' ,in that instance nlcnlts

l

' tain services.

on. R.B. Hans on Makes Strong Presentation of

Island gar F erry_

.T ext of Discussion in House Of Commons Over P.E.I. Transportation Problem

_

'1'” l°ll°Wl118 discussion

tion claims is from if proceedings, April 2; Government Owned Entcrpfiggs

Prince Edward Island Car Ferry and Terminals.

445. To provld for th during the flscael year

the Canadian National Helium Company (hereinafter called the Nflllmlal Cillllilfllly) upon appli- l-‘llllolls llPDYOWd by the Minister of Trans ort, made from time to time by he National Company to the Minister of Finance, and to bennppliedpbls; ti]: NliltlOllfildCOin. Pl‘ l’ n a men O the elicit (certified by the auditors of Llli: National Company) in the Opera- tion‘ of the Prince Edward island cur Iflrry and terminals arising iii the calendar year 1942_fui-iuer amount required, $191,095.36,

Hon. R. B. SON (York. sllllbllry): I am afraid I shall be obliged to take up some oi tile time of the committee to discuss certain matters flPlSlIlg out of this important itcln, and in doing so I shall review some of the history oi the relationship between the province of Prince Edward Island and the Confederation.

It will be recalled that Prlngg Edward Island was not one of the original provinces of the con. federation. Although the confer- ence was held at Charlottetown Drlor to 1867. Prince Edrvai-rl Is- laud did not come in until about 1872. and it camc in under the provision; of all itllperial order in council and thc British North America Act. The order ill council is dated June 26, i873. It contains as a scehedulc an address to Her bfisicsly the Queen. which states the terms under ivl-licll Priucc Ed- ward Island would enter confed- eration. Among those terms of union was the our which stated that the dominion government

; was to assume and defray all the

charges in connection with cer- Ii then goes Oil to enumerate certain specific services with which I am not particularly concerned, but it includes an ef-

ficient steam service for the con--

veyance of mails and passengers, to be established and maintained between the island and the main- land of the dominion, winter and summer. by the Dominion, thus placing tile Island in continuous communication tvitll the Inter- colonial railway and the railway system of the Dominion.

Federal Obllgnilun

I submit that "efficient service" modern. up-to-ziate service. That was the understanding upon which Prince Edward Island critcrcd the union at that time. I bcllcvc it. is fail‘ lo sav that from 1871i down t0 i915 that undertaking was not carried into fulfilment by any gov- ernment ill Canada. especially with respect to winter transportation service. Willi regard to tilesum- mer service during that pcricd, I do not think that iu days gonc by there was grcat ccmplaiilt, hav- ing regard to lllc progress made ill stream navigation mid steam transportation. But l wcll romem- her as long as forty-nine years ago having seen with my owll eyes Passengers from Prince Ed- ward Islaiid having _ the strait of Nortliumbcrlnlld in the old-time ice boat. I llccd oilly recall that period to indicate ‘hat at that time, at. all events there was no efficient method 0f transportation during the winter season between the little island province and the Dominion.

The position stood thus until 1911 or’ thci-cabotits. when Sir Robert Borden, in the course 0f an election tour in that your. visited Prince Edward Island and gave the definite undertaking fill"? if his party were returned to pow- er in the approaching election he would build and operate a steam ferry between the mainland and inc island. I do not propose to refer to the demands for a lunncl. and things of that nature. bif- causc so far as I KNOW they "P117" got beyond tllc stage of academic

‘discussions.

First Car Ferry

There is no doubt that us tllc rcsillt of the action of Sii‘ Robert Borden, for thr- first time there

was a moderately adequate fulfil-

ment of thc toxins of coilietiera- lion as sct out in the ilddicss to I-lcr Majesty the Queen in 1873- As the result of Sir Robert Bor- den's action the car ferrv Prlrife Edward Island was built. That ferry operated with more or less success until about fifteen or twenty years ago-I have not the

' exact date. when she was more or

less condemned. not as unsca- worthy, pu: as inadequate for the servicc, The government of that day-I have forgotten which gov- evnmeni; it wns—bullt the car ferry Charlottetown, I shall have some- thing to say with respect to the loss of the Charlottetown later on. At the moment however suffice it to say that the island la m!’ opinion had reasonably good transportation facilities from 1915 to 1941, first through the var is"? Prince Edward Island and then through the Charlottetown.

