
 dealing with those who were to be a 
 portion of ourselves, who would have 
 a common interest with ourselves in 
 having the work prosecuted in the 
 way most advantageous to *ae country, 
 and who would be deeply interested that 
 the financial credit of Canada should 
 not be imperilled, or that any result 
 should follow which would be injuri- 
 ous to the country to which they had 
 irrevocably linked their own fortunes. 
 But I have still more conclusive evi- 
 dence in relation to that matter. It 
 
 f'will be remembered that when the 
 Address was .passing the House we had 
 then present in Ottawa some of the 
 delegates from British Columbia, who 
 had been authorized to I'epresent the 
 Province in those negotiations, and 
 
 Srominent among them was Mr. 
 'rutoh, the late Lieutenant-Governor 
 of British Columbia. I will trouble 
 the House for a few moments by read- 
 ing an extract from the speech he 
 made at the banquet provided 
 for his entertainment. He said : — 
 
 " We Arom British Columbia were prepared 
 to accept the amendment of the acheme. 
 Mid we i^ocordinflj proceeded to calculate 
 tke time it woulcTproDably take to build the 
 
 railroad, and we agreed upon an estimated 
 period of ten years. If it had been 
 put at twelve or liiteeu years,. 
 British Columbia would have been 
 just as well satisfied, and if the estimated 
 period had been reduced to ei^;ht years, 
 she would scarcely have been better pleased. 
 But some definite period ior the completion 
 of this work tke Britith Colnmhiont mnited on 
 as a necrssary safeguard to our colony iu 
 entering nto the propoaeil union. To argue 
 tliat auT other interpretation will be placed 
 upon the railwaj) en^aeement by Britisk 
 Columbia than that winch I have given to 
 you as my construction o( it, to areue that 
 she expects it to be carried out in the exact 
 interpretation of the words tliemselves, re- 
 gardless of all consequences, is a fallacj 
 which cannot bear the test of common sense. 
 "The case stands thus: British Columbia 
 is about to enter mto a partnership with 
 Canada, and one of the terms of the articles 
 of partnership is, that we ^re, under the 
 partnership, to construct a raihroad upon 
 certain conditions. Is British Columbia 
 
 foing to hold her partner to that which will 
 ring ruin and bankruptcy upon the firm? 
 Surely you would think us fools indeed, if 
 we adopted Huch a course. I would protest, 
 and the wholeof British Columbia would pro- 
 test, if the Government proposed to borrow 
 $100,000,000 or $150,000,000 to construct 
 this road; running the country into debt^ 
 and toxing the people of British Columbia 
 as well cs of the rest of the Dominion, to pay 
 the buiden of such a debt." 
 
 I will not occupy the time of thio^ 
 House by reading further, but the- 
 speech is much longer, and has a great 
 deal more in it to the same purpose. 
 What I have read, however, contain* 
 the point of the case. Well, Sir, the 
 Minister of Finance iii introducing his 
 Budget Speech in 18'74, also alluded to- 
 this question ; and as a great deal has 
 been said by the First Minister who 
 has used the terms "madness, insanity 
 and utter incapacity" in connection 
 with this act on the part of the latf© 
 Government, I may, - perhaps, be 
 excused for taking up a little of the 
 time of the House iu meeting and, I 
 think, disposing ^ at once and forever, 
 I trust with all Reasonable men, any 
 charge based on such terms as those. 
 In referring to this resolution, which 
 qualified this engagemp'^t, the Minister 
 of Finance said : 
 
 " So very strong was the feeling that it wa* 
 afterwards determined that a certain resolu- 
 tion should be placed oh the Journals of 
 the House, which) indeed, was actual] v done, 
 and by which it was declared that, altliongh 
 wv had committed ourselves t» this claim, it 
 was only on condition that the road should 
 be made in a' certain fashion, aad that no> 
 
 s.-> 
 
 ■- 41 
 
be 
 
 'cx^eseive barden «hou1d be plftc«d od the 
 readurceB of the tontitry.'* 
 
 It would be diMcult, Sir, to find lan- 
 ^na^e more atoropriatelj or more 
 lucidly cpnveving exactly what the 
 action of the fate Government and of 
 ^arliauaent in thit) matter had been. 
 He also says : — 
 
 *< I ba^walflo been informed that the British 
 GoliimbiadeleL-ateB were tbemselves aiiaent- 
 iDg tibrties to tJiis resolution." 
 
 " That, however, I donotknowof my own 
 
 rTflonal knowledge. Thi* I do know, thbt 
 my! elf called the attention 6f Sir George 
 Cartrer, the then Minister of Mihtia, to tbia 
 extraordinarjr provision, askicK him if h# 
 had commu licatc I it to the Legislature of 
 British Cohiinbia. ^ Some one q\ the dele* 
 gates was tneA'llttihg near the chair of the 
 St)eaker, I am not sure which of them, but I 
 think it was Governor Trutch." 
 
 Sir Groorge Cartier's reply Vas that : 
 
 " There was no need to do so, because the 
 -delegates were full? cognizant of the whole 
 miitter and were assenting parties thiereto. 
 And, although I do ftot Vkj #e %kh or vHlI 
 dissent from the conaeuuenoe« of our l^gal 
 •obligationsi, I dq say that at any rate the 
 people of British Columbia haa v^r;^ fair 
 notice of what the intention Siud meaning of 
 this House was whbn these obli^ltttons w^re 
 «ndf;rtakeii;" 
 
 I give this, Sir, as the testimony— I 
 •will not say <if a hostile witness — biit 
 of an hoti. geiitlemah, Vho was 
 •disposed hiriiself to Criticise, with 
 a ^eat dedl of severity, the course 
 which the late Government had pur- 
 sued ih entering into this engagondent. 
 Then \fre had reCess a;t six o'clock, and 
 th«& hon. gphtlenian returned at l30 
 o'clock dtxd resumed his speech. He 
 had investigated the matter in the 
 mearttime, and hb then mtkle some 
 ihrther obsbrVations which I will read 
 >to the House. !d!e says : 
 
 "Before I proaned further, I desire to 
 corrept ah error thai I fell into with regard 
 to the resolution tit Ajml, 1871, passed after 
 the treaty with British Qj^mbi a was agreed 
 to. I had been under tK impression that 
 thi^ resolution declared that the Paciflc 
 Railway should be built without unduly 
 increasing the taxation of Canada. The 
 -actual text is stronger still. Sir George 
 "Gartiir movfed and Mr, Tillfe;^ seconded i 
 resolution setting forth that the rdlWay 
 referred to.in the Act concerning the, union 
 between British . Colutpbifi with Canada, 
 -adopted on Saturday, the Ist of ApriU should 
 be cpnatracted by a company formed ol 
 .private individuals, and not Dy the Dominion 
 'GovMramei^t (hit the ^oiMyMhy btiUdit^ it 
 should %e assistBd by liberal li&oney subaidies 
 
 and liberal grants of land, prorided alwa/s^ 
 that no increase of the then rate of taxatio* 
 should hereafter be determined on in conae- 
 quence." 
 
 The hon. gentleman, in revising his 
 speech, has very properly put the word* 
 " no inoreaw " in italics, it being the 
 strongest feature of the resolution. 
 The hon. gentleman continued : — 
 
 " That, Sir, was the resolution placed upOD 
 our Journals on the motion of Sir George B. 
 Cartier, seconded by Mr. Tilley. It was of 
 value for the reason I have alluded to, 
 because St was represented to ua at the time 
 it wae DasseJ that the delegaties from British 
 Columbia were assenting parties thereto." 
 
 Now, Sir, I think that I am not re- 
 quired to take up much more time oti 
 that feature of tne subject, but I may 
 say that following up the resolutioti 
 meeting the engagement which the 
 late, Goverhinent assumed, and whiok 
 Parliament assumed in relation to this 
 matter, it became the doty of the Grov- 
 eymment to bring before the House what 
 they considered a liberal grant of land 
 and a sufficient aid in public monejr 
 in order to accomplish this work with- 
 out increasing the rate of taxation ; 
 ^nd. Sir, we submitted to the Hoa«b 
 resolutions which will be found on the 
 145th page of the Journals of 1812. de- 
 clui'ing that this House would grant 
 $30,000,OCO and 50,000,000 acres of 
 land for that work ; und we also pro- 
 vided, in addition to this, that the Pem- 
 bina Branch should be embraced in tho 
 resolutions, and should have a subsidy 
 of 20,000 acres of land, and that the 
 branch connecting the line with Lake 
 Superior should have a subsidy of 
 25,000 acres of land per mile. Now Sir, 
 we may leave the Lake Superior 
 branch out of consideration altogether, 
 for this reason : it was then supposed 
 that it would be absoltttely necessary 
 to go north of Lake Nipigon in order 
 to obtain a line at all, but by subse*- 
 quent surveys it has been found, and 
 on both sides of the House it has 
 been agreed, and both the late and 
 present Governments were quite agreed 
 on the question, that, as matters novr 
 stand, wnenever the main line is con- 
 structed, at whatever time that maj 
 be, that a fair, passable line has been 
 found skirting the 8hoi*es of 
 Lake Superior within some ton 
 miles of Lake Superior,, and* th^re^ 
 fore, this disposes altogether oT 
 
 J' 
 
thin question of branches, with the ox- 
 c«ption of the Pembina Branch. We 
 therefore committed the House and 
 country distinctly to the undertaking 
 of providing $30,000,000 and 60,000,000 
 acres of land for any company found 
 possessed of sufficient means and re- 
 sources to undertake the consti uction 
 of that work. The First Minister has 
 again and again referred in very strong 
 terms to the inadequacy of that appro- 
 priation ; but, Sir, I think I may draw 
 the attention of the House to the fact 
 that we have better evidence than that 
 of any opinion the First Minister is 
 capable of giving on this question. 
 The First Minister is a gentleman of 
 nodoubted talent and ability and of 
 high standing in the country; and 
 although I do not suppose that 
 he is at all wanting in appreci- 
 ation of his great powers, T am 
 quite certain that he will not him- 
 ^f undertake to put his judgment, on 
 a purely commercial question against 
 the opinions of many other gentlemen 
 who are to be found in the country; 
 and when I tell him that the very 
 ablest men — I am not speaking of 
 gentlemen connected with the late 
 ■Government or having political sym- 
 pathies with it — who have shown by 
 their successful commercial enterprises, 
 and by thoir gi-eat financial aoility, 
 they had been able to acquire vast 
 fortunes for themselves, thus giving the 
 best evidence to the country ol" their 
 ability to judge on commercial questions 
 — were most eager to obtain acts 
 of incorporation to enable them 
 to undertake the construction of 
 Hiis work on the terms proposed, 
 when I state that, I shall, give the 
 House better evidence than any 
 opinion of the First Minister, that the 
 scheme was not a bad scheme, that 
 iuhore was no insanity in the 
 proceedings, and that, in fact, it was 
 one which at that time and in the light 
 of information then obtained in this 
 country upon this subject, was regarded 
 ^ the first commercial minds of 
 .danada as an eminently practical 
 scheme. When I give the names of 
 t^e\BEon. Mr. McMaster and the Hon. 
 Dftvid Christie and, also the present 
 hon. Minister of Customs, who shows 
 himself pos.>-qi3Bed of financial ability as 
 Jlur M Ifivdsting money imd the tranis^ 
 
 action of business goes, I give hon.. 
 gentlemen the best evidence that it. 
 was not a wild visionary scheme, but 
 that it was a practical scheme which 
 commended itself to the judgments of 
 those best able to form an opinion in 
 i-elation to it. What were the 
 consequences to the late Government ?' 
 Was this proposition to give 60,000,000 
 acres of land and $30,000,000 in money 
 regarded as utterly inadequate ? No ; 
 the late Government was destroyed iu 
 a desperate struggle between :he 
 first commercial men of all [)ar- 
 ties in Canada to obtain posses- 
 sion of the Charter on those terms. 
 I do not require to occupy the timo 
 longer to show that we were not open, 
 to the charge of proposing anything 
 visionary or illusionary. It was a solid 
 substantial project which, if carried out, 
 would have accomplished untold 
 benefits to the country. Hon. 
 gentlemen opposite will all admit 
 that the greatest boon which could 
 be conferred upon Canada would be 
 the construction of the Canadian 
 Pacific Kailway upon those terms. 
 They were all agreed upon that. We 
 are all agreed upon the desirability of 
 this work, which would be of such 
 immense advantage to Canada, being- 
 secured under the cerms which Parlia- 
 ment was induced to grant for that 
 purpose. The scheme was defeated. . 
 I am afraid if I were to go into that 
 branch of the question 1 should bo- 
 doing what I said I would not do, 
 namely, that I would not say anything 
 that could be undorstnod as directeia. 
 by party feeling or political sentiment, 
 and that I would not for a single 
 moment divert the attention of the 
 House from the question under con- 
 sideration. But I believe the time 
 will, if it has not already come, when, 
 it will be regarded as the greatest 
 misfortune the country ever suffered 
 that that scheme was defeated, and 
 that hon. gentlemen should have — "E 
 am afraid I must say in the interest of 
 party — adopted measures to defeat it,, 
 which not only prevented its , accom- 
 plishment by those who had thei>> 
 nfidettaken to deial with the woi*k, bat' 
 hid thrown almost insuperable 
 obstacles in the way of their suocessom 
 or of any other Govenundnt. How-^ 
 ever, it was done, rigbtly or wjonaly,. 
 
 by 
 
 -A 
 
ie 
 
 I 
 
 jmtly or oujustly. The late (Govern- 
 ment wero defeated, and hon. gentle- 
 men opposite wero charged with ihe 
 important duty of governing the 
 ooontry, and one of the greatest and 
 moBt important duties that devolved 
 mpon them was the construction oi' the 
 Cwnadian Paoihe liailway. I am bound 
 to say that it is deeply to be lamented 
 that party considerations ever 
 ciAtered inte. this question. It is a 
 question so gigantic .^n ita proportions, 
 and of such onormoou interest and im- 
 portance to the conntry, that it de- 
 manded then, as it demands now, 
 thai party considerations should be 
 kit entirely in abeyance; and that 
 men of all parties and of all classes 
 should unite, and endeavour to assist, 
 uriioever may b^ the Government of 
 the day, in ariy wise or judicious 
 measures that are calculated to aocom- 
 pU«h the object. I may not be able to 
 look dispasBionately upon questions in 
 which the Government are concerned, 
 bat, as far as I am able to do so, it is 
 my desire, as it ought to be of every 
 Inm. member of this House and every 
 patriotic man of whatever party, to 
 assist any Government in cai'rying for- 
 ward any wise or judicious measui'ea, 
 by which a work so important may 
 become acoompliibhed. And now came 
 the groat test of finding, out whether 
 bon. gentlemen in power carried out 
 the views Ihey held when in Opposi- 
 tion. Hon. gentleman were . called 
 open to deal with this question, and I 
 am bound to say, that they have not 
 maintained in power the principles 
 tiiey professed when they sat upon the 
 Opposition benches.. I have shown 
 that the hon. Mr. Borion moved a reso- 
 lution on the matter, and that the 
 House was unanimous upon the ques- 
 tion as to how the road was to be oon- 
 stmoted. But, not satisfied with the 
 clear, unqualified declaration that the 
 road was not to be built by the Domin- 
 ion Government, he wanted to add a 
 " rider " to declare " and not other- 
 wise," so as to make it impossible for 
 the road io be built except by a private 
 oompany, aided by a grant of land 
 and mooev from tbs Government. I 
 tbkik the hon.member for Chateaugnay 
 aeeonded that lesokition;^ bat, at all 
 onMnts, lam ablb tasa^r that thegeur 
 tlaman aouta^ijag the. preeeikt \^t 
 
 Hinister voted a solid and unanimous 
 . ote with Mr. Dorion in reference to 
 that question. This gave to the coun* 
 try the most unqualified and solemn 
 pledge that public men can give to a 
 people, that if they obtained power 
 thev would carry out the policy to 
 which thev had thus committed them- 
 selves. The hon. gentleman now at the 
 beau of the Government was called 
 upon to form an Administration, and 
 he bad to present himself before his 
 constituents. The lute Government 
 had, before that, appealed to th^ coun 
 tr^, and their policy had been sus- 
 tained. The hon. gentleman, when he 
 went before his constituents, without 
 any sanction fV*om the members of the 
 House, without Parliament having been 
 consulted, constructed a new platform 
 and declared his intention of ouilding 
 the road as a Government road. The 
 reason he adduced wcs that the profits 
 which would go to the contractors 
 under the original scheme would go to 
 the people. I will read the words ot 
 the non. gentleman from the organ of 
 the Government, and an organ which 
 the hon. gentleman will hardly be able 
 to repudiate, because upon the testi- 
 mony of an hoQ. member of this House, 
 itw&s an organ to which he bad him- 
 self contributed a very large sum of 
 money, in order to buy it over from an 
 Opposition paper into an organ of the 
 Govern mtnt. I refer to the Times of 
 this city, which i-eported the hon. gen- 
 tleman as follows: 
 
 " It will be the duty, as I think it will ke 
 the desire oi the Government, to develop any 
 plan by which these results are to be acoom- 
 plished. • • • Any profit. Sir, that 
 would have come to the share of the company 
 will ultimately fall, under our scheme, to the 
 share of the country. • • • It may be 
 necessary for us to let the work out in 
 contracts, vnder our own superintendence* 
 but, at any rate, we shall take care that our 
 attention is given to the interests and money . 
 of the country." 
 
 True to the course the hon. gentle- 
 man stated there, he introduced a Bill 
 providing for the construction of this 
 work by the Government, giving the. 
 Government power to deal with the: 
 whole of this work from end to end as ; 
 a Government work. The hon^ geatjisr 
 man says that, measure passed the 
 House unanimously. He is hardly 
 ;ca»di4i i94>^ lit) i makiog: saoh a«tat«-) 
 
ment to thlo House, if he mcftns tb« 
 H0UH6 acid tho country to believe that 
 it met the oonourrenoe of all the netn- 
 betv of this HodM. He most remem- 
 ber, or, if matters of too great impor- 
 tacoe have rendered him forgetfal of 
 it, I remember that the Bill was rauhed 
 throuffh thiH HouHe at a late hour ef 
 the night, the Gorernment refusing, 
 when the Opposition entreated them 
 to give them more time, to delay it 
 and give time for farther consideration. 
 He knowH that, under tho Suxby gale, 
 under the great tidal wave of political 
 excitement which wwept over the ooun- 
 t»y in 1874, the Opposition were under 
 great disudvantfige ; he Icnows thaCwe 
 were taunted, att, happily, we cannot 
 be taunted now, with being aoorpo^al'd 
 guard, and I admit that We were not 
 strong enough to protect the int^ests 
 of the 04;>tintry as an Opposition 
 is bound to protect them, and 
 as, I am happy to oav, we are able to 
 protect them in this House to-day. 
 When the hon. gentleman says, how- 
 ever, it was unanimous, he makes the 
 statement in fitoe of the fkct that £ 
 myself spoke in my place in the House 
 — spoke much longer, no doubt, than 
 was pleasant to the hon. gentleman 
 and many of his supporters — against 
 the enactment of that measure, and 
 declared that I regarded the undertak- 
 ing to build this Cuoadian Pacific Rail- 
 way by the CK)vernment,apart th)m the 
 policy previously sanctioned by Pfirlia- 
 ment and the people, as one which could 
 npt oopimend itself to the House, and 
 wppl4 be ftavigbt, X was afraid, with 
 disastrous results to the country. 
 There was, at all events, a very s1at>ng 
 feeling on the part of tho Opposition 
 that the hon, gentlemfHJ was tilling a 
 s^p from which he w«h precluded l)y 
 his past policy and pledged action in 
 the House, and whicn, in our judgment, 
 at all events, the pui>Hc interests did 
 not sanction. But the hon. gentleman 
 alio superadded to that the Greoi^an 
 Bay branch, Let me say a single 
 word in reference to that measure: 
 It is known tjiat I strenuously opposed 
 in this House the proposai for the oon- 
 etruotion of the Georgian Bay Branch. 
 Why did I oppdibe itf It was because 
 I regarded the abandonment of the 
 policy «f secuiing at an early day the 
 oonBtmotion of a direct line ofrailway 
 
 from Ntpisaing to the great prslrias «f 
 the Kortn-West, as a great misfortuoo 
 for the people of this oonatrv. I fr 
 
 f^aixied earrylBg a line of railway to • 
 ake which wovki be fVoxetf nix or 
 seven months in the year as iavoivb 
 ing a large •xpenditure wiiboat 
 the country ever reeeiving anjr 
 commemmrm^e advantage. I did 
 not oppoae ii on ito own merrta, 
 bat in oontrast to that route for which 
 I fblt the valley of the Ottawa had 
 been intended W nature. If anyone 
 looks at the coongaration of this oonti* 
 nent, if anyone looks at the position of 
 this Dominion to<di^, if anyone will 
 regard tne four mVUions of Oanadians 
 who are settled in this portion of th« 
 country, and tho great fertile prairiM 
 of the North- West that wonld reqaim 
 the construetion of, perhaps, a thousand 
 miles of railway to oring us in connao- 
 tion with them, he must feel that iro 
 are throwing away perhi^as one of tiM 
 greatest possible advantages to be d*> 
 rived ftrom the oonstrvotion of this 
 great national hi^way, if we adopt 
 any expedient by which we should rei»> 
 gate to the remote futnre oompletioD 
 of a direct line of railway to the valley 
 of the Ottawa, bringing us the prodnotn 
 of the North-West, inhabited, as it 
 wonld be at no distant date, by millionn 
 of intelligent, thrifty, industrious 
 eople. But the hpn. gentleman felt^ 
 ir, that the oonstraction of the 
 Georgian Bay Branch waa a matter of 
 such vital necessity that we could noi 
 aflbrd to wait a moment, that, notwitb* 
 standing his pledges and all his deolaiv- 
 ations that parliamentary government 
 required that every appropriation of 
 public money should be nrst sanctioned 
 byParhament^he mustta!ieoart0 bUmeke 
 to construct that work without th« 
 formality of submitting the contract 
 to Parliament, and he obtained the 
 sanction of h5s sopporters to carry it 
 on in that way, and a large sum of 
 money was plaoed at his disposal t» 
 carry out that policy. And, Sir, his 
 policy embraced the subsidizing of 
 linM of railway bott- in Ontario and 
 Q|uefoeo. A good da^l of eontroveniy 
 has arisen as to what he meant fay^ 
 his deehuraUon iii his manifiMtothat wf 
 pttppOfled to subsidiae Unes<tf railwaj i. n 
 ObtMio attd Qoobeo to ooimec/' fiiii 
 Georgiaa Bay Brandt with tho syataaa 
 
 g 
 
 fi 
 
 ■w 
 
ifortiUM 
 I i^ 
 »^ to« 
 
 niz or 
 
 IwiihoK 
 
 \g anjr 
 
 I did 
 
 merrla, 
 
 ir Mrhioh 
 
 \wa, had 
 
 aujone 
 
 ^is oonli« 
 
 iitioB of 
 
 >ne will 
 
 eiMre. We nil kaottr aow Uuit ihe nib- 
 sidy feo tUe Oanadft OeAtiad i» tb« 
 pTMOMMmt feature in canneotion with 
 that t)cl»cj, but I took the opfortf nit/ 
 of mnang tiio lioau gMiAlefiiian wban 
 Bidkiay nis «tAt«meBt in *674-~>he itm 
 food etiTngk to ellow me to intwnupt 
 Eim by ticking : '^ Are you to Bubei* 
 dJHMone hraoch u: vWO txxnokM ? " Are 
 you to connect witii the rnlways fVom 
 Toronto aa w^il sh with the railways 
 in this seoti\Ma ef the eouatry ? And 
 bis unewor wtas : " Two branohea." 
 So whateTer policy he may have 
 adopted afterwards, hi^ policy then 
 was to give snbsidies to oonneet with 
 the Toronto system, as well as with 
 the Ot^iswa syulbeaai f railways. I ooily 
 .BMike aUUblon to that is passing. But, 
 as I have stated, the matter of the 
 Georgian Buy Branch was considered 
 so pressing and of such vitial interest 
 thfM the hon. gentleman took power to 
 •exempt the oontraot knrade in regard to 
 it from the ooatrol of this House. The 
 hon. gMitieman has also undertalieD the 
 constraction of a railway iVom Thunder 
 Bay to Red Biver. I hold that was a 
 contravention of the Act, and I will tell 
 the boil, gentleman briefly why. 
 The Aot for the constraction of the 
 Canadian Paoiiio Bailway piwided 
 that it should be divided into four sec- 
 tions. The Aot read :•*- 
 
 " The whole line of the naid nilwsj, for 
 tthe purpose of ite conMru^tioD, shall be 
 dirided into four parts; the first section to 
 begin at a point near to and soutliofLake 
 Nipissio^, and to extend towardi the upper 
 or western end of Lake Superior, to a point 
 where it ahall interuect the second section 
 Jiereinailer mentioned." 
 
