7 SPEECH ON THE BUDGET BY THE HON. J. G. ROBERTSON, TREASURER OF THE PROVINCE OF OUEBEC, /■ DBLIVBRBD IN THR LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY, QUEBEC, 2iid f'EBBUA^Y, 1876. {B^arUdyiit^ Morning Chronicle.) QUEBEC: PRINTED AT THE <'MOBNING CHRONICLE" OFFICE. 1875. SPEECH ON THE BUDGET BY THE HON. J. G. ROBERTSON, TREASURER OF THE PROVINCE OF QUEBEC, DELIVERED IN THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY. QUEBEC, 2nd FEBRUARY, 1875. {Reported Jor Morning Chronicle.) QUEBEC : PRINTED AT THE "MORNING CURONICLE" OFFICE. 1875. BUDGET SPEECH OF THE HON. TREASURER OF QUEBEC. Feh-rzLcuTy Snd, 1S7B. AFTER RECESS. The House mot at half-past seven. The Hon. Mr. liOBERTSON then moved the House into Com- mitteo of Supply. In doing so, he said : — Mr. Speaker, — I \to% to move that you do now leave the chair, and that the House go into Committee of Supply. Tliis motion is not a mere matter of form, but of substance. It involves a statement of the sources of our revenue, and of how the supplies previously granted by the Legislature, have been expended, and the enquiry whether a wise economy has been exercised, or lavish extravagance of public funds practised by the Government. It involves also explanations respecting our pro- bal)lo means for the next iiscal year, and also the expenditure proposed for the same period, and the different objects for which I he expenditure is asked from the House. A molion for llie House to go into Committee of Supply under our constituliou, recognizes the sound principles that, to the popular l)ranch of the Legislature, in a special manner, belongs the raising of funds lor the public service and the distribution thereof, according to the view of the representatives of the people, and in such manner as they consider the public interest requires, A Government under our system has only to carry out, in the collection of revenues and their disposal, the requirements of the Legislature ; and it is well, Mr. Speaker, for the country that these periodical seasons of rendering an account of their stewardship to the Legislature come round, from time to time, in order that the Government may have an opportunity of showing what has been done, and the House an opportunity of judging of the way the trust reposed in the Executive has been exercised. The public accounts for the past year have been before the House for some time, and contain statements of our receipts and expenditure for the year ending 30th June last. These state- ments are, I think, about as plain and easy to bo understood as it is possible to make them, and will, I trust, be found satisfactory. I may observe that tho estimate of our receipts for the past fiscal year submitted by me on the 29th November, 1872, to the House, was, I am happy to say, exceeded by actual receipts to the amount of about $325,000, and that notwithstanding the large ex- penditure on Spencer Wood and.the Quebec Court House, the gain on the year's transactions amounted to $105,000. There was also the sum of $38,700 paid during the past year to the South Eastern Railway Company, on account of Railway Subsidy, which appears among the payments made, which should properly have come out of the loan for railway purposes I have transfericd this amount to the general revenue account for the current yeaf, and the sum mentioned will appear in this year's transactions as a receipt, and to the debit of Railway Subsidy account. ^ As we have now a Railway Subsidy Account all payments hereafter to railway companies will be charged to the proper account so as to show the disposition of the money obtained under the Act of last session, and .showing the respective com. panies to which the money may be paid. In connection with payments to certain railways, although made during the present fiscal year, I hope the House will allpw me to make some explanations, I allude to tho payment of $80,000 to the North Shore Railway Company, and about a like sum to the Montreal Northern Coloni- zation Company. The act of last session provides, that tho Lieutenant-Governor in Council, on being satisfied that these companies have entered into contract, in good faith, for the construction of their respective railways, and the work thereon is in active progress, may advance out of the grant or loan to which these companies are entitled, under the law, such sums as the progress of the work, and the security taken by tho Companies, may seem to the Lieutenant- Governor in Council to justify. The Government had, as they supposed, made arrangements with an engineer, to inspect and report, from time to time, upon the progress of the work on these roads, but through some misunderstanding on the part of the engineer referred to, he finally declined through press of other business to undertake the inspection. The contractors on these railways had expended large sums of :r.oney in the prosecution of their work. The Companies had at the time no available means at their disposal to go on with the v^ ork, and it became a question whc^thcr the work on these railways must stop, or with some assistance from the Government be proceeded with. With regard to the North Shore Railway, the Government obtained from the Chief Engineer of the Company, a report show- ing the amount of work done, and material furnished on this line, and the Government upon this Report, made an advance to the Company out of the grant made by the Legislature of $80,000 to enable the work to be proceeded with, till such time as an offi- cial report could be made by a Government Engineer as to the prooToss of the works and the cash value thereof. The report of Mr. Ligjit, the Engineer appointed by the Government to inspect and report on this line, fully justifies the advance made by the Government. Wilh respect to the Montreal Northern Colonization Railway, the Government had reports from the engineer of the Company, and also the engineer appointed by the City Corporation of Mont- real, showing the progress of the works of various kinds on this line of road, and an advance was likewise made to the Company, oiherw,sc the work must have been partially, if not wholly en». ponded. The inspection ofthi« line by the Governmire ^ueer fully bear« ont the propriety of the appropriation made. In^both rr rl"'" "■'" "''^"" "> ^"^•" ""hin the mark. And I eon- sider the Government h onld have been justly liable to censure along ,nto eonsideration the critical po.it'ion o'f these Cn ' Z "i 't r" ':'^ °'f' 'f "'f^ '-'^ .-f-0 '0 appropriato'a ■ .ion of the ,rant made by thi L^.