IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // %^ 1.0 !^*^ 1^ ||_LL J."^ "^ IL25 mu 11.6 ^^ <^ ^r^**' ■^ I^otographic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STMIT WIBSTIR.N.Y. MSIO (716) •72-4903 ? CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiquas Tschnical and Bibliographic Notaa/Notas tachniquaa at bibliographlquaa Tha Inatituta daa attamptad to obtain tfw baat original copy avaiiabia for filming. Faaturaa of thia copy wliich may ba bibliographically uniqua, which may altar any of tha imagaa in tha raproductlon, or which may aigniflcantly ehanga tha usual mathod of filming, ara ehackad balow. D D D D Colourad covars/ Couvartura da coulaur r~1 Covars damagad/ Couvartura andommagia Covars rastorad and/or lamlnatad/ Couvartura rastauria at/ou pallicul4a □ Covar titia missing/ La titra da couvartura manqua r~| Colourad maps/ Cartas g^ographiquas an coulaur □ Colourad ink (l.a. othar than blua or black)/ Encra da coulaur (i.a. autra qua biaua ou noira) pn Colourad platas and/or illustrations/ n Planchas at/ou illustrations an coulaur Bound with othar matariai/ RaliA avac d'autras documants Tight binding may causa shadows or distortion along intarior margin/ La re liura serr^e paut causar da I'ombra ou da la distortion la long da la marga intiriaura Blank laavas addad during rastoration may appaar within tha taxt. Whanavar possibia, thasa hava baan omittad from filming/ II sa paut qua cartainas pagas blanchas ajoutias lors d'una rastauration apparaissant dana la taxta, mais, lorsqua cala 4tait possibia, cas pagas n'ont pas AtA f limAas. Additional commants:/ Commantairas supplAmentairas; L'Inatltut a microfilm^ la malllaur axamplaira qu'il iui a AtA possibia da sa procurar. Las details da eat axamplaira qui sont paut-AtTa uniquas du point da vua bibliographiqua, qui pauvant modif iar una imaga raproduita, ou qui pcuvant axigar una modification dans la mithoda normala da f iimaga aont indiquAs ci-dassous. I I Colourad pagas/ D Pagaa da coulaur Pagas damagad/ Pagas andommagAas Pagas rastorad and/oi Pagas raataurias at/ou palliculAas Pagas discoiourad, stainad or foxat Pagas dAcolorAas, tachatAas ou piquAas Pagas datachad/ Pagas dAtachAes Showthrough/ Transparance Quality of prin QualitA inAgale da I'imprasslon Includas supplamantary matarit Comprand du material supplAmantaira Only adition avaiiabia/ Saula Adition disponibia r~~| Pagas damagad/ I — I Pagas rastorad and/or lamlnatad/ [TT] Pagas discoiourad, stainad or foxad/ I I Pagas datachad/ r^ Showthrough/ rn Quality of print varias/ rn Includas supplamantary matariai/ I — I Only adition avaiiabia/ Pagas wholly or partially obscured by errata slips, tissues, etc., have been refilmed to ensure the best possible image/ Lea pages totalement ou partieilement obscurcies par un feuillet d'errata, una pelure. etc.. ont M filmAes A nouveau de fapon d obtenir la meilleure image possible. This item is filmed at tha reduction ratio chocked balow/ Ce document est filmA au taux de reduction indiquA ci-deaaous. 10X 14X 18X 22X 26X 30X c J 12X 16X 20X 24X 28X 32X •x«mpla!r« ir«r. Lm details t7« uniquas du pauvant modifiar trant axigar un9 mala da filmaga atad/ :ultes J foxad/ ou piquAas an ^ ; irial/ imantaira curad by errata raf ilmed to iellament rrata. una pelure, lu da fa^on d ssibla. 30X 32X Tha copy fllmad hara haa baan raproducad thanka to tha ganaroaity of: Library of tha Public Archivaa of Canada Tha imagaa appaarfng hara ara tha baat quality poaaibia conaidaring tha condition and lagibility of tha original copy and in Icaaping with tha filming contract apacificationa. Original copiaa in printad papar covara ara filmad baginning with tha front covar and anding on tha laat paga with a printad or iliuatratad impraa- aion, or tha back covar whan uppropriata. All othar original copiaa ara filmad baginning on tha firat pAfia with a printad or iliuatratad Impraa- aion, and anding on tha laat paga with a printad or iliuatratad Impraaaion. Tha laat racordad frama on aach microficha ahall contain tha aymbol — •»> (moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha aymbol y (moaning "END"), whichavar appllaa. Mapa, piataa, charts, ate. may ba filmad at diffarant raductlon ratioa. Thoaa too larga to ba antlraly includad in ona axpoaura ara filmad baginning in tha uppar laft hand cornar, laft to right and top to bottom, aa many framaa as raquirad. Tha following diagrams illustrata tha mathod: *, •» ^ • . ' • L'axamplaira fllniA f ut raproduit grica A la g4n4roait« da: La bibliothAqua daa Archivaa publiquas du Canada Laa imagaa auh/antaa ont 4tA raprodultaa avae la piua grand soln, compta tanu da la condition at da la nattati do l'axamplaira filmi, at