DIARY OF THE CONFEDERATION NEGOTIATIONS, 1870

June 27th. [Monday.]

Met the council at 4 o'clock. The subject of Railway and Dry Dock was again gone over and Railway and Dock resolutions finally agreed to. Of course much of the old ground was gone over again. The Govt. wanted to diminish the amount for dry dock but had to give in, which they gracefully did but considered that it was the hardest thing they had to swallow as it would open so many questions in the House.

The whole of the Resolutions were gone over again. Clause 5. The District judges would be paid by Govt. but their services would be also utilized in other ways, probably as Indian agents and so forth. With regard to Court of Appeal the Council promised not to oppose a Bill to that effect in any way.

A promise was made to build the Marine Hospital at Victoria and to admit other patients upon making reasonable allowance. Langevin could not make any stipulation as to the time. He would probably visit Victoria beforehand.1

With regard to penitentiary. The Govt. could not take in prisoners sentenced for short periods. It had been tried and people had very much complained that small criminals should be mixed up with great ones. Such had been the case in Nova Scotia, where the Govt. had now to build a penitentiary or make arrangements with the local government. We must remember that the local govt. could oblige the Dominion to build a penitentiary, because when there were any prisoners sentenced for long periods the general govt. must have a place to keep them in and therefore the local government could if it thought fit compel them to do so.

Lunatic Asylums the Govt. has nothing to do with.

With regard to Pensions.2 The resolution was agreed to, but the ministry said they meant to make such arrangements as would suit and be agreed to by Gov[ernor] Musgrave. Perhaps give them appointments or get appointments for them from H.M. Govt. With regard to Attorney General [the Hon. H. P. P. Crease] he might be made a judge and thus settle [the question of a] court of appeal and an official at once. Pensions they did not like to go before parliament with, they did not like them and were afraid of them. As few officials as possible would be interfered with.

 With regard to the Addresses to be presented to the Queen,3 the forms would be found in the journals of the House of Commons, copies of which would be sent to Victoria.

The section about Responsible Govt. would be put in and speaks for itself. The Govt. are not particularly anxious about Responsible Govt. but will put no objection in its way. It would perhaps be advisable to let confederation come first and settle the responsible govt. afterwards.

The clause about Indians was very fully discussed. The Ministers thought our system better than theirs in some respects, but what system would be adopted remained for the future to determine. I asked about Indian Wars and Sir G. Cartier said that it depended upon the severity, as a rule the expense would have to be borne by the Dominion Govt.

The Laws of B[ritish] Columbia would remain in force until altered by the Dominion Parliament.

There was some probability of a Reciprocity Treaty,4 in which case B[ritish] Columbia would have to be included. This was considered certain.

It was likewise determined that all produce and manufacture of the Dominion or of B[ritish] Columbia should be admitted free from Customs Dues, each being a portion of the same country. It was decided that the clause mean this.

Mr. Tilley likewise said that if the Governor determined to or desired the Tariff to be slightly modified, if he would show the alterations, the Dominion Govt. would consider and most likely agree to them, but the Dominion could not invite such a requeSt.5

The Council desired the Resolutions to be kept quiet until the Governor choose to make them public,6 the fact being that a Minister was about to proceed to Ontario to get lands there for the Railway and if Sand[field] McDonald [Premier of Ontario] got wind of it beforehand, he would not give up the land.7 This was understood to be the reason.

Sir G. Cartier considered that Lower Canada and B.C. would be the most important of the divisions of the Dominion, that the former would be the manufacturing part of the Dominion, B.C. had a great commercial future before it. That in the Dominion Parl[iamen]t the Maritime Members of the Atlantic would always be with the B.C. Members in matters relating to shipping, &c., whilst the interior would also have a policy for its own interest supported by its own Members. That the Dominion would ever act kindly by B[ritish] Columbia and that her Members would be as much listened to as those from other places. That all the provinces would act for the public good and the greatest goodwill existed among all.

I am to tell from Sir George Cartier that it is necessary to be Anti-Yankee. That we have to oppose their damned system-that we can and will build up a northern power, which they cannot do with their principles, that the Govt. of Ontario or rather of the Dominion is determined to do it.

June 25 Terms
of Union

Notes.

  1. The reference is to H. L. Langevin, Minister of Public Works. He visited British Columbia in 1872 and his Report appears in the Canada Sessional Papers, 1872, V., no. 6, paper 10.
  2. Under the terms proposed by British Columbia, pensions were to be provided for those executive officials of the colony whose services were dispensed with as a result of confederation. The inclusion of this clause had influenced not a little the change in attitude of the officials towards the question of confederation.
  3. The reference is to the Addresses necessary in the admission of a new Province as laid down in the British North America Act, 1867.
  4. The original reciprocity treaty of 1854 had been abrogated in 1866 although considerable opinion favourable to the negotiation of a new treaty existed. The signs were particularly hopeful at the close of 1869 and during the early months of 1870. See L. B. Shippee, Canadian-American Relations, 1849-1874 (New Haven, 1939), pp. 304-21.
  5. Such a request for tariff adjustment was made early in 1871 (see Musgrave to Lisgar, February 10, 1871, Canada Public Letters Received, G. series, no. 1879), but it was not acceded to, for it was considered inadvisable to make any changes prior to the consummation of the union.
  6. The reference is to Governor Musgrave. A postscript marked private to Young to Granville, July 5, 1870, reads as follows: "Sir G. Cartier desires me to add that it was understood between the Canadian ministers and the delegates from British Columbia that the publication of the terms of the agreement should first be made by Governor Musgrave in British Columbia." C.O. 42/687.
  7. The terms were made public in British Columbia on August 31, 1870. It is interesting to note that the Toronto Leader, July 7, 1870, mentions the arrival of a deputation of the Canadian Privy Council, composed of the Hon. Sir Francis Hincks, the Hon. Alexander Morris, and the Hon. J. C. Aikins, to wait on Sandfield McDonald to secure his assistance in building the Pacific railroad, a scheme which is heartily endorsed by the newspaper. From a previous article on July 4, 1870, it is apparent that while the newspaper was aware that British Columbia was making a grant of land, it did not know of the indemnity awarded for that grant.
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