Letters and Journals of James, Eighth Earl of Elgin Part 4

Fever cases among leading persons in the community here still continue to excite much comment and alarm. This day the Mayor of Montreal died,--a very estimable man, who did much for the immigrants, and to whose firmness and philanthropy we chiefly owe it, that the immigrant sheds here were not tossed into the river by the people of the town during the summer. He has fallen a victim to his zeal on behalf of the poor plague-stricken strangers, having died of ship-fever caught at the sheds. Colonel Calvert is lying dangerously ill at Quebec, his life despaired of.

Meanwhile, great indignation is aroused by the arrival of vessels from Ireland, with additional cargoes of immigrants, some in a very sickly state, after our Quarantine Station is shut up for the season.

Unfortunately the last arrived brings out Lord Palmerston's tenants. I send the commentaries on this contained in this day's newspapers.[6]

[Sidenote: The flood subsides.]

From this time, however, the waters began to subside. The Irish famine had worked its own sad cure. In compliance with the urgent representations of the Governor, the mother-country took upon herself all the expenses that had been incurred by the colony on behalf of the immigrants of 1847; and improved regulations respecting emigration offer ground for hope that the fair stream, which ought to be full of life and health both to the colony and to the parent state, will not again be choked and polluted, and its plague-stricken waters turned into blood.

[Sidenote: Visit to Upper Canada.]

In the autumn of this year Lord Elgin paid his first visit to Upper Canada, meeting everywhere with a reception which he felt to be 'most gratifying and 'ncouraging;' and keenly enjoying both the natural beauties of the country and the tokens of its prosperity which met his view. From Niagara he wrote to Mr. c.u.mming Bruce:--

[Sidenote: Niagara.]

I write with the roar of the Niagara Falls in my ears. We have come here for a few days' rest, and that I may get rid of a bad cold in the presence of this most stupendous of all the works of nature. It is hopeless to attempt to describe what so many have been describing; but the effect, I think, surpa.s.sed my expectations. The day was waning when we arrived, and a turn of the road brought us all at once in face of the ma.s.s of water forming the American Fall, and throwing itself over the brink into the abyss. Then another turn and we were in presence of the British Fall, over which a still greater volume of water seems to be precipitated, and in the midst of which a white cloud of spray was soaring till it rose far above the summit of the ledge and was dispersed by the wind. This day we walked as far as the Table Rock which overhangs one side of the Horse-shoe Fall, and made a closer acquaintance with it; but intimacy serves rather to heighten than to diminish the effect produced on the eye and the ear by this wonderful phenomenon.

The following to Lord Grey is of the same date:--

Our tour has been thus far prosperous in all respects except weather, which has been by no means favourable. I attended a great Agricultural Meeting at Hamilton last week, and had an opportunity of expressing my sentiments at a dinner, in the presence of six or seven hundred substantial Upper Canada yeomen--a body of men not easily to be matched.

It is indeed a glorious country, and after pa.s.sing, as I have done within the last fortnight, from the citadel of Quebec to the Falls of Niagara, rubbing shoulders the while with its free and perfectly independent inhabitants, one begins to doubt whether it be possible to acquire a sufficient knowledge of man or nature, or to obtain an insight into the future of nations, without visiting America.

A portion of the speech to which he refers in the foregoing letter may be here given, as a specimen of his occasional addresses, which were very numerous; for though the main purposes of his life were such as 'wrote themselves in action not in word,' he regarded his faculty of ready and effective speaking as an engine which it was his duty to use, whenever occasion arose, for the purpose of conciliating or instructing. In proposing the toast of 'Prosperity to the Agricultural a.s.sociation of Upper Canada,' he said:--

[Sidenote: Speech at an agricultural meeting.]

