OUR CANADIAN LETTER.

Otago Witness, Issue 2203, 21 May 1896, Page 31

OUR CANADIAN LETTER.

(Fbom Oub Own Corrkspondent.) > Ottawa. March 26. Tho fir6t indications of a general break-up of the long Canadian winter anTapparent to-day. The weather ha 3 grown mild, rain is falling, .and the snow whioh covers the country to- the depth of two feet is rapidly melting. About tbe time of my last letter the cold was intense, and it was strikingly suggestive of the width of the British Empire to read in your paper of that date an interesting discussion of the onuses governing the extreme heat ia Australia. While our fellow British subjects wer« swelterIng in the Southern Pacific, we were enduring a temperature at the capital of 25deg below zero. There was this important fact .to be borne in mind, however : that while the conditions of life were almost unbearable for the time being in Australia, our bracing atmosphere in the north gr.ve.ua very little' discomfort. In our homes we were perfectly snug and comfortable ; while in the open the cold ' air. wae actually exhilarating. In another month the delights of a Canadian spring will be upon us, and after six months of cold weather our people know how tp appreciate them. Speaking of climates, the impression is genersl in Canada that New Zealand is freest! from extremes of any of' the BriU.sh^olouiea. Considerable attention has been given of late years in Canada to the matter of how best to deal with juvenile offenders. The existing law is not entirely satisfactory in its operation's, but it is a vast improvement oyer former conditions, • Up to 15 j e*rs ago scarcely any distinction was made in the judicial procedure affecting boys and girls comirrg within the process of the law and the most hardened offender. Both were herded together in gaols pending trial, and if convicted were sent to a common prison. The pernicious results of this system were everywhere apparent, and a general outcry was raised for a changes For m^ny years a boya' reformatory had been in operation in Ontario, but the commitments to that institu- . tion could qnly be made under certain narrow Conditions. It was more pi a home for incorrigible boys, who were sent there by their parents' consent, than it was a prison. It has done a useful work, and has saved many ajboy from a career of crime. It did not, however, obviate the e\pls which sprang from prisonassociations in the case of lads r waiting trial ; and it was only one institution over a vast country. As a result of the agitation of several years ago two things have been done— firi-t, industrial schools have been established at various points both for boys and girls, and the law han been altered so as to make it impossible for juveniles to be kept long in prison pending the assizes. Any boy or girl showing a determine'ion to adopt a wayward life may be committed to one of these schools for an indefinite period, and while there will he educated and taught a trade Thns far the system has beeo successful, and its extension is but a mattnr of time. I have given this matter con- ,. eider able personal attention, and the d-feot which presents Itself to my mind is just this r 1 At the present time imprisonment in some form is the inevitable fate of a. boy who has committed an offence against thi law. I bold , strongly to the view that for fin<t and second offences he thould be whipped. By tbis Ido not moan a flagging, but merely a sharp birching or a spanking with a strap. At the Elmira Reformatory in New York State, whioh is perhaps the largest iuetitution of its kind in the worlf l , the spanking treatment ha* been found to be the most effective of all corrective methods. It seems to me that domestic treatment of tbis sort would < ot only turn a boy's mind into a wholet>oma groove, bat would save . him from the stain of imprisonment, whioh renders him callous and vicious much oftener - than it reforms him. Mere sentiment should not stand in the way of saving either a boy or a girl from ruin. ' ■ - * The Canadian Governmsnfc is giving particular attention at this time to the development of a bettor sysidßO. of marketing our products in Great Britain. For many years the exportation of liv.c cattle to that market was a large item in our trade; but the scheduling of Canadian cattle, compelling them to. be slaughtered at the port of debarkation, .has greatly interfered with the business. These animals were seldom sent over in the finished state, and the. chief profit was reaped by the enterprising Scotch and English farmer who prepared them for the market. It is now proposed to encourage our breeders and stockmen .to feed the cattle on this side of the Atlantic, and when in proper condition to havo them slaughtered at convt-nient centres. Tbe dead meat would then be sent H^me instead of the live animal, and the main object of the scheme now under * consideration is to have this meac cart-fully graded and placed in the hands of dealers who would sell it as Canadian produce. This would involve the estal>linhmfcnt of abattoirs and cold storage warehouses on this sitfe, and of Government agencies in England. It would" also eutail a considerable txpenditure .of money. It is not proposed, however, to~ curry on the enterprise for any considerable tijne under Government auspices, but simply to place the trade on a healthy footing and show our people how it can best be done so as to win- mo9t profit and command the esteem and confideuce of the British buyer. It is estimated that this would be accomplished in from oni to three'iears, and after that time ike trade would be left in the hat ds of those who might take it up. It is argued that once a good name bas been gained, and certain fixed standards of quality established, it would be to .the interest ot business men to follow the lines , laid down. Complementary to this dead meat scheme, which includes mutton" and poultry, is the proposition to extend our trade in butter and eggs in the same market. At the present time Canadian butter ranks considerably below the New Zealand article in England, notwithstanding the fact that 'our dairy facilities are very great. Our cheese practically controls the British market, as does also our bacon. It is assumed that the Bame careful regard for quality which has'built up our cheese and cured meat trade to such large proportions, if applied to fre-h meat, butter, and eggs, will bring about equally satisfactory results. Quite recently a committee of Parliament has bsen taking expert "testimony on these mutters,, and a deep feeling of general interest has been aroused. It is expected that the Government's policy in thi6 jegard will be anuouueed ere long. The political situation is practically unaltered since my ltsb letter. Parliament has given its ..almost undivided time to the discussion of the 'Manitoba school question. The debate on the ' Beooud reading of the Remedial Bill lasted until Thursday last, when a division was taken after a continuous sitting from 3 o'clock on Tuesday afternoon until 6 o'clock on Thursday morning. The result w«s a majority of 18 for the seoond Wading. Seventeen Government supporters voted against tbe measure, while seven Opposition members voted for it. The copsideratton Of tbe measure in Committee is now in progress, end in the mcautime three commissioners have been sent by the Government to Manitoba to iscettftiu if tbe Legislature of tbftt province

