Part 7 (1/2)

A strong speech against confederation was made by Dorion, an old friend of Brown, a staunch Liberal, and a representative French-Canadian He declared that he had seen no ground for changing his opinion on two points--the substitution of an Upper Chamber, nominated by the Crown, for an elective body; and the construction of the Intercolonial Railhich he, with other Liberals, had always opposed He had always admitted that representation by population was a just principle; and in 1856 he had suggested, in the legislature, the substitution of a federal for a legislative union of the Canadas; or failing this, representation by population, with such checks and guarantees as would secure local rights and interests, and preserve to Lower Canada its cherished institutions When the Brown-Dorion government was formed, he had proposed a federation of the Canadas, but with the distinct understanding that he would not attempt to carry such a measure without the consent of a majority of the people of Lower Canada From the document issued by the Lower Canadian Liberals in 1859, he quoted a passage in which it was laid down that the powers given to the central government should be only those that were essential, and that the local powers should be as as to matters of a purely local character, such as education, the ad to property, police, etc, ought to be referred to the local governenerally to extend to all subjects which would not be given to the general govern of residuary powers in the provinces was an important difference between this and the scheme of confederation; but the point most dwelt upon by Dorion was the inclusion of the Maritily opposed

Dorion denied that the difficulty about representation was the source of the itation for representation by population had died out, and that the real authors of confederation were the owners of the Grand Trunk Railway Coain by the construction of the Intercolonial ”The Tache-Macdonald govern without authority one hundred thousand dollars out of the public chest for the Grand Trunk Railway, at a time when there had not been a party vote on representation by population for one or two sessions” He declared that Macdonald had, in Brown's coainst confederation, and that he and his colleagues adopted the scheme simply to enable them to ree in the constitution of the Upper Chamber, from the elective to the nominative system The Conservative instincts of Macdonald and Cartier, he said, led thethen the power of the Crown at the expense of the people, and this constitution was a specieneral appointed by the Croith local governors also appointed by the Croith legislative councils in the general legislature, and in all the provinces, nominated by the Croe shall have the overnovernovernor-general-in-council to veto the acts of local legislatures His expectation was that a ht appeal to their party friends at Ottawa to veto lahich they disliked, and that thus there would be constant interference, agitation and strife between the central and the local authorities He suspected that the intention was ultiislative union The sche carried without sube fro accomplished in a similar way? To this the people of Lower Canada would not submit ”A million of inhabitants may seem a small affair to the mind of a philosopher who sits down to write out a constitution He may think it would be better that there should be but one religion, one language and one systeoes to work to fra all to that desirable state; but I can tell the honourable gentleoes to show that not even by the power of the sword can such changes be accoeration Mr Dorion struck at real faults in the scheht to have been submitted to the people is difficult to meet except upon the plea of necessity, or the plea that the end justifies thethe people of the power of electing the second chaovernment of the day, has been as unsatisfactory in practice as it was unsound in principle The federal veto on provincial laws has not been used to the extent that Dorion feared But e consider how partisan considerations have governed appointround for the fear that the power of disallowance would be similarly abused Nor can we say that Mr Dorion was needlessly anxious about provincial rights, e remember how persistently these have been attacked, and what strength, skill and resolution have been required to defend them

CHAPTER XVIII

THE MISSION TO ENGLAND

A new turn was given to the debate early in March by the defeat of the New Brunswick governeneral election, which meant a defeat for confederation, and by the arrival of news of an important debate in the House of Lords on the defences of Canada The situation suddenly became critical That part of the confederation scheer of failure At the sa controversy between the imperial and colonial authorities as to the defence of Canada had come to a head

The two subjects were intiovernment had been led to believe that if confederation were accomplished, the defensive power of Canada would be much increased, and the new union would be ready to assuations Froed It ceases to be a philosophic deliberation of the ency and anxiety is found in the ministerial speeches; the previous question is ry protests from the Opposition

Mr Brorote on March 5th: ”We are going to have a great scene in the House to-day The government of New Brunswick appealed to the people on confederation by a general election, and have got beaten

This puts a serious obstacle in the way of our scheme, and we mean to act promptly and decidedly upon it At three o'clock we are to announce the necessity of carrying the resolutions at once, sending ho parliament without any unnecessary delay--say in a week”

The announcement was made to the House by Attorney-General Macdonald, who laid much stress on the disappointland by the abandonment of a scheme by which Canadian colonies should cease to be a source of eth The question of confederation was intimately connected with the question of defence, and that was a question of the overnovernainst every hostile pressure, from whatever source it may come”

A lively debate ensued John Sandfield Macdonald said that the defeat of the New Brunswick governer scheme of confederation, unless it was intended that the people should be bribed into acquiescence or bullied into submission ”The Hon Mr

