CHARLES TUPPER

The Beginning of a New Era. 477

the work had been done, and when further opposition could serve no purpose. He then began to coôperate with Sir John A. Macdonald, and no one was surprised when it became known that he had been entrusted with the formation of the Ontario Government, He succeeded in forming a strong coalition Ministry, which inaugurated a rigid system of economy, and remained in power for more than four years.

Two events which occurred during the short interval that elapsed between the elections and the meeting of the first session of the First Dominion Parliament are deserving of mention. On the 4th of November Mr. Galt resigned his portfolio of Minister of Finance, together with his seat in the Ministry. The reasons alleged by him for his resignation were: first, the necessity of attending to his private affairs ; and, second, a series of attacks made upon his fiscal policy. It was alleged by the Opposition press that the effect of the Currency Act, which had been introduced and passed under his auspices during the last session of the old Parliament of Canada, had been to unduly favour the Bank of Montreal at the expense of other banks throughout the country. The failure of the Commercial Bank, which had just occurred, was said to be largely due to this cause, and there can be no doubt that the charge was well founded. Mr. Galt felt the aspersions upon him, and it is not improbable that they may have had something to do with his resignation, but there seems good reason for believing that the harmony between him and other members of the Government had been to some extent interrupted. The other cireumstance referred to as worthy of note was the appointment of the Hon. J. E. Cauchon as Speaker of the Senate. As has been seen, Mr. Cauchon had rendered essential service to the cause of Confederation in his native Province, and had fully earned the goodwill of the Administration, but the appointment was not received with much enthusiasm, as the recipient’s aggressive character had raised up for him many enemies,

478 The Last Forty Years.

and it was moreover felt that some of the older members of the Senate had a prior claim. Mr. Cauchon’s discharge of the duties pertaining to his office, however, are on all hands admitted to have been eminently dignified, and in every sense creditable to him.

The issues of the past having been wiped out, the new Government began its reign, as it was said, “ with a clean slate” There were no strictlv party questions to be discussed, and though it was inevitable th« à legitimate Opposition must sooner or later arise, there was for the time nothing to interfere with the seasonable reduction to practice of the new constitution. The construction of the Intercolonial Railway, the extension of the Union to the North- West Territories and to all the other British North American colonies, were matters as to which there was little divergence of opinion. The one serious difficulty that presented itself was the hostile attitude of Nova Scotia. Such was the aspect of affairs when Parliament

met at Ottawa on the 7th of November.

The personnel of this First Parliament under Confederation affords ample materials for an interesting series of pen-and-ink sketches of distinguished public men. The space within which the present work must be restricted unfortunately prevents this frem being done with any approach to completeness, or even to comprehensiveness of detail. The members from the Maritime Provinces were of course all new to Canadian public life, and there was a large infusion of new blood from the old Provinces of Canada. A few old acquaintances—Mr. Brown among the number—were conspicuous

by reason of their absence; but, in addition to the gentlemen composing the Ministry, Messieurs A. A. Dorion, L. H. Holton, J. $. Macdonald* Alexander Mackenzie, P. J. O. Chauveau,* H. G.

* Dual representation was then permitted, and the fact that these gentlemen were at the head of their respective Provincial Governments, and had seats in their respective Provincial Legislatures, did not disqualify them from sitting in the House of Commons. Many conspicuous persons in Ontario and Quebec held seats in both the Dominion and Provincial Parliaments, In Nova Scotia and New Brunswick dual representation was prohibited by local legislation.

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