244 



DOMINION OF CANADA. 



to erect a Union of States on this Continent 

 upon the principle of the United States Con- 

 federacy, but still subject to and in sympathy 

 with her own Government, is about being 

 fully realized. 



It is computed, according to the ratios which 

 have been established, that the census to be 

 taken this year will show that the popula- 

 tion of this prospective Confederacy is about 

 4,677,364, thus apportioned: 



Ontario, 2,136,308; Quebec, 1,422,546 ; New 

 Brunswick, 327,800; Nova Scotia, 396,440; 

 Newfoundland, 130,000; the Northwest, 110,- 

 000 ; Prince Edward's Island, 99,261 ; British 

 Columbia, 55,000. 



The legislation of the last session of the 

 Dominion Parliament, although not extensive, 

 embraced subjects of much importance. A 

 new law was passed relative to banks and 

 banking, introduced by the able Finance Minis- 

 ter, Sir Francis Hincks, which effected many 

 and serious changes, all approved, however, 

 by the principal bankers, and by the public at 

 large. No bank can now commence business 

 with less than $200,000 paid-up capital; at 

 least 20 per cent, of the subscribed capital 

 must be paid up each year subsequently ; notes 

 in circulation are not to exceed the unimpaired 

 paid-up capital ; each bank must hold, as nearly 

 as may be, one-half of its cash reserves in 

 Dominion notes, never less than one-third; 

 loans and discounts cannot be made on security 

 of its own stock ; no dividend nor bonus to be 

 paid out of capital ; directors knowingly con- 

 curring in such payment become jointly and 

 severally liable for the amount to the bank ; 

 no dividend of over 8 per cent, to be paid until 

 a reserve has been formed -of at least 20 per 

 cent, of the capital ; a shareholder has a vote 

 for each share held by him for three months pre- 

 vious to the day of meeting, and may always 

 vote by a proxy, also, who must be a shareholder, 

 but must not be a cashier, manager, or other 

 officer of the bank ; lists of shareholders, stat- 

 ing residences, amount held, etc., to be laid 

 before Parliament each session; monthly re- 

 turns to be made up on the first juridical day 

 of each month according to a prescribed form ; 

 and making a false statement or return to be 

 a misdemeanor, if not a higher offence. The 

 charters of now existing banks are to expire at 

 the end of the session of Parliament to be held 

 in 1881. A Dominion Note Act was als*o 

 passed, authorizing the issue of such notes, at 

 first, to the extent of $5,000,000, on security 

 of specie and debentures at least 20 per cent. 

 of the former ; this issue may be increased 

 not oftener than quarterly, and under other 

 regulations until the aggregate is $9,000,000. 

 To warrant this extent of issue, however, the 

 Eeceiver-General must hold $2,000,000 in spe- 

 cie. A "Civil Service Superannuation Fund " 

 has been also authorized by law, to be created 

 by deducting 4 per cent, from all salaries of 

 $600 or over, and 2-J- per cent, from others, 

 during 35 years' service, those who have paid 



for ten years being entitled to full allowance. 

 The benefit of this fund is confined to civil 

 servants over 60 years of age, and to those 

 who may become incapacitated by bodily in- 

 firmity. Notable among the changes in the 

 tariff are imports on coal and flour, the former 

 to pay 50 cents per ton ; the latter, of wheat 

 and rye, 25 cents per barrel ; meal of Indian corn, 

 oats, and other grains, 15 cents. The tax on coal 

 was contended for by the representatives of 

 Nova Scotia, in the interest of the mines of 

 that province ; and, it is said, somewhat in a 

 hostile or retaliatory spirit toward the United 

 States and Western members availed them- 

 selves of the moment of divergence in the judg- 

 ment of the House of Commons in favor 

 of special interests, to demand a flour duty, 

 as favorable to the agriculturists whom they 

 represented. But a considerable vote was re- 

 corded against such a policy, and public opinion 

 in the Dominion at large is so plainly opposed 

 to it that it will, probably, soon be abandoned. 

 As evidence of a higher tone of statesmanship, 

 authority is given by the Customs Act to issue 

 a proclamation admitting the folio wing articles 

 free, or at a less rate of duty than the present, 

 whenever it appears that similar articles will 

 be admitted free, or at the same rate of duty, 

 from Canada into the United States, viz. : 

 animals of all kinds, green fruit, hay, straw, 

 bran, seeds of all kinds, vegetables, plants, 

 roots and shrubs, coal and coke, salt, hops, 

 wheat, peas, barley, rye, oats, Indian corn, 

 buckwheat, and other grains; flour of wheat 

 and rye, and other flour and meal; butter, 

 cheese; fish, salted or smoked; lard, tallow, 

 and meats, fresh, salted, or smoked. This in- 

 dicates more the spirit of Canada than does 

 the tone adopted by a party in Nova Scotia. 

 The enactments by the several local Legisla- 

 tures of the Dominion during the past year 

 appear to be judicious, and well adapted to 

 their respective purposes, those of Ontario 

 taking the lead in extent and importance. 



The prosperous condition of this province 

 may be said to be without parallel in provin- 

 cial history; its municipal and educational 

 systems are admirably developed; the most 

 liberal encouragement is held out to immi- 

 grants ; recently various railway projects have 

 been vigorously carried out ; and the Govern- 

 ment has just announced a policy of money 

 loans, out of the large surplus on hand, to such 

 lines of railway as will open up new dis- 

 tricts to settlement. The last session of the 

 Quebec Legislature was also most liberal in 

 its assistance to railway enterprise. Large 

 grants of land have been made to the North 

 Shore, the Northern Colonization, and the 

 Quebec and New Brunswick Railways ; and it 

 is stated that a grant of land will be made 

 to the St. Francis and Megantic Railway early 

 in the next session. Subsidies have been 

 granted to immigrant roads, which must 

 largely assist in the settlement of the hitherto 

 unfrequented and comparatively unknown parts 



