The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-10-14
Canadian Politicians and the Grand Trunk
Railway.
From the New York Herald

1t is not long since article appeared in
the London Post adverting to the low tone of
political men in Canada. 1t stated that the
member. Of the Provincial Government
We're chiefly lawyers, who We're not alto
gether innocent OF ccmpiicity in those Jobs
which have made the Grand Trunk Railway
scandal and disgrace TO the Province. We
could not help at the time instituting q COM
parison between our own public men and
those referred to !; and no doubt, if the secret
opera tions or the members of our State Lee
gtsla;ures and those of the Canadian politi-
clans were laid bare, side by side, a very close
affinity would be presented between them
We have long been well aware Of the corrup-
tion which underlies political life in this
country, but are only Just opening our eyes
to the fact that matters are very little better
in Canada. Great as the Grand Trunk Rail
way job has already been, we observe that
there is = probability of its being made q still
greater one. A number OF influential ger tie
men in Canada are agitatng the extension Of
the line to Halifax, and the Government Jour
nails maintain that the work is ind ispensable
to the military protection of the "Canadian
empire" and that the British Government
must at once supply the connecting link of
such inter colonial railway; and they con tend
that il the British Government leaves Can
ada to defend itself, "Canada will not do it;
and on that ground will not itself go TO the
expense OF constructing the road" This is
very kind of Canada and the gentlemen and
journals concerned but we thought that Eng
land had already paid so heavy a bill for the
"
OF return, that she had firmly set her race
against paying anything more, and moreover,
that her disgust was 50 great that she sim
cereiy hoped she might never hear the name
of the concern m en- toned again. 1t seems,
however, that importantly has not yet died
out in the land of the Biue Noses, and that
the Canadians, nOtwiths landing all they have
consumed and wasted, still, like Oliver
Twist, ask for more.
Undoubtedly railway in Canada, and es-
pecialiy the Grand Trunk Railway is u very
fine thing for the country; but why the Rrit-
ish Government should be pestered and the
British treasury taxed to extend it to Nova
Is likely to be commercially remunerative
by all means let it be undertaken. and let the
wealthy NJ en- of Canada come forward and
invest their money in it, But if 1T is SO
obvious that the undertaking would not
pay that no Canadians can be found to
take shares in it, we cannot recognise the
justice OF their appealing to the British
Government to do the work for them. I'M
doubtediy there would be more nice pickings
for politicians and contractors if shower of
gold from the British treasury was rained
down Oh Canada, than if Canada was left to
herself as regards her railways but we think
the chance of such occurring is so remote
that W. would advise those interested to
abando the anticipation The British Gov
ernment and the British people have had
enough OF the Grand Trunk Railway, and
jobs. We have every respect for the people
and press OF Canada, IS friends as well as
neighbors-for the majority Of both are in
favor OF the North in this great struggle to
preserve the integrity OF the Union-but we
would suggest 70 them tho propriety OF exer-
csing listle more self-dependence than IL
exhibited in this railway extension scheme.