_THE CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY._
Rapid Construction--Travelling--Old and New--Beginning of Pacific
Railway--Difficulties--Party Warfare--The Line North of Lake
Superior--The United States Government--Mountain Passes--Soil
and Climate--National Parks--Pacific Terminus.
Any one who, with the least attention, has followed the writer in
his journey cannot fail to have observed the ease with which long
distances on this continent in modern times are passed over. Within
the last quarter of a century the whole system of travel has changed.
With efficient railway carriages, possessing sleeping accommodation
and accessories to personal comfort and with a restaurant car,
making allowance for time and distance, the traveller may pass over
half a continent with no greater difficulty than he meets in going
from London to Liverpool. The Canadian Pacific Railway Company has
shewn extraordinary energy in the construction of the work. The
progress seems fabulous. Four hundred and fifty miles of main line,
independently of collateral branches in the North-West, aggregating
one hundred and forty miles, which they have completed in one summer.
The railway now extends westerly from Port Arthur, Lake Superior, to
the first range of the Rocky Mountain zone, thirteen hundred and ninety
miles. It has practically reached the eastern boundary of British
Columbia, in itself identical with the mountain crest forming the
continental water-shed. The Canadian Government, in accordance with
the contract, retained in its hands the construction of the line from
Kamloops to Port Moody, 215 miles. The intervening distance of 300
miles remains to be constructed to complete the connection between Lake
Superior and the Pacific.
North of Lake Superior the line is under construction easterly. During
the present winter a force of 10,000 workmen have been continually
engaged in the task of establishing the line between Port Arthur and
Callander, 650 miles, at which last named point connection has been
made with the railway systems of Ontario and Quebec.
By degrees these gaps will be closed, and in two or three years it is
estimated that trains starting on the eastern seaboard will run on an
unbroken line to the Pacific waters. Literally a new continent will be
opened to the traveller; the tourist of other lands will be tempted to
visit Canada by the care bestowed on his comfort and convenience, and
by the moderate expense at which the journey can be accomplished.
During the last century travelling was the prerogative of the wealthy
alone. The spirit of enterprise which leads to the examination of the
institutions and the inner life of foreign countries was not general.
The journey itself was marked with so much discomfort that it required
no little love of adventure to face the ordeal. There was also the
insular prejudice against the continent and what is still called
foreign manners. Men of ancient families and of large ancestral acres
frequently, during a long life, were known not to have extended their
visits beyond the county town of their shire. The grand tour of the
continent, it is true, was a portion of the education of the sons
of noblemen and of men of large fortune, but it was enjoyed by few
others. It was not simply a matter of money which imposed a limit to
the number. Leisure was equally necessary for its enjoyment, and men in
busy life could not give the time required. To pass from one locality
to another, separated by long distances, even in England itself, was a
matter of expense; and, although in their day the mail coach and the
post chaise achieved wonders in the then standard of rapid movement, it
was only the possessors of assured and ample means who could use those
conveyances to any extent for a pleasure tour.
The wide influences which steam applied to motion, exercised upon life
in all its forms was rapidly felt. When we consider the shortness
of the period within which these changes have arisen, we recognise
additional ground for astonishment, that in so limited a period so
much has been done to mould us to a new condition of being. All the
important departures from our old theories and habits have taken
place within this century. It was but a few years beyond this limit
when Johnson expressed the belief that one of the happinesses of life
was to be whirled rapidly along in a post chaise. Only a few years
previously, in 1762, Brindley commenced his first canals which, if they
did not admit of speed, permitted intercommunication along their line,
until the very traffic which they created led to the establishment of
railways, in one sense, to supplant them.
