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Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island, 10 March 1870, Prince Edward Island Confederation with Canada.

PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 43

THURSDAY, March 10.

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Debate on the Draft Address resumed.
Mr. ARSENAULT said as the question to which the paragraph referred was an PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 44 important one—one which might be regarded as the question of the day—and as it was expected that each member of the committee would declare his opinion on confederation, he would offer a few remarks. From what he had heard, he considered that the principle was admitted by almost every hon member who had spoken, except the hon member for Tyron (Mr. Howat) who had declared himself a no-terms man, and the hon member for Belfast (Mr. Duncan) who had also avowed himself a no-terms man. He (Mr. A.) supposed they might be regardad as the political giants of the anti-confederate ranks. While he was not in favor of the terms offered, he was not opposed to the principle, for were he do say he was opposed to confederation on any terms, to his mind it would sound like disloyalty. (Hear from Mr. Haviland.) It was the desire of the home government that the matter should be fairly discussed, and in the opening speaeh the Legislature was asked to give a calm and deliberate consideration to the subject. Some hon members had attended meetings and ascertained the opinions of the people, and formed their views at those meetings in accordance with the majority. His constituents had held meetings also, and those of them whom he heard speak upon the subject said they would not oppose terms that would be just and equitable ; but if his constituents were equally divided on the question, he would feel to be his duty to go against it with the hope that at some future time the people would view the question more favorably. Some hon members had spoken as if entering confederation would be selling our country. He did not see it in that light. He viewed it as an alliance, and that with people like ourselves. Those here who claimed to be descendants of natives of Scotland, Ireland, England or France, going to Canada would meet with the same class of people, (hear) the same customs, institutions and laws as were here. He viewed it in the light of the alliance of a young gentleman to a lady. If the one was suited for the other, it would be an advantage to both. But one important condition was, it must be mutual, otherwise it would be an injury, if not the ruin of them both ; and such were the conditions required before we should think of joining with the Dominion. Were we to unite with Canada, we would still have the management of all our local affairs, but if the union was effected against the will of the people, the alliance would not be happy, consequently he would be sorry to give a vote that would mar the happiness of the country. He thought the terms we would accept should be named, and if the Dominion would not grant them, then we would have a good excuse for remaining as we were ; but if we said we would accept of no terms, he thought we could not fairly meet the people.
Mr. HOWAT.—Name your terms.
Mr. ARSENAULT would not take so much upon him. He had voted against the government on the resolution in favor of Mr. A. McNeill as summary reporter, because he considered him a useful officer. He had heard that some voted against Mr. McNeill because he opposed the government on confederation ; if so, he thought it was a weak cause if it required this action to uphold it. It had been said that the synopsis of the debates printed in the papers was one-sided. The leading article in the Patriot of this morning was so. We heard something from the hon member for Georgetown (Mr. McAulay) about " watching", but he would like to know if the hon member (Mr. Howat) was the watchman of the House ? At all events he had told him outside that he was watching him (Mr. A.). He knew that the hon member for Tryon was coming out with a long no- terms pledge. Before his constituents he had no doubt (Mr. H.) would take the pledge, and with them he would leave the hon member. The government did not say it was against fair terms, neither was he (Mr. A.)
Hon. THE SPEAKER said his hon friend the Leader of the Opposition and himself did not agree respecting the imports from the Dominion yesterday. He had taken some pains to ascertain what was exported to and imported from Canada.
PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 45
Hon. Mr. HAVILAND.—The hon Speaker and he (Mr. H.) need not go into a dispute on this question. If he meant Canada, then he (Mr. H.) admitted he was correct, but understood the hon member to say the Dominion.
Hon. THE SPEAKER was going to show that the payments made to Canada, by our merchants were, to a great extent, made in bills of exchange, or in gold, which, as a consequence, was drawing from this Island the circulating medium required at home. In 1868 our imports from Canada amounted to ÂŁ20,486, and our exports to ÂŁ1,095, which was all he could find in the returns, and he wished to ascertain how the balance had been paid ! It must have been drawn from the banks, and therefore had not been paid for by articles which were the growth and production of this Island, hence it must have drawn away the gold and silver required among ourselves. The exports to the United States from this colony in 1869 amounted to ÂŁ72,808 14s. 9d., and this had been wholly paid for by the products of our farms and fisheries, and undoubtedly that was the country which best suited this colony to trade with. If we could induce the United States to reduce her tariff on some of our products which suited their market, it would be of greater advantage to us than an intercolonial free trade with the Dominion. The United States was a market we could not overstock, and were it not that since the abrogation of the Reciprocity Treaty we had the markets of Great Britain to go to, he did not know what we would have done. If the British Government would give us the privilege of our own waters, and allow us to enter into a commercial treaty with the United States, we would, he had no doubt, find that an arrangement could be arrived at which would be mutually satisfactory, and greatly to our advantage. But this Great Britain would not allow. But he believed, on account of our being out of the union, the United States had and would retain a more kindly feeling for the people of this colony than if they formed a part of the Dominion of Canada.