Gentlemen, the question forces itself upon every reflecting mind, How does it come to pa.s.s that the introduction of agriculture, and of the arts of civilised life, into this and other parts of the American continent has been followed by such astonishing results? It may be said that these results are due to the qualities of the hardy and enterprising race by which these regions have been settled, and the answer is undoubtedly a true one: but it does not appear to me to contain the whole truth; it does not appear to account for all the phenomena. Why, gentlemen, our ancestors had hearts as brave and arms as st.u.r.dy as our own; but it took them many years, aye, even centuries, before they were enabled to convert the forests of the Druids, and the wild fastnesses of the Highland chieftains, into the green pastures of England and the waving cornfields of Scotland. How, then, does it come to pa.s.s, that the labours of their descendants here have been rewarded by a return so much more immediate and abundant? I believe that the true solution of this problem is to be found in the fact that here, for the first time, the appliances of an age, which has been prolific beyond all preceding ages in valuable discoveries, more particularly in chemistry and mechanics, have been brought to bear, under circ.u.mstances peculiarly favourable, upon the productiveness of a new country. When the nations of Europe were young, science was in its infancy; the art of civil government was imperfectly understood; property was inadequately protected; the labourer knew not who would reap what he had sown, and the teeming earth yielded her produce grudgingly to the solicitations of an ill-directed and desultory cultivation. It was not till long and painful experience had taught the nations the superiority of the arts of peace over those of war; it was not until the pressure of numbers upon the means of subsistence had been sorely felt, that the ingenuity of man was taxed to provide subst.i.tutes for those ineffective and wasteful methods, under which the fertility of the virgin soil had been well-nigh exhausted. But with you, gentlemen, it is far otherwise. Canada springs at once from the cradle into the full possession of the privileges of manhood. Canada, with the bloom of youth yet upon her cheek, and with youth's elasticity in her tread, has the advantage of all the experience of age. She may avail herself, not only of the capital acc.u.mulated in older countries, but also of those treasures of knowledge which have been gathered up by the labour and research of earnest and thoughtful men throughout a series of generations.

Now, gentlemen, what is the inference that I would draw from all this?

What is the moral I would endeavour to impress upon you? It is this: That it is your interest and your duty to avail yourselves to the utmost of all these unparalleled advantages; to bring to bear upon this soil, so richly endowed by nature, all the appliances of modern art; to refuse, if I may so express myself, to convert your one talent into _two_, if, by a more skilful application of the true principles of husbandry, or by greater economy of management, you can convert it into _ten_. And it is because I believe that societies like these, when well directed, are calculated to aid you in your endeavours to effect these important objects, that I am disposed to give them all the protection and countenance, which it is in my power to afford. They have certainly been very useful in other countries, and I cannot see why they should be less serviceable in Canada. The Highland Society of Scotland was the first inst.i.tuted, and the proud position which Scotland enjoys as an agricultural country speaks volumes of the services rendered by that society. The Royal Agricultural Society of England and the Royal Agricultural Society of Ireland followed in its wake, and with similarly beneficial results. I myself was instrumental in establishing an agricultural society in the West Indies, which has already done much to revive the spirits of the planters; and I shall be very much disappointed, indeed, if that society does not prove the means, before many years are past, of establishing the truth so important to humanity, that, even in tropical countries, free labour properly applied under a good system of husbandry is more economical than the labour of slaves.

[Sidenote: Change of Ministry.]

At the close of 1847 the Canadian Parliament was dissolved. When the new Parliament met early in 1848, the Ministry--Lord Metcalfe's Ministry-- found itself in a decided minority. A new one was accordingly formed from the ranks of the opposition, 'the members of both parties concurring in expressing their sense of the perfect fairness and impartiality with which Lord Elgin had conducted himself throughout the transactions' which led to this result.[7]

[Sidenote: French _habitans_.]

