TUESDAY APRIL 10.
UNION OF THE COLONIES.
SPEECH OF HON. PROVINCIAL SECRETARY.
House met at 3 o'clock. Â
Dr. TUPPER then rose and said:—The house
will recollect that, a few days ago, the hon.
member for Richmond put a question to the
Government, in relation to a very important
subject, and on that occasion I stated that the
situation in which we stood in respect to the
Union of the Colonies would preclude me from
giving him an immediate reply, until I had an
opportunity of placing myself in communication with my colleagues in the Government,
and with the other gentlemen who had assisted
in maturing the Quebec scheme. I stated,
however, to the hon. member and to the house,
that in view of the great importance of the
subject,—of the events which were daily transpiring in connection with the question—I
would take the earliest opportunity of giving,
in my place, the policy which the government
and the friends of the Quebec scheme of Confederation in this Legislature are prepared
to
take in relation to the matter. In order to redeem the pledge and bring the attention
of this
Legislative Assembly to the consideration of
the gravest and most important question that
has ever been submitted to it—after due deliberation with my colleagues, and consultation
with the gentlemen who were associated with
us at the Quebec Conference—I rise for the
purpose of giving to the house and country the
fullest information as to the policy which we
are prepared to assume in relation to the subject. I regret deeply that in approaching
a
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DEBATES AND PROCEEDINGS
question of such gravity—which demands that
the members of the house should rise to to the
great emergency, and look with a single eye
to the interests of the country; only to that
course that is calculated to promote the
advancement of our common country, and perpetuate the great privileges which, as British
subjects, we enjoy; I regret, I say, Sir, in
approaching a question of such deep importance, that the conduct of a portion of the
press
in this Province, controlled by a gentleman
within this Legislature, occupying a high and
responsible position, should make it my duty
at the outset to notice, not the arguments-for
that time has passed — but unfounded
calumnies and misrepresentation. The time has
passed when the opponents of a union of British North America can meet the friends
of that
great question on the platform, in the press, or
on the floor of Parliament, and discuss it as
becomes public men and statesmen, upon the
principles and leading features of the scheme
proposed. Instead of that, the opponents of
union have resorted to appeals to the passions,
--to such an amount of personal vituperation
as never before I believe in the history of this
country, was dragged into the consideration of
a great public question upon anyoccasion. I
should fail in what 1 owe to myself and to the
great question with which I am at this moment undertaking to deal, and in what I owe
to
this deliberative assembly, if I did not in my
place in Parliament, notice at the very outset
the position that the opponents of this question have assumed, and the strange liberties
they have taken with this Legislature. I would
be justified on the present occasion, in dealing
with this matter in a very different form,—any
member of this Legislature would only be discharging his duty if he dealt with it
in a different spirit,-—and in asking the Legislature if the
inherent privileges which the members of this
assembly enjoy are to be trampled under foot
in our very presence, and by those holding high and responsible positions within
these very walls, and, at the same time, acting
in the capacity of editor, publisher, and proprietor of a newspaper in this city.
Is he to be
allowed to assail the character and integiity
of members of this house with impunity? not
simply to hold up this Legislative Assembly
as devoid of intelligence, as one of the most
despicable bodies of men that have ever been
permitted to deal with the public affairs of a
free country ; but to go further, and charge in
the most direct terms members with being
influenced by motives most base and corrupt?
I hold in my hand the
Morning Chronicle of
April 6, last, in which a correspondent, over
the signature of "Brutus" —a well known
gentleman, closely identified with the publisher and editor of this paper,—who has
ventured to speak of members of this house,—of
his own political associates in this Legislature
as well as of those who are opposed to him,—
in terms not only of opprobrium and reproach,
but which are alike dishonorable and insulting to every member of this deliberative
assembly. He says:—
"As it is well known, a few designing politicians,
doing the work of conspirators, traitorously contemplate the destruction of our constitution,
and the
transfer of our revenues to a set of men who are far
away. and who care nothing for us or for the preservation of those interests which
are as dear to us
are the crimson tides that circulate through our
veins."
I ask the house what must be the position of
public men in this country who are called
upon to deal with a question so vital to our
interests as a union of British North America,
when they are obliged to descend to such
language as that? I need not remind the house
when the Government was called upon to
deal with the question, they invited the aid
and co-operation of the leaders of the political
party opposed to them; and that these gentlemen, thus called upon to share the responsibility
in connection with a matter of such
vital import, have acted from the first in entire
unison with those who had asked their assistance. I do not mean to say that the members
of the Government and the gentlemen
opposed to them, who were delegates to the
Quebec Conference, always saw eye to eye,
I do not mean to say that we were not obliged
on many occasions to arrive at a common result by a compromise of our individual opinions;
but in the measure as a whole, that was
presented to the world, we were all heartily
and thoroughly united. Then, I ask, what is
the position of the organ of the party of which
the hon. and learned member for Colchester,
(Mr. Archibald,) is the leader, when, in dealing
with this question, they denounce that gentleman in the presence of this Assembly,
as a
conspirator, traitorously endeavoring to strike
down the rights and liberties of his country.—
A cause which requires an advocacy like that
must indeed be in want of arguments on which
to found aclaim to the support of the people.
Again I read:—
"Yesterday, however, on the floors of the Assem
bly Room, bygone promises were unscrupulously re
pudiated, confidence betrayed, and barefaced treachery exhibited. I sat in the gallery,
and witnessed
the perpetration of this act of political turpitude, and
heard the whisper circulated from ear to ear—"The
traitor has been bought." The scene reminded me of
what transpired in the Parliament House in Dublin,
at the commencement of the present century, when
the seductive influence of British gold corrupted a
Parliament, and professed patriotism was bought and
sold like bank stock, or any other marketable commodity. I asked myself whether the
temptations of
either proffered official aggrandisement and emoluments, or the rejection of a candidate's
claim to membership of a social club, was a sufficient pretext for
party treachery, for the glaring tergiversation of oft
repeated and publicly avowed opinions,—and what is
more, for the betrayal of a country's dearest interests,
and the diabolical destruction of its constitution."
When the opponents of Union have been
obliged to take a course like that, they have
given the best evidence that their cause is an
untenable one, which cannot be sustained by
public men. Here we find the best leading
minds of the part with which the hon. member is associated, denounced by their own
press, as men who have been recreant to the
best interests of the country. Again, in the
editorial of the Morning Chronicle of April 9, we
read:-- Â
"But whatever the people of this ocuntry believed,
at the period referred to, there is too much reason to
apprehend that their hopes and expectations will never be realized. A majority of
the members of the
Assembly, it is said, has been secured, corrupted by
influences frightful to contemplate, to vote our free
Parliament out of existence, and with it the rights
and privileges we so dearly prize."
Here is a charge made in the most emphatic
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213
language that it is possible to make it—that a
majority of the members of the House have
been basely bribed and corrupted by means
that it is frightful to contemplate. What is
the position of a man who thus degrades the
Legislature, who holds up to the public execration the representatives of the people
as
men that are to be bought and sold. Farther
on I read:—
"But might, we are told, makes right, and in this
spirit the Provincial Secretary and his aiders and
abettors in the house, propose to lay their sacrilegious hands upon the constitution
of our country. Let
them beware ere they attempt the unholy deed. The
people of Nova Scotia are proverbially loyal, but they
will have need of it all if their feelings are thus violently outraged and their rights
basely betrayed.
