40 



The Review of Reviews. 



stream of immigration and the most equal distribution 

 of it, in accordance with the requirements of each 

 province. 



" It is imperative, in view of chanKed conditions in 

 Canada and Great Britain, ami in order to tai<e the 

 greatest possible advantage of the pro-Canadian 

 sentiment prevailing in the United Kingdom, to give 

 the most expert attention to the conditions which 

 underlie and ultimately govern emigration from the 

 United Kingdom." 



THE VIEWS OF JOHN BURNS. 



Where Canada leads let the Empire follow, and 

 model the Imperial Board of Emigration upon the 

 proposed Canadian Board of Immigration. One of the 

 first duties of the Imperial Board would be to consider 

 the question of national education as a preparation 

 for emigration. Annexed to Mr. Hawkes's report is a 

 letter from JVIr. Burns, who, as President 'of the Local 

 Government Board, is the member of the Government 

 most closely affected. This letter gives some hope that 

 -Mr. Burns may take an active part in the establishment 

 of the Imperial Board of Emigration. He writes : — 

 " There is nothing to prevent practically the whole of 

 our output going to British Dominions, but it rests 

 largely with Canada and her agents to secure her 

 proper proportion of these. And here I would warn 

 you of the danger of glowing advertisements of the 

 attractions of Canada ; these must in time necessarily 

 have an ill effect. The true facts simply brought out 

 will be found sufficient to draw the right class of 

 settler. ... I quite agree with you as to the import- 

 ance of constant and close co-operation between 

 the Mother Country and Canada in the matter of 

 emigration." 



The cost of the Board of Immigration would not be 

 excessive, and could easily be covered by joint 

 contributions. But indeed the question of expense is 

 a minor question, since, if Empire emigration be 

 svstematiciillv organised and worked, the reduction in 

 the amounts spent in poor relief will be so great as to 

 easily afford much greater expenses than the Board 

 could ever incur. 



COSTLY PERPETUATION OF POVERTY. 



Every year there are millions of money spent in 

 perpetuating poverty in this country, and not as many 

 thousands for the systematic cure of this most pitiful 

 of all social evils. In the last hundred years it is esti- 

 mated that no less than £i ,000,000,000 have been 

 spent in relieving poverty and in unfitting future 

 generations from being anything save poor and depen- 

 dent upon relief independent of their own effort. 

 To-day there are some 2.500 societies for relief, besides 

 the Government wholesale pauper factories. After a 

 hundred years we might expect to see some signs of 

 results should the system or lack of system in deaUng 

 with poverty have any merit. The progress made 

 has been insufficient : there has been a steady con- 

 tinuance of poverty and inability to support oneself 

 among large masses of the population. This hothouse 

 culture of poverty cannot fail to Weaken the life-blood 

 of the Empire, for what is the life-blood but the people ? 

 We might understand, we might even pardon such a 

 state of affairs, were it found in a small country, a poor 

 land whence the population could not stir ; but for it 

 to be perpetuated in the greatest Empire the world 

 has ever known is inconceivable — it is criminal. 



HEALTHY CIRCULATION OF IMPERIAL LIFE-BLOOD. 



We believe that there is no reason why a sane 

 and healthy circulation of the life-blood of the Empire, 

 under central supervision and guidance, should not 

 at the same time practically sweep away poverty en 

 masse from our midst and enable the Dominions to 

 develop their natural resources. The life-blood of 

 Empire is stagnant now ; it must not be allowed to 

 remain so. The moment is ripe for action, and we 

 believe that the day of the " pressed " emigrant, 

 touted for, duped by pamphlets, and conducted blindly 

 into strange conditions, is over, and that very soon 

 an Imperial duty of this magnitude will be ful- 

 filled in an Imperial manner. No longer will the 

 Empire's life-blood flow spasmodically, but from the 

 great pulsing heart it will be pumped regularly to 

 every part of the Imperial body. 