 Now, where is that point. The hon. 
 .gentleman told us yesterday — he did 
 not require to do so, becauKe Mr. 
 Pieming in his report has pointed it 
 •out, as will be seen bv reference to 
 the 55th pajge— that it is not the inten- 
 tion that toe conimencoment of the 
 line at Thunder Bay shall be any other 
 than a branch. Mr. Fleming says : — 
 
 *'A jH-aefisal route, without ezcessi^ly 
 beary works, ii reported^tabliehisf^ the fact 
 that the, trmdc line from the prairie to the 
 'e«ster|i terminus in Ontario may, in the 
 fuiure, be carxied in a direct course, without 
 lUSking a detour to Thunder Bav. The line 
 !abw under oonetro^tion to Fori William will 
 ilb«D constitute a short branch from the maia 
 Jbas to the aarigatiea of bake Superiyv." 
 
 The bon. eeitleaaen provided by him 
 Aiet, by t£e oonstttMtion of t«d 
 bnwBcbes-^the Geoif^istn Bay Btiuiali 
 aiKi the Pcooibina Brant b. That wm 
 all ; the rest were to be the four aeo- 
 tions, amd in the Aot it is declared ibai 
 the i^tseetiaa sball run to the point 
 wber-s it ictarseots the second sectioit 
 ranning on to Bed Biver. The hon. 
 tfeatleman told nu this leould be a 
 bnmoh from Thunder Bay of 26 or SO 
 railefe. Thoee who have looked at Mr. 
 Fleming's map will see that if acy- 
 tbing is to bo judged from the configiH 
 jtitioB of the coaotry fbom the liiM 
 traced there that it would be 
 near sixty or ' seventy milesi, cer" 
 tainly maeh nearer fifty miles 
 than 25 or 30 miles. I hold, therefoi^ 
 that the hon. gentleman, in departing 
 fVom the policy to which he was com- 
 mitted by his SD^h introducing this 
 subject, in wbion he spoke of Nepigoa 
 OS tbe particular point of intersection, 
 has made a mistake, and that the ooto- 
 struetion of that branch is without 
 authority, and that there is no appro- 
 priation of public money wnieli 
 can legally he used for thai 
 purpose. ijM t >n. gentleuaan ad^ 
 mitied himself yesterday that th« 
 bay where the trunk line would 
 approach Lake Supei*ior near Nepigon 
 Bay, would be easier of access froni 
 Sault St. Marie, from tho objective 
 point, than Thunder Bay. We all 
 know that very elaborate evidenco 
 was submitted in the report of the 
 Chief Engineer to establish the fact 
 that there is no point except Nepigoa 
 Bay which would have been equally 
 beneficial to the country, a'id avoided 
 altogether the coastruotipn of this 
 branch or any detour to run in that 
 direction . l^erefore, in that respect, 
 the hon. gentleman has acted withoat 
 law, and constructed what has been 
 done without appropriation from Par- 
 liament. But I now come to a mucb 
 more important feature of the policy' 
 of the hon. gentleman than any whidh 
 I have yet criUcised— the terms made 
 by the hoQ. geatlemaii with , Lord 
 Carnarvon — th^ solemn treaty enterod 
 into between th« Grovernment of ^^^liiak 
 Cohmbia, iand binding the Grovernment 
 also to the Imperial (government Ihave 
 shown that every st^p taken by tbe 
 House up to t^e change of Crovprsr 
 
It 
 
 mert, was taken under tlie gnard pro- 
 vided in the reaolntion— that the road 
 ahenM bo coneti 3ted by a priTate 
 company, aided by grants of land and 
 money ; and th&t all obligatiocs vre had 
 incurred ir. relation to British Colnmbis 
 or thelmporial Govemmont^r anybody 
 dlse, were all limitod by the op«>n »ad 
 trowed policy daclared by that res> 
 litlou. I may say that tb>^ eifect of 
 that resolution oould^noL be better 
 illustrated than by the fact. the Lon. 
 gentleman himself, "^hen he foi:Qd.it 
 ueoessary in his ovfr defence to quote 
 that resolution, quoted it as an unaa- 
 awerable argument to British Columbia. 
 I will now refer to a Minute of Council 
 pise^ December 20th, 1875, which 
 sfiys : — 
 
 ** It nkust be borne in mind that every step 
 in the negotiations was aeceBsaril]^ predicated 
 open and sut^ect to tke conditions uf the 
 reeolation of tae House of Commons parsed 
 in 1871) contemporaneously wiih ihe adoption 
 4)f the I'erois of Union with Biitieh Columbia, 
 subtequently enacted in theCanaiiian Pacific 
 ltai>waT Act of 1872, and subsequently 
 CDacted, after a large addition had been made 
 &:> the rate of taxation, in the Canadian Pacific 
 Bailway Act of 1874 ; that the pablic aid to 
 lie given to secure the accomplish ment of 
 ihia undertaking should consist of such 
 'librral grants of land, and such subsidies in 
 money or other aid, not increasing the then 
 rateof taxaiiou, as the Parliament ot Canada 
 •hoi;]d thereafter determine.' " 
 
 One of the complamts made against 
 the hon. the I ^ftt Minister is that ho 
 IS inclined to be an autocrat. One cf 
 the complaints is that while courting 
 the sweet voi'^es of the people he spoke 
 of the necessity of a Ministry having 
 the authority of Parliament and the 
 sanction of the people for every impor- 
 tant act in which they were engaged 
 but that to sooner did he get the high 
 position which he now fills than he 
 seemed to throw off all Parliamentary 
 restraint, and to regai<i his own ipse 
 dixit and the opinions of the Ministry 
 with which he is asso'^iated as the only 
 power to be recognized, or the only 
 one to which he reqtiired to pay 
 any attention. The hon. gentleman 
 ttiadei an engagement, which will only 
 ooottiy a moment in reading, and 
 w^^m will be fottnd extdnd^ at Teti^h 
 St riage Sll, Mtruitrd, 1875. This 
 engagement was icade f* November, 
 1876, during the recoss of ftirliaftnent, 
 Aft4r the iSbidm in which' hi 6btaiiied 
 
 power to deal with the whole qnestionr 
 as a Government work, taking- 
 it entirely out of the category^ 
 of a private enterprise. But still we- 
 iisd, an the hon. gentleman admits, 
 re-euacl3d the clause providing thct th» 
 work should not be proceeded with »ny^ 
 faster than could be done withou , n- 
 creating the existing rate of taxation., 
 J myself have a ptrong opinion as to> 
 the extent to .which, 'bat resolutiooi. 
 was^qualified by the elauHe the h0Q«^ 
 gentleman caused to be Inserted in thft- 
 Act of 1874, and where the terms of the 
 resolution itself was departed from by 
 taking -power to construct the railway- 
 as a uoremmeut wM'k which the 
 resolution required could only be done 
 by a private company. The hon. 
 gentleman engaged to expend two- 
 millions per annum in British Columbia 
 and to commence the railway the' 
 moment that the surveys were com- 
 pleted, and if the hon. gentleman ha» 
 detormined to spend another year iu 
 additional surveys, and surveys with;: 
 reference to points, as far aa ,tbe loca- 
 tion of the route is concerned, which I 
 stated yesterday, appear to me to be un- 
 calledfor — some little consolation for 
 thatstate of things may, perhaps, bd 
 foundin the fact that he was bouad under 
 those terms and is bound under those 
 teims, to expend two million? per 
 annum on the road immediately on the 
 completion of the surveys in British 
 Columbia, and it was just possible, ia 
 the existing state of things, that the- 
 hon. gentleman does not feel himselT 
 
 Suite prepared to engage in the expen- 
 itureoftwo millions per annum in. 
 Fritish Columbia, in the present con- 
 dition o^ pablic afftiii-s. These term?, 
 which are of a very extraordinary 
 character, are detailed anbs'tantially aV 
 follows : — 
 
 " Lastly, that ort or before the 31 st of De- 
 cember. 1890, the itailway shall be com- 
 pleted and open for traffic from the Pacific 
 seaboard to a point at the West end of Lake- 
 Superior, at which it will fall into connection' 
 with existing lines of railway through a por- 
 tion of the U nited States, and alsc witii the- 
 navigatioB on Canadian waters." 
 
 Now, Sir, the hon. gentl'^man, as I 
 naVe stated, first todk pbver t6 o6n- 
 struct this work directly bvthe Gov* 
 emment and then made a solemn bind- 
 ing treaty with 'British Columbia and 
 the littpeHal Govei'tiltf «^t, that by 189#' 
 
11 
 
 uestioi^ 
 taking 
 
 stiJi Wfr 
 admits, 
 
 tluitthfr 
 ith my 
 
 lOU, Di- 
 
 •tion^ 
 >n as to 
 isoIatioQi . 
 ix& honu- 
 in ther 
 of the 
 ►m by 
 
 ioh the 
 bedoue 
 le hoa. 
 nd two- 
 Columbia 
 ^ay tbe> 
 >re oom> 
 nan ha» 
 year in, 
 
 •ys with; 
 
 •be loce- 
 
 which I 
 
 bo bean- 
 
 tion for 
 
 *iaps, be 
 
 nd under 
 
 e> those 
 
 on3 per 
 
 y on the 
 British 
 
 liblo, in 
 
 hat the 
 
 himseir 
 
 I expen- 
 
 num ia 
 
 It con- 
 
 ; terms, 
 
 "dinarv- 
 
 ially a». 
 
 itofDe-- 
 
 >e coin- 
 
 Paoifio 
 
 of Lake- 
 
 I a por- 
 'ith khe^ 
 
 b6 o6ii'^ 
 > Gk>v- 
 i biod- 
 a aiHi 
 r 1899' 
 
 *Jii8 work phould be constru^'ted and 
 completed from the Pacific coast to the 
 shores of Lake Superior. What is the 
 distance between these points ? It is 
 something like, accoming to the 
 Chief Engineer s statement, 2,022 miles 
 over which the road was to be built ; 
 and the hon. gentleman made "^his 
 engagement without the slightest quali- 
 fication OR the slightest provision that 
 it was not to increase the existing rate 
 of taxation. He made a binding, solemn 
 treaty, and the good faith of the 6ov- 
 fimmentofthis country was piedgsd 
 as for as a Minister — and a Minister 
 lias power to pledge it to a great ex- 
 tent— Kiould pledge it without consul- 
 tation with the .. /Use; and, without 
 the knowledge ./ the House, the 
 hon. gentleman entered into this 
 engagement. In invitin,' his at- 
 tention to it I would like to ask 
 him whether the act of the late 
 CrOTomment in engaging to subsidise 
 with $30,000,000 of money and 
 60,000,000 acres of land a Company 
 to constnict the Canadian Pacific jRail- 
 way, was a madder scheme, a more 
 insane scheme, or a scheme exhibiting 
 greater incapacity than was this scheme 
 proposed by an hon. gentleman holding 
 the vit,W3 which he did in reference to 
 the character of that work, as stated by 
 himself. Sir, over his own signature 
 previous to the appeal made to the 
 people, he published a manifc.^to con- 
 taining the views and opinions of the 
 Government in relation to this metter, 
 and giving his opinion as to the cost 
 of this woric. He stated, Sir, in that 
 manifesto, in January, 1874, his views 
 in reference to this work at some con- 
 aiderable length : — 
 
 " In the meADtimt, ;rith a view to obtain 
 a dpe«d5 means at coc'iainnication across 
 the continent, and to fM'Mtate the «oi> 
 atrnotion of the railway itself, it will bo our 
 policy^ to utiliie the enormous stretches of 
 vuignificent water communication which lie 
 between a point not far from the Roeky Moun- 
 tains and fort Oarir, and between Lake 
 Superior and French Birer on the Georgian 
 Bay, thus avoiding, for the present, the con- 
 avittion of about 1,900 miles of railwar, esti- 
 a^ted to coat from sixty to eighty niilfions of 
 •dollars, and rendering the rbsources of the 
 country available for toe f rotecution of those 
 
 ' Now, Sir,. in this statement, and I 
 fkhall draw the attention of the Honse 
 to it by-and-bye, the hon. gentleman 
 •Btimated the saving of the 900 miles j 
 
 between ^Tipissing and Nepigon, hh^ 
 between Bed Biver and the remaining 
 TOO miles westward — because these 
 were the water stretches and the only 
 water streiches he covers in his mani- 
 festo—he estimated that 1,300 mileb or 
 railway, TOO miles of it througl the 
 prairie region, at from $60,000,01 *> to 
 $80,000,000. That 1,300 miles of this 
 road, and that, not the most unfk- 
 vourable portion of it, more than half 
 being praine Countiy, was going to 
 cost oetweeh sixty and eighty mtlnonB 
 of dollars; and in tho face of that: 
 delaration, which I presume he would 
 not make without having gone 
 into some calculations with referenco 
 to it, the lowest calcrlation involving 
 an enormous expenditure of money, 
 this engagement was made by 
 the hon. gentleman without any 
 reserve, and -.yithout the slightest 
 qualification as to whether the 
 resources of the country would 
 admit of it. Now, as we stood up to 
 that period, we had a safety val>ra, and 
 a clause exempting the country from 
 being plunged headlong into a ruinous 
 expenaiture, but this was all swept 
 away by the hon. gentleman who 
 presented himself to this House with 
 the declaration that this was a binding 
 treaty which he had made, not only 
 with a portion of ourselves, with our 
 fellow citizens in British Columbia, 
 but also with the Imperial Government, 
 which was solemnly calletl on to take 
 part in thfe negotiations effecting that , 
 arrangement. Now, Sir. I would 
 draw the attention of the House 
 for one moment to this question 
 as one of great importance, oecause 
 it has involved the most serious charge 
 against the hoc. gentleman and his 
 Government that was ever made, or 
 that ever could be made against any 
 Government ; it has involved the charge 
 of bad faith. I hold. Sir, that serious 
 as were the financial arrangements 
 and great as were the pecuniary diffi- 
 culties with which he surrounded this 
 question, that by this arrangement, 
 even that sank into insignificance com- 
 pared with the qnestipn of having the 
 good fitith of the Qovemment of Canada 
 ehalleAged, not oaiy by the Provinee,. 
 and the important Province ol British. 
 GohmlUa^a portitiit of oarselves, but 
 also, 9h, bnwdcaat throoghoHt tha- 
 
» 
 
 "World, through Gireat Brkain aad 
 wberevw the ntkxm of Cam^ was 
 ktiown. Up ta that hour. Sir, no spot, 
 no stain coold rest on the reputation 
 -oir the Oovernment of Ckinaaa with 
 relation to any ei^p^ement chat it had 
 -ever m?>do; but, I saj that ihe 
 charjije of had faith was brought kgainst, 
 and nas been sustained against, the 
 hon. gentleman, bvargumenjs and by 
 •e^ndence so conclusive as to involve 
 great trouble and great difficulty, I am 
 afraid, on his part, in order to extri- 
 "Oate himself from it ; and as, Sir, there 
 is no advantage to be aained in con- 
 cealing from ourselves uie true nature 
 •of the case, and as it is the painful duty' 
 of the surgeon, occasionally, as the 
 first step towai'ds tke euro, to probe a 
 wound to the ver^' bottom, I feel my- 
 self called upon, for a few moments, to 
 touch upon aod examine that most im- 
 portant feature of this question. 1 
 m&y be told that I have had my answers, 
 and that, too, from ja veiy high quarter ; 
 — thW His Excellency the Gr0<roi^ 
 nor Creneral, who has the best, 
 and the most intimate means of 
 Judging of Ministers, has, in distinct 
 andT unqualified terms, exonerated, at 
 -all events, the Prime Minister from 
 any charge of bad faith in relation to 
 this matter. I cannot allow that. 
 Sir, to prevent me dealing with the 
 subject, but I shall tonch on that point 
 as delicately as possible, as I feel that 
 the distinguished gentleman who 
 rightly enjoya the confidence of 
 the people of this country as 
 few Governor-Gronerals have done 
 before, that men of all parties, 
 and men of all classes recognize 
 in him a gentleman who has d> 
 voted himseU, heart and soul, to the 
 best interests of Canada; and because 
 no person will question his entire 
 honesty in making the sU^ment which 
 he did, in reference to this matter. I 
 will not discuss the question. Sir, of its 
 constitutionality; but I f»y that it is 
 one of the most serious 'Oharges against 
 this Government) t^t they snould 
 render it necessary for the represtmta- 
 tive of the Qrow^^ to iwrn^ down from 
 the exalted position he ^plds, and ta^d 
 3^t in the 4i4ocMi»ipn of political 
 quoeitiont that ag^ti^ the copntB-y. 
 Kow, Six*,, I ^9.y tiM^ th«< •vidmoes of 
 the bresieh of faith that have been 
 
 raised on the part of the people of 
 Brijtish Ck>lumbia> have hot, m my 
 judgment, been raised withoqt a good 
 deal of foundation. It will be remeqai- 
 bered that thd hon. gentleman who Is 
 now Minister of Justicis, then occupied 
 an independent position in this Hous*^ 
 and a < very independent position 
 at that moment, put a (question on thii 
 notice paper. It was a verr seriooft 
 question, and it appears in the Totie* 
 and Proceedings on the 4th of March, 
 18t6:-- 
 
 '* Hr. BLAKE-<on Monday aest^Enquurjr 
 of Minittry — Wiether to* Gorernmeiifc. 
 intend to propose to Pariiknient knj measarit 
 on the eubjetit of tlie reiadiusttnent Of iba 
 Tern« X)f U'tiiow wfth Jf^itiW Columbia f* 
 
 ifow, 3ir, it is kn'cwh that th 3 > >h. 
 gentleman ijad, in additio.i to el6 ^l^i^ 
 toconstrrttet this railivay, tbj 2,liW 
 miles of railway which the iNoWrh- 
 mettt had powdr to bdild las a Govidir^a- 
 meux work, and whii6h, by the ppridd 
 of 1890. he was tohaV)^ c()ihpleted,atsd 
 engaged to add to thii^t, bii'tsidd of th^ 
 woi^k altogether, th6 cdnstiAifcttbk of 
 the foad flora N'au&itnb to ^sqnlmadllb, 
 sixty-eight miles of additionul it){ad. 
 The Mibister of Justlcl^ put this Uj^fiill^ 
 cant question oh the nbtico piEiper, aiid 
 what was his answei*? Thb dhs-#i^ 
 was given in the tHi(9 spiiiit of tl^^ 
 autoorat. The hoh. gdntleni^b silid-^ 
 but at that tiihe, I sttbposd, he Mi 
 stronger than h6 did afwhv^hifei' :-i-i 
 
 , 'IJ; ■!) >■ 
 
 " With respeet to the question raised b] 
 hon. fnend frotn South Brac«, I tnar Saf 1 1 
 nothing to ask from Parliament, wi) haire tt» 
 authority to obtain, but hare tnarslf, tbcOMi* 
 municate this decision and rely upon the fiouw 
 supporting us in accepting the tbnti^ that hav* 
 been made throagh the interreiitloni it istii^ 
 madiationi of uord OaruarroBi aaA that 
 support, I do not doubt, will be cheerfuUj 
 accorded." 
 
 So the hotx. geniiemah had ioi^^ 
 unqualinea engagement with Bntialit 
 Columbia ^nd with the Imperial Pkrlia^ 
 meht,^ to sp^nd 01000,000 per mbtt^ 
 in British Uolamnia — build $8 miles of 
 railway flrom Nanaimo to JECsqttinuilti 
 iinJ flhibh the lihd frdM i%ii Pa^flb ^ 
 take SupeHoV, i^(M fhUes, by mO, 
 Yet his answer was that f)t>m F&riiat* 
 tae^tM had hothifeig tb iutlt. Bi^t h^ 
 altered his ifiihd. SomiB HtgifiiUcaifi 
 divisions took Jtjtfe in thi^^ Hou»9. 
 Th^ presflnt Minister of Jiistvefe, thf^n. 
 sitting on tlie Indle]Hinae«it .WhcneS| 
 votecT agaiist the 'hon. gentleman o^ 
 
 thi 
 mJ 
 
 rel 
 
 WL 
 
13 
 
 people of 
 >t, m mj 
 \t a good 
 >« remeiqi- 
 &n who is 
 
 occapiedl 
 lis Koxiah, 
 
 position 
 ioQ on this 
 seriooa 
 
 J Vote* 
 ofMapch, 
 
 — Knquiiy 
 overauteot. 
 
 etil df iba 
 imbia?* 
 
 tiba V>h. 
 
 io ppri^di 
 etod,8li»6 
 e of thb 
 i(i|ti8k of 
 Qimaiill^ 
 r<\ it)iad. 
 
 iBSii^hiiiL 
 
 tier', aiia 
 
 o?^tS 
 
 [J siiid-^ 
 
 he Mi 
 
 Is:— 
 
 la*! _ 
 
 '. tb.cOi*- 
 he muM 
 tUatUav* 
 
 ai, that 
 heerfuUy 
 
 ajafiattl 
 nlwdt 
 ttimalL 
 
 rim 
 
 WL 
 
 Sottse. 
 
 oches^ 
 lain on 
 
 the Bill for the Na: amo and Esqui- 
 mau Bailwaj ; and on a most impor- 
 iAnt qneatioa, in which tb« legality of 
 the prooeedinffs of the Qovernment in 
 roferenoe to the Canadian Pacific Bail* 
 way was involved, the hon. gentle^ 
 man put on his hat and walked out of 
 the House, accompanied by another 
 
 gentleman, whose , assistance the 
 ovemment felt it necessary since to 
 obtain on the Treasury benches 
 as Minister of the Interior. The h<H]. 
 
 gentleman had, befove the Session was 
 tr advanced, some pretty strong hints 
 that the position he had assumed, in 
 which he nndertook to deal with the 
 most important financial interests of 
 this country, and involving the most 
 onerous obligutionis^ — obligations to 
 which anything undertaken by the late 
 Government seemod inagnificant-r- 
 was such that he was not as strong in 
 the support of the House as he had led 
 himself to believe. "What occurred? 
 The Bill was passed by this House hy 
 a large majonty. This Bill provided 
 for building the Esquimalt and IfA- 
 naimo Hallway in addition to the rest 
 of the Canadian Pacific Bailway. I 
 may be told that we contemplatedi 
 buildiug a road on Vancouver island. 
 We did. We had fixbd upon a terminus 
 at Esquimalt, but every person knows 
 that that did, not involve the additional 
 cost of a dollar, as far aa the financial 
 rescurcea of the country were concern- 
 ed, The stipulation raquired that the 
 pai'tiea obtainipg the charter of the 
 Pacific Bailway should build this road, 
 the subsidy tp be the same as far as 
 money was concerned. But the hon. 
 gentleman changed his base. He, who 
 to-day had notinug to ask from Parlia- 
 ment, to-morrow found it convenient to 
 introduce a Bill for the pui-pose of con- 
 structing the £!squimalt and Nanainao 
 Bailway. He passod this Bill through 
 the House despite the opposition of 
 the present Mmister of Justice and 
 other leading members of the Oppoi^i- 
 tion. The Bill was lost, however, and 
 significantly lost in the Upper House 
 by the votes of two of the warmest and 
 strongest friends the hop. gentlemi^i 
 had in that branch of the Legislature. 
 I am not going to say that it was Io9ti 
 at the instance of the First Minister, 
 b0 I maV^ cay that his colleagues 
 iii^ tiie Upper House did not 
 
 exhibit ^reat enthusiam In trying- 
 to obtam a majority. But the 
 Bill having passed by a considerable 
 n^ajority in tnis House, was abandoned, 
 luiis was a case in which the hon. 
 gentleman could say : *' The good faith 
 Of Canada is pledged ; we are bound to 
 the British Columbian and Imperial 
 Governments to earry this out ; I ask 
 you to re-affiim the policy." The hon. 
 gentleman could have used those 
 efibrts of moral suasion which are 
 always iri thi) power of a leader of the 
 GovOTnment. Hut, no I He abandoned 
 his policy, and an extraordin&iy 
 occurrence presented itself. The hon. 
 gentleman who was most hostile to the 
 construction of this branch was taken 
 into the Cabinet, as the result of a bar- 
 gain that this road should be sacrificed. 
 That statement may seem a strong 
 one, but I will oustain it by a speech 
 delivered by the hon. Minister of 
 Justice himself at Walkerton, in which 
 he said that he would not enter the 
 Cabinet until the (government had 
 made up their mi .ids to abandon their 
 policy in liiis respect. The hon. gen- 
 tleman said, as reported in the GHohe: — 
 
 "He would apw touch upon a question with 
 respect to which he had not been in entire 
 acoordaaoe with the oeotlemsn who wai con- 
 ducting the affairs of the country. He referred 
 to the settlement attempted to be made threngb 
 the Sari of Oamafvon with British Golombia. 
 He had been of opinion that that settlement 
 was more onetrons to the conntrj than it was 
 advantaeeouB to agree to, and he was happy 
 to be able to say that, previous to his acceptme 
 oflBof^ discussions had been entered upon which 
 had resnltou in an agreement upon a policy 
 satisfactory tolhimaelf. He would not tell them 
 that they might hope for as satisfactory a settle- 
 ment of the dreadful burden imposed upon them 
 by th«ir predecessors as they would like, but he 
 had ev^r/ reason to ho^e that matters would 
 be place i in a more satisfactory position than 
 at one time they could expect they would be." 
 
