studies of lumber, pulp and newsprint. James White, the efficient Secretary and Assistant Chairman, reported as to the 1918 work that special objects of investigation had been the preservation of forests from fire and the white pine blister pest-with a Pathologist studying various tree diseases of a fungous nature; the question of reforestation of the pulp-wood regions in Quebec; the investigation of water-powers and utilization of coal. There was some notable practice work on 16 farms in Dundas County, Ont., which involved a taking of the Experimental farm idea to the farmer.

At a Mining Institute meeting in Montreal on Mch. 3rd, Mr. White denounced that body for an attack upon the Commission and described, at length, its work. One point was particularly effective the Commission had defeated an application for damming the St. Lawrence at the Long Sault by an American corporation, and also an application under the guise of a Canal charter which, if granted, would have alienated to a corporation all the water powers of the Pigeon, Rainy, Winnipeg and Saskatchewan Rivers between Lake Superior and the Rocky Mountains. A flood of other water-power legislation was, he said, withdrawn after that. The Town Planning branch of the Commission's work was, also, important and Thomas Adams, its adviser in this connection, declared on Nov. 12th that 690,000 deaths occurred annually on this continent from preventable causes while the yearly expenditure of $90,000,000 upon feeble-minded children and $600,000,000 upon crime could largely be averted by revised Civic planning; he recommended better machinery for public control of land, a comprehensive survey of conditions in rural territory, new methods of administering highways and municipal affairs, model regulations as to sanitation, housing and building construction, carefully-planned model towns as object lessons, Provincial planning Acts as outlined by the Commission. At the close of the year Sir Clifford Sifton resigned the Chairmanship of the Commission. Meantime, the 9th Annual Report was, as usual, large and comprehensive with valuable articles and great stores of information. Special pamphlets or larger publications of the year dealt with Fishways in the Inland Waters of British Columbia and was written by A. V. White; Utilization of Fish waste in Canada by J. B. Fielding; Electric Generation and Distribution in Canada by Leo G. Denis; Forests of British Columbia by H. N. Whitford and R. D. Craig. The two latter were most elaborate studies of the subjects specified.

The 10th Annual Report of the Civil Service Commission-Hon. W. J. Roche (Chairman) M. G. La Rochelle and Clarence Jamieson -reviewed the growth of reform in this connection and the abolition of the Patronage system; described the difficulties of this last great change which involved the sudden placing of 40,000 positions in the Outside Service under control of the Commission; included a Memorandum on Superannuation together with reports on several subjects investigated for the Government. Amongst other matters this Commission reported under technical advice of F. H. Gis

borne, K.C., as to reform regulations along the lines of Government policy and as preliminary to the Patronage enactments which were to follow; by Order-in-Council of Feb. 9, 1918, on the Prime Minister's recommendation, preference was ordered to be given in all appointments to returned soldiers passing the Civil Service examinations. In this general connection a vigourous agitation was initi ated by The Civilian of Ottawa and the Civil Service Federation of Canada against the appointment of W. S. Weldon as Collector of Customs at Montreal and of A. G. Acres as Postmaster at Ottawa because of their alleged political character. On the other hand the Government was congratulated upon the promotions of L. Roy Cane and A. C. McMicken to be, respectively, Assistant Receiver General at Toronto and Winnipeg and that of Bedford Phillips to be Postmaster at Fredericton.

On Feb. 18th an Order-in-Council was passed defining and applying the Government policy in this respect until permanent legislation was passed. In brief, it was provided that every appointment to the Outside Service, including all postal officials, Customs and excise officers, Public Works employees, messengers, sorters, and, in fact, every person joining the Federal Civil Service, even in a temporary capacity, should be made only with the approval and on the recommendation of the Civil Service Commission. As to this legislation Messrs. Maclean, Carvell and Robertson of the Cabinet were appointed to confer with the Civil Service Commission. Under the old system the whole 5,000 appointments to the Inside and 35,000 appointments to the Outside Civil Service had been made as a portion of Government or Party patronage; under the new system the whole Service was to come under the Commission and, as to new appointments, under competitive examination. Even the old appointees were to be weeded out by means of pensions and allowances and, on May 6th, Hon. A. K. Maclean gave notice of a resolution in the Commons instructing the Civil Service Commission to prepare. forthwith and submit to the Government a list of Government employees who, "owing to advanced age, failing health, or lack of experience or ability, or other cause, are not capable of rendering, or do not render, efficient service to the State, and should therefore be retired from the public service."

