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CIHM/ICMH 
 
 Microfiche 
 
 Series. 
 
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 1980 
 
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 THE LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION 
 
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 ♦ / 
 
 Hon. E J. FL YNN 
 
 To the Electors of the Province of Quebec 
 
 Gentlemen,— On the 14th November 
 instant, His Honor the Lieutenant- 
 Governor was pleased, in accordance 
 with the advice of his Executive Coun- 
 cil, to dissolve tho Legislative As-cm- 
 blv and to call- upon vou to choose new 
 representatives. The nomination will 
 take place on the 30th November and 
 voting on the 7th Dccem'ter, excepting 
 for the districts of Gaspe, Chicoutimi- 
 Saguenay and the Magdalen Islands. 
 A fact worthy of note is that the 
 writ bears the date of the 15th Nov- 
 ember and that the delay between the 
 latter date and polling day is exactly 
 three weeks. 
 
 The question now before us Is : Why 
 is tho House dissolved at the pregont 
 moment ? 
 
 No constitutional reason is alleged. 
 It is true that a certain newspaper con- 
 tends that the Premier wishes to apply 
 the democratic principle by getting the 
 oaople to ratify the choice made of 
 Opx as chief adviser of the Crown. 
 This is a new theory. Hitherto we 
 have always thought that Parliajr.'^Jkit 
 was, and should be, the Government's 
 pciar star, and that it represented the 
 p^ple. Has the Government peradven- 
 ture imapi'ned that it did not possess 
 the confidence of the people's p:?presen- 
 tatives ? 
 
 No new qicstion, no new programme 
 is submitted to the electorate. The 
 truth is that the Government wishes 
 the party it represents to bcni»?flt by 
 the vote eiven on *he.?th of November 
 in favoi of Sir Wilfrid Laurier ; in 
 
 r)ther words, having but little desire 
 for a contest purely on the merits of 
 Provincial questions, it wishes to take 
 advantage of the wave of popular 
 favor which has carried Sir Wilfrid 
 I.,aurier to power. 
 
 Now, nothing can be mop; irregular 
 or more unconstitutional than a disso- 
 lution for this reason. 
 
 All authors on constitutional law are 
 agreed on this point. It is needless to 
 cite, however, it is advisable to call 
 the public's attention to tlie serious 
 consequences resulting from a wron^ 
 application of the constitutional theory 
 upon such matters. 
 
 Todd, in his work "Parliamentary 
 G(»vernmcnt in the British Colonies," 
 •says (p. 526) : "From the seilous con- 
 sequences which may foVow the ad- 
 ministration of this prerogative, it is 
 manifest that \t should tc resorted to 
 with great caution and forbearance. 
 Frequent, unnecessary or abrupt disso- 
 lutions of Parliament inevitably "tend 
 to blimt the edge of a great instru- 
 ment, eiven to the Crown for its pro- 
 tection" : and wherever they have occur 
 red they havi* been fraught with dan- 
 ger to the commonwealth." And fur- 
 tlier (p. 542) : 
 
 "For It is not a legitimate use of 
 the prerogative of dissolution to re- 
 sort to it when there is no important 
 political qtvslion upon which contend- 
 ing parties are directly at issue, and 
 merely in order to maintain in power 
 tlie particvilar Ministers who are in 
 office at the <time." 
 
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 Another authority, Ilearn, "Govern- 
 mwit of F^njjland," savs (p. 156) . 
 "Ascain, where no political question is 
 at issue but t!ie object is meielv the 
 Bidvantage of a particiVar party, there 
 is no proper cause for a dissolution." 
 
 In our opinion the real motive for this 
 disS()lut.'on— and we are convinced that 
 the people oi this Province will agree 
 with us— is to take advantage of the 
 vole just given by this Province in 
 favor of Sir Wilfrid Laurii'r. The j)ef>- 
 ple of this Pronnfe will allow njc to 
 point out heiO how danicerous and re- 
 grettable i.s this tendency (to lise tl.<? 
 exprefjtiion of an illustrious thinker and 
 writer) "to place one's de&tinies in the 
 hands of a single man, while ananrton- 
 in«c all consideration of prina'pks." 
 This way, no doubt, serves the tempo- 
 rary iijterfst of the party, but the con- 
 seaiJ«ices are no less serious lor the 
 country. 
 
