The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-09-02

verscd the figures in the present parla-
ment stand: l.ioerafs, 81 Conservatives.
H. The execution s@f Louis Riel, the lead
er OF the NIctis r4beilicn IN 1885 gave til;
first great shake to the power Of the on
servatiyes in this province, aid tie re
mafkaI5le rise Of Sir Wifffd Laarier u
the leadership of tile Liberal party coin-
pleted their destruction. So long as The
Liberals can !old Il cir present majority
from Quebec they viii remain in Office,
and therefore there Will be in the co.IlEit;
campaign tremendous effort made by TIE
Conservatives TO edualize the represents
ton If the province. or al least TO Teauca
the Liberal me jnrity to moderate proper
:lonS. This viii make the contest hei
one of great liveliness, ana the habit ant
will have his I'LL of oratory and whisky
hlanc-two things to which he rs very
Partial.
That the Conservatives have their work
cut out for them if they are to make
any substantial gains is obvious, fore the
French Canadians naturally take immense
pride in the distinguished position attain
ed by Sir Wilfrid Laurier. He has been
the first Of the race to reach the position
of prime minister. In that position he
has mingled with the ablest public men
of the empire, and has not suffered In
comparison with any of them Sir Wilfrid
has all the qualifications Of q popular
hero = handsome presence, captivating
manners, eloquence that charms friend
and foe and that indeiinable quality call
ed personal magnetism. He has but to
show himself to his compatriots to be re-
ceived with acclamations The ConserVa-
tives could hope to make Roadway against
him only if they had some potent cry
that would appeal powerfully to the racial
and religious feelings of the French Ca
nadians Such cry they might have
found in the imperialistic policy of the
government had not the English Conserv-
atives in the other provinces taken a
course which deprived 1t of all it's po-
tency. While it is sought in this prov
ince to make it an offense on the part Of
Sir Wilfrid that he sent soldiers to South
Africa at cost of 81, 100000, and therefore
identified Canada with the wars of the
empire. in Ontario he is accused of 4trea-
son because he did not send more troops
and send them earlier
Official pamphlets issued by the party
give both sides of the shield-one in
French is for circulation in this province,
the other in English is being scattered
broadcast over Ontario In this age of the
steam press and the electric telegraph
these tactics are calculated to defeat
themselves, and there is little doubt that
this will be the outcome in this case
so far as the province is concerned. But
in the English provinces the anti-Laurier
campaign, based principally on the fact
that he is Frenchman is likely to be
in a measure successful. A good deal Of
feeling has been aroused, for much of
which the Liberals have to thank the rash
utterances of Mr. Tarte. one of their
own chiefs. But the ant-French cam
paign in the other provinces will make
the shedding all the easier in Quebec for
the Liberals and the claim confidently
made on their behalf tina tsthey will carry
at least fifty seats appears to be well
founded.
PICTURESQUE ELECTION .FEA-
TUREs.
An election in this province has many
picturesque eatures that are lacking
elsewhere. Here the platform speaker
reignS supreme: The responsiveness of
the somewhat illiterate habitant to good
speaking is remarkable, and to an extent
quite unknown in the English provinces
the result turns upon the labors of the
orator. With so great premium on
speaking, it is no wonder that, the graces
of oratory are ass3duousy cultivated
Hardly man in public life or one with
aspira tons in that direction can be found
who does not use his own Language with
precision and even elegance. and many Of
them are masters of English as well!
Most of these speakers are lawyers o.,
journalists, for here the two prefessfo e
are closely allied
AS soon as young man enters the law
schools, he begins his education in pubiic
speaking. His first experience is gained
In the debating societies; as soon. as he
acquires a little Self-confidence he offers
his services to the party with which he
Is allied, ands is sent out ito the eoun-
try parishes to try his prentice band on
q fa ac.rc.r
ladder and he can. climb as far as ~
capacity will permit him. If he is a
speaker of exceptional talent he NAV
count with confidence on an early non,i-
nation TO the legislature or to parliament.
The prejudice against the nonresident
candidates, which prevails very strongly
| elsewhere in Canada, Is hardly known
In Quebec; nor Is youth counted a dis
qualification. Repeatedly young men
with no family connections and no re-
sources whatever have had themselves
! nominated in counties where they were
practically unknown, and have won their
| way to parliament by their performa noes
| On the stump.
| The Rouge" party, as it existed for
| generation, was the result of a cam
paign inaugurated by handful of YOU h
| in Montreal. few law students smit-
| ten with the revolutionary doctrines that
! convulsed Europe IN 1S4S, decided % sub
| nit their panaceas for universal hap
| piness to the electors, and thew separat-
| ed for their crusade, each taking a par
ticular county. They were an unknown
penniless, friendless little band Of en-
| thusiasts, but gifted with the power To
| transmit their fervor to their auditors
! Over dozen of these youths became
members Of parliament, where they
formed the most brilliant and radical
| group of young men that the Cana dia !,
parliament has ever known. Subsequent
| ~ most of them rose to the highest dis
tinct!ons They are all gone now, the
| last to pass away being Sir Antoine
| Dorion, chief justice of the province. and
| the school they founded has gone too
| for Sir Wilfrid Lauren is no radical
! The joint Political meeting in disfavor
| elsewhere, is one Of the institutions OF
| Quebec. The elector insists upon the
| opposing candidates pitting their wits
| against each other on the public platform.
In these gatherings each candidate is
! allowed an equal number of supporting
speakers, and an equal measure Of time
! Is dealt out to each by the presiding
officer, who is usually the mayor of the
parish, or, In large meetings. the warden
OF the county. These gladia torial DISPLAYS
/ attract the whole countryside, and the
! speaking goes on interminably hour afte7
| hour If The season is favorable, these
! meetings are always held in the open,
and tavorite place for them is the lawn
| in front of the parish church, the time
| chosen being Sunday forenoon after
| mass. The church door has been for gen
| erationS the center of parish life; there
| pcoclamati9ns, secular and otherwise
| are posted; auction sales are held. and
! issues, national and municipal, discuss
! ed in mass meeting The stems Of tre