The Portland daily press., 1889-07-03
General Buffers Grafton.

Az o clOck tnlS evening, O6u. ID. It. Dut-
Ter of Boston delivered the Grafton before
the literary societies and an immense au-
dience. The General was in happy mood
and spoke as follows;
venture to depart from the usual proprie-
ties of speech adopted upon occasions like
this, addressing the alumni of my college,
which has greatly honored me with its
several degrees.
The rule has been purely literary efforts.
/ will endeavor inasmuch as / may to turn
the attention Of my fellow students to sub
ject within my own contemplation, upon
which my studies have lately found occupa-
tiOn. | am quite certain that when devel-
oped all will agree there are none more i'm
portant to the future Of our country, for the
unity, integrity and glory Of which our
Memorial Hall shows so many OF our alumni
have expended so much OF heroic effort as a
patriot or hero may well do.
All know the fact that two English speak
ing nations lie here side by side divided by
conventional line only, of more than 6000
miles in length. One the Dominion of Can
ada, dependency of European monarchy.
the other the mightieSt of republics, now
beyond all preadventure a nation, whose
duty and mission is to maintain the principle
of self-government of the people of all
nations.
Our own military power and strength, our
enormous resources and their extent, are
fully known and considered, and we are ap-
preaching an exhaustive census which shall
make known all these to the world in their
minutest detail, so that pondering upon them
we may arrive at certain just conclusions as
to what our future may be.
But how is 1t with our neighbOr on the
northern side of this astronomical line? Are
such kindred subjects concerning her as fully
understood as they should be-. because we
1o6 fn oh ft,fO hnx
far her future may be controlling element
in our own.
We hear men, some of whom hold positions
which statesmen should fill, speak of the
ANNEXATION OF CANADA
to this country with the same levity as one
in the ordinary walks Of life might speak of
the jointing of tail to dog-a little difficult
| to do, but of itself very small matter.
But how should this be spoken Of if the
tail might happen to be larger than the dog ?
| In my belief this frivolous talk, belitting
I alike to the Canadian and insulting to the
might and power Of Great Britain, is one of
the chief obstacles to what every patriot in
| the United States and every Englishman in
| question is fully understood. greatly desire
| the union of these two great English-speak-
| ing peoples on this continent, which must
| happen If democracy is not to be failure,
| SO tQdb IulS COuLlu6ut Sudu D6 lH6 HUili6 dlu
| exemplar of English freedom and OF English
| language, as modified and improved by
| American genius and American enterprise.
The first great fact to be taken into con-
| temptation when we speak so lighly OF the
annexation of Canada, is her immense area,
| which includes 40 per cent. of all the posses
sions of Great Britain, wherever situated on
| the globe.
| If Disraeli had made the Queen of Great
Britain empress of Canada, which he would
| have done If he had considered the facts as
we are about to discuss them, and the rela-
| tion of Canada to the rest Of Great Britain,
so that the British Empire would indeed
have been like in extent to the empire OF
Rome.
Empress of India, indeed! There is room
for three British Indian possessions within
the Dominion of Canada, and enough terri.
tory left over out CT which the area Of Great
Britain might be five times taken. Modern
| empires are pigmies to 1t, for there is room
in Canada to carve out
NINE GERMAN EMPIRES.
Victoria, Empress of Canada. If the Do
minion can be held in the future generations
which are but hours in the life time oi
nations. the English empress would be the
ruler of the greatest and most powerful
English-speaking people, civilized and
Christianized, such as nowhere exists now
| but must exist in the future if the laws by
which the growth of nations continue, under
which they haveibeen laid out and begun.
The British possessions in North Americf
which the Dominion of Canada holds withir
its boundaries, an area of 3,470,392 square
miles; while the United States mot includ
ing Alaska, of which the limits are un
known has an area of 2,970,0O0 square miles
or raising 100000 square miles less thar
Canada.
| While those who have not before com
pared these facts are started with surprise
at their statement, 1 observe quiet smil,
pass over the face of others, as much as t
say, "Well what of this extent Of area? L
is but an nclosure of ice and snow, most o.
it the home of the polar bear and thu
Esquimaux, and the remainder sterile ant
extent have to do with her resources, or bel
power hereafter to make great nation, be
| cause the whole Northwestern and western
Canada produced nothing and requires
nothing?" :,
Let us answer such suggestion will
| another which gives Canada an element O.
| power which has not been taken into con
| sideration, as almost the very foundation
her resources-her means Of cheapest inter
| communication.
Canada and her surrounding waters con
tain quite one-half Of all.
THE FRESH WATER
of the globe. Please bear this great fact il
mind, for repeat 1t is a foundation of tn
resources to make one of the creates
nations on earth.
The general idea when thinking of Can
ada is that her high latitudes must b
regions of Arctic cold.
CursOry thought takes but little else thai
| this into consideration when dealing witt
matters of climate.
! Humboldt says that many other matter