Meantime the Government had dispensed with patronage in all its Departments and the purchase of all supplies had been placed in the hands of the War Purchasing Commission. Incident to this situation and coming under the Commission's jurisdiction to some extent, was the insistent demand of the Civil servants in Ottawa for higher salaries or a substantial bonus. A delegation headed by F. Grierson, President of the Federation, waited on the Government (Oct. 8th) and demanded that a bonus of $350 be given to each and every official or worker in the Civil Service; they also asked for the appointment of Hon. G. D. Robertson as Minister of Personnel. A Mass meeting of 3,500 repeated this request on Nov. 2nd and, five days later, an Order-in-Council granted a war-bonus

amounting to $175 each to Inside Service employees receiving not more than $1,800 a year-the distribution and allotment to lie with each Department and no one person to receive more than $250—as also, an addition to allowances voted for this purpose by the Parliaments of 1917-18. The Civil Service Federation resented the amount and its disposition and issued a vigourous and more than critical statement on Nov. 9th; The Civilian, for December, demanded a Conciliation Board or arbitration; Sir Thomas White, acting-Premier replied (Nov. 26th) to the Federation, referred them to the Civil Service Commission, reminded them that a reclassification and re-organization of the whole Service were underway, and that the current bonus would, as a total, amount to $8,000,000 which was about all the Government could ask the tax-payers for at this juncture. This Commission was also concerned in the salary phases of the Postal strike during the summer.

The 1st Report of the Advisory Council for Scientific and Industrial Research was published in October as presented by Prof. A. B. Macallum, F.R.S., Chairman. He reviewed the wide field of work undertaken by this body at the request of the Government and including such matters as the cultivation of flax for making the linen required in aeroplanes; the conditions of cold storage as affecting fish, meats, fruits, etc.; the acute Salmon question in the Fraser River and British Columbia waters with the conclusion that unless an arrangement was come to with the United States the fish would be in danger of extinction owing to the overwhelming use of traps, seines and nets; the investigations into swamp fever and wheat rust; the study of such matters as Hydro-power, potash and phosphates, nitrogen, fixation, munition plants and their after-war use, Western lignites and their uses, Land classification, soil survey, etc.; the elaborate study of Forestry conditions and of such problems as production of Potassium salts, Fish waste, and the making of industrial alcohol from wood and Toluene from Sulphite liquor.

The War Purchasing Commission was a permanent body with large powers—at first intended to direct the purchase of war supplies and, by 1918, acting as the purchasing authority for all supplies whether war, or Departmental, or for Government needs in general. The Commissioners were Senator Sir Hormisdas Laporte, Montreal, (Chairman), G. F. Galt, Winnipeg and W. P. Gundy, Toronto. The method of operation had gradually evolved into a complete, business-like administration. When, in 1918, the various Departments wanted anything the Commission was consulted. Tender forms were sent out to all who were on the lists, and when the bids came in they were opened in the presence of an officer from the Department and one from the Commission. The prices were scheduled and the Department officers, on the basis of the quotations, recommended the acceptance of a particular tender. This information went to the Commission which either sanctioned it or made further inquiry. While the contract was really awarded by the

Department, the supervision of its operations was under the Commission. The general principle followed in buying for all the Departments was to have the contracts supervised by people experienced in the trade concerned. The great extension of the Commission's powers was by Order-in-Council on Feb. 7th, 1918, and the only limitations were with respect to supplies of small value which might, from time to time, be urgently and quickly required at points distant from Ottawa; purchases of supplies for the Government system of Railways, or of special purchases where the provisions of the new order could not be enforced "without detriment to the public interest."

A body which was local in name but national in its work was the Ottawa Improvement Commission which came into existence under a Federal statute in 1899, with the object of co-operation with the City authorities for the improvement and beautifying of Ottawa and its vicinity and with an authorized Government grant of $60,000 a year for 10 years-increased in 1909 to $100,000 for a further period of 10 years. Debentures were issued totalling $270,373 and this money, with the Government grants of $1,600,000, were utilized in various construction work, in parks and driveways and the acquisition of land, which unquestionably greatly beautified the capital. The Commission during 1918 besides the Chairman, Sir H. K. Egan, included Senator J. P. B. Casgrain, Gilbert Fanquer, E. G. Laverdure, J. B. Fraser, B. Slattery and the Mayor, ex-officio, with Wm. Kearns as Secretary. The first Chairman was Sir Henry Bate.

