domination in India is the finest thing the world has ever seen. We have made mistakes, in some things we have been selfish and wrong, but on the whole the verdict of time will bear me out in what I have said. Sympathetic and firm, Lord Minto has been one of the very best Viceroys the country has ever had. His position has been one of the greatest difficulty and danger and he has borne it as an Englishman should." The Rev. Dr. Fraser Campbell of the Central India Presbyterian Mission described conditions as follows, in Toronto, on Sept. 21st: "No Christian instruction is given in the Colleges and Schools, the atmosphere being thoroughly non-religious. As a consequence the young native has his intellect and his wits sharpened, but leaves school without moral training or Christian principles. With keen, intelligent mind, but no strong conscience, the educated native out of work is very apt to become seditious; and ignorant people give ear to the specious arguments of the agitator." Canada had a notable Indian visitor in the Summer in His Highness the Maharaja of Baroda with his family and suite. They passed through the country in a private way, however, and were given no formal reception or any special attention or hospitality such as would be accorded in England. Principal R. A. King, the Canadian head of Indore College, was in Toronto on Apl. 4 and said to a local paper: "It is not from the masses that sedition springs. They are not seeking representation and are not crying out for a change of rule. The British Administration as I know it, is just and fair and I believe from what I have seen that the average native so considers it. It is the Brahmin who is the menace. The longer I stay in India the more I am compelled to lean towards the moral and spiritual education of this caste as the real cure for India's unrest." In June it was found that money was being sent to India from the Hindus of Vancouver for seditious purposes and one result of this was the deportation of an agitator named Rabin. Five Baptist Missionaries left Toronto in September for southern India and the usual papers regarding Civil Service Examinations in India-to be held in August, 1911-were forwarded by the Colonial Secretary to Canada and filed at the Department of External Affairs for inspection by any intending Canadian candidates. On Oct. 14 Lord Minto, in a farewell speech at Calcutta reviewed conditions as follows: The battle which the Government has fought, has to the best of my belief been won. If fought again by a future generation in accordance with a still further advance in political thought, it will, I hope, be under conditions less involved than those with which we have had to deal. Great problems there must always be in the administration of our vast Indian Empire, with its multifarious nationalities, religions and castes, but if I may venture to prophesy, the political agitation that we have had to deal with will make way under the more favourable conditions that we have inaugurated, for the discussion of great questions affecting the economical and industrial development and the direction of the educational policy upon which the welfare of the people of India so vitally depends. Conditions in Egypt aroused some Canadian interest as a result of Mr. Roosevelt's Guildhall speech of May 31. The following is the notable paragraph in this historic speech: "In Egypt, you are not only the guardians of your own interests, but of the interests of civilization. The present condition of Egyptian affairs menaces your Empire and civilization as well. You have given Egypt the best Government in two thousand years, yet recently you erred. It is necessary to remember that weakness and timidity and sentimentality are more harmful to an uncivilized people than violence and injustice. You treated the Pan-Egyptian movement and religious struggles fairly and impartially. Instead of acknowledging this a section of the natives took advantage of an anti-foreign movement. If you feel that you ought not to be in Egypt, and have no desire to keep order there, by all means get out. If you feel that it is your duty to civilization to stay then show yourselves ready to meet the responsibility of your position. You saved Egypt from ruin, yet if not governed from the outside, Egypt will again sink into chaos. Some nation must govern Egypt. I hope you will decide that it is your duty to be that nation." Sir Edward Grey, Foreign Secretary, on June 13th made this important declaration which may be recorded as of interest to the whole Empire: British occupation must continue; more so now than ever. It is not a question of British Interests in Egypt. It is simply this; that we have gone on doing more and more good work year after year; that that good work depends upon our staying there; and that we cannot abandon Egypt without disgrace. We could not go and see all that work undone; and the agitation against the British occupation can have but one result, whichever party is in power, and that is to lead to more assertion of our authority and our intention to stay there. We cannot talk any more of the development of self-governing institutions so long as the agitation against British occupation continues. Canadian Bela Passing from the far East to an Island on our tions with own coasts, it may be said that except in their joint Newfoundland association before the Hague Tribunal-itself an important matter, however the relations of Newfoundland and Canada were not conspicuously close during the year. At the same time their interests in so many matters are so identical that some consideration has to be given here to Island affairs. The year was one of marked success and increasing prosperity in the Colony. Lord Northcliffe's great pulp and papermaking industry was a factor in this; the experiments in shipping fresh fish to Canada and the United States promised to be extensive and profitable; a fine tract of agricultural land, 700 miles long and six or seven miles broad, was discovered on the west coast; mineral discoveries-gold on the north coast and more payable coal seams near Fortune were reported; the revenue in March was estimated at $3,250,000 giving a surplus of $256,000 and exceeding that of the previous year by nearly half-a-million. The Budget speech of Mch. 8th showed nearly $9,000,000 bearing interest in the Colonial Savings Bank and the several Canadian branch Banks. For the year ending June 30, 1910, the trade of the Island included imports of $12,799,696 and exports of $11,878,455-a total increase of trade since 1900 of nearly $6,000,000; the Fishery exports during this period were important elements in the increase having risen from $7,015,964 in 1900 to $9,578,984. The most notable political incident of the year was the decision of the Government and Legislature to commence a policy of branch railway construction which would add 850 miles to the existing system and benefit many residents and sections of the Island. A contract was arranged with the Reid-Newfoundland Company and work begun early in the Summer. Speaking on this subject to the Montreal Star (Apl. 21) Sir Edward Morris, the Premier, eulogized the original railway policy of Sir W. Whiteway 20 years before, stated that five branch lines were now being constructed and gave the conditions as follows: "We have decided to construct five branch lines touching largely populated and highly prosperous sections of the country that at present do not enjoy the advantages of railway communication. This railway policy will involve the expenditure of about $4,000,000 altogether, the interest on which at 312 per cent. will amount to $140,000 a year. As an illustration of how favourably the railway contractors view the establishment of these branches it is only necessary to say that they are undertaking the operation of these branches for forty years for four thousand acres of land per mile of track, asking no cash subsidy." As to Newfoundland's relations with Canada Sir Edward made several suggestions: We think the time has come when the Colony should have a daily connection with the continent, and it would be well worth the consideration of the Canadian Government, from a business standpoint, to contribute handsomely to the establishment of such a Service. At present Newfoundland pays practically the whole cost of the maintenance of this Service which goes to the door of Canada. Canada is seeking new outlets for her trade. American competition with Canada is very keen in Newfoundland. As a result very largely of the establishment of this Reid Railway connection with Canada at North Sydney, Canadian trade has increased the past 12 years from $2,000,000 to $5,000,000 and in view of the great and growing prosperity of Newfoundland its market is bound to be much more important to Canada in the future than it has been in the past. The rapid increase in population in the Canadian North-West; the comparative scarcity of fish food there; and the abundance of fish in our waters, suggest that a natural outlet for much of what we produce would be the rapidly-peopling prairies. Already large shipments of our boneless fish have been made to the North-West and have found ready sales there and proved so satisfactory that a substantial enlargement of this trade is assured. It was claimed that Newfoundland's Fishery business was changing from a salt fish to a fresh fish trade and that this was an important consideration for Canada. During the 1910 Session, also, legislation passed under which the Government undertook to guarantee, for one or more Cold-storage companies up to a total capitalization of $500,000, an annual interest or bonus of 5 per cent. for 15 years, with a view to establishing warehouses for the preservation of fish to be shipped to Canada-especially to Montreal in summer by steamers fitted with refrigerating chambers. Another Act of Canadian interest during the Session was of a Temperance character. This newly-amended law allowed