The success of the locomotive and the rapidity of movement which it
created, with the decreased cost of travel, were early suggestive of
the modifications which would arise in thought, in manners, in the form
of life and the political aspirations of modern times. The opening of
railways in the early stages of the system established that the new
mode of conveyance was one attended with less risk and danger than
the old stage and mail coach, and by the control obtained over it
applicable to all our wants. Moreover, it was of common utility from
the extreme lowness of the charge which it exacted from those using
it. It is no exaggeration to say that with the highest class of minds
profound emotion was experienced in the changes which they saw would
follow in the introduction of this new awakening of thought. It was
to them an entirely new departure from old traditions. The ordinary
mass of men saw but little beyond the excitement of the hour. Not a
few feared trouble in its democratic developments, that something
portentous and inevitable had come into being, the consequences of
which could not be foreseen. It was felt that life henceforth would
be turned into a new track. Men traced an analogy of feeling to
that experienced by their fathers when America was discovered, when
printing became a power, when the Reformation established liberty of
thought and made inward conscience the guide of conduct. It was felt
that new relations of life, new comforts, joys and sorrows had come
upon us; that the institution of the railway seemed almost a special
dispensation, the ends of which were inscrutable, and that the very
form and colour of our being had been changed. There are numerous
passages in modern literature to prove that in no way I exaggerate the
anticipations which were formed, and doubtless which many can well
remember.
As we look back to 1839, when the “Rocket” ran the first trip, we have
but a few years of interval beyond half a century within which every
department of human life has been expanded, enlarged and widened.
Much as successive additions, adaptations and developments have made
the locomotive in its character, weight, power and capabilities,
wonderfully in advance of the primitive machine of that date--in
itself, be it said, in every respect remarkable, containing many
elements of what was to follow--so our lives, by its influence have,
step by step, assumed a totally distinct and different character to
that which marked the early days of the century.
Few of those who are struggling in the business and pleasures of the
day stop to consider that the world was ever different to what it now
is. The positive results and advantages which we now enjoy have come
to us gradually. They are accepted by our children as if they had
always existed. It must, however, be evident to all who for a moment
think, that to the creation of the railway system we owe much. If the
railway has revolutionized many parts of Europe, I cannot but think
that the history of the United States would have been very different
but for its introduction. Certainly the lines of travel would have
been by no means so extended, and what influence a restricted field
of settlement might have exercised on the fortunes of the Republic no
mere speculation can define. It is obvious that without the new agency
the successful settlement of the great North-West of Canada would have
been impossible. We have only to compare the condition of the Selkirk
settlement of a few years back and the limited progress made during
half a century to the sudden and extraordinary bound which it took
when the first few miles of railway were put in operation.
It is now twenty years since I was first publicly called upon, as a
delegate on behalf of the Selkirk settlement, to give my attention to
the question of opening up British North America by the establishment
of a line of communication from the Atlantic to the Pacific. I was
then called upon to submit my views on the subject to the Imperial and
Canadian Governments. Those views were recorded in the parliamentary
documents of that year, 1863,[K] and since that year have frequently
been referred to in debate.
British Columbia became connected with Canada in 1871, and one of
the conditions of union was the construction of the Canadian Pacific
Railway. I was appointed Engineer-in-chief of the undertaking. What the
condition of the country was at that period may be seen in the many
volumes published by the Government. I shall quote but one passage from
the report for 1873, of the Department of Public Works, issued by the
Hon. Alexander Mackenzie, then Premier: “It is no exaggeration to speak
of the extent of territory to be explored as immense.” I undertook
the duty with all the zeal I could command, and moreover, I did so
with a strong feeling of sympathy with the work as a great national
undertaking, and as one which, I believed, would in the future command
more than an equivalent for all the moneys expended upon it, in its
bearing on our history and the advantages it would extend.
In the tenth year of my labour in connection with this gigantic
undertaking political or rather party exigencies compelled me to sever
all official connection with it. I do not wish in any way, directly
or indirectly, to allude to my retirement from the position I held.
The subject can be of no interest to the general reader, but I may say
that before I retired, in 1880, the problem of the practicability of
the Railway had been grappled with and solved. The formidable natural
barriers which lay before us had been penetrated. Construction had been
commenced at several points between British Columbia and Lake Superior,
within a range of two thousand miles; and, further, the completion
of a length of railway of eight hundred miles, embracing some of the
most difficult sections of the work, was assured within a very short
period of time. The latter in the west piercing to the heart of British
Columbia from the Pacific, and in the east opening up a way through
Canadian territory for the influx of settlers to the fertile prairies
of the North-West.
