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Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 188, 7 February 1914, Page 4

"CANADA A NATION." "There is not now one dissentient voic■.! out of a hundred people in the Dominion wishing to separate from England.'' This statement must be reassuring to those British people, here and elsewhere, who believe that the people of Canada are desirous either of linking their destinies with those of the United States or of setting up as an independent nation. The words quoted acquire added significance 'because of the man who utterett them. The speaker was a prominent French-Canadian, Sir Alexander Lacoste, a former Chief Justice of the Dominion, and the occasion was the annual banquet in London of the Canada Club in December last. Sir Alexander had apparently been pained, during his visit to England, to hear the loyalty of French-Cana-dians doubted, and his speech was a warm vindication of his compatriots. The French-Canadians, he said, lov-.ii France as a matter of course; but, he a(iued, "there is not one Canadian now, whatever his love to France, who woul 1 be willing to go back to France and abandon England. And why? It is your admirable constitution—the only constitution which permits to rule not [only the people of one creed, but the people of all creeds; not only the people of one race, but the people of all races. We have had friction in Canada, but it has not been due to the constitution. If the constitution were obeyed in its spirit there would lie no friction." To ghv point to his contention, the speaker gav> 1 a narrative of how Canada was saved to the Empire by French-Canadians, in in.; days ef General Montgomery and again in the conflict of 1812. In conclusion, he pleaded with Englishmen to get rid of their prejudice against French-Cana-dians; for if the English people who emigrated to Canada had prejudiced minds there was nothing to hinder the great future, of the Dominion. These j sentiments, agreeing as they do with [those recently tittered by the Roman [Catholic Bishop of Ontario, ought to 'satisfy doubters that whatever problems [Canada may have, a divided or disloyi.l 1 populace is not one of them. It is i clear that Canada is destined to be a great nation, but not in the sense of separation from Britain, but rather as the greatest of the "company of nations" that go to make up that mighty entity known as the British Empire.