Loading...
The Seaforth News, 1934-02-08, Page 3THURSDAY,'FEBRUARY 8, 1934 THE SEAFORTH NEWS PAGE THREE the speech from the throne somewhat changed. It ;goes on to say: World conditions. .are 'beyond the ,control of the Canadian people. But I rejoice that their resolute adherence to .policies designed for the welfare' of the nation has minimized the ad- verse influence of .eternal economic If•or:cos. This period of trial has shown the Canadian situation to be funda- m•en'tal.fy sound... :The provisions made at the last session of parliament' for unemployment and farm relief are proviing effective. You are successfully meeting diffi- cult domestic problems. Conditions are .gradually improving. lien making his address, a dew days ago, the 'hon. member for (Fraser 'Valley (Mr. Barber) 'stated that dur- ing the last few years a'bout 'the best that could be said was to express a pious hope that conditions would im- • prove. This is not an,expression 'of any pious hope: It is a positive state- ment made in 1'012 that conditions are gratldually improving. Anyone w'ho wants to be at all fair roust admit that those words were not in keeping with the situation existing at that time, When we compare the prices 'which prevailed in 1119130 with those ..which prevailed in 119312 and 'the num- ber of unemployed as repotted in !130 with the number reported in 1932, we cannot help wondering how anyone could say that conditions were im- proving, ,There were only two reasons dor making such a statement. The .first, of course, was to try to raise 'the hopes of the people, add the sec- ond, and II think the principal reason, was to maintain confidence in the pre- sent government, I quite agree that it .really is itn- portant that every effort should be made to keep up the spirit and morale of a nation which has had to pass through ,such a period of depression. as Canada has faced. I presume the .government will expect •us to excuse them on that ground For any unwar- ranted note of optimism that may have been expressed in their messages to the people given from 'bine to time through the speech from the throne. I am not going to spend de time in adversely criticising the, speech frons, the throne for whatever note of optimism may be found therein, But 'I do think the members of this hoose—indeed, the Canadian people—are keenly dis- appointecl that the government has not offered any concrete suggestion of a policy which would have at least some effect in dispelling the gloom that has prevailed in this country for same time. The government has had splendid opportunities to- do effective l' work; as a matter of fact it has had opportunities in a national and inter- national way that perhaps few gov- ernments ever had. There have been conferences; there were two imperial ecot mic, conferences, a world eco - n conference, a conference with • the president .of the;United States; there have been federal -provincial 'conferences. As a matter 'of fact this 'government has probably taken part in more conferences than any other` Canadian government .in a like period of time, Our Canadian people did ex- pect some beneficial results from these conferences, which certainly provided a 'splendid opportunity to get this 'much -advertised blasting pol- icy into operation. 13et it es quite evi- dent that the blasting machine was would be taken to 'break down, ito not 'functioning; so we have had la.rg expenditures of money with very hill result. 'lir. 'Pouliot: The result was nil, Mr. Golding: As we all know, th first imperial economic .conferenc was a failure. The second impeeia economic conference, Which was held int this 'cit'y, afforded an opportunity for Canada and the other parts of the .empire to lead the world in a cam- paign for a reduction of trade bar- riers, But, as was clearly indicated in the addresses delivered on this side of the house .during the debate on the treaties, the very opposite happened. !Ars a result of that conference not only did 'Canada raise her tariff again - Si m'a'ny countries,.but Great Britain herself threw 'her hat into the arena of the tariff struggle, a struggle just as disastrous as far as trade and the restoration of normal conditions throughout the world are concerned as was the great war in its destruc- tion of human life and property. The Prime Minister stated here the other day, Mr. Speaker, that the trade of the world had shrunk to about one-third of what it had been previously. There could be no better evidence of the correctness of our contention as to the disastrous results that would inevitably follow .high tariffs than the 'figures 'duoted by the Prime 'Minister, When we realize that our exports, which amounted to something over $1444,000,000 in 1930, have fallen to possibly less than half of that figure in 11033-34, T think _ we ought to make -a careful survey of our whole situation to ascertain just what .has happened to our foreign track. I know the charge has been made 'by members of the government that some of ehese marketsmarketswere lost to us during the Liberal rugine, Es- pecially has that charge been made in reference to the United 'States, \ncl of course the charge is perfectly true. But why stop there; why not tell that it was a protectionist gov- ernment in the -United States which, believing as this government does in the efficacy of high tariffs, brought into being 'legislation which practical- ly shut off our trade with that coun- try ,Why not go further still and examine the result of that legislation as far as the 'United States is con- cerned? tW'hy not ask ourselves the question: Was that legislation bene- ficial to the United States? Did it in- crease the price of their wheat to any