nor does it bind me to work for him, for I look at his position from a practical and political stand point, and that suffices. It is not sufficient to tell me that such a man is a Catholic to make me believe that he is an honest man; he may be an honest man, or he may be a thief. Neither is it sufficient to say he is a Protestant to make me believe that he is a wretch (un misérable), for he may be a Protestant and still be a perfectly honourable man. This is the position taken by the Parti National on this question. It is to be deeply regretted that in the Province of Quebec, the religious question has been introduced into political discussions. It is well known that the Conservative press, or, at least, a part of it, has treated the members of the Liberal Party during the past fifteen or twenty years in the character of Communists, Communards, and Nationards; and they have endeavoured to establish a comparison between the members of our party and the most wretched beings in the world, the French Socialists. This is what they have sought to make the electors of Quebec believe, representing that a member of the Liberal party sympathises with the subversive and utterly absurd doctrines of the French Socialists; at each election this is a plank in the Conservative platform-a deplorable state of things. With reference to the speech pronounced by the Postmaster General in Argenteuil, I maintain that it was provoked to a certain extent by the conduct of the Conservative press in constantly introducing religious questions into the discussion of political matters whenever opportunity offered. I trust that my hon. friend from Terrebonne, will, as I have already remarked, induce his party to adopt his personal opinions; and I am certain that if they had been held and observed by the Conservative party no such speech as that which I regret to have been made in Argenteuil would have ever been delivered. Hon. Mr. HOLTON-If no other hon. gentleman has any observations to offer, perhaps, as I incurred or assumed the grave reponsibility of giving rise to this discussion, I may be permitted to say a very few words in | connection with the discussion on this paragraph, or rather avail myself of the right of speaking on the subsequent paragraph. I have very little, indeed, to say; the object I had in view was to obtain the explanation which I did from my hon. friend, the First Minister, and to ascertain from my distinguished friend whether he approves of this speech of the Postmaster General in the County of Argenteuil. I felt that this speech was a deadly blow at the existence and the very life of the party, which I have spent my whole political life in endeavouring to build up and sustain according to the measure of my humble ability. I felt, Sir, that we the members of the Liberal party of the Province of Quebec, were entitled to know, and to know at the earliest possible moment, whether the sentiments of that speech had the approval of the head of the Government, or of the Government at large, of which the Postmaster General was a member. The answer, although not quite so explicit on the constitutional point concerning the general responsibility of Ministers for each other's views as I could have desired, I take to be a satisfactory answer to this question, and the Hon. the First Minister has not ventured to give his assent to the doctrines of the Argenteuil speech. I assume, therefore, that he condemns those doctrines, because that condemnation is implied in his statement of his individual views, supported as his statement is by his uniform line of conduct as a public man. That part of his statement, as I had occasion to say, was entirely satisfactory to me, and growing from that is an implicit, if not an explicit condemnation of the speech of the Postmaster General in Argenteuil. So far for the First Minister. Then as regards the party in Lower Canada. Not one of the supporters of the Government from Quebec has ventured to offer even an apology for the Argenteuil speech, not one. The leading French Canadian Minister in this Government has told us, in the most explicit terms, that he was alarmed when he read that speech, and that he took the earliest possible opportunity of ascertainingfeeling that his own position was deeply involved in the matter-whether part in any such new departure, and I felt that it was due to my own position, due to those friends who have stood by me during these many years, that I should repudiate and protest against the attempt to import a new element into our midst which, if successful, would render all legitimate politics in Quebec and throughout the Dominion impossible, and transform that which, I may say, is the pleasantest society in the Dominion if not in America, to wit, the society of Quebec, into a pandemonium. This is my vindication of the course I have taken. the Government approved of the who, as a member of the Government speech. All the hon. members of this country, proposes a new deparon this side of the House who have ture to his party, including myself. I spoken-the member for Montreal say, at this stage, and I say it frankCentre, and the member who has justly, I am not disposed to take taken his seat-all the members who have spoken have united in condemnation of the speech. I therefore find, sir, that this is the result of the disussion to which I gave rise by a very direct enquiry-an enquiry I thought I was entitled to make-and not only entitled to make but which it was my duty to make, in the position I occupied as a public man who has represented a constituency for very many years, and various constituencies for very many years, in Lower Canada. I say, Sir, that I have attained substantially the object I had in view; that, the speech was condemned by the First Mr. ROCHESTER-This discussion Minister, and is condemned by all the has taken a very has taken a very wide range in many supporters of the Government from ways, a range that certainly may be the Province of Quebec. Of course, regretted by all parties. If the PostSir, it is not for me to indicate the master General was honest in making logical result that must flow from that