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THE BRITISH AMERICAN.

Stu-18

From Bell's Weekly .Meucngar, Sept. 9. OUR AMERICAN COLONIES. .

Since the celebrated work of Mr. Basil Hall, and several others which accompani- ed or followed it, the public seem to have arrived at a correct estimation of the real value, and ofthe vital importance, of our North American Colonies. As every thing which is daily passing around us cannot but strongly convey to our minds the actual ne- cessity of keeping open all the channels of employment, it has now become perfectly intelligible to all men, that the main ad- vantage of Colonies is to contribute to the demand and employment of home-labour. By their exports, they necessarily employ the capital and the shipping, the merchants and the manufacturers, of the mother country ; and, by their imports, they intro- duce into our markets the materials of in- dustry and employment. They uphold our navigation, extend our commerce, and in- vigorate:our manufactures. Being general- ly branches from the parent stock. and re- taining for successive generations the same nature and tastes, they are not only the largest and most liberal, but the longest and surest customers to the original country, and we are thus secure against those spreading vicissitudes of prosperity, and decline to which all branches of commerce, depending upon a varying taste and fash- ion, are so subject.

Of all our colonies; it appears, not only by writers and travellers, but still more strongly by our ofﬁcial returns, that none “ 4s“ more valuable )than Canada, and that none, at the present time, contributes more largely to the real wealth of the British empire.

This Province is in the agricultural stage of its progress towards civilization ; thatis, it is in that stage in which wages are so high, and land is so plentiful, and affords so large a return, as to render it impossible for manufactures to compete with agricul- ture, and thus to make it necessary for the Canadians to conﬁne themselves to the growth of corn and timber, and to supply themselves with manufactures from the European market. Now the very habits of that country, the consanguinity of the in- habitants with those of England, and even the natural similitude of the physical cir- cumstances of the two countries, must lead the Canadians, amongst all other European markets, to prefer that of England. And, secondly, it has always been thejust policy of this cou_ntry,(and never deviated from in a single instance, except partially by the

resent administration,*) to extend the

ighest favdur towards this branch of our Colonial trade, and thus to put it upon that footing under which it has hitherto contri- buted so considerably to the advantage of the two countries.

* The late attack upon the timber trade.

Under these circumstances, our trade with Canada is greater than with any other colony or dependency of this empire, if we except Jamaica and the \Vest Indies. It appears indeed by the ofﬁcial returns, that Canada employs more shipping than any other colony, takes more of our manu— factures, and supplies us more beneﬁcially with a larger stock of valuable raw pro-

uce.

At the present moment, Canada con- tains between eight hundred thousand and a million inhabitants, and as the tide of emigration is now setting this way with a strong current, this amount will probably double itself within the next ten years.

According to the accounts lately receiv- ed, the emigrants from Great Britain and Ireland, for the last year, reckoning from July l83l, to July 1832, have been forty- one thousand eight hundred,-—which is an excess ot'nearly ﬁve thousand beyond the amount of the preceding year. Almost ev- ery port in England has one or more ves- sels daily proceeding to the Canadas, and the accounts of those who have so recently settled, are so favorable, and are so uni- versally spread, that the surplus population of England is daily and hourly flocking to the bank of the St. Lawrence, and Quebec will soon become to Canada, what New- York is to the United States.

We have only to express our conﬁdent h0pe, that our government will contribute its restoring aid towards a state ofthings of so much importance to both communities. Above all, let the Ministry bear in mind that the relative prosperity ofthe two coun- tries must depend upon the strict observ- ance of the followingprinciples :——

First, as Canada is now a full grown Colony, and no longer a barren waste, which is to be brought into cultivation by the common sacrifice of the landlord and tenant,-—-—the one giving seed and the other labour, and each agreeing fora time to loose both,—as Canada, we say, is no lon- ger in this state, it is ajust principle of na- tional and colonial policy, that she should at last bear the expenses of her own local government, that she should pay her own militia. her own executive government, her own judges, the ofﬁcers other own revenue, and defray the cost of her own canals and public works.

The principle is here perfectly intelligi- ble ; it is the common principle between the landlord and tenant ofa farm about to be brought into cultivation for the ﬁrst time. It is a speculation which for a time, must be carried on at their joint expense, andjoint sacriﬁce, as otherwise it could not be done at all. The landlord not only gives up his own rent, and the parsOn his tithes, but agrees to carry so much manure upon the land. The tenant agrees to loose bis labour, and upon this joint sacriﬁce, as a dead fund, the farm is at length brought

*K. into heat and produce, so as to yield rent to the landlord, and to afford a good “Vina to the tenant Now it is plain that it woulﬁ he a most unreasonable expectation on the part ofthe tenant, that the contribution of the landlord should be permanent instead of temporary, and that he should go on pay_ ing the whole seed and manure out ofhi, own packet, after the just occasion had ceased. In plain words, Canada is better able to support herself than we are to sup. port her ; and therefore we have ajust ex. pectation that she will do so. -Let her no longer be a burden on the English ﬁnances,

The second colonial principle is, that it is our duty to give Canada all the privile. ges and franchises ofa British constitution, and to bestow upon her the benefits ofour 0Wn experience, and of the new light we have acquired, in the progress ofour know- ledge, of the true nature andjust rights of government. Let us not encumber Cana- da withafeudal aristocracy. This princi- ple is too plain to require any further ex- planation.

The third principle as respects Colonial Government is, that it is our duty, as the mother country, to give a fair preferance to their trade and dealings ; and to all our colonies, and to Canada in particular, to give such privileges and advantages as are not conceded to foreigners ; such as do not interfere with the paramount importance of our domestic interests, or conﬂict with the principles of general trade and 0011) merce.

THE REFOBMFRS NEW POLITICAL

CA'l‘iiCl-llb'M. . Suited to the Times present, and Times to come, and adopted to the meanest capacity-

Q. What is your name?

A. Reform Bill.

Q. Who gave you that name?

A. The Commoners and l’eersin my baptism. wherein l was made the law of the land, the child of the Commons, and the new Bill 01 Rights.

Q. What did the Commoners and Peers, then for you ?

A. They promised three things in my name, lst, 1 should disfranchise rotten boroughs—2d, enfranchise such places grown to opulence.— and 3d, that l invest the rights of suilrages in £10 householders.

Q Dost thou think thou art bound to do as they promised for thee?

A. Yes, and by the people’s help, I will.— And 1 thank our King he called me to this state, through Brougham our advoCatc, and pray to continue to my life's end.

Q. RCllL‘LU'SC the articles ofyonr belief?

A. l believe in the patriotic Earl Grey. and Russell and Bi‘Ougham, his colleagues: I be- lieve in the detestable inconsistency of Wel- lington, Peel, Lyndhurst, and the Bishops. and look for the extermination of tyranny and oppression.

Q. What dost thou chieﬂy learn in these nr- ticles of'thy belief?

A. lst, 1 learn to believe in Earl Grey. “‘9 advocate of an ins-ulted nation—2d, the base ingratitude of the Prince of VKaterloo—Sd. in