^^^ t^SsTZrlr, IrK™ r""'"™ "' "- -*. «" a- important ro2 (Hear, hear.) Another pom : I had just returned from England, where I requeruly hoard the probable success of these railways dircusred I found detormn,ed opposition to their success by certain iZ™' wh ri '" ^'"''°"- " ™^ ^-"^ "■»' <•""« «Xd a to' whether the eit.es of Montreal and Quebec would K r . wiilin, to carry out their en,agements^:itr't, J^'l^ot f™"' way compan.es_donbts also as to the lerralitv ^eT u . pa^sed by these Corporations : an ^ll'sr^'^to^^' ^hj. th': S=r:^^!::^.;:^-j^-he~ railway imrposes ; and that if this riffht eiislod (hTi /, session, authorizing the issue and salfof debuttr* Z"', '"' purposes, was defective and insufficient, in h ho™ L ki r^' railway enterprises in the Proving,. K„ i r 7 r "^'"""'6 Government bonds. Thos!- a^d maiiV Ith "'^ ""^ '''° "' ""= contend with and remove: rar^TsiMe.^''*^''^"'"'^ ' "-' '" After the Govenimont bonds had been pl'-ced T 1,.^ r occasion to give infonnation respecting Z! rtl^"^ ^ITu""' importance for the nrosnevifv r!n^ r.° r-nlways, as to their existed for their coiSS^ the*™.':™:; t TT' 7"'"'' in aid of their being built etc 1^7 ft ^ •Legislature prejudices against them, and didl^^d otWwir "'"""'' """" Mr. Speaker, knowing all these things, and others which 1 need not weary the House by alludi]ig to, 1 acquiesced in making the payments referred to. 1 well knew that the stoppage of work on these railways would have rejoiced the hearts of some ; but would have given a death blow to any hopes of negotiating a loan in England for years to come, and ruined the contractors and the companies as well ; and parallzed the ellbrts of the Legislature to a great extent in these and similar enterprises in our Province for a long time to come. I accept, Mr. Speaker, to the full, my re- sponsibility in this matter. I should have been wanting in my duty to this House, which has done, and is doing, so much to aid railways, and to the country, which has sanctioned and approved of the liberal railway policy which is in force to-day, — if I had hesitated, in connection with my late colleagos in the Govern- ment, to come to the relief of these companies in their time of need. It has been said by a certain class of persons amongst us, that the Government acted against the law in the payments re- ferred to, wilhout iirst having a rep"rt from the Government en- gineer, which the law requires. Mr. Speaker, such is not the case ; the law, in so far as these roads are concerned, .says nothing as to a report from a Government or any other eiigineer, before any money shall be paid. "When the Lieuteuant-Gove vnor in Coan- cil is satisiied that the works are progressing and contracts made in good faith, iinancial arrangements made, &c., money may be advanced. The Government fully intended employing an engi- neer ; but having failed to do so, acted on the best information possible. S'nce then, the Government engineer's reports bear out fully, that 10 risk was run by the Government of the Provhice in the course adopted, Mr. Speaker, if the Government, in view of what 'hey knew of the difficulties these companies had to contend with, of the oppo- sition of certain parties and corporations to the construction of these roads, with the knowledge of tlie deep interest taken by members of this House in these and similar railway operations, of the anxiety felt by the whole peoj)le of this Province in the suc- cess of railway enterprises, and the necessity of showing abroad that the Government and people of tliis Province had faith in its railway policy. I say, in view^ of all this knowledge, if the Go- / d vetnment had failed to act, they would have richly deserved the censure of this House to the fullest extent. A failure to act would have been hailed with delight by certain parties who would glad- ly see these railways prove a failure, and who would have found equal fault with the G-overnment for non-action, which they now find for the action taken. (Hear, hear.) I regret, Mr. Speaker, that the law does not give to the Lieute- nant-Governor in Council the power to come to the aid of other railways in a like manner, now struggling against every possible difficulty, from open enemies and lukewarm friends, till such time as 25 miles of road are built and equipped, and ready for public use. I have to apologize for this digression ; but could not help alluding to the subject in defence of the late Government, and in the public interest. I have no great progress to report to the House since the last session, respecting the division of the assets belonging jointly to the Provinces of Ontario and Quebec. There has l)een some in formal and unofficial correspondence on the subject ; but the ab- sence of the Honorable Treasurer of Ontario, and iny own, in .England, on business, prevented any definite action. I hope that during the recess of the Legislature, we may be able to accom- plish more than we did last year. (Hear, hear.) REVENUE. I now come, Mr. Speaker, to the receipts of the last fiscal year. As I have mentioned, they exceeded by a considerable amount my estimates. This I expected. It is more pleasant to have to re- port an excess of receipts than the reverse. I like to err on the safe side. (Hear, hear.) I shall not go into details of receipts and expenditure as I have formerly done ; but shall content myself vrith giving a summary of the principal items on both sides of the account. Hon. members can easily, from the Public Accounts, supply what details may be required for all practical purposes. Dominion: on subsidy, interest on Trust Funds, and special subsidy for Immigration $1,031,690 91 9 Crown Lands $ 625/206 90 Less notes not due or not paid 121,023 61 $504,183 29 Add notes deducted as above last year 37,957 38 And overpaid amount 5 542,140 72 Law and Registration Stamps . 181,920 41 Law Fee Fund & Building and Jury Fund, (exclu- sive of stamps) and including $10,000 received from the Trustees of Morrin College for old Gaol, Quebec... 