Alumni Oration

"Opportunities in Maritimes For Young People Subject of Alumni Orator, J.D. McKenna" Daily Gleaner (15 May 1930). (UA Case 67a, Box 2)

At the encaenial exercises of the University of New Brunswick in the Memorial Hall this afternoon, the oration on behalf of the Associated alumni was delivered by James D. McKenna, President of the New Brunswick Publishing Co., Saint John. "Opportunities in the Maritimes Provinces" was the subject of Mr. McKenna’s remarks and was dealt with in most interesting manner.

Mr. McKenna held out the brightest future for the Maritimes expressing the opinion that with the filling up of the Canadian West, Canada would turn to the Maritime Provinces as the promised land. The young people who had received the best the country could give them, should remain in their own country and attempt to aid in the expansion. The loss which New Brunswick had suffered in trained men and women who left to apply their talents elsewhere had been colossal.

The implementing of the Duncan Report, the speaker said, had resulted in marked commercial improvement in the Maritime Provinces during the past few years. There were still improvements to take place in that connection.

Future For Maritimes

Implementing of Terms of Duncan Report Making Changes - Services of Young Men and Women Required

First permit me to express my appreciation of the honor conferred on me in asking me to deliver the address on behalf of the alumni on this occasion. I fully measure my shortcomings in discharging this duty, especially when I recall the distinguished men who have preceded me; men who occupy outstanding positions in Canada and elsewhere and who have reflected their glory on their Alma Mater. I would also echo the gratification of the people of New Brunswick at the addition to the physical assets of this university. Through the generosity of Lord Beaverbrook, students may enjoy privileges which were but the dreams of those who were their predecessors within these historic walls. A boy who, commencing life with fewer advantages than some of you have, Max Aitken advanced in the business world by his personal ability until he has become an outstanding figure within the British Empire. His services have been on more than one occasion recognized by his Sovereign. Today he is one of the moulders of opinion in the British Isles and is an outstanding figure in a galaxy of eminent Canadians who have made themselves felt in the Motherland. Nevertheless he has not forgotten his native province, and the erection and equipment of the splendid building for which he is responsible proclaims his personal pride in the land of his birth. Such generosity is becoming more characteristic of New Brunswick men of wealth who are domiciled without the province, but who within recent years have been contributing of their money in order that conditions in their native land may be improved for those who remain behind.

Contributions by These Parts

One might easily devote considerable time to a recitation of the accomplishments of talented men and women born in these parts. In every profession they have been outstanding. We have given no less than three prime ministers to Canada, Thompson, Tupper and Borden, and the present leader of one of the leading parties in Canada is a New Brunswicker. In finance, the general manager of three of the "big four" banks of Canada are Maritime born. If the presidents of Canada’s universities are considered, they furnish names nationally known and esteemed and these provinces are strongly and favorably represented. In business circles, it is impossible to visit almost any part of Canada or the United States without encountering men and women of Maritime lineage who are not prominent figures in their various lines of endeavour. If their careers are reviewed you will find that for the most part they were boys whose futures were carved by them and not for them. They have only done what you can do.

Should Retain Services

I have often wondered what would have been the effect on the Maritime Provinces had we been able to retain the services of the army of brilliant men and women who have gone forth from these provinces and become vital factors in the upbuilding of the communities to which they attached themselves. If we had them with us, and they had displayed the same enterprise and fitted into the tasks through which they have accomplished so much, I think the Maritime Provinces, would be indeed an outstanding portion of the business world. Of course, this is but a dream, but who among us would not be a dreamer when the vision holds so much that is pleasant. But if we have suffered in the past in that direction, is it necessary that we should still continue to give of the utmost importance to so many communities in the United States and in Canada beyond our own provincial boundaries? It seems to me that there cannot be too much emphasis within our own universities of the importance of fitting our college graduates into the life of our own section of Canada. How many under-graduates are thinking of careers which will anchor them in eastern Canada? Has not the outlook of the student in the Maritime universities largely developed along the possibilities of success [or] [ ] [ ]? If the day comes when the same intelligence, energy and thrift that have been applied by Maritime boys and girls in other parts are directed to the solution of the problems of these provinces, then indeed will we have even greater hope of achieving an unassailable position within the Dominion of which we should be a most important part.

This suggests the subject on which I shall address you today – the Maritime Provinces as a land of promise for young men.

