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Mr. Marter Again the Talker .of the Day f ON THE FREE GRANTS QUESTION. March 31, 1890. The House had its first Monday sitting to night, probably also its last. The day was largely spent in debatingMr.Hardy'sFrocGrants and Homesteads Act, against which Mr. Marter entertained some very strong objections. 'The discussion became very interesting when Mr Hardy remarked that Mr. Marter prefurroti his objections and charges simply for glectioneering purposes. After this had been disposed of sevoral minor Government bills came fup, and finally there was a short dis. cussion on the Treasurer's Assessment Kxemp-- tion Bill, Sevaral Resolutions of MNr. Marter Put and Defeated--The Municipal Ex-- emption Bill and Other Government Mea-- AND MAKES HIM INDIGNANY. Mr. Hardy Points Out His Eleo-- tion Tactics FORE®ST PROTERCTION, Hon. Mr. Hnrdy drew aitention to the report in Trs Grosk of a statoment made by him on Friday evening in the course of a short debate on imatters connected with forestry. 1t appear:rd from the report as if one of his schomes for the preservation of the forests was the appointment of eighty or ninety rangers. As a maiter of fact thore wore em-- 8loyed by tho owners of timber iimits and the overnment _ jointly about eighty fire rangers for the protection of the woods and forests from fire duriny the sumimer, the own-- ers paying omue--half ot their wages and the Government paying the other hail. His idea was to utiliso this force for the purpose of boginning a system of forestry, Thero was this hardy force already in existence ac-- quainted with the work, and the Government .could, without incurring very much addition«l exponse, uso'these men for the more compre»-- hensive work. LIQUOR LICENSE BILL The House went into Committeeo on the Gor-- ernment's bill to amend the license law. Mr. Gibson (Hamilton) moved a slight amendment to the first clause, Mr. Meredith asked the Provincial Secretary if he still adhered to his decision to contine the number of those who vote on the question of the .fmulinz of a license to those entitled to voto for the Legisiature and not for municipal purposes, as suggested by some members of the Opposition ; also if he still provosed to nllow a licenso to be ch.n{:od from one locality to another in the same pol lns sub--divi«ion without petition, which some o the Upposition had olxructod to. Hie proposed to divide the House on theso points, and %er- haps some others at a later stage, Mr. uibson said it had not (boen decid-- ed --to amccept theso amendments, _ e then explained one or two other slight THE ASSEMBLY. waney rlno timber. aonk Mr. Hardy's bill proposed to increase the 25 cents to 33 cents and the $3 to $4. The second clause of the biil gives additional privileges, providing that the Committco may dispense with residence and settlement duties in certain cases, and the third similarly provides that the Commissioner may dispense with clearing and residence in certain cases, A bill by Mr. Fel!l to amend tho samo Act came u during the discussion. 'The principal provr- sions of this bill are the forest, viz., that *No township in any part of the tract or territory meutioned in section 4 of the Free (Girants and Momesteads Act shall hereafter be set apart as a free grant township, unless and tintil an Order in Council appropriating the lands there-- in for free grants to actual settlors has been approved of by the Legislative Assembly "; the sgecond, namely, the striking out of sections 11 anc :2 of the Act, theso being the clauses in which heGovernment retains the r'iight of issu-- inglicensestecut pine nponlands under fhel"'rco Grants and Homesteads Act ; and finally, that all trees remui;::rag on the lands at the time the patent issucs s becomeo the property of the patentce. o eey." ---- MR. MARTER ON THE STUMP. Mr. Marter proceeded to discuss the bill at some length and prefaced his romarks by say-- iu*lhe wanted it to be considered outside of politics altogethor. After ailuding to one or two minor points on which, in his opinien, the measure ought to be amended, Slr. Marter referred to the bill to amenrd the Free Grants and Homesteads Aot introduced by Mr. fcll, which he reguarded as a step in the right direc»-- tion. The Act now in force, instead of being one for the encouragement and bringing over of settiers, had just the opposite effect, He would be glad if the Government would ao away with tho clause in the existing Act which reserved to them for ever the rlue on the settiers' land. 