Nova Scotians will not pass under the yoke of Canada
without a struggle. A resolution to confederate us
may receive the assent of a majority of the House of
Assembly. but the end is not yet. Our countrymen,
if true to themselves, will triumph in the end."
You have then this same paper using this
inflammatory and seditious language with the
object of exciting the loyal people to this pro—
vince to rise against the action of the Legislature of their country. That is the
position to
which an hon. member has been drawn, in his
inability to find arguments to sustain his
cause. Again, in the Morning Chronicle of
April 10th, we find:—
"In the course of the Confederate Debate in the
Canadian Assembly, last winter, the Hon. George
Brown referred to the large sum that was given for
the purchase of the State of Louisiana, and suggested
that the expenditure of as large, or even a larger
sum, in the purchase of the Maritime Provinces,
would be profitable Canadian investment. Mr.
Brown's hint, we have reason to believe, has not
been lost sight of by the Confederates. Canadian
gold, it is said, is here, and in sufficient abundance to
overcome the scruples of certain representatives of
the people. The count has a sharp eye on the
House just now, and will duly appreciate the sudden
conversion of members, should any unhappily he
found willing to accept the base bribe."
I ask the house if the most spiritless member
is prepared to allow a foul stigma like that
to rest upon his character? I feel that all the
hon. member has been doing is bringing down
discredit and dishonour upon himself and the
cause he thus upholds. I may have occasion
to draw the attention of this house to the question as to how far these imputations
of base,
corrupt and dishonourable motives influencing the members of this Legislature, have
sprung from the belief in the mind of the hon.
member that there are other gentlemen as
open to such imputations as he himself may
be. Now when a base and dishonourable motive is imputed to a man of fair character,
the
party who attempts to put such a stigma upon
him has a right to sustain it by showing it at
there is some reason for the belief that it
might possibly apply to the person in question.
I have already said that these imputations are
not levelled against the gov't party alone,
but fall with the same weight upon gentlemen politically identified with the hon.
member. It may be argued with reason that these
imputations fall with far greater force upon
the leader of the Opposition, with whom the
hon. member has been long closely associated,
and whose motives he may be supposed to
know better than those with whom he has not
been politically identified.
Let me call your attention to this charge of
bribery. No one will deny the truth of the
principle that it is only when you find a man
lend himself to a dishonorable deed, that you
have a foundation to impute a base motive.
In what position are the promoters of the
Quebec scheme? Were we in the position
of having denounced a Union of British North
America, and then, without anything to
change their attitude, having suddenly assumed a position entirely antagonistic and
at
variance with that which we had previously
taken? If it were so, then the hon. member
might have something on which to base a
suspicion. Before the question was mooted
in this Legislature I was called to address a
meeting in the city of St. John, in the neighbouring Province, and chose for my subject
the Union of British North America. From
that day to this I have been found the consistent supporter of Union. When the late
government brought down the question of
Union I adhered to the principles on the platform and in the press, and gave them
my cordial and enthusiastic support. So down to
the present day I stand before the people of
this country as a man who, in every position,
has used every influence he possessed to promote and carry forward that on which he
believed the prosperity and security of the
country depended. Can the hon. member find
any foundation there for the imputation of
base and corrupt motives? Again, if the promoters of Union are influenced by motives
that are dishonourable to themselves and the
Legislature, in what position is Her Majesty
the Queen? When he sees the Queen, session
after session, at the close and opening of Parliament, coming down and urging in the
most
emphatic terms that the Royal lips can use,
this question of Confederation upon the people
of British North America, does he mean to
say that she, too, is corrupted by base bribes?
Coming down to Her Majesty's Ministers—to
the men who stand before the world as exemplars of the most distinguished patriotism,
the
most profound statesmanship—are they too
corrupted by base means when they declare
that the advancement of British North America is to be secured by carrying through
this
great question of a Colonial Union? What
does he think influences Lord Derby and the
statesmen opposed to Her Majesty's Ministers
who, on every occasion, have stood forward
and strengthened the hands of the government
of England in carrying forward this great
question of Colonial Union? What has inuenced the press and people, as well as the
Lords and Commons of Great Britain, when,
with a unanimity which has never been
exhibited on any other public question, they
stand forward as the avowed supporters and
advocates of this great measure? Is it at a
crisis like this—when day by day these patriotic
influences that are calculated to operate upon
men's minds do operate—that a member of
this deliberative assembly should dare to
dishonour this House by imputations of being
influenced by base and unworthy motives?
Go to Canada and you find in that great country an overwhelming majority of both branches
of the Legislature in favour of this great measure; and you find Her Majesty's Representative
therein using his legitimate influence to
press it forward. Go to New Brunswick and
you see Her Majesty's Representative heartily
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DEBATES AND PROCEEDINGS
promoting the scheme though he was at the
outset hostile to it; but when he has had an
opportunity of examining it in all its details he
gives it his support and confidence. If you
look at the Legislature of that province you
find that, although upon an appeal to the people by a combination between the opponents
of Confederation and the opponents of the government, a large majority was returned
to
oppose the Quebec scheme, yet now day by
day the condition of public affairs is operating
to such an extent upon boTh branches that a
few days since the following resolution was
passed by the Legislative Council, by a majority of 14 to 5:—
Resolved, as in the opinion of this Committee,—That
a Union of all the British North American Provinces,
based on the resolutions adopted at the Conference
of Delegates from the severAl Provinces, held at Quebec on the 10th of October, 1864,
is an object highly
to be desired—essential to their future prosperity and
influence, and calculated, alike to strengthen and
perpetuate the ties which bind them to the Mother
Country;
"Resolved, as in the opinion of this Committee,—
That the Legislative Council should concur in any
measure which may be necessary to carry such a
union into effect."
I ask what is it that has corrupted the Legislative Council of New Brunswick so as
to
induce this overwhelming change in their
minds. Is the hon. member prepared to charge
them with base, dishonorable, and corrupt
motives? Does he not know that sitting in
that branch of the Legislature are men whose
wealth and standing in the country are sufficient protection against the base insinuations
with which he fills the disreputable journal
which is under his control? In the presence
of this crisis in the history of British
North America the Legislative Council, like Her Majesty's Representative,
stand forward and declare by an overwhelming majority that they are prepared
to uphold the great scheme of Intercolonial
union as the great means of advancing
the best interests of the country. Look at
the lower house, and you will find the leader
of the Government—who has been bespattered
for the past twelve months by this same press
and held up as and incorruptible patriot,—declaring by the speech at the opening of
the Legislature, and showing by his own admissions
on the floor of Parliament, that his views have
undergone a great change in relation to the
question of a union of the colonies. Looking
at the events that are transpiring in this province no one can doubt the result. Then,
I
say, is it Canadian gold that is corrupting the
Province and influencing it to assume an attitude so very different from what it assumed
a
year ago? Coming to our own Province what
do I find? I am not going to speak of the
Lieutenant Governor (Mr. Annand—hear,
hear), but the Government knows that the
"Hero of Kars," in his capacity of Commander-in-Chief of British North America, used
all the ability and talent at his command, by
public speeches and written communications,
in favor of a union of British North America.
