undertakes to secure the commencement simultaneously, within two years from the date of the union, of the construction of the railway from the Pacific towards the Rocky Mountains, and from such point as may be selected east of the Rocky Mountains towards the Pacific, to connect the seaboard of British Columbia with the railway system of Canada; and further to secure the completion of such railway within ten years from the date of such union.' We have seen that an imperial Act had been passed in 1866 altering the Constitution of British Columbia, so that the new Legislative Council represented both that colony and Vancouver Island. That body addressed the home authorities, praying to be admitted into the Dominion on the basis of the terms and conditions which had been agreed upon; and in July, 1871, British Columbia became part of the Dominion of Canada. of the We have chosen this date rather than that of the passing The accomof the British North America Act for the coming into being of the new nation because, till it stretched from ocean to Dominion. ocean, Canada was still in the making. From this time its material future was assured. To make use of Brown's words,1 used at the time in prophecy, a great and powerful people had grown up in these lands-boundless forests were giving way to smiling fields and thriving towns-one united government under the British flag had extended from shore to shore. All that henceforth was needed was that the spirit of the people should rise to the occasion and make worthy use of the great opportunities thus presented. Under the trend of advancing civilization the glamour and the mystery of the West tend to disappear, but it will be long before they are wholly a thing of the past, and meanwhile it is a matter for sober thanksgiving that in its dealings with the Indians British North America has set an example which it would have been well if other nations could have followed. AUTHORITIES On Oregon Boundary Question:— History and Digest of the International Arbitrations to which the United States has been a Party. 6 vols. Washington, 1898. Vol. i, chapter vii. A History of the Pacific North-West, by J. Schafer (New York: 1905), gives a clear account of the Oregon question from an American point of view. History of the North-West, Toronto, 1894-5, and History of British Columbia. By A. Begg. Toronto, 1894. Manitoba and The Hudson's Bay Company. By G. Bryce. 1882 and 1900. Among Parliamentary Papers the evidence before the House of Commons Committee of 1857 on the Hudson's Bay Company is especially valuable. Canada and the States: Recollections, 1851-1886. By Sir Edward Watkin. 1887. The Story of a Soldier's Life. By Lord Wolseley. 2 vols. 1903. Vol. i. The Red River Expedition. By Captain G. L. Huyshe. London, 1871. Sir Wilfrid Laurier and the Liberal Party. London, 1903. Vol. i, chapter vii, on the Red Pope J., op. cit. vol. ii, chapter xviii, on the North-West. By J. S. Willison. River troubles, and acquisition of the BOOK III THE DOMINION CHAPTER I RELATIONS WITH UNITED STATES Prime WE have traced the history down to 1871, so far as to include within our last Book the accomplishment of the Dominion, but it is necessary to take up the political narrative from the time of the passing of the British North America Act of 1867. When the Dominion came into being, on July 1, 1867, a preliminary difficulty had to be surmounted. It was impossible to find out, in the ordinary constitutional manner, the statesman who possessed the confidence of a Parliament which did not yet exist, but Macdonald, who had been made a K.C.B. on the birthday Macdonald of the Dominion, had been the chosen chairman and spokes- Minister. man of the delegates to England from all the provinces, and seemed the natural Prime Minister of the new Dominion. Lord Monck took the opportunity of his appointment to express his strong opinion that for the future there should be a distinct understanding that henceforth the position of First Minister should be held by one person, who should be responsible to the Governor-General for the selection of the other Ministers, and that the system of Cabinets with dual control should come to an end. In any case the situation was difficult enough, because it was necessary that each division Constitu- of the Dominion should have its share of representation in tion of the Ministry. It was agreed that the new Privy Council Ministry. should consist of thirteen members, five from Ontario, four from Quebec, and two each from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. A further difficulty arose from the necessity for providing that in Ontario each party to the coalition should have its fair share. Cartier, to whose influence over the French Canadians it was largely owing that confederation had been accepted by them, had been made a baronet, and, as Minister of Defence, he continued to work hand and glove with his old colleague. Galt, who had been made a K.C.M.G., was Finance Minister, and Mr. S. L. Tilley Minister of Customs. Dr., now Sir Charles, Tupper, after Howe the most distinguished public man in Nova Scotia, for the time refused office, so as to facilitate the task of satisfying rival claims. Results of In the general election which ensued, the cause of confederation triumphed in Ontario, Quebec, and New Brunswick, but, as has already been noticed, in Nova Scotia the Opposition obtained a sweeping victory. We have also seen how the great leader of the Opposition, Joseph Howe, found himself unable to turn the tide of history, and was compelled either to come to terms with the Dominion or else be swept along a current leading to annexation to the United States, a course to which his whole past stood opposed. In this dilemma, when urged to take office in the Dominion Government, he was doubtful how to act. He knew that in the excited state of feeling which prevailed in Nova Scotia such a step would alienate from him the sympathies of the people. Already there was much jealousy between the representatives in the Dominion Parliament and those in the Provincial Legislature. The Provincial Ministry had come into office on the repeal cry, and depended on its continuance for their existence. Sir John Macdonald, who visited Halifax in August, 1868, laid great stress on the manner in which the Govern ment. Nova Scotia was suffering from her interests being un- Howe and represented in the Government, and from the position of isolation taken up by her representatives in Parliament. He was not able to convince the Nova Scotians, but the local Legislature, which had threatened to adjourn as a protest against the Constitution, was induced to proceed with the public business. It was arranged that Howe and his associates should be considered by the Canadian Government as 'friends', and receive a fair share of influence in recommending local appointments, but that, for the present, the more important of such appointments should be kept open until the state of public feeling allowed Howe and his friends. to come to the aid of the Government. At length, in great measure owing to the influence of Howe, more moderate views prevailed. In January, 1869, he was able to report that victory was in sight, though the battle had been a hard one, and there was a good deal of sullen resistance yet to be overcome. Macdonald was quite willing that the financial settlement should be readjusted on terms more satisfactory to Nova Scotia, and by these means the way was made clear for the entry into the Canadian Government of Howe, as President of the Privy Council, on January 30, 1869. But the great Nova Scotian had nearly run his course, and though he returned to his native province as Lieutenant-Governor in 1872, he returned as one under sentence of death. colonial railway. The action of the Nova Scotian people was the more Interunfortunate as one of the first measures to engage the attention of the Dominion Parliament was closely connected with their interests. It empowered the Government to raise, by way of loan, the sum of four million pounds sterling for the making of the intercolonial railway. The interest of three millions of this sum was guaranteed by the Imperial Government, on condition that the Parliament of Canada passed, within two years of the coming into being of the |