It is true that there was a mot deal of objection to the cost 0f transportation. The car ferry We! operated for the account of the Dominion Government by the then Department of Railways and Can- als, now the Department; of Trans-

rt, and the cost to the 001m-

ljv was Bllbiltilfltllll. But an de- ficit in operation was a c M89 on the treasury by lelwm of the undertaking giveil in 1873. and I believe no one has raised an)’ question with respect to that cx- ndltui-e. In some years it hos n larger, and iii others Muller- But then has been a good deal 0! criticism of the rates charged fol‘ the tranaportlrtioil of freiithf. and at one time for the transiwflflllllll 0i’ motor vehicles. From time to ‘lme there have been reductions " rates and some amelioration in

Prince Edward Island transport?) 1e Hansard report of the House of Cmnmops

conditions, because it must be b01110 in mind that the cost of transportation, aside from bflrlle by the treasury in the Day- lilent of deficits, in most c3595 came upon the shi rs o r . ducts. In order wppgeci; fr: SQ}. markets on the mainland they were obllced-I believe it is mu- lO 59y this-to assume the cost of this extra transportation via the cm‘ ferry.

that

ivood Island Ferry

That condition was never pro- Derly righted, and the time crime when. owing u, the increase u; tourist traffic between the main- lrmll and the island. the facilities were inadequate to take care of the traffic offering, especially in the summer season. An ‘"15 made to lmDPOvc that coildi- tion when the Wood Island ferry was established. It is now ii, mat- fer of history and record that the efforts to establish that ferry were in a measure frustrated by reason 0f the filCt that the vessels acquired for that purpose

WCTQ, one after the other, requisitipned by the naval department. It was

only within recent months that. that service was established and maintained. No one has ever Ellgsested that the establishment of the Wood Island ferry, or its predecessor the Hochelaga run- Xlllliz from Piciou to the Island, Wflflaflylhlniz more than supple- memary to the main service.

In the summer of 1941 the Charlottetown was ordered to dr dock for her annual over-hail. and it is a matter of great mis-

‘Ibflilllle that in that ycal- she was

ost off the coast of Nova Scotla. Since that time. in common with other hon. members, I have been asked by commercial interests and others in Nova Scotia to lay before the government and the house the position of citizens in Prince Edward Island with respect to the inadequacy of transports. tion facilities. I did so at great length on one occasion. and I have no apology for so doing. This season the situation has been ag-

Efflvalcd by the severity of the weather conditions, and in the past. several months the trans- portation facilities between the

island and the mainland have been wholly inadequate. I think that is putting the matter quite mildly.

inexcusable

I wish to speak moderately on this subject; but.I think it is in- excusable, if I may use that term, that we should be no further ahead than to have had a promise made by the minister in reply to a question asked by the senior mem- ber for Queens to the effect that plans were being prepared for a new car ferry, which would be built on an if, as and when basis. That is not good enough for the province of Prince Edward Island. We have been told that it is im- possible to get priorities for the machinery and that no yard should be asked to build this new vessel. But there have been may occasions where moneys have been appropriated for ace-time activ- ities which inter cred with the war effort. I need but refer to the Montreal terminal, where mil- lions have been spent on what is

to traverse ‘really a peace-time undertaking,

while this situation on the island has been left unattended to.

I know that the government must have been preserved with the representations which have been nude from time to time by public bodies. The whole thing culminated this winter in a series of representations by public bodies, and the legislature of Prince Edward Island has gone oli record unanimously as demanding that the rights of the citizens of that province, as outlined ill the _rovince‘s magma chzirta to which l) have referred, shall be graflvtelds

.i

by the federal authorities. nlul-

has been followed up by a titude of resolutions by nearly _ every board of trade on the 1:.- land. Only recently thcrc has been an exchange of correspond- ence between certain public and semi-public bodies ill the province and the Prime Minister. I do not propose to place this 0n illc rc- cord because it would mkc too long, but I do make fl plea to tho government to expedite the build- ing of a new car erry for the Northumbcrland strait.

lslaull Members Not Vocal

I do not think all the avenucs have been explored by the gov- ernment or the Department of Transport to attain this end. I used to marvel ut the fact that here was o, province represented in this chamber by IOU‘ lllfimbefs who support the adminlstratlcil. I am hound to sa that so far as my own observat ons are concern- ed up to this fourth session of this parliament the only public reference that has been made to this matter has been on two oc- casions. One was a question plac- ed cn the order paper by the hon. member for Queens, and the oili- er was a speech made recently b1’ the hon. member for Kings. I would have wished that tnese izvn- tlemen had been a. little more vocal with regard to this matter, especially since one of them sits on the treasury‘ benches. I have no doubt that e will have Some- thing to say about it this ail/er- noon.

