230 



TEE POPULAR SCLENCE MONTELY.— SUPPLEMENT. 



As regards Canadian land revenue I may ob- 

 serve that it is divided into the proceeds of act- 

 ual sales of land, and the revenue derived from 

 sales of timber cut on unoccupied crown lands. 

 Canada spends a great deal more on promoting 

 immigration than all the revenue derived from 

 sales of land ; indeed, the free-grant system pre- 

 vails in several localities. There is not the slig-ht- 

 est objection to immigration on the ground of its 

 cheapening colonial labor. 



I am very sorry indeed to have to notice an- 

 other remark of Lord Blachford : 



" Now I entirely admit Sir Julius Vogel's alter- 

 native. As the colonies develop, they must either 

 become separate nations, or they must have a share 

 — eventually the greater share— in the government 

 of the British confederacy." 



For my own part I can discover no reason for 

 changing the subsisting relations between the 

 empire and the self-governing colonies. Lord 

 Blachford has not, in his excellent paper, pro- 

 posed any new demands of a pecuniary nature on 

 the colonies. I admit that if the imperial au- 

 thorities desire to terminate the present connec- 

 tion they can easily find a pretext for doing so, 

 and I am further willing to admit that it might 

 be plausibly urged that they would have a right 

 to demand a contribution toward expenses in- 

 curred for the preservation of the empire. The 

 time may come when the subsisting connection 

 may be subjected to such a test. The colonies 

 can have no interest in hastening the period. 



With regard to Canada I may observe that, 

 though, as a loyal subject of her Majesty, I 

 should deeply deplore, having reference to the 

 interests of the empire, the withdrawal of the 

 garrison from Halifax, convinced as I am that its 

 maintenance does not cause any increase to the 

 standing army of Great Britain, yet as a Cana- 

 dian I am of opinion that no remonstrance should 

 be made against its withdrawal. Canada does 

 not claim any imperial expenditure. The bene- 

 fits it derives are incidental, and do not cost any- 

 thing to the Imperial Government. Canada does 



not wish to exercise any influence over foreign 

 policy, nor does it desire to interfere in imperial 

 expenditure of any kind. 



I must point out to Lord Blachford that there 

 is an alternative not suggested by Sir Julius 

 Vogel, but of which Mr. Goldwin Smith has made 

 a forecast, viz., annexation to the United States. 

 My own conviction is that it is most unwise to 

 discuss alternatives of any kind when the status 

 quo gives so much general satisfaction ; but con- 

 vinced as I am that the two alternatives — viz., 

 indepeudence and imperial confederation — are 

 wholly impracticable, I can discover no other al- 

 ternative for our present most satisfactory rela- 

 tions with the crown of Great Britain than an- 

 nexation to the United States, and I think it high- 

 ly desirable that our fellow-countrymen in the 

 United Kingdom should fully realize that such 

 would be the result of the severance of the pres- 

 ent connection. 



Lord Blachford has clearly and most satisfac- 

 torily defined what must be the limits within 

 which the interests and quarrels and responsibili- 

 ties of each part of a confederacy shall be con- 

 fined. Each part must have the sole management 

 of its local affairs, and on this Lord Blachford 

 justly notices how small a proportion of the leg- 

 islative and administrative action of our own 

 country relates to anything but the internal af- 

 fairs of the United Kingdom. Then come what 

 are termed " interprovincial questions," none of 

 which are of a character " to strengthen material- 

 ly the raison d'etre for a Confederate Legislature.'' 

 In all that Lord Blachford urges on this head I 

 entirely concur. Then his lordship continues, 

 " It remains that this raison d'etre must be found, 

 if anywhere, in foreign politics," and he proceeds 

 to establish most conclusively the conflicting in- 

 terests of the various parts of the empire, and 

 the impracticability of attempting to unite them. 

 My only objection to Lord Blachford's views is 

 that his lordship, like many English statesmen, 

 seems to have no confidence in the maintenance 

 of a system of local self-government, in which I 

 for one have implicit faith. — Nineteenth Century. 