As one of the most distinguished soldiers of
the empire he felt that the salvation and security of British North America depended
upon the promised union being carried into
effect. What has corrupted that high-minded
soldier, statesmen and patriot? Is it Canadian
gold? If the features of the scheme are such
as to bring to its advocacy a man so distinguished, why is it that this deliberative
Assembly is told that Canadian gold is the only
means of inducing men to combine in carrying
it forward? In what position is the brave and
distinguished Admiral on this Station? He
stood forth at the very inception of this
scheme, as he stands to-day,—he, one of the
most distinguished heroes that ever graced the
navy of England—lending his voice and cooperation to the great scheme of a Union of
British North America, as the means by which
we are to be elevated into a position of infinitely greater importance than we can
now
enjoy,—as the only means of preserving these
provinces to the Crown of England. What is
it that has corrupted him? Need I remind
gentlemen that the same position is occupied
by that universal favorite in this country—the
gallant Major-General Doyle. Does not the
hon. member know that that distinguished
gentleman as a soldier, as a servant of the
Crown, as a man upon whom the responsibility of our protection depends, has used all
the
influence he can exercise by argument and
persuasion in favour of a Union of these provinces. Thus we find all those illustrious
men standing shoulder to shoulder in this
great question. Then there is the distinguished prelate, His Grace the Archbishop,
who
has stood forward in this province, and by
his voice and pen, urged upon the people the
adoption of this scheme of Union as the great
means by which the safety and prosperity of
our country must be promoted. There is His
Lordship the talented and astute Bishop of
Nova Scotia. His Lordship the Bishop of
Arichat—the united clergy of all denominations—Episcopalian, Catholic, Methodist,
Presbyterian, Baptist, men of all shades of political opinions standing in a solid
phalanx, such
as was never exhibited in this country before,
in the face of the people of this province as the
supporters of Confederation, and giving all the
assistance of their talents and exertions as
the only means by which our country may be
elevated, and our connection with Great Britain preserved. Side by side you find all
the
able and distinguished judiciary of our country united in sustaining this Union of
British
North America. What has corrupted the entire religious Press—the "Presbyterian Witness,"
the "Wesleyan," the "ChristianMessenger? Here you see these journals reflecting the views of the clergy of various
denominations combining to press forward this great
scheme of Union; and yet you find the hon.
member standing forward and declaring that
men who only look to the welfare and security
of their country are influenced by the base
and contemptible motives which he has ventured to insinuate. I am hold to say that
if
up to the present hour there has been a single dollar of Canadian gold brought into
the
country in connection with this question I
am ignorant of it; if there has been a statesman in the whole of Canada that would
dare
to approach a member of this Legislature or
any one else in this country by means such as
that, he has not insulted me by taking me into his confidence. Standing here as I
do with
the knowledge of that fact—of the dishonorable character of this insinuation, I feel
I
could afford to let it pass by with the contempt
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215
that it deserves if it was not sent abroad into
the remotest hamlets of this country for the
purpose of creating strife and rebellion among
the unsophisticated and less uninformed of
our people. I ask the hon. member if it was
under the influence of base bribes a great number of the citizens of Halifax, when
the question had been fully discussed on the public
platform by the ablest men on both sides that
could be found, were induced to stand forward as the avowed supporters of Union? I
do
not mean to say that on a question of such
deep import, involving such weighty considerations, there are not high-minded men who
differ from us, but I have never insinuated—
never have been compelled to resort to such a
despicable position as to say that they were
influenced by other than patriotic motives.
Then at Truro, in the heart of our agricultural
counties, a large body of intelligent men, convinced by the arguments in support of
Union,
have stood forward as its firm friends. So at
Windsor, Kentville, Bridgetown, Annapolis,
Parrsboro, Amherst, Pugwash, and other
parts of the country you see men who had, in
year's past, been diametrically opposed to
each other on political matters, standing
shoulder to shoulder and co-operating for the
promotion of Colonial Union.
I regret to have to allude to a gentleman
who is not in this building, and I shall deal
with him with greater delicacy than if he
were here; but my duty as a public man compels me to sink every consideration of false
delicacy in dealing with this question, and
place it before my fellow-countrymen free
from all disguise. I believe that the time has
come when man should speak to man plainly
and unhesitatingly, and when men who have
taken up the position that the opponents of
Union have, should be exposed to the naked
gaze of the people ot the Province. Need I
tell the House that in the same paper which
sends broadcast over the face of this country
these unfounded calumnies, we see Mr. Howe
over his own signature assisting the hon. member by his pen.
Before I touch upon that part of the subject,
let me first call attention to the fact that the
hon. member, at the close of my observations
on Thursday last, addressed a challenge to
me to show that he was at all responsible for
ever having committed himself in any shape
whatever to the Union of B. N. America;
and I am here now to accept that challenge
and to prove from the journals of this Legisture that if there is a gentleman in this
House
exposed to suspicion—if we wanted an inconsistent course of conduct on which to base
an
imputation—it is to be found in the career of
the hon. member himself, and of the gentleman whose mouth-piece he is in this Legislature.
This hon. member who now says that
he has yet to hear the first argument in favour
of Union, declared that "so many were the
advantages of Union" that the time had arrived when it was necessary to deal with
the
question.
Near the close of the session of 1861, the hon.
Mr. Howe, then leader of the government of
this Province, moved the following resolution,
which passed unanimously:—
"Whereas the subject of Union of the North American Provinces, or of the Maritime Provinces,
from
time to time have been mooted and discussed in all
the Colonies.
"And whereas, while many advantages may be secured by such a union, either of all these Provinces,
or a portion of them, many and serious obstacles are
presented. which can only be overcome by mutual
consultation of the leading men of the Colonies, sud
bv free communication with the Imperial Government.
"Therefore resolved, That His Excellency the
Lieutenant Governor be respectfully requested to
put himself in communication with His Grace the
Colonial Secretarv and His Excellency the Governor
General, and the North American Colonies, in order
to ascertain the policy of Her Majesty's Government,
and the opinions of the other Colonies, with a view
to the enlightened consideration of a question involving the highest interests, and
upon which the
public mind in all the Provinces ought to be set at
rest.
The hon. member does not require to say
"hear, hear," to direct the attention of every
intelligent gentleman in this house and country to his shameful inconsistency. At
a time
when these gentlemen held the responsible
position of Ministers of the Crown, we find the
government of which he was a member bringing down to the house a resolution affirming
in the most emphatic language that ever
tongue can express the "many advantages of
Union;" and in the face of that declaration
you now see the hon member standing up and
endeavoring to repudiate his former sentiments so unequivocally expressed. The man
who pledged his character as a statesman, as
a man of integrity, to the statement that the
great advantages accruing from a Union of
British North America should be considered
by all the Provinces, now ventures to
come into the House and tell us that
he has "yet to hear the first argument in favour of that Union." I ask
you if a public man, after an exhibition
like that, is in a position to ask that the slightest weight should be given to any
declaration
that he may make? He may throw his base
insinuations into the face of this deliberative
Assembly—he may degrade himself by attempting to degrade this Home, but it will
avail nothing with every man who knows that
the gentleman who brought here a great question of public policy, and pledged his
public
character to its support, now unblushingly declares that it was a farce, a delusion,
and a deception, which he had been passing upon this
deliberative Assembly. If I stood in such a
position, I would forgive the hon. member if he
attributed base and dishonorable motives as
the reason why I had been influenced to adopt
a course so untenable and so at variance with
the public policy to which I stood pledged as a
public man.