considerable extent? It seems to tie that the action taken by the United States in regard to our trade was just about the most suicidal thing that could .have happened to that country, and the same can be said of similar !teflon by any country. Mr. McGibbon: .What about the price over there? Mr, Golding: However, we had hoped that the situation had changed in the United .States since that legis- lation was passed. I know that our Canadian people looked up with new hope when the !Prime Minister at the iast session of parliament practically announced itis conversion to the idea of a reciprocal trade agreement with' our neighbours to the south. We hop- ed that with a government in power across the line advocating a reduction in trade barriers the opportunity e some degree, at any rate, the tariff e''wall that had been built up between us, The Prime Minister made refer- ence .to that in 'his speech the other e day. He quoted present prices of hogs e ,and similar products, 1 want to re- 1 mind my right hon. friend that while that may all :be true, this market in 'the United States was a valuable maelset to them. In 19.30 we sent over there more than $1e5,000,000 worth of live animals. !Even last year, with all the restrictions, we sent nearly $3,- 000y000 worth of live animals to the !United States. I say in all sincerity that the government should make every effort to remove the shackles frons trade. After all, the greatest problem that confronts this country is that of improving agricultural con- ditions. We are all agreed that the £u - turn of Canada is dependent .upon hav- ing a happY, prosperous and content- ed rural population, as agriculture is our greatest basic industry. The de- mand is urgent by reason of the seri- ous condition in which many farmers still find themselves, notwithstanding all that has 'been said about the in- crease in prices—and tI hope the situ- ation is just as bright as the Prime :Minister pictures it. II am not con- cerned at all about who is going to get the credit for these these increas- ed prices; what II am concerned about, what I think we all ought to be con- cerned about, is the making of a de- termined effort to see that those in- creased prices contin•tte and that our farmers be relieved of some of the suffering that they have had to endure; in recent years. I nm not going to attempt to de- scribe conditions in my own constit- uency. Perhaps they are not as bad es in some other sections of the coun- try, but I want to tell the horse that, meeting the farmers continually and knowing them intimately, T knots- that many who previously made heavy commitments are being driven al- most to .desperation wondering how they are going to corse through. In all my association with the farmers— and II have been associated with them all my life -;1 have found them to be a courageous class. They come from a group of noble men and women who pioneered this country, and they are not easily discouraged. But this depression has really been reducing our farmers to poverty. They are un- able to meet their obligations, to pay taxes, .redeem mortgages, maintain in- terest payments and meet the neces- sary bills for machinery, gasoline and oil and such things. S feel that the continuance of existing conditions in- evitably must affect every industrial add financial institution, and in tarn will seriously affect every worker, l have read and have heard many different statements as to the reason he farmer finds himself in his pres- ent pr s-ent unfortunate position, Some, with no knowledge of farming at all, 'blame it on mismanagement; some say the farmer is buying too much, .some that he is buying Inn little, and some have actually said that the farmer is ;gamb- ling ton numb, I think if any class of citizens have received from our arm- chair and white collar philosophers of this land more free advice than any other class. it has been the farmers. But I want to say, Mr. Speaker, that daring this :emergency the farmer does need someone to show him how to surmount the difficulties with wdiic'h Ile is confronted; how to run his farm without help; how to finance the growing; harvesting and marke•t- in•g of his crops; how to construct his buildings and keep them in repair; how to pay taxes, redeem mortgages, •maintain interest payments, clothe, Tedd, and educate his family, support the church and other local institutions as well as a hundred and one other Things tvhicb time does not permit me to enumerate, .I have pointed out that many farmers are trying to meet all t'h'ese bills with an income barely suf- ficient to provide for the living ex- pense of themselves and their families. and I feel that the improve] ent of farm conditions will involve to a large extent the solution of other problems such as industrial regeneration and uo.emplo'yment, In view of the defin- ite promise made by the ,Prime Min- ister that the wrongs of the Canadian people would be righted, the people in my constituency are keenly await- ing the coining of the great day of fulfilment, As elle of the great exporting na- tions of the world I think we all real- ize that we need more and more mar- kets. In this country we do not want any policy of extreme nationalization and S think we all realize that inter- nationally we are all interdependent, and it has been pointed out by econ- omists and statesmen that throughout the world more than a billion people are potential consumers of our sur- plus products and that with the right kind of governmental policy they can be converted into actual consumers. All the great problems that confront this country at the present time, in- cluding farm relief, agricultural surp- luses, the utilization of manufacturing