July 2nd and its policy formally ennunciated. The Government were charged in this document with making use of money, patronage and other corrupting influences to hold themselves in power; with having signally failed to maintain the roads of the Province in proper condition; with an ineffective administration of the Department of Mines which had weakened confidence in the validity of titles issued under its direction and had caused, in other ways, much discontent; with a railway policy which had been weak, dilatory and hesitating, and had not kept pace with the resources and reasonable requirements of the Province; with grossly neglecting the agricultural interests of the country as well as its great fishing industry; with extravagance in carrying on the civil government of the Province, and with declining to establish a satisfactory audit of public accounts; with methods of giving contracts to, and employing members of, the Legislature, which were unsound and subversive of the independence of that body. The constructive part of the platform may be summarized as follows: 1. Amendment of the law so as to prevent corruption. 2. Expenditure of road grants by the Municipal Councils. 3. Application of the Eastern Extension Railway Award of $671,000' to the permanent improvement of the public highways. 4. Re-organization of the Mines Department and its equipment with an assay plant and other modern appliances. 5. Larger grants to the Miners' Relief Societies. 6. An arbitration law to provide for the hearing of questions at issue between employers and workmen before Boards entirely free from Governmental or political influence. 7. Completion of the railway lines from Halifax west to Yarmouth, and from Halifax east to the Strait of Canso and thence to Louisburg. 8. Substantial Legislative encouragement to dairying, stock-raising, horticulture, cold storage and rapid transportation of farm products. 9. Assistance to the fishermen by the establishment of bait stations and arrangements for improved transportation facilities. 10 Amendment of the School curriculum and substantial assistance to manual training, technical, mining and agricultural education. 11. Abolition of existing electoral lists and replacement by some simpler process, with right of appeal to a non-political tribune. 12. Abolition of the Legislative Council. 13. Revision of the laws relating to public health. 14. Appointment of a responsible Provincial Auditor for the public accounts. The announcement of dissolution was made on September 4th, and during the succeeding month the constituencies brought their political organizations into play, nominated their candidates and cleared the ground for battle. On September 5th the Hon. G. H. Murray, as Premier and Liberal Leader, issued a Manifesto to the people. His first reference was to the Dominion Government Award of $671,000 in connection with the prolonged railway dispute, the alleged refusal of the Opposition to aid the Government in pressing that claim and the intention of the latter to apply the money to the reduction of the Public Debt of the Province. He then dealt with the railway needs of the country between Halifax and Yarmouth, the many past efforts to provide transportation facilities for that section and the recently arranged contract for building a railway with money lent by the Government. Since the authorization by the Legislature of this policy, however, a change in the amount of the loan per mile had been made and the contract would not be ratified until popular approval had been shown. The enterprise would then be quickly commenced and vigorously prosecuted to completion. Subsidies of the usual amount were also promised to a line of railway through the Musquodoboit Valley and a portion of Pictou and Guysboro' Counties. Referring to the financial situation the Premier pointed out that when his party came into power in 1882, the revenue was $541,000 and had since increased to $1,034,906. The moderate debt which had been contracted was for important and necessary public purposes-the construction of iron bridges and subsidies to railways. Larger grants were being given for education, for roads and bridges, for agriculture, for humane institutions, for mining development, for public works, and yet in the past year there was a surplus of $76,000. The consolidation of the Public Debt in 1899 had resulted in a loan at 3 per cent., which was the lowest in the history of Nova Scotia. “Our The He dealt with the improvements in the humane institutions of the Province and promised a Provincial Sanitarium for the treatment of consumptives. The grants to education had been most liberal. splendid system of free common schools has been maintained with ever-increasing efficiency." Night schools, High Schools and the Normal School had all been aided and supported by financial grants. Technical education had been specially encouraged, and the total grants for school purposes had increased from a Conservative average in four years of $146,095 to a Liberal average of $182,500. Model Farm at Truro and the proposed Maritime Agricultural College, were amongst the steps taken to aid agriculture and the amount voted for the encouragement of this