1952-02-28

HOUSE OF COMMONS DEBATES


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itousit of Commons! ®ebates!
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Speaker: The Honourable W. Ross Macdonald
Thursday, February 28, 1952

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The parliament which had been prorogued on the twenty-ninth day of December, 1951, met this day at Ottawa for the dispatch of business.

Mr. Speaker read a communication from the Governor General's Secretary, announcing that His Excellency the Governor General would proceed to the Senate chamber at three o'clock on this day, for the purpose of formally opening the session of the dominion parliament.
A message was delivered by Major C. R. Lamoureux, Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, as follows:
Mr. Speaker, His Excellency the Governor General desires the immediate attendance of this honourable house in the chamber of the honourable the Senate.
Accordingly, Mr. Speaker with the house went up to the Senate chamber.
And the house being returned to the Commons chamber:

Mr. Speaker:: I have the honour to inform the house that during the recess I have received communications from several members notifying me that the following vacancies have occurred in the representation:
Of Hon. Gabriel Edouard Rinfret, member for the electoral district of Outremont-St. Jean, consequent upon his acceptance of an office of emolument under the crown.
Of Louis Orville Breithaupt, Esquire, member for the electoral district of Waterloo North, by resignation.
I accordingly issued my warrants to the chief electoral officer to make out new writs of election for the said electoral districts.



NEW MEMBER INTRODUCED

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Carl Olof Nickle, Esquire, member for the electoral district of Calgary West, introduced by Mr. George A. Drew and Mr. D. S. Harkness.

Right Hon. L. S. St. Laurent (Prime Minister) moved: for leave to introduce Bill No. 1, respecting the administration of oaths of office.
Motion agreed to and bill read the first time.



SPEECH FROM THE THRONE

Mr. Speaker:: I have the honour to inform the house that when the house did attend His Excellency the Governor General this day in the Senate chamber, His Excellency was pleased to make a speech to both houses of parliament. To prevent mistakes I have obtained a copy, which is as follows:
Honourable Members of the Senate:
Members of the House of Commons:
I meet you at a time when the people of Canada, in common with the other peoples of the commonwealth, mourn the loss of our late sovereign, King George VI. His late Majesty was greatly loved by all his subjects in Canada who have vivid recollections of his visit to this country and of his many associations with his Canadian people. In no part of the commonwealth has the sense of personal loss been more deeply felt than in our country. I join with you in extending deepest sympathy in their bereavement to Her Majesty the Queen, to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, to Queen Mary, to Princess Margaret and all the members of the royal family.
The people of Canada have already had an opportunity of meeting their new sovereign. In the course of her visit to our country a few months ago Her Majesty made a deep and lasting impression on her Canadian subjects. As the queen assumes her heavy responsibilities she is assured of the loyalty and devotion of the Canadian people in full measure.