that speech he was very wrong in in view of the declaration of the hon. writing the apology he wrote. I say gentleman at the close of his speech distinctly that every man, whether he in Argenteuil. The hon. gentleman be Catholic or Protestant, should be himself calls hear, hear. Of course, consistent in his views. If he is, he he says that it is not necessary for me will be respected by all, even by those to indicate; but, Sir, I desire to say with whom he disagrees, but the man one word as to my own position in this who truckles to both parties will be matter. For twenty-two years I have respected by neither. My hon. friend been fighting this battle against very from North Wentworth says the Oppogreat odds, with very great difficulties sition have made a great deal of this in my way; and I have been exposed, speech. I am inclined to think there as all public men are, to misrepresenta- has been as much talking and as hard tion and to injustice even, and to things have been said on one side as on rigorous criticism always. During the the other. It was rather unfair for the whole of these twenty-two years, Sir, I hon. member to attribute anything to have ever had occasion to affiliate past differences. He alluded to what myself with Englishmen or Protes-occurred two or three years ago, and tants, and Roman Catholic electors; but I never have been reproached by Roman Catholic electors for doing anything hostile to them, their opinions, their sentiments or their feelings. I have not, therefore, conducted the battle, so far as I am concerned, during these twentytwo years, in any shape or form upon the burning questions of race and creed; but, Sir, I am not disposed, as I am growing old, and as the time when I shall actually retire from public life is drawing to a close-I am not disposed to engage in a new departure at the bidding of an hon. gentleman, who chooses to go into a county, and also to some private conversation with a member of the Opposition, and said the memory of the past rankled in our hearts at this time. If the conversation he speaks of was private, it should never have been repeated here. I think the hon. member was wrong in attributing anything of the kind to the Opposition. The hon. member for North Ontario alluded to me as an Orangeman. Before he attempts again to give advice to those who are his seniors, as far as Orangeism is concerned, he should be careful not to make assertions that he is not prepared to substantiate. Mr. RYMAL-I am sorry if I have hurt the feelings of my old and respected friend. He is the last person in the party that I would charge with harbouring a vindictive feeling; but the proverbial ferocity of the she bear, robbed of her whelps, is tameness itself when compared with the feeling which animates the Tory party generally when they are deprived of office. The Address was then carried. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE moved that said resolutions be referred to a Select Committee to prepare an Address to His Excellency.-Carried. The Select Committee reported the Address which was adopted." Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE moved that the Address be engrossed and presented to His Excellency.-Carried. | Standing Committees ordered by this House. He said:-I mentioned on Friday that some arrangement would have to be made immediately to authorize the printing, or some other Committee to take charge of the reports of the House. On thinking over it, I believe it is much more convenient that a Committee of our own, and not a Sub-Committee of the Joint Committee on Printing should take charge of the matter of reporting the debates, and I shall therefore move, seconded by Sir John Macdonald, that a Select Committee of seven be appointed to assume the direction, under orders of this House, of the reporting and printing of the debates.-Carried. THE RULES OF THE HOUSE. it Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE moved the appointment of a Select Committee to consider certain amendments to the rules of the House. He said-In making this motion I may add that some of the rules to be considered are connected with the legislation of last Session. Hon. gentlemen will see by the 53rd section of the Supreme Court Act, that it shall be the duty of the Judges of that Court to give opinions upon certain measures that may be submitted by Parliament, and was necessary that e should adopt the rules that should govern us in so submitting them. It is also proposed to make some change, not perhaps exactly to the same extent but in the direction of the change made in the House of Commons of England last year, assented to by the Government as to notices of motion and the order in which they should be proceeded with. The right hon. gentleman on the other side of the House mentioned on the last day of the Session of last year, that he would give early notice this Session of his intention to have the rules of the House, as they now stand, strictly enforced with regard to taking up notices of motion and disposing of them as they came up. It would be desirable, I think, to consider this by a Select Committee. The Legislature of Ontario, and I think the Legislature of Quebec, have adopted certain rules with regard to the printing of private bills, and the payment of the fees before the meeting of the A House. It has facilitated the transaction of business very much. I propose to submit to this Select Committee the question whether it would be advisable for us to adopt the same rule here to its full extent or not. There is another rule in the English House of Commons with regard to the exclusion of strangers. At the will of any member of this House, strangers may be excluded from the galleries. This has been felt in England, in consequence of recent events, to be an intolerable power placed in the hands of any member of the House, and a change has been made there which practically puts it out of the power of any one man—although it leaves it in the hands of the Speaker-to enforce such a rule at any time. I propose to leave it to the Committee to consider whether something of this kind should not be done here. Sir JOHN MACDONALD suggest ed that the Committee should be empowered to report from time to time. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE said it was a very good suggestion, which he would · adopt. Hon. Mr. BLANCHET said perhaps it would be more courteous to the Chair to follow the usual custom and appoint this Committee o assist Mr. Speaker in revising the Rules of the House. Perhaps the Hon. Premier would see fit to change the motion in this way. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE thought it had never been the practice of Parliament to put the Speaker on any Committee, and this was a matter appertaining so entirely to the government of the House that it ought to be left in their hands. The recollection of the hon. member for Levis was about the Library, a Committee being appointed every Session to assist the Speakers of the two Houses in its management. Hon. Mr. BLANCHET said the cus tom in this House had always been to appoint such Committees to assist the Speaker. He appealed to the right hon. member for Kingston to say whether this had not been the rule. Sir JOHN MACDONALD said his recollection was not clear on the subject. He knew that a good many "Committees had been appointed to assist WHARVES AT MALBAIE, ETC. Hon. Mr. LANGEVIN moved an Address to His Excellency the Governor General for:-1st. Copies of all accounts and pay-lists presented to the Government and also of all accounts and pay-lists paid by the Government for the construction or repair in 1875 of the wharvos at Malbaie, Les Eboule ments and Bay St. Paul; 2nd. A list of the foremen and clerks employed in connection with such construction or repairs; 3rd. A statement in detail of the travelling expenses and salary paid to each of the said foremen and clerks; 4th. A list of the schooners and barges employed for the said work, shewing their tonnage and the amount or in connection with the said work, paid for each trip, and the system of calculation of such payments; 5th. A separate statement of the cost of the work done on each of the said wharves and an estimate of the cost of what remains to be done on each of them; 6th. A statement shewing the total cost of the timber purchased for each of the said works, shewing the price of such timber per foot, the name of the person from whom it was purchased, and what quantity was purchased for the purpose; 7th. A statement shewing the total amount paid by the Government for the said works; 8th. A statement shewing the amount claimed and remaining to be paid for the said works; 9th. The report or reports of Henry R. Symmes, Esq., and also report or reports of Frederic Baillargé, Esq., Assistant Chief Engineer of the Department of Public Works, on the subject of the said works in the years 1874, 1875 and 1876. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIE-I have no objection to the adoption of the motion, but I cannot promise all the information that the hon. gentleman asks. I will give it as far as possible. The hon. gentleman is aware that Mr. Symmes died during the execution of this work from a sudden illness, and left some of these matters in such a state that it is impossible to give all the information that he wants, but I will give all I can. The motion was carried. SURVEYS IN CHARLEVOIX, Hon. Mr. LANGEVIN moved an Address to His Excellency the Governor General, praying him to cause to be laid before this House the report of Henry R. Symmes, Esquire, in reference to his surveys in the Parish of St. Irénée in the Electoral District of Charlevoix in 1874 or 1875, also a copy of the instructions issued to him on that subject, and of all petitions and correspondence which may have been sent in or exchanged in relation there to. Hon. Mr. MACKENZIF-I may say to the hon. gentleman with regard to all these subjects that there is some very interesting correspondence. Would he like to have it all? Hon. Mr. LANGEVIN—Of course, this matter interests me, and I have no doubt the correspondence will prove most interesting. The motion was carried. SURVEYS IN ST. FIDÈLE AND ST. SIMEON. Hon. Mr. LANGEVIN moved an Address to His Excellency the Governor General for copies of the report or reports of Frederic Baillargé, Esquire, Assistant Engineer to the head of the Public Works Department, on his surveys in the Parish of St. Fidèlo and St. Siméon in 1875; the instruc tions furnished him in relation thereto, and of all petitions and correspondence presented or exchanged on the subject. Carried. VIOLATIONS OF DECK LOAD LAW, Hon. Mr. MITCHELL moved an Address to His Excellency the Governor General for copies of all correspondence between the Government of Canada and any of its officers or with any individual or public body in relation to violations of the Deck Load Law, and also in relation to violations of the Port Wardens Act, with any instructions that may have been given by the Government to its officers for the enforcement of the Laws referred to. Mr. Mitchell said: My object in making this motion is to call the attention of the Government to the fact that two very serious violations of the laws to which I have referred have taken place within the past year. This matter is of the greatest importance in view of the Legislation of the Imperial Parliament, which seriously affects our shipping interests, and a very strong remonstrance should be made that at a crisis like the present any violations should occur of the character at which English legislation strikes so directly and desires to have strictly enforced. I may state, for the information of the Hon. the Minister of Marine, that the cases to which I refer came within my own knowledge. There may have been many more violations which have escaped observation. One lines which was loaded with grain, and was a steamer of one of the steamship finding by the report which the Port could not be passed, went to sea in deWarden is required to make, that she fiance of the law and without the cer tificate necessary before clearing. The other instance was that of the N. Churchill, which, after loading with a cargo of grain, proceeded to Quebec and took on board a deck load of timber |