The struggle for imperial unity : recollections and experiences

presented to

®{je lltbrarg

of the

33nmerstty of ®oro«ta

The Estate if the late
Profess A.H. Young,M.A.,D.CL

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THE

JUGGLE FOR LMPERIAL UNITY

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THE STRUGGLE FOR
IMPERIAL UNITY

RECOLLECTIONS & EXPERIENCES

COLONEL GEORGE T. DEN1SON

President of the British Empire League in Canada

A uthor of

Modern Cavalry" "A History of Cavalry" "Soldiering in Canada," &c.

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MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED
ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON
THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd., TORONTO
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, NEW YORK
1909

RlCUAHD Cla LIMITED,

. AMi

PREFACE

Some fifteen years ago the late Dr. James Bain,
Librarian of the Toronto Public Library, urged me
to write my reminiscences. He knew that, as one
of the founders of the Canada First party, as Chair-
man of the Organising Committee of the Imperial
Federation League in Canada, then President of it,
and after its reorganisation, under the name of the
British Empire League in Canada, still President, I
had much private information, in connection with the
struggle for Imperial Unity, that would be of interest
to the public. He was therefore continually urging
me to put down my recollections in order that they
should be preserved.

I put the matter off until the year 1899, when I
was retired from the command of my regiment on
reaching the age limit. I then wrote my military
recollections under the title Soldiering in Canada.
This was so well received by the Press and by the
public that, being still urged to prepare my political
reminiscences, I began some years ago to write them,

vi PREFACE

and soon had them finished. In the early part <>t
L908 Dr. Bain read the manuscript, and then asked
me not to delay, as I had intended, but to publish
at once. Shortly before his death last spring, he
again expressed this wish. I have consulted several
of my friends, and in view of their advice now
publish this book.

I have not attempted to write a history of the
Imperial Unity movement, but only my personal
recollections of the work which I have been doing
in connection with it for so many years. I still feel,
as I did when I was writing my military recollec-
tions, that 1 should follow the view laid down by
the critic who said that reminiscences should be
written just in the style in which a man would
relate them to an old friend while smoking a pipe
in front of a fire. I have tried to write the follow-
in that spirit, and if the personal pronoun
appears too often, it will be because, being recollec-
tions of work done, it can hardly be avoided.

GEORGE T. DENISON.

\\\ \ i. <,N Villa, Toronto,

1909.

VI

CONTENTS

PAGE

Introductory Chapter 1

CHAPTER I

Condition of Affairs in Canada before Confedera-

tion

7

CHAPTER II
Canada First Party and Hudson's Bay Territory . 10

CHAPTER III
The Red River Rebellion 17

CHAPTER IV
The Red River Expedition 33

CHAPTER V

National Sentiment 4&

CHAPTER VI

Abortive Political Movement 5&

CHAPTER VII

The Independence Flurry 62

CONTENTS

CHAPTER VIII

PAOI

The O'Brien Episode 69

CHAPTER IX
•* Tin: Imperial Fedeeation League 77

CHAPTER X
Commercial Union 81

CHAPTER XI
j Imperial Federation League in Canada . 85

CHAPTER XII
Commercial Union a Treasonable Conspiracy 98

CHAPTER XIII

J Tii L888 and 1889. Work of the [mpebial

[JB 117

CHAPTER XIV

Vkak 1880 130

CHAPTER XV
Visn \m>, 1890 [38

CHAPTER XVI

n OP 1891 155

CHAPTER XVII

ith (Jou.win Smith 168

CONTENTS ix

CHAPTER XVIII

PAGE

J Dissolution or the Imperial Federation League in

England 194

CHAPTER XIX

J Organisation of the British Empire League . . 206

CHAPTER XX

Mission to England, 1897 225

CHAPTER XXI
The West Indian Preference 242

CHAPTER XXII

1899 : Establishment of Empire Day .... 248

CHAPTER XXIII

The South African War 258

CHAPTER rXXIV

1900 : Beitish Empire League Banquet in London . 271

CHAPTER XXV

Work in Canada in 1901 285

CHAPTER XXVI

Mission to England in 1902 291

CHAPTER XXVII

Correspondence with Mr. Chamberlain . . . 33&

CONTENTS

CHAPTER XXVIII

Congress of Chambers of Commerce of the Empire,

L906 356

APPENDIX A
i in Reply to Sir C. Dilke 371

APPENDIX /;

Spibit" :J77

Index . . 405

B T. Denison Frontispiece

[mile Letters . . ... facing p. 114

sU

THE

STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

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TORONTO

THE STRUGGLE
FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER

A UNITED EMPIRE

The idea of a great United British Empire seems to
have originated on the North American Continent.
When Canada was conquered and the power of France
disappeared from North America, Great Britain then
possessed the thirteen States or Colonies, as well as the
Provinces of Quebec and Nova Scotia.

The thirteen colonies had increased in population
and wealth, and the British statesmen burdened with
the heavy expenses of the French wars, which had
been waged mainly for the protection of the American
States, felt it only just that these Colonies should
contribute something towards defraying the cost in-
curred in defending them. This raised the whole
question of taxation without representation, and for
ten years the discussion was waged vigorously between
the Mother Country and the Colonists.

A large number of the Colonists felt the justice of
the claim of the Mother Country for some assistance,
but foresaw the danger of violent and arbitrary action

2 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

in enforcing taxation without the taxed having any
in the matter. These men, the Loyalists, were

afterwards known by the name United Empire Loyal -
they advocated and struggled for the
organisation of a consolidated Empire banded together
for the common interest. Thomas Hutchinson, the
last loyalist Governor of Massachusetts, and one of the
ablest of the loyalist leaders, believed in the magni-
ficent dream of a great Empire, to be realised by the
process of natural and legal development, in full peace
and amity with the Mother-land, in short, by evolution.

Joseph Galloway, who shared with Thomas Hutchin-
son the supreme place among the American statesmen
opposed to the Revolution, worked incessantly in the
cause of a United Empire, and has been characterised
as ' The giant corypheus of the pamphleteers." He
i member of the first continental Congress and
introduced into that body, on the 28th September, 1774,
his famous " Plan of a proposed union between Great
Britain and the Colonies."

In introducing this plan Galloway made some most
interesting remarks, which bear their lesson through
all the years to the present day. He said :

I am as much a friend of liberty as exists. We
want the aid and assistance and protection of the arm of*
our Mother Country. Protection and allegiance are
reciprocal duties. Can we lay claim to the money and
•tion of Great Britain upon any principles of
honour and conscience ? Can we wish to become aliens
to the Mother State ? We must come upon terms
with Great Britain. Is it not necessary that the trade
of the Empire should be regulated by some power or
other' Can the Empire hold together without it?
No. Who shall regulate it ?

A UNITED EMPIRE 3

Galloway's scheme was very nearly adopted. In the
final trial it was lost by a vote of only six colonies to
five. This rejection led Galloway to decline an election
to the second Congress, and to appeal to the higher
tribunal of public opinion. The Loyalists followed this
lead, and the struggle went on for seven years, between
those who fought for separation and independence and
those who fought for the unity of the Empire.

The Revolution succeeded through the mismanage-
ment of the British forces by the general in command,
followed by the intervention of three great European
nations, who were able to secure temporary command
of the sea.

The United Empire Loyalists were driven out of the
old colonies, and many found new homes in Nova Scotia,
New Brunswick, and Canada; some also went to
England and the West Indies, carrying with them the
cherished ideas of maintaining their allegiance to their
Sovereign, of preserving their heritage as British
subjects, and still endeavouring to realise the dream of
a United British Empire.

For this cause they had made great sacrifices, and,
despoiled of all their possessions, had been driven into
exile, in what was then a wilderness. Men do not
make such extraordinary sacrifices except under the
influence of some overpowering sentiment, and in their
case the moving sentiment was the Unity of the
Empire. The greater the hardships they encountered,
the greater the privations and sufferings they endured
for the cause, the dearer it grew to their hearts, for
men value those things most that have been obtained
at the highest cost.

In the war of 1812-14 the intense spirit of loyalty
in the old exiles and their sons caused the Canadian

B 2

4 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Provinces to be retained under the British flag, and when
afterwards, in 1837, rebellion broke out, fomented by
strangers and new settlers, the United Empire Loyalist
element put it down with a promptitude and vigour
that forms one of the brightest pages in our history.
In Nova Scotia the agitation for responsible govern-
ment was headed by Joseph Howe, a son of one of the
exiled Loyalists. Suggestions of rebellion to him were
impossible of consideration, and he held his province
true to the Empire, and succeeded by peaceful and
loyal measures in securing all he wanted.

Then Great Britain repealed her corn laws instead
of amending them, and introduced free trade instead
of rearranging and reducing her tariff. She deprived
Canada of a small advantage which her products up to
that time enjoyed in the British markets, and which
was rapidly assisting in the development of what was
then a poor and weak colony. This act was a severe blow
to Canada, because it meant that Great Britain had
embarked on the unwise and dangerous policy of
treating foreign and even hostile countries as favour-
ably as her own peoples and her own possessions.

This caused a great deal of dissatisfaction in some
quarters, and in the year 1849 some hundreds of the
leading business men in Montreal signed a manifesto
advocating annexation to the United States. This
aroused strong opposition among the United Empire
Loyalist element in Upper Canada ; the feeling soon
manifested itself in a way which proved that no
pecuniary losses could shake the deep-seated loyalty of
the Canadian people. The annexation movement
withered at once.

Seeing how severely the action of the Mother
Country had borne upon Canada, Lord Elgin, then

A UNITED EMPIRE 5

Governor-General of Canada, was instructed to en-
deavour to arrange for a reciprocity treaty with the
United States, or in other words to ask a foreign
country to give Canada trade advantages which would
recompense her for what Great Britain had taken away
from her. The United States Government, either
influenced by the blandishments of Lord Elgin, or by
a politic desire of turning Canada's trade in their own
direction, and making her dependent for her business
and the prosperity of her people upon a treaty which
the United States would have the power of terminating
in twelve years, consented to make the treaty.

It was concluded in 1854, and for twelve years
during a most critical period, when railways and
railway systems were beginning to be established, the
great bulk of the trade of Canada was diverted to the
United States, the lines of transportation naturally
developed mainly from north to south, and the foreign
handling of our products was left very much to the
United States. The Crimean war broke out in 1854
and lasted till 1856, raising the price of farm produce
two-fold, and adding largely to the prosperity of the
Canadian people. The large railway expenditure
during the same period also aided to produce an era of
inflation, while during the last five years of the exist-
ence of the treaty the Civil War in the United States
created an extraordinary demand, at war prices, for
almost everything the Canadian people had to sell.
The result was that, from reasons quite disconnected
from the reciprocity treaty, during a great part of its
existence the Canadian people enjoyed a most remark-
able development and prosperity.

The United States Government, although the treaty
is said to have been of more real value to them than

6 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

to Canada, at the earliest possible moment gave the
t w. i years' notice to abrogate it, and they did so evidently
in the hope that the financial distress and loss that its
discontinuance would bring upon the people of Canada
would create at once a demand for annexation. In a
sense they were right; talk in favour of annexation
soon heard from a few, but the old sentiment of
loyalty to the Empire was too strong, and the people
turned to the idea of the confederation of the Provinces
and the opening up of trade with the West Indies and
other countries. The Confederation of Canada was the
result, and the Dominion was established on the 1st of
July, 1867.

My object in writing the following pages is to
describe more particularly from my own recollection,
and my own knowledge of the facts, the movement in
favour of the Unity of the Empire which has been
going on during the last forty years.

CHAPTER I

CONDITION OF AFFAIRS IN CANADA BEFORE
CONFEDERATION

The extraordinary change that has taken place in
Canada, in every way, in the last fifty years cannot be
appreciated except by those who are old enough to
remember the condition of affairs about the middle of
last century. The ideas, sentiments, aspirations, and
hopes of the people have since then been revolutionised.
At that time the North American Provinces were poor,
sparsely settled, scattered communities, with no large
towns, no wealthy classes, without a literature, with
scarcely any manufactures, and with a population
almost entirely composed of struggling farmers and the
few traders depending upon them. The population was
less than 3,500,000. The total exports and imports in
1868 were $131,027,532. The small Provincial Govern-
ments found their duties confined to narrow local limits.
All the important questions were entirely in the hands
of the Home Government. The defence was paid for
by them. British troops occupied all the important
points, and foreign affairs were left without question
entirely in the hands of the British statesmen. The
Provinces had no power whatever in diplomacy, and
were interested only in a few disputes with the United
States in reference to boundary difficulties, which were

s

8 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

generally settled without consultation with the
( Jolonial Governments, and with very little thought for
the interests or the future needs of the little British
communities scattered about in North America.

The settlements were comparatively so recent that
men called themselves either English, Irish, or Scotch,
according to the nationality of their parents or grand-
parents. The national societies, St. George's, St.
Andrew's and St. Patrick's, may have helped to continue
this feeling, so that in reference to the various Pro-
vinces there was not, and could not be, any national
spirit. Another cause that led to the absence of
national spirit or self-confidence was that Great
Britain not only held the power of peace and war in
her own hands, but, as a consequence, took upon her-
self the responsibility for the defence of the Provinces.
British troops, as has been said, garrisoned all the
important points, and all the expenses were borne by
the Imperial Government. Canada had no militia
except upon paper, no arms, no uniforms, no military
stores or equipment of any kind. She depended solely
upon the Mother Country ; even the Post Office
System was a branch of the English Post Office
Service. One can readily imagine the lack of local
national spirit. Of course the loyalty to the Mother
Country and the Sovereign and the Empire was
always strong, but it was not closely allied to the spirit
of nationality as attached to the soil.

When the Crimean war broke out, the British troops
were required for it, and Canada was called upon to
a militia force for her own needs. This she did.
Ten thousand men were organised, armed, uniformed,
and equipped at ber expense. They were called the
Active Militia, and were drilled ten days in each year.

CANADA BEFORE CONFEDERATION 9

The assumption of responsibility had an effect upon
the country, and when the Trent difficulty arose the
force was increased by the spontaneous action of the
people to about thirty-eight thousand men. Four
years later the Fenian raids took place upon our
frontier, and were repulsed, largely by the efforts of
the Canadian Militia. All this appealed to the
imagination of our youth, and as confederation was
proclaimed the following year the ground was fallow
for sowing seeds of a national spirit.

The effect of confederation on the Canadians was
very remarkable. The small Provinces were all merged
into a great Dominion. The Provincial idea was gone.
Canada was now a country with immense resources and
great possibilities. The idea of expansion had seized
upon the people, and at once steps were taken looking
to the absorption of the Hudson's Bay Territory and
union with British Columbia.

With this came visions of a great and powerful
country stretching from ocean to ocean, and destined
to be one of the dominant powers of the world.

CHAPTER TI

CANADA FIRST PARTY AXD HUDSON HAY TERRITORY

[T was at the period when these conditions existed
that business took me to Ottawa from the 15th April
until the 20th May, 1868. Wm. A. Foster of Toronto,
a barrister, afterwards a leading Queen's Counsel, was
there at the same time, and through our friend,
Benry J. Morgan, we were introduced to Charles
Mair, of Lanark, Ontario, and Robert J. Haliburton, of
Halifax, eldest son of the celebrated author of " Sam
Slick." We were five young men of about twenty-
eight years of age, except Haliburton, who was four or
five years older. We very soon became warm friends,
and spent most of our evenings together in Morgan's
quarters. We must have been congenial spirits, for
our friendship has been close and firm all our lives.
Poster and Haliburton have passed away, but their
work lives.

The seed they sowed has sprung at last,
And grows and blossoms through the land. '

Those meetings were the origin of the "Canada
First " } »arty. Nothing could show more clearly the
hold that confederation had taken of the imagination
of young Canadians than the fact that, night after

1 From Charles Mail's lines in memory of Foster.

CANADA FIRST PARTY n

night, five young men should give up their time and
their thoughts to discussing the higher interests of
their country, and it ended in our making a solemn
pledge to each other that we would do all we could to
advance the interests of our native land ; that we
would put our country first, before all personal, or
political, or party considerations ; that we would
change our party affiliations as often as the true
interests of Canada required it. Some years after-
wards we adopted, as I will explain, the name " Canada
First," meaning that the true interest of Canada was
to be first in our minds on every occasion. Forty
years have elapsed and I feel that every one of the five
held true to the promise we then made to each other.

One point that we discussed constantly was the
necessity, now that we had a great country, of en-
couraging in every possible way the growth of a
strong national spirit. Ontario knew little of Nova
Scotia or New Brunswick and they knew little of us.
The name Canadian was at first bitterly objected to by
the Nova Scotians, while the New Brunswickers were
indifferent. This was natural, for old Canada had been
an almost unknown Province to the men who lived by
the sea, and whose trade relations had been mainly
with the United States, the West Indies, and foreign
countries.

It was apparent that until there should grow, not
only a feeling of unity, but also a national pride and
devotion to Canada as a Dominion, no real progress
could be made towards building up a strong and
powerful community. We therefore considered it to
be our first duty to work in that direction and do
everything possible to encourage national sentiment.
History had taught us that every nation that had

12 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

become great, and had exercised an important influence
upon the world, had invariably been noted for a strong
patriotic spirit, and we believed in the sentiment of
putting the country above all other considerations — the
feeling that existed in Rome

When none was for a party

When all were for the State.

This idea we were to preach in season and out of
sea-! m whenever opportunity offered. The next point
that attracted our attention was the necessity of
securing for the new Dominion the Hudson's Bay*
Territory and the adhesion of British Columbia. At
this time the Maritime Provinces were not keenly
interested in either of these projects, while the province
of Quebec was secretly opposed to the acquisition of the
Territory, fearing that it would cost money to acquire
and govern it, but principally because many of the
French Canadians dreaded the growing strength in the
Dominion of English speaking people, and the conse-
quent relative diminution of their proportionate in-
fluence on the administration of affairs. The, Hudson's
Bay Company were also dissatisfied at the prospect of
the loss of the great monopoly they had enjoyed for
nearly two hundred years. They continued the policy
they had early adopted, of doing all possible to create
the belief that the territory was a barren, inhospitable,
frozen region, unfit for habitation, and only suitable to
form a great preserve for fur-bearing animals. This
general belief as to the uselessness of the country, and
and inaccessibility, which prevented any
full information being gained as to its real capabilities,
also had the effect of making many people doubtful
its value and careless as to its acquisition. As

CANADA FIRST PARTY 13

an illustration of the ignorance and false impressions
of the value of the country, it is interesting to recall
that when, in 1857, an agitation was set on foot
looking to the absorption of the North-West Terri-
tories, very strong opposition came from a large portion
of the Canadian Press. Some wrote simply in the
interests of the Hudson's Bay Company. Some wrote
what they really believed to be true. Now that
Manitoba No. 1 hard wheat has a fame all over
the world, as the best and most valuable wheat that is
grown, it is interesting to read the opinion of the
Montreal Transcript in 1857 that the climate of the
North-West " is altogether unfavourable to the growth
of grain " and that the summer is so short as to make
it difficult to " mature even a small potato or a cabbage."

The Government, under the far-seeing leadership of
Sir John Macdonald, were negotiating in 1868 for the
purchase of the Hudson's Bay Company's rights, and
they sent Sir George Cartier and the Hon. Wra. Mac-
dougall to England to carry on the negotiations. Mr.
Macdougall was a man of great force of character, an
able debater and a keen Canadian. We knew he would
do all that man could do to secure the territory for
Canada, and as far as the arrangements in the old
country were concerned he was successful.

In anticipation of the incorporation of the territory
in the Dominion, and partly to assist the Red River
Settlement by giving employment to the people, the
Canadian Government sent up some officials and began
building a road from Fort Garry, now Winnipeg, to the
north-west angle of the Lake of the Woods. This
was in the autumn of 1868. Mr. Macdougall appointed
Charles Mair to the position of paymaster of this party,
and at once we saw the opportunity of doing some

14

HE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

good work towards helping on the acquisition of the
territory. We felt that the country was misunderstood,

and it was arranged, through the Hon. George Brown,
the proprietor and editor of the Toronto Globe, who
had for many years been strongly in favour of securing
the North- West, that Mair was to write letters to the
Globe on every available opportunity, giving a true
account of the capabilities of the terrritory as to the
soil, products, climate, and suitability for settlement.

Mair soon formed a most favourable opinion, and
became convinced that a populous agricultural
community could be maintained, and that in time to
come a large and productive addition would be made
to the farming resources of Canada. He pictured the
country in glowing terms, and practically preached
that a crusade of Ontario men should move out and
open up and cultivate its magnificent prairies. His
letters attracted a great deal of attention, and were
copied very extensively in the Press of Upper Canada
and the Maritime Provinces. They were filled with
the Canadian national spirit, and had a great effect in
awakening the minds of the people to the importance
of the acquisition of the country. Reports of his letters
got back to Fort Garry, and caused much hostile
feeling in the minds of the Hudson's Bay officials,
and the French half-breeds and their clergy. The
feeling on one occasion almost led to actual violence.

Six years before this, in 1862, John C. Schultz
(afterwards Sir John Schultz, K.C.M.G., Lieutenant-
i nor of Manitoba) had arrived in Fort Garry. He
lien a young doctor only twenty-two years of age.
He at on,,, engaged in the practice of his profession, as
well as in the business of buying and selling furs, and
trading with the Indians and inhabitants. He was

CANADA FIRST PARTY 15

born at Amherstburg, and had grown up and been
educated in the country where Brock and Tecumseh
had performed their greatest exploit in defence of
Canada. He was a loyal and patriotic Canadian. He
had been persecuted by Hudson's Bay officials. Once
he was put in prison by them, but was soon taken out
by a mob of the inhabitants. Mair soon became
attached to Schultz. They were about the same age,
and possessed in common a keen love for' the land of
their birth. Mair told him of the work of. our little
party, and he expressed his sympathy and desire to
assist. In March, 1869, Schultz came down to Montreal
on business, and when passing through Toronto
brought me a letter of introduction from Mair, who
had written to me once or twice before, speaking in the
highest terms of Schultz, and predicting (truthfully)
that in the future he would be the leading man in the
North- West, and he advised that he should be enrolled
in our little organisation. Haliburton happened to be
in Toronto at the time and I introduced Schultz to
him and to W. A. Foster, and we warmly welcomed
him into our ranks. He was the sixth member. Soon
afterwards we began quietly making recruits, considering
very carefully each name as suggested.

Schultz went back to Fort Garry. The negotiations
for the acquisition of the Hudson's Bay Territory were
brought to a successful termination, and it was arranged
that it should be taken over on the 1st December,
1869. Mr. Macdougall was appointed Lieutenant-
Governor of the Territory, and with a small staff of
officials he started for Fort Garry.

During this time Haliburton had been lecturing in
Ontario and Quebec on the question of " inter-
provincial trade," showing that it should be strongly

16 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

encouraged, and would be a most efficient means for
creating a feeling of unity among the various provinces.
Be also delivered a very able lecture on "The Men of
the North," showing their power and influence on
history, and pointing out that the Canadians would be
the " Northmen of the New World," and in this way he
endeavoured to arouse the pride of Canadians in their
country, and to create a feeling of confidence in its
future. This was all in the line of our common desire
to foster a national spirit, which formerly, in the
Canadian smse, had not existed.

CHAPTER III

THE RED RIVER REBELLION

During this year, 1869, when the negotiations in
England had been agreed upon, the Canadian Govern-
ment had sent out a surveying expedition under Lieut.-
Colonel Dennis. This officer had taken a prominent
part in the affair of the Fenian Raid at Fort Erie
three years before, with no advantage to the country
and considerable discredit to himself. His party began
surveying the land where a hardy population of half-
breeds had their farms and homes, and where they had
been settled for generations. Naturally great alarm
and indignation were aroused. The road that was being
built from Winnipeg to the Lake of the Woods also
added considerably to their anxiety.

The Hudson's Bay officials were mainly covertly
hostile. The French priests also viewed an irruption
of strangers with strong aversion, and everything
tended to incite an uprising against the establishment
of the new Government. When Lieut.-Governor
Macdougall arrived at Pembina and crossed the bound-
ary line, he was stopped by an armed force of French
half breeds, and turned back out of the country. He
waited till the 1st December, when his commission was
to have come into force, and then appointed Lieut.-
Colonel Dennis as Lieutenant and Conservator of

c

1 8 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

the Peace, and sent him to Fort Garry to endeavour to
organise a sufficient force among the loyal population
to put down the rebellion, and re-establish the Queen's
authority.

When Lieut.-Colonel Dennis reached Fort Garry, he
went straight to Dr. Schultz' house where Mair was
staying at the time, and showed them his commission.
Schultz, who was an able man of great courage and
strength of character, as well as sound judgment, said
at once that the commission was all that was wanted,
and that he would organise a force of the surveyors,
Canadian roadmen, etc., who were principally Ontario
nun, and that they could easily seize the Fort that
night by surprise, as there were only a few of the
Insurgents in it, and those not anticipating the slight-
est difficulty. This was the wisest and best course, for
had the Fort been seized, it would have dominated the
settlement and established a rallying point for the
loyal, who formed fifty per cent, of the population.

Colonel Dennis would not agree to this. On the
contrary In- advised Dr. Schultz to organise all the
men he could at the Fort Garry Settlement, while he
himself would go down to the Stone Fort, and raise the
loyal Scotch half breeds of the lower Settlements.
This decision at once shut off all possibility of success.
Kill, the rebel leader, had ample opportunity not only
to fill Fort Garry with French half breeds, but it
enabled him to cut off and besiege Dr. Schultz and the
Canadians who had gathered at his house for
protection.

When mat tors had got to this point Colonel Dennis
lost heart, abandoned his levies at the Stone Fort in
the night, leaving an order for them to disperse and
return to their homes. He escaped to the United

THE RED RIVER REBELLION 19

States by making a wide (Utour. Schultz and his
party had to surrender and were put into prison.
Mair, Dr. Lynch, and Thomas Scott were among these
prisoners.

When the news of these doings came to Ontario
there was a good deal of dissatisfaction, but the
distance was so great, and the news so scanty, and so
lacking in details, that the public generally were not at
first much interested. The Canada First group were
of course keenly aroused by the imprisonment and
dangerous position of Mair and Schultz, and at that
time matters looked very serious to those of us who
were so keenly anxious for the acquisition of the
Hudson's Bay Territory. Lieut.-Governor Macdougall
had been driven out, his deputy had disappeared after
his futile and ill-managed attempt to put down the
insurrection, Mair and Schultz and the loyal men were
in prison, Riel had established his government firmly,
and had a large armed force and the possession of the
most important stronghold in the country. An unbroken
wilderness of hundreds of miles separated the district
from Canada, and made a military expedition a difficult
and tedious operation. These difficulties, however, we
knew were not the most dangerous. There were many
influences working against the true interests of
Canada, and it is hard for the present generation to
appreciate the gravity of the situation.

In the first place the people of Ontario were
indifferent, they did not at first seem to feel or under-
stand the great importance of the question, and this
indifference was the greatest source of anxiety to us in
the councils of our party. By this time Foster
and I had gained a number of recruits. Dr. Canniff,
J. D. Edgar, Richard Grahame, Hugh Scott, Thomas

c 2

20 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Walmsley, George Kingsmill, Joseph E. McDougall,
and George M. Rae had all joined the executive
committee, and we had a number of other adherents
ready and willing to assist. Foster and I were
constantly conferring and discussing the difficulties,
and meetings of the committee were often called to
decide upon the best action to adopt.

Governor Macdougall had returned humiliated and
baffled^ blaming the Hon. Joseph Howe for having fed
the dissatisfaction at Fort Garry. This charge has not
been supported by any evidence, and such evidence as
there is conveys a very different impression.

Governor McTavish of the Hudson's Bay Company
was believed to be in collusion with Riel, and willing
to thwart the aims of Canada. Mr. Macdougall states in
his pamphlet of Letters to Joseph Howe, that in Sep-
tember 1868 every member of the Government, except
Mr. Tilley and himself, was either indifferent or hostile
to the acquisition of the Territories. He also charges
the French Catholic priests as being very hostile to
Canada, and says that from the moment he was met
with armed resistance, until his return to Canada, the
policy of the Government was consistent in one direction,
namely, to abandon the country.

Dr. George Bryce in his Remarkable History of
th> Hudson's Bay Company points out the serious
condition of affairs at this time. The Company's
Governor, McTavish, was ill, the government by the
Company moribund, and the action of the Canadian
authorities in sending up an irritating expedition <.f
surveyors and roadmakers was most impolitic. The
influence of mercantile interests in St. Paul was also
kemly against Canada, and a number of settlers from
the United States helped to foment trouble and

THE RED RIVER REBELLION 21

encourage a change of allegiance. Dr. Bryce states
that there was a large sum of money " available in
St. Paul for the purpose of securing a hold by the
Americans on the fertile plains of Rupert's Land."
Dr. Bryce sums up the dangers as follows : " Can a
more terrible combination be imagined than this ? A
decrepit Government with the executive officer sick ; a
rebellious and chronically dissatisfied Metis element ;
a government at Ottawa far removed by distance,
committing with unvarying regularity blunder after
blunder ; a greedy and foreign cabal planning to seize
the country ; and a secret Jesuitical plot to keep the
Governor from action and to incite the fiery Metis
to revolt."

The Canada First organisation was at this time
a strictly secret one, its strength, its aims, even its
existence being unknown outside of the ranks of the
members. The committee were fully aware of all these
difficulties, and felt that the people generally were not
impressed with the importance of the issues and were
ignorant of the facts. The idea had been quietly
circulated through the Government organs that the
troubles had been caused mainly through the indiscreet
and aggressive spirit shown by the Canadians at Fort
Garry, and much aggravated through the ill-advised
and hasty conduct of Lieut.-Governor Macdougall.

The result was that there was little or no sympathy
with any of those who had been cast into prison, except
among the ranks of the little Canada First group, who
understood the question better, and had been directly
affected through the imprisonment of two of their
leading members.

The news came down in the early spring of 1870
that Schultz and Mair had escaped, and soon afterwards

22 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

came the information that Thomas Scott, a loyal
Ontario man, an Orangeman, had been cruelly put
to death by the Rebel Government. Up to this time
it had been found difficult to excite any interest in
Ontario in the fact that a number of Canadians had
been thrown into prison. Foster and I, who had been
consulting almost daily, were much depressed at the
apathy of the public, but when we heard that Schultz
and Mair. as well as Dr. Lynch, were all on the way to
Ontario, and that Scott had been murdered, it was seen
at once that there was an opportunity, by giving
a public reception to the loyal refugees, to draw
attention to the matter, and by denouncing the murder
of Scott, to arouse the indignation of the people, and
foment a public opinion that would force the Govern-
ment to send up an armed expedition to restore
order.

George Kingsmill, the editor of the Toronto Daily
Telegraph, at that time was one of our committee, and
on Foster's suggestion the paper was printed in
mourning with " turned rules ' as a mark of respect to
the memory of the murdered Scott, and Foster, who
had already contributed able articles to the West-
minster Review in April and October 1865, began a
series of articles which were published by Kingsmill
as editorials, which at once attracted attention. It
was like putting a match to tinder. Foster was
accustomed to discuss these articles with me, and to
read them to me in manuscript, and I was delighted
with the vigour and intense national spirit which
hnathed in them all. He met the arguments of the
official Press with vehement appeals to the patriotism
of his fellow countrymen. The Government organs
were endeavouring to quiet public opinion, and

THE RED RIVER REBELLION 23

suggestions were freely made that the loyal Canadians
who had taken up arms on behalf of the Queen's
authority in obedience to Governor Macdougall's proc-
lamation had been indiscreet, and had brought upon
themselves the imprisonment and hardships they had
suffered.

Mair and Schultz had escaped from prison about the
same time. Schultz went to the Lower Red River
which was settled by loyal English-speaking half
breeds, and Mair to Portage la Prairie, where there was
also a loyal settlement. They each began to organise
an armed force to attack Fort Garry and release their
comrades, who were still in prison there. They made a
junction at Headingly, and had scaling ladders and
other preparations for attacking Fort Garry. Schultz
brought up about six hundred men, and Mair with the
Portage la Prairie contingent, under command of
Major Charles Boulton, had about sixty men. Riel
became alarmed, opened a parley with the loyalists,
and agreed to deliver up the prisoners, and pledge
himself to leave the loyalist settlements alone if he
was not attacked. The prisoners were released and
Mair went back to Portage la Prairie, and Schultz to
the Selkirk settlement. Almost immediately Schultz
left for Canada with Joseph Monkman, by way of Rainy
River to Duluth, while Mair, accompanied by J. J. Setter,
started on the long march on snow shoes with dog
sleighs over four hundred miles of the then uninhabited
waste of Minnesota to St. Paul. This was in the
winter, and the journey in both cases was made on
snow shoes and with dog sleighs. Mair arrived in
St. Paul a few days before Schultz.

We heard of their arrival at St. Paul by telegraph,
and our committee called a meeting to consider the

24 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

(jutstion of a reception to the refugees. This meeting
was not called by advertisement, so much did we dread
the indifference of the public and the danger of our
efforts being a failure. It was decided that we should
invite a number to come privately, being careful to
choose only those whom we considered would be
sympathetic. This private meeting took place on the
2nd April, 1870. I was delayed, and did not arrive at
the meeting until two or three speeches had been
made. The late John Macnab, the County Attorney,
was speaking when I came in ; to my astonishment he
was averse to taking any action whatever until further
information had been obtained. His argument was
that very little information had been received from
Fort Garry, and that it would be wiser to wait until
the refugees had gone to Ottawa, and had laid their
case before the Government, and the Government had
expressed their views on the matter, that these men
might have been indiscreet, &c. Not knowing that
previous speakers had spoken on the same line I sat
listening to this, getting more angry every minute.
When he sat down I was thoroughly aroused. I knew
such a policy as that meant handing over the loyal
men to the mercies of a hostile element. I jumped up
at once, and in vehement tones denounced the speaker.
I said that these refugees had risked their lives in
obedience to a proclamation in the Queen's name,
calling upon them to take up arms on her behalf; that
there were only a few Ontario men, seventy in number,
in that remote and inaccessible region, surrounded by
half - besieged until supplies gave out. When

abandoned by the officer who had appealed to them to
take ujj arms, they were obliged to surrender, and
Buffered for long months in prison. I said these Cana-

THE RED RIVER REBELLION 25

dians did this for Canada, and were we at home to be
critical as to their method of proving their devotion to
our country ? I went on to say that they had escaped
and were coming to their own province to tell of their
wrongs, to ask assistance to relieve the intolerable con-
dition of their comrades in the Red River Settlement,
and I asked, Is there any Ontario man who will not
hold out a hand of welcome to these men ? Any man
who hesitates is no true Canadian. I repudiate him as a
countryman of mine. Are we to talk about indiscretion
when men have risked their lives ? We have too little
of that indiscretion nowadays and should hail it with
enthusiasm. I soon had the whole meeting with me.

When I sat down James D. Edgar, afterwards Sir
J. D. Edgar, moved that we should ask the Mayor to
call a public meeting. This was at once agreed to,
and a requisition made out and signed, and the Mayor
was waited upon, and asked to call a meeting for the
6th. This was agreed to, Mr. Macnab coming to me
and saying I was right, and that he would do all he
could to help, which he loyally did.

From the 2nd until the 6th we were busily engaged
in asking our friends to attend the meeting. The
Mayor and Corporation were requested to make the
refugees the guests of the City during their stay in
Toronto, and quarters were taken for them at the
Queen's Hotel. Foster's articles in the Telegraph
were beginning to have their influence, and when
Schultz, Lynch, Monkman, and Dreever arrived at the
station on the evening of the 6th April, a crowd of
about one thousand people met them and escorted
them to the Queen's. The meeting was to be held in
the St. Lawrence Hall that evening, but when we
arrived there with the party, we found the hall crowded

26 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

and nearly ten thousand people outside. The meeting
was therefore adjourned to the Market Square, and the
speakers stood on the roof of the porch of the old
City Hall.

The resolutions carried covered three points. Firstly,
a welcome to the refugees, and an endorsation of their
action in fearlessly, and at the sacrifice of their liberty
and property, resisting the usurpation of power by the
murderer Riel ; secondly, advocating the adoption of
decisive measures to suppress the revolt, and to afford
speedy protection to the loyal subjects in the North-
West, and thirdly, declaring that " It would be a gross
injustice to the loyal inhabitants of Red River,
humiliating to our national honour, and contrary to all
British traditions for our Government to receive,
negotiate, or treat with the emissaries of those who
have robbed, imprisoned, and murdered loyal Canadians,
whose only fault was zeal for British institutions,
whose only crime was devotion to the old flag." This
last resolution, which was carried with great enthusiasm,
was moved by Capt. James Bennett and seconded by
myself.

Foster and I had long conferences with Schultz, Mair,
and Lynch that evening and next day, and it was
decided that I should go to Ottawa with the party, to
assist them in furthering their views before the Govern-
ment. In the meantime Dr. Canniff and other
members of the party had sent word to friends at
Cobourg, Belleville, Prescott, etc., to organise demon-
strations of welcome to the loyalists at the different
points.

A large number of our friends and sympathisers
gathered at the Union Station to see the party off to
Ottawa, and received them with loud cheers. Mr.

THE RED RIVER REBELLION 27

ndrew Fleming then moved, seconded by Mr. T. H.
O'Neil, the following resolution, written by Foster,
which was unanimously carried :

That we, the citizens of Toronto, in parting with our
Red River guests, beg to reiterate our full recognition
of their devotion to, and sufferings in, the cause of
Canada, to emphatically endorse their manly conduct
through troubles sufficient to try the stoutest heart,
and to assure the loyal people of Canada that no
minion of the murderer Riel, no representative of a
conspiracy which concentrates in itself everything a
Briton detests, shall be allowed to pass this platform
(should he get so far) to lay insulting proposals at the
foot of a throne which knows how to protect its
subjects, and has the means and never lacks for
will to do it.

At Cobourg, where the train stopped for twenty
minutes, we were met by the municipal authorities of
the town, and a great crowd of citizens, who received
the party with warm enthusiasm, and with the heartiest
expressions of approval. This occurred about one
o'clock in the morning. The same thing was repeated
at Belleville about three or four a.m., and it was con-
sidered advisable for Mr. Mair and Mr. Setter to stay
over there to address a great public meeting to be held
the next day. At Prescott, also, the warmest welcome
was given by the citizens. Public feeling was aroused,
and we then knew that we would have Ontario at our
backs.

On our arrival in Ottawa we found that the Govern-
ment were not at all friendly to the loyal men, and
were not desirous of doing anything that we had been
advocating. The first urgent matter was the expected
arrival of Richot and Scott, the rebel emissaries, who
were on the way down from St. Paul. I went to see

28 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Sir John A. Macdonald at the earliest pioment. 1 had
been one of his supporters, and had worked hard for him
and the party for the previous eight or nine years — in
fact since I had been old enough to take an active part
in politics ; and he knew me well. I asked him at once
if he intended to receive Richot and Scott, in view of
the fact that since Sir John had invited Riel to send
down representatives, Thomas Scott had been murdered.
To my astonishment he said he would have to receive
them. I urged him vehemently not to do so, to send
someone to meet them and to advise them to return. I
told him he had a copy of their Bill of Rights and
knew exactly what they wanted, and I said he could
make a most liberal settlement of the difficulties and
give them everything that was reasonable, and so
weaken Riel by taking away the grievances that gave
him his strength. That then a relief expedition could
be sent up, and the leading rebels finding their
followers leaving them, would decamp, and the
trouble would be over. I pointed out to him that the
meetings being held all over Ontario should strengthen
his hands, and those of the British section of the
Cabinet, and that the French Canadians should be
satisfied if full justice was done to the half-breeds, and
should not humiliate our national honour. Sir John
did not seem able to answer my arguments, and only
repeated that he could not help himself, and that the
British Government were favourable to their reception.
I think Sir Stafford Northcote was at the time in
Ottawa representing the Home Government, or the
Hudson's Bay Company.

Finding that Sir John was determined to receive
them 1 said, ' Well, Sir John, I have always supported
you, but from the day that you receive Richot and Scott,

THE RED RIVER REBELLION 29

you must look upon me as a strong and vigorous
opponent." He patted me on the shoulder and said,
" Oh, no, you will not oppose me, you must never do
that." I replied, " I am very sorry, Sir John. I never
thought for a moment that you would humiliate us. I
thought when I helped to get up that great meeting in
Toronto, and carefully arranged that no hostile resolu-
tions should be brought up against you, that I was
doing the best possible work for you ; but I seconded a
very strong resolution and made a very decided speech
before ten thousand of my fellow citizens, and now I
am committed, and will have to take my stand." Feel-
ing much disheartened I left him, and worked against
him, and did not support him again, until many years
afterwards, when the leaders of the party I had been
attached to foolishly began to coquette with commercial
union, and some even with veiled treason, while Sir
John came out boldly for the Empire, and on the
side of loyalty, under the well-known cry, "A
British subject I was born, a British subject I will
die."

After reporting to Schultz and Lynch we considered
carefully the situation, and as Lynch had been espec-
ially requested by his fellow prisoners in Fort Garry to
represent their views in Ontario, it was decided that
he, on behalf of the loyal element of Fort Garry, should
put their case before his Excellency the Governor-
General himself, and ask for redress and protection.
After careful discussion, I drafted a formal protest,
which Lynch wrote out and signed, and we went
together to the Government House and delivered it
there to one of his Excellency's staff. Copies of this
were given to the Press, and attracted considerable
attention. This protest was as follows :

30 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Ki ssku/s IloTKL, < hT-\W \

I2ih April, L870.

May it Please Voir Excellency,

Representing the loyal inhabitants of Red River
both natives and Canadians, and having heard with
feelings of profound regret that your Excellency's
Government have it in consideration to receive and
hear the so-called delegates from Red River, I beg
most humbly to approach Your Excellency in order
to lay before Your Excellency a statement of the
circumstances under which these men were appointed
in order that they may not be received or recognised
as the true representatives of* the people of Red River.

These so-called delegates, Father Richot and Mr.
Scott, were both among the first organisers and pro-
moters of the outbreak, and have been supporters and
associates of Mr. Riel and his faction from that time
to the present.

When the delegates were appointed at the convention
the undersigned, as well as some fifty others of the
loyal people, were in prison on account of having
obeyed the Queen's proclamation issued by Governor
Macdougall. Riel had possession of the Fort, and
most of the arms, and a reign of terror existed through-
out the whole settlement.

When the question came up in the convention, Riel
took upon himself to nominate Father Richot and
Mr. Scott, and the convention, unable to resist, overawed
by an armed force, tacitly acquiesced.

Some time after their nomination a rising took
place to release the prisoners, and seven hundred men
gathered in opposition to Riel's government, and,
having obtained the release of their prisoners, and
declared that they would not recognise Riel's authority,
they separated.

In the name and on behalf of the loyal people of Red
River, comprising about two-thirds of the whole popu-
lation, I most humbly but firmly enter the strongest

THE RED RIVER REBELLION 31

protest against the reception of Father Richot and
Mr. Scott, as representing the inhabitants of Red
River, as they are simply the delegates of an armed
minority.

I have also the honour to request that Your
Excellency will be pleased to direct that, in the event
of an audience being granted to these so-called dele-
gates, that I may be confronted with them and given
an opportunity of refuting any false representations,
and of expressing at the same time the views and
wishes of the loyal portion of the inhabitants.

I have also the honour of informing Your Excel-
lency that Thomas Scott, one of our loyal subjects, has
been cruelly murdered by Mr. Riel and his associates,
and that these so-called delegates were present at the
time of the murder, and are now here as the represen-
tatives before Your Excellency of the council which
confirmed the sentence.

I have also the honour to inform Your Excellency,
that should Your Excellency deem it advisable, I am
prepared to provide the most ample evidence to confirm
the accuracy and truth of all the statements I have
here made.

I have the honour to be
Your Excellency's most humble and obedient servant,

James Lynch.

I believe this was cabled by his Excellency to the
Home Government. In the meantime Foster and our
friends in Toronto were active in the endeavour to
prevent the reception of Richot and Scott. A brother
of the murdered Scott happened to be in Toronto, and
on his application a warrant was issued by Alexander
Macnabb, the Police Magistrate of Toronto, for the
arrest of the two delegates, on the charge of aiding and
abetting in the murder. This warrant was sent to the
Chief of Police of Ottawa, with a request to have it

32 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

executed, and the prisoners sent to Toronto. Foster wrote
to me and asked me to see the Chief of Police and press
the matter. When I saw the Chief he denied having
received it. I took him with me to the Post Office, and
we asked for the letter containing it. The officials denied
having it. I said at once that there was some under-
hand work, and that we would give the information to
the Press, and that it would arouse great indignation. I
was requested to be patient until further search could
be made. It was soon found, and I went before the
Ottawa Police Magistrate, and proved the warrant,
as I knew Mr. Macnabb's signature. Then the men
were arrested. We discovered afterwards that the
warrant had been taken immediately on its arrival to
Sir John A. Macdonald, and by him handed to John
Hillyard Cameron, Q.C., then a member of the House
of Commons, and a very prominent barrister, in order
that he should devise some method of meeting it.
This was the cause of the Chief of Police denying that
he had received it. Mr. Scott, the complainant, came
down to Ottawa, and as we feared Mr. McNabb had no
jurisdiction in the case, a new information was sworn
out in Ottawa before the Police Magistrate of that
City.

Richot and Scott were discharged on the Toronto
warrant, and then arrested on the new warrant. The
case was adjourned for some days, but it was impossible
to get any definite evidence, as the loyal refugees had
been in prison, and knew nothing of what had happened
except from the popular report. Richot and Scott
were therefore diseharged, and were received by
the Government, arid many concessions granted to
the rebels.

CHAPTER IV

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION

During the spring of 1870 there had been an agitation
in favour of sending an expedition of troops to the Red
River Settlement, to restore the Queen's authority, to
protect the loyal people still there, and to give security
to the exiles who desired to return to their homes.
The Canada First group had taken an active part in
this agitation, and had urged strongly that Colonel
Wolseley (now Field-Marshal Viscount Wolseley)
should be sent in command. We knew that under his
directions the expedition would be successfully con-
ducted, and that not only would he have no sympathy
with the enemy, but that he would not be a party to
any dishonest methods or underhand plotting. He
had commanded the camp of cadets at La Prairie
in 1865, and had gained the confidence of them all ;
afterwards at the camp at Thorold in August and
September, 1866, he had nearly all the Ontario
battalions of militia pass under his command, so that
there was no man in Canada who stood out more
prominently in the eyes of the people.

Popular opinion fixed upon Colonel Wolseley with
unanimity for the command, and the Government,
although very anxious to send Colonel Robertson Ross,
Adjutant-General, could not stem the tide, particularly

D

34 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

as the Mother Country was sending a third of the
expedition and paying a share of the cost, and General
Lindsay, who commanded the Imperial forces in
Canada, was fully aware of Colonel Wolseley's high
qualifications and fitness for the position.

The expedition was soon organised under Colonel
Wolseley's skilful leadership, and he started for Port
Arthur from Toronto on the 21st May, 1870. The
Hon. George Brown had asked me to go up with
the expedition as correspondent for the Globe, and
Colonel Wolseley had urged me strongly to accept the
offer and go with him. I should have liked immensely
to have taken part in the expedition, but we were
doubtful of the good faith of the Government, on
account of the great influence of Sir George Cartier
and the French Canadian party, and the decided
feeling which they had shown in favour of the rebels.
We feared very much that there would be intrigues to
betray or delay the expedition. I was confident that
Colonel Wolseley's real difficulty would be in his rear,
and not in front of him, and therefore I was determined
to remain at home to guard the rear.

From Port Arthur, the first stage of the journey was
to Lake Shebandowan, some forty odd miles. This
was the most difficult part of the work. The
Government Road was not finished as had been
expected, and Colonel Wolseley was delayed from the
end of May until the 16th July, before he was able to
despatch any of the troops from McNeill's Bay on Lake
Shebandowan.

It will be seen that the expedition was delayed
nearly two months in getting over the first fifty miles
of the six hundred and fifty by water which lay
between Prince Arthur's Landing and Fort Garry.

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION 35

This was caused by the fact that the first fifty miles
was uphill all the way, while the remainder of
the journey was mainly downhill. Sir John A.
Macdonald was taken with a very severe and dangerous
illness, so that during this important period the
control of affairs passed into the hands of Sir George
Cartier and the French Canadian party. This caused
great anxiety in Ontario, for we could not tell what
might happen. Our committee were very watchful,
and from rumours we heard, we thought it well to be
prepared, and on the 13th July, Foster, Grahame and I
prepared a requisition to the Mayor to call a public
meeting, to protest against any amnesty being granted
to the rebels ; and getting it well signed by a number
of the foremost men in the city, we held it over, to be
ready to have the meeting called on the first sign of
treachery.

About the 18th July, 1870, Haliburton was at
Niagara Falls and by chance saw Lord Lisgar, the
Governor-General, and in conversation with him he
learned that Sir George Cartier, Bishop Tache, and
Mr. Archibald (who had been chosen as Lieutenant-
Governor of the new province) were to meet him there
in a few days. Haliburton suspected some plot and
telegraphed warning Dr. Schultz at London, Ontario,
who sent word to me, and on the 19th we had a
meeting of our committee, and arranged at once for
the public meeting to be held on the 22nd. In the
Government organ, the Leader, of the 19th July was a
despatch from Ottawa dated the 18th in the following
words :

Bishop Tache will arrive here this evening from
Montreal. The Privy Council held a special meeting
on Saturday.

D 2

36 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

It is stated on good authority that Sir George
Cartier will proceed with Lieutenant-Governor Archi-
bald to Niagara Falls next Wednesday to induce His
Excellency to go to the North-West via Pembina with
Lieutenant-Governor Archibald and Bishop Tache.
On their arrival, Riel is to deliver up the Government
to them, and the expeditionary troops will be with-
drawn.

On the next day the same paper had an article
which, appearing'in the official organ of the Government,
was most significant. It concluded in the following

words :

So far as the expedition is concerned we have no
knowledge that there is any intention to recall it, but
we would not be in the least surprised if the physical
difficulties to be encountered should of itself make
its withdrawal a necessity. How much better than
incurring any expense in this way would it be for Sir
John Young (Lord Lisgar) to pay a visit to the new
Province, there to assume the reins of the Government
on behalf of the Queen, see it passed over properly to
Mr. Archibald, who is so much respected there, and
then establish a local force, instead of endeavouring to
forward foot and artillery through the almost impassable
swamps of the long stretch of country lying between
Fort William and Fort Garry. Should the Government
entertain such an idea as this and successfully carry it
out, the time would be short indeed within which the
public would learn to be grateful for the adoption of so
wise a policy.

This gave us the opportunity to take decisive action.
We had already been dreading some such plot which,
if successful, would have been disastrous bo our hopes
of opening up the North-West. If the expedition had
been withdrawn, what security would the loyalist leaders
have had as to their safety, after the murder of Scott,

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION 37

and the recognition and endorsation of the murderers ?
It was essential that the expedition should go on. On
the first suspicion of difficulty, I had written to Colonel
Wolseley and warned him of the danger, and urged
him to push on, and not encourage any messages from
the rear. Letters were written to officers on the
expedition to impede and delay any messengers who
might be sent up, and in case the troops were ordered
home, the idea was conveyed to the Ontario men to
let the regulars go back, but for them to take their
boats and provisions and go on at all hazards.

Hearing on the 19th that Cartier and Tache were
coming through Toronto the next night on their way
to Niagara, our committee planned a hostile demon-
stration and were arranging to burn Cartier 's effigy **
at the station. Something of this leaked out and
Lieutenant-Colonel Durie, District Adjutant-General
commanding in Toronto, attempted to arrange for a
guard of honour to meet Cartier, who was Minister of
Militia, in order to protect him. Lt.-Colonel Boxall, of
the 10th Royals, who was spoken to on the subject, said
he had an engagement for that evening near the
station, of a nature that would make it impossible for
him to appear in uniform. The information was
brought to me. I was at that time out of the force,
but I went to Lt.-Colonel Durie, who was the Deputy-
Adjutant-General, and told him I had heard of the guard
of honour business, and asked him if he thought
he could intimidate us and I told him if we heard
any more of it, we would take possession of the
armoury that night, and that we would have ten men j
to his one, and if anyone in Toronto wanted to fight it
out, we were ready to fight it out on the streets. He
told me I was threatening revolution. I said, " Yes, I

38 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

know I am, and we can make it one. A half continent
is at stake, and it is a stake worth fighting for."

Lt.-Colonel Durie telegraphed to Sir George Cartier
not to come to Toronto by railway, and he and Bishop
Tache" got off the train at Kingston. Tache" went to
the Falls by way of the States. Cartier took the
steamer for Toronto, arrived at the wharf in the morn-
ing, transferred to the Niagara boat, and crossed to the
Falls. This secrecy was all we wanted.

About the same time another formal protest was
prepared and Dr. Lynch presented it to his Excellency
the Governor-General : —

To His Excellency Sir John Youno, Bart., K.C.B., dc, &c.t

Governor-Genemi, <lv., dbc.

May it Please Your Excellency

I have on several occasions had the honour of
addressing Your Excellency on behalf of the loyal
portion of the inhabitants of the Red River Settle-
ment, and having heard that there is a possibility of
the Government favouring the granting of an amnesty
for all offences to the rebels of Red River, including
Louis Riel, O'Donohue, Lepine and others of their
leaders, I feel it to be my duty on behalf of the loyal
people of the territory to protest most strongly against
an act that would be unjust to them, and at the same
time to place on record the reasons which we consider
render such clemency not only unfair and cruel, but
also injudicious, impolitic, and dangerous.

I therefore beg most humbly and respectfully to lay
before Your Excellency, on behalf of those whom I
represent, the reasons which lead us to protest against
the leaders of the rebellion being included in an
amnesty and for which we claim that they should be
excluded from its effects.

(1) A general amnesty would be a serious reflection
on the loyal people of the Red River Settlement who
throughout this whole affair have shown a true spirit

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION 39

of loyalty and devotion to their Sovereign and to British
institutions. Months before Mr. Macdougall left Canada
it was announced that he had been appointed Governor.
He had resigned his seat in the Cabinet, and had
addressed his constituents prior to his departure.
The people of the Settlement had read these
announcements, and on the publication of his proclama-
tion in the Queen's name with the royal arms at its
head, they had every reason to consider that the
Queen herself called for their services. Those services
were cheerfully given, they were enrolled in the
Queen's name to put down a rising that was a rebellion
— that was trampling under foot all law and order, and
preventing British subjects from entering or passing
through British territory. For this they were impri-
soned for months ; for this they were robbed of all they
possessed ; and for this, the crime of obeying the call
of his Sovereign, one true-hearted loyal Canadian was
cruelly and foully murdered. An amnesty to the
perpetrators of these outrages by our Government we
hold to be a serious reflection on the conduct of the
loyal inhabitants and a condemnation of their loyalty.

(2) It is an encouragement of rebellion. Riel was
guilty of treason. When he refused permission to
Mr. Macdougall, a British subject, to enter a British
territory, and drove him away by force of arms, he set
law at defiance and committed an open act of rebellion.
He also knew that Mr. Macdougall had been nominated
Governor, knew that he had resigned his seat in the
Cabinet, knew he had bid farewell to his constituents ;
yet he drove him out by force of arms, and when
the Queen's proclamation was issued — for all he knew
by the Queen's authority — he tore it up, scattered the
type used in printing it, defied it, and imprisoned,
robbed and murdered those whose only crime in his
eyes was that they had obeyed it. It may be said that
Riel knew that Mr. Macdougall had no authority to
issue a proclamation in the Queen's name ; a statement
of this kind would lead to the inference that it was the

4o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

result of secret information and of a conspiracy among
some in high positions. This had sometimes been
suspected by many, but hitherto has never been
believed. An amnesty to Riel and other leaders
would be an endorsation of their acts of treason,
robbery, and murder, and therefore an encouragement
to rebellion.

(3) An amnesty is injudicious, impolitic and dan-
gerous, if it includes the leaders. Some of those who
have been robbed and imprisoned, who have seen their
comrade and fellow prisoner led out and butchered in
cold blood, seeing the law powerless to protect the
innocent and punish the guilty, might in that wild
spirit of justice, called vengeance, take the life of Riel
or some other of the leaders. Should this unfortunately
happen the attempt by means of law to punish the
avenger would be attended with serious difficulty, and
would not receive the support of the loyal people of
the Territory, of the Canadian emigrants who will be
pouring in, or of the people of the older Provinces.
Trouble would arise and further disturbance break out
in the Settlement. It would be argued with much
force that Riel had murdered a loyal man for no crime
but his loyalty and that he was pardoned, and that
when a loyal man taking the law into his own hands
executed a rebel and a murderer in vengeance for a
murder, he would be still more entitled to a pardon,
and the result would be that the law could not be
carried out. When the enforcement of the law would
be an outrage to the sense of justice of the community,
the law would be treated with contempt. A full
amnesty will produce this result, and bitter feuds and
a legacy of internal dissension entailed upon that
country for years to come.

(4) It will destroy all confidence in the admin-
istration of law and maintenance of order. There could
be no feeling of security for life, liberty, or property in
a country where treason, murder, robbery and other
crimes had been openly perpetrated, and afterwards

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION 41

condoned and pardoned sweepingly by the higher
authorities.

(5) The proceedings of the insurgent leaders,
previous to the attempt of Mr. Macdougall to enter the
Territory, as well as afterwards, led many to suspect
that Riel and his associates were in collusion with
certain persons holding high official positions. Although
suspected, it could not be believed. An amnesty
granted now, including everyone, would confirm these
suspicions, preclude the possibility of dissipating them,
and leave a lasting distrust in the honour and good
faith of the Canadian Government.

In respectfully submitting these arguments for
Your Excellency's most favourable consideration, I wish
Your Excellency to understand that it is not the object
of this protest to stand in the way of an amnesty to
the great mass of the rebels, but to provide against
the pardon of the ringleaders, those designing men
who have inaugurated and kept alive the difficulties and
disturbances in the Red River Settlement, and who
have led on their innocent dupes from one step to
another in the commission of crime by false statements
and by appealing to their prejudices and passions.

I have the honour to be,

Your Excellency's most obe't humble Serv't,

James Lynch.
Queen's Hotel, Toronto,
29tfi June.

This was also given to the Press and widely published.

The meeting for which, as has been said, a requisition
had been prepared, was called for the 22nd July, and
in addition to the formal posters issued by the acting
Mayor on our requisition, Foster and I had prepared a
series of inflammatory placards in big type on large
sheets, which were posted on the fences and bill boards
all over the city. There were a large number of these

42 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

placards ; some of them read, " Is Manitoba to be reached
through British Territory ? Then let our volunteers
find a road or make one." "Shall French rebels rule
our Dominion ? " " Orangemen ! is Brother Scott
forgotten already ? " " Shall our Queen's Representa-
tive go a thousand miles through a foreign country, to
demean himself to a thief and a murderer?" "Will
the volunteers accept defeat at the hands of the
Minister of Militia ? " " Men of Ontario ! Shall Scott's
blood cry in vain for vengeance ? "

The public meeting was most enthusiastic', and St.
Lawrence Hall was crowded to its utmost limit. The
Hon. Win. Macdougall moved the first resolution in a
vigorous and eloquent speech ; it was as follows :

Resolved, that the proposal to recall at the request
of the Rebel Government the military expedition, now
on its way to Fort Garry to establish law and order,
would be an act of supreme folly, an abdication of
authority, destructive of all confidence in the protection
afforded to loyal subjects by a constitutional Govern-
ment— a death-blow to our national honour, and calls
for a prompt and indignant condemnation by the people
of this Dominion.

Mr. Macdougall in supporting this said that :

There were many of our own countrymen there who
had been ill-treated and robbed of their property, and
whose lives had been endangered. Were we to leave
these persons — Whites and Indians — without support ?
Was this the way that our Government was to maintain
its respect ? How could we expect in that or any other
part of the Dominion, that men would expose them-
selves to loss of property, imperil their lives, or incur
any hazard whatever, to support a Government that
makes peace with those assailing its authority, and
deserts those who have defended it.

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION 43

Ex-Mayor F. H. Medcalf seconded this resolution
which was unanimously carried.

The second resolution called for the prompt punish-
ment of the rebels. It was moved by James D. Edgar
(afterwards Sir James D. Edgar, K.C.M.G.) and
seconded by Capt. James Bennett, both members of
the Canada First group.

The third resolution read :

Resolved, in view of the proposed amnesty to Riel
and withdrawal of the expedition, this meeting
declares : That the Dominion must and shall have the
North-West Territory in fact as well as in name, and if
our Government, through weakness or treachery, cannot
or will not protect our citizens in it, and recalls our
Volunteers, it will then become the duty of the people
of Ontario to organise a scheniejoLarmeil .emigration in
order that those Canadians who have been driven from
their homes may be reinstated, and that, with the many
who desire to settle in new fields, they may have a sure
guarantee against the repetition of such outrages as
have disgraced our country in the past; that the
majesty of the law may be vindicated against all
criminals, no matter by whom instigated or by whom
protected; and that we may never again see the
flag of our ancestors trampled in the dust or a foreign
emblem flaunting itself in any part of our broad
Dominion.

In moving this resolution, I said, as reported in the
Toronto Telegraph :

The indignation meeting held three months since
has shown the Government the sentiments of Ontario.
The expedition has been sent because of these grand
and patriotic outbreaks of indignation. Bishop Tach^
had offered to place the Governor-General in possession
of British territory. Was our Governor-General to

44 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

receive possession of the North-West Territory from
him ? No ! there were young men from Ontario under
that splendid officer Colonel Wolseley who would place
the Queen's Representative in power in that country
in spite of Bishop Tache and without his assistance
(loud cheers). We will have that territory in spite of
traitors in the Cabinet, and in spite of a rebel Minister
of Militia (applause). He had said there were traitors
in the Cabinet. Cartier was a traitor in 1837. He
was often called a loyal man, but we could buy all
their loyalty at the same price of putting our nocks
under their heels and petting them continually. Why
when he was offered only a C.B. his rebel spirit showed
out again; he whined, and protested, and threatened
and talked of the slight to a million Frenchmen, and
the Government yielded to the threat, gave him a
baronetcy, patted him on the back, and now he is loyal
again for a spell (laughter and cheers).

I also pointed out how, if the expedition were
recalled, we could, by grants from municipalities, &c,
and by public subscription, easily organise a body of
• armed emigrants who could soon put down the rebels.
This resolution was seconded by Mr. Andrew Fleming
and carried with enthusiasm.

Mr. Kenneth McKenzie, Q.C., afterwards Judge of
the County Court, moved, and W. A. Foster seconded,
the last resolution :

Resolved that it is the duty of our Government to
recognise the importance of the obligation cast upon
us as a people ; to strive in the infancy of our confedera-
tion to build up by every possible means a national
sentiment such as will give a common end and aim to
our actions ; to make Canadians feel that they have a
country which can avenge those of her sons who suffer
and die for her, and to let our fellow Britons know
that a Canadian shall not without protest be branded

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION 45

before the world as the only subject whose allegiance
brings with it no protection, whose patriotism wins no
praise.

The result of this meeting, with the comments of
the Ontario Press, had their influence, and Sir George
Cartier was obliged to change his policy. The Governor-
General, it was said, took the ground that the expedition
was composed partly of Imperial troops, and was
under the command of an Imperial officer, and could
not be withdrawn without the consent of the Home
Government. Sir George Cartier then planned an-
other scheme by which he hoped to condone the crime
which Kiel had committed, and protect him and his
accomplices from the punishment they deserved.

This plan, of course, we knew nothing of at the time,
but it was arranged that Mr. Archibald was to follow
the Red River expedition over the route they had taken,
for the purpose apparently of going to Fort Garry
along with the troops. It was also planned that, when
Mr. Archibald arrived opposite the north-west angle
of the Lake of the Woods, he was to turn aside, and
land at the point where the Snow Road (so called
after Mr. Snow, the engineer in charge of the work)
was to strike the lake, and proceed by land to Fort
Garry. Riel was to send men and horses to meet
Mr. Archibald at that point, and he was to be
brought into Fort Garry under the auspices of the
Rebel Government, and take over the control from
them before the expedition could arrive.

This is all clearly shown by two letters from Bishop
Tache to Riel, which were found among Riel's papers
in Fort Garry after his hurried flight. They are as
follows :

46 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY
Letter No. 1. — Bishop Tache to President Riel.

Monsieur L. Riel, President,

I had an interview yesterday with the Governor-
General at Niagara : he told me the Council could not
revoke its settled decision to send Mr. Archibald by way
of the British Possessions, and for the best of reasons,
which he explained to me, and which I shall communi-
cate to you later. We cannot therefore arrive to-
gether, as I had expected. I shall not be alone,
because I shall have with me people who come to aid
Mr. Archibald regrets he cannot come by way of
Pembina ; he wishes, notwithstanding, to arrive among
us. and before the troops. Therefore he will be glad to
have a road found for him either by the Point des
Chenes or the Lac de Roseaux. I pray you to make
enquiry in this respect, in order to obtain the result
that we have proposed. It is necessary that he should
arrive among and through our people. I am well
content with this Mr. Archibald. I have observed that
he is really the man that is needed by us. Already he
sit ins to understand the situation and the condition of
our dear Red River, and he seems to love our people.
Have faith then that the good God has blessed us,
notwithstanding our unworthiness. Be not uneasy;
time and faith will bring us all we desire, and more,
which it is impossible to mention, notwithstanding the
expectations of certain Ontarians. We have some
sincere, devoted and powerful friends.

I think of leaving Montreal on the 8th of August, in
which case it is probable I shall arrive towards the
22nd of the same month.

The letter which I brought has been sent to
England, as well as those which I have written
If, and which I have read to you.

The people of Toronto wished to make a demon-
stration against me, and, in spite of the exaggerated
statements of the newspapers, they have never dared to
give the number of the persons present (?). Some

THE RED RIVER EXPEDITION 47

persons here at Hamilton wished to speak, but the
newspapers discouraged their zealous efforts.

I am here by chance, and remain, as this is Sunday.
Salute for me Mr. O. [O'Donohue ? ] and others at the
Fort. Pray much for me. I do not forget you.

Your Bishop, who signs himself your best friend,

A. G. de St. Boniface.

Letter No. 2. — Bishop Tache to President Kiel.

Boukville, 5th August.
M. Le President,

I well know how important it is for you to
have positive news — I have something good and
cheering to tell you. I had already something
wherewith to console us when the papers published
news dear and precious to all our friends, and they are
many. I shall . leave on Monday, and with the
companions whom I mentioned to Rev. P. Lestang.
Governor Archibald leaves at the same time, but by
another road. He will arrive before the troops, and
I have promised him a good reception if he comes by
the Snow Road. Governor McTavish's house will suit
him, and we will try to get it for him. Mother salutes
you affectionately, as also my uncle. Mile. Masson
and a crowd of others send kind remembrances to your
good mother and sisters Forget not Mr. O. and others
at the Fort. We have to congratulate you on the
happy result. The Globe and others are furious at it.
Let them howl leisurely — they excite but the pity and
contempt of some of their friends. Excuse me — it is
late, and I am fatigued, and to-morrow I have to do a
hard day's work.

Yours devotedly,

A. G. de St. Boniface.

These letters prove the plot and the object of it.
There was also a most compromising letter from Sir

48 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

George Cartier, which was taken away while Colonel
Wolseley was a few minutes out of his room, attending
to some urgent business. The suspicion was that it
was taken by John H. McTavish, of the Hudson's Bay
Company.

It is possible that the word that had been sent to
keep back any messages from the rear may have
delayed and impeded Mr. Archibald's progress, but
whether that be so or not the fact remains that
Mr. Archibald lost two days trying to find the point
where he was to meet Riel's emissaries, and failing to
make the junction he was obliged to follow the
circuitous route taken by the troops down the
Winnipeg River to Lake Winnipeg, and therefore he
did not arrive " among and through the people " of
Bishop Tache. When he reached Fort Garry the
Rebels had been driven out, Colonel Wolseley was
established in possession, the British flag had been
raised over the Fort, and Colonel Wolseley was able to
hand over the government of the country to the
Queen's representative without the assistance of Riel
or his accomplices.

The successful arrival of the expedition, the flight of
the rebel leaders, and the confidence that further
disorders could not be successfully started, caused
numbers of new settlers from Ontario to move into the
country, and the progress and development of the whole
Territory have since been most remarkable. Looking at
the condition of affairs now, it is hard to realise that a
little indifference and carelessness thirty-eight years
ago might have delayed the opening up of that great
country for two or three generations, and it might
easily have happened that it wrould have been absorbed
by the United States.

CHAPTER V

NATIONAL SENTIMENT

Sir John A. Macdonald was very ill during this
crisis, and was unable to take any part in public affairs,
but the action of Sir George Cartier injured the
Government, and in the general election of 1872 Sir
George himself was beaten by a large majority in
Montreal and the Government much weakened. The
discovery of the Pacific Scandal followed in the summer
of 1873. This gave the public the information that
the Government had promised to Sir Hugh Allan and
a few capitalists the contract for building the Pacific
Railway, in consideration of a large contribution of
between $300,000 and $400,000 towards the campaign
expenses of the Conservative or Government party in
the late election.

After a bitter fight over it in the House of Commons,
Sir John A. Macdonald, seeing that his Government
would be defeated, resigned his position, and Mr.
Alexander McKenzie and the Liberals came into power.
At the general election which took place in February,
1874, Mr. McKenzie secured a large majority in the
House of Commons.

During the stirring times in the summer of 1870,
while the expedition was on its way to Fort Garry, our
committee were constantly meeting to discuss matters
and often met in my office. At one meeting it was
suggested that we should have a name for our party —
the committee had for some time been called jocularly
the " Twelve Apostles." Several names were mentioned,

E

5o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

and someone said that Edgar had made a suggestion.
I walked across the hall into Edgar's office, and asked
him what he had suggested. He seemed to have
forgotten the exact words, but said, " Canada before all,
or Canada First of all." I said, " That will do : Canada
First," and went back to my room and proposed it to
the others, and after some discussion it was unanimously
decided that we should call ourselves the " Canada
First " Party, meaning that we should put Canada
first, before every other consideration.

To keep our party free from politics, and to cover

our work, we decided to have an organisation, called

^the North- West Emigration Aid Society, which we

could use to give out statements to the public, and to

arrange for meetings, &c, to push on our work.

In the autumn of 1870, following the lead given by
Haliburton in his lectures, I prepared a lecture on
"The Duty of Canadians to Canada," and in 1871 I
delivered it at Weston, Belleville, Orillia, Bradford,
New Market, Strathroy, Richmond Hill, London,
Toronto, Brampton, Halifax (Nova Scotia), Niagara,
Wellandport, Dunnville, Chippawa, and in 1872 at
Niagara again.

This lecture was a direct appeal in favour of a
Canadian National Spirit. It began by showing that
the history of the world was the chronicle of the rise
and fall of great nations and empires, of the wars and
invasions in which the lust of conquest on fche part of
rising Powers, and the expiring struggles of waning
empires, had been left to the arbitrament of tli«' Bword,
the nations rising and foiling with the changeability of
a kaleidoscope. I pointed out that all the greal
nations possessed a strong national spirit, and lost their
position and power as soon as that spirit left them, and

NATIONAL SENTIMENT 51

urged all Canadians to think first of their country — to
put it before party or personal considerations — pointing
out that this sentiment, in all dominant races, exhibited
itself in the same way, in the patriotic feeling lrTthe
individual, causing him to put the interest of the
country above all selfish considerations, and "to be
willing to undergo hardships, privations, and want, and
to risk life and even to lay down life on behalf of the
State."

After showing a number of ways in which Canadians
in ordinary life could help Canada, I went on to say :

If our young men habituate themselves to thinking
of the country and its interests in everyday life, it will
become in time part of their nature, and when great
trials come upon us, the individual citizens will more
readily be inclined to make the greatest sacrifices for
the State.

Haliburton, in his lecture on " The Men of the North,"
made use of a paragraph which I quoted. It shows the
spirit which animated the Canada First Party :

Whenever we lower those we love into the grave,
we entrust them to the bosom of our country as sacred
pledges that the soil that is thus consecrated by their
dust shall never be violated by a foreign flag or the foot
of a foe, and whenever the voice of disloyalty whispers
in our ear, or passing discontent tempts us to forget
those who are to come after us, or those who have gone
before us, the leal, the true, and the good, who cleared
our forests, and made the land they loved a heritage
of plenty and peace to us and to our children, a stern
voice comes echoing on through thirty centuries ; a
voice from the old sleepers of the pyramids ; a voice
from a mighty nation of the past that long ages has
slumbered on the banks of the Nile : " Accursed be he
who holds not the ashes of his fathers sacred, and
forgets what is due from the living to the dead."

E 2

/

52 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

I urged a confidence in our future as another great
necessity :

We have everything in a material point of view to
make Canada a great country — unlimited territory
fertile and rich, an increasing hardy and intelligent
population, immense fisheries, minerals of every
description, ships and sailors : all we further require is a
moral power, pride in our country and confidence in its
future, confidence in ourselves and in each other.

It has been sometimes said by those who knew little
of the aspirations of our party that there was a feeling
in favour of independence among us. The extract
quoted from Haliburton's lecture shows how true he
was to the cause of a United Empire. I shall quote
the concluding paragraphs of my lecture, which are very
definite upon the point :

It must not be supposed that the growth of a
national sentiment will have any tendency to weaken
/ the connection between this country and Great Britain.
On the other hand, it will strengthen and confirm the
bond of union. Unfortunately England has reached
that phase when her manufacturing and commercial
community have attained such wealth and affluence,
have become so wrapped up in the success of their
business, and have acquired such a pounds, shillings,
and pence basis in considering everything, that
national sentiment is much weakened, in fact senti-
ment of any kind is sneered at and scoffed at as being
behind the age. This school of politicians, fearing the
expense of maintaining a war to defend Canada,
calculating that in a monetary point of view we are
not a source of revenue to them, speak slightingly
of us, and treat the sentiment of affection that we bear
to the Mother land with contempt.

Nothing could be more irritating to a high-spirited

NATIONAL SENTIMENT 53

people. We have the gratifying reflection, however,
that the more we rise in the scale of nations, the more
will this class desire to keep us, until at length every
effort will be made to retain our affection and secure
our fealty. It is our duty therefore to push our way
onwards and upwards, to show England that soon the
benefits of the connection in a material as well as
a moral point of view will be all in her favour.

I hope the day will come when the British Empire
will be united into one great power or confederation of
great nations, a confederation for the purpose of
consolidating power as to foreign countries, and on all
international questions ; and rest assured, if we
Canadians are only true to ourselves, the day will come
when Canada will be not only the largest, but the
most populous, the most warlike, and the most
powerful of all the membeTs^o~f- that confederation,
if not the most powerful nation in the world.

I delivered this lecture, with a few slight changes, in
Halifax, Nova Scotia, on the 29th April, 1871, and the
feeling then in that Province against Canada and the
name Canadian was so strong, that I changed the title
to that of " The Duty of our Young Men to the State."
Haliburton was then living in Halifax, and he had
interested the late Principal George M. Grant, of
Queen's University, in our movement. Grant was then
a young minister in charge of a Presbyterian Church
in Halifax. He took an active part in getting up the
meeting, which was largely attended, and my lecture
was favourably received. That was my first meeting
with Grant, and afterwards we were often closely
associated in the movement in favour of Imperial
Unity, and were warm friends as long as he lived. I
shall often have to refer to him in the following pages.