Hon. Mr. HAVILAND had misunderstood this hon the Speaker on the previous evening. Canada was a part of the Dominion, and so were Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and although the balance of trade was against us in Canada proper, yet it was not so in the other Provinces. Our merchants who purchased goods in Manchester paid for them in gold, which they procured in Liverpool or London for the products which find a market in these parts ; and so was it in the Dominion. Hills in Canada were probably paid with gold procured in Halifax.
Mr. HOWAT would ask the hon member for Egmont Bay if he had, at the time of his election, expressed views similar to those he had now given utterance to ! He felt that if he had, the hon member would not have had the trouble of stating them before this hon committee. The hon member classed the greater portion of the people with himself, and stated that they admtted the principle of confederation. This he (Mr. H.) did not believe. The hon member had said that the greater portion of the committee had accepted the principle, but he (Mr. H.) would leave him and his constituents to settle that point. He (mr. H.) believed there were but two classes—the no-terms men and the confederates. He did not see what grounds we had to suppose that we could get terms that would justify us to accept, and confederates admitted the Dominion government had power to change the terms when it pleased. Were we in the Dominion, the terms granted by the present Ottawa government might be considered too liberal by their accessories, who might therefore denounce them as a species of bribery by which we had been induced to join the Dominion. The hon member (Mr. A.) had not the moral courage to state the terms he would accept. No, he was watching to see what others would say. In regard to the wish of the Imperial government he (Mr. H.) was not yet certain that it had expressed any anxiety on the subject, and, even if it had, the Imperial Government changed also, and the next one might be quite indifferent about the PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 46 matter. Besides, our experience in the land question had proved to us that a despatch was not a law. Those who rebelled in Canada were not only forgiven, but their leaders were promoted by the home government to positions of honor, clearly proving that those who resisted the Imperial will were then right ; and it would very likely be so with the people of this Island if they continued to resist confederation. Could the statesmen in England have a correct knowledge of the position of the people of this Island ? It was unreasonable to suppose they could. He would admit the hon. Leader of the Opposition was an experience statesman, yet he went to Quebec, signed the Report there agree to, which he had since said was unjust to this Island. He (Mr. H.) merely mentioned this to show that even the hon member was at that time mistaken, and he feared was mistaken yet ; yes, and the greatest statesman might sometimes be mistaken. He understood the Hon. Mr. Haviland to say the Dominion would always retain her connexion with the old country ; then, if so, how could she be called great until she was independent ? There was another point. The hon member said that many articles upon which we had now to pay a duty would, under union, come in free, but would the hon member say the Dominion Government could do with less of a revenue than at present ? No ! such would not be the case ; and when all her contemplated public works were undertaken, it would be found that the taxes would have to be increased.
Mr. ARSENAULT said that at the last election the hon member for Tryon had a pledge which he desired candidates to subscribe to ; but he believed those who did not do so had been just an faithful to the country as those who did. When he was returned he was not asked to take a pledge, nor was confederation spoken of. He did not speak about it, nor did the people. He supposed the Patriot might be regarded as the greatest anti-confederate paper in the Island, and yet it was not opposed to terms. When the new terms were made public, that journal said that "they were not just and fair." The Patriotwould, therefore, he inferred, have supported them had he considered them to be just and fair. It was said the $800,000 were to be given to purchase out the lands from the proprietors, therefore he did not see that the price of lands would be so high if we joined the Dominion. Our land purchase act required that each estate should be made self-sustaining, at least as nearly so as possible, but in the event of our going into the Dominion and receiving that money, he thought the lands might be sold at a lower rate. If he was not correct, he would like an explanation.
