Keewatin v. Minister of Natural Resources

Part 11. Post-Treaty Events 189consideration of the people in this country. The Province of Ontario after all, perhaps, willnot get as much as it expected, because a great portion of the Indian title to the land is notextinguished; while, in regard to those portions that are extinguished, if the award wasconsistent, they have the right of sovereignty, and the title belongs either to the Indians or tothe assignee of the Indians, which is the Dominion Government.[References omitted.][976] 1881. By 1881, the CPR had been completed north of the Lake of the Woods.[977] In the Disputed Territory, pending a legal determination of Ontario's boundaries, therewas chaos on the ground. As early as February 1881, an Ontario magistrate had written: "Thereis no civil court to collect debts, no land agent to locate settlers, no registry office to recorddeeds, no timber agent to protect the forest." (Saywell report, Ex. 137-2, pp. 20-21.)[978] Meanwhile, Canada passed legislation extending the boundary of Manitoba eastward.Saywell's report, Ex. 137-2, contains the following:At p. 17[O]n 7 March 1881 … the Manitoba boundary bill was introduced … Sir Alex Campbell stated thatthe new boundary proposed on the east "will extend to the west limit of Ontario, wherever that maybe…" and a map indicated "what the boundary line between Ontario and Manitoba will be, as thepresent Government of the Dominion believe the law establishes it." ……At pp. 18-19:During the heated debate in the Commons on 18 March 1881, Macdonald declared that … as"trustees for the Dominion" he believed the only way to settle the case was an appeal to the JudicialCommittee.[979] 1882. During the federal election campaign of 1882, Macdonald, speaking of theBoundary Dispute, was quoted as follows:The land belonged, so far back as the grant of Charles II could give it, to the Hudson's Bay Company,but it was subject to the Indian title. They and their ancestors had owned the lands for centuries untilthe Dominion Government purchased them. These lands were purchased, not by the province ofOntario – it did not pay a farthing - but by the Dominion … Even if all the territory Mr. Mowat asksfor were awarded to Ontario, there is not one stick of timber, one acre of land, or one lump of lead,iron or gold that does not belong to the Dominion…[980] The Globe characterized Macdonald's statement as a "flimsy piece of sophistry." Mowatdecided to test it in court, declaring "There can be no war without two parties." He said thatwhile he was just as attached to Confederation as anyone, "if [Ontario] could only maintainConfederation by giving up half of [its] Province, then Confederation must go." (Saywell report,Ex. 137-2, pp 19-22, 33.)2011 ONSC 4801 (CanLII)[981] 1883. In 1883, at Rat Portage (now Kenora), there were two municipal governments, twolegislatures; two sets of courts, two liquor laws, and three police forces. Saywell's report (Ex.137-2) contains a newspaper report from one day in July 1883, at pp. 20-21:Dominion Commissioner McCabe with two policemen, Ontario Magistrate Burdon with twenty-fivepolicemen, and Stipendiary Magistrate Brereton with fifteen policemen acting on behalf of Manitoba,have been arresting each other all day; and the people have been siding, some with one party andsome with another, to the imminent danger of the peace and of loss of life.