an conformhA avac laa conditlona du contrat da filmaga. Las axamplalras origlnaux dont la eouvartura an paplar aat ImprimAa sont fllmto an comman9ant par la pramlar plat at an tarminant soit par la darniira paga qui comporta una amprainta d'Impraaaion ou d'iiluatration, soit par la aacond plat, aaion la caa. Tous las autras axamplalras origlnaux sont fiimAa an commandant par la pramiAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'Impraaaion ou d'iiluatration at an tarminant par la darniAra paga qui comporta una talla amprainta. Un daa aymbolas suivants apparattra sur la darnlAra Imaga da chaqua microficha, salon la caa: la symboia -^ signifia "A SUIVRE ", la aymbola ▼ signifia "FIN". Las cartaa, planchaa, tableaux, ate, pauvant Atra filmAs A das taux da rAduction diff Arants. Lorsqua la document aat trop grand pour Atra raproduit an un saul cilchA, 11 aat f limA A partir da I'angia supAriaur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bas, an prenant la nombre d'imagea nAcassaira. Laa diagrammas suivants illustrant la mAthoda. • V. .. • ■ i ' \ * : 2 3 4 1 5 6 ■ . • m- Ussmaiiimam^mmmm x.*jMBiM-iiiiBmjmmiJiSm sm ■yM|i|M>yi»ip w#^w > m | OJf wMb OHANGBI^ OPINIONS, since: 1.84 8, OF THE fltttrtal l^irarlr of Craie, ABSrSGTINO A CANAL TO ceaCKBGT LAKE CflAMPLAIN WITH THE ST. LAWRENCE. PRINTED BY JOHN I^OVm^ ST. NICHOLAS STREET. V, ■. smssSi '( ON THE CHANGED OPINIONS, SINCE 1848, OF THE ontreal ^oarb of Crah, RESPECTING A CANAL TO CONNECT LAKE CHAMPLAIN WITH THE ST; LAWRENCE. PRINTED BY JOHN LOVELL, ST. NICHOLAS STREET. 1866. ,'* ^^91^ . .'* ON THE CHANGED OPINIONS, SINCE 1848, or TBI MONTREAL BOARD OF TRADE, RMPIOTINO A. O A.N A.L TO OONNBOT LAKE CHAMPLAIN WITH THE ST. LAWRENCE. The following extracts from the records of the Montreal Board of Trade, since 1848, will show how uniformly consistent the merchants of Montreal have been since that time, in every Report and Resolution adopted by them, through the Board of Trade, up to the date of its last meeting, in February, 1866, in reference to the necessity for the construction of a Canal to connect the waters of Lake Champlain with the St. Lawrence ; and how mcon- sistent was their action at that meeting in disapproving of that work, (by a vote of 36 to 11,) with all of their action during the previous eighteen years. The collecting together of the opinions, thus expressed by the Board of Trade on this subject, will not only be useful, as shewing what has been done, but may also tend to dissipate any erroneous views or prejudices which many hold in reference to the effect which the construction of this Canal will have on the commerce of thia city. The first action taken by the Montreal Board of Trade was at a meeting of the Council, held on the 18th April, 1848, of which the following is an extract : — " The Secretary reported havmg addressed the Provincial Secre- tary, requesting he would favour the Board with the inspection and perusal of any Plans and Reports which might be in the possession of the Government respecting the construction of a Canal from the neighbourhood of Caughnawaga to Lake Champlain, and read the reply granting the same; but the Council, thinking it would be more satisfactory to have copies of the same, he was requested to apply to the Board of Works for them. The Map and Report being obtained, Mr. Geo. Elder, at a meeting on the 11th June^ 1848, road a letter from Mr. John Young, on this subject, to himself and after reading the report of Mr. Mills, Civil Engineer, on the vrork, it was moved by Mr. Law, seconded by T. B. Anderson, Esq., that Messrs. Elder, Law and McPherson be a Committee to take into consideration the documents presented, and to draft a memo- rial to Government, praying for a further survey of the country lying between the St. Lawrence and Lake Champlam and the vicinity of Montreal and Caughnawaga. The following is the Memorial referred to : — TJie Memorial of the Montreal Board of Trade humbly aheweth : — *' That your memorialists haveforsome time been deeply impressed with the desirableness of connecting the waters of the St. Lawrence with Lake Champloin, by means of a Canal. The commercial advantages which would result from such an undertaking are nume- rous and highly important. Istly. By means of such a Canal, provisions and breadstufis, which are at present imported into the non-producing States of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Connecticut from the West by the route of the Erie Canal, would undoubtedly be brought by the St. Lawrence — the superior cheapness of such a route being such as to defy competition ; so that thus not only a transit trade of considerable magnitude would be secured, but a new and valuable market would be opened for the productions of this Province. 