Hon. P. SINCLAIR said the hon. member was not correct in the view he had taken. If the $800,000 was received, it would be handed over to the local Government, which would have the management of the lands, and as there was a law which, while it required that each estate should, as nearly as possible, be made self-sustaining, yet it also prohibited the Government from making any profits on the land. He would be sorry if any such opinions were entertained in the country, for if so they were not correct and might do harm. But he must say he did not for a moment suppose that any hon. member of this committee entertained such an opinion. The price of the land was now reduced to cost and charges, and if we were into confederation the people would find that it would not be had any lower than it could be had now.
Mr. BRECKEN.—It was true the tenantry, even if we went into confederation, would have to pay as high for thir lands as they did at present. The only difference would be that we had now to take it out of the general revenue. If the Dominion gave us the $800,000, it would make no difference in so far as the price of the land was concerned. He agreed with the hon. member for Tryon that there were but two alternatives—no terms, or terms. The hon. member was more manly than the government which he supported, in his views upon that question.
PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 47
Mr. HOWAT said he was not a supporter of the Government.
Mr. CAMERON.—Perhaps it would be those who were for just and equitable terms that would, in naming them, be as much of no-terms men as the hon. member for Tryon. For his part, he did not see what terms could be offered which would be an equivalent for what we were expected to give up. For it would not be possible to name terms to which some objection might not be taken. He (Mr. Cameron) contended that this Island was not to gain so much by the saving of duties on importations from the Dominion as some imagined , for the excise duties in Canada were so high that it would necessarily keep prices up to nearly their present rate, if not quite as high a figure as they were now bought at. One disadvantage would be that our duties would be immediately raised to 15 per cent., and probably very soon to 20 per cent. Certainly we had no guarantee that such would not be the case, for by the Imperial Act they could raise a revenue by any modes of taxation they might choose to adopt. The hon member for Egmont Bay said he opposed some of the present terms, but was willing to accept fair terms. He believed the hon. members who said so might be as hard to satisfy as any of the no-terms men, for he felt satisfied the Dominion could not give terms that would be satisfactory, so that the action of the fair-terms men and the no-terms men would have the same effect, and for that reason he would oppose the scheme entirely. A great deal bad been said about the railroads of Canada and the advantages this Island would derive from their use ; but he might ask, would our remaining out of confederation deprive us of such advantages. His opinion was, that by entering into a union with Canada we had much to dread from the construction of the railroads and other contemplated public works of the Dominion. Nor did he believe the Pacific railroad would ever prove, even if built, as beneficial as its advocates imagined. One reason why he thought so, was, because it would consist of detached parts, and to show the difficulties that had to be encountered, he thought it sufficient to state that the route selected was 200 miles north of a direct line, and this line had to be chosen in order to avoid passing through the territory of the United States. He regarded our isolation as our best protection, and thought we had more to hope than to dread by remaining as were were; nor could he see what better position the Dominion was in, with its population of four millions, when placed beside the United States with her 42,000,000, than we were. As to the great value of the North-west territory, he much doubted the correctness of statements which had been made. The population was only about 20,000, and, in 1868, they were in a state of starvation. The numerous obstacles to be encountered and overcome would, for a long time, continue. The country was liable to plagues, grass-hoppers, locusts, drought and inundations, any one of which was sufficient to destroy the crops of the country, and frequently did so. The country around Winnipeg had frequently been inundated. Great portions of its crops, after droughts, which were frequent, had also been destroyed by fire. The argument used, that the British government desired us to unite with the Dominion, he regarded as weak. Had we acted upon the expressed desire of the Home government, he felt convinced that this Colony would never have made an effort to have freed itself from the hands of the proprietors, and the tenantry to-day would still be under them. As to our being forced into confederation, he thought the opinion of John Bright and other distinguished statesmen in England, when speaking on the Nova Scotia difficulty, supplied the best answer to that objection. Mr. Bright said :—"Your scheme (of confederation) must break down if the Nova Scotians resolve they will not have it. It is not possible to coerce them. There is no statesman living in England who will venture to bring about the shedding of one drop of blood upon the continent." And no doubt the same arguments would be used and applied to this Island. That was if the argument contained in the logic of force was ever to be used. The hon. member for Egmont Bay had drawn a comparison between our union with Canada and that of a party getting married. He thought the comparison would not hold good, because there was too great a disparity between them ; nor did PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 48 he at all think the rule would hold good in this case, for the party wooing was too extravagant and unequal to suit little Prince Edward Island. With respect to the idea that the $800,000 was to be given to the tenantry, from whatever source the opinion originated, he thought it was somewhat generally believed. But the thought it would be a long time before that money would be received; the promise was all we should ever obtain.
