Mayor McMillan For The Settler

Mr. J. C. McMillan, of Webbwood, spoke as follows:
Mr. Premier and Gentlemen of the Cabinet of the Province of Ontario: In appearing before you as a member of this Union I have been asked to relate to you the difficulties that exist between the lumberman and the settler and in doing so I feel that there has fallen upon me a task of no small importance, as here lies the difficulties as seems to have kept settlers out of our country, so many townships have been held by the lumberman after having cut all the pine excepting a few million feet, and for years those limits have been held under licenses whereas they should be open for settlement. Hon. Sir, I think that it would be quite in order for me to show you a few of those townships which should be open for settlement and in doing so I will be as brief as possible.

There is the township of Hallam, which the town of Webbwood is situated in; the south east portion of this township should be open for settlement; the township of Shakespeare the first and second concessions; townships of Baldwin, Merritt and McKinnon; Long Patton and Wallace Mines. Those are only a few of the townships that should be open which have at least fifity per cent of good argicultural land.

The reasons why these townships should be opened up is; At the present time there is no land open for settlement which would encourage settlers to come in. This spring the C.P.R have made arrangements for the bringing to the district of Algoma three train loads of settlers, and we want to make provision to receive them. The only way for the government to overcome the difficulty is to step in between the lumberman and the settler. How can this be done? Well, as we all know our governments of Canada are spending thousands of dollars for the bringing in of emigrants into our country, and whom we find in many cases are practically useless. We have, Sir, scores hundreds of good Canadians, yea, Ontarionians who would locate in our province if any encouragement was given.

Let the government give the settler all the timber on his lands other than the pine. Let the government if need be pay the lumberman for the timber other than the pine, and in so doing settlers will have some encouragement.

I wish to call your attention to a matter which occurred within three miles of the town of Webbwood. A widow who is located in one of the berths held under license wished to sell wood in order to make a living for her family. The lumberman stepped in and told her that she could not sell hard wood or anything else. But this lumberman suggested that she cut wood for his company and for the sum of $1.75 per cord, in which case it would have cost her practically that amount to cut it.

The trouble in many cases is that the farmer has no timber in which to build his buildings.

Hon. Sir, we have not come down here to tell you how you should rule the Province of Ontario, but we have come as residents of a very important part of this province to show what we consider the only proper way of opening up the country and getting settlers to come in. Or on the other hand to hold our young sons and daughters we now have within our province.