OUR CANADIAN LETTER.

Otago Witness, Issue 2924, 30 March 1910, Page 14

OUR CANADIAN LETTER.

' CFboji Oub Own Cobbespondent.) OTTAWA, January 1. The deeping instincts of Imperial unity are significantly illusirated m the interest which Canadians are taking in the British elections. With the exception perhaps, of the contest associated with Mr Gladstone's Home Rule campaign, it might be said that relatively few people in tne Uominion have heretofore shown any concern in the struggles between political parties in Great Britain. Now the ;ssue across the Atlantic is being discussed with as much feeling as if it were domestic. All the leading Canadian newspapers have sent representatives to England,, and Jong cablegrams appear daily in the battle. This is all new, and- it demonstrates the extent to which the identity of interests are recognised on this side. With such an awakening no one may say what will happen in the next decade to intensify this bond of sympathy and give it practical application. Incidentally, Canada is establishing a, navy as a proof of the spirit of unity by which her people are animated. A good deal will depend on the attitude of mird which is developed in England: If the people of the Motherland see in these things the sense of ■ loyalty and the disposition to co-operate which prevail in Caiada, and let matters take their course, all will be well. Under such conditions the Canadian people will go just as far as their warm hearts may impel them. On the other hand, if there should be shown a tendency to dictate or to bargain, the impulses of this rugged' young scion might very easily be chilled. Jn short, if anything should happen to disturb the independence of Canada- it would be unfortunate. The situation calls chiefly for patience and non-interference. Canada will do far more" for Imperial defence if left alone than as the result of any binding agreement. Her neart is sound and her strength undoubted, but she must be permitted to act in her own -a fair view of sentiment in

■ueshold of 1910 Canadians maybe to have a glimpse of the national development which lies ahead. The proofs of solidarity and potentiality are abundant. The tide of growth and progress is running sWong;. First in importance is the rapid increase in population. With 7,500,000 people animated by faith and weaJ there is a general conviction that within the next decade we shall rise to 15,000,000. As merely indicating the movement which is under way in this regard, it may be said that during the year just closed over 90,000 sturdy settlers came into Canada from the United States. Over 92,500 came from -Europe. The immigrants from across the border biought cash and belongings with them appraised at £20,000,000; but that is of infinitely less importance than their productive power-. These Americans took up 2,400,000 acres of land, and it is. expected that at least 500,000 acres of this area will be- under crop next year. It is assumed that New Zealanders have a brotherly interest in these facts. The pastoral interests -of Canada must for a long time to come hold first place, and in this view ; .t is encouraging to know that the field crops of 1909'.have been officially valued at £107,000,000, as compared with £87,000,000 for 1908. The area devoted to this production was 30,065,556 acres. The average yield of wheat was 21,51 bushels per acre, at an average revenue of £3 13s. Canada must not, however, be regarded as a country given up to the growing of wheat. That applies solely to the prairie provinces. Taken aitogetner, the value of other products rises above that of wheat, and this tendency to adopt mixed farming is everywhere being given effect. It pays far better, for example, to feed live stock than it does to sell grain off the land, ..and just now this is particularly true. Meats have aever been so dear in the history of the country, and it is a significant fact that for some months past the United States has been buying beef from Canada. This is a reversal! of what has been going on for a generation, and it means a new market for our people. For the coming expansion of interests within the Dominion preparations are in evidence on every hand. Railways are being completed, others put under construction, and projects canvassed. The railway mileage was increased by 3138 miles during the year ended June 30 last, and since that date 1400 additional miles have been put in operation. It was. officially estimated that 3300 miles were in process of construction four months ago. The aggregate railway mileage of Canada now exceeds 25,000, or somewhat more than that of Great Britain In two or three respects the railway situation in Canada is unique We have the largest mileage per capita and the smallest per square mile of aw* If any country in the world. The average

