placing your future conduct in contradiction with your
conduct in the past, but, at the same time, that you desire
to reserve to yourself that liberty of appreciation and action
necessary to every representative who wishes to act honest-
ly and according to conviction in the interests of the coun-
try. Since I have been in power, my ambition has been
to deserve the confidence of honest and intelligent men, and
it is not I who will find fault with your views.
" Please accept, my dear sir, the assurance of my consider-
ation.
Your devoted servant,
"H. G. JOLY."
Now, I ask, what have 1 done, to deserve the-calumnies
which for five years have been gratuitously heaped upon
me, and to call for this perpetual discussion of my actions ?
I hear stigmatism spoken of. Who here has the right to
stigmatize? Is it the honorable members of the Opposi-
tion? Where did they get this right? In 1879, Mr.
Speaker, I was elected by acclamation when I came before
my electors after my entrance into the Chapleau adminis-
tration. In 1881, all over the rest of the Province there
was war to the knife against the Chapleau Government.
I was again reelected by acclamation.
Finally I was reelected last April by an overwhelming
majority.
This time an effort was made to try their strength. , A
candidate was found and for a whole month I was subjected
to every kind of annoyance. The most disgraceful means
were employed against me, thousands of copies of a sheet
which breathed out lies and calumny being circulated in
my county. Notwithstanding all this I was reelected by a
large majority. If these are stigmatisms, it is true I have
been stigmatized three times, twice by the unanimity of
my constituents and once by a great majority. I am right
in saying that. my position is better than that of my detrac-
tors. I do not need to defend myself when I receive such