34,304 74 Montreal Court House, exclusive of stamps 2,078 75 Licenses (tavern) 141,597 72 Marriage licenses 7,482 00 Education Receipts 10,991 14 Provincial Police from Quebec City for year 18,066 90 Municipal Loan Fund 14,737 73 Official Gazette 16,578 79 Interest 52,239 24 MISCELLANEOUS. Proceeds of sale of lands adjoining Montreal Court House $1,000 00 St. John's Lunatic Asylum 676 50 Fines and penalties 1,118 40 Quebec Fire Loan 4,117 46 Township of Windsor, in trust 1,436 49 Sale of Statutes 87 85 Fees on Private Bills 2,888 24 Proceeds of House of Correction, and City contribution to Gaol guard Montreal 8,196 74 Casual Revenue -1,722 82 Dorchester Bridge Loan Sinking Fund 450 00 21,694 50 10 Refunds 15,651 16 Toial receipts for year $2,041,174 71 On hand, 30th June, 1873 948,001 43 Grand total $2,989,176 14 EXPENDITURE. I now come to the expenditure for the past year. It will be found that, notwithstanding our large payments on works of a permanent character, and on account of Railway Sub- sidies, the amount in the Treasury exceeded that of the previous year by over $100,000. Means must be taken to reduce our an- nual expenditure, more especially as I fear, on account of the stag- nation of the lumber trade, our receipts this year and next will be considerably diminished, and I am sure the House will see the propriety of this course and be moderate in their demands on the public purse. We have expended last year on Legislation $173,292 98 Civil Government 146,766 41 Administration of Justice, Police, Reformatories and Prison Inspection 469,479 21 Education, Literary and Scientific Institutions, Arts and Manufactures 820,166 07 Agriculture, Immigration and Colonization 242,072 75 Public Works and Buildings 161,147 42 Charities, including Beauport Asylum ($137,800 54), Reformatory and Industrial Schools 218,224 85 Official Gazette 10147 28 Crown Lands Expenditure, including Registration Service 128,574 82 Railway Subsidy to South Eastern Railway 38,700 00 SUNDRIES. Miscellaneous ^ $ 13,304 36 Municipalities Fund 1,413 00 Licenses, Stamps, &c 2,309 00 Township of Windsor, in trust 1,436 49 •=. — 18,462 8$ 11 Making the total expenditure for the year paid by warrants through the Treasury 1,927,034 64 To which must be added amounts paid by Sheriffs and Collectors of Revenue out of their collec- tions 25,134 23 As well as amounts credited Municipal Loan from the Dominion ; this amount is credited the Pro- vince by the Dominion Government in open account , 11,516 82 And also "Warrants outstanding 30th June, 1873... 28,909 19 $1,992,594 88 Less-Warrants outstanding 30th June, 1874 54,822 84 $1,937,772 04 So that taking the total receipts during the year with the amount in the Treasury on 30th June, 1873 $2,989,176 14 And deducting the total expenditure 1,937,772 04 Leaves in the Treasury $1,051,404 10 Disposed of as follows : — Union Bank of Lower Canada $100,000 00 Metropolitan Bank 125,000 00 Jacques Cartier Bank 100,000 00 Eastern Townships Bank 130,000 00 City Bank 75,000 00 Bank of Montreal 150,000 00 Special deposits bearing 6 per cent $680,000 00 Bank of Montreal $315,025 54 Union Bank 24,167 65 Metropolitan Bank 18,667 24 LaBanque Nationale 13,543 67 Ordinary deposits 371,404 10 $1,051,404 10 I next come to the Judicial Deposit Account, an entirely differ- ent account from our General Receipt and Expenditure Account. 12 The moneys deposited on judicial processes in our Courts, are kept distinct from Provincial funds, as they are held in trust, for siiitors, and payable on demand according to judgments rendered in the various Courts of the Province. The keeping of these moneys and the accounts, v^dth the various depositors, individ- ually, and with the respective districts and offices, imposes a large amount of additional work on my Department, but the system works well, is satisfactory to the country, and ensures safety to the public, and relieves judicial officers from great re- sponsibility in keeping monies in their possession. JUDICIAL DEPOSITS. 35 Vic, cap. 5, and 36 Vic, cap. 14. Amount deposited previous to 1st .July 1873...., do deposited year ended .'JOth June, 1874. Total amount dc])ositcd Amount paid previous to 1st July, 1873 do do during lisciil year ended aoth June, 1874 Total paid on deposits Balance on deposits ct.s. 558,761 55 602,8l)J SB $ cts. Interest accrued to 1st July, 1873 do allowed by Banks for fiscal year ended 3jth June, 1874 Total interest Lkss. Amount paid previous to Ist July, 1873, ns per .state- ment published Amount paid during flsoal year ended 30th Juno, 1874: Refunded administration of justice : For proportion of Auditor's salary..., $400 00 Clerk's salary, 1st July to 30th Nov., 1873, at $1,200 per year 500 00 Clerk's salary 1st Dec, 1873, to 30th June, 1874, at $1000 per year 583 33 Books, forms, printing, &c 188 27 $1,671 60 Refunded Treasury Department con. tingencies for postages 500 00 Amount paid under tho law to Sheriffs, I'ro- thonotarics, itc 2,726 08 Total charges against interest. Balance of interest 7,120 87 4,S97 68 827,854 97 512,.384 89 1,340,239 86 1,161,662 41 14,655 29 13,718 02 28,373 31 12,018 £5 $ eta. 178,587 45 16,354 It $194,942 21 13 Balance at credit of Judicial Deposits in the follow- ing Banks : Union Bank, Quebec $69,004 09 Do ThrcoRivers 4,814 29 Do Ottawa 633 56 Merchants' Bank, Sorel 2,702 41 Do St. Hyacinthe 1,1:80 63 Do Beauharnois 1,256 87 Do St. John's 3,459 71 City Bank, Sherbrooke 8,780 66 Eastern Townships Bank, Sherbrooke... • 1,713 89 Do do Cowmansville 9,444 19 La Banque Jacques Cartier 101,851 91 $194,942 21 REVENUE FOR 1875-76 I now^ come to the estimated revenue for the next fiscal year. It is based principally on our previous receipts, and I hope, will be exceeded somewhat by our actual receipts, and first : From the Dominion Government $1,014,000 00 This amount is composed of the subsidy payable under the B. N. Act of 1867, and interest on certain trust funds in their hands belonging to us. Crown Lands— Estimated by the officers of that department at $550,550 00 I hope ihis sum Avili be realized. I must confess the estimate is large in view of the lumber trade, Possibly this depression will affect the current year's receipts, more than the next, as it is hoped, that the present stagnant state of this important industry may be early succeeded by better demand, and better prices, for lumber than obtained just now. Then follow — Law and Registration Stamps $132,000 00 Education; Normal Schools 8,500 00 14 JUeformatory St. Vincent de Paul. (This amount is from proceeds of property sold when the Re- formatory was changed to Montreal) 5,000 00 Licenses of various kinds, hotel, shops, &c 150,000 00 I must acknowlege that there is great difficulty in making the law in such a shape as to regulate the traffic in liquors as it should be. I have altered the law three or four times as respects the city of Montreal, in each case, so as to meet the views of those intrusted with the proper working of the License Act. (Hear, hear.) Last session it was amended, to meet the wishes of the people in that city, as was supposed in such a way as to limit, and shut out improper parties from obtaining Licenses, and to prevent illicit selling of liquors, yet still complaints are made as to the inefficiency of the law to accomplish their ends. (Hear, hear.) It may be prudent to endeavour to meet the difficulty by still further altering the law as respects Montreal. Then comes House of Correction and Gaol guard Montreal |8,000 00 Municipal Loan Fund 40,000 00 Official Gazette 18 675 00 Casual Revenue 2 000 00 Sale of Statutes, printing laws and fees Private Bills 3,000 00 ^<*^ice 3yQ00 00 Rent in Montreal 500 00 Gaol for Females in Montreal for City Corporation as per agreement 