Report of the Transcontinental Railway Commission.-Mr. Graham. Report of the Board of Railway Commissioners for Canada.-Mr. Graham.
Hon. G. E. FOSTER (North Toronto).
May I ask the Minister of Railways if the report of the commission appointed to look into the wages of employees on the Intercolonial has been presented to the House; I have seen it referred to in the papers.
Hon. G. P. GRAHAM (Minister of Railways).
I have no recollection of a commission being appointed for that purpose.
Mr. FOSTER.
I remember reading copious extracts from the report of some commission; the minister ought to know if he appointed one. There was a report that the employees were too numerous and that if they were fewer the money thus saved could be devoted to raising the wages of other employees who are necessary.
Mr. GRAHAM.
That was the finding of the board under the Lemieux Act with reference to the claims of freight clerks.
Mr. FOSTER.
Then the Minister of Labour might bring down the report to the House.
Mr. LEMIEUX.
It is contained in the report of the Department of Labour presented on the first day of the session.
Hon. WM. PUGSLEY (Minister of Public Works) moved:
That the second report of the joint restaurant committee be adopted and that the following be the members of the House of Commons on the permanent joint restaurant committee, namely, Messrs. Sutherland, Barker, Monk and Harris. ,
Mr. R. L. BORDEN.
That had better stand until to-morrow.
Bill (No. 23) respecting the Alberta Central Railway Co.-Mr. W. McIntyre (Strathcona). Bill (No. 24) respecting the Edmonton and Slave Lake Railway Co.-Mr. W. McIntyre (Strathcona.) Bill (No. 25) respecting the joint section of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company and the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway Company at Fort William, Ontario.-Mr. Turriff. Bill (No. 26) respecting the Kootenay Central Railway Company.-Mr. Goodeve. Bill (No. 27) to incorporate the London and Lancashire Plate Glass and Indemnity Company of Canada.-Mr. Macdonell. Bill (No. 28) respecting the Union Station and other joint facilities of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway Company and the Midland Railway of Manitoba at Portage la Prairie.-Mr. Turriff. Bill (No. 29) respecting the Winnipeg and Northwestern Railway Company. Mr. Mc-Craney. Bill (No. 30) respecting the subsidy from the Ontario Government to Lake Superior Branch of the Grand Trunk Pacific.-Mr. Turriff.
Mr. R. L. BORDEN.
I rise, Mr. Speaker, to a question of privilege. I observe in the Toronto ' Globe ' two recent editorials with regard to a telegram which I sent to ' The Colonist ' on the 24th October last. The portion of the editorials to which I de sire to call attention is-this:
Mr. Borden has supplied the public with the information that in a private statement to Mr. Templeman he repudiated the garbled despatch. He admits therefore that he was, immediately after its use, well aware of its Existence. Why then did he not make his disclaimer public? The change in the text of the message was sufficiently great to make the Act of the garbler one of virtual forgery,
and yet Mr. Borden has allowed three months to pass without, so far as the public know, taking a single step to put himself right in the matter.
I stated in the House, when the matter was referred to before, and I again state, that it was not until after I had returned from the south in the month of December that I became aware that any change had been made in the telegram. I also stated, and I again state, that I then immediately called upon the management of the paper foran explanation. I had no reason to believe until after the middle of December that any change had been made in the telegram. I then wrote immediately and received a certain report with regard to it from the management, in which it is stated most distinctly that no person connected with the management had been responsible for it, and bringing to my attention certain matters which I will not now detail to the House until I receive from the management of the newspaper certain further reports which they have promised, because they have made investigation and are still making further investigation into the matter. So far as the newspaper is concerned, I have not the slightest control over it, editorially or otherwise, and I am no more responsible for the change in the telegram than I am for the mis-statements in the editorial columns of the 'Globe' with regard to it. I only regret that gentlemen in British Columbia who say they suspected I had not sent a telegram in these terms, did not, during the course of the by-election, bring the matter to my attention by telegram when I would of course have put it right at once.
LENNOX (South Simcoe. I would like to call the attention of the Minister of Railways to a statement in the press that a letter was sent by him this week to the chairman of the Board of Railway Commissioners and that the latter had replied. In view of the importance of the subject and the deep interest of the public in it, I would ask the hon. minister if he would bring down a copy of his letter and of the reply and lay them on the table of the House.
Hon. GEO. P. GRAHAM (Minister of Railways and Canals).
Under the circumstances, the matter has become largely pub-lip, but it was not intended at all that the correspondence should be published. I would prefer not to be asked to bring it down until I have thoroughly gone into the matter. The question is still in abeyance, and I may have some proposals to make later in the matter, and therefore think it advisable not to bring down this correspondence just yet.