Mair had been doing good work, delivering a splendid

54 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

lecture in Belleville in 1870. Haliburton had been
delivering his lectures, and I mine ; but I felt that
Foster, who had done such splendid work in the
editorial columns of the Telegraph, should also prepare
a lecture. I kept urging him until at last he began to
write one. He used to bring two or three pages at a
time down and read them to me in my office. By this
time we had got thirty or forty members together
and had formed, as I have said, the North-West
Emigration Aid Society, of which Joseph Macdougall,
son of the Hon. Wm. Macdougall, was secretary. The
Hon. Wm. Macdougall was then one of our members.
On one occasion, when the Society had issued a
paper for publication, Mr. Macdougall had induced
his son to put in additional matter that had not
come before the Society. This did not please Foster,
who asked six members of the Society to sign a
requisition calling a general meeting to consider the
matter. It was then decided that any publications
issued by the Society were to be brought before them
first for approval.

It was not many weeks after this incident that
Foster brought in the concluding pages of his lecture
and read them to me. I do not believe any of the
others knew anything about it. When he had read it
all to me, I said to him, " What are you going to call
it?" He said, " I think our motto, ' Canada First.' "
I thought that a good idea, and he wrote "Canada
First" at the head of it. I then asked him where he
was going to deliver it. He was a very shy fellow and
he replied, " I am not going to deliver it." I said, " Oh
yes, you must. We will call a meeting." I knew we
could get up a large public meeting, and I wanted him
to agree to read it, but he positively refused. I then

NATIONAL SENTIMENT 55

said, " You can read it here before our Society, and then
we can have it published in the papers " ; and I wrote
on the top of it in pencil the words " Delivered before
the North-West Emigration Aid Society by Mr.
W. A. Foster," and I showed it to him and said, " That
will look very well, and I am sure Mr. Brown will
publish it." Foster hesitated, but at last said, " Will
you go and show it to Mr. Brown, and ask him, if I
read it before the Society, whether he will publish it ? "
I agreed to do this.

I went to see the Hon. George Brown and explained
the matter thoroughly, and told him we were to get
the MS. back, and have it read before our Society, and
then it would be given to him to be published.
Whether Mr. Brown forgot, or whether he thought he
had some good matter for his paper and wished to
publish it before any other paper got wind of it or not,
or whether he thought the chronological order of
events was a matter of no moment, I cannot say. The
result was, however, that the second or third morning
after, Foster came into my office early, in a great state
of excitement, and told me that the lecture was
published in full in the Globe that morning, and that
it had copied in large type the pencil memo, which I
had written at the top, " Delivered before the North-
West Emigration Aid Society by Mr. W. A. Foster."
Foster was very much troubled about it after his
action about Macdougall, but our friends were so
pleased with it that no one complained.

This lecture was soon after published in pamphlet
form and had a very wide circulation throughout
Canada. It was printed in the Memorial Volume to
W. A. Foster which was published soon after his
death.

CHAPTER VI

ABORTIVE POLITICAL MOVEMENT

SHORTLY after these events some of our committee
were anxious to make a forward movement, to organ-
ise a political party to carry out our views, and to
start openly a progaganda to advocate them. I
opposed this strenuously, saying that the instant wc
did so the newspapers on both sides of politics would
attack us, and that they would have something tangible
to attack. The late Daniel Spry urged me very
strongly that we should come out openly. I opposed
the idea and refused to take any part in it, fearing
that it would at the time injure the influence we were
beginning to exert.

Foster and I discussed the matter at great length,
and my suggestion was that we should go on as we had
been going, and that if we ever wished to hold public
meetings Dr. Canniff, one of the "Twelve Apostles,"
and the oldest of them, the author of "The Early
Settlement of Upper Canada," would always make an
excellent chairman, and not being a party man would
not arouse hostility. I said, " If we organise a party
and appoint a particular man to lead, we shall be
responsible for everything he says," and repeated that
the party Press would attack him bitterly and injure
the cause, which was all we cared for. Foster supported
my views, and during 1872 and 1873 we kept quiet,

ABORTIVE POLITICAL MOVEMENT 57

watching for any good opportunities of doing service to
the country.

In the general election of 1872 I was requested by
the Hon. George Brown and Alexander McKenzie to
go up to Algoma, and either get some candidate to run
or run myself in the Reform interest against Lt.-Col.
Fred C. Cumberland, the sitting member for the
House of Commons. I arrived at Bruce Mines on the
same steamer with Col. Cumberland, and he called a
meeting of the electors the same evening and asked me
to attend. I did not know anyone in the place, but
Mr. Brown had given me a letter to Mr. Peter Nicholson,
which I presented to him and told him I was going to
the meeting. He urged me not to go, but I insisted.
He then said he would get a few friends, so that I
would not be alone. Col. Cumberland spoke for about
an hour, and then called upon me to speak, he well
knowing I had come up to work against him. I asked
him to introduce me to the meeting, as I did not know
anyone ; this he did in a very satirical manner. I then
spoke for an hour, and attacked the Government very
vehemently for their Red River policy and on other
points. Very soon the whole meeting was with me,
and after it was over the people nearly all came over
to Mr. Nicholson's store and insisted that I should
contest the constituency, and, finding I could not get
anyone else to run, I consented. Col. Cumberland
withdrew the next day from the contest, and the
Hon. John B. Robinson was brought out in his place.
After a hard struggle I was defeated by a majority of
eighty votes. I fully expected to be beaten ; in fact, I
was surprised the majority was not much greater.
There was a very large amount of money spent against
me ; so large that there was an inquiry in the House

58 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

afterwards, and something like $6,000, spent by the
Northern Railway Company against me, was, I believe,
refunded to the company by the directors or the
Conservative party. This was my only attempt to
enter Parliament.

In November, 1873, I left for England and did not
return until the 2nd February, 1874. Shortly after
leaving an election came on, and the late Chief
Justice Thomas Moss was contesting West Toronto for
the House of Commons. Foster thought it would be
good policy, as Moss was sympathetic with our views,
to organise the "Canada First" party as a political
organisation and as such to support Moss. He at once
took steps to organise it, and with the old organisation
and a large number of others the National Association
was established. This was on the 6th January, 1874.
Of our old group there were W. A. Foster, Dr. Canniff,
Hugh Scott, Joseph E. Macdougall, C. E. English,
(J. M. Rae, Richard Grahame, James R. Roaf, Thomas
Walmsley, George R. Kingsmill ; and besides these a
number of new associates — W. H. Howland, R. W.
Elliott, J. M. Trout, Wm. Badenach, W. G. McWilliams,
James Michie, Nicol Kingsmill, Hugh Blain, Jos. A.
Donovan, W. B. McMurrich, G. W. Badgerow, C. W. R.
Biggar, W. H. Fraser, J. G. Ridout, W. E. Cornell,
W. G. Mutton, C. W. Dedrickson, J. Crickmore, Wm.
Hessin, J. Ritchie, Jr., R. G. Trotter, A. S. Irving, A.
Howell, R. H. Gray, and Dr. Roseburgh.

Foster did most of the work, and I have no doubt
drafted the constitution and the platform. He remem-
bered what I had said, and provided that the move-
ment should be guided by an Executive Committee of
twelve, without any president or vice-president. The
platform was adopted as follows :

ABORTIVE POLITICAL MOVEMENT 59

(1) British Connection, Consolidation of the Empire,
and in the meantime a voice in treaties affecting
Canada.

(2) Closer trade relations with the British West
India Islands, with a view to ultimate political
connection.

(3) Income Franchise.

(4) The Ballot, with the addition of compulsory
voting.

(5) A Scheme for the Representation of Minorities.

(6) Encouragement of Immigration, and Free Home-S
steads in the Public Domain.

(7) The imposition of duties for Revenue, so ad-
justed as to afford every possible encouragement to |
Native Industry.

(8) An improved Militia System, under the command
of trained Dominion Officers.

(9) No Property Qualifications in Members of the
House of Commons.

(10) The Reorganisation of the Senate.

(11) Pure and Economic Administration of Public
Affairs.

It will be noticed that the very first plank in the
platform was " British Connection, Consolidation of
the Empire, and in the meantime a voice in treaties
affecting Canada." This certainly was not favouring
either Independence or Annexation, and of the other
ten items nearly every point has since been carried
into practice.

At the first public meeting, held on 6th December,
1873, Mr. W. H. Howland was in the chair. He knew
very little of our objects or aspirations. He was the
son of Sir Wm. P. Howland, who had been a citizen
of the United States, and had only settled in Canada

6o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

some fourteen years before W. H. Howland was born.
Sir Wm. Howland was a most useful and patriotic
citizen, and during a very long life did great service to
Canada in various capacities, but neither he nor his
son had the inherited traditions of loyalty to the
Empire which animated the older Canadians, and the
result was that at this first meeting the chairman's
remarks struck a discordant note in the minds of the
majority of the members of the National Association.
" He held that there was too much toadyism to English
aristocratic usages in this country. There was too
much toadyism to titles. We would have no aristo-
cracy in this country but the aristocracy of merit, no
order but the order of merit, and the sooner the
English Government recognised the fact that the
adornment of a man in this country with the feelings
they entertained was rather an insult than an honour
to our people, the sooner would they appreciate our
real sentiment. Many Canadians who had gone home
had, he held, brought us into contempt by their
toadying."

The result of this speech was most unfortunate. I
believe he did not speak for more than fifteen or twenty
minutes, but in that time he had practically killed the
movement as a political organisation. The committee
were dissatisfied and disheartened ; the political Press
seized at once on the weak points, and attacked the
organisation for advocating Independence, and charged
it with being disloyal in its objects. Mr. Goldwin
Smith then joined it and hoped to use it for the
purpose of advocating the disruption of the tie which
bound Canada to the Empire. The National Club was
founded by this organisation at this time.

I returned to Canada shortly after the movement

ABORTIVE POLITICAL MOVEMENT 61

had been launched and was at once appealed to by my
old comrades to join and help to redeem the party
from the taint of Independence which it had acquired
through the unfortunate speech of W. H. Howland in
introducing it to public notice. I declined positively,
telling them that it was too late, and it would have to
die a natural death. As a political party it lost
strength and soon died, its demise being hastened
by the fact that it gave encouragement to a few
young men to come out openly in favour of Canadian
Independence, supported as they were by the great
social and literary status of Mr. Goldwin Smith, who
has always been willing to assist any movement likely
to injure the unity of the British Empire.

CHAPTER VII

THE INDEPENDENCE FLURRY

The National Club soon ceased to be a political club
and the National Association gradually disappeared
from public view. I joined it about a year after its
Inundation, and was President of it in the years 1883
and 1884, and during the existence of the Club it has
been the centre of the sentiment " Canada First within
the Empire," which has been the dominant senti-
ment of the Canadian people for the last twenty
years.

Mr. Goldwin Smith in the early years of the Club
inaugurated a scries of dinners among the members
where fifteen or twenty of us would dine together and
then discuss some public question of interest. These
dinners were popular, and Foster and I were gener-
ally present. On one occasion Mr. Goldwin Smith
gave out as the subject, for discussion the question as
to whether " Annexation or [ndependence would he the
best future for Canada."

Mr. Smith was in the chair at one end of the long
table, at which about twenty, or perhaps more were
seated, and he opened the discussion by pointing out
some arguments tor and against each alternative,
leaving it for the members to discuss as to which would

THE INDEPENDENCE FLURRY 63

be the best. I was in the vice-chair at the other end
of the table, and the speaking began on one side of Mr.
Smith, and came down that side of the table one after
the other to me. I was struck with the bad effect such
a discussion would have, in encouraging Canadians to
argue in favour of either Independence or Annexation,
and when it came to my turn I simply said that I
could not argue in favour of either Independence or
Annexation, that I was vehemently opposed to both,
and that if ever the time came that either should have
to be seriously discussed, I would only argue it in one I
way, and that was on horseback with my sword. As I \
then commanded the cavalry in Toronto and had sworn
to bear true allegiance to her Majesty, it was the
natural way for me to put it. I sat down the moment
I had made this statement and the discussion went on.
My remarks were received as if I had spoken jocularly,
but I think many of those present sympathised with
my way of looking at it. Mr. Goldwin Smith saw that
I had punctured the scheme, and referred to my
remarks in the next issue of his Bystander for October,
1880, in the following terms, which are in his best
style :

In Canada we have some curious remnants of the
idea, dominant everywhere in days gone by, and still
dominant in Islam, that intolerance on certain questions
is a duty and virtue. The good St. Louis of France
used to say that he would never argue with a heretic who
doubted Papal doctrine, but give him six inches of cold
steel ; and we have lately been told that among ourselves
there are questions which are to be debated only sword
in hand. There are some special factors in our political
composition, such as United Empire Loyalism, Orange-
ism, and the surviving sentiment of Anglican Estab-
lishmentarianism, which may explain the pheno-

64 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

menon without disparagement bo our intellectual
civilisation.

In a speech at a dinner of my regiment not long
after, I spoke clearly to them on the subject— and on
the .same lines. My views were received with great
enthusiasm.

For several years matters progressed slowly, a few
young men advocating Independence, among whom
E. E. Sheppard and Charles G. D. Roberts. Mr.
Norris and others were writing on the same line.
Sheppard, who then edited the Evening News in Toronto,
was the ablest of these advocates, and carried on his
campaign with great vigour and ability. He designed
a new flag and hoisted it over the News office. In 1884
I he Independence agitation was probably more in
evidence than at any period before or since. That year
was the centennial of the arrival of the United Empire
Loyalists in Upper Canada, and it. was decided to hold
a series of celebrations at Adolphustown, Toronto, and
Niagara in commemoration of the foundation of the
Province. 1S.S4 was also the 50th Anniversary of the
establishment of Toronto as a city, and the celebration
of the two events was combined in meetings and
festivities which lasted several days. On Dominion
Day there was a great review of the Active Militia
with regiments from various parts of the Province, and
one from Montreal. This large force paraded through
the principal streets to the Queen's Park, where they
were reviewed, and then they marched to the Exhibition
Buildings, where the officers and men were entertained
at dinner. At the officers' dinner, Mayor Boswell,
Lieut.-Governor John B. Robinson, and I made the
principal speeches. The Toronto Mail of the 3rd July,
1884, contained the following article :

THE INDEPENDENCE FLURRY 65

Nuts for the Independence Monkey.

We offer the Cartwright party and their organ the
following nuts to crack, taken from the report of the
military banquet on Tuesday, to which we referred in
our last issue.

Mayor Boswell was next honoured. In responding,
his Worship referred to the attempt which was being
made in some quarters to introduce the question of
independence or annexation into Canadian politics.
He regretted this very much, but he was certain that
no member of the Militia force would ever entertain
such a proposal.

Lieut.-Colonel G. T. Denison, in proposing the toast
of the visiting corps, also referred to the same matter.
He said that the Militia of Canada would remain true
to its Queen and country. Before independence or
annexation could be brought about, he said, " Many of
us will have to be placed under the sod." His
remarks were received with enthusiastic cheers, again
and again renewed.

The Lieutenant-Governor, in proposing the toast of
Lieut.-Colonel Robert B. Denison, Deputy- Adjutant-
General, also touched on the absurdity of the independ-
ence or annexation question. He felt satisfied that if
it became a political issue, there would not be a con-
stituency in Canada that would return a man in favour
of it.

The United Empire Loyalist Centennial celebration
took place in the Pavilion, Toronto, on the 3rd July
— the same day that the above article appeared. It
was a very successful meeting, there being representa-
tive loyalists from all over Ontario. " Dr. Wm. Canniff
was in the chair. The speakers were the Hon. Senator
G. W. Allan, Chief Green (a Mohawk Indian, of
Tyendinaga), Lieut.-Colonel George T. Denison, and
Bishop Fuller, of Niagara."

F

66 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

My speech was mainly directed against the Inde-
pendence movement. I showed how Canadians had
always stood by British connection, and went on to say :

From whom comes this cry for independence ? Not
from the real Canadians, but from a few hangers-on of
the newspaper Press — a few wanderers and Bohemians —
men who have lived indifferently in Canada and the
States, and have never been satisfied anywhere — men
without an atom of stake in the country. And do you
think that the people of Canada are going to submit
themselves to the guidance of such men ? Never.
The Independence party in Canada can almost be
counted on one's fingers and toes. The movement
did not amount to anything, and the moment it did
the real feeling of the country would manifest itself.

I was attacked very bitterly by the few Independence
papers on account of this speech, and the attacks con-
tinued for nearly six weeks. I was invited to address
the United Empire Loyalist Centennial celebration at
Niagara, which took place on the 14th August, 1884,
and then replied to some of the arguments used by
them. On the question of national sentiment I said :

Sometimes it is said by strangers and aliens amongst
us that we Canadians have no national sentiment, that
if we were independent we would have more of it, and
it is the fashion to speak loudly of the national spirit
of the citizens of the United States. I take issue on
this point, and on behalf of our people I say that the
pride of the native Canadian in his country is quite
equal to the pride of the Yankee in his, while the
willingness to defend it in case of need is far greater in
the Canadian.
/- The strongest national sentiment that has yet been
exhibited in the States was shown by the Southern
people in their gallant struggle to destroy the Union.
The national spirit shown by the Northerners where the

THE INDEPENDENCE FLURRY 67

bounties rose to about $1,800 a man, where patriotism
consisted in hiring a man to go and fight while the
citizen took a contract to supply the soldiers, as has
been well said by their celebrated divine, Dr. Talmage,
" With rice that was worm-eaten, with biscuits that
were mouldy, with garments that were shoddy, with
meat that was rank, with horses that stumbled in the
charge, and with tents that sifted the rain into the faces
of the exhausted." The patriotism shown by three
thousand Yankee Militia almost in sight of this spot
in 1812, when they refused to cross at Queenston to
aid their comrades, whom our volunteers shortly after-
wards cut to pieces under their eyes, was very different
from the patriotism of the Canadians who crossed the
river and captured Detroit, or those who fought at
Chrysler's Farm, or those who drove back Hampton at
Chateauguay.

Can we call to mind the Canadians who came back
to Canada from every State in the Union to aid in
defending her from the Fenians without feeling that
we have in our people a strong national sentiment ?

Wanderers and Bohemians, strangers and tramps
may, because we are not traitors to our Government
and our country, say that we have no national senti-
ment ; they may not see or feel or appreciate the
patriotic feeling of the Canadians, but we Canadians
know that it is there. The Militia, force is one proof of
it, a finger-post to point out to all, that we intend to be
a free people on this continent, and that our liberties
can only be taken from us after a desperate struggle.

These wanderers and Bohemians, with the charming
impudence of the three tailors of Tooley Street, speak
of themselves as the people of Canada. It is the
fashion of men of their type always to talk loudly of
the people, as if they were the people. But who are
the people ? The people of this country are the
farmers who own the soil, who have cleared the fields,
who till them, and who produce the food that feeds us.
The people of Canada are the workers who work in her

F 2

68 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

factories, who carry on her trade, who sail her ships
and spread her commerce, the citizens who build her
cities and work in them. These are the people of
Canada, not the few agitators who serve no good
purpose, and whose absence would be a relief if they
went back to the neighbouring Republic from which
many of them have drifted in to us.

The result of these demonstrations so directly
appealing to the sentiments and feelings of the loyal
element, which formed the vast majority of the people,
discouraged the disloyal element, and for a year matters
were rather quiet.

In March, 1885, the whole country was aroused
over the outbreak of the North-West Rebellion, and
troops from all over Canada were sent to aid in putting
down the rebellion and re-establishing the Queen's
authority. One regiment came from Nova Scotia.
The result of the affair was to consolidate the Provinces
into a Dominion, in a way that was never felt before.
This put the Independence movement quite out of
sight, and during 1886, and until May, 1887, matters
remained dormant. Particulars of the causes of this
outbreak and some of the details of the operations will
be found in my " Soldiering in Canada," chapters xx. to
xxv.

CHAPTER VIII

THE O'BRIEN EPISODE

In the early part of 1887 the Irish party in Ireland
had been endeavouring to secure sympathy and assist-
ance in the United States and Canada, in favour of
their demand for Home Rule. There was a very
large Irish population in Canada, and through their
representatives in our House of Commons and in the
local legislatures they pressed for resolutions in favour
of the policy of Home Rule. The people of Canada were
not generally favourable to the movement, but the
politicians on both sides, who were anxious to obtain
the Irish vote, did not hesitate to support the Home
Rule resolutions ; little caring for the interests of the
Mother Country or the Empire, so long as their
political opponents did not obtain any advantage in the
matter. The resolutions were carried with remarkable
unanimity. I was much annoyed, and wrote to Lord
Salisbury tellinghim to pay no attention to the addresses
of our politicians. I assured him that the silent masses
of the Canadian people were on his side on that
subject, but unfortunately there was no way in which
the silent masses could make their views known.

The apparent unanimity of feeling in Canada, as
shown by the action of Governments and Parliaments,
deceived the Irish Nationalists, and to emphasise their

7o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

power in Canada, Mr. Wm, O'Brien, M.P., announced
that he was going to Canada to drive Lord Lansdowne,
our Governor-General, out of Canada, amid the hoots
and execrations of the Canadian people. This was
because he was an Irish landlord and had evicted
some of his tenants.

This was cabled across, and a day or two after I met
Colonel Gzowski (afterwards Sir Casimir Gzowski) on
the street, and he told me that Lord Lansdowne was
coming to Toronto in a few days, and as O'Brien was
coming out, he thought we in Toronto should see that
Lord Lansdowne got a friendly reception. I saw the
opportunity at once. I felt the silent masses might
have a chance to speak out, and said, "Leave that to
me : we will give him a great reception." Among other
things it was feared that the few disaffected might
resort to violence against the Governor-General.

A few days later, on the 26th April, 1887, I attended
the St. George's Society Annual Banquet, where I
responded to the toast of the Army, Navy, and Volun-
teers. The presidents of most of the benevolent
and patriotic societies of the city were guests
at the dinner. The Premier, Sir Oliver Mowat, sat
next to me ; the Mayor was present also, and a very
large number of prominent citizens. I saw what an
opening there was to start a movement in favour of the
Governor-General, and spoke in short as follows : I was
speaking on behalf of the Army, Navy and Volunteers,
and drew attention to the fact that a great deal
depended upon the Volunteers — that only a few years
before we had to turn out, and go to the Niagara
frontier to defend our country against an invasion of
Fenians from the United States. I said that the Irish
of that country had subscribed large sums of money,

THE O'BRIEN EPISODE 71

Irish servant girls giving liberally out of their savings,
to provide funds to organise armed forces, to buy rifles
and bayonets and swords and ammunition, to be used
in attacking a peaceful and inoffensive country in order
to devastate our fields, to shoot down our people, and
rob us of our property. I pointed out that I and
my command had been sent to Fort Erie, and that
some of my comrades in the Queen's Own and other
Volunteer corps had been shot down, and many
wounded, before we drove the enemy out of the country.
I thanked them for proposing the toast of the " Volun-
teers," but went on to say, there was one thing, however,
that was very annoying and humiliating to us. The
Fenians, having failed to defeat us, were still carrying
on their campaign against our Empire. Money was
being collected as usual in the United States in large
quantities, but instead of being used in the purchase of
arms and munitions of war, it was being expended in
sending traitors into the British House of Commons,
and in maintaining them there to destroy the Union,
and make the first rift in our Empire. " Fancy,
gentlemen, the feelings of those of us who went to
the front, who risked our lives, who had our comrades
killed in opposing these men, when we see our
politicians in our Houses of Parliament, for wretched
party purposes, clasping hands with the enemies of our
Empire, and passing resolutions of sympathy and
support to them in their efforts to injure our nation.
These resolutions are an insult to our Volunteers, and
a shame and disgrace to our country," and I sat down.
This was received with uproarious applause. The
people .jumped to their feet and cheered and waved
their table napkins, many even got upon their chairs,
and shouted themselves hoarse. Sir Oliver Mowat

72 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

(then Mr. Mowat), who had supported one of these
resolutions in the local House shortly before, and was
Premier, said to me when the cheering subsided and I
could hear him, " That was a very powerful speech you
made." I replied, " Do you think so ? " He said, " It
was a very strong speech." I answered, " Was it ?
I tried so hard to be moderate." He laughed and said,
" You did, did you ? " He never had any more such
resolutions in his House.

When the dinner was over and the guests were
leaving, I stood near the door and was surrounded by
men approving of my speech. I picked out the men I
wanted — the Mayor, the presidents of societies, colonels
of regiments, &c. — and asked them to wait as I
wished to speak to them. When the group had
gathered I said to them, " I did not speak as I did for
nothing. Lord Lansdowne is coming here very soon.
Wm. O'Brien is coming from Ireland to drive him out
of Canada. We must arrange for such a reception to
Lord Lansdowne as no Governor-General ever had in
Toronto, and I want you all to agree to serve on a
committee to organise it ; and I hope the Mayor will
take the chair, and send out notices for the meeting."
All at once agreed heartily.

When the meeting was held to arrange the plan for
the reception, a number of those present wished a
great procession to be organised of societies and the
city regiments in uniform, &c. I knew that the object
of the Irish Nationalists was to create the belief that
the people of Canada, with the exception of the official
classes, &c, were not on the side of the Governor-
General, and that he would have to be guarded by
police and soldiers, and insisted that not one man in
uniform should be seen — that the people, as the people,

THE O'BRIEN EPISODE 73

should take the matter into their own hands, and
escort the Governor-General. It was a most difficult
task to carry the committee with me, but I was deter-
minedly persistent and at last carried my point.

A small committee was appointed to arrange details,
and the reception was organised with the greatest care.
The Volunteer regiments were pledged to turn out in
plain clothes, with walking-sticks; the societies also
agreed to be out, the Orangemen did their part, the
lawyers were canvassed to be in the streets, and all
were asked to act as private detectives, and watch
carefully any attempt to throw stones by any disaffected
parties if there were any. The citizens illuminated
their houses and shops on the route from North
Toronto Station through Yonge and King Streets
to Government House. Members of the Toronto Hunt
Club, mounted and in plain clothes, formed an escort ;
but, what was not known to the public, twenty-five
picked men of my corps, the Governor-General's Body
Guard, in plain clothes, with Lieut.-Colonel Merritt,
my adjutant, in charge, rode as members of the
Hunt Club, along with them, and guarded the carriage
of his Excellency. About four hundred men of the
Queen's Own, all in plain clothes, marched along the
street alongside the carriage. The Orange body
arranged for a torchlight procession with about a
thousand torches, and the police were entirely with-
drawn from the streets on which the procession
marched. I do not believe anyone was ever more
carefully guarded, for the people as a mass took it
in hand themselves.

On the morning of the day on which his Excellency
was to arrive, I learned that the General commanding
had ordered a guard of honour to meet him at the

74 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

station. I went at once to the Mayor, and we went
together to see the Governor's military secretary, and
urged him to ask his Excellency to countermand the
order and dispense with the guard. This was done,
and no man in uniform was to be seen. The reception
was a remarkable success. The streets were filled with
most enthusiastic crowds, and no Governor-General
ever made such an entry into Toronto. The people
took him to Government House, and the whole neigh-
bourhood and the carriage drive were packed with
cheering crowds. Lord Lansdowne stood up in his
carriage at the door, and made a speech thanking the
people, and lie must have felt that he was among
friends.

A few days later a great meeting was held in the
Queen's Park, when a number of prominent citizens
made speeches condemning Mr. O'Brien's proposed
visit to Toronto and resolutions were passed in that
sense. The Mayor, on behalf of the citizens, sent a
telegram to O'Brien requesting him not to come to
Toronto.

O'Brien and his people persisted, however, and called
a public meeting in the Queen's Park for the 17th May.
There was a very large gathering, probably ten or
twelve thousand people, and O'Brien and his companion,
M r. Kilbride (one of Lord Lansdowne's evicted tenants),
were carefully guarded by the police. The Irish party,
who comprised probably one-tenth of the crowd,
organised the meeting, and Mr. O'Brien, with several
Yankee reporters around him, began to speak. The
University students had planned to start singing, and
the moment he began, the crowd broke out with " God
Save the Queen." Cheers were then called for for Lord
Lansdowne, Lord Salisbury, Lord Hartington, and

THE O'BRIEN EPISODE 75

Joseph Chamberlain. Then the singing began again ;
" Rule, Britannia " was sung by the great masses. Again
cheers for the four statesmen already mentioned, then
alternately " God Save the Queen," cheers, and " Rule,
Britannia." No one could hear a word of O'Brien's
speech. This went on until he ceased to attempt to
speak. Mr. Kilbride then stood up. The students led
the crowd in a refrain, " Pay your rint, pay your rint,
pay your rint, you thief," and the people shouted this
over and over again, and he, unable to be heard, had to
cease, and the meeting ended by some local man trying
to say a few words.

While moving through the crowd studying the
temper of the people, I saw two or three incidents
which showed me that there was a very dangerous and
ugly spirit among the loyalists, and I become anxious
lest the mob should get beyond all control. I went to
the Chief of Police, who had a large force of policemen
and an escort of mounted police, to guard the carriage
of the visitors, and told him he would have a difficulty
in getting O'Brien away without injury. Being a
Police Commissioner, I advised him to get those
in charge of the meeting to put up someone to speak
as soon as Kilbride finished, and to take O'Brien and
Kilbride quietly ofT the platform to the back, hurry
them into the carriage, and drive off before the crowd
should discover it. This was done, and they had barely
got clear when the crowd, seeing they were going,
chased them and endeavoured to stone them. For-
tunately they had a start, and driving rapidly escaped
without injury.

I had told the Chief of Police not to allow O'Brien
to go anywhere on the streets without a strong police
guard, for, as I told him, " I do not want him hurt for

76 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

one thing, and, on the other hand, I should be very
sorry that the idea should get abroad that he could
walk the streets of Toronto (under the circumstances)
without protection." The following evening, O'Brien
and his party of three or four friends, including one
Yankee reporter, started from the hotel in the dusk to
walk round a block, and would not wait for the police
escort for which the police sergeant was sending. The
party had not gone two hundred yards when the crowds
began to gather and follow them. They were pelted
with stones and eggs, the New York reporter being
badly cut by a stone. They escaped with difficulty
back to the hotel. In 1 1 am il ton, Kingston, and other
places O'Brien was also mobbed and chased and was
obliged to hide. He then left the country, while Lord
Lansdowne, who remained, received a few days later a
remarkable ovation on his return to Ottawa.

I left for England the day after O'Brien's meeting
(on my vacation) and a day or two after my arrival in
London I was dining at Lord Salisbury's, where I met
Mr. Balfour, then Chief Secretary for Ireland. They
were interested in hearing the particulars. I told Lord
Salisbury that the " silent masses " had spoken out, and
with no uncertain sound. Both he and Mr. Balfour
said that O'Brien's reception in Canada had helped the
passage of the Coercion Bill through the House- of
Commons, for it proved that the statement of the
Nationalists that every country in the world was on
their side was not quite accurate.

AT

CHAPTER IX

THE IMPERIAL FEDERATION LEAGUE

In 1884 a movement was begun in England, and the
Imperial Federation League was formed, for the pur-
pose of securing the Federation of the whole Empire,
on somewhat the same lines as the Confederation of
Canada. The Right Hon. W. E. Forster was the
moving spirit, and the first President of the organisa-
tion. The objects of the League are clearly laid down
in the following resolutions defining its nature and
objects, which were passed at an adjourned conference
held in London on the 18th November, 1884 :

That a Society be now formed to be called " The
Imperial Federation League."

That the object of the League be to secure by
Federation the permanent Unity of the Empire.

That no scheme of Federation should interfere with
the existing rights of local Parliaments as regards local
affairs.

That any scheme of Imperial Federation should
combine, on an equitable basis, the resources of the
Empire for the maintenance of common interests
and adequately provide for an organised defence of
common rights.

That the League use every constitutional means to
bring about the object for which it is formed and invite
the support of men of all political parties.

78 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

That the membership of the League be open to any
British subject who accepts the principles of the
League, and pays a yearly registration fee of not less
than one shilling.

That donations and subscriptions be invited for
providing means for conducting the business of the
League.

That British subjects throughout the Empire be
invited to become members, and to form and organise
Branches of the League which may place their repre-
sentatives on the General Committee.

It will be seen that the main object of this League

was to secure by Federation the permanent Unity of

/ the Empire. The existing rights of local Parliaments

^ as to local affairs were to be preserved, but the resources

of the Empire were to be combined to maintain

common interests, and to provide for an organised

defence of common rights. That was the whole scheme

in a nutshell, to form a Federated Parliament, which

would not interfere with local affairs, but would have

power to use the resources of the Empire for common

defence. No other object was given to the public. It

,y was really formed to secure colonial contributions to

Imperial Defence.

The Imperial Federation League in Canada was
inaugurated at a meeting held in Montreal under the
leadership of the late Mr. D'Alton McCarthy, M.P., on
the 9th day of May, 1885. A large number of prominent

Inien were present, and speeches were made by Jehu
Matthews, Benjamin Allen, M.P., D'Alton McCarthy,
Senator Plumb, G. R. R. Cockburn, Edgar Baker,
1M.R, Hector Cameron, M.P., A. W. Ross, M.P.,
Hugh McLennan, Senator Macfarlane, Alexander
McNeill, M.P., Dr. Potts, Hon. George E. Foster, M.P.,
and Principal G. M. Grant. The first branch of the

THE IMPERIAL FEDERATION LEAGUE 79

Canadian League was organised at the small town of
Ingersoll in Ontario in May, 1886, principally through
the exertions of Mr. J. Castell_Hopkins, then a young
man twenty-two years of age, and a junior clerk in the
agency of the Imperial Bank of that place. Mr. M.
Walsh was elected President, and Mr. Hopkins
Secretary. Mr. Hopkins has ever since been an active
and industrious supporter of the movement. An
influential branch was inaugurated in Halifax, Nova
Scotia, in December, 1886, of which his Grace Arch-
bishop O'Brien was one of the foremost members.
The next branch was established at Peterborough on
the 28th April, 1887, mainly through the exertions of
Mr. J. M. Long. A small branch was also started in
Victoria, but in 1888 had not been affiliated to the
Canadian organisation.

In 1886, Lt.-Colonel Wm, Hamilton Merritt, one of
the officers of my regiment, came to me and endeav-
oured to enlist my sympathies in the new movement.
I discussed the whole subject fully with him. He had
hoped to get me to accept the presidency of the
branch to be formed in Toronto. I refused to take II
any part in the matter, feeling that Canada was getting
along very well, but that she had only just expended
nearly $150,000,000 in the construction of the
Canadian Pacific Railway, and that she required some
years of steady development before she could undertake
any further expenditures on a large scale for Imperial .
defence, for I saw this was the main object of the (/
League in England. I did not think the time had
come, nor the necessity, for pressing this point, and
that public opinion would not be in favour of any such
movement.

It will be seen that Imperial Federation made very

8o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

little progress for the first two or three years. In
1885, 1886, and 1887, only three branches, and, with
the exception of Halifax, very small and uninfluential
ones, had been established in all Canada.

There was no branch in Toronto, the most Imperial-
istic and most loyal of all the cities of Canada, and up
to the fall of 1887 the movement had made but little
headway.

In the year 1887, however, a movement arose which
changed the whole features of the case, which
altered all the conditions, and made it necessary
for all loyal men in Canada to consider seriously the
future of their country. This movement, known as
Commercial Union will be dealt with in the next
chapter.

CHAPTER X

COMMERCIAL UNION

The Canadian Pacific Railway was completed at the

end of 1885, and it began to prove a competitor with

the railways in the United States for the through traffic

across the continent. This competition affected the ,. /"OR

great financial interests of New York, for the United ^

States railroads were subject to regulations as to the

long and the short haul, while the Canadian Pacific

Railway was free from them, and thereby had a very

great advantage in the struggle for business. This

direct present pecuniary interest, added to the belief

that Canada was likely to prove a much greater factor 2-

on this continent than had ever been anticipated by

the people of the United States, was the cause of the

inception of the Commercial Union Movement, which

attracted so much attention at the time, and has

had such far-reaching influence on the affairs of the

Eritish Empire ever since. Q^*/*~^'

The originator of this movement. Erastus Wiman of
New York, was born at Church ville, near Toronto, and
was educated and lived in Toronto for a number of
years in his early life. He was connected with the
Press and for a time kept a small book shop on King
Street. He served a year in the Toronto City Council.
He became Toronto manager of R. G. Dun and Com-

G

r.u.m

82 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

pany's Commercial Agency in 1860, and afterwards
went to New York and became manager of it there,
and a member of the firm. He was also president of
the Great North Western Telegraph Company, which
controlled almost all the telegraph lines in Canada.
He had not taken the oath of allegiance to the United
States, and he was suited in every way to lead the
insidious, scheme which was started under the name of
Commercial Union, but was intended to bring about
fully the annexation of Canada to the United
States.

The movement was planned and launched with
remarkable skill. Mr. Wiman, who was posing as a true-
hearted Canadian, was, I believe, working for great
financial interests in the States, headed bv_Jay Gould.
Of course, of this there is no proof, but only the deduc-
tion that can be drawn from a close study of all the
information that can be had. The first step was to
establish the Canadian Club of New York, to be a home
for welcoming Canadians visiting that city. The next
was still more ingenious. A number of the most
prominent Canadians, principally literary men, orators,
&c, were invited to New York as guests of the Club,
to address the members. These visitors were treated
with the warmest hospitality, and no indication given
that Mr. Wiman had anyjdterior motives. About the

{same time, in 1886, Mr. Wiman gave some public
baths to the citizens of Toronto, at a cost of about
$6,000, as a proof of his warm feeling towards the city
in which his early life had been spent.

After all this preparation he came to Canada in the
Uspring of 1887, and aided by Goldwin Smith, Valancy
| Fuller, Henry W. Darling, President of the Toronto
!' Board of Trade, and a few others, he proposed in the

COMMERCIAL UNION 83

interests of Canada a scheme of Commercial Union
between Canada and the United States which he
claimed would be a great boon and lasting advantage
to Canada. During the whole summer of 1887 an
active campaign was being conducted, meetings were
held in many places, and addressed by Mr. Goldwin
Smith, Mn Wiman, Congressman Butter worth, of Ohio,
and others. The members of the Canadian Parliament
were furnished with circulars, articles, and reports of
speeches in profusion. Mr. Wiman, as a member of the
firm of Dun, Wiman and Company, had an influence
over the business men of Canada that could hardly be
overestimated. It would have been a serious thing for
any ordinary business man in any city, town, or village
in Canada, if dependent upon his credit for the
profitable conduct of his business, to incur the hostility
of the mercantile agency, on whose reports his credit
would largely depend.

The result was that at first the plausible speeches of
its advocates, and the friendly assistance of some news- // ^^n/xr
papers, caused the movement to acquire a considerable
amount of success. It was not thoroughly understood. —
It had been inaugurated as in the direct interest of
Canada by a friendly and successful Canadian, and was
being discussed in a friendly way, and many good men
at first supported the idea, not suspecting any evil, and
not fearing that it might result in annexation. I was
away on a visit to England from the 19th May until the
21st August, 1887, and heard very little of what was
going on, and not enough to understand the details or
real facts of the scheme. After my return to Canada
I asked my brother, the late Lt.-Colonel Fred C.
Denison, then a member of the House of Commons for
West Toronto, what it all meant. He was not at all

G 2

84 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

favourably impressed. He had been supplied with
copies of the literature that was distributed, and I read
it over, and we discussed the question very fully during
some weeks. We both agreed that it was a very
dangerous movement, likely to bring about the annexa-
tion of Canada to the United States, and designed for
that purpose by its originators, and we considered very
carefully how it could be met and defeated. I felt that,
in view of the way in which it was being taken up at
the time by the people, it would be hopeless to attack
the scheme and endeavour to check its movement by
standing in front of it and fighting it. I was afraid we
might be overrun and probably beaten. I felt that
the only way to defeat it was to get in front, and lead
the movement in another direction. My brother agreed
with me in this, and we decided to take a course of
action based on those lines.

CHAPTER XI

IMPERIAL FEDERATION LEAGUE IN CANADA

The progress the Commercial Union movement was
making, and the great danger arising from it, led my
brother and me to discuss it with a number of loyal
men, and on all sides the opinion seemed to be that
active steps should be taken at once to work against it.
The principal active workers at first were officers of my
regiment and a few other personal friends, and small
meetings were held in my brother's office to discuss the
matter, and it was decided that/the best policy was to
advocate a Commercial Union of the British Empire as
the alternative to the proposition of a Commercial
Union with the United States, and that a scheme of
Imperial Federation based upon a Commercial Union
of the various parts of the Empire would be the
best method of advocating our views. By advocating
Imperial Federation it enabled us to appeal to the old
dream of the United Empire Loyalists of the Revolu-
tion?] It gave the opportunity of appealing to our
history, to the sacrifices of our fathers, to all the
traditions of race, and the ties of blood and kindred,
to the sacrifices and the victories of the war of
1812, and to the national spirit of our people, to
preserve our status as a part of the British Empire. \
G. R. R. Cockburn, J. M. Clark, D'Alton McCarthy, ! X

J

86 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

] John Beverley Robinson, Wm. Hamilton Merritt,

Lt.-Colonel Fred C. Denison, Casimir Dickson,

Commander Law, John T. Small, D. R. Wilkie,

John A. Worrell, Henry Wickham, and James L.

Hughes were the moving spirits in organising the

Toronto Branch of the Imperial Federation League,

and it was accomplished during the last two or three

months of 1887 and the beginning of 1888.

In October, 1887, Erastus Wiman sent a circular to

the Members of the House of Commons, asking them

for their views upon his scheme. Lt.-Col. F. C.

Denison sent the following reply, and forwarded a copy

to the newspapers :

Toronto, 12th Oct., 1887.
SlR,

I have received your circular of Sept. 17th sent to me
as a member of the House of Commons, enclosing a
copy of a speech delivered by you on Commercial
Union and asking an opinion upon it.

I must tell you that I am utterly opposed to it, as in

$ my mind Commercial Union simply means annexation,
a result to be deplored by every true Canadian, and

, unlikely to happen without the shedding of a lot of

/' Canadian blood. We are now, despite what the advo-
Icates of Commercial Union say, a happy, prosperous,
'and contented people. I am positive no pecuniary
advantage would accrue to Canada from Commercial
Union, but even granting all that you say as to the
increased prosperity it would bring to us, I would still
be opposed to it. We do not in Canada place so high

|| a value upon the " Almighty Dollar " as do the Yankees,
and we hope always to be Canadians. Why should
J we sever our connection with the Mother Country,
which has in the past done so much for us, for the sake
of throwing in our lot with a people who produce more

\ bank thieves and embezzlers than any other country
in the world; who care so little for the sanctity of

FEDERATION LEAGUE IN CANADA 87

the marriage tie that one hundred divorces a day have j
been granted in one city ? To do so would be national
suicide. No pecuniary advantage can ever outweigh
our national life, or our national honour. The appeals
made in favour of Commercial Union are all addressed*
to the pocket, but I have confidence in my fellow'
countrymen that they will place our national honour
and our independence above all pecuniary consider-
ations. A man worthy of the name will not sell his
own honour, or his wife's or his daughter's, for money.
Such a proposal could not for a moment be considered
from a financial standpoint, and no people worthy of
the name would ever sacrifice their national honour for
material advantages. There is no sentiment that
produces such sacrifices as national sentiment, and you
gentlemen who advocate Commercial Union, argue as
if my countrymen would sell everything dear to thern
for money. You entirely misunderstand our people. V

Believe me,

Yours truly,

Fred C. Denison.
Erastus Wiman, Esq.,

New York, U.S.A.

The late Mrs. S. A. Curzon paraphrased this letter in
the following lines, which appeared in the Toronto
World of the 18th October, 1887 :

Well spoken, Denison ! a heart beats there

Loyal to more than selfish minds can grasp ;

Not gold our nation's wealth, or lavish ease,

Nor sordid aim her rod of destiny.

No ! Canada hath ends beyond a life

Fed by loose license, luxury, and pelf.

She hath inherited through noble sires

Of ancient blood, and lineage straight and clean,

Great riches. A renown unequalled yet ;

A liberty hard won on many a field ;

A country wide and large, and fair and full ;

A loyalty as self-denying as a vow ;

)'

88 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

An honour high as heaven and pure as light ;

A heroism that bleeds, but blenches not ;

An industry of muscle true as steel ;

A self-restraint that binds a world in bonds ;

An honesty contented with its own.

Shall she sell these for gold ? " What can gold give

Better than she hath ? — a nation's life

A nation's liberty, a nation's self-respect."

Brave words — my Denison — brave words and true !

Take thou this tribute from a patriot heart.

As thee our legislators ever be ;

Men whose whole aim is for the nation's weal

And for safekeeping of her name intact.

On the 30th December, 1887, the Toronto Board
of Trade gave a banquet in honour of the Rt. Hon.
Joseph Chamberlain. It was a very large and in-
ifluential gathering. I then fired my first public
shot against Commercial Union. Colonel Otter was
put down to respond to the toast of the Army, Navy,
and Active Militia, but the Chairman in proposing
the toast, added my name also, without having given
me any intimation whatever that I would be called
upon to speak. I quote the report which appeared
in the World the next morning of my three minutes'
speech :

As belonging to the active militia of the country,
I am very glad to be here to-night to do honour
to so distinguished a statesman as the Rt. Hon.
Joseph Chamberlain, because that gentleman, above
all gentlemen in the Empire, has shown that he
places the interests of a United Empire above all
others (applause). There is no part of the British
Empire where these words, " United Empire," convey
a greater meaning to the hearts of the people than to
the people of Canada (applause), and I am certain
there is no part of the whole Empire where the Rt.
kHon. Mr. Chamberlain is more heartily appreciated
fl than in Toronto, the capital of the Province of Ontario

FEDERATION LEAGUE IN CANADA 89

— a Province which owes its origin to the desire on

the part of men who, like Mr. Chamberlain, desired

a United Empire, and made great sacrifices for it.

There is a subject upon which I wish to say a word or

two before I sit down, and that is Commercial Union.

And in the presence of Mr. Chamberlain I wish to jjt*

say that the active militia of this country have all y A

been sworn to be faithful, and bear true allegiance ^**

to her Majesty, and they intend that Canada shall not

be laid at the feet of any foreign country (great

applause). I am a Canadian, born in this city, and I

hope to live and die a Canadian, to live and die in

a country where our people will govern their own

affairs, where we will be able to establish our own

tariff, and where it will not be fixed and established to

suit a foreign people against our Mother Country. I

can assure Mr. Chamberlain that when I speak in

behalf of the volunteers of the country in this way, I |1

am also voicing the feeling of all the fighting men in "

this country.

My remarks were received with great applause, and
created somewhat of a sensation, for it appeared that
there had been an understanding that the subject of
Commercial Union was not to be referred to, and all
the speakers had been warned except myself. I have
had a suspicion since that I was called upon suddenly
in the belief that I would speak out plainly.

The Toronto World commenting on the dinner
said :

The main result of Mr. Chamberlain's visit to
Toronto and the speeches made at the dinner on Friday
night must be a heavy blow and a great discourage-
ment to the Commercial Unionists. On Friday after-
noon it was stated to the reporters, on good authority,
we believe, that the management of the Board of
Trade had arranged to exclude the much disputed

9o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

question of Commercial Union from among the
subjects of the speeches But as Burns wrote —

The best laid schemes of mice and men
Gang aft agley.

Colonel Denison's remarks so heavily charged with
the electricity of British connection, "brought down
the house," and after that all other subjects were lame
and uninteresting to the company in comparison.
Our distinguished visitor soon made it evident that he
thought it the question of the day

The event on Friday night, we repeat, must prove
the worst blow that the Commercial Unionists have
got since they forced their " fad " before the public.
After this we fancy there will be a stampede among
them to get out from a most unpleasant and ridiculous
position.

• As early as October, 1887, the late Thomas Mac-
farlane, one of the ablest and most active members of
the Imperial Federation League, wrote to the journal
of the League in England a strong article pointing out
that Commercial Union would mean annexation, and
advocating a uniform rate of duty on all foreign
imports in every country of the Empire over and
above the ordinary tariff in force then. This was Mr.
Hoffmeyer's suggestion at the Colonial Conference of
1884, one made mainly as a commercial measure which
would encourage trade and give a tie of interest to the
various parts of the Empire. Mr. Macfarlane had
supported this view from the first.

During November and December, 1887, the matter
was being considered, and on the 22nd December a
preliminary meeting was held in Shaftesbury Hall,
and after speeches by D'Alton McCarthy, G. R. R.
Cockburn and others, resolutions were passed in favour
of forming a Toronto branch, and a number gave in

FEDERATION LEAGUE IN CANADA 91

their names for membership. Mr. McNeill's magni-
ficent speech at Paris on the 19th January, 1888, was a
most eloquent appeal in favour of Imperial Federation,
and was printed and widely circulated in Ontario.
He argued strongly in favour of discriminating tariffs
around the Empire.

On the 1st February the Toronto branch was form-
ally organised, with the Hon. John Beverley Robinson
as President, George R. R. Cockburn, M.P., John M.
Clark and Col. George T. Denison as Vice-Presidents,
and Wm. Hamilton Merritt as Secretary.

It was then arranged that the Annual General
Meeting of the Imperial Federation League in Canada
should be held on the afternoon of the 24th March,
1888, for the transaction of business, and that in the
evening there should be a large public meeting to
inaugurate the Toronto branch, and to bring it
prominently before the public.

It will be remembered that with those who took the
most active part in the organisation of the Toronto
branch the moving idea was to agitate for all
commercial union of the Empire. There was nothing in "
the original constitution of the Imperial Federation
League that would justify such a policy being advo-
cated. It was therefore necessary to amend or alter
the constitution to that extent. Consequently, at the
Annual General Meeting our Secretary, Wm. Hamilton
Merritt, moved, and D. R. Wilkie seconded, the
following resolution :

That the Imperial Federation League in Canada
make it one of the objects of their organisation to
advocate a trade policy between Great Britain and her
Colonies by means of which a discrimination in the
exchange of natural and manufactured products will be

92 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

made in favour of one another, and against foreign
nations; and that our friends in Parliament are hereby
called upon to move in support of the policy of this
resolution at the earliest possible moment.

This was unanimously carried. In the evening the
public meeting was held at the Association Hall, which
was crowded to its limit. Mr. Cockburn was in the
chair. I moved the first resolution, which was as
follows :

Resolved, that this meeting hails with pleasure the
establishment of a branch of the Imperial Federation
League in this city, and confidently hopes that through
its instrumentality the objects of the League may be
advanced, and the ties which bind Canada to the
Motherland be strengthened and maintained.

In moving this resolution I outlined my reasons for
advocating the cause, and pointed out the necessity of
doing something to counteract the scheme of Commer-
cial Union with the United States, calling on the
patriotic sons of Canada in that crisis in the affairs of
the country " to rally round the old flag and frustrate
the evil designs of traitors." I stated that the Com-
mercial Union movement was designed by 1 raitors, that
I wished " to be fair to those who believed that the
movement would not destroy the national life and
sentiment of Canada," but adhered to the position that
the movement originated in treason. " There was no
use mincing words in the matter, Commercial Union
could only be carried out by severing the ties which
bound the Canadian people to the Motherland. Not
only that, but it aimed at the destruction of the
national life of the country, by subjecting the people
to the power and dictation of a foreign country." The
report in the Empire went on to say :

FEDERATION LEAGUE IN CANADA 93

He desired to draw the attention of the audience to
a few facts in the history of the continent. Canada
was a country with a comparatively small population,
but an immense territory, rich in every department
of mine and forest, lying alongside a country of
immense population and great resources. If that\
country was not an aggressive country the difficulty
would be minimised. He held, however, that it was
an aggressive and grasping country. They wanted
Florida, and they took it ; Louisiana and Alaska they
annexed ; California and Mexico they conquered ; and
Texas they stole. They wanted half of the State of
Maine that belonged to Canada, and they swindled the
Canadian people out of it by means of a false map.
The war between the North and South was as much
for tariff as slavery. It was only after three years that
the North decided to emancipate the slaves. They
conquered the South and put them under their feet.
He asked them to remember their treatment of the
Canadian people in dealing with the question of
Imperial Federation. In 1775 they attempted to
conquer Canada, and again in 1812, but they were
beaten ignominiously both times. They left no stone
unturned in 1812 to conquer Canada, and gave it up as
a hopeless task after a three years' effort. The popula-
tion of Ontario at that time was only 100,000, as
against their ten millions. They fomented discord
which led to the Fenian Raid in 1866. Those
benighted warriors came armed with United States
muskets. They had never evinced a friendly feeling
towards Canada. They sent the British Minister home
during the Crimean War when they thought England
had her hands full . . . They gave a reciprocity
treaty to Canada a few years ago, and allowed it to
remain in force long enough to open up a volume of
trade between the two countries, and then they
suddenly cut it off in the hope that it would produce
annexation. The Commercial Union fad had its birth
in treason, he reiterated, and was designed in the hope

94 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

of inducing the people of Canada to believe in the
fallacy that, by tying themselves hand and foot to a
foreign and hostile Power, they would get richer by it.
They wanted to make Canadians believe that an
extended market would benefit them. Their real
desire, however, was to make Canada a slaughter
market for their goods, and by crippling Canadian
industries eventually drive the people of the Dominion
into such a condition that they would be glad to
accept annexation as an alternative of absolute ruin.
They had conquered and stolen States in the South,
and now they desired to betray Canada in the North.
The scheme of Imperial Federation was designed to
build up Canada and her industries, and absolutely to
demolish the delusive theory propounded by the
authors of that nefarious scheme Commercial Union.
Unrestricted Reciprocity and Commercial Union were
one and the same. The prime object of Imperial
Federation was to complete an arrangement with the
Mother Country, whereby our goods would be admitted
free with a discriminating tariff against the importa-
tions of all foreign Powers. Such an arrangement he
believed would not only benefit the agricultural com-
munity, but also the whole population of the Dominion.
It would consolidate the Empire, and give the Canadian
people greater influence amongst the nations of the
world.

Mr. J. M» Clark seconded the resolution in an
eloquent speech and it was carried. Mr. Alex McNeill
moved the next resolution. He said he had felt a
great deal of doubt coming down from Ottawa that
• lay. but when he was face to face with such a glorious
meeting all his doubts passed away like mists before
the light of the sun. The news of that meeting would
be tidings of great joy all over the Empire, for it would
proclaim in trumpet tones that the great British City

FEDERATION LEAGUE IN CANADA 95

of Toronto was up and doing in the glorious work of
Imperial Federation.

Mr. R. C. Weldon, M.P., from Nova Scotia, made an
eloquent speech.

The meeting was most enthusiastic and spirited. At
its conclusion Mr. D'Alton McCarthy invited about
fifteen or twenty of the Committee and speakers to his
house to supper. I remember walking over with Mr. R. C.
Weldon, whose speech had been very warmly received.
He was very much astonished at the enthusiasm and
vigour of the audience. He told me he had never seen
such a meeting before, and asked how I could account
for it. I replied, "Toronto is the most loyal and
imperialistic city in the Empire." It was partly '
founded, as was St. John, N!B., by United Empire
Loyalists, but the difference was that loyalty had come
more closely home to Toronto, that since its foundation
every generation of the Toronto people had seen the
dead bodies of citizens who had died fighting for
the cause of the Empire or the Sovereign carried
through her streets for burial ; that the battle of York
had been fought in 1813 within the present limits of
the city, the skirmish at Gallows Hill three miles
north of the city in 1837 ; that Toronto men had
fought at Detroit, Queenston Heights, and other fields
in 1813-14, and at Navy Island in 1837, also in 1866
at Fort Erie ; that Toronto men were the first sent
from the older Provinces to the North- West Rebellion,
and that all this had kept the flame of loyalty brightly
burning on her altars.

Four days after this meeting, on the 28th March,
1888, Mr. D'Alton McCarthy, President of the League
in Canada, placed on the order paper at Ottawa the
following important notice of motion :

11

96 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

That it would be in the best interests of the
Dominion that such changes should be sought for in
the trade relations between the United Kingdom and
Canada as would give to Canada advantages in the
markets of the Mother Country not allowed to foreign
States, Canada being willing for such privileges
to discriminate in her markets in favour of Great
Britain and Ireland, due regard being had to the
policy adopted in 1879 for the purpose of fostering the
various interests and industries of the Dominion, and to
the financial necessities of the Dominion.

This was the beginning of the great scheme of
preferential tariffs around the Empire, which lias since
attracted bo much attention throughout the British
possessions. Mr. McCarthy's resolution did not carry
at that time; it was not intended that it should. It
was adjourned after some discussion. It was a new
idea in Canadian politics, and the members had not
had time to study the question in all its bearings.

The Imperial Federation Journal, representing
the League in England, was not favourable to the
action of the Canadian branch, and advised the
Canadians to approach the other Colonies, and not
disturb the Mother Country with the proposal. Within
five years this cause of difference had, I believe, much
to do with the disruption of the League in (
Britain.

Mr. McNeill's reference to the importance of Toronto's
accession to the cause was well founded, for after that
meeting the movement went on with increased impetus,
and subsequent events proved the far-reaching effect
upon the affairs of the Empire.

During the next three years a most vigorous
campaign was carried on in Ontario. Toronto became

FEDERATION LEAGUE IN CANADA 97

the headquarters of the League, a large branch was
kept up, and efforts were made to educate the public
mind and organise branches of the League in other
places. An organising committee was appointed, of
which I was elected chairman. The movement, which
had been started in Montreal three years before, had
languished, and it was not until the Commercial Union
movement alarmed the people and proved the necessity
for prompt action that the cause of Imperial Federation
became a strong and effective influence upon the
public opinion of Canada.

CHAPTER XII

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT — A TREASONABLE
CONSPIRACY

At the first public meeting of the Imperial Federation
League in Toronto 1 made the charge that the
Commercial Union movement was a treasonable con-
spiracy on the part of a few men in Canada in
connection with a number of leading politicians in
the United States to entrap the Canadian people into
annexation with that country. It will be of interest
to trace this phase of the question and its development
during the three or four years in which the great
struggle took place.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, in conversation with William
Allingham in November, 1872, said, " Americans will
not take any definite step ; they feel that Canada must
come into the Confederation, and will of herself
American party in Canada always at work." —
Allinghanis Diary, p. 217 (Macmillan).

It will be remembered that I said that the United
States " were an aggressive and grasping people."
"They wanted Florida and they took it, Louisiana and
Alaska they acquired, California and Mexico they
conquered, and Texas they stole." 1 went on b
that "they had conquered and stolen States in the
South, and now they desired t<> betray Canada in the

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 99

North." This speech was made on the 24th March,
1888. I was criticised by some on the ground that
my remarks were extreme in their character, and was
caricatured and ridiculed in the comic papers.

Six months later I was vindicated in a remarkable
manner.

Senator Sherman, at that time one of the foremost
statesmen of the United States, and chairman of the
Senate Committee of Foreign Affairs, made a very
significant speech before the Senate on the 18th
September, 1888. He said :

And now, Mr. President, taking a broader view of
the question, I submit if the time has not come when
the people of the United States and Canada should
take a broader view of their relations to each other than
has heretofore seemed practicable. Our whole history
since the conquest of Canada by Great Britain in 17 63
has been a continuous warning that we cannot be at
peace with each other except by political as well as
commercial union. The fate of Canada should have
followed the fortunes of the Colonies in the American
Revolution. It would have been better for all, for the
Mother Country as well, if all this continent north of
Mexico had participated in the formation, and shared
in common the blessings and prosperity, of the
American Union.

So evidently our fathers thought, for among the
earliest military movements by the Continental Con-
gress was the expedition for the occupation of Canada
and the capture of the British forces in Montreal and
Quebec. The story of the failure of the expedition —
the heroism of Arnold and Burr, the death of
Montgomery, and the fearful sufferings borne by the
Continental forces in the march and retreat — is
familiar to every student of American history . . .

Without going into the details so familiar to the

H 2

ioo THE STRUCxGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Senate, it is sufficient to say that Spain held Florida,
France held all west of the Mississippi, Mexico held

Texas west to the Pacific, and England held Canada
The United States held, subject to the Indian title,
only the region between the Mississippi and the
Atlantic. The statesmen of this Government early
discerned the fact that it was impossible that Spain,
France, and Mexico should hold the territory then held
by them without serious detriment to the interests and
prosperity of the United States, and without the
danger that was always present of conflicts with the
European Powers maintaining Governments in con-
tiguous territory. It was a wise policy and a necessity
to acquire these vast regions and add them to this
country. They were acquired and are now held.

Precisely the same considerations apply to Canada,
with greater force. The commercial conditions have
vastly changed within twenty -five years. Railroads
have been built across the continent in our own
country and in Canada. The seaboard is of such
a character, and its geographical situation is such on
both oceans, that perfect freedom as to transportation
is absolutely essential, not only to the prosperity of the
two countries, but to the entire commerce of the world :
and as far as the interests of the two people are
concerned, they are divided by a mere imaginary line.
They live next-door neighbours to each other, and there
should be a perfect freedom of intercourse between
them.

A denial of that intercourse, or the withholding of it
from them, rests simply and wholly upon the accident
that a European Power one hundred years ago was
able to hold that territory against us; but her interest
has practically passed away and Canada has become
an independent Government to all intents and purposes,
as much so as Texas was after she separated herself
from Mexico. So that all the considerations that
entered into the acquisition of Florida, Louisiana, and
the Pacific coast, and Texas, apply to Canada, greatly

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 101

strengthened by the changed condition of commercial
relations and matters of transportation. These intensify,
not only the propriety, but the absolute necessity
of both a commercial and a political union between
Canada and the United States . . .

The way to union with Canada is not by hostile
legislation ; not by acts of retaliation, but by friendly
overtures. This union is one of the events that must
inevitably come in the future ; it will come by the logic
of the situation, and no politician or combination of
politicians can prevent it. The true policy of this
Government is to tender freedom in trade and inter-
course, and to make this tender in such a fraternal way
that it shall be an overture to the Canadian people to
become a part of this Republic . . .

The settlement of the North-West Territory, the
Louisiana and Florida purchases, the annexation of
Texas, and the acquisition from Mexico are examples of
the adaptation of our form of government for expansion,
to absorb and unite, to enrich and build up, to ingraft
in our body politic adjacent countries, and while
strengthening the older States, confer prosperity and
development to the new States admitted into this
brotherhood of Republican States . . .

With a firm conviction that this consummation most
devoutly to be wished is within the womb of destiny,
and believing that it is our duty to hasten its coming, I
am not willing, for one, to vote for any measure not
demanded by national honour that will tend to post-
pone the good time coming, when the American flag
will be the signal and sign of the union of all the
English-speaking peoples of the continent from the Rio
Grande to the Arctic Ocean.

I ask that the resolution be referred to the
Committee on Foreign Relations.

I drew attention to this speech in a letter to the
Toronto Globe, on the 26th September, 1888. After
quoting a number of extracts from it, I went on to say,

io2 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

" Tins man is honest and outspoken. He is trying to
entice us by kindly methods to annexation, which
would be the annihilation of Canada as a nation ; but
doos not his whole argument prove the absolute
correctness of the view I took of Commercial Union at
the Imperial Federation meeting, and does it nol prove
that his co-worker Wiman, being a Canadian, was
acting the part of a traitor, in trying to betray his
native country into a course which could only end in
placing it absolutely in the hands of a foreign and
hostile Power ? "

A few days later another incident occurred showing
the active interest that was being taken in the annex-
ation movement. Senator Sherman's speech was
delivered on the 18th September, 1888; on the 29th of
the same month, Krastus Wiman sent the following
telegram to a number of the Canadian newspapers:

New Y<>hk, 2<>//, Sept.

I deem it my duty to say that information from
Washington reaches me of a reliable character to the
effect that the Senate Committee of Foreign Affairs
has, during the past few days, in furtherance of the
views of its Chairman, Senator Sherman, been dis-
cussing the Question of inviting the Dominion of
Canada to .join the United States. So far have
matters progressed that it is not at all unlikely that ;i
resolution will be reported for concurrent action of both
Houses, declaring it to be the duty of the President to
open negotiations with Great Britain, looking to a
political union between the English-speaking nations on
this continent.

The condition attending the invitation of Canada is
understood to be that the United States would assume
the entire public debt of the Dominion, estimated at
s:soo,000,000.

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 103

Commercial Union was urged as the basis of the
proposed negotiation, on the ground that while a large
majority might be secured for it, only a small minority
favoured political union, but the sentiment of the
Commitee was so strong in favour of proposing* at
first Political Union, that it was impossible to contend
with it.

Erastus Wiman.

An attempt was made by Mr. Wiman to withdraw
this message, but it failed, and it was published in two
or three papers.

The United States papers were for a year or two
filled with articles discussing annexation, sometimes in
friendly strains, sometimes in a most hostile spirit.
President Cleveland's retaliation proclamation follow-
ing closely the refusal of the United States Senate
to confirm a treaty which had been agreed upon
between Great Britain and the United States, was a
direct threat against Canada, issued to the people of
the Republic at a time likely to influence the result of
the approaching Presidential election.

On the 26th September, 1888, the Chicago Tribune
concluded a very aggressive article with these words :

There are two ways in which Canada can protect
herself from all possibility of a quarrel with this
country about fish. One of these is by commercial
union with the United States. The other is political
union. If she is not ready for either, then her safety
lies in not provoking the United States by unfair or
unfriendly dealing, for when the provocation comes,
Uncle Sam will reach out and take her in, in order to
ensure quiet, and neither she nor her venerable old
mother can prevent it.

This paper about the same time had a cartoon

io4 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

depicting "The United States in 1900," showing Uncle
Sam bestriding the whole North American continent.

The New York World,in December, 1888, also pub-
lished a map of North America to show what the
United States would look like after Canada came in,
and depicted our country divided up into twenty-eight
new States and territories, and named to suit the
Yankee taste. In connection with this map the World
published an interview with Senator Sherman, in which
he advocated strenuously the annexation of Canada to
the Tinted States, saying that "the fisheries dispute
and the question of the right of free transit of Ameri-
can goods over Canadian railroads are a type of the
disputes that have vexed the two nations for a century,
and will continue to disturb them as long as the
present conditions exist. To get rid of these questions
we must get rid of the frontier."

In the descriptive article on the map everything that
could help to excite the cupidity of the people of the
Tinted States was said and with great ability, and
Professor Goldwin Smith was cited as declaring:

It is my avowed conviction that the union of the
English-speaking race upon this continent will some
day come to pass. For twenty years 1 have watched
the action of the social and economical forces which
are all, as it seems to me. drawing powerfully and
steadily in that direction.

The map and the articles accompanying it were
evidently published to accustom the minds of the
people of the United States t<> the idea of expansion
and aggression :

What a majestic empire the accompanying map

suggests: one unbroken line from the Arctic Ocean to

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 105

the Torrid Zone. The United States is here shown as
embracing nearly the whole of the North American
continent. Having conquered the Western wilderness
the star of Empire northward points its way . . .
There would be no more trouble about fishing treaties
or retaliation measures, and peace with all nations
would be assured, by making the United States
absolute master of the vast Western continent. The
Empire that this nation would embrace under such
circumstances is so vast in extent that none other
furnishes a parallel.

This is only an illustration of the feeling all over the
United States at this period from 1888 to 1890. The
newspapers and magazines were filled with articles and
cartoons all pointing in the same direction. Mr. Whit-
ney, a member of the United States Cabinet, even went
so far as to say that four armies of 25,000 men each
could easily conquer Canada, indicating that the
question of attacking Canada had been thought of.
General Benjamin F. Butler, in the North American
Review, one of their most respectable magazines,
speaking of annexation, said, " Is not this the fate of
Canada ? Peacefully, we hope ; forcefully, if we must,"
and in the truculent spirit of a freebooter he suggested
that the invading army should be paid by dividing up
our land among them. General J. H. Wilson, a
prominent railway manager, presented a petition to the
United States Senate in which he said :

The best and most thoughtful citizens were coming
to look upon the existence of Canada, and the allied
British possessions in North America, as a continuous
and growing menace to our peace and prosperity, and
that they should be brought under the constitution
and laws of our country as soon as possible, peacefully
if it can be so arranged, but forcibly if it must.

(V^-^Av*-*-^ .

io6 THE STRUGGLE EOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Then came the MeKinlov Bill especially bearing
upon the articles where Canada's trade could be mosl
seriously injured. It was believed that traitors in our
own country assisted in arranging this pari of the
tariff so as to strike Canada as severely as possible.
As another instance of the unprincipled manner in
which these conspirators carried on their work, the
following Press dispatch was sent to some of the
United States papers :

At a meeting called in Stimpson, Ontario, to hear a
debate on annexation v. independence or continued
dependence, a vote taken after the speakers had
finished showed 418 for the annexation to 21 for the
status quo. It seems almost incredible, but this
meeting is a good indication of the rapid strides the
annexation sentiment is making among the Canadian
people. The Tories cannot keep Canada out of the
Union much longer.

As I have never been able to discover anyplace of
that name in Ontario, and as there is no such posl
office in the official list, it is evident that the dispatch
was a pure invention tor tin- purpose of deceiving the
people of the United States,

Another important indication of the feeling is shown
in an article in the New York Daily Commercial
Bulletin in November, 1888, referring to certain
political considerations as between Canada and the
States. It states :

What these are may be inferred from the recent
utterances of prominent American statesmen like
Senator Sherman and Mr. Whitney, Secretary of t la-
Navy, just previous t<> the recent election, with refer-
ence to which the Bulletin has recently had something
to say. Both are inimical to commercial union unless

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 107

it be also complemented by political union; or, to
phrase it more plainly, they insist that annexation of
Canada to the United States can afford the only
effective guarantee of satisfactory relations between
the two countries, if these are to be permanent.
These prominent public men, representing each of the
great parties that have alternately the administration
of this Government in their hands, we are persuaded,
did not put forth these views at random, but that they
voiced the views of other political leaders, their asso-
ciates, who are aiming at making Canadian annexation
the leading issue at the next Presidential election. As
if speaking for the Republicans, Senator Sherman, as
has already been shown, thinks the country is now
ready for the question ; while Secretary Whitney, as if
speaking for the other political party, is not less eager
to bring the country face to face with it, even at the
risk of a war with England, though it is but justice to
him to say that he is of the opinion that the Mother
Country, if really persuaded that the Canadians them-
selves were in favour of separating from her, would not
fire a gun nor spend a pound sterling to prevent it. . . .
The whole drift is unquestionably in that direction
(political union), and in the meantime we do not look
for positive action on the part of Congress, on either
eomniercial reciprocity or the fisheries, at this session or
the next. These questions, in all human probability,
will be purposely left open by the party managers in
order to force the greater issue, which, as it seems to me,
none but a blind man can fail to see is already looming
up with unmistakable distinctness in the future.

The New York World in the early part of 1890
" instructed its correspondents in Montreal, Toronto,
and Quebec to describe impartially the political situ-
ation in Canada in regard to annexation to the United
States." The report charges Premier Mercier with
being " a firm believer in annexation as the ultimate

108 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

destiny of the Dominion of Canada," but he " is too
shrewd a politician to openly preach annexation to his
fellow countrymen under existing circumstances."
The report also quotes the Toronto Globe as saying
that the Canadian people " find the Colonial yoke a
galling one," and that " the time when Canadian
patriotism was synonymous with loyalty to the British
connection has long since gone by."

The concluding paragraph of the World's article is
the most suggestive and insolent :

Nobody who has studied the peculiar methods by
which elections are won in Canada will deny the fact,
that five or six million dollars, judiciously expended in
this country, would secure the return to Parliament of
a majority pledged to the annexation of Canada to the
United States.

The leading men in this conspiracy in Canada were
Edward Farrer, Solomon White, Elgin Myers, E. A.
Maedonald, Gold win Smith, and John Charlton, the
two latter being the only men of any prominent status
or position in the movement, and after a time
Charlton left it. These men were avowed annexa-
tionists, while there were a great, many in favour of
commercial union who did not believe that it would
result in annexation, or did not care, and there were
numbers who were ready to float with the stream, and
quite willing to advocate annexation^ if they thought
the movement was likely to succeed. When the
Continental Union Association was formed in 1892,
Cfoldwin Smith accepted the Honorary Presidency in
Canada, for the organisation had its principal strength
in New York, where a large numbei of prominent and
wealthy men joined its ranks, Francis Wayland Glen

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 109

being the Secretary. Glen became angry at the defec-
tion of some Liberal leaders after they obtained office,
and gave the names of the organisers in a letter to the
Ottawa Evening Journal of the 13th September, 1904,
as follows :

Charles A. Dana, Andrew Carnegie, John Jacob
Astor, Ethan Allen, Warner Miller, Edward Lauterbach,
Wm. C. Whitney, Orlando B. Potter, Horace Porter,
John Hay, Theodore Roosevelt, Elihu Root, Oswald
Ottendorfer, Cornelius N. Bliss, John D. Long, Jno. B.
Foraker, Knute Nelson, Jacob Gallinger, Roswell P.
Flower, Joseph Jno. O'Donohue, Chauncey M. Depew,
John P. Jones, Wm. Walter Phelps, General Butter-
field, General Henry W. Slocum, General James H.
Wilson, General Granville W. Dodge, Charles Francis
Adams, Oliver Ames, Seth Low, Bourke Cochrane,
John C.^McGuire, Dennis O'Brien, Charles L. Tiffany,
John ClafHin, Nathan Straus, and Samuel Spencer.

In the list we received in addition to these there
were others, nearly 500 in all.

Afterwards, in 1893, I was able to get some further
information as to the treasonable nature of the move-
ment as far as the Canadian side of it was concerned.
The intention of those interested in the United States
was to endeavour to extend the power of that country
to the Arctic Ocean, as it had been extended to Mexico
and the Pacific.

The Continental Union League in New York was in
close connection with the Continental Union Associa-
tion of Ontario. Mr. Goldwin Smith, as I have said,
accepted the position of Honorary President, John
Morrison was the President, and T. M. White Secretary.
The headquarters were in Toronto. We had informa-
tion at the time that Mr. Goldwin Smith subscribed

no THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

$500 to the funds, and that this was intended to be an
annual subscription.

There were two members of our League with whom I
was constantly conferring on the private matters
connected with our work. Upon them, more than on
any others, did I depend for advice, for consultation,
and for assistance, and I can never forget the obliga-
tions I am under to them. We three accidentally
saw an opportunity of getting some knowledge of the
working of the Continental Union League in New
York. By great good fortune we were able to perfect
arrangements by which one who was in the confidence
of the movement in New York was induced to send
us any information that could be obtained. For a
considerable time we were in receipt of most interest-
ing information, much of which was verified by inde-
pendent evidence. We often heard from our agent
beforehand of what was going to take place, and every
lime matters came to pass just as we had been fore-
warned In many instances we had independent
corroborative evidence that the statements were
reliable.

We were informed of a written agreement, signed
by a Canadian Liberal leader, to have legislation
carried to handicap the Canadian Pacific Railway it
the Liberal party came into power. Our agent
obtained knowledge of where and by whom it was
signed, and who at the time had custody of it. We
received copies of many of Glen's letters to Mercier,
Farrer. Bourke Cochrane, and ethers. One letter to
Colonel John Hay at Washington informed him that
the New York League was working in conjunct ion with
the Ontario League. A letter to Farrer told him of
a meeting held in November, I89o, in the New York

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT m

Sun office, at which Honorc Mercier, John Morrison,
Tarte, and Robidoux were present, that money was
asked to aid the Liberals, but Glen objected. This
information we received some months after this
meeting had been held. Eleven years later, in the
letter already referred to, which Glen in his anger
wrote to the Ottawa Journal of the 13th September,
1904, I find the following paragraph :

Upon the 4th November, 1893, Wilfrid Laurier held
a meeting of his friends in Montreal, and that meeting
sent a deputation to New York to ask funds of the
National Continental Union League for the elections,
which it was supposed would take place in the spring
of 1894. Israel Tarte, Honore Mercier, J. E. Robidoux,
Louis Joseph Papineau and Mr. Langelier, and Sir
Oliver Mowat was represented by John Morison, of
Toronto. These gentlemen met Mr. Dana, Mr. Carnegie,
and myself in the office of The Sun on November 6th.
Mr. Tarte asked as a beginning for $50,000, with which
to purchase Le Monde newspaper, and Mr. Morison
desired $50,000 to purchase a labour paper in Toronto.
Mr. Carnegie asked Mr. Tarte if he was prepared to
pledge the Liberal party to advocate the independence
of Canada as a prelude to continental union.