productivity, unemployment, the maintenance of our standard of liv- ing, our continued development and progress and international goodwill with resultant international peace, all eeetn to Inc•to be bound up in this great problem of the expansion of our trade, I am persuaded that not until we start trading with one another, buying and selling and selling and buying, need we expect any economic recovery. !No inflation, deflation, re- flation or any other kind of ,flation will be of any avail until we have a buy- and-sellation. '1 do not want to conclude nay re- marks, Mr, (Speaker, without making reference to a speech delivered in To- ronto by the Minister of Trade and Commerce (Mr. Stevens) on which I congratulate my hon. friend. I have had some correspondence with the Department of .Agriculture and the Department of Trade and Commerce and I am certainly pleased to find from the order paper that the govern- ment is going to appoint a special committee to investigate some of the matters that were referred to by the Minister of Trade and Commerce. Among the questions into which they are to inquire I find: '(d) the methods and system pre- vailing in the marketing of live stock and animal products for domestic con- sumption and export, and the extent to which the present system affords or restricts opportunity for fair re- turns to producers. :14 t.. t#, tit. We Are; Selling Quality Books. Books are Well Made, Carbon is Clean and Copies Readily. styles, Carbon Leaf and Black Back. Prices as ' Low as You Can Anywhere. Get our Quotation on Your Next Omer: • The Se • fort SEAFORTH, ONTARIO, e All Get S 1iftt +,1r2"rv?'.e;riktS✓i`.', A;`Jl I ant very glad indeed that the gov- ernment are -going to make a thorough invesaigatiottinto this iquestien, 1 have 'had] a good .tnan'y complaints with re- gard to shipping facilities available in connection with sending cattle to the old country and S am endeavoring to take up this •m'atter with the depart- ment, I think hon. members will ap- preciate the situation in which the farmer finds himself. Lf he is not get- ting a square deal it is absolutely im- possible for hiin to defend ;himself in any way. He is not getting prices that will warrant his taking any action against anyone at all. I tliinlc 11 is the duty sof the government to have s thorough investigation made in order to see if the farmer is being given a fair deal, and I hope that twill be done. With regard to the speech from the throne, and particularly with regard to the proposed central bank, of course we have no idea what position the government is going to talc -e. This central baulk .has been advocated by the Liberal party for some time, and we on this side will simply have to wait until the 'bill is brought down to see whether or not we can approve of the central bank system proposed by the government. THE ONTARIO LEGISLATURE Surrounded by .British parliament- ary tradition and procedure, the fifth and last session of the fifteenth Leg- islature of the province was opened on Wednesday afternoon by the Hmr. Herbert A, Bruce, Lieutenant Gover- nor. Crowded galleries witnessed the historic ceremony, the floor of the chamber being crowded with beauti- fully gowned women. For the' fist time in the history of the legislature the opening .ceremony was broadcast. From former years, the ceremony was changed in one respect, his 1 -Ion - or escorting firs. Bruce to the cham- ber, whereas in former openings. both his Honor and Mrs, Bruce were es- corted by Premier George S. Henry, The Prime Minister followed immed- iately behind the Lieutenant -Gover- nor and Mrs..Bruce who were accom- panied by representative aides from the militia regiments. Several important pieces of legisla- tion were forecast in the Speech in- cluding the extension .01 the Mortgag- ors and Purchasers Relief Act, to give further assistance to those who find themselves in financial difficulties; supervision of lumbering operation: and living conditions in lumbering camps; legislation to provide for pub- lication and registration of rates for bus and truck transportation; provin- cial control of the distribution . of milk, coupled with compulsory past- eurization bymunicipalities, u and cer- tain regulations as to the inspection and grading of agricultural products under the department of agriculture. An indication was given by his 'Ho- t:or that work in the 'construction and maintenance of highways will be un- dertaken during the costing season on a larger scale than prevailed last year, with a view to providing great- er field for employment. !Special aid to counties and townships by the fed- eral and provincial governments to- ward labour costs in such construc- tion will be continued as in former years. . His Honor referred to tate loss of several remembers of the Assembly since the last session, there having been live up unfii the opening, and six with the death of Dr, George V. Harcourt, Conservative member for Parry Sound. "As a people, we are encouraged by the progress now being made toward the recovery of business and indus- try," said Dr. Bruce. "I trust that this tendency will be .continued at an ac- celerated .rate and that the time is not far distant when our country will ag- ain bewell on the road to enduring prosperity." ,Relief unemployment payments by the D'oan'inion and the provincial gov- ernments will 'be continued, the funds to be used in providing work in order that the distribution of direct relief may be gradually curtailed. !Provincial governments are now planning great- er uniformity of the company law which was discussed at the recent in- ter -provincial conference at Ottawa, while reference was made to the forth- coming centennial