 And- what was that policy proposed 
 by the present Ministier of Justice ? 
 It was to dtp liieir hands into the 
 
 Jubiic treasuiy of Canada and hand 
 750,000 over to the people of British 
 Columbia for local works. The hon. 
 gentlemah seemed to think that all 
 that was necessary in case of any 
 embarrassment that such a sum of 
 public money should Le paid as might 
 meet the emergency. But the hon. 
 titfH Minister, who had thus abandoned 
 his policy, saxl to the people of British 
 Columbia that he was defeated in the 
 SeiMt«HMMl that tii<»OovM^ment were^ 
 
u 
 
 ' i 
 
 •compelled reluctantly to abandon the 
 construction of the Nanaimo and 
 Esquimau j^ilway. My right hon. 
 friend from Kingston and myself §ap- 
 ported tLe Government in that propo- 
 ■ sition, and we voted i>r the second 
 reading of the Bii! But when the 
 hon. gentlemen refVised to agree that 
 the contracts should be submitted to 
 Parliament, we voted against the third 
 reading, and our friends in the Upper 
 House voted entirely in harmony with 
 us. The great substantial element of 
 the policy of the Government, as 
 arranged with Lord Carnarvon regard- 
 ing the construction of the Pacific 
 Eailway, was still left intact. 
 Although the Government were not 
 going to build the Nanaimo and Esqui- 
 malt Railway, they were to carry out 
 the rest of ^e terms as to the Pacific 
 Railway. The terms were onerois. 
 I am not surprised that hon. gentle- 
 men began to be alarmed. The hon. 
 gentleman who had said that all the 
 resoui'ces of the British Empire could 
 not build the Pacific Eailway in ten 
 years had agreed to build 2,022 miles, 
 from the head of Lake Superior to the 
 Pacific Ocean, in thirteen years fi'om 
 this time, that is, by 1890. 
 
 Mr. CAUCHON : That is three years 
 more. 
 
 Ml-. HOLTON: The question is 
 whether it would be easier to do the 
 work by 1890 or 1881. 
 
 Mr. TUPPER : I say this: that the 
 obligation on the part of Canada to give 
 certain aid to a company which would 
 find the capital to build the railway, 
 and although the engagement was to 
 finish it in ten years, yet, as has been 
 shown by Mr. Trutch, if it could not 
 be done in the ten years the time 
 would have been extended, provided 
 honest, straightforward and con- 
 sciencious em>rts were made to 
 fulfil the obligation the Govern- 
 ment incurred, that obligation was 
 vastly superior, as none knew 
 better than the hon. member for Chat- 
 «auguay, than that the Grovernment 
 should proceed with the road as a Gov- 
 Oi-nment work, taking every dollar of 
 the money required from, the public 
 exchequer, and by a loan and debt 
 placed on the shoulders of the people 
 of the country build it by 1890. There 
 
 is no comparison between the extent 
 of obligation incurred in the two cases. 
 
 Mr. HOLTON: The two points are 
 quite distinct. The relative advantage 
 of the two modes of constructing the 
 road, and the possibility of building 
 the road withiQ a given time. The 
 latter was the point to which the hon. 
 member was addi-essing himself when 
 I ventured to throw across the floor 
 the slight interruption. I say that, 
 whereas, he agreed to finish the road 
 by 1881, my hon. friend the First 
 Minister proposed to build, not the 
 whole but a considerable portion of the 
 lino by 1890, and the hon. member for 
 Cumberland was dei^onncing him for 
 undertaking an impossible task. 
 
 Ml*. TUPPER: The hon. member 
 for Chateaugnay will see this — and he 
 will see it very readily — ^that the 
 essence of .the objection was, there 
 being a time bargain in the first 
 instance. We were told by the dele- 
 gates that they would not hold 
 us to the ten or twelve years, but 
 that we might have whatever time 
 would reasonably be required in the 
 construction of the work. But the 
 greair assault made was that it was 
 a time bargain, although it was made 
 with a portion of ourselves. Bat 
 here is a oargain to which the Imperial 
 Government became parties, made 
 after hon. gentlemen have had further 
 time for consideration, made to con- 
 struct that portion of the line which 
 will involve the longest time, vii., 
 through the Cascade range and Rooky 
 Mountains, made without any qualifi- 
 cation as to whether the resources of 
 the country will permit it. 
 
 Ml-. HOLTON : Were the Imperial 
 Government parties to the original en- 
 gagements ? Was is it not in the ad- 
 dress which formed the basis of union f 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: The Imperial Gov- 
 ernment were parties, in so far as they 
 were willinff — for that was all they 
 had to de — that British Columbia and 
 Caaada should unite on the terms wo 
 had. mutually agreed upon. Here is a 
 case in which the Secretary of State 
 for the Colonies had come to accept 
 the position of arbitrator in the carry- 
 ing out the affi-ement made between 
 Canada and British Columbiaj to which 
 the Imperial Government were parties. 
 
 1 
 1 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
16 
 
 the extent 
 le two cases. 
 
 points are 
 'e advantage 
 ructing the 
 of building 
 time. The 
 ich the hon. 
 mself when 
 88 the floor 
 I say that, 
 3h the road 
 
 the First 
 d, not the 
 )rtion of the 
 member for 
 Dg him for 
 task. 
 
 >n. member 
 his — and he 
 ' — that the 
 was, there 
 L the first 
 >y the dele- 
 not hold 
 years, but 
 fctever time 
 lired in the 
 But the 
 that it was 
 t was made 
 Ives. But 
 he Imperial 
 'ties, made 
 had further 
 ule to con- 
 line which 
 time, viz., 
 and Booky 
 vary qualifi- 
 'esources of 
 
 >erial Gov- 
 far as they 
 s all they 
 umbia and 
 terms we 
 Here is a 
 Y of State 
 to accept 
 the carry- 
 9 between 
 ^, to which 
 re parties. 
 
 Mr. HOLTON : Was not the ground 
 »oi that interference of the Imperial 
 <jovernmont that they were parties to 
 the original agreement made by hon. 
 -gentlemen opposite. 
 
 Mr. TUPPEE: The colony of Brit 
 ish Columbia felt they were entitled to 
 go to the Imperial Government to com- 
 
 Slain in regard to any violation by 
 anada of ^e terms mutually agreed 
 upon. But to return. The main fea- 
 ture of the policy was still left, all 
 •except the railway on Yancouver 
 Island. Did the Government maintain 
 good faith as to that ? The First Min- 
 ister came to Parliament and proposed 
 a vote — a moderate vote — to carry on 
 works connected with the railway. 
 What happened ? If hon. gentlemen 
 would turn to the Hansard for 1816, 
 they will find the record of a voiy 
 extraordinary procedure. They will 
 ■find that the hon. First Minister, 
 having become wise in his genera- 
 tion, found that he had committed 
 himself to this unqualified engage- 
 me»t — a point not noticed by many 
 members of the Opposition on the in- 
 ception of the matter — that his solemn 
 pledge was unrelieved by ^ny action of 
 ■the Senate, the pledge to construct the 
 • road from the shores of the Pacific to 
 the shores of Lake Superior, over two 
 thousand miles, by 1890. What hap- 
 pened when that item came Up for the 
 construction of the railway? What 
 -did the hon. member for West Middle- 
 sex (Mr. Boss) do ? That hon. member 
 is not a very recalcitrant supporter of 
 the hon. the First Minister. 1 will not 
 flay he is not an independent member, 
 but among the hon. gentleman's fol- 
 lowers he has none more devoted than 
 the hon. member for West Middlesex ; 
 there is no hon. member who will 
 make a greater effort o act in accord 
 with the First Minister, and, I believe, 
 the hon. gentleman on more than one 
 occasion showed the hon. the First 
 Minister that he was prepared to make 
 a sacrifice in oixier to meet his views. 
 What did the hon. member for West 
 Middlesex do ? He moved a vote of 
 want of confiden4te in the Government. 
 We had been voting them the Supplies. 
 We, like a loyal Opposition, had been 
 endeavouring, as far as possible, to 
 promote the interests of the country ; 
 but Bubmittingtothe fact that we were 
 
 a minority, and must accept the gen- 
 eral policy of the Government, and on 
 many occasions vote them larger 
 sums than we thought necessary in the 
 interests of the country, or demanded 
 by the necessity of the case. We re- 
 cognised the obligation to assist the 
 Government in carrying the Supply 
 Bill. The hon. member for Middlesex, 
 however, moved his vote of want of 
 confidence, refusing to vote one dollar 
 for the construction of the railway 
 until the House had adopted the 
 motion, which was in these terms : 
 
 "But, while granting this sum, this Houm 
 desires to record its view that the arranKcmenta 
 for the coastruction of the Canadian Pacifie 
 Railw.ij stall be such as the resources of the 
 country will permit, without increasing the 
 existing rates of taxation." 
 
 The moment that resolution was 
 moved the hon. the First Minister was 
 bound lo rise in his place and state that 
 he would sacrifice his position as Firp^ 
 Minister before he would accept it, 
 because it involved an act of bad faith, 
 he had made a binding obligation with 
 the Imperial Government and British 
 Columbia, that a certain work should be 
 constructed in a certain time. It was 
 impossible to proceed with the work 
 at all if the resolution were passed. I 
 can show the House that the Govern- 
 ment of the day are, in the face of that 
 resolution,violating the constitution by 
 spending one dollar in connection with 
 the railway. What was the state of 
 things when the resolution was passed? 
 It was this : three millions of addi- 
 tional taxes had been levied on the 
 Canadian people, as the hon. the Min- 
 ister of Justice had stated in oncof his 
 speeches; that British Columbia had 
 nothing to complain of, for 
 Parliament had provided three 
 millions of additional taxes for the pur- 
 pose of constructing the rv>ad. The 
 money ' was all gone, and to say that 
 under these circumstances the Govern- 
 ment should not be permitted to spend 
 that vote until they had accepted that 
 resolution, was to say/that they should 
 not spend another dollar in connection 
 with the railway. The hon. the First 
 Minister was bound to have thrown 
 himself on the House, not on one side 
 but on both sides, and to have said : 
 " The good faith not of the Government 
 alone, but of Canada, was pledged by 
 he head of the Government to carry 
 
SB 
 
 out the railway, and I call on tho 
 House to vote down the motion." It 
 is said that the resolution was 
 drafted by a Minister and offei ed by a 
 liinister to another gentleman in Uiis 
 House a month before, and he refased 
 to move it, and that resolution, moved 
 by the hon. member for West Middle- 
 sex (Mr. Boss) was voted for by the 
 Government and all their supporters ; 
 and when they did that, they placed 
 themselves in a position from which, I 
 believe, with all their ability and 
 special pleading, they will find it diffi- 
 oult to; extricate themselves when 
 arraigned by British Columbia, or by 
 the Colonial Minister, or ^ny person in 
 this country, on the serious charge of 
 having been guilty of bad faith in 
 relation' to this matter. 
 
 It being Six o'clock the Speaker left 
 the Chair. 
 
 After Beoess; 
 
 Mr. TUPPMtt resumed his speech. 
 He said : When the House rose fbr 
 recess, I was dealing witji the position 
 in which the Government were placed 
 by the resolution passed at the close of 
 the last Session, and I had taken the 
 ground that any expenditure made 
 since the passage of that resolution by 
 the Gbvemment was not only uncon- 
 eititutional but illegal — that, in fact, 
 they w»re bcund by the resolution: to 
 stop at once any expenditure upon tho 
 Canadian Pacific Bailway. The reso- 
 lution which I read provided that the 
 vote for the oonstruction of the road 
 should only be given to them under 
 the obligation that no portion of it 
 could be expended which Avould involve 
 increasing the existing rate of taxation. 
 Now, what was the position in which 
 the hon. gentlemwi found themselves 
 placed the moment that resolution was 
 placed upon the Journals of this 
 House ? Three millions of new ad- 
 ditional taxation had been imposed 
 upon the people of Canada, and, v hich 
 was admitted by one of: the hoa^ Min- 
 isters to be mainly for the purpose of 
 constructing the railway. Parnament 
 met) and the Government were obliged 
 to admit/ aa the hon. the MinUteri of 
 Finance haa adpdtted, during th» 
 present Sessionj thftt he. welit .to Eng- 
 
 land to negotiate the late loan last 
 autamn beoau.oe it was known that a 
 large deficit existed. Now, the Gov- 
 ernment have admitted this Session 
 that the deficit wiia about $2,000,000, 
 that tho 9ui^000,000 of additional tax- 
 ation which waa imposed was all ex- 
 pended, and that that being done the 
 ordinary expenditoire of ^e country 
 exceeded the whole revenue by 
 fl,900,000 i and, as mji; examination^ of 
 the figilres shows, theh(»i.the Minister 
 of Finance considerably understated 
 the aJmountof the deficit whit^ existed. 
 The QoT^erninent have asked the 
 Hoo^e to imposelfiOOfOOO of additional 
 taxatdoni this year in ordisr to meet the 
 fiHpetlditure of the year over the amonsiC 
 which the $3,000,000 of previous taxes 
 had enabled them to meet. Under 
 these circumstances, I want to know if 
 this resolution is not waste paper, what 
 it means. I want to know how tke 
 Grovemment can, withoutviolating tk'> 
 principle of Farlibmentary Govern- 
 ment, expend a single dollar of public 
 money for the construction of the 
 Ctoadian Pacific Railroad with the ad- 
 mission of the hon. the Finance 
 Minister liiat the taxation of the coun- 
 try was increased, must bo increased, 
 and that additional taxes must be im- • 
 posed in order to meet this expendi- 
 ture — that he was unable to meet the 
 existing cost upon the revenue without 
 new taxation. I say they were com- 
 pletly prohibited and precluded from 
 the expenditure: of a single dollar 
 without the violation of the constitur 
 tion. I have another very grove charge 
 to make against the Administration in 
 relation to this wOTk. Eveiy pwson 
 who has given the subject any attention 
 knows that, regard it from what point 
 of view you may, the moment joa 
 havn declared the expediency of con- 
 sti noting the Padnc Bailway, the 
 monaont you have gone the length that 
 the hon. the First Mnister lam gone- 
 in admitting its absolute necessity, that 
 moment you are bound to adopt everjr 
 possible: means in your power m order 
 to promote the construction of that 
 road. What means have the Govern- 
 ment adopted? I shall show the 
 Hensei t^at fwm thei moment th^ 
 were plaoed in tliftreaponiiM«pQwtioa 
 tb«y oooupy, they had sUamty, , per* 
 
 |ated| 
 
 '.effecl 
 
 6be 
 fabroj 
 
 ',tO 
 
 ".;coun| 
 Ito 
 l^can 
 I that I 
 
 iw 
 
 |8ibl3 
 fthe^l 
 
 '>^a8Sis| 
 '*, worlT 
 
 Mstrud 
 
 iiiiiBtiiMii 
 
19 
 
 late loan last 
 
 known that a 
 STow, the GK)v- 
 )d this Session 
 >ut 12,000,000, 
 additional tax- 
 )d was all ox- 
 eing done the 
 f the coontly 
 
 povenuo by 
 zaminationi of 
 m.tha Minister 
 y understated 
 whidb existed. 
 i asked the 
 Oof additional 
 er to meet the 
 rer the amonsit 
 previous taxes 
 aeet. Under 
 int to know if 
 te paper, what 
 now how tie 
 b-violating tko 
 tapy Gfevom- 
 Jlar of public 
 jtion of the 
 1 with the ad- 
 the Finuioe 
 1 of thecoan- 
 bo increased, 
 ) must be im-. 
 this expendi- 
 J to meet the 
 enue without 
 r were com^ 
 eluded from 
 Jingle dollar 
 the constitiir 
 ^rave charge 
 nistration in 
 very person 
 »y attentiim 
 I what point 
 noment yaa 
 »ncy of con- 
 ailway, the 
 
 iMigUithat 
 » faia, gone 
 oessity, that 
 adotrteveiy 
 r«r in order 
 on of that 
 the Grovent- 
 
 show the 
 »meot they 
 MepoutioB 
 
 ated the cost of that work. And what 
 would be the ettect of that ? The 
 '.effect of exaggerating the cost would 
 *^be to prevent any capitalist at home or 
 |abroaa from investing a dollar, and 
 !>to compel the Government of the 
 ^country to find all the money required 
 
 !'*'to be iiivestod in the work. And if I 
 can show tho House, as I am confident 
 that I can, that they have steadily ex- 
 iaggerated and done all that they pos- 
 |sibly could, in the high positions which 
 I they occupy, to deter any person from 
 I assisting in the construction of that 
 |work, and damaged the financial posi- 
 Ition of the country by declaring that 
 lit had assumed an obligation to con- 
 * struct a work enormous in its cost and 
 unproductive in its results, I think I 
 win show that the Government have 
 pursued a course the most inimical to 
 the interests of tho countiy that can 
 be conceived. The hon. the First 
 :| Minister gave a proper answer to a 
 Iq.uestion which I put across the floor 
 |oiF tho House last night. I asked the 
 I estimated cost of the Pacific Eailway, 
 land tho hon. gentleman gave us some 
 I very interesting, and, I may frankly 
 say, some encouraging statements as 
 i to the cost of the work. In order to 
 ?'draw out a statement which would be 
 still more encouraging, I asked what 
 the estimate was. His answer was 
 judicious and proper. It was to the 
 eifect, that in the position tlmt he oc- 
 cupied, and in relation to the fact that 
 Ithey were about to ask for tenders at 
 ino distant day, it would perhaps be 
 f unwise for him to commit himself to a 
 statement as to the expenditure it 
 t would involve. I regret that that wise 
 sand judicious policy was not always 
 '^pursued by that hon. gentleman. I 
 "^need not go back to the period of the 
 ^general election, when the countiy 
 «|was made to r:ng with the most ex- 
 ■••aggerated statements of the cost of 
 this work, and the intolerable, or to 
 ' use the expressive language of the hon. 
 *|the Minister of Justice since he became 
 '•m member of the Government, the 
 ¥«' dreadful burden " that was upon the 
 ^icountry. The statements to the 
 -^ountry have been precisely of that 
 •character, and coming from persons 
 fin the position owupied by hon. 
 "gentlemen opposite, rendered it im- 
 :^^OBsible to draw a dollar of money 
 
 into the service of the country in con- 
 nection with this work. Now the 
 hon. the Minister of Public Works, in 
 the most authentic manner, over his 
 own signature, in a well and carefUiiy 
 considered manifesto at the general 
 election, estimated the cost of 1,300 
 miles, of certainly not the most difficult 
 portion, at from $60,000,0ii0 to 
 $80,000,000— no portion of this was 
 in the Eocky Mountains of British 
 Columbia. He stated, as I have said, 
 that he proposed to avoid tho construc- 
 tion of 1,300 miles of this road, some 
 600 milo^ of it from Lake Nepigon and 
 the remaining 700 along the water 
 stretches of the Saskatchewan, saving 
 to the country and avoiding for the 
 present tho construction of about 1,300 
 miles of railway, which was estimated 
 to cost from sixty to eighty millions of 
 dollars. Now, Sir, if 1,300 miles of this 
 road-~and certainly not the most diffi- 
 cult portion of it, 'for we all recognized 
 as being the great difficulty, the liae 
 permeating the Cascade range and 
 tho Eocky Mountains- -would cost 
 from sixty to eighty millions of dollars, 
 I would ask what estimate commercial 
 men, intelligent men and capitalists 
 would form of the amount of money 
 that would be required to construct 
 this 2,000 miles from tho Pacific to 
 Lake Superior. Well, Sir, we have 
 that followed up by the statement, 
 quite as authentic, and on a financial 
 question quite as weighty, published as 
 we knew, broadcast, and sent to every 
 part of the country, and not only here, 
 but in Great Britain, by the Hon, 
 Minister of Finance. Some comment I 
 believe. Sir, has been made with refer- 
 ence to the expenditure involved in the 
 publication of the Budget Speeches of 
 the Alinister of Finance ; but, Sir, I do 
 not intend to raise any question as to 
 the propriety of a document so impor- 
 tant as that being widely spread over 
 the country, tliough I will ask for 
 what reason should you spend a great 
 deal of money when you have a great 
 work like the Canadian Pacific Kail- 
 v?ay in hand, — in sending abroad and 
 in Great Britain a statement such us 
 that which I am now going to read on 
 this subject from the Budget Speech in 
 1874, of the Minister of Finance, lio 
 said, following up the authentic state- 
 ment of the First Minister : — 
 
ii'l 
 
 ^8. 
 
 ! \.f 
 
 I I- 
 
 :i ;i!ii 
 
 " In order rightly to understand the res! 
 nature aud extent of the burden we would be 
 required to take uprn ourselreB, it muBt be 
 remi'tnbered that the lowest estimate for build- 
 ing this road to the Pacifi'^ is something orer one 
 buadred millions of dollars, and this too on 
 the supposition that a vt- 17 much longer time 
 would be giyen for the c nstruction. ' 
 
 "I entertain no doiibt that if it w«re 
 incuDibt^nt upon us to piisli the line through 
 within tlie time epecified (if tliis were 
 possible), tlie expense would be caornioiisly 
 increased, and that a moderate estimate 
 would reach one hundred and fifty or one 
 hundred and sixty millions of dollars. 
 Every hon. gentleman who has had experi- 
 ence in these matters know that the cost of 
 construction of a work ol this kind 
 is largely enhanced if it be required 
 to cr.rry it to completion in a certain 
 limited time. They well knew, too, that 
 there is great difficulty in carrying such a 
 work through an unprotected country, much 
 of which, looking particularly at two sections 
 of it,is a desert, at least for arable purpose?." 
 
 *' Were we to undertake such a burden as 
 this, I would simply say that our national debt 
 in seven years would be, relatively to oar 
 population, just one-third greater than tliat 
 with which the U nited Utates emerged from 
 their great civil war, and, if measured by the 
 rate or interest required, it would be oud-third 
 greater than the huge national debt of Eng- 
 land." 
 
 Now, Sir, the First Minister stated 
 in his manileslo to the country that ho 
 honied, in connection with this work, 
 to bo able to attract an immense 
 amount of immigration to the country, 
 and every person who knows anything 
 ■of this question, the building of the 
 Canadian Pacific Kailway, knows that 
 one of the most important features in 
 connection with it is the opportunity 
 its construction would present of bring- 
 ing a great mass of Immigrants into 
 thii country; and how admirably are 
 tboee words of the Finance Minister 
 calculated to bring people into Canaaa 
 when people throughout the world ace 
 told, from so high and so authentic a 
 source as the Minister of Finance of 
 the Government of Canada, that the 
 debt of this country is to become 
 greater than that of the United States 
 when emerging fvom the civil wu»*, and 
 one- third greater than that 01 England. 
 Irt other words he goes on to aay : — , 
 
 1" That if we undertake'to fulfill this project 
 according to the letter of the law, the burdea 
 we would require to ask you to lay uion your- 
 Mlves for this purpose alone would Le equal to 
 a new debt of seven hundred and fifty miliiou 
 sterling imposed on the p<)ople of Hagland." 
 
