November of each year; but special sitt- eral or not. I have no doubt he has do so. acter-to the attorney general of the province; and I will simply say this with regard to the contents of my letter to him; I pointed out that my own view was that it would make for the increased confidence of the public of the province in the new court of appeal if it were not to be composed altogether of new men without previous judicial experience; that it would be in the best interest of the administration of justice in the province that some of the members of the new court of appeal should be men who already had had judicial experience in the province, and that if that course were taken, while the new court of appeal would be constituted, there would be a breaking up of the present or existing Mr. MARTIN BURRELL (Yale-Cariboo). court for the trial of causes, and that, unI do not intend to detain the House for less appointments were contemporaneously more than a moment or two in the discusmade to the vacancies which promotion sion of a subject which is so largely legal would cause, there would be vacancies on in its bearing as the one now before the the bench for the trial of causes, a greater Chair. It is with some diffidence that any embarrassment to the business of litigants layman must rise in this House to touch by the inability to carry on all the assizes upon matters that affect directly the lega! or sitttings for trial which might be profession, for on this floor one has the appointed to be held during the time felicity of finding lawyers in front of him. when the positions of judgeships might lawyers behind him, lawyers to right and be vacant. I have not had any answer to left of him ready to volley and thunder. to my communication. I do not know It is, however, of some advantage occasionwhether my ideas in the matter com- ally to get members of my own profession. mended themselves to the attorney gen- that is the farmers, as, after all, not only are they allied to the basic industry of the country, but I do believe that in some of these legal matters the assistance of the farming fraternity would tend at least towards simplicity, efficiency and the necessary cheapening of the processes of law. I think, therefore, that the House should not have in its membership too great a quan tum of lawyers, and it is perhaps well that a farmer and not a lawyer should come to this House from North Essex. The question raised by the leader of the opposition (Mr. R. L. Borden) has, I think, been well raised. It is felt by everybody in British Columbia, be he litigant or non-litigant, that we have suffered very much from the law's delay. It is hard enough, Heaven knows, for the aver age individual to get into the clutches of the law, and it is very much harder for him to be eating out his soul with anxiety while a decision is pending. Our position is very much harder at the present moment when we have absolutely and literally no court of appeal existing in the whole province and have not had since the first of September when this proclamation came into force. I do not wish to dilate on the remarks of the Minister of Justice (Hon. A. B. Aylesworth) as to the delay on the part of the province in proclaiming this matter, but we have heard it stated. and I have every reason to believe that it is true, that due notice was given to the Minister of Justice here as long ago as last May, that it was the intention of the province to proclaim this Act on September 1, or at the end of August and, ipso facto. therefore, there would be absolutely no way in which a man in British Columbia could appeal because there would be no court of appeal until judges were appointed by the Dominion government. The Minister of Justice (Hon. A. B. Avlesworth) has, it is true, expressed his wish not to see judicial matters mixed up in politics. and yet he took on himself, I think rather illogically, rather unnecessarily and perhaps in a somewhat undignified way, to state that this Act was not proclaimed by the government of the province of British Columbia because it was hoped that after the election of 1908, the government of Canada might be of a different political complexion. If that is so, and if the Minister of Justice, taking that lofty idea, thought he could attack a province for delay on account of political reasons, it was evidently and abundantly clear that he should have taken particular pains to keep himself clear of the criticism which he might incur by leaving a whole province void of a court of appeal when some of the gentlemen who may be on that court are now taking part in an election campaign against the present provincial government The Minister of Justice (Mr. A. B. Aylesworth) has stated that he very much regrets the delay, that he has not been ready to decide on the personnel of the court and he does not wish to discuss that question in the House. That is a sentiment in which we would probably all agree, but I would point out to him that the personnel of the bench has been very freely discussed all through the province of British Columbia by Liberal newspapers, and name after name has been bandied about in those newspapers as the names of gentlemen who are to fill positions on this court of appeal. So far has it gone that some time ago despatches were published in the chief Liberal newspapers announcing that the appointment would shortly be made of the late leader of the Liberal opposition in British Columbia, a gentleman who has the unfailing respect of all people in British Columbia, Liberals and Conservatives, and that gentleman and his friends seem to have attached such full credence to that report that he retired from the leadership of the Liberal party in British Columbia and, to his credit, is not taking any part in the campaign now in progress. I do not know that this can be said of several other gentlemen whose names have been mentioned. The Minister of Justice (Hon. A. B. Aylesworth) says that these matters should be kept entirely free from party political influences Unfortunately it does not always come with the best grace from the Minister of Justice, when we have had in the past in British Columbia the spectacle of judges shortly before an election, before their resignations had been accepted, taking part in party politics, and then stepping down from the bench into the party arena. 