Reply of the Hon. D.L. MacPherson to ministerial attacks upon his speeches and reflections on the public expenditure of the Dominion published in June last.

information from the Public Departments-have asserted that my statements were unqualifiedly false, and when those assertions have been disseminated far and wide on the wings of the press, they cannot but have implanted in the minds of many honest men serious doubts of the correctness of my representa- tions.Under these circumstances, I feel it due to myself, for the purpose of removing such doubts, to re-affirm all my allegations, and to submit in their support further and irrefragable proof of their accuracy.Although it ought to be incredible that Ministers of the Crown in Canada could stoop to make gross mis-statements to serve the purpose of the hour, yet it is unfortunately susceptible of proof that they did so at their pic-nics. I observed but one allusion to my pamphlet at the early Summer pic-nics.It was made by Mr. Mackenzie, in what, I think, he intended for a spirit of pleasantry.He seemed to think that my allegations could be disposed of without serious examination or argument.But as the summer advanced, Mr. Mackenzie discovered that the facts presented in the pamphlet had sunk deep into the minds of the people, and that he was expected to disprove my charges, or suffer in the estimation of his friends and of the public generally.Thus pressed Mr. Mackenzie attempted to deal with the contents of the pamphlet in a speech delivered at Orangeville on the 1 8th September, reported in the Globe of the ist October-and also in one delivered at Gait on the 20th September, and reported in the Globe of the 9th October.It cannot be said that sufficient time was not taken in each case, between the delivery and publication of the speech, for careful revision.At Gait Mr. Mackenzie made use of the following words : " Senator Macpherson a short time ago published a pamphlet which some- " body wrote,* and he has sent it broadcast through the country * On seeing this remark, I addressed the following letter to the press : " Sir, -The Cabinet Ministers who noticed my pamphlet at their pic-nics, and their " friends and organs throughout the country who essayed to weaken its force, became con " scious early in the pic-nic season that, notwithstanding their recourse to the most barefaced " misrepresentations, they had utterly failed to disprove any of my statements." Unable to answer the pamphlet they turned upon me, its author, and emptied upon my " head their copious vocabulary of disparagement, detraction and coarse abuse.Still they " were not satisfied.They knew, and what was more distressing to them, they felt that the " people knew, that they had not by their individual and combined attacks shaken, much " less refuted, any one of the charges of political recreancy and perfidy, of administrative " blundering and incapacity, and of departmental extravagance and corruption, made by me " against the leading members of the Government." When the Ministerialists discovered that they could not answer or evade the damaging *i truths contained in the pamphlet-which to their intense vexation they saw in the hands of " so many who attended their pic-nics, -they seem to have bethought themselves of endeav- " oring to lessen its authority with the public by alleging that I was not its author, and that " I had been guilty of the contemptible conduct of taking credit to myself for the work of " another." The Prime Minister, Mr. Mackenzie, to his shame be it said, lowered himself so as to " give public utterance to this petty calumny.In a speech delivered by him at Gait on the " 20th September, and published in to-day's Globe, he is reported to have said, ' Senator " with a falsehood on every one of its pages.There is absolutely " not a correct page in the whole pamphlet ; and when he attempts to insti- " tute a comparison between the expenditures of the present and the late " Government, he leaves out, as you will have observed, the last year of the " late Government, which happened to be an expensive one, and takes the " previous year, 1872-3, so that he might concoct a charge of extravagance " against us."At Orangeville Mr. Mackenzie said : -" I desire now to say a few words " about a very remarkable pamphlet by a very remarkable man-the Hon." Mr. Macpherson.He is a very great man, is Mr. Macpherson, and I can •' only refer to him with the greatest possible deference, 1 might say, almost " with reverence.This gentleman speaks as an oracle from a lofty pedestal " erected by himself for the admiring gaze of humanity, but his representa- " tions are so unfair that I almost hesitate to tackle them."When Mr. Mackenzie so far forgets what is due to himself and his office as to misrepresent me after this fashion, he cannot expect much consideration from me for his own sake ; but when referring to him I shall endeavor not to forget what is due to the office of Prime Minister of Canada, even when that office is unworthily filled.The above extracts from Mr. Mackenzie's speeches conflict with each other.If, as Mr. Mackenzie recklessly said, "there is a falsehood on every page" of my pamphlet he should have been able to " tackle" and in a few sentences " ' Macpherson a short time ago published a pamphlet which somebody wrote,' and again, 11 'The person who wrote Mr. Macpherson's pamphlet.'TheMinisterial press has done its" utmost to circulate this absurd falsehood, and which I here declare to be an unqualified " falsehood.Personally I am altogether indifferent to this and the other slanders which have 11 been showered upon me, and I only notice and contradict this one to prevent its being " made to serve in ever so small a degree the purpose of its originators and propagators, " which is the diversion of the public mind from the consideration of the facts submitted by " me in the pamphlet. .If the influence of the pamphlet with the public is enhanced in the " smallest degree by the supposition that 1 had some knowledge of the subjects upon which " I wrote, I shall not permit that influence to be diminished by allowing even so contempti- " ble a mis-statement as that made by Mr. Mackenzie to remain uncontradicted.Mr. Mac- " kenzie will surely feel it due to himself either to state good grounds for his charge against " me or retract it." If he does not do either one or the other -and I know that he cannot do the former-he " will stand convicted of having cast a mean and pitiful imputation, an act especially dis- " creditable to one occupying his present high position." I shall reserve to a future occasion my comments upon Mr. Mackenzie's extraordinary -*"* utterances touching the contents of my pamphlet." Yours, &c, " D. L. MACPHERSON." Toronto,

Récupéré en direct depuis OpenAlex et désinversé. Les résumés ne sont pas conservés dans cette base de données : les index inversés représentent 8,6 Go des 9,3 Go de texte de la base, et le serveur dispose de 13 Go libres.