Speech from the Throne
I am deeply sensible of the great honour of having been appointed by His late Majesty as his personal representative in my native land. As I take up my duties as the representative of the queen, I assure you of the pleasure with which I look forward to our association in parliament and I deem it a privilege to be connected with you in your labours for the welfare and happiness of the Canadian people.
The situation throughout the world continues to cause concern and to require my ministers to devote a great deal of attention to our external affairs. The government remains convinced that the nations of the free world must continue to increase their combined strength, in order to ensure lasting peace and security by the effective discouragement of aggression.
In Korea it has not yet been possible to bring about an armistice, but negotiations with this end in view are still going on. Canadian forces together with their comrades from other of the United Nations are giving distinguished service in that unhappy land.
A formation from the Canadian Army now forms an effective part of the integrated force of the North Atlantic alliance in Europe and further elements of the Royal Canadian Air Force are progressively being dispatched overseas. Amendments to legislation relating to our armed forces will be submitted for your approval.
Your approval will also be soqght for a further Canadian contribution to the Colombo plan and for technical assistance to underdeveloped areas.
A Japanese peace treaty has been signed and will be submitted for your consideration.
At home our economy remains very buoyant. External trade and capital investment have reached record levels. Generally speaking employment remains at a high level. Inflationary pressures are still being strongly felt and require the maintenance of anti-inflationary measures.
Unfortunately foot-and-mouth disease has appeared in cattle in a small area in Saskatchewan. Immediate steps have been taken to limit the affected area, eradicate the disease and meet the situation resulting from the embargo under United States law on exports of livestock and meat to that country.
A board of engineers has been established to prepare an application for submission to the international joint commission concerning the development of hydroelectric power in the international section of the St. Lawrence river.
As a measure designed to assist in the development of our natural resources you will be asked to consider legislation to enable the Canadian National Railways to construct a branch line between Terrace and Kitimat in British Columbia.
You will be asked to consider legislation to amend the War Veterans Allowance Act, 1946, and the Veterans Benefit Act, 1951.
A bill to revise the Immigration Act will be placed before you. If that bill can be finally dealt with during the present session, related amendments to the Canadian Citizenship Act will be submitted.
You will be asked to approve a bill to authorize the federal government to enter into new tax rental agreements with the provinces.
You will be invited to consider a measure to provide for the readjustment of representation in the House of Commons.
You will be asked to consider a complete revision of the Criminal Code prepared by a commission which has been engaged on this project for the past three years.
A bill will be introduced to authorize certain preparatory steps in connection with the establishment of a national library.


A bill will also be presented respecting trademarks.
Other measures to be introduced will be amendments to the Food and Drugs Act; the Canada Grain Act; the Cold Storage Act; the Canadian Farm Loan Act; the Civil Service Superannuation Act; the Currency Act; the Canada Shipping Act; the Northwest Territories Act; the Aeronautics Act; the Radio Act; the Government Employees Compensation Act, 1947, and the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1940.
Members of the House of Commons:
You will be asked to make provision for all essential services, and for national defence and the meeting of our obligations under the United Nations charter and the North Atlantic treaty, for the next fiscal year.
Honourable Members of the Senate:
Members of the House of Commons:
May Divine Providence bless your deliberations.



MOTION FOR PRECEDENCE OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS

Louis Stephen St-Laurent: That the speech of His Excellency the Governor General to both houses of parliament be taken into consideration on Friday next, and that this order have precedence over all other business, unless and until otherwise ordered, except introduction of bills and government notices of motions, until disposed of.


[Stage Direction]
Motion agreed to.


Louis Stephen St-Laurent: Mr. Speaker, I rise at this time
to propose two motions which my hon. friend, the leader of the opposition (Mr. Drew), has kindly consented to second. Perhaps it would suit the convenience of the house if, so far as the speeches that are to be made on these motions are concerned, both motions were dealt with together.
When they awoke on the morning of February 6, all Canadians were profoundly shocked to learn that their king was dead. We knew how precarious His Majesty's health bad been, and for some months we had all been very anxious. Then gradually this feeling of anxiety had given way to gratification at what seemed to be a steady recovery from his illness. But now King George VI is no more.
It is our first duty and our sad privilege to extend to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II our profound sorrow at the bereavement she has sustained and to express our loyalty and allegiance to her. Our heartfelt sympathy also goes out to Their Majesties the Queen