As I am writing, the subject of the Canadian Pacific Railway is
again before Parliament. Four years ago the Ministry entrusted the
construction of the railway to a Company. The measure was carried by
large majorities in both Houses. If I understand the argument advanced
for this policy, it was advocated on the ground that a Company could
carry on the work more efficiently and more economically than a
Department of the Government.
The facts disclosed in the recent discussions in the House of Commons
establish that a Company cannot find money at less than double the
cost at which it is obtainable by the Canadian Government. The Company
has been raising capital at more than nine per cent. The Government
can find money at four per cent. or less. That a Company can carry
out a national undertaking more efficiently and economically than a
government, if the argument be not a fallacy, most certainly implies
that there is some defect in the system of government itself.
The difficulty with our present system lies in the fact that the
interests of party must be consulted, whatever the cost, whatever
the sacrifice. Party takes precedence of every other consideration.
Party seems to cloud the judgments of men who, in many instances, are
irreproachable in private life. Public men seem to act on the principle
that there is one creed and language for the hustings, the press and
parliament, and another for social intercourse.
The Canadian Pacific Railway has been considered a political question
during three administrations, and has played an important part in
party warfare. Every year, since 1871, motion after motion has been
made in Parliament relating to engineering operations and the mode
of conducting the work. Seldom have there been such acrimonious
discussions. Frequently the whole debate was dictated by the party
results supposed to be obtainable. Committee followed Committee,
year after year, in the Senate and House of Commons, nominally to
investigate matters, in reality to create party capital. Who now can
point out the slightest result from all these efforts? Two Royal
Commissions of special enquiry were appointed. The first made no
report; the second prolonged its sittings for two years, at a cost
of some $40,000 to the country. What remains of the labours of those
Commissions beyond the items of their cost in the public accounts? The
report of the second Commission was contained in two bulky volumes. The
record of an attempt for party ends to blast the reputation of men who
had given the best years of their lives to the performance of public
duty. When this report was considered it was held to be so valueless
that it has never been circulated.
In Canada we enjoy a liberal constitution, and it may be affirmed that
it is the only principle of authority which, as a people, we would
tolerate. It cannot, however, be said that in its present form our
system of government is an unmixed blessing.
We may ask if representative government is ever to be inseparable from
the defects which form the most striking feature in its application
and administration, especially on this continent. Must a country
constitutionally governed be inevitably ranged into two hostile camps?
One side denouncing their opponents and defaming the leading public
men of the other, not hesitating even to decry and misrepresent the
very resources of the community and to throw obstacles in the way of
its advancement. Never was partyism more abject or remorseless. Its
exigencies are unblushingly proclaimed to admit the most unscrupulous
tactics and the most reprehensible proceedings. Is there no escape
from influences so degrading to public life and so hurtful to national
honour?
It is evident that the evils which we endure are, day by day, extending
a despotism totally at variance with the theory and principles of
good government. Possibly Canada may be passing through a phase in
the earlier stage of her political freedom. Can we cheer ourselves
by the hope that institutions inherently good will clear themselves
from the slough into which they unfortunately may be immersed? May not
the evils of partyism at last become so intensified that their climax
will produce a remedy. As by natural laws a liquid in the process of
fermentation purifies itself by throwing off the scum and casting the
dregs to the bottom, so may we be encouraged to believe that we are
approaching the turning period in the political system we have fallen
into, and that year by year Parliament will become less and less a
convention of contending party men and be elevated to its true position
in the machinery of representative government. Public life will then
become more ennobling; it will, indeed, be an object of ambition for
men of honour and character to fill places in the Councils of the
Nation, when rectitude of purpose and patriotism and truth will be
demanded in all and by all who aspire to positions of national trust
and dignity.
