Document Information
Date: 1867-02-07
By: The Montreal Herald
Citation: “The Queen’s Speech”, The Montreal Herald (7 February, 1867)
Other formats: TBA
THE QUEEN’S SPEECH.
—The Speech from the Throne was given yesterday, for the first time on this side of the Ocean, by the Atlantic Telegraph, and given at full length. We are, of course, not surprised, though we need hardly say that we are not delighted, to find that the Ministry has undertaken to digest and, if possible, carry the Confederation scheme by Imperial legislation—of course, as the Saturday Review suggests in an article on the subject, if they can maintain themselves upon questions of more immediate concern to the people of Great Britain. The Quebec constitution, nevertheless, if we are to put any faith in the intentions of this writer who is understood to be a gentleman of well known ability, and in close communication with some of the English promoters of Confederation, has been amended in various ways, by the self appointed delegates, especially in two particulars. One change is intended to limit still more the powers of—in other words, to render still more superfluous—the local governments; the other to convert the ridiculous Legislative Council of the Quebec Conference into something more really resembling the humanity of modern legislative bodies. In fact, we should judge from his article that the writer conceives that the draft professedly passed by the Colonial Parliament has been made all over again in London. In other particulars the speech strikes one as remarkable for the extraordinary largeness of its promise–an omen sometimes of correspondingly small performance. The speech is longer, more precise, and goes more into detail than is usual in such documents; and strangely enough it promises just those things which it is understood to be the function of Conservatism to resist. The gentlemen of that political persuasion, who have been indulging in private meditations, and more open disquisitions on the almost absolute perfection of the present House of Commons, must be surprised and shocked, in spite of Mr. D’Israel’s past aberrations in that direction, to find themselves asked for a vote which must give the opposition gain de cause, at least to the extent of an acknowledgment that things will not do as they are. Also we take it the country gentleman party—English and Irish—will be alike alarmed and astonished at the recommendation to the House to give tenants some rights in or to the land which they hold,—alarmed at the proposed interference with the sacred rights of landlordism, and astonished to hear that it can be done without any infringement upon property in the sense in which they understand the word. Possibly something of the same kind of feeling may occur to those who read the paragraph respecting the American claims arising out of the war. There is indeed no reason why a conservative Government should not do right; but this concession is not precisely the one which, considering the bent of conservative opinion during the war, was to be looked for as a possible attempt to do right from a conservative point of view. For our own parts it accords precisely with the course which we have always believed to be the most wise and statesmanlike, after the original error had been committed which gave the opening for the claims to arise. The other suggestions of the speech are excellent, and if the Government can legislate on them effectively in the sense which they appear to desire they will justly entitle themselves to the applause and gratitude of the country.