I am going now to deal with another gentleman, outside of these walls, who brought
that
resolution here and declared himself in
the face of this country as the great exponent of Union. The action of the house upon
the above resolution was followed up by Mr.
Howe addressing, in his capacity of Provincial
Secretary, a circular to the Governments of
Canada, New Brunswick, and P. E. Island,
asking them to agree to a Conference for the
purpose of discussing this important question
of a Union of British North America. We
come now to 1863, when the Hon. D'Arcy McGee visited this city to advocate this Union,
I need not remind he house that a gentleman
whom the hon. member for East Halifax has
had the good taste to designate an " expatriated
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DEBATES AND PROCEEDINGS
rebel," at this moment occupies a position as
one of the most distinguished statesmen of
British North America. I speak of the Hon.
D'Arcy McGee, a gentleman who possesses
the finest mind, the most wonderful eloquence,
the most facile pen, and who has devoted all
the powers of his mind, all the influence of his
position, during the past ten years, to the work
of uniting, consolidating, and strengthening
the people and resources of British North
America. Can the hon member designate in
no other style the man whom her Majesty the
Queen and her ministers have delighted to honour who, whatever the indiscretions of
his
Youth mav have been, has devoted himself in
British North America. to speak down and
write down the antagonisms of race and of
religion, and has contributed more than any
other to unite the friends of British rule in
these colonies. What was the language of
Mr. Howe when this eminent statesman came
among us in 1863? He visited this city year
after year, and exercised his talents, as he has
always done in Canada, for the elevation of
our common country. He came on an invitation to Halifax and delivered an address in
Temperance Hall on the union of British
North America, and what was the opinion of
Mr. Howe, as expressed on that occasion, of
the man who came to this House and pledged
his public reputation to the declaration that
so great was the advantages of union that the
Legislature ought to move in the matter for
the purpose of bringing it to a happy consummation. Mr. Howe rose and seconded a vote
of thanks to Mr. McGee in these words, as reported at the time:—
"Mr. Howe went on to remark that it would be injustice to the lecturer to say more,
further than he
was with him in all he said He was for a Union of
all the British North American Provinces, but he was
for an intercolonial Railroad first. Then the road
would bring about the Union. It would enable the
Canadians to see our faces, to become familiar with
us, and to see the number of 1000 ton-ships which we
were building, which with our other wealth and resources, we are willing to throw
into the one great
stock. He thought a Union should not be delayed
till we had drifted into difficulties. How short
sighted were the English statesmen of old who lost
them the thirteen states, when the difficulty could
have been arranged in a month, the horrors of the
Revolutionary war prevented. and all our race living
at peace and harmony at present without the bickering
and animosity which prevail in their midst. Talk of
the fall of Quebec being a source of sorrow to the
inhabitants of this Province. It would be more if
the St. Lawrence were in the hands of our enemies,
we should be compelled to beg permission to tear
down the British flag. What he wished for Nova
Scotia was that she may be the frontage of a mighty
Colony; upon which it may be truly said the sun
never set. No man can look upon Halifax and its
environs, its harbour, its citadel and say it was made
for this Province alone."
"The United States has drifted into a civil war:
and we may drift into a tight place from which it
will be difficult to extricate ourselves. The States
might assail us; but if we had a railway by which
troops could he sent from Quebec or other military
stations to the threatened point, we would be saved.
Mr. Howe said, that he hoped when Mr. McGee returned to Canada he would be able to
say, "I have
been down among those people who live on fish and
lobsters, and there I seen keen politicians bickering
upon small topics. but when the great subject of national union was brought before
them then all minor
difference was disregarded, and I found them uniting
and pushing and cheering me on in this labor of
love."
On that occasion, therefore, Mr. Howe stood forth
to endorse everything that Mr. McGee had stated in
reference to this great question of intercolonial
Union. Did the man who stood then, as he does now,
at Mr. Howe's back, call the scheme of Union a snare
and a delusion? No, he stood there to publish those
sentiments of Mr Howe in his own paper, for the
purpose of proving that that gentleman was a farseeing patriot, who recognized the
position which
British North America must occupy, and the measures that were necessary to her security.
But that
is not all. ln 1864, subsequent to my having carried
a resolution in this House in favor of a Legislative
union of the Maritime Colonies, a visit was made to
this Province bv a large deputation of Canadians,
headed by Mr. McGee, upon the invitation of prominent merchants of this city, who
came forward and
contributed their means towards receiving their
guests, and declaring a resolution that it was of
the greatest commercial and political importance that
there should be a closer union between Nova Scotia
and Canada. A splendid banquet was given on that
occasion in the drill shed to our visitors, and Mr.
Howe was present to declare that no change had
taken place in his views since in Temperance Hall
he stood forward and endorsed the opinions expressed by Mr. McGee. It will be remembered,
that previous to this time the Government of Canada had
re-organized on the basis of endeavoring to obtain a
federal union of British North America; and Mr.
McGee was present as the exponent of that policy.
I spoke on that occasion, and expressed the slight
with which I had witnessed the political coalition in
Canada, and the hope it gave me that when Cartier
and Brown were rowing in the same best to the tune
of "Row Brothers, Row," the result would be a
Union of British North America. It was known, at
the same time, I may here say, for it had been announced in Parliament that Canada
was about to
send a deputation to the Maritime Convention to be
held at Charlottetown, for the purpose of ascertaining whether the larger Union could
not be carried
out. I shall now quote from the remarks that were
made by Mr. Howe on the occasion in question, as
given by the Sun newspaper which is now engaged in
aspersing the character of public men more consistent than themselves upon this question
of Union.
The Sun says:—
"Hon. Mr. Howe was received with most hearty
cheers. His speech was short and appropriate. He
was no stranger among them. His voice had been
heard in almost every town in the Provinces of
British America, and would again if occasion required it; and he was in hopes of yet
seeing the dream
of his boyhood realized —the Union of these Provinces in one great federation under
the old flag of
England, an event which he hoped was at no distant
date. We are sorry that our space will not allow us
to give this gentleman's remarks at greater length."
Now what next? The government invited Mr.
Howe as the exponent of a large portion of the public sentiment of this country to
go upon the Delegation. He told me, as I have stated in his presence,
that if there was any great work in which his services were required he was ready
to give us his assistance: and accordingly we invited him, and his
reply is on the journals of this House. That invitation remember, was tendered after
he was aware of
the Canadian policy of extending the Union to all
the Provinces—after he had endorsed that policy by
saying he hoped Union would be secured. Deeply do
I deplore that Mr. Howe was unable to attend on
that occasion, for I believe that the difficulties and
embarrassments that the friends of British American
Union have had to encounter in dealing with this
great question arose in a large measure from the fact
that they were deprived at the Conference
of Mr. Howe's services. I am only repeating
that which we hear from the warmest riends
he has in this Province, that if he had attended
at the Convention there would not be a man
who would be more enthusiastic in pressing
forward this great scheme than himself.
However, he addressed me a letter in which he
expressed his deep regret that he could not at
OF THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY.
