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House of Commons, 23 March 1871, Canadian Confederation with British Columbia

March 23, 1871 COMMONS DEBATES 247

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Thursday, March 23, 1871

The SPEAKER took the chair at 3 o'clock afier routine.
Prayers

WESTERN BANK

Mr. KILLAM introduced a Bill to incorporate the Western Bank.
* * *

SUN INSURANCE COMPANY

Mr. WORKMAN withdrew the Bill to incorporate the Sun Insurance Company.
***

INSOLVENT ACT

Mr. MAGILL introduced a Bill to amend the Insolvent Act of 1869.
* * *

QUEBEC MARINE AND FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY

Mr. SIMARD introduced a Bill to amend the Act incorporating the Quebec Marine and Fire Insurance Company.
* * *

FEMALE CONVICTS

Hon. Mr. IRVINE introduced a Bill to make provision for the detention of Female convicts in the Reformatory Prison of the Province of Quebec.
(All these bills received first reading.) * * *

BRITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES

Hon. Sir GEORGE-E. CARTIER announced that the Government had made no further arrangement for special reports of the debates on the British Columbia measure.
Hon. Sir A.T. GALT said he was sorry that the Government had arrived at that conclusion, for the debates would be particularly interesting to British Columbia, and would not reach there in as full a form as they would otherwise have done had his suggestion been adopted. He trusted that the energy usually displayed by the reports would on this occasion supplement the necessity that would exist for full reports.
Mr. JONES (Leeds North and Grenville North) believed the Government deserved credit for the decision to which they had come. He was about to proceed further, when
The SPEAKER called him to order. There was no question before the House.
Mr. JONES (Leeds North and Grenville North) thought he had as good a right to speak on the subject as other hon. gentlemen.
The SPEAKER explained that a minister of the Crown had simply answered a question put on a former occasion by the hon. member for Sherbrooke, and there the matter should drop.
Mr. JONES (Leeds North and Grenville North) said he was sorry to be obliged to resort to extreme measures, but he had a precedent for it only the other day. He moved the adjournment of the House. (Laughter) He continued at some length to explain that he was elected on the Independent ticket, and though he might have erred in judgment, he had always endeavoured to preserve economy in the administration of public affairs. (At this point the hon. gentleman's voice became inaudible, owing to the slamming of desks and other noises in the House resorted to, to silence him.) He did not approve of going to any additional expense in the British Columbia matter.
The SPEAKER suggested that it would be as well to postpone the discussion until the British Columbia Bill should be before the House.
Mr. JONES (Leeds North and Grenville North) bowed to the opinion of the Speaker, and withdrew his motion.
Mr. RYMAL rose to reply to some remarks made by the hon. member for Leeds and Grenville, with respect to his (Mr. Rymal's) course in Parliament. The hon. member had seen fit to take him (Mr. Rymal) to task and would fain make the House believe that he would encourage extravagance in the administration of public 248 COMMONS DEBATES March 23, 1871 affairs. He (Mr. Rymal) believed that his course would show that he had advocated economy whenever it was in the interest of the public, and he had no desire that every man's utterances should be fully reported in the case. He had no desire that a column should be given to his own speech, though the hon. member for Leeds might. Whether that hon. gentleman was reported in the regular way or not, he (Mr. Rymal) could not say, but he had frequently noticed that if the hon. member only spoke for five minutes in the House, a column report of it, at least, appeared in the papers. (Laughter) No doubt the hon. member engaged a special reporter to record his wise sayings. As for the charge of inconsistency and want of independence, he (Mr. Rymal) left it to those who had known them to say whether he or the hon. member for Leeds was the more deserving of the charge. The hon. member's course had been what Wm. Lyon Mackenzie had said of such members—that those who boasted of independence in the House were those who never could be depended on. (Laughter)
***

WEST INDIES MAIL

Mr. FORBES asked whether, in view of the business between the Dominion and the British and Foreign West Indies, it is the intention of the Government to increase the mail accommodation during this year between those countries so as to give greater advantage and larger development to this important trade.
Hon. Mr. TUPPER said the attention of the Government had been drawn to the importance of establishing such a service, but considered it not advisable to undertake it yet.
***

PROMISSORY NOTES

Mr. KIRKPATRICK asked whether it is the intention of the Government to issue stamped paper for the purposes of the Promissory Notes Stamp Act?
Hon. Mr. MORRIS replied that the subject was at this moment under the consideration of the Government.
***

ST. CLAIR FLATS CANAL

On the order for Mr. Mackenzie's resolution for the correspondence relative to the canal built by the United States Government at St. Clair Flat,
Mr. MACKENZIE said the first Minister of the Crown had promised a portion of this correspondence, and he wished to know if that correspondence could be brought down now.
Hon. Sir GEORGE-E. CARTIER said it would not be conducive to public interests to bring down any portion of the correspondence. The correspondence was still going on between the Canadian and Imperial Governments and the Government of the United States. He hoped the hon. gentleman would accept his declaration, that it would not be in the public interest to bring any of it down.
Mr. MACKENZIE said he was of course bound to accept the assurance of the Government.
***

ADMISSION OF RUPERT'S LAND AND THE NORTH- WEST

Mr. BLAKE moved that this House do resolve itself into a Committee of the whole to consider the following resolutions:-
1. That the sense of the Houses of the respective Legislatures of the Provinces Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick was taken as to, and formed the basis of the Imperial Legislation under which the said Provinces were federally united into the Dominion of Canada.
2. That it was by the British North America Act (1867) enacted that it should be lawful for the Queen, by and with the advice of the Privy Council, on Addresses from the Houses of Parliament of Canada, to admit Rupert 's Land and the North Western Territory, or either of them, into the Union by the said Act created, on such terms and conditions as the Queen should think fit to approve subject to the provisions of the said Act; and that the provisions of any such Order in Council should have effect as if they had been enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
3. That Addresses have been passed by both Houses of Parliament of Canada touching the admission of the said Territories into the Union, and Canada has paid large sums, and incurred large liabilities in order to accomplish such admission, and an Order in Council has been made by the Queen for such admission.
4. That the Parliament of Canada has assumed to exercise jurisdiction over the said Territories and to make provision for the erection of part of the said Territories into the Province of Manitoba and for the establishment of federal relations between the said Provinces and Canada.
5. That it has been made to appear to this House that the Canadian Government has requested the Government of the United Kingdom to submit to the Parliament of the United Kingdom a Bill touching the said North Western Territories or some part thereof', and that the Government of the United Kingdom in consequence of such request has proposed to the Canadian Government to submit a Bill, a draft of which it has forwarded to the Canadian Government.
6. That in the opinion of this House the sense of both Houses of the Parliament of Canada should be taken as to and should form the basis of such proposed Legislation.
Mr. BLAKE said that he proposed in these resolutions to establish the principle that legislation on matters affecting this [...]

Source:

Canada. House of Commons Debates, 1871. Edited by Norman Ward and Pamela Hardisty. Ottawa: Ministry of Supply and Services Canada, 2007. Original scans accessible at: http://parl.canadiana.ca/.

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

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