[...] cious and unfriendly
to say beforehand, what
the electoral franchise shall be in the Provinces, not yet in the Union; to tell them,
in fact,
that their influence here shall not be felt. He
called the attention of the House to the irrelevancy of the franchise proposed. He
thought
that the Minister of Justice could, with propriety, adopt the franchise of the local
Houses.
His opinion was that the time was not far off,
when every man in the country would have a
vote, when the political sentiment of the country would not be demoralised by the
registration system.
Hon. Mr. Wood—The hon. gentleman says that it is desirable
that the elections should not be simultaneous and on one day, because it
would deprive persons having votes in different constituencies from
exercising the franchise in more than one constituency. Should he
not then, to be logical, provide for the elections to take place in each
constituency on successive days, so as to give full opportunity for
all having the franchise in different constituencies, (hear,
hear).
Hon. Col. Gray—Why this would be impossible; it
is the
reductio ad absurdum.
Hon. Mr. Wood—It is_ reducing your argument
ad absurdum, (hear, hear and laughter).
Hon. Col. Gray thought that the House was indebted to the
hon. member for Bothwell for awakening an interest in another subject of
discussion than the one they had for the last seven or eight days, (hear). If
every man were an educated man, and if there were no moral wrong, then
the theories of the hon. gentleman would be right. But they must take men as
they were, and look at the interest a man had in the country in which he
resided. The possession of property was an evidence of capacity of
an interest in the country to be affected by legislation, and should
serve as a criterion on which the franchise should be based, (hear,
hear). As to the argument that the proposed franchise was different from that
of Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island, with whom we were
negotiating to enter the Dominion, he (Col. Gray) would say that it
would be absurd to frame a measure not based upon the wishes, the wants,
or the interests of the 4,000,000 of the Dominion, but on the local
practice of a population not larger than two of our counties in Ontario,
and of Provinces which refused to join us, (hear, hear). If the Govern
514 COMMONS DEBATES March 18, 1870
ment had brought down
a measure of that character, it would be absurd. One might as well ask
the people of the United States to frame their laws on the customs of the
inhabitants of the Fiji Islands. If there were any attempts
to deprive the people of the Maritime Provinces of their rights, as the member
for Bothwell seemed pleased to intimate, there were men from those
Provinces, their own representatives, who were perfectly able to look
after their interests. The people of New Brunswick were content
with the franchise as they had it, and the franchise there was based on
the £100 qualification, mixed of real and personal estate or
income—and in case of land of $100. In Ontario the franchise had always been
connected in some way or other with the land. In the Maritime Provinces
the franchise went further, and was based on salary and income. The
principle of the Bill was to extend to Ontario the same advantages which were
possessed by the Maritime Provinces, (hear, hear).
Mr. Mackenzie—The franchise for the counties remains the same as it is now in Ontario — $100.
Hon. Col. Gray said that the provisions of the Bill were
more liberal to Ontario than those of the Act passed by their own Legislature last
winter. In this respect this Bill represented the interests of Ontario better than
their own Legislature represented
them.
Hon. Col Gray—Another principle of the Bill
was to prevent the floating population of the country from controlling the
affairs of the country, by making residence a qualification of voting.
Registration as well as residence and property was required. If the
representatives of Ontario were prepared to adopt the principle of
universal suffrage, then he would say that the people of the Maritime Provinces
would not have it, (hear, hear). Those people were determined that
practical and not theoretical qualifications should be the result of voting.
Mr. Mills—But you would employ these men
who have no property to defend the country? (Hear, hear.)
Hon. Col. Gray said he would trust every man brought up in
the country to defend it even if he had not a shilling, (hear, hear).