The reason given-J shall not call 1t an excuse because I think ere is some reason for it -is that the nation is at wsr- The nation is at war. but civilian life must go on. when we have an isolated island province such as Prince Edward Island lt is the duty of the government to use every slble means within its power see to it that a situation such as I have outlined is taken care of. There is no question about the financial abllitv of the country to build this boat. I question very much if thc ilfll/“Yll-

ment has exhausted every effort

effort.

Claims

dertake the construction of this ship. I assume that either the Minister of Notional Defence or the Minister of Transport will reply. when he does so, I hope he will be good enough to tell the committee what avenues have been explored in connection with having this ship constructed.

In ustioe to a large bodv of our ctizcns. this must be done. if it is not done these peo le will continue to suffer economc and other inconveniences which they ought not to be asked to put up with any longer." They have put up with them dong enou h. I make the plea to the minis ry to use the utmost diligence to ro- vide the ferry transportation lich tllc people of Prince Edward Is- land demand aild which they re- quire if they are to continue to function properly, to do their shape in makin a contribution to the food supp y of Canada. and to get that food supply across to wher- ever it can be useful.

P.E.I. War Record

Thai: little province of 100.000 people has sent more volunteers per caplta to the war than any other province. '

Mr. BLACK (Cumberland): Except Nova Scotia.

Mr. HANSON (York-Sunbury): Tile two provinces are in th same military district, and it is quite difficult to separate the voluntary cnlistrrlents of the two. Tneir record in voluntary enlist- menis for active service overseas has been magnificent. The little province of Prince Edward Island has no great industrial corpora- flung within its boundaries and has practically no industry apart from Agriculture, but it has gone over the top in the early days of every war loan campaign. That little province has been among the first of all provinces in its contribu- tions to the Red Cross. In these days of grave national crbis that little province has exemplified the bestithere is of citizenship. I do suggest, moderately I hope, that Prince Edward Island has not had a. fair deal at the hands of the federal government in connection with this transportation problem. 1 will not emphasize that any fur- tlier.

Ttierc is something else to which I desire to refer tonight, namely, the loss of the ferry Charlotte- town. I hold in my hand a copy of sessional paper 150, brought down in response to anorder of this house made on Februar 8, on a motion by the hon. mem r for Cumberland, for a copy of the findings of Mr. Justice Archibald, with respect to the sinking of the ferry S.S. Ctlarlottetcwn off the coast of Nova Scntia in 1941. I make on apology for referring to this matter this afternoon, be- cause it is part and parcel of tile subiect matter with which I am den mg.

O

Sinking of "Charlottetown"

An investigation into the sink- lng of the Charlottetown was held in the months of December, 1941. and January and February, 1942. by Mr Justice Archibald. as a wreck commissioner, assisted by certain naval officers and nautical assessors. Certain questions were submitted to that court.

I should preface my remarks in this connection by stating that the Ctuirlotfctotvn left Borden, Prince Edward Island, on the morning of June l6. 1941. on hepway to Saint John, New Brunsvnck, for annual overhaul and repair. The finding of the court is that she was seaworthy at the time of her departure.

The findings cf the court of inquiry indicate the type of ship the Charlottetown was. She had an indicated horse-power of 8,000; her speed was 15 knots, with eight boilers in use, and the dimensions of the ship are given.

it appears that when off Sam- bro light or near thereby she struck a rock or ledge, as a re- sult of which she ultimately be- came a total loss. I will no; go into the details of the findings, but I desire to read to the com- mittec certain of the latter por- tion of the court's findings and I refer hon. members who have seen this report to paragraph 18:

"i8. The ss. Charlottetown ro- maiued afloat after the strlkin! g period of 32 hours and l3 illin- lites"

Please keep that in mind. Then paragraph 19.