 He is determined, Sir, that they 
 Bhall understand the enormous taxes 
 
 they will have to pay if they venture^ 
 to come into Canada. He continues : — 
 
 " Having regard to population and the rates 
 of interest we would respectively have to pay, 
 for this is an important coasideration, were it 
 the pleasure of the House to decide that the 
 Oaoadian Pacific Railway must be completed 
 in that time, it must also be prepared to take 
 iiito account the sums required to be borrowed 
 for other public works, and to redeem certai:;> 
 portions of the public uobl ; and, at a moderate 
 estimate, over $200,000,000 would be needed for 
 all purposes. In other words, we would be com- 
 pelled to go to the London market-for this is the 
 onty market practically open to us-as borrowers 
 of $30jOOO,000 every year for seven euc.essive 
 years. There majbe hon. gentlemen in this House 
 who think we would be able to do thit ; but, if 
 so, I envy them their faith in the fuf-e of the 
 Dominion. Now, Sir, I say that such t> project, 
 involving such a charge is ludicrously absurd.'' 
 
 Then, Sir, ho returned to the subject, 
 and he said : — 
 
 "Now, Mr. Chairman, I apoke before the 
 recess at some length upon the extraordinary 
 deficiency arising from the working of the In- 
 tercolonial Railwav and the other railroads of 
 the Dominion, chicfiy in the Maritime Provinces. 
 The deficiencieH arising from these sources are 
 reported as likely to amount to the extrn ordi- 
 nary sum of about a million and a quarter dol- 
 lars. I desire to call the special attention of 
 the House to one point which must be clear to 
 every hon. gentleman These railways raa for 
 the most part through a country which has 
 been settled for the last fiftv or sixty years. 
 I cannot refer, of course, to toe fact that these 
 railroads entail such an enormous expenditure, 
 without its becoming apparent to tne House, 
 that the cost of the maintenance of a railway, 
 nearly 3,000 miles in length, and passing 
 throuf(h a country which is almost entirely un- 
 inhabited, must be of necessity very much 
 greater. For a very long time, even after the 
 actual construction of this railway, an enor- 
 mous charge must be levied upon tnis countt;jr 
 in order to keep it in full working order and 
 repair, and this fact must be steadily kept 
 sight of in considering the real character of tne 
 project." 
 
 So much, Sir, for the manner in vrhich 
 the Minister of Finance endorsed the 
 statements of the Fir.st Minister; of 
 coarse, they are qualified to a certain 
 extent by his speaking of the effect of 
 the construction of that road within a 
 certain time, but the hon, gentleman 
 applied no suoh limitation to thiH 
 estimate. He says that the lowest 
 estimate is one hundred millions 
 and yet, Sir, strange to say, the&e gen- 
 tlemen — I will not say with madneM 
 or with recklesssness to use the strictly 
 parliamentary expressions of the First 
 Minister because I wish to confine my- 
 self to extremely moderate terms in 
 characterising the acts of the hon. 
 gentlemen opposite ; I will not use anj 
 of these terms, although having sucn 
 
19 
 
 f they vent«re 
 lo continues: — 
 
 tion and the ntei 
 rely have to pa^, 
 stderatioQ, were it 
 i> decide that the 
 lust be completed 
 
 prepared to take 
 ed to be borrowed 
 to redeem certai:!i 
 and, at a moderate 
 ould be needed for 
 
 we would be com- 
 ,rket-forth!aisthe 
 to uB-as borroweri 
 r aerea euceum 
 emen in this House 
 
 to do thii ; but, if 
 1 the fuf'e of the 
 hat such t> project, 
 dicrouslyabaurd.'' 
 
 I to the subject, 
 
 (ipoke before the 
 the extraordinary 
 
 orking of the In- 
 other railroads of 
 Maritime Provinces. 
 
 these sources are 
 
 to the extrnordi- 
 and a quarter doN 
 ecial Httention of 
 ti must be clear to 
 le railways raa for 
 ountry which has 
 IV or sixty years, 
 tnefact that these 
 moug expenditure, 
 mt to the House, 
 ince of a railway, 
 jTth, and passing 
 ilmoat entirely un- 
 sessity very much 
 me, even after the 
 railway, an enor- 
 upun tnis country 
 'orkiuK order and 
 , be steadily kept 
 3al character of tne 
 
 lanner in which 
 e endorsed the 
 •lit Minister; of 
 ied to a certain 
 
 of the effect of 
 t road within a 
 lOP, gentleman 
 itation to this 
 lat the lowest 
 idred millions 
 
 say, these gen- 
 f with madnei-i 
 
 use the strictly 
 ons of the First 
 1 to confine my- 
 lerate terms in 
 s of the hon. 
 will not use anj 
 ^h having sucii 
 
 ,n authority for them, in connection 
 ith this subject, they naturally rise 
 jto one's lips ; but I d'" say that these 
 jitatements were not, in my judg- 
 .nxent, calculated to promote the 
 instruction of the Canadian Pa- 
 lific Eailway, cither by a company 
 r by the G-overnment. In the first 
 lace, thoy would bo calculated, in the 
 ind of every commercial man and 
 icapitalist abro:id, to lead to the con- 
 jpliu^ion that the construction of the 
 Jbanada Pacific Railway was one of the 
 ^addest and most unquestionable 
 .ineasures that any Government or 
 ^party ever engaged in ; and in the 
 loond place, they would lead to the 
 elusion that the Government that 
 ere saddling a country with such a 
 lability, and h.'wl undertaken to carry 
 ut such an obligi^tion, would be in a 
 si tion that would render their credit 
 t no distant day, a very doubtful mat- 
 ter. I have given you the statement 
 pver the signature of the First Minis- 
 T and his manifesto to the country ; 
 ,nd the endorsement of that by, and 
 e statements of, the Minister ot 
 ^^in»ace; then, Sir, we come to the 
 introduction of the Act, and hon. gen- 
 /.tlemen will remember — because the 
 -•dubject was too important rapidly to 
 fade fiom recollection — that when the 
 First Minister went, as he was bound 
 
 f» do, into a very exhaustive explana- 
 on of what the cost of this work 
 ould bo, he drew his illustrations 
 from a variety of sources, as to what 
 ^railways coat in other places, and 
 rihowed that railways running through 
 'm prairie country cost not less tuan 
 '|48,000 a mile. He told us what the 
 'Intercolonial was costing, and he led 
 |the House and country to believe that, 
 Mn his estimate of 1,300 miles, costing 
 mom 860,000 to »80,000, he was not 
 S'ery far astray. He stated that the 
 jaountry must find all the money. 
 That the project was so hopeless as a 
 ifiommercial undertaking that it was 
 itimple madness to look for any assis- 
 i|aDce fror^ capitalists, and that the 
 ■People of the country must make up 
 jtheir minds to bear the burden theu- 
 jelves, without any aid fi-om capitalists. 
 ^He favoured the House with an esti- 
 ^^te of the working expenses. He 
 phowed that the life of an iron 
 il was only eight years, a steel rail 
 
 however lasting some years longer. 
 He undertook to show that when the 
 road was in working order it was 
 hopeless to exf ect anything like fair 
 returns until millions of people wore 
 thrown into the North-West; and he 
 estimated that there would be an annual 
 deficit on the working expense of 
 $6,000,000 per annum. This was the 
 view hon. gentlemen were putting for- 
 wardto the country at the very time 
 they were taking power to construct the 
 whole of the road as a Government road, 
 and making a solemn engagement to 
 construct, in 13 years from the present 
 date, some 2,000 miles, and that em- 
 bracing ' me of the most difficult 
 portions of the road. I am charging 
 the Government with doing that 
 which, if they could be justly charged 
 with, certainly shows an amount of 
 incapacity in dealing with this matter 
 which was extraordinary. I say that 
 the Government were bound to present 
 it in the most favourable light to the 
 country, especially if they had the 
 most remote idea that the time would 
 come when they would invite capital- 
 ists to tender for its construction. 
 Last night the hon. the First Minister 
 gave us the information that 228 miles 
 of the railway from Thunder Bay to 
 English River, and from Selkirk to 
 Keewatin, would be completed and 
 fairly equipped with rolling stock at 
 something like $24,500 per mile, and 
 that 65 miles from Pembina to Fort 
 Garry had been graded at a cost of 
 $3,500 per mile, and that this latter 
 amount was to be considered as some- 
 thing like a fair estimate of the prairie 
 sections. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE: No, no. 
 
 Mr. TUPFER: I suppose then that 
 the hon. gentleman intended to confine 
 his estimate to completing the line 
 from Fort Garry to Selkirk? 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE: Yes. 
 
 Mr. TUPPBR: I understood the 
 hon. gentleman to apply that estimate 
 to the whole of the prairie section. But 
 the country must be exceptionally 
 favourable in that part of the route. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : Of courte it is. 
 
 Mr. TUPPEB: But I am certain 
 the House beard with pleasure 
 the hon. gentleman state the amount 
 
eo 
 
 'f h 
 
 il I 
 li i 
 
 : j I 
 
 of money Jwhich practical ex- 
 perience had shown the road could 
 be oonstracted for, and I would like to 
 ask him, in the light of the experience 
 he has had, whether he is not prepared 
 to revise his statement as to the 
 «' insanity " of building the road on a 
 subsidy of 030,000,000 and 60,000,000 
 acres of the finest land on which the 
 gun shines on in any part of the world. 
 (Hon. gentlemen : Oh I oh !) Yes, I 
 say you can select by the Pacific Rail- 
 way Act 50,000,000" acres of the finest 
 land in the world upon which the sun 
 shines. Nothing on the face of the 
 civilized world exceeds it in fertility, 
 and as a giain and grazing country ; 
 and I do not think that the hon. the 
 First Minister will be pi*epared to con- 
 trovert that statement. At Whitby, in 
 the Eiding of South Ontario, the hon. 
 
 fentleman said we might as well oifer 
 10 to build the road as 830,000,000 
 and 60,000,000 acres of land. This 
 was the language by an hon. gentle- 
 man whose every word was weighed, 
 as he now seemed to appreciate. After 
 apending three years in denouncing 
 this (Undertaking, and exaggeratiBg 
 in every possible and conceivable 
 manner the cost of this work, 
 diminished as had been "the 
 dreadful burden " by the interpositicm 
 of the Minister of Justice, the finale 
 was, that the hon. gentleman was, at 
 the moment he was making the above 
 remarks at Whitby, publishing a notice 
 to capitalists and contractors to be 
 prepared on the Ist January, 1877, to 
 tender for the construction of this road. 
 After undertaking the work as a Govern- 
 ment woi'k, and spending large amount 
 of money upon it as such, in constnict- 
 ing some of the least productive por- 
 tions of the road, after having exhaust- 
 ed all the power the Government 
 possessed, in pointing out the utter 
 impossibility of any pei^son touching 
 this matte)', without being involved in 
 the most utter financial ruin, he caps 
 the climax by, adopting the policy of 
 the late Government, publishing notices 
 for tenders to contractors upon the 
 basis of $10,000 and 20,000 acres of land 
 per mile, or at the rate of $27,000,000 
 and 50,000,000 of acres of land, and 
 asks the amount they will take, in 
 addition to that, to build and own and 
 operate the road. The hon. gentleman 
 
 mentioned last night to the House, h« 
 took us into his confidence so far as t( 
 say that there had not much result 
 obtained from that fldvortisoment, thai 
 the capitalists of the world did noi 
 seem in a huiTy to invewt their monej 
 or their means in the construction of a 
 Pacific Eailway for Canada. Is it an} 
 wonder, after three years spent by thi.'' 
 Government in exaggerating, as the 
 hon. gentleman proved last nin^ht, in 
 enormously exaggerating the cosi that 
 would be involved by the construction 
 of this work; that when he comes 
 back at last to the policy of bin 
 predecessors, the hon. the First Minis 
 ter finds that what capitalists were 
 eagerly prepared to engage in at a for- 
 mer pei'iod, they now shrink from 
 touching. The statements of the hon. 
 Ihe Minister of Finance that this 3,000 
 miles of unpeopled country, that two 
 sections of this road are two great 
 Saharas, two great deserts from which 
 nothing is to be hoped, could not cer- 
 tainly be expected to cause a great rush 
 of capitalists to construct the Canadian 
 Pacific Eailway, and the Groveniment 
 stands to-day charged before the poo 
 pie of Canada with having failed in 
 their duty to the people in their deal- 
 ing with this question after they had 
 voluntarily assumed this obligation, 
 Instead of saying : " The late Gov- 
 ernment engaged to give 030,000,000 
 and 50,000,000 acres of land to any 
 capitalists who were prepared to con- 
 struct this road ; we are prepared to do 
 that, and to act in good faith,to go thus 
 far but not beyond it," they maintained 
 that it was incumbent upon them to 
 assume that they must carry the work 
 to completion, although they did it 
 with public money and as a public 
 work. I have already told the House 
 that the Govdi-nment have undertaken 
 to do this under the Railway Act, pro- 
 viding that it should be consti'ucted as 
 under the Public Works Act. It is not 
 to be done by Commissioners, but di- 
 rectly by the Minister of Public Works. 
 I now pass from the general question 
 of the policy of the Government in 
 relation to this matter to the course 
 they have pursued in carrying 
 out that policy. Before going far- 
 ther, I desire to remind the House 
 that these gentlemen were not 
 free to deal in the autocratic matter, 
 
 Ijeigardl 
 iiid po 
 tl^ have 
 
 wore t 
 g^ve t 
 
 Updersi 
 gpvorn 
 and pr( 
 Jas th 
 Uli'ime 
 #tho 
 4)iDmme 
 !e sai( 
 
 . " The 
 
 ttace th 
 Pirliitmi 
 
 ^te for 
 ||Btaao« 
 itarBue, 
 «nmeat 
 tlon of 
 iiat all 
 l^e Hon 
 
 eedec 
 ke int 
 
 r 
 
21 
 
 tho House, h*| 
 
 ardlesa of pafliamentory control 
 t, . Mud nopalar opinion, that thoy 8oom 
 
 ncoHofarascrhaVe imagined and that thoy cor- 
 t much resultgi^i have practiHCHl. When thoy 
 HTu^a^ *t'"|ere seeking to obUvin powu-, thoy 
 world did ^ot^^^ ^he people of this country to 
 t their monejjL^grBtand tho principles v/hi«h won Id 
 i«tr„ction ofajvern thorn after they attained pow i-, 
 ,r wf"?^*^ prominent among those principl s 
 ' *" ' tas that which was stated by tho 
 'i'imo Minister in a speech delivered 
 the 5th July, 1872, in Montreal, the 
 mmercial capital of the Dominion. 
 !e said : 
 
 ^ " The policy of the- Liberal Party is to make 
 
 « parliamentary government supreme, to 
 
 i»ce the Cabinet directly under the control of 
 
 rliament, to take from them all power to use 
 
 nstruction of a 
 ad a 
 
 rs spent by thfis 
 rating, as the 
 last nl^bt, in 
 g the cosi that 
 e construction 
 hen he comes 
 policy of hid 
 ho First Minis 
 pitalists were 
 
 ^BSe in at a for ^^ ^^^^ °^ ^'^^ people's money without a direct 
 Lv aK,.;,>i, A.^^ ^t« for each service. I might point out, as an 
 iilBtance of the course the Liberal Party will 
 irsue, that in Ontario, when the Reform Qot- 
 nment came into power, they repealed a por- 
 ipn of the Act granting aid to railwars, so 
 t all grants had to receive the sanction of 
 e Uoiibe before a farthing could ba paid." 
 
 I could multiply instances in which 
 
 e hon. gentleman pledged himself to 
 
 e same principle, and promised that 
 
 he was entrusted with the manage- 
 
 entof public affairs, "parliamentary 
 
 jovernment should be supreme," and 
 
 ihat no public money should be touched 
 
 ithout a direct vote for the pur- 
 
 )8e. Let us see how, in carrying tho 
 
 iW out, the hon. gentleman nae suc- 
 
 eded. I may say, further, that, when 
 
 le introduced the act giving him power 
 
 construct this road in the Dopart- 
 
 ent of Public Works as a government 
 
 ork, the hon. gentleman renewed the 
 
 fledge, and told the House that, if they 
 assed the Act — as will be seen by the 
 »eport of his speech in the Teronto 
 jSrlobe newspaper — not a single cent of 
 Ifche people's money should be expended 
 ;'|Bxcept after a direct vote for tho pur- 
 se. And, Sir. the House will romem- 
 r that one of the leading featui'os of 
 e Act was, that no work should be 
 performed on it except under contracts, 
 JUid that these contracts must be given 
 my public tender. I now come to a 
 yery unpleasant feature in connection 
 -^ith the administration of this great 
 .anestion, and that is to the purchase of 
 ;*teel rails ; and, I may say at once, 
 that, consistently with what I stated 
 ■when I rose to-night that I would en- 
 deavour to avoid touching any question 
 that would, in the least degree, load 
 
 |vv shrink from 
 
 nts of the hon. 
 
 that this 3,000 
 ntry, that two 
 ire two great 
 irts from which 
 
 could not cer- 
 use a great rush 
 ct the Canadian 
 be Grovemment 
 [before the poo- 
 iving failed in 
 9 in their deal- 
 after they had 
 his obligation. 
 The late Gov- 
 ve $30,000,000 
 f land to any 
 epared to con- 
 prepared to do 
 ■aith,to go thus 
 loy maintained 
 upon them to 
 arry the work 
 1 they did it 
 i as a public 
 aid the House 
 ve undertaken 
 1 way Act, pro- 
 constructed as 
 A.ct. It is not 
 )ner8, but di- 
 Public Works, 
 leral question ^ 
 )vernment in 
 ;o the course 
 in carrying 
 re going fur- 
 d the HouHO 
 
 were not 
 ratio matter, 
 
 the House away frnm tho mode in 
 which the Government had dealt with 
 tho question, I shall, on tho present 
 occasion, carefully abstain from touch- 
 ing anything in reference to this mat- 
 ter except its purely business features, 
 as a transaction for which tho House 
 have a right to hold the Ministiy 
 directly responsiblo. Now, tho hon. 
 gentleman has brought down a state- 
 mon«t of the cost of the steel rails which 
 wore purchased without a vote of a 
 dollar ueing passed by this House. It 
 has been said elsewhere that there 
 was a vote, that before the money was 
 paid a vote was taken. The hon. 
 gentleman knows it is trifling 
 with the intelligence of the 
 country, and I believe I am 
 correct in saying it has never been 
 attempted so to trifle with the intelll- 
 gence of Parliament as tq draw a dis- 
 tinction between a binding contract 
 being made by the Government of 
 Canada, not subject to the vote of Parlitt- 
 ment, and the money being paid. Tho 
 fact that the tenders and the contracts 
 were laid upon the table of the House 
 before the money was paid does not 
 touch the question at all. Had the 
 contracts been made subject to the 
 approval of Parliament, there might 
 have been a difference ; but they were 
 absolute, leaving no option to Parlia- 
 ment, without being charged with bad 
 faith in not carrying out an arrange- 
 made by tho Government of Canada, 
 and that is an alternative which I am 
 sure the hon. gentleman would not say 
 left it open to the House at all. The 
 hon. gentleman, .vho had pledged 
 himself that parliamentary government 
 should be supreme ; that, if we passed 
 the Act, not a cent should bo spent 
 without a vote, startled the House and 
 the country by the statement that he 
 had made contracts, binding contracts 
 on the Government, for the purchase 
 of 50,000 tons of steel rails. We have 
 now ascertained something like tho cost 
 of the rails delivered in tbo country. 
 The return shows the dates of tho pay- 
 ments that were made and tho charges 
 that were made upon them. 
 I have had the interest carefully cal* 
 culated. I find, by the return brought, 
 down by the Government, that 
 $2,925,396 was paid for thpae railp, 
 doiivered in Canada, including the 
 
w 
 
 n 
 
 \i it 
 
 '•■ i 
 
 ooHt of freight and the inspection. 
 The interest on that sum nt 5 percent, 
 would of coui-se be $146,294. And the 
 meantime at which that interest 
 became payable— because those amounts 
 of money were paid at different dates 
 — but the meantime at which the 
 yhoie interest became payable was the 
 6th November, 1876. So that from 
 that moment we have been paying 
 interest amounting, at 6 per cent., to 
 $146,294 per annum. On the 6th day 
 of May, which will bo here in a very 
 few days, wo will have a year and a hairs 
 interest accumulated, $219,441. To 
 show the price to which rails have 
 since fallen — I may say that I was pre- 
 pared to prodmse testimony of an 
 authentic character on this question, 
 und would have done so if It had been 
 convenient to call the Committee on 
 Public Accounts together — I speak on 
 the authority of a gentleman well 
 qualiflt'd to judge, who had made a pur- 
 chase of steel rails of the best quality, 
 and had them delivered at Proscott 
 Junction during thejpast year, at a 
 cost of £7 15s. sterling— that is $37.71 
 per ton. The freight from Montreal to 
 Prescott I assume to be, and I 
 am told it is within the mark, 
 $1.71. Deduct that, and you have 
 the cost of the best steel rails 
 that can bo made, and by parties who 
 were ready to supply any quantity of 
 rails upon the same terms, at abou^ 
 $36 per ton, laid down in Montreal. 
 Now, the House will see that 50,900 
 tons of steel rails and fastenings, laid 
 down in Montreal, cost us, according 
 to the return laid upon the table of the 
 House by the hon. the First Minister 
 himself, $2,925,896, and the price at 
 which the same description of rails 
 were laid down at Montreal, within 
 the last six months, was $36 per ton, 
 The cost, tnerefore, of the 50,000 
 tons, if purchased within the past 
 six months, instead of when 
 they were purchased, in 1874, and paid 
 for at a mean date of November 5, 1875, 
 atpd from which date we have been 
 paying interest on the whole sum, 
 would have been $1,800,000, showing a 
 dead loss on the cost of the rails, com- 
 pared with what the same quality could 
 be nurohafied to-day, of neai-ly amilli(>n 
 dollars. Now, add to that the interest 
 payable before they can be used, and 
 
 the dead loss to the country in relation 
 to that transaction alone, will exceed 
 a million and ^ a half dollars. I 
 do not, as I saiU before, intend to 
 touch any question outside the 
 purely business nature of this 
 tiansaotion, because I have abundart 
 ground for the motion I am submititng 
 to the House without introducing any 
 collateral issue ; but I must cull atten- 
 tion to the fact that, in relation to a 
 part of this purchase, no tenders 
 appear to have been asked. 
 I notice that 6,000 tons were bought 
 Without tender, and the freight to 
 Vancouver Island Hooms to have been 
 arranged on the sarae private principle 
 and not by tender. This bears on the 
 point I am chaiging against the Grov 
 ernment, that they have systematically 
 violated the binding obligation of the 
 law, and their own repeated pledges, 
 that everything should be done by 
 contract in relation to those works. 
 The charge of $223,884 for inland 
 transportation must be a mistake, and 
 for this reason : We are told bv the 
 Public Accounts, we have been told by 
 the speech of the hon. the First Minis- 
 ter, that it cost $15 per ton to convey 
 the rails from Duluth to St. Boniface, 
 near Fort Garry. The public docu- 
 ments on the table show that nearly 
 13,000 tons of rails have been deposited 
 there, and the House will see at 
 once that on that transaction, carrying 
 these rails that portion of the distance 
 by the Eed Kiver Transportation Co., 
 must be something in the neighbour- 
 hood of $200,000. I am told that was 
 not done by public tender and contract. 
 Now, Sir, what was the necessity of 
 buying these rails at all. Why should 
 they be purchased ? What did the 
 Government want with 50,000 tons of 
 steel rails? We have, in a public 
 document laid on the table of the 
 House, a statement as to the condition 
 in which the Pacific Eailway works 
 wer J at that date ; and what do they 
 show ? Why, Sir, they show that the 
 contract was made for the first section, 
 from Fort William to Sunshine 
 Creek, a distance of 32J miles — the 
 line ran originally from Fort William 
 to Shebandowan, but it was afterwai'ds 
 altered — on April the 3rd, 1875 ; nearly 
 six months after the purchase of these 
 50,000 tons of steel rails was made, the 
 
