The Sun.
London, England, 1850-03-11 00:00:00

stating that " the number and magnitude of the
evils that afflict our countrymen call upon all per-
sons to combine for the purposes of inquiry.....
with a view to the adoption of such remedies as a mature
and dispassionate investigation may suggest." Now,
fellow-countrymen of the most enlightened empire of
the world, there is not one amongst us who will for
a moment, I think, maintain, or even assert, that, if
there are any evils—even few in number and small
in importance,—we are not all bound to examine into
the causes of their existence and suggest our remedies
for their correction. On this paragraph, therefore, it
is quite unnecessary to detain you for a moment.
The second paragraph says—" Belonging to all na-
tions, origin and creed we have consented to merge
in oblivion all past differences of whatever character."
This is well and nobly said, and surely the men who
could think and write thus do not mean to exclude
from their general amnesty their brethren on this side
of the Atlantic. If to forgive and to forget "past
differences of whatever character" is to be their future
motto, they will not, surely bear hatred to their old
parent, nor even remember any mistakes she may
have made, or errors she may have committed, when,
often herself apparently struggling for existence, and
never being unkind or unjust if you will, from any
desire to tyranniae.
" The reversal of the ancient policy of Great Bri-
tain," continues this document, " has produced the
most disastrous effects upon CanaJa." What has
Canada alone, then, suffered, that Canada alone has
the right to complain ? Have no other colonies ex-
perienced disasters ? Has New Brunswick escaped ?
Has Nova Scotia escaped ? Have the West Indies,
as true and loyal colonies as ever existed—have they
escaped ? Has Great Britain herself escaped ? No,
we fearlessly answer, no; whatever may be the
future result of our change of policy, the transition
state is one of much pain and suffering to many an
honest man, and we call at once upon the annexation
party to withdraw a plea that belongs net alone to
Canada. Let her case be special, if her conduct is to
be extraordinary.
We now return to this document. It complains of
the "embarrassment of the provincial Government, the
civic corporation.... of capital amassed under a more
favourable system dissipated !" How so ? let us ask,
and Why so soon dissipated ? The "reversal of the
ancient policy of Great Britain" is but of to-day ;
and has Canada already dissipated " amassed capital?"
Has Canada never heard of other Governments em-
barrassed, other civic corporations in fault? This is
childish quite. It is like the young lady who did not
like the gentleman's hat, his wig, his coat. No, pro.
moters of annexation, say that you do not like Eng-
land, as the young lady was obliged to say at last
regarding the gentleman's face, or be silent, be
honest, and let those you lead on your track under-
stand fully the road you wish to take them. This
document also complains of " unrivalled rivers, lakes,
and canals, almost unused ;" and then that, " unable
to effect a loan with the mother country, although
offering security superior to that which readily obtains
money when other than colonies are the appli-
cants." Did I say that the attempt to produce the
feeliug of annexation would appear dishonest ? I be-
lieve I did, and think that I have already shown that
it does so ; but here, at all events, there can be no
mistake, "unrivalled canals. How as to the money
raised to make the I3eauharnois Canal? Shame! shamet
so to abuse old England. No one can regret more
than myself that the unrivalled rivers and lakes of
the magnificent North American provinces are not
made navigable to the foot of the Rocky Mountains
—but let not all the blame be put on England. If
Canada amassed capital under a " mere favourable
system"—why was it not applied to the purposes
of opening out that navigation—why has no canal
been made as the Strait St. Mary, to allow vessels to
pass from Lake Superior to Lake Huron ? Why is her
amassed capital now dissipated ? Is it honest to
blame England for that—and will an attempt at
annexation encourage England to plant her accumu-
lating capital in Canada ? Will it not rather flow
into the rising empire of Australasia, when she ob-
serves how anxious some of her children, so near
home, are to get rid of her ? The annexation party
are now the greatest enemies of heir country—l do
not mean intentionally, but virtually so. Their
document proceeds to say—" with superabundant
water, however, and cheap labour, we have no domes-
tic manufactures." And here let me ask have
not the Americans plenty of water power,
and labour as cheap as in Canada ? How, then, let it
be also asked, in common sense, would annexation
create those manufactures which Canada has not
made for herself in more favourable times ? " How
can the most sanguine," this document asks, "anti-
cipate the advance of capital or enterprise to embark
in this great source of national wealth?" and at the
same time, it gives the answer itself—" except under
altered circumstances." But those altered circum-
stances will not be a return to a system under which
such domestic manufactures ;never arose—for there
are none !—but must be the altered circumstances of
the day—the great onward movement that has com-
menced, and will not be arrested. The great march
of intellect and of science, does Canada mean to es-
cape that, and remain shut up in lonely forests ?
If British capital and enterprise does not flow into
Canada, it is because repudiation has once been
adopted on the American continent, and by which
England severely suffered ; and because she now
dreads the unsteady conduct of her North
American children, and fears to lend to
those, who, to a superficial observer at
least, appear more anxious to enter into the family
of her neighbours, from whom she already bought ex-
perience at a fearful loss, than remain attached to
their old parent, or careful even to build up a noble
mansion for themselves. The "altered circumstances"
must be a firm reliance of the Canadians in them-
selves, and a well laid out plan to develops the im-
mense resources of the magnificent country. They,
must remember the fable of Hercules and the coun-
tryman, and put their own shoulders to the wheel,
and then she too may be covered with a "network
of railways,"
like her neighbours, navigable rivers
and canals—more than that, she may open out to
herself a noble route to the west. Aye, to the shores

of the Pacific ! breanalor rail, equal, if not superior,
to any route that the United States can accom-
plish, great nation as they are! and in a much
shorter time. Let then the Canadians—let the people
of the North American provinces, ask for the assist-
ance of England in such a work—let her form her
companies for each particular
.object. Let her
ascertain and state the exact security she can give,
and come boldly to the English market and to the
s
English Government—show that the accumulated
given
; glaannddcatnhobse will be the " altered e beneficially employed and
seacvuinrgity of g
cir-
cumstances" under which our North American pro-
vinces may rise to be the British hyperborean king-
dom—the powerful and enterprising men of the
north. Let her statesmen remember the words of
Roebuck, with which I propose to close this first
essay of my remarks on the" Annexation Circular:"—
" I contemplate an extension of our dominion
across the continent; the formation of new states im-
mediately north of Lake Superior, where copper
mines of unexampled fertility have of late years
been discovered. Let her statesmen feel them-
selves the rivals of those of Washington, and
able to meet them on equal terms, and then
in Nova Scotia, in Lower Canada, in Upper
Canada, in the new states that might imme-
diately arise on their long frontier line, aid also be-
yond the Rocky Mountains north of the river Columbia
—you would soon see their expanded views and
daring conceptions, the really formidable opponents of
their enthroaching republic, which is destined to
swamp the whole continent unless checked and cir-
cumscribed by a spirit as bold and as pure as her
own." Awake spirit of the north—arise, equal to the
duty appointed you. Let the royal banner of civil
and religious liberty be unfurled and planted from
Nova Scotia to Nootka Sound, and let it be rollers-
j bored that " wherever Englishmen have ken sent or