Mother and Queen Mary, to Princess Margaret and to all the other members of the royal family.
Canada mourns the loss of a great king and a good man. And we are not alone in our sorrow. Throughout the commonwealth, and indeed everywhere in the free world, King George VI was held in the highest esteem and affection. It is not hard to discern why this was so.
He had not expected to be called to rule over the British commonwealth of nations, and he succeeded to the throne in circumstances which were without precedent and must have been personally distressing to him as, indeed, they were to many of his subjects. I suppose he had hoped that, while he would have many duties as the brother of the reigning monarch, he would be able to lead, out of the limelight, a relatively quiet but useful family life. This was not to be. But to his everlasting glory King George VI responded to this call of duty in a manner we can all be proud of, and for which, I think I may add, we can all be thankful.
His reign coincided with one of the most turbulent periods in history; a period of depression, war, distress, fear and uneasiness. Yet throughout it all he remained calm and held firm to his faith in freedom and his belief in human progress. One has only to read the speeches he made each Christmas to get a clear conception of the ideals of this good man.
As we remember him today, and we will remember him for many years to come, we think of his sense of duty; of his great courage; of his example as a husband and a father; of his kindness and his concern for the welfare of his subjects everywhere. He was specially interested in the future of his younger subjects. It will be remembered that on May 24, 1939, King George VI spoke from Winnipeg over the radio to the peoples of the commonwealth everywhere. In concluding he addressed a word to those of his listeners who were young. He said:
Life is a great adventure, and every one of you can be a pioneer, blazing by thought and service a trail to better things. Hold fast to all that is just and of good report in the heritage which your fathers have left to you, but strive also to improve and equalize that heritage for all men and women in the years to come. Remember, too, that the key to all true progress lies in faith, hope, and love.
The late king himself did "hold fast to all that is just and of good report", but he also believed in the future.
Canadians have never forgotten the visit of the late king and his queen to our country in 1939. Those who were in this house at that time will remember meeting him and
55704-1J
The late King George VI hearing him speak and give his assent to legislation which had been passed by our two houses of parliament. Across our land, hundreds of thousands of Canadians were able to see and acclaim their monarch for the first time. Canadians will remember, too, the many associations the king established with our armed forces during the war.
These experiences, and many more besides, have greatly strengthened the attachment of the Canadian people to the crown.
The crown is, of course, the constitutional link between the members of the commonwealth. And it is more than that; it is also the symbol of unity in each of the nations of the commonwealth. It is in the name of the king-now of the queen-that we discharge in Canada the responsibilities of government.
We have, in our commonwealth nations, a system of government as free as any on earth; in our parliaments and in public debate we place few limits on differences of party; but happily in this house and, indeed, in this country, all political parties worthy of the description are as one in their devotion to the crown and in their attachment to the commonwealth.
As Mr. Churchill reminded us in his broadcast the day after the king died, it is vital that "the occupant of the throne should be equal to the august and indefinable responsibilities which this supreme office requires."
We remember with gratitude how fittingly the king we mourn today bore those responsibilities. And throughout his reign, indeed through his whole married life, we know how well he was supported and sustained by his dear wife. Our heartfelt sympathy goes out to the Queen Mother, who shared so fully the life of our late king.
Hon. members will notice that the second of the two motions which the leader of the opposition and I are sponsoring today is in terms identical with the message of condolence to the Queen Mother when the late King George V died a little over sixteen years ago.
I am sure that Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother will be gratified to know that the members of the Canadian House of Commons think of our late king as the worthy son of a worthy father and have for her the same admiration, the same sympathy and the same affection they expressed to her illustrious predecessor, Queen Mary, sixteen years ago.
And we now hail our new monarch, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

