Hon. Gentlemen Near Him Should
Remember Their Geography A Little, And They Would Cease To Speak Of
Canada As More Than A Section Of That Northern Continent Over Which The
Queen Of Great Britain Ruled, And Which Comprised An Area Larger Than
That Of The Federal And Confederate States Put Together.
Now what was
that great property?
He could not describe it better than in the
language of the United States. If the House would refer to the report
on the Reciprocity Treaty laid before the House of Representatives at
Washington in 1862 by Mr. Ward, they would find a glowing description
of the vast extent, the wonderful means of internal navigation, the
richness of mineral resources, the bracing healthiness of climate, and
the immense extent of fertile soil which British North America
contained. The report said: - 'The great and practical value of the
British North American Provinces and possessions is seldom appreciated.
Stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans, they contain an
area of at least 3,478,380 square miles - more than is owned by the
United States, and not much less than the whole of Europe, with its
family of nations.' And, again, it said - 'The climate and soil of these
Provinces and possessions, seemingly less indulgent than those of
tropical regions, are precisely those by which the skill, energy, and
virtues of the human race are best developed. Nature there demands
thought and labour from man as conditions of his existence, and yields
abundant rewards to a wise industry.' Indeed, the warmth of language
used irresistibly suggested the idea that the people of the United
States, with whom the love of territory was a passion, were disposed to
cast a covetous eye upon these possessions of old England.
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