From the earliest days of my connection with the Pacific Railway I felt
convinced of its national necessity. If the North-West country was
to become a part of the Dominion vigorous efforts for its settlement
were necessary. Among the facilities to be given to the immigrant one
of the most important was that of obtaining a means of ingress and a
market for his produce. Taking the geographical central position of
the country it was not enough to have completed a connection in one
direction. If, in due time, a market was open to the Atlantic, it
appeared equally essential that an outlet to the Pacific should be
obtained. It was clearly foreseen that the only true principle on which
the line could be constructed was to form a connection equally with the
valley of the St. Lawrence and with the Pacific Ocean.
This view was not generally entertained. There were many who readily
admitted that the Railway should be carried across from Red River to
Lake Superior, to find an outlet to the East by the St. Lawrence.
For without such a connection no Canadian character would have been
given to the line, and freight and passengers equally would have been
diverted to St. Paul and Chicago, to be engulfed in the United States
system of railways. But while such as these recognized the commercial
and political wants of a line from the interior to Lake Superior, there
were many who saw no advantage in its Eastern extension along the north
shore of Lake Superior, to connect with the lines in operation to the
East. It was held that the Railway should terminate at Lake Superior.
It was argued that from May to the month of November navigation is open
for vessels to proceed by the lakes and the St. Lawrence; and that
during the remaining five months of the year it was contended that
connection could be obtained by passing over the Canadian frontier to
St. Paul and by following the railways eastwards. It was remembered
that Montreal had been many years without a winter port, and that
no practical inconvenience by that arrangement had followed. On the
contrary, that every convenience had resulted, and for the five winter
months the limited travel of that period had been profitably directed
through the United States Railways to Portland. Very many, therefore,
argued that the line should stop at Port Arthur, and that the
completion of the portion on the north shore of Lake Superior should
be postponed for an indefinite period. I have always held a different
opinion. My theory, from the first, has been that the construction of a
Pacific Railway meant the construction of the whole Railway.
If Canada had held the sovereignty of the south shore of Lake Superior
or controlled the railways in operation by the South Shore, there
was much plausibility in the argument that the several links should
be connected by the completion of the parts wanting, and that this
route should be followed for a quarter of a century or until a large
increase of population called for the construction of the line along
the north shore of Lake Superior. But all lines south of the lake
pass through the States of Michigan and Minnesota. Any diplomatic
difficulty would at once be felt in this direction. We were, by such
a policy, creating for ourselves a weak spot to be felt on the least
strain in our relations with our neighbours. That it is not a fanciful
supposition may be found in President Grant’s proposition to Congress
in his annual message of 1880. In alluding to the course taken by the
Canadian authorities in seeking to protect the inshore fisheries of
the Dominion and to the Statute passed by Parliament in that intent,
General Grant makes the following deliberate proposal to Congress:
“I recommend you to confer upon the Executive the power to suspend
by proclamation the operation of the laws authorizing the transit of
goods, wares and merchandise in bond across the territory of the United
States to Canada; and, further, should such an extreme measure become
necessary, to suspend the operation of any laws whereby the vessels of
the Dominion of Canada are permitted to enter the waters of the United
States.”
Such language as this is a threat of no slight moment, and its record
is a warning both so powerful and unmistakeable as not to allow it to
pass without providing against the contingency of its future execution.
With a summer route by water _via_ Port Arthur and a winter railway
line through the United States to Winnipeg, encouragement would be
offered to the United States Government on the slightest provocation,
to repeat the language of General Grant, and for Congress to carry it
into effect. Without a connection on the north shore of Lake Superior
we would have possessed but a shadow of a line, which an hour’s
declaration of unfriendliness would have nullified. Even in summer
Canada would be practically cut in two, for the canal overcoming the
Rapids of Sault St. Mary, at the outlet of Lake Superior, is in the
State of Michigan. With the connection completed from Ottawa we are
perfectly independent of any diplomatic strain on our relations.
Possibly the cost of our freedom from this risk may be some millions
of dollars, but it is precisely the situation when cost cannot be
counted.