He replied that if we furnished them with money for
the elections they would do so if they were successful in
the elections. Mr. Morison agreed with Mr. Tarte.
Mr. Carnegie then asked Hon. Honore Mercier if he
would contest the province of Quebec in favour of the
independence of Canada as a prelude to continental
union. He replied, Yes.

This statement cannot be taken as reliable. Glen
himself was not reliable, and it is not at all probable
that Sir Wilfrid Laurier had anything to do with send-
ing these men to New York, and yet some of them may
have told Glen that he had, or Glen may have assumed

ii2 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

it. Certainly Sir Oliver Mowat never asked Mr.
Morison to make any application of any kind. I do
not believe he would have entrusted him with any
mission, and I am sure Sir Oliver Mowat was as much
opposed to these intrigues as I was. It is quite possible
that Morison posed in New York as representing
Sir Oliver Mowat, but it was an absurdity.

The letter of Glen, however, proves that there was
some foundation for the information our agent sent
to us.

In a letter to Mercier in February, 1894, Glen stated
that John Charlton, an Ontario Liberal, had called on
Dana the day before for money, and I have another
letter signed by Francis W. Glen which corroborates
this statement of our informant.

Mr. Goldwin Smith's name appeared often in the
correspondence, so did Erastus Wiman's. Myers is
mentioned as going over to New York to see Dana.
Glen writes to Mercier on the 3rd April, 1894, to write
to Farrer in reference to Goldwin Smith. On the same
day he wrote to Bourke Cochrane telling him that
Goldwin Smith was anxious for a resolution in
Congress. A copy of the draft of the resolution
referred to, which was sent to us, reads as follows :

Resolved :

That we believe that the political union of the two
great English-speaking communities who now occupy
and control North America will deliver the continent
from the scourge of war, and securely dedicate it to
peaceful industry and progress, lessen the per capita
cost of government and defence, ensure the rapid
development of its boundless natural resources, enlarge
its domestic and foreign commerce, unite all interests
in creating a systematic development of its means of

THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 113

internal communication with the sea-board by rail and
water, protect and preserve its wealth, resources, privi-
leges, and opportunities as the undisputed heritage of
all, immensely add to its influence, prestige, and power,
promote, extend, and perpetuate government by the
people, and remove for ever the causes most likely to
seriously disturb cordial relations and kindly inter-
course with the Motherland. We therefore invite the
Canadian people to cast in their lot with their own
continent, and assure them that they shall have all the
continent can give them. We will respect their free-
dom of action, and welcome them when they desire it
into an equal and honourable union.

I do not know whether this was introduced into
Congress or not.

We also had information of meetings at Carnegie's
house and The Sun office, and what took place at
them. All our information was conveyed to Sir John
Thompson, and at a meeting in Halifax he made some
reference to movements that were going on in the
States, which apparently attracted attention.

Not long after this we heard from our informant
that at a meeting where Carnegie, Dana, and Goldwin
Smith were present, Goldwin Smith said they would
have to be very careful, as he believed there was a leak
somewhere.

Among other information we obtained was a copy of
the subscriptions to the fund. Some of the more
important were Andrew Carnegie, $600 ; R. P. Flower,
$500 ; Charles A. Dana, $460 ; J. J. Astor, $200 ; O. B.
Potter, $150; W. C. Whitney, $100, &c.

Outside and apart from all this information, I was
shown a letter from Honore Mercier to Charles A.
Dana, and a letter enclosing it to the President of the
Continental Union Association of Ontario. I was able

I

ri4 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

jure photographs of these letters. I forwarded one
copy of these photographs to Lord Salisbury, but kepi
copies from which the facsimiles here published are
taken.

Mebcibb, Gouin,& Leiheux, Avocats. Montreal,

WK August,

Hon. Honore Meicier, C.R.
Lomer Gouin, L.L.B.
Rodolphe Lemienx, L.L.L.

[Private and Confidential,']

To the Honorable Ms. Dana, Editor of TheSun, New York.

Deab Sir, —

I have met General Kirwin Sunday last, and am
satisfied with the general result of the interview.

1 asked him to see you without delay, and to tell you
what took place.

V- the matter he placed before me concerns chiefly
the American side of our common cause, I thought
hitter to have your view first and be guided by you.

Genera] Kirwin seems to be a reliable man, as
stated in your letter, and to be much devoted to our c

My trip in the East has been a success and will
bring out a strong and very important move in favour
of Canadian Independence.

I will be in Chicago on the 22nd inst. to take part m
the French Canadian Convention and hope to obtain
there a good result.

Allow me to bring your attention to my state of
poverty and to ask you if our New York friends could
not come to my rescue, in order that I might continue
the work, in providing me with at least my travelling
expenses.

I make that suggestion xny reluctantly but by
necessity.

Believe me, dear Sir,
Yours very truly,

HoNoKK MeRCIER.

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THE COMMERCIAL UNION MOVEMENT 115

P.S. — I would advise you to seal and register every
letter you will send me. I intend to leave for Chicago
on Sunday, the 13th inst., and stop at Detroit and
Buffalo.

H. M.

"The Sun,"

New York, Aug. 12, 1893.

Dear Mr. Morison,

I have just received the enclosed letter. Its
demands are moderate. You know the sum which is
in my hands. How much should I send him ? Please
return the letter with your answer.

Yours faithfully,

C. A. Dana.

James Morison, Esq.,

Toronto, Canada.

This letter of Mercier's is very significant. I do not
understand the allusion to General Kirwin. His name
was Michael Kirwin, and he is not to be confused with
Capt. Michael Kirwan who served in the North-West
Rebellion. I knew the latter well, he was an Irish
gentleman. The General Kirwin was a Fenian, and
from what I heard of him at the time I gathered that he
was somewhat of a soldier of fortune. Whether Mercier
was intriguing for a Fenian rising or for Fenian
influence in the United States in favour of annexation
I do not know, but the association with such a man
had a sinister look, to my mind. The letter, however,
shows Mercier's strong support of Canadian Independ-
ence, and his desire to obtain money from foreign enemies
of his country to enable him to carry out his intrigues.

The transmission of this letter to the President of
the Continental Union Association of Ontario for
advice as to how much money should be paid out to

1 2

n6 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Mercier shows how closely the two organisations were
working together.

The foregoing pages show clearly the object and aim
of the Commercial Union Conspiracy, the widespread
influence of the movement among the foremost men of
the United States, the dangers Canada had to face,
with the power of a great country active and unscrupu-
lous against her, and embarrassed by the internal
treachery of disloyal men in her own borders. My
main object in the following chapters will be to describe
the efforts and exertions made to warn our people,
and to frustrate the designs and intrigues of our
enemies at home and abroad.

CHAPTER XIII

THE YEARS 1888 AND 1889
THE WORK OF THE IMPERIAL FEDERATION LEAGUE

After the inauguration of the Imperial Federation
branch in Toronto on the 24th March, 1888, the
members were much encouraged by the result of the
debate in the Dominion House of Commons on Sir
Richard Cartwright's motion in favour of unrestricted
reciprocity with the United States. The vote was
taken at half-past four on the morning of the 7th April
after a discussion lasting for many days. The resolution
was defeated by a majority of 57 in a house of 181
members. The Commons of Canada then sang " God
Save the Queen."

The Mail attacked me on the 26th April, 1888; on
account of my statement that the originators of commer-
cial union were traitors, and threatened that if I did
not desist from acting in that way I should be
removed from the position of police magistrate.
Replying the next day in a letter to the editor I
repeated :

that Commercial Union originated in treason, and that
it emanated from a traitor in New York. This view I
still hold and will express whenever and wherever I
feel disposed. . . ,

ttS the struggle for imperial unity

I wont on to say :

I do not look upon this question as a political or party
question. It is one affecting our national life, It is a
foreign intrigue to betray][us into the hands of a foreign
people, and it behoves every Canadian who loves his
country to do his utmost to save it from annihilation.

I did not ask for the position of police magistrate : it
was offered to me by cable when I was in England. I
accepted it at Mr. Mowat's request 1 feel under no
obligation whatever to the country for the offi<< !
feel I am giving good service for every dollar I receive,
I did not want the office at the time I was appointed,
and can live without it whenever I choose to do so, and
all the traitors in the United States and Canada
combined cannot make me cease to speak for my
country when occasion requires . . . on questions
affecting the national life, I shall always try to be in
the front rank of those who stand up for Canada.

On the 7th May, 1888, the Toronto branch sent a
deputation to Lord Lansdowne, Governor-General, t<>
present a memorial praying his Excellency to invite
the Australian Governments, and the Government of
New Zealand to join the Canadian Government in a
conference to devise means for the development of
reciprocal trade and commerce.

The Imperial Federation Journal published this
memorial and Lord Lansdowne's reply, and spoke of
the energy and 6lan which the Canadian branches were
displaying, and then added prophetically, " They have,
if we mistake not, set a ball a-rolling that will be
found ere long too big to be described in the half
dozen lines of print that is all the great English news-
papers have so far seen fit to devote to the subject."

The organisation of new branches of the League
followed rapidly the successful meeting in Toronto.

WORK OF THE FEDERATION LEAGUE 119

On the 2nd April, 1888, a strong branch was formed
at Brantford, Ontario. On the 16th April another
Was formed at St. Thomas, another about the same
time at Port Arthur, on the 4th May another at
Orillia, while a very successful meeting of the Ottawa
Branch was held on the 22nd April, to carry a resolu-
tion in favour of discriminating tariffs between the
Colonies and the Mother Country.

On the 4th June there was a rousing meeting of the
branch of the League at Halifax, Nova Scotia, at which
a resolution was unanimously carried in favour of
reciprocal trade between the colonies and Great Britain.
At this meeting the late Archbishop O'Brien, one of
the ablest and most patriotic men that Canada has
produced, made a most eloquent and powerful speech
against commercial union or annexation, and, speaking
of the men advocating these ideas, he said :

There are, however, others of this section less worthy
of respect. They are men who have not courage to
face great national problems, but think it wisdom to
become the Cassandra of every noble undertaking.
These men have for leader and mouthpiece Goldwin
Smith, the peripatetic prophet of pessimism. Because,
forsooth, his own life has been a dismal failure, because
his overweening vanity was badly injured in its
collision with Canadian common sense, because we
would not take phrases void of sense for apophthegms of
wisdom, he, the fossilised enemy of local autonomy and
the last defender of worn-out bigotry, has put his
feeble curse on Canadian nationality and assumed the
leadership of the gruesome crowd of Missis Gummidges,
who see no future for Canada but vassalage to the
United States. Let them, if it so pleases, wring their
hands in cowardly despair; but are we, the descendants
of mighty races, the inheritors of a vast patrimony, the

T2o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

heirs of noble traditions, bo poor in resources or so

degenerate as to know no form of action save the tears
and handwringings of dismal forebodings { It, is an
insult, and should be resented as such, to be told that
annexation is our destiny. The promoters of Imperial
Federation are called dreamers. Well, their dream is
at least an ennobling one, one that appeals to all the
noble sentiments of manhood. But what are we to
say to the dreary prophets of evil, the decriers of their
country, the traitors of their magnificent inheritance \
They are not dreamers : they are the dazed victims of
a hideous nightmare, to be kindly reasoned with when
sincere, to be remorselessly thrust aside when acting
the demagogue. The principle of Canadian nationality
has taken too firm ahold on our people to permit them
to merge their distinct life in that of a nation whose
institutions give no warrant of permanency, as they
afford no guarantee of real individual ami religious
liberty.

This extract from the speech of the Roman Catholic
Archbishop of Halifax indicates clearly how the
Canadian feeling was being aroused by the attempts
upon the national life of Canada.

In the summer of this year the United Stat<^
Senate refused to endorse the Fisheries Treaty which
had been agreed upon by President Cleveland and the
British authorities. This was followed by a Retaliation
proclamation, <>r at least by a message to Con
asking for powers to retaliate upon Canada, by cancel-
ling the bonding privileges which we have been using
for very many years. The Retaliation Act was p
after a most hostile discussion against Canada. This
threat was received by our people in the most unflinch-
ing spirit, and the matter was soon dropped by the
United States Government,

WORK OF THE FEDERATION LEAGUE 121

In October, 1888, the Toronto Globe, evidently with
the object of accustoming the minds of the Canadian
people to the idea that the question of Annexation or
Independence was a live issue, and one to be discussed
and considered with as much freedom and propriety as
tariff reform or temperance legislation or manhood
suffrage, called for letters discussing the advantages or
disadvantages of annexation or independence. It was
the same scheme that Goldwin Smith had endeavoured
to work in the National Club.

On the 6th October I wrote a letter to the Globe on
the condition and prospects of Canada, and said :

Events are crowding upon us faster than we arc
aware. Let us look back over the past few months.
First came the Commercial Union movement, appar-
ently originated by a Canadian in the interests of
Canada, but which is now shown to have been a
Yankee plot worked by a renegade with the object of
producing annexation. Then came the repudiation of
the Fisheries Treaty by the Republican party, followed
by the Retaliation proclamation of the Democratic
President; then came the almost unanimous passage
of the Retaliation Act in the United States House of
Representatives after a long succession of speeches by
members of both political parties violently abusive and
unreasonably hostile to Canada. Then came the
speech of Senator Sherman exposing the hostile
policy of a hundred years. Then the discussion of
negotiations for annexation in the Committee of
Foreign Relations, and to-day Senator Sherman's
interview, in which he says, " Political union is
necessary or war is inevitable." At this moment the
Presidential election is being fought out on the
question as to which party is most hostile to England
and Canada, and unless a marked change comes over
the people of the United States, it will not be many

i22 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

years before we shall be fighting for our existenc
free people on this continent. Senator Sherman's last
warning is straight to the point, and cannot be over-
looked or misunderstood

I then went on to urge that we must forget all party
differences, that we should unite in the face of the
common danger, that a firm and united front might
save us all the horrors of war, pointing out that " at
(lie Trent affair if there had been treason in Canada,
or the least sign of division in our ranks, we would
have had war."

A number of letters in favour of annexation appeared
in the Globe, and I became much alarmed, for the
writers signed their names. I felt that if the discus-
sion went on unchecked it would in time have a
certain effect upon the wobblers and the unreliable.
I had studied carefully the American Revolution, and
was of the opinion that the whole success of that
movement was due to the fact that the loyal men, and
the law-abiding men, did nothing themselves, but
relied upon the constituted authorities to check a
movement that in the end robbed them of their
property, deprived them of all their civil rights, and
drove them penniless into exile. I felt that as far as
T was concerned I would leave no stone unturned to
prevent such a fate befalling Canada through supine-
ness or indifference.

At the annual dinner of the Caledonian Society of
Toronto, on the 30th October, 1888, I responded to the
toast, of ''The Army, Navy, and Volunteers." The
Empire of the 31st October reported my speech as
follows :

Colonel Denison launched forth a few hundred words

which made the Scots fairly jump with enthusiasm.

WORK OF THE FEDERATION LEAGUE T23

He referred in the first place to the achievements
of Scotchmen in the British Army, and then spoke
about the Canadian Volunteers. Canada at this
moment, he said, is passing through a very critical
crisis in her history. She will be called upon to
preserve her national life within the next three or four
years. (Someone ejaculated " Oh ! Oh ! ") It's all
very well to say " Oh ! Oh ! " said the Colonel. I tell
you things are crowding upon us very fast. Within
the past two months we have seen one thing after
another showing a most bitter and hostile feeling
towards this country on the part of the United States.
Only this very evening came a telegram from Washington,
saying that Cleveland is going to issue his retaliation
proclamation immediately. Let him do it. (Cheers.)
I have every faith in Canada. We have got everything
on this northern half of this continent to make this a
great country. We have the country and the people,
and we can hold our own. All that is necessary is for us
to be true to ourselves. (Cheers.) Then let us have
confidence in ourselves and in our future. I am
sorry to see that a few have not sufficient confidence
in our future. I hope our volunteers will mark
these traitors in this country, and put them in
the rear when trouble comes. I do not like to see
letters in our papers advocating annexation. It is
nothing but rank treason. (Cheers.) There is one
thing about it though, gentlemen, when these men
come out, and put their names to annexation papers,
they can be marked. We can put " ear marks " on
them, and when trouble comes we will know who the
traitors are. (Ringing cheers.)

And I went on to say we were putting their names in a
list.

The Globe was evidently much put out at my action,
and not daring openly to take the opposite view,
relieved its feelings in a long article heaping ridicule

i24 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

upon me and upon the Rev. Mr. Milligan, who had
spoken sympathetically with me at the same dinner,
and intimating that I was anxious for war with the
United States. I wrote in reply to this:

I believe the United Slates to be very hostile to
Canada: I believe they always have been. I believe
they will endeavour to destroy our national life by
force or fraud whenever they can, with the objecl
of absorbing us. This has been my view for ;
and I feel that the history of the past is strong
evidence of the correctness of my opinion, if the events
of the last two months are not absolute proof of it.

I have always warned my fellow-countrymen of this
danger. I have always striven to encourage a healthy
Canadian national spirit, a confidence in ourselves and
in our future. I have endeavoured to give courage to the
faint-hearted and the timid, and have always urged
that Canadians of all classes should stand shoulder to
shoulder, ready to make any and every sacrifice tor the
State. I have felt that doubts and misgivings, the
preaching and talking of annexation, were of all thinca
the most likely to induce the Yankees to attack us. In
1812, the belief that we were divided, that the traitors
were in the majority among us, and that we were ripe
for annexation, had much to do with bringing on a
bloody and severe war. The unanimity and courage
displayed by our people at the Trent affair, the bold
and unbroken front then shown by the Canadians
saved us from war at that time.

To-day every word that is said in Canada in favour
of annexation, or that shows a want of confidence in
ourselves, is being vigorously used in the United States
to create a widespread belief in that country that we
are ripe for annexation. This dangerous mistake will
pave the way to war, and this is why I so strongly
resent a line of action that is so fraught with danger to
our country.

WORK OF THE FEDERATION LEAGUE 125

Talk of my wanting war ! The idea is absurd. It is
the last thing I want. I hold that we have a free
Government, that we have the fullest political, religious,
and personal liberty. Our country is one of the most
prosperous, if not the most prosperous, country in the
world, and we have every hope of a great national
future. If we had war it would cost the lives of thou-
sands of our best. It would destroy our property, ruin
our business interests, throw back our country twenty
years in progress, burden us with an enormous debt,
and if completely victorious we could not be freer, or
have greater liberty or advantages, than we have to-day.
We have no reason to go to war, unless we are driven*
to defend and preserve all we hold dear. No one
appreciates this better than I do, and on that account
all my efforts have been in the direction of preserving
peace.

If war comes you will probably be still carrying on
the newspaper business on King Street, your annexa-
tion correspondents will (if at large) still be spreading
fears and misgivings in the rear, if not traitorously
aiding the enemy, but I will have to be on the outpost
line, exposed to all the hardships and trials of war.
I know enough of war to hope that the Almighty may
give us peace in our time, but rather than my country
should be lost, I hope when the day of trial comes that
God may give me courage to make any and every
sacrifice in the interests of my native land.

I have been abused and attacked, threatened and
ridiculed by Canadians for speaking out for Canada,
but while I live nothing shall prevent me from doing
what I believe to be the duty of every true Canadian.

One member of the Ontario Government met me on
the street about this time, and took me to task for
speaking so strongly on the question of Commercial
Union and Unrestricted Reciprocity. I gave him an
emphatic reply that I would follow my own course

126 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

in the matter. Another prominent gentleman, since
a Senator, and now a preferential tariff supporter,
also .spoke to me on the street, and said, "Certainly
people should be allowed to discuss annexation or
independence as they liked." I denied this vehemently,
and declared they could not have either without fight-
ing, and I told him plainly that it he meant to secure
either he had better hang me on a lamp-post, or other-
wise, if it became a live issue, I would hang him. I had
made up my mind that if there was to be any of the
work that the "Sons of Liberty" resorted to in the
United States before the Revolution, we of the loyal
party would follow their example and do it our-
selves. Sir Oliver Mowat, then Premier and Attorney*
General, once spoke to me, advising me not to be 90
violent in my language. My reply was that if the
matter became dangerous I would resign my Police
Magistracy one day, and he would find me leading a
mob the next. Sir Oliver Mowat was a thorough
loyalist, and at heart I think he fully sympathised
with me.

Early in November. 1888, there was a large Conven-
tion of Dentists held in Syracuse, New York State,
which Dr. W. George Beers, of Montreal, attended.
At the banquet a toast was proposed, "Professional
Annexation." Dr. Beers replied in an eloquent, loyal,
and maul)' speech, which voiced the Canadian feeling.
It was copied into many Canadian papers, and printed
in pamphlet form and circulated broadcast throughout
the country.

lie told them: "Just as you had and have your
croakers and cowards we have ours, but Canada is not

for sale Annexation as ;i serious subject has

received its doom, and in spite of the intoxication of

WORK OF THE FEDERATION LEAGUE 127

senatorial conceit on the one side, and the croaking ot
malcontents and tramps on the other, Canada is loyal
to the Mother Country from whose stout old loins both
of us sprang." And after describing the extent and
resources of the British Empire, he said : " Sharers in
such a realm, heirs to such vast and varied privileges,
Canadians are not for sale."

During December, 1888, I spoke at a large meeting
at Ingersoll on the 6th with Mr. J. M. Clark, on the
11th at Lindsay with Mr. James L. Hughes, and on
the 20th at a meeting of the Toronto League.

In 1889 the work went on very vigorously. Dr.
George R. Parkin, one of the most eloquent and able ,/
of our members, who had been lecturing in England on
behalf of the parent League, made a tour through
Canada, and the Imperial Federation League arranged
a series of meetings which he addressed with great elo-
qence and power. He was then on the way to Australia,
where his energy and enthusiasm helped on the spirit
of Imperialism among the people of that colony and
New Zealand, and gave the movement an impetus
there which has not been lost. This was helped by
some speeches delivered in Australia in 1888, by .{
Principal George M. Grant, the greatest of our members, //
one who never lost an opportunity of doing all he
could for the cause.

It was an interesting fact that at one of Dr. Parkin's
meetings at St. Thomas he was accompanied by Mr.
E. E. Sheppard, who, it will be remembered, was one
of the early advocates of Independence, and who had
flown an Independence flag over his office in 1884.
Mr. Sheppard had been won over by the arguments of
our League to advocate Imperial Federation as a
practical means of becoming independent, and had

i28 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

become a member of our Committee and a very
powerful advocate of our cause.

In Canada the League was very active this year.
On the 11th January, 1889, Mr. D'Alton McCarthy
and I addressed a large and enthusiastic meeting at
Peterboro. On the 17th January I attended a Sons
of* England Banquet at St. Thomas, organised as a
demonstration against Annexation and in favour of
Imperial Unity, where I responded to the principal
toast, and made a strong appeal against Commercial
Union and in favour of Imperial Consolidation. On
the 9th February, A. J. Cattanach, Commander Law,
J. T. Small and I went to Hamilton in Imperial
Federation interests. On the 18th February, Dr. Parkin
spoke at St. Thomas. On the 29th March, 1889,
J. Castell Hopkins and I addressed a large meeting at
Woodstock. I spoke at the St. George's Society
Banquet, Toronto, 23rd April. On the 11th May.
there was a large meeting at Hamilton addressed by
Principal George M. Grant. The Annual Meeting of
the League took place at Hamilton the same day, and
the early difficulties of the movement are well evi-
denced by the fact that at the Annual Meeting of the
League only eleven representatives were present, viz.:
D'Alton McCarthy, M.P., President, in the Chair;
Thomas Macfarlane, F.R.S.C, representing Ottawa
Branch ; Principal G. M. Grant, President Kingston
Branch ; Henry Lyman, President Montreal Branch ;
H. H. Lyman, Treasurer ; J. Castell Hopkins, one of
the Hon. Secretaries; Commander Law, Secretary
Toronto Branch ; D. T. Symons, Lt.-Colonel George T.
Denison, J. T. Small, and Senator Mclnnes. On the
21st May, Principal Grant delivered an address in
Toronto, and another on the 16th August at Chatauqua,

WORK OF THE FEDERATION LEAGUE 129

near Niagara-on-the-Lake, both powerful appeals in
support of the cause.

The Commercial Unionists made violent attacks
upon the League, ridiculing it and its objects, and
caricatures were often published making light of our
efforts, while many Liberal newspapers, led by the
Globe, attacked us at every available opportunity.

CHAPTER XIV

THE YEAR 1890

This was the most active and important year of our
work for the Empire, and we began to see the result of
the efforts we had made. The Commercial Union
movement was as active and dangerous as ever, and
the contest was carried on with great vigour all the
year.

On the 6th February, 1890, I wrote to Sir John
Macdonald telling him that the next election would be
fought on the straight issue of loyalty. At that time
he hardly agreed with me, but before the year was out
my forecast was verified.

On the 13th January, 1890, I addressed a dinner of
the Sons of England. On the 25th of the same month
I had a letter in the Globe pointing out the dangers of
the belief obtaining ground that we were divided. I
knew that Mr. Mulock proposed moving a resolution in
the House of Commons to show how united our people
were on the question of loyalty to the Empire, and, to
aid him, went on to say :

These conspirators are working now every day to
pave the way for trouble. The public mind of the
United States is being educated, and those in Canada
working for them and with them, some consciously, some
unconsciously, are sowing seed of which we will reap

THE YEAR 1890 131

the bitter harvest. The Canadians advocating Inde-
pendence are of two classes, one a class loyal to Canada
above* all, the other using Independence as a cloak,
knowing that Independence just now, while making us
no freer, would deprive us of the backing of the Empire,
and change our present practical independence, either
to an absolute dependence on the United States or to
the necessity of a desperate struggle with them.

Mr. Mulock will do good service if he succeeds, as I
suppose he will, in getting a unanimous vote of our
Parliament in favour of the existing constitution of our
country. It will show that we are not a downtrodden
people, waiting for our neighbours to aid us in throwing
off a galling yoke, and will tend to counteract the plots
of those conspirators who are intriguing for our
conquest and national extinction.

We must show them that we are a united people on
national questions. It is our only safeguard. If we
are to be weakened by internal dissensions in the face
of foreign aggression, God help our country.

On the 29th January, 1890, Mr. Mulock moved an
address to her Majesty in the following terms :

Most Gracious Majesty,

We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects,
the Commons of Canada in Parliament assembled,
desire most earnestly in our own name, and on behalf
of the people whom we represent, to renew the
expression of our unswerving loyalty and devotion to
Your Majesty's person and Government.

We have learned with feelings of entire disapproval
that various public statements have been made, calling
in question the loyalty of the people of Canada to the
political union now happily existing between this
Dominion and the British Empire, and representing it
as the desire of the people of Canada to sever such
connection.

K 2

i32 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

We desire, therefore, to assure Your Majesty that
such statements are wholly incorrect representations of
the sentiments and aspirations of the people of Canada,
who are among Your Majesty's most loyal subjects,
devotedly attached to the political union existing
between Canada and the Mother Country, and earnestly
desire its continuance.

We feel assured that Your Majesty will not allow
any such statement, emanating from any source what-
ever, to lessen Your Majesty's confidence in the loyally
of your Canadian subjects to Your Majesty's person
and Government, and will accept our assurances of
the contentment of Your Majesty's Canadian subjects
with the political connection between Canada and the
rest of the British Empire, and of their fixed resolve to
aid in maintaining the same.

We pray that the blessings of Your Majesty's reign
may, for your people's sake, be long continued.

Mr. Mulock's speech clearly explains the reasons for
hi-s action. He said :

We are all observers of current events, we arc all
readers of the literature of the day, and we have had
the opportunity of observing the trend of the American
Press during the last few months. In that Press you find
a doctrine set forth as if it were the expression of one
mind, but appearing in the whole of the Press of the
United States and being in that way spread far and wide.
You find it asserted there that the political institutions
in Canada are broken down ; that we are a people
divided against ourselves or amongst ourselves ; that we
are torn apart by internal dissensions; that race is set
against race, creed against creed, Province against
Province, and the Dominion against the Empire ; and
that this has created a feeling in favour of independent •
or annexation which is now only awaiting the opportunity
to take practical form and shape. These statements
have, no doubt, already done injury to our country. A

THE YEAR 1890 133

surplus population does not seek countries which are
supposed to be bordering on revolution. Capital does
not seek investment in countries which are supposed
not to be blessed with stable government. Therefore,
for the information of the outside world, for the
information of those who have not had the advantage
of being born or becoming Canadian citizens, for their
advantage and for our own advantage ultimately, I
have asked the House to adopt this resolution. To give
further colour to these statements, we find that the
United States Congress appointed a Committee of the
Senate, ostensibly to inquire into the relations of
Canada with the United States ; but if anyone investi-
gated the proceedings of that Committee, he would
find that apparently the principal anxiety of the
Commission is to discover satisfactory evidence that
this country is in a frame of mind to be annexed to the
United States. I know of no better way of meeting
their curiosity on that subject, and at the same time of
settling this question, than for the people of Canada,
through their representatives here assembled, to make
an authoritative deliverance upon the subject. Such a
deliverance will go far, I believe, to settle the question
in the minds of the people of the old lands, those of
England and of continental Europe, and then I hope
it will result in setting once more flowing towards
our shores the surplus capital and the surplus popu-
lation of those old lands which are so much wanted
for the development of the resources of this vast
Dominion. I make this statement in no feeling of
unfriendliness to the United States. We cannot blame
them for casting longing eyes towards this favoured
land, but we can only attribute that to Canada's worth,
and, therefore, to that extent we can appreciate their
advances. But that the American people seriously
believe that Canada, a land so full of promise, is now
prepared, in her very infancy, to commit political
suicide, I cannot for a moment believe. Do the
American people believe that this young country, with

i.34 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

her illimitable resources, with a population representing
the finest strains of human blood, with political
institutions based upon a model that has stood the
strain for ages, and has ever become stronger — do they
believe that this country, possessing within her own
limits all the essentials for enduring national greatness,
is now prepared to abandon the work of the Con-
federation fathers, and pull out from the Confederation
edifice the cement of British connection which holds
the various parts of the edifice together ? Do they, I
say, believe that the people of Canada are prepared
in that way to disappear from the nations of the earth,
amidst the universal contempt of the world ? No,
Mr. Speaker, the American people are too intelligent to
believe any such a thing. They have been trying to
make themselves believe it, but they cannot do it. But
whether they believe it or not — no matter who
believes it outside of Canada — I venture to say the
Canadian people do not believe it ; and whatever be
the destiny of Canada, I trust that such as I have
indicated is not to be her destiny.

The motion was carried by a vote of 161 yeas and no
nays.

This action of the House of Commons was of the
greatest possible good, and gave great encouragement
to our League.

By this time the meetings of the Executive Com-
mittee of the Imperial Federation League were gener-
ally held in my office, at the old Police Court. I often
occupied the chair in the absence of Mr. D'Alton
McCarthy, and later of Sir Leonard Tilley, who
succeeded him as President. At a meeting held on
the 17th February, 1890, Mr. Henry J. Wickham read
a letter which he had received from a friend in the
United States, mentioning the custom of flying the
Stars and Stripes over the schools in that country, and

THE YEAR 1890 135

suggesting that a like custom might be advantageous
in Canada. The idea was seized on at once, and it was
decided to organise a representative deputation with a
view to waiting on the Minister of Education, and
getting him to make such a regulation that the
national flag would be used in all public schools in
Ontario, and hoisted on certain days of the year to
commemorate events of national importance. The
details of the matter were left in the hands of Mr.
H. J. Wickham and myself. Mr. Wickham acted as
secretary, and very soon we had organised a very
influential and powerful deputation of representative
men to wait upon the Hon. G. W. Ross and to ask
for Government recognition and authority for the
movement.

On the 21st February, 1890, our deputation was
received by the Minister of Education, and the objects
we desired were explained to the Minister by Mr.
Wickham, Mr. Somers (Chairman of the Public School
Board), by myself as chairman of the deputation, and
we were supported by Mayor Clarke, J. M. Clark
and others.

Mr. Ross said that " it was needless to say that he
sympathised deeply with the deputation in their
request." He said also that " he considered the display
of the national emblem would be a fitting exhibition
representing externally what was being done inside the
schools. He would have no objection to make such a
regulation, if it was not easy enough now, and legal if it
was not so now, to display the national emblem in
some such way as to impress upon the children the
fact that we are a country and have a flag and a place
in it."

This was most satisfactory to us, and the movement

136 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

soon became general, and now in several Provinces the
practice of displaying the flag is followed.

On the same night, the 21st February, I attended the
annual dinner of the Sergeants' Mess of the Queen's
Own Rifles, all of whom were Imperial Federationists.
I found there, for the first time at a public dinner to
my knowledge, as one of the principal toasts, " Imperial
Federation," to which I responded. Since then, at
almost all public dinners in Canada, some patriotic
toast of that kind has appeared on the programme —
" The United Empire," " Canada," " Canada and the
Empire " " Our Country," and many variations of the
idea.

On the 4th March, J. M. Clark and I went to Barrio
and addressed a large meeting in the interests of
Imperial Federation, and received a hearty support.

Our Committee about this time thought it would be
well to issue a kind of manifesto that would explain
our objects, and put forth the arguments in favour of our
views and could be used as a kind of campaign liter-
ature to be distributed freely throughout the country.
It was therefore arranged that a meeting should be
held for the purpose of organising a branch of the
League at Guelph, and that I should make a speech
there that could be printed in separate form for general
circulation. Mr. Creighton, of the Empire, agreed to
send a reporter to take a shorthand report which was
to be published in that paper. Mr. Alexander McNeill
went to the meeting with me and made an excellent
speech, one of many great efforts made by him for
the cause.

The meeting was held on the 28th March, 1890, and
afterwards fully reported in the Empire. The meeting
was large, the hall being filled, and was as unanimous

THE YEAR 1890 137

and enthusiastic as the warmest advocate of Imperial
Federation could have wished. The report of this
meeting was reprinted and circulated in great numbers
throughout the country.

The following day Dr. W. George Beers delivered an
eloquent and powerful lecture in Toronto in the
interests of our cause, which was well received.

CHAPTER XV

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890

In December, 1889, the Council of the Birmingham
Chamber of Commerce passed the following resolution
unanimously :

That whilst the Council approve of the objects of
the Imperial Federation League as set forth in their
circular of November the 13th last, they are of opinion
that the primary essential condition of Imperial
Federation is a customs union of the Empire.

This adoption of the main point in the policy of the
Canadian Branch of the League was very gratifying
to us.

The Annual Meeting of the League in Canada took
place on the 30th January, 1890, and there was con-
siderable discussion on the question of preferential or
discriminating tariffs around the Empire, although no
formal resolution was carried, as direct action at that
time was thought to be premature.

I moved a resolution : " That this League wishes to
urge on the Government the importance of taking
immediate steps to secure a universal rate of penny
postage for the Empire." This was seconded by
Mr. McNeill, and carried.

A resolution was also carried against the German-

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 139

Belgian Treaties which prevented preferential tariffs
within the Empire.

Lt.-Col. W. Hamilton Merritt suggested that the
League should send its organisers to England, as it was
there the missionary work would have to be done. Mr.
McGoun supported this view, saying that " the policy
of the Canadian League should be to send delegates to
England to promote the gospel of commercial unity of
the Empire."

It will be seen that at this early period of the
movement the Canadian Branch of the League felt
that the real work would have to be done in England.
We had discovered that there were clauses in two
treaties with Germany and Belgium which positively
forbade any special advantages in trade being given
by Great Britain to any of her colonies, or by the
colonies in favour of Great Britain or each other, that
should not be given to Germany and Belgium. This
as a necessary consequence would take in all nations
entitled to the favoured nation clause.

It was essential, as the very first step towards our
policy being adopted, that these two treaties made in
1862 and 1865 should be denounced. The earliest
period that either of them could be denounced was on
the 1st July, 1892, provided that a year's notice had
been given before the 1st July, 1891, in order to secure
that result.

After full discussion in our Executive Committee, I
agreed to go to England with two objects in view,
first to endeavour to prepare the way for the denun-
ciation of the treaties, and, secondly, to urge the policy
of preferential tariffs around the Empire. A special
resolution was adopted to authorise me to represent
the Canadian Branch of the League while in England.

i4o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

I arrived at Liverpool on the 27th April, 1890, and
found a message requesting me to speak at a meeting
at the People's Palace, Whitechapel, the next evening.
This meeting was called by the League in order that
Dr. George Parkin might deliver an address
Imperial Federation. The Duke of Cambridge was in
the chair, and Lord Rosebery, Sir John Colomb, and
I were the other speakers. I was requested to say
nothing about preferential tariffs, and consequently
was obliged to refrain.

On the 13th May I happened to be at a meeting of
the Royal Colonial Institute. Col. Owen read a paper
on the military forces of the colonies. In the discussion
which ensued Sir Charles Dilke, after complimenting
other colonies, viz. : Australia, New Zealand, and Cape
Colony, then proceeded to comment adversely <»ii
Canada.

I answered him in a speech which will be found in
the Appendix " A."

On the 19th May I addressed a meeting at the
Mansion House, under the auspices of the London
Branch of the Imperial Federation League, in favour
of Australian Federation, and once more I was
requested not to touch on the question of preferential
tariffs.

On the 15th May I had attended the meeting of the
Executive Committee of the League, and with some
difficulty and considerable persistence had secured the
insertion of the following clauses in the draft Annual
Report :

10. As anticipated in last year's Report, a strong
feeling continues to exist in Canada against the con-
tinuance in commercial treaties with foreign countries
of clauses preventing the different portions of the

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 141

Empire from making such internal fiscal arrangements
between themselves as they may think proper. The
League in Canada at its Annual Meeting, held in
January last, passed a resolution condemning such
stipulations. Most of the treaties obnoxious to this
view terminate in 1892, and it is expected that strong
efforts will be made by the League in Canada to
obtain the abrogation of such clauses where they exist,
and the provision under all treaties that the favoured
nation clause shall not have the effect of extending to
foreign countries the advantage of any preferential
arrangement between different parts of the Empire.
Any action in this direction taken by the Dominion
Government will have the hearty support of the
Council.

The 13th clause of the Report contained a copy of
Mr. Mulock's loyal address to the Queen from the
Dominion House of Commons. The 14th clause was as
follows :

The significance of this action of the Dominion
Parliament cannot be overrated, and the League in
Canada is to be congratulated upon this most satisfac-
tory outcome of its steady and persevering work during
the past three years.

When the Council Meeting was held on the
19th May to adopt the Report for presentation to
the Annual Meeting, clause after clause was read and
passed without question, until the 10th clause quoted
above was reached, when at once an elderly gentleman
rose and objected strongly to it, and moved to have it
struck out. He made a speech strongly Free Trade in
its tenor, and urged that nothing should be done to
aid or assist in any preferential arrangements. Seeing
at once that this reference to their favourite fetish

i42 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

appealed to the sympathies and prejudices of those
present, I was sure that if not stopped other speakers
would get up and endorse the view. I jumped ap
at once as he sat down, and made a short speech,
saying, I did not know when I had heard a more
illogical and inconsistent speech, that I gathered
from his remarks that the gentleman was a Free
Trader, that his whole speech showed that he was in
favour of freedom of trade, and yet at the same time he
wished to maintain treaties that were a restriction
upon trade : that if we in Canada wished to give
preferences to British goods, or lower our duties in her
favour, or if we wished to have free trade with Greal
Britain, these treaties would forbid us doing so, unless
Germany and Belgium and all other countries were
included ; that I felt Canada would give favours to
Great Britain, but would positively refuse to give them
to Germany, and could anything be more inconsistent
than for a man declaring himself a Free Trader on
principle, and yet refusing to help us in Canada who
wished to move in the direction of freer trade with the
Mother Country, and I begged of him to withdraw his
opposition? This he did, and my clause was passed.

I found out afterwards that my opponent W80
Sir Wm. Fairer. Years afterwards when Canada gave
the preference to Great Britain in 1897, and the
treaties were denounced, the Cobden Club gave to
Sir Wilfrid Laurier the Cobden gold medal.

The Annual Meeting of the Imperial Federation
League was held three days later, on the 22nd May.
I was announced in the cards calling the meeting as
one of the principal speakers, and as the representative
of the League in Canada, and was to second the adop-
tion of the Annual Report. The day before the meet-

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 143

ing, when in the offices of the League, a number of the
Committee and the Secretary were present, I once
more said that I wished to advocate preferential tariffs
around the Empire. It will be remembered that this
was one of the two points that I was commissioned to
urge upon the parent League. I had been restrained
at the People's Palace and at the Mansion House, but
being a member of the League, a Member of the
Council, and of the Executive Committee, and repre-
senting the League in Canada by special resolution,
I made up my mind to carry out my instructions. The
moment I suggested the idea it was at once objected to,
everyone present said it would be impossible. I was
persistent, and said, " Gentlemen, I have been stopped
twice already, but at the Annual Meeting I certainly
have the right to speak." They said that Lord
Rosebcry would be annoyed. I said, " What difference
does that make ; the more reason he should know how
we feel in Canada ; there was no use in my coming
from Canada, learning Lord Rosebery's views, and then
repeating them. I thought he could give his own
views better himself." They then said " that it would
be unpleasant for me, that the meeting would express
disapproval." I said, " The more reason they should
hear my views, and I do not care what they do if they
do not throw me out of an upstairs window," finally
saying, " Gentlemen, if I cannot give the message I
have undertaken to deliver I shall not speak at all, and
will report the whole circumstances to the League in
Canada, and let them know that we are not allowed to
express our views." This they would not hear of, and
agreed that I could say what I liked.

Lord Rosebery, who presided, made an excellent
speech ; among other things he said :

i44 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

You will look in vain in the report for any scheme
of Imperial Federation. Those of our critics who say,

"Tell me what Imperial Federation is, and I will tell
you what I think about it," will find no scheme to
criticise or discuss in any corner of our Animal Report
If there were any such scheme, I should not be here to
move it, because I do not believe that it is on the
report of any private society that such a scheme will
ever be realised. But I will say that as regards the
alternative name which Mr. Parkin — and here I cannot
help stating from the Presidential Chair the deep
obligations under which we lie to Mr. Parkin — has
given to Imperial Federation, namely, that of National
Unity, that in some respects it is a preferable term,
But if I might sum up our purpose in a sentence,
it would be that we seek to base our Empire upon
a co-operative principle. At present the Empire is
carried on, it is administered successfully owing to the
energies of the governing race which rules it, but in
a haphazard and inconsequential manner ; but each day
this society has seen pass over its head has shown the
way to a better state of things.

Lord Rosebery's idea of a " co-operative principle " is
not very far removed from the idea of a " Kriegsverein
and a Zollverein.''

In seconding the adoption of the Report I pointed
out the many difficulties we had to face in Canada
through the action of the United States, and concluded
my speech in the following words:

Now with reference to a scheme of Imperial Federa-
tion, I quite agree with the noble lord, our President,
that we cannot go into the question of a scheme. At
the same time I do not think it would be out of the
way to mention here that it would be of the utmost
importance to Canada that we should have
arrangement that there should be a discriminating

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 145

tariff established. (Cheers.) The effect would be to
open up a better state of trade than ever between the
two countries. I feel that we in Canada would be
willing to give for a discriminating tariff very great
advantages over foreign manufacturers with whom the
trade is now divided. I think if this matter is only
carefully considered, it is not impossible for the
English people, for the sake of keeping the English
nation together, to make this little sacrifice. I have
spoken to numbers of people in England, and I find a
great many would be willing to have some such
arrangement made if England were assured of some
corresponding advantage. They seem to think it is a
question which ought to be considered ; but they think
that England has committed herself to another policy
to which she must stand. Well, I do not think that
that is the case. My opinion is that it is to the
interest of the Empire, and to the interest of the
Mother Country, that something should be done which
would knit the Empire together. I believe the
English people are open to reason as much as any
people in the world. That policy would be of immense
interest to us considering that the United States are
our competitors. Then again look at the advantages
which might be offered in the way of emigration to a
country under your own flag, with your own institutions,
and with those law-abiding and God-fearing principles,
which we are trying to spread through the northern
half of the continent ; and at the same time it would
be adding strength to you all here at home. I must
not detain you too long, but I thought I would like to
mention these one or two points to you. I speak
on behalf of the great masses of the Canadian people,
and 1 think I have shown you some of the annoyances
under which they have been living up to the present,
and I am quite sure that if any sacrifice can be made
the Canadians will be willing to meet you half-way.
But it ought not to be all one way. There ought to be
give and take both ways.

i46 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

During my speech I was loudly applauded, and fell
that a large majority of the meeting was with uw.
When I sat down, I was just behind Lord Rosebery,
and to my astonishment he turned around, shook
hands with me, and whispered in my ear, " I wish
I could speak out as openly." I knew then that I had
neither frightened him nor the meeting. The Report
was unanimously adopted.

I felt that I had succeeded in my mission as far as
the Imperial Federation League was concerned, but
while I was on the spot I was using every effort to
urge the views of my colleagues in other directions.
Believing that the two strongest men in England at
the time were Lord Salisbury and the Colonial
Secretary, Mr. Chamberlain, I had been at the same
time endeavouring to impress our views upon them.

I had met Mr. Chamberlain in 1887 in Toronto, and
had spoken at the same banquet which he there
addressed. I wrote and asked him for an interview,
and discussed the whole question of preferential trade,
and the condition of affairs in Canada with him at
great length. Our interview lasted nearly an hour.
I then used with him many arguments which he lias
since used in his contest in England for Tariff Reform.
After I had put my case as strongly as I could, I
waited for his reply. He said, " I have listened with
great interest to all the points you have brought
forward, and I shall study the whole question thor-
oughly for myself, and if, after full consideration, I
come to the conclusion that this policy will be in the
interests of this country and of the Empire, I shall
take it up and advocate it." I said, "That is all I
want; if you look into it and study it for yourself you
are sure to come to the same view," and got up t<>

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 147

leave, but he then said to me with the greatest
earnestness, " Do not tell a soul that I ever said I
would think of such a thing. In the present condition
of opinion in England it would never do."

The result was that, though I was greatly cheered by
his action, there was not one word that I could use, or
that could be used, to help us in our struggle in
Canada. I always felt, however, that it was only a
question of time when he would be heartily with us.

Lord Salisbury about this time invited me to an
evening reception at 20 Arlington Street. When
there I mentioned' to him shortly what I had come
over for, and told him I wished to have a long talk
with him if he could spare the time. He said,
"Certainly, we must have a talk," and he fixed the
following Wednesday, the 14th May.

At this time there was an acute difficulty between
the United States Government and the British Govern-
ment over the seizures of Canadian vessels engaged in
the Behring's Sea seal fisheries. A number of Canadian
vessels had been seized by United States cruisers, their
crews imprisoned, and their property confiscated. The
Canadian Government had complained bitterly, and,
after much discussion, two Canadian Ministers, Sir
Charles Hibbert Tupper and Sir John Thompson, were
in Washington engaged, with the assistance of the
British Ambassador, in negotiations with the Hon.
James Blaine, United States Secretary of State,
endeavouring to settle the Behring's Sea question, as
well as several other matters which were in dispute.

Having watched matters very closely in the United
States, I had come to the conclusion that the Wash-
ington authorities had no serious intention to settle
anything finally. We had made a treaty with them

148 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

before in 1888, which had arranged the matters in
dispute upon a fair basis, and when everything was
agreed upon and settled, waiting only for the ratifi-
cation by the United States Senate, that body threw it
out promptly and left everything as it was. This
action was at once followed by the retaliation un-
delivered by President Cleveland, which was a most
unfriendly and insulting menace to Canada. I felt-
confident that they were determined to keep the
disputes open for some future occasion, when Great
Britain might be in difficulties, and a casus belli might-
be convenient.

The New York Daily Commercial Bulletin openly
declared in November, 1888, that the questions of the
fisheries, etc., "in all human probability will be pur-
posely left open in order to force the greater issue
(viz., political union) which, as it seems to us, none but
a blind man can fail to see is already looming up with
unmistakable distinctness in the future."

At this reception at Lord Salisbury's I was discussing
the negotiations at Washington with Lord George
Hamilton, then First Lord of the Admiralty, express-
ing my fears that they would come to nothing, and
pointing out the dangers before us. He seemed some-
what impressed, and said, " I wish you would talk it.
over with Sir Philip Currie," then permanent Under-
Secretary of Foreign Affairs, and he took me across
the room and introduced me to Sir Philip, to whom 1
expressed my opinion that the negotiations at Wash-
ington would fail and that the United States Govern-
ment would not agree to anything. While I was
talking to him I was watching him closely, and I came
to the conclusion, from his expression, that he was
positively certain that the matter was either settled or

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 149

on the very point of being settled, and I stopped
suddenly and said, " I believe, Sir Philip, you think
this is settled. You know all about it, and I know
nothing, but I tell you now, that although you may
believe it is all agreed upon, I say that it is not, and
that either the Senate or the House of Representatives,
or the President, or all of them put together, will at
the last moment upset everything." I do not think he
liked my persistence, or felt that the conversation was
becoming difficult, but he laughed good-naturedly and
said, "Nobody will make me believe that the Americans
are not the most friendly people possible, but I must

just go and speak to Lord " whose name I did not

catch, and he left me.

The next week I had my interview with Lord
Salisbury and put my arguments from an Imperial
point of view as powerfully as I could, told him of the
dangers of the Commercial Union movement, of the
desperate struggle I could see coming in the general
election that was approaching in Canada, told him of
our dread of a free expenditure of United States
money in our elections, and pointed out to him that
the real way to prevent any difficulty was to have
a preferential tariff or commercial union arrangement
with Great Britain, which would satisfy our people,
and entirely checkmate the movement in favour of
reciprocity with the States.

Lord Salisbury listened attentively and at last he
said, " I am fast coming to the opinion that the real
way to consolidate the empire would be by means of
a Zollverein and a Kriegsverein." I was delighted,
"That," I said, "gives me all my case," and I urged
him to say something publicly in that direction that
we could Use in Canada to inspire our loyal people,

150 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

and put that hope and confidence in them which would
carry our elections. He did not say whether he would
or not, but I knew then that at heart he was with us.

As a matter of fact, he did speak in a friendly tone
at the Lord Mayor's Banquet at the Guildhall on the
9th November following, and afterwards followed it up
with a much more direct speech at Hastings on the
18th May, 1892.

I then said that nothing could be done until the
German-Belgian Treaties of 1862 were denounced.
He asked me why, and I told him the effect of the
treaties was to bar any such arrangement. He did
not know of the particular clauses and could hardly
believe they existed. When told he would find I was
right, he said, "That is most unfortunate, and they will
have to be denounced." I thanked him for taking that
view and felt that I had a strong ally on both points.
From subsequent conversations and from many letters
received from him during the following ten or twelve
years, I always relied upon him as a true friend who
would help us at the first possible opportunity.

On this occasion I also spoke to him seriously a
my forebodings as to the failure of the negotiations at
Washington and told him I believed he was under the
impression that the matter was about settled, but
warned him that at the last moment either the Senate
or the President, or someone, would upset everything.

I had spoken very plainly at the Canada Club not
long before on the Behring's Sea business, and some of
my remarks were published in several papers. On
this point I said :

We in Canada are for the British Connection. In
years gone by when we thought that the British Hag

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 151

was insulted, though it was not a matter in which we
were concerned and happened hundreds of miles from
our shores, our blood was up, and we were ready to
defend the old emblem. Can you wonder, then, that
we in Canada have failed to understand how your
powerful British ironclads could be idle in the harbours
of our Pacific coasts while British subjects were being
outraged in Behring's Sea and the old British flag in-
sulted ? No, that to us has been beyond comprehension.

Before I left England my anticipations were realised,
and suddenly, without any apparent reason, President
Harrison broke off the negotiations just as Mr. Blaine
and our representatives had come to an agreement, and
he gave orders to United States vessels to proceed at
once to the Behring's Sea and capture any Canadian
vessels found fishing in those waters. This was about
the end of May. I sailed for home from Liverpool on
the 5th June. On the Parisian I met as a fellow
passenger the Rt. Hon. Staveley Hill, M.P., whom I
had known before and who had taken a most active
part in the House of Commons in favour of the
Canadian view of the Behring's Sea difficulty. After
we had got out to sea he said to me, " I will tell you
something that you must keep strictly to yourself for
the present; when we reach the other side it will
probably all be out," and he went on to say that the
British Government had made up their minds to fight
the United States on account of President Harrison's
action. I was startled, and asked him if they were
going to declare war at once. He replied, " No, not
yet, but they have sent a message to the United
States Government saying that if they seized another
Canadian vessel it would be followed and taken from
them by force from any harbour to which it would be
taken." I at once said, " That is all right ; if that

152 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

message is delivered in earnest, so that fehev will know
that it is in earnest, it means peace and no further
interference."

When we arrived at Quebec, to our surprise not a
word had come out, and no one seemed to have the
slightest suspicion that anything had happened. Some
weeks elapsed and yet nothing was said, and I was
under the impression that there had been some mistake,
although Mr. Staveley Hill told me he had heard it
directly from a Cabinet Minister.

I saw in the newspapers that large additions were
made to the Atlantic and Pacific fleets, the latter being
more than doubled in strength. About two months
after my return a member of the House of Representa-
tives got up in the United States Congress and drew
attention to these extensive preparations, to the
increase of the garrison of Bermuda, to the work going
on in the fortifications of the West Indies, and asked
that the House should be furnished with copies of the
despatches between the two Governments. These were
brought down, and Lord Salisbury's ultimatum appeared
in the following words :

Her Britannic Majesty's Government have learned
with great concern, from notices which have appeared
in the Press, and the general accuracy of which has
been confirmed by Mr. Blaine's statements to the
undersigned, that the Government of the United States
have issued instructions to their revenue cruisers about
to be despatched to Behring's Sea, under which vessels
of British subjects will again be exposed in the prosecu-
tion of their legitimate industry on the high seas to
unlawful interference at the hands of American officers.

Her Britannic Majesty's Government are anxious to
co-operate to the fullest extent of their power with the
Government of the United States in such measures as

VISIT TO ENGLAND, 1890 153

may be found expedient for the protection of the seal
fisheries. They are at the present moment engaged in
examining, in concert with the Government of the
United States, the best method of arriving at an agree-
ment on this point. But they cannot admit the right
of the United States of their own sole motion to restrict
for this purpose the freedom of navigation of Behring's
Sea, which the United States have themselves in
former years convincingly and successfully vindicated,
nor to enforce their municipal legislation against
British vessels on the high seas beyond the limits of
their territorial jurisdiction.

Her Britannic Majesty's Government is therefore
unable to pass over without notice the public announce-
ment of an intention on the part of the Government of
the United States to renew the acts of interference
with British vessels navigating outside the territorial
waters of the United States, of which they had pre-
viously had to complain.

The undersigned is in consequence instructed for-
mally to protest against such interference, and to
declare that her Britannic Majesty's Government must
hold the Government of the United States responsible
for the consequences that may ensue from acts which
are contrary to the established principles of Inter-
national law.

The undersigned has the honour to renew to Mr.
Blaine the assurance of his highest consideration.

Uth June, 1890. JuLIAN PaUNCEFOTE.

This correspondence showed me that the informa-
tion given Mr. Staveley Hill had been based upon a
good foundation, but this was followed in Congress a
few days later by a demand for a return of a verbal
message which was said to have been given by the
British Ambassador to the Hon. James Blaine. The
answer was that a search in the records of the State
Department did not discover any reference to any such

i54 THE STRUGGLE FOR [MPERIAL UNITY

verbal message. I have do doubt but that some such
ige was given.

About a year afterwards I was discussing matters
with Sir C. Hibbert Tupper, and I asked him if when
they were in Washington they were not at one time
quite confident that the matter was practically settled.
He said, " Yes, certainly ; we had been discussing
matters in a most amicable way, and had been coming
nearer together, and at last we agreed to what we
thought was a final settlement, when President Har-
rison interfered and broke off the whole negotiations."

Lord Salisbury's bold and determined action had the
desired effect, and soon an agreement was arrived at for
an arbitration, which took place in Paris in 1893. In
spite of the false translations and unreliable and false
affidavits which appeared among the evidence produced
on behalf of the United States claims, the decision on
the point of International law was in our favour, and
a large sum was awarded to our sealers for damages.
Canada therefore came out of the dispute with credit to
herself, owing to the firm and courageous stand of the
Imperial Government under the leadership of that g
Prime Minister, Lord Salisbury. My forecast to him <>t
what he was likely to encounter in the negotiations was
fully verified.

#

CHAPTER XVI

THE GREAT ELECTION OF 1891

I arrived home on the 15th June, and found that
in my absence I had been vehemently abused both in
a section of the Press and in the City Council, partly
because I was not present to defend myself, and partly
on account of the active manner in which I had been
opposing the disloyal clique.

Our Committee was still working earnestly in stirring
up the feeling of loyalty, and from that time until
the great election of March, 1891, the struggle was
energetically maintained. Arrangements were made
for demonstrations in the public schools on the 13th
October, 1890, the anniversary of the victory of
Queenston Heights, and on that day a number of
prominent men visited the schools of Toronto and
made patriotic addresses to the boys. I addressed the
John Street Public School, and afterwards the boys of
Upper Canada College.

The Globe attacked me on account of these cele-
brations in their issue on 13th October, and followed it
up with another article on the 14th October. I
answered both articles in a letter which appeared
in the Globe of the 16th October, and concluded as
follows:

/

1 56 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

As to y<»ur remarks that I should abstain froir
interfering " in the discussion of questions that hav<
become party property," I may say that before I was
appointed Police Magistrate I was a follower of Mr
Brown, Mr. Mackenzie, Mr. Blake, and Mr. Mowat
Since then I have never voted or taken part in an\
political meeting. Not that the law prevents it, bir
from my sense of what I thought right. 1 may say
however, on behalf of the friends with whom I used t<
work, that I utterly repudiate the suggestion tha
loyalty to Canada and her history is not equalh
the characteristic of both parties. There are a few, ,
know, who are intriguing to betray this country ink
annexation, but they are not the men I followed, an<
when the scheme is fully developed I have ever
confidence that Canadians of all political parti*
be united on the side of Canada and the Empire. Ni
politicians can rule Canada unless they are loyal.

On any question affecting our national life I wil
speak out openly and fearlessly at all hazards.

About the same time the Empire newspaper, to hel]
on the movement and to advertise it, offered a naj
(12 feet by 6 feet in size), the Canadian red ensign wit]
the arms of Canada in the fly, to that school in eacl
county which could produce the finest essay on th
patriotic influence of raising the Hag over the schoc
houses. Each school was to compete within itself, air
the best essay was to be chosen by the headmaste
and sent to the Umpire office. These essays fror
each county were carefully compared, and the tine-
essay secured the flag for the school from which i
came. I read the essays and awarded the prizes fo
about thirty counties, and it was a pleasing an
inspiring task. I was astonished at the depth (
patriotic feeling shown, and was much impressed wit
the great influence the contest must have had i

THE GREAT ELECTION OF 189 1 157

stirring up the latent patriotism of the people, spreading
as it did into so many houses through the children.

I was so much interested in what I read, and often
found so much difficulty in deciding which was the
best essay, .that I felt that they all deserved prizes. I
therefore decided to prepare a little volume of patriotic
songs and poems, and to publish a large number and
send a copy to the child in each school who had written
the best essay, and a copy was also sent to the master
of every school that had sent in an essay. I wrote to
my friend Mr. E. G. Nelson, Secretary of the Branch of
our League at St. John, New Brunswick, and told him
what I was doing. I soon received from him a copy of
a song, which he said my letter had inspired him to
write. It was called " Raise the Flag." I give the
first verse :

Raise the flag, our glorious banner,
O'er this fair Canadian land,
From the stern Atlantic ocean
To the far Pacific strand.

Chorus.

Raise the flag with shouts of gladness,
'Tis the banner of the free !
Brightly beaming, proudly streaming,
'Tis the flag of liberty.

I decided to use this as the first song and I called
the little book :

" Raise the Flag,
And other Patriotic Canadian Songs and Poems."

On the front of the stiff cardboard cover a well-
executed, brightly-coloured lithograph of a school-
house with a fine maple tree beside it was seen, with
a large number of children, boys and girls, waving their
hats and handkerchiefs and acclaiming the flag which

158 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

was being run up to the top of the flag-pole, the maste
apparently giving the signal for cheering. On th<
back of the cover was a pretty view of Queenstoi
Heights, with Brock's monument the prominent object
and over this scene a trophy of crossed .flags with i
medallion containing Queen Victoria's portrait imposec
on one, and a shield with the arms of Canada on th<
other. Over both was the motto " For Queen anc
Country."

On the title page a verse of Lesperance's beautifu
poem was printed just below the title. It containec
in a few words all that we were fighting for, the objeci
we were aiming at, and the spirit we wished t(
inspire in the children of our country :

Shall we break the plight of youth
And pledge us to an alien love !

No ! we hold our faith and truth,
Trusting to the God above.

Stand Canadians, firmly stand
Round the Hag of Fatherland.

I asked a number of friends to assist me in the
expense of getting out this book, and I feel bound tc
record their names here as loyal men who gave mc
cheerful assistance and joined me in supplying all the
necessary funds at a time when we had many vigorous
opponents and had 1<» struggle against indifference and
apathy: — George Gooderham, John T. Small, John
Hoskin, J. K. Macdonald, J. Herbert Mason, Edward
Gurnev. Win. K. McNaught, W. R. Brock, Allan
/ McLean Boward, A. M. Cosby, Walter S. Lee, Hugh

Scott, Thomas Walmsley, W. II. Beatty, A. B. Lee,
John Leys, Jr., E. B. Osier. .John I. Davidson, J. Ross
Robertson, Hugh Blain, Hon. G. W. Allan, Henry
Cawthra, Fred C. Denison, Oliver Macklem, G. R. R.

THE GREAT ELECTION OF 1891 159

Cockburn, James Henderson, R. N. Bethune, Sir
Casimir Gzowski, C. J. Campbell and W. B.
Hamilton.

We published a good many thousand volumes and
scattered them freely through the country before the
election of 1891.

I gave Lord Derby, then Governor-General of
Canada, about a dozen copies, and he sent one to the
Queen, and some months after he received a letter
from Sir Henry Ponsonby asking him at the request of
the Queen to thank me for the book.

When the schools throughout the country received
the flags which they had won, in many instances
demonstrations were organised to raise the flag for the
first time with due ceremony. I was invited to go to
Chippawa to speak when their flag was first raised.
There was a very large gathering of people from all
over the county, and as an illustration of how the
opportunity was used to stir up the patriotism of the
people, I quote part of my address from the Empire of
the 30th December, 1890.

I am pleased to come here to celebrate the raising ol
the flag, because Chippawa is in the very heart of the
historic ground of Canada. Here was fought out in
the past the freedom of Canada from foreign aggression.
Here was decided the question as to whether we should
be a conquered people, or free as we are to-day, with
the old flag of our fathers floating over us as a portion
of the greatest empire in the world. (Applause.) In
sight of this spot was fought the bloody battle which
is named after this village, within three miles in the
other direction lies the field of Lundy's Lane, and a
few miles beyond the Heights of Queenston. From
Fort George to Fort Erie the whole country has been
fought over. Under the windows of this room Sir

i6o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Francis Bond Head in 1837 reviewed about thre<
thousand loyal militia who rallied to drive the enemj
from Navy Island. It is no wonder that here in ok
Chippawa the demonstration of raising the flag shouU
be such a magnificent outburst of loyal feeling . .
There is nothing more gratifying than the extraordin
ary development of this feeling in the last year or two
All through the land is shown this love for Queen, Hag
and country. From the complaining of some few dis
gruntled politicians, who have been going about thr
country whining like a lot of sick cats about th(
McKinley Bill, some have thought our people were noi
united ; but everywhere, encompassing these men
stands the silent element that doth not change, and i
the necessity arise for greater effort, and the display o
greater patriotism, and the making of greater sacrifices
the people of this country will rise to the occasion
(Loud applause.) The cause of this outgrowth o
patriotic feeling has been the belief that a conspiracy
has been on foot to betray this country into annex
ation. The McKinley Bill was part of the scheme
But are you, the men of Wei land, the men whos<
fathers abandoned everything — their homes, and land;
and the graves of their dead — to come here penniless
to live under the flag of their ancestors, are you likelj
to sell your allegiance, your flag and your country, foj
a few cents a bushel on grain, or a cent or two a dozei
on eggs? (Loud applause.) No! the men of thi:
country are loyal. So leader of either party can leal
any important fraction of his party into disloyalty
We may have a still greater strain put upon us. I
the conspirators believe that stoppage of the bonding
privileges will coerce us, the bonding privileges will bi
stopped. If so, we must set our teeth and stiffen ou
sinews to face it (applause), and the more loyal we arc
the more prosperous and successful we will be. Ou
contemptuous treatment of the McKinley Bill had
I believe, a great influence in the defeat of thi
Republicans, and may cause the repeal of the Bill, anc

THE GREAT ELECTION OF 1S91 161

then when we get freer trade we will keep it, because
our neighbours will know that we cannot be oc
into being untrue to our traditions. In whatever you
do put the interest of Canada fi before politics

and everything. (Loud applause.)

I addressed a number of meetings during the fall of
the year and winter, all on patriotic subjects, endeavour-
ing to arouse the people against Reciprocity or Annex-
ation, and urging Imperial Lenity as the goal for
Canadians to aim at. I spuke <:»n the 11th September,
9th October, 5th December, 29th December, 9th
January. 1891, 19th January, 27th February, and the
17th March.

I had written in February, 1890, as already mentioned,

S : John A. Macdonald expressing my opinion that
the next election would be fought on the question of
loyalty as against disloyalty. All through the year I
became more and more convinced of this, and foresaw
that if the elections were postponed until 18:
would give the Commercial L'nionists and Annexation-
ists more time to organise, and, what I dreaded 1
give more time to our enemies in the United Stat
prepare the way for an election favourable to their
views. I cannot do better to show the trend of affairs
than copy from the Empire of the 7th February, 1890.
■r referring to the disloyalty of Premier Mersier
of Quebec, and quoting a statement of the Toronto
rhat the Canadian people ,;find the colonial yoke
a galling one " and that " the time when Canadian
patriotism was synonymous with loyalty to British
connection has long since gone by," the article copies
the extract from the New York World in which it
Xobody who has studied the peculiar
methods by which elections are won in Canada will

M

i62 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

deny the fact that five or six million dollars judiciously
expended in this country would secure the return to
Parliament of a majority pledged to the annexation of
Canada to the United States," and then goes on to
say:

This dastardly insult to our country is not only the
work to order of a member of the staff of the New
York World but is adopted and emphasised by it with
all the parade of display headings and of the black
letter which we reproduce as in the original. So these
plotters are contemplating the wholesale purchase of
our country by the corruption of the electors on this
gigantic scale, to return members ready to surrender
Canada to a foreign Power. And for such insults afl
these we have mainly to thank the dastardly traitors
who from our own land have by their secret information
and encouragement to the foreign coveters of our
country invited the insulting attack. By such baseness
our enemies have been taught to believe that we will
fall easy victims to their designs.

Again, as so often before, we find the well deserved
tribute to our Conservative statesmen that the} are
the bulwark of Canada against such assaults. Friends
and enemies are fully in accord on this one point;
that the opposition are not similarly true to their
country is clearly indicated in this outspoken report,
and it may also be observed that every individual 01
journal mentioned as favouring annexation is of the
most pronounced grit stripe. It is, however, by no
means true that the whole Liberal jjarty is tainted
with this treasonable virus. By thousands th<
withdrawing from the leaders who are paltering with
such a conspiracy, and are uniting themselves with th<
Conservatives to defend their country. Not tin.
boasted six millions of United States dollars will tempt
these loyal Canadians to sell their country. It is
however, that Canada should thus be forewarned.

THE GREAT ELECTION OF 1891 163

Watching all we could learn of these movements, I
became very anxious that the election should take
place before another session. My brother, the member
for West Toronto, agreed strongly with me on this
point. Sir John Macdonald was gradually coming
around to that view, but most of his colleagues differed
from him. My brother happened to be in his office
one day when several of the Cabinet were present, and
Sir John asked him when he thought the election
should come on. He replied, " As soon as possible," and
urged that view strongly. Sir John turned to his
colleagues and said, " There, you see, is another." This
showed his difficulty.

There had been some rumours of intrigues between
some members of the Liberal party and the United
States politicians. Sir Richard Cartwright was known
to have gone down secretly to Washington to confer
with Mr. Blaine, principally, it was believed, through
the influence of Erastus Wiman. Honore Mercier was
also believed to have been mixed up in the intrigues.
In the month of November I had been able to obtain
some private information in connection with these
negotiations, and I went down to Ottawa on the
8th December, 1890, and had a private conference with
Sir John Macdonald and gave him all the information
I had gathered. I told him that Blaine and Sir
Richard Cartwright had had a conference in Washington,
and that Mr. Blaine had thanked Mr. Wiman for
bringing Sir Richard to see him.

During the autumn of 1890, Edward Farrer, then
editor of the Globe, and one of the conspirators who
were working for annexation, prepared a pamphlet
of a most treacherous character, pointing out how best
the United States could act to encourage and force on

m 2

i64 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

annexation. He had the pamphlet printed secretly
with great care, only thirteen copies being printed for
use among a few of the leading United States
politicians. In Hunter, Rose and Co/s printing office
where it was being printed, there was a compositor
who happened to know Mr. Farrer's handwriting, and
who set up part of the type. He was struck with the
traitorous character of the production, and gave
information about it to Sir C. Hibbert Tupper, then in
the Government. He reported it to Sir John Macdonald,
and the latter sent Col. Sherwood, the chief of the
Dominion police force, to Toronto, and told him to
consult with me, and that I could administer the oath
to the compositor, who swore to affidavits proving
the circumstances connected with the printing of the
pamphlet. The printer had proof slips of two or three
pages when Col. Sherwood brought him to my office, and
it was arranged that any more that he could get he was
to bring to me, and I would prepare the affidavits and
forward them on to Col. Sherwood.

The proof sheets were watched so closely and taken
back so carefully after the corrections were made, that
it was impossible to get any of them, but the printer
who gave us the information was able at the dinner
hour to take a roller, and ink the pages of type after
the printing had been finished and before the type
had been distributed. The impressions were taken in
the most rough and primitive way, and as he had only
a few chances of doing the work without detection, he
was only able to bring me about two-thirds of the
pamphlet.

These portions, however, contained enough to show
the drift of the whole work, and gave Sir John
Macdonald quite sufficient quotations to use in a public

THE GREAT ELECTION OF 1891 165

speech at Toronto in the opening of the election
to prove the intrigues that were going on. The re-
velation had a marked influence on the election, not
only in Toronto, but from one end of Canada to the
other.

It was a mystery to Farrer and the printers how
Sir John had obtained a copy, for they assumed he had
a complete copy. They were able to trace the thirteen
copies, and Mr. Rose was satisfied no more had been
printed. He gave me his theory shortly after, and I
was amused to see how absolutely wrong he was. He
had no idea that I knew anything about it. The secret
was well kept. The printer who gave them to us,
Col. Sherwood, Sir Hibbert Tupper, David Creighton,
Sir John Macdonald, and myself, I have heard, were
the only persons in the secret until the day Sir John
brought it out at the great meeting in the Princess
Theatre.

In January, 1891, Sir John Macdonald came to
Toronto. He was anxious to see me without attracting
attention, and my brother Fred arranged for him to
come to my office at an hour when the officials would
be away for lunch, and we had a conference for about
three-quarters of an hour. He was very anxious to get
a letter to publish the substance of which I had known
and which would have thrown much light upon the
intrigues between two or three Liberal leaders and some
of the United States politicians. I said I would do what
I could to get the information, but I did not succeed.
Before he left he asked me what I thought of bringing
on the elections at once, or of waiting till the following
year. I jumped up from my chair at the suggestion
that he was in doubt, and said, " What, Sir John ; in
the face of all you know and all I know, can you hesi-

166 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

tate an instant ? You must bring the elections on at
once. If you wait till your enemies are ready, and the
pipes are laid to distribute the money which will
in time be given from the States, you will incur
great danger, and no one can tell where the trouble
will end." I spoke very earnestly and Sir John
listened with a smile, and got up to leave, saying to me,
" Keep all your muscles braced up, and your nerves all
prepared, so that if the House is suddenly dissolved in
about three weeks you will not receive a nervous
shock, but keep absolutely silent." He said this in a
very humorous and quizzical way which was character-
istic of him, and went off wagging his head from side bo
side as was his wont.

I knew about Farrer's pamphlet and about other
things which came out in this election, and I had two
very warm friends in the Liberal Government of
Ontario, Sir Oliver Mowat and the Hon. G. W. Ross.
I did not wish them to be mixed up with any political
scandal that might come out, nor did I wish them to
commit themselves definitely to the party at Ottawa,
who were advocating a policy which I was sure could
not succeed, and the real meaning of which they could
not support. I told them both I thought there would
be unpleasant matters divulged, and begged of them bo
keep as far away from the election as they could.
They both seemed to take what I said in good part,
and they adjourned the session of the local Legislature
till after the general election.

Mr. Mowat arranged that his son Arthur Mowat was
bo run in West Toronto, and he spoke for him in his
constituency, and also for the Honourable Alexander
Mackenzie in East York. He made several spei
all most loyal and patriotic in their tone. Mr. Ross

THE GREAT ELECTION OF 1891 167

spoke once in his own constituency. I told him after
the election when it went against the Liberal party,
that I had given him fair warning. He said, " Yes,
but I only made one speech in my own constituency."
Sir Oliver Mowat's assistance in Ontario saved the
Liberal party in that Province from a most disastrous
defeat, for the people had confidence in him and in his
steadfast loyalty.

When the election was going on, my brother said
one day to me, " I think I shall defeat Mowat by four
or five hundred." I replied, " Your majority will be
nearer two thousand than one thousand." He said,
" That is absurd ; there never was such a majority in the
city." I answered, " I know the feeling in Toronto,"
and using a cavalry simile said, " She is up on her hind
legs, pawing the air, and you will see you will have
nearly two thousand." The figure was one thousand
seven hundred and sixty-nine, the largest majority in
Ontario, I believe, in that election.

The election supported the Macdonald Government
with a large majority in the House and practically
finished the attempt to entrap Canada into annexation
through the means of tariff entanglements. Although
dangerous intrigues went on for several years, they
were neutralised by the loyal work of Sir Oliver
Mowat and the Hon. G. W. Ross.

CHAPTER XVII

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH

Professor Goldwix Smith was the foremost, and

most active, dangerous, and persistent advocate and
Leader of the movement for annexation to the United
States that we have ever had in Canada. After
Leaving Oxford in 1868 he went to the United States,
where he lectured at Cornell University for two or
three years. Having taken part in a controversy in
the Press over the Alabama question, in which he took
the side of Great Britain, he aroused a good d<
hostility and criticism in the United States. In is? I
he removed to Toronto where he has ever since
resided.