1907 we had an extraordinary spectacle when a gentleman who had been in party politics in British Columbia and who had been rewarded by being appointed to the important position of governor of the Yu kon-I refer, of course, to Mr. W. W. B. McInnes, a very energetic and strong champion of the Liberal cause-went up to the Yukon, and behold Mr. Henderson stepped down from his position on the bench, went into party politics, was defeated in 1907. and was rewarded by being appointed to Mr. McInnes' place as governor of the Yukon while the Dominion government compensated Mr. McInnes by putting him on the bench. When we have such an extraordinary shuffle as that, well may the Minister of Justice (Mr. A. b. Aylesworth) say that the judiciary ought to be above party politics. I would like to re-emphasize the fact that at this time every man in British Columbia is in this position that if he wants to appeal a case, he cannot appeal it simply because we have no such thing as a court of appeal in British Columbia, and have not had since September 1. The Minister of Justice (Mr. A. B. Aylesworth) concluded his remarks by saying that he knew of a great many gentlemen who would make very excellent judges. Possibly he does, possibly we all do, but he says although hẻ In knows of many qualified for the position, he intends to go a little slowly, to wait a little longer, and he added significantly 'that he would probably make the appoint ments before the end of the month. It is an extraordinary coincidence that the British Columbia elections are to take place on November 25. There is no doubt in my mind that when these elections are decided it will be far easier for the Minister of Justice to give the awards. It leads to the suspicion that in some cases it may be a party decision and that these gentlemen will de: cide it according to the political merits of the case, but not judicially. I think we are justified in coming to some such conclusion It is unfortunate that whatever delays may have occurred, even assuming that there was delay in proclaiming the Act on the part of the provincial government, in view of the fact that the Minister of Justice has taken this high stand, he did not immediately put a court of appeals into effect by proclaiming it and by appointing judges before the heat of an election campaign and so relieved himself and his party from any criticism of this kind. as that. Mr. W. S. MIDDLEBRO (North Grey) Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Justice (Mr. A. B. Aylesworth) gives as a reason why the Act was not brought into force promptly that he believed the provincial government did not intend to bring the Act into force until after the elections in October, 1908. I scarcely think that is the kind of reason the Minister of Justice should give to this House, but if that were so then, on October 28 last, the Minister of Justice (Mr. A. B. Aylesworth) knew that all ideas of that kind had been dissipated and the only reason for delay would be that he would think the British Columbia legislature would not bring the Act into force until after the following general election. It has been urged that because the British Columbia legislature remained inactive for a period of two years and four months there was therefore no great urgency for bringing the Act into force and appointing the judges. But the point that we desire to make, and practically the only point, is that the Minister of Justice knew, or he should have known-I have no doubt that he did know-that the minute the British Columbia Act came into force it abolished all machinery for appeals in that province. The Attorney General of the province of British Columbia away back last May desired the Minister of Justice to know that the British Columbia Act was going into force because he knew that just so soon as that Act was brought into force, if there were no judges immediately appointed, the whole machinery of the appellate court of British Columbia would be completely clogged. It is no justification for the Minister of Justice to say that at the time that the Act came into force he was awav in Europe. There should be some person in his department who could at once bring into force the Act providing for the salaries of the judges. The fact that the Act was passed two and a half years ago is all the more reason why this government should be prepared now to appoint the judges. They recognized the existence of the British Columbia Act when they passed the Act in 1908 and they must have believed that the Act providing for the creation of the court was going to be brought into force. They passed that Act fixing the salaries of the judges of the particular court in question and they must have come to the conclusion that the Act constituting the court was going to be brought into force. The Minister of Justice says to-day on the floor of this House that he has more applicants for these positions in British Columbia, competent and willing to fill the positions, than the four or five positions to be filled. That being the case I ask him why he does not appoint the judges forthwith. This is not the first time that a question of this