Some attempt has been made to cumber the problem by assertions of the
bleak and barren character of the intervening distance from Callander
to Port Arthur. One important industry is certainly ministered to by
this line: that of the lumber trade. At a period when some of the old
fields of enterprise have ceased to furnish the timber supply of former
days, all the territory where the waterfall runs away from the Ottawa
will be directly served by this line, and an opportunity for working
it opened up. It is also confidently affirmed that the mineral wealth
of the territory is great and that in no long period many important
industries will arise in connection with its development.
The British Columbia terminus of the Pacific Railway involved many
considerations and it could not at once be determined. At any early
stage of our proceedings it was expedient to adopt a pass through the
mountains which would admit of a connection with any one of the many
harbours advocated. The Yellow Head Pass was the only one to meet this
condition; it was attended also with the accompanying advantage that
the line from Red River to this locality passed through the heart of
the best land in the North-West. It has been designated the fertile
belt; a fact, I believe, indisputable. On both sides of the proposed
line the land was marked by great productive qualities; the soil was
considered, in every respect, suitable for agricultural purposes.
Moreover, the line so projected ran within easy reach of the extreme
Peace River District, by some reported to be the most fertile of the
North-West. It was these reasons, its low elevation and its freedom
from objectionable features of climate, which led to the almost
universal recognition of the excellency of the Yellow Head Pass. I have
not seen it necessary to modify the views which, under the aspect in
which it was selected, I then expressed concerning it. I still regard
it as peculiarly favourable, and under that aspect superior to every
other passage through the mountains to the south or to the north.
When the Railway Company entered into their contract with the
Government and assumed the work of construction, the conditions under
which the consideration of the location presented themselves were no
longer the same. Port Moody, Burrard Inlet, had been definitely chosen
as the terminus, and construction had commenced between Kamloops and
Port Moody, that distance being the extent of line which the Government
undertook to complete. To the East the line between Lakes Superior and
Winnipeg was also being pushed forward with vigour by the Government.
The problem which the Company had to solve was the location between
Winnipeg and Kamloops. They have considered it on the principle of
obtaining the shortest trans-continental route, and in these few
words they explain the theory of their selection. They claim that this
reason, in itself, is all powerful to determine the location by the
more southern route which they follow, and one in itself sufficient to
meet any objection urged against it.
In the earlier pages of this volume I described the soil of the country
west of Winnipeg through which the Railway has been constructed, and I
expressed my opinion as to its capability for agricultural development.
It is generally conceded that for four hundred miles, to Moose Jaw,
it is of great fertility. I could not learn one unfavourable view of
any portion of this extent with the most trifling exception. The whole
distance may be said to be entirely free from that sterile, forbidding
surface soil which passes under the name of waste land.
There is by no means the same unanimity of opinion regarding the
country from Moose Jaw to Calgary. Travellers and land jobbers in
Winnipeg described it to me as a semi-desert. I came to a different
conclusion. I was surprised, from what I heard, to find the soil
such as I have described it. I am satisfied that the same land in
the climate of the farming districts of England and Scotland would
produce the most luxuriant crops. I will not compare it in character
to the land away to the north on the route by Edmonton. In many places
I found the pasture short and dried brown, as it is often to be seen
in the best districts of Ontario at the end of August, the period
of the year I passed through the North-West. The fears which I heard
expressed respecting an insufficient rainfall exacted more attention,
for without moisture even good soil will bring only indifferent crops.
This important consideration, however, will soon be brought within
the domain of fact. The railway company has commenced a series of
experimental operations, breaking up the land and bringing it under
cultivation in the neighbourhood of the stations in those localities
where any doubt has been expressed of the character of the soil.
I have crossed the continent on the four different lines now known, and
to a certain extent can contrast the features of the country and its
fertility as they are represented on each line by such an examination
as I could make. We have, likewise, the known opinions of each separate
route by those familiar with it. So some fair ground of comparison
exists as to their characteristics:--
1. The Central and Union Pacific from Omaha to San Francisco;
2. The Northern Pacific from St. Paul _via_ Portland, Oregon, to
Puget Sound;
3. The Canadian Pacific from Lake Superior to Port Moody by the
Kicking-Horse, Rogers and Eagle Passes;
4. The line originally surveyed from Lake Superior to Port Moody
by the North Saskatchewan and Yellow Head Pass.