Be had some relatives living in Toronto in the
suburb then known as Brockton. My lather and I,
two uncles, and a cousin then lived in that district,
in which my house is situated, and we had a small
social circle into which Mr. Goldwin' Smith was warmly
welcomed. He shortly after bought a house from my
lather near to his place, and we soon became close
friends. In my father's lifetime Mr. Smith belonged
to a small whist club consisting of my father, my unci*
Richard, Major Shaw, and himself. After my fathei
death J took his place, and we played in each othei
houses for some years, until Mr. Smith married tin

CONTEST WITH GOLDVVIN SMITH 169

widow of Wm. Henry Boulton and took up his home
in " The Grange." The distance at which he lived
from us was then inconvenient, and in a few months
we discontinued the club.

In 1872 Mr. Smith was the prime mover in starting
the Canadian Monthly and asked me to contribute
an article for the first number, and afterwards I con-
tributed one or two more. At one time we contem-
plated writing a joint history of the American Civil
War, in which I was to write the military part and he
was to write the political. I even went to Gettysburg
to examine the battlefield, and began to gather material,
when we discovered that it would be a long and
laborious work, and that under the copyright law at
the time there would be no security as to our rights in
the United States, as we were not citizens of the
republic. So the project was abandoned.

For many years Goldwin Smith and I were close
friends, and I formed a very high opinion of him in
many ways, and admired him for many estimable
qualities. When the Commercial Union movement
began, however, I found that I had to take a very
decided stand against him, and very soon a keen
controversy arose between us and it ended in my
becoming one of the leaders in the movement against
him and his designs. When he assumed the Honorary
Presidency of the Continental Union Association,
formed both in Canada and in the United States, and
working in unison to bring about the annexation
of the two countries, I looked upon that as rank
treason, and ceased all association with him, and
since then we have never spoken. I regretted much
the rupture of the old ties of friendship, but felt
that treason could not be handled with kid gloves.

170 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

I shall now endeavour to give an account of the
contest between us, because I am sure it had a distinct
influence upon public opinion, and helped to arouse the
latent loyalty of the Canadian people, and for the time
at any rate helped to kill the annexation movement in
Canada.

I have already mentioned the incident of the dinner
at the National Club where I said I would only discuss
seriously annexation or independence with my sword.
I did not think at that time that Mr. Smith was
discussing the question in any other than a purely
academic spirit; subsequent developments have satisfied
me that even then he cherished designs that from my
point of view were treasonable.

In the early spring of 1887, Mr. Goldwin Smith
was at Washington and went on to Old Point
Comfort and became acquainted with Erastus Wiman,
who was staying at the same hotel and who showed
Mr. Smith some courtesy. Mr. Smith invited Wiman
to pay him a visit in Toronto in the latter part of May,
1887, and shortly after it was found that the strongest
supporter that Wiman had for his Commercial Union
agitation was Mr. Goldwin Smith.

As I have already said, during 1888-9-90, I was
frequently addressing public meetings and speaking at
banquets of all sorts of societies and organisations.
We had also started the raising of the flags in the
schools, the decoration of monuments, the singing of
patriotic songs, &c. and generally we were waging
a very active campaign against the Commercial Union
movement. In 1891, the most dangerous crisis of the
struggle, Mr. Smith commenced a series of lectures
which were cleverly intended to sap the loyalty of
our people and neutralise the effect of our work. The

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 171

three lectures were delivered before the Young Men's
Liberal Club of Toronto. The first was on " Loyalty "
and was delivered on the 2nd February, 1891, and was
intended to ridicule and belittle the idea of loyalty.

In reply to this I prepared at once a lecture on the
United Empire Loyalists which I delivered at the
Normal School to a meeting of school teachers and
scholars on the 27th of the same month.
\ On the 11th May, 1891, Goldwin Smith delivered his
second lecture on " Aristocracy."

I saw now that there was a deliberate and treasonable
design in these lectures to undermine the loyal
sentiment that held Canada to the Empire, and as
there was danger at any time of open trouble, I replied
to this in another way. I delivered a lecture on the
opening of the war of 1812 to point out clearly how
much the loyal men were hampered by traitors at the
opening of the war of 1812, and how they dealt with
them then, how seven had been hanged at Ancaster,
many imprisoned, and many driven out of the country,
and I endeavoured to encourage our people with the
reflection that the same line of action would help us
again in the same kind of danger.

On the 17th April, 1891, this lecture was delivered
before the Birmingham Lodge of the Sons of England.

On the 9th of the following November Goldwin
Smith delivered his third lecture entitled " Jingoism."
This was a direct attack on me and on what my
friends and I were doing.

This lecture aroused great indignation among the
loyal people. I was asked by the Supreme Grand
Lodge of the Sons of England to deliver a lecture in
reply at a meeting to be called under their auspices,
which it was intended should be a popular demon-

172 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

stration against Gold win Smith, and a proof of the
repudiation by the Toronto people of his views. The
meeting was held in Shaftesbury Hall, then the largest
room in the city for such purposes, and it was packed
to the doors. My lecture was entitled " National
Spirit," and was delivered on the 17th December,
1891. (See Appendix B.)

Referring to this lecture the Umpire of the 18th
December, 1891, commented as follows:

The fervour and appreciation of the large audience
which assembled in the auditorium last evening to
hear Colonel George T. Denison were undoubtedly due
in great measure to the well-known ability of the
lecturer and to the intrinsic qualities of the lecture —
its wide range of fact, its high and patriotic purpose, the
eloquence with which great historic truths were im-
parted— but its enthusiastic reception was due none the
less to the fact that the lecturer struck a responsive
note in the breasts of his hearers, and that he was
expressing views which are the views of the ordinary
Canadian, and which at this time are especially
deserving of clear and emphatic enunciation.

In marked contrast to the enthusiasm of this
immense gathering was the small handful of dis-
gruntled fledglings and annexationists who assembled
lately in some obscure meeting place to hear the senti-
ments of Professor Gold win Smith, though even there
the respectable Liberal element was strong enough to
utter a protest against the annexationist views of the
Professor.

For several years there has been afoot a determined
attempt, promoted on its literary side by the writings
and addresses of Professor Goldwin Smith, to undermine
the national spirit, to disturb the national unity, and
to arouse the latent impatience of an intensely pi; u
people for any displays of the pride, the courage, and
the patriotic sentiment of the country. By elaborate

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 173

sneers at "loyalty," at "aristocracy," at "jingoism";
by perverting history, by appealing to the cupidity
which always has temptations for a small section of
every nation, this propaganda has been kept up per-
sistently and malignantly, and it was not unfitting that
Colonel Denison, who has been a foremost figure in
stemming the movement by encouraging patriotic
displays and honouring the memories of national heroes,
should have met the enemy in the literary arena, and
vindicated there, too, the righteousness and wisdom of
encouraging national spirit. He has boldly met
Professor Goldwin Smith's appeal to history, and
triumphantly proved his case, and presents in this
lecture to all thoughtful men, to all students of the
past, incontrovertible evidence that the efforts being
made in Canada to stimulate national patriotism and
enthusiasm are in accordance with the experience of
every virile and enduring race since the beginning of
the world, and in thorough harmony with the ex-
perience of every young and developing community.

Goldwin Smith addressed a meeting at Innerkip on
the 4th October, 1892. He spoke on the question of
freedom of speech, in defence of Elgin Myers, who had
been dismissed from his position of Crown Attorney at
Orangeville by Sir Oliver Mowat for publicly advocating
annexation. I answered him in a speech at the banquet
of the Kent Lodge of the Sons of England on the 11th
October, 1892.

On the 3rd December, 1892, the Empire published
the following correspondence :

Canada Life Building,

Toronto, Nov. 30, 1892.

Dear Sir,

It is the unanimous wish of the members of the
Continental Union Association of Toronto that you
accept the position of honorary president of the Asso-

i74 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

ciation. As you have for many years been an earnest
advocate of the reunion of* the English-speaking people
on this continent, it is considered fitting that you should
fill this position. I am desired to add that your accept-
ance would not necessarily involve your attendance at
our meetings nor require you to take an active part.

Yours respectfully,

T. M. White.

Goldwin Smith, Esq., Toronto.

Toronto, The. 2, 1892.
The Secretary of the Continental Association of Ontario.

Dear Sir,

As the Continental Association does me the honour
to think that my name may be of use to it, I have
pleasure in accepting the presidency on the terms on
which it is offered, as an honorary appointment. From
active participation in any political movement I have
found it necessary to retire.

Your object, as I understand it, is to procure by con-
stitutional means, and with the consent of the mother
country, the submission of the question of continental
union to the free suffrage of the Canadian people, and
to furnish the people with the information necessary to
prepare them for the vote. In this there can be nothing
unlawful or disloyal.

That a change must come, the returns of the census,
the condition of our industries, especially of our farming
industry, and the exodus of the flower of our population,
too clearly show. Sentiment is not to be disregarded,
but genuine sentiment is never at variance with the
public good. Love of the mother country can
stronger in no heart than it is in mine; but I hav
satisfied myself that the interest of Great Britain am
that of Canada are one.

Let the debate be conducted in a spirit worthy of
the subject. Respect the feelings and the traditions of

he

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 175

those who differ from us, while you firmly insist on the
right of the Canadian people to perfect freedom of
thought and speech respecting the question of its own
destiny.

Yours faithfully,

Goldwin Smith.

In March, 1893, an interesting episode in the struggle
between the loyal people and Goldwin Smith occurred
in connection with the St. George's Society, a most
respectable and influential organisation of Englishmen
and sons of Englishmen, formed for benevolent pur-
poses. Mr. Goldwin Smith was a life member and a
very generous contributor to the charitable funds of
the Society. His open and active hostility to the
Empire and to Canada's best interests, however, aroused
a very bitter feeling of resentment, and in February,
1893, Mr. J. Castell Hopkins gave notice of motion of
a resolution in the following words :

Resolved, that in view of his advocacy of the annex-
ation of the Dominion of Canada to the United States,
his position as President of the Continental Union
Association of Toronto, and the treason to his Sovereign
to England and to Canada involved in these conditions,
this body of loyal Englishmen request Mr. Goldwin
Smith to tender his resignation as a life member of
the St. George's Society, and hereby instruct the
treasurer to return to Mr, Smith the fee previously
paid for that privilege.

This notice of motion aroused much heated discus-
sion in the Press, numbers of letters being written
strongly supporting Mr. Hopkins's resolution, one " mem-
ber of the Society " writing under that name, quoted
the object of the Society in its constitution "to unite

176 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Englishmen and their descendants in a social compact
for the promotion of mutual and friendly intercourse/'

and he went on to say that there could be "no mutual
and friendly intercourse between a true-hearted, honest,
loyal Englishman and a traitor and enemy of England's
power and position .... If the St. George's Society |
does not speak out with no uncertain sound it will be
a disgrace to the Englishmen of Toronto and be a
death blow to the Society. Most Englishmen would as
soon join a society for friendly intercourse that con-
tained thieves as one that contained traitors. The
thief might steal one's money. The annexationist is
striving to steal our birthright, our name, our place in
history, and the lives of the thousands who would die
in defence of their country and its institutions."

A number of our. Imperialists who belonged to the
Society formed a committee to organise a plan of action.
This committee met in my office. We were not sat isfied
with Mr. Hopkins's resolution, as it asked Goldwin
Smith to resign, which he could easily avoid doing and
so put the Society in a false position. On the after-
noon of the day of the meeting our committee decided
on a resolution which it was thought could be carried
as a compromise. When the meeting was held after
there had been considerable discussion, all upon the
proper course of action, a committee was appointed to
draft a resolution as a compromise, and the one we had
prepared was adopted and carried unanimously. It
was in the following terms :

Whereas it has been brought to the attention of
this Society that Mr. Goldwin Smith, one of its life
members, has openly proclaimed himself in favour of
severing Canada from the rest of the British Empire,
and has also accepted the office of honorary president

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 177

of an association having for its object the active pro-
motion of an agitation for the union of Canada with
the United States, therefore this Society desires em-
phatically to place on record its strong disapprobation
of any such movement, and hereby expresses its extreme
regret that the Society should contain in its ranks a
member who is striving for an object which would
cause an irreparable injury to the Dominion, would
entail a loss to the motherland of a most important
part of her Empire, and would deprive Canadians of
their birthright as British subjects.

This was soon followed by Mr. Smith's resignation
from the Society.

In spite of Mr. Goldwin Smith's farewells he had an
article in the Contemporary Review for January, 1895,
on the Ottawa Conference of 1894. After reflecting
on the manner in which the "delegates" were
appointed, he went on to say the conference confined
itself to discussing trade relations and communications,
and that defence " was excluded by omission." He
sneered at the French Militia who served in the
North- West Rebellion, and attacked the Canadian-
Pacific Railway, insinuating that it would be blocked
in case of war, because part of it went through the
State of Maine. He made a great deal of snow blocks
also, and even said that the prediction made when
the Canadian- Pacific Railway »" was built, that the
road would never pay for the grease on its axle wheels,
though then derided as false, has, in fact, proved too
true," and he absolutely stated that "as a wheat-
growing speculation, the region has failed." The
whole article was as inimical to Canada and the
aspirations of the people as he with his literary ability
and indifference as to facts could make it.

173 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

This article aroused a good deal of criticism and
hostility all over Canada. I received many letters
from various parts of Canada, sonic from friends, some
from strangers, asking me to reply to it. Sir Oliver
Mowat urged me very strongly to answer it. I there-
fore prepared an article and sent it to the editor of the
Contemporary with a request that he should publish
it. I wanted no remuneration, but claimed the right
to answer many inaccuracies. I received from the
editor the following letter :

11, Old Squabe, Lincoln's Inn, W.C.,
Sth March, 1895.
Dear Sir,

I am afraid I cannot find a place for your article
on Canada.

But I do not think that you need fear misconstruc-
tion. We know Mr. Gold win Smith as a man of great
ability and cultivation, but he is not taken
representative of the bulk of Canadian opinion.

Believe me,

Yours faithfully,

Percy Wm. Bunting.

With this letter came my manuscript returned to

me by same mail. I replied as follows:

Heydon Villa, Toronto,

23rd March, 1895.

Dear Sir,

Many thanks for sending me word so promptly
about my article and for returning the manuscript
which has safely arrived.

I am glad to find that you do not take Goldwin Smith
as a representative of the bulk of Canadian opinion,
andean only express the regrel of Canadians generally

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 179

that his distorted and incorrect views about our
country are so widely circulated in England. This is
the more unfortunate when the bulk of Canadian
opinion is refused a hearing.

Yours, etc.

I then sent the manuscript back to England to my
friend Dr. George R. Parkin, and asked him to get
it published in some magazine. After considerable
delay, he succeeded in getting it in the Westminster
Rcvieiv for September, 1895. It was received very well
in Canada, many notices and copious extracts being
printed in many of our papers. The Week published
the whole article in pamphlet form as a supplement.

In the following January, the Press Association
having invited Mr. Goldwin Smith to their annual
banquet to respond with the Hon. G. W. Ross to the
toast " Canada," some objection was raised by Mr.
Castell Hopkins to his being endorsed to that extent.
Mr. Hopkins was attacked for this in the Globe. I
replied in his defence in the following letter, which
explains why we of the Imperialist party followed
Goldwin Smith so persistently and endeavoured to
weaken his influence. It was not from ill-feeling but
from an instinct of self-preservation as to our country. :

Sir,

I have read an article in your issue of this morning,
in reference to Mr. Goldwin Smith being asked to
respond to the toast of " Canada " at the coming Press
Association dinner, and censuring Mr. Hopkins for
objecting to such a course.

You say Mr. Hopkins's pursuit of Mr. Smith has
become ridiculous, and you refer to the St. George's
Society incident. As one who was present and took
part in that affair, I may say that the feeling was that

N 2

i8o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

the fact of Mr. Smith being a member of the society
gave him a recognition as an Englishman that he was
not entitled to, in view of his hostility to the best
interests of the empire . . .

Your editorial admits that Mr. Goldwin Smith " is a
sincere advocate of political union." If so, he is a
traitor to our constitution and our country. This
political-union idea is no new or merely polemic
discussion. It was advocated in 1775, and was crushed
out by the strength of the Canadian people. It was
advocated again in 1812, and again it brought war and
bloodshed and misery upon our people, and by the
lavish expenditure of Canadian lives our country and
institutions were preserved. Again in 1837 it was
advocated, and again produced bloodshed, and once
more Canadian lives were lost in preventing it. Mr.
Goldwin Smith knows this, or ought to, and he is the
most potent element to-day in preparing the Yankee
mind to take up the question of annexation. A belief
in the States that we were favourable to annexation
would do more than any possible cause to bring on an
attempt to secure annexation by force. This belief led
to the attempts in 1775 and 1812.

In view of this, Goldwin Smith's conduct is treason
of the worst kind. Such persistent hostility to the
national life in any other country would not be tolerated
for an instant. In Russia, under like circumstances,
Goldwin Smith would long since have been consigned
to the mines of Siberia. In Germany or Austria he
would have been imprisoned. In France he would
have been consigned to the same convict settlement
as the traitor Dreyfus ; while in the United States he
would long since have been lynched. In the British
Empire alone would he be safe — for he has found here
in Canada the freest constitution, and the most
tolerant and law-abiding people on earth, and these
British institutions, under whose protection h<
working against us, our people are determined to
uphold at all hazards.

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 181

I would not object to Mr. Smith appearing at any
public function but that I feel it gives aid to him in
misrepresenting and injuring our country. In 1812
we had just such men in Willcocks, Mallory, and
Marcle, members of the House of Assembly, whose
intrigues did much to bring war upon us. These men,
as soon as the war broke out, went over to the enemy
and fought against us, and Willcocks was killed in
action fighting against Canada. Goldwin Smith will
not follow his prototypes so far. On the first sign of
danger he will escape, and settling in some comfortable
retreat, probably among the orange groves on the
Riviera, or perhaps in a villa on one of the Italian lakes,
he will watch the struggle from afar, while " the over-
whelming majority " of the opponents of political union
in this country, or in other words the Canadian people,
would be engaged in a fearful struggle in the defence of
their native land and all that they hold dear. Those
who know Mr. Smith best will readily imagine the
sardonic smile with which he would read of our losses
in action, of our difficulties, and the untold miseries
that war always brings upon a people.

I ask the Press Association if it is fair to their fellow-
Canadians to allow our bitterest and most dangerous
enemy to speak on behalf of our country ? Is it fair to
ask a loyal man like the Hon. G. W. Ross, who believes
in Canada, to be coupled with a traitor ?

Among the other methods of arousing the patriotic
feeling of our people was the erection of monuments on
our great battlefields in memory of the victories gained
in the struggle to preserve the freedom of our country
in 1812-14.

The Lundy's Lane Historical Society, one of the
patriotic organisations which sprang up over the Prov-
ince, had started a movement for erecting a monument
on the field of Lundy's Lane where the last important
and the most hotly contested battle of the war took

i82 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

place in July, 1814. They had collected a number of
subscriptions but not sufficient for the purpose, when
Goldwin Smith offered through the late Oliver A.
Howland to supply the balance required, provided that
ho might write the inscription so as to include both
armies in the commemoration on equal terms. This
offer was promptly declined by the Society, which had
no desire to honour invaders who had made a most un-
provoked attack upon a sparse people, who had nothing
whatever to do with the assumed cause of the quarrel.

Shortly after, the Canadian Government took the
matter in hand, and provided the balance required for
the Lundy's Lane Monument, and the full amounts re-
quired for monuments on the fields of Chatoauguay and
Chrysler's Farm.

The Lundy's Lane Monument was finished and
ready to be unveiled on the anniversary of the battle,
the 25th July, 1895, and the Secretary of State, the
Hon. W. H. Montague, had promised to unveil it and
deliver an address. The day before Dr. Montague
telegraphed to me that he could not go, and asked me
to go on behalf of the Government and unveil the
monument. I agreed, and he telegraphed to the
President of the Society that I was coming. About
two thousand people were assembled. It will be
remembered that Mr. Goldwin Smith had commented
severely upon the proposal to put up a monument at
Lundy's Lane, in his lecture on "Jingoism" delivered in
1891. He said, " Only let it be like that monum-
Quebec, a sign at once of gratitude and of reconcilia-
tion, not of the meanness of unslaked hatred." T
replied to this in my lecture on "National Spirit"
shortly after, and said that, the Professor, "considering
how he is always treating a country that has used him

CONTEST WITH GOLD WIN SMITH 183

far better than he ever deserved, should be a first-class
authority on the meanness of unslaked and unfounded
hatred."

At the time of the unveiling of the monument, when
speaking in the presence of the officers and members
of the Lundy's Lane Historical Society, I naturally
felt it to be my duty to compliment them upon their
work, to congratulate them on the success of their
efforts, and to defend them from the only hostile
criticism that I knew of being directed against them.
I spoke as follows in concluding my address, as appears
in the newspaper report :

It was well, the speaker said, that they should
commemorate the crowning victory, which meant that
he could that day wear the maple leaf, could be a
Canadian. He was aware of one peripatetic philoso-
pher who had said that the noble gentlemen of Lundy's
Lane Historical Society, in putting up a monument to
Canadians alone, were doing nothing but displaying
the signs of an unslaked hatred. He would say that
to show themselves afraid to honour the memory of
their forefathers would be to make an exhibition of
contemptible cowardice. Lieut.-Colonel Denison then
argued that every great nation which has ever existed
has shown itself ready to acknowledge the deeds of
those who had fought for it, and he cited Assyria,
Egypt, Greece, and Rome in ancient history, and
Switzerland in modern times, in proof of this assertion.
The erection of such monuments, he said, taught the
youth of the land to venerate the memory of the past,
and encouraged that sentiment of nationality which
was throbbing now so strongly in Canada. (Applause.)
The past ten years have witnessed a great improve-
ment in that respect, he said. The flag can be seen
flying everywhere, the maple leaf is worn, and Canadian
poets celebrate in verse the finest passages of our history.

1 84 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

The speaker concluded by expressing the thanks of all
to the Government for deciding to erect monuments to
commemorate Canadian battlefields. He was glad that
the first had been erected on this sacred frontier ; that
at Chrysler's Farm would mark the spot of a great
victory, and he was glad for the thought of sympathy
with their French-Canadian brothers which had led
to the commemoration of the brilliant victory of
Chateauguay, where, against the greatest odds of the war,
500 French-Canadians had defeated 5,000 Americans.

Where France's sons on British soil
Fought for their English king.

They should never forget that they owed a sacred duty
to the men who fought and died for the independence
of their country. (Applause.)

The Historical Society objected strenuously to a
proposed inscription for the monument, and stopped
its being engraved, and asked me to urge upon the
Government to put something different. This was
done, and I was asked by the Minister to draft one.
It was accepted, and now stands upon the monument
as follows :

Erected by the Canadian Parliament in honour of
the victory gained by the British and Canadian forces
on this field on the 25th July, LSI 4, and in grateful
remembrance of the brave men who died on that day
fighting for the unity of the Empire.
1895

My speech was printed in the Toronto papers
some length, and some of Mr. Smith's friends censure*
me for having defended the Lundy's Lane Society froi
his attacks. A week or two later I was amused
receiving a visit from the Rev. Canon Bull, tl

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 185

President of the Lundy's Lane Society, who came
across the Lake to see me, to lay before me a matter
which had come before the Society, and of which after
discussion they felt I should be made aware.

I have mentioned above Mr. Goldwin Smith's offer
made through Mr. Howland to subscribe for the
monument provided he could write the inscription.
This offer and its refusal the Society had kept strictly
private, so that I was quite ignorant of it, and made
my address in entire innocence of any knowledge in
reference to it. Mr. Smith apparently jumped to the
conclusion that I had been told of this offer, and that
my comments had been caused by it. He wrote to
Mr. Howland and asked him to put the matter right,
and enclosed him a draft of a memo, which he wished
Mr. Howland to send to the Society. Mr. Howland very
innocently sent Mr. Smith's letter, his draft memo.,
and his own comments to the President of the Society,
Rev. Mr. Bull. As soon as the correspondence was read,
my old friend Mr. Wm. Kirby, author of Le Chien d'Or,
said, "Col. Denison knew nothing of that offer, but
Mr. Smith did make an attack in his lecture on
' Jingoism,' and Col. Denison had answered him in his
lecture on 'National Spirit' which was published in
the Empire in 1891, and his remarks on that point at
the unveiling were on the same lines." The Society
refused to act on Mr. Howland's and Mr. Smith's
suggestion, but decided that Canon Bull should come
over to Toronto and lay the whole matter before me.
I thanked Canon Bull and asked him to thank the
Society, and the next day wrote to him, and asked
him if I might have a copy of the letters. He wrote to
me promptly, saying I might as well have the originals
and enclosed them. I have them now.

i86 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

While Mr. Goldwin Smith was working so earnestly
against the interests of the Empire, and while many
were leaning towards Commercial Union, and some
even ready to go farther and favour annexation, Mr.
(afterwards Sir) Oliver Mowat, then Premier of Ontario,
saw the danger of the way in which matters were
drifting. I often discussed the subject with him, and
knew that he was a thorough loyalist, and a true
Canadian and Imperialist. He often spoke despondingly
to me as to what the ultimate outcome might be, for,
of course, the majority of the men who at the time
favoured Commercial Union were among his supporters,
and he would therefore hear more from that side than
I would. In spite of his uneasiness, however, he was
staunchly loyal. Mr. Biggar, his biographer, relates
that just before the Inter-Provincial Conference in
October, 1887, an active Liberal politician, referring
to his opposition to Commercial Union, said to Mr.
Mowat in the drawing-room of his house on St. George
Street, " If you take that position, sir, you won't have
four per cent, of the party with you." To which the
reply came with unusual warmth and sharpne-
cannot help it, if I haven't one per cent. I won't
support a policy that will allow the Americans to have
any — even the smallest — voice in the making of our
laws."

On the evening of the 18th February, 1891, in the
election then coming on, Mr. Mowat spoke at a meeting
in the Horticultural Pavilion, Toronto, and again his
strong loyalty spoke out. He said among other things,
" For myself I am a true Briton. I love the old land
dearly. I am glad that I was born a British subject; a
British subject I have lived for three score year-
something more. I hope to live and die a British sub-

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 187

ject. I trust and hope that my children and my grand-
children who have also been born British subjects will
live their lives as British subjects, and as British sub-
jects die." Sir Oliver Mowat's clear and outspoken
loyalty prevented the Liberals from being defeated in
Ontario by a very much greater majority than they
were.

During the summer of 1891, however, the annexa-
tion movement assumed a still more active form. Mr.
Goldvvin Smith was doing his utmost to stir up the
feeling. Solomon White, who had been a Conservative,
and was a member of the Ontario Legislature, induced
a public meeting in Windsor, where he lived, to pass a
resolution in favour of annexation. Encouraged by
this, Mr. White arranged for a meeting in Woodstock
in Mr. Mowat's own constituency of South Oxford, in
the hope of carrying a resolution there to the same
effect.

While there was a feeling to treat the meeting with
contempt, Mr. Mowat with keener political insight saw
that such a course would be dangerous, not only to the
country but to the Liberal party as well, and he
wrote a letter on the 23rd November, 1891, to
Dr. McKay, M.P.P., who represented the other riding of
the county of Oxford in the House of Assembly. He
wrote :

With reference to our conversation this morning, I
desire to reiterate my strong opinion that it would not
. be good policy for the friends of British connection and
the old flag to stay away from Mr. Solomon White's
meeting at Woodstock to-morrow. By doing so and
not voting at the meeting they would enable annexa-
tionists to carry a resolution in favour of their views,
and to trumpet it throughout the Dominion and else-

1 88 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

where as the sentiment of the community as a whole.
If in the loyal town of Woodstock, thriving beyond most
if not all the other towns of Ontario, the capital of the
banner county of Canadian Liberalism, formerly repre-
sented by that great champion of both British
connection and Liberal principles, the Hon. George
Brown, and noted heretofore for its fidelity at once to
the old flag and to the Liberal views, if in such a place
a resolution were carried at a public meeting to which
all had been invited, no subsequent explanation as to
the thinness of the attendance or as to the con-
temptuous absence of opponents would, outside of
Oxford, have any weight.

There are in most counties a few annexationists —
in some counties more than in others ; but the aggre-
gate number in the Dominion I am sure is very small
as compared with the aggregate population. The
great majority of our people, I believe and trust, are not
prepared to hand over this great Dominion to a foreign
nation for any present commercial consideration which
may be proposed. We love our Sovereign, and we arfl
proud of our status as British subjects. The Imperial
authorities have refused nothing in the way of self-
government which our representatives have asked for,
Our complaints arc against parliaments and govern-
ments which acquired their power from our own people.
To the United States and its people we are all most
friendly. We recognise the advantages which would
go to both them and us from extended trade relations,
and we are willing to go as far in that direction as shall
not involve, now or in the future, political union ; but
there Canadians of every party have hitherto drawn
the line.

The meeting passed by twelve to one the follow]

resolution :

That the people of Oxford of all parties are deepl
attached to their beloved Sovereign, the Queen of (

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 189

Britain and Ireland ; that they proudly recognise the
whole British Empire as their country, and rejoice that
Canada is part of that Empire ; that Canadians have
the most friendly feelings toward the people of the
United States, and desire the extension of their trade
relations with them ; that while differing among them-
selves as to the extent of the reciprocity to be desired
or agreed to, we repudiate any suggestion that in order
to accomplish this object Canadians should change their
allegiance or consent to the surrender of the Dominion
to any foreign Power by annexation, political union, or
otherwise.

Sir Oliver Mowat's biographer states that Sir Oliver
had determined in case a pro-annexation resolution
should be carried at this meeting, to resign his seat for
North Oxford, and appeal again to the constituency on
the straight issue of British Connection v. Annexa-
tion.

The morning Sir Oliver's letter appeared in the
papers and we knew what had happened at Woodstock,
I went up to his house and congratulated him warmly,
and thanked him earnestly for his wise and patriotic
action. I knew that as the leader of the liberal party
in Ontario he had delivered a death-blow to the
annexation movement. I told him so. I said to him,
" You had control of the switch and you have turned it
so that the party will be turned towards loyalty and
away from annexation. And when the future historian
writes the history of our country, he will not understand
his business if he does not point out clearly the far-
reaching effect of your action in this matter."

Sir Oliver seemed to think that I overrated the
matter, but he told me that he had sent his secretary,
Mr. Bastedo, to Woodstock to see his leading supporters,
and to do what he could to help Dr. McKay to secure

i go THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

control of the meeting. .Many years have elapsed, and
I still hold the opinion I expressed to Sir Oliver that-
morning, and I feel that Canada should never forgel
what she owes to Sir Oliver Mowat, and that hig
name should always be cherished in the memories of
our people.

This was followed on the 12th December, 1891, by
an open letter to the Hon. A. Mackenzie which was
published as a sort of manifesto to the Liberal party, in
which he made an exhaustive argument along the
same lines.

In the early part of 1892 Mr. Elgin Myers, County
Attorney of Dufferin, was writing and speaking openly
and strongly in favour of annexation, and on being
remonstrated with by the Government, said he had
the right of free speech, and would persist. Sir Oliver
dismissed him from office. This was another strong
lesson, and was heartily approved by the people
generally. About the same time and for the same ca
E. A. Macdonald was dismissed by the Dominion
Government from the Militia, in which he held the
iank of Lieutenant in the 12th York Rangers.

On the 16th July, 1892, about two months after
Elgin Myers' dismissal a great meeting of loyal
Canadians was held at, Niagara-on-the-Lake, the first
/ capital of the Province, to celebrate the one hundredth
anniversary of the establishment of the Province of
Upper Canada by Lt.-Governor Simcoe, who issued
his first proclamation on July lGth, 1792, at Kingstc

The Lt.-Governor, Sir George Kirkpatrick, made
first speech, and gave a historical sketch of the histc
of the Province. Sir Oliver Mowat followed him, and
made a very loyal and effective speech.

He commenced by saying :

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 191

At this great gathering of Reformers and Conser-
vatives in which both are equally active, I may be
permitted to express at the outset a hope that there
will be no attempt in any quarter to make party
capital out of this historic event, or out of anything
which may be said or left unsaid either in my own
case or that of any other of the speakers. ... As the
Dominion grows in population and wealth, changes are
inevitable and must be faced. What are they to be ?
Some of you hope for Imperial Federation. Failing
that, what then ? Shall we give away our great country
to the United States as some — I hope not many — are
saying just now ? (Cries of " Never.") Or when the
time comes for some important change, shall we go for
the only other alternative, the creation of Canada into
an independent nation ? I believe that the great mass
of our people would prefer independence to political
union with any other people. And so would I. As a
Canadian I am not willing that Canada should cease to
be. Fellow Canadians, are you ? (Cries of " No.") I
am not willing that Canada should commit national
suicide. Are you ? (Cries of " No.") I am not willing
that Canada should be absorbed into the United
States. Are you ? (Cries of " No.") I am not willing
that both our British connection and our hope of a
Canadian nationality shall be for ever destroyed.
(Cheers.) Annexation necessarily means all that. It
means, too, the abolition of all that is to us preferable
in Canadian character and institutions as contrasted
with what in these respects our neighbours prefer. . . .
But I don't want to belong to them. I don't want to
give up my allegiance on their account or for any
advantage they may offer. ... I cannot bring myself to
forget the hatred which so many of our neighbours
cherish towards the nation we love and to which we
are proud to belong. I cannot forget the influence
which that hatred exerts in their public affairs. I
don't want to belong to a nation in which both political
parties have for party purposes to vie with one another

192 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

in exhibiting this hatred. I don't want to belong to a
nation in which a suspicion that a politician has ;i
friendly feeling towards the great nation which gave
him birth is enough to ensure his defeat at the polls,
. . . No, I do not want annexation. I prefer the ills 1
suffer to the ills that annexation would involve. J
love my nation, the nation of our fathers, and shall do1
willingly join any nation which hates her. I love
Canada/ and I want to perform my part, whatever it
may be, in maintaining her existence as a distinct
political or national organisation. I believe this to be
on the whole and in the long run the best thing for
Canadians and the best thing for the whole American
continent. I hope that when another century has
been added to the age of Canada, it may still be
Canada, and that its second century shall, like its first,
be celebrated by Canadians unabsorbed, numerous,
prosperous, powerful, and at peace. For myself I
should prefer to die in that hope than to die President
of the United States. (Cheers and applause.)

Sir Oliver's biographer, C. R. W. Biggar, says of this
speech :

Quoted and discussed by almost every newspaper in
Canada from Halifax to Vancouver, and also by the
leading journals of Britain and the United Si
Sir Oliver Mowat's speech at the Niagara Centennial
Celebration sounded the death-knell of the annexation
movement in Ontario.

While Sir Oliver was speaking I was sitting c
behind him, next to Mr. Wm. Kirby, who was a staunch
loyalist and keen Imperialist. He was delighted and
whispered to me, " Mr. Mowat has stolen your thunder,"
and again, " He is making your speech." I replied,
"Yes, there will not be any need for me to
much now." And when I was called upon to speak

CONTEST WITH GOLDWIN SMITH 193

after him I made a speech strongly supporting him but
very brief, feeling, as I did, that he had done all that
was necessary in that line.

He was always impressed with the feeling of hostility
in the United States. As I had been speaking upon
that subject for years in unmistakable language, and
was often abused for my outspoken comments, I was
delighted on one occasion some years before at a
Board of Trade banquet in the Horticultural Pavilion,
Toronto, to hear him say positively " that the United
States was a hostile nation." Afterwards in the cloak
room I congratulated him warmly upon his speech,
and thanked him for speaking so plainly about the
hostility of the United States. Sir John A. Macdonald
was standing by, and he turned playfully towards
Mr. Mowat, and, shaking him by the shoulders, said,
" Yes, Denison, did he not do well, the little tyrant ? "
This was in reference to the opposition papers having
sometimes called him " the little tyrant." Mr. Mowat
seemed highly amused, and I was much impressed
by the evident kindly, almost affectionate, personal
feeling between the two rival statesmen.

The decided position taken by Mr. Mowat certainly
had an immense influence upon the Liberal party, and
in this he was ably seconded by the Hon. G. W. Ross,
who on many occasions sounded a clear note in favour
of British connection and Imperial consolidation.

CHAPTER XVIII

DISSOLUTION OF THE IMPERIAL FEDERATION
LEAGUE IN ENGLAND

On the 30th January, 1891, Sir Leonard Tilley, of
New Brunswick, was appointed President of the League
in Canada in place of D'Alton McCarthy, mainly
through the instrumentality of Principal Grant, who
was of the opinion that the course taken by Mr.
McCarthy in opposition to the Jesuit Estates Act and
his movement in favour of Equal Rights were so
unsatisfactory to the French Canadians that the pros-
pect of the League obtaining their support would be
hopeless while he remained President. Sir Leonard
Tilley was one of the Fathers of Confederation, and at
the time Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick.

A meeting of the Council of the League in Canada
was held on the 18th September, 1891, Sir Leonard
Tilley, President, in the chair, when after careful
discussion they passed a resolution asking the League
in England to help the Canadian Government t<
secure the denunciation of the German and Belgian
treaties, and a second one urging once more the impor-
tance of a preferential trade arrangement between the
Mother Country and the Colonies.

On the 30th of the same month, both Houses of the
Canadian Parliament passed unanimously an addre

DISSOLUTION OF LEAGUE IN ENGLAND 195

the Imperial Government, asking them to denounce the
German and Belgian treaties which prevented prefer-
ential trade arrangements between the various parts
of the British Empire.

The Seventh Annual General Meeting of the League
in Canada was held in the Tower Room, House of
Commons, Ottawa, on the 1st March, 1892, Mr. Alex-
ander McNeill in the chair. A still further advance
in the policy of the Canadian League was made in a
resolution moved by Lt.-Col. W. Hamilton Merritt and
carried as follows :

That in the event of preferential inter Imperial trade
relations being adopted in the British Empire, it is the
opinion of this League that Canada will be found
ready and willing to bear her share in a just and
reasonable proportion of Imperial responsibilities.

On the 28th April, 1892, Mr. McNeill moved in the
House of Commons :

That if and when the Parliament of Great Britain
and Ireland admits Canadian products to the markets
of the United Kingdom upon more favourable terms
than it accords to the products of foreign countries, the
Parliament of Canada will be prepared to accord
corresponding advantages by a substantial reduction
in the duties it imposes upon British manufactured
goods.

This was carried by ninety-eight votes to sixty-four.

All this was very gratifying to our League, and
proved to us that the campaign we had been waging in
Canada for nearly five years had convinced the
majority of the people of the soundness of our policy.
We had our Parliament with us both on the question
of the German and Belgian treaties and preferential

o 2

i96 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

tariffs. In Great Britain, however, our progress had
bees slow; with the exception of Sir Howard 'Vincent
no prominent British politician had accepted the
principle of preferential tariffs. Lord Salisbury had
spoken tentatively at the Guildhall on the 9th Novem-
ber, 1890, and at Hastings on the 18th May, 1892, but
he was, while in a sense favourable, very cautious in his
remarks, as he felt public opinion in Great Britain was
quite averse to any such policy on account of their
obstinate adherence to the principle of Free Trade.

The majority of the Imperial Federation League in
England were not at all favourable to the views of the
Canadiau League, and the Journal of the League
showed its bias in all its articles on the subject,
while Lord Knutsford on behalf of the Imperial
Government in his dispatch on the 2nd April, 1892,
in answer to the joint address of the Canadian Houses
of Parliament declared, that for reasons given, " Her
Majesty's Government have felt themselves unable to
advise Her Majesty to comply with the prayer of the
address which you have transmitted for submission to
Ber Majesty."

The Eighth Annual General Meeting of the League
in Canada was held in Montreal on the 13th February,
1893, Mr. Alexander McNeill, Vice-President, in the
chair, and a resolution was carried, asking the Govern-
ment to request the Imperial Government to summon an
Imperial Conference. Sir Leonard Tilley wrote to the
meeting asking to be relieved of the duties of President,
and advising the election of Mr. Alexander McNeill ii
his place. In my absence, through Mr. McNeill's efforts,
I was elected President of the League. I accepted the
position, and on examination of its affairs I found that
from a business point of view it was in a very ba(

DISSOLUTION OF LEAGUE IN ENGLAND 197

condition. The work of the Secretary was behindhand,
the League was without funds and considerably in debt.
I soon succeeded in placing it in a much better position.
A large amount of arrears of fees was collected, and with
the assistance of Mr. Herbert Mason and the late
C. J. Campbell we soon secured subscriptions from a
number of friends of the cause, whose names I feel
should be recorded as they aided the movement for
many years. The list of subscribers was as follows :
George T. Denison, J. Herbert Mason, George Gooder-
ham, A. R. Creelman, John T. Small, A. B. Lee,
D'Alton McCarthy, Sir Sandford Fleming, Sir Frank
Smith, Alfred Gooderham, T. G. Blackstock, D. R.
Wilkie, Larratt W. Smith, E. B. Osier, A. M. Cosby,
George R. R. Cockburn, Hugh Blain, Albert E. Gooder-
ham, W. G. Gooderham, and W. H. Beatty. The debts
were paid, and a balance on hand and the future
expenses for some years secured. A new secretary was
appointed, and everything was in good working order.

I had barely succeeded in this when I received
from the secretary of the League in England a com-
munication marked " Strictly private and confidential,"
informing me that there was a proposal to dissolve the
League, and close its business.

I was much astonished and alarmed at this informa-
tion, and much embarrassed by the strict secrecy
imposed on me, but a day or two afterwards I found
by the cable dispatches in the Toronto papers that
the matter had come before", the Council in England
and that the motion had been adjourned for six months.
I concluded that the six months' hoist meant the end
of it. So I preserved the strict request for secrecy
which had been made to me. I had before written
privately in reply to the Secretary, Mr. A. H. Loring,

198 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

protesting against the proposition to dissolve the
League. And I happened to mention that I personally
would feel inclined to keep up the struggle. I thought
the postponement had settled the matter, but as
Mr. John T. Small, the Hon. Treasurer, was going
to England that summer, and as he was a member of
the Executive Committee of the League in England and
entitled to know what was being done, I urged him very
particularly to go to the head office in London, and
inquire carefully as what was going on. When he
returned he told me that he had twice tried to sec
Mr. Loring but failed, that he had asked for his address,
which the clerk said he could not give him as he was
away on his holidays,"and Mr. Small was assured by the
clerk that there was nothing going on, and that there
was no information that he knew of to give him.

All this lulled me into a feeling of security. Sud-
denly on 25th November, 1893, the news came by
cable to the Press that on the previous day a meeting
had been held in London, and that the League had
been dissolved. The meeting was called 1)y a circular
dated 17th November, so that there was no possibility
for the Canadian members of the Council in England
to have attended, even if notices had been sent to
them, which was not done.

In the Journal for the 1st December, 1893 (the last
issue of that publication), it is stated that discussion
had been taking place in the meetings of the Executive
Committee during the previous six months, to decide
upon the course of action to be adopted by the League in
the immediate future; and it, shows thai a special
committee had been appointed to consider the matter.
The report of this committee was signed by the Rt.
Hon. Edward Stanhope, M.P., President, Lord Brassey,

DISSOLUTION OF LEAGUE IN ENGLAND 199

Sir John Colomb, R. Munro-Ferguson, M.P., H. 0.
Arnold-Forster, M.P., S. Vaughan Morgan, the Lord
Reay, and J. G. Rhodes. This committee reported
" a recommendation, that the operations of the League
should be brought to a close."

" This report was discussed at several meetings of
the Executive Committee, and alternative proposals
were carefully considered during the autumn," and on
the 24th November, 1893, the report was adopted by a
vote of 18 to 17, Mr. Loring saying he had been
assured that the Canadian League would continue as
heretofore.

In spite of all these discussions mentioned, Mr.
Small was assured there was nothing going on, and
the Canadian League were kept in ignorance of the
movement until it was accomplished.

This dissolution of the League at a council meeting
to which none of the thirty-five Canadian members
representing the Canadian Branch were either invited
or notified, caused a considerable feeling of dissatis-
faction among our members, and was a severe and
disheartening blow to all friends of the cause in
Canada, the concealment and secrecy of the whole
movement being very unsatisfactory to everyone.

I called a meeting of our Executive Committee at
once for the 27th November when the matter was
considered. A resolution was moved and unanimously
carried that the Secretary should notify the Secretary
of the Imperial Federation League to stop the paper at
the end of this year, and if the journal should be
continued that they should communicate direct with
the Canadian subscribers.

The following resolution was also, after careful
consideration, carried unanimously :

2oo THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Moved by G. R. R. Cockburn, Esq., M.P., seconded
by H. .1. Wickham :

1. That the Executive Committee having had
brought to its notice telegrams from England pub-
lish, ti during the past week in the daily papers stating
that the Council of the League in England contem-
plated carrying resolutions tending towards its dis-
solution, would ask (as it conceives it has the right to
do) to be advised at once of any steps proposed to be
taken in that direction.

■2. The Canadian Branch of the League was formed
at a meeting held in Montreal on the 9th May, 1885.
At that meeting the resolutions passed at the Con-
ference held in London on the 29th July, 1884, and at
the inaugural meeting of the League held on the
1 Nth November, 1884, were accepted, and a resolution
lien eaiiied forming a Canadian Branch of the
ue. to be called the Imperial Federation League
in Canada.

o. Among the resolutions of the League in England
ecepted were the following: —

( 1 ) That the object of the League be to secure by
federation the permanent unity of the Empire.

(2) That British subjects throughout the Empire be
invited to become members and to form and organise
branches of the League which may place their repre-
sentatives on the general committee.

4. Canada then was, and is to-day, face to face with
momentous questions involving its whole political
future. The Earl of Rosebery then and until recently
President of the League, in a speech at Edinburgh on
the :Ust October, 1888, quoted from a speech delivered
in the American Senate by Senator Sherman these
woids :

" I am anxious to bring about a public policy that
will make more intimate our relations with the

DISSOLUTION OF LEAGUE IN ENGLAND 201

Dominion of Canada. Anything that will tend to the
union of Canada with the United States will meet with
my most hearty support. I want Canada to be part of
the United States. Within ten years from this time (and
I ask your particular attention to this), within ten years
from this time the Dominion of Canada will, in my
judgment, be represented either in the Imperial Parlia-
ment of Great Britain, or in the Congress of the United
States." Such language he thought worthy of attention,
and then Lord Rosebery went on to say : " My plan
is this : to endeavour so to influence public opinion at
home and in the Colonies that there shall come an
imperious demand from the people of this country,
both at home and abroad, that this federation should
be brought about."

5. To bring about a solution of the questions above
indicated on the lines laid down by Lord Rosebery has
been, since the formation of the Canadian Branch and
up to this time, its constant and anxious care, and
many of its members have, at great personal sacrifice,
devoted themselves to securing the permanent unity of
the Empire, with Canada as an integral part.

6. Much work has been done, but much more
remains to be done. The most enthusiastic of our
members would be unable to say that the objects of
the League have been accomplished, or that the
question above referred to especially affecting Canada
has as yet been solved.

7. The dissolution of the League in England would
therefore be nothing less than the desertion of the
Canadian Branch at a critical period in its history, and
would further appear necessarily to involve the
destruction of the League's branches both in Canada
and elsewhere. To those at least who are unfriendly to
our aims, it will seem that the great cause, of which
this branch nmy without exaggeration be said to be

202 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

the representative in Canada, has received a heavy
blow indeed at the hands of its friends.

8. Under these circumstances the Council of the
League in England will, this committee is convinced,
appreciate the necessity and propriety of consulting the
Canadian Branch of the League, and of duly notifying
the members resident in Canada, of the Executive
Committee and of the Council of the League in
England, before taking any such step as that above
referred to, a step to which this committee has seen
the first and only reference in the public Press.

Not long afterwards we Learned that a small faction,
principally those who had managed to destroy the League,
had formed a new organisation, had taken over the
office, appropriated the records, lists of members,
subscription list, &c., and adopted the same trade
mark or title cover used for pamphlets. They also
assumed the name " Imperial Federation (Defence)
Committee," and began circulating literature, pamphlets,
fly-sheets, &c, all pointing out the shortcomings of the
Colonies, and demanding cash contributions to the
Army and Navy. This was done in a spirit that
aroused a good deal of hostile feeling in Canada, and
did much more harm than good to the cause they
seemed to advocate. Had they desired to destroy the
movement in Canada, they could not have taken more
effective steps to secure that result.

This intrigue has been the most puzzling circum-

connected with the history of the Imperial

cation movement. I have never been able, even

after the most careful inquiry, to reach with confidence

the real cause of such peculiar conduct. At one time

I thought that as Lord Rosebery had become Premier

existence of the League might have become

DISSOLUTION OF LEAGUE IN ENGLAND 203

embarrassing to him, and that he had been in favour
of doing away with it, but Dr. Parkin assured me that
this could not be, as Lord Rosebery referred to the
question some years after when Dr. Parkin was his
guest at Mentmore, and asked him why the League was
dissolved, and Lord Rosebery said that he regretted
its dissolution very much and could never understand
it.

My own impression, although it is, of course, not
capable of proof, has always been that a few free
traders on the committee were alarmed at the progress
the Canadian members were making in spreading views
in favour of preferential tariffs, and in reference to
which Sir Charles Tupper had been rather aggressive.

The destruction of the League would have been
useless unless steps were taken to prevent its revival,
and to destroy, if possible, the League in Canada.
Hence the adoption of the name, address, trade
mark, etc., under which to flood Canada with publica-
tions tending to arouse great hostility among our
people. This was the condition in which I found
affairs only about ten months after I had been elected
President. The outlook was most discouraging, and
caused a great deal of anxious discussion among the
stalwarts in Toronto. We decided to summon a meet-
ing of our most influential men to consider the situation,
and decide whether we also should dissolve, or whether
we would continue the struggle.

The meeting was held on the 3rd January, 1894, and
after full discussion it was decided to fight on, and
with the assistance of Sir John Lubbock, who had sent
a communication to us asking us to co-operate with
him, to endeavour to resuscitate the League in
England,

2o4 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

The ninth annual meeting of the Imperial Federa-
tion League in Canada was held in the Parliament
Buildings, Ottawa, on the 29th May, 1894, and in the
notices of motion printed in the circular calling the
meeting was one by Lt.-Col. Wm. O'Brien, M.P., as

folio v.

Resolved, that the first step towards arriving at a
system of preferential trade within the Empire should
be for the Government of Canada to lower the customs
duties now imposed upon goods imported from the
United Kingdom.

And another to the same effect by Rev. Principal
George M. Grant :

Resolved, that this League is of opinion that as a
first step towards arriving at a system of preferential
trade within the Empire, the Government of Canada
should Lower the Customs duties now imposed on goods
manufactured in and imported from Great Britain.

These notices exactly foreshadowed the policy
adopted by Sir Wilfrid Laurier's Government in 1897.
Another resolution was carried to the effect that
a delegation should be elected by the Executive Com-
mit toe to confer personally with the City of London
Branch and similar organisations, and agree upon a
common course of future action. Accordingly on the
6th Juno, L894, the Executive Committee appointed
"Colonel (!. T. Denison President, Larratt W.
Smith, Esq., Q.C., LL.D., President Toronto Branch,
!'.. Evans, Esq., Hon. Secretary of the League
inada, John T. Small, Es<j., Hon. Treasurer, II. .1.
Wickham, Esq., Chairman of the Organising Com-
■'. L Hughes, Esq., J. 31. Clark. Esq., and

DISSOLUTION OF LEAGUE IN ENGLAND 205

Professor Weldon, M.P., to be the delegation, with power
to add to their number." Messrs. Clark, Small, and
Weldon were unable to act, and Sir Charles Tupper,
then High Commissioner, Lord Strathcona, and Lt.-Col.
Septimus Denison, Secretary and Treasurer of the
London Ontario Branch, were added to the delegation.
This was the turning point of the movement, and led
to the organisation of the British Empire League and
the continuance of the struggle for Imperial consolida-
tion. The account of this mission, its work in England,
and the subsequent proceedings of the new League, and
the progress of the movement for Imperial Unity during
the succeeding years, will be dealt with in the following
chapters.

CHAPTER XIX

ORGANISATION OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE

I LEFT for England on the 27th June 1894, arrived in
London on the 9th July, and at once called upon Sir
John Lubbock, M.P., now Lord Avebury. I breakfasted
with him on the 13th, when we thoroughly discussed
the whole question. I pressed upon him the urgent
need there was that we should have a head office in
England, and how important the movement was in
order to spread and maintain the Imperial sentiment
in Canada. He was most sympathetic and friendly,
and said that if it would be convenient for us he would
gather a number of men favourable to the idea to meet
us at his house a week later, on the 20th July. I wrote
to the members of the delegation, and gathered them
the day before at Lord Strathcona's rooms on Dover
it, and secured the attendance of Sir Charles
Tupper, who was then High Commissioner for Canada,
and also a member of our League, and we added
him to the committee. We discussed our policy at
considerable length, and arranged to meet at Sir John
Lubb<»cks in St. James's Square the following morning
ven a.m.
I happened to be breakfasting at the United Service
Club that morning with Lord Roberts and General
Nicholson, and Lord Roberts hearing that I was going

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 207

to Sir John Lubbock's, said that he had been asked to
attend the meeting, but had not intended to go. I
prevailed upon him to accompany me.

Sir John Lubbock had a number of gentlemen to
meet us, among whom were Sir Westby Percival,
Agent-General for New Zealand, the Hon. T. A.
Brassey, Messrs. C. Freeman Murray, W. Culver James,
W. H. Daw, W. Becket Hill, Ralph Young, H. W.
Marcus, and others. Sir John Lubbock was in the chair
and Mr. Freeman Murray was secretary. As chairman
of our deputation, I put our case before the meeting,
following the lines agreed upon at the conference at
Lord Strathcona's rooms the day before. I spoke for
about forty minutes, and naturally urged very strongly
the importance of preferential trading throughout the
Empire, as a practical means of securing a permanent
unity, and I insisted that we should make the denuncia-
tion of the German-Belgian Treaties one of the
definite objects of the League.

The City of London Branch had prepared a pro-
gramme of a suggested constitution, which contained
nearly all the clauses afterwards agreed upon as the
constitution of the British Empire League. Our
Canadian delegation accepted all their suggestions, but
we insisted on a clause referring to the German and
Belgian Treaties. Our English friends were evidently
afraid of the bogey of Free Trade, and seemed to think
that any expressed intention of doing away with the
German and Belgian Treaties would prevent many
free traders from joining the League. I urged our
view strongly, and was ably assisted by speeches from
Sir Charles Tupper, Lord Strathcona, and Sir Westby
Percival. Our English friends still held out against us.
At last I said that we had agreed with all they had advo-

208 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

cated, had accepted all their suggestions, but that when
we asked what we considered the most important and
ssary point of all, the denunciation of the German
and Belgian Treaties, we were met with unyielding
opposition, that there was no object in continuing the
discussion, and we would go home' and report to
our League that, even among our best friends, we
could not get any support towards relieving us of
restrictions that should never have been placed upon
us. Mr. Becket Hill seeing the possibility of the
meeting proving abortive, suggested an adjournment
lor a week. Mr. Herbert Daw immediately rose, and
in a few vigorous sentences changed the tone. He
said that the Canadians had agreed with them in
everything, and that when they urged a very reason-
able request they were not listened to. He said that
was an unwise course to take, and urged that an
attempt should be made to meet our views.

Sir John Lubbock then said : " Perhaps I can
draw up a clause which will meet the wishes of our
Canadian friends," and he wrote out the following
clause:

To consider how far it may be possible to modify
any laws or treaties which impede freedom of action in
the making of reciprocal trade arrangements between
the United Kingdom and the colonies, or between any
two or more British Colonies or possessions.

1 said at once that we would accept that clause,
provided it was understood that we of the Canadian
Branch should have the right to agitate for that
which we thought was the best, and the only way,
probably, of unifying the empire. We claimed we

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 209

were to have the right to work for the denunciation of
the treaties with the view of securing preferential tariffs
around the Empire, and that in so doing we were not
to be considered as violating the constitution of the
League, although the central council was not to be
responsible for the views of the Canadian Branch.
That settled the matter at once, and the League was
formed. Difficulty was found in deciding upon a name.
We wished to retain the old name, but the arguments
in favour of a change were so great that we yielded to
the wishes of our English brethren. A number of
names were suggested, most of them long and explana-
tory, when Mr. James L. Hughes suggested that as the
object was the maintenance of the British Empire why
not call the League simply " The British Empire
League." This appealed to all, and it was at once
adopted, so that Mr. Hughes was the godfather of the
League.

It was then arranged that a meeting of the old City
of London branch of the Imperial Federation League
should be called at the London Chamber of Commerce.
It was held on the 26th July, when several of us
addressed the meeting, and an organising committee
was formed for undertaking the work of the recon-
struction of the League. It consisted of the Canadian
deputation and the following gentlemen : The Earl of
Derby, Earl of Jersey, Earl of Onslow, Earl of Dun-
raven, Field Marshal Lord Roberts of Kandahar, Lord
Brassey, Lord Tennyson, Sir John Lubbock, Bart., M.P.,
Sir Algernon Borthwick, Bart., M.P., Sir Charles
Tupper, Bart., Sir Westby Percival, Sir Fred Young,
Major General Ralph Young, Lieut.-Colonel P. R.
Innes, Dr. W. Culver James, Messrs. F. Faithful Begg,
M.P., W. Herbert Daw, E. M. Headley, W. Becket Hill

p

2io THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Neville Lubbock, Herman W. Marcus, John F. Taylor,
and Freeman Murray.

Addressing this meeting at some length, I endeav-
oured to show the importance of settling the North-
West, as well as other portions of Canada, with a
population of British people if possible, who would
grow grain to supply the wants of the mother country.
I stated that a preferential tariff against the United
States would keep our people in Canada, and would
settlers from Great Britain to make their homes
in that country; and that in a very little time the
North- West Territories would be occupied by a large
population of loyal people, who would be devoted to
the Empire, and would be able to supply all the bread-
stuffs that England would require. In order to impress
that upon the audience, I drew their attention to the
fact that if England was engaged in a war writh
continental countries, say, for instance, Russia and
France, it would cut off the supply of wheat from the
former country ; and that if hostilities were also to
break out between the United States and England, it
would confine the mother country's wheat supply to
India, Australia, and Canada; that the distance was so
great that it would take an enormous naval force to
keep the sea routes open, and that these would be
constantly liable to attack and interruption unless
England had absolute command of the sea.

I then went on to say that I was aware that there

rong feeling in England that there was no

possibility of a war with the United States, but

warned the meeting that they must not rely upon

that belief, and I quoted several facts to prove my

Within eighteen months the Venezuelan Message of

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 211

President Cleveland, followed as it was by the warlike
approving messages to Mr. Cleveland from 42 out of
the 45 Governors of States, proved how easily trouble
might arise.

Mr. James L. Hughes also addressed this meeting,
and we were strongly supported by a member of the
Fair Trade League, who used some powerful arguments
in favour of some steps being taken to improve the
position of the " Food Supply." He was answered by
Mr. Harold Cox, Secretary of the Cobden Club, who
said that my proposition was one that would abolish
Free Trade, and substitute Protection for it. In spite
of his appeal to the intense prejudice of the British
people, at that time in favour of Free Trade, the
idea of an Imperial Preferential tariff seemed to
have considerable weight upon those who heard it
expounded.

Lord Tennyson was present at the meeting and
spoke to me afterwards, approving of much of my
speech, but regretting I had spoken so freely about the
United States. I replied that the very fact of his
criticism was a strong proof of the necessity for my
speaking out, and told him I would send him some
publications which would enable him the better to
appreciate our view. This I did. He has been a
strong supporter of the British Empire League and
acted on the Executive Committee from the first.

I addressed a large meeting at Hawick, Scotland, on
the 17th August, 1894, and for the first time in
Scotland advocated our Canadian policy. My friend
Charles John Wilson organised the meeting. I spoke
in much the same strain as in London. Although my
remarks were well received it was evident that free
trade opinion was paramount, and that I did not have

p 2

2i2 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

any direct support in the meeting. One member of

the Town Council told me at the close that, while they
ill free traders, yet I had given them food for
thought for some time. At the Congress of Chambers
of Commerce of the Empire held in London in July,
L906, my friend Mr. Charles John Wilson, who spoke
at my meeting in Hawick in 1894, was a representative
of the South of Scotland Chamber of Commerce, and
made a powerful speech in favour of the Canadian
resolution which endorsed Mr. Chamberlain's policy
of preferential tariff, and his Chamber of Commerce
voted for it.

The organising committee appointed at the London
meeting took a considerable time in arranging the
details. Lord Avebury told me that he had considerable
difficulty in getting a prominent outstanding man as
President, and that the negotiations took up a great deal
of time He wished to secure the Duke of Devonshire,
and he being very busy, could not give much time, and
only agreed at length to take the position on the under-
standing that Sir Robert Herbert who, for many years
had been the Permanent Under Secretary for the
Colonies, and was about to be superannuated, should
undertake to act as chairman of the Executive Com-
mittee and attend to the management of the League.

When all was arranged, a large meeting was held at

Mansion House on the 27th January, 1896, the

Lord Mayor in the chair, and then the British Empire

formally inaugurated, the constitution

adopted, and a resolution, moved by Lord Avebury,

carried :

That the attention of our fellow-countrymen through-
iie Empire is invited to the recent establishment

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 213

of the British Empire League, and their support by
membership and subscription is strongly recommended.

It may be mentioned that when our deputation
reported to the League in Canada the arrangements
we had agreed to, it was suggested that an addition
should be made to the constitution by the insertion of
what is now the second clause of it. " It shall be the
primary object of the League to secure the permanent
unity of the Empire." This, of course, had been well
understood, but the Canadian League desired it to be
placed in the constitution in formal terms. The
request was made to the committee in England, and it
was at once acceded to.

A special general meeting of the Imperial Federation
League in Canada was held in the Tower Room, House
of Commons, Ottawa, on the 4th March, 1896, to
consider the annual report of the Executive Committee,
and the recommendation therein contained, that the
League should change its name to that of the British
Empire League in Canada, and affiliate with the
British Empire League.

As President of the League I occupied the chair.
Among those present were : Sir Charles Tupper, Bart.,
G.C.M.G.; Sir Donald Smith, K.C.M.G. ; the Hon.
Arthur R. Dickey, M.P. ; Senators W. J. Almon, C. A.
Boulton, John Dobson, Thomas McKay, Clarence
Primrose, W. D. Perley, and Josiah Wood. The follow-
ing members of Parliament : W. H. Bennett, G. F.
Baird, T. D. Craig, G. R. R. Cockburn, Henry Cargill,
George E. Casey, F. M. Carpenter, G. E. Corbould,
Dr. Hugh Cameron, Emerson Coatsworth, D. W. Davis,
Eugene A. Dyer, Thomas Earle, Charles Fairburn,
W. T. Hodgins, A. Haslam, Major S. Hughes, David

2i4 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Henderson, Charles E. Kaulbach, J. B. Mills, A. C.
Macdonald, J. H. Marshall, James Masson, J. A. Mara,
\\ . F. Maclean, D'Atton McCarthy, G. V. Mclnerney,
John McLean, H. F. McDougall, Major R. R. Maclennan,
Alex. McNeill, W. B. Northrup, Lt.-Col. O'Brien,
II. A. Powell, A. W. Ross, Dr. Thomas Sproule, J.
DSon, William Smith, Lt.-Col. Tisdale, Thomas
Temple, Lt.-Col. Tyrwhitt, Dr. N. W. White, R. C.
Weldon, R. D. Wilmot, W. H. Hutchins, Major
McGillivray, William Stubbs, J. G. Chesley, A. B.
Ingram; and Messrs. S. J. Alexander, Sandford
Fleming, C.M.G., N. F. Hagel, Q.C., James Johnston,
Thomas Macfarlane, Archibald McGoun, C. C.
ml, Q.C., Joseph Nelson, J. C. Pope, E. E.
Sheppard, J. G. Alexander, J. Coates, Joseph Nelson,
McLeod Stewart, R. W. Shannon, Major Sherwood,
Major (Mark, Dr. Kingsford, Dr. Beattie Nesbitt,
Prut". Robertson, Dr. Rholston, Lt.-Col. Scoble, Captain
Smith, George E. Evans (Hon. Secretary), and others.

I moved the adoption of the annual report, which
contained a copy of the constitution of the British
Empire League, and recommended that the Canadian
lie l»e affiliated with that body.

As bo tin- question of changing the name of the
I said :

That the Canadian delegation had urged the
tttion of the name Imperial Federation League,
but the arguments in favour of the change wen- so
great that we felt we had to yield to the wishes of our
English brethren. The word Federation was objected
bo by some, and there is no doubt that to attempt to
prepare a fixed and written constitution for a federated
Empire, with all its divergent interests, would be
difficult thing to do. If a dozen of the very ablest

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 215

men in all the Empire were to devote any amount of
time and their greatest energies to prepare a scheme
for such a federation, and succeeded in making one
practical and workable under existing conditions, might
not ten or twenty years so change the conditions as to
make a fixed written constitution very embarrassing and
unsuitable ? Such a method is not in accord with the
genius of the British Constitution. The British Con-
stitution is unwritten ; it has " broadened down from
precedent to precedent," always elastic, always adapting
itself to changing conditions. So should the idea of
British unity be carried out. Let us work along the
lines of least resistance. The memorial included in the
report urges a conference to consider the trade question.
A conference might arrange some plan to carry out
that one idea ; in a year or two another conference
could be called to consider some other point of agree-
ment. Soon these conferences would become periodical.
Soon a committee would be appointed to carry out the
wishes of the conferences in the periods between the
meetings; and then you would have an Imperial
Council, and Imperial Federation would have become
evolved in accordance with the true genius of the
Anglo-Saxon race. Let us take one step at a time,
and we shall slowly but surely realise our wishes.

These remarks outlined the policy that the Executive
Committee had agreed upon, and foreshadowed much
that has since occurred.

Mr. Alexander McNeill seconded the adoption of the
report, which was carried unanimously.

Sir Charles Tupper then moved the first resolution :

Whereas the British Empire League has been for-
mally inaugurated in London with practically the same
objects in view as the Imperial Federation League, this
meeting expresses its sympathy and concurrence there-
with, and resolves that hereafter the Imperial Federa-

2i6 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

tion League in Canada shall be a branch of the British
Empire League, and shall be known and described as
the British Empire League in Canada.

In his speech he gave a short sketch of the progress
of the old League, and pointed out that it was an
important fact that this organisation had committed
itself to the policy of removing the obstruction to
preferential trade with Great Britain which existed
through the treaties with Belgium and Germany.

Mr. D'Alton McCarthy seconded the resolution. He
-poke of the work of the old League which he had
founded in Canada, and of which he was the first
President. He said :

That no mistake was made in forming the League,
because at that time, twelve years ago, the feeling was
towards independence or annexation. The League did
very much to divert public opinion in the direction in
which it was now running. As to the treaties between
< treat Britain and other countries, he did not look upon
them as an obstruction but as an impediment. For
his part ho was prepared to do anything to advance
Canadian trade relations with England at once, without
postponing it until those treaties were terminated by
Civ.it Britain.

This last sentence shows that at that time he was

eon t.n i plating the adoption of the policy of a British

rence, which I believe in the following year, with

Principal Grant's assistance, he succeeded in inducing

Sir Wilfrid Laurier and his Government to adopt.

The constitution, by-laws and rules for the govern-
ance of branches were then adopted, and the work of
tli«' old Imperial Federation League in Canada has
smee hron carried on under the name of "The British
Empire League in Canada."

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 217

I have always felt that this success of our mission to
England was most important in its result, or at least
that its failure would have been' very unfortunate.
The collapse of the Imperial Federation League had
disheartened the leading Imperialists very much, and
the deputation to England was an effort to overcome
what was a very serious set back. Had we been
obliged to come home and report that we could get
no one in Great Britain sufficiently interested to work
with us, it would necessarily have broken up our
organisation in Canada, and the movement in favour
of the organisatipn of the Empire, and a commercial
union of its parts, would have been abandoned by the
men who had done so much to arouse an Imperial
sentiment. The effect of this would have been wide-
spread. Our opponents were still at work, and many
of the Liberal party were still very lukewarm on the
question of Imperial unity.

Our success, on the other hand, encouraged the
loyalists, and led the politicians of both sides to
believe that the sentiment in favour of the unity of
the Empire was an element to be reckoned with.
Sir John Macdonald had made his great appeal to
the loyalty of Canada in 1891, and had carried the
elections, the ground having been prepared by the
work of the League for years before. The general
election was coming on in 1896, and it was most
important that the Imperial sentiment should not
be considered dead.

After Sir John's death the Conservative party
suffered several severe losses in the deaths of Sir
John Abbott and Sir John Thompson, and in the
revolt of a number of ministers against Sir Mackenzie
Bowell, who had been appointed Prime Minister. The

2i8 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

party had been in power for about eighteen years, and
was moribund, many barnacles were clinging to it.
My brother, Lt.-Col. Fred Denison, M.P., was a staunch
conservative, and a strong supporter of the Govern-
ment, but for a year before his death, that is during
the last year of the Conservative regime, he privately
expressed his opinion to me that, although he could
easily carry his own constituency, yet that throughout
the country the Government would be defeated, and
he also said he hoped they would. He was of the
opinion that his party had been in long enough, and
that it was time for a change; and he held that
the success of the Liberals at that time with their
accession to office, and the responsibilities thus created,
would at once cause them to drop all their coquetting
with the United States, and would naturally lead them
to be thoroughly loyal to a country which they them-
selves were governing.

About the 1st January, 1896, President Cleveland
issued his Venezuelan message in reference to a dispute
between Great Britain and Venezuela. It was couched
in hostile terms, and was almost insolent in its character.
Among European nations it would have been accepted
almost as a declaration of war. This was approved of
by the United States as a whole. Nearly all the
Governors of States (forty-two out of forty-five was,
I believe, the proportion) telegraphed messages of
approval to President Cleveland, and many of them
offered the services of the militia of their States, to be
used in an invasion of Canada. This aroused the
feeling of our people in an extraordinary degree, and
in all Canada the newspapers sounded a loyal and
determined note. I was anxious about several papers
which had opposed us, and had even advocated inde-

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 219

pendence or annexation, but indignant at the absolute
injustice of the proposed attack upon Canada they
came out more vehemently than any. The Norfolk
Reformer struck a loyal, patriotic, and manly note,
while Mr. Daniel McGillicuddy of the Huron Signal,
who used to attack me whenever he was short of a
subject, was perhaps more decided than any. He said
in his paper that he had always been friendly to the
United States and always written on their behalf, but
when they talked of invading the soil of Canada,
they would find they would meet a loyal and deter-
mined people who would crowd to the frontier to the
strains of " The Maple Leaf Forever " and would die
in the last ditch, but would never surrender. Mr.
McGillicuddy had served in the Fenian raid in the
Militia, and all his fighting blood was aroused. This
episode of the Venezuela message ended the annexa-
tion talk everywhere, and Mr. McGillicuddy has been
for years a member of the Council of the British
Empire League.

I had but little influence myself in political matters,
but I had great confidence in Sir Oliver Mowat and
the Hon. George W. Ross, and among my friends I
urged that they should be induced to enter Dominion
politics, as their presence among the Liberal leaders
would give the people of Ontario a confidence which
in 1891 had been much shaken in reference to the
loyalty of the Liberal opposition. I was much pleased
to find that before the election in 1896, arrangements
were made that Sir Oliver Mowat was to leave the
Ontario Premiership, and support Sir Wilfrid Laurier
in the Senate.

In the early spring of 1896, while the Conservative
Government were still in power, I wrote to Lord

22o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Salisbury and bold him what I thought would happen,
first that the Conservatives would be defeated, and
ndly that the Liberals, when they came into power,
would be loyal and true to the Empire, and that he
Deed not be uneasy, from an Imperial point of view, on
int of the change of Government. I knew that
with Sir Oliver Mowat in the Cabinet everything
would be right, and I felt that all the others would
stand by the Empire.

In 1897, during the Jubilee celebration in London, I
saw Lord Salisbury, and he was much gratified at the
action of the Canadian Government in establishing the
British Preference, and said that they had been anxious
about the attitude of the Liberal party, until Sir
Wilfrid Laurier's first speeches in the House after his
accession to office. I laughingly said, " You need
not have been anxious, for I wrote telling you it would
be all right and not to be uneasy. His reply was,
See, I know you did, but we thought you were too
sanguine."

As soon as the new Government were sworn in, we
endeavoured to press our views of preferential tariffs
upon them, D' Alton McCarthy and Principal George M.
Grant exerting themselves on that behalf, and during
the autumn of 1896 a deputation of the Cabinet
consisting of the Hon. Wm. Fielding, Hon. Sir Richard
Cartwright, and the Hon. Wm. Patterson travelled
through the country inquiring of the Boards of Trade
and business in. 11 as to their views on the question of
revision of the tariff.

Our League naturally took advantage of this
opportunity to press our views upon the Government,
and urged Mr. Fielding and his colleagues very earnestly
to take steps bo secure a system of preferential tariffs.

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 221

A curious incident occurred on this occasion that is
worth recording. While our deputation were sitting
in the Board of Trade room in Toronto waiting our
turn to be heard, a manufacturer was pressing the
interests of his own business upon the Ministers. It
was amusing to hear him explain how he wanted one
duty lowered here, and another raised there, and appar-
ently wanted the tariff system arranged solely for his
own benefit. There was such a narrow, selfish spirit
displayed that we listened in amazement that any man
should be so callously selfish. Mr. Fielding thought he
had a good subject to use against us, so he said to the
man, "Suppose we lower the duty say one-third on
these articles you make, how would that affect you ? "
" It would destroy my business and close my factory."
" Then," said Mr. Fielding, " here is a deputation from
the British Empire League waiting to give their views
after you, and I am sure they will want me to give
Great Britain a preference." The man became excited
at once, he closed up his papers and in vehement
tones said, " If that is what you are going to do, that
is right. I am an Imperial Federationist clear through.
Do that, and I am satisfied." " But what will you
do ? " said Mr. Fielding. " It will ruin your business."
" Never mind me," he replied, " I can go into some-
thing else, preferential tariffs will build up our Empire
and strengthen it, and I will be able to find something
to do." "I am an Imperialist," he said with great
emphasis as he went out.

I turned to someone near me and said, " I must find
out who that man is, and I will guarantee he has United
Empire Loyalist blood in his veins." He proved to
be a Mr. Greey, a grandson of John William Gamble,
who was a member of a very distinguished United

222 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Empire Loyalist family. I am sure this incident must
have had some influence upon Mr. Fielding, as an
illustration of the deep-seated loyalty and Im-
perialism of a large element of the Upper Canadian
population.

The members of our League were delighted with
the action of the Government in the Session of 1897,
in establishing a preference in our markets in favour of
British goods. It will be remembered that we had
been disappointed in our hope that Lord Salisbury
would have denounced the Treaties in 1892, when the
thirty years for which they were fixed would expire,
but five years more had elapsed and nothing had been
done. I believe the plan adopted by our Government
had been suggested by Mr. D'Alton McCarthy, our
former I 'resident, and in order to get over the difficulty
about the German and Belgian Treaties, the preference
was not nominally given to Great Britain at all, but
was a reduction of duty to all countries which allowed
Canadian experts access to their markets on free trade
terms. This of course applied at once to Great Britain
and one of the Australian Colonies (New South Wales).
All other nations, including Germany and Belgium,
would not get the preference unless they lowered their
duties to a level with the duties levied by Great
Britain. The preference was first fixed at one-eighth
of the duty just to test the principle.

Shortly after this was announced in our Commons,
Kipling, who saw at once the force of it, published his
striking poem "Our Lady of the Snows," which
emphasised the fact that Canada intended to manage
her own attaii

Daughter am I in my mother's house,
But mistress in mine own.