Mr. BRECKEN observed that the terms offered to this Island were much more favorable than those offered to Nova Scotia. Our indebtedness was arranged on the same principle as that of the other Provinces. They, for their debt, had handed over to the Dominion government some costly and valuable railroads, the construction of which had greatly increased their liabilities; but our indebtedness was caused mainly by the purchase of the lands of the Colony, which would not be given up to the Dominion government; and yet for this debt we were credited, while we would give no equivalent to the general government. Yet to the extent of that indebtedness were we offered better terms than those given to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.
Hon. Mr. McAULAY admitted that the indebtedness of the Provinces was taken equally into account, but thought it was proper to enquire from what cause their indebtedness arose? The other Colonies got into debt by building railroads with borrowed money, and in their construction they circulated the money paid for building them among their people so that they had received a two-fold benefit from them, the use of the roads and then the benefit arising from the circulation of the money. But how was it with us? We had the satisfaction of doing the patriotic work of buying out our own hands, which were wrongly given away. For the Cunard estate alone this Colony paid ÂŁ57,000, all of which had walked away from the country; not one shilling if it was circulated among our people, and the same was true of other estates which were purchased by the government of this Island.
Mr. BRECKEN thought the fact had been overlooked by hon. members, that while Nova Scotia and New Brunswick had built these roads they had handed them over to the general government, and to the use of these, we, if in the Dominion, would have a common right, while they cost us nothing.
Hon. COL. SECRETARY said that Nova Scotia and New Brunswick were gainers by handing their roads over to the general government, for they were not paying working expenses; and he believed there were very few railroads that did pay the cost of working. He was told that one of the best lines in England--that between Liverpool and London--would not pay, if the traffic on it was confined to that between the two cities alone.
Mr. BRECKEN thought the roads in New Brunswick were paying, and even if they were not, it would be no argument against their construction, for they opened up the country and aided in developing its resources. Public men did not look upon them in the light of a paying matter but in the broader view of the many benefits their construction conferred upon the country.
Hon. Mr. CALLBECK--The hon. Leader of the Opposition said he understood him (Mr. Callbeck) to state that when the better terms came down he had said he was prepared to accept them, but he had been misunderstood, for, under no circumstances, would be content to do so without submitting the matter to the people. For his own part, he would never consent to unite with the Dominion while it remained unconsolidated and discontented. Nova Scotia was forced in against the will of her people; nor could he see why it should have been kept in, for it was never united to Canada in accordance with the well-understood wishes of her people. If he understood the hon. member for Charlottetown (Mr. B.) correctly, he said if the Americans were disposed to conquer those colonies, they could do so, but that they would find them too expensive to hold. But until Great Britain gave us to understand that she would not defend us any longer, he would feel disposed to consider that she intended to stand by us. As to terms, he considered that no matter what they were, it would be found that, like water, they would eventually find their level. If we were living in Nova Scotia and found that this Island had received more than a fair share of her proportions of the general revenue, he was inclined to believe we would feel disposed to make up the difference in some other way. Our Province could not expect to enjoy an advantage at the expense of others. The hon. Leader of the Opposition said yesterday he was glad that those on his (Mr. C.'s) side of the house had no gene into figures.
PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 49
Hon. Mr. HAVILAND said it would be better if hon. members would reply to statements in which they did not concur, at the time they were made. He (Mr. H.) alluded to the tabular statement, and said he had no faith in the figures, but that there were something more grand in the question in which, he had faith.
