FRENCH-CANADIANS AND THE WAR.
[To me EDITOR or THE " SPECIATOR."] Sze.,—I am too glad and proud that French-Canadians are now " heartily joining up " to allow Mr. Alex. Clement to draw me into a criticism-of his views on the Ontario school question. It was not the intention of my recent _letter tse deal fully with -the striking points of analogy between conditions in Ireland and-yin Quebec. But in support of my statement that intheearlier stages of the war many French-Canadians " professed to believe that the Ontario school fight -was of greater importance to them than the battle of Armageddon," I may as well chronicle the fact that 1 heard with my own ears a Roman Catholic Archbishop in Quebec, at a public meeting held under the patronage and in the presence of H.R.H. the Governor-General, assign the Ontario school grievances as the explanation of the -then scanty enlistment of French-Canadians. -Mr. Clement's statement that " everything was done by the authorities to discourage and hamper enlisting in Quebec " will not be aoceptedhy me or by any one who thinks as I do. And I regard as the purest moonshine hie further suggestion that the motive for -this alleged policy of discouragement was-the calculated desire to put the French-Canadians in the wrong, and ,so secure ground for a " further attack on their rights." With quite as much appropriateness an English-speaking Canadian ,might cite the equally -monstrous view„said at one time to have been currant among his French-speaking fellow-citizens, to the effect that it would be good policy on their ,partto hang back from the war and let the English all go and get killed. For so they 'Lir appreciation of the spirit in which the Principal of McGill University has-written—ED. Spectator.]
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