will not moke such concessions to the Roman Catholic minority as will meet the objects of the bill now before Parliament. Should they fail in their mission' the measure will be pressed to its final issue. It is scarcely possible, however, that a third reading can be had before the life of the present Parliament expires on the 25th of next month. Should Manitoba decline to settle the matter we shall have the unfortunate spectacle of the whole country engaged in a fierce sectarian warfare, to the exolusion of all other issues, regardless of their importance It is not, as I explained before, a question of establishing separate schools in Manitoba, but of restoring certain rights in matters of education to the Roman Catholic minority which were taken from them by the Legislative after having been guaranteed to them in the Constitution. Where the trouble will end it is quite impossible to predict at thia time This question is the first real menace to the stability of our Confederation which has occurred since 1867.

A melancholy and tragio event ocourred in Toronto the day before yesterday. Two brothers named Frank and John Findlny wore returning home from military drill when a quarrel arose. Frank struck John a' blow in the face, which was returned by a blow with John's scabbard. Frank fell insensible on the pavement, and next morning died. The scabbard had broken his skull, and John Fiudlay is now in the terrible position of being hold for trfal for the murder of his brother. There seems to have been no bad blood between them, and the tad occurrence is the result of a hasty exchange of blows, without any apparent intention of doing serious injury. Another case of murder occurred in Barrie last week. A young man named William Hammond had been secretly married for come time to a handsome young lady named Miss Kate Tough. He was a drug student and she was the daughter of well-to-do people. A few evenings ago she was found in a dying state in the snow, and the evidence points to poisoning by prussic acid. Young Hammond had purchased an ounce of this deadly poison two days before, and was in her company on tho evening of the tragedy. Strange to say, however, the empty vial was found hidden in the young lady's bed at her mother's house, and at this time there is very little direct evidence against Hammond. The Crown, however, attach considerable importance to the fact that he had^an insurance on his wife's life for 3000dol.

. The Senate spent a day this week in'discussing a proposition which has been urged for some ye»r« pant by Mr Henry Went worth Monk—a man who hits become notorious at the C&pital for his advanced views on religion and methods of government. This proposition involves the establishment of a central peace tribunal in Europe, competed of representatives from all the lending nations. The main idea on which the scheme rests is that the moment this tribunal is established all nations shall immediately disband their armies and tie up their warships. International disputed would then ba ..disposed of by arbitration, and universal peace would prevail. The Senate did not commit itself to a decision in the matter.

In Brockville, the other day, a desperate tragedy occurred. A man named Lapointe, who has long had an uneviable reputation, walked into the centre of the town aroted with a double-barrelled breech-loading qua. He had mads up his mind, in a frenzy of temper, to avenge himself on society generally in a way that would cover his memory with gory notoriety. Stationing himself at a paint that would command the main streets, he attracted the attention of a email crowd by loud yells and eccentric movements. Suddenly he opened fire, and at the first charge an old man named Smith fell dead. The chief of the police then appeared on. the scene, and was received with a charge of buckshot that riddled his face and neck with holes. He fell as if dead. The third shot disabled two other citieeni. By this time steps were taken to secure' the desperado or shoot him. A policeman rushed at him, but was stopped by a charge of shot in his body.. Men armed with guns and revolvers now began firing at Lapointe from doorways and windows, and in return were shot at by the murderer. At last a young man got into the building against whioh Lepointe had his back, and dropped him with a well-aimed shot from a revolver. By this time one man was lying dead, and 10 others were badly wounded. Lspointe himself had 16 bullets in his body, and was believed to be beyond the hope of recovery. At the time of writing he is considered oat of danger, and it is believed the 10 wounded men will also recover, although some of them will be disfigured and disabled for life. A sickening phase of the matter lies in the fact that Lapointe, the worthless and bloodthirsty villain, is waited on at the hospital by women in good station, and served with all sorts of delicacies. Within two or three months he will certainly be hanged. -

- In my last letter I gave a short account of the cruelty of Mra Bell to two children here in Ottawa. Since that time Mr Bell has been arrested as an accessory, the gravameu of the charge being that he did not inform the authorities of the fiendish acts perpetrated by his wife, although he took no hand in them himself. He was during all that time inspector of the Sooiety for the Prevention of Cruelty, but he seems to have been afraid of bis wife, and stood by while she tortu&d her grandchildren, He was given two years, in the penitentiary, while Mrs Bell is still awaiting her trial.