There were a number of minor Commissions appointed during the year. On Jan. 22nd T. Sherman Rogers, K.C., (Chairman) County Judge W. B. Wallace, and F. L. Fowke, ex-M.P., of Oshawa constituted the Halifax Relief Commission, to look after distribution and other matters in respect to the Halifax explosion of 1917; on Mch. 28th Major Thomas Robb, Montreal, J. N. Bales, Montreal, and J. W. Harrison, Halifax, were appointed to look into and investigate the pilotage system of Eastern ports and the same body, with the substitution of Henry Pybus, Vancouver, for Mr. Harrison, to investigation the Pacific port system; the Hon. J. A. Chisholm, Halifax, (Chairman) the Rev. Dr. John Forrest, Halifax, and J. B. McLachlan, Secretary of the Amalgamated Mine Worwers, were appointed (Apr. 22nd) to investigate the unrest existing as to wages, peace-work, hours, time, overtime, and other labour conditions in the Province of Nova Scotia-particularly the industries of coal mining, steel making and the operation of the N.S. Steel and Coal Co.; the Hon. F. S. MacLennan, Quebec, T. E. Robb, Montreal and J. M. Walsh, Quebec, were appointed Commissioners on behalf of Canada, at and upon a Joint Conference to consider proposals for a settlement of outstanding Fishery questions with the U.S. Government; the Hon. F. S. MacLennan was appointed to investigate conditions at the Engineers Training Depôt, St. Johns, P.Q., and Hon. J. D. Hazen, St. John, G. F. Desbarats, C.M.G.,

Ottawa and W. A. Found, Ottawa, to investigate into and report upon the unrest existing in the Province of Quebec between firms engaged in shipbuilding and their employees.

As to other public bodies of this nature it may be added that a Commission was appointed on War Records and Trophies (Dec. 11) to report on the best action to be taken for organization of a permanent War Museum, with Sir Edmund Walker, Toronto, Dr. A. G. Doughty, C.M.G., and Brig.-Gen. E. A. Cruikshank of Ottawa as members; that a Government Board regarding Economies in Public Printing and Publications issued its Report on Jan. 25th with recommendations which were expected to effect savings up to $5,000,000 a year-its members being Fred. Cook, F. C. T. O'Hara and F. C. Lynch. Another Board appointed during the year was in connection with the ever-present Coal question. After considerable discussion between the Dominion Government and those of Saskatchewan and Manitoba an agreement was come to in September for a testing of the Lignite coal of these Provinces under the auspices of a Federal body to be styled the Lignite Utilization Board. Its members were to serve without remuneration and an experimental plant was at once to be constructed in the Souris district of Saskatchewan with a capacity to manufacture 30,000 tons of briquettes each year. The Federal Government was to pay $200,000 toward the cost and the two Provinces $100,000 each. The Board eventually appointed was made up of R. A. Ross, an eminent Engineer of Montreal, J. M. Leamy, Provincial Electrician of Manitoba, and J. A. Sheppard, a well-known business man of Moose Jaw. It was hoped that this practical effort to carbonize lignite coke, or charcoal, would produce a fuel suitable for domestic and manufacturing purposes with, also, by-products such as oil, pitch, ammonia, sulphate and gas.

Administra

As Minister of Militia and Defence Maj.-Gen. S. tion of Mili- C. Mewburn, C.M.G., had a responsible and difficult tary Affairs position to administer in 1918. It is true that the by General Department was divided and that the war-work Mewburn and abroad and responsibility for administration of the Mr. Doherty. Military Forces of Canada in England or France, were in the hands of Sir Edward Kemp; it is also true that the legal enforcement of the Military Service Act was in the hands of the Hon. C. J. Doherty, Minister of Justice, and its details under control of the Military Service Branch of that Department; yet the other issues requiring settlement, and conditions to be met at home, were quite enough for one Minister to handle. The Report of the Militia Council for the year ending Mch. 31, 1918, showed ordinary expenditures of $3,887,838 and War expenditures of $316,669,785 compared with the following figures during other years of the War period: 1914-15, $9,991,817 and $53,176,614 respectively; 1915-16, $4,681,502 and $160,433,416; 1916-17, $4,301,785 and $298,291,031. The total expenditures of the Department in Canada under War appropriation up to Mch. 31, 1918, was $466,343,986 and the total expended