406 



NEWFOUNDLAND. 



was $3,324,986. It has shown a steady increase 

 since 1882, when the amount was $1,228,413. The 

 total assets, including a Dominion debt allowance 

 of $529,628, were $588,688. Mr. Tweedie, in his 

 estimates for 1900, included a grant of $5.000 to 

 the New Brunswick volunteers in South Africa. 

 Against the favorable view of provincial finances 

 afforded in his speech is the Conservative opinion, 

 which is summarized in the following editorial 

 words of the St. John Sun on Sept. 3, 1900: " The 

 truth is, that the financial position of the province 

 requires great prudence and the most economical 

 management. Within the past ten years many 

 new provincial taxes have been imposed. Heavy 

 burdens have been placed on the municipalities 

 from which they were formerly free. School taxes 

 have been increased because of the reduction of the 

 provincial grants. The interest charge continually 

 increases." 



Education. Excellent progress was made by 

 the province in education, and on June 30, 1899, 

 there were 1,806 public schools, 1,912 teachers, 

 63,536 pupils, and an average attendance of 37,771. 

 The increase in schools was 9, in teachers 30, and 

 in pupils 4,000. The receipts from Government 

 grant were $193,730; from municipal grants, 

 $90,857; from district assessments, $318,000. 



Agriculture. The province is not a great agri- 

 cultural center, but its progress is steady though 

 slow. The production of wheat in 1899 was 491,810 

 bushels, on 27,132 acres. There were 5,120 acres 

 of barley and a product of 114,183 bushels; 179,540 

 acres of oats and 5,114,691 bushels; 72,173 acres 

 of buckwheat and 1,413,018 bushels; 39,501 acres 

 of potatoes and 4,071,200 bushels; 6,036 acres of 

 turnips and 1,507,917 bushels. The total, in round 

 figures, was 12,700,000 bushels, covering 329,000 

 acres. There was an estimated product of 500,000 

 tons of hay. The Dairyman's and Farmer's Asso- 

 ciation of the province did good work during the 

 year in encouraging agriculture, and at its annual 

 meeting in St. John, Feb. 28, 1900, instructive 

 addresses were delivered. The St. John Exhibition, 

 held in October, 1900, was a great success. The 

 attendance was 62,166, compared with 59,514 in 

 1899, 47,439 in 1898, and 40,182 in 1897. 



Fisheries and Shipping. The value of the 

 yield of New Brunswick fisheries in 1898 was 

 $3,849,357, making a total of $98,000,000 since con- 

 federation. The amount included salmon, valued 

 at $238,998; herring at $1,070,799; cod at $311,326; 

 lobsters at $531,524; smelts at $351,050; sardines 

 at $423,742. There were 239 vessels, with a ton- 

 nage of 3,155 and 859 men, and 678 boats, with 

 1,237 men, engaged in the operations. The export 

 of New Brunswick fish in 1899 was $618,414 in 

 value, against nearly $5,000,000 in Nova Scotia. 

 The total sea-going tonnage in 1899 was 1,284,225, 

 a slight increase over preceding years. 



NEWFOUNDLAND, a North American Brit- 

 ish colony; area. 42.200 square miles; popula- 

 tion, about 210.000. Capital, St. John's. 



Legislative Session. The amount of legisla- 

 tion in 1900 was unusually small. This was 

 owing to the disturbed condition of political par- 

 ties, and the change of government, which led to 

 a general election. -\ sr-Mon of the Legislature 

 was held in February for the single purpose of 

 renewing the Hindu* rirrndi, or interim agree- 

 ment between the British and French govern- 

 ments in regard to the treaty shore. This Hindu* 

 riftndi has been in existence ten years, having 

 been renewed year after year by tiie local Gov- 

 ernment to enable the Imperial Government to 

 negotiate with France for a settlement of the 

 Question. No progress has yet been made in that 

 direction. The colonial Government's consent is 



necessary to the continuance of this agreement, 

 which is never renewed for more than one year. 

 The people of the colony are becoming more and 

 more restive under this agreement, and more ur- 

 gent in their demands for a final settlement. The 

 Right Hon. Joseph Chamberlain, Secretary of 

 State for the Colonies, took up the question, and 

 sent out commissioners to inquire into the work- 

 ing of the treaties, and great things were ex- 

 pected from his well-known ability and energy. 

 But the war in South Africa broke out, and the 

 time was found to be inopportune for opening 

 negotiations with France. Accordingly, the Im- 

 perial Government asked the colonial Government 

 to renew the Hindu* rin-iidi for another year, 

 ending Dec. 31, 1900. On patriotic grounds the 

 request was at once acceded to without a dissen- 

 tient voice. It was felt to be a duty owed to the 

 empire, not to embarrass the British Government 

 at such a crisis, or do anything that might in- 

 volve England in complications with France when 

 the stress of a great war was severely felt. 

 The time expired on Dec. 31. The death of 

 Queen Victoria, the accession of a new sovereign, 

 and the continuance of a guerrilla war in Africa 

 seem to render the continuance of the mndn* 

 riri-iidi desirable. Accordingly, the Hon. Robert 

 Bond, Premier, was invited to visit London to 

 confer with the Imperial Government. The proba- 

 bility is that a renewal of the agreement for an- 

 other year will follow. All political parties agree 

 in the duty of such renewal if requested. A spe- 

 cial meeting of the Legislature is called to pass it. 



When the Legislature met in February. 1900, to 

 renew the Hindu* rin i/di, Mr. Bond, as leader of 

 the Opposition, moved a vote of " want of con- 

 fidence " in the existing Government, of which 

 Sir James Winter was Premier. The vote was 

 carried, and the resignation of the Government 

 followed. Mr. Bond was then called upon to form 

 a government, in which he was successful. A 

 short session followed, in which only routine 

 measures were introduced, as Mr. Bond decided on 

 appealing to the country, and a general election 

 was in prospect. The chief acts related to a re- 

 newal of the revenue act with but one slight 

 change, and an act to make provision for the 

 raising of certain sums of money by sale of de- 

 bentures, for purposes provided for in the rail- 

 way contract of 1898. 



The general election, the great event of the 

 year, took place on Nov. 8. Every district was 

 contested, and both parties put forth all their 

 strength. The contest turned almost entirely on 

 the contract formed by the Winter Government 

 in 1898 with Mr. R. G. Reid. The party led by 

 Mr. Bond assailed this contract as being injuri- 

 ous to the interests of the colony, as handing 

 over 4,000,000 acres of land, together with the 

 fee-simple of the railway at the end of fifty years, 

 for a present payment of $1,000,000, and an- 

 nounced their intention of modifying the contract, 

 if returned to power, and of securing a surrender 

 of some of the franchises thus granted. The 

 Opposition, led by Mr. A. B. Morine. sustained the 

 contract in its full integrity, and held it to be 

 irrevocable, except with the consent of the con*, 

 tractor, and that it was most favorable to tlie 

 best interests of the country. The issue of tie 

 electoral contest was remarkable and unprece- 

 dented. The supporters of Mr. Bond carried 32 

 -eats out of a total of 36, and only 4 of tie 

 Opposition candidates were returned. A majority 

 of 32 to 4 enables Premier Bond to carry any 

 measure that may be decided on. The popular 

 condemnation of the contract and of those who 

 carried it has thus been strongly indicated. It 



