6 



to find a man who one day mig-ht be called npon to govern the nation. 

 The son of the voyageur who passed his life in the bush ; the son of the 

 peasant-soldier, who deserted the plough for the musket ; the youth born 

 in the humblest grade of society — all these were taken, educated, and then 

 placed at the head of the nation ; out of them was selected a distinguished 

 prelate, a Cartier, a Papineaii. (Cheers.) Thus, by going from one extrem- 

 ity of the social scale to the other, prodigies were accomplished. Out of a 

 popiilation composed in great part of voi/a<reurs and poor peasants, means 

 were found to form men highly educated, men who haA^e worthily occu- 

 pied the most ele\ ated positions, men who have rlone honor to our coun- 

 try, as they would have done honor to any country in which they might 

 have happened to have lived. 



At the time when we were <^onquered, and reduced, algebraically 

 speaking, to our simplest expression ; at the time when France was aban- 

 doning us, we were endowed with new chiefs. Let the clergy again 

 afford us the cooperation of their intelligence and of their devotion, and the 

 restoration of our agriculture will be assured. 



THE DAIRY INDUSTRY. 



Agriculture is still the source of our national wealth. That our towns^ 

 may flourish our rural districts must be prosperous. 



To arrive at this result I desire to benefit by the experience of those 

 who have followed the best practical methods, who have been successful, 

 and who are living, ostensible proofs that one can gain one's bread on a 

 farm and not come to ruin ; that on a farm one can prosper aud remain in 

 this our country, Canada. (Cheers.) 



One of the largest dealers in the country, Mr. Ayer of Montreal, a man 

 who has made his fortune in the dairy industry, told us the other day, 

 before the Committee on Agriculture, that the soil of the Province of 

 Quebec was better suited to dairying than the soil of Ontario. 



To this statement I am sure you v;ill all listen with pleasure. 



Our field of operation in the Province of Quebec is superior to that of 

 Ontario ! "Why, it is a perfect revelation ! j([ 



I have often heard it said that it freezes in every month of the year in 

 this province. May be, Voltaire was the author of this saying, but I 

 believe many of our people have repeated it after him. They tell us our 

 climate is too severe; our long, long winters devour our profits. Well,, 

 here is a man who has realised a considerable fortune in dealing in the 

 butter and cheese of our province, a man who has been obliged to visit all 



) 