 Irst 
 E«nier 
 
 f^on th 
 '^two ■ 
 
 m 
 
 !t! r 
 
f 
 
 Irst contract requiring their u.-*e was 
 
 j^enkerod into ; and, Sir, wo are told thnt 
 
 on the l8t of January, 1877, more than 
 
 ttwoyoarM after this purchnso \vm made, 
 
 i^ithat 2fti mileH, requiring 2,295 tons of 
 
 'the ftO.OOO are UHed; and therefore that 
 
 ^^^ is all of these S0,000 tons of steel rails 
 
 submitltmr gpurchosed at a cost of nearly 13,000,000 
 troducing any f involving an interest of over $140,000 
 
 ti-y in relation 
 o. will exceed 
 dollars. I 
 e, intend to 
 outside the 
 '•o of this 
 ave abundart 
 m 
 
 IS 
 
 ■u«t cull atten 
 relation to a 
 »o tenders 
 l>oon asked. 
 
 wore bought 
 freight to 
 
 to have been 
 
 vate principle 
 bears on the 
 
 iriHt the Gov 
 iystematically 
 
 gation of the 
 'ated pledges, 
 
 be done by 
 
 those works, 
 for inland 
 
 mistake, and 
 •e told by the 
 5 boon told by 
 e First Minis- 
 on to convey 
 St. Boniface, 
 public docu- 
 
 that nearly 
 leen deposited 
 will see at 
 ion, carrying 
 ' the distance 
 ortation Co., 
 J neighbour- 
 told that was 
 and contract, 
 necessity of 
 Why should 
 liat did the 
 ),000 tons of 
 in a public 
 able of the 
 ie condition 
 Iway works 
 lat do they 
 low that the 
 first section, 
 Sunshine 
 miles — the 
 wt William 
 afterwai'ds 
 575; nearly 
 ise of these 
 IS made, the 
 
 ^1 
 
 per annum, which, at the end of this 
 period, these hon. gentlemen with all 
 „ their anxiety — and I have no doubt 
 ■; that thoy have pressed those works for- 
 ;^ ward, for they had reason to press them 
 I forward as far as it was possible to do 
 ? so, for the purpose of getting these 
 ;; rails out of sight— yet, with all their 
 I eflforts, all thoy have been able 
 ' to accomplish has been to use 2,295 
 tons of rails, and that, too, not on a 
 portion of the Pacific Railway, but on 
 a branch, unauthorized by Parliament, 
 and built without the sanction of Par- 
 liament or the vole of Parliament. 
 Also, on April 3rd, 1875, they 
 made a contract, from Selkirk to 
 Cixms Lake, 77 miles ; and on the 7th 
 of June, 1876, thoy made a contract 
 from Sunshine Creek to English River, 
 80 miles more. As to both of these 
 contracts, the first have the same date, 
 April 3rd, 1875, from Fort William to 
 Sunshine Creek; and April 3rd, from 
 Selkirk to Cross Lake, 77 miles ; and, 
 on the 7th June, 1876, with all the 
 despatch and every effort they could 
 make, they wore enabled "to put 80 
 miles more under contract, from Sun- 
 shine Creek to English River ; and on 
 the 9th of January, 1877, from Cross 
 Lake to Keewatin, so that, at this mo- 
 mentjthere are 226 miles under contract, 
 37 miles of which were put under con- 
 tract this year, and 80 miles of it 
 only on the 7th of June last ; yet, Sir, 
 we have the purchase made, as I say, 
 in November 1874, of no less ♦Van 
 three million of dollars worth of jel 
 rails, or 50,000 tons. Now, Sir, I may 
 be told, — but you have failed to credit 
 us with 11,160 tons for the Intercolon- 
 ial Railway—but I would like to know 
 how they came on the Intercoli/iiial 
 Railway. I stand in the presence of 
 Parliament and I am open to correc- 
 tion, and I ask the attention of my 
 hoD. friend from Chateauguay to the 
 
 foint which I am about to make, when 
 say that there is no graver violation 
 
 of constitutional law— there is ni graver 
 violation of Parliaraoutary nrinoipio, 
 than tho appropriation of tne puolio 
 money, voted for one object, to another ;. 
 I am open to the correction ol the House, 
 if I am right or wrong in that state- 
 ment; and I say that tho Government 
 that would dare to tako public money 
 voted for one purpose and apply it to 
 another a thousand miles away from 
 th« place for which it was voted, and 
 for which Parliament gave the vote, 
 has violated the Constitution and 
 ignored the tundamontal principles of 
 parliamentary Government. I say 
 that the power that Parliament ha» 
 over tho Governmont of the day, is 
 that sound constitutional maxim which 
 deprives the Government of the power 
 of spending money unless thoy have 
 the authority of tho House for it. I 
 say thnt grant the principle that you 
 can tako 11,000 tons of rails, bought 
 for the Cai.iidian Pacific IJauway with 
 a voto for the Canadian Pacific Ruil- 
 way, and take them away and put them 
 to another purpose totally different, 
 and I bay that the Government can 
 carry on the government of the coun- 
 try despite the power of Parliament, 
 becaufo it can use any vote for the 
 Canadian Pacific Railway for the ordi- 
 nary expenses of tho country, or for 
 the payment of their own salaries, or 
 for anything of that kind — I am giving 
 perhaps, an extreme illustration, but it 
 is because I want to draw the attention 
 of the House to the matter, it appears 
 that the First Minister, who claimed 
 the coufidence of the people over and 
 above all men in this country, because 
 he was going to carry out the principle 
 of parliamentaiy Government, has 
 become totally oblivious to his duty to 
 the House and his duty to the country 
 in reference to the expenditure of 
 
 Eublic money. I ask the House if we 
 ave over l)een asked to authorise 
 a change of that appropriation ? 
 I ask the House if any authority 
 was ever given by it to the Gov- 
 ernment to change a dollar of that 
 appropriation for tho Canadian Pacific 
 Railway to the Intercolonial Railway? 
 I am open to the correction, but I am 
 not aware, and I do not believe, that the 
 Government have ever considered it to 
 be their duty to ask Parliament to 
 grant any such authority. If it has 
 
i 
 
 24 
 
 i n 
 
 ^- 1 
 
 not, then 1 say, Sir, that one of the 
 gravoBt charges made in connec- 
 tion with this whole traneactiop, and 
 which stands against these hon. gen- 
 tlemen, is undertaking to so dea?. with 
 jnblic moneys, and appropriating 
 public moneys for parpabes for which 
 it was never intended by Parlia':?i'>nt 
 and never voted. 1 wish also to draw 
 the attention of the House to 
 the fact that the hon. gentleman 
 purchased these rails in a fall- 
 ing market. He mav say : " I had 
 no knowle<lge of that," but he cannot 
 say that, because I have under my 
 h^nd the advice given to him by a gen- 
 tleman well conversant with these 
 qoestions, and a gentleman in whom 
 that hon gentleman has groat 
 con-ldencb, in every possible way, of 
 which he has given evidence to the 
 House — I mean, Sir, the Superinten- 
 dent of the Provincial TJailwaya, Mr. 
 Brydges — made a report to that hon. 
 gectleman, and he used these very 
 significant terms ; and this wafi on the 
 31st day of October, 1874, at the time 
 when this subject was under considera- 
 tion. He suys, in a letter addressed to 
 Hon. A. Mackenzie, dated Slst October, 
 1874:— 
 
 " There ia no doubt whatever, that at the 
 close of 1873 aad the beginuing of 18^4, the 
 Bt^i^el rail market in England was well kaowa 
 to be in a decliniug condition, and no prudent 
 man would bur rails at that time unless he 
 actnallj w mted them for immediate deliyery." 
 
 Now, Sir, 1 do not, as I dare say the 
 House knows, always regard that gen- 
 tleman as a supreme authority. I be- 
 lieve this is pretty well understood ; 
 but, I do saj that it is not opo.i to the 
 hon. gentleman who leads the House, to 
 take that position because he has con- 
 fidence in him. He has shown it in 
 every possible way, that one man can 
 show tliat he has conhdence in an in- 
 dividual ; and he knew that Mr. 
 Brydges was conversant with this 
 whole question, and he had under 
 his hand that letter at the very 
 time he was entering upon this 
 pui ia«c. Now, Sir, what answer 
 does the hon. gentleman give to the 
 House when ho is charged with taking 
 three millions of the public money 
 without the aufchoritv of Parliament, 
 *nd without one dollar of it being 
 voted, and making a binding contract 
 for its expenditure for 60,000 tons of 
 
 steel rails, which, at the end of this 
 long period of time, he admits himself it 
 is impossible to apply, and he gives n^^ 
 prospect to the House of being able to 
 use tnem for long years to come, I have 
 shown the dates when these contracts, 
 which are now under construction, were 
 let, and you know the difficulty or going 
 through a large portion of the country 
 in question, and its remoteness from 
 supplies i and I have shewn that with all 
 the public money the Government could 
 sp^d, and all the pressure the Grovera- 
 ment could bring to bear, as 
 the Minister of Finance says, in an 
 open and settled country, it has takdn 
 seven long years to accomplish the 
 construction of the Intercolonial Bail- 
 way; and hon. gentlemen will see 
 what time must elapse before it could 
 be possible to use 50,000 tons of rails 
 on the Canadian Pacific Ball way. 
 Why, Sir, the Leader of the Minister- 
 ialist's, a member of the Government 
 in the Upper Branch, says they only 
 expect to be able to get the road 
 through from Thunder Bay to Red 
 Eiver in seven or eight yeai-s ; and 
 the hon. the Finance Minister ad- 
 mitted last night, or, at all events, re- 
 cently, that it must be at least four or 
 five ^ears before that portion of the 
 road can be made. And yet these 
 rails are lying and rusting and de- 
 teriorating in value quite as much as if 
 they were moderately used. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : Oh, nonsense. 
 
 Mr. TUPPBR: I may be wron^, 
 and I am open to correction. But if 
 it is nonsense, it is nonsense shared in 
 by nearly all experts connected with 
 railway matters in the world. 
 This question of the oxidization 
 of rails had attracted the attention 
 of scientific men generally. It has at- 
 tracted the attention of scientific men, 
 who had devoted their whole^fe and 
 great abilities to the question of rail- 
 ways, art there was no more interest- 
 ing question than this of the oxida- 
 tion of rails. Some attributed the 
 protection from oxidatioa to a cer- 
 tain amount of electrical action caused 
 oy the passage of the cars over the 
 rails, others hel^l that when the rails 
 were piled up the wet accumulated and 
 the ru»t was more rapid than otherwise. 
 But the fact remained that rails deteri- 
 
 [orate 
 jwhei 
 
 I M: 
 
 Igent 
 
 i Ml 
 |that 
 |be a 
 ItolO 
 I very 
 Iwhic 
 an hi 
 
 Mdon'' 
 
 1 ^ 
 
 i^gent 
 
 ritiof 
 ;ir\oti 
 
2^ 
 
 ood of thia 
 nits himself it 
 d he gives no 
 being able to 
 come, I have 
 ese contracts, 
 bruction, were 
 cultyor^oing 
 f the country 
 oteness from 
 » that with all 
 rnment could 
 e the GroveiTB- 
 bear, as 
 says, in an 
 it has takda 
 iomplish the 
 colonial JRaii- 
 ion will see 
 iore it could 
 tons of rails 
 fie Eailway. 
 he Miniater- 
 Grovernment 
 8 they only 
 st the road 
 Jay to Red 
 years ; and 
 [inister ad- 
 1 events, re- 
 east four or 
 ction of the 
 I yet these 
 ng and de- 
 s much as if 
 
 I, nonsense. 
 
 be wrong, 
 on. But if 
 e shared in 
 ected with 
 »e world, 
 oxidization 
 attention 
 
 It hasat- 
 ntific men, 
 )le'*fe and 
 ion of rail- 
 •e interest- 
 the oxida- 
 ibuted the 
 
 to a cer- 
 ion caused 
 
 over the 
 1 the rails 
 ilttted and 
 )therwi8e. 
 ils deteri- 
 
 orated more rapidly when piled up than 
 I when moderately used. 
 
 Mr. MACKEKZIB : >Vould the hon. 
 gentWman name any of these experts. 
 
 Mt. TUPPEE: I did not suppose 
 fthat a fact so generally known would 
 
 fbe contravened. But 1 will undertake 
 to look up for the hon. gentleman a 
 >^ very elaborate ntatementon the subject, 
 m which, 1 tmst, will satisfy him. 1 hear 
 M an bon. friend saying that " If the rust 
 S don't eat them up the interest will." 
 1 M.'. DYMOND: Would the hon. 
 :^i gentleman be able to give us his autho- 
 * ritios before he asks us to vote for his 
 Emotion. 
 
 Mr. TUPPEE : I think I shall be able 
 to convince, if not to convert, even such 
 ain incorrigible supporter of the other 
 side as the aon. member fbr North 
 York, without my being able iu quot'°i 
 tha.' specific authority upon \'hat point j 
 and will give an opportunity to the 
 hoii. gentleman to show his indepen- 
 ckJnt position. The hon. gentleman 
 says Mr. Fleming advised him. I have 
 no hesitation in saying that I consider 
 the authority of the Chief En^neer, 
 bti a great many quetstions connected 
 with such a work, as quite sufl^^ient to 
 absolve the Minister of Public Works, 
 whoever he may be, from any blame 
 whatever. If the hon. gentleman can 
 show one single line signed by Sand- 
 
 ^ forO 1 leminf ; to him, stating that at a 
 cei*tttin time the road would be in such 
 a state of forwai-dness as to requii-e a 
 certain amount of rails, however mis- 
 taken Mr, Fleming may be, I will at 
 once acquit the First Minister of any 
 blame in the transaction, because he 
 would give the 'Souse an authority 
 which any reasonable man would be 
 aatisfied with. Bai I deny that Mr. 
 
 ^^ Fleming is a special authority on this 
 question. There are ten thousand m- m 
 in this country just as able, and thou- 
 sar^'s of them more able, to advrise the 
 I^rst Minister in relation to a purely 
 ccaunercial and business question, than 
 Ml-. Fleming, with all his engineering 
 knowledge. If it was a question in 
 wMch the hon. gentleman had required 
 Mr. Fleming's professional knowledge, 
 I should say his opinion was sufficient. 
 Btit we have to remember that all the 
 authority brought here from Mr. 
 Fleming ftirnished was after the trans- 
 
 action was over. And this authority 
 was given incidentally and verbally. 
 This was only a paltry matter of 
 50,000 tons of rails, an insigniticant 
 matter of $3,000,C00,and it was not con- 
 sidered worth a sheet of paper to make 
 a report upon. In parsing, the JTirst 
 Minister asked Mr. Fleming, verbally, 
 whether it would be a good thing to 
 secure a large quantity of sfeel railB. 
 Mr. MACKENZIE • I never asked 
 ai^ything of the kind. 
 
 Mr. TUPPEE: So much the worse. 
 Then the hon. gentleman has no right 
 to quote Mr. Fleming on the subject 
 as an authority. But supposing Mr. 
 Fleming had given him, in writing, the 
 most elaborate report, wh'ch, however, 
 he did not give, I question the pro- 
 priety of the hon. gentleman procur- 
 ing an exparte statement fbr the pur- 
 Ecse of justifying an action for wnich 
 e himself was responsible. I do not 
 presume to question the strict accuracy 
 of every statement of Mr. Fleming, 
 but I claim thai the Government ought 
 not to require from a subordinate 
 officer, however high his position, a 
 justiification of acts of which they were 
 responsible themselves alone to Parlia- 
 ment, unless they show that prior to 
 the Act, they had some evidence, in 
 writing, as to the necessity of the 
 transaction. But who would suspect 
 that the First Minister would have 
 justified a ti-ansaction of this kind by 
 quoting Mr. Fleming. I can show that 
 he has no confidence in Mr. Fleming's 
 judgment, even in a question where 
 engineering entered largely into con- 
 sideration. On a question on which 
 he had devoted years of his Hfe, and 
 had expended enormous 'lums oi' public 
 money, the hon. the First Minister 
 had treated the report of Mr. Fleming 
 as unworthy the paper on which it was 
 "^-i:,en. A great deal of controversy 
 had urisen in respect to the route of 
 the Intercolonial Eailway. Mr. Sand- 
 field Macdonald's Government appoint- 
 ed Mr. Fleming to make an exhaustive 
 survey for tne purpose of locating the 
 line of the Intercolonial Railway. That 
 duty was vigorously discharged for 
 years; and afterwards Mr. Fleming 
 was called upon to give his advice. 
 He says on page 84, in a work publish- 
 ed by the First Minister and paid hr 
 by the country, I presume : 
 
n 
 
 I! 
 
 i 
 
 1 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 1 : 
 
 i I 
 
 J 
 
 " When Mr. Fleming entered upon the Bur- 
 Tey in 1864, his instructioas on thu point were 
 Tery plain. He was not called upon to select 
 what he held to be the most eligible line ; in- 
 deed, as he read his instructions, he considered 
 it to be his duty to withhold all indications of 
 preference. His own opinions were, however, 
 explicitly and directly expressed, when it be- 
 came his duty to placB'them on record. In 
 March, 1868, he was requested by the C ^»9rn- 
 mect to report on the route he held to do the 
 best. • , • • The Chief Engineer, 
 after examining the arguments advanced in 
 fav&itr of each route, placed on record his 
 opinion that, beyond a doubt, the line by the 
 Bay of Ohaleurs was the route to be adopted." 
 
 And yet, after that declaration, mttde 
 in a way to carry all the weight of 
 authority Mr. Fleming could throw 
 into any document, tho hon. the Fii-at 
 Minister treated it then as he tieats it 
 now, as BO much waste paper, and 
 said that the Government were throw- 
 ing $8,000,000 into the sea in adopting 
 the route that the Chief Engineer, after 
 surveying five years, and, when called 
 upon to express his opinion doliberately 
 declared was infinitely the best. 
 
 Mr. MILLS : It was your colleague, 
 Mr. Macdougall. 
 
 Mr. TUPPEE : Mr. Macdougall was 
 never my colleague, I had not that 
 honour. If the honour of the origin- 
 ality of the expression is to be attri- 
 buted to Mr. Macdougall he has been 
 most servilely copied by a good many 
 hon. gentlemen opposite, with the fact 
 before them that Mr. Fleming had 
 mode a report in the most authoritative 
 manner in which it uould be made, in 
 ikvour of that route ; and this on a 
 question on which his opinion was 
 cci*tainly entitled to respect. The hon. 
 gentleman has not shown that he con- 
 Bulted any commercial men, though 
 there were some of his friends engaged 
 in the ti-ade, v* hose disinterested advice, 
 if taken, would have pointed to the 
 fact, as I showed in the House when 
 the transaction was first announced, 
 that an enormous public loss was going 
 to occur to the country in consequence 
 of that ill-advised purchase. We have 
 now the fact that this couatry ie to be 
 saddled with that enormous burden, 
 that the legacy, the monument which 
 the hon. the First Minister would leave 
 behind him, when I trust, at an early 
 day, his monument as Prime Minister 
 will be erected, would be th at transact! n 
 by which not less than #75,000 
 
 annually for ever out cf the public 
 purse was lost to the people. I ask 
 the hon. member for North York (Mr. 
 Dymond), unbelieving as he is, if 
 that is not evfficient ground, without 
 being able to give the authority of an 
 expert, that rails become oxidized by 
 lying on the ground unused, toTirarrant 
 any indep indent member in sayine 
 that the non. gentleman has violated 
 the first principles of parliamentary 
 government by expending that money 
 without the authority of the Hcuse, 
 and, owing to this ill-advised and 
 unfortunate purchase, he has sunk 
 over a million and a half of dollars of 
 the people's money, never to be recov- 
 ered, involving an annual charge of 
 $75,000 on the public treasury. Now, 
 Mr. Speaker, i am glad to leave u) 
 unpleasant a subject, because I feel that 
 I cannot deal with it, that I cannot 
 discharge my duty to this Hbuse and 
 the country temperately, as I am. 
 endeavouring to discharge it, without 
 reflecting not only upon the hon. the 
 First Minister, but upon the Parlia- 
 ment of Canada and the people of 
 this country. I will exculpate the 
 people because, until they have the 
 opportunity of passing their own ver- 
 dict upon it, we must absolve them 
 fVom blame, but this Parliament stands 
 before the world and the people of this 
 country as pr'jpared to sustain a Prime 
 Minister who forgets what he owes to 
 Pai'liament, to his own public declaitir 
 tions and to the laws on the Statute- 
 book in this transaction, independent 
 of the enormous amount of pecuniary 
 loss which has been entailed. I now 
 come to another matter in which the 
 law has been violated in the most 
 direct and glaring manner. I speak 
 of the expenditure of money for the 
 Canada Pacific Eailway telegraph. 
 The law provided that a line of electrio 
 telegraph shall be constructed in ad- 
 vance of the said railway and branches 
 along the whole extent so soon as 
 
 f)racticable after the location of the 
 ine should be deter mineJ upon. No 
 law could be more easy of con- 
 struction. It dirl not require an ap- 
 peal to the Minister of Justice of 
 the day, the predecessor of the 
 
 £ resent Minister (we know what 
 is construction of the law would have 
 been), it did not require a reference to 
 
■^; 
 
 «T 
 
 f the publi«j 
 eople. I ask 
 th York (Mr. 
 as be is, if 
 )und, without 
 thority of an 
 oxidized by 
 )d, to warrant 
 )r in sayine 
 has violated 
 )arliaraientary 
 J that money 
 the Hcuee, 
 -advised and 
 has sunk 
 ' of dollars of 
 r to be recov- 
 al charee of 
 
 isury. T«iow, 
 to leave u> 
 aae I feel that 
 .hut I cannot 
 lis Hbu&e and 
 y, as I am 
 ge it, without 
 
 the hon. the 
 a the Parlia- 
 he people of 
 pxculpate the 
 oey have the 
 heir own vor- 
 abuolve them 
 [lament stands 
 people of this 
 iistaii.i a Prime 
 lat he owes to 
 lubiiu declarfj- 
 1 the Statute- 
 , independent 
 
 of pecuniary 
 iailed. I now 
 in which the 
 in the most 
 ler. I speak 
 loney for the 
 y telegraph, 
 ine of electric 
 ructed in ad- 
 and branches 
 
 so soon as 
 nation of the 
 J upon. No 
 :wy of con- 
 i quire an ap- 
 f Justice of 
 90 r oi' the 
 know what 
 " would have 
 i reference to 
 
 a, 
 
 -Sr- 
 
 m 
 
 -30: 
 
 any legal mind to say what the con- 
 struction of that law was. It became 
 my duty to bring this subject of the 
 Canadian Pacific Eailway Telegraph 
 before the House when, in 1875, the 
 hon, the Premier again, in his truly 
 autocratic fashion, stated to the House 
 that he had entered into contracts to 
 the extent of over $700,000 for the 
 construction of that telegraph line. I 
 directed the attention of the House to 
 the illegality of the proceedings; I 
 challtnged the propriety of this work 
 being so carried out, and claimed that 
 it could not be done under the law. 
 My action was followed up bv my 
 late lamented friend, Mr. Hillyaixi 
 Cameron, the member for Oardwel], 
 who joined in that opinion, and the hon. 
 men ber for Frontenao (Mr. Kirk- 
 patrick) followed by moving a resolu- 
 tion condemning the act as illtijL<al, 
 which was seconded, 1 think, by the 
 hon. member forCardwuU. The House 
 will remember the short discussion 
 which took place op that occasion, to 
 which I intend briefly to call the 
 attention of the hon. the First Minis- 
 ter. I may state that on ITovember 
 10th, 1S74, a contract was made with 
 Mr. F. Barnard to construct a talegraph 
 line from Cache Creek to Edmonton, 
 660 miles. That contract required the 
 telegraph to be completed on October 
 2nd, 187«, and yet, on April 20th, 1877, 
 the hon. the First Minister in his 
 place in this House last night, ad- 
 mitted that he did not know 
 within one hundred or two hun- 
 dred miles of that p int where the 
 Canadian Pacific Rail\ ay would go. 
 Yet he made a contract, knowing that 
 he had not a particle of authority in 
 law or a vote from Parliamont, to spend 
 one dollar on the construction of a 
 mile of telegraph, except as the railway 
 lino may have been located ; neverthe- 
 less, he made a binding contract with 
 Ml'. Barnai'd, to construct 550 miles of 
 telegrajih from Edmonton to Cache 
 Creek, which, according to the hon. 
 gentleman's statement last night, would 
 not be within 200 miles of the point 
 where it is most probable the railway 
 will go. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE: I did not say a 
 word about that. 
 
