The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-11-04

Ottawa, Nov. 4.--Conservative news
papers in England have been severely
criticizing Sir Wilfrid Laurier's al
legged statement at the banquet to T..
P. o 'Connor in Ottawa that Canadians
were all in favor of home rule for Ire
land, and the protest has found an
echo in Toronto, where the Orangemen
have passed resolution repudiating the
statement
The British newspapers point out,
more or less bluntly, that the qeustion
of home rule for Ireland is none of
Canada s business; that it is purely a
domestic problem; and that Canadians
and the Canadian prime minister in par
ticular, had better confine themselves
state Of British politics, it is perhaps
natural that the conservatives, whose
persistent policy of checking Irish
aspirations is at last being overturned,
should resent the statement attributed
tosL aurier. ,..s
Canadian minister was unsupported. He
Is too astute and experienced a states
man to have been guilty of such an in
discretion. What he did say was that
Canadians thoroly believed in the prin-
ciple of home rule; which was an OBJ
vious enough truism. If there is one
thing that is dear to the heart of every
Canadian it is his birthright of self
government. So far as Ireland is con-
cerned, most Canadians are frankly
puzzled to know Just why home rule has
not been conceded long AGO: why it
would not be just as successful and sat-
isfactory from an imperial point Of view
In Ireland as it has been in Canada or
Australia. But as the London news
papers say it Is none Of Canada s
business, a Canadians are just now
too preoccupied with the tremendous
problems of agricultural, industrial and
transportation expansion to worry. their
heads over transatlantic questions.
The Interprovincial Conference.
Interviewed since their return to their
respective capitals, the provincial pre-
miers, with the single exception of Mr..
McBridge of British Columbia, have
with the results Of the meeting at Otta-
wa. An interesting fact brought out
in the course of these interviews is that
in most of the provinces, east and
west, the increased financial subsidy
from the dominion will be devoted to
the Improvement Of educational facili-
ties. The little red schoolhouse, in Can
ada as in the United States. has always
been one of the most vital factors in
TUE Quilting up VI Guo udb1Ou. Ouo
of the very first acts of the new legis-
1atures of Saskatchewan and Alberta
was to make ample provisions for the
public schools, and the facilities thus
afforded for the education of their chill
dren has been a very important consid-
Grafton to those American and British
immigrants who were planning to settle
in the Canadian northwest.
British Interest in Canadian Affairs.
An interesting controversy has been
In progress between Canadian and Eng
lish newspapers as to the degree of in
terest taken by Englishmen in Canada 8
resources and development. The con-
troversy grew out of a statement made
by Hon. Mortimer Clark, lieutenant gov
ernor of Ontario, on his return from
recent visit to England, that the Brit
ish people were too preoccupied with
their own insular affairs to give much
thought to che growth Of their greatest
colony. One of the London weeklies
vass the situation with the following
result: In period Of ten days 2,011
inches of space were given in the lead
ing British newspapers to Canadian af
fairs, or about 200 inches daily, con-
siderably more than to all the other
colonies put together. And, concludes
this paper, Gin the whole 1000 Ca
madam inches there is hardly a refer
ence that is not fully appreciative Of
Canada's growing national status and
remarkable development. When it is
remembered that only very few years