BRITISH COLUMBIA, PROVINCE OF. 



early date, the measures to be submitted for your 

 consideration, though important, will be few." 



In the session that followed various important 

 resolutions were passed. One of them urged the 

 Dominion Government to settle the disputes re- 

 garding actual and ultimate ownership of Indian 

 reserve lands in the province; another protested 

 against the influx of Mongolian immigrants: an- 

 other pressed for better payment of Dominion 

 judges in the province; still another urged the 

 establishment of a mint in British Columbia. 

 A measure was also passed for helping the 

 Kettle Valley Railway, which had been so bit- 

 terly opposed by the Canadian Pacific Rail- 

 road and refused incorporation by the Dominion 

 Parliament. On Aug. 31 the House was prorogued 

 with a speech from the Lieutenant Governor and 

 his assent to the following, among other acts: 



Respecting the closing of shops and the employ- 

 ment of children and young persons therein. 



To incorporate the Vancouver and Westminster 

 Railway Company. 



To incorporate the Crow's Nest Pass Electric 

 Light and Power Company, limited. 



To incorporate the Western Telephone and Tele- 

 graph Company. 



To incorporate the Pacific Northern and Onii- 

 neca Railway Company. 



To amend the investment and loan societies act. 



To amend the Columbia and Western Railway 

 subsidy act of 1896. 



To amend the land registry act. 



To amend the judgments act of 1899. 



To amend the mechanics' lien act. 



Relating to extra-provincial investment and 

 loan societies. 



To incorporate the Kamloops and Atlin Railway 

 Company. 



To amend the official administrators' act. 



Respecting succession duties. 



Relating to employment on works carried on 

 under franchises granted by private acts. 



To regulate immigration into British Columbia. 



To permit the use of voting machines in British 

 Columbia. 



To amend the law relating to costs allowed to 

 mortgagees. 



To incorporate the Grand Forks and Kettle 

 River Railway Company. 



To amend the licenses act of 1899. 



To levy a tax on coal and coke. 



To amend the land act. 



To amend the assessment act. 



Finances. On Aug. 16 Mr. J. H. Turner pre- 

 sented to the House his budget as Finance Min- 

 ister. He pointed out that from 1893 to 1900 the 

 provincial debt had increased about $3,000,000, 

 making it $5,000,000 altogether. During this 

 period $4,500,000 had been expended on public 

 works, the revenue had increased 90 per cent., and 

 the expenditure only 40 per cent. The estimated 

 revenue for 1900 was $1,549,989; that for 1901 was 

 $1,757,239. The estimated expenditure for 1900 

 had been $1,764,873, involving a deficit of over 

 $200,000; that for 1901 was $2,220,388, involving 

 a possible deficit of over $460,000. Doubling the 

 grant for public works was the chief cause of this 

 increased expenditure. 



The expenditures included $372,000 on the public 

 debt, $341,000 on civil government and Depart- 

 ment of Justice (salaries), $67.000 on legislation, 

 $118,000 on maintenance of public institutions, 

 $70,000 on hospitals and ehaiitie*. $110.000 on the 

 general administration of justice. *:VJ<;.0()0 on edu- 

 cation. 1864,000 on public works, and the remain- 

 der on miscellaneous subjects. 



The budget was received with general approval. 



Labor Questions. Matters connected with la- 

 bor in a province where fishermen and miners are 

 so large a part of the population naturally have 

 a prominent place. Mr. Ralph Smith became this 

 year the leader of the more staid labor element, 

 as opposed to a rougher section under an agitator 

 named McClain. Mr. Smith was elected Presi- 

 dent of the Canadian Trades and Labor Council 

 at Ottawa, and in October resigned from the Legis- 

 lature to contest a seat in the Dominion Liberal 

 interest. There were several mining strikes, but 

 the Fraser river strike was the most important 

 labor event of the year. This arose nominally 

 out of Japanese competition with white working- 

 men. The white fishermen, numbering about 

 4,000, demanded 25 cents a fish, and the canners 

 offered 20 cents, at which rate the Japanese, num- 

 bering 3,000 men, were willing to work. Much 

 loss was incurred and bad feeling and violent 

 action created before the issue was settled by a 

 compromise, which was arrived at, in part, through 

 the efforts of Mr. Bremner, the Labor Commis- 

 sioner of the Dominion Government. Before that 

 occurred, however, there were serious riots, and in 

 July a large force of militia was sent to Steveston. 

 Mr. Turner, the Finance Minister, in defending 

 this action in the House, pointed out, that while 

 the trouble might have been initiated by Japanese 

 competition, yet it was greatly helped by the fact 

 that 7,000 men were fishing where there was only 

 room for half that number. Other factors were 

 the competition of the Alaska and Oregon fisheries, 

 the lowering in the price of salmon, and two bad 

 years in succession for the canneries. After the 

 strike was over a committee of the Assembly re- 

 ported as follows concerning the situation and the 

 necessity of sending militia into the disturbed 

 district : 



" In addition to the bona fide fishermen in 

 Steveston there was a tough element from across 

 the border which, aided by certain agitators, 

 caused a state of excitement and unrest; that an 

 organized effort was made to prevent any person 

 from fishing until such time as the union fisher- 

 men should succeed in arriving at a price for fish 

 satisfactory to them; that the justices of the peace 

 were of opinion that had the militia not been called 

 out there would have been serious disturbances of 

 the peace in the event of the Japanese commencing 

 to fish, with which disturbances, had they oc- 

 curred, the provincial police admit they would 

 have been unable to cope. On the other hand, 

 there is conflict of evidence, some witnesses swear- 

 ing that there was no reason to apprehend dan- 

 ger, while others swore that they believed there 

 would be trouble in the event of the Japanese 

 commencing to fish." 



Mongolian Labor. Intimately associated with 

 the general labor situation, with political condi- 

 tions, and even with imperial relations, was the! 

 question of Chinese and Japanese immigration. In 

 the previous year measures prohibiting the entry 

 of these people were passed, but were vetoed by 

 the Dominion authorities at the request of Mr. 

 Chamberlain, with the intimation that it was done 

 on account of the exclusion applying to Japanese 

 ;is well as Chinese. The provincial authorities re- 

 fused to discriminate between the two races, and 

 there was a practical deadlock at this point. On 

 Aug. 28 the situation was explained from the 

 British Columbian standpoint by the Legislature, 

 in a resolution from which the following extract 

 may be taken: 



" That the wave of Mongolian immigration is 

 increasing in volume at such an alarming rate that 

 it threatens to overwhelm all the industries con- 

 nected with the development of the natural re- 





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