History of Confederation

If we go back to pre-confederation days and briefly review the circumstances which led up to the Canadian Confederation, we find that the first well-defined attempt to effect a union of the British North America colonies was one to unite New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. Negotiations to effect this union resulted in the Charlottetown Conference in 1864 and there came to that conference "the uninvited guests" representing the province of Canada (Ontario and Quebec) which up to that time had been divided against herself on racial, sectional and political lines. There representatives, Sir A.T. Galt, D’Arcy McGee, Sir John MacDonald, George Brown and Sir Georges Cartier, of what was then Upper and Lower Canada, suggested a confederation which would also embrace their province. There followed the Quebec Conference in October 1864, and the London Conference in December 1866, when at the Westminster Hotel, London, England, the authorized representatives of the provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick drafted a contract of union. The British North American Act, 1867, which is the Imperial sanction of the union, is pursuant to that contract and so eventually there came into being our confederation for the purposes expressed in the British North American Act, "to conduce to the welfare of the provinces and promote the interest of the British Empire."

Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland refused to adopt the Quebec scheme of union, but in 1873 Prince Edward Island came into the union under a separate contract of the original provinces as are also the contracts (with their Imperial sanctions) of the provinces which subsequently came into confederation.

The Real Basis

We may accept the confederation agreement long suppressed but now being published with the Quebec resolutions by the Dominion Government as an appendix to the British North American Act, as the real basis of confederation. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia attached first importance to a recognition by the contracting parties of the geographical disadvantage under which these provinces suffered and still suffer in trading with other Canadian provinces, and to an undertaking on the part of the four contracting provinces (aided by he Imperial Government) to provide for the construction of the Intercolonial Railway. But the agreement went further and it stipulated that not only would the Intercolonial Railway be built to furnish these provinces with a route over which commodities could be mutually exchanged, but that as soon as the Dominion Government could find sufficient funds, this railway should be extended to the Canadian west (that part of Ontario beyond the Ottawa river) and later to the great northwest which today forms the splendid western asset of this country. Further than that it was agreed that the traffic originating on these railways shall be moved through Maritime ports. Resolution No.67 of the London agreement which, by the way, was signed by Sir John A. MacDonald as chairman, H. Bernard as secretary, stipulated that the full resolutions should be the basis of the confederation agreement and that it should be sent to the Imperial Government in order that legislation be passed embodying its conclusions.

Text of Clauses

In order that there may be no misconception as to the terms of the Confederation treaty, I wish to read the clauses to which I have referred:

Section 65 – The construction of the Intercolonial Railway being essential to the consolidation of the Union of British North America, and to the assent of the Maritime Provinces thereto, it is agreed that provision he made for its immediate construction by the General Government, and that the Imperial guarantee for £3,000,000 sterling pledged for this work to be applied thereto, so soon as the necessary authority has been obtained from the Imperial Parliament.

Section 66 – The communication with the North-western Territory, and the improvements required for the development of the trade of the great west with the seaboard, are regarded by this Conference as subjects of the highest importance to the Confederation, and shall be prosecuted at the earliest possible period that the state of the finances will permit.

Section 67 – The sanction of the Imperial Parliament shall be sought for the Union of the Provinces on the principles adopted by this Conference.

Maritime Contribution

The Maritime Provinces in turn were to transfer their right to customs and excise revenues to the Federal government. Let me say that since the Confederation that Maritime Provinces have fully carried out their undertakings. The public accounts of this country show that New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have contributed in the building of the great railway systems of this country, in the guarantee of railway bonds and have assumed responsibility for immense sums representing unpaid interest on these securities and in addition have become guarantors for bonds which were sponsored by other provinces of Canada and which were defaulted both in principle and interest.

The Maritime Provinces have also paid their share to the construction of the free canals of Canada. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been invested in these works, and with the exception of the St. Peter’s canal in Cape Breton, not a single dollar has been spent on canals in New Brunswick or Nova Scotia. Then, too, the Maritime Provinces are contributing their share of millions of dollars each year to the upkeep of national parks of which none have been provided for this part of Canada.

No Apology Needed

I am mentioning these things in order to disabuse the minds of the people of the Maritime Provinces, and particularly of the young men who are graduating here today, of the oft repeated fallacy that the Maritime Provinces have been rather greedy feeders at the public trough, whereas if their financial responsibility, as measure by the money spent in that part of Canada beyond the boundaries of the Maritime Provinces, is compared with the amount of federal funds spent within the Maritime Provinces, it will be found without question that we have contributed far more that our share to paying for works which have been placed in the category of undertakings for the general advantage of Canada. So the Maritime Provinces have nothing to apologize for, but on the contrary should feel rather proud of their greater "than thou" contribution to the development of the Dominion of Canada.

Moreover, I think I am safe in saying that the Maritime Provinces have not realized any great economic advantage through Confederation. I am quite convinced that that has been in a sense due to our own modesty and our neglect to insist upon our undoubted rights under the terms of the London Agreement and its Imperial sanction. I say this, because within five years the Maritime Provinces have made undoubted advances in a commercial sense, because we have at last concluded to do things for ourselves and to insist upon a fair share of the general prosperity which this country enjoys.