The French Canadians, who formed the chief element in the new government, were even at this time a peculiar people. Planted in the days of the old French monarchy, and cut off by conquest from the parent state long before the Revolution of 1789, their little community remained for many years like a fragment or boulder of a distinct formation--an island enshrining the picturesque inst.i.tutions of the _ancien regime_, in the midst of an ever-encroaching sea of British nineteenth-century enterprise. The English, it has been truly said, emigrate, but do not colonise. No concourse of atoms could be more fortuitous than the gathering of 'traders, sailors, deserters from the army, outcasts, convicts, slaves, democrats, and fanatics,' who have been the first, and sometimes the only ingredients of society in our so-called colonies. French Canada, on the contrary, was an organism complete in itself, a little model of medieval France, with its recognised gradations of ranks, ecclesiastical and social.

It may, indeed, be doubted whether the highest forms of social life are best propagated by this method: whether the freer system, which 'sows itself on every wind,' does not produce the larger, and, in the long run, the more beneficent results. But if reason acquiesces in the ultimate triumph of that busy, pushing energy which distinguishes the British settler, there is something very attractive to the imagination in the picture presented by the peaceful community of French _habitans_, living under the gentle and congenial control of their _coutumes de Paris_, with their priests and their seigneurs, their frugal, industrious habits, their amiable dispositions and simple pleasures, and their almost exaggerated reverence for order and authority. Politically speaking, they formed a most valuable element in Canadian society. At one time, indeed, the restless anarchical spirit of the settlers around them, acting on the sentiment of French nationality, instigated them to the rebellion of 1837; but, as a rule, their social sympathies were stronger than their national antipathies; and grat.i.tude to the Government which secured to them the enjoyment of their cherished inst.i.tutions kept them true to England on more than one occasion when her own sons threatened to fall away from her.

By the legislative union of 1840 the barriers which had separated the British and French communities were, to a great extent, broken down; and the various elements in each began gradually to seek out and to combine with those which were congenial to them in the other. But there were many cross currents and thwarting influences; and there was great danger, as Lord Elgin felt, lest they should form false combinations, on partial views of local or personal interest, instead of uniting on broad principles of social and political agreement.

Such were the antecedents of the party which now, for the first time, found itself admitted to the counsels of the Governor. Well might he write to Lord Grey, that 'the province was about to pa.s.s through an interesting crisis.' He was required, in obedience to his own principles, to accept as advisers persons who had very lately been denounced by the Secretary of State as well as by the Governor-General, as impracticable and disloyal.

On the other hand he reflected, with satisfaction, that in these sentiments he himself had neither overtly nor covertly expressed concurrence; while the most extravagant a.s.sertors of responsible government had never accused him of stepping out of his const.i.tutional position. He felt, therefore, that the _onus probandi_ would rest on his new councillors if they could not act with him, and put forth pretensions to which he was unable to accede. At least he was determined to give them a fair trial. Writing on the 17th of March he says:--

The late Ministers tendered their resignations in a body on Sat.u.r.day 4th, immediately after the division on the address, which took place on Friday. I received and answered the address on Tuesday, and then sent for Messrs. Lafontaine and Baldwin. I spoke to them in a candid and friendly tone: told them that I thought there was a fair prospect, if they were moderate and firm, of forming an administration deserving and enjoying the confidence of Parliament; that they might count on all proper support and a.s.sistance from me.

They dwelt much on difficulties arising out of pretensions advanced in various quarters; which gave me an opportunity to advise them not to attach too much importance to such considerations, but to bring together a council strong in administrative talent, and to take their stand on the wisdom of their measures and policy....

I am not without hopes that my position will be improved by the change of administration. My present council unquestionably contains more talent, and has a firmer hold on the confidence of Parliament and of the people than the last. There is, I think, moreover, on their part, a desire to prove, by proper deference for the authority of the Governor-General (which they all admit has in my case never been abused), that they were libelled when they were accused of impracticability and anti-monarchical tendencies.

[Sidenote: News of the French revolution.]

