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PULLED FROM "THE ATLANTIC", OCTOBER, 1891

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1891.]

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1891.]

The Lille Sir John MdcilonuUh

THK LATE Sill JOHN

•

TnK wave of emotion which Hwept
over Cuiiada on the death of Sir John
Macdonald lia< not yet wholly siil)sided.
The incidents of the political struggle
of the sension of Parliament at the very
beginning of which he died have stimu-
lated the zeal of his followers, and given
them a clearer knowledge of the loss
they have sustained. Thus i)crs()nal
feeling and political fealty join in keep-
ing fresh the sense of regret for the loss
of their old chief.

In the nature of things, there has
necessarily been some subsidence of i)ub-
lic sorrow. All the circumstances sur-
rounding the death of the Premier tend-
ed to create a feeling that since at
seventy-six death must be expected, Sir
John Macdonald was fortunate in dying
as Premier of his country, and in the
confidence alike of the ])eople and Par-
liament of Canada, and of the Parlia-
ment and Queen of Great Britain. He
passed away with dignity, and dignity,
in such a case, affords some alleviation
to sorrow.

The life which thus closed was spent
almost wholly before the public, and in
the discharge of public business. Jiorn
at Glasgow in 1815, Sir John Macdon-
ald came with his parents to Canada at
an early age ; was educated at Kings-
ton ; studied law, and was in due time
admitted to the bar ; and in 1844 en-
tered on his long parliamentary career.
A brief list of his various emjjloyments
in the service of the state will indicate
the variety and extent of his public
life : —

Receiver-General, May 21 to Decem-
ber 7, 1847.

Commissioner of Crown Lands. De-
cember 8, 1847, to March 10, 1848.

In opposition, 1848 to 1854.

Attorney-General, September 1 1 , 1854,
to August 1, 1858.

MACDONALD.

Postmaster-General for one day, Au-
gust (), 1858.

Attorney -General, August 7, 1858, to
May 2;i, 1802.

In opposition. May 23, 1 862, to March
30, 1804.

Attoiney-General, March 30, 1804, to
July 1. 1807.

Premier of New Dominion, July 1,
1807, to November. 1873.

In oj)p()sition, Novendier, 1873, to Sep-
tember, 1878.

Premier of Canada, September, 1878,
to June 7, 1891.

Thus, out of his forty-seven years of
jjarliamentary life, from 1844 to 1891,
he was thirty-two years in office, most
of that ti:ne leader of his pai'ty. He
was only three years in public life be-
fore he was in the government ; and in
all he was only twelve years in opposi-
tion, — still, however, leading his party.
His ojjponents always feared him ; his
friends never abandoned him in opposi-
tion ; and whether in jjower or in oppo-
sition, he was always the most versatile
and vigorous force in Canadian public
affairs.

In order to make as clear as possi-
ble to the reader the conditions of pub-
lic life and the questions which public
men had to solve at the time when Sir
John Macdonald entered public life, a
brief history of i)olitical development in
Canada nmst be given.

Among the possessions of the British
crown, Canada holds a peculiar place.
For Canada, the empire made a great
and costly struggle alike against France
and against the United States. For the
empire, Canada has thrice resorted to
arms — in 1775, in 1812, and in 1866
— and turned the tide of invasion from
the walls of Quebec and from the fron-
tiers of Ontario. For Canada, the em-
pire has exerted at all times its full

528

The Late Sir John Manhmald.

[October,

diplomatic strenj^th ami skill, though not
always siiccesst'ully, and has att'orded
wliun necessary the valuable service of
her public credit. For the empire, Can-
ada has incurred great liabilities, which,
while develi)i)ing Canadian territory and
enlarging Canadian wealth and com-
merce, must inevitably be of signal ser-
vice in the future defense of the Queen's
dominions. India alone, an)ong the
other dependencies of the crown, has in-
curred great expenditure foi- inij)erial
interests ; but this was done, not by the
spontaneous and loyal self-sacrifice of
the people, but by the order of the
state. In the West Indies great bat-
tles have been fought, which have made
the waters surrounding those islands full
of glorious historic memories ; but those
battles wore fought by the British navy,
.. d entailed no struggle and little sac-
•' .ce on the part of the people. In
Canada, however, all efforts made for
the security and the interests of the em-
pire have been loyal, spontaneous, and
helpful.

Nevertheless, the political develop-
ment of Canada was slow. It did not
exhibit that progress by leaps and
bounds towards free political institutions
which we notice in the case of the Aus-
tralian colonies. These latter sprang
speedily into full life and vigor because
they had no long preliminary period of
military rule. They were settled rap-
idly by men who fully understood the
practice of constitutional government,
and therefore constitutions were quickly
conferred on them. But in the North
Ameri(!an provinces, though some be-
came British possessions in 1713, and
all in 1763, the acquisition of political
institutions of perfect freedom was long
delayed. Nova Scotia did not acquire re-
s])onsible government till 1848 ; Pi-ince
Edward Island not till 1851 ; New
Brunswick not till 1848 ; Quebec not
till 1841, at the time of the union of
Upper and Lower Canada, and indeed
it was not till the second session of the

first Parliament tiiat responsible govern-
ment was, in tiieory, conceded to the new
Province.