217
tend, and said he would be back by the middle of October prepared to assist us in carrying
out any measure we agreed upon. Now you
see the same man who thus bound himself to
assist us in promoting anything that the government of the day and his own political
Â
friends might concur in, to-day in the "Morning Chronicle" denouncing these gentleman,
his own tried political associates, as traitors,
and holding them up to the execration of their
countrymen all over the province. If there
was a spark of gratitude in his heart he should
know that the men he is denouncing as conspirators are those to whom he owed the position
and all the advantages that he has enjoyed for the past ten years. They are the men
who sustained him in this house, who sent him
to England and enabled him to secure the Imperial office which he lately held, and
this is
their reward! If I stood in the position that
Mr. Howe stands in to-day on this great question of union, I would forgive the hon.
member for denouncing me as a traitor and a conspirator, and feel hat he had reason
to insinuate that I was influenced by the most base and
unworthy motives. Having said this much,
having read the hon member for East Halifax
a lesson which he will probably never forget,
I come now to the ques ion as it lies before
the house. I ask whether we are in a position
to deal with this question. It has be n denied
that we are—it has been said that this is a
change in the consitution of the country which
must be ratified by the people at the polls, if
it is to be constitutionally made. What, I
ask, gave Nova Scotia her constitution? From
what source does it come ? Looking at
the quarter from which it comes do you find
anything to lead us to suppose that there is
anything unconstitutional in a Parliament
dealing with a question of this character. You
find her Majesty's ministers, the very sources
from which our constitution was received, day
by day urging, not that the Legislature shall be
dissolved, and an appeal made to the people
of this Province, but that the representatives
of the people here assembled, in virtue of the
constitutional power they possess, should deal
with this question. You find the very highest
authority in reference to constitutional matters, the British Government, committing
itself unhesitatingly to the only statesmanlike
position, that the Parliament of the country,
the represen atives of the people, had the power to deal wi h all such matters—that
the people of a country are assumed to be present in
the persons of those whom they have elected
to represent them. In that constitutional doctrine or not? Is it sustained by British
practice which is our great exemplar, or opposed
even to American practice, or to constitutional usage in any part of the world where
constitutional government exists. That the constitution of a country may not be changed
by the
Parliament? What do you see at this moment
in England? When the present House of
Commons was elected, the question of Reform
was hardly mentioned at the Polls; the people
had no opportunity of expressing their opinions on the subject; but now you see the
Parliament thus elected, preparing to deal
with its own constitution, by adding nearly
500,000 electors to its list of voters. Members
of Parliament have declared that the change
is so fundamental that it will hand over the
governing power to a different class; but no
one has rendered himself ridiculous by declaring the Parliament was not competent
to deal
with this question, and bring about this important change in the constitution of the
country.
Is not Congress, at this moment, changing
the Constitution of the United States in the
most important respects? The time to ascertain
whether a question is constitutional or not—to
obtain a dispassionate opinion from the public
mind in the country—is not when it is a subject
of excitement and controversy. You must go
back and study the pages of the history of our
country to ascertain if you can find upon the
record what are the real and deliberate utterances of public men on both sides of
politics. I
am prepared to go back and turn up the page of
Nova Scotia's history, and give to the house the
statements of public men of all shades of politics,
that will be clear and conclusive upon the subject. The house will recollect that
many years
ago the Hon. Mr. Johnston, when sitting on the
Opposition benches, proposed a resolution, pro
viding for a Union of British North America.
That resolution became the subject of calm and
dispassionate discussion, as it should always obtain at the hands of the Legislature.
Two of
the ablest men who have ever figured in the affairs of the country were sitting on
the Government side—I refer to Mr. Howe and Mr.
Young. These gentlemen discussed the question
in all its aspects, and it was never questioned
whether the Parliament had the power of dealing
with the constitution, but, as I shall prove to
you, the utterances of the ablest statesmen
on both sides went to show that the power
of the Legislature to change the constitution ol
the Province was admittcd in the clearest and
most conclusive manner:—
"Mr. Johnston said on this occasion:—"I do this,
sir, that at the outset it may be seen to be my desire
that the Imperial and Colonial Governments should
be drawn to consider this great question and to mould
it after full deliberation into some form fit to be
presented for the consideration of the several Legislatures and that I presume not at this stage of the enquiry to offer any specific scheme
of my own."
Mr. Johnston thus emphatically recorded his
opinion as to the power of the Legislature to
change the constitution.
It was on this occasion that Mr. Howe advocated Representation to the Imperial Parliament,
which seems like an ignus fatuus to be
dancing before the eyes of some hon. gentlemen
still. Mr. Howe, however, in the course of his
remarks, gave in his adhesion to some such plan
as was devised at Quebec. He said:—
"By a Federal Union of the Colonies we should
have something like the neighbouring Republic and
if I saw nothing better I should say at once let us keep
our local Legislatures and have a President and Central Congress for all the higher
and external relations
of the United Provinces. Under a Federal Union we
should form a large and prosperous nation, lying between the other two branches of
the British family,
and our duty would evidently be to keep them both
at peace."Â
Here you will see you have not only the authority
of the mover of this resolution, but of the Hon. Jos.
Howe, who stated that if he did not see a means of
accomplishing the object he wished, he would go in
218
DEBATES AND PROCEEDINGS
favour of a Federal Union of these Provinces with a
general Legislature to deal with the general interests,
and Local Legislatures for the management of local
affairs—in fact just such a scheme as we have proposed.
But the point with which I am now specially
dealing is the constitutional question. I shall
now give you Mr. Howe's views on this subject.
When he obtained the unanimous permission of
the Legislature to deal with the question of the
Union of the Colonies, he addressed a letter to
all the Governments of British North America,
calling their attention to the advisability of
holding a Conference in connection with the
question. He said:—
"You will perceive that the Colonial Governments
are left free to invite all the leading men of all the
Provinces concerned, to a discussion of the question
of Union, either of all the Provinces, or the Maritime
Provinces only: and Her Majesty's Government, it
would appear, are disposed to give due weight. and
consideration to any resolutions to which the Colonial
Legislatures may concur.
"It must be obvious that there can be no great progress m de towards an adjustment
of this question
unless the resolutions to be submitted to the Colonial
Legislatures are in substance the same, and in order
that uniformity in spirit, and, if possible, in language
may be secured.
Here you have from Mr. Howe himself the
mode proposed to give effect to the resolution
which he in the commencement of his course, as
first Minister of the Crown, brought forward for
a Union of the Colonies. Not a word escaped
from Mr. Young, Mr. Johnston, or any one else,
that it was necessary to appeal to the people, in
order to effect this important constitutional
change:—
Mr. Young said: "It will be apparent, Mr. Chairman, from these views, that while I
am favorable to an
union of these colonies and keenly alive to the benefits that may be expected to flow
from it, I am also
of opinion that we are not prepared to pass any resolution that should bind us at
the present moment
Till we can at all events decide whether the union we
desire shall be federal or legislative; it is wiser for
us to say nothing. That cardinal point being once
agreed on by the colonies, the details must be settled
by a convention of the ablest and most experienced
men. Their report would come back to the respective
Legislatures for revision or confirmation; and in place
of a precipitate movement, a movement might be
consummated by general consent, after a deliberate
and calm review and give to British America, under
the old flag and surrounded and endeared by the old
associations, a government formed on the most approved model. which republicans might
envy and a
free people could venerate and defend."