Speaking generally, the country traversed by these lines is the least
valuable on the most southern and increases in value as the lines run
through the more northern country.
The best land is undoubtedly to be met on the line through the valley
of the North Saskatchewan, leading to the Yellow Head Pass. The most
indifferent is the Central Pacific at the south. The Northern Pacific
line passes through a better country than the latter, but is again
greatly inferior to the land between Winnipeg and Calgary, which I
cannot recognize as so good as on the more northern route.
The engineering character of the four trans-continental routes may in
some respects be judged by the mountain summits passed over.
The Central and Union Pacific Railway passes over four main summits at
intervals apart of from 300 to 400 miles; the lowest of which is 6,120
feet, the highest is 8,240 above sea level.
The Northern Pacific line passes over two summits 120 miles apart,
reaching elevations of 5,547 and 5,572 feet.
The Canadian Pacific Railway, by the route followed on the recent
journey, has the Bow River summit, 5,300 feet, and the Rogers summit,
4,600 feet above sea level. The latter summit may, however, be entirely
avoided by following the River Columbia, a _detour_ which would
somewhat lengthen the line.
The one main summit on the line by the North Saskatchewan is at the
Yellow Head Pass, 3,720 feet above tide water.
As nearly as can be ascertained, the lengths of the four lines are as
follows: From Montreal to Port Moody by the Yellow Head Pass 2,940
miles, and by the route adopted 2,890 miles. From New York to Tacoma by
the Northern Pacific 3,380 miles, and from New York to San Francisco
by the Central Pacific 3,270 miles. It thus appears that the railway
through Canada will be 380 and 490 miles shorter between ocean ports
than the other lines established through the United States.
The Canadian Pacific, now in process of construction, has this
remarkable peculiarity: it is unsurpassed in the variety and
magnificence of its scenery. Between Calgary and Kamloops we meet a
group of bold, striking combinations of rivers and mountains, not
yielding in any way to the scenery of Switzerland, so often visited and
described. I have not myself seen the Yosemite Valley, but, judging
from the photographs which are well known, my experience suggests
that there are scores of places in the mountain zone to be made
accessible by the Canadian Pacific equally as striking and marked by
as much beauty. They only require to be known to obtain a world-wide
fame. There are also some localities near the north shore of Lake
Superior possessing attractive scenery of a different character. It
is therefore suggested that the opportunity for establishing one or
more national parks or domains should not be neglected. Two such Parks
of ample dimensions, one to the east and the other to the west, might
now be selected. The most easterly should undoubtedly embrace Lake
Nepigon, to the north of Lake Superior, and the other should take in
possibly one hundred miles square of the finest mountain scenery in
the Rocky Mountain zone. Such parks, with the marked salubrity of the
climate, would attract visitors to frequent them. Rendered perfectly
easy of access by the Railway, and with assurance that the life to be
found there was marked by comfort at no extravagant cost, these resorts
would, especially in the heat of summer, bring many within their
boundaries on the score of health and recreation. Sportsmen and crowds
of tourists would flock thither, some to hunt the grizzly, the cariboo
or the bighorn, others to fish the splendid speckled trout to be found
in the mountain streams; many with alpenstock in hand to climb the
glacier-covered heights, and all to enjoy the pure air and the charm
of the scenery and the striking features of natural beauty nowhere
else to be seen. Every year a limited expenditure in forming roads and
bridle paths to the remote sections would render the localities more
and more attractive. In no long time all the aid that art could furnish
would be manifested in developing the landscape and in establishing
retreats of quiet and repose amid some of the grandest scenes of wild
nature. Evidently such improvements, being in the common interest, they
should in some degree be borne by the Dominion. In itself it would be a
national matter. It would require no large expenditure; the development
should be gradual and systematic, and in a few years the Dominion
would possess attractive spots of the rarest picturesque scenery, to
be ranked among those remarkable localities which all look upon with
pleasure, and which, by the number of strangers who would visit them
would become a source of general profit. It is scarcely possible to
estimate the amount of money circulated in this form in Switzerland.
