mission applied for power to supply the Municipalities a reply was given that the controlling Company was not in a position to meet the demand, as all the power was needed to meet their own requirements." Mr. Beck quoted figures to the Delegates which were considered more than satisfactory and he also informed them that the Commission controlled an alternative water-power at High Falls on the Madawaska River.

The situation in the Trent Valley was discussed on Nov. 16 between Mr. Beck and the now politically sympathetic Minister of Railways at Ottawa; as well as the projected control by the Commission of Chats Falls near Ottawa so as to serve the Capital with power. As to the former matter it was understood that the Dominion Government would consent to give the Commission a right to operate certain dams on the Trent Valley Canal and that this would give the Commission control of the situation. To a Peterborough audience on Dec. 28th Mr. Beck offered to undertake the financing of their water-power development and transmission lines on the same basis as in the Niagara district and other parts of the Province and announced, also, that the Electric Power Merger was now willing to dispose of its interests to the Commission for about $4,000,000. The municipal votes of January 1st following brought this region under the Commission's system and practically rounded out the whole Provincial plan. Meanwhile Mr. Beck had been in Europe and on his return told the press (July 29) something which he considered applicable to Ontario under future conditions of Power operation: "In practically all European countries electricity is largely and extensively used on farms of from 25 to 1,000 acres, for light and power purposes, for thrashing and cleaning grain, for cropping, root-cutting,. wood-sawing and pumping water, for milling and for warming and lighting houses, stables and barns." At the close of the year (Dec. 18) Sir James Whitney stated in The Mail that important changes were pending. "We intend to replace the Commission by a Department of which the head will be a Cabinet Minister with a Deputy Minister to assist him."

The Whitney
Government
and the
Ontario
Elections

The Provincial Elections of December, 1911, cannot be described as an exciting contest. They were announced as pending on Oct. 11th when Sir James Whitney said to the press: "We have decided to dissolve the House in the near future, and I give this notice now in order that there may be no suggestion that we desire to hurry the Elections. The present Legislature has already existed longer than its predecessors and there are now ten vacant seats. The expense of bye-elections would be large about $15,000-and this expense would have to be duplicated in less than a year did we not dissolve now." The ensuing contest followed a Dominion struggle which had exhausted public interest to a considerable extent and it was fought with a strong

Government practically assured of success on the one side against an Opposition weak in numbers and affected in prestige by the tremendous Conservative sweep of the Province during the Federal Elections.

The Whitney Government, also, had a record of accomplishment which made criticism-however convincing to the person or party submitting it seem inconclusive to the public. The following is a summary of the actual steps taken, legislation carried, or policy developed, during its six years of power: Reform of the numbered ballots; breaking up of the School-book "ring" and cutting in half the price of school-books; revision of the Public School system and creation of a consultative Educational Council; supply of cheap power from Niagara Falls to the chief towns and eities in Western Ontario with pending arrangements for extension to Eastern Ontario and its general distribution to farmers; better inspection of butter and cheese factories; legislation to lessen the dangers of workingmen on buildings; reconstruction of the administration and financial resources and building capacity of the Provincial University; putting the Provincial finances on a sound footing and the sale of pulpwood and timber by tender; an honest enforcement of the License law; revision of mining laws and appointment of a Cabinet Minister from New Ontario; modification of the County Councils Act so as to restore it to the former basis; extension of the Temiskaming Railway and the development of New Ontario; creation of the Ontario Railway and Municipal Board for the protection of public rights; Law and prison reform; extension of agricultural training to the people through the medium of the schools; promotion of reforestration in waste lands and the preservation of timber reserves in the Northern country; legislation for a pure milk supply and for protecting the interests of municipalities in regard to the control of street railways; protection of independent telephone companies; the re-organization of school inspection and an extension of the Normal School system. Several items of this record were outstanding ones and included the public ownership of Electric power facilities; the Prison reform policy of Mr. Hanna; the T. & N. O. Railway development under J. L. Englehart's guidance; the Educational policy as to University support and cheaper text-books. Through and about them the public also saw a straightforward Premier in whose honesty of purpose and character they had full confidence and who, even if he did make mistakes upon occasion, never lost the respect of his opponents or

critics.

Such were the general Conservative issues involved when the Whitney Government, with its 78 supporters to 17 Liberals and 1 Labour member, announced the 1911 appeal to the people. On Oct. 31, following, Sir James Whitney made public the exact date of the Election as Dec. 11, with Nominations a week earlier.

After reviewing, in an accompanying Manifesto, the Government's record, along lines already reviewed here, the Premier went into details. Educational improvements and some other reforms were summarized as follows: "The amount payable towards the salaries of teachers in Public Schools has been increased until this year such aid will amount to about $475,000; we have devised a system for industrial training in the urban schools, liberally aided by money grants; the amount to be paid to the University of Toronto this year will reach to about the sum of $488,000; the amount appropriated this year for the construction of Colonization roads is $582,000." As to Provincial Railway matters the Premier pointed out that the T. & N. O. was completed 253 miles to Cochrane and that the Porcupine branch would be carried to the Matagami River by the end of the year with, altogether, 380 miles in operation while surveys were being made as far north as James Bay. Upon the Power question he was explicit:

The great scheme for the utilization of Electric power has, after many vicissitudes and in the face of bitter and relentless opposition, been accomplished and is now in operation and practically within reach of the farmers and other residents in the villages and rural districts-and I am glad to say that the cost of construction has been $85,000 less than the estimated sum. It should not be forgotten that this policy of the Government contemplates the furnishing of electric power at cost to all sections of the Province, but great efforts have been made by interested individuals to hamper and prevent the carrying out of the intentions of the Government in the central and eastern parts of the Province.