celebrations of the city of Toronto.. Touching on the work of the past year, his Honor said that it was grat- ifying to learn of the progress made in opening up ass extencling nsarkets for -tore products of Ontario farms, 'As- sistance given to the building of cold storage and central packing plants is enabling the ferrate; to place ..perish- able 'products on the market to the best advantage. Co-operation has been • arranged with the Federal .Department of !Agri- culture to improve the :quality of beef cattle' and to increase the yield of dairy cows. Young people in the rural districts are taking a keen interest in the edu:cat'ional activities of the On Department of Educatiost, , the attendance at the short courses in •Agriculture .and home economics be- ing the alar-gbst on record.' As an evidence of Phe` trend of in-• destry,- the operations of the II-1ydiro-- I1Electric Commission afford valuable and reliable in.forination, as in De cem'ber the actual peak load, includ- ing secondary power, carried by 'the various systems reached the highest. paint in the history of the Coinmis- sign. Rural services were extenaled last year by the addition of ',3313 cus- tomers, and further loans were made to farmers to enable then to install .. electrical equipment, No interruption has taken place in educational ,ser- vices, except where in a few remote localities schools have been closed on. grounds of economy. Public interest continues t0 :be manifested' in the conservation and propagation of fish and game for which increased facili- ties have been provided. The federal authorities have assisted in the plac- ing of large game in Northern 'On- tario, and plans to increase the sou- sumpfion of Ontario fish are being developed. The Welfare Department, his Hon- or pointed out, advanced the cause of social amelioration and enlisted co- operation in helpful work to a com- mendable degree. Increasing num- bers of families have invoked the as- sistance of the Mothers' .Allowances and the Old Age pensions, and spec - sal attention has been required for the needs of ex -service inert. The T. and N. O. ,Railway maintained its service during the past year with an operat- ing surplus and present indications inspire frill confidence in the future of. this undertaking: Dealing with the province's financ- ial position, Dr. Bruce stated that public accounts will indicate the $476,- 000 surplus for the last financial year, which he termed "a much bet- ter showing than was considered a year ago." As to the recent $40,004,- 000 loan, ID.r. Bruce said: "by the prompt subscription of this loan, a notable demonstration of the financ ial strength of Ontario was afforded."' Moving and seconding the motion for the adoption of the Speech from the throne fell to the lot of two of 'the youngest members of the House in the persons of Arthur Ellis, South Ottawa, and Dr. E. J. Davis, East Elgin, Mr. 'Ellis mentioned that the Liberals had dismissed their farmer leader, W. E. N. Sinclair, K, 'C., bttt he offered Mr. Sinclair his admiration far having had the courage of his convictions in putting .the welfare of the people ahead of his own political' ambitions. Hydro critics, Mr. Ellis , said, were still attacking the greatest asset of the province, 'but in dealing with a'comparison of rates, he pointed to the greatly reduced cost of power to municipalities and rural sections than existed prior to adoption af. Hydro. Dr. Davis c that at the grad» ing of 'hogs would shortly be done as on the rail and not on the hoof. Many farmers felt, he said, that it was prac- tically impossible to grade properly on the hoof and that there is not suf- ficient given for select hogs for the production risks the farmers take, He also advocated the grading of bacon before it reaches world markets, so that the farmer would be paid ac cording to quality and would thus get the top price which is generally five to 20 shillings higher than the farmer usually gets. ISSUE STATEMENT ON HYDRO' In view of the fact that the Ontario Municipal Electric Association is holding its annual convention in Tor- onto this week the announcement ab. out Hydro affairs, which appears in this newspaper is of unusual public - interest. - A popular misconception about the great public utility, known as the Hydro-4Etectric ,System, or more fa- miliarly as 'Hydro," k that it is ow-n- ned by the iGovernntent of Ontario, or the Ilydro-Electric .Power Com- mission. 'Under the caption, "Who Ons Hydro?" this announcement makes it clear that neither the Gov- ernment nor the Commission own the Hydro System. While operated add administered. by the Commission acting in the ca- pacity of trustee,'the 'Hydro System is really owned by the .Hyd'ro munic- ipalities tt^ho purchase power in. blocks from the Commission .and lis-• tribute it to homes and factories. The, Government enters the picture only as banker for the Cotnntission, 'In other words, Ilydro is •the property - of the people of the nssociatect Hydro, municipalities -represented by the loris Municipal Electric Association: After declaring that "statements have been made ,and published with respect to the •.L-Iy'dt o System` of 'Ont- ario that a re not in accordance with the facts," the resolution regarding publicity, embodied in. the ,Associa- tion atinouncetne'ut, states:. This Municipalities of Ontario are the/ owners of the Hlydrn System, in which tiney> have an investment of some three hunched' millions of dd-ol- lars;-and anything which would create• distrust in the minds of the people as to the proper and efficient conduct oF' title are it Public utility would tend' to ptpair the .value of the invest( enle of the Municipalities in . the_layettes System." 41,