32,000 00 Law fee fund, Building and Jury fund and Court House tax 25,000 00 Interest on Bank Deposits 175 000 00 Making the estimated Revenue to be 82,194,22^00 This amount I hope to receive, and is exclusive of whatever sum may be in the Treasury at the end of the present fiscal year. EXPENDITURE. I now come to the estimated expenditure for next year, which IS expected to cover the actual expenditure, unforseen contingen- gencies excepted. ° 15 Hon. members will bear in mind, that voting the amounti asked for, does not necessarily involve their being spent. So much of the various amounts granted by the House, as are not absolutely required for the public service, will be retained in the Treasury, and written oflf at the close of the year. It having been found that the amount voted by the House, for the current year, is not enough to meet the demands for certain services, and although the law permits the issue of special warrants, in certain cases, I prefer bringing in a supplementary estimate for this year's service for what will be required, to complete the year, to the 30th June next. To supply deficiencies on II. CIVIL GOVERNMENT, Public Departments salaries $ 3,000 00 III. JUSTICE. Administration of Justice $32,000 00 IV POLICE, &C Police 3,350 00 Prison Inspection 250 00 Reformatory, Montreal 6,200 00 41,800 00 v. IMMIGRATION, &C. Immigration 20,000 00 Colonization roads 1st class 18,345 00 2nd class 13,598 02 Srdclass 3,579 91 >- $ 55,522 98 IX. COLLECTION, MANAGEMENT AND OTHER CHARGES ON RETENUE. Registration Service $17,500 00 Boundary Line, Quebec and Ontario, 4,000 00 16 Crown Lands, General Expenditure for Agents' disbursements (bush ranging) 6,000 00 $27,500 00 Rents, Insurances and Repairs of Public Buildings: Spencer Wood 3,000 00 Lunatic Asylum, Montreal Sisters of Providence 8,000 00 Making in the whole |ll38,822 98 I now come to the proposed Expenditure for the next fiscal year, which corresponds with the printed Estimates submitted to the House. In some branches of the public service these will be found lar- ger than formerly, to which I will call attention as I proceed in ray remarks. It will also be observed, that, in my statement, I mention the whole proposed Expenditure, whether votes are required or not, in order that the House may know the full amount necessary for each service. Part of the Expenditure having been already voted in various statutes, will not be asked for again ; and that portion requiring votes are numbered from one consecutively in the Estimates given to the House in conformity with the act passed at a former ses- sion of the Legislature. I. LEGISLATION. Legislative Coancil, covering indemnity to mem- bers, mileage, salaries and contingent expenses.. § 41,507 00 Legislative Assembly for similar services 100,000 00 Expenses of Elections 30.000 00 The general elections under the Constitutional Act, coming olF this year, entails a larger expen- diture than usual, for this service. Parliamentary Library 5 000 00 Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, salary and con- tingencies 300 00 17 Printing, binding and distrilmting hws 5,500 00 Law Clork, salary and conlingoucios 4,000 00 Making in the whole under tho head of legifslation. $180,807 00 II. CIVIL OOVEIINMENT. Public Departments, salaries and contingencies 145,915 00 The items which make up this amount, will be found in the printed statement accompanying the Estimates, and are in excess of last year, by about $2,500. III. ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE, &:c. Administration of Justice $371,110 00 Police 06,000 00 Reformatories ,t, 44,500 00 Prison Inspection..... 3,700 00 Making in all for Justice, &c $485,310 00 With respect to the items of Justice, Police and Reformatories, I have frankly to state that they arc very large, and have been steadily increasing since 1867, notwithstanding every effort to keep down the expenditure. The Government intend examining thoroughly into the Admi- nistration of Justice, with the view of ascertaining, if equal effi- ciency cannot be obtained at less cost to the country. It is cer- tain also, that there are some olficers in this Departmeiit very in- adequately pail lor their sovvic;'s, wh^lo other;-: may be f:ini:d per- haps overpaid. Sherills, for instance, in several district?', have not enough to live on decently, not to s;ry respectably from their sa- laries. District Magistrates also, have reprconled that their sala- ries are inadequate for their respectable suppori:, and the attention of the Government frequently called to this state of things. The large expenditure, however, requircnl for Justice has preveiited the Government from granting an increase, luitil the "Vvhole sub- ject is examined in all its details, by the law officers of the Crown, 3 18 and means devised to render the administration of Justice more effective, if possible, and at the same time enquire if any way can be found to grant increased remuneration to those engaged in this important service. The same remarks apply to the Police expenditure in so far as increated cost is concerned, and means must be adopted to lessen the expense in one way or other, which at present exceeds what the Province can legitimately pay. One thing is clear, if local contributions are not increased, the number of police must be di- minished. The attention of the Government will, therefore, be directed to the whole systom of the administration of Justice and Police, in order to ascertain whether equal efficiency, at least, can- not be maintained, and at less cost to the Province. The next service is IV. EDUCATION. Superior Education proper „ $ 71000 High Schools Quebec and Montreal 2,470 Compensation to lloman Catholic Institutions 4 940 Common Schools 1S5 000 Schools in Poor Municipalities 8 000 Normal Schools 46 000 Salaries of School Inspectors 24 000 Books for Prizes 2500 Journals of Education 2*400 Superannuated Teachers q'qOo Schools for the Deaf and Dumb 12 000 Total Education ^334 g-^Q It will be observed that the grant to School I inspectors is some- what less than last year, and that to Normal Scliools a little larger. Representations have frequently been made to the Government, that the salaries of Normal School Professors, were too low for the class of gentlemen suitable for such professions, and that to make these valuable institutions as efficient as they should be, the very best teachers should be procured. In order to secure the service^ 19 ofsuchgoiitlemcnand retain the prosent stafl" of efficient profcs- RorH, larger salaries must ho paid. It was proposed that the tuition iees received in several Normal Schools should bo distributed amongst the professors to increase their salaries ; but this vs'as ob- jected to, as the consent of the House