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House of Commons, 25 April 1895, Canadian Confederation with Alberta and Saskatchewan

197 [APRIL 24, 1895] 198
[...] only to persons having contracts with the Government. I propose to make the penalties apply to directors and otlicers of railway companies who have subsidies, or loans, or advances, or bonuses, from the Government of Canada. And I think, Sir, that this will meet the view of the House and of the public. I hope at a later stage to discuss the matter more fully.
Motion agreed to, and Bill read the first time.

DOMINION NOTES ACT.

Sir RICHARD CARTWRIGHT. Excuse me ; I suppose that the object of the Bill to amend the Dominion Notes Act is to put in the proviso which, in a most extraordinary fashion, was dropped from the measure last year.
Mr. FOSTER. Precisely that.

DOMINION ELECTIONS ACT.

Mr. O'BRIEN (for Mr. McCarthy) moved for leave to introduce Bill No. 16 to amend the Dominion Elections Act. He said : The object of this Bill, Mr. Speaker, may be very briefly stated. Of its provisions—one is a most important one—to make railway companies that carry voters to or from the polls free of charge, guilty of a corrupt practice, and also to make any persons who abet the railway companies in doing so guilty of a corrupt practice. In fact, the object is to put a stop to the practice which is well known to prevail, especially as shown during recent elections, of railway companies making themselves election agents and carrying voters free from one end of the Dominion to the other to please the Government of the day. The other portion of the Bill relates to acts of personation. We have on our statute a clause referring to this offence. The Ontario Legislature has passed an Act which provides for summary process in cases of personation. Any one can easily understand that cases of personation will frequently arise, especially in the more remote districts of the country, where the population is sparse, and where strangers can come in and poll votes on behalf of persons who are not present. This Bill enacts, as an amendment to the existing law, a similar provision to that of the provincial Act, which provides for summary process in regard to personation. These are the main provisions of the Bill. I therefore beg leave to move, seconded by Mr. Bryson, for leave to introduce this Bill.
Motion agreed to, and Bill read the first time.

NORTH-WEST TERRITORIES-DUAL LANGUAGE, ETC.

Mr. O'BRIEN (for Mr. McCarthy) moved for leave to introduce Bill (No. 17) to amend the North-west Territories Act. He said : On behalf of Mr. McCarthy, I beg to introduce this Bill, which has been introduced on several previous occasions in this House and which has not yet met with the support which its advocates hoped it would meet with and which they believe it will ultimately meet with. I need say but little with regard to the provisions of the Bill, for they are well known. The object is to give the North-west Territories power to deal with the subject of education and to abolish the use of the French language as official in these Territories. I have said, Mr. Speaker, that this Bill has not met with the support in this House which we think it ought to meet with, it has met with a very large support throughout the country, except in the province of Quebec.
Mr. AMYOT. Hear, hear.
Mr. O'BRIEN. Which the hon. gentleman who interrupts me so ably represents ; and, Sir, the public have come to the conclusion that they are not the demagogues who strive by every means in their power to do away with these distinctions of race and religion which are the cause of nearly all our troubles ; they are the real demagogues who fatten and batten and grow into political power and influence by means of these distinctions. Sir, it is within the knowledge of this House that gentlemen who are hardly qualified to fill the position of third class clerks have been put in high office in the Cabinet, and have been retained there from year to year, from one administration to another. Kept there, and kept there why ? Not on account of their merits, because nature never gave them any such qualifications as to entitle them to fill these positions, but simply and solely because they represented a certain race and a certain religion. And, Sir, the hon. Minister of Marine and Fisheries is a case in point. The. hon. gentleman illustrated his position most admirably on a recent occasion. The hon. gentleman referred —or perhaps it would be more parliamentary to say reference was made—to the power which the late Sir John Macdonald had of judging character and choosing men, very seldom making mistakes in that respect. Well Sir, Sir John Macdonald made no mistake in the case of the Minister of Marine and Fisheries. He made no mistake because he never thought that with all his powers it was possible to make a statesman of the hon. gentleman, but he did believe—and that belief has been justified by events—that the hon. gentleman would make a most admirable placeman. A most admirable placeman he has been, a most admirable placeman he still continues to be. I do not propose to say anything further with reference to this Bill, but I beg to move, second by Mr. Denison, for leave to introduce the Bill.
Motion agreed to, and Bill read the first time.

FIRST READING.

Bill (No. 18) to prevent the importation and immigration of foreigners and aliens under [...]

Source:

Canada. House of Commons Debates, 1875-1949. Provided by the Library of Parliament.

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Selection of input documents and completion of metadata: Gordon Lyall.

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