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had no doubt that low offers would be made, if invited, for the building of the road, as would almost render their refusal impossible.

In view of the number of railroads being built across the continent he could not see why there was such persistence in urging the difficulties in the way of constructing our Pacific Railroad. The Union Pacific had proved a success, notwithstanding the fact that it passed through a country inferior to ours. Population followed railroads, and it was only by running a road to our great North-West that we could get any adequate return from it.

Mr. DECOSMOS said the future historian of the Canadian Parliament would treat this resolution with perfect · contempt. Its mover would be regarded as one who was willing to repudiate the solemn obligation of the Dominion with one of its provinces.

Mr. ROSS-No! no!

Mr. DECOSMOS said the question of

taxation should never be taken into

Taxation

consideration in carrying out the
obligations of the country.
could only reach a certain maximum.
If it exceeded that, it became

been

oppression. It never was the wish of the people of British Columbia that such a burden should be placed on the Dominion. Year after year the resolution passed by the late Government had cropped up and represented as part of the terms of Union. The Minister of Justice had denied the correctness of that idea, yet one of his followers came forward now with an amendment which was equivalent to repudiation. If it did not mean that, it was worthless.

The speech of the Premier was excellent, but when the hon. gentleman took his seat he left the House in a fog. He had not said where the railway would be commenced on the Pacific coast. The hon. gentleman gave new evidences every day of an intention to build the road, but he should state where it would begin and whether work would be commenced this year. The hon. member for Yale had put down the en.ire cost of building the road from the Ottawa to the Pacific coast at $71,000,000. That was undoubtedly a more correct estimate than

| had been hitherto made by other mem-
bers; but when he stated the portion
west of that, extending to Victoria,
would cost $27,500,000, he greatly
exaggerated the cost.
exaggerated the cost. It would cost
half that amount. The hon. member
for Yale had also stated that Burrard
Inlet was a better harbour than Bute
Inlet. It so happened, however, that
it could not be entered like other har-
bours. For the Vancouver Pilot, issued
by the Admiralty, says:—

"The strength of the tide in the narrowest part of the First Narrows is from 4 to 8 knots. The only directions for a steamer are to keep the south shore aboard and to be quick and through with ease, the tide being favourable; careful with the helm; small craft may go to a sailing ship a knowledge of the locality is necessary as well as a commanding breeze, and should never be attempted with the full strength of the stream."

That

There were two large saw mills from
which a large quantity of lumber was
shipped. Vessels came to anchor off
into Burrard Inlet, and when they had
Victoria in the first place, were tugged
into the Straits of Fuca opposite Vic-
received their cargo they were tugged
toria, or into the open ocean.
was conclusive against Burrard Inlet
able for the terminus of the Pacific
that it was not a first-class port, suit-
Railroad. If it were suitable for a ter-
minus, vessels would never take a tug
to reach it and leave it, whether with
or without a cargo. This is the best
evidence that Burrard Inlet is unsuit-

able. The hon. member for Yale had
referred to Bute Inlet, and he would
read his utterances on the subject.
They were as follows:-

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suppose he made such a statement; so there must be some misapprehension on the subject, inasmuch as a vessel of that size could move round in Waddington Harbour as easily as she could in the harbour of San Francisco. The hon. gentleman had also said that Burrard Inlet was approachable at any time; but the statement he (Mr. DeCos · mos) had made on a former occasion as to vessels going there for lumber, proved conclusively that, in the judgment of ship captains and shipowners, it was not approachable at any time. The hon. gentleman had made another statement as reported in the Montreal Gazette, that the delta of the Fraser contained 11,500,000 acres of arable land. He hoped the hon. gentleman would withdraw that statement.

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statement. His party apparently wereafraid that if it were constructed as a Dominion Public Work it would place in the hands of the Government so much patronage that they would be able to retain office as long as they desired. In reference to Governor Trutch, the hon. gentleman had said :

"It had been alleged that the said Government was forced to assent to the passage of this resolution, and he believed that this declaration had never been contradicted, and he

had heard both members from Victoria say that they had the authority of Lieutenant

Governor Trutch for the statement that he

(Mr. Trutch) had never been in a position to give his consent to this resolution."

hon.