I think these conditions can be attributed to the determination of a few men to lay aside the political standards that prevailed in the Maritime Provinces for sixty years. Too often the people of the Maritimes Provinces have divided politically at time when a united front would have been so much to them. After all we have been prone to regard as political footballs, measures which were really business propositions and which should only have been entertained as such.

Splendid Opportunity

I can see in the Maritimes many splendid opportunities for young people. I do not know of a village, a town or a city in eastern Canada where there are not outstanding men who have by sheer ability, industry and determination advanced themselves to positions of leadership. They have had no special assistance and in many instances have not been favored, as you, with college educations. Yet they have been able to work with the tools at hand and not only carve out success for themselves, but contribute in large measure to the progress and betterment of those about them. They had the outstanding gift, "They will to do," and I commend it to you as young men and women entering the portals of a new college to make the will to do your guiding principle. If you do, whether here or elsewhere, you will undoubtedly be other boys and girls born in the born in the Maritime Provinces to win great distinction.

Wonderful Background

We in the Maritime Provinces have behind us a wonderful background. I was interested in reading in a New England newspaper recently that almost every movement which has as its goal social improvement was invariably backed by Maritime Province people. This most desirable condition is undoubtedly due to the splendid stock which we are privileged to claim as ours. We are the direct descendants in large part of men and women who came to this province and changed it from a wilderness to the magnificent country that we know today. They faced difficulties and privations which would stagger us, surrounded as we are by modern comforts. But they did not hesitate. They had a task to perform and inspired by the "will to do" they achieved their objectives. Blood tells in men and women to a degree that we very often underestimate. It is not a privilege for any boy or girl to claim as forbears the men and women who surrendered their all in te United States for the privilege of maintaining connection with the British Empire? Or is it not equally a matter of gratification to be descendants of those who abandoned the comforts of the old land and who by toil and sacrifice won homes for themselves in surroundings which must have almost daunted by the strongest wills.

It is this breeding that has enable the Maritime Provinces to make our outstanding contribution of men and women who have graced the political, financial, educational, legal, medical, agricultural and business circles in the Dominion of Canada and elsewhere. The oft repeated and almost common placed success of Maritime boys and girls who have left us is not due to haphazard our accidental causes. Their positions as leaders in almost every path of life in Canada, the United States and Great Britain, is attributable to the splendid foundations which they derived from the past generations who created British colonies in these parts. Their achievements should undoubtedly appeal to you as worthy of imitation. I venture to say that there are among you boys and girls, many of who will later be heard of as attaining success in whatever profession or business enterprise you many engage. But my I suggest that I do not think it is necessary for you to leave the Maritime Provinces in order to be successful. I hope I am not over sanguine when I say to you that the time is approaching when the Maritime Provinces will play a far greater part in the development of Canada than they have since 1867, and that they will in a measure assume the relative position in regard to the rest of Canada that they occupied previous to Confederation. You are among those who can bring about that condition. You are the men and women who will mould public opinions within these provinces and who will be responsible for the results achieved during the coming years. I have no hesitation in saying that I feel in your hands and those of other boys and girls like you, the destinies of this part of Canada are safe, provided you discharge your legitimate obligations and are true to the fine traditions which lie behind you.

There is nothing needed in Canada more than a truly national spirit. I would point out to you, however, that your contribution to the progress of Canada may be quite as significant and quite as helpful if made within the Maritime Provinces. I believe that our first duty is to sell ourselves the idea of a personal responsibility as Canadian citizens, and if we do that we will do more to break down sectional prejudice than by any other means. It seems to me that there can be no better leaven for the creation of a Canadian national spirit than through the rapidly increasing and strong Maritime Province clubs which have been organized from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Numbered in the memberships of these various branches are men recognized in every profession and in every business occupation. They are in many cases the leaders of thought in the communities in which they reside and it occurs to me that if those men and women so splendidly equipped mentally were to impose high ideals of Canadian citizenship upon those with whom they are associated, they could in very great measure help to bring about that national spirit which is so much needed.

