104 



CANADA, DOMINION OF. 



ready for its adoption, it must be admitted that 

 the expectation was not justified by the event. 

 On the other hand, it was argued before us by 

 vourself and others that, as the plebiscite cam- 

 paign was carried out by the friends of prohibi- 

 tion without any expenditure of money and with- 

 out the usual excitement of political agitation, 

 the vote recorded in favor of it was comparatively 

 a large one. This statement I did not then con- 

 trovert, nor do I controvert it here and now. 

 I would simply remark that the honesty of the 

 vote did not 'suffer from the absence of those 

 causes of excitement, and that even if the totality 

 of the vote might have been somewhat increased 

 by such cause, its moral force would not have 

 been made any stronger. I venture to submit 

 for your consideration, and the consideration of 

 the 'members of the Dominion Alliance, who be- 

 lieve in prohibition as the most efficient means 

 of suppressing the evils of intemperance, that no 

 good purpose would be served by forcing upon 

 the people a measure which is shown by the vote 

 to have the support of less than 23 per cent, of 

 the electorate. Neither would it serve any good 

 purpose to enter here into further controversy 

 on the many incidental points discussed before 

 us. My object is simply to convey to you the 

 conclusion that, in our judgment, the expression 

 of public opinion recorded at the polls in favor 

 oi prohibition did not represent such a propor- 

 tion of the electorate as would justify the intro- 

 duction by the Government of a prohibitory 

 measure." 



This view of the case naturally did not please 

 the Prohibitionists, and at a meeting in Toronto 

 of 400 delegates, on July 11, the following reso- 

 lutions were passed, together with an expression 

 of opinion in favor of woman suffrage and the 

 support of prohibition candidates in ensuing 

 elections : 



" That in view of the substantial majority in 

 favor of prohibition of all the votes polled 

 throughout the Dominion in the recent plebiscite, 

 including an overwhelming majority in all the 

 provinces but one, and a large proportion of all 

 the possible votes in those provinces, this meet- 

 ing desires to express- its strong dissatisfaction 

 at the failure of the Government to take any steps 

 to give effect to the will of the people as ex- 

 pressed at the polls. 



" That this convention declares that nothing 

 short of the total prohibition of the manufac- 

 ture, importation, and sale of intoxicating liquor 

 for beverage purposes throughout the Dominion 

 can be accepted as a settlement of the liquor ques- 

 tion. That such prohibition is the right and only 

 effective remedy for the evils of intemperance, 

 and must be steadily pressed for until obtained. 



" That, in view of the large vote and the great 

 majority recorded in favor of prohibition in six 

 provinces and the Northwest Territories, the least 

 measure of immediate legislation that could be 

 looked upon as reasonable would be such as 

 would secure the entire prohibition of the liquor 

 traffic in and around these provinces and terri- 

 tories. 



That such legislation ought to be enacted by 

 the Dominion Parliament, which alone could pro- 

 hibit the sending of intoxicating liquor into pro- 

 hibition provinces from places in which prohibi- 

 tion was not in operation. 



" That failure to enact at least this measure of 

 prohibition must be considered inexcusable dis- 

 regard and defiance of the strong moral senti- 

 ment of the electorate so emphatically expressed 

 in the plebiscite. 



" That Prohibitionists ought to oppose any 



government or party, or any candidate, that will 

 refuse to recognize and respond to the demand 

 of the people to at least the extent of such legis- 

 lation." 



The Pacific Cable. Progress was made in 

 connection with the important project of an all- 

 British cable between Canada and Australia after 

 an interval during which it threatened to fall 

 through altogether. On July 24, 1899, the Post- 

 master-General, the Hon. William Mulock, moved 

 a formal resolution in Parliament to provide for 

 its construction. He pointed out that the sub- 

 ject was one with which the public had become 

 comparatively familiar. The enterprise was not 

 intended primarily as an investment from which 

 dividends were expected, but was designed to 

 unite more firmly the different portions of the 

 empire. The subject was first mooted at the 

 conference of 1887 in London, and afterward at 

 the conference of 1894 at Ottaw r a. The question 

 that chiefly concerned the people now was that 

 of cost. He did not think that the monopoly 

 enjoyed by the Eastern Extension Cable Company 

 at Hong-Kong for twenty-five years, from 1893, 

 would seriously interfere with this new enterprise, 

 or prevent it from securing a fair share of the 

 business of China and Japan. The Imperial Gov- 

 ernment had power, if it wished, to purchase the 

 line from Hong-Kong to Singapore for 300,000, 

 and in any event it was quite inconceivable, if 

 Canada and Australia had decided to unite them- 

 selves by the construction of a cable, that any 

 monopoly could prevent them from establishing 

 a connection with China and Japan. He believed 

 that the Eastern Extension Cable Company would 

 recognize the irresistible force of the empire, and 

 render a duplication of lines unnecessary unless 

 the volume of business should happen to require 

 it. As to the extent to which the scheme would 

 involve Canada financially, it was of course im- 

 possible to give anything but estimates. The line 

 would have to be laid in places at a depth of 

 3,000 fathoms, which exceeded the depth of any 

 cable at present; but once it was laid this cir- 

 cumstance would help to preserve it. The esti- 

 mate of cost made by the Imperial Pacific Cable 

 Committee was 1,422,000. Since then the cost 

 of material had appreciated to the extent of 

 about 170,000, making the total estimated cost 

 1,592,000. To this it was proposed to add 

 108,000 as a margin, and to figure the total 

 cost at 1,70Q,000. It was confidently antici- 

 pated that the cable would become a paying en- 

 terprise within a very few years. The cost of 

 maintenance, repairs, sinking fund, and interest 

 would be 144,886, and it was believed by ex- 

 perts that, after paying off these charges, there 

 would b~e a surplus for the first year of operation 

 of 1,114, which would increase by the fifth year 

 to 124,565. The proposal involved Canada's 

 becoming interested to the extent of five eight- 

 eenths in the profit or loss. Great Britain would 

 have five eighteenths, and New Zealand, Queens- 

 land, New South Wales, and Victoria two eight' 

 eenths each. The intention was, that ea^ch coun- 

 try should be represented on the governing board 

 in proportion to its interest, but in order to bring 

 this about the board would have to consist of 

 18 members, which would be too large. It had 

 therefore been decided that the board should be 

 composed of 8 members, of whom 3 would be from 

 Australasia, 3 from Great Britain, and 2 from 

 Canada. 



The Militia. In 1899 there were upon the 

 regimental establishment of the militia 3 regi- 

 ments of a permanent force practically regulars 

 numbering 61 officers and a total of 986 officers 