The reasons for this long delay in
gaining responsible government are in-
teresting. Tlio country was obtained by
conquest or had been always maintained
by arms ; consequently a period of mil-
itary rule was natural and necessary.
The invasion of Canada from the United
States in 1775 prolonged this period of
military government, and indeed ren-
dered any other government almost im-
possible. The loyalist inunigration into
Canada from 1770 to 1783, and after-
ward, added to the pojjulation a great
number of j)eople by no means disposed
to think that jjolitical agitation of any
sort was good for the peace and order of
the state. The war of 1812 strength-
ened the military ^nd conservative feel-
ing again, and gave an air of treason to
political designs and demands which at
any other time would have been deemed
worthy of serious consideration. The
rebellion of 1837 stigmatized as traitors
all who had joined in it, the penalties
inflicted having been very severe. For
these reasons, the demand made, and
ultimately conceded, for responsible gov-
ernment was met by the fierce and de-
termined opposition of the most influen-
tial, intelligent, and respectable men in
all Canada. The opposition to responsi-
ble government did not come from Brit-
ish officials or the red-tapists of Down-
ing Street. It came from within, from
among the people themselves, and from
the best and the wisesi among them.
For example, in Nova Scotia, in 1838,
resolutions were passed against the pro-
posed federal union of the Provinces
on the ground that it would " imbue the
rising generation with a fondness for
elective institutions." In New Bruns-
wick, in 1849, the people sustained at
the polls an administration strongly op-
posed to responsible government.

Responsible government having, how-
ever, been gi-anted to all the Provinces,

1891.]

The Late. Sir John Mdcdoitdld.

520

iiiul tlio union of tho two principal
Provinces liiivinir lieon iiccoinplishi;!! in
IS41, a new iield in jJolilicH was opened
tor public men. Tiicie were at this
time three classes of men engaged in
tile dis(;nssion and conduct of public
alfairs: (1) the old-time Tories, who
looked upon all demands for constitu-
tion il (ihanges as iireliminary symjjtoms
ol i-evolntion ; (li) the moderate Con-
servatives, who did not love change of
any sort for its own sake, but who were
not afraid of improvement ; and (3) tho
Radicals, who saw in responsible gov-
erniiu;nt and popular institutions the
promise of tho golden age. The strife
of these factions was rendered more
intense by the fact that the governors
had no accepted traditions of political
conduct, and fell sometimes under the
influence of one faction, sometimes un-
der that of another, while striving to
seem free from the influence of all.
To Lord Durham the i)eople of Lower
Canada had been hostile. Lord Met-
clfe had been unpopular in Upper Can-
ada. Lord Elgin bad been stoned in
the streets of Montreal and egged in
the streets of Toronto. The House of
Parliament had been burned by the ex-
cited loyal mob of Montreal in revenge
for the passing of tbe Rebellion Losses
Bill. The country was a victim to par-
tisanship, and the strife of pa)Lies was
unceasing.

Mr. John Alexander Macdonald be-
longed to the moderate Conservative
party, which he was soon to lead. The
older Tories had passed or were passing
away. The last of them may be said to
have been Sir Allan MacNab, who was
Mr. Macdonald's leader at first, and who
was in a few years succeeded by his sub-
ordinate.

The questions which the leaders of
public opinion had now to face were of
two kinds : —

(1.) Those arising out of the con-
quest.

These questions had by no means dis-

VOL. Lxviii. — NO. 408. 34

a])pcarcd in 1S4 1. The Quebec act of
1774, which coMJcrrcd on the French
Canadian sultjccts of the crown tlie
rigiit to tho use of their own langtuige,
religion, and laws, had always excited
the hostility of a considerable section
of tho liritish population. The military
rule of the liritish, however just, — and
its justice was not witiiotit flaws, — was
necessarily objectioniible to the French
people. Hence alienation prevailed be-
tween the races, which lasted long, and
which is not yet wholly extinct, — an
occasional eruption reminding us of an-
cient explosions. This feeling rendered
the government of the country as a unit
very difficult ; and in 1791 it was di-
vided into two Provinces, each with a
legislature of its own, and each with its
own laws. Out of tins state of things
political questions of much local conse-
quence arose in both Provinces. In each
there was a political agitation, which
resulted in 1837 in a double rebellion,
which was not suppressed without blood,
and which left behind it bad passions
that remained long a source of disturb-
ance. In Lower Canada the old royal
grants of land to the seigneurs had in
course of time become oppressive and
unpopular among the tenants. In Ui)-
per Canada the reserves of land for the
clergy — claimed by the English Church,
and this claim denied by the nonconfor-
mist bodies — had proved a source of en-
during trouble. In addition, there arose
after 1837 the claims of those who had
sustained losses in the rebellion. All
these (questions must be decided in some
H'anner.

One after another they were dis-
posed of. The Rebellion Losses Bill
was passed in 1849 by a Liberal gov-
ernment. The old Conservatives and the
moderate men alike offered opposition to
this measure, under which, they claimed,
men who had been in rebellion would
be repaid for the loss arising from their
rebellious action. In 1849 Mr. Mac-
donald was under the leadership of Sir

nso

77/r Ijiitv Sir John Jldcdunn/i/.

[October,

Allan RlacNalt, and he votod aj^ninst
tills hill as a CMiici-ssioii lo his lender.
it was one of the last cuncessiuns he
was to make to the rtiiiesenlatives of
the old order, in 18r)4 Mr. Maedonald
himself brought in the hill which seeu-
hirized the clergy reserves in Upper Can-
ada by dividing them amongst the muni-
cipalities, vested interests being respected
during the lifetime of uicumbents ; and
likewise tlie bill which abolished the
seigneurial tenures of Quebec, securing
fair compensation at the same time to
the proprietors. The skill with which
this latter question was handled has in-
duced numy of those who remember the
events to believe that Sir John Maedon-
ald was the one man in the liritish Em-
pire who could have solved the laud ques-
tion in Ireland.

(2.) The next difficulties to be over-
come were those arising out of the union
of 1841.