THE BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE 223

The gates are mine to open
As the gates are mine to close,
And I set my house in order
Said Our Lady of the Snows.

Another strong point was illustrated in the lines :

Favour to those I favour
But a stumbling block to my foes,
Many there be that hate us,
Said Our Lady of the Snows.

Carry the word to my sisters,

To the Queens of the East and the South,

I have proved faith in the heritage

By more than the word of the mouth.

They that are wise may follow

Ere the world's war trumpet blows,

But I, I am first in the battle,

Said Our Lady of the Snows.

This poem pointed out to Great Britain that Canada
had waited long enough for the denunciation of treaties
which never should have been made, and which were
an absolutely indefensible restriction on the great
colonies.

At a meeting of the council of the British Empire
League in Canada held in May a week or two after the
Annual Meeting in Ottawa, a resolution was passed :

That the President and those members of the
Canadian Branch who are members of the Council of
the League in England be hereby appointed a deputa-
tion (with power to add to their number) from the
League in Canada to the League in the United
Kingdom j and that they be instructed to lay before
the members of the Parent League the views of the
Canadian Branch on matters of national moment, such
as the organisation of a Royal Naval Reserve in the
colonies, and also to express their opinion that, as a
guarantee of the general safety of the Empire, vigorous

224 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

steps should at once be taken to provide that the
British food supply should be grown within the
Empire.

The deputation consisted of the following : The
Bon. K. K, Dobell, M.P., George R. Parkin, J. M. Clark,
A. .McNeill, M.P., Sir Charles Tupper, Bart., John T.
Small, Sir Sandford Fleming, K.C.M.G., Lieut.-Colonel
ge T. Denison, D'Alton McCarthy, Q.C., M.P., Lord
Strathcona, H. H. Lyman and J. Herbert Mason.

&£

CHAPTER XX

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897

I left for England via Montreal on the 31st May,
1897, and expected to arrive in Liverpool a day or two
before Sir Wilfrid Laurier, who was to sail some days
later from New York on a fast ship. We were
delayed for some days by fogs, and did not arrive
in Liverpool till after Sir Wilfrid Laurier had left
that place. He had arrived in the old world for the
first time of his life, and at once fell into the hands
of the Liverpool merchants and business men, at that
time generally free traders. He had not a colleague
with him and naturally was affected by the atmosphere
in which he found himself, and in his speech at the
great banquet given by the British Empire League
with the Duke of Devonshire in the chair, he made
a few remarks in reference to preferential tariffs for
which he was severely criticised at home. I joined the
party at Glasgow two days later, and Sir Wilfrid, who
seemed pleased to see me, had a long talk with me
between Glasgow and Liverpool on the special train
which took the party down. On the following morning
the Liverpool papers had cables from Canada giving an
account of the discussion in the Canadian House of
Commons over the cabled reports of Sir Wilfrid's
speech. He was attacked vehemently by Alexander

Q

226 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

McNeill, our champion in the House, on one point of
his speech at Liverpool, and Sir Richard Cartwright
and his colleagues, in defending Sir Wilfrid, did bo on

round that the reports of what he said could not

in as correct, and asking the House to withhold

comment until the full reports should be received.

This was a desirable course to adopt, for cable despatches

have so often conveyed inaccurate impressions.

The real secret of the trouble was that in the
busy rush of his work as leader of the opposition, and
then as Premier, Sir Wilfrid had not been able really
to master the question, but he soon grasped the
subject, and his later speeches were very effective.
His reception by the British people was wonderfully
favourable, and the impression he made upon thorn was
remarkable. Ho stood out from all the other Premiers —
ami there were cloven in all— and he was everywhere
the central and striking figure.

On the 5th July, 1897, a meeting of the British
Empire League was held in the Merchant Taylors
Hall. The Duke of Devonshire was in the chair and
made an able speech welcoming the Premiers from the
colonies. He was followed by Rt. Hon. R. .1. Seddon,
Premier of New Zealand, Sir William Whiteway,
Premier of Newfoundland, Mr. G. H. Reid, Premier
of New South Wales, and Sir Edward Braddon,
ier of Tasmania. Sir Wilfred Laurier had not
been able to attend, and as President of the League in
Canada I was called upon to speak. As to the
treal id:

I have come here from Canada to make one or

estions. In the first place in reference to

rential tariffs, we have shown you that wo wish to

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 227

give you a preference in our markets. (Cheers). But
treaties interfere with us in the management of our
own tariff, and I wish to emphasise the fact that some
steps should be taken to place us in absolute freedom
to give every advantage we wish to our fellow-
countrymen all over the world. (Cheers.) We wish to
give that advantage to our own people, and we do not
wish to be forced to give it to the foreigner. (Hear,
hear.) . . .

Now my last point is this. In Canada we have
viewed with considerable alarm the fact that the
wealthiest and most powerful nation in all history is at
this moment dependent for her daily food for three out
of every four of her population upon two foreign
nations, who are, I am thankful to say, friendly to her,
and who, I hope, will always be friendly, but who, it
cannot be denied, might by some possibility be engaged
in war with us at some future time. These two
nations might then stop your food supply, and that
harm to you would spread great distress among the
people of our country. I have been deputed by the
League in Canada to ask you to look carefully into
this question. If there is no real danger, relieve our
fears ; but if you find there is any danger let me urge
upon you as strongly as I can to take some steps to
meet that danger. Let the method be what it may,
great national granaries, a duty on food, a bounty or
what not, but let something be done.

A special meeting of the Council of the League was
held on the 7th July, 1897, to meet the deputation uf
our League. In my address I once more dealt with the
question of the German and Belgian treaties. I said,
" The Canadian people have now offered, in connection
with their desire regarding these treaties, to give what
they propose to all nations, but with the express
intention of giving an advantage to our own people. I

4 2

228 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UN1TV

am deputed to ask you to use -what influence you can
on the Government and people of this country to give
us that full control of our own tariff to which we
.•<)] it cud we are entitled."

Lord Salisbury in 1890, although favourable to the
ulci. was Dot able to secure the denunciation of the
German and Belgian treaties, although I knew from
his conversation with me that personally he felt that
tiny should be denounced. In 1892 Lord Knutsford
peremptorily refused a request by Canada to denounce
the treaties, Lord Ripon was not quite so peremptory
in 1894 -5 after the Ottawa Conference, but he refused
permission to Mr. Rhodes to arrange a discriminating
tariff in Matabeleland. We had been held off for six
years, but the action of the Canadian Government
brought matters to a head.

During June and July, 1897, in London the most
profuse and large-hearted hospitality was shown on
every hand to the colonial visitors, and I was fortunate
enough to be invited to all the large functions. I felt
the importance of taking every opportunity to press
upon the leading men in England the necessity for the
denunciation of the treaties, and I know Sir Wilfrid
Laurier could not urge it with the freedom or force
that I could. Consequently in private conversations
I talked very freely on the subject, whenever and
wherever I had an opportunity.

I found that in meeting friends, almost the first
remark would be an approving comment on the
friendliness of the Canadian Parliament in giving the
British people a preference in the markets of Canada
My reply always was that it was no more than was
right, considering all that Great Britain had done for
us. This was usually followed by the remark that the

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 229

Government were afraid, from the first impression of
the law officers of the Crown, that Great Britain would
not be able to accept the flavour. My reply was very
confidently, " Oh yes ! you will accept it." Then the
remark would be made that the German and Belgian
treaties would prevent it. "Then denounce the
treaties/' I would say. " That would be a very serious
thing, and would be hardly possible." My reply was,
" You have not fully considered the question, we have."
Then I would be asked what I meant, and would reply
somewhat in these terms :

Consider the situation of affairs as they stand.
To-day at every port of entry in Canada from Sydney,
Cape Breton, to Victoria in the Island of Vancouver,
along 8,500 miles of Canadian frontier, German goods
are charged one-eighth more duty than goods from
Great Britain, and goods from Great Britain one-
eighth less duty than on German goods. This was
being done yesterday, is being done to-day, and will
be done to-morrow, and it is done by the Government
of Canada, backed by a unanimous Parliament, and
behind it a determined and united people. We have
made up our minds and have thought it out, and have
our teeth set, and what are you going to do about it ?

This did not usually bring out any indication that any
clear decision had been arrived at by them, and then I
would go on :

Of course we know that you can send a large fleet
to our Atlantic ports, and another to our Pacific ports,
and blockade them, paralyse our trade, and stop our
commerce, until we yield, or you may go farther and
bombard our defenceless cities, and kill our women and
children. Well, go on and do it, and we will still hold
out, for we know that any British Government that

230 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

would dare to send her fleets to jamb German goods
down our throats when we want to buy British, would
be turned out of office before the ships could get across
the Atlantic The thing is absurd, the treaties are an
outrage, and the only course out of the difficulty is to
denounce them.

These arguments carried weight with all to whom
I spoke, and I spoke to .Ministers, Privy Councillors on
the Government side, M.P.s, and others. Once only
the head of one of the great daily newspapers seemed
to be annoyed at my aggressive attitude, and said,
" You had better not be too sure. We might send the
fleet and be very ugly with you." My reply was,
" Well, go on and send it. You lost the southern half
of North America by trying to cram tea down their
throats, and you may lose the northern half it you try
t<> cram German goods down our throats. I should
have hoped you had learned something from history."

It will be seen that the plan which was, I under-
stand, originated by D'Alton McCarthy, worked out
very successfully. There could only be one result, and
within a month the treaties were denounced, and I felt
that the first great step of our programme had been
made. The amusing feature, however, was, that this
object for which we fought so hard three years before
at the meeting at Lord Avebury's, when the British
Empire League was founded, and which was opposed
by nearly all our English friends, was no sooner
announced as accomplished, than men of all parties and
views seemed to unite in praising the act, and the
Cobden Club even went so far as to present the Cobden
Medal to Sir Wilfrid Laurier.

Sir Wilfrid Laurier in all his speeches had upheld
abstract theories of free trade, and with considerable

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 231

skill succeeded in allaying the hostility of the free
trade element. This, I think, helped to secure the
denunciation of the treaties, with the approval of all
parties. On my return to Canada I was interviewed
in Montreal by the representative of the Toronto Globe.
Being asked by the reporter my opinion of the
probable effect of the denunciation of the German and
Belgian treaties, I said :

The denunciation of these treaties marks an epoch
in the history of the British Empire. The power of
Canada has made itself felt not only in British but in
European diplomacy. It has affected Germany, Bel-
gium, and other countries, and every one of these
countries knows that it was Canada's influence that
produced the result. Another point in connection
with the denunciation of these treaties is, that it is a
tremendous step towards preferential trade within the
Empire. Great Britain was going along half asleep.
Canada has awakened her, and made her sit up and
think, She has been jostled out of the rut she has
been following, and is now in a position to proceed in
the direction that may be in her own interest and in
that of the Empire.

Being then asked if I had any opinions to express in
regard to the Premier's remarks in Great Britain on the
question of free trade, I said :

His remarks were general and theoretical. The
great point of the whole movement was to secure the -A
denunciation of the treaties. Nothing could be done
while these treaties were in existence, and in my
opinion it would have been a most indiscreet thing for
Sir Wilfrid Laurier to have pursued any line of argu-
ment that would have aroused the hostility of the
great free trade party in Great Britain. The great
point was to secure the united influence of all parties

232 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

in favouring the denunciation of the treaties, which
was an important step in advance

Being asked to account for the fact that Sir Howard
Vincent, of the United Empire Trade League, a strong
protectionist, and the Cobden Club both united in
applauding the denunciation of the treaties, I replied :

Sir Howard Vincent and his League saw plainly
that this action made tor a preferential tariff. The
( Jobden Club are whistling to keep up their courage.

In the Conference of Premiers, held in 18f)7; it was
not possible to secure an arrangement for mutual
preferential tariffs. The other colonies were not ready
tor it, the Imperial Government was not ready for it,
nor were the people, but as the German and Belgian
Treaties were denounced to take effect the following
year, in August, 1898, the path was cleared, and from
that date the Canadian Preference came into force, and
has since been in operation.

It will be remembered that the deputation of
our British Empire League to England, in 1897.
was instructed to express the great desire of the
Canadian Branch that, as a guarantee of the general
safety of the Empire, vigorous steps should at once be
taken to provide that the British Food supply should
be grown within the Empire. As chairman of the
deputation I did all in my power to stir up inquiry on
the subject. Being introduced to Principal Ward of
( hvens College, Manchester, when at that city, I talked
freely with him on the point, and he suggested I
should discuss it with Mr. Spencer Wilkinson, the
well-known author and journalist. He gave me a
introducing me t„ Mr. Wilkinson, and we had

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 233

several interviews. Shortly after reaching London
I called to see my friend Lord Wolseley, then
Commander-in-Chief. He took me with him to his
house to lunch, and as we walked over, I at once
broached the subject of the food supply, principally
wheat and flour, and he told me that the Government
had been urged to look into the matter some two or
three years before, and that there had been a careful
inquiry by the best experts, and the report was that
the command of the sea wras a sine qua non, but if we
maintained that, and paid the cost which would be
much increased by war prices, the country could get all
the grain they would want.

I said suppose a war with Russia and the United
States, what would be done if they combined and
put an embargo on breadstuff's ? How would it be got
then even with full command of the sea ? He did not
seem himself to have understood the difficulty, or
studied the figures, and said, " I cannot explain the
matter. All I can say is that the Government obtained
the advice of the best men in England on the subject,
and that is their report." My reply was, " I wish you
would look into it yourself, " and I dropped the subject,

I met Lord Roberts shortly after and I pressed
the matter upon him. He had not known of the
Government report, and consequently listened to my
arguments attentively and seemed impressed, for I
may say that 1897 was the worst year in all our history
as to the manner in which the supply of food was
distributed among the nations.

Mr. Spencer Wilkinson seemed to be much interested
in my talks with him, and one day he said, " I wish
you could have a conversation with some great author-
ity on the other side of the question, who would

234 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

understand the matter and be able to answer you." I
replied, " Thai is what I should like very much. Tell
nit- the best man vim have and I will tackle him. If
he throws me over in the gutter in our discussion it
will be a good thing, for then I shall learn something."
Mr. Wilkinson laughed at my way of putting it, and
said, <; If that is what you want, Sir Robert Giffen is
the man for yon to sec" I said I would try and get a
letter of introduction to him. Mr. Wilkinson said ho
would give me <>nc, and did so.

I called to sec Sir Robert Giffen. He received me
very kindly, and we had an interesting interview of
about an hour. The moment I broached the subject
of the food supply he said at once, "That question
came up some two or three years ago, and I was called
upon to inquire into the whole matter and report upon
it, and my report in a few words was, that we must have
the command of the sea, and that once that was
secured, then, by paying the somewhat enhanced war
prices, we could get all the grain required." My reply
"Then, as you have fully inquired into the
question, you can tell me what you could do under
certain conditions. In case of a war between Great
Britain and Russia combined with the United States,
followed by an embargo on food products, where and
how would you get your supplies?" Sir Robert said,
" We do not expect to go to war with the United
States and Russia at the same time." I said, "You
were within an ace of war with the United States only
a year ago over the Venezuelan difficulty, and <<
Britain and Russia have been snarling at each other
over the Indian Frontier for years, and if you go to war
with either, you must count on having the other on
your hands."

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 235

Sir Robert then said, " But I said we must have the
command of the sea." I replied, " I will give you the
complete, undoubted, absolute command of the sea,
everywhere all the time, although you are not likely to
have it ; and then in case of an embargo on wheat and
foodstuffs where are you to get your supplies ? " He
said, " We would get some from Canada and other
countries." I pointed out that all they sent was only a
fraction. Sir Robert then said, " They could not put
on an embargo, for it would ruin their trade." I told
him that I was talking about war and not about peace
and trade, and said that no desire for trade induced the
Germans to sell wheat to Paris during the siege of
1870. His idea had been that, in case of war with
Russia or the United States, or both, holding the
command of the sea, Great Britain would allow food-
stuffs to be exported to neutral countries such as
Belgium or Holland, and then England would import
from those countries. My answer to that was, that if
England had the command of the sea, the United
States or Russia would have only one weapon, an
embargo, and they would certainly use it. He seemed
cornered in the argument, and said," Well, if we cannot
get bread we can eat meat. I eat very little bread."
I said, " The British people use about 360 lbs. per
head of wheat per annum, and about 90 lbs. of meat,
and a great deal of meat would be stopped too " ; and I
said on leaving, " I wish you would investigate this
thoroughly again, and let the Government know, for I
know they are depending upon your report at the War
Office " ; and then I left him.

When at Liverpool shortly after on my way back to
Canada, I asked the manager of the Bank of Liverpool,
to whom I had a letter of introduction, if he would

236 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

introduce me bo the highesl authority on the com
trade in Liverpool. Ho introduced me to the late
Mr. Paul, ex-President of the Corn Exchange, and I had
a long conversation with him on the question of the

food supply. As soon as 1 mentioned the subject he
bold me that the corn trade people in Liverpool had
been asked from London to make a report on the
possibility of supplying grain in case of war. Mr. Paul
told me thai they had considered the matter (I suppose
he meant the leading corn merchants), and that their
report was practically that they must have the
command of the sea, that was essential; but that
secured, and the enhanced war prices paid, they could
supply all the corn required in any contingency. 1
questioned him as I had Sir Robert Giffen and found
the same underlying belief. The law of supply and
demand would settle the question. The corn would be
allowed to go in neutral ships to neutral ports, and then
be transhipped to England. An embargo had not
been considered or treated seriously a- a possibility,
and when I cornered him so that he could not answer
my arguments, he said, ■ Well, if we could not gel
wheat we could live on potatoes." I told him potatoes
could not be kept over a year, that a large quantity
was imported which would be stopped. I said lie had
better make another report The whole thing was
very disheartening to me, for T saw how the Govern-
ment wen- depending upon peaceful traders for
information how to guard against war dangers.

In 1902 when Sir Michael Bicks-Beach, then Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer, proposed a small tax on wheat
and flour. I was pleased to see that Sir Robert Giffen
was the fust prominent man to write to the Press
endorsing and approving of the bread tax, as it was

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 237

called. It showed me that Sir Robert had carefully
considered the question, and was manly enough to
advocate what was not altogether a popular idea.

After my return to Canada I prepared an article for
the Nineteenth Century on the " Situation in England,"
and it appeared in the December number, 1897. In
this I pointed out the danger of the condition of the
food supply, and the' article attracted a considerable
amount of attention in the British Press, in comments,
notices, letters, etc. Sir Michael Hicks-Beach in a
speech at Bristol, in January, 1898, referred to the
question, and in a way contradicted the points I had
brought out in the Nineteenth Century article. My
conversations the summer before with Lord Wolselov,
Sir Robert Giffen, and Mr. Paul had so alarmed me at
the false security in which the Government were
resting, that when I saw Sir Michael Hicks-Beach
relying on the same official reports, I determined,
although I had never met him* to write him direct, and
on the 20th January, 1898, I wrote, drawing his atten-
tion to a remark which he was reported to have made
that "in any war England would have many friends
ready to supply corn," and I said, "Our League sent a
deputation to England last summer to draw attention
to the danger of the food supply. I was chairman of
it. Since my return I published an article in the
Nineteenth Century giving our views. I enclose a
reprint which I wish you could read. If you have not
time please give me one minute to examine the enclosed
diagram (cut out of the Chieayo Tribune) showing the
corn export of the world. This shows that Russia and
the United States control, not including the Danubian
ports, nearly 95 per cent, of the world's needs, and if
they were to put an embargo on the export of food of

238 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

all kinds, where would be the ' many friends ready lu
supply England with corn ? ' "

Sir .Michael Hicks-Beach, now Lord St. Aldvvyn,
with great courtesy wrote me a personal letter, in
which he thanked me for my letter, and went on to
Bay :

1 do not think that the sentence you quote " that in
any war England would have many friends ready to
supply corn* quite accurately represents what 1 said
on that subject. The report was necessarily much
condensed. But it would be true if (say) we were at
war with the United States alone: or if we were at
war with one or more of the European Powers and the
United States were neutral. In either of such c
the interests <»t' the neutral Powers in access to our
market would be so strong, that our enemy would not
venture to close it to them, in the only possible way,
viz.: by declaring corn contraband of war. And I
think that if the United States were the neutral part)',
self-interest would weigh more with them than their
ill feeling towards us, whatever the amount of that
feeling may be.

It is possible, though most improbable, that the two
great corn-producing countries might be allied against
us. If they were, I believe that our navy would still
keep the seas open for our supply from other sources,
though no doubt there would be comparative scarcity
and Buffering. I am no believer in the encloset
diagram, the production of corn is constantly inc
ing in new countries such as the Argentine, and bettei
communication is also increasing the total amount
available for export. Bad harvests in the United
S and Russia, and good ones in India and the
Argentine, would show quite another result to that
shown in the enclosed, though, as 1 have said, 1 do not
believe it is true, even of the year which it profess
sent.

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 239

On receipt of this letter I wrote to Mr. Geo. J. S.
Broomhall, of* Liverpool, editor of the Corn Trade
News, and author of the Corn Trade Year Booh, and
received from him a certificate of the correct figures of
corn exports. I forwarded it to Sir Michael Hicks-
Beach, showing that in 1897 India and the Argentine
only exported 200,000 qrs. and 740,000 qrs. respec-
tively, and that the diagram I sent could not have
been a very great way out. In 1902 Sir Michael
Hicks-Beach put a tax of one shilling a quarter on
imported wheat, and as I have already said, Sir Robert
Giffen wrote to the Times approving of it. I was very
glad to see this action on the part of both of them.

On the 4th December, 1897, the Hon. George W.
Ross gave an address before the British Empire League
in St. George's Hall, Toronto, in which he strongly
favoured preferential tariffs and came out squarely
against reciprocity with the United States. This
action was a great encouragement to our cause and
attracted considerable attention all over Canada.

On the 8th December, 1897, the National Club
gave a complimentary banquet to his Excellency the
Earl of Aberdeen, Governor-General. I attended the.
banquet and sat second to the left of the president of
the club, Mr. McNaught. I was under the impression
that Mr. Blake, who had been a few years away from
Canada, and who had joined the Irish Nationalist
party, would be sure to speak in a strain not acceptable
to our club. I mentioned this to Dr. Parkin who sat
next to me. When Mr. Blake began to speak he very
soon uttered sentiments strongly opposed to all that
the Canadians had been working for in the Imperial
interest. I said to Parkin that as an ex-president of
the club, and president of the British Empire League,

24o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

I would not allow his remarks to pass without comment.
I leaned over and told the chairman I intended tu
Bpeak a few minutes when Mr. Blake finished. He
raised some objection, but I told him I must speak,
lie mentioned it to the Governor-General, who said he
would wait for fifteen minutes. I told Dr. Parkin I
would divide the time with him.
After Mr. Blake sat down, I said :

I have been a member of this club almost from its
foundation. I was for many years on the Board of
Directors, and for some years its President, and T feel
that I should state that the speech of my friend
Mr. Blake does not represent the views nor the
national aspirations which have always been character-
istic ot the National Club. . . .

I agree with what Mr. Blake has said as to the
importance of preserving friendly relations with the
United States. We hope bo live at peace with them,
but because we do not wish to beg for reciprocity or
make humiliating concessions for the sake of greater
trade, it is no reason why we should be charged with
wanting war. We want peace, and no one can point
to any instance where the Canadian people or Govern-
ment have been responsible for the irritation. Mr. ( \.
W. Ross pointed this out clearly in his admirable speech
of Saturday night. The great causes of irritation have
come from the United States. The invasion of l77o.
the war of 1812, the Trent affair, and the Venezuela]
business were all matters in which we were absolutely
free from blame. Nor were we to blame some thirh
a ago when I had to turn out with my corps t<
help defend the frontier of this province from tin
al tacks of hands of Fenians, organised, armed, and
equipped, in the United States, who invaded our
country, and shot down some of my comrades, who died
defending Canada. These raids were maintained by
contributions from our worst enemies in the United

MISSION TO ENGLAND, 1897 241

States, but we drove them out, and now I am glad to
say that, while the contributions still go on, the pro-
ceeds are devoted to troubling the Empire elsewhere,
and I hope they will continue to be expended in that
direction rather than against us.

I approve of Mr. Blake's remarks about the defence
of Canada, and the expenditure of money to make our
country safer, but I object strongly to the hopeless
view he takes. We are 6,000,000 of northern men, and,
lighting on our own soil for our rights and freedom, I
believe we could hold our own in spite of the odds
against us, as our fathers did in days gone by, when the
outlook was much more gloomy.

•

Dr. George R. Parkin followed with an eloquent and
powerful speech pointing out the various arguments
which showed the growth of the movement for Imperial
unity.

It was thought at that time that Mr. Blake had
some idea of returning to Canadian politics, but the
result of this meeting and the Press comments must
have put an end to any such idea if it ever existed.

CHAPTER XXI

THE WEST INDIAN PREFERENCE

In the autumn of 1897 the report of a Royal Com-
mission on the condition of affairs in the West Indian
Islands was published. Field-Marshal Sir Benry
Norman disagreed with the other two members of the
Commission, and put in a minority report, showing in
effect that the real way to relieve the distress in the
sugar industry of the West Indies, was for Great
Britain to put countervailing duties on bounty favoured
sugar coming into her markets. I was much impressed
with Sir Henry Norman's report as to the condition of
the West Indies, and came to the conclusion that we
in Canada might do something to aid on Imperial
grounds.

I wrote, therefore, to Principal George M. Grant, one
of our most energetic and brilliant colleagues, asking
him to let me know when he would be in Toronto
wished to have a long conference with him. On the
29th December, 1897, we met, and I discussed the
whole question with him and asked him to go to
( Htawa. and urge Sir Wilfrid Laurier and Mr. Fielding
to increase the sugar duly in order that Canada might
be able to give a preference to West Indian Sugar. I
pointed out that such action would be popular, and
that 1 was satisfied both parties would support it. I

THE WEST INDIAN PREFERENCE 243

had been pressing Sir Wilfrid and the Government on
many points, and thought that in this matter they
had better be approached from a different angle.
Grant took up the idea eagerly, and promised to go
to Ottawa and do his best. On the 3rd January,
1898, he wrote me " (Private and confidential) " :

A Happy New Year to you! I have just returned
from Ottawa. Had an hour with Fielding discuss-
ing the West Indian question, which he understands
thoroughly. I think that something will be done,
though perhaps not all that we might wish at first.

Had an hour also with Laurier. First, the prefer-
ence hereafter is to be confined to Britain. That is
settled, but this is of course strictly confidential.

Secondly, he seemed at first to think that we had
gone far enough with our twenty-five per cent, reduc-
tion, till we could see its workings, but when I argued
for going steadily along that line he said, " I do not say
yea, but I do not say nay." I intend to push the
matter.

He is in favour of the cable, but thinks that we
cannot take it up this session.

He impresses me favourably the more I study him.
He has a truer understanding of the forces in Britain
than Tupper in my opinion.

Of course I told Fielding that the West Indian
suggestion was yours, and that I cordially endorsed it.
He is anxious to do something, but thinks that we
must ask in dealing with them a quid pro quo.

Shortly before it was announced Sir Wilfrid Laurier
told me the Government were likely to give West
Indian sugar a preference. And on the 5th April,
1898, Mr. Fielding introduced his Budget, and in a
most eloquent and statesmanlike speech declared that
Canada had her Imperial responsibilities, and that she

K 2

244 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

would lend "a helping hand to our sister colonics in
tin- south." This was received with great applause
from both sides of the House, and Grant and I were
not only much pleased at the success of our efforts, but
still more gratified to find the universal feeling in
Canada in favour of Mr. Fielding's action. A few days
after, on the 9th April, Grant wrote to me:

I am sure that my thorough discussion on the West
India matter with Mr. Fielding did good, but the sug-
gestion came from you. We may be well satisfied with
the action of the Government, but it will be bad if the
public gets the idea that the J British Empire League is
pressing them. It is our task rather to educate public
opinion. Things are moving steadily in the right
direction.

P.S. — Mulock is evidently aiming at Imperial penny
postage. Good!

Sometime after this the German Government put
the maximum tariff against all Canadian goods, and
Mr. Fielding met this by a surtax of ten per cent, on
all German goods entering Canada. This changed the
whole supply of sugar for Canada from Germany to the
West Indies to their great advantage.

On the 10th March, 1898, the Annual Meeting of
the British Empire League was held in the Private
Dills Committee Room in the House of Commons. It
was a most successful meeting. Four Cabinet .Ministers
present, Sir Louis Davies, Sir Win. Mulock,
Hon. .1. Israel Tarte, and Hon. Charles Fitzpatrick.
Sir Charles Tupper and Sir Mackenzie Lowell ex Prime
Ministers, and many members of the Senate and the
House. Those named above addressed the meeting as
well as Principal Grant and Colonel Sam Hughes.

Sir Wm. Mulock succeeded this year in securing

THE WEST INDIAN PREFERENCE 245

Imperial Penny Postage, which was one of the objects
for which the British Empire League had been working.
It was managed with great boldness and skill by
Mr. Mulock. His first step was to announce that on
and after a certain date some three or four months in
advance, all letters stamped with the ordinary three
cent domestic rate would be carried to Great Britain
without further charge. He knew that objection would
be raised to his action, but that it would bring the
question to the forefront. The Imperial Government
objected to deliver the letters, and said the matter
would have to be considered at a conference. Mr.
Mulock then answered that a conference should be
held, which was agreed to, but he insisted it should
not be a departmental affair, that he should only be
asked to discuss it with men of his own rank, that is
with Cabinet Ministers. This also was agreed to, and
it was not long before the matter was settled. Mr.
Mulock sent me a cable telling me of his success as
soon as he came out of the meeting where the resolu-
tion wras passed.

On the 28th August, 1898, a large deputation of the
Executive Committee of the British Empire League
met Mr. Mulock at the Toronto railway station on his
arrival from England, to welcome him home, to
congratulate him upon his success, and to invite him
to a complimentary banquet to be given in his honour.

The banquet took place on the 15th September, at
the National Club. Principal Grant, Alexander
McNeill, and Sir Sandford Fleming all came to Toronto
to attend it. It was a most successful affair.

The Lieut.-Governor Sir Oliver Mowat, who was one
of our vice-presidents, attended, also Lord Herschel,
Hon. Kichard Herschel, Hon. Charles Russell, Sir

246 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Frank Smith, Mayor Shaw, and a large and
distinguished company.

I was in the chair and proposed the health of Mr.
Mulock. The World of the following day, the 16th
September, 1898, reported me as follows :

Colonel Denison, inspired by the nobility of the
dominant idea of the evening, looked like a general
standing on the ramparts just won by his troops. He
spoke o? the double aim of the League, to preserve the
permanency of the British Empire, and secondly to
procure closer intercourse between the parts. He
dwelt on the wonderful advance made by the idea of
federation and the disappearance of the "Little
Englander," It was not enough to denounce the
Gorman and Belgian treaties, or to have a preferential
tariff. There should be no rest until a mutual
preferential tariff had been secured.

Lord Herschel, Sir Oliver Mowat, Mr. Mulock, Prin-
cipal Grant, Alexander McNeill, Sir Sandford Fleming,
Mr. George Hague of Montreal, Geo. E. Casey, and W. F.
Maclean all made loyal and patriotic speeches, Alex-
ander McNeill's being especially eloquent and powerful.

Our League was much gratified not long afterwards
at an article which appeared in the London Daily Mail
of the 21st November, 1898, under the heading
<: Where Imperialism comes from." After referring to
many things Canada had done, preferential tariffs and
pivferences to the West Indies, penny postage, &c,
it concluded as follows ■

By their works ye shall know them, and by the
record of Canada's works is her magnificent, constructive,
peaceful Imperialism made known to the world. Yet
its full strength can only be measured by going among
Canadians in their homes and noting — and becoming

THE WEST INDIAN PREFERENCE 247

affected by — the palpitating Imperialist life of the
people, which even the coldness of the mother country
cannot damp. When future historians come to write
the history of the Empire's later development they
will have much to say of Canada's Imperialist lead.
At present we don't make half enough of this rich and
beautiful Dominion — an Empire in itself — and its
enthusiastically loyal sons.

CHAPTER XXII

1899: THE ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPIRE DAY

The Fourth Annual Meeting of the League in Canada
was held in Ottawa on the 6th April, 1899. In moving
the adoption of the Annual Report, I made an address
which clearly outlined the policy of the League at thai
time, and may therefore be worth quoting. It appears
in the report printed by order of the annual meeting
as follows :

The year that has passed since we last met has been
a most important year in reference to the work of the
British Empire League, and many striking events have
happened which teach us lessons that we should care-
fully consider in framing our policy for the future.
Wo have many things upon which we can look with
great satisfaction. Since we last met the preference
in our markets, which under certain conditions had
previously been open to all countries, has been re-
stricted to our empire. A preference has also been
given to our sister colonies in the West Indies, and
this example, we are gratified to find, has in a way
been imitated by the Government <>f India, with the
approval of the British Government, which is another
move in the direction of the aims of our league.
Almost simultaneously we see the London Times dis-
cussing a duty on wheat and sugar as a means of
raising revenue. As this would not only raise revenue

i899 : ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPIRE DAY 249

but help to raise wheat in Britain as well, it would aid
to that extent in strengthening the empire. In refer-
ence to the preference to West Indian sugar, I wish to
point out that I am informed that cane sugar in the
United States has a preference through duties on beet
root sugar, which, at present, is an advantage to West
Indian sugar to the extent of 27 cents per hundred
pounds, while the preference we have given in our
market is only about 18 cents per hundred pounds.
I may suggest that we in Canada should increase
our preference to, say, 40 per cent, of the duty, which
would give our fellow-colonists a slightly greater
preference than they now receive under the United
States tariff. I need not say much about the fast
Atlantic service, for all parties are united in favour
of it, and we can only hope that it will be established
at the earliest moment, for nothing would help more
to show our position as a separate community upon
this continent. We have been too backward in the
past, and we should endeavour more and more to
assert ourselves among the countries of the world.
There is one point I wish to press upon this meeting:
there has been in the last twenty-five or thirty years a
revolution in the affairs of the world in reference to
national relations and methods of defence. Germany
has united, and we remember that it was accomplished
under the stress and trial of war. The German Empire
was inaugurated in the greatest palace of France, to
the sound of the German cannon firing upon the capital
city of their enemy. Italy, as the result of three wars,
has been united and consolidated. The United States
during the last year have launched out into the politics
of the world, have adopted expansion as their policy,
and are pressing their views on the Filipinos with
rifles, maxims, and field guns. We have discovered
this year once more by hard facts what history in
all ages has shown — that nations cannot expect to
exist upon the security of their natural moral rights,
unless those rights are supported by physical strength.

/

250 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Spain lias been taught that might prevails, and she
has been crushed and humiliated for doing what the
United States arc now obliged to do themselves in the
Philippine Islands. The greatest lesson of all, however,
which this last year has taught us is that which we
learn from the impending fate of China. There is
a nation <>f three hundred to four hundred millions
of people, honest traders, I am told, certainly most
inoffensive and unaggressive: a nation which, from its
fid character, industrious habits, and natural
reserve, should have been the last to have aroused
hostility. It has neglected its defences and has taken
no effective steps to protect itself from wrong, and
what do we see now as the result ? The nations in
the possession of navies and armies are commencing
ar it to pieces and divide the spoils.

Do we hear of any of these nations being worried by
conscientious scruples, or complaining of the moral
wrong of this partition? No; the whole disputing
is concentrated over the division of the spoils. Now
what is the lesson this thing teaches us? It is this;
that nations can only enjoy their freedom by being
able to defend it, and that the true policy for nations
under present conditions is to be closely united within
themselves, to be thoroughly organised and equipped,
and to be able in case of necessity to use their whole
strength to the greatest advantage for the common
safety — and to do this nations must be self-sustaining.
( Applause.)

In trade, also, we see the selfish war going on and
increasing. While England is talking about the "open
door," which is a fine phrase lor theorists, she is finding
other nations busily engaged in shutting their own
doors. Each nation year by year is being forced to
protect its industries by tariff regulations. France
is following this policy; Germany and Russia also,
and the most prosperous of them all, the United States,
is carrying the principle to the greatest extent. One
can see that this principle is growing and will grow,

T899: ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPIRE DAY 251

for the selfishness of nations seems, if possible, to
be increasing every day. Now, how is the British
nation placed ? It has the best chances of all if it
sees how to take advantage of them.

It has the largest territory, with every variety of
climate and products, with the greatest possibilities
of development, with prospects of an internal trade
far beyond all other countries. It has the best coaling
stations scattered everj^where, but to secure and retain
her advantages the empire must be consolidated, both
for trade and defence, and this can be fully accomplished
without the slightest aggression. (Hear, hear.)

If we Canadians desire to be free and safe it must be
in that empire to which we are attached by every tie,
and to which we must be ready to give our strength for
the common defence, if we expecb the enormous reserve
force of that empire to be at our back if our life as a
free people should ever be threatened. (Applause.)

It is necessary, therefore, for the prosperity and
safety of all the parts, that the United Kingdom, India,
Australasia, South Africa, and Canada should all be
firmly united so as to show a square front to any
enemies that may attack us. This is the object of our
league ; to secure the permanent unity of the empire ;
and with the extraordinary development of nations and
of military progress in them, our empire must also, if it
desires security, be ready in every part to pay for that
security and be ready to defend it.

In past ages the wars between nations have been
carried on by moderate sized armies, while the great
bulk of the people attended to their usual business,
except where interrupted in the actual theatre of war.
For a thousand years wars had been conducted upon
that principle, until the French Revolution, when in
1793, being threatened with invasion by combined
Europe, 1,300,000 men were conscripted in France to
defend her frontier. This was the first example of
a nation almost taking up arms to defend herself.
It changed the organisation of armies ; but later, under

252 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Napoleon, the nation returned more nearly to the <>M
system of regular armies. In 1870 and since, however.
the revolution in military defence in most civilised
countries except our own has been completed. Now in
Prance, Germany, and Russia the whole people prac-
tically are trained for war. The war footing of the
army in France is about 4.000,000 and some thousands
of field guns: in Germany just about the same: in
Russia the armv on a war footing is said t<> be
3,400,000; Austria has a war strength of 2,750,000.
As these forces in these countries are all organised,
and arms, equipment, and field guns ready, it will be
seen that never before in history were such enormous
military preparations made. The navies have increased
almost in the same ratio, our navy fortunately being
more than equal to any two navies combined. With
this outlook, with this condition of affairs outside,
it is only wisdom for the wealthiest of all nations
to consolidate its power in order to preserve its wealth,
--ions, and liberty.

And what are we in Canada doing? We are
following the example of the Chinese, and trusting to
the forbearance and sense of honesty of other nations,
instead of relying upon our own strength and the
strength of the empire, to which we could better appeal
if we did our own share properly.

Thirty-eight thousand militia, drilled spasmodically,
without the necessary equipment and departments,
without reserves, or even rifles to arm them, is no
contribution to the strength of the empire. This
should be changed at once. We should establish depots
for training our fishermen and sailors to supplement the
royal naval reserve, and the guns with which to train
them, the barracks in which to house them, and the
permanent instructional staff necessary to drill them,
if judiciously placed in batteries in front of St. John,
N.B., Charlottetown, Quebec, and other seaports, would
be aiding the British navy, which protects our
mercantile marine, while matters could be arranged to

1899: ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPIRE DAY 253

make them a defence for those seaports, which at
present would be at the mercy of any swift cruiser that,
evading pursuit, might approach their wharves. (Hear,
hear.)

Our militia should be largely increased, and supplies
of all kinds provided, and in agreeing to do our share
in developing and strengthening the military resources
of the empire, in our own borders, we could fairly ask
the mother country to remedy a danger which at
present menaces the safety of our race.

I spoke very plainly on this point of the food supply
last year, but the intervening months have produced
such strong evidence in support of my arguments that
I wish to draw attention to the subject again. I said
last year that an embargo on foodstuffs in Russia and
the United States, rigidly carried out, would force the
surrender of the mother country in a very few months.
I have been told by trade theorists in England that
the demand would create the supply, and that England
could purchase food through neutral countries. I
argued that an embargo by the two countries men-
tioned would necessarily be followed by an embargo
in all important countries at once, and in all other
countries as soon as their surplus was exported. This
last year has seen this view triumphantly vindicated.
Mr. Leiter effected a corner in wheat in Chicago,
purchasers became alarmed, prices increased, and wheat
began to be picked up in other countries. What was
the result ? Spain, a country which about feeds itself,
put on an embargo. I believe Italy did the same, or
was on the point of doing so, while an embargo was
being discussed in France and Germany. If this could
be the result of the cornering operations of one dealer
in one town in one exporting country, what would have
happened if those two countries which control nearly
nine-tenths of the wheat exports of the world were to
withhold that amount ?

I have been told that no country, could put on an
embargo, that the people would rebel against being

254 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

prevented from selling their produce, but I have one
example which conclusively proves my argument. The
southern States had the bulk of the cotton supply of
the world when the Civil war broke out in 1860. Their
main industry was growing cotton, their capital, labour,
and business were mainly involved in the production
and sale of it. To force Great Britain to recognise and
assist them, in other words, to bring pressure to bear
upon a neutral power, the southern Government placed
an embargo on the export of cotton. At Great Britain's
request the northern Government agreed to give permits
to let it go to England. So that it was not the blockade
alone which prevented its export. The southern
Government maintained a strict embargo. Winn their
troops were forced back the stores of cotton were seized
and jtaid for by the Confederate Government by receipts
and Government bonds, and the cotton was burned.
Hire. Jefferson Davis, in her memoirs, says that her
husband grudged every pound that got out. Now let
us see what was the result of this embargo, and how far
it was possible to enforce it. In 1860, England imported
from the United States 1,115,890,608 pounds: in 1861,
England imported from the United States, N19.:)00,528
pounds; in 18(j2, England imported from the United
States 13,524,224 pounds: in 1863, England imported
from the United States (>,:}!)4,080 pounds ; in 1864,
England imported from the United States 14,198,688
pounds. The drop from 1,115,890,608 to 6,394,080
pounds, about one-half of one per cent., shows how
complete this embargo was. The cotton famine has
not been forgotten. The loss to the English people has
been computed at £65,000,000, and' yet this only
affected one industry in one section of one kingdom.
( Bear, hear.)

Nine-tenths of the population were able to help the
tenth affected, and there was abundance of food for all.
Hut extend that pressure, and let it be in food, which
no one can do without, and let it extend over the whole
ten-tenths ( as would be the case in the event of a

1899 : ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPIRE DAY 255

stoppage of food) and try to imagine the misery that
would follow. Food would have to be rationed to rich
and poor alike, for the starving masses would not allow
all there was to be monopolised by the wealthy.
Under such conditions, what heart could the Govern-
ment be expected to display in the conduct of the
struggle ? Russia and the United States could control
the export of 40,000,000 quarters out of 45,375,000
quarters exported by all nations in 1897. The late war
between the United States and Spain is said to have cost
the States nearly $500,000,000. If the Government of
Russia and the United States bought the full surplus
from their people of 320,000,000 bushels at the present
market price, it would only cost them about
$225,000,000, while even at $1 a bushel it would only
be $320,000,000 — the cheapest and most effective war
measure that could be adopted. And this could be done
by these countries without their having one war vessel.
T repeat, therefore, that this is the weak point of our
empire ; our food should be grown under our own flag,
or there should be large stores in England, and a
preference which would increase the growth of wheat to
the extent of 10,000,000 quarters additional in the
British Isles would be the best spent money for defence
that could be expended, and a preference to the colon-
ies would soon produce the balance within the Empire.
(Hear, hear.)

We should urge this upon the mother country, not
because it would help us enormously, though that is no
reason why we should not urge it, but because danger
to the mother country is danger to us all.

These are the two points for us to look forward to, a
thorough organisation of our own forces in Canada,
with a liberal assistance from us toward the royal naval
reserve and other defences of the empire, and a provision,
for the food supply of the empire being made safe.
These should go together, for there is not much use in
our sending our sailors, well trained, to man war vessels,
to defend our empire, unless it is understood that

256 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

a ship without food is as useless as one without
guns, or powder or coal or men. A number of requisites
are absolutely necessary to make an effective navy, or
an effective defence, and the want of one makes all the
others useless, and food is one of these indispensable re-
quisites. We cannot press this too earnestly upon the
mot her country, but we cannot talk to them about their
duties or necessities until we first attend to ours, and
show our willingness to take up our share of the
common burden. The answer to my argument from
the English point of view is that my suggestion to
cure a safe supply of food might be a great material
advantage to Canada. This should not be considered.
A preference to the British farmer would increase the
growth of wheat to sixteen orseventeen million quarters
in the United Kingdom. This would do us no good
financially, but would be a great service to us, because
it would make our empire more secure.

If large stores of grain were accumulated in England,
it would be no advantage to us pecuniarily, but it
would strengthen the whole empire, and I for one would
bo delighted to see either plan adopted, for at present
none of us are safe. No nation or power can be in-
dependent that is not self-dependent. The lesson
i ught us by the course of events is to consolidate and
unite our empire, both for trade and defence.
(Applaus

Another movement which has spread over the Empire

was started this year to help Imperial sentiment. Mrs.
Clementine Fessenden of Hamilton wrote to the Hon.
G. \Y. Ross suggesting the establishment of an Empire
1 >a v to be celebrated in the schools by patriotic exercises
readings, and addresses. Mr. Ross was favourably
impressed with the idea and inaugurated the movement
' large meeting held in the Theatre of the Normal

School, Toronto, on the 23rd May 1899, which was

1899 : ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPIRE DAY 257

attended by most of the school teachers of the City and
many others. I was asked by Mr. Ross to address the
meeting, which I did. Mr. Ross himself, Mr. N. F. Rowell
and Mr. Sanford Evans were the other speakers. This
idea has been taken up by Lord Meath in England, and
has spread throughout the empire, but that meeting
in the Normal School was the beginning of the
movement.

CHAPTER XXIII

THE SOUTH AFRICAN' WAR

During the summer of 1899 the relations between the
British and the Boers in the Transvaal became very
strained. As early as the 26th April, 1899, Mr. George
Evans, Secretary of the British Empire League
received the following cablegram from Kimberley, South
Africa. " Twenty-one thousand British subjects, Trans-
vaal, have petitioned Imperial Government obtain
redress grievances and secure them status which their
numbers, industry, stake in country, entitle them. We
strongly sympathise, if you do too, would you as kindred
Societies cable Imperial Government sympathetic
resolution." " Signed, South African League Congress,
Kimberley, representing 10,000 enrolled members."

At this time we knew very little of the state of affairs
in South Africa, or of the merits of the dispute, and
there was a hazy idea that the Boers had opened up
the country and should not be disturbed, and after a
conference of the principal members of the Executive
Committee it was decided to forward the cable to the
Head Office of the League in England leaving
the matter in their hands. A cable was sent to
Kimberley telling them that we had asked the Head
Office to decide what to do. Principal (J rant at the

THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR 259

beginning of the difficulties in South Africa, in the
early summer of 1899, was in sympathy with the Boers
as against the gold seeking speculators of Johannesburg,
and publicly expressed his views in that way. I
sympathised somewhat with his view, but advised him to
keep quiet, saying we could not tell how events might
shape, and we might have to take a strong stand on
the other side. I felt I did not understand the
question.

In the following July, Mr. J. Davis Allen, representing
the South African Association, came from England to
Ottawa, and explained to the Canadian authorities the
situation in South Africa and urged the passing of a
resolution that would strengthen the hands of the
British Government, in its negotiations with Mr. Kruger
and the Transvaal Government. Mr. Alexander
McNeill naturally took up the cause and wrote to me
asking me to go to Ottawa to help Mr. Davis Allen in
his efforts. I declined to go, saying I did not sufficiently
understand the question, but a few days later, on the
31st July, 1899, Sir Wilfrid Laurier introduced and
Parliament unanimously adopted a resolution which
concluded as follows :

That the House of Commons desires to express its
sympathy with the efforts of Her Majesty's Imperial
authorities, to obtain for the subjects of Her Majesty
who have taken up their abode in the Transvaal such
measures of justice and political recognition as may be
found necessary to secure them in the full possession of
equal rights and liberties.

This resolution, seconded by the Hon. George E.
Foster, was carried unanimously, and the House rose
and sang " God Save the Queen."

S 2

26o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Mr. Allen came to Toronto on the 10th August.
Mr. McNeill had written to me saying that Mr. Allen was
coming to see me, and we had several long interviews.
He explained to me the whole situation, and read me
some of Lord Milner'a despatches in which he pointed
out clearly the dangers that were looming up. He
explained that the whole trouble was a conspiracy on
the part of the Boers to drive the British out of South
Africa altogether. He insisted that the Orange Free
State was deeply engaged in it, and that the Dutch in
the Cape Colony were also involved. All that Mr.
Allen told me was absolutely verified before six months
had elapsed. After these explanations, and reading
the despatches of Lord Milner, I took up a very decided
stand against the Boers.

Colonel Sam Hughes, M.P., had as early as the 13th
July called the attention of the Government to the
fact that Queensland had offered a contingent, and he
urged them to make an offer of one on behalf of
Canada. He also offered to raise a regiment, or
brigade, for service in case war should break out.
Other officers in various parts of the country made
similar offers. Sir Charles Tapper, about the end of
September, came out boldly in favour of offering a
contingent, and agreed to help the Government in
Parliament in any action they might take in that
direction. On the 25th September there was a small
meeting of senior officers in Toronto, Lieut.-Colonel
.lames .Mason being the moving spirit. At that meet-
ing we decided to call a meeting of the members of
the Canadian Military Institute for Saturday, the 30th
September, to consider the question of what Canada
should do. The Globe of the 2nd October, 1899,
reported me in part as follows:

THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR 261

Lieut.-Colonel Denison followed. In his opening
remarks he expressed the belief that there was no
difference of opinion among British peoples, except
those in South Africa, in regard to the question. The
opinion had prevailed to a certain extent that the
question was simply one as to the rights of the Uit-
landers in the Transvaal. He was bound to admit
that up to a certain period that had been his impres-
sion, and that being the case he had not been convinced
that the matter was one which necessitated the Empire's
going to war. Some time ago, however, he had been
in the position of learning a good deal about the inside
working of affairs in South Africa from one who was
thoroughly posted in all the details. He had then
discovered that it had got altogether beyond any
question of interest or rights of the Uitlanders, and
that for the last few years there had been a widespread
conspiracy among the Dutch-speaking settlers over the
whole of South Africa for the purpose of ousting the
British. Ample proof was constantly being furnished
as to the continuity of this conspiracy. Sir Alfred
Milner's despatch of 14th May stated in the plainest
possible language that such was the case, and it was a
question whether Britain was to hold the balance of
power in that part of the world or be driven out of it
altogether. The conspiracy extended further back
than the Jameson raid, and was one of the hidden
causes leading to that affair. It was because of it that
the English people and Government had become so
angry over the famous telegram sent by the German
Emperor to President Kruger.

Continuing, Colonel Denison said it could not be
gainsaid that the question was one of vital importance
to the whole empire, and Canadians were as much
interested as any of Her Majesty's subjects. The
Dominion had not fully and properly appreciated her
responsibilities as part of a great empire. If Canada
was an independent nation of six millions of people it
would have to support a standing army of 40,000 men,

262 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

besides reserves of 200,000 or 800,000. " Is it right,"
he asked, " that we should all the time bo dependent
upon the home Government and the British fleet for
protection? Is it fair that we should not give any
proper assistance ? What, kind of treatment would we
have received from Washington in the Behring's Sea
business or in reference to this Alaskan question if we
had not had behind us the power of the Empire ? "

Such a course was not only selfish but impolitic
and foolish. In his opinion not only should one con-
tinent of 1,500 men be offered in the present crisis,
but another 1,500 should be immediately got together
and drilled so as to be ready in ease of emergency.
Xo one could tell where the thing was going to end,
and reverses might be expected in the beginning.
Other great nations envied the power of Britain and
would be ready to seize the opportunity if the Empire
was in a tight hole. Therefore they should be pre-
pared, not only to send one contingent and have another
on hand ready for the call, but should be in a position
to relieve the garrisons at Halifax and Esquimalt,
allowing the regulars to be added to the forces in the
field. "We have been children long enough," he con-
cluded ; " let us show the Empire that we have grown
to manhood."

He then moved "That the members of the Cana-
dian Military Institute, feeling that it is a clear and
definite duty for all British possessions to show their
willingness to contribute to the common defence in
case of need, express the hope that in view of impending
hostilities in South Africa the Government of Canada
will promptly offer a contingent of Canadian militia to
assist in supporting the interests of our Empire in that
country.

This was carried unanimously.

This meeting started a strong movement of public
opinion in favour of the Government making an offer,

'

THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR 263

On the 3rd October an article appeared in the Cana-
dian Military Gazette which began in these words : " If
war should be commenced in the Transvaal — which
seems most probable — the offer of a force from the
Canadian Militia for service will be made by the
Canadian Government," and it went on to give details
of the composition and methods of organising the
force. Sir Wilfrid Laurier, on behalf of the Government,
at once disavowed it, and on the same day gave an
interview to the Globe, which appeared in that paper on
the 4th October. He said :

There exists a great deal of misconception in the
country regarding the powers of the Government in the
present case. As I understand the Militia Act — and I
may say that I have given it some study of late — our
volunteers are enrolled to be used in defence of the
Dominion. They are Canadian troops to be used to
fight for Canada's defence. Perhaps the most wide-
spread misapprehension is that they cannot be sent out
of Canada. To my mind they might be sent to a
foreign land to fight. To postulate a case : Suppose
that Spain should declare war upon Great Britain.
Spain has or had a navy, but that navy might be being
got ready to assail Canada as part of the empire.
Sometimes the best method of defending one's self is to
attack, and in that case Canadian soldiers might
certainly be sent to Spain, and it is quite certain that
they legally might be so despatched to the Iberian
Peninsula. The case of the South African Republic is
not analogous. There is no menace to Canada, and
although we may be willing to contribute troops, I do
not see how we can do so. Then, again, how could we
do so without Parliament's granting us the money ?
We simply could not do anything. In other words, we
should have to summon Parliament. The Government
of Canada is restricted in its powers. It is responsible

264 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

to Parliament, and it can do very little without the
permission of Parliament. There is no doubt as to the
attitude of the Government on all questions that mean
menace to British interests, but in this present case
our limitations are very clearly defined. And so it is
that we have not offered a Canadian contingent to the
Home authorities. The Militia Department duly
transmitted individual offers to the Imperial Govern-
ment and the reply from the War Office, as published
in Saturday's Globe, shows their attitude on the
question. As to Canada's furnishing a contingent the
Government has not discussed the question for the
reasons which I have stated, reasons which, I think,
must easily be understood by everyone who under-
stands the constitutional law on the question. The
statement in the Military Gazette published this
morning is a pure invention.

This interview proves that Sir Wilfrid Laurier at
that time had no intention of sending a contingent.

On the 7th October Sir Wilfrid Laurier left for
Chicago, and returned to Ottawa on the 12th. The
Boer ultimatum had been given on the 9th October,
refused by Lord Milner on the 10th, and war
opened on the 11th. This turned Sir Wilfrid back.
H<- travelled on the train from Chicago with Mr.
J. S. Willison, editor of the Globe, who urged him
strongly to send a contingent at once. I called to see
Sir Wilfrid on his way through Toronto in order to
press the matter upon him. He had evidently made
up his mind, for he told me he would send a contingent
no matter whether it broke up his Government or not,
that it was the right thing to do and he would do
it. II«' was anxious, however, about how his own
people would take it, and told me that Mr. Bom
would resign as a protest, and he seemed very sorry

THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR 265

that it should be so. I was very much pleased at the
decision and firmness he evinced, and have always been
very grateful to him for his action in this matter, as in
many other things in the interest of the Empire.

On the next day, the 13fch October, the Order in
Council was passed. It provided that a certain
number of volunteers in units of 125 men each with a
few officers, would be accepted to serve in the British
army operating in South Africa, the moment they
reached the coast, provided the expense of their equip-
ment and transportation to South Africa was defrayed,
either by themselves or by the Canadian Government,
and the Government undertook to provide the equip-
ment and transportation for 1,000 men.

I knew that it was the intention to send these eight
units of 125 men each, as distinct units to be attached
to eight different British regular infantry regiments,
and that no officer of higher rank than a captain
was to be sent. I felt that our men would be
swallowed up and lost, and could gain no credit under
such conditions. I therefore published in the Globe of
the 14th October the following letter :

The Globe on Wednesday morning published in its
Ottawa correspondence a proposed scheme for a
Canadian contingent for the war in South Africa.

If the Imperial Government proposes, as the report
indicates, to enlist a number of units of one hundred
and twenty-five men each, to be attached to the
British Infantry Regiments, and to be paid and
maintained at imperial expense, there can be no
objection raised to their doing it, in any way they
like, and under any conditions that may be agreed
upon between the imperial authorities and the
Canadians who enlist in what will practically be
British regiments. Of course, these units will not

266 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

be a Canadian contingent, any more than were the
40,000 Canadians who fought in the northern army
during the civil war, or the large numbers who fought
in the ranks of the United States army and navy in
the late Spanish war. A thousand Canadians may go
and tight tor the Empire in the British army, but
it will not be a Canadian contingent, nor will it
represent Canadian sentiment, or a Canadian desire to
aid the Empire. For what part will the six millions
who stay at home contribute to that contingent'?

If Canada sends a contingent as her share in helping
the common cause, she should send a force commanded
by our own officers, and paid and maintained by our
own people. They should feel that they represent our
country, and that the honour of all who stay at home is
in their keeping. Men would go in such a corps for
such a purpose who would never dream of enlisting as
the ordinary Tommy Atkins, in regiments they did not
know, among comrades unfamiliar, and under strange
officers. A Canadian contingent sent to represent our
militia and country in an imperial quarrel would
attract the very best of our young men, but every
officer should be a Canadian.

The slurs that have been thrown out in some
quarters, that our officers are not qualified, are not
based upon fact, and are grossly insulting to our
people. We have had over 85,000 militia for over
thirty years, we have had a Military College of the
highest class for over twenty years, a permanent corps
tor over fifteen years, a number of our officers have
been sent for long courses of instruction at Aldershot,
and not long since 6,000 of our militia were engaged in
a campaign of some four months' duration. If Canada
with all that experience has not produced one man fit
to command a battalion of infantry, we are too inferior
a type of fellaheen to offer assistance to anyone. I
repudiate, however, any such idea of inferiority. It
does not exist, and even if it did, our own Government
should not admit it until it has been clearly proven.

THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR 267

It has been said that our men have not had war
service, and that a lieutenant-colonel in command of a
battalion in war must have war experience. I examined
the list of imperial battalions published in this even-
ing's Telegram, as being in South Africa, or told off
to be sent there, and I find, after consulting Hart's
army list, that out of these thirty-four battalions seven-
teen are commanded by lieutenant-colonels who have
had war service, and the same number by lieutenant-
colonels who have never had experience of any kind in
active operations. An examination of our militia list
of the 1st April last shows that in the seniority lists
of lieutenant-colonels there are no less than seventy-
six who have the crossed swords before their names,
indicating that they have had active service. It seems
strange that out of the seventy-six one could not be
found sufficiently qualified. Let us send a Canadian
contingent entirely our own, and at our own cost. Let
us send the best we have, and then let us stand or fall
with what they can do on our behalf. I think we can
await the result with confidence.

Sir Wilfrid Laurier read this letter the same evening,
and wrote me at once, asking me to do nothing further
on that line, but to meet him at Sir Wm. Mu lock's
at ten p.m. on Monday evening, the 16th, on his arrival
from Bowmanville, and he asked me to get Mr. Willison
to come also.

On the Monday afternoon the evening papers pub-
lished a despatch from Ottawa, saying that the British
Government had agreed to change their order, and
allow the contingent to go as a unit under a Canadian
officer. When I met Sir Wilfrid he told me he had
received a telegram at Bowmanville to that effect, but
was surprised to hear that it had got into the news-
papers. He then told me that he had cabled to
England on the Saturday evening, the 14th, and had

268 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

urged strongly that our men should be sent as one
corps, and that it had been agreed to. Once more
I was under obligations as a Canadian to Sir Wilfrid
Laurier, in his efforts to maintain the dignity of
( Janada. The feeling here was that the dividing up
our force into companies attached to British regiments
was the idea of General Hutton, who had the regular
officer's view as to the lack of capacity of colonial
militia. The three years' war which followed, with
colonial forces side by side with imperial troops, pretty
effectually settled the question whether the colonial
levies were inferior or not to any of their comrades.

I was very much criticised by the more timid of my
friends in Toronto for the action I had taken in
favour of having a Canadian officer in command. The
opinion was that Colonel Otter would, as senior
permanent officer, get the position, and some of the
militia officers did not have a high opinion of his
capacity. The only regrettable incident connected
with the Canadian contingents was the coming home of
the bulk of Colonel Otter's regiment (when their
term of service had expired) in spite of Lord Roberts'
express request The other contingents stood by their
colonels, notably the Canadian Mounted Rifles under
( JoL Lessard, who three times, at his request, postponed
their return after their term of service had expired,
and only went homo when there were very few men
loft to represent the corps.

The Canadians who represented Canada, on the
whole, did exceedingly well, and brought greal
credit to our country. There were no Canadian
surrenders, in a war where Arnold White says that
there were 226 surrenders of British troops. At the
skirmish of Lilliefontein, Capt. Cockburn, whom 1 had

THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR 269

recommended to represent my old regiment, and his
troop of about thirty-five men, fought and would
neither retreat nor surrender until all but four were
either killed or wounded. Capt. Cockburn received
the Victoria Cross for this affair. At the last battle of
the war, Hart's River, Lieut. Bruce Carruthers and
about thirty-five Canadian mounted riflemen fought
until the last man was killed or wounded. Lord
Kitchener cabled to England that the battle was won
principally through the brilliant gallantry of Lieut.
Bruce Carruthers and his party.

There was one circumstance in connection with this
fight that was very gratifying to me. It will be
{remembered that in 1890 I had been chairman of the
deputation that had started the movement for raising
the flag over the schools, and for holding patriotic
exercises of various kinds. This movement had spread,
and during the years 1890 to 1899 there had been a
wave of Imperialism moving through the country.
The boys at school in 1890 were in 1899 men of
twenty to twenty-five years of age, the very men who
formed our contingents. The proof of this spirit of
Imperialism which animated these men was strikingly
illustrated by an incident of this fight at Hart's River.
I will quote from the Globe of 19th April, 1902 :

Standing alone in the face of the onrushing Boers at
the battle of Hart's River on the 31st March, every
comrade dead or disabled, and himself wounded to the
death, Charles Napier Evans fired his last cartridge
and then broke his rifle over a boulder.

In the last letter thus far received by his father, Mr.
James Evans, of Port Hope, Charlie looked not without
foreboding into the future. " Before this reaches you
we will probably be after De Wet. We can only hope

27o THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

for a safe and victorious trip. Many a good man has
died for the old flag, and why should not I ? If
parents had not given up their sons, and sons had not
given up themselves to the British Empire, it would
not be to-day the proud dictator of the world. So if
one or both of us (he had a brother with him) should
die, there will be no vain regrets, for we will have done
what thousands have done before us, given our lives for
a good cause."

There could not be a better sermon on Imperialism
than that young man's letter to his father.

aw

CHAPTER XXIV

1900 : BRITISH EMPIRE LEAGUE BANQUET IN
LONDON

The fifth Annual Meeting of the British Empire
League in Canada was held at Ottawa on the 14th
March, 1900. It was a very successful gathering, no
less than six Cabinet Ministers and five ex-Cabinet
Ministers being present besides a large number of
senators and members of the House of Commons.

About the middle of April I received a cablegram
from Mr. Freeman Murray, Secretary of the League in
London, by order of the Council, inviting me to go to
England to attend a banquet which the League was
giving in London on the 30th April, and I left New
York by the Campania on the 19 th April. (The cable-
gram was urgent and I felt it a duty to go over.) I
arrived in London on Saturday evening, the 28th. All
offices were closed on Sunday, so I could see no one
until Monday morning, the day of the banquet. I
went down to the offices of the League early and saw
Mr. Murray, and found that there was to be a great
demonstration. There were to be three toasts besides
that of the Queen. The first the " Prince of Wales and
the Royal Family," which was to be responded to by the
Prince himself, now the King; the second was to

272 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

" Ber Majesty's [mperial Forces," to be proposed by
Lord Salisbury and responded to by me ; the third
'The Australian Delegates," to be proposed by Mr.
Chamberlain and responded to by Sir Edmund Barton,
of Australia, I saw the diagram of the tables and
found that nearly six hundred of the foremost men of
the Empiiv were to be present, including Lord Wolseley,
Commander-in-Chief, Lord Lansdowne, Secretary of
State tor War, and several Field Marshals and Admirals
of the Fleet. Sir Robert Herbert, the chairman of the
executive, was with Mr. Murray, and I demurred at
once bo responding to the toast of "Her Maj<
[mperial Forces" in the presence of Lord Wolseley and
the other Field Marshals and Admirals. I asked if
Lord Wolseley had been spoken to about it, and the
reply was that he had not, but that Lord Lansdowne
had arranged that I was to do it, and it was all right,
and no one would object. I decided I would go at
once and see Lord Wolseley.

Before I left, Sir Robert Herbert and Mr. Murray
consulted me about the Hon. Mr. Tarte, who was in
Paris and had telegraphed that he was coming to the
dinner, and wished to speak in order to make an
important statement. They were both averse to
changing their arrangements, on account of pressure of
time. I urged them, however, to arrange for Mr. Tarte
i" speak, and the toast list was changed and an
additional toast, to the British Empire League was put
on at the end of it, which Mr. Tarte was to propose,
and to which the Duke of Devonshire, our chairman, was
to respond.

I drove then at once to the War Office and saw

Lord Wolseley, and told him what the arrangements

and the instant he heard I was to reply for

EMPIRE LEAGUE BANQUET IN LONDON 273

the Imperial Forces, he said, " Oh, that is capital, I
did not know whether I might not have to reply and I
was thinking it over in the train on my way to town.
I am so glad you are to do it." I said, " Was there
nothing said to you about it ? I will not be a party to
anything that does not show proper respect for you."
His answer was, " There is no one I would rather see
reply than you." I asked him if I could say I had his
consent and approval. " Certainly," he replied.

When I arrived at the Hotel Cecil that evening I
was warmly greeted by many old friends. Shortly after
the Prince of Wales came in, and just afterwards Lord
Salisbury, who spoke to the Duke of Devonshire and
the Prince of Wales, and then looking about the room
he saw me and crossed over at once and shook hands
with me, and chatted for a few minutes in his usual
friendly manner. As soon as he moved Taway several
of my friends came to me and expressed surprise at the
very cordial greeting he had given me. I said, " Why
should he not ? " and then they told me that he
hardly ever knew or remembered anyone, and was very
exclusive. I had never thought that of him, as he had
always been so kind and friendly to me.

At the table I was third to the left of the chairman,
the present Prince of Wales and the Duke of Fife
between us. I had a good deal of conversation with
the Prince and the Duke of Fife during the dinner.
Among other things, the Prince said to me, " Do you
not feel nervous when you have to address a gathering
like this ? " I said, " Not generally, sir, but I must
confess I never had to tackle an outfit like this before."
He seemed much amused at my western way of
putting it.

I had not known anything of what I was wanted for

T

274 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

till that morning, so I had little time to think over
what I should say. I had during the afternoon thought
out the general line of a short after-dinner speech, but
when I sat down at the table and looked around the
room I was impressed with the fact that I had been
thrust into what was a great Imperial function, and I
had to vary my plan and pitch my speech in a different
key.

The King, then Prince of Wales, in responding to
his health, made a very fine speech, and referred to
the attempt to assassinate him, which had occurred
not long before in Belgium. Lord Salisbury then
proposed " Her Majesty's Imperial Forces " and in doing
so paid me a compliment that I appreciated more than
any that has ever been paid me. He ended his speech
in these words : " I beg to couple with the toast the
name of my friend, Colonel Denison, who has been one
of the most earnest and industrious, as well as most
successful supporters of the Empire for many years, as
I have well and personally known."

I spoke as follows :

May it please your Royal Highness, your Grace, my
Lon is and Gentlemen, and Ladies — I arrived at the offices
of the League this morning, and found to my astonish-
ment that I was put down to respond to the toast of
the Imperial Forces. I am, I suppose, the junior officer
in this room, but I have the consent and approval of
my old commander, the Commander-in-Chief, so that I
have very great pleasure in responding to this toast.
1 am glad to be here to-night, and I thank the Council
of this League for their kindness in cabling an in-
vitation across the Atlantic to me to come. I have
come 3,500 miles to be with you to-night, to show
my sympathy with the cause, and to bring to you a
message from the British Empire League in Canada.

EMPIRE LEAGUE BANQUET IN LONDON 275

I need not refer to what our League has done in our
country, and is still doing, in educating public opinion
in favour of the great idea of the unity of the Empire.
We have been doing many things in that cause lately.
You know what we have done in regard to preferential
trade. What we have done in giving advantages to
the West Indian Colonies is another proof that we
are willing to put our hands in our pockets for the
benefit of our fellow-countrymen. We Canadians
are to-day paying a cent a pound more for our sugar
to help labour in the markets of the West Indies.
We have also had a great deal to do in helping
to carry out the scheme of Mr. Henniker-Heaton
for Imperial Penny Postage and in this sense we have
done all we could. Now I want to say a few words
to-night on behalf of our League on the question
of Imperial Defence. We have thought over this
thing seriously, and we see at this moment, in looking
around the world, a great many things that we cannot
help viewing with anxiety. We see every other great
nation armed to the teeth ; we see a feverish anxiety
on the part of these other great nations to increase
their navies to a very considerable extent. All that is
something which should cause us to reflect very
seriously as to our position, and do all that we can as
an Empire to combine all our forces, so that, if at any
future time the blow comes, the full force of the
British Empire can strike in the swiftest and most
powerful manner possible. We know that the Navy is
the main defence of us all, and we know what great
strides are being made abroad in regard to the navies
of the different Powers, and it is our desire — and we
have educated public opinion in Canada to that point
— that there shall be a Royal Naval Reserve formed
among our 70,000 hardy and vigorous sailors. We
have got the people, Parliament, and the Government
with us, and it will only take a little time and depart-
mental work to have this matter carried out. That is
one point. There is another. We are exceedingly

T 2

276 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

anxious about your food supply. I know a candid friend
is not always a pleasant companion, and this may be to
some an unpleasant subject, but I have come to speak to
you about it, Your food supply depends on your Navy,
and if anything should happen to prevent for a few
months the English Navy having the control of the
sea, where would you people be ? Now, we know that
if the Mother Country goes down, the Colonies might
hold together, but still what could we do if the heart
of the Empire were struck ? It would be like stabbing
a man to the heart, and therefore wo are anxious about
your food supply because we, as a part of this Empire,
are interested in it. Now, then, you are putting all
your r^s in one basket. You are putting everything
on the control of the Navy, and I want to say this to
you to-night — I am again the candid friend— that you
might have the absolute control of the sea and yet, by
a combination of two Powers, with an embargo on food,
you could be brought bo your knees. I ask if it is
right that things should he left like that '. Should the
greatest, the wealthiest-, and the most powerful Empire
in history be dependent on foreigners for its food supply?
I shall not make any suggestions as to what should be
done, but I have been asked to urge you to give earnest
consideration to the point. So much for that. Now,
with reference to the contingents. We sent our con-
tingents to this war willingly. We not only did it
willingly, but before the war came on our Parliament
by a unanimous vote expressed its sympathy with and
approval of the conduct of the Imperial Government,
and therefore we had to stand by it, We have sent
our men willingly— some 3,000 of them. We would
have senl a great many more if it had been a great
war, and I may tell you that at the opening of the war
we all misunderstood it. One of our prominent states-
men said to me. " Denison, this is only a small war,"
and Mr, Alexander .McNeill, of the Canadian House of
Commons, one of the staunches! friends of the Empire
said: 'This is a small war, and it is not necessary to use

EMPIRE LEAGUE BANQUET IN LONDON 277

a steam hammer to break a nut." Another prominent
statesman said to me after the ultimatum was issued :
" If this were a great war and the Empire in danger
we should have to send our men by the 50,000
and vote war credits by the hundred million."

When that man said that he voiced, I believe, the
feelings of the Canadian people. We sent the contin-
gents, and the men, as I said, turned out willingly.
Officers resigned their commissions all over the country
and went into the ranks. In fact in one regiment there
was only one private. (Laughter.) I am going to let
you have that joke ; if I had finished my sentence you
would not have had it. There was one regiment
in which only one private was able to get in to the
ranks of the contingent. The others were all officers
and non-commissioned officers. That sort of thing-
went on all over the country, and although they were
only militia men, although they were only raw troops,
I am proud to be able to say to-night, on the authority
of Lord Roberts' despatches, that our men have been
able to hold their own with the others. There is one
more remark I wish to make. The people of Canada
have been struck by the extraordinary way in which
the Mother Country has entered into this war. The
manner in which it has been done has thrilled our
people with admiration. We have seen the best blood
in England spilt in this campaign. What for? In
order to uphold the rights of one or two hundred
thousand of our fellow-colonists in one small part of the
Empire. That has been a great object-lesson to us all.
We have seen men of wealth, of birth, and position
leave their comfortable homes by hundreds ; we have
seen them leave all the luxury and ease of the greatest
and finest and highest civilisation that this world has
ever seen, to undergo dangers, trials, wounds, and in
many cases death, all for this cause. Now, this has
been an object-lesson to us all in Canada. If your
people will do that for one colony we feel you would be
likely to do it for another. Whether you would or not

278 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

I say it is a fine thing to have an Empire to fight for
that can produce such men, and it is a proud thing for
our contingents to be able to fight alongside such
comrades. With reference still to this point about
Imperial defence, I wish to say that we Canadians are
very anxious about the establishment of all-British
cables round the world, and we have tried to do our
share in regard to the Pacific cable. We who are
connected with the League in Canada have written
and spoken and done everything we could to stir up
public opinion, so that the Canadian people might
have their share in that cable, and we have been
alarmed lest anything should occur to affect adversely
t hat project ; and here let me say that I am glad to
see present to-night my fellow-countrymen from
Australia. I congratulate them on the possibility of
the federation of their country, for we Canadians know
by experience what a good thing it has been for us,
and wo believe that it will be equally good for them.
But I wish to say to them, while here to-night, that
while the establishment of the Pacific cable might
have the effect of benefiting us in a pecuniary way by
cheapening rates, that has not been the motive which
has influenced people in our country. I for one may
say that I never in my life sent a cable to Australia,
I never received one, I never saw one, and I never mot
a friend who had, and on the committee of which I
was <>ne of the members I believe that that was pretty
generally the experience. Allow me to say in explana-
tion of this that I live in Toronto, well inland, where
there is not any great communication with Australia,
and therefore the question of cheap rates had nothing
to do with our action. We wanted to see an all-British
cable, so that if there should be a war the man in
charge of the Navy should have the opportunity of
handling that Navy to the best advantage. It is for
that reason we Canadians want an all-British Pacific
(•able, and I am called upon to ask you here to use
what influence you can, that, in any arrangements tor

EMPIRE LEAGUE BANQUET IN LONDON 279

new cables anywhere, there shall be a provision
that the Empire may buy them at a fair price
whenever it may wish, and I hope that the Empire,
with the assistance of the Colonies, may some
day unite and have their cables all over the world.
Now, with reference to the Imperial forces, the
Marquess of Salisbury did not say a great deal about
the Imperial army. I think that I should like to say
a word or two for them to-night. I think they have
shown that in pluck and daring, and in the courage
which has carried the British people through so much,
they have been fully equal to the traditions of the
past. With reference to the future I want to say one
word. When this war is over I hope there will be an
Imperial Conference called. I think the moment would
be most opportune for leading men from the leading
Colonies to meet together and see on how many points
they could agree. I quite agree with the noble
Marquess in saying that we must move slowly and
along the lines of the least resistance ; that we must
move step by step, slowly and carefully, as we have
been doing, and not be in too great a hurry for a
written Constitution. That is the policy we have been
advocating in our country, and it is the right one. I
am afraid I have kept you too long. I am glad indeed
to have been here to meet you to-night, and I am glad
to see with us my friend, the Hon. J. I. Tarte, the first
French Canadian who joined our League, now long
years ago ; and if there is anything more to be said
on behalf of Canada I am sure that he will be willing
to say it for me.