2ndly. That such a Canal would prove of immense advantage to the lumber districts on the Ottawa and its tributaries, inasmuch as it would open up a new and permanent market for timber, besides bringing into play the water power, so largely available on all the streams, for the manufacture of rood stuffs adapted for a Southern market. Srdly. That it would be the means of completing the chain of water communication from the Upper Lakes by the St. Lawrence to New York, and thus materially assist, under the system of free navigation contemplated, in rendering that river the great thorough- fare to the ocean of the produce of Western Canada and the West- ern States of America. 4thly. The financial results which would accrue from such a ►t ►f canal would be of tho greatest advantage to the Government, if its effects would be, as it is justly anticipated, to increase incalculably the traffic in the St. Lawrence, by tho power it would place in our hands of competing successfully with the Erie Canal : tho tolls arising from tho Provincial Canals could not fail to be largely increased and tho public revenue proportionately augmented. 5thly. The Canal in ((uestion will prove of great advantage to tho city of Montreal, not only by the direct trade it would bo the means of opening up, but by tho growth in wealth by a population resident in her rear, which, by natural necessity, would resort to her market for supplies. By tho contemporaneous completion of the Portland Railroad, Montreal would also become the centre of three great routes to the ocean, a situation most favourable for tho growth and concentration of commerce. Lastly. A Canal connecting tho waters of tho St. Lawrence and Lake Champlain would liavo tho effect of neutralizing, in a great measure, the present contemplated railroad from Ogdensburgh, which otherwise would draw the traffic of the St. Lawrence at a point above all our Public Works, thereby inflicting a serious loss on our revenue, but an incalculable injury on the interest, of the Lower Province. Your memorialists are also aware that representations on the subject of such a Canal were made last year by a number of the citizens of Montreal, and that according to the prayer of their peti- tion Your Excellency was pleased to direct a survey of a line for the proposed Canal, commencing at the St. Lawrence side, at or near the village of Caughnawaga. It appears to your memorialists expedient, under any circum- stances, before deciding the line of the proposed Canal, that the country lying between Longueuil and Laprairie should also be sur- veyed, so that the final preference be given to that line which, after minute investigation and consideration of all the interests involved, shall be deemed to possess a preponderance of advantages in its favour. Your memorialists cannot help regarding the selection of the terminus of such a Canal, in the construction of which a vast expenditure must be incurred, and any mistake regarding which may be looked upon as irremediable, as a matter of the very highest I < 6 importance) and not to be decided on without the utmost deliber- ation and the examination of competent and unbiassed authorities. Wherefore your memorialists would humblj pray your £icellency, as a preliminary step, to direct the survey of the country lying between Longuouil and Laprairie, so that a choice of a route for the proposed Canal may subsequently bo made, after a due balancing of the various circumstances, pro and con, affecting each line res- pectively. And your, &c., &c. (fSigned,) Peter McGill, Prest. M. B. ofT. F. A. Wilson, Secretary. Montreal, 2eth July, 1848. On the 9th October, 1848, Mr. Seymour, of St. Johns, asked the opinion of the Board when the Canal was likely to be built, and the Secretary was ordered to reply to the effect, " that the Board was of opinion such a work would prove of the very highest importance to Canada, and they entertain a confident hope it would be constructed at no distant day." In the Annual Report of 2nd April, 184VS (Mr. Hugh Allan being a member of the Council,) whi(,h was unanimously adopted, it is stated that : — " Your Council have noticed the importance of improving and extending the inland commu- nication of the country, so as to enable Canada to compete advantageously with the neighbouring States in the carrying trade of the West, and to facilitate the transportation of lumber to Southern markets, from the Ottawa and other timber districts. Hence the construction of a Canal to connect the St. Lawrence with Lake Champlain, became a matter of the deepest interest ; and the Council