 This dissolution is not only irregular 
 and unconsi'itutional, but it is iiniusl. 
 in the first place to the mcmiy-rs 'vhom 
 you have elected to represent \ou for 
 Ave years and whose term ot office could 
 only expire in eiglit^^n months, alter 
 two othtr sessions ; but it is also and 
 above all unjust to ihe ur>|)k; who will 
 have to nay tlie cost of these eenoral 
 elections, amountinc under tic pre- 
 sent ci'rciurstances to at least S75,00'J 
 and probablv SlOO.OOO, besiJ,s the cx- 
 penee which will fall upon every citi- 
 zen in consequence cf a general elec- 
 tion and the other inconveniences con- 
 nected therewith. 
 
 Mo! cover, the season chosen is the 
 worst of tic year. The Government 
 has had no cotwideration for the conve- 
 nience of tl'o public. On the contrary, 
 it seems to have taken pleasure in mak- 
 ing this appeal to the people at the 
 most unreasonable time possibl?, espe- 
 ciunv as a contest of several weeks' 
 duration has barely (inishod. 
 
 Why did not the Government wait 
 for a. more siVtable season ? Why did 
 it not call tl»e House together, and af- 
 ter holding a session chocso a proper 
 time far the election, if it had any 
 legitimate reason /oc so doing ? 
 
 In actlnir as It has doic. and in gi%*- 
 kyc so ftttle time, the Govrrnnwnt can 
 have Imd no other object than to stifle 
 all discussion before tite electors, and 
 
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 even (we may at least pTlBume so un- 
 der the circumstanors) thAintention it 
 has is to destroy all oppjliition in the 
 Legislative Assembly, -f ii'sbould suc- 
 ceed in taking the electoral by sur- 
 prise 
 
 It caims to be desirous of having 
 Its administrative acts approved of by 
 the people, and, strange to .say, it 
 takes the very means to prevent such 
 acts to be looked into and criticized, 
 inasmuch as the Public Accounts for 
 the year ending on the 3(>th of J 
 1900, are not yet printed, are not at 
 disposal of the members or the publ 
 The Government will, no doubt, cla 
 that it has a siirplus, and we sh( 
 not even have the Public Accounts 
 show whether tJ)is statement is ti 
 or not. 
 
 How then can it render an aocoun' 
 of its administration to the people o 
 tliis Province, for to render such 
 account, vouchers are needed, and the 
 Go\'©rnment ha.s none and produces 
 none. This method of proceeding must 
 be condemned by every man who has 
 any idea of bu-siness. 
 
 One of the nc<*es.sary consequences of 
 the Government s action is to lessen 
 the importance iA our Legislature, and 
 within a short time, to bring about the 
 destruction of tlie principle of Con- 
 federation. The Legislature of Que- 
 bec thus becomes the accessory of Ot- 
 tawa, and this Legislature of Qtiebec 
 which the Fatliers of Confederation 
 wi^ed to make so proudly indp'ipendent 
 becomes' in reality a mere branch of 
 the central power. 
 
 The people of this Province will, no 
 doubt, ask itself this question : What 
 is to become of Provincial Autonomy 
 under the circumstances <? 
 
 I here quote as niy authority tte 
 words of Sir Wilfrid Laurier himseflf 
 who on tJ» 24th of November, 1871, in 
 the Legislative Atisembly, at Quebec, 
 (see the collection of his Speeches pul>- 
 liBhed by U. Barthe, p. 15> saM : f 
 
 "Within the domain of their respec- 
 tive attributes, the Legislatures, both 
 Local and Federal, are sovereign and 
 independent one of the other. 
 
 "Now, in order that this federative 
 system may not be an idle word, in 
 order that it may produce the results 
 it is called upon to produce, it is ne- 
 
 
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 ccssary jKat it should be so, not only 
 in theorf , but in fact ; it is above 
 all nec«f>ary that the Local Legisla- 
 ture shoold 1« entirely free from all 
 control of the Federal LeRislalure. 
 Should the Federal Legis/lature, either 
 directly or indirectly, exert tl.c sliglit^ 
 est control over the Local Legislature, 
 then you no longer have federative 
 Uftion, but you have legislative union, 
 under the federative rorni. If you 
 open tlic door to the mem tors of the 
 Federal I^gislatkre, by this very fact 
 you admit the control of the Federal 
 Legislature over this House, and then, 
 as 1 have said, you destroy the federa- 
 tive union, whereof, in truth, you re- 
 tain the form but no longer possess 
 the substance." 
 
 Sir Wilfrid Lp.urier thus proclaimed 
 that through federal intervention, wo 
 should, in reality, have I^egislative 
 Union under the form of federation. 
 Well, gentlemen, it would seem that 
 his apprehensions are fully realized at 
 the present day, and this, thanks to 
 the unheard of action of the Quebec 
 Government. 
 