"l9. The vessel became a total loss by sinking on tuc evening of Junt- 18, i941. at 7.07 a’clock. Ar that time she was being towed by motor boats toward Port Mouton niid slink ill 16 fathoms of witter—" Ill a certain latitude and long- itude. Then mark this well. 1t is the finding of the court:

“Z0. Tile court is of opinion that the master either failed to realize the seriousness of the damage to tllc vcssel and the necessity of immediate action to control the water and to secuie assistance if ttie vessel was to be saved or that he was mistakenly confident that notwithtandlng the damage he could take the vessel to a safe port. It is difficult to understand why the master did not within a very few minutes after the strik- mg_..

It was more than thirty hours after the striking that she actual- lv sank. It goes on:

“-ufien she had reached deep water stop or even anchor the vessel and ascertain the damage suffered. It is apparent from t e evidence given particularly that of the chief engineer that the ship had suffered serious damage and that he had so advised the master.

there is no evidence that the mas-

fo get. rid of ' the cough accompanied trouble that. keeps ou awake of. night . Wood's [damn Pine this coughing condition areoot ' loosening the phi an stimuh is done the troub some irritating Dr. Wood's Norwn Pine 48 yearn. The Trude

drug counters.

to find a stiipyard which will un-

Tronblmne Iigill 0min: Are llarl or llie Syrian

It's tho cough that sticks; thqeough that is hard the throat tlmt causu the nerve and t ‘helps in relieve

_ e irritated peril , the bronchial. organs, and when thin

ark "8 'ne Trees". Price 35c a bottle; large family cine, about 3 time: as much, 00o of. all

The T. Million limited. Toronto. 0n.

. Rm 6 1943 gTi-IE cnalrnorrsfroww GUARDIAN

her went of June

That was approximately twelve hours after the accident occurred. ‘Ihat is a factor to be kept in mind. The wreck commissioner proceeds to moire this rather start- ling statement:

“The method employed by the master in securing assistance seems to have been casual and lnad uate. It. must be observed that n the absence of a wireless system or any other method of communicating from the ship to the shore, it is difficult to under- stand why the ship's boat was not ant to shore immediatcflylmtwith

e proper messages an ruc- tiolis for assistance. Infead of doing so the master did not make any effort to establldl communi- cation with the shore until the vessel arrived at Little Hope buoy at. 12.20 pm. At that time a. fish- erman in a. boat was at the buoy

to him the master give a ver- bal messa e for transmission to the Cana ion National Railways office at Moncton. This messa e he did not send. It was not un 4.3) o'clock in the afternoon of the 17th thata lifeboat left for the shore in charge of the first mate, who had with him the chief enslllefi‘. the chief steward and a crew of 17 men. when he reached shore that evening he sent a. number of motor boats to the shi after hav- irig communcated wi‘. the 8e11- eral manager of the Canadian National Railways at Moncton and the district superintendent at Halifax and advising them of the ship's condition and the need for assistance, but notwithstanding this message it would seem that these officers must have had in- adc uate information as to the ships peril; otherwise a greater effort would have been made in getting effective assistance to the distressed vessel without- the lapse of a great length oi time. It is difficult, to undertnnd why ef- forts were not made to get tug- boats or other boats capable of giving assistance from the nearby ports of Shelburne, Inckport, Liv- erpooi or Lunenburg. Havln re- gard also to the condition o the vessel and the unoertaintv 115 V1 the time of arrival of assistance it is difficult to understand why the vessel was not 8W6" l" WW l9 mOtOI‘ boats during the night of June 17 or early on June 18 in- stead of “waiting until 1.35 pm. on the 1B ~"

I suggest that those findings of fact indicate that this boat could have been saved if the master had taken adequate measures. I de- sire to call the attention of the committee to finding 22:

"In the opinion of the court the loss of the ss. Charlottetown re- suited." from the damage she sui- fered when she struck Devastation shoal and from the failure to take adequate measures to secure the safety of the ship after the striking an from the failure to obtain prompt and efficient assistance."

lrllaelow until the evening

Summing Up of Court

That responsibility was that of the master, and he wholly failed .to assume that responsibility. Now listen to this. This is the summing up of the court:

"The coult is of opinion that the damage sustained by the ss. Char- lottetown was caused by the wrong-

John Iefurgy Read in the follow- ing particulars:

"(a1 He did not choose a proper or safe course in the weather con- ditions prevailing."

And reference is made to the an- swers given to questions '7. 8, 9 and 11

“(b1 His navigation of the vessel on this course was faulty and im- proper for the reasons given in the answers to qivistlons 9, 11, 12 and 13;.

I have not sketched the answers to those questions. I am content- ing myself with giving the findings of the court of inquirv.