have been engaged in procuring all the information in their power on the subject, not only through the Board of Works, but from other sources, the result of which has satisfied your Council, that the construction of a Canal would be found of the greatest practical utility and advantage to the public, besides yielding a large revenue to the Province, and they therefore would recommend to their successors that this contemplated im- provement should not be lost sight of." I 1 The Annual Report of April, 1850, says : — ** The question of a Canal to unite the waters of the St. Lawrence and Lake Cham- plain, being frequently before the public during last summer, the Council deemed it their duty to address the Oovemment, praying that any rights reserved by the Act, authorising the formation of a company for this purpose, might be exercised by the Government, so as to prevent any injury to the interests of Montreal, in the selection of a location for the St. Lawrence terminus of any Canal which might be formed." On the 17th December, 1850, it was moved in Council, by Mr. D. L. McDougal, and carried, " That, a Committee of three be appointed to draft a memorial to His Excellency the Governor- General, in Council, praying for the immediate adoption of meas- ures for the construction of a Canal, on the same scale as the St. Lawrence Canal, to connect the River St. Lawrence with Lake Champlain, the Committee being instructed to report without reference to the terminus." In the Annual Report of April, 1851, it is stated, " That i1ic subject of a Ship Canal, to connect the waters of the St. Lawrence with Lake Champlain, has also had the attention of the Council, and the advantages expected to arrive from connecting the Eastern and Western Trades, were thoroughly discussed ; but on account of a diversity of opinion existing as to where the terminus should be located, they took no further steps on the prosecution of the object." No reference to the Canal is made in the Reports of either 1852 or 1853. In a memorial from the Council of the Board, 14th April, 1853, signed by Mr. Hugh Allan, it is stated, " That, while your memo- ralists are not convinced of the great benefit under present circum- stances to be derived by this Province from the proposed new Canal they would view with alarm its construction, as injurious to the trade of this City, unless its terminus is fixed at some point on the opposite shore, not higher up than St. Lambert." On the 1st June, 1853, a Special General Meeting of the Board was called, to consider the following Resolutions, which were pro- posed and moved by Mr. Young : — 1. That, in the opinion of this Board, the interests of Canada, and the prosperity of all classes of her inhabitants are, in a high 8 degree, dependent on the complete success of those great Public Works, which have been constructed at so vast an expense, with a view to making the St. Lawrence the great highway for the con- veyance of the produce of the Western States, and of Western Canada to the Eastern States, to Eastern Canada and the Atlantic Ocean. 2. That this Board considers it as established beyond all doubt, that the . Public Works on the St. Lawrence do not offer, in their present incomplete state, the best route for the trade between the Western States, and Western Canada with the Eastern States ; but that Buffalo and Oswego successfully compete, and that the construction of the Dunkirk Bailroad from Lake Erie, the Cape Vincent Railway, and of the railway connecting Ogdensburgh with Rouse's Point, on Lake Champlain, are calculated most seriously to detract from the efficiency of the St. Lawrence Canals, and ti ..t if counteracting Public Works be noc constructed the revenue from these Canals will be impaired, and the commerce of the country injuriously affected. 3. That, in the opinion of this Board, Canada can successfully compete with all or any of the routes referred to by the construc- tion of a Canal to connect Lake Champlain with the St. Lawrence, or the River Richelieu, of dimensions commensurate with the probable trade ; and that if so constructed, it is the opinion of this Board, that the great bulk of the trade of the Western States and of Western Canada would be attracted through our waters, inasmuch as such Canal would be the cheapest and speediest means of trans- port, besides possessing the great advantage of connecting any port on Lake Champlain with the most western port, without any transhipment. 