 If, in consequence of these unjust, 
 unfair and unconstitutional tactics, 
 the Government should succeed in des- 
 troying freedom of discussion, botii in 
 and out of Parliament, in stifling as 
 it were the voice of the electorate, 
 our Legislature would then present an 
 example unprecetlented in countries 
 governed by the principles of ttlie Bri- 
 tish constitution, of a House without 
 opposition, thai is to say without cri- 
 ticism, and without any lawful oppo- 
 nents of the Government. Tl.cre 
 would ensue a state of things little 
 better than anarchy. 
 
 For more than 22 years that I have 
 ^bcen a member, I have attentively fol- 
 ^ lowed the actions of our Legislature, 
 and I assert without fear of contra- 
 diction, that opposition is essential to 
 «all good legislation and all good Gov^ 
 ernment, especially in this Province. 
 
 Because as citizens and electors, we 
 have thought proper to discuss the 
 acts of the Laurier Government, an 
 attempt) should not now be made to put 
 us through the federal mill, for we 
 have done nothing but exercia^ our 
 rights as citizens and electors, l)earing 
 in mind, at tJie same time, the active 
 
 intervention in 1H97 of the Federal 
 Government and its supporters' to oust 
 UK from power. 
 
 Moreover, every one knows that I 
 havo always upheld the principle, that 
 Provincial Legislatures should I* sepa- 
 rate from and independent of the cen- 
 tral power, and it is very regrettable 
 for this Province that s\ich a policy 
 has not prevailed in this case. 
 
 No, gentlemen, we cannot avoid see- 
 ing in the action of the Government, 
 not only an irregular, unconstitutional 
 and unfair proceeding, and one subver- 
 sive of proxincial institutions, but 
 also a sure indication of great moral 
 weakneK.s, and of a marked fear of all 
 opposition In fact, why is the Gov- 
 ernment in sucli a hurry to dissolve 
 Parlian.ent ? Why dois it not call 
 the HousfH together and allow the re- 
 presentatives of the people to inquire 
 into its conduct with the aid of the 
 Public Accounts and official documents'? 
 Has it anything to conceal ? If not,? 
 why this liaste ? ^ 
 
 The result is that we, who have sat/ 
 on the opposition benches for three 
 years, are placed in an entirely un-- 
 equal po.sition in this contest, as the t 
 Goverimient wishes to carry it on un- 
 der the auspices of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, 
 instead of coming before the people on 
 the merits of its own actions, and 
 moreover, as the Go\ernment does not 
 even allow us to use the weapons 
 given us by the constitution. We are 
 thei 'by deprived of the advantages of 
 British fair play, that undeniable . re- 
 rogative fV' every British subject. 
 
 Nevertheless, we hope that the \yeo- 
 ple of this Province will see that an 
 attempt is being made to snatch a 
 verdict\ifrom it by a vile electoral dodget 
 and through such verdict to remain in 
 power for tive years, by stifling all 
 discussion outside of Parliament for 
 the present, and, after the election in 
 Parliament itself. 
 
 The hour is a solemn and a seriouj^ 
 one. This is admitted by all without 
 distinction of party, and all seek to 
 solve the problem ; How is this 
 state of affairs to be remedied ? 
 
 A celebrated general once said : Re- 
 member that, when a people is threat- 
 ened with destruction, nothing but- 
 
 
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 devotedness and selfnsacrifice can save 
 it" 
 
 I wouUl sav to vou, people of the 
 Province of Quebec, whatever may be 
 youi origin or your creed, whatever 
 your political allegiance may have 
 hitherto been, remember that the po- 
 pular Institutuons and liberties which 
 you have learned to cherish are now 
 threatened with destruction and that 
 they can be saved only by devotedness 
 and self-sacrifice. Lc, us. therefore, 
 unite to one common il < ight of true 
 patriobism. 
 
 I appeal to all riglit thinking men, 
 to all true patriots, and I call upon 
 them to protest solemnly and energetic- 
 
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 ally in every county of this 
 against this action of the Qi 
 which threatens to wreck 
 StAte. 
 
 People of the Province otf 
 yout fate is in your hands, but before 
 deciding, reflect, and reflect seriously. 
 
 We protest against the action of tlie 
 Government, and call upon the people 
 to condemn it for this odious attack 
 upon our constitutional liberties. 
 
 I have the honor to be, 
 
 Your ol)edient si'rvant, 
 
 . , E. J. FLYNN. 
 
 I^eader of the Opposition. 
 
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