The conditions of politics were as fol-
lows : The governors did not relinquish
without a struggle the valuable patron-
age they had hitherto jjossessed. The
legislative council, or upper house, was
nommated by the governor, who made
the appointments from a very narrow
circle of Conservative public men, and
a clamor arose for the election of this
chamber hy the people. The population
of Upper Canada, owing to the influx
from the United States and to the bet-
ter character of the country for the
purposes of agriculture, increased more
rapidly than that of Lower Canada, and
the Liberal leaders of the larger popu-
lation demanded a larger representation
in Parliament. This question was dis-
cussed with constantly increasing bitter-
ness. The parties in the legislature were
represented in the cabinet according to
their provincial and racial character, and
it became, in spite of every form of
reasonable protest, a practice to require
a majority from each Province to carry
on a government " having the confidence
of the legislature." Fiscal qnestions did

not disturb the jteace of parties in those
da} s ; the ])olitical battle was fought on
constitutional grounds alone.

Mr. Maedonald was one of those who
in \Hr>C) votiil for the bill which made
the legislative <'ouncil an elective body ;
and it continued elective till 1807, when,
on the creation of the Seiuite, the fa-
thers of confederation returned, very
wisely in a country where there were
then and still are too many elections,
to the jnindple of nomination by the
crown for life. To the policy of repre-
sentation by population advocated by the
reform loaders Mr. Maedonald was oj)-
])osed, because his Lower Canadian al-
lies were opjwsed to it, and because he
did not think that the gain in political
power arising from an increased rejjre-
sentation in Upper Canada would be
any compensation for the feeling of in-
security .and suspicion that would con-
tinually alarm Lower Canada, which,
having been forced into the union of
1841 against its consent and with a sus-
pended local constitution, was naturally
in a supersensitive mood. Moreover,
the ju'inciple of representation by ))op-
ulation as then advocated "ou'd have
perpetuated the provincial differences,
which it was the object of the union to
efface. Mr. JNIacdonald's opposition ex-
posed him to attack in his own Province
and weakened his political following, be-
cause he thereby incurred the reproach
of governing Upper Canada by means
of the support of the Lower Canadian
member's. A like accusation was made
against him when, after a period of ad-
herence by way of experiment, he aban-
doned the practice of having a majority
in each Province to support a govern-
ment. This also tended i-o perpetuate
provincial prejudices, and he abandoned
it in his endeavor to promote a substan-
tial union of the Provinces and a sub-
stantial unity in the legislative chamber.

Up to this time, then, it will be ob-
served by the reader wlio understands
the science of politics that Mr. Mac-

• «

1891.]

77/ r /,tt(c sir ,/ohu Miivihmitlil.

681

a «

(lonaltli ullliou^'li a CoiiHOi-viitive, uc(|iii-
nHiMjil rlit'oitiiUy ill tlic piissiiij,' away
of practicuH and iiirstitutioim wliii^li had
served their purpose. He had aban-
doned the tiieories of the old-time C'oii-
Hervatives; ho had assisted in tiio cur-

I'hu <-uuses of the truuhluo thus ul-
huled to liy the {ruveriiur were iis fol-
lows : —

()\\ May 'JU, 1801', the (government of
Maed(»iiald and Cartier (Conservative)
was di I'eated, l>y the defection of some

tailinent of the powers of the governors; of Cartier's Quebee following, on the
lie hud voted for tlie election of the militia bill; and the ministry resigned.

fegislative council ; he hail opposed re-
presentation by population; he had given
up the double majority ; he had forced
the Mettlemeiit of tlie clergy reserves
(piestiuii ; he had insisted on the u -
rangement of the seigneiirial tenure dis-
pute ; he resjiected the ])ast, l)ut lie also
respected the future. He was always
thinking of the next session, the next
election, the next generation, the next
phase of public opinion and publii; af-
fairs. That the driving-wheel of the
machinery of state makes large revolu-
tions he knew very well. He was not
impatient for it to come round again ;
but he knew it would come, and he
was always ready for the opportunity
it afforded.

In 18G4 began the movement which
ended in the confederation of the British
North American Provinces. Professor
Goldwin Smith, in reply to those who
make claim for this or that man that
he was •' the father of confederation,"
invariably says, " No ; deadlock ivus the
father of co?ifederatio)i." And this in
what he means.

On the 16th of May, 1863, the Pavlia-
ment of Canada was dissolved by Lord
Monck, the reform party being in power.
At the close of the session of 1863, on
the 12th of May, the Governor-General,
in his speech dissolving the Parliament,
said in general terms : —

On May L'4 the Sandliehl r»Iac<lonald-
Sicotte ministry was sworn into otlice.
On May 8, 1863, in the succeeding ses-
sion. Mr. John A. Macdonald carried a
vote of want of contiilence in this new
ministry. The defeated ministers, acting
witiiin their right, advised the governor
to dissolve the house, and Parliaineiit
was dissolved accordingly on the 16th of
May, 1863, as above stated.

The elections were held in June, and
the Liberal government was sustained
by a very small majority. After a
sharj) ))arliamentaiy struggle, the new
Liberal governnient, finding its position
dithcult to maintain, and thinking to em-
barrass its opponents, resigned. When
two other men had declined the danger-
ous task of forming an administration, a
member of the upper house, .Sir Etienne
Tach^, undertook the forlorn hope and
formed the second Tache- Macdonald
administration. Consei'vative. This new
government was defeated, by a vote of
sixty to fifty-eight, an a test question ;
making the fourth ministry condemned
in four years. The Governor-General
gave his new and defeated ministers
power to dissolve once more, a most
troublesome and financially ruinous pro-
cess, though i)erfectly regular and con-
stitutional ; but this time the dissolution
did not take place.

At this critical point, when parties

(1.) That it was not possible to con- were so nicely balanced that neither
duct the public business in a satisfactory could form a stable administration, Mr.

manner under existing circumstances.

(2.) That two successive administra-
tions had failed to obtain the confidence
of the legislature.

