n other names were used, which was a violation of
the rules of the department. A portion of the press at the time created
a widespread excitement upon this subject, and the services of the
official referred to were dispensed with. Some of the supporters of the
government also took such ground in reference to the attorney-general,
Mr. Fisher, that his retirement from the government became necessary,
the accusation against him being that he had negligently permitted some
improper sales of Crown lands to be made. It was felt at the time by
some that the penalty that was paid by the attorney-general was
excessive for the offence; but, under the excitement then existing, it
was the only course that could be taken to avoid the defeat of the
government. At the general election that followed a few months later,
Mr. Fisher was reelected for the county of York, and later on, after the
excitement had passed over, the delinquent Crown lands official was
reinstated. At the same election, that took place in 1861, the
government was handsomely sustained, after one of the warmest contests
that had ever taken place in New Brunswick. Probably the most effective
nomination speech ever made by Tilley, during his long political career,
was the one then delivered at the court-house, St. John, in his own
defence, and in the vindication of his government against the charges
made by the Opposition candidates and press.

CHAPTER V

THE INTERCOLONIAL RAILWAY

The imperfect means of communication between the Maritime Provinces and
Canada had long been recognized as a great evil, and very soon after the
introduction of railways into England a line of railway was projected to
run from St. Andrews, in New Brunswick, to Quebec. The transfer of a
considerable tract of territory, which had been believed to be in New
Brunswick, to the state of Maine, under the terms of the Ashburton
Treaty, gave a check to this enterprise, and financial difficulties
afterwards prevented its accomplishment. A more promising scheme was
that of a railway from Halifax to Quebec, and this so far received the
approval of the British government that an officer of engineers, Major
Robinson, was, in 1847, detailed to conduct a survey of the proposed
line. As this gentleman was influenced by purely military
considerations, his line was carried as far from the United States
boundary as possible, and consequently by a very long and circuitous
route. During the session of