Tilley and his followers are routed, horse and foot, by the honest people of the province, scouted by those whose interests he had betrayed, and whose behests he had neglected; and I think his fate ought to be a warning to those who adopted this scheme without authority, and who ask the House to ratify it _en bloc_, without seeking to obtain the sanction of the people” Later on he charged thean entirely new bill, obtaining the sanction of the British govern it on the Canadian people, as was done in 1840

This charge was hotly resented by Brown, and it drew from John A

Macdonald a overnislature adopted the confederation resolutions, proceed to England, inforovernment of what had passed in Canada and New Brunswick, and take counsel with that governard to defence and the reciprocity treaty The legislature would then be called together again forthwith, the report of the conferences in England sub to confederation co day Macdonaldto a debate in the House of Lords on February 20th, which he regarded as of the utmost importance A report made by a Colonel Jervois on the defences of Canada had been published, and the publication, exposing the extrearded as an official indiscretion It asserted that under the arrangeether could not defend the colony Lord Lyveden brought the question up in the House of Lords, and dwelt upon the gravity of the situation created by the defencelessness of Canada and by the hostility of the United States He held that Great Britain s: withdraw her troops and abandon the country altogether, or defend it with the full power of the empire It was folly to send troops out in driblets, and spend money in the saovern that was not previously known about the weakness of Canada He explained the proposed arrangeovernment was to fortify Quebec at a cost of two hundred thousand pounds, and Canada would undertake the defence of Montreal and the West[16]

Co on a report of this discussion, Mr Macdonald said there had been negotiations between the two governments, and that he hoped these would result in full provision for the defence of Canada, both east and west It was of the utland at this juncture In order to expedite the debate by shutting out amendments, he moved the previous question

Macdonald'sfree discussion, and counter-charges of obstruction, want of patriotism and inclinations towards annexation The debate lost its academic calm and became acrimonious Holton'sfurther information as to the scheme, was ruled out of order The same fate befell Dorion's motion for an adjournround that it involved fundaes in the political institutions and political relations of the province; changes not conteeneral election

On March 12th thethe resolutions of the Quebec conference was carried by ninety-one to thirty-three On the following day an amendment similar to Dorion's, for an appeal to the people, was moved by the Hon John Hillyard Cameron, of Peel, seconded by Matthew Crooks Cau, and was hardlyopinion of the House was against delay, and on March 13th the discussion came to an end

The prospects for the inclusion of the Maritime Provinces were now poor Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island withdrew A strong feeling against confederation was arising in Nova Scotia, and it was proposed there to return to the original idea of a separate overn the hesitation of the Mariti Canada to assuations as to defence Defence depended on confederation, and England, by exercising soht promote both objects

The coovernment was coland a committee of the imperial cabinet, Gladstone, Cardwell, the Duke of Soreement was arrived at as to defence Canada would undertake works of defence at and west of Montreal, and maintain a certain militia force; Great Britain would complete fortifications at Quebec, provide the whole aruarantee a loan for the sum necessary to construct the works undertaken by Canada, and in case of ould defend every portion of Canada with all the resources of the ereement was made as to the acquisition of the Hudson Bay Territory by Canada, and as to the influence to be brought to bear on the Mariti the Maritime Provinces into the ht was to i a nant with future prosperity to British Aard to New Brunswick, the fact that its consent was a vital part of the whole scheme must have been an incentive to heroic measures, and these were taken

One of the causes of the defeat of the confederation government of New Brunswick had been the active hostility of the lieutenant-governor, Mr Arthur Haly opposed to the change, and is believed to have gone to the li its opponents in the election of 1865 Soon afterwards he visited England, and it is believed that he was sent for by the home authorities and was taken to task for his conduct, and instructed to assist in carrying out confederation A despatch from Cardwell, secretary of state for the colonies, to Governor Gordon, expressed the strong and deliberate opinion of Her Majesty's government in favour of a union of all the North Aovernor carried out his instructions with the zeal of a convert, showed the despatch to the head of his govern him also, and believed he had been partly successful The substance of the despatch was inserted in the speech froislature islative council adopted an address asking for iislation to unite the British North A for the action of the asse pleasure at their address, and declaring that he would transmit it to the secretary of state for the colonies Thereupon the Sht to have been consulted about the reply, that the council, not having been elected by the people, had no authority to ask the imperial parliament to pass a measure which the people of New Brunswick had expressly rejected at the polls A protest in siislative asseovernment favourable to confederation was formed under Peter Mitchell, with Tilley as his chief lieutenant, and the legislature was dissolved

A threatened Fenian invasion helped to turn the tide of public opinion, and the confederate e majority That result, however desirable, did not sanctify theabout a verdict for confederation, which could hardly have been more arbitrary

FOOTNOTES: