A FEW FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES
FOR
The Electors of Carleton and of the Ottawa Valley
TO READ AND REFLECT UPON.
FELLOW-CITIZENS OF THIS SECTION OF THE " DOMINION OF CANADA"
The present epoch of our country's history and the various circumstances connected therewith, supply to the independent elector and philanthropist subject matter which demands serious consideration.
To those who have lived in Canada for the past thirty years or upwards, by whose industry and enterprise the Provinces have prospered, and risen from being a dependency, to become an ally to Great Britain, this progress will be reflected upon with pleasure.
Some ninety years ago, the people of the thirteen States on the opposite side of the St. Lawrence, thought proper to conspire and rebel against the laws and rule of the Parent State, (England), which had nurtured them for some two hundred years. The population of these States at that time numbered about four millions. They proceeded after attaining what they called their liberty, to frame their laws founded upon Democracy. Being a people of British origin Possessing a vast country of fertile soil in a maiden state, for a series of years their prosperity was proverbial. They gloried in their conquest, they prided in their laws, and scrupulously submitted to be governed by them. At length wealth not only increased, but became abundant; pride and ambition fired the minds of men, and demagogues arose to create divisions. The tendency of " Democracy" placed temptation in the way of ambitious men to aspire to the chair of the Chief Magistrate. Therefore ensued the foulest of corruption; the most degraded and basest means, bribery and peculation, were practised to debase the people, so that aspiring demagogues might attain their ends, and occupy places of power and emolument. "Democracy" places in the hands of what that system calls the "Sovereign people," the power to elect their Chief Magistrate, and all subordinates,~udges, Sheriffs, Coroners, &c. Those who read the public papers of that country will see vivid accounts of the base and degraded practices resorted to at elections by that "Sovereign people" to gain their ends and carry their measures. It is an established fact, that demagogues who aspire to offices of emolument, commonly practise canvassing the haunts of street rowdies, thieves known to the police, and bawdy-house bullies, in the City of New York, and other places throughout the Union, and harangue such characters, so that they may not only obtain their votes, but form and congregrate mobs sufficiently strong to deter the orderly, citizen and wealthy merchant from voting or approaching the polls.
Common report says that men of honour or standing in the United States at the present time will not subject themselves to insult at elections, nor degrade themselves by mingling in the society of these men in public deliberative bodies or assemblies.
The New York World, a paper of some independence, in an article some time ago, asserted that in Courts where justice should be had and expected, the fullest purse obtained the verdict, and as for Iegislation at Albany or Washington, "all bills in any way affecting money might just as well be put up to or at auction." The tendency of democracy is to engender these things~hose base and degraded practices portray the brute force of that so-called "Sovereign people."
Beholding the anarchy, bloodshed, rapine and murder, which has emanated from inordinate ambition, disregard of their Laws, and abuse of the privileges of their constitution, by the people of the United States of America, we the citizens of the Provinces of British North America, now at a period when the population is about four millions, seeing and appreciating the blessings of protection to life and property that emanate from and are the results of the laws, founded on Monarchial principles, which these Provinces have grown and prospered under, are desirous to renew our bonds, and shew our appreciation of the peace, order, and blessings we have and enjoy under our institutions.
The people of these Provinces deputed our loyal Statesmen to present and lay their humble petition at the foot of the Throne of her Majesty, QUEEN VICTORIA, praying that her Majesty, by and with the consent of her Lords and Commons, would be graciously pleased to pass a Bill for the Confederate Union of the Provinces of British North America. The prayer of our petition met a cordial reception ; and the result was the passing of an Act by both houses of the British Parliament, concurred in by overwhelming majorities of both political parties in England, comprising " Whigs " and " Conservatives," therefore enabling us, the present fathers of these British Provinces, to bequeath to our children and succeeding generations, a renewed alliance with Great Britain, and the order and blessings which time and experience have shewn to accrue from .a Constitution founded on like Monarchical principles.
Fellow-Citizens of the " Dominion of Canada,"~ho are neither Slaves, Bondsmen nor Tenants, but who are Freeholders of the soil in your own right, it becomes us to think and reflect, that it has pleased an Almighty Providence to give us our existence in the most enlightened period of the civilized world's history, and placed our lot in a country, which, for extent, climate, soil and natural resources, is unsurpassed in the world.
These considerations, in connection with the political Constitution under the Providence of God lately granted, and soon to be proclaimed by the Representative of our Sovereign, lays us, as a people, under great and lasting obligations to Him from whom we have received life, and all that we have and are; and who, in His merciful providence, delivered us and our country from the hands and designs of misguided men, who, a short time ago, invaded our peaceful and united country, under the pretext of thereby aiding and effecting a political revolution in Ireland ; but, instead of that, this banditti of men were incapable of a generous act towards any place, state or people.
