103 



of any account, they have a great advantage over us in reaching the British market. 

 ]do not think we should allow the interests of the larger portion of the Dominion 

 to suffer for the sake of a single Province that already possesses peculiar advantages. 

 As for New Brunswick, according to our friend here he need not look to any better 

 market than he has got. "We would be i^lad in Ontario to have half the crop of 

 strawberries that they get there ; and trince Edward Island has carried off th^ 

 prizes for winter apples in several cases here. I think that, taken as a whole, the 

 jDominion requires this protection. There is another Province that might feel this 

 slightly, but I believe if they consider it properly they should not object — that is, 

 British Columbia, in the west. We should do all we could to encourage fruit pro- 

 duction there. Ontario has done all it could to open up that North-West, and the 

 result has been that as soon as Ontario and Quebec have sent their sons there to 

 open up that country they are pouring down millions of bushels of wheat upon us 

 in return. I say they should be willing to have us supply them with fruit, and I 

 am sure we could do so at prices as low as they could be supplied from any other 

 source. 



Mr. C. E. JL. Stake. — I was not present when this matter came up yesterday, 

 but I observe that my name is in the list of gentlemen who form this delegation. 

 While we would not wish to interfere in any way with the interests of our Ontario 

 friends, we feel that in view of the fact that this matter having been discussed before 

 the Nova Scotia association and that we were instructed with respect to this matter, 

 we will not be at liberty to act in conjunction with that delegation. Therefore, we 

 would request that our names be expunged from that list. I may say that while we 

 do not wish to offer any serious opposition, we do not wish to act upon a delegation. 



The President. — I have received an amendment to the main motion to this effect : 



" Moved by E. J. Clinton, seconded by J. M. Fisk, that the question of duties be 

 placed in the hands of a committee of equal number of representatives from each of 

 the Provinces, who shall report on the same at 5.30 p. m." 



On being put to the meeting, this amendment was declared to be lost. 



Mr. Thorburn. — In the interest of the North-West Territories I want to speak 

 on that question. We must be and will be for many years to come an importing 

 country. We raise very little large fruit and must import it for many years to come. 

 As protection in this case necessarily means increased prices by those who are pro- 

 tected, I do not see how it would help us to have this motion adopted. We must 

 look largely to British Columbia for our future supply of fruit as soon as they are 

 able to supply us, and we get some reduction in the rates from the express company. 

 Naturally, Ontario and Quebec will compete with British Columbia in that trade 

 and it will be pi'ofitable for both that there should be competition. I have heard from 

 the representative of British Columbia in the meeting that they believe that they 

 will be able to compete with the world in raising fruit. At present, when we send 

 an order to British Columbia, as I and others have done, we have found that the mer- 

 chants very often send us California fruit. With reference to that, the representative 

 from British Columbia has said that where we could desfl directly with the fruit 

 growers instead of the merchants we could get better fruit, and get it more directly 

 and fresher. I think, however, it shows a lack of enterprise on the part of the fruit 

 growers of British Columbia, who are also dealers, that they permit those who would 

 naturallj^ be their customers to apply to those who deal in California _ fruits. We 

 apply to those who transact our business, and if the fruit growers of British Columbia 

 are perfectly sure they can supply us with as good and as cheap fruit as California 

 they should let it be known. They will naturally get the trade. I have heard that 

 the climate of British Columbia is somewhat enervating, and that until the impor- 

 tation of Ontario people went there they were wonderfully slow. I would ask the 

 fruit growers of British Columbia to shake off their lethargy and put a little more 

 stir into their business. Let them make known to those who are likely to be their 

 customers what they can do for us, and there would be no need for protection at all. 

 I am sure the people of Ontario and Quebec are enterprising enough to hold the 

 market of Manitoba and the North-West without any protection. I think that the 