(3.) That these facts had made a dis-
solution necessary.

George Brown, the reform leader, who
was a sincere and able advocate of a
union of all the British North American
Provinces, gave it to be understood, by
means of a communication to the late
Hon. Alexander Morris, that he was not

532

Thv Late Sir John Mnnhniiiht.

f()(t,(»l>lM%

iiiiwilliii^' to coitiiorate witli thu Cuimur- ntiitVilcratioii wiin foniuMi iiiul ^ovoriu>il

vali\e iniiii^lcrM in a coalilioii niiiiixliv, at iirrtt !i_v a iinioii nl' |iarti(>N.
lor till! |>iir|H)sc ol' jrL'Uiiij; rid t»l tiii' diis- Tin' atltlri'ss which, at ihi' chiNo of his

tui'hin^r coiistitutioniil (ititMtioiiH, uiul ut' forlieth yuar in pulilic litu, wuh |)ri'Hi>iit-

foi'initi;^ a t't'dcral union of I lie I'ldviiiccH.
ThuM thi' (h'adlock lu'twi'i-n tiio two jiai'
tit'H hi()ii^;lit. about the Lihi-ral-C'onMiiva-
tive alliancf which t'ui-iiioil thu Dumiuion
of Cana(hi.

Hut till! Canadian "duadlock" would
iitivur have produced confodemtion had
not otht"- causes contiihulcd materially
to that result, 'i'hc! lower Provinces were
ctonsideriiifT a union amon^ themselves

ed to Sir ilohn Macdoiiald in 'I'oronto,
in hSK'l, contains tht^ following pura-
jjraphs : —

"The luiiipy results of Hritisli ride in
North America, lie^un when the jiolic/
of I'itt was a('com|ilished liy the valor
of Wolfe, would have been iniiierfect, if
not frustrated, liut for the cordial rela-
tions wliich you have for nearly half a
century maintained, in spite of unjust

on lines which lia<l been laid down in and unpatriotic criticism, willi tliu loyal

an indetinite way for half a contiiry. men of j^enius who luivc bet'u the chiefs

This was one contributinj^ cause. 'J'iien of the loyal Canadians of (.Quebec; and

the rccij)rocity treaty with the United on this occasion we would minj^lo with

States was about to be abolished. That
was clear from the expressions of opin-
ion in the United States, and the ne-
cessity for more interprovincial trade
bec;an to be foreseen. The Fenian inva-
sion of liStiO ffave. later on, a new im-
petus to the efforts of the fathers of the
confederation. The need for a larger
revenue, for more and more perfect pub-

our feli(Mtations to yourself a tribute of
grateful remembrance of Cartier, whoso
statue rises in another city to bear wit-
ness to his ])ublic deeds and to keep his
menu)ry green.

" The hopes of imperial and the i)ol-
icy of Canadian statesmen to found u
strong and lasting confederation of the
British North American Provinces might

lie works and railways, and for a more have been prevented from early accom-

uniforni trade jmlicy was ai)i)arent; and plishment but for your unselhsh conduct,

the wisdom of erecting a lasting bul- your generous recognition of the sincer-

wark of British power on this continent ity of political opponents, your willing-

was clear to all Canadian public men. ness to admit to your counsels men of

What was wanted at this i)oint was a genius and skill when the service of

man who could take in hand the varied the nation was paramount to the service

groujjs of political forces, unite them, of party. And history will recall with

mould them, inspire them, and give them impartial admiration your agreement in

confidence in themselves and in the fu- policy and your continuance in friend-

ture of the country. Such a man was shij) with Brown and Howe, with Hincks

found in Mr. John A. Macdonald, who, and McGee, rein-esenting phases of opin-

on the first day of July, 1867, became ion which, with the quick sympathy of

Premier of the Dominion, and who now, genius, you conciliated, at a time of cri-

by the favor of the Queen, became Sir sis, to the service of the state."
John Macdonald. He had at his dis- In substance these are the merits

posal at this time the leading men of which his friends claimed for Sir John

hoth sides of ])olitics ; for although Mr. Mecdonald ; and on the occasion in ques-

Brown, who had taken the first step tion, in the course of a long review of

towards the coalition of parties, had his public career, he took these i)ara-

withdrawn from the ministry in a short graphs for his text, and accepted and

time, he was unable to check the move- detailed the views ex])ressed in them,
ment in the other Provinces, and the The tasks which Sir John Macdonald

IHJH.]

Thf Lntr Sir tfohti MnvihumUl.

633

' m\

Bi>(l Sir OeorKo Carticr and their ool-
len^fiiuH of tlio Liberul-CoiiNervnlivo gov-
erninunt lta<l beforu tlioin lU tlio ostah-
liHlitnunt of tliu Doiiiinioii of Caimda in
1K67 were no Hmall oiieH, notwillistaiul-
\\\^ tlio Hti'fain of tcixli'Dcy wliicii iiiado
for NiiccoHM and tlio iiu-ii of cxpuritMicu
tlivy liad in tlioir party. In tliu ttiHt
place, tliiTo was HiM-iouM disoontont in
Nova Scotia with tho financial terms on
which that Province had heen induced
to enter the union. This wa8 remedied
in 18r>l) hy an act jjrantinjr a larjjer
gnhsidy, and hy the settlement of some
minor (|iieHtion8 relating to pnhlic works.
In the next place, there was an ohviouH
geographical incompleteness in the Do-
minion. This was amended with some de-
gree of enterprise. The Northwest Ter-
ritory was obtained l>v purchase from
tlu) Hudson Bay Company in 1870, and
out of this territory the Province of
l^fanitoba was created in the same year.
In 1871 British Columbia entered the
union. In 1873 Prince Kdward Island
was added. Finally, in 1880, the popu-
lation of the Northwest Territory having
rapidly increased, a species of represen-
tative government was conferred on this
region ; a representative act was passed,
a governor was appointed, and the toan-
dation of a regular provincial consti-
tution established. Four districts have
been outlined, namely, Assiniboia, Al-
berta, Saskatchewan, and Athabasca;
three of which already send members
to the House of Commons, and all of
which will at no distant day form new
Provinces of the Dominion.