True, this invasion gave us much trouble, and incurred great cost to the Province ; but the noble, determined and united effort of the people, of all creeds and nationalities, put forth in order to repel and drive these invaders from our soil, showed and proved to Great Britain the undivided loyalty of the people of Canada to British Institutions, thereby facilitating the passing of the Act of Confederation, and the eliciting of an expression on the floors of both houses of the Lords and Commons, by the first statesmen in the realm, not only that the Army and Navy of Great Britain would protect us in the enjoyment of Confederation, but that her exchequer would furnish or guarantee the finances for the construction of our great Intercolonial Railway. And it may be reasonably inferred that aid will be rendered for other national purposes, such as our'' Ottawa and Georgian Bay Canal," or other public works which may present themselves, for facilitating and developing the resources of the "Dominion," and the strengthening thereof in a military point of view.
Fellow Citizens, this is but an imperfect delineation of our position and privileges. Great Britain has bestowed upon us the ship of state " DOMINION,'' and launched her for us to man and guide. Herein is our knowledge, wisdom and philanthropy about to be tested. And as we will soon be called to the polls to elect men to inaugurate the working of our new constitution, it becomes the duty of the freeholders of the various constituencies to reflect seriously on the consequences which must ensue to themselves, their offspring and country, for good or evil, in the choice of the men they will elect to represent them in Parliament, and be the framers of the Laws which in future will regulate the affairs of the " Dominion." The sparseness of the population of a new country partly accounts for the reason why the people in so many instances are deceived in the men they elect to represent them in Parliament.
To every observant individual it is apparent that the great body of the people are becoming sensible of the very weighty duty imposed on all commodities of imported merchandize ; and a feeling little short of alarm is taking hold of the minds of the agricultural community in consequence of the extraordinary annual increase of taxation on their personal and real property.
It is true Great Britain has granted the " Dominion of Canada" a Constitution, founded on principles assimilated to her own, but one departure from the spirit of that Constitution, of a serious nature, was inaugurated by an Act of our Legislature, and tolerated by the people of these Provinces. That departure from the spirit of the British Constitution was the legalising and allowing our representative men in both our Municipal Councils and Halls of Legislative Assemblies, the power of voting to themselves, as a consideration for their public services, such sums of the public or people's money as they may think proper.
This being the case, a wide door of temptation is opened to the low, unprincipled demagogue and political speculator, who possesses no material stake in the country, and to worthless idlers, who may have proven themselves incapable of securing or commanding patronage in commercial business, or in such of the learned professions as they may have made an attempt to follow or practice.
Amongst an intelligent, free people, reason would suggest that such worthless characters would be frowned down. On the contrary, it is to be regretted in very many instances, such men are tolerated to insinuate themselves by their plans, wiles and devices, upon the freeholders, and are elected as representatives and law-givers to the people.
It can be no matter of surprise that such unscrupulous men, will, when in positions of power, prove as has been frequently the case, mean tools, for sale at the bid of leaders of political parties for the time being, for the sake of obtaining a living, and having their relatives and connections placed in offices, frequently created for them.
This is an approach at a description of that class of men, who even in this country resort to the basest subterfuges to get into Parliament, in order to sacrifice their country's best interests for their own mercenary purposes~nd which explains in a great measure the cause of the extraordinary increase of direct and indirect taxation, which the whole country feels and is groaning under.
To those who mingle with the general public, it appears evident that the people are desirous to elect the best men if possible. And the question is very frequently asked by the Electors how are we to know the best men. To obtain and arrive at this knowledge the ELECTORS of the " Dominion " of Canada must divest themselves of Religious bigotry, put away National prejudice-supplanting these weeds of nature's production with the, principles of good will and charity, springing and emanating from the broad and true spirit of philanthropy. Then the Electors' eyes will be open to see, and their minds unbiased to know the difference between the self-arrogant demagogue. who possesses a stock of empty verbosity but no material stake in the Dominion, " to give effect to or sustain the positions of a legislator.
The independent citizen, and elector, who desires to discover the true character of the men who seek their suffrages, by close observation will discover that the unworthy man panders to the passions, and assimilates himself to the prejudices of all sorts of men with whom he comes in contact.
Another very prominent mark of the unworthy man will be discovered in his being ready to promise his support in Parliament to any and every measure which designing men and corporation; may combine for, and are anxious to have carried to the loss, and at the general expense of the country.
This species of legislation has been practised and tolerated too much. Its tendencies are sapping the vitals and best interests of our country, and is another of the prominent causes of the exorbitant burthens of taxation which the people feel and are complaining of.
These shallow men, for they show they merit no higher encomium, will also be found supplicating mendicants at the door of the Prime Minister's Office, and they will even invade his private domicile-begging even a smile if not a promise, that they may represent that they have the influence of Government to aid in carrying their election, ~hereby proving that they are unpossessed of that knowledge of our Constitution, viz., that it is the high right and privilege of the freeholders to elect Members of Parliament, and that it is the right, duty, and perogative of Members of Parliament to make and unmake Prime Ministers.