The late King George VI We all recall the happy time she and her husband spent among us only a few months ago, and we know how much she endeared herself to her Canadian subjects. Though young in years, Her Majesty is qualified to follow in the footsteps of her illustrious father. And she is well aware of her many responsibilities.
In addressing her privy council in the United Kingdom for the first time she declared-and these are Her Majesty's words: I shall always work as my father did throughout his reign to uphold constitutional government and to advance the happiness and prosperity of my peoples.
There could be no better example and no worthier pledge. Hon. members, I know, will agree that the crown rests upon a head which will bring to it further honour and glory. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, like her father, comes to the throne at a most difficult and trying period in world history. As she assumes her great responsibilities I know I speak for all members of the House of Commons in Canada in expressing our earnest desire to uphold and support her in the task which has been laid upon her.
I now beg leave to move, seconded by the leader of the opposition, that a humble address be presented to Her Majesty the Queen in the following words:
To the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty:
Most Gracious Sovereign:
We, Your Majesty's dutiful and loyal subjects, the Commons of Canada, in parliament assembled, respectfully desire to express our deep sympathy to Your Majesty in the great loss you have sustained by the death of the late king, Your Majesty's beloved father.
Your Majesty's sorrow and that of the royal family is shared in a personal way by the people of Canada, whose representatives we are. King George VI was a great king and a good man. By his devotion to duty, his high courage, his example as a husband and a father, and his concern for the welfare of those he ruled, he greatly endeared himself to his Canadian subjects. We will not forget the occasion when, accompanied by your beloved mother, he visited our country, nor will Canadians forget the many happy associations established in the course of his reign over us. In common with all the peoples of the commonwealth, we shall ever deeply cherish his memory.
We welcome Your Majesty's accession to the throne, and we desire to convey to you a sincere expression of our loyalty and devotion. When Your Majesty, accompanied by your husband, visited us a few months ago, you left a deep and lasting impression upon the Canadian people. We are convinced that Your Majesty will ever seek to promote the happiness and well-being of all your subjects. As members of the parliament of Canada it is our desire and determination to uphold and support Your Majesty, to the utmost of our authority and wisdom; and it is our prayer that Divine Providence will sustain Your Majesty in the discharge of your heavy responsibilities.
I also move, seconded by Mr. Drew, that the following message of condolence be sent to Her Majesty the Queen Mother:

Your Gracious Majesty:
We, the Commons of Canada, in parliament assembled, respectfully beg leave to tender to Your Majesty our heartfelt sympathy in your great sorrow and bereavement. We share Your Majesty's grief and loss in the passing of our late sovereign, King George VI, who was greatly beloved by all his subjects.
We pray that, at this time, Your Majesty may be comforted and sustained by the remembrance of what your loving companionship meant to the late king throughout his life and reign; by memories of service shared; and by the sympathy and love that everywhere surrounds Your Majesty in your great sorrow.
(Translation):
Mr. Speaker, it is not my intention to repeat in the other official language of our parliament what I have just said in English; however, I believe it is fitting that I should repeat in French the terms of the two addresses which the leader of the opposition (Mr. Drew) and I are submitting to our colleagues for adoption, because, in my opinion, they truly express the feelings of all Canadians whom we represent in this house, whatever be the language usually spoken in their respective homes. The addresses read as follows:
(Text):
A Sa Tres Excellente Majeste la Reine:
Tres Gracieuse Souveraine,
Nous, fideles et loyaux sujets de Votre Majeste, les Communes du Canada, en Parlement assembles, desirons respectueusement exprimer a Votre Majeste notre profonde sympathie dans l'affliction que vous a causee la disparition du feu Roi, Pere bien-aime de Votre Majeste.
Les Canadiens, dont nous sommes les represen-tants, partagent personnellement le deuil de Votre Majeste et de la Famille royale. Le Roi George VI a ete un grand roi et un homme de bien. Par Sa fidelite au devoir, Son courage marque, l'exemple qu'Il a donne comme epoux et comme pere, l'in-teret qu'Il portait au bien-etre de ceux sur lesquels II regnait, II s'est rendu tres cher a Ses sujets canadiens. Nous n'oublierons pas la visite qu'11 a faite en notre pays en compagnie de Votre Mere bien-aimde; les Canadiens n'oublieront pas non plus les liens heureux et nombreux etablis durant la periode ou II a r6gne sur nous. En communion avec toutes les parties du Commonwealth, nous cherissons a jamais et profondement Sa memoire.
Nous accueillons avec joie l'accession de Votre Majeste au Trone et nous desirons Vous exprimer sincerement notre loyaute et notre devouement. Lorsque, accompagnee de Votre Epoux, Vous avez visite notre pays, il y a quelques mois, Vous avez produit sur le peuple canadien une impression profonde et durable. Nous sommes certains que Votre Majeste s'efforcera toujours de favoriser le bonheur et le bien-etre de tous Ses sujets. A titre de membres du Parlement du Canada, nous avons le desir et la determination de soutenir et d'ap-puyer Votre Majeste dans toute la mesure de notre autorite et de nos capacites, et nous prions la Divine Providence de Vous assister dans l'exercice de Vos lourdes responsabilites.