It will be noticed that when I said that there was
one regiment in which there was only one private, the
audience laughed loudly and interrupted me before I
finished my sentence. I turned the laugh on them
to the evident delight of the present Prince of Wales,
who turned to me beaming with amusement when

2«So THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

down and said, "You nervous! you — why you
could speak anywhere about anything." He waa
evidently pleased, for when my brother, Admiral John
Denison, who commanded the Niobe, which escorted
him as far as Gibraltar when he left for Australia, met
him at Gibraltar, he spoke to him at once about my
speech at that dinner.

Lord Wolseley, who was sitting on my left, Lord
Avebury and Sir Edmund Barton being between us,
tore off a piece of a menu card and wrote on it, "My
dear friend, Bravo! Bravo! Wolseley," and passed it
up to me. Everyone was very kind. The King came
and spoke to me for a tew minutes as lie was going out,
and said he was pleased with my speech. The Duke
of Cambridge, Lord Salisbury, Lord Lansdowne, and
many others spoke in friendly terms, and altogether
] was well pleased that I had crossed the Atlantic to
do that one piece of work tor Canada and the Empire.

The accounts in the Press were very full of the idea
of the importance and success of the function.

The British ti/n pire Review said :

It is unnecessary to dilate here upon the Imposing
features of the great assembly which congregated in
the Grand Hall of the Hotel Cecil on 30th April. By
common consent, as our principal contemporaries bear
witness in the extracts from their leading columns,
which are appended to the full report of the speeches
at the banquet printed at the end of the present issue
of the Review, no more memorable Imperial Demon-
stration has ever been held in London. Certainly the
Executive Committee was justified in taking the
exceptional course of inviting Colonel Denison to
travel 3,500 miles in order to be present, and he in
turn can have no reason to regret his acceptance of the
invitation. .Many of those present, from the highest

EMPIRE LEAGUE BANQUET IN LONDON 281

downwards, have expressed the opinion that, taking
into consideration the occasion of the banquet, the
attendance of persons of note, the speeches, the
general excellence of all the arrangements, and the
dinner itself, the event stands unrivalled within living
memory.

On the 17th May, 1900, a meeting of the Council of
the League was held, principally to hear an address from
me on behalf of the Canadian Branch. The late Earl
of Derby, K.G., occupied the chair. I brought before
.the Council the resolution with which our Executive
Committee had entrusted me when I was leaving :

Resolved, that the Executive Committee of the
British Empire League in Canada wishes, in view of
the President's coming visit to England, to reiterate its
well-defined opinions upon certain matters of Imperial
unity. It strongly feels the desirability of the Pacific
cable project, the importance to the Empire of some
mutual tariff preference between its various parts, the
advisability of holding another Imperial Conference to
discuss matters of defence, trade, and other interests of
the Empire, and the vital necessity of encouraging the
production of a sufficient national food supply under
the British flag.

I pressed all these points upon the Council in a
speech which is reported in the British Empire Review
for June, 1900.

I had been discussing these questions and particu-
larly the food supply with many people and found an
undercurrent of feeling much stronger in that direction
than on my previous visits to England, and I felt sure
that if any political leader would come out and boldly
advocate our policy he would get a strong support. I
knew Lord Salisbury was in full sympathy with my

IHi; STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

views, but the r*< »]<l reception given to him in 1890 and
1892, when he tried to lead public opinion in that
direction, had thoroughly discouraged him, and he
refrained from further efforts, not because he did not
feel the Importance of the question, but he felt it was
hopeless. Be wrote me on 1st March, 1901 :

I am old enough to remember the rise of Free Trade
and the contempt with which the apprehensions of the
protectionists of that day were received, but a genera-
tion must pass before the fallacies then proclaimed will
be unlearnt. There are too many people whose minds
were formed under their influence, and until those men
have died out, no change of policy can be expected.

Mr. Chamberlain still held back, but I felt that he
would come to our policy as soon as he could see any
hope of a successful movement. I was anxious to test
the public feeling, but did not see any opportunity,
until 1 met Sir Howard Vincent about the middle of
May. and he told me he was going down to Chelmsford,
to deliver a lecture on " South Africa." The meeting
was organised by Major Sir Carne Rasch, who was
nursing the constituency, and intending to be a
candidate in the Conservative interest at the general
elections, which were to come off that autumn. Sir
Howard Vincent said he would arrange that I should
have half an hour to say something about Canada.
I agreed to go, and decided that I would feel the pulse
<>f the masses on the subject of food supply, but T said
nothing of this to anyone, for I felt that neither Sir
Howard nor Sir Carne Rasch would wish to run any
risks. I began very cautiously but soon had the
audience with me. I was continually cheered, and
went on farther and farther, until I advocated a duty on
corn, or a bounty on wheat, or a bonus to farmers to

EMPIRE LEAGUE BANQUET IN LONDON 283

keep wheat in ricks. I had been astonished at the
friendliness of the audience, but when I got to that
point, Sir Carne Kasch and Sir Howard Vincent
evidently became nervous, and Sir Howard whispered
to me that we would have to get off in order to catch
the train, and I stopped instantly. On driving to the
station I saw that both my friends were uneasy, and I
said, "I hope I did not make any bad breaks "; Sir
Carne said, " Oh, I think not." I replied, " You can
easily say that I am an ignorant colonial and did not
know any better." He laughed at this, but I could see
he was a little nervous as to the result.

About four or five days after this I was in the lobby
of the House of Commons, when Sir Carne Rasch came
out of the House, and as soon as he saw me he came
across to me at once, and said he was glad to see me,
and that he was going to get my address from Sir Howard
Vincent. He went on to say that the people at
Chelmsford had been delighted with my speech, that
letters had been written to him, and he had been
asked to get me to go down to Chelmsford and
repeat my speech and enlarge upon it. He said he was
astonished, that the people had been discussing it ever
since, and he offered to secure the largest hall in
Chelmsford if I would go down, and that he would
guarantee it would not hold all that would wish to
come. I was leaving in three or four days for home,
and had no opportunity, and so had to decline.

A day or two afterwards, in the Mafeking demon-
stration, I was looking at the crowds near the Piccadilly
Circus, when I heard a man say to another, " Is not
that Colonel Denison ? " I knew I had seen him before,
and I said, " Yes, it is ; do you come from Toronto ? "
" No," he replied, " I am from Chelmsford, and heard

284 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

you speak there last week," and he introduced me to
three friends from Chelmsford. One was the Mayor,
another the editor of the Essex Comity Chronicle,
They at once asked me if I was going down to
Chelmsford again, and whether Major Rasch had seen
Hid they urged me to go, telling me that the
people were very anxious that I should speak there
again, and that they were busily discussing the various
points which 1 had raised.

I naturally watched for the return of the election in
the following October, for J was very anxious that my
friend Sir Came Rasch should be elected. The return
for Chelmsford was Major Rasch, 4,978, H. C. S. Henry,
Lil>., 1,849, a majority of 3,129. I felt then that my
speech had Dot hurt him, or that if it had it. did not
matter. This incident, had an important influence
upon the subsequent work of our League in Canada for
several years.

CHAPTER XXV

WORK IN CANADA IN 1901

I reported to the Executive Committee the details of
my work in England, and in the Annual Report for
1901 the Executive Committee strongly supported the
suggestion, which I had made at the banquet, that an
Imperial Conference should be held during 1901, to
consider many important matters affecting the safety
and welfare of the Empire. The Report went on to
say :

The time was never so opportune. The public
mind is full of these Imperial questions. Australia
is now in a position to act as a unit. Canada has long
been ready. The people of England have at last
awakened to the vastness, the importance, and future
possibilities of their great outside Empire, and posterity
would never forgive the statesmen of to-day if so
favourable a chance to carry out a great work was lost.
Your Committee consider that an Imperial Consultative
Council should be established, and that immediate
steps should be taken to thoroughly organise and
combine the military and naval power of the Empire.

During the year 1901 I was consulting with the
Executive Committee, and with individual members of
it from time to time, and expressed the view that
we had accomplished our work in Canada, that

286 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Commercial Union had been killed, the desire for
reciprocity with the States had died out, that both
political parties had become alive to the importance of
mutual Imperial preferential trade, and that the
( Canadian Government had given a preference to Great
Britain and the West Indies, that penny postage had
been established, Canadian contingents had been sent
to fight in an Imperial quarrel, that the Pacific cable
was being constructed principally through the deter-
mined action of Canada, and that I felt the whole
movement in favour of Imperial Unification in the
future would have to be fought out in Great Britain.

.My experience in Chelmsford had convinced me that
there was a strong undercurrent of feeling in Great
Britain in favour of tariff reform, but that nearly
everyone seemed afraid to "bell the cat" or to face
the tremendous influence of the bogey of Free Trade.
1 found many people quite willing to admit privately
the necessity of some change, but no one ready to come
out and boldly advocate tariff reform, or any kind of
protection. I said that if a few Canadians, good
platform speakers, would go over to England, and make
i compaign through the cities and towns, pleading
with the people to unite with the colonies to con-
solidate and strengthen the Empire, the support
tiny would receive would be very great, and might
lead bo securing the assistance of some prominent
political Leaders.

I was, and always have hern, convinced that so many
influences of every kind were working in our direction
that in time our policy would necessarily be successful.

This was discussed from time to time, and it was
finally decided that a deputation should go to England
before the Imperial Conference, which we knew would

WORK IN CANADA IN 1901 287

be held at the time of the coronation in 1902, and that
the deputation should advocate a concise and definite
policy, easily understood, which would contain the
substance of the trade system that we felt to be
so necessary for the stability of the Empire. This was
crystallised into the following resolution :

That a special duty of five or ten per cent, should be
imposed at every port in the British possessions on all
foreign goods ; the proceeds to be devoted to Imperial
defence, by which each part would not only be doing its
duty toward the common defence, but at the same time
be receiving a preference over the foreigner in the
markets of the Empire.

Having decided upon this point, it was considered
advisable that before we went to England we should
first test feeling in different centres in Canada, to make
sure that the policy we were advocating was one that
Canadians generally would approve. I decided to go
to New Brunswick and lay the question before a public
meeting in St. John and discuss the matter with
prominent men, and in that way test public opinion. I
had a very successful meeting in St. John on the
28th November, 1901, where one senator and four
members of the Commons and of the local legislature
spoke approvingly of the resolution, which was carried
unanimously. The Press in New Brunswick was very
favourable. The St. John Sun, in its leading article the
next day, said :

We have no hesitation in endorsing the policy
propounded by the President of the British Empire
League, and supported at last night's meeting by all
the speakers on both sides of politics and the unani-
mous vote of the audience.

III. STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

The article concluded in the following words :

Xoi- is it out of place to say that Colonel Denison's
manner of presenting the proposition was worthy of the
great theme. He is himself intensely impressed with
the solemn dignity of the subject, which touches the
destiny of our Empire, and this grave interest was
borne in on the audience, and pervaded the other
lies, even those in which a lighter tone prevailed.
For this reason, perhaps because most men speak better
when they speak strongly, the speeches following the
address of the evening were, like Colonel Denison's
itself, in tone and quality distinctly superior to these
which one usually hears on public occasions.

The Morning Post, of London, and the Naval and
Military Record both had long articles commenting
upon this meeting and approving <>(' the spirit shown,
but not speaking hopefully of the possibility
Great Britain accepting the principle of preferential
duti<

Prom St. John I went to Montreal, where 1 addressed
a successful meeting on the same subject on the 30th
November, 1901. On the 24th January, 1902, I
addressed a large meeting in London, Ontario, the
Bishop of Huron in the chair. The same resolution

arried unanimously, and the three newspap
the Conservative, the Liberal, and the Independent —
all united in warm approval of the policy, as did
the other speakers, who were chosen equally from
both sides of politics.

Some time later a meeting was organised at Owen
Sound, which was addressed by Mr. Alexander McNeill,
Vice- President of the League, advocating the same
policy, which was unanimously endorsed.

The seventh Annual Meeting of the League at

WORK IN CANADA IN 1901 289

Ottawa, at which this policy was also endorsed, took
place on the 20th February, 1902.

By this time the Executive Committee had become
confident that they had the mass of the Canadian
people behind them in their proposed policy, and steps
were taken to have a deputation proceed to England to
endeavour, by public meetings and otherwise, to bring
the matter before the attention of the people, and if
possible to inaugurate public discussion of the policy.

The following resolution was carried by the Executive
Committee :

The Executive Committee of the British Empire
League in Canada, having regard to the rapid growth
of national sentiment in the greater colonies and the
strong and vigorous Imperial sentiment throughout
the Empire, is of opinion that it is most important
that advantage should be taken of the coming Imperial
Conference in London to secure some definite and
forward action towards the accomplishment of the
objects of the British Empire League as a whole.

The Executive Committee, with this view, requests
the President of the League in Canada to visit England
soon, if possible, and advocate the already expressed
opinions of the Canadian branch by addressing public
meetings, and otherwise, as he may find expedient and
proper, in order to assist in influencing public opinion
in favour of these objects.

That he also be empowered and requested to advocate
that a special duty of 5 to 10 per cent, should be
imposed at every port in the British possessions on all
foreign goods, in order to provide a fund for Imperial
Defence, which fund should be administered by a
Committee or Council in which the colonies should
have representation.

The Executive Committee also expresses the hope
that the Hon. George E. Foster, the Hon. George W.

u

290 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

and Dr. George K. Parkin, C.M.G., if they may be
able i" visit England this year, will assist in this work,

and give their valuable ai<l to the cause.

A copy of this resolution was scut to the head office
in England, with a request that I should have an
opportunity of addressing the Council of the League in
April. A favourable reply was received

*j9I

CHAPTER XX\rI

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902

I left for England on the 10th April, 1902, and
arrived in London on 21st April. The following
members of the League and of the Executive Com-
mittee, staunch friends and supporters of the cause,
came to the station to see me off: W. B. McMurrich,
President of the Navy League, H. J. Wickham, J. M.
Clark, John T. Small, George E. Evans, Fraser Lefroy,
H. M. Mowat, K.C., Colonel Grasett, and J. W.
Curry, K.C. I was much impressed with the tone of
their conversation ; they seemed to feel that I was going
upon an almost hopeless errand, but let me know
how strongly they sympathised with me. I can never
forget the loyal support and assistance I have always
received in all circumstances from the spirited and
unselfish patriotism of the advocates of Imperialism in
Canada, The greatest satisfaction I have is to feel
that for so many years I was working in a cause which
rallied around it such a splendid galaxy of upright and
honourable men.

Mr. Foster was not able to go to England that year,
but he went the following year, and did great work in
speaking through England, and in Scotland, in support
of Mr. Chamberlain's policy of Tariff Reform, which was
what we had been working for for so many years. The

U 2

292 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

H<»n. George W. Ross came over late, being delayed by
the Ontario General Elections, and he supported me by
a powerful and eloquent speech at the annual meeting
of the League in London. Dr. Parkin was also delayed,
but he had never fully accepted our trade policy, and as
negotiations opened at once between him and the
Rhodes Trust to secure his services for their work, he
was not able to address any meeting, so that for
two months the whole burden fell upon me, and I was
obliged unaided to endeavour to break the ice, and get
the movement started.

To look back now it is hard to call to mind the state
of affairs in England at this time. No prominent states-
man had said one word, in public, in support of mutual
preferential tariffs except Lord Salisbury, and he was
discouraged and disheartened by the lack of support, and
at that time was in such failing health that no assistance
could be expected from him. I felt that I was facing
a very hard proposition, and one almost hopeless in its
prospects. I was afraid of being ignored or simply
sponged out. I was very anxious to be attacked. I
knew if I was vehemently assailed it would be a great
advantage, for I felt I had the facts and arguments,
and could defeat my opponents in discussion. I had
been for years studying the question, reading con-
stantly articles pro and con., and had classified, organised,
and indexed my material, until I felt every confidence
in my cause.

I arrived in London on the 21st April, and on that
morning my first stroke of good luck occurred. The
papers had just published the announcement of the
Morgan combine of the Atlantic Steamship Lines.
This had positively startled the British people. It
-hook them Up and alarmed them, and caused them for

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN T902 293

the first time for many years to be uneasy as to their
pre-eminence in mercantile marine. They were in a
mood to listen to questions as to their future prospects.
I used Morgan's action in conversation to support my
view that Great Britain must follow the advice of the
Prince of Wales and " wake up."

The Daily Express sent a representative to interview
me on the Morgan affair, and on the 25th April, 1902,
it published an interview of over a column in length. I
pointed out the widespread danger of Morgan's combi-
nation if it succeeded, that the Canadian Pacific Railway
might be secured, and then no other line of steamships
could compete, for if the United States combine con-
trolled the railways, they would control the freights, and
so the vessels ; and if they dominated the Atlantic and
Pacific, the British Empire would be split in twain. I
wound up the interview by a plan to checkmate the
combine, saying, " The right method is to run a
competing line, tax everything the combine vessels
bring into this country and let the things that the
other line brings come in free."

On the 1st May the Express had another interview
on the same question.

On the 26th April I spoke at the banquet given to
the Lacrosse Team at the Hotel Cecil, and touched
upon Imperial questions, but the newspapers reported
nothing.

On the 28th April Sir Gilbert Parker gave a lunch
for me at the Constitutional Club, and invited several
editors to meet me. On the 30th April I attended
the annual dinner of the Royal Colonial Institute,
where I was assigned to respond to the toast of
" The United Empire." This was my first chance
of speaking to a large audience, and it was composed

294 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

of the foremost men in England interested in the
Colonial Empire. Sir George Taubman Goldie sal next
to me and proposed the boast. It came last. An
extra toast to the Houses of Parliament inserted
bo give Lord Halsbury, the Lord Chancellor, an oppor-
tunity to speak, made it very late when my turn
came. Sir Taubman Goldie said it was too late and
he would not speak. I felt it was too important a chance
tor me to allow to slip, and I said to him that I must
speak for five minutes.

The next morning none of the, daily papers had any
report of my speech. The Times included it under the
words "other toasts followed." This was the treatment
I had been most afraid of. I knew there was no
chance of doing anything if I was simply ignored. It
was not that my speech was not important, but it was
late and I was a stranger. Mr. I. N. Ford, represen-
tative of the New York Tribune and the Toronto Globe,
was present, and he at one saw the importance of the
policy I propounded, and cabled to New York, and all
over the States, and to Toronto a report of the dinner.
His report, in view of subsequent developments, may be
reproduced :

The most interesting episode of the last twenty-four
hours has been the breath of fresh air at that Imperial
function, the annual banquet of the Royal Colonial
Institute in Whitehall Rooms. The speaking began
aft ei- nine o'clock and was perfunctory for two hours.
Lord Grey, as chairman, opened the proceedings quietly,
and there was nothing of exceptional interest. The
Hon. Henry Copeland, representing New South Wales.
suggested that the three sons of the Prince of Wales,
should have the titles of Princes of Canada, of Australia
and of South Africa, and the daughter Princess of
New Zealand. Lieut.-General Leslie Rundle asserted

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 295

that a good feeling had been brought about between
the colonial contingents and the British Army. The
Lord Chancellor talked about the utility of Parliament.
Lord Grey paid a tribute to the unselfish idealism of
Mr. Cecil Rhodes.

It was not until eleven that real interest was
created by the response of Colonel Denison to the
toast of "The United Empire." He was only on his
feet five minutes, but he carried the representative
audience of 240 colonials with him.

He then gave a summary of the speech and concluded :

Colonel Denison's policy excited murmurs of dissent
at first, but was applauded with great vigour at the
close as a practical sequel to the tax on grain and flour.

I give the verbatim report of this speech, and it will
be seen that it contains the whole principle of the
Tariff Reform movement which has since made such
headway :

As a member of this Institute, and one who has
worked most of his life in the interests of the United
Empire, I should have very great pleasure in responding
to this toast at some little length, but I must be brief
at this late hour. This year is one of the most
important years of the history of the Empire. We
speak of the United Empire, and although we have an
Empire which in one sense is united, still in another
sense it is not a United Empire. It is not combined
in any way, or organised for defence, and I think it is
absolutely necessary that steps should be taken at the
earliest possible moment to have it properly combined.
The coming conference of Premiers will be one of the
most important events in the history of the British
race. I am under the impression that when this
conference meets it will either do some good work in
connection with the unification of the Empire, or it

Zg6 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

may be thai either through sloth, or indolence, or lack
of appreciation of the extraordinary importance of the
occasion, the critical moment may be allowed to
lapse, and we may soon see our career as a great and
powerful people approaching a close. (" No.") I certainly
hope not, hut speaking as a Canadian watching closely
the trend of affairs in that country, and having had a
good deal of work in the fighl we had some fifteen years
igainst Commercial union with the United States.
I tell you this is a most critical period, and that this
Empire must combine idr defence and for trade. For
defence because every great thinker and every man who
has studied the subject knows that we may have war
upon us at any moment. Take t he last words of that
great statesman. Lord Dufferin, when he said that
nothing, neither a sense of justice, nor the precepts of
religion, nor the instincts of humanity, would'prevenl
any of these foreign nations from attacking us at the
first favourable opportunity. Why did Lord Salisbury
two years ago, at the Primrose League gathering, sa\
that " The whole thing may come as a wave upon as,"
Is it not necessary that we should combine the Empire
both for trade and defence ? Now we have considered
this subject carefully in Canada, and held meetings all
over the country, and the proposal we wish to see
adopted at this conference — a proposal I have been
asked by the British Empire League to lay before you —
is that at that conference every representative there
should agree to a proposal to put from live to ten pel'
cent, duty on all foreign goods at every port in every
part of the Empire. What for? Not for Protection
or Free Trade, but to form a fund for defence. That is
why it has got to be done, and you will require large
sums of money to put the thing on a proper footing. We
want also to combine for trade. Wo want some proposal
which would help to a certain extent to protect the
trade of the Empire in every part, which would tend
not only to protect trade in every part, but to stop the
merciless attacks made on the trade of this country

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN T902 297

by foreign nations. We have never had to face
such a pitiless commercial war in all our history. The
commercial war in the time of Napoleon was a mere
incident in actual war, but we are to-day feeling the
attacks at every turn. I think this proposal which the
Canadian people wish to see adopted would have one
other effect. We have 400,000,000 of people in this
Empire, but only 50,000,000 of British stock and bound
together by ties of kindred, race, and blood. The rest
are satisfied to be in our Empire. But why ? On
account of the just administration of affairs, the freedom
and liberties they enjoy under the British flag, and for
one other reason also, because of the great prestige
we have hitherto held as a great and dominant power.
The proposal we suggest would have the effect of
giving a direct trade interest to all these alien races
under our flag to-day.

I believe our good friend Mr. Seddon, of New
Zealand, will soon be in this country and will be with
us on this point. I hope our Australian friends will
be with us also, and that the people of England will
be willing to make some slight sacrifices for the purpose
of holding our great and powerful Empire together,
and iat the same time we also shall be making sacri-
fices, and doing much more than ever before for the
common cause.

This banquet was on the 30th April. As an indica-
tion of the interest taken in the matter in the United
States, on the 5th May the Chicago Tribune had a
portrait of my brother, Lieut.-Colonel Septimus
Denison, which they believed was mine. Over the top
were the words " Projector of plan for Union of the
British Empire against the World " ; at the foot of the
portrait " Colonel Septimus Denison."

Several hundred representatives of the British
Colonies grew wildly enthusiastic at a banquet in

29S THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

London on Wednesday night, over a plan proposed by
Colonel Denison, of Toronto, for a union of Greal
Britain and all its colonies for commercial defence
against the rest of the world. Colonel Denison's
scheme, as outlined in his speech, is to levy a tariff of
from five to ten per cent, at all British and colonial
pints on all goods not from Great Britain or one of its
colonies and establish free trade within the Empire.

On the 4th May I lunched with Mr. Joseph
Chamberlain, and discussed with him the policy that I
was advocating. He argued the matter with me,
bringing forward any number of objections, which I
answered as well as I could. I soon came to the
conclusion that he was quietly taking my measure,
and testing my knowledge of the question. I then
warmed up in my arguments and put my views
Strongly and emphatically, and BOOH came to the
conclusion, from a mischievous expression in his eye,
that he was not as much opposed to me as his remarks
would lead one to think. When leaving I felt that
although he did not say a word in support of my plan,
yet he was not altogether unfavourable.

On the 5th May I met Sir Douglas Straight, editor
of the Pall Mall Gazette, and after some conversation
ho suggested to Mr. Sydney Low, who was with us, to
interview me on behalf of the Pull Mall Gazette, and a
long interview appeared on the front pages of that
paper on the 12th May, in which I put our views
forward clearly and strongly. After pointing out the
precarious condition of Great Britain's food supply I
said that, we in Canada felt that it would be a sheer
wast.- of money for us to pay lor ships, troops, and
coaling stations, while taking no precautions to secure
adequate supplies of food, and that a preferential tax

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 299

on food would help greatly to overcome the danger.
I concluded with the following words :

I do not wish to enter upon the whole economical
and financial question ; but everything I have seen and
read convinces me that your industrial situation is a
perilous one, that you are paying for your imports
largely out of capital, and that you are depending far
too much on the profits of the carrying trade, of which,
as you have been very forcibly reminded during the
past few weeks, you cannot expect to have a virtual
monopoly much longer. If you do not speedily make
arrangements to secure yourselves some markets, where
you will be able to deal at an advantage, you will be
in a very serious position indeed in the course of the
next few years. The opportunity of solving at once
the defensive and the industrial problem seems to us
to have arrived ; and we have great hopes that British
statesmen and the British public will take advantage
of it.

On the 6th May there was a special meeting of the
Council of the League held in a room at the House of
Commons, at which Lord Avebury presided. It was
called to hear my appeal for assistance in obtaining
opportunities for placing the views of the Canadian
Branch before the British people. There were a
number of prominent men present, among others the
Duke of Abercorn, Earl Egerton of Tatton, Sir Walter
Butler, Sir Edward Carbutt, Rt. Hon. Sir John Cock-
burn, Sir Charles Fremantle, W. Herbert Daw, Sir
Robert Herbert, W. H. Holland, M.P., Dr. Culver
James, Sir Guilford Molesworth, Sir Charles Tupper,
and Sir Fred Young. Lord Avebury introduced me
and I put my case before them. After I had spoken at
some length Sir Charles Tupper followed, supporting
me strongly. Mr. W. H. Holland — now Sir William

3oo THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Holland — criticised my views from the Free Trade
Manchester standpoint, and was totally opposed to me.
Captain Lee, M.P., was critical but not hostile, Mr.
Talbot Haines was not favourable to ray views, but
thought T should have opportunities of putting them
before the public. Sir Guilford Molesworth and Sir
Fred Young supported me strongly, as did Dr. Culver
.lantes and Sir John Cockburn. I wound up the
discussion, particularly replying to Sir William Holland's
remarks. Among other things Sir William Holland
had said :

I might say that the trade of which I know the most.
the <otton trade, would be affected considerably by
such a scheme. If an important duty of five or ten
per cent, were imposed on all cotton coming into this
country from territory outside the limits of the British
Empire, we should at once penalise that great industry
by enhancing the cost of the raw material by five or
ten per cent., and as the cotton trade is largely
dependcnl on markets outside British territory, I am
afraid it might have a disastrous effect on our ability
to compete in the great neutral markets of the world,
if our raw material was penalised to that extent.

When I rose to reply, I said :

Will Mr. Holland kindly wait a few moments? I
have just, a few words to say in reply to his remarks,
He is interested in the cotton trade, and has given
us one or two ideas upon it. . . . With regard to
cotton, I will give you one lair warning about that.
?ou are engaged at this moment — the British people
:iie engaged — in one of the most pitiless and merciless
wars evei- waged in commercial history. Napoleon's
war was nothing to it. The United States have made
up their mind that they are going to use you up in
every quarter. They are taking your ships from you,

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 301

and they are going to take your boot trade altogether.
I came over here with the president of their great
combine, and he explained it to me. " We shall destroy
the whole shoe trade of England," is what he said.
Now about your cotton trade. I want to warn you.
Do not be surprised if before long there will be a heavy
export tax put upon cotton in the United States,
because I understand that they may likely keep it for
manufacturing with themselves. If that is done — and
it maybe easily done— such a proposition as I have
made of putting a ten per cent, duty on imports into
the ports of the empire might cause cotton to be grown
in Africa, in India, in Egypt, and in other places, and I
think for the benefit of having cotton grown inside the
Empire it will be a good thing to put on the duty,
because you are not safe for a day with the United
States. They are waging war upon us now at every
turn.

Sir Win. Holland evidently was impressed with my
remarks about the danger of the United States
reducing their sale of cotton. It was only about a
month after that the public heard of the organisation
of .the British Cotton Supply Association, with a sub-
scription of £50,000 to make experiments in growing
cotton under the British flag. I have always had
a very high opinion of Sir Win. Holland ever
since.

It was unanimously resolved at that meeting " to
give Colonel Denison every possible facility for stating
his views to Chambers of Commerce and other in-
fluential bodies without committing the League to an
endorsement, and it was referred to the Executive
Committee to embody this decision in a formal resolu-
tion in the name of the Council."

At a meeting of the Executive Committee held on

302 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

the 15th May the resolution was passed in these
words :

That while maintaining its traditional policy of

neutrality in all matters affecting tariffs and fiscal
arrangements, the Council of the League have pleasure
in resolving that it will do everything in its power to
provide facilities lor Colonel Denison, the distinguished
President of the League in Canada, to express publicly
his views before the Chambers of Commerce and other
important bodies in this country.

This resolution was published in the newspapers, and

the action of the Council was known to the Liberal
leaders.

On the 7th May I dined at the Annual Banquet of
the Newspaper Society, and responded to the toast of
"The Guests," where! had an admirable opportunity of
bringing my proposition before a large number of editors
of newspapers from all over Great Britain.

The Aberdeen Journal commenting upon this dinner
said : —

Perhaps the most interesting speech of the evening

lie last one. It was delivered by Colonel Denison,
a Canadian, and President of the Empire League
in Canada. He stated that he had been sent over to
this country to do what he could to promote a movement
for the defence of the Empire, and indicated that one
of the proposals to be discussed at the Colonial
Conference at the coronation would be one to impo
duty on foreign imports at every port in the Empire, in
order to raise an Imperial Defence Fund common to
the whole Empire Ho said the duty might be
"l' !> per cent. There was one exclamation of

at when this proposal was mentioned, but Colonel
Denison's breezy, confident manner, and evidently strong
conviction on the subject, excited general sympathy.

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 303

Lord Tvveedmouth's attitude during the Colonel's
speech, as it may be described, suggesting an Imperial
war tax, was rather quizzical than sympathetic.

By this time the newspapers were beginning to
notice my work. Fortunately for me about the same
time Mr. Seddon had been speaking on similar lines
in South Africa, and Sir Wilfrid Laurier also in the
Canadian House of Commons. This alarmed the
Liberal party, and the Manchester Guardian began to
criticise and find fault with me to my great satisfaction,
for I knew I could stand anything better than being
ignored.

A friend of mine in the Liberal ranks told me about
this time that the leading Liberals were in a great
state of anxiety at my work. They believed, he said,
that Chamberlain, Seddon, and Sir Wilfrid Laurier had
all agreed that the scheme was to be put through at
the Imperial Conference, and that I had come over as
an advance agent, to break the ice, to open the
discussion, and prepare the way. I evaded making any
definite reply to this suggestion, jokingly saying that I
was not surprised to hear that they were anxious.

I had another hint that the Liberal party purposed
arranging for a great meeting at Leeds, at which Lord
Rosebery was to speak, and a direct effort made to
rally the whole Liberal party together, under the
banner of Free Trade, as against the proposed corn tax.
and the preferential arrangements with the colonies,
I thought it desirable that I should have a talk with
Lord Rosebery at once, and wrote asking him for an
interview. He invited me to lunch the next day, the
8th May. There was no one present but his son and
his secretary, and I appealed to him earnestly, appealed

3o4 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

bo his sympathy with Imperialism, and to his service*
bo Imperial Federation, and urged him to assist me in
my work. I pointed out the dangers of the precarious
food supply, and the disintegrating influences that
might break up the Empire, and put my case as clearly
as possible. He seemed to get more and more serious
as he saw all the arguments on that side, and when I
was leaving I said to him ; " It is too bad of me to come
and unload all my gloomy forebodings upon you." His
reply was, " I share a great many of them with you."
I knew then, as I knew at the meeting in 1890, that at
heart he was a warm Imperialist, but is terribly
hampered and embarrassed by his party affiliations.
The meeting took place at Leeds on the 30th May. In
his speech he made two or three remarks which showed
he was not as opposed to my policy as I expected. In
reference to the corn tax he said :

Not another acre of wheat, we were bold by one
Minister, would be planted in consequence of this baa
which removed, to my mind, the sole inducement to
\ute for it, for if more of our country could he placed
under wheat it would solve some of the difficulties
connected with the land.

lin he said :

But there is a much graver issue connected with this
corn tax— an issue which has, in reality, only recently
been imported into the discussion. It is, I think, quite
clear from the last speech of the Colonial Secretary, thai
it is intended as a prelude to a sort of Zollvcrein or
Customs Union throughout the British Empire. Now,
speaking for myself, I cannot summarily dismiss any
proposal for the closer union of the Empire, because it
has been the ideal of more than the last twenty years
oi my life (hear, hear), an ideal of which I spoke to yon

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 305

afc Leeds when I was last here. I do nut say that Free
Trade is a fetish, a religious dogma, which must be
accepted and applied on all occasions without consider-
ation or reservation. ... I do not know, my mind is
open, and I shall wait to hear.

His speech was more friendly than I expected, al-
though some of his party objected to an "open mind."

Before the Leeds meeting the Liberals held a
meeting in Scotland, at Aberdeen, on the 20th May,
where the Rt. Hon. James Bryce made a vigorous
speech against the corn tax, which it was believed was
being put on preparatory for the Imperial Conference.

On the 23rd May I addressed the Liverpool Chamber
of Commerce under the chairmanship of its President,
Sir Alfred Jones, who treated me with the most un-
bounded hospitality. The meeting was very large and
successful, and although my views aroused criticism and
were objected to by some speakers, I had a chance to
reply in acknowledging a vote of thanks, and as I
had the strongest arguments I had little difficulty in
effectively answering objections.

The Westminster Gazette of the 21st May, the day
before I went to Liverpool, had the following article :

Mr. Bryce stated the case against the bread tax with
admirable point and force in a speech last night at
Aberdeen. He dealt with its protective aspect, and
the part it seemed destined to play in helping on an
Imperial Zollverein, and had an excellent passage as
to the effect of the tax on the very poor : he said :

And when you get lower still, when you approach
that large section of our people — in many places 30
per cent, of the population — which lives on the verge
of want, it becomes a crushing burden, which means
reduced subsistence, frequent hunger, weakness of

x

3o6 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

body, and susceptibility to disease. The poor man
suffers not merely because his margin is so small that
the least addition to price tells, but because he can
only afford the simplest and cheapest kinds of food.
Bread to him is not only an article of first necessity,
but of last necessity, etc.

The comment, " He dealt with its protective aspect
and the part it seemed destined to play in helping on an
[mperial Zollverein," shows the alarm in the Liberal
ranks. One of the speakers at the Liverpool meeting,
who objected to my arguments, spoke of the marvellous
prosperity of Great Britain, all due, as he said, to Free
Trade. In my reply I used with great effect this
extract from Mr. Bryce's speech, and said that if about
8d. per head for a whole year meant to 30 per cent, of
the population "a crushing burden, which means
reduced subsistence, frequent hunger, weakness of
body, susceptibility to disease," I could not see that
it could be called a prosperous country. I said I
do not believe that gentleman ever saw a prosperous
country. Let him come to the protectionist United
States of America, or to protectionist Canada, and
he will see countries where there is hardly a soul who
does not spend at least 8d. a week on pleasure or
amusement. This was apparently an unanswerabl
retort. I found this paragraph of Mr. BryceV
use t'ul on more occasions than one.

I was told some five months after I had return*
home, by one of the newspaper men who visil
Canada at that time, that he had heard, on undoubt<
authority, that Mr. Joseph Chamberlain had privately
asked Sir Alfred Jones to get up a meeting, and invit
in.' to go down and address it. The result must have
been satisfactory, for the meeting was much more

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 307

successful than I had any hope for. I think Mr.
Chamberlain's part leaked out and still further alarmed
the Liberals, and still more aided me.

The Liverpool papers gave good reports of the
meeting, and the editorial comments of two of them
were not unfavourable, while one was opposed to me.
The Courier of the 24th May said :

Now Canada proposes — and no doubt she will not be
alone — that the Empire as a whole accept this challenge.
Colonel Denison suggests that a five per cent, tariff
should be laid on foreign goods in every part of the
Empire, and that the money be ear-marked for the
defence. It is, of course, premature to discuss details,
but the final words of the Canadian Imperialist deserve
the most earnest attention. He shows that Mr. Cham-
berlain has not misread the signs in saying that an
opportunity of closer union is about to be offered, and
a chance given, perhaps once for all, of keeping British
trade in British hands. If the occasion should be
rejected, fair warning is given that the elements of
disintegration will inevitably begin to operate among
the colonies thus flouted, disappointed, and rebuffed.
But we are asked to remember what Mr. Bryce says as
to the percentage of the population always on the verge
of want, and to whom an important duty would be
fatal. They have not this terrible dead-weight in
Canada, and neither have they anything of the sort in
the United States. Is it not rational to suggest that
this vast proportion of the population, ever ready to be
submerged, is a result not of dear commodities, but of
restricted production. On the score of mere cheapness
there is assuredly little to complain of. The biggest
and cheapest loaf costs something, and its price has
to be earned. The question is, Are we to face this
commercial struggle alone and unarmed, or are we to
unite with the daughter nations in securing a not
dubious victory ?

x 2

HE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

On the L3th May, ten days before the meeting in
pool, I was dining at Lord Lansdowne's at a
dinner given bo Count Matsugata, formerly Prime
Minister of Japan. The Premier and five Cabinet
Ministers, Lord Roberts, the Duke of Aberoorn, and
il others were present, I was seated between
Mr. Chamberlain and Lord George Hamilton. I took
advantage of the opportunity bo discuss our policy with
Mr. Chamberlain, and pressed it as earnestly as I could
put it, and we had a long conversation. I pleaded with

him to help us, that 1 was still afraid of reciprocity

with the I 'nited States, and that I felt we were

drifting, drifting, and that every year made it worse.

Whether my remarks had any weight on him or not I
cannot say, 1 think he had long been privately OD our
side, but anyway, three days alter he made a speech in

Birmingham, which was the most hopeful thing that

had happened in all our struggle. In that speech he
said :

I lie position of this country is not one without
an\iet\ to statesmen and careful observers. Political
jealousy, commercial rivalry, more serious than anything

We have yet had, the pressure of hostile tariffs, the
pressure of bounties, the pressure of subsidies, it is
all becoming more weighty and more apparent.

What LS the object of this system adopted l»\

countries which, at all events, are verv prosperous
themselves countries like Germany ami other large
Continental States.' What is the object of all this
policy of bounties and subsidies ? It isadmitted- there
is no serret about it t he intent ion is to shut out this
country as far as possible from all profitable trade with
those foreign States, and at the same time to enable
those foreign Stales to undersell us in British markets.
That is the policy, and we see that it is assuming a

MISSION' TO ENGLAND IX roo

great development, that old ideas of trade and Free
competition have changed. We are face bo face with
great combinations, with enormous trusts, having
behind fchem gigantic wealth. Even the industries and
commerce which we thought bo be peculiarly our own,
even those are 111 danger, [t is quite impossible that
bhese new methods of competition can he met by
adherence to old ami antiquated methods which were
perfectly right at the time at. which they were
developed.
At- the present moment: the Empire is being attacked

mi all sidos, and m our isolation we must, look to

'selves. We must- draw closer our internal relations,

the ties of sentiment, the ties of sympathy yes, and the

ties of interest, If by adh< aviic ■ |,o economic pedantry,

to old Bhibboleths, we are to lose opportunities of

closer union which are ottered us by our Colonies;
if we are to put aside occasions now within our grasp;

if we do not. take every chance in our power to keep
British trade in British hands, 1 am certain that we
shall deserve the disasters which will infallibly come

upon us.

This was the first public utterance of Mr. Chamber-
lain, in which he endorsed in general terms the policy
I was advocating. In the remarks I have quoted, if.

will be seen that he endorsed the salient, points of

my live minutes' speech a fortnight before at the
Royal Colonial Institute. Political jealousy, <'<>m-
mercial rivalry, the pitiless commercial war, the ties of
sentiment, the ties of interest, the keeping of British
trade in British hands, etc Nothing inspirited me so
much as this speech. I had preserved as a profound
secret Mr. Chamberlain's promise to me in L890 that
he would study up the question, and, if he came to the
conclusion if would he a ,L,r<>od thing for <>ur Empire,
that he would take if up. I had keptsilent waiting for

3io THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

twelve years, until I read that speech on the morning of
the 17th May, and I then told my wife the story of the
interview in 1890, for I fell he had adopted the policy.

The Daily News, in two articles on the 22nd and
24th May, made an attack en Mr. Chamberlain and me,
and found fault also with the British Empire League
for giving me any countenance, and strongly criticised
our policy. The Hist article was entitled " The Empire
Wreckers." F was delighted to see these articl
well as others, in the Westminster Gazette, the Manchester
Guardian, and other Liberal papers. 1 saw that my
greatest difficulty had been overcome, and that I was
not to be ignored, but that I was likely to succeed in
getting the whole matter thrown into the arena for
public discussion.

After quoting the proposition I was advocating in
full, the Daily News went on to say :

We leave to others the task of finding the ap-
propriate adjectives for this composition, but Colonel
Denison will forgive us if we observe that there is a
certain inconvenience in conducting a campaign of this
kind during the coronation festivities. We have no
notion whether he is acting as the advance agent of
Mr. Seddon and others, whose views on tariff prefer-
ences are of an extreme character, nor do we know how
far he speaks as the representative of his fellow-
colonists. But he and those who are acting with him
must sorely see that this is not the time for launching
a campaign which is bound to give rise to differences,
and possibly to heated differences. Everyone is anxious
to give a cordial welcome to the visitors who will be
coming to our shores next month, and nothing would
!>.■ more unfortunate than to find ourselves involved
in a dispute about preferences and tariffs with our own

people . . ,

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN t 902 311

There can be no doubt, however, that Mr. Chamber-
lain is the person primarily responsible for these
proceedings, and itfis with him that the Chambers of
Commerce will have to deal if they wish to call their
souls and their trade their own much longer. Ever
since he came into office the master motive in Mr.
Chamberlain's mind has been to put the Empire on
a cash basis, to run it frankly as a commercial venture,
and to occupy the position of managing director of the
concern. . .

From the standpoint of national trade and Imperial
security it is the maddest scheme that was ever offered
to a country as a policy. It ignores the fact that we
do four times as much trade with foreign countries as
with our Colonies and Dependencies, and that it ties
our hands in our fiscal arrangements, and to all intents
and purposes constitutes our Colonies as the predomi-
nant partner. Who would have thought that it would
be necessary at this time of day to do battle against
such midsummer madness ? We repeat that if Mr.
Chamberlain is allowed his way, and the British
Empire comes to stand for starvation, misery, and
loss of economic freedom for the mother country, the
Empire will soon become a thing of the past.

On the 24th May, two days later, it returned to the
attack on similar lines. I saw my opening and
promptly seized ic. I wrote the following letter to the
News, which they were fair enough to publish in full
with an editorial note attached. It appeared in the
Daily News of the 27th May, 1902 :

Sir,

In two articles in your issues of the 22nd and 24th
inst., you have referred to my action in endeavouring
to bring the views of the British Empire League in
Canada— views which are almost universally shared by

3i2 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Canadians -before the people of this country. Will

yon kindly allow me to bring one or two points before
your readers in defence of my action ?

The British Empire League here has not adopted
our views, but has maintained a position of neutrality,
being only willing to show to the Canadian Branch
the courtesy of giving facilities for bringing its views
forward. 1 have spoken already at four large banquets,
and to the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, without
the British Empire League having had anything to d<>
with the matter, either directly or indirectly.

Sou speak of all that Free Trade has done for this
country, the priceless boons, the carrying trade of the
world, increased commercial relations with other
nations, etc. 1 wish in a few words to point out why
the Canadians are anxious about the present state oi
affairs in the interests of the whole Empire, in which
our fate as a people is inextricably involved.

1. We see every nation in the world armed to the
teeth, the great nations increasing their navies with
feverish anxiety. We see that you are alarmed in this
country, for your naval expenditure has almost doubled
in the last fifteen or twenty years. If war is out of
the question this great expenditure is useless.

2. We see that the United Kingdom which once
grew 17,000,000 quarters of wheat, now produces about
6,500,000 quarters. We see that a combination of
two Powers with an embargo on food would bring you
to your knees in a few months, and compel you to
surrender, and perhaps pull us down also as a people
in the general smash of the Empire which might ensue.
We know that our Empire cannot be either a free,
independent, or great Power, until it. is self-sustaining,
and has its food grown on its own soil, and in the hands
of its own people.

3. We see a great Empire with great possessions,
with resources unparalleled, with possibilities of future
strength and prosperity almost beyond imagination;
with no organisation, no combination, no complete

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 313

system of defence: and this in the face of what you
admit to be a possibility of the dangers of war.

4. We see a commercial war going on of the most
extreme type — many nations seemingly organising all
their forces to injure the trade of Great Britain. We
see that your export trade for the ten years 1881-1890
amounted to £2,343,000,000, while in the following ten
years, 1891-1 900, it had only increased to £2,398,000,000,
or an increase of £55,000,000 in the ten years. But the
exports of coal in the first ten years amounted to
£125,000,000, in the last ten years to £210,000,000— an
increase of £85,000,000 ; which makes the exports of
manufactured goods less by £30,000,000 during the
years 1891-1900 than during the previous ten years,
for export of coal is only a sale of national assets or
capital.

5. We see that while your trade is stationary at less
profits, foreign nations are increasing theirs enormously.
German exports in 1895 amounted to £171,203,000, in
1901 to £237,970,000. The United States in 1871
exported about £90,000,000, in 1901 about £300,000,000
(1,487,764,991 dollars). While your trade is in a weak
condition, we see also the carrying trade passing into the
hands of our rivals. The Morgan combine will control
the North Atlantic trade if something is not done. It
will fix the rates of freight, and, as a great portion of
your food comes from the United States, they can make
the British people pay the extra rates which will enable
them to carry American manufactures of all kinds at
the smallest cost, and so deprive your workmen of their
employment and wages at the cost to themselves of
dearer food.

6. Canadians have seen the difficulty, and have given
this country a preference of one-third the duty in their
markets without any return or quid pro quo. We have
contributed to an all British cable to Australia for
Imperial reasons. I advocated at Liverpool a large
tariff on wheat in the United Kingdom against every-
one, including Canada. I advocated a tariff of five to

514 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

ten per cent, on all foreign goods at every port in the
Empire to raise a fund for the common defence, and to
combine the Empire for trade. We in Canada do not
require this change if you d<> not. We are prosperous:
our exports are mounting up by leaps and bounds ; the
balance of trade is in our favour: but we are in the
Empire : we have made up our minds to stand by it.
Wo have spent the lives of our young men, and our
money, in that cause in the past. When, therefore, wo
Bee your manufactures going down, your export trade
barely holding its own in spite of a great increase of
population, your carrying trade slipping from your
hands, your agricultural interests being destroyed, three
quarters of Ireland disloyal, principally because their
fanning has boon ruined by what must seem a false
policy to them, is it any wonder that we should wish to
appeal to you to do something? Is it not only fair
that you should listen to us, and if we can combine in
any way to defend our Empire from foreign aggression,
either in war or in trade, should we not all endeavour
to do

Yours, &c,

George T. Denison.

President British Empire League in Canada.

[The picture which Colonel Denison paints in such
gloomy colours is unhappily true in a large degree.
But the remedy is not to be found in impoverishing
the people, increasing the price of the necessities of
life, stopping the current of Free Trade through our
markets, and establishing the principle of scarcity and
d earn ess in the place of abundance and cheapness.
Such a remedy would simply hasten the catastrophe
that Colonel Denison foreshadows. — Ed. D.N.]

Lord Masham, speaking bo me afterwards about this
letter, laughed most heartily and said, "Just think, to
get that letter before the readers of the News, That

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN T002 315

is capital, how the editor must have grudged print-
ing it."

I spoke at the Canada Club dinner on the 8th May
in response to the toast of " The Dominion of Canada,"
and at the Colonial Club dinner on the 28th May in
response to the toast of " The Empire." On the 2nd
June I addressed the Chamber of Commerce at Tun-
bridge Wells. On the 4th June I addressed a large
meeting in Glasgow, the Lord Provost in the chair.
On the 5th June another in Paisley, and on the 6th
June I addressed a joint meeting of the Edinburgh
and Leith Chambers of Commerce in Edinburgh.

On the 5th June the Glasgow Herald had an article
criticising my speech. It gave me an opportunity
which I used by sending them a letter which they
published the next day, the 6th. The same issue of
the Herald had an article referring to my letter. To
my gratification it closed with these words :

The question remains an open one whether, when
the Colonies are prepared to accept some of the burdens
of the Empire, we should accord them preferential
treatment in respect of products in which they compete
with foreigners.

I have already referred to the uneasiness and anxiety
among the Liberals about my mission, and in addition
to Mr. Bryce's speech in Aberdeen a large meeting was
held in Edinburgh on the 8th June, where the Rt. Hon.
John Morley spoke in reply to my speeches in Scotland.
Among other things he said :

You have got a gentleman now, I observe, perambu-
lating Scotland — I am sure in perfectly good faith—I
have not a word to say against it — perambulating
Scotland on this subject, and it will be the subject,

3i6 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

depend upon it, because it is in the bands of a very
powerful and tenacious Statesman. Therefore excuse
me if I point out a fifth broad effect. On the chances
of some increase in your relatively small colonial trade,
you arc going to derange, dislodge, and dislocate all
your immense foreign trade.

And he also said that it meant the abandonment of
Free Trade, and "would overthrow the very system
that has placed us in the unexampled position of
power and strength and wealth."

On the 11th June I addressed the Chamber of
Commerce of Bristol, and my meeting attracted con-
siderable attention from the local newspapers. The
Western Daily Press had on the morning of the meeting
a long and quite friendly article, bespeaking earnest
attention to my address, even if I laid down " lines of
fiscal policy along which the majority may be reluctant
to travel." The Bristol Mercury gave a very full
report of the meeting and of the speeches, and had a
long article discussing the proposition from a strong
Free Trade and hostile point of view.

On the 10th June in the House of Commons my
work caused a passing notice. After I had left Canada
the Executive Committee of the League in Canada
published in pamphlet form a report of the Annual
.Meeting of the League in Canada containing my
Presidential Address in moving the adoption of the
Annual Report, and they had an extra quantity printed
and sent a copy to every member of the Bouse of
Lords and the House of Commons.

On the discussion of the Finance Bill in the House
of < '<>minons on the 10th June, Sir W. Harcourt, after
saying that the Colonies could on \y join the mother
country on the basis of protection, went on to say:

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 3.7

" I received the other day the Manifesto of the Canadian
Imperial League, which seems to be a very authoritative
document, containing, as it does, the principal names
in Canada, and which I would ask the committee to
examine in relation to the Budget. The first article of
the constitution of the League is thus laid down :
1 To advocate a trade policy between Great Britain and
her Colonies, by means of which discrimination in
the exchange of natural and manufactured products
will be made in favour of one another and against
foreign countries.' Of course, that is the only basis on
which the Colonies will deal with us. If they give up
their preferential duties against us; they will expect us
to institute preferential duties against other nations.
In the annual report of the Executive Committee of
this British Imperial League, dated February 1, 1902
— months before the introduction of the present
Budget — we learn that at its meeting, which was held
at Toronto, the following resolution was adopted :
' Resolved, that this meeting is of opinion that a special
duty of 5 to 10 per cent, should be imposed at every
port in the British possessions on all foreign goods ' ;
and we are told, further, that the proceeds are to be
devoted to Imperial defence. But I come to the
speech made by the president of the League, which
bears particularly on the Budget. He said :

" New methods of taxation are absolutely necessary in
Great Britain, and there is no difficulty in the way
except the over confidence against which Kipling
writes, and the strong prejudice in the English mind
against taxing wheat. It is a remarkable thing that
two months alter this declaration was made we have, for
the first time, a tax imposed upon wheat. The joint
action of the poet and the financier has overcome; the

3i8 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

prejudice in the English mind against taxing wheat ;
then we are to have this duty of 10 per cent, on all food
introduced into this country against the foreigners, and
the whole thing is accomplished. I say that thai is a
policy of pure and simple protection. The Chancellor
of the Exchequer yesterday disavowed any intention of
adopting this policy of universal duties to be levied
upon all foreign goods. He said we are to proceed on the
principles of free trade. But he introduced a sentence
that something may be done in that direction,
great deal of doubt has been raised in reference to that
sentence.

" Mr. Austen Chamberlain said the right hon. gentle-
man the member for West Monmouth had adopted m
remarkable line of argument. He had produced a
pamphlet containing the report of an executive com-
mittee of a private association in Canada, and had
referred to that document as if he could find in it an
official explanation of the intentions and policy of His
Majesty's Government.

"Sir W. Harcourt. — I quoted it as the view to be
presented by the Canadian Government. I believe I
am perfectly justified in that statement.

"Mr. Austen Chamberlain said he thought the right
hon. gentleman had gone a good deal further than that.
The views of the association were entitled to the
respect which they commanded on their merits, and
for the ability with which they were put forth; but
they were not binding on the Canadian Cabinet, still
■n the Government of this country. It was
rather a far-fetched suggestion that in such a report as
that was to be found the basis <.t the action which His
Majesty's Government were now proposing. As a
matter of fact the reporl appeared two months before
the tax. Allusion had been made to a speech de-
livered by his right hon. friend the Colonial Seen
Birmingham. But in that speech the Colonial
tarv was commenting on a speech made by the
leader of the Opposition. He was not arguing

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 319

favour of preferential relations, but he was refusing to
be deterred from proposing a tax which he believed to
be good on its merits merely because it might be used,
if the people of this country so willed, to draw closer
the ties between the Motherland and the Colonies.
That was a declaration which was emphasised by his
right hon. friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer on
Monday. The whole question between the Opposition
and the Government now was that hon. and right hon.
gentlemen opposite wished to extort from the Govern-
ment at this stage a declaration that in no circum-
stances and at no time would they consent to pre-
ferential arrangements with the Colonies. He thought
it would be a strange proceeding if, before learning
authoritatively what the Prime Ministers of the great
self-governing Colonies intended to propose, before
learning the arguments with which those Ministers
would support their propositions, the Government were
to slam the door in their faces and solemnly declare
that they would not listen to any arguments on the
subject. That would not be a very friendly act. It
would not be courteous in dealing with strangers, and
it would not be decent in dealing with our kinsmen."

The final meeting of my campaign was at the
London Chamber of Commerce on the 13th June.
Mr. Morley had spoken at Edinburgh on the 8th of
June, and had said generally that the policy I was
advocating was contrary to the principles of Free
Trade under which England had built up her wonderful
prosperity, had maintained it for years, and which was
the foundation of Great Britain's present great pros-
perity. I had been urged very strongly by all my
friends to be very cautious not to refer directly to
either Free Trade or Protection. I was told that the
feeling in favour of Free Trade was so strong, that it
would be unwise to refer to it in set terms, and I was

J

io THE STRUGGLE FOR 1MPKRIAL UNITY

advised simply to argue for the war tax of 5 to 10
per cent, bo raise a defence fund. Up to this time I
had followed this advice, but when Mr. Morley attacked
me, and raised the question, I felt that the time had
arrived fur me to come out boldly and in clear and
unmistakable terms. I found in my movement about
the country that there was much more feeling in
favour of Protection than anyone believed. I there-
fore made up my mind to take advantage of the
inciting of the London Chamber of Commerce to
make a direct and vehement attack on Free Trade in
order bo test feeling in that centre. I carefully prepared
as strong a speech as I could arrange, although I kept
my own counsel as to my intentions. I decided to
make my address a direct reply to the Rt. Hon. John
Morley and to use his attack upon me as my excuse
for criticising Free Trade in hostile terms.

The room was crowded, with a number of prominent
men present 1 referred fco Mr. Morley's remarks and
said that I took issue with him, and that I denied that
Free Trade was the cause of Great Britain's progress.
I said her position was established under a system of
protection, that it was maintained by a protection of a
different kind for years, and that now she was no1
prosperous. I gave a great many figures, and traced
the trade returns at intervals from LS05 until the year
L901, and in reply to Mr. Morley's statement of the
wonderful prosperity of Great Britain I repeated the
argument I used at Liverpool, and quoted again Mr,
Bryce's statement about the crushing burden the
In. a quarter on wheat would be on about 30 per
cent, of the population.

When 1 had finished, Lord Charles Beresford made

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 321

a speech that was quite friendly to my proposition,
saying, " that the time had arrived when we had to
do something to bind the Mother Country and the
Colonies more closely together, and to do something
also by which we might mutually benefit by the trade
of the Empire, in view of the enormous competition
directed against us by the rest of the world."

Sir Guilford Molesworth and Mr. Ernest E. Williams
then spoke strongly supporting me. They were followed
by Mr. Faith full Begg, who made a short but remark-
ably clever speech. He began by saying, " Is this the
London Chamber of Commerce ? Can I believe my
eyes and ears ? I have sat here and listened to what
I am satisfied was the strongest attack upon Free
Trade that has been heard in these walls in two
generations, and in an open discussion no one has said
a word in defence of the old ijolicy. I was a Free
Trader and I can no longer support the principle, but
will no one say a word in defence of the old cause ? "
This taunt brought up a Mr. Pascoe, who used a
number of stock arguments of the Cobden Club
school. General Laurie, Admiral Sir Dalrymple Hay,
Sir S. B. Boulton, and the Chairman, Sir Fortescue
Flanuery, then followed in speeches distinctly favour-
able to my proposition, and the meeting closed.

The effect of this meeting cannot be better shown
than in the editorial comments of the Financial Ncvjs
of the next day, the 14th June, 1902 :

It was indeed a remarkable gathering which assembled
at the London Chamber of Commerce yesterday to hear
Colonel Denison speak upon the National Food Supply
and cognate trade questions ; and the essential feature
of the meeting — more essential if Colonel Denison will
allow us to say so, even than his own speech — was that

322 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

to which Mr. Faithfull Begg drew attention when he
announced his surprise that in a discussion upon Free
Trade versus Protection, no one, in that erstwhile
typical house of Free Trade, stood up to champion the
old cause. Most of those present were in Mr. Faithfull
Begg's own position ; they had recently been forced by
the logic of events, from acquiescence in or champion-
ship of Free Trade, into a conviction that it would no
longer do. True, Mr. Faithfull Begg's challenge brought
forth a solitary advocate of the discredited philosophy ;
a young man to whom the meeting listened with
obvious impatience : for as General Laurie said, every
one of his points had been answered in advance by the
lecturer, and the quality of his arguments might be
gathered from the fact, that among them was an
assertion that, as an explanation of our adverse trade
balance there was no question as to there being
anything in the nature of an export of securities in
progress ! That this should have been the only voice
raised upon the Free Trade side would be a mightily
significant circumstance in any gathering of business
men ; but to those who are familiar with the London
( lhamber even in its recent history, the significance is
greatly heightened. For a body professedly in-
dependent, there was, until the other day, no association
in England (unless it be the Royal Statistical Society)
more thoroughly and openly upon the Free Trade side in
the economic controversy. With the surrender of the
London Chamber of Commerce it is really time to
dictate conditions of peace.

This was a conclusion to my campaign far beyond
my most sanguine expectations. It was a coincidence
that about the time I concluded my campaign at this
successful meeting, Dr. Fred W. Borden, Minister of
Militia of Canada, who had lately arrived in England,
in an interview with Mr. I. N. Ford, representative of
the New York Tribune, stated that 1 represented

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN igo2 323

nobody's views except my own, and pretended that he
did not know of me even by name, until Mr. Ford let
him understand that he was too well informed for that
to be accepted. In an interview with one of the London
newspapers he also spoke in a hostile manner of me
and my views. As he had been quite friendly to me
personally when we had met a day or two before, I was
at a loss to account for his action. After consideration,
I came to the conclusion that the Canadian Government
had taken up some new position upon the question of
preferential trade, and that I was wrong in my previous
belief that I was working directly in their interests
and in accordance with their views in a general
way.

Mr. Ford telegraphed on the night of the meeting to
his various papers across the Atlantic, the following
account of my concluding words at the London Chamber
of Commerce :

Colonel Denison closed his series of addresses in the
United Kingdom on a tariff for Imperial Defence by a
speech before the London Chamber of Commerce in
which he announced that he represented the British
Empire League in Canada, and had accomplished his
purpose. This had been to raise the question of a
British tariff for defence and business. The subject
had been discussed in Parliament, and had been taken
up by the Press throughout the Kingdom. The
Dominion Ministers would be in England next week,
and the responsibility for carrying the question into
the Imperial Conference or dropping it altogether
would be theirs not his.

When I sailed for home Mr. Ford cabled :

Colonel Denison will sail for Montreal to-day. He
has gone so far and so fast in presenting the plans of

Y -

324 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

the British Empire League of Canada that neither
Imperialist nor colonial has been able to keep abreast
with him. His views on a war tax around the Empire
are not considered practicable by the Canadian Minis-
ters, but the energy with which he has forced the
business side of Imperial Federation upon public
attention here, is generally recognised.

The Annual General Meeting of the British Empire
League was held on the 7th July, where the Hon.
George W. Ross and I represented the Canadian
Branch. I moved a resolution which Mr. Ross
seconded. I spoke as follows:

Your Grace, my Lords, Ladies, and Gentlemen, —
] shall only occupy two or three minutes of your time,
as I am fortunate to have with me one of the very
best and most active members of out- League, the
Prime Minister of Ontario. 1 am here at this moment
under a resolution of the League in Canada which
reads as follows : •

"That he also be empowered and requested to
advocate that a special duty of 5 to 10 per cent, be
imposed at every port in the British possessions on all
foreign goods in order t<» provide a, fund for Imperial
Defence, which fund should be administered by a
committee or council in which the Colonies should have
representation."

That resolution I need not tell you is one which this
League did not feel disposed to endorse because the
lie had held itself open, and I wish to thank the
President, the Council, and the Members of this
ue tor the broad-minded liberality and generosity
with which they enabled me to speak, and say what
we Canadians wished to lay before the people of this
country. I thank this League tor its courtesy, and for
the broad-minded spirit in which it was done, more
particularly as I happen to know that the well-con-
sidered resolution adopted by the Executive Commit tee

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 325

was drafted by probably one of the most vehement
opponents of my policy. That broad-minded spirit I
have seen all over England and I wish publicly, as I am
going away in a day or two, to express my thanks for
that British spirit which allows such free discussion.

I shall only take one or two minutes more because I
wish Mr. Ross to have an opportunity of speaking at
greater length. I have listened with a great deal of
attention to what our noble President has said in his
speech with respect to three questions, of defence,
commercial relations, and political relations, and if you
think of it, we have combined all three in these two
lines : " A duty in order to provide a fund for Imperial
Defence, which fund should be administered by a
committee." The duty helps all questions of commer-
cial relations, helps your trade, helps your food supplies,
and it also furnishes a fund for defence, and provision
is made for a committee to administer the political
relations. The whole thing can be done by an adapta-
tion of that resolution. As to the question of defence,
I wish to say that we Canadians are in favour of any
method that may be devised to defend this Empire,
but we know that no system of defence can be made
worth a snap of the finger that does not secure the
protection of the food supplies of this Mother Country,
and yet you persist in spending on ships, troops, fortifi-
cation, on coaling stations on Naval Reserves, on every-
thing but food, the most important of all. I urge you
to do all you can not only to make your food supply
safe, but also to save your trade, your merchant
shipping, and to put all these things in a safe
position.

Mr. Ross followed me with a very able and powerful
speech in which he expressed the views of the Canadian
League with great eloquence and vigour.

On the 17th June, a letter from Sir Robert Giffen
appeared in the London Times severely criticising the

326 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

policy I was advocating. As a great statistician and
Trader, and formerly Secretary of the Government
Board of Trade, he was considered the ablest expert on
the subject and his name carried great weight. His
objections were in substance :

First, that under such a system at 10 per cent., the
United Kingdom would pay £41,000,000 annually, and
the colonies but £3,500,000, of which Canada and
Newfoundland would contribute £2,400,000, whereas
on the basis of population the Colonies are one quarter
of the United Kingdom.

Second, the effect of such a tax would be infinite
disaster to the trade of the United Kingdom, by
raising the cost of raw material and by requiring
harassing regulations in regard to the entrepot trade.

Third, the increase of existing duties in the Colonies
by 10 per cent, would effect no such injury to their
trade as the substitution of duties for the Free Trade
system of the United Kingdom.

Fourth, the duty on foreign goods entering the
United Kingdom and preference given to colonial goods,
would increase the price for colonial goods imported in
the United Kingdom by £11.000,000, and the Colonies
would thus gain much more than their contribution.

Fifth, the difficulty in arranging bonding privileges
in such free ports as Singapore and Hong Kong.

This letter was so plausible that even the Times in
an article on the 19th June, said :

Colonel Denison is a representative Canadian of the
highest character and proved loyalty, and no doubt
his views prevail widely in British North America. At
the same time the criticisms of his plan from a strictly
economic point of view which Sir Robert Giffen
published in our columns on Tuesday appear to us to
be conclusive.

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 327

This attack was satisfactory to me as it gave me an
opening for a reply which I made as fallows :

Sir,

In your issue of yesterday there is a letter from
Sir Robert Giffen commenting upon my address to the
London Chamber of Commerce, and requesting me to
give information on certain points. May I give my
answer ?

He asks (1) how much under the scheme I proposed
the Mother Country would have to pay ; (2) how much
each of the principal Colonies; (3) how the trade of
each would be probably affected ; (4) what exceptions
would be made as to Hong Kong and Singapore, which
are distributing centres ?

1 and 2. These I shall answer together, dealing only
with Canada, as space will not admit my going fully
into the whole question. I will take Sir Robert
GifFen's figures, although he puts the foreign imports
of Canada and Newfoundland together at £24,000,000 ;
while the statistical abstract for colonial possessions
gives the figures for Canada alone at over £27,000,000
for 1900. Taking Sir Robert Giffen's figures, however,
Canada would have to pay, on a basis of ten per cent,
on foreign imports, nearly £2,400,000 per annum. As
the normal amount Canada has been spending on
defence in years past, has been about £400,000 per
annum, this would mean an additional payment by her
of £2,000,000 a year. Sir Robert Giffen claims that
the United Kingdom would have to pay £41,000,000
per annum. This is an extraordinary statement.
The expenditure of the United Kingdom upon the
Army and Navy in ordinary years, not counting war
expenses, far exceeds £41,000,000. So that the United
Kingdom would not pay one farthing a year more under
the proposition than she always does expend.

This answers the first two points. The United
Kingdom would pay nothing additional, Canada would
expend £2,000,000 more than she has been doing.

328 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

As to Canada's paying in proportion to her popula-
tion, that would be an unfair basis, because she is a
young country with very little accumulated wealth,
and is developing and opening up enormous tracts of
territory at a great cost to the sparse population.
Great Britain is a small country with a large popula-
tion, and has been in process of development for nearly
2,000 years, for I believe some Roman roads are in
<>-day. The time will come when Canada will be
able to do far more.

3. As to how trade would be affected, I answer that
the trade of the United Kingdom would be greatly
benefited. The duty would tend to protect for your-
selves your home market, which you are rapidly losing.
It would give you advantages over the foreigner in the
markets of 360,000,000 of people in the British pos-
sessions, in which at present you are being attacked in
the most pitiless and disastrous commercial war. It
would turn emigration into your own dominions, instead
of aiding to build up foreign, and possibly hostile,
countries. In the British Colonies the inhabitants
purchase from the United Kingdom many times as
much per head as the inhabitants of foreign countries,
and it is the direct interest of the Mother Country to
save her population to build up her own Empire.
Your food Bupply also, which is in a most dangerous
and perilous condition — a condition which leaves our
Empire dependent upon the friendship of one or two
nations for its very existence — would be rapidly
produced upon British soil among your own people,
and would make yon once again an independenl and
powerful nation. At present you are existing upon
sufferance.

L Sir Robert Giffen speaks about the entrepot trade
and the difficulty of allowing goods to pass in bond.
We Canadians have so many goods passing in bond
through the United States, and the United Si

30 many passing in bond through Canada, without
the slightest difficulty on either side, that we cannot

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902

29

see how there could be any trouble about such an
arrangement. This system could apply to Hong Kong
and Singapore, and it should not require much thought
or ingenuity to arrange minor details of that kind, if
the broad principle was once agreed upon.

The question of taxing raw material for manufactures
and its effect upon exports to foreign countries could
be easily arranged by the simple expedient of granting
a rebate of the duty on goods sent to foreign countries.
I fancy this is an expedient well understood by most
civilised nations.

It is asked also what would be result of putting an
extra 10 per cent, on exports from the United States
into Canada. It ought very largely to increase the
sale of British manufactured goods in Canada, but I
notice that Sir Robert Giffen, in counting the advan-
tage to the United Kingdom, leaves out the United
States, and only counts European competitors. This
is rather remarkable, when we remember that the
Canadian imports from the United States in 1900 were
£22,570,763 and from all European countries under
£4,000,000. In this connection it is interesting to
note that British imports into Canada had been
declining for some years before 1897, but when the
33 J per cent, preference was given to the United
Kingdom the imports from it into Canada rose from
£6,000,000 worth in 1897 to £9,000,000 in 1900.

Sir Robert Giffen claims that the Colonies would
gain the full amount of the 10 per cent, tax on the
foreigner in increased prices. If so, why should not
the United Kingdom gain the 10 per cent, on all
she sold in the Empire ? The rule should certainly
work both ways; but, as a matter of fact, a large
portion of the duty would be borne by the foreigner.
The greater part of the present tax on flour is now
being paid by the United States railways, through
the reduction of their freight rates in order to meet it.

Sir Robert Giffen repeats a second time, to impress it
upon his readers, that the proposed preferential arrange-

330 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

merits would impose a charge upon the people of the
United Kingdom of £42,000,000, as if the people would
have to pay that amount more than they do now. This i
emphatically deny. It will only mean a rearrangement
of taxation. A little more would go on grain and
manufactured goods and other things, but it could come
off tea and tobacco or income tax, so that the taxpayer
would pay no more, and it makes little difference to
him on what he pays it, if he actually pays out the
same amount for his needs each year.

In Canada we feel that Great Britain is steadily
losing her trade, that her home markets are being
invaded, that she is in great and constant danger as to
her food, that her mercantile marine is slipping from
her, her agriculture being ruined, and that anything
that would tend to keep the markets of the Empire
for the Empire would be of enormous advantage to her.
The British Empire League in Canada suggested the
scheme they have urged me to advocate in this country.
This scheme has received general support in Canada,
but the League will, I am sure, be pleased with any
effective plan which will put matters in a better position
for the advantage of the Empire as a whole.
Your obedient servant,

George T. Denison.
18th June.

This letter was not replied to. Lally Bernard
writing from London to the Toronto Globe of the Sth

July says ;

There is a great deal of argument going on in a quiet
way regarding the controversy between Sir Robert
Giffen and Colonel George Denison, on the subject of
an Imperial Zollverein, and the reply of Colonel
Denison to Sir Robert Giffen's letter in the Times has
aroused the warmest admiration even from those who
are diametrically opposed to his theory.

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 331

Sir Wilfrid Laurier with Sir Wm. Mulock, Mr.
Fielding, and Mr. Patterson, arrived in London a few
days after this. I had been surprised at Dr. Borden's
attempt to weaken and destroy the effect of what
little I had done to prepare public opinion, and
thinking that Sir Wilfrid and the other Ministers must
have sympathised with what he had done, I came to
the conclusion that there was no use in me taking any
further trouble in the matter. I ceased any work, and
although I was constantly meeting Sir Wilfrid and his
colleagues I never once spoke to them upon the
question.

I had been having several conversations with Mr.
Chamberlain, and knew exactly what his position was,
and he had asked me to press the Canadian delegates
to take a certain course. In view of Dr. Borden's
action I had not attempted to do anything on the line
Mr. Chamberlain suggested. This was the condition of
affairs when I had to leave for home, which was just
before the meeting of the Conference. I went down to
the Hotel Cecil the morning before leaving, and called
on Sir Wilfrid to say good-bye. He seemed astonished
when I told him why I had called, and asked when I
was leaving ; I told him the next day. He urged me to
stay over a week or two, but I said it was impossible as
my passage was taken and all my arrangements made,
and I said I knew he was going to a meeting and that
I would not keep him. To my great astonishment he
said, " Sit down ; I want to talk to you," and then he
surprised me by asking my opinion as to what could be
done at the Conference. I was so astonished that I said,
" You ask me what I would do in your place ? " He
said, " Yes. You have been here for over two months,
you have been about the country addressing meetings,

332 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

yon have been discussing the question with the
leading men, and you have studied the subject for
, and I want the benefit of your opinion. Now
what would you say as to moving the resolution you
have been advocating?" I thought for a moment and
said, " No, Sir Wilfrid, I would not do that." He
asked me why. I said, " Because it could not be carried.
I have discussed it with Mr. Chamberlain and he is not
ready for it. Sir Edmund Barton tells me that they
are having a great fight over the tariff and could not
take it up now. Sir Gordon Sprigg says they are not
in a position to do it on account of the war in Cape
Colony, .and Mr. Seddon is so full of another scheme
connected with shipping, that while he would support
it, it might not be as vigorous support as would be
required."

Saving the opening, however, I told him of my
conversation with Mr. Chamberlain, and pressed upon
him the advisability of taking up Mr. Chamberlain's
idea, which was for Canada to give Croat Britain
further preferences on certain articles, in fact, if
possible free entry of those articles in return for the
preference of the one shilling a quarter on wheat. I
think this was already his view, but I pointed out all
the advantages from a Canadian point of view of this
plan, and expressing the hope that he would be able to
see his way to it, T said good-bye and left him. I
saw my friend and colleague in my work, the Hon.
(!. \V. Ross, and told him of the conversation, and asked
him t«> press the same view upon the Canadian
.Ministers, which he did.

On my arrival in Toronto the representatives of the
Toronto newspapers came to interview^ me on my work.
Among other things, I said :

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 333

I am entirely satisfied that Sir Wilfrid Laurier and
Mr. Fielding and Sir William Mulock are doing all in
their power to obtain some advantageous arrangement
for Canada at this Conference. They have all been im-
pressed with the importance of their mission and their
speeches have been along the best lines. Hon. Mr.
Fielding made an admirable speech at the United
Empire Trade League luncheon, in which he expressed
the unanimity of the Canadian people in favour of the
preference to England, stating that both parties were
in favour of it, and appealing to Sir Charles Tupper,
who sat near him., to corroborate this.