had not lirst been obtained. I therefore retain, amongst the estimated receipts, an amount to be received from these institutions, and bring the propriety of dealing more liberally with the Normal School professors, before the House for adoption, feeling sure that the justice of the claim will be conceded by the House. I consider the importance of these institutions, in training teachers for our Academies and Common Schools, cannot be over- estimated, and their importance cannot be too much appreciated by hon. members and by the public. Next come Literary and Scientific Institutions. These are the same as last year, with the exception of the grant to the Advocates' Library, Quebec, not given this year, and a grant of $500 to the Institut Canadien of Quebec. Medical Faculty, McGill College, Montreal $750 School of Medicine, Montreal 750 Natural History Society, Montreal 750 Montreal Historical Society, Montreal 400 School of Medicine (Bishop's College), Montreal 500 Numismatic and Antiquarian Society, Montreal 100 Literary and Historical Society, Quebec 750 Institut Canadien, Quebec 500 Aid towards publication of Le Natumliste Canadien, Quebec. 400 Academic de Musique, Quebec 100 Amounting to in all $5,000 ARTS AND MANUFACTURES. Board of Arts and Manufactures $7,500 It will be noticed, by the House, that I have added, to this grant, fifty per cent over last year, towards encouraging the esta- liO blishmont ol' Schools ol' Art niul DoKigii. I boliovo Ihcso schools arc doiiii,^ ;i i','(>(kI work in the I'rovincc, uiul supplying a want whicli other .schools cimnoi .supply. Thoy urc atlt'iulcd hy young men desirous oi' jiorlccting" (heniselvt's intho variouw ])oi)artmont8 ol" Art.s and Manulaclurcs, to which llu'y have devoted them.selves. Many attend in the eveninq-.s, who aie necessarily em])!oycd earn- ing' their livelihood diuini;' the day time, and who, without those schools must n^main i^'iiorant (d'the liist piinciplesoi' their trades* and are prevented iVoni taking' proniint-nL po.sitions, I'or want of just such knowledge ;is th(>y acquire at the.se schools. It is to bo hoped that private contril)utions may bo obtained towards the encoura- gement oi' these institutions, and tliat hereal'ter, we may be able to do a little more in this House to the .same end. (Hear, hear.) V. Aoiiicui/ruKi:, immigration and colonization. Agricultural Societies 150,000 Board of Agricirlturo 2,000 iStom'-breaking Machine ! 2,000 Agricultural Schools 2,100 $56,400 Immigration and Repalricment 50,000 colonization. Colonization Societies $1 2,500 Eoad.s, Istcla.ss 40,000 2nd '' 12,000 '"^rd " 8,000 To a.ssist the establishment of IJeet-sugar Manu- factories 5,000 77,500 Making for Immigration, Agriculture and Colonization... $183,900 It will be uoticod here, that the Government intend to apply a portion of the amount asked for immigration and repatriement, to- wards preparing locations on Crow^n Lands, by building houses and clearing a few acres of land on each 100 acres, in order to en- courage those wdio wish to return from the United States to re- 11 21 main in the Province. (Hear.) It is hoped this expenditure will answer the purpose iutonded. I now come noxt to PITULU; WOUKS AND BUILDINci]y s'xii:>li<'d with tli(^ results of my mission to Kng'land. (Appluus,>.) I Imd no personal end to serve in trying to nei^'otiale tiie loan. ))ul, I did wi-h to discharge my duty to the House and to ilie rrovinco, and my best efTorts were directed, to gi'.'e such info/mation to tlio.-e who could a.ssist me in the transaction, and through tJKMa the British public, in order that our true position might- be known, and our credit established on a firm basis, and 1 humbly coiieeive I suc- ceeded reasonably well in my purpose. (Hear, hear.) I had an opportunity in London, belore my return, of meeting gentlemen intimately acquainted with the mom^y market in England, and they, without exception, said that I had o])tained a higher ligure. by far, than they looked for, and in iacttoo high for the issuers to make anything for their trouble and expense. The Manager of the Bank of Scotland, one of the largest bank- ing institutions in Great Britain, and formerly at the head of two of the largest Banks in the Dominion, in a letter which I saw» said he could not do much in the sale of the Quebec Bonds, or recommend them, as the price was too high for investors to place money in them. Not but what they were a .safe investment, but issued at so high a price, that partie.s could invest their money in securities which would yield better returns. Parties in this country I have seen and and lu\ivd from, some of whom had frequently negotiated loans in the English market for the Canadian Government. Those, without a .^ingle excep- tion, said the price o])tained was a good one. and that, for the Government to have given these l)onds to any railway comi)any to negotiate, would have been to dein'eeiatc the eivdit of the Province and produce ler-is money lor railway purposes. They all agree that the Government did right in n(>gotiating tiieir own bonds and not handing them over to the railway companies ; and that the price obtained was a good one. Under all the circum- stances, I conceive, Mr. Speaker, the House and the country are 5 84 satifiiitid with the result as rcRpecto tho wolfaro and financial credit of QiU'hcc. (Hear, hear.) Another point in connection with our loan : It was indusiri- ously circulated in London that our law of last sewsion was de- foctivo, as no particular amount was dolinitely fixed in tho act which might bo borrowed under it, and objections were taken by certain members of the Stock Exchange to a quotation being f^iven. These objections were with some difficulty removed, and a quotation allowed by tho Committee of tho Stock Exchange to appear in the list of " Miscellaneous Stock." This I would not permit, and insisted that our bonds should be placed among " Colonial Government Securities." To accomplish this, T had to prepare a statement, showing that the Government of Quebec derivi-d its powers to borrow money, from precisely tho same source as the Dominion Government, namely : tho Imperial Parliament, for purposes within the scope of the jurisdiction of the Quebec Lej^islature, and that railway construction in the Province was within the scope of our powers, as set forth, in the British North America Act of 1867. An appeal to the Secretary of Stale for the Colonies was made. He fully sustained our i)retentions, and accordingly our bonds were quoted among- Colonial Government Securities, which at once stamped a value upon them which years would have faijied otherwise to do. Here also Sir John Rose rendered valuable assistance, in fact, without him I should have failed in my efforts. Perhaps to this