The geographical (piestion having been
settled, there remained the fact that the
means of interprovincial communication
within Canadian territory were very im-
perfect. From the East men came to
Ottawa by way of Boston. From the
West they came by way of San Fran-
cisco and Chicago. In sunmier the St.
LawTence aff»)rded communication with
the ocean. In winter our ocean port was
Portland, wliich the fitness of things

Imd decreed to belorig to Canada, though
Lord Ashliurton was not awaro of it,
and Daniel Webster confessed that ho
did not remind him of it. 'I'he govern-
ment of Sir John iMacdonahl undertook
to supply the means of communication.
The Intercolonial Railway, the first link
of which ha*l been begun by the Provincu
of Nova Scotia, was comi)leted in 1871,
and has been ma<le more useful still by
the aciiuisition of portions of the Grand
Trunk. Kxtensions of the system in
Capo Breton and «'lsewhere in Nova Sco-
tia have sin(^e addinl to the usefulness of
this line, though the fact of increased
conuiinnication must i»e ofVset by the fact,
of prol)able yearly deficits.

The bargain with the East having
been thus liberally fidfilled, the bargain
with the West, requiring the construc-
tion of the Pacific Railway, remained
to bo completed. This work was un-
dertaken in 1872. The next year Sir
John Rlacdonald fell from power, and
remained out of office for nearly five
years, in consequence of the revelations
made concerning the subscriptions paid
for political purposes by the promoters
of the railway ; but the Liberal gov-
ernment which took the place of the de-
feated administration went on with the
work, if not on the lines of Sir John
Macdonald's policy, at least on the lines
which commended themselves to the prac-
tical men of the Liberal party ; and the
value of the work done was acknowledged
by Sir John JMacdonald's minister of rail-
ways when, in 1878, the Conservatives
were returned to power. The work was
begun by the new company organized
in 1881, and was finished in 1886 ; an
exhibition of vigorous railway manage-
ment unsurpassed in the history of rail-
ways. But the government which un-
dertook to aid th i^ompany in this
gigantic task took its life in its hand
every session till the work was complet-
ed : for the vastness of the undertak-
ing alarmed the parliamentary support-
ers of the government, the most of

534

The Late Sir John Macdoiudd.

[October,

whom were not in the liabit of thinking
in lax^b figures or of looking forward
to future ge aerations.

One other giert work had to be done
if the confederation of i.}\e Provinces
was no*^ to be a failure. 1'his was, to
diversify industry, to encourage manu-
factures, to develoi) the natural resources
of the country. The necessity for this
was pressing, for this reason. Before the
foundation of the Dominion there were, as
has been said, very imperfect means of
communication, and trade had not flour-
ished between the Provinces. The reci-
procity treaty of 1854, which made the
American markets free to Canadian pro-
ducts of certain kinds, and Canadian
markets free on equal terms to Amer-
ican products, had checked the develoj)-
ment of a varied industry in Canada.
The abrogation of the treaty found Can-
ada without political unity, without inter-
communication, with few manufactures,
and without an established foreign mar-
ket. Circumstances rendered the post-
ponement of this question of trade less
disastrous than it might have been. The
continuance of high prices in the United
States btiore the resumption of specie
payment enabled Canada for some years
to cany on a fairly satisfactory trade
with the republic, in sj)ite of the loss of
the free market. But this state of thi'^ ;S
changed about 1876. Prices went down
in the United States. The manufactur-
ers of that country became active and
enf u'prising, particularly in seeking for
their surplus a market in Canada. Agri-
cultural products were enormously mul-
tiplied. And therefoi _ the manufactur-
ers, farmers, and niineis of Canada be-
gan to feel the stress of this competition,
espcijiaiiy as the Canadian tariff of only
about fifteen per cent was opposed to the
American tariff of about sixty.

Sir John Macdonald, in 1876, was out
of power, but he and his colleagues in
opposition saw an opening for a promis-
ing political camjjaign. It has been
generally said that Sir John Macdon-

ald was always a free trader at heart.
This is not so, for in 1860 he had ad-
vocated fiscal changes on the ground
that they would afford protection to the
labor of Canada. His chief colleague
in the framing of his policy. Sir Leonard
Tilley, had also as early as 1852 been
a protectionist. They were consistent
enough, thereforf^, in advocating protec-
tion in 3876, 1877, and 1878, when, af-
ter one of the most exciting of all his
campaigns. Sir John Macdonald was re-
turned to power, on a promise to promote
by means of protection the agricultural,
mining, and manufacturing industries of
Canada. This policy was duly carried
out in the tariff act of 1879, on the lines
laid down in 1877 and 1S78 ; and was
sustained at the polls at the subsequent
general elections of 1882, 1887, and
1891. In this last election of 1891 there
was mingled, indeed, the element of a
promise to ncf^otiate, on certain restrict-
ed lines, for a renewal of reciprocal
trade relations with the I'nited States ;
but in the main the battle was fought
on the grounds of the old policy of pro-
tection, under the old flii<4 and the old
leader. That this policy was maintained
without mistakes and n 'scalculations,
without protests and opijosition of the
strongest kind, no one can assert, but
the government remained firm. In this
election there was certainly a revolt in
the Province of Ontario against protec-
tion, and in favor of perfect free trade
with the United States. The knowledge
of that revolt and the anxiety attendant
on it im])elled Sir Jolm Macdonald, dur-
ing a most inclement and dangerous sea-
son, to make such efforts in addressing
the constituencies as in his feeble state
of health he was unable to endure ; his
death was no doubt hastened by these
exertions. Before he died, however, he
knew that he had given strength for an-
other parliamentary term to the trade
policy he was pledged to maintain.