Hon. Mr. CALLBECK stated he had not admitted the principle. He had said that he considered it his duty to give proper consideration to any proposal coming from the British Government had frequently pledged itself to defend this Colony, but he was not aware that this pledge extended to the Dominion. The inter-colonial railroad, it was said, was being constructed more for military than commercial purposes, hence it would be of little commercial advantage, nor did he think the benefits to be derived from a free trade with the Dominion would prove as important to this Island as some supposed. He was aware that some thought vessels would be allowed to run from one Province to another without having to go to a custom house; but he found that a rule had been laid down by which a vessel on the payment of ÂŁ5 could have a permit so to run; but then the master had to keep a book in which all the shipments were to be entered, which he thought would be found a troublesome arrangement. He admitted that goods coming in, which were the manufacture and production of the Dominion, would pay no duty, but doubted if they would be any cheaper, for he noticed that a spice mill had been put up in one of the Provinces, and a duty of 25 per cent, was placed upon ground spices, as a protection, he supposed, to that mill, and, of course , spices bought there would be that much higher than if this duty had not been imposed. Nor could manufactures be carried on successfully in the Colonies unless a high protective tariff was imposed. He was not aware that goods of any kind could, to any extent, be had on advantageous terms in the Dominion. A drawback on some goods could be had, it was true, but only when the bills amounted to a certain sum, and these purchased in one establishment. He knew if the free list was examined carefully, it would be seen that it was wholly limited to articles manufactured in the Dominion. He objected also to the representation in the Senate. The senators in the United States had every six years to return to their constituents. In the Dominion, the ap pointment was for life, and he believed they need not, unless they chose, remain in the Colony they represented. He knew that the Receiver General for Nova Scotia spent a large portion of his time in Ottawa, and when a man had two homes it was hard to say where his interest was. He was far from considering that the taxation to which we should be subjected under confederation, ought to be considered as a bugbear, unless it could be shown that such a corresponding value was to be received, which he thought could not be proved in this case. Reference had been made to salaries. He knew Mr. Kenny received ÂŁ1,250 currency, as Receiver General, and did not, he thought, do as much as our Treasurer, who held quite as responsible a position , that was when all things were fairly considered. The Receiver General had a staff of six clerks, each of whom received ÂŁ500 currency a year, and when one of these, some time ago was found minus the funds which should have been forthcoming he would ask if Mr. Kenny was held responsible? Mr. Kenny was not held accountable, hence he concluded that our Treasurer occupied a more responsible position than that of the Receiver General of the Dominion. It had been said that if we desired to have faithful officials they should be well paid; but he was satisfied that large salaries did not always secure a faithful discharge of duty. A large salary not unfrequently drew men into society and expensive habits of living that were injurious. He believed our public officers had proved themselves as honest and efficient as if their salaries had been higher.
Mr. BRECKEN hoped the hon. member did not bring that forward as an argument why our officials should not receive a fair salary.
Hon. Mr. CALLBECK did not bring it forward as such, but for the purpose of showing that it should not be used as an argument in favor of confederation. He knew that the municipal taxes in Canada were very high. He noticed that in one county (Dundas) it was as high as one per cent, and that a farmer whose property was valued as being worth ÂŁ600 was assessed ÂŁ6. It was true they lowered the tariff from 20 to 15 per cent., but were forced to resort to a tax upon newspapers and other articles to make up this deficiency. Nor could we by accepting the terms offered expect to maintain our schools and other public works without resorting to direct taxation in some shape or other.
The third paragraph was then agreed to.
House adjourned for one hour.
PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 57
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Hon. Mr. LAIRD.—The hon member for Charlottetown had boosted of his courage because he had expressed his opinions freely on confederation, and exposed himself to the attack of some writer in the newspapers. Whether he was pursuing a course contrary or not to the understanding on which he was returned to this House, was a matter which rested between him and his constituents ; but he (Mr. L.) held that no hon member was deserving of praise for courage in opposing the popular voice. He (Mr. L.) contended that when a representative of the people had changed his opinions through conscientious convictions, and found he could not advocate those principles on which he was elected, his duty was to resign his trust into the hands of those from whom he received it. The hon member's reference to other countries in regard to the method of supporting education was a very poor argument indeed. All other countries might be wrong in this matter. We had tested the principle in this Colony of paying the teachers' salaries wholly from the public chest, and we had found it to work well ; this, therefore, was a far better guide for us than what some great country did, or some distinguished man thought. He (Mr. L.) supposed the hon member for Charlottetown had changed his views on confederation, because some great man was in its favor. Great men were only but men, and often erred, consequently we should judge for ourselves, and do what we thought was right.
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Mr. BRECKEN.—The hon. member for Bedeque had begun his remarks by leveling a shot at him (Mr. B.) for opposing the popular voice. That gentleman did not appear to understand the first principles of politics. When a person was not prepared to vote on a question, which had to go before the people again, he could not be charged with betraying their trust. When the documents came down from the Government relative to the negotiations with the Canadian delegates, he (Mr. B.) thought it would be found that the members of the Executive themselves had violated their pledges. The hon. member for Tryon had said to-day that those who admitted the principle of union were confederates, and only no-terms men were anti-confederates ; but when he did so, the hon. member for Bedeque had not the manliness to rise and state whether he was with his colleague or not.