kind has been brought before the House, because, in January, 1907, a similar charge was brought against the Minister because of his failure to fill a position on the bench in Nova Scotia. On that occasion what was the answer of the Minister of Justice? His answer was: I do not believe that any inconvenience is being suffered by being only six judges instead of seven. He said: I do not believe the absence of one judge is an impediment to the administration of justice in Nova Scotia; if I did I would immediately appoint another judge. But, in this case in British Columbia we have not a single judge appointed and the whole machinery of justice, as far as the appellate court in British Columbia is concerned, is completely clogged. The answer would be that there being no judge in British Columbia who could carry on the appellate court work, there should be an imme diate appointment. In what position will some of these litigants be placed? It is true that the court is constituted, but it is an inanimate thing until the judges are ap pointed. If a litigant desires to apply to the court of appeal for leave to appeal, there are no judges to hear the appeal and these appeals have, in many cases, to be made within a limited time. A criminal may be lying in jail waiting for leave to ap. peal to the court and he remains in jail ba cause the government have failed to appoint these judges. For these reasons I say that there has been no sufficient reason shown why these judges should not have been appointed. It is. as my hon. friend from Yale-Cariboo (Mr. Burrell) says, a curious coincidence that these appointments are not going to be made until after the provincial general elections. Is the Minister of Jus litigants in Nova Scotia because of there vincial election? Governor General in reply to his speech at the Motion agreed to. tice going to make up his mind within the next ten or fifteen days? Has he not all the material and all the information now upon which he is going to make these appointments, or is he going hereafter to British Columbia for information to enable him to select the men whom he is going to appoint immediately after the next pro-lation.) Mr. Speaker, custom will be my Mr. A. ECREMENT (Berthier). (Transexcuse for being so bold. Custom requires that some young, unexperienced member be entrusted with the task of commenting the speech from the Throne. It affords an opportunity for teaching him a lesson which may turn out to be profitable to him; besides, it affords an opportunity for the House to show indulgence, the greatest virtue of men and especially of leaders of men. Mr. AYLESWORTH. Mr. Speaker, I would like to make a correction of a statement that I understand the hon. gentleman has attributed to me. I understand that he attributed to me the statement that I had nore applicants for these positions than there are positions to be filled. I said nothing of the kind and I beg to assure the hon. members of this House that there is not an applicant for one of these positions that I would think of recommending. Mr. MIDDLEBRO. Perhaps I did not make it clear, but what the hon. gentleman did say, I think, was that he could name more good men suitable for these positions than there were positions to fill. Motion agreed to, and House adjourned at four o'clock p.m. CONTROVERTED ELECTION. Mr. SPEAKER. I have the honour to inform the House that I have received from the Hon. Mr. Justice Pelletier and the Hon. Mr. Justice Lemieux, two of the judges selected for the trial of election petitions pursuant to the Dominion Controverted Elections Act, a report relating to the election for the electoral district of Montmagny, by which the said election petition was dismissed and the sitting member declared duly elected. MEMBER INTRODUCED. Edmond Fortier, Esq., member for the electoral district of Lotbinière, introduced by Sir Wilfrid Laurier and Hon. L. P. Brodeur. REPORT PRESENTED. ADDRESS IN ANSWER TO HIS EXCEL- Sir WILFRID LAURIER moved: I feel deeply grateful for the honour bestowed upon me, and which the electoral district of Berthier, whose representative I am, is especially entitled to claim for itself. But have good reason to hesitate at undertakpected in the course of a few minutes to reing such a task, considering that I am exview a series of questions which it will take the House the whole session to dispose of. Bound as I am to merely give a very general idea of the government's policy, I should certainly be in fear of minimizing its importance by too summary a judgment, were I not aware that experienced and leading politicians are to follow me up and take occasion of this period of peace and tranquility, to deal fully with these great undertakings referred to in the speech from the Throne. Such a task is not always congenial to a beginner; many difficulties are in his way, some of which are personal to himself; a youth is often taken to task for being youthful. But if years impart experience, youth endows one with a capacity for work and a willingness to work; and I would feel some satisfaction if though everything else might be wanting, the quality of sincerity was found to inspire my utterances. It is customary, Mr. Speaker, at the opening of each session, to review briefly the general condition of the country. It would be unbecoming on my part to break away from the custom generally followed, and particularly at a time when complying with the usage cannot but be an agreeable task, since, as several of my predecessors have done, I am bound to submit a favourable report. On the other hand, however pleasant the task of pointing out the really good features in a policy, I must say that it is not solely with the object of eulogizing the government that I intend showing the connection