 Mr. TUPPEK: lam open to correc- 
 
 tion if Fort George is not between 100 
 and 200 miles from Cache Creek. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE: I did not say 
 that the road would go to Fort George. 
 
 Mr.TUPPER: No. But I will .show 
 the hon. gentleman and the House that 
 he had decided that it should go to 
 Fort George ; that after the matter wag 
 discussed in the House, that after the 
 vote was taken as to the illegality of 
 the proceedings, the present Minister 
 of Justice, the Minister of the Interior 
 and Air. Justice Moss having refused to 
 vote with the hon. gentleman, that it 
 was not illegal when attacked in hie 
 most vital part — those gentleman, in- 
 cluding two of the most able legal 
 minds in the House, refused to support 
 him. A few days afterwards the hon.the 
 First Minister telegraphed to Mr. Ber- 
 nard to stop work, and he endeavoured 
 to transfer the construction of the tele- 
 graph'from Edmonton to Cache Creek to 
 Fori George, showing he had then de- 
 cided that was to be the railway line. 
 The contract was not merely ibr the 
 construction of a telegrhph ; it was for 
 to aid the construction of a lailway as 
 well, because it was given out by the 
 hon. gentleman in his statement in the 
 Houae that he had contracted with the 
 telegi-aph constructor to clear the road 
 for 132 feet, which would be so much 
 work done towards the construction of 
 the road itself. Yet all this was done, 
 when the hon. gentleman, according 
 to his own stutement last night, con- 
 fessed he did not know within 200 
 miles where the road was to be. The 
 hon. gentleman was very much mis- 
 taken in the statements he made to 
 the House on that occasion. I will 
 not Shy more than that, because I do 
 not wish to be supposed to bring a 
 charge of wilful misstatomeut against 
 the hon. gentleman. 
 
 * Mr." MACKENZIE: Of course not, 
 
 Mr. T UPPER : If I did wish to give 
 it an unpleasant turn, I could submit 
 a great deal of 'authority for the 
 statement I will lay before the 
 House. I do not wish, however, to be 
 80 understood. I know the hon. gen- 
 tleman's mind is burdened with .an 
 enormous amount of work, and one of 
 the reasons why he has so signally 
 failed in administering the important 
 
26 
 
 department of Public Works is because 
 the hon. gentleman is altogether over- 
 weighted in unuevtaking that \va-c-h 
 no man, however great his powers can 
 discharge, viz : to fill the position of 
 of Premier with eflScienoy and vigour, 
 and at the same time discharge the 
 laborious and almost overwhelming 
 duties devolving upon any Minister of 
 Publ'". Works. I feel on this, as on 
 other occasions, that the hon. the First 
 Minister cannot carry in his mind all 
 the statements necessary in order to 
 meet charges which may be brought 
 against his Ministry. To-day it is our 
 duty to bring charges against hon. 
 
 fentlemen opposite. Tomorrow, no 
 istant to-morrow, I believe, it will 
 be their duty to criticise omr acts, and 
 I trust, when the time comes, that we 
 will bo judged in the same lenient and 
 kindly spirit in which I have endea- 
 voured to judge the hon. gentlemen 
 who now oocupy the Ti-easury benches. 
 Veil, Sir, the question arose, and it 
 was charged that this contract was 
 made and that the tolegraph was being 
 constructed contrary to law, without 
 the authority of law, and in opposition 
 to the Act, because no line had been 
 located. On page 1013 of Hansard of 
 1875, 1 find the following : 
 
 "Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE said the Ime had 
 been located where the comtracts had been let, 
 and he coneeived the Goyernment were acting 
 according to law.'' 
 
 I have shown that this contract was 
 let to a point that the hon. gentleman 
 was anaole to tell us whether it was on 
 the line or within 200 miles of it ; and 
 that is six months after the time fixed 
 for the completion of the contract. 
 
 An HON. MEMBEB : There is no 
 contracv let. 
 
 Mr. TUPPBE : No, not for the rail- 
 way; the line is not located. The 
 report proceeds : 
 
 "Mr. SOHULTZ said the on\j portion of the 
 work that had been done was that under con- 
 tract of the Pacific Railway to be useful in the 
 construction of that work. He wished to know 
 if the route of the railroad had been so far 
 established as to admit of the contract of 
 Messrs. Glass, Sifton & Co., about 23 miles, 
 and that had not been placed where the line 
 yfoA completed by any means. Kd location hftd 
 been made then, and so far as he (Mr. Sehultz) 
 could understand, no location was intended tp 
 b« made where that line was put up. 
 
 " Hon. Mr. MACKE.VZIB said the hon. gen- 
 man's statement was incorrect. 
 
 " Mr. PLUMB said the line must be put up 
 along the route of the location of the telegrapn 
 line, or were the toutractors to locate the line 
 for the Governmeiit. 
 
 " Hon. Mr. Mi CKEN^ZIE said he bad alreadj 
 stated the line was to be put up where the row 
 was to be located (these being the Engiaeer's 
 instructions base 3 upon his original sugges- 
 tion) and he did uot know that a single mile 
 of telegraph line was being erected anywhere 
 except on the line of the road. 
 
 " Mr. KIRKPATRIOK asked the Premier if 
 he ^uld tell the House whether the line waa 
 erected from Port Edmonton to Oed^r Greek. 
 Unless this bad been done, a d it was known 
 defiaitely where the H^f of liilway was to Tun, 
 the contracts had been miproperly giren oat. 
 • » • • • • 
 
 "Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE said these con- 
 tracts were jpven out in accordance with the 
 rery letter oi the Statute, and the House has 
 Toted money to carry them out. 
 
 On the 31st Marcii this rjotion was 
 made in the House, and this discssjon 
 took place, and there is a very signifi- 
 cant commentary on what took place. 
 According to this document brought 
 down and laid upon the table of the 
 House by the. Government, the follow- 
 ing significant message was sent to the 
 contractor, Mr. Barnard : — 
 
 " Ottawa, 9th April, 1876. 
 
 "Discontinue building of telegraph lin#, 
 British Colambia, under contract wita this 
 Department. You will not be c»l'«id upon to 
 proceed with the work for some months. A^ 
 what price would you erect telegraph, gay 
 forty-fiye (46) miles from Quesnel on old tele- 
 graph trail, clearing twenty (20) feet wide ? 
 
 (Signed), "P. BRAUN, 
 
 " Secretary." 
 
 So that the gentleman who had a 
 binding contract to finish his work by 
 October, 1876, is told to stop his work, 
 and is coolly asked not to send in a 
 tender in accordance with the provision 
 of the Act that no work shall be done 
 except by open public tender, but to 
 put in a statement as to what he would 
 erect 45 miles of telegraph line for. 
 Mr. Barnard's reply is a very signifi- 
 cant one : — 
 
 " I had completed 60 miles of the line, with 
 the exception of erecting the poles and attach- 
 ing the wire (which can be done at u small 
 cost) receiving a certificte for $8,000, which 
 has been paid?' 
 
 So that at the time when the House 
 was informed by the hon. gentleman 
 that no work was being done, except 
 where the railway had been located, 
 $8,000 had been paid to the contractor 
 for work done at a point which it is 
 not known to-day whether it is within 
 :;00 miles of the line or not; and Mr. 
 
 v% 
 
29 
 
 Bt be put up 
 the telegraph 
 |cate the lioe 
 
 I bad already 
 
 |here the romi 
 
 Engiieer't 
 
 inal Biig^^- 
 
 single mile 
 
 hd anywhere 
 
 le Premier if 
 [the line waa 
 iled^r Greek, 
 was known 
 ly wa3 to ran, 
 
 giTen out, 
 
 • 
 
 these con- 
 JHce with the 
 |e House haa 
 
 jotion was 
 disc'bsjon 
 sry signitt- 
 ;ook place. 
 t brought 
 ble of the 
 the foUow- 
 seut to the 
 
 ipril, 1876. 
 
 igraph lint, 
 :t wit a this 
 n<)d upon to 
 months. At 
 legraph, say 
 on old tele- 
 'eet wide ? 
 
 AUtf, 
 Secretary." 
 
 vho had a 
 3 work by 
 > his work, 
 send in a 
 3 provision 
 I be done 
 9r, but to 
 L he would 
 I line for. 
 y signifi- 
 
 e line, with 
 
 aud attach- 
 
 at u small 
 
 1,000, which 
 
 he House 
 :entloman 
 Le, except 
 located, 
 on tractor 
 lich it is 
 is within 
 and Mx. 
 
 Barnai*d shows that he had then in- 
 volved himself in engagements in try- 
 ing to fill this Government contract to 
 the extent of «43,720. The Public 
 Accounts show a payment to Mr. Bq^r- 
 nard to the Slst December on this 
 workof$l>*,284. Now I think that 
 the most incredulous, the most critical 
 gentlemen on the Government side of 
 the House will have some difficulty in 
 relieving himself from the responsibil- 
 ity of saying that a Government who 
 would thus undertake, in violation of a 
 Statute, to expend money contrary to, 
 and in open defiance of the law, and to 
 involve the country in a large amount 
 of utterly uneless expenditure in con- 
 nection wiih this work, are rot fairly 
 chargeable with being open to public 
 censure. Now, Sir, I have drawn 
 attention of the House to the mode in 
 which the Government have failed in 
 their duty in reference to the purchase 
 of steel rails. I have drawn the atten- 
 tion of the House to the mode in which 
 they have failed in their duty in caiTy- 
 ing out the railway in connection with 
 the telegraph line ; and I have shown 
 M that in both cases a large amount of 
 public money has been sacrifioed as 
 well as all Parli'^mentary practiiie and 
 principle ignored. I will now briefly 
 turn the attention of the House to the 
 mode in which the Government have 
 carried on the contract for the construc- 
 tion of the Geoi'gian Bay Branch. As 
 I ha'-e stated before, they declared 
 that this was a question of such vital 
 urgency and hob haste that they must 
 go forward, notwithstanding the 
 remonctrances of the hon. gentlemen in 
 opposition that no instrumental survey 
 had been made, and that the Govern- 
 ment had no means of informing 
 themrtelves in relation to the nature of 
 country or the character' of the work. 
 The hon. gentleman made a contract 
 for the consti-uction of the Georgian 
 Bay Branch. That was in February, 
 ISfs, during the time that Parliament 
 was sitting. It would have been bettc-, 
 under the circumstances, considering 
 the extraordinary character of that 
 contract, although he had obtained 
 authority from the House, it would 
 only have been wise to take the House 
 iftto his confidence before the contract 
 was made. That was not done ; nOr 
 was the appr'^val of Parliament asked 
 
 •for that contract. I myself put a 
 nnotion on the pa^yer to condemn the 
 Georgian Bay contract, but the First 
 Minister, by adiourning the House, 
 prevented its being reached. I am 
 not now going to say one word 
 touching the desirability of the work; 
 but one thing is obvious, Sir, that if 
 the work was n mistake, then there is 
 no justification for the step they have 
 taken. If it was a matter of such 
 vital urgency as the First M.inisler 
 declared to the House, how is be going 
 to justify himself for folding his hands 
 at the end of a couple of years, in rela- 
 tion to this work, which ho declared 
 to be so vitally necessary so long ago 
 !i8 November, 1874, two years and a 
 half aco? How did the hon. gentle- 
 man arge his duty to the House 
 and the country in relation to the con- 
 ti'act itself. The law was plain. 
 The law declared that he was 
 precluded and prohibited from 
 giving that contract to anybody unless 
 tbey could satisfy him, and give con- 
 clusive evidence, that they possessed a 
 capital of $4,000 per mile. Now, Sir, 
 1 draw the attention of hon. gentlemen 
 to this fact, that the amount I am stat- 
 ing is far below the sum required bj' 
 law, for this reason ; instead of having 
 85 miles, according to Mr. Foster, it is 
 105 miles, and, according to Mr. Flem- 
 ing, it is 103^ miles ; ', pretty striking 
 illustration, L think, to the House, of 
 the mode in which the Government 
 plungea blindly and contrary to the 
 remonstrances given them from this 
 side of the House, into the undertaking 
 of this contract at all ; but I say that 
 there is a law which precludes the 
 Minister of Public Works from lotting 
 one mile of that contract until he 
 had satisfied himself that Mr. Foster 
 possessed the capital of $340,000 
 according to his own estimate of 
 the distance, under the Act. Now, Sir, 
 what was Mr. Foster's position ? The 
 hon. gentleman has been asked, what 
 evidence had you of .Mr. Foster's abil- 
 ity to carry on this work ; and he was 
 obliged to answer — none; and this 
 with regard to a contract, concerning 
 which the law obliged him to have 
 satisfactory testimony befoi-e ho let it, 
 that Mr. Foster had r* capital of 
 $340,000 ; and, that is only an insigni- 
 ficant portion of the capital which was 
 
80 
 
 required. The hon. gentleman did 
 not take any means of ascertaining 
 whether Mr. Foster was worth a single 
 dollar ; and we all now know that he 
 was not worth a dollar; and that 
 when the contract was let, it was a 
 matter of notoriety, tha'- he had in- 
 volved himself by tH purchase of the 
 Canada Central Railway. He was 
 then bound to the payment of interest 
 which he could not begin to pay at all ; 
 and, in liact, no man in the country 
 stood in a more embarrassed condition 
 than Mr. A. B. Foster at the time when 
 the contract was given him. The fol- 
 lowing telegram, from a daily paper 
 publishad a few days since, says : 
 
 "The finftncial storm which has orertaken 
 Hon. A. B. Foster, the railway contrnictor, is 
 due to the following causes : — In 1871 he bought 
 the rights of Mr. Bolckow in the Brockville and 
 Ottawa and Canada Central Railways, on the 
 understanding that he was to pay a certain 
 SMia for them in ten vears, and to commence 
 paying instalments of the purchase price at 
 the end oi^five years." 
 
 I stated it was no secret that he waa 
 etmggling with difficulties with this 
 gigantic load of debt around his neck, 
 at the very moment when the contract 
 was given him. It further says : 
 
 " The price was large, and in addition h-) 
 bought from Mr. Bolckow a million and a 
 quarter dollars' worth of iron rails, which he 
 never paid for. The price of the interest in the 
 railways and rails was over two million dollars. 
 He has paid some small amount of interest on 
 the railway purchaseSj but nothing on the rails. 
 The railway companies hare a^o instituted 
 several suits against Mr. Foster in Ontario, and 
 proceedings have been taken to foreclose on the 
 bonds held by Mr. Bolckow. Several bills of 
 defendant's now running have not yet been 
 fued on. Messrs. O'Halloran, Q.O., and Edward 
 Carter, Q.O., counsel for Mr. Foster, are con- 
 testine the writ of attachment on the (rround 
 that tne affidavit is irregular and insufficient, 
 And also upon the merits charging that the 
 Brockville and Ottawa Railway Company, 
 plaintiffs, have no claims whatever against Mr. 
 Foster. The contestation was presented at 
 flweetsbnry to-day." 
 
 Now, 1 8ay,Sir,that the Fi rst Mmister 
 is called upon to justify himself to this 
 House, and say wiiy he let this contract 
 in the face of the law, and conti-ary to 
 law, ignoring all its provisions, and 
 treating Parliament as if thev were his 
 creatures instead of being what Parlia- 
 ment always ought to be, the m&sters 
 x>f the Government of the day. Par- 
 liament always should hold the posi- 
 tion -^f I'equiring the Gk)verament to 
 fulfil the law, or vacate the position 
 that such non-fulfilment shows that 
 
 they a ^ not worthy to fill ; and I say 
 that tL hon. gentleman has to justify 
 himself to this House, under these 
 circumstances, for making this enor 
 mous contract with Mr. Fostei-, and 
 making a contract to build a line of 
 railway which they did not know the 
 length of within 20 miles at the time ; 
 and upon which no survey had been 
 made, and concerning which no esti- 
 mate had been prepared. The hon. 
 gentleman violated the law if he has 
 built this work under the Public 
 Works' Act. What does this Act 
 say ? It declares that : 
 
 '* It shall be the dnty of the Chief Engineer 
 to prepare maps, plans and estimates for all 
 public works, which are about to be constructed 
 or repaired by the Department." 
 
 And yet. Sir, without a plan, without 
 an estimate, without anything what- 
 ever, without even a recommendation 
 from the Chief Engineer, this work is 
 entered upon ; and that without a sui'- 
 vey, without the slightfst means being 
 taken to ascertain what ought to be 
 done with reference to a work which 
 was considered of such vital import- 
 ance that it must be rushed through 
 without Parliament having permission 
 to pass on the contract at all. It was 
 thus undertaken, and a binding con- 
 tract made by the Government. Well, 
 Sir, that law also was violated; and 
 where are we to-day? Why, to-day 
 we are told that $41,000 of public 
 money have, been paid. Why paid ? 
 How paid ? Upon a certificate of the 
 Chief Engineer r The hon . gentleman 
 has never received such a certificate. 
 The Chief Engineer of the Canadian 
 Pacific Railway never signed a cer- 
 tificate for a dollar of this $41,000; 
 and. Sir, it was not only paid without 
 such a certificate, but also without 
 proper vouchers. Read the document 
 brought down in relation to this 
 matter! Let the attention of this 
 Ho^se be di'awn for-^a moment to the 
 paper — the extraordinaiy paper laid 
 on« the table of the House in connec- 
 tion with this most extraoi-dinary con- 
 tract, and what will it show ? Why, 
 Sir, it will show that we have $41,000 
 paid on the Georgian Buy contract. 
 It will show, Sir, that we have the 
 contract cancelled ; and, Sir, this most 
 oxtraordirary document will show iJie 
 mod( in which the public work is 
 
tl 
 
 and I say 
 to justify 
 Inder these 
 this enor 
 [Poster, and 
 a line of 
 know the 
 the time ; 
 had heen 
 ph no esti- 
 Tho hon. 
 if he has 
 Ithe Public 
 Is this Act 
 
 iiief Envinaer 
 itea for all 
 • constructed 
 
 an, without 
 ling what- 
 imeudation 
 lis work is 
 thout a sui'- 
 leans being 
 ught to be 
 vork which 
 tal import- 
 ed through 
 permission 
 ill. It was 
 :nding con- 
 ent. Well, 
 dated; and 
 ^hy, to-day 
 of public 
 SVhy paid? 
 icate of the 
 gentleman 
 certificate. 
 i Canadian 
 ned a cer- 
 s $41,000; 
 id without 
 io without 
 document 
 I to this 
 n of this 
 [lent to the 
 paper laid 
 in connec- 
 linary con- 
 IV? Why, 
 /e $41,d00 
 contract, 
 hare the 
 , this most 
 i show the 
 work is 
 
 
 carried on. I think that this document 
 will hold a very remarkable position. 
 On November 2'7th . Mr. Foster says : 
 
 '• We will have the profile of the Canada Cen- 
 tral Railway In readiness to submit to the De- 
 partment in the course of three or four weeks, 
 and the remainder to French River in about 
 two months." 
 
 On the 20th December he asks for 
 important modifications. On December 
 23rd Ml". Fleming advises an extension 
 o£ time for one year, and that the sub- 
 stitution of 26 miles of navigation 
 woukl be I'eaBonable. On the 8th of 
 February Mr. Foster asys, that his 
 total outlay amounted to $63,000. On 
 the 9th of Febnxary, Mr. Fleming 
 says : 
 
 " That the proportion payable on an expen- 
 diture of $38,864 would be $9,716, less IB per 
 per cent, to be retained undor the 9th section 
 of the contract." 
 
 One would suppose that the Govern- 
 ment would reypoct a declaration of 
 that kind from the Chief Engineer, 
 but it appears that this was not the 
 case. It seems that the hon. Minister 
 of Public Works, as I stated before, 
 delights in showing Parliament that he 
 recognizes no authority here or any- 
 where else, and that anything con- 
 tained in the Statute-book, or any 
 respect for Parliament is not worth a 
 moment's consideration. On the 28th 
 February a Minute of Council was 
 passed on tha recommendation df the 
 Mini.^ter of Public Works, advising 
 that this contract be cancelled, and 
 that the $83,000 which the law required 
 should be deposited as a security for 
 the fulfillment of the contract, should 
 be returned. This deposit belonged to 
 the people of Canada, and it ought not 
 to have been retm*ned, without the 
 sanction of Parliament, to Mr. Foster, 
 That Minute of Council said that : — 
 
 " The amount claimed by Mr. Foster to the 
 iBt instant is ^'38,862.28, $20,000 of which may 
 be safely paid." 
 
 On the 28th of April, Mi-. Fleming 
 says : 
 
 "I find by the accounta furnished by Mr. 
 Foster, that there are only reoaipta for about 
 $30,000. Accordingly, I would advise that be 
 be called apon to famish complete vouchers, 
 •od that the whole be placed in the Audit 
 Dtpwtment for examination." 
 
 I think that this was a very reasonable 
 And very praoticul suggestion, and in 
 this the House will quite agree with me. 
 
 But instead of that being done, instead 
 of the (Suggestion of the Chief Engineer 
 being carried out — although the First 
 Minister is so ready to tall back on 
 that gentleman to support himself 
 whenever he can do so — it appears it 
 was treated with contempt, and the 
 answer is an Oi-der in Council dat«d 
 the 6th May, recommending the pay- 
 ment of $36,838.15, and that the 
 balance on the $50,096, the total sum 
 claimed, be paid on the production of 
 vouchers, and. this was done, although 
 Mr. Fleming had shown that only 
 $9,716, lest 15 per cent., could be paid 
 under the contract. 
 
 Ml- MACKENZIE: When did Mr. 
 Fleming say that? Mr. Fleming said 
 in his letter dated February 9th : 
 
 "The proportion, therefore, payable on an 
 expenditure of $38,864.28 would be $9,716.07 
 less 16 per cent, to be retained under the 9th 
 section of the contract." 
 
 The difficulty of readily finding these 
 three statements is, that the return is 
 put together in the most extraordinary 
 manner : one half is backwards, and 
 the other half, I was going to say, is 
 upside down. In the Order of Council^ 
 of the 28th of April, Mr. Fleming says | 
 
 "I find, of the t /: counts furnished by Mr. 
 Foster, there are only rtceipts for about t20,000. 
 Accordingly I would advise that he be called 
 upon to furnish complet<» vouchors, and that the 
 whole be placed in the Audit Department for 
 examination." 
 
 On the 6th of May, a few days after- 
 wards, without any such audit, the 
 Minister of Public Woiks recommends 
 that $36,838.15 be paid, deducting the 
 sum of $20,000 already paid. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : That is not the 
 balance of $50,000. 
 
 Mr. TUPPER : He further recom- 
 mends that he be authorized to pay 
 the remaining accounts to an extent 
 not exceeding in the whole the said 
 sum of " $50,966.27, as soon as such 
 vouchers are presented as shall be 
 satisfactory." 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : Does the hon. 
 gentleman call th>it a balance? 
 
 Mr. TUPPER : I said the balance on 
 $60,000— that a*, the balance remaining 
 on $60,000. The hon. gentleman mie- 
 anderstood me. 
 