(Translation):
Now, here is the message of condolence to the Queen Mother:
(Text):
Gracieuse Majeste,
Nous, les Communes du Canada, en Parlement assembles, demandons respectueusement la permission d'offrir a Votre Majeste notre sincere sympathy dans Votre grand deuil et Votre profond chagrin. Nous partageons la douleur et la perte que Votre Majeste eprouve de la disparition de Notre Souverain defunt, le Roi George VI, qui etait grandement aime de tous Ses sujets.
Nous formons des vceux pour que, en ce moment, Votre Majeste soit reconfortee et soutenue par ie souvenir de ce que Votre aitectueuse compagnie a valu au defunt Roi pendant toute la duree de Sa vie et de Son regne; par la memoire des services partages; par la sympathie et par l'affection gene-rales qui entourent Votre Majeste dans Votre grande affliction.


Mr. George A. Drew (Leader of the Opposition):: Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister (Mr. St. Laurent) has expressed correctly the sentiments of every member in the House of Commons when he has said that every Canadian worthy of the name at this time feels a profound sense of loyalty and affection for our new queen. In the addresses which the Prime Minister has read and which ' it is my privilege to second, there is sympathy, loyalty and hope conveyed to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and a profound and vast measure of sympathy and affection for the Queen Mother who shared so completely throughout the years of his reign the great work that was done, not only for us, not only for the commonwealth, but for every free man and woman everywhere by His Majesty King George VI.
As the Prime Minister has said, he was a great man and he was a good man. The Prime Minister spoke of the shock that everyone felt when they were surprised to learn that the king had died in his sleep. That sense of shock and of sorrow was in no way confined to the people of the commonwealth. It was in fact shared in an unexpected degree by all people in the free nations throughout the world, and I am inclined to think also by people who want and desire freedom in those countries which are not now free.
At this time our thoughts are associated with the man who symbolized for us and for the commonwealth that continuing monarchy which year by year has gathered strength and which is the continuing expression of our own form of democracy. He was truly loved by all his people. He was truly admired by the whole free world. I suspect that he was greatly envied by those nations which follow a different pattern of life to that which we do.
He was a man of great courage, not only the courage demanded by the ordinary tests of physical bravery but that greater form
The late King George VI of courage which was demanded by the tasks imposed upon him which in his particular case were extremely heavy. As a young man he served in the battle of Jutland as a naval officer in A gun-turret of H.M.S. Collingwood. In one of the greatest and most terrible naval battles of all time he took his full part and accepted his full share of danger. Then in the later war, when he had assumed the responsibility of the monarchy, he shared without stint the dangers of those who lived in that bastion of freedom. He shared not only the dangers but the privations of men and women to whose fortitude each one of us is greatly indebted today.
As we extend our sympathies to the Queen Mother we recall so well her sweetness and amiability as well as the way in which she expressed on so many occasions her affection for Canada and for the people of this country. We all remember so well that young couple who visited us in the spring of 1939 and left in the mind of every Canadian an intimate impression which carried with it, not only the respect due to the crown but the affection for a man and woman who symbolized the kind of decent life we all wish to preserve.
His life was a triumph of kindness and simplicity. I happened to be in the United States the day after his death and the thing that impressed me profoundly was the fact that the people of the United States seemed to share our sorrow, seemed to feel as we did, and indicated in every way that they regarded his death as their own loss. Of all the things that have been said and written, few could be more moving or strike deeper to the heart than the things that were written in the great publications of the United States and said by their great public men. I believe and I am hopeful that, because of the consciousness that seemed to come to the people of the United States at that time of the deep affections which bring us together, we of the commonwealth may be closer to them at this hour than we have ever been since 1776.
It was extraordinary the way that people throughout the world seemed to be brought together. I doubt if there could be more dramatic evidence of the immense influence exercised by the prevailing spirit of good will which seemed to be so much a part of the king himself than that one of the first countries to announce a period of mourning after his death was Egypt, a country where such bitter things had been said for weeks before and where hatred of everything British seemed to be on every tongue. The very fact that at this hour there seems to be a great measure of tranquillity in Egypt, and that discussions are proceeding in an orderly