haul of 197 miles is also- considerably the longest. Yet with all this railway development the transportation problem in the Dominion is acute, and more energy is perhaps being displayed just now in providing carrying facilities than with respect to anything else. A factor in the present situation which is big with promise arises out of the rapidly intensifying interest in Canada as a field for the investment of American and British capital. Our own financial resources have expanded enormously within the past 10 years, as the bank returns amply prove; but money is simply being poured into Canada at the present time from abroad. Millions are coming in where thousands came 10 years ago, and the process accretion which rearly always finds play under such conditions is certain to bring a swelling volume of money. This capital finds investment in industries, which in turn call for operatives. Immigration follows quite naturally, and with the multiplication of producers comes a corresponding increase of consumers. So one activity creates another. It is precisely this hopeful situation * 'vhich greets Canada at the opening of 1910. The Christmas trade of the past three weeks has been unprecedented. The spending power of the people has greatly increased of late years, and it finds special exercise at the holiday season. The practice of present giving still prevails, and as wealth has grown, so has the sca.e of generosity—which is, of course, always relative. The weather conditions this year were ideal. There was excellent sleighing everywhere, and skatisg too. The cold has not been intense* except in the far west; in fact, we have thus far had what Canadians regard as a mild winter. ' Zero, or 32 degrees below the freezing point, has only been reached during a few nights in the older parts of Canada, and the snowfall at this moment does not represent an average of more than 10 .inches. In - wooded districts, where protection from the action of the sun is- obtained, it is possibly twice that. Christmas is the great home-coming time. Just what _this means in Canada may be gathered from the fact that the railways operating in the west brought 40,000 people to the eastern provinces during the 10 days preceding Christmas. .The local movement was is proportion. It has its inconveniences; but at the season of the great Christian festival everybody is in good humour, and prepared to exhibit a spirit of compromise. The social activity during the holidays is enormous, and, in keeping with the growth of means. These functions have taken on an elaboration which was undreamt of in the days of small things. The deplorable part is that the sum total of human happiness produced by these gatherings has not grown with the cost. In fact, by just such homely tests we learn that money really buys little that makes for real or permanent joy. The writer was talking with an Antipodean on Chrstmas Day. This was his first winter in Canada. He said : " We always went for a picnic at Christmas, if it was not too hot." How suggestive ! of the difference created by geographical environment is such a statement! We associate picnics with June and July. In this northland Christmas stands for a • snow-covered landscape, for the iingle of sleigh-bells, the rink of skates, «nd the blazing hearth. It means frosty .sir and frozen streams. Thus it is in this great Empire, that while one section of the family is snug in furs, another is packing flowers in the open air. The municipal elections throughout the Dominion are now under way. In Ontario by-Jaws are being voted upon in many communities with respect to local option. The contests now hi progress affect hundreds of iiquor licenses, and it : is b«yond doubt that in many districts the prohibitionists will win. They would prevail in practically all the battles but for the law which requires an affirmative vote of three-fifths. A mere majority is not sufficient. Under the three-fifths provision it is not likely that local option will carry everywhere, but it is certain that scores of licenses will go. The sentiment against the saloon is gaining strength, particularly in rural municipalities, and the liquor interests of the Dominion are face to face with a serious situation. Of course, local prohibition does not nlways prohibit, as the court records show; but these contests at least afford a.i opportunity fcr the declaration of public opinion with respect to the liquor traffic. Within the past three years hundreds of licenses have been cut off, and if this process of reduction continues general prohibition will he brought about in Ontario within the next 10 years. The same movement is in progress in all the other provinces, with the exception of Quebec. Whatever may be the final re«"]t -thwe can be .ir, doubt that in Canada there is a growing disposition to dispense with the bar-room. At this moment grave concern is being felt with respect to the fuel situation in Saskatchewan. Two years ago t>he