Tribute was paid to the patriotic and unselfish exertions of Messrs. Beck, Hendrie and McNaught and the statement made that the time was coming when the Commission should be discontinued and a new Department of the Government created. The increase in Ontario's mineral output and in the number of immigrants, the necessary additions to the Parliament Buildings and the new Government House arrangements, the sale of the Central Prison and Lunatic Asylum properties for $1,025,000, and the continued increase in Succession duties, were referred to. The Premier then described the Government as having been hampered in New Ontario by Dominion Government immigration expenditures which took settlers elsewhere and by Provincial expenditures which in so far as they promoted settlement increased the Federal revenues through consumption of tariff-taxed goods without giving similar returns to the Provincial Government-providing in fact only a constantly increased demand for roads, bridges, and other public works. "It was, therefore, with much satisfaction that my colleagues and I took note of the announcement some time ago by Mr. Borden, now the Prime Minister of Canada, that if he came into power he would favour the giving of financial aid by the Dominion to the Province in the work of immigration to New Ontario, the construction of permanent highways in the Province, and for providing practical instruction in agriculture." Further,

the Provincial Government hoped now to obtain the Federal bonus or subsidy of $6,400 per mile for the T. & N. O. Railway which had hitherto been refused at Ottawa.

During the ensuing campaign the Premier took the most conspicuous part. He was met with some criticism from within his own party as to the subject of exempting Land improvements from taxation. In a press interview (Nov. 10) he refused to commit his Government to any definite policy, preferred to leave the subject to the usual five year amendment of the Assessment laws and, personally, declared any local control of this form of taxation under the existing checker-board system of Ontario municipalities to be absurd. The Hamilton Spectator and Ottawa Citizen did not agree with this view and it did not, of course, commend itself to the Opposition. Meanwhile the Liberals had "swapped horses in crossing the stream" and the change of Opposition leadership placed Sir James in the position of a tried, trained and experienced public administrator opposed by one whom he could, politically, describe as a novice. He aroused some popular amusement by saying of Mr. Rowell's platform (Nov. 8) that "it took a long time to hatch out such a skimpy chicken."

The Premier opened the campaign at Cobourg on Nov. 15th with a review of his Government's policy, praised Mr. A. G. MacKay, the late Opposition Leader, and welcomed Mr. N. W. Rowell in his place as "a great moral reformer" who had supported the many alleged sins of the Ross Government; described the Rowell Manifesto and platform of things to do as largely taken from the Government's list of things already done. At Hagersville on Nov. 16th Sir James was warmly welcomed and stated that Mr. Beck was then on his way to Ottawa to confer with Mr. Cochrane, Minister of Railways, as to the elimination of "certain capitalistic influences" which were hampering the Government in giving to Eastern Ontario farmers the benefit of cheaper Power. He reviewed the Government's arrangement with the Grand Trunk Railway by which that Company paid $300,000 a year for running rights over the T. & N. O. and indicated the benefits which would accrue to Ontario from the co-operation of the Dominion and Provincial Governments under new political conditions at Ottawa.

As to Mr. Rowell's main policies he had something to say: "Mr. Rowell is in favour of placing the T. & N. O. Railway under Dominion control. He would take the Railway which is the pride of the people of Ontario, and on which the people have spent their money, and put it under the control of the Dominion. He is known as a Temperance man but he won't take any definite stand on the question. He won't touch the question of total prohibition and confines himself to advocating the abolition of the three-fifths clause." The position taken by Mr. Rowell on the Bi-lingual school question was ridiculed by the Premier.

He

has taken the law that is now on the statute book, stipulating that English shall be the language of instruction and communication in schools, except where the pupils do not understand English, and has put it in his platform!"

At Ingersoll, on Nov. 17th, the Premier proved to the satisfaction of his audience that three-quarters of the schemes now advocated by the Liberal party had already been taken up and finished by the present Government. "We have appropriated $582,000 for building good roads in Northern Ontario, and it will go a long way. And this is the thing we are told we haven't done. It was only to-day, before I left my office, that I signed an Order-in-Council for a considerable sum of money for further expenditure on Colonization roads over and above the amount set aside by the Government. We have extended the Government railway until it is 300 miles in length. Mr. Rowell says steps should have been taken to build the railway to Hudson's Bay. Why, the surveys are already finished." He was at Fergus on Nov. 21st and at Durham on the 22nd where an early Commission to deal with the Land assessment question was promised. Sir James was welcomed at Alvinston on the 23rd and at Essex on the 24th-children with Union Jacks greeting him at the former place and the strains of "Rule Britannia" at the latter. He also spoke at Guelph on the 29th. It was announced at this time (Nov. 25) that a plan was under consideration by the Dominion Government whereby Ontario as well as Manitoba would secure a seaport on Hudson's Bay. "The arrangement has the approval of both Ontario and Manitoba Ministers and members at Ottawa, but it will require the approval of the Governments of the two Provinces before a Bill can be introduced into Parliament giving it effect."

Speaking at Lindsay on Dec. 2nd the Premier made one of his characteristic statements. "The public man who hesitates to say definitely what he thinks on a public question is a public fool." The cause of the scarcity of teachers was indicated when Sir James said he had been shown two advertisements for teachers, one from Saskatchewan offering $1,200 a year, and one from Ontario, offering $400 a year. He was at Orillia on Dec. 7th and at Hamilton on the 8th where he reviewed the Labour policy of the Government to a large audience of workingmen and referred to the recently appointed Commission to inquire into Compensation for Injuries and upon which thorough legislation would be based. As to this matter of Labour the Toronto News (Nov. 21) made a concise statement: "The classes in Manual Training and Household Science have been improved and already the Legislative grant for these branches and for industrial education has advanced from $25,000 in 1904 to $103,700 in 1911. In 1904 there was not a single free employment bureau in the Province. This year there are five. The old Government took