So you have the three prominent men of the
day committing themselves in the most unequivocal manner to the declaration that under
the
constitution of the country the mode of dealing
with this question was a Convention of public
men, and that the scheme should have effect given to it by the people's representatives
assembled
in Parliament, when Lord Mulgrave, at Mr.
Howe's solicitation, addressed a letter to the Colonial Office His Grace the Duke
of Newcastle
gave his opinion on this point, as follows:—
I should see no objection to any consultation on the
subject amongst the leading members of the Government concerned: but whatever the
result of such
consultation might be the most satisfactory mode of
testing the opinion of the people of British North
America would probably be by means of resolution or
address proposed in the Legislature of each Province
by its own Government"
To this may be added the following opinion of
the present Colonial Minister. He says:—
"Her Majesty's Government anticipate no serious
difficulty in this part of the case, since the Resolutions
will generally be found sufficiently explicit to guide
those who will be entrusted with the preparation of
the Bill. It appears to them therefore that you
should now take immediate measures in concert with
the Lieutenant Governors of the several Provinces,
for submitting to the respective Legislatures this project of the Conference; and if as I hope, you are
able to report that these Legislatures sanction and
adopt the scheme, Her Majesty's Government will
render you all the assistance in their power to carry
it into effect."
So, at a time when the question was calmly
debated, and when there was no excitement, you
have these distinct utterances of all these able
statesmen, both British and Colonial, that the
Parliament of the country has power to change
the constitution of the country, and that that is
the proper mode of dealing with such a subject.
Therefore I say that I am in a position to state
that the Legislature is justified in taking such
action upon the vital and important question, as
in their deliberative opinion is calculated to promote the best interests of the Province
and of
British North America. It will thus be seen that
the issue that has been raised by parties for purposes of their own—who wish to overthrow
the existing administration and come into power themselves, is swept away like chaff
before the wind
neither constitutional principle nor precedent
being found to support their views.
After having sustained my position by arguments like these—after having brought the
opinions of all these eminent public men to prove
the proper and constitutional mode of dealing
with the subject—after having shown that in
the whole history of Great Britain and of the
United States no parallel can be found for the
appeal to the people which has been proposed —
I think the opponents of Union are not in a situation to challenge the right of this
house in the
exercise of its legitimate functions to pursue
such a course as the interest of our common
country demands. They cannot find one example of a question like this being referred
to the
people at the polls, either in Great Britain or the
United States,—there is one, but it is not one
which they are likely to adduce for adoption by
a British Assembly. It is the occasion on which
the people of France were driven at the point of the
bayonet to the polls, to sustain a perfect despotism in the country, to part with
every vestige of
liberty that freemen value.
Having already stated in detail the arguments
in favor of Union which weigh upon my own
mind, I feel l would be trespassing upon the
House if I were, on the present occasion, to go at
any length into a question which has been so fully discussed. I feel that when I have
drawn the attention of the House to the fact that, not only
have gentlemen politically opposed to each other
been brought to co operate on this question, but
the greatest minds of the country who have ever
taken a prominent share in public affairs are endorsing this action. It is unnecessary
for me to
weary the House with any lengthy observations.
I am not surprised that Mr. Howe should have
OF THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
219
brought forward this great question of Colonial
Union. At a time when party conflict raged in
this country as never before, in 1861, the opposion party in this House stated that
they were prepared to sustain their oppnents in a measure
that was calculated to advance the Union of British North America. At that time the
advocacy
of that subject was popular to the last degree; nor
was it till the last moment that men were found
unpatriotic enough to ignore their own previous
actions in order to antagonize a great national
movement, in order to obtain an unfair advantage
over the Government of the day. Although by
the dissemination of inflammatory productions,
by conjuring up the frightful bugbear of taxation,
a large body of the people have been brought to
look upon the Quebec scheme with disfavor I am
proud to know that the best minds of this country
give their hearty sanction and are prepared to sustain this movement to unite British
North America by every means in their power. Is it strange
that such should be the case? What future can
Nova Scotia have apart from a Union of British
North America.
Look at the comparatively insignificant position
we occupy and tell me, surrounded as we are by
hostile tariffs, with a mere handful of population,
what future can we look forward to unless it is
in connection with the consolidation of British
North America under one government. Looking only at the commercial aspect of the question-at
the expansion of our trade and our
great facilities for manufactures, is it a matter
for surprise that the most intelligent men in this
country have combined, as they have never done
on any other question? The geographical position we occupy, can be of little service,
and the
great resources we possess are all comparatively
useless and can never obtain full development
except, as Mr. Howe has said, by making this
province the Atlantic frontage for a mighty British
American country. Let us turn our attention to
the question of an Intercolonial Railway. Great
as may be its commercial advantages, though it
may make Nova Scotia the wharf of British
North America, everybody knows that it has
been stated time after time by Mr. Howe as laying at the very foundation of the security
and
advancement of British America. He said
he wanted the Intercolonial Railway because it
would bring about Union. For twenty long
years the ablest public men had combined all
their talents and energies to bring about the construction of this great work but
all their efforts
have proved futile. The moment however the
Intercolonial Union is consummated, the Inter-
colonial Railway becomes an accomplished fact.
The delegates came back not only with the evidence that the general scheme gave that
these
Provinces would have all the legitimate influence
that they were entitled to, but with the proof that
the twenty millions of dollars required to build
the Inter-colonial Railway were secured by Inter-
colonial Union. But the great commercial advantages derived from Union have been so
fully
detailed on the platform and in the press in a
manner that must carry conviction to every intelligent mind, that it is altogether
superfluous for
me to dwell on this part of the subject. No man
can look at the position of our country without
recognizing at once that, surrounded, as we are,
by hostile tariffs, our great facilities for manufactures must lie dormant. If, therefore,
we wish to
develope enterprize, and make this country a great
bee hive of industry, we must, without delay,
carry out this scheme of lnter-colonial Union.
The Reciprocity Treaty has been swept away,
and no intelligent man, whether opposed to the
Quebec scheme or not, can fail to see that the
basis on which our previous prosperity rested has
been affected to a large extent and that there
should be found some counterbalancing means
by which our common interests may be promoted.
Important, however, as these matters are, there is
another question to which I have hardly referred,
which lies at the foundation of the whole argu—
ment. Whilst I am prepared to support this
Union under the belief that our political and commercial prosperity is indissolubly
bound up in the
measure, I would say that I would accept it at
some sacrifice for the purpose of adopting the
only means by which I could hand down to my
children the priceless boon of British connection.
I must here again invite the attention of the House
to the following observations of Mr Howe on
this subject, and for which the hon. member is
responsible, for he was a member of the Government who brought them here. In a state
paper
in the Journals of 1862 Mr. Howe declared:
"The United States thus have been suddenly
transformed from peaceful communities, pursuing lawful commerce, to a military Republic.
"The British Provinces survey these phenomena without fear, but not without emotion:
and they ask, as the first measure of indispensible precaution and obvious defence,
that the
Inter-colonial Railroad shall be completed
without delay.