It was only a few days after this that news reached Canada of the revolution of February in Paris. On receipt of it he writes:--

It is just as well that I should have arranged my Ministry, and committed the Flag of Britain to the custody of those who are supported by the large majority of the representatives and const.i.tuencies of the province, before the arrival of the astounding intelligence from Europe, which reached us by the last mail. There are not wanting here persons who might, under different circ.u.mstances, have attempted, by seditious harangues if not by overt acts, to turn the example of France, and the sympathies of the United States, to account.

[Sidenote: Three difficulties.]

But while congratulating Lord Grey on having pa.s.sed satisfactorily through a crisis which might, under other circ.u.mstances, have been attended with very serious results, and on the fact that 'at no period, during the recent history of Canada, had the people of the province generally been better contented, or less disposed to quarrel with the mother-country,'

Lord Elgin did not disguise from himself, or from the Secretary of State, that there were ominous symptoms of disaffection on the part of all the three great sections of the community, the French, the Irish, and the British.

Bear in mind that one-half of our population is of French origin, and deeply imbued with French sympathies; that a considerable portion of the remainder consists of Irish Catholics; that a large Irish contingent on the other side of the border, fanatics on behalf of republicanism and repeal, are egging on their compatriots here to rebellion; that all have been wrought upon until they believe that the conduct of England to Ireland is only to be paralleled by that of Russia to Poland; that on this exciting topic, therefore, a kind of holy indignation mixes itself with more questionable impulses; that Guy Fawkes Papineau, actuated by the most malignant pa.s.sions, irritated vanity, disappointed ambition, and national hatred, which unmerited favour has only served to exasperate, is waving a lighted torch among these combustibles--you will, I think, admit, that if we pa.s.s through this crisis without explosions it will be a gratifying circ.u.mstance, and an encouragement to persevere in a liberal and straightforward application of const.i.tutional principles to Government.

I have peculiar satisfaction therefore, under all these circ.u.mstances, in calling your attention to the presentment of the grand jury of Montreal, which I have sent you officially, in which that body adverts to the singularly tranquil and contented state of the province.[8]

[Sidenote: The French question.]

With regard to the French he constantly expressed the conviction that nothing was wanted to secure the loyalty of the vast majority, but a policy of conciliation and confidence. In this spirit he urged the importance of removing the restrictions on the use of the French language:--

[Sidenote: Use of the French language.]

I am very anxious to hear that you have taken steps for the repeal of so much of the Act of Union as imposes restrictions on the use of the French language. The delay which has taken place in giving effect to the promise made, I think by Gladstone, on this subject, is one of the points of which M. Papineau is availing himself for purposes of agitation. I must, moreover, confess, that I for one am deeply convinced of the impolicy of all such attempts to denationalise the French. Generally speaking they produce the opposite effect from that intended, causing the flame of national prejudice and animosity to burn more fiercely. But suppose them to be successful, what would be the result? You may perhaps _Americanize_, but, depend upon it, by methods of this description you will never _Anglicize_ the French inhabitants of the province. Let them feel, on the other hand, that their religion, their habits, their prepossessions, their prejudices if you will, are more considered and respected here than in other portions of this vast continent, who will venture to say that the last hand which waves the British flag on American ground may not be that of a French Canadian?

In the same spirit, when an a.s.sociation was formed for facilitating the acquisition of crown lands by French _habitans_, he put himself at the head, of the movement; by which means he was able to thwart the disloyal designs of the demagogue who had planned it.

[Sidenote: French unionisation.]

You will perhaps recollect that some weeks ago I mentioned that the Roman Catholic bishop and priests of this diocese had organised an a.s.sociation for colonisation purposes, their object being to prevent the sheep of their pasture (who now, strange as it may appear, emigrate annually in thousands to the States, where they become hewers of wood and drawers of water to the Yankees, and bad Catholics into the bargain) from quitting their fold. Papineau pounced upon this a.s.sociation as a means of making himself of importance in the eyes of his countrymen, and of gratifying his ruling pa.s.sion by abusing England. Accordingly, at a great meeting convened at Montreal, be held forth for three hours to the mult.i.tude (the bishop in the chair), ascribing this and all other French-Canadian ills, real or supposed, to the selfish policy of Great Britain, and her persevering efforts to deprive them of their nationality and every other blessing.