circumstance, as much as any other, may be attributed the present advance in the price of our bonds. I know Sir John Rose told me, that without this, no profit could have been mad<% by the syndicate which brought out the loan, on the amount to be fixed by them. I was quite aware^that the business season was almost over, and that, if I wanted to place the loan to good advantage, no time was to be lost in doinjr so. "O I think I have shown that the Government had no alternative, in prder to meet the calls likely to be made for railway subsidies, A5 than to negotiate tho loan, tho law not allowing tho surplus oii hand to bo UKcd for that purposo, and that to havo givon bonds to tho diffbront railway companies, would havcondangercd tho credit ot the Province, uiul not have done as much in railway iuterestfs, as to use tho l)oiuls ajid pay the couii)auie8 the i)roceeds ; and that tho price obtained for the bonds was a fair one, quite as much as, under the circumstances, could be expected. I now, Mr. Speaker, say that the late Government acted wisely and in tho public interest in the course they adopted, and say fur- ther, that I carried out to the letter, the provisions of the order in Council respecting the preparation of the bonds and their sale in London, and, in the deposit in various banks of the Province on interest till wanted for railway purposes, and on the whole tran- saction, acted upon, and carried out, the understanding had with my colleagues in the matter. I am perfectly satisfied that had I not closed tho sale at the time and for the prices obtained, the pro- bability is, the transaction would not havo been closed to-day, and that no such price could be obtained now as was then. As I expected, the interest rales lor money soon became higher than in tho beginning of July, and as things turnt'd out on this side the water, if the loan had to be negotiated now, nothing like so good terms could be obtained, in fact, it is doubtful if any negotiation could be successfully completed. (Hoar hear.) I consider, Mr. Speaker, that the loss of the small discount,'at which the bonds were sold — a smaller loss than could reasonably bo expected — and not to be called a loss, because tho bonds were sold, and the proceeds given, to the railway companies interested, was money well spent in placing the credit of tho Province in the position it stands to-day in the English market. Tho efforts I made and succeeded in, being aided as I was, to tho fullest ex- tent, by Sir John Rose and the Committee of the Uank of Mon- treal in London, in having our loan placed on the stock lists amongst the " Colonial Governments," instead of " Miscellaneous Stocks," were, well worth all the loss which we sustained, and the future negotiators of the Local Government bonds will reap the benefit of my labours in this regard. 36 In eiidcavoiiriiio' to Iuito our loan placed where it ought to be amongst " CoLinial Gov.'rnmont Stocks," I know I was not only doino- rrood service lor the Province of Quebec; but also for the olher Provinces of the Dominion, and members of the other Pro- vincial G-ovornmonts, have not hesitated to tell me that they felt n-vatei'ul lor my services in their behalf, and that I was lighting other battles as well as our own. (Applause.) i have. I lear. wearied the House with my remarks, but I thought it well that hon. meml)er.s should have a full and frank statements of the facts relative to this subject, more especially as it was in a manner forced upon me. If any injury is done to the credit of the Province in co]isefiue]ice, the Itmlt is not mine. If this House considers I have been to blame, in any way, respecting the negotiation of the loan— if hon. members think I neglected the interests of the Province, if they think that I deserve censure —I must bow to their decision. I am quite ready for any investi- gation, any enquiry— the more searching the better, I am willing my public acts should bo judged upon their merits by those capa- ble of under.standing and .judging of the diOiculties of my position ni London, and the manner these were met and overcome. I am 'Willing also to allow the good sense and the intelligence of the people of the Province to pronounce as to my conduct, and abide by their decision. There are parties in, this House who have had to do with placing loans on the English market, and who know the difficul- ties to be met with in satisfactorily arranging such matters Let them testify. One hon. member of this House (from Montreal centre) was m London at the time, andean speak of how other l)ankers considered the Quebec loan was placed. He will bear me out 111 saying that, without exception, those he met with said that the price obtained was a large one, and that the Pro' vince had every reason to be satisfied. (Cheers.) I now come, Mr. Speaker, to the RAILWAY POLICY OF THE GOVERNMENT. I shall not go into details, as opportunity will be afforded when the rcBolutions come before the House, of fully explaining the in- d7 tentions of the Government. Some hon. members have expressed dissatisfaction, at the Government, for not bringing down, thei? railway policy sooner ; but it will be remembered that certain companies had until the 1st January, to make their option, as to whether they would take lands or cash subsidy, and the Govern, ment had also to obtain information, as to the progress made upon the respective roads, in order t« decide as to the course to be pursued. It is perfectly clear, that to encourage the construction of rail- ways, the aid given must be sufficient to enable the companies to obtain other assistance, in order to be able to go on and complete these roads. The difficulty in arriving at a proper conclusion as to what aid to grant, is, to reconcile the necessities of the railway interest with our financial resources. It would be quite easy to. grant sufficient aid to railways if we had plenty of me^iis, or were we to shut our eyes to future consequences and rush blind- ly into debt, leaving our successors to take care of themselves. Such is the anxiety and feeling respecting railway extension in the Province, that a momentary popularity could easily be se- cured, to any party, or Government, advocating large subsidies in aid of railways. The business of the Government, however, is not to yield to popular pressure where this is likely to be inju- rious to the Province ; but to assist, and, keeping the permanent, interest of the State in view, yield only so far as this interest per- mits. Last year I divided the Provincial railways into three classes : 1st. The roads from Quebec to Deep River, which had special le- gislation in their favor ; 2nd, railways entitled, upon the fulfil- ment of certain conditions, to cash subsidies, etc. ; 3rd, railw^ays which had the option till 1st January, of choosing either lands or money. The first class mentioned, remains as it was last year, with no alteration in the grant of lands or subsidy ; but an additional grant of |30,000 in aid of building a railway bridge acniss the Ot- tawa River, between this Province and Ontario, in order to secu?