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lems here. Even now. he can’t meet the other Maritime Premiers, unless he gos to Toronto or Ottawa to meet them. We were hoplng he’d meet those Premiers down here. \Vhen I was in power we had those Premiers meeting everV vear and I’ll tell you. we had good meetings. But our Premier has to go to Toronto or Ottawa to meet them and they spend about half an hour together and I don’t know whether they spend it at three-thirty in the morning or not. I wouldn’t suggest such a thing. Qh, here’s something else. He can hardly meet his friend, Mr. Robichaud, but he Jumps in the air in real excitement about Maritime Union. Five or six years ago at Halifax when Premier Robichaul spoke in favor ff I‘llaritimc I'ni'n at the Pre- mier’s Conference, and wished immediate approval I refused. I claimed that this should be presented to the people of all Provinces before I would take a stand of that kind. It come up in the Legislature of this Province and the Premier was a member here at the time, in Opposition. Did he ever say a word about it? He never said one word in favor of Maritime Union and the thing went out the back door without anyone saying a word about it. Three years ago in this very room we hed meetings of the Atlantic Provinces premiers. Was there anything said about it? I never heard anyone make a statement about Maritime Union but now, as soon as the Honourable Premier of this Province sees this man, Robichaud, his great friend and benefactor, by the way, they tell me, very substantially so, he just can’t see anything but Maritime union and he wants everyone to go for Maritime Union. Now, he’s suggesting that we should have an outstanding expert come in from out- side somewhere, of course, and study the problem of Maritime union. What is this foolishness anyway? Trying to revive a dead horse? Maritime Union was started many years ago and I don’t believe the people of Prince Edward Island have changed their minds on this proposal. As far as that’s concerned, I don’t believe the people of Prince Edward Island would agree to making Prince Edward Island a county of the Province of New Brunswick. Then he says we should have a closer liaison be- tween the Atlantic Province Premiers and decide on the things we should do to- gether. I can’t understand the Premier on this. Surely he must have known that this liaison was in effect for years. Alex Matheson, or pardon me, the present Judge Matheson, when he was Premier some years or more ago, had made his arrange- ments with the other Maritime Premiers, Atlantic Province Premiers, to get closer together so that we could support the things that were of common interest to these provinces. The very year that I was made Premier I went up to a meeting at Fred- ericton to one of these meetings. Premier Smallwood was there, I remember. Mr. Flemming from New Brunswick and Mr. Stanfield from Nova Scotia and we had a wonderful meeting. I don’t think Joey Smallwood bothers, pardon me, Mr. Speaker, for calling him Joey. I always call him that when I meet him anyway. He doesn’t bother with it. Now, what has been done at these meetings in the past? We estab- lished a power pool not so long ago to draw electric power from the other provinces. We established an Atlantic Province House in London, England, for which we are paying our share from each of three provinces. We have taken part in many dis- cussions not only among the premiers but also among the industrialists and the farmers. Our Federations of Agriculture worked together with A.P.E.C. Our De- partments of Agriculture have worked together. We have paid our share in the Maritime livestock shows. We have linked up our tourists affairs under my honour- able friend, J. D. Stewart, who did a tremendous job. We worked through APEC throughout these years but the Premier apparently didn’t know this. But he gets his picture taken, puts on a great splurge in the press that we should now co-operate with the other premiers with whom we’v been co-operating for the last ten years. I would suggest that the Premier had better wake up and find out what’s going on round about him but the only way the Premier recognizes progress is through per- sonnel as long as they don’t belong to the Island. Previous meetings have not taken place in the past two years. They have been neglected and, as a matter of fact, not held this year at all. I can tell the Premier now, as far as I’m concerned. forget it. Forget this Maritime political union. As far as I’m concerned I will go forward, as always, working together in a common purpose to promote our best Interests with the other premiers of the Atlantic Provinces but I will never be a party to selling the Province of Prince Edward Island “down the river”_to promote the am- bitions of one or two misguided people who would like us to unite.

Now, I would like to discuss another matter and I really cannot understand the great love that the Premier of the Province has for off1c1als from other provmces. It is indeed hard to know and realize why our own good men are ignored for public

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