4. That the trade of the Ottawa region, as well as the district of Montreal, and the lower districts of Lower Canada, with the United States, is rapidly increasing, and demands greater facilities of transport than now exists ; that for this trade our present means of transport will yearly become more inadequate for the wants of a commerce which promises to be almost indefinitely extended by the increasing demand on the part of the Eastern States for the producti /Hs of our soil and our forests. 6. That although this Board has only referred to the effect -which the proposed Canal would have on the Western States and Canada with the Eastern States, it is nevertheless of opinion, that, whether the State of New York enlarged the Canal connecting the Hudson River with Lake Champlain to a similar size with the pro- posed Canal, or not, the construction of the latter would neverthe- less render the St. Lawrence a successful competitor with all other routes for the trade between the West and the City of New York. 6. That this Board offers no opinion as to the best point of depar- ture from the St. Lawrence, and deprecate any discussion thereon until full and complete surveys are made, having in view not only the Western but the Eastern trade of the St. Lawrence ; and that it is firmly convinced that a moderate toll would not only yield a very great return on the cost, but would also add to the revenue of the St. Lawrence Canals, and greatly augment the trade of the country. 7. That the proposed Canal, being the last link of our chain of internal water communication, iS one which ought to be undertaken at the public expense ; that the reasons which induced the Legis- lature in its wisdom to construct the other Public Works on the St. Lawrence, which are the pride of Canada, apply with increased force to the proposed Canal, inasmuch as it is a work which will be generally useful, and not calculated to serve the interests o any one section of the country at the expense of any other. 8. That a memorial be prepared to His Excellency the Gover- nor General, founded on the foregoing resolutions, and praying that, guided by that spirit which His Excellency has ever evinced to promote public improvements and develope the resources of the country, he will exert his constitutional influence to cause a Canal of suitable dimensions, to connect the waters of the St. Lawrence with those of Lake Champlain, to be undertaken as a Government measure, without further loss of time. Resolutions moved in amendment to the above, and carried : — 1. " That in the opinion of this Board, a Canal of large capacity to connect the waters of the St. Lawrence and those of Lake Champlain, or the River Richelieu, made from a point of the St. Lawrence where vessels from sea and from the interior could meet and exchange cargoes, without incurring the heavy charges which would be unavoid- able, were it to diverge from a point inaccessible to sea-going vessels ^ ? i i I ',1 r\ n '1 i ■ I 10 would (while it preserved the shipping trade of the St. Lawrence, and thereby promoted the interests of the entire Province,) afford every facility required by the growing traffic between the Western States, Western Canada, and the Eastern States, and Europe, while a Canal constructed from a point inaccessible to sea-going vessels, would prove highly injurious to the Eastern section of the Province. 2. That in the opinion of this Board the early construction of a Canal, such as that referred to in the preceding Resolution, would tend to prevent the further absorption of the trade of the St. Lawrence by completing foreign channels to bring back much of the trade which has been lately lost, to secure the progressive growth of the traffic on the St. Lawrence, and thereby render pro- ductive and profitable those works which have been constructed at so great an outlay of public money. 3. That the Council of this Board be requested to prepare and forward to His Excellency the Governor General, a memorial embodying the foregoing Resolutions, expressing the confidence felt in the well-known anxiety of His Excellency to promote the interests of the Province, and praying that he will cause the neces- sary surveys to be made by competent engineers, with a view to the immediate construction of a Canal, so much desired and so essen- tial to the expansion of Canadian commerce." A memorial, embodying the above Resolutions, was forwarded to the Government : the Provincial Secretary, in reply, stating that it would not fail to receive attention. In consequence of these representations of the Board of Trade and other parties in Canada West, the Government, in Executive Council, passed the following Order on the 18th October, 1854 : " On the report of the Chief Commissioner of Public Works, stating that several petitions to Your Excellency from various localities in Upper and Lower Canada, for the construction of