Some questions, indeed, he left unset-
tled ; among these is one which caused

hor.

1891.]

The. Late Sir Join 3frtcdotinfd.

635

him at all times the most serious anx-
iety, since it is one wliich hrs always
been a source of danger to British North
American unity. It is the growth of an
aggressive provincialism. Tlie union of
1841 was effected for the purpose of
putting an end to this provincial feeling,
with which were mingled racial and re-
ligious prejudices. But the very means
adopted to put an end to tlie evil "'ere
the cause, a." ro often happens in politics,
of its perpetuation and growth. The
representation of both Provinces — nay,
even the representation of geographical
sections of the same Province — in the
cabinet; the establisimient for a con'=id-
erable period of tlie double-majority prac-
tice ; the development of the agitation
for representation by population, — all
these things tended inentably to per-
petuate provincialism, and render unity
quite out of the question. These ten-
dencies were intensified by the mainte-
nance — the necessary and proper main-
iCnance, under the faith and guarantee
of tceaties entered into between Great
Britain and France — of a separate set
of laws and institutions and another lan-
guage in the Province of Quebec. The
establishment of the Dominion of Can-
ada, with added territory, a larger con-
stitution, a fuller measure of freedom
in self-government, would, it was hoped,
have a tendency to suppress provincial-
ism ; but provincialism has become more
powerful, more aggressive, than ever.
And now that death has removed the
one man whose great reputation and
whose incalculable personal influence
could add overwhelming force to his ap-
peals to national sentiment, the danger
arising from the aggressive character of
the Provinces becomes serious. Provin-
cial representation in the cabinet, provin-
cial representation ii- the public service,
provincial apportionment of the expen-
diture, provincial gi'ievances regarding
railways and public works, provincial
attacks on the stability of the federal
ministry, provincial demands for the abo-

lition of the veto power, provincial in-
terests in the arrangement of the tariff,
— these are some of the characteristic
dangers which menace the maintenance
of what was intended by the fathers of
the confederation to be a strong central
government. But it is the business of
statesmen to overcome difficulties ; and
the death of Sir John Macdonald leaves
us still with men of the first rank, capa-
ble, it may be hoped, of carrying out his
policy and completing his work.

At this point we may abandon for a
time the direct line of development of
Canadian history to examine briefly Sir
John Macdonald's attitude towards Great
Britain and towards the United States.

Great Britain, or, one mav say, the
Queen, never had a more loyal subject.
In these days when personal devotion
to the crown, to a constitution, even to a
country, has become merely a charming
legend to some, a cause of scorn and
mockery to others, the chivalric devo-
tion of Sir John Macdonald to the honor
and interests of the empire and the
Queen is most interesting. But at the
same time he was modern in his views
respecting the needs, interests, and policy
of all colonies. He was conservative of
the power of the crown, but he never
allowed the representative of the crown
in Canada to ^^ct against the advice of
his responsible ministers ; and when Lord
Lome, in discussing the Lettellier case
in 1878-79, exerted some personal influ-
ence against his ministers, and hesitated
about following their advice. Sir John
Macdonald prepared a minute which
was accepted by the colonial office as
true constitutional doctrine, and which
made it impossible thereafter for any
governor of a colony to refuse to follow
the advice of ministers who are guiltless
of political high crimes, who have an
ascertained majority in the legislature,
or who are willing to go to the country
on the advice which they have tendered
to the crown. Having thus maintained
the position of responsible ministers

53G

The. Late Sir John Macdonald.

[October,

k t

against the action of the direct repre-
sentative of th ) crown, Sir John Mac-
donald went further, and in the same
case caused the disniissal of the repre-
sentative of th • representative of the
crown, that is the lieutenant-governor of
Quehec, for acting in a partisan man-
ner, contrary to the advice of his pro-
vincial ministers. Again, Sir John Mac-
donald was devoted to imperial interests ;
hut he forced the hands of British min-
isters to protect thi; Canadian ilsheries
when they were not disposed to be very
active ; he made it a part of necessary
policy that no treaty affecting Canada,
or indeed auy colony possessing respon-
sible government, shall be finally nego-
tiated Avithout reserving the assent of the
colony to the arrangement : and above
all, he made it a necessary part of
imperial policy that in all negotiations
concerning Canada this country shall
be represented in the negotiating body.
And at the ti'ne of his death it had been
made, to all intents and i)urposes. a fur-
ther pai't of imperial policy that none
of the British colonies of America shall
be permit' ad to make separate trade
arrangements affecting in any way the
interests of Canada without the consent
of this country.