 Mr. MAGKHNZiB : I did not ini»- 
 nnderstand the hon. gentleman. He 
 

 92 
 
 BAid there wan a lalanoe of 960,000, 
 and when I called for him to show 
 where that balance was Htated he 
 looked for it bat could notfip'1 it. Now 
 he makes out that he did t mean 
 that. The amount referred to is made 
 up of the following items : — Buildings, 
 Ac., at mouth or French River, 
 $9,494.^3; survey, 31,838.15; head 
 office expenses and fees to consulting 
 engineer, $5,000; contingent expenses 
 at ten per cent., 94,633 ; total, 
 $50,966.27. So that instead of there 
 being a balance of $50,000, that is the 
 sum total of the claim of Mr. Foster, 
 and which the Ministers recommended 
 should be paid as soon as such vouchers 
 were presented as were satisfactory, 
 first as to the character and usefulness 
 of the work at French River; and, 
 secondly, the actual payment of the 
 i everal sums for purposes defined in 
 the Order in Council of February the 
 5th, 1876. - 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: If the hon. gentle- 
 man understood me to say there was a 
 balance of $50,000, after the $36,838 
 were paid, he misunderstood me. I 
 meant that the value, $50,966, was the 
 .whole amount claimed by Mr. Foster. 
 *I do not want to detain the House 
 while I read the whole amended Order 
 in Council, I said that Mr. Fleming 
 stated that he could only find receipts 
 for $20,000; and that Mr. Fleming 
 advised that Mr. Foster be called upon 
 to furnish complete vouchers, and that 
 the whole be placed in the Audit De- 
 partment for examinatio'i ; but, instead 
 of that, as far as any evidence given to 
 the House shows, no such audit took 
 place. The hon. the Minister of Public 
 Works recommended that $36,838.15 
 be paid, and also that the balance on 
 $50,966.27 bo paid on production of 
 vouchers. I trust I have made myself 
 clear to the hon . gentleman. It does 
 not require the slightest exaggeration 
 in order to make the case sufficiently 
 strong, as I think I have convinced, 
 the hon. gentleman. "We come now to 
 the case of the Canada Central Rail- 
 way. I have shown to the House the 
 mode in which Mr. Foster is dealt 
 with. That a contract is made with 
 him without his showing that he had 
 sufficient capital to carry it out ; that 
 lie entered upon the work; and that 
 he got a certain amount for that work. 
 
 And if the House wants to know more 
 as to the charai;cer of thai work, it can 
 refer to Mr. Ridout, who had been ap- 
 pointed by the Government in charge 
 of that work, and who, a short time 
 before these payments were made, 
 gave a most remarkable history 
 ofthemodein which the work was 
 
 Eroceeded with. On the 22nd of Nov., 
 [r. Ridout, who had been sent to 
 examine the work, says that Mr. Fos- 
 ter's engineer, Mr. Harris, was unable 
 afford him any positive information of 
 the result of their surveys so far as 
 made, having only in his office a few 
 rough pieces of profiles and mups of 
 portions of the early surveys in a very 
 unfinished state, no proper profiles or 
 map having as yet been made. If the 
 House will turn to the Journals for 
 1875, they will find tho terms on which 
 the Government was authorized by 
 this House to make a conti-act in rela- 
 tion to the Canada Central. What 
 were they ? — 
 
 " That the Compauj shall, within oue month 
 from the ratification of thia Order in Council, 
 bj the House of Oommons, satisfy the Minister 
 of Public Works that they have entered into a 
 bona fide contract or contracts for the building 
 of the railway, and have provided sufiBcient 
 means, with the Government bonus, to secure 
 the completion of the line on or before the Ist 
 day of January, 1877, and also that the com- 
 pany shall, from the data of such contracts, 
 make continuously such progress as will justify 
 the hope of the completion of the line within 
 the time mentioned.^' 
 
 Now, there is the basis on which the 
 Government alone could make a con- 
 tract, and the terms upon which alone 
 they could make any payment. In the 
 first instance I want to know with 
 whom they made the contract? 
 They are obliged by law, they are 
 corapollod by the action of the House 
 to ascertain that this Company have 
 sufficient means with that bonus to 
 complete the work by the 1st January, 
 1877, and they are only permitted by 
 their Order in Council to make a con- 
 tract with parties who proved beyond 
 peradventure they had tha means. 
 Whom did they make it with ? They 
 made it with Mr. A. B. Foster, not 
 content with giving the contract for 
 the Georgian Bay Branch, in which 
 they were required by law to itfty© 
 
 ?roof that he had a capital of $340^6()0. 
 'hey gave another contract for the 
 Canada Central to the same man wiin- 
 
lottttho elightost ovid:'"'3 that ho poB- 
 sessed a single dollar, or had the moans 
 
 I of doing anything whatever. It is then 
 apparent that this contract was made 
 in the teeth of the Order in Council 
 with a party that the Oxderin Council 
 excludes from making such contract 
 at all, limiting, as it does, the payment 
 
 I to a person who had made the contract 
 and was not making such continuous 
 pi'ogresB as would complete itwithin the 
 time. Yet $68,000 of the public money 
 
 iof the country has been paid over 
 
 I to this Mr. A. B. Foster, in viola- 
 tion of the express terms of the act of 
 this House, and without the evidence 
 
 Uhat he was doing anything at nil 
 except those imperfect surveys, which 
 
 \ are treated with much contempt by the 
 
 'Government Engineer who was sent 
 up to SCO what he Avas doing and on, 
 
 ' WTiat pretext ho was claiming to be 
 paid. J Ic was paid all the money ho 
 professed to have expended on his sur- 
 veys, and that without vouchers or 
 audit; without the authority of law, 
 and in opposition to express terms of 
 his contract, then he was paid $68,000 
 on the pretext that he had deposited a 
 lot of iron rails somewhere. The line 
 is not located, the surveys have not 
 been finished according to Mr. Plem- 
 ng's statement and Mr. Eidout's 
 statement. No one knows where the 
 line is to begin, whether twenty miles 
 from Eenfrew or not, because the esti- 
 mated eighty-five miles from Burnt 
 Lake to the Georgian Bay, turned out 
 to be 105 miles; so that from the 
 vicinity of Douglas t« Burnt Lake it 
 would not, improbably, be 140 miles if 
 the snme in accurate estimate was made, 
 So they do not know if these rails, 
 iiwhat few are left of them, are now 
 I within twenty miles of whore the line 
 was to cotttmence. These iron rails 
 were shown to be of the most worthless 
 |character, but they were valued by 
 iMr. Foster, during the past season, at 
 |$48 a ton and ho was paid $68,000 on 
 |them at that rate. That is not the 
 Iworst, it will probably turn out that 
 ithese rails are owned by parties 
 in England, but if they are of 
 |no more value than we have 
 freason to suppose, it is of very 
 I little ccmsoquence what became of 
 them. It is said that what were used 
 for ballasting were worn out, they 
 
 3 
 
 were so utterly W(n'thie*js. After itv, 
 Foster is paid $68,000 in violation of 
 the law, in violation of the Order 
 in Council, which required him to be 
 going on continuously with the work 
 and showing that he could com- 
 plete this contract, he coolly asked 
 the loan of 100 tons of those rails; 
 and this good-natnred Government, 
 this Government which seems to bo 
 owned by Mr. Fostei-, say very well, 
 but you must deposit some security, so 
 he deposited somo South Eastern Bail- 
 way bonds; and when we asked the 
 First Minister, who had no more auth- 
 ority to take and lend that 100 tons of 
 rails than to lend money out of the 
 Treasury, after paying more than twice 
 as much as they were worth, what so- 
 ctirity did you get? — ho says South 
 Eastern Kai I way oonds. We asked if he 
 knew whether they are worth any- 
 thing ; No ! he says he is unable to say 
 that they can be sold at all, and I be- 
 lieve for the best reason, that thoy 
 have, as far as I can ascertain, no 
 marketable value. Then, Sir, when 
 gentlemen in opposition, pationt and 
 enduring as we are, ready to pass over 
 almost anything that is not of such a 
 grave nature as to compel us to do our 
 duty to the country, Avhen we call 
 attention to it, and it is a matter of in- 
 vestigation what turns out to be the 
 fact ? Why that instead of 100 tons 
 being gone, there arc 227 tons 
 gone, and without any authority, 
 without any securitj'', without any 
 pretence, without even the form- 
 ality of asking for the last 127 tons. 
 I do the Government the justice to 
 say that I believe thoy wore ignorant 
 of the fact ; that this property which 
 hiid been paid for, that this property 
 which belonged to the country 
 was being used by Mr. Foster as if 
 it was his own private jji-operty. That 
 is the condition of things on which 1 
 think w<- are justilied in asking the 
 House to say it cannot agree to endorse 
 the policy of the Government, or the 
 mode in which the Canadian Pacific 
 Kailway has been carried out. I must 
 say something about a most remarkable 
 transaction, that is, a report brought 
 down, I believe, to the Senate — at all 
 events, it is a public document — show- 
 ing Avhat is going on at the 
 interesting section oftho country called 
 
84 
 
 4- 
 
 "Thundci Bny." I bfiid boforo, tliat I 
 would 'aiot'uily guard niysolf ngainst 
 iifling u word or throwing out inKinua- 
 tions which might bo conytruod into a 
 personal awiult or anything outhido of 
 tho ncccHnnry criticism of this work as 
 a public trar taction. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE: Do not spare 
 youi'solf. 
 
 Mr. TUPPEE: I wish 1 could bo 
 ppared, I boliovo tho Minister of Public 
 Worb;— unlike mo— is incapable of ap- 
 preciating tho pain it gives me to bo 
 compelled to criticise the conduct of 
 any public man as my duty obliges mo 
 to criticise his. If ho knew the 
 ])loaKure it gave me to t^ay, as I did 
 
 two years ago, 
 
 that I believed there 
 
 was no man in this country better able 
 to fill tho office of Minister of Public 
 Works than himself, he would appre- 
 ciate the pain with which I am now 
 forced to admit that I was no prophet, 
 and that the administration of his 
 department has obliged mo to recon- 
 sider that compliment which I was so 
 happy to bo able to bestow, in this 
 House, upon the hon. gentleman. But 
 Sir, I have shown that this railway 
 lino was taken down there, and this 
 branch commenced without the 
 authority of Parliament. There is no 
 law for the construction of the Thunder 
 Bay branch. We have been told that 
 this is an economical Government. 
 Well, we have had a specimen of their 
 economy in this connection. But when 
 I tell the House that the Eeturn brought 
 down shows that over $51,000 have 
 been paid for about a mile of right of 
 way it Kaministiqwio, that wild and 
 unsoti/led country, they can form some 
 conception of how the Government 
 are exr'^nding the public money. Here 
 is a country which Jias been described 
 — and I need not describe again — by 
 the hon the Minister of Pinant . as a 
 road runnini; through an unpeopled 
 deport, and which §51,000 would 
 almost have bought the fee simple of a 
 few years ago. No doubt the value of 
 property has risen from the fact of the 
 Government locating tho i-oad there, 
 but it is an important question for dis- 
 cussion, why it should have gono to 
 th.at point instead of to Prince Arthur's 
 Landing, or why it should have gone 
 to a place which lengthens tho road. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : It shortens the I 
 I'oad. 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: Any pei-son looking 
 at tho map distributed to the Ilnu.se, 
 will find that tho ono lino is curved, 
 and tlie other almost direct. But 1 
 believe I am right in saying that private 
 enterprise is building a line to Princo 
 Arthur's Landing, and that tho Gov- 
 ernment of Ontario have subsidized the 
 line to the extent of 02,000 per mile 
 to make this connection. 1 believe 
 that returns brought down to tho 
 House proves that Mr. Ballairgc 
 has shown that there are forty-lhrcc 
 dnj's more of navigation to Prince 
 Arthur's Landing than to the point 
 where the Government .ire mak 
 ing the terminus of the line. 
 I am now quoting from tho report 
 Lioughtdown b}' the Government. Mr. 
 Bnllairge is a gentleman of high attain- 
 ments, a gentleman who has been long 
 in the Public Works Department, and 
 who was sent up specially to examine 
 into this question, and this is hi.s 
 report. It njay be worthy tho con- 
 sideration of the House or it may bo 
 not. • 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE; 
 correct. 
 
 It cannot bo 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: If tho hon. gentle- 
 man says it is not correct he is coiTect- 
 ing his own return submitted on ■" ,o 
 authority of his own Engineer. I o 
 not want to detain the House, and will, 
 therefore, pass over that without tak- 
 ing time to turn over authorities ; but 
 whenever tho accuracy of any state- 
 ment I make is challenged, I think I 
 shall be just as likely to give as deci- 
 sive testimony as I have given now. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : Where is that 
 report ? 
 
 Mr. TUPPER : It is the report re- 
 lating to the 
 
 Port Francis Locks or 
 
 Canal. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE: Perhaps tho 
 hon. gentleman will allow me to cor- 
 rect him, because I do not think ho 
 deliberately intended to mislead tho 
 House. The date the hon. gentleman 
 quoted has no roteronco to the liver 
 or Thunder Bay at all ; it is tho chain 
 of lakes away in tho interior, 200 
 miles from this. 
 
ii 
 
 <» 
 
 t .shortens the 
 
 )oi-son looking 
 to tho Ilon.sc, 
 ino is ciirvcrl, 
 ircct. But 1 
 Jig that private 
 ino to Prince 
 that thoGov- 
 Mibsidize'l the 
 000 jpor milo 
 )n. 1 boh'ovo 
 lovvn to the 
 Ballairge 
 ro forty-three 
 o'l to Prince 
 to tho point 
 It aro niak 
 tho lino, 
 n tho report 
 crnraont. Mi*. 
 )f highattain- 
 has boon long 
 lartmont, and 
 y to oxamino 
 this is his 
 thy tho Con- 
 or it may bo 
 
 It cannot bo 
 
 hon. gentlo- 
 he ia correct- 
 litted on -".o 
 gineer. I o 
 >use, and will, 
 without tak- 
 horities; but 
 3f any stato- 
 id, I think I 
 givo as doci- 
 fivon now. 
 
 boro is that 
 
 report ro- 
 !i8 Looks or 
 
 *orhaps tho 
 me to cor- 
 
 lot think ho 
 
 mislead the 
 gentleman 
 
 to tho I'ivor 
 
 is the chain 
 
 torior, 200 m 
 
 Mr. T UPPER : I will show the 
 
 bnso that if any person is to blamoit 
 
 tlio ono who muuo tho report. Tho 
 
 u. gentleman calls Kamiuistiipiia tho 
 
 irosont terminus of the Canadian 
 
 ^aeitic Railway, and I assumed, us this 
 
 turn says : " River Kaministiquia, 
 
 present terminus of tho Canadian 
 
 acific Railway," and puts tho words : 
 
 opening 25th May, and closing 20lh 
 
 ctobor opposite," that it applied to 
 
 Cana<.lian Pacific Railway. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : The figures are 
 ot oppusitu. 
 
 Mr. TQPPER : Tho hon. gentleman 
 ill seo if I am inaccurate in the stato- 
 ent that inaccuracy has followed tho 
 xtraordinary way in which this re- 
 urn has doscribod tho torminrfs. Mr. 
 allairgo has put down navigation as 
 pening on tho 25th May and closing 
 n tho 2C)t\\ October. Ho may not have 
 oant that, but it is certainly calcula- 
 d to givo that impression, and I am 
 lad the hon. gentleman has cullo I 
 y attention to it. 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE : The return will 
 lOt read that way at all. 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: I road it in 
 way, and I am glad if there is 
 ^©rror, that tho hon. gentleman 
 ^rawn attention to it because I 
 ||w8ure him I am most anxious to avoid 
 ^ho slightest error of statement in 
 j^riticizing these matters. But at all 
 ''|jvent8,there is a considerable difference 
 Jfbetwoen the opening and closing of 
 r^avigation ot the two points. 
 J; Mr. MACKENZIE : No. 
 
 I Mr. TUPPER: Why, evon the hon. 
 
 Jgontleman's own correction admits 
 
 "*«consido:"iblo difi'oronce, and when wo 
 
 take into consideration. Sir, tho fact, 
 
 ^Wo aro building 400 milos of railway 
 
 i'ora Thunder Say to tho Rod Riv^r, 
 
 nd that wo aro going to this enormous 
 
 oxponditiiro of public money for tho 
 
 ' ivconstruction of a road that is to bo 
 
 Ipracticall)' u-ioloss f )r something liko 
 
 "%t least six months in tho year, ildoes 
 
 "become important, Sir, ovon to tho 
 
 __^xtent of "a fow days as to the opening 
 
 of navigation; but '^'v, I did not pro- 
 
 Cose to discuss wht 3r an error had 
 eon made or not in the selection of 
 one point or tho other; but I want* to 
 jtiraw the attention of tho House 
 
 that 
 any 
 has 
 can 
 
 to 
 for 
 
 this p)int, tho amount paid 
 tho right of wa^ at Kaminis- 
 tiquia. Now, Sir, it IS perfectly ob- 
 vious that tho location of a railway 
 enormously increases the value of land ; 
 but I deny that speculators — and those 
 people aro declared to bo speculators ; 
 it is so staled in this document which 
 has boon brought down by tho Gov- 
 ernment — antl persons who have gone 
 in to purchase land on speculation at a 
 mere nominal figure, have a right to 
 bo paid by tho Government the in- 
 creased value of tI)oir land owini; to 
 tho location of tho railway there. 
 When the Intercolonial Railway was 
 located, the principle observed by the 
 Government and by the Commissioners 
 in tho payment for right of way, was 
 the rational principle of paying tho 
 amount that the land would have been 
 worth if tho railroad had not boon 
 located there, because it is perfectly 
 obvious that this was all tho parties 
 owning it wore ontitlod to. 
 
 Mr. BOWELL : That is all the Act 
 allowed. 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: Yes; that is all 
 tho Act allowed ; and all it ought to 
 allow, bocauso it is perfectly apparent 
 that the Government would pay, other- 
 wise, twice the increased value of the 
 land and that whon the parties are in 
 most instances only too glad to give 
 the right of way. It is true that this 
 appears on the papers to have been a 
 town, butrit was a town without any 
 houses. I believe that after they made 
 up their minds to sell to the Govorn- 
 mont, a rough shanty was oroctod on 
 it to give it additional value, but all tho 
 streets and ovorything ol.so about it 
 existed on!}' on paper and in tho im- 
 agination of tho-io wise a^d wn- 
 deat speculators who managed to 
 pocket tho people's money without 
 giving any equivalent considoration for 
 it. Now, Sir, what do you suppose 
 was paid by the Intercolonial Railroad 
 Commissioners for tho right of way on 
 .'500 milo.-i, in round numbers, of tho 
 lino of tho Intercolonial Railway? 
 and this was not through a wild and 
 unsettled country liko Kaministiquia, 
 but it ran in many places through the 
 finest, the most arable and the most 
 valual)lo land to bo found in tho Pro- 
 vinces of Nova Scotia and Now 
 
89 
 
 Brunswick and (iuoboc— only about 
 $278,000; juul.Sir, I may Koy tliutoi^'lity 
 miles of riglit of way, with station 
 groundH, gravel jnis and cvcrytliing 
 (iovcrnmcnt required in connection 
 Willi tlio conatruction of tho road, 
 through Nova Scotia in tho Kplcndid 
 counties of Cumberland and Colchester, 
 through tho town of Truro, and 
 through tho village of Amherst, 
 including damages to buildings and 
 for bnildingH, and for everything else, 
 cost only about $3,000 more than for 
 this mile of right of way at Kam 
 inistiquia. What will tho House siiy 
 when I toll them that^ according to 
 the rate uaid for tho roadway at 
 Thunder Bay, tho Government havo 
 paid at tho rate of nearly 
 three millions of money more than for 
 tho whole cost of constructing tho 
 Intercolonial Railway with all the ap- 
 purtenances, and with all tho rolling 
 stock, and with everything cL-o on it ; 
 and thatjin fact, these 500 mi Ion, accord- 
 ing to tho rale paid at Thunder Bay, 
 would havo cost instead of 8272,420, 
 which was the entire cost of 500 miles 
 through Nova JScotia and Now Bruns- 
 wick, and Quebec, 825,70i),50n for 
 the right of way alone; such would 
 have been the cost, had the owners of 
 land on tho Intercolonial been paid at 
 tho same rate as these speculators at 
 Kaministiquia, who have thus been per- 
 mitted to pocket tho people's money, 
 Sir, I only need to draw tho attention of 
 the House to these figures to show that 
 the most wasteful extravagance in tho 
 use of the public money has been ex- 
 hibited by the Government in relation 
 to that matter. 
 
 An hon. GENTLEMAN : Who got 
 it? ^ 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: An hon. gentleman 
 asks mo who got it; but to answer 
 that would take me to another branch 
 of tho subject, which, as I stated at the 
 outset, I wanted to avoid; I must, 
 therefore, decline to say anything with 
 reference to that enquiry. But, Sir, 
 I now come to another matter in con- 
 nection with this work, and that is— 
 the Fort Francis Locke, I will not re- 
 fer to it at length, and I will not 
 occupy much of tho time of the House 
 with It, because it has been laid before' 
 the House previously ; but I must say 
 tjjis, Sli", that the policy of the Govern- 
 
 ment was stated in vei^ distinct terms 
 in 1876 by the Minister of Public 
 Works, and it was this : — 
 
 " In addition, therefore, to the railway lur- 
 veyi from Lake Hhebandowan to Lal(c Superior, 
 a distance of 4n viiles, and from Ued Hirer to 
 Rat Portage, a distance of 114 miltis, we hare 
 felt it doBiraoi) to mnke correct surveys, during 
 the season, if tho intervening distance. Tho 
 entire distance from Red River to Lake Superior 
 is, in round numbert., 4J0 miles by the Dawson 
 route, of this we havo surveyed and asked for 
 tenders for 156 or 160 miles. This leaves a dis- 
 tance between the two points of 270 miles, of 
 that distance we will be able, by constructing 
 two cheap wooden locks at Port Francis, tu 
 obtain from Rat Portage uninterrupted steam 
 navigation for a distance of nearly '200 miles to 
 Sturgeon Falls at the east end of Rainy Lake." 
 
 Ho further says : 
 
 "We hope within two years, or two and a 
 half at the outside, that wo will have a railway 
 finished at the eastern and western ends, and, 
 with these and the locks at Fort Francis, wt< 
 expect that the distazc°> altogether may be 
 traversed in four or live days at tho outside, 
 that now takes on the average from nine to 
 twelve days " 
 
 That was tho policy of tho Govern- 
 ment as avowed in 1875 ; and I may 
 state that tho policy announced in 
 tho speech of the hon. genlleniun in 
 submitting tho Railway Act of 1874, 
 was tho immediate construction of a 
 through line of railway iiom Lake 
 Superior to Red Rivjr. In 1876, a 
 year aftorwai-ds, that policy was aban- 
 doned, and it was proposed to substi- 
 tute for it a mixed route of land and 
 water — 270 milos of navigation with a 
 short lino of railwuy at oach end. 
 The attention of the hon. Minister was 
 drawn in forcible terms, from this side 
 of the Hout. . , to the fact that as on tho 
 
 United 
 
 Oi. 
 
 side there was a lino 
 
 from Dulu i ' to Rod River, i t was utterly 
 impossible to suppose that we could 
 con lete by 150 miles of Railway at 
 the wo ends of the route, and half a 
 dozen or eight portages to cro8s,and 270 
 miles of navigation ; and that all tho 
 money expended on it would bo thrown 
 away. The hon.gontleman then revised 
 his policy and again changed it, under- 
 taking to construct a through lino of rail- 
 way from Thunder Bay direct to Red 
 River. When, Sir, that was done, it 
 was assumed that this oxpondituro, 
 which would have been thrown away 
 in any case, and utterly useless, if a 
 direct line of railway was made, would 
 beaabandoned, and that no further ex- 
 penditure of money should take place 
 on it. It appears, however, that, whil9 
 
8V 
 
 undortaking to constnict oh rn])idly 
 at> the location of a Ihrou^l' lino «>f 
 railway would permit, n I'lrough 
 railway, tho Govornniont luu-o at 
 the Hamo time oxpondod over 8100,000 
 of public money, not on any portion of 
 tho Caniwlian Pacillc Railway, liiit on 
 thcBO loclcH at Fort Krancin, and in that 
 direction. Now, Sir, I have said that 
 thitt report, in reference to Mr. Foster, 
 WBM a mB»*vellou8 report, hut it is in 
 ftict rat f thrown into tho nhado, if 
 anythh,^, by the Port FranciH Ijocka 
 report. What do we find? We find 
 that, although the Public Works' Act 
 BayH, that the Government must have 
 the apecifications of (he en;;inecr in all 
 works constructed by that J)epartmonl, 
 they had no specitications, and that a 
 Mr. Sutherland — who he is I know 
 not— of Orillia, is called in hot haste 
 to go and take charge of the work, and 
 actually commence excavations with- 
 out un estimate, without a plan, with- 
 out engineering, cr anything else. A 
 more astounding porics of statements, 
 except for gentlemen who are conver- 
 sant with these papers, which have 
 recently been brought down, could 
 Bcorcoly be presented to the House, 
 than these papoi-s which are before us 
 at present. Why, Sir, they show that 
 there were no tei.ders. The law says 
 that the Government must have ten- 
 ders. The "ote is for the Canadian 
 Pacific Bailway. Every dollar expen- 
 ded is expended under that Act, or 
 under no Act at all. If they have ex- 
 pended it under tho Canadian Pacific 
 Kaihtray Act, then, as my right hon. 
 friend has stated, tlioy are acting con- 
 trary to law, for they did it without 
 tender ; and it' it was expended under 
 the Public Works Act, then it was 
 contrary to law, because they have no 
 vote for it and no authority. Sir, it 
 will be seen b/ iho Public Works Act 
 that, in that crsc, they would bo violat- 
 ing the Act. It says : 
 
 " Nothing ill thia Act shall give authority 
 to the Minister to cause expenditure not pre- 
 viously sanctioned by Parliament, except for 
 such repairs aqd alterations ns the interest 
 of the public service shall require." 
 