a Canal to connect the St. Lawrence with Lake Champlain, have been referred to his Department ; that the Legislative Assembly also, by its resolution of the 6th of April, 1853, called Your Excellency's attention to the subject ; that the petition from the Montreal Board of Trade, also referred to that Department, requests that a survey be made by Government of a convenient site for the Canal in ques- , " ■- '•■ , 11 c ' f ^m, at su<:'h a place that vessels going to or coming from sea may the St. Lawrence and such Canal to Lake lain ; that V . has carefully perused these petitions and res^loit-i'ons, and al he papers relating to the matter of record in his office ; that a s.u^ey was made in 1847, at the request of een^tain individuals, also contemplated to construct the Canal as a private enterprise ; and that such survey was confined to a parti- cular line, with its terminus at Caughnawaga above Montreal, so as to be within the locality these persons had in view ; that he is of opinion, considering the great importance of the subject, that a new survey should be made immediately by competent engineers, who should report as to the most convenient site for the said Canal and the probable cost thereof ; and requesting that authority may be given to the Commissioner of Public Works to have the survey effected. The Committee recommend that authority be given to the Commissioner of Public Works to cause a survey to be made, for the purpose of ascertaining the most eligible and convenient route for a Canal, from some point on the St. Lawrence to Lake Champlain." In consequence of this Order in Council, Mr. John B. Jarvis, one of the most eminent Engineers in the United States, was engaged to malce the survey alluded to, and the following is his letter of instructions from the Chief Commissioner of Public Works : — Public Works, Quebec, 12th August, 1854. Sir, — As you have been pleased to signify your willingness to undertake the duties connected with the location of the con- templated line of Canal between the River St. Lawrence and Lake Champlain, in the performance of which the Commissioners of this Department were most doSirous to have the benefit of the counsel and experience of a gentleman of such admitted high standing, it now becomes necessary that you should bo informed as to the points upon which your opinion and advice is more immediately sought for. The advantages to this Province which are calculated upon from the construction of this Canal, are fully set forth in the Annual Report of this Department to the Legislature, for the year 1852, in pages 32 to 38. A copy of this Report is herewith 12 i !(' if transmitted. By reference to it you will perceive that the objectd aimed at are : — To complete the chain of Canals already in use, and to render them profitable as well as a convenience to the Province. To enable our Canals to compete successfully with the Erie Canals and t«e Railways on the South bank of the St. Lawrence, in the transport of property to and from the Atlantic seaboard in the United States, and with the Western States and Canada. To furnish a cheaper, quicker, and from reduced transhipments, a more desirable route to the great trade which passes between tide water in the HudsonJRiver, the Railways in New England, and the City of New York on the one hand, and the Western States and Canada on the other ; and thus to bring traffic and tolls to the St. Lawrence Canals, which, by the competition of the Oswego and Erie Canals and the Ogdensburg and other Railways, and the want of an efficient outlet between them and Lake Champlain, obtain scarcely any of the transit trade between the Atlantic and the Western States or Canada. To enhance the value of one of our great staple products (lumber), by furnishing a direct, cheap and capacious connection between the great lumbering districts of the Ottawa, the Upper and Lower St. Lawrence, and the greatest lumber mart in the world, that of Albany and Troy. By connecting Lake Champlain with the St. Lawrence upon an efficient scale, to open the districts upon that Lake to the sea via Quebec, and afford them a shorter and cheaper route for imports of coal, iron, salt, fish, oil, &c., &c., which articles can be had down at Quebec at a cheaper rate than at any other American port, in consequence of the large amount of tonnage entering inwards in ballast. Such were some of the principal objects considered attainable by the construction of this work in 1852, when the Report alluded to was written ; but the Commissioners are of opinion that the altered circumstances under which the Province will be placed by the passing of the Reciprocity Act and the opening of the River