Hon. George W. Ross at the annual meeting of the
British Empire League, with the Duke of Devonshire
as chairman, made a telling and impressive speech,
strongly advocating preferential tariffs within the
Empire. But in the face of Sir Frederick Borden's
efforts in the opposite direction, these and the other
splendid addresses of Sir Wilfrid and his colleagues
could not have the effect that they would have pro-
duced had our representatives been of one mind in the
matter.

I was very much astonished at Sir Frederick Borden's
action in stating that I represented nobody's views but
my own, when he must have known that I never
intended to represent anybody's views except those of
the British Empire League, and that at all public
meetings I invariably read the resolutions that had
been passed asking me to take a certain course. His
endeavours to minimise the result of my work and to
lull the English mind into believing that everything
was well, and that nothing should be done, must
have had an injurious effect, as I have said, upon
the efforts that Sir Wilfrid Laurier, Sir William
Mulock, and Mr. Fielding were making upon behalf of
Canada.

Col. Denison was asked by one of those present as to
the reason for Sir Frederick Borden's attitude, and he
replied, " That I cannot tell you. I can only recall the

334 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

remark of Lord Beaconsfield, made once in reference to
Lord John Russell. He said, 'Against bad faith a
man may guard, but it is beyond all human sagacity to
baffle the unconscious machinations of stupidity.' "

Sir Michael Hicks-Beach resigned from the Cabinet
while 1 was on my way home. I always felt that the
desire of Mr. Chamberlain to give a preference to the
Colonies to the extent of the one shilling a quarter on
wheat had something to do with the retirement of
Sir Michael Hicks-Beach. In 1906 I lunched with
Mr. Chamberlain and he explained to me why he had
been unable to carry out the preferential arrangement
that he had outlined to me before Sir Wilfrid Laurier
arrived in England in 1902. The difficulty was that
Sir .Michael Hicks-Beach objected to it because he had
imposed the duty avowedly as a means of raising
revenue for war purposes, that he had defended it and
justified it as a necessity on account of the war ex-
penses, that the war was only just being concluded,
and the outlay for months to come could not be dimin-
ished. For that reason he was firmly opposed to
reducing any portion of the duty for the time. This
prevented Sir Wilfrid Laurier's offers being accepted,
and postponed action indefinitely, as the Conference
concluded its session about the same time.

Sir Edmund Barton and Sir John Forrest went
through Canada on their way home to Australia from
the Conference, and they with their party dined at
my house. During the day I drove Sir Edmund and
Lady Barton about Toronto. I told Sir Edmund what
I had been urging Sir Wilfrid to do at the Conference,
and the remark he made was peculiar. He said that
the proceedings of the Conference were as yet confi-

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 335

dential and he could not speak of them, but he might
say that I should be well satisfied with my Premier.
I was confident then that Sir Wilfrid had taken that
line which the official reports shortly afterwards cor-
roborated. The final result was, however, that our
efforts had been unsuccessful, and our movement had
received a serious set-back.

We were encouraged in October, 1902, by the action
of the National Union of Conservative Associations
held at Manchester on the 15th of that month, when
Sir Howard Vincent obtained the adoption of a resolu-
tion in favour of Imperial preferential trade. The
New York Tribune, commenting on this, said : " This
news is a great triumph for the Hon. Joseph Chamber-
lain's views, and it also no doubt goes to show that
Colonel Denison's recent imperialistic campaign in
the Motherland was not without decided educative
effect."

On the 20th October, 1902, the National Club of
Toronto gave a complimentary banquet to me in
recognition of the work I had done in England that
summer for the Empire. Mr. J. F. Ellis, President
of the Club, occupied the chair; the Hon. J. Israel
Tarte and the Hon. George W. Ross were present.
There was a large and influential gathering. I was
very much gratified at Mr. Tarte's presence. Although
once associating with the Continental Union League,
he had for years been a loyal and active member
of our British Empire League. He was at the time
a Cabinet Minister, and came from Ottawa to Toronto
solely to attend the dinner, and it was at such a crisis
in his career that he wrote out his resignation from
the Government on the train while coming up. His
speech is worth reproducing :

336 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Mr. President and Gentlemen of the National Club, —
I think it is fit, I think it is proper, that French Canada
should be represented at a gathering like this. I am
nut here this evening as a member of the Dominion
Cabinet. Am I a member of the Dominion Cabinet ?
That is the question That is the question I very
diplomatically declined bo answer when I was leaving
Ottawa to come here. Being a Minister is not the
most care-free life in the world. It is an occupation
that is exposed to accidents of all kinds. A Minister
is exposed to tremendous hazards — to the fire of the
newspapers, io the had temper of members of Parlia-
ment, bo the assaults of opponents, and occasionally
to the bender mercies of your best, personal friends.

I am present to-night as a British subject of
Canadian origin — of French-Canadian origin — proud of
British institutions, and feeling in that pride that he is
speaking the sentiments of his countrymen in the
Province of Quebec. I have been connected with the
British Empire League since BSNN. I am not prepared

lo say bhat I have approved all the speeches made by
all members of the League, or that I have always
agreed with the 8peecb.es thai members of the League
make here. I have in mind the fact, however, that
il speeches of other people have not always been
properly appreciated. I was agreed from the start and
am agreed now with the primary object of the League,
which is to promote British interests abroad and at
home, to bring about a better knowledge of our needs
and a better understanding between all portions of the
Empire. We belong to a great Empire ; great through
its power, great through its wealth, but especially great
through its free institutions.

I have now been thirty years in public life, as a
newspaper man, as a member of the Legislature of my
native province, and as a Cabinet Minister. After
having travelled pretty extensively, observing as I went,
after having visited several exhibitions of the world, I
have come to the conclusion that British institutions

MISSION TO ENGLAND IN 1902 337

are the best adapted to bring about the greatness of
this country, as they make for happiness, safety,
prosperity, progress, and permanency.

Since I have been in office as Minister of Public
Works, and that is six years and three months, I have
endeavoured to the best of my ability to build up
British and Canadian commercial independence on this
continent. I have done my best to improve and
develop trade between the Empire through Canadian
soil, through Canadian channels, in Canadian bottoms,
and through Canadian railways.

Let us not be satisfied, continued Mr. Tarte. Let
us make up our minds to make ourselves at home from
a national as well as a commercial standpoint.

Col. Denison, who is allowed to speak of things of
which other people fear the consequence, has spoken of
the tariff. Col. Denison has spoken of Chamberlain,
and has quoted Chamberlain's words on the tariff.
Chamberlain is not Minister of Finance — he is Colonial
Secretary. He has spoken of the tariff, mind you.
I think he should be dismissed. He has violated the
Constitution of England, and doesn't know what he
has done. He has spoken on the tariff, and he has
spoken for Protection. He is a dangerous man. He
has said foreign nations had formed combinations, and
were maintaining hostile tariffs and that the English
nation was suffering by reason of this. He will be
punished.

This was a satirical allusion to the fact that he was
being forced out of the Cabinet, because, as Minister of
Public Works, he had discussed in public meetings the
question of tariff policy. He was put out of the
Cabinet the next day.

CHAPTER XXVII

CORRESPONDENCE WITH MR. CHAMBERLAIN

As I have said, we felt that the result of the Con-
ference had been a very serious set-back and dis-
couragement to all our wishes. I therefore watched
public opinion very carefully and with considerable
anxiety, and I noticed two or three uncomfortable
indications. In the first place a restlessness manifested
itself among the manufacturing classes in Canada,
particularly in the woollen trade, against the British
preference which pressed upon them, while Canada
received no corresponding advantage, and a discussion
began as to whether the British preference should not
be cut off. The next thing which alarmed me was
that during the following winter a movement arose in
the United States to secure the establishment of a
reciprocity treaty with Canada. Suggestions were
made to renew the sittings of the High Joint Com-
mission which had adjourned in 1898 without anything
being done. This was evaded by our Government, but
a strong agitation was commenced in the Eastern
States, and supported in Chicago, to educate the
people of the United States in favour of tariff arrange-
ments with Canada.

The more far-seeing men in the United States were
uneasy about the movement for mutual preferential
tariffs in the British Empire. They saw at once that

CORRESPONDENCE 339

if successful it would consolidate and strengthen
British power and wealth and would be a severe blow
to the prosperity of the United States, which for fifty
years had been fattening upon the free British markets,
while for thirty years their own had been to a great
extent closed to the foreigner and preserved for their
own enrichment. I felt that the failure of the Con-
ference would give power to our enemies in the United
States and aid them to enmesh us in the trade en-
tanglements which would preclude the possibility of our
succeeding in carrying our policy into effect.

Every week I became more and more alarmed. It
will be remembered that there was then no Tariff
Reform movement in England. That Lord Salisbury
was dying, that Mr. Chamberlain had not yet openly
committed himself, and that nothing was being done,
while our opponents were actively at work both in the
States and in Canada. The small faction in Canada
who were disloyal were once more taking heart while
the loyal element were discouraged.

Still further to cause anxiety the Imperial Federa-
tion Defence Committee took this opportunity, through
Mr. Arthur Loring, to make an imperious demand
upon the Colonies to hand over at once large cash
contributions in support of the Navy, or practically to
cut us adrift. Had the desire been to smash up the
Empire, the attack could not have been better timed
than when everything was going against the Imperial
view. I wrote a reply which appeared in The Times
on the 2nd March, 1903 :
Sir,

With reference to your issues of January 9th and
10th which contained the letter of Mr. Arthur Loring,
Hon. Secretary of the Imperial Federation (Defence)

z 2

340 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Committee, and your leading article upon the question
of colonial contributions to the Imperial Navy,l desire
to send a reply from the Canadian point of view.

Mr. Loring's proposition is practically that the
Mother Country should repudiate any further responsi-
bility for the defence of the Empire, unless the Colonies
pay over cash contributions for the Navy in the way
and under the terms that will suit the Imperial Feder-
al ion (Defence) Committee. The British Empire
League in Canada and the majority of the Canadians
- anxious for a secure Imperial Defence as is Mr.
Loring, but the spirit of dictation which runs through
i he publications of his committee lias always been a
great difficulty in our way, by arousing resentment in
our people, who might do willingly what they would
object to bo driven into. Because we hesitate to pay
cash contributions we are attacked as if we had made
no sacrifices tor the Empire. Mr. Loring seems to
our preference to all British goods, which has
caused Germany to cut off the bulk of our exports to
that country, to forget that we imposed a duty on
sugar in order by preference to help the West Indies
in the Imperial interest, that we helped to construct
the Pacific cable for the same reason, or that numbers
of our young men fought and died for the cause in
South Africa. We have proved in many ways our
willingness to make sacrifices tor the Empire, and yet,
because we will not do just exactly what Mr. Loring's
committee suggest, they wish to cut us adrift.

This is a very impolitic and dangerous suggestion

Ii is so important that we should understand each

other, and that you in England should know how we

look at this question, that I hope you will allow me to

a few words upon this subject.

The British Empire League in Canada requested
mo as their president to go to Great Britain last April
to advocate a duty of 5 to 10 percent, all round the
Empire <>n all foreign goods in order to provide a fund
lor Imperial Defence. This proposition was approved

CORRESPONDENCE 34i

of at a number of meetings held in various parts of
Canada, and by political leaders of all shades of politics
and I am certain it would have been confirmed by a
large majority in our Parliament had Great Britain and
the other Colonies agreed to it.

I addressed a number of meetings in England and
Scotland, and discussed the question with many of the
political leaders in London. I soon discovered while
the audiences were receptive, and many approved of the
proposition, that nevertheless it was new, contrary to
their settled prejudices, and that it would take time
and popular education on the subject before such an
arrangement could be carried in the House of Commons.
When Sir Wilfrid Laurier came over just before the
Conference, knowing that I had been discussing the
subject for two months, he asked me if I thought the
proposition I had been advocating could be proposed
at the Conference with any prospect of success. I
replied that I did not think it could, that Great
Britain was not ready for it, that Australia at the
time was engaged in such a struggle over her revenue
tariff that she could not act, and that if I was in his
place I should not attempt it. He did, however, make
a number of suggestions at the Conference which, if
accepted by the home Government, would have gone a
long way to place the Empire on a safer footing. The
Mother Country would not agree to relieve Canada
from the corn duty, but was quite willing to accept and
ask for contributions for defence. This Sir Wilfrid
refused ; and a large portion of our people approve of
that course, not because they do not feel that they
ought to contribute, not because they are not able to
contribute, but because they do not feel disposed to
spend their money in what they would consider a
senseless and useless way.

We feel that to save our Empire, to consolidate it,
to make it strong and secure, there are several points
that must be considered and that, as all these points
are essential, to spend money on some and leave out

342 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

others that are vital would be a useless and dangerous
wast.-. If our Empire is to live, she must maintain her
trade and commerce, she must keep up her manu-
factures, she must retain and preserve her resources
both in capital and population for her own possessions,
she must have bonds of interest as well as of senti-
ment, and she must have a system of defence that
shall be complete at all points. An army or a navy
might be perfect in equipment, in training, in weapons,
in organisation, in skilled officers, &c, and yet if powder
and cordite were left out all would be useless waste.
If food were left out it would be worst of all, and
yet Mr. Loring asks us to contribute large sums to
maintain a navy, and to have that navy directed and
governed by a department in which we would have
little or no voice — a department under the control of an
electorate who in the first war with certain Powers
(one of which we at least know is not friendly) would
be starving almost immediately, and would very soon
insist on surrendering the fleet to which we had
contributed in order to get food to feed their starving
children. They might even be willing to surrender
possessions as well. While you in England maintain
this position, that you will not include food in your
scheme of defence, do you wonder that we in Canada
should endeavour to perfect our own defence in order to
secure our own freedom and independence as a people,
if the general smash comes, which we dread as the
possible result of your obstinate persistence in a policy,
which leaves you at the mercy of one or two foreign
nations.

I wish to draw attention to the following figures,
which seem to show that there is weakness and danger
in your commercial affairs as well :

1900.
I Hited Kingdom imports (foreign) . . £413,544,528
Initod Kingdom exports (foreign) . . 252,349,700

Balance of trade against United Kingdom £161,194,828

CORRESPONDENCE 343

1901.

United Kingdom imports (foreign) . . £416,416,492

United Kingdom exports (foreign) . . 234,745,904

Balance of trade against United Kingdom £181,670,588

We see the result of this great import of foreign
goods in the distress in England to-day. The cable
reports tell us of unemployed farm labourers flocking
into the towns, of unemployed townsmen parading the
streets with organised methods of begging, of charity
organisations taxed to their utmost limit to relieve
want. We see the Mother Country ruining herself and
enriching foreign nations by a blind adherence to a
fetish, and we begin to wonder how long it can last.

Adopt the policy of a duty upon all foreign goods,
bind your Empire together by bonds of interest, turn
your emigration and capital into your own possessions,
produce ten or twelve million quarters more of wheat
in your own islands, no matter what the cost may
be, and then ask us to put in our contributions
towards the common defence, for then an effective
defence might be made.

Yours truly,

George T. Denison.

I was so alarmed at the state of affairs that on the

23rd March, 1903, I wrote to Mr. Chamberlain the

following letter, which shows my anxiety at the
time :

Dear Mr. Chamberlain,

There are one or two very important matters I
wish to bring to your attention.

Just before the Conference I had a conversation with
you and Lord Onslow in reference to Canada's action.
You considered that it would be useless at the time to
attempt to carry the proposition that I had been
advocating in Great Britain, of a 5 to 10 per cent, duty

344 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

around the Empire for a defence fund. You told me
what line you thought the most likely to succeed, and
advised me that Canada should try to meet your views
by further concessions to Great Britain in return for
advantages for us in your markets. I urged this upon
Sir Wilfrid Laurier, and I understand that he was
willing to meet you, it possible, on the lines indicated.
Unfortunately, nothing was done. I fancy your col-
leagues got frightened, for I know that you personally
had a clear insight into the matter, and fully ap-
preciated the importance of something being done.

Now 1 wish to tell you how matters stand out here.
Our people are very much discouraged. Many of our
strongest Imperialists in the past are beginning to
advocate the repeal of our preference to Great Britain.
The manufacturers who were in favour of the preference,
provided we had a prospect of getting a reciprocal
advantage in your markets, are, many of them for their
personal ends, now desirous of stopping it. All the
disaffected (there are not very many of them) are
using the failure of the Conference to attack and
ridicule the Imperial cause. This is all very serious.
The gravest danger of all, however, is that the United
States will never give our Empire another chance to
consolidate itself if they can prevent it. They are
already agitating for the reassembling of the High
Joint Commission to consider, among other things,
reciprocal tariffs. Only the other day a member of
the Massachusetts House of Assembly declared in that
house that he had assurances from Washington that
the passage of a resolution in favour of reciprocity with
( lanada would be welcomed by the administration. We
see the danger of this, and our Government have made
excuses to delay the meeting of the Commission until
October. Now if nothing is done in the meantime
towards combining the Empire — if nothing is done to
make such a start towards it as would give our people
' ncouragement, what will happen ? The United States
will give us the offer of free reciprocity in natural

CORRESPONDENCE 345

products. What would our people be likely to do in
that case ? All along the frontier our farmers would
find it very convenient to sell their barley, oats, hay,
butter, poultry, eggs, &c, to the cities on the border.
In the North West it would appeal to our western
farmers, who would be glad to get their wheat in free
to the mills of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Such a
proposition might therefore carry in our Parliament,
and would probably bind us for ten or fifteen years.
This would be a dead block against any combination of
the Empire for preferential trade, for then you could
not give us a preference, as we would be debarred from
putting a duty on United States articles coming
across our border, which would be necessary if an
Imperial scheme were carried out.

A proposition for reciprocity with the United States
was made in 1887. At the dinner given to you in
Toronto that year I fired my first shot against
Commercial Union, and ever since I have been prob-
ably the leader in the movement against it. My main
weapon, my strongest weapon, was an Imperial discrimi-
nating tariff around the Empire. We succeeded in
getting our people and Parliament and Government to
take the idea up and to do our side of it, and we have
given the discriminating tariff in your favour. We
hoped that you would meet us, but nothing has been
done, and our people feel somewhat hurt at the result.
Where will we Imperialists be this autumn when the
High Joint Commission meets ? The people of the
United States will be almost sure to play the game to
keep back our Empire, and we will be here with our
guns spiked, with all our weapons gone, and in a help-
less condition.

I feel all this very deeply and think that I should
lay the whole matter before" you. I do not wish to see
the Empire " fall to pieces by disruption or by tolerated
secession." I do not wish to see " the disasters which
will infallibly come upon us." I wish to see our Empire
" a great Empire " and not see Great Britain " a little

340 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

State," and I do urge upon you as earnestly as I can
to get something done this Session that will give us a
preference, no matter how small, in order that our
hands may be tied before the High Joint Commission
meets, so that we may escape the dangers of a recipro-
city treaty, for if we are tied up with one for ten years,
our Empire may have broken up before our hands are
igain.

[f something was done on the preference, I believe
we could carry large expenditures for Imperial Defence
in our Parliament. I enclose a letter to the 7
which appeared while you were on the sea, which I
believe pretty fairly expressed the views of most of our
people.

I send my hearty congratulations on the success of
your mission to South Africa, and on the magnificent
work you have done there for our Empire,

Believe me,

Yours, «fec.

The Right Hon Joseph Chamberlain, M.P.

On the 16th April, 1903, I received a letter from
Mr. Chamberlain which was quite discouraging. I
wrote to him again on the 18th April, and on the 10th
May received an answer which was much more
encouraging.

I was not surprised when, on the 15th May, Mr.
Chamberlain made his great speech at Birmingham,
which resulted soon afterwards in his resignation from
the Government, and the organisation of the Tariff
Reform movement, which he has since advocated with
such enthusiasm, energy, and ability.

The result of this speech was like the sun coming
out from behind a cloud. Instantly the whole prospect
brightened, every Canadian was inspirited, and con-
fidence was restored. Such an extraordinary change

CORRESPONDENCE 347

has seldom been seen. The Toronto correspondent of
the Morning Post, 17th May, 1903, said:

Canada has seldom before shown such unanimity
over a proposed Imperial policy, as that which greets
the project of Mr. Chamberlain for the granting of
trade concessions to the British Colonies in the markets
of Great Britain.

It is this hope in the ultimate triumph of Mr.
Chamberlain's policy which has caused the Canadian
people to wait patiently for that result. The extra-
ordinary defeat of the Unionist party in the elections
of 1906 has not destroyed this confidence, and the
Empire has yet a chance to save herself.

The 6th annual meeting of the British Empire
League took place on 19th May, 1903, in the Railway
Committee Room, House of Commons, Ottawa.

A very unpleasant event occurred about this time in
the Alaskan Award. I had looked into the matter
very closely while Sir Wilfrid Laurier was in Washing-
ton engaged in the negotiations over the dispute, and I
felt confident that we had a very weak case for our
contentions, in fact I thought we had none at all. I
saw Chief Justice Armour, who was to be one of the
Canadian Commissioners, just before he left for
England. He was a friend of mine, and one of the ablest
judges who ever sat in the Canadian Courts, and I told
him what I thought. He evidently felt much the
same. I said to him that I wished to make a remark
that might be stowed away in the back of his head in
case of any necessity for considering it. It was that
when he had done his very best for Canada, and had done
all that he could, if he found that Lord Alverstone would
not hold out with him, not to have a split but if the

348 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

case was hopeless to join with Lord Alverstone and
make the decision unanimous. I said if Lord Alver-
stone went against us the game was up, there was
no further appeal, no remedy, and there was no use
fighting against the inevitable, and it would be in
more conformity with the dignity of Canada, and good
feeling in the Empire, to have an award settled
judicially, and by all the judges. Unfortunately the
Chief Justice died, and the Government appointed
a very able advocate Mr. Aylesworth, K.C., who
happened to be in England at the time, to fill his
place. Mr. Aylesworth had been the advocate all
his life. At that time he had absolutely no knowledge
of political affairs. The award was better than 1
expected and gave us two islands, which the United
States had held for years, and on one of which a
United States Post Office had been long established.
.Mr. Aylesworth forgetting there was no appeal, and
that the matter was final, prevailed on Lt. -Governor
Jette" who was with him to make a most violent protest,
and a direct attack upon Lord Alverstone. Owing to
this, the award created a good deal of resentment in
Canada. The people were very much aroused, and
believed they had been betrayed.

By the time Mr. Aylesworth arrived in Toronto
he had time to think the matter over. The Canadian
Club had organised a greal banquet in his honour, and
1 am of opinion that- when he arrived at home, he was
astonished at the storm he had aroused. He at once
allayed the exeited feelings <>f his audience by a most
loyal, patriotic, and statesmanlike speech, and quieted
the feeling to a great extent, although it is still a very
sore question in Canada, and Lord Alverstone is placed
on the same shelf with Mr. Oswald of the treaty of 1783,

CORRESPONDENCE 349

and Lord Ashburton who gave away a great part of the
State of Maine ; but had I been in Lord Alverstone's
place, and I am an oat and out Canadian, with no
sympathy whatever with the United States, I should
have done as he did.

In the spring of 1903 a controversy arose between
Mr. Joseph Chamberlain and the present Lord Salisbury
in which I was able to intervene on Mr. Chamberlain's
side with some effect.

Mr. Chamberlain had said in a public letter that the
late Lord Salisbury had favoured retaliation and closer
commercial union with the colonies. The present
Lord Salisbury wrote to The Times saying that his
father profoundly dissented from Mr. Chamberlain's
fiscal policy. Several letters followed from Mr. Cham-
berlain and Sir Michael Hicks-Beach. I published in
The Times on the 18th May, 1905, the following
letter :

Sir,

The controversy which has been lately going on in
the Press in Great Britain over the question of the late
Lord Salisbury's view on protection and preferential
tariffs has excited considerable interest in this country.
As I am in a position to throw some light upon the
late Premier's opinions on these questions, I would ask
your permission to say a few words.

I was for some years president of the Imperial
Federation League in Canada, and since it was merged
in the British Empire League I have held the same
position in that body. In 1890 I was appointed
specially to represent the Canadian League in England
for the purpose of advocating the denunciation of the
German and Belgian treaties, and of urging the
establishment of a system of preferential tariffs between
Canada and the Mother Country. In two interviews

35© THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

with Lord Salisbury, I urged both points upon him as
strongly as possible, and pointed out to him that our
ie had taken up the policy of preferential tariffs
in order to counteract the movement for commercial
union or unrestricted reciprocity between the United
States and Canada, which at that time was a very
dangerous agitation. After hearing my arguments,
Lord Salisbury said that he felt that the real way to
consolidate the Empire would be by a Zollverein and a
Kriegsverein. This was substantially our policy, and I
begged of him to say something on that line publicly, as
it would be a great help to us in the struggle we were
having on behalf of Imperial Unity. He did not say
whether he would do so or not ; but a few months later
at the Lord Mayor's banquet at the Guildhall in
November, 1890, he made a speech which attracted
considerable attention, and which gave us in Canada
great encouragement. He spoke of the hostile tariffs
and said : " Therefore it is that we are anxious above
all things to conserve, to unify, to strengthen the Empire
of the Queen because it is to the trade that is carried
on within the Empire of the Queen that we look for the
vital force of the commerce of this country. . . . The
conflict which we have to fight is a conflict of tariffs."

At Hastings on May 18th, 1892, he made another
speech still more pronounced the terms of which are
well known.

We carried on a correspondence for many years, and
i saw him on several occasions when I visited England.
We discussed the policy of preferential tariffs and the
denunciation of the German and Belgian treaties, which
were denouueed by his Government in August, 1897.
His letters to me show how strongly he was in sympathy
with us; but he was a statesman of great caution and
evidently would not commit himself to practical action
in regard to either preference or fair trade, as long as
he believed that the prejudice against any taxation on
articles of the first necessity was too strong to be over-
come.

CORRESPONDENCE 351

The following extracts are taken from letters
received by me from Lord Salisbury, and they give a
clear idea of what his opinions were. In the early days
of the movement I was probably the only one who was
pressing on Lord Salisbury the urgent need of some
action being taken, and he may not have had occasion
to express his views upon the subject to many others.

In a letter dated March 21st, 1891, in reply to one
from me telling him of the danger of reciprocity or
commercial union with the United States, he wrote :

" I agree with you that the situation is full of danger,
and that the prospect before us is not inviting. The
difficulties with which we shall have to struggle will
tax all the wisdom and all the energy of both English
and Canadian statesmen during the next five or ten
years. I should be very glad if I saw any immediate
hope of our being able to assist you by a modification
of our tariff arrangements. The main difficulty I
think, lies in the great aversion felt by our people here
to the imposition of any duties on articles of the first
necessity. It is very difficult to bring home to the
constituency the feeling that the maintenance of our
Empire in its integrity may depend upon fiscal
legislation. It is not that they do not value the tie
which unites us to the colonies ; on the contrary, it is
valued more and more in this country, but they do not
give much thought to political questions and they are
led away by the more unreasoning and uncom-
promising advocates of free trade. There is a move-
ment of opinion in this country, and I only hope it
may be rapid enough to meet the necessities of our
time."

" In another letter, dated November 22nd, 1892, he
wrote :

" I wish there were more prospect of some fiscal
arrangements which would meet the respective
exigencies of England and Canada, but that appears
still to be in the far distance."

In another letter written nine years later, dated

352 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

.March 1st, 1901, a little over a year before his final
retirement from office, referring to a report of the
speeches at the annual meeting of our League in
Canada, which I had sent to him, he wrote :

" It is very interesting to read Mr. Ross's address
about the error into which free trade may run, for I
am old enough to remember the rise of free trade, and
the contempt with which the apprehensions of the
protectionists of that day were received. But a
generation must pass before the fallacies then pro-
claimed will be unlearnt. There are too many people
whose minds were tunned under their influence, and
until those men have died out no change of policy can
be expected."

" These extracts show very clearly Lord Salisbury's
views,- and prove that personally he would have
favoured preferential tariffs in order to save and
preserve a great Empire.

Yours,

George T. Denison.

This was much commented on in the British Press.
The Times said :

The extraordinarily interesting letter which we
publish from Colonel Denison, the president of the
British Empire League in Canada, shows how deeply
sensible was the late Lord Salisbury of the obstacles
which prejudice and tradition offer to the adoption of
a genuine policy of tariff reform, and how conscious he
of the difficulties to a practical statesman of
:oming them.

The London Globe said :

Few more remarkable contributions have been made
recently to the controversy over fiscal reform than the
the late Marquis of Salisbury, which Colonel
Denison, of Toronto, has communicated to The Times.

CORRESPONDENCE 353

The Outlook said :

The invaluable letter in The Times from Colonel
G. T. Denison, of Toronto, has disposed once for all of
Lord Hugh Cecil's theory that the system of free
imports ought to be regarded as a Conservative
institution. Passages cited by Colonel Denison from
unpublished letters and forgotten speeches prove that
the late Lord Salisbury's agreement with the principles
of Mr. Chamberlain's policy was complete.

Lord Hugh Cecil had the following letter in The
Times of the 20th May, 1905.

Sir,

I have no desire to enter into any controversy with
Colonel Denison as to Lord Salisbury's opinion in
1891 or 1892. The extracts from the letters published
by Colonel Denison do not seem to me to have any
bearing on Lord Salisbury's attitude towards any
question that is now before the public.

I myself think that it is undesirable to quote the
opinions of the dead, however eminent, in reference to
a living controversy. But since the attempt continues
to be made by tariff reformers to claim Lord
Salisbury's authority in support of their views, it is
right to say that I have no more doubt than have any
of my brothers that Lord Salisbury profoundly dissented
from Mr. Chamberlain's proposals so far as they were
developed during his lifetime. Not only did he
repeatedly express that dissent to us, and to others
who had been in official relations with him, but he
caused a letter to be written in that sense to one of
my brothers.

In conclusion, may I point out that it would have
been more courteous in Colonel Denison, if he had
at least consulted Lord Salisbury's personal representa-

A A

354 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

before publishing extracts from Lord Salisbury's
private correspondence ?

Yours obediently,

Robert Cecil.
V.Uh May.

1 replied to this in the following letter to The
. which was published in the issue of 13th June,
L905:

Sir,

I have seen to-day, in The Times of the 20th inst.,
Lord Robert Cecil's letter in reply to mine, which
appeared on the 18th inst. As his letter contains
a reflection on my action in publishing extracts from
the late Lord Salisbury's letters to me, I hope you will
allow me to make an explanation.

Mr. Chamberlain had claimed that the late Lord
Salisbury had approved of his policy of preferential
tariffs, while the present Lord Salisbury held that his
father " had profoundly dissented from Mr. Chamber-
lain's fiscal policy."

As Lord Salisbury and his brothers had published
their father's private opinions, which may have referred
more to the time and method and details of Mr.
Chamberlain's action than to the general principle
of preferential tariffs, I had no reason to think that
there could be any objection to publishing the late
Premier's own written words on the subject. The
letters from which I quoted, although not intended
for publication at the time, contained his views on a
great public question, and did not relate to any person,
or any private matter, and as he was not here to speak
for himself, I felt that it was desirable to publish the
extracts in order to show clearly what his views were.

Lord Robert Cecil says that it would have been
more courteous in me to have consulted with his
father's representatives before publishing, but in view

CORRESPONDENCE

355

of their own action in publishing his oral, private
opinions, it would seem discourteous to assume that
they could, under the circumstances, desire to suppress
positive evidence on a matter of grave public im-
portance to our Empire.

Yours, etc.,

George T. Denison.
Toronto, Canada, 31st May, 1905.

This closed the episode.

A A 2

CHAPTER XXVIII

CONGRESS OF CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE OF THE
EMPIRE

In 1906 I went to England j again, and once more
the Toronto Board of Trade appointed me as one of
their delegates to the Sixth Congress of Chambers of
Commerce of the Empire to be held in London. I
arrived in London on the 27th June, and the next
evening, at the Royal Colonial Institute Conversazione,
I met Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlain, and it was arranged
that my wife and I were to lunch with them a few
days later. Mr. Chamberlain had wished that we
should be alone. After lunch the ladies went upstairs,
and Mr. Chamberlain had a quiet talk with me for
about an hour. He gave me the whole history of the
difficulties he had encountered and explained how it
was that he was not able to carry out the arrangement
we had discussed in 1902, just before the conference.
He told me that Sir Michael Hicks-Beach objected to
throwing off the one shilling a quarter on wheat in
favour of the colonies, because he had put it on only a
short time before as a necessary war tax to raise funds
for the South African War, that the expenses
still going on, and that it would be inconsistent in him
to agree to it at the time.

Shortly after Sir Michael Hicks-Beach resigned from

CONGRESS CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE 357

the Cabinet and Mr. C. T. Ritchie (afterwards Lord
Ritchie) was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer.
In the autumn it was considered advisable, so Mr.
Chamberlain told me, that he should pay a visit to
South Africa, which would take him away for some
months, and he went on to say : " On my return from
South Africa we called at Madeira, and I found there a
cablegram from Austen saying the corn tax was to be
taken off. When I arrived in London the Budget was
coming up very soon. I could not do anything for
many reasons. I did not wish to precipitate a crisis,
and I had to wait." He was evidently annoyed at the
matter, and explained it to me, because he had held
out hopes to me that if Sir Wilfrid Laurier would meet
him with further preferences, he would give us the
preference in wheat. This he had been unable to do.

I asked him if he could explain why Ritchie acted as
he did. He did not seem to know. I suggested that
I thought either Mr. Choate, the United States
Ambassador, or some other United States emissary,
had frightened him and he had taken off the tax to
head off any movement for imperial trade consolidation.
Mr. Chamberlain asked me why I thought so, and I
drew his attention to the fact that shortly after the
corn tax was taken off Mr. Ritchie went down to
Croydon to address his constituents, and in justifying
his action used the argument — apparently to his mind
the strongest — that a preferential corn tax against the
United States would be likely to arouse the hostility of
that country and be a dangerous course to pursue.
The audience seemed at once to be struck with the
cowardice of the argument, and there were loud cries
of dissent, and then they rose and sang "Rule
Britannia." Mr. Ritchie did not contest Croydon in

358 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

the next election, but was moved to the House of
Lords shortly before his death. Mr. Chamberlain
apparently had not thought of that influence.

Mr. Chamberlain was then looking in perfect health,
and left the next day for Birmingham, where great
demonstrations were made over his 70th birthday.
He told me he was anxious to have a rest, as the
burden of leading a great movement was very heavy.
I urged him strongly to take a holiday, and I had
pressed the same idea upon Mrs. Chamberlain as J sal
next to her at lunch. He took ill, however, before a
week had passed. The strain at Birmingham was very
heavy.

The meeting of the Congress of Chambers of Com-
merce of the Empire took place on the 10th, 11th and
13th July. We had but little hope of doing anything
to help the preferential trade policy, for the General
Elections had gone so overwhelmingly against us that
it seemed impossible that in England our Canadian
delegation could carry the resolution they had agreed
upon in favour of Mr. Chamberlain's policy. We
expected to be badly defeated, but decided to make a
bold fight. After the discussion had gone on for some
time, Sir Wm. Holland and Lord Avebury, who led the
free trade ranks, approached Mr. Drummond, who
had moved the Canadian resolution, and suggested that
if we would compromise by the insertion of a few words
which would have destroyed the whole effect of what
we were fighting for, the resolution might be carried
unanimously. Mr. Drummond said he wished to consult
his colleagues, and he called Mr. Cockshutt, M.P., and
me out of the room and put the proposition. I said at
once, "I would not compromise to the extent of one
word. Let us fight it out to the very end, let us take

CONGRESS CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE 359

a vote. We will likely be beaten, but let us take
our beating like men. We will find out our strength
and our weakness, we will find out who are our friends
and who are our enemies, and know exactly where we
stand."

Mr. Cockshutt said immediately, "I entirely agree
with Denison." Drummond said, « That is exactly my
view. I shall consult with no others but will tell them
we will fight it to the end."

I spoke that afternoon as follows as reported in the
Toronto Neivs, 23rd August, 1906 :

There were a few remarks, said Col. Denison, which
had fallen from previous speakers, to which he desired
to call attention, In the first place, his friend Mr.
Cockshutt, said that Canada had given England the
benefit of five million dollars annually in the reduction
of duties, in order to help the English manufacturer to
sell English manufactured goods in Canada, and stated
that that was a contribution in an indirect way
towards helping the defence of the Empire. Mr.
Cockshutt, however, left out one important point. If
Canada had put that tax on, collected the money, and
handed over the five million dollars to England in
hard cash, what would have been the result ? The
greater portion of the trade would have gone to
Germany, would have given work to German workmen,
would have helped to build German ships, and it would
have taken more than the five million dollars annually
to counterbalance the loss thereby caused to this
country. He felt that every day the British people
were allowing the greatest national trade asset that
any nation ever possessed, the markets of Great Britain,
to be exposed to the free attack of every rival manufac-
turing [nation in the world without any protection,
without any possibility of preserving those great
national assets for the use of their own people, and in
his opinion such a policy was exceedingly foolish.

360 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

Be had heard a gentleman from Manchester say that
els all very well for Canada, and that Canada
wanted it. He was one of the very earliest of
( Canadians who advocated preferential tariffs. In 1887
he began with a number of other men who were
working with him, to educate the people of Canada on
the subject. When they first began they were laughed
at ; they were told it was a fad, and it was contrary to
the principles of free trade. When he came to
England years ago he could find hardly a single man
anywhere who would say anything against free trade.
He was perfectly satisfied that for years English people
would have listened much more patiently to attacks
upon the Christian religion than they would have
fco attacks upon free trade.

Why did they advocate the system of preferential
tariffs in Canada? Because the country was founded
by the old United Empire Loyalists, who stood loyal to
this country in 1776, who abandoned all their worldly
ssions, who left the graves of their dead, and came
away from the homes where they were born into
the wilderness of Canada, and who wanted to carry
their own flag with them. They wanted to be in a
country where they were in connection with the
Motherland, and it was the dream of those loyalists
to have a united Empire. Canadians were net
advocating preferential tariffs for the benefit of
Canada.

He said, further, that if England would not give
Canada a preference, although Canada had already
given England one, at least it was advisable that
England should have some tariff reform which would
prevent the wealth which belonged to this great
Empire being dissipated among its enemies. That
son they were advocating the resolution.
said that they desired to tax the poor man's
food He said it was of the utmost importance to
have food grown in their own country. England in
the past had had no reserves of food. Fortunately

CONGRESS CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE 361

they were now in such a position that, if they kept the
command of the sea, Canada would be able to grow
enough in a year or two for the needs of the United
Kingdom. Seven years ago England was in such a
position that, if a combination of two nations had put
an embargo on food, she would have been brought to
her knees at once. Australia and Canada were now
growing more wheat, but everything depended upon
the navy ; and if England allowed her trade and her
markets, and the profits which could be made out of
the markets, to be used by foreign and rival Powers to
build navies, they were not only helping those foreign
nations to build navies at their own cost, but at the
same time the people of this country had to be taxed
to build ships to counter-balance what their enemies
were doing.

Canadians felt that they were part of the Empire.
They had helped as much as their fathers did; but
after all, they had only added to the strength
of the Empire, because their fathers went abroad to
other nations, carrying the flag and spreading British
principles and ideas into other countries. He therefore
contended that Canadians had a great right to urge upon
the people of England to do all they could to preserve
the Empire, as Canadians were doing in their humble
way.

As had been already said, Canada was giving pre-
ferences. For instance, she was giving a preference
to the West Indies, so that nearly every dollar that
was paid for sugar in Canada went to the West Indies.
A few years ago it all came from Germany, and the
profits that were made out of Canadian markets went
to Germany, and, although they were not comparable
with the profits made out of the English markets, such
as they were they helped Germany. The trade gave
her people employment; gave her navy money, and
enabled her still further to build rival battleships.
Was that wise? (No.) Canada asked England to
remedy that ; but Canada did not want it if England

362 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

did not, because England wanted it five, ten, fifteen, or
thirty times more than Canada did. Free trade at
one time existed in Canada. When he was a very
young man he was a free trader, but he was now
older and wiser. What was the condition of the country
then ? It was a country with the greatest natural
resources in the world, with the most magnificent
agricultural prospects, with mineral and every other
resource, such as he believed had not been paralleled
anywhere else on the globe. Yet, for twenty v
when they had only a revenue tariff, what happened?
The Yankees in 1871 put on a large protective duty,
and commenced to build up their manufactures. The
result to Canada was that in a few years, in 1875, 1876,
and 1877, the Americans not only made for themselves
but introduced their goods into Canadian markets.
The result was that Canadian manufactories were
closed up, the streets of the cities were filled with
unemployed, and during that early period of their
history nearly one million Canadians left the country.
It was so well known that it was called " the exodus."
People used to wonder what was the matter, and
enquired whether there was a plague in the country.
They used to enquire how it was that Canadians could
not succeed, and how it was there were so many people
starving in the streets.

An agitation was started for a national policy — a
protective agitation. Canadians decided that they
must protect their own manufactures, and they had
done so since 1878, with the result that there were now
no starving people in the streets, no want in the
country, no submerged tenth, and no thirteen million
people on the verge of starvation. The exodus had
1 from Canada to the States, and Canadians were
now coming back in their tens and twenties of
thousands. Canada was now prosperous. A great
deal had been done in the last twenty years. For
instance, Canada had to come to England to get an
English company to build the Grand Trunk Railway.

CONGRESS CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE 363

They did not do it wonderfully well, but still they did
it, and it was now a fine railroad. But what had
Canadians done ? They had built the Canadian Pacific
Railway to the other side ; two gentlemen in Toronto
were building another trans-continental railroad right
across the continent, and the Government were assist-
ing a third project, the Grand Trunk Pacific. The
Canadian Pacific Railroad, a Canadian institution,
managed in Canada, had its vessels on the western coast
at Vancouver, carrying goods and passengers through
to Japan, to the Far East, and Australia and New
Zealand. All that had been done since Canada took
up the policy which enabled it to prevent the enemy
from bleeding it to death.

He hoped he had made the point clear. Surely
England would desire to follow the example of
Canada in that respect. "The exodus" was now
taking place. The Right Hon. John Morley, in reply
to a speech that he (Col. Denison) made, referred to the
wonderful prosperity of Great Britain, which depended
on free trade. Now he would tell the delegates the
other side. The Right Hon. James Bryce went to
Aberdeen just at the time the Government put the tax
of a shilling a quarter on wheat. The Right Hon.
James Bryce, who was a very able and clever man,
made a powerful and eloquent speech, but he had not
lived long enough in Canada. He said that the tax of
a shilling a quarter on wheat would make a difference
of 7\d. per annum to each person in the United
Kingdom, and that it would be a great burden upon
the ordinary working man of the country : but when
they thought of the lowest class of the people, about
30 per cent, of the population, or 13 millions, as Sir
Henry Campbell-Bannerman had said, who were living
upon the very verge of want, then he said it would
mean reduced subsistence, frequent hunger, weakness
of body, and susceptibility to disease. Was that not an
awful fact for a prosperous country ? Was it not an
awful fact to think that 8d in a whole year would mean

364 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

reduced subsistence, frequent hunger, weakness of body
and susceptibility to disease to 13 million of English
people '. That was the condition of England. The
exodus was taking place; the people were going to
da, where they enjoyed sane conditions under
which people could live. They were going to Canada,
instead of going to hostile countries, as they had done
•in the past.

Canada was getting a good many of such people,
but not half enough; and if she had preferential
tariffs in that sense, it would keep the blood and bone
and muscle in this country under the common flag :
it would keep them from helping to build up hostile
nations, and would in that way be a source of strength
to the Empire. He hoped that would be considered an
answer to his friends from Manchester, on the point
that there would be give and take, and not as had been
said, simply "take" on the part of the colonies. He
thought that was a most unfair statement to make;
but he had now presented the Canadian side of the
question.

Another extraordinary thing had happened. A
gentleman whom the people of England had appointed
to take control of English affairs with reference to the
colonies, had lately declared that the colonies ought to
make a treaty among themselves, leaving Great Britain
out. That was rather a flippant way to meet offers of
friendship, sympathy, and loyalty. Two hundred and
seventy-four members of Parliament, he believed, had
written requesting that no preference should be given.
He desired to ask what had Great Britain done to
those men that they should want to prevent England
getting an advantage? Why should they object?
Why should they interfere? What had Great Britain
ever dene to them ?

His friend, Mr. Wilson, had told the delegates of
the French manufacturer who said, ' Why do you not
come over and build your factories in France?'
British factories were already being built on the

CONGRESS CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE 365

Continent to-day. British factories, with British
money, British brains, British enterprise, and British
intellect, were now being built in the United States ;
but while that was the experience of England, Canada,
on the other hand, was able to say that United States
capital was being utilised in Canada and giving work
to Canadian workmen. That was where Canada was
reaping the advantage ; and it was not to be wondered
at that the Canadian delegates came to England and
asked the English people to look about them.

When he was a young man he used to boat a good
deal upon the Niagara River, a mile above the Falls.
Two people always rowed together and always had a
spare pair of oars. They had to row at an angle of
45 degrees, and row hard to get across without being
carried into the rapids. They could not depend on
their course by watching the river or watching their
own boat ; they had to take a point on the shore, and
another point away beyond it, and keep them in line.
The instant they stopped rowing, although the boat
might appear to be perfectly calm and safe, it was
quietly drifting to destruction. The Canadian people
were on the shore and were watching the British
people in the stream. The people of this country had
their eyes on the oars and on the boat, but were not
watching the landmarks and outside currents. They
were not watching what Germany or the United States
were doing ; they were not watching how other nations
were progressing. In fact England was going back-
wards. If he were standing on the shore of the
Niagara River and saw a man stop rowing, he would
shout to him to look out, and that was what he was
doing now.

Two gentlemen had spoken on behalf of the poor
people in India, but he would like to know whether
those gentlemen were not much more interested in the
exchange of commerce between England and India
than they were in the internal comfort and happiness
of the natives. He would also like to ask who put on

366 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

and took off the duty in India '. Was it not done
through the influence of the English Government?
Why was such a large duty placed on tea, and why was
it not taken off tea and put on wheat ? If the duty
were taken off tea, it would not cost the working man a
farthing more, and the result would be that the Indian
fanners and agriculturists would probably obtain sonic
slight advantage, by^t the Indian tea worker would get
a direct and positive advantage. Both parties would be
helped by it, and it would also help at the same
time the whole Empire.

An extract had been read from a speech by Sir
Wilfrid Laurier, the Prime Minister of Canada. Sir
Wilfrid seven or eight years ago might have made a re-
mark of that kind, and it so happened that he was in
very bad company at the time, because the remarks
were made at the Cobden Club. In Canada, prominent
men such as Sir Wilfrid Laurier were able to under-
stand and listen to good arguments, to assimilate them
and to change their minds. But Sir Wilfrid at the last
conference made a plain and distinct offer, which he had
repeated in public, and yet he (the speaker) heard
political partisans in this country in their newspapers
making the statement that Canada had made no offer.
It was not true ! The offers were in the report of the
Imperial Conference of 1902 ; that he would give the
} tresent preference and a further preference on a certain
list of selected articles, if the English people would
meet him. The long list of articles was not mentioned
because it would be improper to do so, as it would have
the effect of making the business of Canada unsettled
in reference to those things. But that the offer was
made was an undoubted fact, and people in this country
had no right to make statements to the contrary,

He desired to make one final appeal to Englishmen

t<> look at the matter broadly ; and when they found

that the security and unity of the whole Empire might

depend upon closer federation with the colonies, he

led to English people not to make such flippant

CONGRESS CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE 367

remarks as that the colonies should make an agreement
among themselves leaving out the Mother Country, be-
cause if that were done, and a preferential tariff institut-
ed among the colonies, the Mother Country would very
soon find out the difference. He appealed to English-
men as a Canadian, the whole history of whose country
was filled with records of devotion to the Empire, not
to think that they were acting in any way for themselves,
or for their personal interests, but only in the interests
of their great Empire, which their fathers helped to
build, and which they, the children, desired to hand
down unimpaired and stronger to their children and
children's children."

The vote was not taken until the next day, and
when the show of hands was taken I think we had five
or six to one in our favour. A demand was made for a
vote by Chambers with the result that 103 voted for
the resolution, 41 against it, and 21 neutral. The
reason so much larger a number appeared with us on a
show of hands was, I believe, because many Chambers
had given cast iron instructions to their delegates to
vote against it, or to vote neutral, but on a show of
hands many of them voted as they personally felt after
hearing the arguments.

This was a remarkable triumph that we did not
expect, and must have been very gratifying to Mr.
Chamberlain.

Unfortunately Mr. Chamberlain's illness took place
just as the Congress opened, It was thought at the
time that he would recover in a few days, but he has
not as yet been able to resume active leadership in the
struggle for preferential tariffs or tariff reform. As far
as the work of our organisation is concerned, although
we were at first ridiculed and abused, criticised and
caricatured, the force of the arguments and the innate

368 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

loyalty of the Canadian people, have caused the feeling
in favour of imperial unity and preferential trade to
become almost universal in Canada. The preference has
been established, West Indian Sugar favoured, penny
postage secured, the Pacific Cable constructed, assist-
ance given in the South African War in the imperial
interest, and now the whole question remains to be
decided in the Mother Country. The colonies have all
followed Canada's lead.

The conference of 1907 was futile. Sir Wilfrid
Laurier took the dignified course of repeating his offers
made in 1902, and saying that the question now rested
in the hands of the British people. The British
Government declined to do anything, which in view of
the elections of the previous year was only to be expected,
but a good deal of ill feeling was unnecessarily created
by the action of one member of the Government, who
offensively boasted that they had slammed, banged, and
haired the door in the face of the colonies. We still
feel however that this view will not represent the sober
second thought of the British people, If it do
course our hopes of maintaining the permanent unity of
the Empire may not be realised.

From the Canadian stand-point I feel that enough lias
been said in the foregoing pages, to show that there was
a widespread movement, participated in by people of
both sides of the boundary line, which would soon have
become a serious menace to Canada's connection with
the Empire, had it not been for the vigorous efforts of
the loyalist element to counteract it. To the active
share in which I took part in these efforts, I shall ever
look back with satisfaction. Not many years have
passed, but the change in the last twenty years, has
been a remarkable one, the movement then making

CONCLUSION 369

such headway towards commercial union or annexation
being now to all seeming completely dead. Nor should
it be forgotten that it is to the Liberal party, a great
many of whose leading members took part in the
agitation for Unrestricted Reciprocity, that we owe,
since they came into power, the tariff preference to the
Mother Country, and the other movements which I
have mentioned above, which tend to draw closer the
bonds of Empire.

It would be difficult now to find in Canada any
Canadians who are in favour of continental union, many
of those who formerly favoured it, being now outspoken
advocates of British connection, looking back with
wonder as to how they then were carried away by such
an ill-judged movement. Nevertheless the lesson
taught by this period of danger is clear. We must not
forget, that with a powerful neighbour alongside of
Canada, speaking the same language, and with ne-
cessarily intimate commercial intercourse, an agitation
for closer relations, leading to ultimate absorption, is
easy to kindle, and being so plausible, might spread
with dangerous rapidity. This is a danger that those
both in Canada and Great Britain, who are concerned
in the future of the British Empire, would do well to
take to heart, and by strengthening the bonds of
Empire avert such dangers for the future.

B H

st

APPENDIX A

Speech Delivered at the Royal Colonial Institute on the
Vith May, 1890, in reply to Sir Charles Dilke.

I am very glad to have the opportunity of saying a few
words this evening. I have listened to the discussion and
I find there is a feeling that of all the Colonies Canada is
the only one which is not doing her duty. I have heard
the doubt expressed as to whether Canada would, in case
of serious trouble, stand by the Empire in the defence
of her own frontiers. In support of this view I have
heard an opinion quoted of an Englishman who was
dissatisfied with this country and left it for the United
States ; dissatisfied there also he went to Canada, where
he is now equally dissatisfied and is agitating to break up
this Empire. I utterly repudiate his opinions. He is no
Canadian and does not express the views of my country-
men. You have generally large numbers of Australians,
New Zealanders and Cape Colonists at these meetings, but
it is not always that you have Canadians present, and I
do not think that we have altogether had fair play in this
matter. It seems to be popular to compliment the other
Colonies, while the doubt is expressed as to whether the
Canadian people would fight to keep Canada in the Empire.
I am astonished to hear such a reflection upon my country.
Our whole history is a standing protest against any such
insinuation. Let me recall a few facts in our past history,
facts which show whether Canadians have not been true

B B 2

372 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

to this country. Why our very foundation was based
upon loyalty to the Empire. Our fathers fought for a
united Empire in the revolution of 1776. They fought
to retain the southern half of North America under
the monarchy. Bereft of everything, bleeding from the
wounds of seven long years of war, carrying with them
nothing but their loyalty, they went to Canada and
settled in the wilderness. Thirty years later, in 1812, in
a quarrel caused by acts of British vessels on the high seas
far from Canada — a quarrrel in which they had no
interest — the Canadian people (every able-bodied man)
fought for three long years by the side of the British
troops, and all along our frontier are dotted the battlefields
in which lie buried large numbers of Canadians, who died
fighting to retain the northern half of the continent in
our Empire. And yet I come here to London and hear it
said that my countrymen won't stand true to the Empire.
(Cheers.) Again, in 1837, a dissatisfied Scotchman raised
a rebellion, but the Canadian people rose at once and
crushed it out of sight before it could come to a head.
The people poured into Toronto in such numbers to
support the Queen's authority, that Sir Francis Head, the
Governor, had to issue a proclamation telling the people
to stay at their homes, as they were gathering in such
numbers they could not be fed. (Cheers.) In the Trent
affair — no quarrel of ours ; an event which occurred a
thousand miles from our shores — every able-bodied man
was ready to fight ; our country was like an armed camp, the
young and the old men drilling, no man complaining that it
was not our quarrel, and the determined and loyal spirit of
the Canadian people saved this country then from war.
(Cheers.) So also in the Fenian Raid ; again no quarrel
of ours, for surely we have had nothing to do with the
government of Ireland, and were not responsible in any
way. Yet it was our militia that bore the brunt of that
trouble. The lives lost in that affair were the lives of
Canadian volunteers who died fighting in an Imperial
quarrel. This affair cost us millions of dollars, and did we
ever ask you to recoup us? And I, a Canadian volunteer,

APPENDIX A 373

come here to London to hear the doubt expressed as to
whether my countrymen would stand true to the Empire.
(Cheers.) It is not fair, gentlemen ; it is not right. For
the spirit of our people is the same to-day. (Cheers.) I
have also heard the statement made this evening that
there were no proper arrangements for the Nova Scotia
militia to help in the defence of Halifax, as if there might
be a doubt whether they would assist the Imperial troops
to defend Halifax. This is not fair to my comrades of the
sister Province of Nova Scotia. Let me recall an incident
in the history of that Province at the time of the Maine
boundary difficulty. I allude to the occasion — many of you
will remember it — when an English diplomatist, being
humbugged with a false map, allowed the Yankees to
swindle us out of half the State of Maine. Well, at that
time, Governor Fairfield, of the State of Maine, ordered
out all the militia of that State to invade New Brunswick.
The Nova Scotian Legislature at once passed a resolution
placing every dollar of their revenue, and every able-bodied
man in the country, at the disposal of their sister Province
of New Brunswick. This vote was carried unanimously
with three cheers for the Queen ; and their bold and deter-
mined stand once more saved the Empire from war —
(cheers) — and yet I, an Ontario man, come here to England,
to hear the doubt expressed as to whether the militia of
our sister Province of Nova Scotia would help to defend
their own capital city in case of attack. It is not fair,
gentlemen, and I am glad to be here to-night to speak for
my sister Province. (Cheers.) However, I cannot blame
you for not understanding all these things. You have not
all been in Canada and even if any of you were to come to
the Niagara Falls and cross from the States to look at
them from the Canadian side, you would not return to the
States knowing all about Canada. It would not qualify
you to be an authority on Canadian affairs. (Laughter
and applause.) Now our position is peculiar. We have a
new country with illimitable territory — you can have no
conception of the enormous extent — a territory forty times
the size of Great Britain, and fifteen times the size of the

374 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

German Empire, and we have only a small population.
We are opening up this country for settlement, developing
its resources, and thereby adding to the power of the
Empire. Our burdens are enormous for our population
and our wealth. What have we done quite lately? We
have spent something like $150,000,000— £30,000,000—
in constructing a railway across the continent and giving
you an alternative route to the East. Many people thought
this would be too great a burden — more than our country
could stand — but our Government and the majority of our
people took this view, that this scheme would supply a
great alternative route to the East, bring trade to the
country, add strength to the Empire, and make us more
than ever a necessity and a benefit to the Empire. And
remember, all the time we are developing our country, all
the time we are spending these enormous sums, we do not
live in the luxury you do here, and while we are perfectly
willing to do a great deal, we cannot do everything all at
at once. With you everything is reversed. You have had
nearly 2,000 years start, with your little bit of country,
and your large population, and by this time I must say
you have got it pretty well fixed up. (Laughter.) The
other day I was travelling through Kent and I was
reminded of the remark of the Yankee who said of it :
"It appears to me this country is cultivated with a pair
of scissors and a fine comb." We have not had the time
or the population to do this, and we cannot afford a stand
ing army. It is not fair to find fault with us because we
do not keep up a standing army. It is absolutely necessary
we should not take away from productive labour too large
a number of men to idle about garrison towns. The
Canadian people know that as things stand at present,
they cannot be attacked by any nation except the United
States. We would not be afraid of facing any European
or distant Power, simply because the difficulties of sending
a distant maritime expedition are recognised to be so
tremendous. Suppose war should unfortunately break
out with the United States— and that, as I say, is the
only contingency we need seriously consider — in that case

««*,

APPENDIX A 375

what are we to do? It would hp useless we know to
attempt to defend our country with a 'small standing
army. We know that every able-bodied man would have
to fight. We know that our men are able and willing to
fight, and what we aje trying to do is to educate officers.
Our military college, kept up at large expense, is one of
the finest in the world. Then we have permanent schools
for military purposes, men drafted from our corps being
drilled there and sent back to instruct. We keep up
about 38,000 active militia, and the country has numbers
of drilled men who could be relied on. As an illustration
of our system, I may mention that in 1866 there was
a sudden alarm of a Fenian invasion. The Adjutant-
General received orders at 4 o'clock in the afternoon to
turn out 10,000 men. At eleven the next day the returns
came in, and to his utter astonishment he found there
were 14,000 under arms. The reason was that the old
men who had gone through the corps had put on their old
uniforms, taken down their rifles, and turned out with
their comrades, and there they were ready to march.
Instead of the militia force going down, it is, I think,
slightly increasing. Our force could be easily expanded
in case of trouble. If there were danger of war, and the
Government were to say to me to-morrow : " Increase your
regiment of cavalry and double it," I believe it could be
done in twenty-four hours. I cannot tell you how many
stand of arms we have in the country, but I believe there
are three or four times as many rifles as would arm the
present militia force, and therefore there would be no
difficulty on that score. In case of a great war, it would,
of course, be necessary to get assistance from England.
We certainly should want that assistance in arms and
ammunition. We have already established an ammunition
factory, which is capable of great extension. We have a
great many more field guns that we are absolutely using.
It would be an easy thing to double the field batteries
with retired men. Further, there is a good deal of
voluntary drill, and I may say, speaking from my expe-
rience in the North- West campaign, that I would just as

376 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

soon have good volunteer regiments as permanent forces.
They may not be quite so well drilled, but they p<>
greater intelligence and greater zeal and enthusiasm. * If
any trouble should come, I am quite satisfied you will not
find any backwardness on the part of the Canadian people
in doing their full duty. At the present time, considering
the enormous expense of developing the country and of,
in other ways, making it great and powerful, it would, 1
think, be a pity to waste more than is absolutely necessary
in keeping up a large military force. The training of
officers, the providing of an organisation and machinery,
the encouragement of a confident spirit in the people, and
a feeling of loyalty to the Empire — these are, I venture to
say, the principal things, of more importance than a small
standing army. (Applause.)

The Chairman (the Right Hon. Hugh C. Childers). —
You will all, I think, agree that it is rather fortunate the
few remarks by previous speakers have elicited so eloquent
and powerful an address as that we have just listened to.
(Cheers.)

APPENDIX B

Lecture Delivered at the Shaftesbury Hall, Toronto, on
the 17th December, 1891, on "National Spirit," by
Colonel George T. Denison.

Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The history of the world is the history of the rise
and fall of nations. The record of the dim past, so great
is the distance from which we look and so scanty the
materials of history, seems almost a kaleidoscope, in which
one dominant race rises into greatness and strength upon
the ruins of another, each in turn luxuriating in affluence
and power, each in turn going to ruin and decay.
In the earliest period, when Europe was pe
barbarians, we read of Egypt, of its 'alth,

and its civilisation. Travellers to-day, standing in the
ruins of Thebes and Memphis, view with amazement the
architectural wonders of the gigantic ruins, and jicftjw"
^ompavisons between what the race of ancient- Egyptians
must have been, and the poor Aral its who live in

ied huts among the debris of former grandeur. The
Assyrian empi. > left a record of its greatness and

civilisation. Th . j sculptures show a .race of sturdy
heroes, with haugi.ty looks and proud mien, evidently the
leaders of a dominant race. The luxuriant costumes, the
proud processions, the ceremonious cortege of the Assyrian
monarchs, all find their place in the sculptures of Nineveh,

378 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

while their colossal dimensions indicate the magnificence
of the halls and galleries in which they were placed.
These broken stones, dug from the desert, are all that is
left to tell us of a great and dominant race for ever passed
away. The Persian empire came afterwards into promin-
ence, and was a mighty power when in its prime. The
Phoenicians, by their maritime enterprise and their roving
and energetic spirit, acquired great power. Their influence
was felt as far as England. Their chief cities, Tyre and
Sidon, were at one time the most wealthy and powerful
cities in the world, excelling in all the arts and sciences.
To-day ruin and desolation mark their sites, and testify to
the truth of the awful prophecy of Ezekiel the prophet.

The Greeks and Romans were also dominant races, but
the small republics of Greece frittered away in dissension
and petty civil wars the energy and daring that might
have made Athens the mistress of the world. Rome, on
the other hand, was more practical. The Roman was
filled with a desire for national supremacy. He determined
that Rome should be the mistress of the world, and the
desire worked out its fulfilment. The Carthaginians rose
and fell, victims to the greater vigour and energy of their
indomitable rivals the Romans. After the fall of the
Roman Empire of the East, the Mohammedan power,
668, warlike, and fanatical, quickly overran Asia
Minor and Turkey, and threatened at one time the
conquest of all Europe.

Three hundred years ago Spain was the all-powerful
country. Her ships whitened every sea, her language was
spoken in every clime, her coins were the only money used
by traders bfgrond the equator. England, which was at
that time the ae of English-speaking people, was

only a fifth or sixth-rate Power. To-day the British
Empire is the greatest empire ihr - orid has ever seen,
with 11,214,000 square mil< , a population

of 361,276,000, a revenue of £212,800,000, total imports
and exports of £1,174,000,000, and she owns nearly
one-half of the shipping of the world.

In considering the causes which lead to the rise and

APPENDIX B 379

fall of nations, we find that the first requisite to ensure
national greatness is a national sentiment — that is, a
patriotic feeling in the individual, and a general confidence
of all in the future of the State. This national spirit
generally exhibits itself in military prowess, in a deter-
mination of placing the country first, self afterwards ; of
being willing to undergo hardships, privation, and want ;
and to risk life, and even to lay down life, on behalf of
the State. I can find no record in history of any nation
obliterating itself, and giving up its nationality for the
sake of making a few cents a dozen on its eggs, or a
few cents a bushel on its grain.

The Egyptians commemorated the deeds of their great
men, erected the greatest monuments of antiquity, and
taught the people respect for their ancestors, holding the
doctrine, " accursed is he who holds not the ashes of his
fathers sacred, and forgets what is due from the living
to the dead." The Assyrians on their return from a
successful war paraded the spoils and trophies of victory
through their capital. They also recorded their warlike
triumphs in inscriptions and sculptures that have com-
memorated the events and preserved the knowledge of
them to us to this present day. The national spirit of
the Greeks was of the highest type. When invaded by
an army of 120,000 Persians in B.C. 490, the Athenians
without hesitation boldly faced their enemies. Every man
who could near arms was enlisted, and 10,000 free men
on the plains of Marathon completely routed the enormous
horde of invaders. This victory was celebrated by the
Greeks in every possible way. Pictures were painted,
and poems were written about it One hundred and ninety-
two Athenians who fell in action were buried under a
lofty mound which may still be seen, and their names
were inscribed on ten pillars, one for each tribe. Six
hundred years after the battle, Pausanias the historian
was able to read on the pillars the names of the dead
heroes. The anniversary of the battle was commemorated
by an annual ceremony down to the time of Plutarch.
After the death of Miltiades, who commanded the Greeks,

380 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

an imposing monument was erected in his honour on the
battlefield, remains of which can still be traced.

This victory and the honour paid both the living and
the dead who took part in it, had a great influence on the
Greeks, and increased the national spirit and confidence
of the people in their country. The heavy strain came
upon them ten years later, when Xerxes invaded Greece
with what is supposed to have been the greatest army
that ever was gathered together. Such an immense host
could not fail to cause alarm among the Greeks, but they
had no thought of submission. The national spirit of a
race never shone out more brightly. Leonidas, with only
4,000 troops all told, defended the pass at Thermopylae
for three days against this immense host, and when,
through the treachery of a Greek named Ephialtes, the
Persians threatened his retreat, Leonidas and his Spartans
would not fly, but sending away most of their allies, lie
remained there and died with his people for the honour
of the country. They were buried on the spot, and a
monument erected with the inscription :

Go, stranger, and to Lecedfismon tell
That here, obedient to her laws, we fell.

Six hundred years after, Pausanias read on a pillar
erected to their memory in their native city, the names
of 300 Spartans who died at Thermopylae A stone lion
was erected in the pass to the memory of Leonidas, and
a monument to the dead of the allies with this inscrip-
tion : " Four thousand from the Peloponnesus once fought
on this spot with three millions." Another monument
bore the inscription: "This is the monument of the
illustrious Megistias whom the Medes, having passed the
river Sperchius, slew — a prophet who, at the time, well
knowing the impending fate, would not abandon the
leaders of Sparta." The Athenians were compelled to
abandon their homes and take refuge on the island of
Sal amis, where the great battle was fought the following
October, between 380 Greek vessels and a Persian fleet
of 2,000 vessels. This action was brought on by a

APPENDIX B 38i

stratagem of Themistocles, whom no odds seemed to
discourage. This ended in a great victory for the Greeks,
and practically decided the fate of the war. Themistocles
and Eurybiades were presented with olive crowns, and
other honours were heaped upon them. Ten months after
this Mardonius a second time took possession of the city,
and the Athenians were again fugitives on the island of
Salamis; even then the Athenians would not lose hope.
Only one man in the council dared to propose that they
should yield; when he had left the council-chamber the
people stoned him to death. Mardonius, who had an
army of 300,000 men and the power of the Persian
empire at his back, offered them most favourable terms,
but the national spirit of the Greeks saved them when
the outlook was practically hopeless. The Athenians
replied that they would never yield while the sun con-
tinued in its course, but trusting in their gods and in
their heroes, they would go out and oppose him. Shortly
after the Greeks did go out, and a brilliant victory was
won at Platsea, where Mardonius and nearly all his army
were killed. The Mantineans and the Elians arrived too
late to take part in the action with the other Greeks, and
were so mortified at the delay that they banished their
generals on account of it. Thus ended the Persian in-
vasions of Greece. The national spirit of the Greeks
inspired them to the greatest sacrifices and the greatest
heroism, and was the foundation of the confidence and
hope that never failed them in the darkest hour. There
were a few traitors such as Ephialtes, who betrayed the
pass, and a few pessimists like Lycidas, who lost hope and
was stoned to death for speaking of surrender. The
lesson is taught, however, that the existence in a com-
munity of a few emasculated traitors and pessimists is
no proof that the mass of the citizens may not be filled
with the highest and purest national spirit.

The history of Rome teaches us the same great lesson.
As Rome was once mistress of the world, as no race or
nationality ever before wielded the power or attained the
towering position of Rome, so we find that just as in

382 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

proportion she rose to a higher altitude than any other
community, so does her early history teem with the
records of a purer national sentiment, a more perfect
patriotism, a greater confidence in the State on the part
of her citizens, and a more enduring self-sacrificing heroism
on the part of her young men. Early Roman history is
a romance filled with instances of patriotic devotion to
the State that have made Roman virtues a proverb even
to this day. Many of the stories are, no doubt, mere
legends, but they are woven into the history of the nation,
and were evidently taught to the children to create
stimulate a strong patriotic sentiment- in their breasts.
When we read the old legend of Horatius at the bridge;
when we read of Quintus Curtius, clad in complete armour
and mounted on his horse, plunging into the yawning
gulf in the Forum to save the State from impending
destruction; when we read of Mutius Scsevola, of Regulus,
urging his countrymen to continue the war with Carthage,
and then returning to the death which was threatened
him if he did not succeed in effecting a peace, we can
form some idea of the spirit which animated this people,
and can no longer wonder at such a race securing such a
world-wide supremacy. The Romans took every means to
encourage this feeling and to reward services to the State.
Horatius Codes was crowned on his return, his statue
erected in the temple of Vulcan, and a large tract of the
public land given him. Rome was filled with the statues,
and columns, and triumphal arches, erected in honour of
great services performed for the State. Many of these
monuments are still standing. Varro, after the terrible
defeat of Cannre, received the thanks of the Senate
because, although defeated and a fugitive, he had not
despaired of the future of the State. The Romans, like
the English, never knew when they were beaten, and
disaster rarely inclined them to make peace. They did
not look upon Carthage, their neighbour to the south, as
their natural market, not at least to the extent of inducing
them to give up their nationality in the hope of getting
rich by trading with that community, and yet history leads

APPENDIX B 383

us to believe that Carthage was at one time very wealthy
and prosperous. No, the national sentiment was the
dominant idea.

For Romans in Rome's quarrel

Spared neither land nor gold,
Nor son, nor wife, nor limb, nor life,

In the brave days of old.

Even the Romans, however, had traitors, for we read
that Brutus ordered the execution of his own sons for
treason. Catiline also conspired against the State; of
course his character was not good; he was said to be
guilty of almost every crime in the calendar, but when
you are picking out specimen traitors it is difficult to be
fastidious about their personal character. The national
spirit of the race, however, easily overcame all the bad
influences of the disloyal, and it was only when this
sentiment died out, and luxury, selfishness, and poltroonery
took its place, that Rome was overthrown.

The experience of the ancients has been repeated in
later times. The national spirit of the Swiss has carried
Switzerland through the greatest trials, and preserved her
freedom and independence in the heart of Europe for
hundreds of years. No principle of continental unity
has been able to destroy her freedom. The Swiss confeder-
ation took its origin in the oath on the Rutli in 1307, and
eight years later at Morgarten, the Marathon of Switzer-
land, 1,300 Swiss peasants defeated an army of 20,000
Austrians. This inspired the whole people, and commenced
the series of brilliant victories which for two centuries
improved the military skill, stimulated the national spirit,
and secured the continued freedom of the Swiss nation.
In 1386 another great victory was won at Sempach,
through the devotion of Arnold of Winkelried, whose
story of self-sacrifice is a household word taught to the
children, and indelibly written on grateful Swiss hearts.
The memory of Winkelried will ever remain to them as an
inspiration whenever danger threatens the fatherland. A
chapel marks the site of the battle, the anniversary is

384 THE STRUGGLE FOR [MPERIAL UNITY

celebrated every year, while at Stan/ a beautiful monu-
ment commemorates Winkelried's noble deed. In 1886
the five hundredth anniversary of Sempach was celebrated
by the foundation of the Winkelried Institution for poor
soldiers and the relatives of those killed in action. In
1388 a small army of Swiss, at Naefels, completely de-
feated, with fearful loss, ten times their number of
Austrians, and secured finally the freedom of Switzerland.
A history published last year says :

" Year after year the people of Glarus, rich and poor
alike, Protestant and Catholic, still commemorate this
great victory. On the first Thursday in April, in solemn
procession, they revisit the battlefield, and on the spot
the Landammann tells the fine old story of their deliver
ance from foreign rule, while priest and minister offer
thanksgiving. The 5th April, 1888, was a memorable
date in the annals of the canton, being the five hundredth
anniversary of the day on which the people achieved
freedom. From all parts of Switzerland people flocked
to Naefels to participate in the patriotic and religious
ceremonies. A right stirring scene it was when the
Landammann presented to the vast assembly the banner
of St. Fridolin, the same which Ainbuhl had raised high,
and thousands of voices joined in the national anthem."

A magnificent monument at Basle commemorates the
bloody fight of St. Jacques. The national spirit of the
Swiss, nurtured and evidenced in this manner, has held
together for hundreds of years a people professing different
religions, and actually speaking four different languages.
In 1856 King Frederick William IV. of Prussia threat-
ened them with war. The whole people rose; grey-haired
old men and mere boys offered their services, fellow-
count rviuen abroad sent large sums of money, and even
the Bchool children offered up their savings, and there was
no intruding traitor to object that the children should not
be allowed to interfere on the pretext that it was a party
question. Catholic and Protestant, French, German,
Italian, and Koinansch, all stood shoulder to shoulder,

APPENDIX B

3^5

animated by the same spirit, determined to brave any
danger in defence of the honour and independence of
their country. The noble bearing of the Swiss aroused
the sympathy and commanded the respect of all Europe,
and really caused the preservation of peace. They have
been free for 500 years, and will be free and respected
so long as they retain the national spirit they have
hitherto possessed. It is interesting to note that the Swiss
teach the boys in the schools military drill, furnishing
them with small guns and small cannon that they may be
thoroughly trained.

Russia has grown from a comparatively small princi-
pality to an enormous empire, and as it has constantly
risen in the scale of nations, so has it also been marked
by a strong sentiment of nationality. Alexander, Prince
of Novgorod, in 1240 and 1242 won two great victories,
one at the Neva and the other at Lake Peipus, and so
saved Russia from her enemies. He received the honour-
able title of " Nefsky," or of the Neva, and the anniver-
saries of his victories were celebrated for hundreds of
years. The great Alexander Nefsky monastery in St.
Petersburg was built in his honour by Peter the Great.
Dimitry, in 1380, won a great victory over the Tartars.
Over 500 years have elapsed, but still the name of Dimitry
Donskoi lives in the memory and in the songs of the
Russian people, and still on " Dimitry's Saturday," the
anniversary of the battle, solemn prayers are offered up
in memory of the brave men who fell on that day in
defence of the fatherland. It is hardly necessary to refer
to the magnificent display of patriotism and self-sacrifice
shown by the whole Russian people, from Czar to serf, in
the defence of Russia in 1812, against armed Europe led
by the greatest general of modern times. The spirit of
the Russians rose with their sacrifices. The destruction
of Moscow by its own people is one of the most striking
instances of patriotic devotion in history. The Governor
of Moscow, Count Rostopchin, burned his own country
palace near Moscow when the French approached, and
affixed to the gates this inscription : " During eight years

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386 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

I have embellished this country house, and lived happily
in it in the bosom of my family. The inhabitants of this
estate — 7,000 — quit at your approach. You find nothing
but ashes." The city was abandoned and burnt. Nothing
remained but the remembrance of its glories and the thirst
for ;i vengeance, which was terrible and swift. Kutusof,
the Russian general, announced the loss, and said "that
the people are the soul of the empire, and that where they
here is Moscow and the empire of Russia." The
magnificent column to Alexander I. in the square in front
of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg is a striking
memorial of the victor of this great war. A visitor to
St. Petersburg cannot fail to notice the strong pride in
their country that animates the people. Now turning to
England we find numberless proofs of the same sentiment
that has built up all great nations. The brilliant victories
of Cressy, Poitiers, and Agincourt, won by Englishmen
against overwhelming odds, had no doubt exercised an
important influence upon the people. The Reformation
and the discovery of the New World exercised the popular
mind, and a spirit of adventure seized most of the Euro-
pean countries. English sailors were most active and bold
in their seafaring enterprises. They waged private war on
their own account against the Spaniards in the Weal
Indies and in the southern seas, and attacked and fought
Spanish vessels with the most reckless indifference as t • »
odds. The Armada set a spark to the smouldering
patriotism of the people, the whole nation sprang to
arms, the City of London equipped double the number
of war vessels they were called upon to furnish. Catholics
and Protestants vied with each other in animating the
people to the most vehement resistance. To excite the
martial spirit of the nation Queen Elizabeth rode on
horseback through her army, exhorting them to remember
their duty to their country.