 Sir, in that cafe, whether it 
 was 0xpended under tho Pacific 
 Railway Act, or under the Public 
 .Works' Act, the Government can- 
 not proceed without estimates, with- 
 out p'ans, and \yjtl|otit surveys by the 
 
 Engineer; nnd yet 3*ou find tliat yoil 
 have, as in the other return, to read 
 this book backwards, and that wlion 
 you have got to the end of the cha|)ter, 
 after the n)onoy has been ppent, you get 
 an estimate, and that after the (iov-, 
 ernmont has expended over $100,000, 
 they find that it is desirable to liavo' 
 an estimate, and send a gentleman* 
 up there to furni^ill them with one. On 
 the 11th May, 1875, Mr. Broun writes 
 to Mr. Sutherland that : 
 
 "Pending the arrival from Ottawa of sucU 
 instructions, you will proceed with the excava- 
 tions first of the whole of tlio earth-work, and 
 afterwards of such portions of the work as 
 nius'. necessarily be taken out." 
 
 On July 2-lth Mr. Sutherland is 
 informed: 
 
 " Full instructions have been sunt to Mr. 
 lliizlewood to proceed to Fo't Francis and 
 prepare afull and complete design for the whole 
 work." 
 
 On tho 2nd August following, Mr. 
 Ilazlewood wrote to Mr. Uraun : 
 
 " Dkau Siu, — Your communications, Nos. 
 31, '.'03 and 31.204, with 'snciojurea, are to hand. 
 I shall give the canal question at Fort Francis 
 my best attention. I have brought .Mr. .Morti- 
 mer down to work unon the plans, and as soon 
 as they are ready I shal not lose a moment in 
 forwarding them to Ottawa. In the meantiino 
 I may state that I approve of the location 
 selected by Mr. Mortimer for the canal at Fort 
 Francis." 
 
 Mr. MACKENZIE: On the lUh 
 May Mr. Braun had written lo Mr. 
 Sutherland : 
 
 " On reaching Fort Francis yon will see Mr. 
 Mortimer, resident engineer, who will be at 
 once instructed to take Boundings with a view 
 to determine the exact points at which it would 
 be most desirable to construct the canal lock9 
 ut each, and you will then as speedily as pos- 
 sible ascertain the nature of the rock and tho 
 depth of various points, so that Mr. Mortimer 
 can make a section." 
 
 And on the 6th July — a month 
 before the hon. gentleman said he had 
 been instructed to go there —wrote : 
 
 " Accordinjr to instructions received, from 
 Mr. Hazlewood, I have made th-* necessary 
 profile, and have la>d out the ground for tho 
 locks on Itainy River at this place." 
 
 Ml-. MACKENZIE: Now, does tho 
 hon. gentleman mean to mix up these 
 dates with tho view of misleading tho 
 House ? 
 
 Mr. TUPPER: I will now read from 
 tho document brought down by tho 
 hon. tho First Minister himself. The 
 first thing to be noticed is the extra- 
 ordinary statement that ; 
 
S8 
 
 " In tho return prepared f'Qr the House ia the 
 matter of the Fort Fruncis Locka, there it 
 wahtinfclhereportof Mr. S. Haclcwood, giving 
 All estininto uf the cost of the works. The report 
 is mishiid, hut Mr. Hazlewood has been written 
 to for ft copy of it." 
 
 J bcliovo mnongiill tho tlocumonta with 
 ffcl'X'o'ico to at) importivnt public vvoi-k 
 fthat poi-haps is Iho most oxtfaofclinary 
 
 Ktatomont that could bo found. On 
 
 May lllh, a lottor was sont to, Mv. 
 
 St'thorlund, si^iiod bj' Mr. Braun, 
 
 sttUing: 
 
 " When yon reach Fort William you will soo 
 Mi-. WuUerOlivfcf, and, if he 1 3 finished the 
 work entrusted to him, ho will company you 
 to assist in takiag cbarao ut .be men. Mr. 
 James Macdonald and Mr. Oliver will act as 
 fi.rcniou under you, cither in the woods or at 
 the wo.'ks, as you may deem desirable." 
 
 An HON. MEM BEE : What Mi-. 
 Oliver is that? 
 
 Mr, TUPPER I don't know. This 
 lort F( aiK'is Look appears to iiavo boon 
 a happy pro,-iOiv<' lot- tho iioody friends 
 of Iho (JovoMunciit, wlio could bo ship- 
 ]>od up thero out of tiio roaclj of any 
 o'lo. Did any ono over hoar of a rosi- 
 dont oiigiiioor bo'iig tlio person to 
 prepare plans and to authorize 
 tho construction of a public work ? 
 What does tho'hon. First Minister take 
 tho House for ? Does ho not suppose 
 that we know that a resident engineer 
 is gonorall} a person with— merely 
 sufflciaht knowlodgo of engineering to 
 enable him to caivy out tho instruc- 
 tions of his supoi'ior offlcors. Long 
 months afterwards it was found that 
 Mr. Mortimer's information was all 
 wrong, that ho had not the proper 
 dopth of tho locks or anything con- 
 nected with it; and that was the best 
 ovidonco tliat Mr. Mortimer was not a 
 competent onginoor. On tho 24th 
 July, Mr. Sutherland is wrilton to as 
 follows: 
 
 "These instructions necessarily include the 
 re-c.Kamination of tlie line recommended by 
 yourself and Mr. Mortimer, and should Mr. 
 Huzlcwood conceive it necessary to make any 
 change in tho location, you will defer to his 
 np:niuus, and carry on the work on the ameadod 
 lino bo may trace out, should hu cunoeivo that 
 course to bo necessary." 
 
 Mow, I ask, in the history of Canada, 
 wtis ever a ])ublic work proceodotl 
 ' with in such a manner as that? I do 
 n(>t think thero was. At uU (>vontji it 
 was done in doliborato dofianco of the 
 Public Works' Act, and without any 
 ButUcioDt authority. Everything like 
 
 law and precedent, and everything that 
 savours of Parliamentary Government 
 wore thrown to the wind because the 
 hon. the First Minister decided that 
 tho work should be commenced at once. 
 Every person knew that the engineer 
 in charge should have control and 
 power over tho work. JJut Mr. H&zle- 
 wood Avas written to as follows: — 
 
 " Ae the site where Mr. Sutherland will com- 
 mence his excavation has been recommended 
 by Mr. Morti^ier equally as by himself, there is 
 fair reason to look forward to the line selected 
 by them being approved by yourself." 
 
 I have never heard of such instruc- 
 tions given to an engineer. It was a 
 direct hint to him how to make up his 
 mind. Would it bo supposed that, 
 under such circumstances as those, tho 
 work of excavation should have been 
 ordered by tho hon. the Minister of 
 Public Works on tho llth May ? On 
 tho 18th April, 1876, nearly a year 
 uftorvvards, Mr. Braun wrote to Mr. 
 Sutherland :— 
 
 " Sin,— I am directed to forward you hero- 
 with a copy of plan of lock at Port Francis, 
 prepared by Mr. Pago, .vhiob has been ap- 
 proved of by the Minister. I am to authorize 
 von to resume work on the said lock by dny 
 labour, and to request that you will submit to 
 tho Department an estimate of the probablo 
 monthly expenditure fur the next twelve 
 months." 
 
 This letter was sent, although tho 
 work had boon commenced nearly a 
 year before under the direction of tho 
 Minister of Public Woiks. ' And yet 
 the hon. gentleman would iiminuato 
 that I was aot doing justice to those 
 statements, because I did not road them 
 in detail. Wo at last got something 
 practical. It is the report signed by 
 Mr. Baillairge, who h.td Doon instructed 
 on the 30th August to proceed to Fort 
 Francis. Mr. Baillairge .said in olVoct 
 that all the monoy htul boon thrown 
 away, and that tho work was practical- 
 ly useless unless a groat deal more 
 monoy was spont ui)on it; and showod 
 that tho work had proved an utter 
 delusion. Ho said : — 
 
 "The object for which the Port 'i'rancis 
 Ganal ia being constructed cannot be obtained 
 unless Kainy River is improved so as to ensure 
 ibo requisite draft, and the ascent of vessels 
 against tho current in the rapid." 
 
 Ho goes on to speak of thtJ mode of 
 improvement, and eays: — 
 
 " No definite scheme or estimate can, how- 
 ever, be submitted, unless the necessary levels/ 
 soundings and measurements are taken along 
 'bo entire lino of the proposed nav^gutioq." 
 
 
mmrw^ 
 
 •"wp-'*- 
 
 3» 
 
 It is thus shown that about a year 
 aftor this work was in progress an 
 Engineer of the Public Works Depart- 
 ment was sent up to the locality and 
 found, the Government hftd not taken 
 the fiivt preliminary step required to be 
 taken before the money was expended. 
 But he gave on Ist September, 1876, a 
 very remarkable statement. Ho said : 
 
 " SiBi—Hftving been instructed on the 3rd uU., 
 by the Uon. the Minister of Public Works to 
 examine the Fort Fruncis Canal, now under 
 your charge, and to give such directions as I 
 may deem advisablej I herewith cncloso for 
 your guidance a specification of the work to bo 
 done according to the revised plan with which 
 you have lately been furnished. 
 
 "This plan was prepared from somewhat 
 limited information, and is based on the h'gh 
 and low water levels originally observed by 
 the engineer who first laid out the work ; the 
 low water levels have since been found to be 
 fourteen inches lower at the lower end than 
 represented on the plan. I have, therefore, 
 appended to the specification a list of levels, 
 snowing the elevation of the main portions of 
 ilie work, so as to suit the highest and lowest 
 water levels observed up to the present time." 
 
 So we have, in regard to this work 
 upon which the excavations were coni- 
 menccd on 11th May, ISYS, a ptatement 
 made by Mr. Baillairge on Ist Sept., 
 1871!, that they were mistaken as to 
 the tirat principles and initial steps 
 necessary io the very inception of the 
 work. Mr. Baillairge continues : 
 
 " As it is important to ascertain the extent 
 and Ditture of the obstructions, and tb ~ cost of 
 removing or overcoming the same, you are 
 hereby requested to examine the sections of 
 the channel referred to, and Auch other points 
 as may appear doubtful, during tlie reason of 
 lowest water, ^nd to furnish ine Departmtnt 
 with a report thereon, together witli an esti- 
 mate of the probable cost of improving the 
 channel for tno required draught from Rainy 
 Lake to the Lake of the Woods.'' 
 
 I hope I have satisfied the hon. the 
 Minister of Public Workb, and in read- 
 in^' the text of this romarknble docu- 
 ment, I has'o given the House the best 
 evidence that the work was undertaken 
 without any knowledge of the subject, 
 and after $100,000 were expended an 
 engineer was sent to investigate and 
 report on Ihe work, showing, in the 
 most con<'lusi\-e manner, that the in- 
 formation which the hon. the Minister 
 of Public Works was bound to have 
 obtained before entering upon the 
 undertaking was not fully obtained 
 until one year imd a half after the 
 work was commenced ; and, in fact, 
 u more reckless, illegal, craiustifiablo 
 oxpondituro of public money had never 
 
 been made by any person in this 
 countr}'. In the rejjort of the hon. the 
 Minister of Public Works, on page 2G, 
 what do wo find ? We rind that at this 
 pluce whore Fort Francis Lock is being 
 constructed with seven Icei, of water 
 ou the sills, for forty miles there' is a 
 depth of only four feet and n half; j ot 
 the public money is used without ])lanH, 
 specifications, or authority of the Chief 
 Jiingincer; or without any recommend- 
 ation under which one dollar could bo 
 expended, and the hon. gentleman 
 makes an expenditure /of $100,000, 
 which unless followed up by un expen- 
 diture of half a million more, will not 
 accomplish the object proposed. But 
 supnose the wo)'ks would be completed, 
 what then ? Does any one h^upposo 
 that with a railway from Duhmi to 
 Rod Rivoi', a i>ingle ton of f (eight 
 would be carried by that route ? As 
 regards the ti-ansportation of rails", by 
 this route there would be eight pf>rt- 
 agc^, involving isixteeu times loading 
 and u- loading, putting the mils into 
 waggons and taking them out again ; 
 and tho most insane Mini&lor of 
 Publir Works would not undertake to 
 transjiort one ton of heavy freight of 
 any description by any such line. Yet, 
 the hon gentleman adhered to the 
 policy he hnd presented before he had 
 undertaken to construct a direct line 
 from Thunder B:iy to Red River, and 
 went on with this expenditure. But 
 iho amount was not charged to current 
 expenditure, as, under the late Govern- 
 ment, all expenditures in connection 
 with the Dawson Route were chaigid. 
 I draw the attention of the hon. the 
 Minister of Finance to tho fact that, 
 when he is compa)'ing the exjienditure 
 of 1873-7't and subsequent yca-s, all 
 such expenditures under the late Gov- 
 ornmeiit were charged to current 
 revenue, and not chargablo to capital 
 undo'' this Govfc/i.monl. All thcf^e 
 expenditures are made in connection 
 with the Canadian Pacific Railway, 
 and thus hundreds of thousands of 
 dollars wore expended withotit having 
 any more connection with the 
 ai'lway than if it was spent 
 in Nova Scotia or New Brunswick. 
 I am happy to say that the duly 1 have 
 laid nj)on myself i.s drawing to a elo-c. 
 i think I have given to the House 
 iiuiiiuiout reason in relation to tho 
 
 1 i 
 
 • 'I 
 
■i "imfmi-<^«,^'mnwmrwt^^ 9^i 
 
 m^ ^mtm. 
 
 T 
 
 40 
 
 {wlicy of the (xovorntnoiit, and the 
 mode in which thoy httvo carriod ouL 
 that policy, for ptissing a modorato 
 censure, the moderate censure that 
 1 proj[K)flo— that this House cannot 
 approve of Ihe policy of the Govern- 
 ment. We cannot approve of it, be- 
 cause Ministers have violated their 
 l)rinci plea and their pledges; because 
 ihe men Avho declared to the Canadian 
 public that the railway never would be 
 built by any other mode than by a 
 jirivatc company, aided by a grant of 
 land and money, had, so soon as they 
 obtained power, trampled the principles 
 piopouiidod and the pledges given to 
 the jjcople, under their ieet, and shown 
 that Avhat they meant was that no 
 other Govoinraent should, in this way, 
 handle iho public money, and be able 
 to deal with the public requirements, 
 but themselves. The moment 
 they were entrusted with power, 
 in consequence, 1 supjiose, of their 
 high ])urity and iudependei;''.e of 
 character, they thought it would bo 
 sale to change the whole policy, and 
 to take the work into their own hands, 
 although it would involve an enormous 
 direct expenditure by the Government. 
 I ask the support of the House to the 
 amendment because the Government 
 have v'.lated their pledges given to 
 the people, that if jjower was 
 conceded to them it would never 
 bo abused, and the groat cardinal 
 principle of their policy would bo 
 that not one dollar would be ex- 
 pended without a direct vote of Parlia- 
 ment. I have shown that millions 
 have been expended, I may say millions 
 wasted, without having a vote of Parlia- 
 ment for a single dollar. I am justified 
 in asking the Holiso to pass this censure 
 upon the Government, because their 
 ])ioceeding8 have been unconstitutional 
 and illegal, and they have violated the 
 law under which thoy are constructing 
 this work, with respect to the declara- 
 tion that public tenders must be invited, 
 and the work performed by con- 
 tiacl. They have expended public 
 moneys withoiit tenders. I have shown 
 that they have, in an unconstitutional 
 manner, because, Vrithout any vote of 
 Parliament, they have undertaken to 
 pledge the good lidth of Canada to the 
 payment ot millions, and by a reckless 
 purchase have saddled the country with 
 
 a dead loss of over a million and a half, 
 involving an annual charge upon our 
 treasury of $75,000 for over. I have 
 shown that, in addition to their vacil- 
 lating policy,— a policy changing ft'om 
 hour to hour, a policyof amixed rdtite 
 one day and an all-rail route the tiext, 
 of carrying on the works by a private 
 company one day and by the Govern- 
 ment the next, and now they propose 
 to I'cvert to the former when they have 
 destroyed all chance of success. I have 
 shown that. even in dealing with the 
 small matter of the right of way in an 
 unsoLtled and unpeopled district at 
 Kaministiquia, the payment made was 
 such that it applied to payment of the 
 right of way for the Intercolonial, which 
 passed in largo sections t!)"ough a 
 settled country, many sections passing 
 through most valuable lands, the 
 amount would have been more than the 
 whole cost of the Intercolonial by some- 
 thing more than three millionsof dollars, 
 I have shown you that their policy was 
 a breach of faith, because they have 
 pledged fbemselves to Bntish Colum- 
 bia ; they have pledged themselves to 
 the Imperial Government, to construct 
 a railway on Vancouver Island, and 
 to construct a railway from the shores 
 of the Pacitic to the shores of Lake 
 Superior by 1890, without any qualifi- 
 cation o. restriction whatever, both of 
 which they have abandoned. I have 
 shown you that their expenditure 
 during the past year was in contraven- 
 tion of the decision of the House, as 
 arrived at by the resolution of the hon. 
 member forWest Middlesex (Mr. lloss), 
 because the hon. the First Minister 
 knows that he cannot say it is not in- 
 creasing the taxation oi' the country. 
 With the $3,000,000 of additional taxa- 
 tion, levied when they first obtained 
 power, gone, with an admitted deficit 
 of $2,000,000 during the past ycai-, 
 with the demand upon the iTouse this 
 Session for $500,000 more to meet the 
 ordinary expenditure of the country, I 
 defy the hoK. gentleman to say that 
 every dollar ho expends on the Cana- 
 dian Pacific liiulway does not increase 
 the existing rate of taxation. And, if it 
 does, I say the rosolutioii, prepared, as 
 I believe it was, by the Governnyjnt, 
 and put into the hands of the hon. mem- 
 ber lor West Middlesex, and sustained, 
 as it was, by them, was a complete 
 
ii?" 
 
 BA3f5' 
 
 41 
 
 breach of faith of the solemn, binding 
 obligation the Government had made 
 with Biitiah Columbia, and with the 
 Impci'i.il Grove rnmeut, that they would 
 proceed with and constract the road 
 within the time wtatcd. Thi. hon. the 
 First MiiiiBt-er stated, in his manilesto 
 to ihe^ country, in reference to the con- 
 nection ot imniigation to thit, work : 
 
 " We shall endeavour to make these great 
 works auxiliary to the promotion of immigra- 
 tion on an extended stale, and CD the settlement 
 and oevelopment of these - rich and fertile 
 territories on which our hopes for the future of 
 Canada are so largely fixed." 
 
 I3 there a man in Canada who did 
 not concur iu the Hentiment propounded! 
 there ? Is there a man in Canada, wh^ 
 knows anything of the great and fer- 
 tile country spoken of, who does not 
 think that the future hopes of Canada 
 are, to a large extent, necessarily fixed 
 on that country ? And, yet, what has 
 been the record of the hon. gentleman ? 
 Dealing with the public money with 
 unstinted hand — for Parliament has 
 been ready to place any thing demanded 
 in the hon. gentleman's hands —what 
 has been done? Instead of making 
 his Canadian Pacific Eailway policy 
 accomplish what every person believes 
 might bo accomplished in connection 
 with the settlement of that country — 
 every onw knows that one of the prime 
 considerations in connection with this 
 great worK was that it would afford 
 the means of giving valuable, remune- 
 rative employment to the ImraigrantH 
 brouigbt into the country to people 
 tha^ B^agnificent territory — yet the 
 Cro^ ;i,fflont have done absolutely 
 noi ) '. '.'wards that end. Was there 
 Cfc^ i. ' ' *r^rnment in the position this 
 Govc.r n' .^ was in, with this matter 
 in thbu i ahds, with a support in 
 Parliament uuch as few (rO"Cx'nmenis 
 bavfi ever poosebsed, and with the 
 opportunity of advancing the interests 
 of the country in that way without 
 measure and without bounds. And, 
 yet, what is the record today ? The 
 record of Votes and Proceedings of 
 yostei*day shows that the number of 
 immigrants brought to this country in 
 iyi,', when not a mile of this road was 
 Ui.ier contract, was three times as great 
 aa duriog the past year ; that while 
 the cost per head of bringing im- 
 migrants to the country has been 
 enormously increased, we stand in the 
 
 position, that instead of the construc- 
 tion of this great work bringing a 
 tremendous immigration and ad- 
 vancing the interestH of Canada in the 
 way the hon. the First Minister held 
 out to the country when ho made this 
 address to the people, those Expecta- 
 tions have utterlj' failed; and that 
 notwithstanding all this expenditure 
 in connection with the work, it has not 
 been attended by increased influx of 
 immigrants, but, on the contrary, a 
 large and rapid decline has taken 
 place. 1 have referred already to the 
 violation of law, the utter disregard of 
 Parliamentary authority, and the 
 enormous payments of money con- 
 nected with the Georgian Bay Branch 
 and the Canada Central Rivilroad, in 
 violation of the one and contempt of 
 the other. The whole policy of the 
 Government, as propounded by the 
 hon. gentleman, has been utterly de- 
 lusive, and to-day we find ourselves 
 without any advance, without anything 
 accomplished, but minus a large sum 
 of money which has been paid to 
 parties, who, contrary to the law, were 
 entrust<id to carry out contracts. I 
 am sorry that 1 have been obliged to 
 trespass on the indulgence of the 
 House so long, but I think 1 have ad- 
 duced sufficient to support the motion 
 which 1 now have the honour to move. 
 I have endeavoured, and 1 think the 
 hon. the First Minister will agree with 
 me in the statement, to avoid every . 
 question that could raise an unpleasant 
 topic of discussion between the oc- 
 cupants of the Treasury Benches and 
 ourselves. Notwithstanding the great 
 temptation that wai« presented as I 
 proceeded in this discussion, I have 
 carefully endeavoured to give a simple 
 statement of facts presented by the 
 Government themselves, as brought 
 down in public documents; and if I 
 have not established successfully that 
 the Government have failed in their 
 duty to the country, and that the 
 course they have pursued on this great 
 question has been detrimental to 
 the interests of the country, then I 
 have no g'aundson which to ask for 
 the support of this House. But I feel 
 that the case that has been presented 
 is one whi'jh entitles me confidently to 
 ask your support, and if I do not obtain 
 it fVom this House there is an equally 
 
 -m«Kk'*°!5J^*V*"" 
 
 J 
 
m^ 
 
 ■■PipWHi^ 
 
 "'■^inniiii 
 
 ■■■^ 
 
 T 
 
 I 
 
 43 
 
 independant tribunal in this country 
 to whioh I can confidently Jook for the 
 ufiirmation of this motion which 1 have 
 now thtj honour tf) offer. Thanking 
 the House for their indulgence at this 
 late period of the Session which they 
 have kii:dly given on thegi'ound of the 
 vast imjwrtauce of the subject, and 
 deeply regretting my own physical 
 inability, under the circumstances in 
 
 which I was compelled to addrefW tJie 
 House, to deal with the question as 
 vigorously as the interests of the 
 country demand, I beg leave to offer 
 the following resolution : — 
 
 "Tiiat Mr. Speaker do not now leave the 
 Uhair, but that it be Resolved, That tiiin House 
 cannot approve of the course pursued by thii 
 GoTeramert with reapect to the Canadian 
 Pacific B'-dway." 
 
 
 MacLean Roger & Co., PuliamenUury and Departmental Printer*, Ottawa, Ont 
 
 / 
 
J