“But, Sir,” persisted the correspondent, “considering the magnitude of
your victory and the unique place you now occupy, would it not be meet
that you should say a word or two to the public, who are desirous of
getting an indication from you of the policies you will carry out?”
He hesitated, yielded at last to persuasion, and gave a column and a
quarter of copy, at once exceedingly interesting and valuable. He could
not commit the party to any particular policy at the moment of victory.
He would have to consult his colleagues, but nevertheless, he outlined
in general terms what the party would stand for now that it had received
the public mandate. He made it plain that he stood for the principle of
harmony between the two great races in the Dominion. That had been his
aim in life, and it would remain his aim as long as he lived. He had his
principles which he considered those of progress, but he did not want
any bitterness. He wanted co-operation and concord. It would be the
realization of his life dream if he could bring the two races together.
At the time when the interview was granted the rotunda of the old St.
Lawrence Hall was filled with his admirers. He was surrounded by young
men full of ardour, idealists, many of them, disinterested and hopeful
of great things for the country. The hardened political cynic was not
absent either, but there was a whirl of emotion; the present and the
future were enswathed in radiant hope and when the Chieftain came down
to the rotunda—erect, with flashing eyes, the cheers were magnetic.
Many eyes were wet. The tide of emotion swelled in every breast. He was
lifted shoulder-high by his adherents, of whom there were hundreds
present, all of whom believed that in the Liberal Leader they had a man
who would save the country. It was after this tumultuous demonstration
that the Premier gave out the interview.
The Liberal Chief all that day was followed by admiring crowds. On being
reminded of the kind things which the English press had written about
him from time to time, he said that he read every word of that kind of
writing, not because of vanity, but because he loved to think that every
kindly word written or spoken did something in bringing about a better
feeling between the two great races. “I love England because she is the
mother of free nations. I look up to her because she is the apostle of
freedom. I admire her lofty ideals, her moral conscience, her high
standards which she sets up. She is, it may be, a trifle Puritanic, but
she is the greatest moral asset in the world, and I admire her statesmen
intensely—John Bright has been my mentor and idol, and, of course,
Gladstone, as the great apostle of freedom, both fiscally and
politically.”
* * * * *
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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