In process of time, after this rather questionable start, the a.s.sociation waited on me with a memorial requesting the co-operation of Government, M. Papineau being one of the deputation.

In dealing with them I had two courses to choose from. I had nothing for it, situated as I was, but either, on the one hand, to give the promoters of the scheme a cold shoulder, point out its objectionable features, and dwell upon difficulties of execution--in which case (use what tact I might) I should have dismissed the bishop and his friends discontented, and given M. Papineau an opportunity of a.s.serting that I had lent a quasi sanction to his calumnies; or, on the other, to identify myself with the movement, put myself in so far as might be at its head, impart to it as salutary a direction as possible, and thus wrest from M. Papineau's hands a potent instrument of agitation.

I was tempted, I confess, to prefer the latter of these courses, not only by reason of its manifest expediency as bearing upon present political contests, but also because I sympathise, to a considerable extent, with the views of the promoters of the movement. No one object, in my opinion, is so important, whether you seek to retain Canada as a colony, or to fit her for independence and make her instinct with national life and vigour, as the filling up of her vacant lands with a resident agricultural population. More especially is it of moment that the inhabitants of French origin should feel that every facility for settling on the land of their fathers is given them with the cordial a.s.sent and concurrence of the British Government and its representative, and that in the plans of settlement their feelings and habits are consulted. The sentiment of French Canadian nationality, which Papineau endeavours to pervert to purposes of faction, may yet perhaps, if properly improved, furnish the best remaining security against annexation to the States.

I could not with these views afford to lose the opportunity of promoting this object, which was presented by a spontaneous movement of the people, headed by the priesthood--the most powerful influence in Lower Canada.

The official correspondence which has pa.s.sed on this subject I hope to send by the next mail, and I need not trouble you with the detail of proceedings on my own part, which, though small in themselves, were not without their effect. Suffice it to say, that Papineau has retired to solitude and reflection at his seignory, 'La Pet.i.te Nation'--and that the pastoral letter, of which I enclose a copy, has been read _au p.r.o.ne_ in every Roman Catholic church in the diocese. To those who know what have been the real sentiments of the French population towards England for some years past, the tone of this doc.u.ment, its undisguised preference for peaceful over quarrelsome courses, the desire which it manifests to place the representative of British rule forward as the patron of a work dear to French-Canadian hearts, speaks volumes.

With the same object of conciliating the French portion of the community, he lost no opportunity of manifesting the personal interest which he felt in their inst.i.tutions. The following letter, written in August 1848, to his mother at Paris, describes a visit to one of these inst.i.tutions, the college of St. Hyacinthe, the chief French college of Montreal:--

[Sidenote: A French college.]

I was present, the other day, at an examination of the students at one of the Roman Catholic Colleges of Montreal. It is altogether under the direction of the priesthood, and it is curious to observe the course they steer. The young men declaimed for some hours on a theme proposed by the superior, being a contrast between ancient and modern civilisation. The greater part of it was a sonorous exposition of ultra-liberal principles, '_Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite,' 'Vox populi, vox Dei_,' a very liberal tribute to the vanity and to the prejudices of the cla.s.ses who might be expected to send their children to the inst.i.tution or to puff it; with an elaborate _pivot a la Lacordaire_--that the Church had achieved all that had been effected in this genre hitherto. _Au reste_, there was the wonderful mechanism which gives that church such advantages--the fourteen professors receiving no salaries, working for their food and that of the homeliest; as a consequence, an education, board and lodging inclusive, costing only 15 _l._ a year; the youths subjected to a constant discipline under the eye of ecclesiastics day and night. I confess, when I see both the elasticity and the machinery of this church, my wonder is, not with Lacordaire that it should do so much, but that it should not do more.

[Sidenote: The Irish question.]