"Without the road the Provinces are dislocated, and almost incapable of defence, for
a
great portion of the year, except, at such a
sacrifice of life and property, and at such a
enormous cost to the mother country, as makes
the small contribution which she is asked to
give towards its construction sink into insignificance. With the railroad we can concentrate
our forces on the menaced points of our
frontier, guard the citadels and works which
have been erected by Great Britain at vast
expense, cover our cities from surprise, and
hold our own till reinforcements can be sent
across the sea; while, without the railway, if
an attack were made in winter, the mother
country could put no army worthy of the
national honor, and adequate to the exigency,
upon the Canadian frontier, without a positive
waste of treasure, far greater than the principal
of the sum, the interest of which she is asked,
to contribute, or rather to risk.
"The British Government have built expensive citadels at Halifax, Quebec, and Kingston,
and have stores of munitions and warlike material in them; but their feeble garrisons
will
be inadequate for their defence unless the Provincial forces can be concentrated in
and
around them. An enterprising enemy would
carry them by coups de main before they could
be reinforced from England, and, once takenÂ
the ports and roadstead which they have been
erected to defend. would not be over-safe the
220
DEBATES AND PROCEEDINGS
the naval armaments sent out too late for their
relief. * * * * *
"Therefore, we desire to strengthen our frontier by the completion of a work indispensible
to its defence. It is not too much to say that
the construction of the Inter-colonial Railroad
might save us the cost of a war; for the Americans are themselves sagacious enough
to see
that, with that work completed, surprise is impossible, and the results of a protracted
war at
least extremely doubtful. Without it, Canada
and the Maritime Provinces may be cut asunder, and outflanked at any moment, without
the possibility of their population leaning upon
common points of support and aiding and
strengthening each other."
Here you have the deliberate utterances of Mr
Howe and Mr. Annand, as members of the
Government, and we accepted them in good faith
as the language of sincerity. Yet the hon gentleman who brought that document here
stands forth
to-day saying that he will use all the influence he
possesses to array the people against the only
means by which we can get the railway upon
which our common security thus depends.
I read with great satisfaction Mr Howe's letter
[?]to day, because I felt that it would be a stain
upon our country if an Imperial officer was secretly
using the power of his position to thwart the
progress of a great movement which the Imperial
authorities had declared to be indispensable to the
security of these Provinces. Therefore I was glad
to find, when salary was no longer in the way, for
it had ceased, even at this late hour he had thrown
off the mask and avowed himself an enemy of a
Union of British North America, declaring that
all the principles he had proclaimed publicly on
this question were a delusion and a deception, and
that the position he was prepared to occcupy was
to trample down this Union, which he had done
more to recommend to the British Government
and the people of this Province than any other
man and that for the insignificant and unworthy
object of getting back into place and power in the
Province of Nova Scotia (cheers in the galleries) Â
I regret that I should thus be compelled to deal
with an absent man but his mouth piece is in the
House to defend him. With a large [?] of
that letter I entirely concur and shall read it to
you, as I think it most effectually proves the
necessity of an immediate Union of these Provinces:—
"While in Washington Congress was in session, and I had the opportunity, never enjoyed
before for so long a period, to study the
practical working of Republican institutions,
and to see and hear the leading men now mingling in the stirring scenes of American public
life.
On my return home I waited upon the Lieutenant Governor and upon General Doyle. and
gave them my impression as to the state of affairs
across the border. During the fortnight which
has elapsed since, I have given to any body
who asked them, in the streets or in society, my
opinions with equal freedom. To those who enquired about the Fenian organization,
I have
said that it was formidable and not to be despised. That it embraced every city and
town
and village where Irishmen dwell in the United
States—that the proverbial generosity of a
mercurial people, who gave liberally of their
substance when their feelings were touched,
placed large sums of money at its disposal; and
that as great numbers of the Fenians have been
under fire during the late civil war, they combined, within the order, a fair share
of discipline
and experience. I have said further that, as
the American Government, in disbanding 800,000 men, had permitted each man to carry
off
his rifle and countrements on payment of six
dollars, the country was full of arms, of the
most approved construction, to be purchased
for a song. That as for nine months past, the
Government has been selling, at all the military and naval arsenals and depots, ships,
cannon
shot, clothing, waggons, ambulances, and every
description of war material, at low prices, the
Fenians could provide themselves with stores
and transportion at a figure far below what
they would have had to pay if the articles were
purchased at first cost.
When asked if I thought the Fenians could
muster any force that could conquer either or
all these Provinces, I have invariably answered no. That, if the Fenians come alone,
and if
we are true to ourselves, we can repel them at
every point of the frontier, or should they effect
a lodgement speedily drive them out. But the
real danger is that they may not come alone.
Unhappily there prevails in the United States a
wide spread felling of hostility to the Provinces arising out of the sympathy for the South
manifested during the civil war. This feeling
has been strong enough to induce Congress to
throw over the Reciprocity Treaty, and to risk
collisions upon the fishing grounds and an enormous amount of trade. And then, every
man who has had a ship captured by the Shenandoah, Alabama, or other cruisers built
in
England, attributes his loss to the supineness
or connivance of the British Government, and
is a Fenian of the most irate description.
But will not American Government interfere? This question is often put to me, and
I
answer. I believe and hope they will. Mr.
Gladstone evidently thinks and Sir Fred.
Bruce is confident they will. But the danger
lies here. At this moment the Cabinet at
Washington is involved in complications of no
ordinary kind. The great Republican party
and the President have been at issue, upon the
reconstruction policy, for ten weeks, and one
Branch has just passed a Bill over the veto by
a two-thirds majority. Both parties are appealing to the country for support. The
Fenians are said to control a million of votes, and
certainly make up a formidable portion of the
Democratic party that supports the President.
Those who cherish hard feeling against the
Provinces and the British Government control
a good many more. Out of these complications no human being, at this moment, can tell
what may or may not arise. In the meanwhile a flying squadron has been ordered to
the North Atlantic, and a formidable iron
Ram, with double turrets, is said to be coming
with it. Let us hope and pray for the prevalence of peaceful feeling, but let us complete
our
coast defences and keep our powder dry.
There is another source of danger. Eight hundred thousand young men, accustomed to war,
to the excitement of raids and to the license of
camp life, have been recently disbanded.
Should the Feniane make a raid, perhaps, in
OF THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
221
the first instance, none but Irishmen may
come. But should these, when the frost is out
of the ground, entrench themselves and hold
any part of our territory for ten days, who can
say how long all the fighting will be left to the
Fenians,—and should others come, what wild
excitement may not sweep over some of those
great border States when a few dead bodies
are sent home? Who can tell how many
horses may not be saddled in the warlike
West? Here are our chances of peace and our
perils fairly stated, as I have stated them to
those in authority, and to anybody who asked
me during the past fortnight. Taking the
calmest view of the whole field, I am free to
admit that, while hoping for the best and
counting on the good faith of the American
Government, I cannot but feel that circumstances may arise very difficult to control,
and
that may test the manhood and resources of the
Provinces before very many weeks."