It really forms no inconsiderable part of the annual revenue of the
Republic. Once a route of travel and centres of attraction of this
character are established with ourselves, the profit derived would
be equally considerable; and, taking the question in its commercial
aspect, would repay any moderate outlay so incurred.
One important result of more than ordinary Imperial interest is
attained by the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Halifax,
with its admirable harbour, is the headquarters of the North American
fleet, and its dockyard is furnished with every accessory for refitting
and repair. If the British fleet is to rendezvous in Pacific waters,
it must be plain that the same opportunities for repair and renewal
of stores must be extended, and in proportion that the distance from
England is greater the more positive demand exists for a completely
equipped dockyard on the Pacific Coast.
Naval and military men have come to the one conclusion on the subject:
that the Imperial Dockyard should be as near as practicable to the
terminus of the Railway. Indeed it must be evident to all, that where
there is a naval station with war vessels on active service there must
be the means of refitting and renovation, in a location central and
accessible, and one perfectly defensible. It is held that the dockyard
should be on an efficient scale, so that a ship of war which has
found refuge in port, whatever her condition, can be replaced in her
integrity and made completely serviceable.
Captain Colomb, in reference to Imperial and Colonial responsibility
in war, has remarked “That an absolute and pressing necessity exists
for the erection of a great Imperial dockyard at the other side of the
world which would relieve the pressure on home dockyards, and fulfil
duties they cannot in war perform, and in peace offer commercial
advantages of construction and repair to ships of the mercantile
marine.” The advantages of a naval station in British Columbia extends
beyond the mere repairing and refitting of vessels. They can be best
set forth in the words of Admiral Mayne, who reports that with respect
to the fleet in Chinese waters:--“Our ships there, which are sometimes
almost disabled from sickness, could reach the healthy climate of
Vancouver in six weeks, and might, if required, be relieved by vessels
of the Pacific Squadron. Vessels have been ordered to Esquimault from
China with crews greatly debilitated, and afterwards returned with all
hands in perfect health.”
However well situated Esquimault may be for a Sanitorium, it cannot be
looked upon as offering equally the proper site for a naval arsenal.
Esquimault was selected, it is said, at mere haphazard for the purpose
of an hospital during the Crimean war. It is an exposed situation, and
its defence is complicated by the position of the city of Victoria in
the neighbourhood.
The construction of the railway, with its terminus established at Port
Moody, has totally changed all the circumstances which hitherto had
obtained prominence. It is now held that the naval dockyard should be
on Burrard Inlet, near the terminus. The site has been pointed out by
Major-General Lawrie and advocated by him in a carefully written paper,
in which both the question of the necessity of such a dockyard and the
site itself are fully discussed.
The spot on Burrard Inlet described by General Lawrie, is held to be
eligible in every point of view. It is defensible by land and by sea,
with good anchorage in front. It is situated on the north shore, west
of the North Arm, so far within the Inlet as to be unassailable by
cruisers, except at the risk of their total destruction, unapproachable
by surprise by land, and in close proximity to the terminus of the
railway; while at the mouth of the Inlet batteries can be constructed
to make entry next to impossible. It must also be borne in mind that
Burrard Inlet is directly opposite to the coal fields of Nanaimo.
Coal is even to be found on Burrard Inlet itself, and in modern
naval warfare coal is an important article of equipment. Indeed,
it may be said to take priority; for without fuel no vessel of
modern construction can move from her anchorage. The supply of coal,
therefore, becomes of primary consideration, and the source where it
can be obtained is of special value and has jealously to be protected.
These views of naval and military men have been widely echoed by all
who have studied the question. It is on all sides an accepted opinion
that with the completion of the Railway, bringing British Columbia
within twelve or fifteen days of England, the terminus on Burrard Inlet
becomes the most important strategic centre on the Pacific Ocean.