saloons to do business only between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. on week-days; closed them absolutely on Sundays; forbade the sale of any liquor on credit to tipplers; prohibited the sending of liquor C.O.D. into "local option" districts; and provided that in future no license should be granted to any saloon which had more than one entrance or more than a single room for the sale or consumption of intoxicants. In June it was announced that the Catholic Arch-diocese of Newfoundland would in future, with its 80,000 adherents of that faith, be under the Apostolic Delegate in Canada. On Aug. 17 the Island-Colony celebrated with much ceremony the 300th foundation of its first permanent settlement by John Guy and a party of colonists from Bristol, England. On Sept. 16, Dr. J. W. Robertson, C.M.G., after visiting the Sydney Steel industries, referred to the immense supplies of iron-ore obtained from Newfoundland and declared that Cape Breton and the Island Colony "would eventually form a sort of commercial world of their own, able one with the other to supply themselves with almost anything they needed and to rear by a combination of their resources a vastly greater manufacturing structure upon present foundations. Newfoundland, with her immense wealth of pulp forests and Cape Breton with her great steel and coal mining industries, should be able to make themselves almost independent of the rest of the world. It was of great importance that the spirit of intercourse and commercial co-operation between the two Islands should be fostered to the limit of their possibilities." About this time the Toronto Globe sent Mr. S. T. Wood to Newfoundland as a special correspondent and his letters in that paper of Oct. 29th, Nov. 2, 5, 7, 10, 11, 15 and 16 reviewed fully the conditions and progress of the Island and its people. Lord Northcliffe's gigantic $6,000,000 Pulp industry at Grand Falls was described as pre-eminently successful; the Government was said to be making a most determined effort to aid and develop agriculture; the iron mines at Wabana were described as exceptionally good and the mineral prospects of the Island as rich in the extreme; an interview with Sir Edward Morris described Confederation with Canada as not an issue. "To my mind," he said, 'it would be a great mistake for Newfoundland or for any country similarly situated, to give up the right which she now possesses to direct and control her own affairs, make her own laws and carve out her own fortunes; to hand that power and that privilege over to any other country or body of men, no matter how trustworthy they might be unless there was some very good and sufficient reason for so doing." According to this interview the Newfoundland Premier was enthusiastic on the possibilities of a fish trade with the United States under Reciprocity while also hopeful of developing interchange with Canada. The Labrador bit of mainland belonging to Newfoundland suffered a good deal from famine during the winter and appeals for help were issued by Dr. W. T. Grenfell, C.M.G. As to the final Hague Award there were different opinions expressed. The Governments of Canada and Newfoundland appeared to be satisfied; Mr. Elihu Root for the United States also expressed satisfaction as to future American interests in the Fisheries. On Oct. 12th, it was announced that, under the terms of the Award, Hon. Donald Morrison, K.C., Newfoundland's Minister of Justice, would represent Great Britain on the new Fishery Commission with Dr. Hugh J. Smith of the United States and Dr. P. C. Hook, the neutral Commissioner. Canadian with, or Interest in, Australia and The youthful Commonwealth in the Pacific was of interest to Canada because many problems similar to its own were being worked out there under the British flag; because there was community of interest between the two countries though in one or two things such as immigration there was also a rivalry of interest; and because unity or similarity of action in Imperial problems was from time to time a question of importance. The Railways of Australia were under Government ownership and up to June 30, 1909, the total capital expenditure on them was stated at £143,533,871, the gross earnings of the year at £14,737,423, the working expenses and interest charges at £13,911,870, the mileage open for traffic at 14,930 miles. The number of factories in Australia (1908) totalled 12,859 with wages of £19,886,432 and an output of £96,669,282. The estimated area of Australia was 107,000,000 acres and of this 17,379,425 acres were set apart for Forestry purposes. The expenditure of the Commonwealth Government in 1907-8 was £15,019,034 as against £11,296,985 in 1901-2 the first year of Confederation. The Australian trade with Canada in 1909, according to Commonwealth figures, was £760,832 as compared with £510,868 in 1907. In view of the pastoral character of Australian development the following figures of progress will be of interest here: |