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PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 58
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Mr. McNEILL—When this paragraph was read he did not think it was going to call forth such discussion. He pretty much agreed with the views expressed by the hon. member for Charlottetown on this question. His own belief was that if denominational schools were to be introduced as a part of our educational system ,we would have to give up free schools altogether. The people of this Island had derived great benefit from these free schools ; and he thought it was pretty much from their intelligence on this account that they were opposed to confederation. 'To give up our independence for a sum of money would place us in a ridiculous position. He was surprised to find men inclined to accede to the proposal to go into union on account of the paltry sum of $800,000. Some advocates of confederation asked us, if not satisfied with the offers made by Canada, to propose terms. It was not our place to make proposals. Great Britain had wronged us in regard to our lands, and it was from her that we ought to get redress. We could return this answer to Canada, that we had no quarrel with her, but we had a dispute with the mother country, and we wished to have that settled first before we could entertain the question of confederation. Look at the case of Newfoundland; some of her politicians went up to Ottawa, received an offer for that colony, and came back thinking they would carry the country, but the people rejected the money with disdain. The people of this Island, he thought, would, treat the money offers of the Dominion pretty much in the same manner. He observed that the Ottawa government had advertised for six schooners to protect the fisheries. It would, however, he feared be poor protection. Probably the attempt would prove something like one set on foot here some years ago, and of which he had heard his father speak. Two boats crews were fitted out from Charlottetown, armed with soythes handled so as to suit instead of. cutlasses, and provided with liquor and other supplies. Thus equipped, they set sail for Souris or some place else, but he believed that when the rum went done, they PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER. 59 returned home. (Laughter.) He thought it would be pretty much the same way with the Canadian fleet. In concluding his remarks, he would express the hope that the people of this colony would accept of no sum of money to enter confederation. Like our fathers, who cleared away the forests, we should trust in Providence, remain as we were, and not sell our birthright.
Mr. BRECKEN would ask the hon. member what he meant by selling our birthright ? If he could show him (Mr. B.) that we were going to sell our birthright by entering confederation then he would sign the pledge of his friend, the hon. member for Tryon.
Mr. McNEILL would answer the hon. member for Charlottetownn. We had cleared away the forests, made our own roads, and paid for our lands, and if these things did not make this country our birthright, he did not know what would.
Mr. BRECKEN—The hon. member had made a very neat little speech. But would confederation take away our roads or lands from us?   Would it prevent the sun from shining or the rain from falling upon us, or would it shorten our winters?  
Mr. McNEILL—No. (Laughter.)
Mr. BRECKEN— Lengthen our winters he should have said. Would not everything connected with the Colony, which we had earned or purchased, be guaranteed to us, by fair and equitable terms?
Hon. COL. SECRETARY thought the hon. member for Charlottetown would find that the eyes of the city mechanics were upon their representative. That gentleman had referred to the educational systems of other countries to find arguments to condemn our own. He (Col. Sec.) could tell that hon.   member that the people of most European nations would be glad to have such a school system as was established in this Island. The member for the City had shown tonight the old Tory principles which were ingrained into him, when he had advocated the sustaining of high schools ; as for the others, which were for the good of the people, he did not appear to care whether they went down or not. He (Col. Secretary), contended that too great facilities to obtain a high education were no benefit in a country where there was not scope for the em ployment of scholars; it made men more able to do mischief. Where there was a number of educated persons idle about the community, they were sure to become parasites. The hon member had repeatedly addressed this hon. committee on confederation, but had never once attempted to show what advantage it would be to the Colony. He kept putting questions to other hon. members,but he never advanced any solid arguments himself in favor of union.
Mr. BRECKEN.-The hon. Col. Secretary had called him a Tory. He (Mr. B.) was not a Tory ; but he could point out a gentlemen who was once returned to this House by the assistance of his conservative friends , and after being elected jumped into the Liberal car . The same hon. member had also left the Executive a year or so ago, for some reason which he had never publicly explained, and last summer we found him again returning to the same Executive, without his stating that it had changed its policy, and accept- , ing an office for himself and getting another for his son.
Hon. COL. SECRETARY had never deceived the people. They knew his sentiments at the time referred to, and he had never betrayed them. He had always been with the people. He jumped into the Liberal car after the election which, preceded the introduction of responsible government, and he was proud of it.
The debate was adjourned until to-morrow.

Source:

The Parliamentary Reporter of Debates and Proceedings of the House of Assembly. Charlottetown: Partiot Book and Job Printing Rooms, 1870. Microfilm copies provided by the Prince Edward Island Libraries and Archives.

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