interest had grown from $12,000 in 1883 to $35,000 in 1900. In mineral development their Government had done much. The formation of the Dominion Coal Company, the creation of the Dominion Iron and Steel Company, the growth of Sydney, the increase of royalties on coal from $120,000 to $460,000, the revival of industries and continuous creation of new mining interests were all, he claimed, the partial outcome of Government policy. Gold mining had been reasonably encouraged; the fishing industry had been aided by obtaining from Ottawa cold-storage arrangements for bait; expenditures upon roads and bridges had been increased from an average of $100,000 a year to one of $240,000; road-making machinery had been widely utilized and steel ship-building was to be promoted. Their policy had, in short, "been intelligent and progressive, and well adapted to the development of the great resources of the Province." The nominations took place on September 25th and five Liberals were returned by acclamation. One of the incidents of nomination day was the refusal of Mr. J. D. McGregor, M.P.P., to accept a Liberal re-nomination in Pictou. Meanwhile a Conservative Convention in Halifax, for the purpose of selecting candidates, had met on September 11th with Mr. R. L. Borden, K.C., M.P., Conservative Leader in the Dominion, as Chairman. At a preceding gathering Messrs. J. Walter Allison and Miner T. Foster had been nominated but now wrote declining, and the choice of the new Convention was Messrs. Stewart, Crosby and Campbell. Mr. C. H. Cahan, ex-M.P.P., and formerly Leader in the Assembly, was made Chairman for the party in the County of Halifax. On the same day the Liberal nominations for Halifax took place and the principal speech was made by the Hon. W. S. Fielding, M.P., Dominion Minister of Railways. At a meeting in Halifax, on September 26th, Mr. R. L. Borden again addressed the public on behalf of the Conservative Opposition. Nomination day in Colchester brought out important speeches from Messrs. F. A. Lawrence, J. F. Stairs, B. F. Pearson and A. S. Black. The contest in this constituency was close and exciting, and one of its features was the changed attitude of Lieut.-Col. W. M. Blair, an old-time Conservative and member of the Assembly. In a letter addressed to the electors on September 24th he gave what were, apparently, local reasons for his change of view. The claims and stories told of candidates and newspapers in the campaign were various. The Conservatives laid stress upon the short notice given the Province in connection with the election and the danger of too long a tenure of office as expressed by the Hon. G. H. Murray in his speeches made against the Dominion Government when he was fighting Sir Charles Tupper in Cape Breton in 1896. In a Manifesto to the electorate upon that occasion, dated January 21st, he had made a strong statement of this kind which the Opposition now declared would exactly apply to his own party and Government in Nova Scotia. Mr. J. W. Longley was also widely quoted in the same connection. The result of the struggle was not gratifying to Conservative hopes and, on the morning of March 3rd, it was announced that every constituency had gone Liberal except two. Mr. C. S. Wilcox, the Opposition Leader, was defeated in Hants by 295 majority. Mr. C. E. Tanner, K.C., was elected in Pictou by a majority of 29, while one other Conservative, Mr. Daniel McLeod, was elected in Cumberland, defeating Mr. M. L. Tucker by 13 votes. Mr. Arthur Drysdale in Hants had 473 majority; Mr. Longley in Annapolis a majority of 583; the Premier in Victoria had 596; Messrs. McKenzie and Gillies in Cape Breton over 1,400; Messrs. Comeau and Gidney in Digby over 800; Messrs. McLean and Davison in Lunenburg over 800; Messrs. Whitman and Sinclair in Guysboro' over 800; Messrs. Wickmore and Dodge in King's over 1,000; Messrs. Finlayson and Joyce in Richmond over 400; Mr. James McDonald in Inverness had 944. The majorities in Halifax City and County ran from 300 down. Colchester was very close and the majorities insignificant. The Domin ion Grant to Prince Ed ward Island The claims of the Island upon the Dominion constituted an important part of current politics and controversies during the year 1901. The Provincial Government were pledged by their policy in the elections of 1900 to obtain something, and, on March 6, 1901, a Memorial was addressed to the Governor-General-in-Council, detailing the demands and giving much elaborate data upon the subject. Signed by the Prime Minister and the Hon. Messrs. Rogers and McLeod, this document reviewed the situation from the giving up of the Prince Edward Island Railway at Confederation to the Dominion, after an expenditure upon construction of $3,250,000, down to the present difficulties of raising a revenue without minerals or forests and with a situation of insularity, and a condition of steady curtailment in the value of products. Every effort at economy was stated to have been made, and the average expenditures had run from $334,234 in 1876-79 to $283,928 in 1886-89 and $300,646 in 1896-99. Yet the annual deficits since Confederation now totalled up to $775,000, and the Province had a Public Debt of $575,000. The situation was summed up as follows: That in our opinion it would not be possible, without very grave results, to impose additional direct taxation to meet the certain annual deficits which the Province has to face, but the Provincial Government are prepared to recommend to the Legislature the imposition of additional taxation sufficient to raise part of such accruing deficits if the Dominion Government would take into their favourable consideration the peculiar position of this Province, and grant it an additional subsidy to compensate for the absence of revenue which accrues to the other Provinces of the Dominion from their mines, forests and fisheries. Under date of April 9th, the Premier addressed a second Memorial to Ottawa, describing the pledges made by the Dominion Government when the Island entered Confederation that steam communication would be maintained with the mainland; the failure to carry out these conditions; the consequent losses which had accrued to the people of the Province; the many efforts which had been made to obtain justice. For the troubles which had resulted they held the Dominion responsible and, therefore, asked that the matter be referred to a Board of Arbitrators or else that a lump sum or annual grant be agreed upon between the two Governments concerned. Other representations were made and, during his Budget speech, on May 8th, the Premier was able to announce that a grant of $30,000 per annum-equal to a sum of $1,000,000-was to be made the Island in settlement of this claim. He described the grant as an increase in our subsidy," and took occasion to say that it was not a final settlement. The Hon. Mr. Gordon, Leader of the Opposition, followed Mr. Farquharson, and declared that two millions at least should have been granted. "He was glad, however, that they were to get $30,000, and still hoped for more hereafter." The Hon. Mr. Peters, Attorney-General, was more explicit upon this point. "By the Memorial it will be seen that the award is confined to one claim only. There are other claims against the Dominion Government. These have not been touched at all. There are claims for amounts due on account of extra expenditures on railways, of which we received no benefit. One great claim that will have to be settled in the near future is that of the Fishery Award. Other Provinces will move in the matter, and we will all move together. Then our claim shall be recognized." The House was at once asked to accept this settlement, and the Premier presented a measure declaring it to be ratified and confirmed "in full satisfaction of all claims which the Province now has against the Dominion of Canada by reason of the non-fulfilment by the Dominion of Canada of the said terms of Confederation relating to the maintenance of such efficient steam communication." The debate, which followed on May 10th, turned upon what the Conservatives at Charlottetown had tried to do, and failed in doing because they asked too much; what the Conservatives at Ottawa had not done or refused to do for the Province, and what the Liberals had now asked and obtained. The Opposition contended that the grant should not be accepted in full of this particular claim, but their amendment was lost on a party vote. The Bill passed shortly afterwards. Referring to the settlement and the point of possibly renewed claims upon the Dominion in future, the Examiner, of May 8th, said: "We are glad to note that the Bill to ratify the bargain sets forth that the $30,000 a year is in settlement only of the claim that the Province has now against Canada by reason of the non-fulfilment by the Dominion of the terms of union in respect to continuous communication. It is to be hoped that the Dominion will take the same view of the settlement." The Guardian, of May 6th, declared of the concession that "if it is strictly limited to the claim on account of steam communication, it may be regarded as fairly satisfactory. But it must not be forgotten that the Island has large and important claims on other grounds than that." A prolonged debate upon this matter and the alleged dangers of opening up the subject of Dominion subsidies to the Provinces took place at Ottawa, on May 8th, when the Minister of Finance presented his proposal for this grant to Prince Edward Island. Prohibition The Island Legislature, in 1900, passed a Prohibition measure based largely upon the Manitoba Bill, and to come into force on June 5, 1901. The principal clause enacted that "from and after the coming into force of this Act no person shall by himself, his clerk, servant or agent, directly or indirectly, on any pretence, or upon any device, sell, barter, or in consideration of the purchase of any other property, give to any person any intoxicating liquor." The exceptions included the sale of quantities exceeding five gallons to physicians, chemists, or druggists; sales for sacramental, medicinal and mechanical purposes; sales by physicians, chemists or druggists, of medicines containing spirituous liquor not intended to be used as a beverage. The penalizing clause provided that any person convicted of violating the law was liable to a fine of $100 and costs, or two months imprisonment, |