The House will remember that when the hon.
member for Halifax wrested the paper of which
he was the responsible editor from one of the Quebec Delegates for the purpose of
writing down
this question of an Inter-colonial Union there appeared in its columns a series of
letters entitled
"The Botheration Scheme;' and it is now known
that they were written by Mr. Howe-that has
never been denied. What was the first position
taken by Mr. Howe, the man who induced the
House to declare that so many and so great were
the manifold advantages of a Union of all these
Provinces, that they should give the Government
the power to deal with it? He come out as the
avowed enemy of any union whatever, because it
was going to destroy Responsible Government. Â
You see the same thing stated in the communication of this morning. If to unite British
America under one Government and into one Legislature, is to destroy Responsible Government,
where was Responsible Government when the
policy to which he had invited the attention of
the House adopted? Again, any Union with
Canada was denounced because there were a million of Frenchmen in Canada. Were there
any
Frenchmen in Canada when that resolution offered by Mr. Howe passed this House? Had
there
no rebellion in Canada when he persuaded the
House to agree to that policy of Union? Having
denounced all Union—having trampled under
his feet all the principles of his previous life,
what more? The next "Botheration" article
treated us to an eulogium upon Republican
institutions such as was hardly ever seen
in a British paper. Mr Howe's language went
to prove that the sooner the worthloss bauble of
North American institutions is swept away and
replaced by the priceless gift of Republican institutions the better for us. I can forgive American
statesmen holding such language those who owe
their fealty to the institutions of that great Republic; but I am not prepared to
hear this language
from the same man who on the platform in England, when a delegate from this Province
to the
Imperial government, denounced the Republican
institutions of the United States and held them
up to the scorn and contempt of every British
subject. When his own country is to be consoli
dated, when a great scheme necessary to the
security of British America is proposed does he
still hold the opinions which he uttered when in
England as the result of 20 years study of American institutions? Doe he show himself
a man
of public principle? No! He shows that he can
change his opinions at pleasure, and propound
whatever views will best suit his interests, and
that he is inflenced by considerations that ought
not to influence any public man, and may thus be
induced to sustain one set of principles to-day,
and asserts others dramatrically opposed to these
to-morrow.
I believe what the hon gentleman says in what
I have read of his letter is true. It is consistent
with all the information that the government
possesses. The information coming to us from
hour to hour shows the existence and widespread
ramifications of the Fenian organization. What
ought to be the conduct of a patriot and a statesman in the face of a danger like
that. I believe
Mr. Howe has not colored the matter too strongly
that these parties are going to make an onslaught
upon some portion of these provinces; and the
men who will be responsible for all its terrors
will be the men who are resisting Inter-colonial
Union and indoctrinating our people with sentiments that may shake their allegiance
to the
Crown. It is only last night the Lieut-Governor
received a despatch that two hundred Fenians had
arrived at Portland; and there is deep apprehension that St John or Yarmouth may be
the first
object of attack. In the presence of a common
danger like that, the duty of a patriot and statesman would be to sink all differences
and combine
for the purpose of protecting the rights and liberties of British North America. Let
the agis of
British protection be withdrawn and what can
Nova Scotia do in the face of such danger as Mr.
Howe depicts? Simply nothing. The hon. member for Halifax told us that the United
States of
America are looking to British North America,
feeling that if they only possessed these Provinces Â
they would become the first Naval Power in the
world and able to dictate their terms of all nations.
That statement carries conviction with it to the
mind of every man. I will now ask the House if I
were corrupted by American gold, enamoured of
American institutions, believing that the best thing
that I could do would be to transfer this country
to the United States of America what are the
most effective measures that I could take?
Would it not be to keep the Provinces disunited and repel the protection of the mothercountry,
and then button-hole every man whom
I could influence, and undermine his confidence in our institutions by whispering
into
his ear the insidious statement that Great Britain
could not protect us? That the power of the United States was too gigantic-that Great
Britain
herself would fail to protect even the city of Halifax against such ships as were
now possessed by
the American Government? And when I had indoctrinated the minds of my countrymen with
that idea, I would tell them that the best plan is
to reject the policy of the Imperial Government. Â
We all know that the feeling of loyalty to one's
222
DEBATES AND PROCEEDINGS
country, the pride in its institutions, lies to the fact
that their institutions are able to afford protection
to life and property. Therefore the moment you
have carried conviction to the minds of the people
that Great Britain is unable to protect us, and
that they stand in the presence of so gigantic a
power that it has only to will to take them, then
you undermine their loyalty. Now we have Mr.
Howe in that attitude; since his return, in the
streets, and in the clubs, and in the presence of
the highest authorities of the land, you find him
constantly holding forth the doctrine that Great
Britain is impotent to defend this Province that
though British America might unite, yet with
even Great Britain at her back, all she could do
would not prevent her being swept away when the
American Government wished it. If I stood in a
position like that, the hon. mem. for Halifax might
be justified in making us an object of suspicion
and throwing out his taunts and innuendos about
base bribes having influenced public men. Here
you see the man who stood but yesterday on the
very watch tower of the question of intercolonial
Union—having indoctrinated the people with the
sentiment of Union—having held up Republican
institutions to scorn and derision; now standing
forth and throwing his whole power into the
scale of Opposition to Intercolonial Union
magnifying the power of the United States
extravagantly. What more? You have at the
same time that this most insidious poison is being
instilled into the ear of every one in the community, the leading opponents of Union
unhesitatingly avowing preference for Annexation to
the United States. (Cheers) I ask you to put
these facts together and I will not require to adduce the treasonable utterances of
Mr. Annand
on the streets which have been taken back and
apologized for on the floors of the House. I say
then, under such circumstances, I cannot come
to any other conclusion than that the time has
come when every man whether public or private,
who wishes to save the county and preserve the
connection with the mother country, should
speak out boldly and manfully, irrespective of
any personal consideration. Holding the sentiments I do - believing that the crisis
has come
when we must decide whether we shall be annexed to the United States or remain connected
with
the Parent state. I would be the blackest traitor
that ever disgraced a country if I did not by every
means in my power urge upon this Legislature
to prove equal to the emergency and take that
course which, in a few months will secure that
consolidation of British North America and the
connection with the Crown of Great Britain
which I believe, which I know it is the sincere wish
of the people to secure, and which can alone place
these Provinces in a position that will at once
give them dignity of position and ensure their
safety.
Having therefore, given the subject the most
careful consideration, having submitted the proposition of the hon member for Richmond
to the
Government and to the gentlemen who are opposed
to us politically, but who are associated with us
on this question, we have come to the conclusion
that it is our duty to the House and to the coun
try to meet in all frankness the proposal that has
been made. We feel that difficulties have arisen
in connection with the Quebec scheme which
require such an arrangement as been proposed,
in order to remove the objections that exist. I
can only say, in reference to this matter, that
Canada has accepted the basis of the Quebec
scheme by a large majority, and that any alteration in the terms obtained from the
Imperial
Government must be even more favorable to the
Maritime Provinces. I believe that the scheme
provided ample security for the interests of Nova
Scotia, but at the same time there are none of us
who have been associated with it who would not
be too glad to obtain any concession that may be
still more favorable to the Maritime Provinces.
The Imperial Government and Parliament will
have an opportunity of largely improving that
scheme, and giving us an amount of consideration
that otherwise we might not obtain. It must be
remembered that let Canada, Nova Scotia, and
New Brunswick pass any scheme they please, that
does not unite British North America. The only
means by which we can be united is by an act of
the Imperial Parliament. The Government can
only say what bill they will submit to the Imperial Parliament; they cannot tell what
will
come out of that Parliament. This resolution,
therefore, provides all the guarantees that can be
had for a plan of Union being adopted by the
Imperial Parliament, advised, during the passage
of the act, by able and intelligent representatives
of all parties, while it is under consideration.
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