between the wisdom of the policy they propound and the satisfactory state of busi ness. We have just emerged from a very trying period of depression. Our neighbours to the south have been severely shaken up; 1 and, while I am not called upon to set forth the influences which have brought this about, it will be in order to recall how disastrous the effects of this crisis have been and how well founded were our apprehensions in this regard. However, things did not turn out as we had surmised, and the depression from which the United States suffered did not affect our country possibly to the same extent as it did most European countries, some of which, such as Germany, show heavy deficits in their finances, while others, such as England, are trying to find out some means of making the revenue meet the expenditure, at the very moment when our Minister of Finance is reducing taxation and announcing large surpluses. While it was inevitable that so great a disturbance in the financial condition of such an extensive country as the United States, should in turn have a depressing effect on the general business of our country, on the other hand our business and financial institutions were not imperilled in consequence; they victoriously withstood the storm. Now, if it is only a matter of fairness to praise very highly the foresight and wisdom of our business men under the circumstances, we should also be frank enough to acknowledge that a large share of these happy results is attributable to this government. Let us be frank about it, no country I would have been able to withstand such a crisis, if the management of its public affairs had not on the whole been sound, if it had not been protected against sudden changes in the financial world by means of a strong and secure financial organization, the result of several years of political effort, of several years of administrative forethought, with the object of warding off all possible danger and ensuring an ever increasing prosperity. The main factor in the continuance of that prosperity has been an ever increasing tide of immigration, kept under strict control and particularly well selected. No one will deny that such prosperity is an actual fact. It would be an easy matter for me to quote figures which are familiar to you; they are very telling, and in that respect would prove useful to me; but preferably I shall follow the advice of a leading member of the party opposite and for once endeavour to find proofs other than statistics as evidence of our country's progress. The fact to which I refer has not been sufficiently insisted upon, it having only slowly come to light, though of late in a striking fashion: I mean the expansion of Canada abroad, outside of its own boundaries. From now on, Canada will attract more and more the attention of foreign peoples who concern themselves with all our country may do, or think, or wish. Thinkers have their eye on Canada; its products, its possibilities, its resources are discussed, estimated and its future commented upon. 'Among new countries,' writes a leading economist, Canada is the one which most attracts attention.' 'It is a country whose progress cannot be impeded,' writes a former minister in the French cabinet. And you are familiar with the following quotation from another author particularly well informed in a book intituled Le Canada et les deux races': 'In a near future, no doubt, the Dominion's economic progress will be enormous and largely comparable with that of its gigantic neighbour, the United States.' In connection with this parallel between our country and the United States, I may be allowed to state with what deep sense of regret we who had enjoyed the happy condition of things created by the treaty of 1854 and that of Washington, witnessed the setting up of that wall at the prompting of the protectionist spirit of our neighbours, the outcome of which action will be to induce us to seek elsewhere other openings for our products. Such is the great work to which our government is devoting itself when endeavouring to develop means of transportation throughout the country. There is possibly no other means whereby to the same extent the development of the country could be brought about, or forced, if I may so express myself. en It is not incumbent on me to deal anew with the matter of the Transcontinental railway. Nearly fifteen hundred miles of that railway will soon have been completed, a gigantic undertaking to which the right hon. gentleman has had the glory of attaching that name which so often led us to victory. That question, as well as that of the reconstruction of the Quebec bridge, the promise of which, given to us as solace on a day of mourning, is now being fulfilled,— should be kept apart from party strife and considered as a national undertaking. It should be looked upon solely as a masterful and beneficent attempt to improve conditions and with which sectional views or prejudices should not be allowed to interfere. We are to-dav in possession of the marvellous results secured by the Caandian Pacific railway, not only as a business proposition, as a business concern, but as a means for the country's development. In connection with the proposed Hudson Bav railway, what wonderful things might We have reached a point in our history be accomplished through the building of a when nature, vanquished by us, is freely new line running across the Laurentian giving up its treasures; all classes of so- highlands, somewhere north of Berthier and ciety are equipped and ready to win the bat-reaching Montreal,-since according to extle in the economic field. We are making the best of our own resources. perts that would be the easiest route,-at the same time putting the commercial me |