'To show that more iberal terms had been advocated on behalf of the settlers than were couferred by the Aotthe hon. gentleman quoted from the specches de» livered in the MHouse.during the term of the Sandfield Macdonald Administration, His con-- tention was that the whole of the pine upon the settler's land should be regarded as his pro« perty when hefjreceived his patent. He quoted from THE GLoBE of the time to show that that jourmal had contended that the Government were not dealing in a spirit of liberality or fairnesa with seltlers, 'The authorities ho had cited _ were _ unanimous that something more ought to be done than was *roposed under the Act. It was certainly a great bardship upon the settler that when he took his patent he did not become the possess-- or of all that was on the land, To make him the owner of the land would be not only of great service to himself, but to the mill--owner who established a imill in the locality. Ho would be glad if the Government would during the present session se their way clear to do what he suggested. 'The privileges at present accordod The settler were not a suff« cient recompense to him _ for _ his outlayfand his enterprise,. Under the present system bad focling was engendered betweed the settler and the lumberman, for naturally the scitler could not be expected to regard with complacency the lumberman who entered his land without asking permission and re« moved the timber, Amonyst other changes thaet he would like to sce introduced was an alteration of the clause requiring the purchaser to reside upon the lot. Instead of tive years he woula like to see the cerm reduced to threo years, as it stood now in Manitoba, Anyjon®e who hau resided three years . on . .l'|'1|l 'The 12th secition of the original Act pro-- vides for the paymgnat by the Crown to . the patentees on allpine trees cut on such land subsequent to the 30th of April next, after the date of the patent, and upon which dues have been collected by the Crown, 25 cents on cach thousand foet, board measure, of sawlegs, and $3 on o.ach K thLounnd cubic feet of spare or CogeR 0C C ROCCS --CA00M. ALL. ML, IVOSS, R'eopoolln'r the expenses of County Court Judges underthe Ditches and Watercourses fletp«ctlnz the Town of West Toronto June» tion--Mr. Gilmour. Respecting the Irondale. Bancroft & Ottawas Railway Company--Mr. Woods (Hasitinge), Respecting the Hamilton & Dundas Streey Railway Company--Mr. Awrey, THE PRFE CRANTS BILL, Hon. Mr. Hardy moved the House into Com. mittee on the bill to amend the Freo Grants and Homesteads Act, He oxplained that he intended moving the following amendment to the Act as it had been read the second time :-- E Mn qs s o e en C Te on any one or more uf the said lots or parcels of lots so located or Kurchnsed._nnd may use the said pine treos on the same lot" or on any :3 the other lots or parcels of lots held by him as & free grant or by purchase under this Act," ycR e e uis s erticd ETY ymee ** Where the land ailotted to a looatee or purchaser under this Act is composed of two or more lots or parcels of lots, the said locatee oz purchaser or those claiming under them may cut such pine trees as may be necessary for tho purpoza of building and fm\cinz.'athere;i'n beforegprovided, ® re--va " C C en m'm" . i the bil e roporlt sw und the bill THIRD The following bills were read a third time an'c{i p:o.sse(ll :~--h tossl t especting the profession a G. W. Ross ,mhltocu--ch, way AWW | EPCSIRNT |ducduds 4. d 40 s C lot and had put up suflicient build« ings and _ done sufficient clearing. _ had given a suillcient guarantec of his bona fides, Then he saw no good in the clause mnkm% residence compulsory. He wanted the term 0 residence, too, reduced from five to three years; moreover, there should be some reser* vation of the lumber for the use of the settler, In many parts of Muskoka and Parry Sound lumber was dearer than it was in Toronts 1G* day, simply because the whole of the t'@z 56P had been cioared off great areas of conntry, There should be, in his opinion, 50,000 foo: of timber reserved for the use of the seitier at whatever time he might desire to use it. He proposed. therefore, to amond the bill before the House by the addition of clauses contain® ing provisions of the '(ure he had indicated, which he would mowe later. NIt. HARDY's REPLY. } The Commissioner of Crown Lands said it | was a singular fact that although Ahir, Marter \had beon in the House for four years ho had orporate the Huron & Ontario Rail. npany--FHon. A. M. Ross, tlingy the expenses of County Court umfer the Ditches and Watercourses land ailotted to a looatee or