was discussed with an Opposition amendment proposed by J. A. McLean and H. D. Dobie and the former carried by 14 to 13. The House was prorogued on Apl. 26th after passing a number of minor measures. Meanwhile Mr. Haszard had on Apl. 11th been asked by a Temperance delegation to amend the Prohibition Act so as to make it unlawful for any man to keep liquor in his possession unless for medicinal, sacramental or mechanical purposes; to give the authorities the right to search residences of private citizens suspected of having such liquors, proof of legal possession to fall on the possessor of the liquor; to take the dispensing of liquor out of the hands of druggists and vendors and to place it in the hands of Commissioners appointed by the Government. The Premier declared the proposals too drastic and refused to pass such legislation. Shortly afterwards Mr. Palmer assumed office and the issue of writs in June for the vacancy caused by Mr. Haszard's retirement and his own accession to office were made returnable on Nov. 15-a five months' interval. For this the Opposition strongly condemned both the Lieut.-Governor and the Premier. In Fort Augustus Mr. Palmer was opposed by Dr. G. F. Dewar; in Belfast the candidates were F. J. Nash (Lib.) of The Patriot and Professor Alex. MacPhail of Kingston who had a farm on the Island. The result of a strenuous struggle was the defeat of the Premier and Mr. Nash by large majorities-Dr. Dewar having 329 and Mr. MacPhail 240. This result gave Mr. Mathieson a majority of one in a House made up of 14 Liberals, 15 Conservatives and 1 Ind. Conservative. Without calling the Legislature, however, Mr. Palmer resigned and on Dec. 5th the new Conservative Government was formed as follows: It was decided to hold the general elections on Jan. 3rd, 1912. On Dec. 12 Mr. John Richards was elected Leader of the Liberals and by the end of the year it was reasonably clear that Mr. Mathieson would be firmly seated in the saddle. The Conservative Government proposed a car ferry system across the channel in place of the expensive Tunnel project and the Charlottetown Guardian (Lib.) supported the proposal while, on Dec. 23rd, the following despatch was received from the Dominion Premier by A. A. McLean, M.P.: "In reply to representations of Nicholson and yourself during the past two months, I beg to inform you that the Government has decided to undertake the establishment of a Government ferry-service between the Island and the Mainland. This will involve the changing from the narrow to the standard guage of the Island railway. This improved service will do away with three short hauls and it is hoped will result in a great advantage to the people. (Sgd.) R. L. Borden." On Nomination Day Mr. Mathieson and 5 other Conservatives were elected by acclamation. It may be added that on Jan. 3rd, 1912, the Government was returned by 28 to 2. An incident of the year was the establishment on Jan. 3rd of Telephone communication between the Province and the mainland—including Halifax and other points in Nova Scotia. The Report of Dr. Alex. Anderson, Chief Superintendent of Education, published in 1911, showed 479 school districts, 478 schools and 595 departments, 4 vacant schools and 591 teachers of whom 381 were females, 17,932 pupils of whom 8,359 were girls, and 9,573 boys. The average attendance was 11,632 and the proportion of the population at school was one in five. The Government expenditure in 1910 was $127,647 and that of School Boards $53,924; the average salaries for women ran in the three Counties from $146 (3rd class certificate) to $289 (1st class) and for men from $201 to $487, respectively. Dr. Anderson considered the constant change of teachers as one of the great difficulties and the small salaries as the chief reason of the change. He urged that teaching licenses should not be given to girls of 16, and wanted compulsory attendance. "An education tax must be imposed, collected and disbursed by the Government." VIII. THE THREE WESTERN PROVINCES. Progress and Manitoba continued during 1911 to reflect and share in the optimism and growth of the Canadian West. Its population had increased from 255,211 in 1901 to 455,614 in 1911 or 78 per cent.; Winnipeg showed an Assessment of $172,677,250 in 1911 compared with $41,000,000 in 1904, Bank clearings of $1,170,605,864 or double the returns of 1906, Building permits of $17,550,000 or nearly three times those of 1907; the value of the Provincial field crops in 1911 according to Dominion statistics were $73,136,000, the product 140,000,000 bushels and the acreage cultivated 4,932,000; for the year ending Mch. 31 the Railway mileage of the Province was 3,466 or an increase of 245 miles in the year; the trade of the Province during the same fiscal year included $34,855,002 of Imports and $3,134,564 of Exports—the bulk of its grain trade going by the Great Lakes within Canadian. territory and not being recorded as Provincial exports; the homesteads taken up in 1910-11 were 3,082 as compared with 2,529 in 1909-10; Winnipeg maintained its position during 1911 as the grain centre of the continent, its wheat receipts* totalling 101,326,250 bushels as compared with 96,647,850 bushels for Minneapolis and 42,629,751 bushels for Chicago; with 26,128,800 bushels of oats as against 11,400,820 at Minneapolis. Industrially, also, Winnipeg continued to forge ahead with a manufactured output of $8,606,248 in 1900, $18,983,248 in 1905 and a locally-estimated $36,000,000 in 1910-employing 15,500 hands with $30,000,000 invested; during 1911, 71 Provincial charters were issued for purely industrial purposes involving an authorized capital of $7,695,000 while 19 firms increased their capital by $41,000,000 during the year. Of new incorporations in the year the authorized capital was $92,491,000 and the chartered Bank branches in the Province numbered 190 in 1911 as compared with 184 in 1910 and 54 ten years before. Agricultural development was marked by the expressed ambition of public bodies to get a million people into the Province; the fact of possessing 36,754,000 acres of land still awaiting cultivation and capable of alone maintaining a million population; the acquisition at the end of the year of great new territories through a settlement of the Boundary question. The December reports of the Provincial Government showed an average wheat • NOTE.