St. Lawrence to our American neighbours, afford increased and strong ground for belief in the great im- portance of this work for the development of the resources of the country. Your views upon the points embraced in the foregoing are particularly requested, especially with respect to the trade 13 of the Great West, its channels, whether in use or in course of con- struction, the changes that are likely to take place in a great portion of it as regards the transportation eastward by the Lakes and Rivers and down the Mississippi, upon the completion of the several lines of navigation and railways leading from the interior to those Lakes, and the probable proportion of it which may be induced down the proposed Canal, for the supply of the Eastern States, the West Indies, &c. Your opinion, also, as to how far such trade may be interfered with or competition formed by the several lines of Railways, North and South of the Lakes and River, now made or in course of con- struction, will also be considered valuable, not only from your intimate knowledge of that trade and section of country, but as President of an important Railway there. The next point on which your well-considered opinion is re- quested, is the general location of the line, and particularly its terminus on the St. Lawrence. Upon this much difference of opinion exists, traceable in a great measure to the separate or local interests of the several sections of the Province. As the Com- missioners desire that this question shall be settled unbiasedly and solely upon grounds connected with the accommodation and facilities for the contemplated trade, together with the engineering difficult ties, or otherwise, which may be found to exist, it is well merely to state that some advocate the line to start from some point, on the Beauharnois Canal, thereby as they suppose to carry such a level as would overcome the summit between the waters at the least expense ; others urge the selection of Caughnawaga,, opposite the head of the Lachine Canal, as being the place most convenient for the Ottawa trade. The interests of Montreal naturally desire its commencement at some point opposite, or a little below ihirt4uic(< of giving an early attention to the prosecution of theic improvements, aa may bo warranted by the State of the finances or tli ^ prospect of making improvomontti remunerative. iliich amendment was carried on a cliviHion. It was then moved by Mr. Honry Lyman, and seconacd by Mr. Ira Gould :— " That the subject of the constructict;. f a Canal to connect the St. Lawrence with Lake Champlain, which has lieretoforo been repeatedly urged by this Board, has h ^t none of iLs importance, as a means of attracting an increased amount of traffic tlirough tho Hi. Lawrence, and should be undertaken and effected so soon as the Pro/ii.ji! finances will permit tho expenditure, and the Stute of Kvi w :. 0' a. shall agree to enlarge the Champlain Canal to .i 0i>rre8- ponding extent." 'Mi8 resolution wa» rejected hy a vote of 36 to 11, while at every meeting of the Board since 1848, the vast importance and nifessity of the Canal for the interests of Canada^ has been uryed as will he seen from the foregoing extracts of the proci lings of the Board. The great objection to tho Canal with man) . is the fact that every Engineer who has surveyed the ground, was com- pelled to come to the conclusion that to secure the least loc kage between the St. Lawrence and Lake Champlain, as well a-! to secure the general interests of the Province, the outlet from the St. Lawrence should be at or near Caughnawaga. It is not denied by any that in the competition for the exports and imports by sea, with the Welland and St. Lawrence Canals enlarged and adapted i r vessels of 800 tons, Montreal would have the entire superiority. It has been estimated (and the estimate has never been impugned) . that property could be brought from Chicago to Montreal, there to meet the ocean ship at $2tVo per ton, while the same property could not bo taken from Chicago via Buffalo to New York, or via tit? Caughnawaga Canal to New York, at less than $4tV5 por ton. Is it not then very absurd to suppose that Montreal would be injured so far as the export trade was concerned, by the Caughna- waga Canal ? Would any merchant, having a cargo of wheat from the West, at Montreal, pay $2 extra per ton for the privilege of taking it through Lake Champlain and Hudson Biver, and shipping it at New York, when he could bring the Western vessel with his 22 if 'I wheat alongside of the ocean ship in the harbour of Montreal ? It is true there might be exceptions to this. Every dealer in produce knows that the sailing ship and steamship owner