New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-01-15
CANADA.

TORONTO, Tburs3sy, Jan. III, looo
~. Iesi.,stive contribution Of 500, 900 70 the
viduvs and orphans Of the soldisrs AMI sailors Of
A. allied srpies has been followed by contrion-
,;n,, frem the people in the prD :ipsl cities OF
n. p,uin.. Nor is this all. The question OF
,,,.,,g q Csnadisn force for the Crimea las been
..;s.5 md /, is sad ito practcability ascertain
"A Mr. Rankin the Representative IN Parlla-
-, ~ IN. County Of Essex, takes the greatest
;..r.s, in this movement, aud he ~ sangune OF
.-~.... In this Province, nothing has been so
..syce as men, for some time past: and without
an extraordinary amount OF zeal this martial move
I.nt could not possibly succeed In no branch OF
;n1os,ry. except numbering is there sOw u sur
nlns of labor; but recently some decline IN IT. re-
nm GRAFTON has taken place. The Grand Trunk
Railway contractors have reduced the wages OF
o. l,borers and meehanics-thc former to ~
e.nts and the latterto : 10 day 1hese ra'es
are little more than half Of what were paid some
ZINE ago. The hands have all or nearly ALL SUB
uitted 10 tbereductiOn. This state OF things may
increase the chances Of success IN the scheHe vi
raising Canadian force for the Crlinea.
Commercially, the state OF the province II
,.tber gloomy. There is, however, no serious
~r;.;s. Int whether we have yet seen the worst
Ia +. one,,iop. The lumber interest IS still IN
state Of prostraiion; 'and numbering ia almost
entirely suspended. On the Ottawa, the great
humber region Of Canada, many OF the principal
firms have almost entirely suspended operations.
A supply of timber equal to an ordinary years
production il, however, stiil on hand-ihe rem
nant of last years stock, which has been
withheld from market in consequence OF the
treat fall in price which, on some descriptions.
amounted TO nearly 0ncAlai. This old stock " as
produced at an unusually great e1pense. In the
winter Of 1853 4, the price Of lumber was unPre-
eedentedly high, and the result was that crowd
Of new adventurers entered the sphere OF enter
prise; almost every farmer, on the OTTAWA, VINO
bad little spare cash, rushed INTO the numbering
business. IN consequence Of the fall IN the price
oflumber before they had got their stocks to mar
ket most Of them suffered heavy losscs-the loss
being propOrtiOned 10 the amount Of business they
had done MANY Of them will be compelled 10
part Win their farms TO pay the drb,s they nave
contracted by their venture IN luinherlng-a most
precariOus business at the best. There are large
numbers of hands unemployed at ottawa Clty, GATE
Bytown,) owing to the partial cessation OF lumber
ig operations. There were 10000 persons,
large proportion of them French Canadians, en-
ployed in numbering on the Ottawa IN l-5O, and
the number must have been nearly One-thrd
greater in the winter Of 1874. The hands now
employed in that occupation have had to submit
10 a great reduction Of wages. Those who re-
seived from SIS to $50 month and board, last
year do not get over $ now. Licenses to cut
granted by the Government; and in some parts OF
Lower Canada Americans have gone extensively
into the business. The lumber region IL not, as
might naturally be supposed destitute OF settlers
who cultivate the soil. On the contrary, wher-
ever there is good land, in the Ottawa country,
there settlers are to be found They find ready
market for their produce at the lumber shantes AMI
get supplied through that channel with such lttle
things 90 they require. With all this depression, the
number Of failures in the lumber trade announced
il not 20 great as was anticipated; but the Que
bee papers, such as they are are not III the habit
Of supplying much Information on any subject, aud
least Of all on this The greater part of the
houses engaged in that business in Quebec, have
been in state Of tromor for some months past;
but many of them have stood the storm better
than was expected. While the main dependence
of Lower Canada is in numbering and ship-bud-
ing, We in Upper Canada, have very little to do
With either the one or the Other and while the
great staple Of Lower Canada is selling at a de-
precated figure, that of Upper Canada-wheat-
brings famine price. The produce of the labor
Of Upper Canada never brought nearly so much
money as that of last harvest has brought and is
still bringing. With ANYTHING like ordinary
prudence, therefore, we ought to be free
from all pecuniary difficulties. But, an fact,
there is an unusual tiehtncss in money, and sew
eTal small failures are spoken OF; som Oi them
having actually taken place. They are the new
table result Of imprudeuce aud overtrdding. The
banks discount little or nothing, and have not for
some time There are several reasons Tor this.
Confidence is some ~hat shaken aud the banks,
IKE individuals have to look 10 themselves. The
business of the country has doubled in the last
five years; but the amount Of banking accOnmO-
dation has remained stationary Provision has
just been made for very considerable increase
in the bank capital of the country, but the stock
has q in most cases TO be- subscribed Then we
have heavy debt held by English capitalists, and
have To pay interest ia London Add to this that the
war by its effect upon the money market OF En-
GLAND has partially cut off the supplies we were
receiving on account of our railroad enterprises,
and We shall have something like The key 10 our
present state of commercial depression.
i he con mission appointed 70 inquire into the
Baptiste Creek Great Westerly massacre, has
not yet reported The accidents on that road
have very intelligent cause.-the chief of which
arose from the premature opening of the line
The next was, the not taking the ballastng out Of
the hands Of the contractors, so as 10 enable them
efectually to control the ballsst-trains. Then,
the road has not over half enough of rolling stock;
and if AL engine gets out of order, they cannot
afford to let her lay up. Add TO all this that, on
single track road, the trains have generally been
out oftime from one 10 five hours and that the self
willed managing director is man who must do
everything himself, and by taking too much upoa
himself does many things very bsdl y-and We shall
get pretty good idea of the cause of the Bsptste
Creek and other accidents on this line. Surveyors
are locating the line for double track.