LORD STANLEYsaid, that since the discussion on the Passengers' Bill, he had received an abstract of a Bill relating to the same subject which was now passing-through the Legislature in the province of Canada, which would greatly impede the operation of the Bill which their Lordships had recently passed, unless the Government interfered. At the present moment the tax imposed by Canada upon every adult emigrant was 5s., while the tax imposed by New York was 7s. By the Bill 1199 which had already passed the House of Assembly in Canada, it was intended to impose a tax of 20s. upon every emigrant, irrespective of age. After the 30th of September, this charge was to be increased to 30s., and at a period subsequent to 40s. It was also required that security should be given against the emigrants becoming chargeable to the colony. He admitted the right of the colony to protect itself against pauperism; but he considered this charge was most exorbitant. The master might relieve himself, indeed, from giving the security, on payment of 20s. for each passenger imported. The consequence of this Act, if passed, would be, that the stream of emigration to a British province would be checked, and exclusively directed to the United States and other foreign parts. There was another portion of the Bill much more oppressive still. By the fifth section the master of the ship was required to report, on the arrival of his ship in the province, the names and ages of all his passengers, their state of mind, whether they had relatives in the colony capable of supporting them, and various other minute particulars, which it was utterly impossible the master could have any knowledge of; and yet, if he failed in making this report, he was to be subjected to a penalty of 5l. The questions he wished to ask his noble Friend were, first, whether Her Majesty's Government had received similar information to that which had already reached him; if so, secondly, whether it was his intention to place the Bill on the table of their Lordships' House; and, thirdly, whether it was the intention of the Government to counsel Her Majesty to give the Royal Assent to an Act which went to impose so arbitrary a penalty on a portion of Her Majesty's subjects?
§ EARL GREYhad, since the discussion to which his noble Friend had alluded, received a copy of the Bill mentioned by him from Lord Elgin, who stated that it had already passed the House of Assembly, and that many Members wished to make its provisions much more severe. He (Earl Grey) regretted that some of its provisions should have been proposed; they appeared to him calculated to operate very injuriously indeed upon the interests of the colony, especially the fifth section, which imposed upon the master of the vessel a duty which was totally impossible to be complied with. He also regretted the provision which imposed so large an amount 1200 as 20s. a head on account of every man taken to Canada as a guarantee against his becoming chargeable on the colony. Altogether he thought the Bill would operate severely against emigrants from this country. But it was not unnatural that there should be a very strong opinion in Canada upon this subject. The expenses incurred by the colony in relieving the sick and diseased emigrants during the last season amounted to no less than 114,000l. Of that sum there was recovered by the emigration-tax 15,000l.; and by a grant made by Parliament last Session, and by advances from the military chest, which had been reimbursed during the present Session, a further sum of 55,000l. were repaid, making in all 70,000l.; still the colony had to sustain an expense of no less than 44,000l. for the relief of these parties. What course it would be necessary to take with reference to that expenditure, it was not in his power at present to say. But what the colonists felt more severely than this charge, was the calamity entailed on the province by the sickness which these unfortunate emigrants carried with them. He was happy to state that the Act was only proposed to last till the end of next year. In answer to his noble Friend he could only say, that until the Bill had been received in the shape of a law, it was impossible to give Her Majesty any advice whatever upon the subject. He, however, intended to send out a despatch to the Governor General, which he hoped would reach him while the Provincial Parliament was still sitting, recommending that some of the most objectionable clauses of the Bill should be reconsidered. The noble Earl concluded by stating that he would lay on the table a copy of the despatch he had received, as well as a copy of the Bill.