keeps himself thoroughly posted, as to the quantity of grain and flour on hand here and on the way from Kingston, and having the game in his own hands, he puts on the screws, and demands any rate of freight he chooses. The merchant is helpless, and he is com> pelled to give whatever rate may be demanded. Hundreds of thou- sands of pounds have in this way been paid by the Montreal produce dealer, in extra freight, which could have been saved, if there was the check on excessive rates of freight, which the proposed Canal would give. The rate at Montreal could never be higher than the New York rate, with the charges of inland transport from Montreal to New York added, and if this option was in the hands of the shipper, the rate of freight could never be excessive at Montreal. The one party, however, gets rich ; while the other, as a class, becomes poor. It is no wonder, therefore, that these ship owners should be on hand, when the subject of this Canal is discussed. The foregoing extracts from the nunutes of the Board shew, that up to 1854, Mr. Allan was warmly in favour of a Canal into Lake Champlain, but since that time, when he became an owner of stea- mers, he curiously enough condemns it. The Canal might, and no doubt, would interfere with the rates of freight inwards, and would tend to reduce rates on all dry goods hard- ware, &c., from Liverpool to Montreal. The fact is well known that the present rates from Liverpool to Montreal, by steamships are so high, that many Toronto and Hamilton importers regularly bring their dry goods, &c., in the " Inman " and " Cunard " lines to New York, and after paying inland charges from New York to these cities, the cost from Liverpool is less than by the " Allan " line of steamers via Montreal. With the proposed Canal constructed, it must also be evident that the dry goods, hardware, and grocery merchants of Montreal would have it in their power of limiting the rates of freight from Liverpool to Montreal, to what might be the cost from Liverpool to New York, with the charges added to Montreal from New York. It is not, therefore, surprising that parties interested in the " Allan " line of steamships, should be so much interested in the proposed Canal, and should have changed 23 »> their opinions on the subject ; but it is surprising that Mr. Hugh Fraser, James Hutton, and others, largely engaged in the Import Trade, should have changed their views. But, again, it is said, there are no objections to the Canal, provided that its outlet be at Longueuil, or, as Mr. Allan says* " not above St. Lambert." So far as the export trade is con- emed the western vessel must meet the ocean ship within the harbour of Montreal. The supplying of the New England States with western products is now almost exclusively done through the Erie Canal and by New York Railways. We get almost none of it wm by Canal, but we do a little by railway, in conseqnence of the V'ctoria Bridge. This trade of New England from the West, for New England's consumption, is far greater than all the exports to foreign countries. Now, the position of Montreal is such, that it may be made the seaport of the West, for western exports and imports. This cannot be disputed ; but, besides being the best seaport for the exports of the West, the St. Lawrence can be made the best and cheapest route from the West to New England. What harm then will it do Montreal if the route from the West to New England can be made the best and cheapest through the St. Lawrence, instead of through the Erie Canal? Upwards of $5,000,000 are now collected annually from the Erie Canal by the State of New York. Would it injure Montreal if Canada could collect $3,000,000 per annum from her Canals, instead of, as at present, receiving nothing whatever ? Would not the people of Montreal, even under this view of the subject, be benefitted alike with the people in all parts of the Province, by the reduced duties on imports which would then be possible ? There was a time when the people of the Western section of the Province did not hesitate to denounce the merchants of Montreal as selfish ; allegmg that they cared not how general laws or principles were ignored? so long as Montreal obtained the advantage. It is to be feared that in the rejecting of Mr. Young's resolutions, and opposing a Canal from the St. Lawrence into Lake Champlain, ignoring all considerations of level, and for no better reason than because its outlet is not at Montreal, that this charge of selfishness will be renewed. Montreal is not the whole province of Canada, and the true policy of her people ought to be to find out what is beat 24 ; si: li ::H !ii':;;.it 1 ■;. :ii I: ' I ' hif 1^^ /or