The Attraction of the North. 23 



bargain, and these, too, were promptly disallowed by the Central 

 Government. 



Meanwhile, discontent in Manitoba was beginning to take root, 

 Liberal politicians seized upon these acts to prejudice the people 

 against the Dominion Government, and every effort was made to fan 

 the discontent into a flame of open defiance of the Federal authority. 

 In the midst of this agitation Providence visited the farmers with 

 heavy frosts, and consequent bad harvests. This visitation, together 

 with scanty railway communication, greatly augmented the feeling 

 of discontent, which, manipulated by designing politicians, cul- 

 minated in several political meetings at which unwise and mislead- 

 ing resolutions were passed, calculated to discourage immigration 

 and otherwise greatly injure the Province. 



Somehow this agitation gave rise to a movement in favour of 

 the construction of a railway from Manitoba to Hudson's Bay, or to 

 the establishment of the Hudson's Bay route from Manitoba to the 

 markets of the Old World. As far back as 1879, charters had been 

 obtained from Parliament authorizing two such roads ; but nothing 

 had been done under them, and, until the beginning of 1884, few 

 people in the North- West became at all interested in the project. 

 But now the " Hudson's Bay Route " became the only streak of 

 sunshine in the "Manitoba agitation." Resolutions were passed 

 declaring faith in the practicability of the route, urging the 

 Dominion Government to grant substantial assistance in opening it, 

 and recommending the Provincial Legislature to authorize the Local 

 Government to undertake the construction of the railway on the 

 credit of the Province. 



Pursuant to the will of the people, the Manitoba Government 

 applied to the Central Administration for the extension of the 

 boundaries of the Province northward to Hudson's Bay. This 

 application was made with a view to bringing the proposed railway 

 under Provincial authority, but the scheme was met by considerable 

 opposition and the extension asked was not granted. On the other 

 hand, the Dominion Government took the question of the proposed 

 route into consideration, and determined to do everything possible 

 to encourage it. 