Respecting the great question of im-
perial federation now attracting so much
attention and challenging so much criti-
cism, the at*' rude of Sir John Macdon-
ald was not jironounced ; it w.ts an at-
titude of friendly encouragement and
attentive consideration. The subject was
not a new one to him. In 1861, at Que-
bec, in discussing the question of repre-
sentation, he had said : " We are fast
ceasing to be a dependency, and assuming
the position of an ally of Great Brii.^.n.
England would be the centre, surround-
ed and sustained by an alliance not only
with Canada, but Australia and all her
other possessions : and there would tluu
be formed an innnense confederation or
freemen, — the greatest confederacy of
civilized and intelligent men that ever

had an existence on the face of the
globe." In 1885 he was quite as em-
})hatic. With regard to imperial fed-
ei-ation, he agreed that there nmst be
something of the kind, and that, as the
auxiliary nations of Canada, Australia,
and South Africa increased in wealth
and population, they must be willing to
accept increased responsibility. Speak-
ing on behalf of Canada, he declared that
she was willing, and tlnvt she would be
prepared, to join the mother country in
an offensive and defensive league for
the maintenance of the empire and flag
of Great Britain. It has been asked
why Canada should mix herself uj) with
the conflict of nations. Her answer was,
that blood was thicker than water, and
that her people were Englishmen, Scotch-
men, and Irishmen, far removed from
the centre, it might be, but still cl nging
to the mother country. He was by no
means rashly committed to ariy paiiic-
nlar scheme of union ; but there are the
strongest reasons for believing tliat, had
he lived. Sir John Macdonald would
jiave been fouml upon the side of thosii
who tbivk that the trade of the British
Empire needc guarding, consolidatiuf;,
and extending under a systeir of gen-
eral imperial policy which would j.vovide
for its ijrotection. It may also ' /C said
on authority that, had Lord Bea' orisfieid
lived, ho ami Sir John Macdonald would
liave been jointly engaged in populathig
and developing the northwest of Can-
ada, and in promoting the inrperial rse-
f alness of the Intercolonial and Canadian
Pacific railways. The policy was be-
gun in 1879 or 1880 ; for, after a visit
which Sir Jolm Macdonald paid to
Hiighenden, Lord Beaconsfield made, at
Bucks, the first of what he intended 'm
be a series of speeches advocating the
encouragement of emigration from the
United Kingdom into the " illimitable
prairies " of the Canadian Northwest.

In regard to the United States there
were only two great questions which
caused Sir John Macdonald to lip o any

'. ♦

» «

k t

1891.]

The Late *Sir r/o/in Mucdomihl,

537

1 •*

» «

» *

policy at all ; and these were, the trade
question and tlie fislieries question. Sir
John Macdonald's attitude had always
been conciliatory in discussing the former.
He was the ablest member of the gov-
ernment which accepted and ratified the
treaty of 1854, negotiated at Washington
by Lord Elgin and Sir Francis Hincks.
It was Sir John jNIacdonald who set on
foot all but one of the attempts which were
nuvde to effect a renewal of that treaty
when, in 38GG, it was abrogated in what
must now be considered a fit of un-
warranted petulance at wliat was mis-
takenly called the unfriendly character
of Canadian action in the civil war. In
1865, when notice of abrogation had been
given, a deputation was sent from the
various Provinces to have the treaty re-
newed, if possible. In 18<)8 tlie first cus-
toms act of Canada contained a clause
offering reciprocal trade whenever the
United States was willing. In 1869 an-
other attempt at negotiation was made,
but owing to the continuance of un-
frie;idly feeling in Congress the attempt
utterly failed. In 1871, when the Wash-
ington treaty was being arranged, pro-
posals for a renewal of the treaty of
1854 were made by Sir John Mac-
donald ; but he was answered that it
was impracticable ; it " would not be in
accordance with the views of the people
of the United States." In 1872 Sir
John Macdonald's government, in reply
to resolutions of the Dominion Board of
Trade, based on resolutions of the Na-
tional Board of Trade of the United
States, stated again its perfect willingness
to enter on negotiations for reciprocity.
In 1 874 Mr. George Brown and Sir Ed-
ward Thornton arranged for a treaty, but
the Senate would not even discuss it.
In 1879, when the new national policy
was adopted, the customs act again con-
tained a clause making reciprocity in
certain natural products dependent on
the willingness of the United States.
In 1887, when the fislicry treaty was un-
der discussion, a new attempt was made

by the Canadian officials to .arrange for
reciprocal trade relations ; but this at-
tempt was also in vain. Finally, in
April, 1891, a proposition was made,
llie terms .and conditions of which are
mjitter of dispute as yet, for a meeting
at Waslnngton to discuss the trade rela-
tions of Canada and the United St.ates.
Sir John Macdonald did not live to take
more than the initiative step in the nego-
tiation, but it may be positively stated
that he h.ad the utmost confidence in
some friendly arrangement which would
remove all causes of dispute between
these two countries.

The friendly policy which Sir John
Macdonald pursued in relation to trade
matters he vas not unwilling to pursue
in regard tc the fisheries. That had
always been, and continues still to be.
an affair with which the ministeij from
the Maritime Provinces have most to
do. But Sir John Macdon.ald never for
a moment wavered in his determination
that the historical view of British and
Canadian interests in the fisheries should
be maint.ained, and th.at the prime pos-
tulates of international law regarding
tlie territorial rights of nations over the
waters surrounding their coasts should
be enforced. Yet he was ready at all
times to negotiate for the free use of
those fisheries and for the suspension
of the rules of law on terms of friendly
reciprocity. He had no hostility to the
United States ; he was hostile only to
certain phases of American policy and
certain moods of American opinion which
threatened the interests or the allegiance
of Canadians ; and to these he was de-
terminedly opposed. No citizen of the
United States who has studied the history
of the two countries can fail to see L^iat
a Canadian may reasonably entertain
doubts upon the subject of the friend-
liness and fair play extended to Canada
by the republic. It does not require ex-
treme sensitiveness to believe that in 1837
some encouragement was given to the
rebels along the border ; that in 1866

538

The Late Sir John Macdonald.

[October,

the Fenian invasion was allowed to ripen
in perfect security till it burst, however
feebly, on Canadian borders ; that no
respect has ever been paid to the ter-
ritorial rights of Canada on the waters
along our coasts ; and it is a matter of
record that an unfriendly and threaten-
ing resolution was passed in 1807 in the
House of Representatives when the Do-
minion of Canada was founded. These
facts will suffice to justify a reasonable
amount of caution and reserve on the
part of a statesman who had had half a
century's experience of these unpleasing
and disturbing affairs.