©.' a connection with the Pacific Railway in the County of I*onti«}| 88 ftt La PaBse at Deep River, or some intermediate point as the cas^ may be. In the second class of this year, which includes two roads for- merly in the third class, the Quebec and Lake St. John and the St. Francis and Megantic International — the directors of which companies surrendered their land grants and chose a money sub- sidy instead ; these are placed amongst the railways to which the Government propose to grant an additional subsidy, above that granted last year, payable either in five per cent bonds of the Go- vernment at par, or the proceeds thereof, as provided in the Act of last session. The third class is comprised of the railway companies which have the subsidy of last year continued to them. Some of these have not strictly complied with the law ; but the Government thought it better, to give them another year, in which to comply with the law, rather than cut them off' from the benefits of the Subsidy Act. In this class also, will be found the Baie des Cha- leurs road, which was entitled to a land grant or $2,600 cash per mile, the directors having preferred to keep the lands, the Govern- ment propose to grant an additional money subsidy. I am quite aware, that the policy of the Government, will not give satisfaction to all those interested in railway construction. I am free to acknowledge it does not quite satisfy myself; but after thinking the matter over in every possible way, and calcu- lating how to grant such aid as I would have liked to do, and only checked from time to time in finding myself exceeding what I believed the Province was able to bear, as a debt even for rail- way purposes, I was obliged to begin again and endeavor to do as equitably as I could, and the result I have briefly stated. The amount of indebtedness the policy will bring on the Pro- vince, if all the railways are built, will be about six millions of dollars, in the whole. As I have frequently stated, I will not consent to go beyond what I consider the Province can bear, and I may mention here, that if we had not succeeded in obtaining the Dominion Govern- 39 ment to assume our share of the surplus debt of the late Province of Canada, we could have done but little in the way of cash sub- sidies towards railway construction. We must not, and for one, I, will not be a party to placing such a debt on the Province, as to oblige the Legislature to resort to direct taxation, in order to meet the current expenses of the G-o- vernment, or to pay interest on our debt. And although at pre- sent I endanger my personal popularity in adopting this course, still I feel convinced that the people of the Province will, by-and- by, see the prudence of the course adopted. We have received since July 1, 1867, to 1st July last, as reve- nue, as appears by our published statements, $12,165,089.64, and expended during the same period, $11,168,508.38, which with the unpaid warrants outstanding, to the amount of |54,822.83, left in the Treasury the 1st July last $1,061,404.10, as appears in the public accounts. We have from the 1st July, 1867, to 1st July, 1874, spent on works of a permanent character $934,674. We left in the hands of the Dominion Government from July 1st, 1868, to 1st July, 1873, on account of interest on our share of the surplus debt $1,163,367.90. There is at present in the hands of the Dominion Government to our credit, and carrying 5 per cent interest from the superior education fund $412,314.25 and from the common school fund $675,986.90, also on interest at 5 per cent. On these we receive the interest annually. There is also, in the hands of the Ontario Government,, aa part proceeds of the common school lands, about $750,000, and some 8,000 or 9,000 acres of lands still to be realized. As to these sums there is no dispute. The municipal loan fund for Lower Canada, which will have to be regulated one of those days, amounts to $2,387,039.78 as well as a share of the Upper Canada M. L. fund and some other assets to be divided between the two Provinces, 40 * There is no use in discussing the fact, that to meet our current expenditure, and the interest on our loan, we must exercise the strictest economy in our expenditures. If this is done I think we may get along, paying necessary expenses and the interest upon our debt. By using up the surplus on hand and collecting in. and utilizing our available assets, we can pay our w^ay without in- terfering with the necessary business of the country. I have made a calculation, and find that we will probably have to pay out of our railway moneys, during the next fiscal year, at least two millions of dollars, possibly more than that sum. By that time we will be able to know, whether we can make our assets available, in the principal, for the payment of subsides, or in the shape of the interest we obtain on assets in the Dominion Government hands, to meet equal interest on an increased loan if required, and the Legislature can then decide what is to be done. The consideration of the House in such an important ques- tion as that involved in the Pacific Railway should not be guided by any party ieeling, or looked at from a party point of view. The interest of the Province should be first, then local interests afterwards. When the railway resolutions come before the House I will give such further information as may bo considered necessary to a full understanding of the whole question. And now Mr. Speaker, to conclude, I have to thank the hon. members of the House for the kind and courteous way they have received my remarks, not only on this occasion, but on many previous similar occasions, in presenting the estimates before them. This courtesy has by no means been confined to this side of the House. Hon. members on the other side have uniformly listened with patience and attention to the remarks I had to offer, and cri- ticized them as little, porhaps les ;, than they deserved. For the consideration I have received from all I jsincerely thank them. Before another budget is brought down, the personnel of the House will be in the nature of things very much changed, other persons will take our position in the House and before the coun- 41 try. The conduct of our Provincial affairs will be intrusted to other parties for the most part. If those who succeed us endea- vour to imitate those who have occupied placos in this House for the past eight years, in so for