ASKED TO RESIGN.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1090, 31 March 1911, Page 5

ASKED TO RESIGN.

CANADA'S OPPOSITION LEADER. By Teletrraph—Press Association—Oopyrisht Ottawa, March 20. Tho Liberal papers declare that Mr. R. L. Borden has resigned the leadership of the Conservatives in tho Dominion Parliament. They say ho received a round-robin asking him to resign the position. THE REPORT DENIED. (Rec. March 31, 0.30 a.m.) Ottawa, March 30. Mr. Borden has not resigned, and will continue to lead the Federal Conservatives. MR. BORDEN'S CAREER, Mr. Borden succeeded Sir Charles Tupper, as leader of the Conservative party m Canada in 1901. The conditions at the timo were peculiarly inhospitable. In Quebec he had to challenge tile immense personal ascendancy of Sir "Wilfrid Laurier. In the Western Provinces, in Ontario, where lay the chief strength of the party, and oven in New Brunswick ami Prince Edward Island, he was comparatively unknown'. Ho succeeded Sir Charles Tupper who for a quarter of a century stood at the side of Sir John Macdonald whose name is written deeply in the history of the Commonwealth. Of English : stock Mr. Borden was born in Nova , Scotia in 185J, and therefore was 42 years of age when ho entered Parliament in ISOli as one of the members for Halifax, i In youth his affiliations were with the . Liberal party; but when he came to the ! actual, consideration of public questions , he seems to have discarded his inherited ■ opinions, 6r at least his inherited asso- > ciations. In Mr. Borden's speeches and i in his general attitude towards public afi fairs, however, there is much of the tem- , per and outlook of early Canadian Liberi alism. During, tho last Parliament Mr. ' Borden devoted himself chiefly to criti-. ■ oism of Departmental methods and to tho - movements for Civil Service reform, for > free rural mail delivery and for reor- • ganisation of tho Federal Railway Com- ' mission. Ho declares for the abolition of > tho whole patronage system, and would > placo the Government'railways'under an " independent commission.

Mr. Borden, like the great bulk of the members of his party, is a determined opponent of the Reciprocity, Agreement.