The late King George VI manner to what we hope will be a solution of the difficulties in that part of the world, is a great tribute to the power of the decent things for which our monarchy stands.
As we think of the king our sorrow goes out to the members of his family. We all join with the Prime Minister in what he has said about our sympathy for all the members of the royal family.
I think perhaps three women are particularly in our minds today. One of the most moving pictures that have ever been taken is a picture which all of us saw of three women in black, a mother mourning for her greatly beloved son, a wife for the husband to whom she was devoted, and a daughter for the father she adored, whose life had at all times been her guide and inspiration. Those three women are very much in the heart and mind of every Canadian today. Year by year the royal family has been brought closer to us by just such simple expressions of humanity as that conveyed in the picture to which I have referred. The radio, moving pictures and television now join the press in bringing them constantly before us and the people of the world.
It is in itself a great tribute to our royal family that under the intense glare of such publicity they have won more and more devotion day by day from those they serve. Never at any time has this ancient monarchy stood as high in our esteem and that of the world as it does today. These are dark days for Britain. These are trying days through which her people are passing. This is not however the first time they have seen dark days and have faced difficulties. More than a century ago a great American made a famous speech in Manchester at a time when the situation in Britain seemed as dark and as grave as it does today, and perhaps more forbidding. For that very reason I should like to recall the words spoken at that time by Ralph Waldo Emerson. This is what he said:
And so, gentlemen, I feel in regard to this aged England, with the possessions, honours and trophies, and also with the infirmities of a thousand years gathering around her, irretrievably committed as she is now to many old customs which cannot be suddenly changed; pressed upon by the transitions of trade and new and all incalculable modes, fabrics, arts, machines and competing populations- I see her not dispirited', not weak, but remembering that she has seen dark days before-indeed with a kind of instinct that she sees a little better in a cloudy day, and that in storm of battle and calamity she has a secret vigour and a pulse like a cannon. I see her in her old age, not decrepit, but young and still daring to believe in her power of endurance and expansion.
These prophetic words spoken more than a hundred years ago were amply justified in the years that followed. Britain saw great

expansion, wider trade, greater prosperity emerge from that darkness and she became the centre of a great fellowship of nations of which we are proud to be a member. Now we are entering a new era. Each one of us recalls that for some reason, whatever that reason may be, the reigns of the queens within this commonwealth of ours have at all times seemed to be periods of advancement, expansion and increasing strength. Now we are entering the new Elizabethan era, and perhaps our hopes are raised by the fact that one of the greatest periods of expansion in the past was that in which another Elizabeth was the monarch at a time when men and women of great spirit went out into the world and gathered new opportunities, new trade and new wealth.
The Prime Minister quoted the words of the late king in which he said, "Every one of us can be a pioneer". That is the challenge to each one of us today who expresses his loyalty to Queen Elizabeth II, to be pioneers in this great new period of adventure, a period of adventure in which perhaps we shall not sail the seas as did the adventurers of old but a period of adventure when the greatest challenge of all is for men and women of good will throughout the commonwealth and throughout the world to find new ways of understanding each other and of strengthening the foundations of peace.
This commonwealth of ours, as we all know, embraces men and women of every race, colour, creed and tongue. That in itself is something which challenges the imagination. This commonwealth of ours, encircling a world, bringing together in one fellowship people of North America, of Europe, of Asia, of all parts of the world can provide not only happiness, security and prosperity for those of us who live in it but can also be a stirring example to the rest of mankind to follow the same path and to establish the same measure of fellowship joined with freedom throughout the whole world. Centuries ago Shakespeare wrote of the first Elizabeth:
Good grows with her. In her days every man shall eat in safety under his own vine what he plants, and sing the merry songs of peace to all his neighbours. God shall be truly known and those about her from her shall read the perfect ways of honour.
May that prophecy, written so long ago, be fulfilled by our new queen. The dangers ahead may be 'great, the days ahead may be hard, peace will not easily be won; but I am sure that at this time it is with hope, with faith, yes, with confidence that each of us says, "God save the Queen".