''I am come amongst you," she said, "being resolved
in the midst and heat of the battle to live and die
amongst you all, to lay down, for my God, and for my
kingdom, and for my people, my honour, and my blood

APPENDIX B 387

even in the dust. I know I have the body of a weak
and feeble woman, but I have the heart of a king, and
a king of England, too, and think foul scorn that Parma,
Spain, or any prince of Europe should dare to invade the
borders of my realms."

These noble sentiments show the feeling that animated
the race, for no woman could speak in such a strain who
had not lived and breathed in an atmosphere of brave
and true patriotism. Elizabeth voiced the feeling of her
people, and this strong national spirit carried England
through the greatest danger that ever menaced her.
The poems of Shakespeare ring with the same loyal
sentiment :

This England never did (nor never shall)

Lie at the proud foot of a conqueror,

But when it first did help to wound itself

Now these her princes have come home again,

Come the three corners of the world in arms.

And we shall shock them : Nought shall make us rue

If England to itself do rest but true.

Henry V. is as much a song of triumph as the Perscn
of iEschylus, but here again history repeats itself, and
Shakespeare has to refer to the treasonable conspiracy of
Grey, Scroop, and Cambridge, who

Hath for a few light crowns lightly conspired
And sworn unto the practices of France
To kill us here in Hampton.

The three hundredth anniversary of the defeat of the
Armada was celebrated at Plymouth three years ago,
and a magnificent monument erected on the Hoe,
close to the statue of the brave old English sailor, Sir
Francis Drake, who did so much to secure the victory.
The great poets of England have voiced the patriotic
feeling of the country in every age. Macaulay's "Armada,"
Tennyson's "Revenge," and "The Light Brigade"; the
songs of Campbell and Dibdin are household words in our
empire, and I never heard of any objection being made
to their being read by children.

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388 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

The confidence of England in herself carried her through
the terrible struggle with the French, Spaniards, and
Dutch, in which she lost the American Colonics. Her
patriotic determination also carried her through the des-
perate struggle with Napoleon, who at one time had
subdued nearly every other European country to his will.
While the English people are animated by the spirit of
Drake and Frobisher, of Havelock and Gordon, of Gren-
ville and Nelson, of the men who fought at Elorke's Drift,
or those who rode into the valley of death, there need be
DO fear as to her safety. Our own short Canadian history
gives us many bright pages to look back upon. The
exodus of the United Empire Loyalists was an instance
of patriotic devotion to the national idea that is almost
unique in its way. The manly and vigorous way in which
about .'500,000 Canadians in 1812 defended their country
against the attacks of a nation of 8, 000,000, with only
slight assistance from England, then engaged In a desperate
war, is too well known to require more than the merest
reference. It is well to notice, however, how the experience
of all nations has been repeated in our own country. We
were hampered and endangered in 1 8 1 li by the intrigues
of traitors, some of whom in Parliament did all they
could to embarrass and destroy the country, and then
deserted to the enemy and fought against us. General
Brock's address to the Canadian people, however, shows
the same national confidence that has carried all great
nations through their greatest trials. " We arc engaged,"'
said he, "in an awful and eventful contest. By unanimity
and despatch in our councils and by vigour in our opera
tions we may teach the enemy this lesson, that a count ry
defended by free men enthusiastically devoted to the cause
of their king and constitution can never be conquered."

The memory of our victories at Queenston Heights
and Chateauguay are as dear to the hearts of the Canadian
people as Marathon and Salamis were to the Greeks, or
Morgarten and Sempach are to the Swiss. Why then
should we be asked to conceal the knowledge of these
ries won on our own soil, by our own people, in

APPENDIX B 389

defence of our own freedom? Confederation united the
scattered provinces, extended our borders from ocean to
ocean, gave us a country and a name, filled the minds of
our youth with dreams of national greatness and hopes of
an extending commerce spreading from our Atlantic and
Pacific coasts to every corner in the world. The com-
pletion of the Canadian Pacific Railway consolidated the
country more than ever, brought the provinces into closer
union, and inspired the hope that a great portion of the
trade between the East and the West would pulsate
through our territory. All these causes have created a
strong national spirit. This feeling was dormant until
the people became uneasy about an insidious movement
commenced four years ago in New York, which, while
apparently advocated in the interest of Canada, would
have resulted in the loss of our fiscal independence and
possibly our national existence. This was followed by
President Cleveland's retaliation proclamation, a blow
intended to embarrass our affairs, and so to force us into
subserviency. Afterwards came Senator Sherman's speech,
strongly advocating annexation ; and Mr. Whitney, the
Secretary of the Navy, threatened us with an invasion,
describing how four armies of 25,000 men each could
easily take Canada.

The newspapers in the States were filled with articles
on the subject, and maps were published showing our
country divided up into states, and its very name obliter-
ated. As an instance of the newspaper articles I quote
the following from the New York Commercial Bulletin,
published in November, 1888, commenting on the speeches
of Senator Sherman and Mr. Whitney. The Bulletin
says :

" Both are inimical to commercial union unless it also
be complemented by political union, or, to phrase it more
plainly, they insist that annexation of Canada to the
United States can afford the only effective guarantee of
satisfactory relations between the two countries, if these
are to be permanent. These prominent men, representing

390 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

each of the great parties that have alternately the ad-
ministration of this Government in their hands, we are

persuaded did not put forth these views at random, but
that they voiced the views of other political leaders, their
associates, who are aiming at making Canadian annexa-
tion the leading issue at the next Presidential election.
As if speaking for the Republicans, Senator Sherman, as
has already been shown, thinks the country now ready for
the question, while Secretary Whitney, as if speaking for
the other political party, is not less eager to bring the
country face to face with it, even at the risk of war with
England."

The North American Beview, one of the most respect-
able of their magazines, actually published an article by
General Benjamin F. Butler, in which, speaking of annex
ation, he said: " Is not this the fate of Canada? Peace-
fully we hope, forcefully if we must/' and in the truculent
spirit of a freebooter, he suggested that the invading army
should be paid by dividing up our land among them.
This was followed by the MeKinley Bill, aimed of course
at all countries, but especially bearing upon the articles
where Canada's trade could be seriously injured. This
portion of the bill is generally believed to have been
prepared with the assistance and advice of traitors in our
own country.

In face of all this a lecturer in this city a few weeks
ago made the following statement :

" Let me say once more, that I have been going among
the Americans now for more than twenty years. I have
held intercourse with people of all classes, parties, pro-
fessions, characters, and ages, including the youth of a
university who are sure to speak as they feel. I never
heard the slightest expression of a wish to aggress on
Canada, or to force her into the union."

Among the people of antiquity there was a race that
inhabited Mysia, a portion of Asia Minor, lying next to
the Hellespont. This race was said to have been once

APPENDIX B 391

warlike, but they soon degenerated, and acquired tike
reputation of being the meanest of all people, Mysorum
ultimus or last of the Mysians being used as a most
contemptuous epithet. The ancients generally hired them
to attend their funerals as mourners because they were
naturally melancholy and inclined to shed tears. I think
that the last lingering remnant of that bygone race must
have wandered into this country, and, unable to obtain
employment in their natural vocation, mourn and wail
over the fate of Canada, urge our people to commit
national suicide, and use every effort to destroy that hope
and confidence which a young country like our own should
always possess. This small clique is working in collusion
with our enemies in the States, the design being to entrap
us into annexation by force or fraud. This threat upon
our country's life, and the intrigues of these conspirators
have had the effect that similar attempts have had upon all
nations that have possessed the slightest elements of man-
liness. The patriotic feeling at once became aroused, the
clergy in their pulpits preached loyalty and patriotism,
the people burst out into song, and patriotic poems of
greater or less merit appeared in the local press every-
where. The Stars and Stripes, often before draped in
friendly folds with the Union Jack, disappeared from
sight, while our own flag was hoisted all over the land.
Battle anniversaries were celebrated, military monuments
decorated, and in all public gatherings the loyal sentiment
of tbe people showed itself, not in hostility to the people
of the United States, but in bitter contempt for the disloyal
among ourselves, who were intriguing to betray the country.
This manifestation of the popular feeling killed the com-
mercial union movement. No party in Canadian politics
would touch it, and the Commercial Union Club in this city
is, I believe, defunct. Its chairman, however, has not
given up his designs against Canada. Coming to Canada
about twenty years ago, his first mission was to teach the
Canadians those high principles of honour of which he
wished them to believe he was the living embodiment.
His writings and his influence have never been on the side

392 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

of the continued connection between Canada and the
Empire, but it is only within the last year or two that he
has thrown off the mask, and taking advantage of the
movements in the States to coerce us into annexation has
come out openly in favour of the idea under the name of
Continental Unity. In his last lecture on " Jingoism/'
given a few weeks ago, he made his political farewell.
If I placed the slightest confidence in his statement that
he had concluded his attacks on Canada, I would not have
troubled to answer this, his latest vindictive effusion. But
be baa already made so many farewells that he calls to
mind the numerous farewell performances of antiquated
ballet dancers, who usually continue repeating them till
they are hissed off the stage. Before three weeks had
elapsed he once more appeared before the public, with a
letter announcing once more his departure from the stage,
and arguing at length in favour of annexation for the
purpose of influencing Mr. Solomon White's Woodstock
meeting. Mr. White's speech and his letter were the
only words heard in favour of that view, in a meeting
which by an overwhelming majority of both parties in
politics, voted against the idea. He will write again and
lecture again if he sees any opportunity of doing Canada
any injury.

This Oxford Professor has been most systematic in his
efforts to cany out his treasonable ideas. He sees several
obstacles in his way. The prosperity of the people, their
loyalty to their sovereign, their love for the motherland,
the idea of imperial unity, the memory of what we owe
to the dead who have died for Canada's freedom, and
the martial instinct of our young men which would
lead them to light to maintain the independence of their
country. He sees all these influences in his way, while
the only inducement he can hold out to us in support
of his view is tin- delusive hope that annexation would
make us more prosperous and wealthy. How getting
a market among our competitors, who produce every-
thing we sell and are our rivals everywhere, would enrich
a difficult point to maintain, and as his forte

APPENDIX B 393

is destruction and not construction, his main efforts arc
devoted to attacking all that stands in his way. Without
the same ability, he seems desirous of playing the part of
a second Tom Paine in a new revolution, hoping to stab
the mother country, and rob her empire of half a continent,
as did that other renegade whose example he tries to
imitate. He neves loses an opportunity to make Canadians
dissatisfied with their lot, trying to make us believe that
we are in a hopeless state, while in reality we are exceed-
ingly prosperous. In England he poses as a Liberal
Unionist, which gives him a stand-point in that country
from which he can attack Canada to the greatest ad-
vantage. His book on the Canadian question was evidently
written for the purpose of damaging this country in
England. One of his very few sympathisers said to me
with a chuckle, "It will stop emigration to Canada for
five years." I need not devote time to this, however.
Principal Grant has exposed its inaccuracies and unfair-
ness, and proved that this prophet of honour has been
guilty of misrepresentations that would shame a fourth-
rate Yankee politician.

In the London Anti- Jacobin this summer he tells the
English people to turn their attention to Africa, to India,
and to Egypt, that there they have fields for achievement,
and that other fields may be opened when the Turkish
empire passes away, and asks the English people why they
should cling to a merely nominal dominion. He evidently
longs to see Englishmen, and English treasure and English
enterprise given to assist and develop India, Africa, Egypt,
or Turkey, anywhere except Canada, which has given him
a home and treated him with a forbearance and courtesy un-
paralleled. The vindictive malignancy of this suggestion to
the Anti- Jacobin is manifest. He sees that emigration to
the magnificent wheat fields of our North- West will help
and strengthen Canada, and so he decries Canada in his
book and writes to English journals endeavouring to
divert English enterprise and capital to countries inhabited
by alien races about whose affairs and possibilities he
knows nothing. These are instances of his systematic

394 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

intrigues against the prosperity of Canada. In February

to attack the innate loyalty of the people, he

delivered bo an organisation of young men in this city a

Lecture on " Loyalty." The whole aim of the lecture was
to throw ridicule upon the very idea. A few men of bad
character, who had claimed to be loyal, were quoted to
insinuate that loyalty was synonymous with vice. As
I have in my lecture on the M United Empire Loyalists'1
sufficiently answered him on this point, I will pass on to
the next which was on " Aristocracy." The object of this
lecture was to discredit aristocracy, to show that the
aristocracy belong to England and to the Empire, and to
try to arouse the democratic instincts of a democratic1
country like ours against British connection. To weaken,
if possible, the natural feeling of the people towards the
land of their ancestors. His last lecture, on "Jingoism,"
is the one I principally wish to deal with, as it is aimed
at the other influences, which this Mysian desires to
weaken in furtherance of his traitorous plans. The main
object is to strike at our national spirit, at the evidences
of it, and at the causes which increase and nourish this
sentiment. He combines in a few words what he objects
to : " Hoisting of Hags, chanting martial songs, celebration
of battle anniversaries, erection of military monuments,
decoration of patriotic graves, aiming- and reviewing the
very children in our public schools." In his elegant way
he says : lilf Jingoism finds itself in need of all these
stimulants, we shall begin to think it must be sick." As ;i
matter of fact, it is these manifestations of a Canadian
national spirit that make him sick, to use his own
elegant phrase. He says, "Jingoism" originated in
the music halls of London. No feeling could have
originated in that way in Canada. We have neither the
music halls nor the class of population he refer
With his usual inaccuracy and want of appreciation of
historical teaching he fails to see that the national spirit
in Canada has shown itself in exactly the same way as
the same feeling has been exhibited in all great nations in
all ages, and has been evoked by the same cause, viz.

APPENDIX B 395

national danger. He speaks of protectionism coming back
to us from the tomb of mediaeval ignorance, forgetting that
he helped to resurrect it in 1878 and gave the influence of
his pen and voice to put that principle in power. The
volunteer movement, that embodiment of the martial
instinct of our race, the outcome of the manly feeling of
our youth to be willing to fight for the freedom and
autonomy of their native land is another great element
that stands in the way of the little gang of conspirators,
and so our lecturer attacks the whole force. As we have
no standing army, he praises the regular soldiers, so as
by innuendo the more forcibly to insult our volunteers ;
insinuates that it is something feminine in the character of
our people that induces them to flirt with the scarlet and
coquette with the steel. This historian says the volunteer
movement in England was no pastime, it was a serious
effort to meet a threatened danger ; but, unfortunately
for his argument, the danger never came to anything.
And yet he ought to know that volunteers in England
have never seen a shot fired in anger for over two hundred
years, and that he was speaking to the citizens of a city,
that have seen in every generation since it was founded
dead comrades brought home for burial who had died in
action for their country. The loss of life and the hardships
of the North-west campaign, the exposure to the bitter
cold of winter storms, and the other sufferings of our
Toronto lads on the north shore trip, of course, were only
pastime, while the parading in the parks and commons of
England, in the long summer evenings, has been a serious
effort. The erection of a monument at Lundy's Lane,
unless it included honouring the aggressors who fought
against us and tried to wrest from us our country, is
described as " the meanness of unslaked hatred." Are the
monuments all over England, France, Germany, Russia,
Switzerland, Rome, Greece and the United States all
evidences of " the meanness of unslaked hatred " % They
have never hitherto been looked at in that light. The
professor, however, considering how he is always treating
a country that has used him far better than he ever

396 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

deserved, should be a first-class authority on the meanness
of unslaked and unfounded hatred. After twenty-five
yciiis the people of Toronto decorated the monument in
honour of their dead volunteers, who died in defence of
Canada in 1866. There was not one word of swagger or
fanfaronade, simply an honouring of the memory of the
(lead, and pointing out the lesson it taught to the living
to be true to their country. This is the cause of a sneer
from this man, who seems to forget that those who fell in
1866 died for Canada. What more could man do than
give up his life in defence of his country? And yet we,
the people of Toronto, have to submit to these insults to
the memory of our dead follow-citizens. An earnest
protest is also made against teaching patriotism to our
children in the public schools, making them nurseries, as
he says, of party passion. Of all the many instances
of the false arguments and barefaced impertinence of this
stranger, this is the worst. What party in this country is
disloyal? What party is not interested in Canadian
patriotism 1 A few strangers, some like the Athenian
Eschines, believed to be in the pay of the enemy, some
actuated only by natural malignity, are trying to destroy
Canada, and find the patriotic spirit of our people in the
way. These men have tried to hang on to the outskirts of
a great and loyal party, and by the ill odour which attaches
to them have injured the party, which longs to be quit of
them. When Goldwin Smith's letter was read at the
Woodstock meeting another letter from the foremost
Liberal leader in Canada was there advising the Liberal
party to be true to its fidelity to the old flag, to vote down
the resolutions of the conspirators, and to show that we
were prepared to sacrifice something to retain the allegiance
of this great Dominion to the sovereign we love. I have
never referred to this question without vouching for
the loyalty of the great body of the Liberal party, and
illy for the loyalty of my old Leaders, the Hon.
George Brown, Mr. Mackenzie, Mr. Blake and Mr.
Mowat. And .Mr. Mowat voiced the feeling of all
true Canadians, for, thank God, this has not yet become

APPENDIX B 397

a party question. As is done in Switzerland, and as is
universally done in the United States — and all honour
to them for it — all parties will unite to teach our children
to honour our own nag, to sing our own songs, to celebrate
the anniversaries of our own battles, to learn our own
history, and will endeavour to inspire them with a national
spirit and a confidence in our future. In all this, remember
that we do not want war. It is the last thing anyone wants.
These intrigues between traitors here and enemies in the
States may betray us into war, but if it comes, it will not
be the fault of the Canadian people, or the great mass of
the right-thinking people of the United States. We only
want to be let alone. We have everything a nation
requires, we have an immense territory and resources, we
are as free as air, with as good institutions as any country
in the world. We do not wish to lose our nationality or
to join a country for mere mercenary considerations where,
in addition to a thousand other disadvantages, we would
have to pay more as our share of the pension fund alone
than the whole interest on our present national debt. We
have nothing whatever to fight for ; we don't even
require their market unless we can get it on equal
and honourable terms. We do not intend, as some
advise, to kneel down in the gutter in front of our
neighbour's place of business, and put up our hands and
blubber and beg him to trade with us. Such a course
would be humiliating to the self-respect of a professional
tramp. A war could do us no good — could give us no
advantage we do not now possess, save that it would rid
us of our traitors. It would be a fearful struggle, and, no
matter how successful we might be, would bring untold
loss and suffering upon our people. This professor of
history, who asks if we want war, ought to know that
every attempt in the past to carry out his views has
resulted in bloodshed. In 1775 our people fought against
the idea. In 1812 they fought again in the same cause.
In 1837, in spite of real grievances, all was forgotten in
the loyalty of the Canadians, and once more by bloodshed
the feeling of the people was manifested. On the 27th

398 THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

October, 1874, the Globe editorially told him that what he
was advocating simply meant revolution, and yet this man
who is taking a course that he knows leads in the direction
of war and bloodshed has the impudence to charge loyal
men who are working in the opposite direction with
wanting war.

The Swiss have for 500 years celebrated their battle
anniversaries and honoured their Hag and taught patriotism
and military drill to their children. Their whole male
population is drilled, and yet no one charges them with
being an aggressive or "jingo" race; no one ever dreams
that they desire war. It is a fallacious and childish
argument to say that this kind of national spirit in itself
indicates an aggressive feeling. If so, the United States
must be a most aggressive race, for no country waves her
flag more persistently with cause or without ; no country
more generally decorates the graves of her dead soldiers,
and no country is erecting so many military monuments,
and I respect them for it. By all means let us live on
friendly terms with our neighbours, but certainly no
people would despise us as much as they would were all
Canadians so cowardly and contemptible as some sojourners
here wish us to be.

The census returns seem to cause great satisfaction to
our enemies. The progress has not been as fast as some
could wish, and the exodus of our people is much talked
of. The only trouble I find is that the exodus is not as
extensive as it should be. The man who cannot get on
here, or who is dissatisfied with Canada or her institutions,
is right to go to the country he likes best. It does not
cost much to go, and, if he wishes, by all means let him
go. The man to be despised is he who, dissatisfied here,
remains here, and, using the vantage ground of residence
in the country, exerts every effort to injure and destroy it.
If a few of this class would join the exodus, instead of
doing all they can to increase it, it would be a ble-
and in the end increase materially both our population
and our prosperity. Strength does not consist so much in
numbers as in quality. When Hannibal was crossing into

APPENDIX B 399

Italy he called for volunteers to stay behind to garrison
some posts ; not that he required them, but because he
desired to rid himself of the half-hearted. Some thousands
volunteered to remain. He then considered his army
much stronger than when it was more numerous, because
the weak element was gone. Shakespeare, that great
master of human nature, puts the same idea in Henry V.'a
mouth on the eve of Agincourt, when in the face of fearful
danger :

Oh, do not wish one more ;
Rather proclaim it, Westmoreland, through my host
That he who hath no stomach to this fight
Let him depart ; his passport shall be made
And crowns for convoy put into his purse :
We would not die in that man's company
That fears his fellowship to die with us.

It is this very exodus of the dissatisfied from Canada that
makes our people more united and determined. We have
about 5,000,000 of people anyway, about equal to the
population of England when she faced Spain, about equal
to the population of Prussia when, under Frederick the
Great, she waged a triumphant war against a combination
of Powers of about 100,000,000.

The remarks about the copyright law are really too
funny. The professor says that the anti-British feeling in the
States is dying out, " and its death will be hastened by
the International Copyright Law, because hitherto the
unfair competition to which American writers were ex-
posed with pirated English works has helped to embitter
them against England." Their hatred is not against their
own countrymen, who, with the consent of the nation,
have pirated English books, and sold them in competition
against their native writings, but it is vented against the
poor, innocent English author, whose property has been
taken from him, much against his will and to his great
loss. There is not a man in all the United States who
would imagine so mean an idea. Space will not admit of
answering one-half the misrepresentations and false argu-
ments in this lecture on " Jingoism." The utter indiffer-

4oo THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

(Mice to facts and to the teachings of history, when they
do not aid his arguments, gives this lecturer an advantage
from which a more scrupulous writer is debarred. Take
for instance his reference to the calmness and freedom in
the States daring the civil war. His statement that
"civil law prevailed, personal liberty was enjoyed, the
whs free, and criticised without reserve the acts of
the Government and the conduct of the war " seems
strange to any who remember the history of the time when
Seward's " little bell " could put any citizen in the northern
states in prison without warrant or trial; when Fort
Lafayette in New York harbour, the old capitol at
Washington, Fort McHenry at Baltimore, and Fort
Warren at Boston were filled to overflowing with political
prisoners ; when newspapers were suspended and editors
imprisoned, when Clement Vallandigham, one of the fore-
most men in the United States, was imprisoned and then
banished for criticising the policy of the Government.

He speaks of his sympathy with the " Canada First n
movement, of which I was one of the originators and for
which I chose the motto " Canada First,' the idea being
that we were to put our country first, before all personal
or party considerations. We began our work by endeav-
ouring to stir up and foster a national spirit. Charles
Mair wrote a series of letters from Fort Garry to the
Globe in 1869, before the North-West territories became
part of Canada, advocating the opening of that country.
His letters were filled with the loyal Canadian spirit.
Robert (!. Qaliburton a year or two after went through
the country lecturing on " Intercolonial Trade," and "The
Men of the North," and teaching the same lesson. W. A.
i about the same time wrote his lecture on "Canada
First, a magnificent appeal to Canadian patriotism, while
1 lectured in different parts of the Dominion on "The
Duty of Canadians to Canada," urging the necessity of
encouraging a strong national spirit in the people. The
professor says he gave the movement his sympathy and
such assistance as he could with his pen. He hoped, as
did one or two others who injured us by their support, to

APPENDIX B 401

turn it into an independence movement and make a sort
of political party out of it, and it melted into thin air, but
the work of the originators was not all lost, as Mair says
in his lines in memory of our friend Foster :

The seed they sowed has sprung at last,
And grows and blossoms through the land.

The professor has in the same way been giving his
sympathy and support to the Reform party, advocating
trade arrangements somewhat as they do, and tacking on
annexation, which they do not. His assistance is blasting
to the Reform party, and nothing but Mr. Mowat's manly
repudiation of his ideas could save the party from the
injury and damage that so unwelcome a guest could not
fail to bring upon it. For I have no doubt he is as
unwelcome in the ranks of the Reform party as his
presence in Canada is a source of regret to the whole
population. The last words of his lecture are as follows :

" But at last the inevitable will come. It will come,
and when it does come it will not be an equal and
honourable union. It will be annexation indeed."

With this last sneer, with this final insulting menace,
this stranger bids us farewell, and only does so, partly
because he thinks that in his book and in his lectures
he has done all that he possibly can to injure our
prosperity, to destroy our national spirit, to weaken our
confidence in ourselves and in our country ; and partly
also to disarm criticism and somewhat allay the bitter
feeling his disloyal enmity to Canada has aroused. But
we need not lose hope.

The instances I have given from the history of the past
show that the very spirit that has carried great nations
through great trials has manifested itself in all ages,
just as the patriotic feeling of the Canadian people has
burst out under the stress of foreign threats and foreign
aggression, and under the indignation aroused by internal

D 1)

4oa THE STRUGGLE FOR IMPERIAL UNITY

intrigue and treachery. This feeling cannot be quenched.
Our nag will be hoisted as often as we will, and 1 am
glad to notice that our judges are seeing that what is a
general custom shall be a universal custom, and that where
the Queen's courts are held there her flag shall float over-
haul. All parties will unite in encouraging a national spirit,
for no party can ever attain power in this country unless it is
loyal. M r. Mowat shows this clearly in a second letter which
lias just been published in the Globe. We will remember
the deeds of our ancestors and strive to emulate their
example. Our volunteers will do their duty in spite of sneers,
whether that duty be pastime or a serious effort. We will
strive to be good friends with our neighbours, and trade
with them if they will, putting above all, however, the
honour and independence of our country. In Mr. Mowat's
words :

" We will stand firm in our allegiance to the sovereign
we love, and will not forget the dear old land from which
our fathers have come."

If all this is " Jingoism," the Canadians will be " Jingoes,"
as that loyal Canadian, Dr. Beers, said in his magnificent
lecture at Windsor. We would rather be loyal Jingoes
than disloyal poltroons. If history teaches us anything, it
teaches us that a sound national spirit alone can bring our
native land to a prominent position among the nations of
the earth ; and if thus animated, what a strength this
country will be to the British Empire, of which, I hope,
we may ever form a part. Let us then do everything to
encourage this spirit. Let all true Canadians think of
Canada first, putting the country above all party or
personal or pecuniary considerations, ever remembering
that no matter what the dangers, or trials, or difficulties,
or losses may be, we must never lose faith in Canada. I
will conclude with a few lines from one of " The Khan's "
poems, which appeared not long since in one of our city
papers, as they indicate the feeling that exists generally
among native Canadians :

APPENDIX B 403

Shall the mothers that bore us bow the head

And blush for degenerate sons ?
Are the patriot fires gone out and dead ?

Ho ! brothers, stand to the guns,
Let the flag be nailed to the mast

Defying the coming blast,
For Canada's sons are true as steel,

Their mettle is muscle and bone.
The Southerner never shall place his heel

On the men of the Northern Zone.

Oh, shall we shatter our ancient name,

And lower our patriot crest,
And leave a heritage dark with shame

To the infant upon the breast ?
Nay, nay, and the answer blent

With a chorus is southward sent :
' ' Ye claim to be free, and so are we ;

Let your fellow-freemen alone,
For a Southerner never shall place his heel

On the men of the Northern Zone."

THE END

D I)

INDEX

Abbott, Sir John, 217

Abercorn, the Duke of, 299

Aberdeen Journal on News-
paper Society's dinner, .302

Aberdeen, Lord, at National
Club dinner, 239

Aberdeen, Mr. James Bryce's
meeting at, 305

Abortive political movement,
56-61

Adams, Charles Francis, 109

Address, House of Commons
to the Queen, 131

Adolphustown, meeting at, 64

Alaska acquired by United
States, 98

Alaskan Award, 347

Algoma, contest constituency,
57

Allan, Hon. G. W., 65, 158

Allen, Benjamin, 78

Allen, J. Davis, visits Canada,
259 ; visits Toronto, 260

Allen, Ethan, 109

Alverstone, Lord, on Alaskan
Arbitration, 348

American Continental Con-
gress, 2

Ames, Oliver, 109

Amnesty meeting, 41-45

Annexation letters to Globe,
121

Annexation manifesto of 1849,
4

Annual meeting, Imperial
Federation League in
Canada, 1888, 91 ; 1889,
128 ; 1890, 138 ; 1892, 195 ;
1893, 196; 1894,204; 1896,
213

Annual meeting, Imperial
Federation League (Eng-
land), 1890, 142

Annual meeting, British
Empire League in Canada,
1897, 223 ; 1898, 244 ; 1899,
248 ; 1900, 271 ; 1901, 285 ;
1902, 288, 289 ; 1903, 347

Annual meeting, British Em-
pire League (England), 1902,
324

Appendix A, 369

Appendix B, 375

Archibald, Lt. -Governor, visits
Niagara Falls, 36 ; plot to
forestall expedition, 45-47 ;
fails to meet Riel's emis-
saries, 48

Argentine export of wheat,
1897, 238, 239

Armour, Chief Justice, 347

Arnold-Forster, Rt. Hon.
H. O., 199

Ashburton, Lord, 349

Atlantic and Pacific Fleets
increased, 152

406

INDEX

Atlantic Steamship Combine,
292

Avebury, Lord (Sir John
Lubbock), 203, 206; pre-
sides at conference, 207 ;
member of organising com-
mittee, 209 ; British Empire
League inaugurated, 212 ;
meeting at his house, 230 ;
at British Empire banquet,
280 ; presides at Council
meeting, 1902, 299; at
Congress, 358

Aylesworth, Hon. Mr.,
Alaskan Arbitration, 348

B

Badenach, Win., 58

Badgerow, G. W., 58

Ktincs, Talbot, :;oo

Baker, Edgar, 78

Balfour, Rt. Hon. A. J., 76

Banquet, British Empire

League in London, 1900,

271-280
Barrio, meeting at, 136

on, Sir Edmund, 280, 332,

334
Bastedo, S. T., 189
Beach, Sir Michael Hicks-, on

food supply, 236, 334, 356
Beatty, W. H., 158, 197

. Dr. \\ . Geo., speech at

Syracuse, 12(5; speech at

Toronto, 137
Begg, Faithfull, M.P., 321,

m

Behring Sea fisheries, 147,
150, 15]

Belleville welcomes Kchultz,

27
Bennett, Capt. James, 26, 4.".
Beresford, Lord Charles, 320
Bernard, Lally, letter to Globe,

Bethune, R. N., 159

Biggar, C. W. R., 58 ; on Sir
Oliver Mowat, 186, 192

Birmingham Chamber of Com-
merce, 138

Blackstock, T. G., 197

Blain, Hugh, 58, 158, 197

Blaine, Hon. James, Behrimj
Sea difficulty, 147, 151, 153;
re Commercial Union, 1(V.)

Blake, Edward, at National
Club, 239

Bliss, Cornelius N., 109

Board of Trade banquet, 1887,
88

Board of Trade banquet, Sir
Oliver Mowat's speech, 193

Body Guard, Governor-
General's, escort Lord
Lansdowne, 73

Boer ultimatum, 2<>4

Borden, Sir Fred, in England,
L902, 322,331, 333, 334

Borthwick, Sir Algernon, 209

Boswell, Mayor, 64, 65

Boulton, Major Charles, 23

Boulton, Sir S. B., 321

Bourassa, Henri, 264

Bowell, Sir Mackenzie, 217,
244

Braddon, Sir Edward, 226

Brantford branch formed, 119

Brassey, Hon. T. A., 207

Brassey, Lord, 198, 209

Bristol Chamber of Commerce
meeting, 316

British Columbia, union with
Canada, 9

Brock, Sir Isaac, L6

Brock, W. R., 158

Brock's Monument, 158

Broomhall, G. S., 239

Brown, Hon. G., letters of
Mair to Globe, 14 ; Red River
expedition, 34 ; publishes
Foster's lecture, 55 ; Algoma
election, 57

Bruce Mines, meeting at, 57

Bryce, Dr. George, 20

INDEX

40:

Bryce, Rt. Hon. James, at
Aberdeen, 305, 315

Bull, Rev. Canon, 185, 186

Bulletin, New York Commer-
cial, 106, 148

Bunting, Percy Win., corre-
spondence with, 178

Butler. General Benjamin F.,
105

Butler, Sir Walter, 299

Caledonian Society dinner,

1888, 122
California absorbed by United

States, 98
Cambridge, the Duke of, 140
Cameron, Hector, 78
Cameron, Hon. John Hillyard,

32
Campbell, C. J., 159
Canada, condition of, before

Confederation, 7
Canada Club dinner, 1902, 315
Canada Club, speech at, 1890,

150
" Canada First " party, origin
of and meaning of, 9

group aroused, 19

a secret organisation, 21

name chosen, 50

Foster's lecture, 54
Canadian Club, dinner to Mr.

Aylesworth, 348
Canadian Club of New York,

82
Canadian Monthly started, 169
Canadian Mounted Rifles, 269
Canadian Pacific Railway,

cause of Commercial Union

movement, 81
Canadian Pacific Railway, plot

to injure it, 110
Canniff, Dr. Wm., 19, 26, 56,

58, 65
Carbutt, Sir Edward, 299

Carnegie, Andrew, member of
Continental Union League,
109 ; at meeting in Sun office,
111 ; subscription to Conti-
nental Union League, 113
Carruthers, Bruce, at Hart's

River action, 269
Cartier, Sir George, in Hudson
Bay negotiations, 13 ; Red
River expedition, 34 ; visits
Niagara Falls with Bishop
Tache, 35-37 ; his early dis-
loyalty, 44 ; changes his
policy re Red River, 45 ;
letter to Riel, 48 ; defeated
in Montreal, 49
Cartoon, United States in 1900,

104
Cartwright, Sir Richard, re-
solution on reciprocity, 117 ;
meeting with Hon. James
Blaine, 163 ; on tariff in-
quiry, 220 ; defends Sir
Wilfrid Laurier, 226
Casey, George E., M.P., 246
Cattanach, A. J., 128
Cawthra, Henry, 158
Cecil, Lord Robert, letter to

Times, 353
Centennial of United Empire

Loyalists, 64, 65
Chamberlain, Rt. Hon. Austen,

318
Chamberlain, Rt. Hon. Joseph,
75 ; at Board of Trade ban-
quet, 1887, 88 ; interview
with, 1890, 146 ; at British
Empire League banquet,
1900, 272; on preferential
tariffs, 282 ; luncheon with,
1902, 298 ; Liverpool meet-
ing, 1902, 306; at Lord
Lansdowne's, 308 ; speech
at Birmingham, May, 1902,
308 ; Daily News attacks,
310 ; correspondence with,
338 ; letter to him, 343-346 ;
speech at Birmingham, May,

4o8

INDEX

1903, 346 ; controversy
with Lord Salisbury, 349;
luncheon with, 1906, 366 ;
illness of, 358, 366

Charlton, John, M.P., in
Continental Union Associa-
tion, 108 ; asks Glen for
money, 112

Chelmsford, meeting at, in
1900, 282; effect of this
meeting, 286

Chicago Tribune, 103; on
speech, 19(12, 297

( Ihippawa, " Raising the
Flag," 159

Civil War in United States, :>

Clafflin, John, 10'.)

(Mark, J. M., 85, 91 ; seconds
resolution, 1888, 94; at
Ingersoll, 205 ; on deputa-
tions, 136, 204, 224

Clarke, Mayor, 136

Cleveland, President, message
to Congress, LOS, 120;
Venezuela message, 210, 218

Cobden Club give Sir \\ .
Laurier Gold Medal, L42

Coburg, reception of Schultz

and Mail', 28
Cochrane, Bourke, 109, 1 1 2
Cockburn, Capt. Churchill, at

action of Lilliefontein, 268
Cockburn, George R. R., 78,

85, 91 ; occupies chair at

First Imperial Federation

meeting, 92, L59, L97, 200
Cockburn, sir .John, 299
Cookshutt, W. F., M.P., at
Congress of Chambers of
( lommeroe, 358
Colomb, Sir John, 140, L99
Colonial Club dinner, L902,
315

ial Union, origin of,
80 Hl' ; a treasonable con-
spiracy, 82 96
Commons, resolution on Pre-
ference, 1 96

Condition of Canada before
Confederation, 7, 8

Confederation of Canada, ti

Conference of 1907 futile, :;•',»;

Congress, the American, 2

Congress of Chambers of Com-
merce, 190(5, l>1l\ 356, 359

( '< institution of Imperial Feder-
ation League, 77

Constitution of National A
ciation, 59

Oontempora/ry Review, Goldwin
Smith in, 177

Continental Union A ss< >ciat i< >n,
108, 109; Goldwin Smith
Honorary President, l(i!» ;
Goldwin Smith's letter to,
174

Contingent to South Africa,
letter on, 265, 266

Cornell, W. B.,

Corn laws, repeal of, 4

Cosby, A. M., 158, 197

Cotton, growth <>f, in Empire,

o(><>, 301
Council Meeting of Imperial
Federation League in 1890,
Ul

Cam ■■ !■'"<!, ei

from, ;;ii:

Cox, Harold, 211
Creelman, A. R., 197
Creighton, David, L36, L66
< "i ickmore, .!.,
Crimean War, raised prioi
Cumberland, Lt.-Col. Fred W.,

57
Currie, Sir Philip, Behrhn

question, 148
Curry, J. \\\, K.C., 291
Curzon, Mrs, S. A., poem, 87

Dana, Chas. A., Continental
Union League, 109 ; at meet-
ing in Sun office, 111 ; Myers

INDEX

409

visits, 112 ; Mercier's letter
to, 114 ; letter to Morison,
115

Darling, Henry W., 82

Davidson, Lt.-Col. John I.,
158

Davies, Sir Louis, 244

Daw, W. Herbert, at Con-
ference in 1894, 207, 208

Dedrickson, C. W., 58

Denison, Colonel George T.,
one of Canada First Group,
10 ; welcomes refugees from
Fort Garry, 24, 25 ; goes to
Ottawa with refugees, 26 ;
drafts protest, 29 ; interview
with Lt.-Col. Durie, 37 ;
moves resolution at meeting,
1870, 43 ; lecture on Duty of
Canadians, 50 ; advocates
Imperial Confederation, 1870,
53 ; speech at National Club
against independence, 63 ;
speech at United Empire
Loyalists' Centennial, 66, 67;
O'Brien episode, 69 ; opposes
Commercial Union, 83, 84 ;
speech at Board of Trade
banquet, 1887, 88 ; at organi-
sation of Imperial Federation
League, Toronto, 91, 92, 93 ;
letter to Globe, 1888, 121 ;
at Caledonian Society dinner,
122 ; threatens Annexation-
ists, 123, 126 ; at Ingersoll,
Lindsay, and St. Thomas,
127 ; at Peterborough and
Woodstock, 128 ; chairman
of flag-raising deputation,
135 ; appointed president
Imperial Federation League,
196 ; on deputation to Eng-
land, 1894, 204; at confer-
ence, Sir John Lubbock's,
1894, 207 ; organisation of
British Empire League, 213 ;
deputation to Hon. Wm.
Fielding and Mr. Patterson,

220 ; mission to England,
1897, 225 ; on denunciation
of German treaties, 228, 229,
230 ; interviewed in Toronto,
1897, 231 ; on food supply,
232-236 ; on West Indian
preference, 242, 243 ; speech
at annual meeting, 1899,
248 ; South African War, at
Military Institute, 260, 261 ;
letter to Globe on Volunteer
contingent, 265 ; at British
Empire League banquet in
England, 1900, 271-280 ;
speech at Chelmsford, 1900,
282 ; speaks at St. John,
N.B., and Montreal and
London, Ont,, 287, 288 ;
mission to England, 1902,
291 ; speech at Royal
Colonial Institute, 1902,
293 ; at Council meeting,
British Empire League, 299 ;
interview with Lord Rose-
bery, 303 ; addresses Liver-
pool Chamber of Commerce,
305 ; dines at Lord Lans-
downe's, 308 ; letter to Daily
News, 311 ; discussion in
House of Commons, 316 ;
addresses London Chamber
of Commerce, 319, 320;
controversy with Sir Robert
Giffen, 326-331 ; returns to
Toronto and interview, 332,
333 ; banqueted by National
Club, Toronto, 335 ; writes
to Mr. Chamberlain, 23rd
March, 1903, 343 ; writes
to Times on Lord Salisbury's
views, 349-352 ; writes to
Times in reply to Lord
Robert Cecil, 354 ; speech
at Congress of Chambers of
Commerce, 359
Denison, Lt.-Col. Fred C,
writes to Wiman, 86, 87,
158, 165, 218.

4TO

INDEX

Denison, Rear- Admiral, 280
Denison, Lt.-Col. Robert B.,

65
Denison, Lt.-Col. Septimus,

206
Dennis, Lt.-Col. J. Stoughton,

17, 18
Depew, Chauncey M., 109
Deputation to England, 1894,

204; L897, 223, 224; 1902,

286, 287
Derby, Earl of, sends book to

thf Queen, 169 ; on British

Empire League committee,

208, 281
Detroit, 95
Devonshire, the Duke of,

president British Umpire

League, 212, 272, 273 ; at

Liverpool, 226, 226
Dickson, Casimir, 86
Dilke, Sir Charles, at Royal

Colonial Institute, 140
Dissolution of I in] K'lial Federa-
tion League, 194-198
Dobell, Hon. R. R., 224
Dodge, Granville W., 109
Donovan, J. A., 58
Drummond, George, 358
Dunraven, Lord, 209
Dun Winiau & Co., influence

of, 83
Durie, Lt.-Col., guard of

honour for Cartier, 37
"Duty of Canadians to

Canada," lecture on, 50, 51

Edgar, Sir James D., 19, 25,

43
Edinburgh, Lord Morley's

speech at, 315

Kdinburgh Chamber of Com-
merce meeting, 315
Egerton of Tatton, Earl, 299
Election of 1891, 155

Elgin, Lord, negotiates Reci-
procity Treaty, 5

Elliott, R. W., 58

Ellis, J. F., presides at
National Club dinner, 335

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 98

Empire, article in, 1890, 162 ;
comments on national spirit,
172 ; flags given to schools,
156

Empire Day inaugurated, 25(5

English, C. E., 58

Equal rights movement, I'M

Evans, Charles Napier, at
Hart's River, 269

Evans, George E., on deputa-
tion, 204 ; receives cable fr< >m
Africa, 258, 291

Evans, Sanford, 267

Executive committee, resolu-
tion, 1902, 289

Expedition, Red River, with-
drawal proposed, 36, 42

Express, The Daily, interview
in, 293

Fair Trade League, 211

Farrer, Edward, in Commer-
cial Union, 108; Glen's
letters to, 110, 111, 112 ;
pamphlet, 163, 164

Farrer, Sir William, 142

Fenian influence, 115

Fenian raid, Lt.-Col. J. S.
Dennis at, 17

Fenian raids, 9, 70, 240

Ferguson, R. Munro, 199

Fessenden, Mrs. Clementine,
suggests Empire Day, 266

Fielding, Hon. W. S., on Trade
Inquiry, 220, 221 ; West
Indian preference, 242, 243 ;
speech in House, 243 ; in
London in 1902, 331

Fife, the Duke of, 273

INDEX

411

Financial News on London
meeting, 321

Fisheries Treaty defeated in
United States Senate, 120

Fitzpatrick, Hon. Charles, 244

Flag raising over schools, 134,
135

Flag over schools, effect of,
269

Flannery, Sir Fortescue, 321

Fleming, Andrew, 27, 44

Fleming, Sir Sandford, 197,
224, 245, 246

Florida acquired by United
States, 100

Flower, Roswell P., 109, 113

Food supply, correspondence
on, 237

Foraker, John B., 109

Ford, I. N., report of Royal
Colonial Institute dinner,
1902, 294

Ford, I. N., 322, 323

Forrest, Sir John, 334

Fort Garry, 17 ; seized by
Riel, 18 ; projected attack
upon, 23

Foster, Hon. George E., at
First Imperial Federation
League meeting, 78 ; mission
to England, 1902, 290, 291

Foster, W. A., in "Canada
First" group, 10, 15 ; articles
in Daily Telegraph, 22 ; gets
warrant against Richot and
Scott, 31 ; calls public meet-
ing, 1870, 35 ; at amnesty
meeting, 1870, 44; writes
lecture, 54 ; organises
National Association, 56,
57, 58, 59

Fraser, W. H., 58
Free Trade, attack upon, at
London Chamber of Com-
merce, 320
Free Trade bogey, 286
Fremantle, Sir Charles, 299
French wars, expense of, 1

Fuller, Bishop of Niagara, 65
Fuller, Valancy, 82

G

Gallinger, Jacob, 109

Galloway, Joseph, 2

Gallows Hill, 95

Gamble, John W., 221

German goods taxed in Canada,
229

German and Belgian Treaties
prevented preference, 139 ;
mission against them, 150 ;
resolution against, 194 ; dis-
cussion on, 207, 208 ; efforts
against, in 1897, 228 ; de-
nounced, 230

Giffen, Sir Robert, interview
with, 234 ; supports Corn
Tax, 239 ; letter against me
to Times, 325 ; reply, 327

Glasgow, meeting at, 1902, 315

Glen, Francis W., organises
Continental Union League,
108; letters of, 109, 110,
111, 112

Globe, the London, comments,
352

Globe, Toronto, 14 ; letter to ,
in 1888, 101 ; attacks and
reply, 122, 124 ; interview
in 1897, 231

Gooderham, Albert E., 197

Gooderham, Alfred, 197

Gooderham, George, 158, 197

Gooderham, Wm. G., 197

Governor-General Lord
Lisgar, 45

Governors of States endorse
Cleveland, 211, 218

Graham e, Richard, of Canada
First Group, 19, 35, 58

Grant, Rev., Principal George
M., met him in Halifax, 53;
at First League meeting, 78 ;
in Australia, 127 ; at Hamil-

412

INDEX

ton, 128; on "preferential
trade, 204, 216 ; urges Weal
Indian preference, 242 ;
letters from, 243, 244 ;
sj icaks at Muloek banquet,
L898, 246 ; sympathises at
first with Boers, 259

Grasett, Lt.-Col., 291

Gray, R. H., 58

Green, Mohawk Chief, 65

Grey, Mr., United Empire
Loyalist, 221

< Juc'lph, meeting at, 136

Gurney, Edward, 158

Gzowski, Sir Casimir, 70, 159

II

1 [ague, < leorge, 246

llaliburton, R. .1., 10, 15, 16 ;
at Niagara Falls, 35 ; lec-
tures, it;, 51, 52, 53

Halifax, lecture at, 53

Halifax branch, annual meet-
ing of, 119

Hamilton, annual meeting at,

12*

Hamilton, Lord George, 148,
308

Hamilton, Wm. B., 159

Hamilton, Wm. O'Brien at,
70

Harcourt, Sir Win. Vernon,
speech in House of Com-
mons, 316

Harrison, President, breaks oil
"tiations, 151

Bartington, Lord, 74

Harts River, Bruce Carruthers,

at action of, 268, 269
Hawick, meeting at, in L894,

211
Hay, Admiral Sir Dalrymple,
:;-_'l

Col. John, L09, 111)
M., 210

Henderson, James, 159
Herbert, Sir Robert, chairman

of executive, 212, 272, 299
Herschel, Lord, at Muloek

banquet, 245, 246
Herschel, Hon. Richard, 245
Hessin, Wm., 58
Hill, Rt. Hon. Staveley,

Behring Sea negotiations,

L61, 153
Hill. W. Becket, 207, 208, 209
Hoflmeyer proposal, 90
Holland, Sir W. H., 299, 300,

301, 358
Home Rule resolutions, 69, 70
Hopkins, J. Castell, Wood-
stock meeting, 128 ; at

Ingersoll, 79; St. George's

Society, 175
Hoskin, John, 158
House of Commons address,

1891, 195, 196
Howard, Allan McLean, 158
Howe, Hon. Joseph, 4, 20
Howell, A.. 58
Howland. < ). A., 182
Howland, W. H., chairman at

Canada First meeting, 59,

60
Howland, Sir Wm. P., 59
Hudson's Bay officials, hostile,

17
Hudson's Bay Company, their

policy, 12
Hudson's Bay Territory, 0,

12 ; acquired, 15
Hughes, James L., 86 ; meet-
ing at Lindsay, 127 ; on

deputation to England, 1894,

205, 209, 211
Hughes, Colonel Sam, at

annual meeting, 1898, 244 ;

offers to raise contingent for

South Africa, 200
Hunter, Rose & Co. print

Farrer's pamphlet, 101
Huron, Bishop of, 288
Huron signal, 219

INDEX

4i3

Hutchinson, Thomas, 1
Hutton, Major-General, 268

1

Imperial Conference, 1902,
286, 287, 303, 305, 331,
332

Imperial defence, letter to
Times, 339

Imperial Federation (Defence)
Committee, 339

Imperial Federation fore-
shadowed in lecture in 1870,
53

Imperial Federation Journal,
comments of, 96, 118

Imperial Federation League
started, 77 ; in Canada, 85 ;
annual meeting, 1888, 91 ;
work of, 117-126 ; dissolved,
197, 198 ; resolution on dis-
solution, 199, 200

Imperial preferential duty, 287

Independence flag hoisted, 64

Independence flurry, 62-68

Independence movement,
Globe's action, 121

India, export of wheat, 1897,
238, 239

Ingersoll, branch formed at,
79 ; meeting at, 127

Innerkip, Meeting at, 173

Innes, Lt.-Col. P. R., 209

Interprovincial trade, Halibur-
ton's lecture on, 15

Irving, A.. S., 58

James, Dr. W. Culver, 207,

209, 299
Jersey, Lord, 209
Jesuit Estates Act, 194
Jones, Sir Alfred, organises

meeting at Liverpool, 305

Jette, Lt. -Governor, Alaska

Commission, 348
Jones, John P., 109

K

Kilbride, Mr., evicted tenant,

74, 75
Kimberley, cable from, 258
King, the, at British Empire

League banquet, 1900, 273,

274, 280
Kingsmill, George R., 20, 22,

58
Kingsmill, Nicol, 58
Kipling, Rudyard, poem, 222
Kirby, Wm, 185, 192
Kirkpatrick, Lt. -Governor Sir

George, 190
Kitchener, Lord, on Hart's

River action, 269
Kirwan, Capt. Michael, 114
Kirwin, General, 114
Knutsford, Lord, refuses to

denounce treaties, 196, 228

Lacrosse Club banquet, Lon-
don, 1902, 293

Lady of the Snows, 222

Langelier, Mr., at New York,
111

Lansdowne, Lord, visit to
Toronto, 70, 71, 73, 74;
interviewed by Imperial
Federation League, 118 ;
British Empire League
banquet, 1900, 272, 280;
dinner at, 308

La Prairie Camp, 33

Laurie, General, 321

Laurier, Sir Wilfrid, 111;
British preference, 216 ;
election of 1896, 219 ; Lord
Salisbury refers to, 220 ; in

414

INDEX

Liverpool, 1897, 225 ; on
Free Trade, 231 ; West
Indian preference, 242, 243 ;
resolution about Transvaal,
259 ; on contingent, 263,
264 : returns from Chicago,
2»>4 ; decides to send contin-
- Sir William
MulockV. 267 j speech in
House, r.M>2. 308 : interview
with, at Hotel Cecil, 331 ;
at conference, 1902, 333,
1 ; at conference, 1907,
366

Lauterbach, Edward, K)(.»

Law, Fred, Commander, 86,
128

Leader article on Red River
Expedition, 36

Lecture on " Duty of Cana-
dians," 50, 51

Lecture on "National Spirit,"
Appendix A, 371

Lee, A. B., 158

Lee, Capt., M.P., 300

Lee, Walter S., 158

Leeds, Lord Rosebery's meet-
ing at, 1902, 304

Lefroy, Fraser, 291

Leith Chamber of Commerce,
315

Letter to Globe, 26th Septem-
ber, 1888, 101

Letter to Globe on wanting
war, 124 ; on contingent,
266

>erance, John Talon, poem,
158

,d, Col. C. B., 268
John, Jr., 158

Liberty, Sons of, reference to,
126

Lilliefontein, tight at, 268

Lindsay, meeting at, 127

Lisgar, Lord, at Niagara Falls,
35, 45

Liverpool, arrived at, 1890,
140 ; in 1897, 220

Liverpool Chamber of Com-
merce, 1902, 305, 307

Liverpool papers, comments
on meeting, 307

London Chamber of Commerce
meeting, 1902, 319, 320

London, Ontario, meeting at,
1901, 288

Long, J. M., 79

Loring, A. 11., 197, 198, 199 ;
letter to Times in reply, 339

Louisiana purchased, 98

Low, Seth, 109

Low, Sydney, writes interview
for PaU Mcdl Gazette, 298

Loyal address from House to
the Queen, 131

Loyalists of* the Revolution, 1

Lubbock, Sir John : see Are
bury, Lord

Lubbock, Neville, 210

Lundy's Lane Monument, 181,
182

Lyman, Henry, 128

Lyman, H. H, 128, 224

Lynch, Dr., taken prisoner,
] 9 ; arrives from Fort Garry,
25 ; first protest, 30, 31 ;
second protest, 38, 39

M

Mafeking demonstration, 283
Mail, London Daily, on

Canadian Imperialism, 246
Mail, the Toronto, 117
Mair, Charles, 10 ; writes
letters from Fort Garry, 14 ;
introduces Schultz, 15; made
prisoner, 19 ; escapes from
Fort Garry, 21 ; raises loyal
men at Portage la Prairie,
23 ; lectures at Belleville,
53, 54
Manchester Cruardian, 303, 310
Manitoba No. 1, hard wheat,
13

INDEX

4i5

Mansion House, meeting at,
140 ; meeting in 1896, 212

Map of North America in New-
York World, 104

Marcus, Herman W., 207, 210

Masham, Lord, 314

Mason, Lt.-Col. James, 2C0

Mason, J. Herbert, 158, 197,
224

Matabeleland, proposed pre-
ference, 228

Matsugata, Count, at Lord
Lansdowne's dinner, 308

Matthews, Jehu, 78

Macdonald, E. A., 108, 190

Macdonald, Sir John A.,
Hudson's Bay acquisition,
13 ; Red River rebellion, 28 ;
interview with, 29 ; illness
of, 35, 41; letter to, 130,
161 ; election in 1891, 163,
164, 165, 166 ; his death,
217

Macdonald, J. K., 128

Macdougall, Hon. Wm., sent
to England re Hudson's Bay,
13 ; appoints Mair to sur-
veying party Fort Garry, 13;
Lt. -Governor of North- West
Territory, 15 ; arrives at
Pembina, 17 ; returns to
Ottawa, 20 ; at amnesty
meeting, 42 ; member North-
West Emigration Society, 54

Macdougall, Joseph E., 20, 54,
58

Macfarlane, Senator, 78

Macfarlane, Thomas, letter to
League Journal, 90 ; at
Hamilton meeting, 128

Mackenzie, Alexander,
becomes Premier, 49, 57

Macklem, Oliver, 158

Maclean, W F., M.P., 246

MacNab, John, County
Attorney, 24, 25

MacNabb, Alexander, Police
Magistrate, 31

McCarthy, Dalton, president
Imperial Federation League,
78 ; Toronto branch, 85, 90 ;
at Toronto meeting, 1888,
95, 96 ; at Peterborough,
128 ; at Hamilton, 128 ; Sir
Leonard Tilley replaces him
as president, 194 ; subscribes
to fund, 197 ; at annual
meeting, 1896, 216 ; suggests
preference to England, 222 ;
on deputation, 224
McGillicuddy, Daniel, 219
McGoun, Archibald, 139
McGuire, John C, 109
Mclnnes, Senator, 128
McKay, Dr., Sir Oliver Mowat

writes to him, 187
McKenzie, Kenneth, Q.C.,

44
McLennan, Hugh, 78
McMurrich, W. B., 58, 291
McNaught, W. K, 158, 240
McNeill, Alexander, 78 ; speech
at Paris, 91 ; at Toronto
meeting, 94 ; at Guelph,
112 ; moves resolution in
House of Commons, 195 ; in
the chair at annual meeting,
1893, 196 ; at meeting of
League at Ottawa, 1896,
214, 215 ; on deputation to
England, 224 ; attacks Sir
W. Laurier, 1897, 226;
speaks at Mulock banquet,
245, 246 ; introduces J.
Davis Allen, 260 ; on South
African War, 276 ; at Owen
Sound, 1901, 288
McTavish, Governor, 20
McTavish, John H., 48
Mc Williams, W. G., 58
Meath, Lord, takes up Empire

Day, 257
Medcalfe, Mayor, F. H., 43
Meeting of Imperial Federa-
tion League in Toronto,
1888, 91

4i6

INDEX

Meeting fco welcome Schultz,
Mair, etc., 24. 25, 26

Mercier Bonore, New York
World'* comment, 107 ; in
Continental Union League,
110; at meeting in New
York. Ill; Glen writes to,
112; writes to Dana, 113;
copy of letter, 114

Mercury, the Bristol, 316

Merritt, Lt.-Col.W. Hamilton,
helps to escort Lord Lans-
downe, 73; helps to organise
Toronto branch Imperial
Federation League, 7'->, 86 :
■ retary Toronto branch
Imperial Federation League,
91 : moves resolution for
preferential tariffs, 91, L95 ;
advocates deputation to
England, 139

Michie, .lames, 58

Military Gazette on South
African War, 263

Military Institute, meeting at,
260, 261

Militia, th(

Miller. Warner. L09

Milner, Lord, 260, 261, 264

Mission to England, 1897, 225;

ISM »L>. 223

Molesworth, Sir Guilford, 299,

300
Monkman, Joseph, 23
Montague, Hon. W. II., L82
Montreal meeting, L901, 288

Montreal Transcript, L3

Morgan Combine, 292

aon, John, president Con-
tinental Union Association,
L09, 111, 112

Morley, Lord, at Edinburgh,
1902, 315

Morning I'<>si on St. John
meeting, L902, 288; com-
ments, L903, 347

. < Jhief Justice Thomas,

Mow at. Arthur, contests West

Toronto, L66
Mowat, H. M., K.C., 291
Mowat, Sir Oliver, at St.
George's Society, 70; F. \\ .
Glen's reference to, 111,
112: assists Laurier, 1891,
166, 167 ; his views on
annexation, 178, 186, 187 ;
letter to Dr. McKay, M.P.,
187 ; action about Wood-
stock meeting, 189 ; speech
at Niagara, 1892, L90, L93 ;
joins Sir Wilfrid Laurier's

Government, 219; attends
Mulock banquet, 245
Milligan, Kev. Mr., 124
Mulock, Sir William, moves
address to the Queen, 130,
131, 132; pei in v postage,
244, 245 ; banquet to,
24(5 ; a conference of, IW-J,

331

Murray, C. Freeman, s-
tary of meeting, L894, 207 ;
member of organising com-
mittee British Empire

League, 210 ; cable from,

271
Mutton, W. <;., 58
Myers, Elgin, in annexation

conspiracy, 108 ; dismissed

from office, 190 ; visits C. A .

Dana, 112

X

National Association, constitu-
tion, 59

National Club founded, 60 ;
dinners at, 62; banquet to
Lord Aberdeen, 239 ; dinner,
L902, 336

National sentiment, efforts to

encourage, 1 L, 50

National Societies, 8

INDEX

417

"National Spirit," lecture on,
50, 172 ; Appendix B, 377

National spirit lacking before
Confederation, 8

National Union of Conserva-
tive Associations, England,
335

Naval reserve, 223

Navy Island, 1837, 95

Nelson, E. G., writes. Raise
the Flag, 157

Nelson, Knute, 109

New Brunswick, 11

News, The Daily, London,
attacks, 310 ; letter to, 311

Newspaper Society dinner,
1902, 302

Niagara- on-the-Lake, Centen-
nial meeting, 190 ; United
Empire Loyalist meeting,
64, 66

Nicholson, General Sir Wm.,
206

Nicholson, Peter, 57

Norfolk Reformer, 219

Norman, Field-Marshal Sir
Henry, 242

Norris, W. E., on Independ-
ence 64

Northc'ote, Sir Stafford, 28

Northern Railway in Algoma
Election, 58

"Northmen of the New
World," lecture by Hali-
• burton, 16

North- West Emigration Aid
Society, 50

North-West rebellion, 68, 95

North-West Territories, 13

Nova Scotia, 11

0

O'Brien, Archbishop, 79

speech at Halifax, 119
O'Brien, Dennis, 109

O'Brien, Wm., isit to Toronto,

70 ; meeting at Toronto, 74
O'Donohue, Joseph John, 109
Onslow, Lord, 209, 343
' ' Opening of the War of 1812, 'r

lecture, 171
Orillia, branch formed at, 119
Osier, E. B., 158, 197
Oswald, Mr., 348
Ottawa, branch meeting at,

119
Ottawa welcomes Lord Lans-

downe, 76
Ottendorfer, Oswald, 109
Otter, Colonel, 268
Outlook comments on letter to

Times, 353
Owen, Colonel, at Royal

Colonial Institute, 140
Owen Sound meeting, 1901,

288

Pacific cable, 286
Paisley, meeting at, 1902, 315
Pall Mall Gazette prints inter-
view, 298
Papineau, Louis Joseph, 111
Parker, Sir Gilbert, M.P.,
lunch at Constitutional Club,
293
Parkin, Dr. George R., C.M.G.,
tour in Australia, 105 ; lec-
ture at Whitechapel, 140 ;
at Imperial Federation meet-
ing, 144 ; on dissolution of
League, 203 ; on deputation,
204 ; at National Club dinner,
239 ; answers Edward Blake,
241 ; on deputation to Eng-
land, 1902, 290, 292
Patterson, Hon. Wm., 220;

at conference of 1902, 331
Paul, Mr., at Liverpool, 236
Pauncefote, Sir Julian, dis-
patch to United States
Government, 152, 153
E E

4i8

INDEX

Pembina, Hon. Wm. Mac-

dougall arrives at, 17
Percival, Sir Westby, 207, 209
Peterborough, branch formed

at, 79
Phelps, Walter, 109
Plan of Union of Empire by

Galloway, 2
Plumb, Senator, 78
1 '< triage la Prairie contingent,

23
Port Arthur, base of Red

River Expedition, 34 ;

branch formed at, 119
Porter, Horace, 109
Post Office service in Canada,

at first British, 8
Potter, O. B., 109, 113
Potts, Rev. Dr. John, 78
Preference granted to Great

Britain, 222
Prescott, Schultz welcomed at,

27
President of the League, 1893,

196
Press Association and Gold win

Smith, 179, 180
Prince of Wales at banquet,

1900, 273, 279; his advice

to Great Britain, 293
Princess Theatre, political

meeting in, 1891, 164, 165
Protest to Governor-General

by Dr. Lynch, 30, 31
Protest, Lynch's, against am-
nesty, 38, 39

Q

Queen, the, on Raise the Flag,

l.v.t
Queen's Own welcomes Lord

Lansdowne, 73 ; Sergeants'

Mess < m Imperial Federate in

136
Queenston Heights, 80 ; anni-

versary of, 155 ; view of, on
book, 158

Rae, G. M.. 20

Raise the Flag, song and book,

157, 158, 159
Rasch, Sir Carne, 282, 283
Reay, Lord, L99
Rebellion of 1837, 4
Reciprocity, discussion in 1902,

338; dangers of, in 1903,

344
Reciprocity treat
Red River Expedition, 33, 34 ;

proposed withdrawal, 36, 43
Red River Rebellion, 17
Red River Settlement, 13
Reid, Hon. G. H., 226
Report of Imperial Federation

League in England, 1890,

140, 141
Resolution at Toronto Station,

1870, 27
Resolution on withdrawal of

Red River Expedition, 43
Resolution in Commons on

preference, 196
Retaliation Act in Cong]

120
Review in Toronto in 1884,

64, 65
Rhodes, Cecil, on preference,

228
Rhodes, J. G., 199
Richot, Father, delegate from

Riel, 27, 28
Richot and Scott arrested and

discharged, 32
Ridout, John G., 58
Riel, seizes Fort Garry, 18 ;

parleys with loyalists, 23 ;

to send to meet Archibald,

45 ; letters from Bishop

Tache, 46, 47
Ripon, Lord, 228

INDEX

419

Ritchie, Rfc. Hon. C. T., 356,
357

Ritchie, J., Jr., 58

Roaf, James R., 58

Roberts, C. G. D., favours
independence, 64

Roberts, Field-Marshal Lord,
at United Service Club, 206 ;
attends conference at Lord
Avebury's, 207 ; on food
supply, 233 ; at Lord Lans-
downe's, 308

Robertson, J. Ross, 158

Robidoux, Mr., Ill

Robinson, Hon. John Beverley,
contests Algoma, 57 ; at
military dinner 1884, 65 ;
President Toronto branch
Imperial Federation League,
86, 91

Roosevelt, Theodore, 109

Root, Elihu, 109

Rosebery, Lord, at White-
chapel meeting, 1890, 140 ;
at annual meeting, 1890, 143,
144, 146 ; dissolution of
League, 200, 202, 203 ; at
Leeds meeting, 304

Rosebrugh, Dr., 58

Ross, A. W., 78

Ross, Col. Robertson, 33

Ross, Hon. George W., sup-
ports flag raising over schools,
135; election of 1891, 166,
167 ; Press Association, 179,
181 ; his loyalty, 156 ; speech
at St. George's Hall, 1897,
239 ; establishes Empire
Day, 256 ; on deputation,
1902, 292, 324 ; speech at
annual meeting in London,
1902, 325 ; at conference,
1902, 332 ; at National Club
banquet, 1902, 335

Rowell, N. F., speech on
Empire Day, 257

Royal Colonial Institute meet-
ing 1890, 140 ; conversazione,

1906, 356; dinner, 1902,
293-298
Russell, Hon. Charles, 245

Salisbury, Lord, 74 ; dinner
with, in 1887, 76 ; views on
preference, 149, 150 ; speech
at Guildhall, 150, 196;
ultimatum to United States,
152 ; on Canadian prefer-
ence, 220 ; delayed denounc-
ing treaties, 222 ; at British
Empire League banquet,
1900, 272, 273, 274; dis-
couraged, 281, 282 ; not
supported, 292 ; fails in
health, 339 ; letter to Times
on his views, 349

Salisbury, the present Lord,
writes to Times, 1903, 349

Schultz, Sir John, at Fort
Garry, 1862, 14; meets
Mair, 15 ; advises Dennis,
18 ; taken prisoner, 19 ;
escapes, 21 ; secures release
of prisoners, 23 ; welcomed
at Toronto, 25, 26 ; goes to
Ottawa, 27, 28 ; sends me
warning, 35

Scott, Hugh, 19, 58, 158

Scott, Riel's delegate, 28 ;
arrested and discharged, 32

Scott, Thomas, taken prisoner
by Riel, 19 ; put to death,
22

Seddon, Rt. Hon. R. J., at
British Empire League meet-
ing, 1897, 226; speaks in
South Africa, 303 ; a con-
ference, 1902, 332

Sergeants' Mess Queen's Own
Rifles, 136

Setter, J. J., 23

Shaw, Mayor, at Mulock
banquet, 246

420

INDEX

Shebandowan, Lake, 34

Sheppard, E. E., favours
independence, 64 ; at St.
Thomas, 127

Sherman, Senator, advocates
annexation, 99, 100, 101,
L02 ; interview in New York
World, 104 ; quoted by Lord
Rosebery, 200

Sherwood, Lt.-Col., 164

Simcoe, Lt. -Governor, first
Lt.-Governor of Ontario, 190

Slocum, General Henry W.,
109

Small, J. T.,at organisation of
Imperial Federation League,
Toronto, 86 ; at Hamilton,
1889, 128, 158; subscribes
to special fund, 197 ; visits
England, 198; proposition
to dissolve league, 198 ; on
deputation to England in
1897, 224, 291

Smith, Gold win, joins National
Association, 60 ; organises
club dinners, 02 ; Bystander
comments, 63 ; advocates
Commercial Union, 82, 83 ;
foresees annexation, 104 ;
joins Annexationists, 108,
109 ; honorary president
Continental Union Associa-
tion, 109 ; name appears in
Glen's correspondence, 112;
Archbishop O'Brien de-
nounces him, 119, 120 ;
contest with, 168-193; lec-
tures on "Loyalty," " Aris-
racy," and "Jingoism,"
171 ; lectures in reply,
"United Empire Loyal-
J," "War of 1812," and
" National Sentiment," 171,
172

Smith, Larratt W\, 197 ; on
deputation in 1894, 204

Smith, Sir Frank, 197, 246

Snow Road, 45

Somers, Mr., 136

South African War, 258, 259 ;

contingents for, 260, 261,

262, 263, 264
Speech by G. T. Denison at

banquet, 1887, 88 ; British

Empire League dinner, 191 M >,

274, 275
Speech of Senator Sherman,

99
Spencer, Samuel, 109
Sprigg. Sir Gordon, 332
Spry, Daniel. 56
Stanhope, Kt. Hon. Edward,

198
St. George's Society censures

Goldwin Smith, 175, 176;

dinner. 1887, 70
Stimpson, Ont., false telegram

report, 106
St. John meeting, 1901, 287
Stone Fort, Lt.-Col. Dennis

at, 18
St. Paul, hostile influence in,

21
Straight, Sir Douglas, 298
Strathcona, Lord, on deputa-
tion to England, 1804, 205,

206, 207 ; on deputation to

England, 1807, 224
Straus, Nathan, 109
St. Thomas branch formed.

119; meetings at, 127, 128
Symons, D. T., 128

Tache, Bishop, 36, 44 ; letters

to Kiel, 46, 47
Tariff Reform, 291 ; movement

started, 346
Tarte, J. Israel, 111, 244 ; in

London, 1000. 272 ; speech

at National Club dinner,

1902, 335, 336
Taxation in American colonies,

1

INDEX

421

Taylor, J. F., 210

Tecumseh, 15

Tennyson, Lord, 209, 211

Texas acquired by United
States, 98

Thompson, Sir .John, 113 ; at
Washington, 147 ; his death,
217

Thorold Camp, 33

Tiffany, Charles L., 109

Tilley, Sir Leonard, 20 ; presi-
dent of Imperial Federation
League, 134, 194 ; resigns
presidency, 196

Times, The, on Royal Colonial
Institute dinner, 1902, 294 ;
comments on Sir R. Giffen's
letter, 326 ; letter in reply
to Sir It. Giffen, 325, 326,
327 ; letter to, in 1903, 339 ;
on Chamberlain-Salisbury
question, 349-352

Toronto branch Imperial
Federation League, 86, 91 ;
Imperialistic city, 95 ; United
Empire Loyalist meeting, 65

Transcript, Montreal, on
North- West, 13

Transvaal, 258

Treaties, German and Belgian,
139 ; denounced, 230

Trent affair, 240

Tribune, New York, comments,
1902, 335

Troops, British, in Canada,
8

Trotter, R. G., 58

Trout, J. M., 58

Tunbridge Wells Chamber of
Commerce, 315

Tupper, Sir Charles, 215 ; on
deputation, 1897, 224 ;
annual meeting, 1898, 244 ;
on contingent, 260 ; at
League council meeting,
1902, 299 ; organisation of
British Empire League, 205,
206, 207, 209

Tupper, Sir Hibbert, at Wash-
ington negotiations, 147,
154 ; Farrer pamphlet, 164,
165

" Twelve Apostles," 49

U

United Empire, idea started

in America, 1
United Empire Loyalists, 1 ;

lecture on, 171
United Empire Trade League

luncheon, 1902, 333
Unrestricted Reciprocity

defeated in Commons, 117
Unrestricted Reciprocity, 367
"United States in 1900,"

cartoon, 104
United States Senate throw

out treaty, 120
United States discussing reci-
procity, 1902, 338, 339
Upper Canada College, meeting

at, 155

Venezuelan affair, Message,

210, 211, 218, 240
Victoria, B.C., branch at, 79
Vincent, Sir Howard, 196,

232 ; meeting at Chelmsford,

282, 283; at Manchester,

1902, 335

W

Wales, Prince of (now the
King), at banquet, 1900,
271, 274, 280

Walmsley, Thomas, 19, 58, 158

Walsh, M., 79

Ward, Principal, Owens Col-
lege, 232

War of 1812-14, 3

422

INDEX

Warrant issued for Richot and

Scott, 31
Washington, negotiations at,

IS'. »o, L50, L51, L52
Weldon, Professor, 95, 204
West [ndian preference, 242,

243, 244
Western Daily Press, article,

316
Westminster Gazette, 306, 310
Westminster Review, article in,

L79
White, Arnold, on the Army,

268
White, Solomon, advocates

annexation, 108, 187
White, T. M., secretary Conti-
nental Union Association,

109 ; letter to Goldwin

Smith, 17:;
Whiten, iv, Sir Wm., 226
Whitney, W. C, threatening

war, in:., L09, L13

Wilkie, 1). I!., S(J ; seconds

solution for preferential

tariff, 91 ; subscribes to

fund, L97
Wickham, II. .1., 86 : starts

Sag movement, 134, 135 ;
tonds resolution, 200 ; on

deputation, 1894, 204, 201
Wilkinson, Spenser, on food

supply, 232, 233
Williams, F. E., at London

Chamber of Commerce. 321

wuiison, J, s., 204, 267

Wilson, General James II.,
105, 109

Wilson, Charles John, Hawick

. meeting, 211, 212

Wiman, Frastus, starts Com-
mercial Union, 81, 82 ; Lt.-
Col. Fred C. Denison, letter
to, 86 ; telegram to Pi
H)2 ; in Glen's letters, 112 ;
and Sir It, Cartwright, Hi:; ;
meets Goldwin Smith, 170

Winnipeg, 13

Wolseley. Field-Marshal Lord,

mmands tied Rivei
pedition, 33 ; warn him, 37,
44 : at Foil Garry, 48 ; suc-
cess of, 48 ; food supply,
233; British Empire League
banquet, L900, 272. 273. 280

Woodstock meeting, 187

Woollen trade in Canada, 338

Worrell, John A., 86

World, Toronto, comments,
89, 90

World, New York, 107 : map
of North America. L900, KM

Young, sir Frederick, 20'.),

2'.l!>, 300

Young, Major-General Ralph,

207, 20!) '

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