Those in the least degree acquainted with human nature will agree with me, that the men who stoop to these subterfuges to obtain a seat in Parliament, thereby entirely unman themselves, lose their standing and influence, and become tools or puppets to serve and do the bidding of their master, the Prime Minister, instead of having obtained their seats by their position, principles, and known talents. Then they would occupy a standing in the estimation of their constituents, which would enable them to be and exercise a judicious check against attempted malversation in Parliament, the injudicious creation of useless and unnecessary public offices, and the extravagance and waste of the public and people's monies. Men whose minds have become fired with ambition, and being determined to obtain seats in the Legislature to subserve some mercenary purpose for their own interests, have been heard to assert that they could purchase or buy a great portion of the Electors' suffrage with money. Attempts to do so have been made, but all honor to the true and independent Electors of Carleton, (the Metropolitan County of the " Dominion ") who so nobly by their votes at the polls shewed that they despised the bribe and scorned the briber.
Men lost to a sense of honor, those who will attempt bribery to buy a seat in Parliament, will, when in power, lend their influence and sell their votes in order to repay themselves by indirectly sharing in the emoluments of the contracts or in some other clandestine way. This has been sufficiently illustrated by the investigations which enquired into and exposed the very defective manner in which the contracts were given for the construction of the Parliament Buildings.
Entering as we are now on a new course of things politically, it is to be hoped every man who is a freeholder or an elector in the "Dominion " will pride himself in the knowledge that he is himself responsible for the preservation of his rights, and the guardianship of the FREE Constitution which it is our privilege to live under.
To the free and independent elector, and the intelligent citizen, it is gratifying to know we have here and throughout the "Dominion," men of established principles, integrity, and ability, who by their natural or acquired genius in the practice of their respective callings~hether Agriculture, Mechanics, Merchandising, or in the learned professions, have by their steady and judicious course risen to distinction. These men are and maybe known by their consistent straightforward course in private life as well as in politics. They will not be found it is true the frequenters of the gamb- ler's resorts, or other places of infamy. This class of men will not be found over-anxious to press their services on the public, nor descend to low practices and artifices in order to obtain seats in the Legislature. Nor will they be seen to grasp at filling a plurality of public offices. At the same time, they know that being properly called upon to serve their country gives influence that enables them to carry measures. They stand ready, and prepared to serve their country when called upon. It is much to be regretted that in this section of the "Dominion " the people throughout the country put forth little effort conjointly to bring out independent men as representatives. The people seem to give the matter little attention, and prefer to allow all who desire to offer their services ; then at the polls they exercise their pleasure in choosing, and the Electors are frequently heard to say that none of the candidates have their confidence, but from a number of evils they try to select and choose the least. In my humble opinion the Electors would be doing themselves and their country a service by taking joint action to call upon men of position, of proven abilities, and sound principles, to come forward as candidates,~en whose stake in the country would be a guarantee that they would put forth exertions to check the increasing taxation, and put a stop to the creation and maintenance of useless public offices.
Electors !~hese remarks are aimed at no person nor are personalities intended ; but the present and the approaching state of public matters in our country calls for thought and reflection, together with the exercise of intelligence and sound judgment on the part of every elector and philanthropist, who now fills the place, and inherits the properties of the first fathers of Carleton, who cut the " tracts" and cleared the fields of your county.
Before concluding these remarks, I beg most respectfully to tender my grateful thanks to the large and influential number of the Free and Independent Electors of Carleton who have honored me with their confidence, in calling upon me by Requisition, and otherwise, to come forward as a Candidate at the approaching Election for the Representation of Carleton in the Assembly of Ontario. To me it is cause of sincere regret that circumstances render it prudent that I should decline the acceptance of the honour you have tendered me, at the present.
It will suffice, I hope, for me to mention the chief reason that has necessitated me to refrain from entering public life, for a period, engaged as I am in commercial business, involving large responsibilities, and looking at the disaster which has an which is to be regretted, too generally happens to the business transactions of men engaged in ordinary commerce, who abandon their business to follow politics. It is an old adage, " there is a time for all things,' and if I shall be spared to see a period that I shall be relieved from the cares of business, it will do me pleasure to discharge the debt of gratitude which I feel I owe to the people of Carleton, for the generous support and patronage they have for a long series of years conferred upon me in business matters ; and more particularly to the independent electors of Carleton, for the expression of confidence they have at this time extended to me, by serving the people of the County in any capacity, public or private, that may be in my power.
With grateful respect;
I remain, gentlemen,
Your obedient servant,
P. A. EGLESON, Senr.
Ottawa, 20th June, 1867.