Better Understanding

I wish to stress the importance of a better understanding of one another’s problems throughout Canada, because I feel that the Maritime Provinces have received a sympathetic hearing from their fellow Canadians in the presentation of their case through the Duncan Commission. We in the old days were rather inclined to complain among ourselves and to nurse our grievances, and to feel that nowhere else in Canada could we look for other than utter disregard of claim for what we viewed as ordinary justice. Then it was decided that the proper thing to do was to present the case of the Maritime Provinces as we saw it to the rest of Canada and to ask for the sympathy and co-operation of those who live in other provinces. We did that. We found that we were not wrong in our assumption, that once our difficulties were explained that we would receive as we have, the assistance of fellow citizen. The Duncan Commission was suggested and appointed. The people of the Maritime Provinces were asked to present their case. They did so. They finds of the Duncan Commission finally reached Parliament and it should be a measure of great comfort to the people of the Maritime Provinces that the major suggestions of the Duncan Commission were passed without question by a untied Parliament. We have received as a result of one of the Duncan recommendations recognition that at the time of Confederation there were special undertaking on the part of the Fathers of Confederation in half of those provinces so far as transportation is concerned. The lowering of transportation rates on railways within the Atlantic Divisions has made it possible for manufacturers to complete successfully for business in other parts of this country. Then there is another market, that of the whole world, which lies at our very threshold situated as we are on the eastern seaboard of Canada. We may be said to have hardly ventured into the export trade when we fully consider our possibilities in this direction. We have scarcely heard the call of a world-wide contact which demands young men of vision and industry. Up to the present our opportunities along the lines of world trade have scarcely been scratched, and I have the utmost faith that when young men, such as I see before me today, are prepared to grasp these wonderful opportunities and win from them sure success, that they will have solved their life problem quite as effectively in the Maritime Provinces as they can by looking to more distant fields.

Land of Promise

I accept as accurate a remark recently made by an outstanding Canadian business man, that he found greater opportunities in the Maritime Provinces than could be found elsewhere in Canada, and that that success awaits those who can grasp the full significance of the possibilities around them and who, like those who gave already found for themselves profitable careers within the Maritimes Provinces can make for themselves reputations founded on industry and on faith in their native province.

I believe that the future of Western Canada has been largely discounted. This is the age of machinery and the effect on the prairies of the increasing use of this servant of man has been the most marked in the past several years. The combination which reaps, stocks, threshes and bags grain has results in the disappearance of the "harvest excursion," itself a great drain on Eastern Canada. The farm of the quarter section of yesterday has given way to a field of a full section today and tomorrow that will be but part of the huge farm of many square miles. Obviously that means production on a much larger scale and a sparser population. Already that talk of fifty cent wheat grown at a profit in competition with the machinery produced, wheat of the Argentine and Russia. Immigration on a large scale has been abandoned in Canada and the provinces and now the federal authorities are to be the custodians of immigration. Where then is the obvious land of promise left in Canada? I maintain that it s is to be found in the heretofore neglects and unappreciated Maritime Provinces. During the past year we have seen the movement of freights in this part of Canada mounting steadily, while there has been a decline in the central provinces and a marked falling off in the middle west. Judged by railway traffic the Maritimes are outstanding in all American, as having best withstood a wave of depression, which I feel is but temporary as far as Canada is concerned.

Abiding Faith

The fight for a betterment of conditions hereabouts is being won. What is needed is a strong and abiding faith, and an encouraging outlook confronts you on every side. The clouds of yesterday are disappearing in a sunrise which means so much to this wonderful portion of our Canada. Yours will be the responsibility for failure or achievement in the years to come. You are the trustees of the generations which will follow you, and it is to you that future graduates of this university will look back with pride or otherwise when exercises similar to those of today will be helped. If you are true to the tradition which should be a matter of pride in you, then I have no hesitation in saying that you can make of this part of Canada a community which will be a matter of gratification to you and those who follow you.

Imperial Feature

At the conclusion of this address I am leaving for London, where I shall spend the new few weeks at conventions which will include delegates from all parts of the British Empire. During the latter part of May there will be a meeting of the British Empire Chambers of Commerce to be attended by leading business men from all part of the British world, who will foregather to discus questions of mutual interest. Canada will be represented by a quota of business men of high rank, representing practically all occupations in this country. One of the outstanding questions to be discussed is inter-Empire trade. It is worthy of note at this point that your benefactor, Lord Beaverbrook, is one of the leaders in Britain of a newly proposed policy which has made increased inter-Empire trade the keynote of its platform. He has suggested a programme for inter-Empire trade which has focused the attention of every part of the British Empire. We from Canada will but discuss this question in its broadest sense. The details of any such proposition must be worked out in the years to come. I take it that there are those among you, those who will be participants in the success of the suggestions for greater inter-Empire trade, and I know of no finer contribution you can possibly make to this most desirable guarantee of the solidity of the British Empire, than that you through your activities within the Maritimes Provinces strengthen our connection with it. I can conceive that you can do just as much to build up the Empire as a whole by your efforts on behalf of your own provinces and your own country, than you can in any other way that can possibly be opened to you.

I leave you with the admonition that if your future should preserve you to your native province, that you see to it that your best will be given to the real advancement of the community in which you are resident. If it be your privilege to prosper, and at the same time to contribute something outstanding to the improvement of the village, the town or the city in which you may be domiciled, and that of your neighbors and fellow-countrymen, you will have performed something which will merit the admiration and gratitude not only of those with whom you may be associated for a time, but of those who later will have occasion to look back realizing that you as Maritime Province men and women have performed a real service to this your country.