There were two witnesses, members of the House, against the member for Yale, in regard to this and He knew statement, he would leave

the delta of the Lower Fraser well, and in his judgment there were not more than 1,000 square miles, or 640,000 acres. He did not think there should be any exaggeration in regard to the resources of the country. The hon. gentleman had also said: "He would refer to the British Colum"bia question generally; he deep"ly regretted the step taken by "the hon. gentleman from Vic"toria last week, and he thought "that this hon. gentleman's resolution "deserved its fate." That was candid on the hon. gentleman's part, but at the same time he was satisfied the people of British Columbia would think differently. The hon. gentleman had further stated that "it was well known when “the contract of the late Administra“tion failed, that it would be impossible to carry out the terms of "the union. It had been stated that "unless the resolution of which they "had heard so much, had been inserted, the Address to her Majesty "would not have been passed." He, however, knew as a fact that the leader of the late Government, when the House was summoned in October, 1873, was in favour of constructing that railway as a Dominion public work. They had heard it stated by the hon. member for Charlevoix, that the road should be constructed by a company with a subsidy of $30,000,000 and $50,000,000 acres of land; and he had no doubt the hon. gentleman had an object to serve when he made the

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it to the House to decide with whom lay the weight of evidence. He was surprised to hear the hon. gentleman state that he (Mr. DeCosmos) had said he had never heard of the resolution with respect to taxation. The hon. gentleman was incorrect. He had never made that statement, for he well remembered having read the resolution as soon as the papers containing the debates of Parliament came British Columbia. As far as the Legislature of British Columbia was concerned, when they passed the address they knew nothing of the resolution, and they were not then bound by it, nor were they at the present time. The hon. member had further said that the petition to the Queen that resulted. in the Carnarvon settlement was carried at a large meeting packed by Mr. Walkem's friends. It so happened however, that the Treasurer of the present Local Government was a member of that league, and had advocated the position taken by the Walkem Government in the hon. gentleman's own constituency whilst on a special mission. The existing Local Government had endorsed the same thing, but so far as he (Mr. DeCosmos) was individually concerned, he always thought the wisest to have course would have been

come to

the Federal Government and let by-gones be by-gones and endeavour to arrive at a satisfactory conclusion before going to England. With respect to the construction of a railway he would say that there had been

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a great deal of disappointment and loss to the Province through the noncommencement of the work. He showed that the terminus selected for the Northern Pacific Railway only contained one or two houses, whereas, had the Northern Pacific Railway Co. decided at the start where the terminus should be, they might have had a large town there now, and be deriving a large revenue from the town lots sold to settlers. The same thing, the vacillation with respect to the terminus in British Columbia, affected Victoria to-day. Had the Government carried out the original policy fixing the terminus at Esquimalt, he had no doubt that the population of Victoria to-day would have been double what it is. The statement of the hon. member for Chalevoix that Esquimalt was the only point for the terminus of this road, would meet with the hearty sympathy of the people of British Columbia. With regard to the question of routes, the Fraser River route he found had been abandoned. The question then was narrowed down to the Bute Inlet route and the route by way of Dean's Channel. If the Government were foolish enough to bring the railroad to Dean's Channel they would affect little or no good for the Province of British Columbia, but some of the greatest benefits would be derived by the Dominion if Bute Inlet were selected. Bute Inlet was so situated in respect to Vancouver Island that vessels going to China or Japan might pass through Johnson's Straits to Queen Charlotte Sound as easily and as quickly as from Dean's Inlet through Milbank Sound. If the road were taken to Bute Inlet it would pass through the best and most accessible portion of British Columbia, where settlement could be easily effected. The region to the north of Seymour Narrows was rich in coal, iron and other minerals. The climate there was not surpassed in any country, not even in England. If it ran by Dean's Channel it would not so benefit and ensure the settlement of the country. If this were accomplished it would be an unfortunate act on the part of the Government, as the land in that quarter was sterile. If the line was taken to Bute Inlet, the Government might afterwards at any time

extend it to the head of the inlet, to Vancouver Island. From Nanaimo to the head of Bute Inlet was a water stretch which the Government might utilise. If the road was brought to Dean Channel, the transpacific business would not be so large as if it was run to Alberni or Esquimalt. The Japanese current flowed into and almost struck the shore of Vancouver's Island nearly opposite, thus making it most favourable to ships passing eastwardly from Yokohama or Hong Kong to Esquimalt; while, if going westward, they would have to, undoubtedly, go south of the Japanese current, as did the Pacific mail steamship running to China and Japan, which took this route in order to enjoy milder weather. The prevailing winds were, besides, in favour of vessels passing westward along the south route. If the Government fixed the terminus at Alberni and Esquimalt, it would not only be in the interests of the Province of British Columbia and of the Dominion, but alsc of the commerce of the world. He hoped that the Government would obtain the sanction of Parliament before the Session closed to the commencement at an early date of the railway within the Province of British Columbia.