Mr. M. J. Coldwell (Roselown-Biggar):: Mr. Speaker, we of this party wish to join in approving the address and resolution so

The late King George VI
fittingly moved by the Prime Minister (Mr. St. Laurent) and the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. Drew). With them we unite in expressing our sympathy to Her Majesty the Queen, the Queen Mother, Queen Mary and all the bereaved members of the royal family. Millions throughout the world mourned with them the passing of a king who was not only a great but a good man. His life of service to the nations and peoples who comprise the commonwealth will be remembered with gratitude and pride long after the generation over which he reigned has passed away.
To Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II we in this parliament assembled, representing the people of her realm of Canada, render our respectful homage today. The queen reigns but does not govern. For us the monarchy is no instrument of autocratic power but a tangible symbol of unity among peoples of diverse races, tongues, creeds and colours numbering indeed approximately a quarter of the human race. What a commonwealth it is. With the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Bermuda, Nigeria, Ceylon, as well as many other lands, Canada recognizes Her Majesty as the visible head of a world-wide and free association. Parliaments and governments may come and go, but the ancient crown remains above party differences and party strife, signifying continuity yet ever reminding us of the age-old road we still must travel in search of complete freedom, democracy and peace.
Her Majesty the Queen is young. We pray that her reign may be long, glorious and notable so that in her time, at long last, mankind may-
Ring out old shapes of foul disease;
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
Ring out the thousand wars of old.
Ring in the * thousand years of peace.
Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the Christ that is to be.


Mr. Solon E. Low (Peace River):: Mr. Speaker, it is fitting and proper that one of the first acts of this new session of parliament should be approval of the two humble addresses that have been placed before us for consideration. We have heard some excellent speeches this afternoon, and there is little left for me to say; but the group I have the honour to lead in this house do want to go on record as being in wholehearted support of the resolutions.
Each of us feels that in the death of King George VI we sustained a personal loss. He
was indeed a great king, a good man and an exemplary father. Realizing these things we the more readily understand the depth of sorrow felt by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother and all the members of the royal family. We would want them to know that our sympathy goes out to them, and that we uphold and sustain them through all their trials. We also say that we will rejoice with them in all their successes and triumphs in the years ahead. In special measure we extend our sympathy to the Queen Mother, whose years of loneliness ahead make hers the harder lot to bear.
We take this opportunity, sir, to affirm our loyalty and devotion to our new sovereign Queen Elizabeth II, and to wish her a long, successful and happy reign. We pray God to give her strength to carry out the heavy duties she will have to perform.


Mr. Speaker:: Shall I declare the motions carried unanimously?


[Stage Direction]
Motions agreed to.
Mr. SI. Laurent:: Perhaps hon. members would feel that they were having a more personal part in the expression of this tribute of sympathy and loyalty if we were to stand together and sing "God Save the Queen".
Whereupon the members of the house rose and sang
God Save the Queen.



BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

Louis Stephen St-Laurent: I move that this house do now adjourn until tomorrow afternoon. 1 think it would be fitting that we defer until tomorrow the announcements usually made the first day of a session and the tabling of documents that is also somewhat traditional. Perhaps also before proceeding with the speech from the throne, which has been fixed for consideration tomorrow, hon. members would wish to take a few minutes to pay tribute to the memory of the deceased members from Victoria-Carleton (Mr. Hatfield) and Brome-Missisquoi (Mr. Gosselin) who passed away during the recess. I hope Your Honour will permit us to do that before we proceed to consideration of the speech from the throne tomorrow afternoon.
Motion agreed to and the house adjourned at 4.40 p.m.



Friday, February 29, 1952