-Figures compiled by C. N. Bell, Secretary Winnipeg Board of Trade. yield of 18 29 bushels as against 13 47 in 1910, oats 45-3 bushels against 28.7 and barley 31 5 bushels against 20.75. In poultry the farmers sold 941,776 turkeys, geese and chickens, during the year; they prepared in the autumn 2,175,626 acres for the 1912 crop; they erected farm buildings valued at $3,273,487 and produced $1,786,073 worth of Dairy products. According to Dominion statistics there were in the Province on June 30, 251,800 horses, 454,500 cattle, 29,600 sheep and 135,800 swine -a total of 871,700 animals as compared with 984,214 in 1908. As to wheat the conditions prevalent elsewhere in the West applied also to Manitoba and all estimates appear to have been greatly under the mark. The Free Press original estimate was 28,660,616 bushels, and even the returns inspected, etc., up to Sept. 18 showed only 40,988,492 bushels. Yet the statistics of this record crop in Manitoba's history were as follows-with Dominion and Provincial figures defined: The Grain Growers Association maintained a strong position during the year, took some part in Provincial politics and shared in the Liberal fight for Reciprocity though not officially. At the annual meeting held in Brandon on Jan. 24-27 the members listened to an address from F. F. Coulter of Portland, Maine, denouncing Government methods in Canada: "I believe your Ministers want to do the right thing for you but your Premier and Ministers are administering the Government in a manner which would wreck the kingdom of hell itself. If the latter place were under a like system of administration it would soon be in the hands of the receiver!" He urged the initiative, referendum and recall as the cure for all political ills. E. A. Partridge of Sintaluta and F. W. Green of Moose Jaw supported this policy and addresses were delivered by many Provincial and other Western agricultural leaders. The character of the speeches is indicated by John Kennedy of Rosser (Vice-President) stating that of the millions of dollars throughout the world seeking investment and unable to find it there was not one dollar but had been produced by the labour of hands; and that of E. J. Fream of Calgary declaring that "on account of unfair economic conditions at least 20 per cent. of the legitimate returns of farm labour goes eventually into the pockets of the special privileged classes." Amongst the Resolutions passed were the following: (1) Instructing the Directors to immediately take up the question of marketing Live-stock with the officers of the Grain Growers' Grain Co. and to discuss with them the feasibility of forming a Cattle Company on the same basis as the Grain Growers' Grain Co.; (2) urging a reduction of the Government elevator commission on handling oats from 1 cent to one-half a cent; (3) declaring that the freight and passenger rates on the C.P.R. should be based upon an actual physical valuation of the Railway; (4) urging members in all parties to use their influence in Conventions so as to compel candidates to subscribe to a pledge prepared by the Grain Growers Association; approving the Reciprocity and other Resolutions placed before the Dominion Government on Dec. 16, 1910; (5) endorsing the attitude taken by the Council of Agriculture on reciprocal trade with the United States and an increase of the preference to Great Britain "until we have free trade between Canada and Great Britain "; (6) approving the principle of direct legislation and hoping to see the initiative, referendum, and recall in operation as speedily as possible and instructing the Executive to join with the representatives of the Direct Legislation League in asking the Government to enact this policy during the coming Session; (7) favouring an educational campaign to be conducted by the Canadian Council of Agriculture among the farmers of Canada in support of the principles laid down before the Dominion Government in December, 1910; (8) declaring the Dominion postal rates on parcels to be exorbitant and instructing the Executive of the Association to apply to the Railway Commission for a reduction on all western freight rates and to ask that a uniform distance be instituted for carrying grain for one cent per hundred; (9) criticizing the C.N.R. for an alleged policy of rapid construction rather than of proper equipment; (10) approving a Manitoba policy of putting the abolition of the bar question to a referendum of the people. Free Trade was the dominant note of this Convention. As to this and the Elevator question there was much Conservative criticism during the year of an alleged party attitude by the Association and, in the latter matter, the Winnipeg Telegram of June 22nd said: "As they could not quarrel with the Government on the question of principle they took issue with it on a question of detail and they freely aserted that the Manitoba Government was acting in bad faith in the declaration of policy it had made." The Grain Growers had failed and the farmers in the main had supported the Government in the Provincial elections but, it was claimed, the feeling of opposition remained. At this Convention one of the addresses was by D. W. McCuaig, onetime President of the Association, and now Chairman of the Government's Elevator Commission. He dealt at length with the policy and operation of this body which, at the close of 1910, |