In conclusion, one may briefly touch
on that most interesting yet most diffi-
cult subject, the personal ch.-vracter of Sir
John Macdoniild. Probably no man on
this continent was more familiar to the
people than was Sir John INIaodonald.
His picture, whether in caricature or
otherwise, had become the possession of
the whole country, and no one in Canada
could meet him in any place, even in the
remotest backwoods, without knowing
that he was Sir John Macdonald. He
knew personally a surprising number of
people, and stories are often told of his
memory for faces he had not seen for
forty years, and had then only encoun-
tered at a political meeting. He had
addressed at various times almost every
constituency in Canada, east and west,
and no man within driving distance
would miss the opportunity of hearing
"John A."

He was delightfully convivial in pri-
vate life, and for more than forty years
had mingled socially on familial' terms
with his followers. It cannot be said
that since 1867, however, he had made
any attempt to be on familiar terms
with his opponents. Political feeling
and personal feeling ran very high at
times ; and though he never said any-
thing on the subject, it was j)lain that,
as a general rule, he preferred to main-
tain an attitude of reserve with the ma-
jority of his opponents. Occasion.ally

this was to be regretted ; but he had
his own reasons, which were respected,
for his conduct, and he did not enforce
his example on his colleagues. His con-
versation was marvelously variable, run-
ning from the gravest to the gayest sub-
jects with the ease of a man who " ran
through each mode of the lyre, and
was master of all." He was full of
anecdotes, and used them freely in con-
versation and in his speeches. In the
natun of things, some of these stories
got old like himself ; but we were al-
w.ays quite ready to laugh at " the grouse
in the gun-room." for the sake of the old
chief and the old times when we heard
it first.

But there was one subject above all
others that he loved to talk of. and that
was the political iiistory and literature
of the eighteenth century in England.
On that subject he knew, doubtless, as
much as any man living. Lord Beacons-
field, who was also a devotee of that
splendid literature, was delighted with
Sir John Macdonald's laste in this re-
spect ; and in conversation told him,
apropos of his familiarity with the pre-
miers, that probnbly there was no man
in England, except Spencer Walpole,
who was writing a book on the subject,
who could repeat without mistake the
names of all the premiers since Pitt.
Sir John Macdonald could do that and
much more. There was no volume of
political memoirs oi that century which
he had not read. All his leisure was
passed in reading, for he was not a de-
votee of exercise, und seemed seldom to
need it. He liked to read and to talk
of books with men who loved them. All
kinds of books were welcome to him.
He frequently read novels, and enjoyed
Howells, Black, Hardy, Blackmore, and
Besant. He had a keen liking for po-
etry, especially ballad poetry, and all po-
litical poetry was familiar^to him. A
quotation from the Ant' Jacobin could
not pass his ear without recognition ;
a line from the Noctes Ambrosianse

1891.]

would quicken his attention at once, and
he would give the following line.

It is very difficult to describe his ora-
tory. He was a master of all the arts
of public speaking except that of being
eloquent, if in these days this is an art
of any value. He debated with great
skill ; and he preferred brief speeches,
though he could, and occasionally did,
speak for hours at a time. His man-
ner was at times hesitating, but not from
want of matter, for he never rushed into
a debate without preparation, and he
knew always how to obtain accurate facts
at the shortest notice ; in this respect
his otRcers and secretaries served him
with conspicuous fidelity. He could be
humorous ; he could be pathetic ; he
could make dignified and touching ap-
peals to loyalty to the crown, to the
party, to himself. Before a crowd on
the hustings he was unrivaled in the
deadly dexterity of his criticism, his
humor, his appeals to popular interests.
It was, of course, in the House of Com-
mons that he was always at his best ;
and his respect for the traditions of the
house, the rules of the house, the kind of
conduct most likely to touch and please
and lead the house, was almost inspired.

He succeeded in keeping together for
a quarter of a century a political party
singularly composed of English, French,
Irish, Scotch, of Catholics and Protef
tants, of Orangemen and Home Rulers,
of old family-compact Tories and sharp
democratic labor agitators : and all these
men had mingled during his life on
terms of such friendly fidelity to the
Old Man that it will be some time be-
fore they remember that they have seri-
ous differences of opinion ; the habit of

The Late Sir John Macdoixild.

539

acting together will remain with them
for some years, at least. The clergy
were largely on his side, and he had a
strong party among what may be called
the academic classes. The reason for
this adherence to him of the clergy and
the professors was probably to be found
in the fact that in all things religious
he was known to be a sound thinker ;
he had no tolerance for the " scientific "
view of man's destiny and origin ; the
agnostic spirit of the age did not touch
him. This " orthodox " habit of mind
and the well-known taste he exhibited
for an intellectual life and for historical
and literary studies gave him a com-
mand of the clerical and academic forces
which added much to his strength.

The loss of Sir John Macdonald leaves
his party weaker and his countiy more
or less in doubt about the immediate po-
litical future. But other men will fol-
low in his footsteps, and indeed other
men are carrying on liis policy and per-
fecting his measures, witli what success
we shall not know till the next general
election. The old chief had faults ; he
often admitted them ; but it is not yet
time to count them over. He made mis-
takes; these he also would refer to,
though, like other men, he naturally pre-
ferred to have them regarded as strokes
of genius ; but we need not dwell upon
them now, — ic is so short a time since
his hand on the shouldor, his touch on
the palm, could thrill the feudal blood
of his followers with somewhat of the
tribal loj.ilty of the Higlilands; and in
this discussion of his career perhaps the
reader will pardon the impossibility of
writing without the sense of his presence
and of the sound of his voice.

Martin J. Griffin.