scarcitv of fuel became so acute that farmers, driven to desperation, took forcible | possession of tr<iinloads of coal belonging j to the railways, and helped themselves. There had been a. prolonged strike at the western mines, and the necessary stores had not been accumulated at distributing points. Precisely tlit, same thing has happened again this year. Trouble with the. coal miners during the summer months led to the mines being closed, and now it seems impossible to meet the urgent demand. Just now 1200 tons per day are being shipped, and an effort is being made to so distribute the available supply as to prevent actual suffering. Just before Parliament adjourned _ for i the Christmas lecess the Finance Minis- | ter brought down his Budget. With four j months still to run of the current year, it is estimated that the public income will reach £19,250,000, while for the Tiext year it is expected to exceed £20,000,000. For the current year a surplus of £3,300,000 is anticipated. During the 13 years of the- present Liberal regime the capital outlay has amounted to £43,000,000, of which- 69 per cent, has been provided out of income. The\ per capita debt is now placed at £9. The aggregate trade of the Dominion is expected for the current year to reach £132,000,000, which will establish a new record. There is throughout the country a profound sentiment of optimism. During the past 16 years the national revenue has trebled, while the actual rate of taxation has decreased. This income has been very largely devoted to public works, which are classified as reproductive. Large sums have been spent on immigration, and this outlay has produced large result. The people approve what has been done in that regard. The c« nstruction of a new railway across tjhe continent has involved the expenditure of many millions, and before the project is completed a further outlay of < large proport i-jus will be necessary; bijt thete, again, the Oovemment is moving with the full assent of public judgment. No other country seems to be forging ahead more rapidly or substantially than is Canada. The railways of the Dominion made satisfactory progress during the year ended 30th June last. The official statistics have just been completed, and they show that tons of freight were hauled, as against 63,071,167 tons for the

preceding year. The number of passengers was 32,683,369, which, strange to say, was a decrease of 1,361,683 as compared with 1908. The average number of tons per freight train was 278, while the average number of tons per loaded freight car was 16.98. The average number of passengers per "passenger train was 61. The aggregate earnings amounted to £29,100,000, which was slightly under the mark for 1908, but, owing to a reduction in the operating expenses, there was a betterment in net earnings. The operating expense's totalled £21,000,000. On the 30th June last there were 126,195 employees in the service of Canadian railways—an increase of 18,791 over the preceding year. This relatively large increase was due to the fact that at the time of taking the railway census in 1908 there had been sweeping reductions for the time being in the working staff owincj to the depression which prevailed. The aggregate of wages paid was £12,750,000, or slightly over 60 per cent. of the total operating expenses. During the past five years there has been a steady rise in the s«ale of remuneration to railway employees. While there has been a general tendency to higher cost of operation, the earning power of the railways, as measured by the average rate per ton per mile, has been practically stationary. For 1909 that rate was slightly over seventenths of a halfpenny. This is far below the standard in both Australia and New ! Zealand : but, of course, it is affected by ' conditions arising Put of the long haul. During the year to which the foregoing paragraphs have reference, 478 persons were killed and 1404 injured by the railways of Canada. These figures represent an increase over those of 1908 of 29 in the number of killed and a decrease of 943 ; n the number injured. Collisions accounted for the' killing of 40 and the injuring of 86 oersons. Of the fatality from this cause only six applied to passengers. The returns for 1909 show that one passenger in every 907,869 was killed, and one in every 116.311 injured. Railway employees were the chief sufferers from accidents, since the statistics for the year show that one in every 172 was killed and one in every 28 injured. Quite recently £IO,OOO worth of gold was received at the Mint here from the Yukon. This bullion, it is expected, will be turned into Canadian coin. We have a large silver coinage, but up to this time all the gold in circulation in Canada —which has been infintesimal —has come from either England or the United States. With bank notes of the denomination of four shillings, eight shillings, one pound, two pounds, and upwards, the need of gold has not been felt. Now, however,

that the domestic production of the precious metal is increasing, a change will be made. There is, of course, a considerable TDrolit in coining silver j but more in the coining of gold. During the Christmas season the demand for turkeys was so large that at all the leading centres the price per pound rose to 2s. One would regard this figure as prohibitive, and yet the /consumption was actually larger than ever. There would seem to be no limits to the prices which people will pay for luxuries when they are prosperous.