Regina Leader
September 28, 1886. p.2
There is wide-spread feeling, not only in the territories, but all over the Dominion, that the time has arrived to do away with the present temporary state of things, and, while not adopting full-fledged municipal institutions, to bring about complete self-government. In the large measure of distribution which we learn His Honor Lieutenant-Governor Dewdney intends to propose, we hope and believe the full number of twenty-one members will be arrived at; a Legislative Council formed, and an executive committee of four or five entrusted entrusted with the conduct of Government. We have a much larger population than the Act requires, but not large enough for three Provinces. Therefore, what should be done, is to form a provisional province, with a government for the whole Territories. We have now fifteen elected members. We could easily have another member from Moosomin, a member from Medicine Hat, a member from Lethbridge, a member from Battleford, a member from York Colony, a member from Whitewood, and in the distribution it would be found that the Regina district could return three instead of two. The two members might be elected as at present, and the town of Regina as the capital, with its population of some 1,500, might return one member itself. But the great thing is to get the Legislative Council and a thoroughly popular government, “responsible to Parliament” and the people for the way the money at our disposal is spent. It would be hard to conceive anything more unscientific and wasteful than the present plan. Much more money should be placed at our disposal and there are, as we will show at an early day, sources of revenue at our disposal of which our people have not dreamed. The North West will never go ahead until we have the management of our own affairs.
We would give the Lieutenant-Governor $7,000 a year, and $2,000 a year, or say $1,500 to each of the executive committee, with $2,000 to the chairman or $2,500. The council will soon meet and we invite suggestions form our readers.