as to exclude from all discussions, questions of nationality, race and creeds, and judge of questions upon their real merits, irrespective of those national and religious differences which exist among our people, they will deserve the approbation of their country, as I believe this and the former members of the Legislature deserve the thanks of every well wisher of the Province. I firmly believe in the future of our Dominion. We are des- tined to become a great nation, great in our national resources, great as respects population, great as respects oiir free institutions, our free liberal laws, our administration of these laws, and des- tined to become one of the great powers of the world, in our in- fluence on other nations, in the example of our enterprise, Agri- cultural, Commercial and in Mechanical pursuits. I trust, also, our educational and religious institutions will keep pace with our material prosperity, and show that the nation, on this side of the Atlantic, has not deteriorated from those two great nations in Europe, from which \ye are descended ; but that we are determined, to follow in their footsteps, and show that in- creasmg age as a Dominion does not enfeeble our power or ener- gies ; but that each year adds additional strength and vigour to our institutions, till we number as many centuries as we have years since the formation of the Confederacy of the Provinces of British North America. (Cheers.) I have faith also in the ftture of our own Province. We have passed many valuable and wise law^s. These laws have been well administered. We have had abundance of food for man and beast in our borders. Our advance in the opening up of the Pro. vince by means of roads and railways has been marked, and is steadily advancing with greater rapidity than ever before. The construction of railways cannot fail to materially advance our prosperity, in every department of industry, and I trust our edu- cational and religious advantages have kept, and will keep pace 42 with our oih;n- impvovomonts A wis(? economy in the adminis- tration ol'Dur rt\sourcos, fi true rogard to tho interests of our Pro- vince as paramount to miT;' party tie.-;, strict attention to our du- ties as privat" individuals and as |)ublic men, cannot fail, with the blessing ol'a kind Providence, to make and keep us a happy, con- tented and prosperous ];eojd(\ At the conclusion of his speech, which was unusually able, and occupied fuliy two liours in its delivery, tho hon. gentleman sat down aniiil v^-ry \vc\rm applniisn from hotli sides of the Housa. It may be proper to f)l>.servo that during the course of his state- ment, thp Treasurer h.'d to reply to various questions. "We append somo of tho most iniportant, imuI his answers. Mr. BelliiVGIiam— A,s to ih.' ...Ivovtisement in the London Times, who drew it up ;' Hon. :\rr. lioBERTSON— It was put in by Morton, Rose & Com- pany, and tho Montreal Bank, with a stati^mcnt appended, signed by himself, showing the amount of the loan, the resources of the Province, and th(^ surplus we had. Mr. BELLiN(iirxVM— Did not that advertisement pledge $214- 000 additional subsidy from the Dominion for the payment of the interest on the bonds :* Hon. Mr. PtOBEKTSOxX-Not any mor<^ than any other revenue of the country, He had merely stated this in order to show that with this increasod means at our command, the Province will bo' in a still better position to meet its liabilities. Mr. ALEX.v:;;,En-A sl.temonl Ji]:o vi.at ^vas noon.sary to secure the success of the loan, and only made tho position th;"' hotter. Mr. Belli N'GirAM-(referring to tho banlcers who neo-otiated the loan in England)-Did you apply in writing or verbally to these gentlemen ? Hon. Mr. RoBERTSON-Verbally. He had received introduc tions from the best men in tho country, who had given him 48 sound advice. He thought so then, and thought so still. Shortly afterwards he remarked that he had been felicitated, either ver< bally or by letter, on the high price at which he succeeded in placing the bonds, by Sir Alexander Gait, Sir Francis Hincks, Hon. Mr, Cartwright, Hon. Mr. Holton and others. Mr. Alexander— "With regard to the negotiating of the loan by the hon. Treasurer, I may say that being in London about the time this loan was made, with two of my confreres from the City Council of Montreal, on the same business, and daily meeting for some time the hon. Treasurer, we formed the opinion that the loan made by him, and the terms of it, were highly successful, and carried out with much tact on his part. Not only was this our opinion then, but also that of the oldest financiers of that city with whom we came in contact. All of them formed the opinion that in the interests of this Province he had done well. "We may say further that those with whom we negotiated our loan affirmed distinctly that they could not take any other on such favorable terms as those given to Mr. Robertson, the hon. Treasurer. Since my return home I have had the opinion of some of our pro. minent fmanciors, who all confirm the impression made on our minds when in London. Mr. Speaker, permit me to say that, in my opinion, any discussion on this subject will not conduce to the sale of your bonds in the London market, but I fear will have a contrary effect, sir, to depress their value and react inju- riously to our credit. The London money market is very sensi- tive, the stock brokers being always on the watch, and I am persuaded that this honora])le House would not like by any action of theirs to injure the credit of the Trovince. A large number of your bonds are still unsold, and it would bo a pity to put these future l)()nds which may be issued in a worse position by a discussion that may give the impression to the Province, and to the London Stock Exchange, that this honorable House does not sustain its Treasurer in the matter of this loan. In my judgment such discussion as will throw discredit on the action of the hon. Treasurer in the negotiation of the loan last summer, will only result detrimentally to the price of your bonds in the London market, and, as I have already remarked, seriously endanger the 44 balance held for sale by your agents in London. I make these remarks as a matter of justice to the honorable Treasurer, and I am fully sustained by the two gentlemen who were with us then. On this subject I could say much more, but it will be better not, more than to merely state emphatically to this House and the Province, that there can bo no doubt but that in the uiter- est of the country the loan was a most successful one. After some further discussion the House went into Committee and adopted pro forma a few items of the estimates, when the Committee reported. Th« House then adjourned at 10.45 p.m. it^^im ^^' •£ '*' "^ . j4;