The members were then called in, the House divided, and the amendment was carried on the following division:

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He

the entrance of the Province of British Columbia into the Union. What was the motive which inspired the present motion ?-It would be unparliamentary to state it; but he would say that he believed that its effect would be to place in the hands of the Government the right to say:-"By the vote of the Conservatives in support of the resolution of the hon. member for Middlese, which stated to the House, that if there was the slightest increase in taxation involved in continuing the construction of this road, we are absolved from the obligation of carrying out the agreement with the Province of British Columbia." regretted that the members of the great Conservative party, who were around him, though he had no claim on their consideration, had fallen into the trap set for them, and placed in the hands of the Cabinet a resolution which would be an excuse for inaction. He was one of those who desired to see the compact with British Columbia carried out in its integrity, in all its honesty, and to the letter. While he entertained these views, he was compelled by the force of circumstances to vote practically against them. He had voted for the admission of British Columbia into the Union; he had supported the terms in question; and he thought, that if this step had not been then taken, another flag would to-day float over Victoria and Nanaimo.

He did not blame the Government for its action; he would make no reflection on the Ministry; they might have erred, and he believed they had erred; they had been appalled by the enormous expenditure which they imagined was required to carry out this policy. They were weak-kneed; for if they had a little more firmness, stiffening in the back, self-confidence and self-reliance, they would believe in the ability of Canada to fulfil the engagements which she had contracted. If an opposite course were pursued, more confidence would be created in the outlying Provinces than to-day existed, and a better feeling would prevail between the different sections of the Dominion. He had faith in Canada's ability to carry out the compact in question.

Hon. Gentlemen--Hear! hear! Hon. Mr. MITCHELL--Hon. gentlemen might say hear! hear! derisively, but such a faith he possessed; and if | the Government did not carry it out, the time would come, and before long, when men would take their places who would do so.

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What was the present position? the Government asked the House to vote half a million for the completion of surveys, and to fulfil the terms of the engagement; and what did they find the Administration doing under these circumstances? An hon. gentleman who was known to be one of their outand-out supporters submitted amendment, the effect of which was practically to enable the Government to postpone indefinitely-simply because it would increase the taxation of the country-the building of this transcontinental railway. Did they not know that the Finance Minister looked with fear and trembling on the prospect for next year. Did they not know that the hon. gentleman anticipated that the imports would not equal the estimates made; and if in order to meet the expenditure required on the Pacific Railway, an additional fifty cents had to be levied on the imports, was there not sufficient in the resolution adopted to justify the Administration if they would not proceed with the construction of this line. He regretted that the representatives in this House of the great Conservative party of the country had chosen to adopt the policy of the hon. gentlemen from Middlesex. He would not say that this was suggested by the Government; he would not affirm that the Premier had advised and counselled the hon. member, and suggested the wording of the motion; but he would declare that if there was any amendment which could possibly be moved, that would play more effectively into the hands of the Administration in carrying out their do-nothing policy, it was this. He was prepared to stand almost alone in the position he had taken, though he was sorry that this was the case, but he had voted as he had done, not because he was against the carrying out of the railway policy, or in favour of the repudiation of our engage

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ments, but for the reasons he had mentioned. The resolution would be used as excuse by the Administration, to delay indefinitely the progress of the work. He might be wrong; he trusted that he was; but he feared that he was right. He predicted that there would be next year a deficit of five millions, and he based his opinion on the views of experienced commercial men. As a member of Parliament, who was in some measure responsible for the entrance of British Columbia in Confederation, he desired to place his views on record.

Mr. OUIMET regretted that he had not been able to vote with the hon. member for Northumberland. If he remembered rightly, the amendment moved by the hon. member for Middlesex, was inserted in the Act introduced some years ago with regard to the Pacific Railway. This had been done by the Conservatives, not because they were opposed to the construction of this road, but because they did not desire that the country should be overburdened with debt in consequence. They were still anxious, as a party-he would venture to say-to have this railway finished; but they did not want to have too great an expenditure incurred. For his (Mr. Ouimet's) part he had voted for the amendment for the reasons he stated, and because he regarded it as a want of confidence motion against the Government and their project. The Government had voted against themselves, and in such a way that they could not build the road which they had Session after Session asked the House to vote millions to survey. The Government knew it would require a large amount of money to carry out their project, and an increase of taxation would be necessary, and the result of the adoption of this amendment would be to stop the work. The Government, by their actions in the past, had shown they were not in earnest-they did not want to build. the road. They had abandoned the through route and were constructing one which would be useless for seven months in the year, and which, the Premier admitted, would have to be replaced with another. The Conservative Party were consistent. By their policy they would have built the road

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