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His Honor ascended the throne. bade the assemblage be seated, after which he read the following speech: Mr. Speaker and gentlemen oi the Legislative Assembly: . I take great pleasure in again int-ch ing you as representatives of the Prov .ince in Parliament assembled. The important subject of municipal assessment will engage your further consideration, having the advantages; derived from the report oi the Royal! Commission already in your hands/ and the eareiul and painstaking 'i'e'iiul,'..') erations devoted to the difiicult (Ines-E tion, involved, by the Select Commit-; tee appointed during the last session! oi the Legislature. Closely connected; with this subject and prominently; brought before public attention by Farmers' Associations will be the question of taxation of railways and» the determination ofa reasonable basisl oi division of revenue received from this source, as between the municipali-l ties and the Province. l Ettieienear of Public Institutions. , It affords pe much pleasure to not- ice the congmucd Iefiifjtrmiy,. cf the "firfftfff was . _ UN OPENING DAY. Address of Lieuteaant-Governor SOCIAL AND MILITARY. vvudttvcr maemess and party mn- cor the coming days of the session of the Legislature may hold in store, the opening was a social event in every sense. and doubtless the most brilliant in the history of the new buildings. It was the first opening since the "Ir" pointment of Hon. w. Mortimer Clark as Lieutenant-Governor, and the plan, seemed to have been formed to make it as pieasant as possible to the people who attended. The attendance oi military was larger than usual. and the presence of artillery to fire a saline was revived after a lapse oi many years. Even the proceedings in the chamber were arranged from a social standpoint. for between the transac- tion oi business there were two lengthy muses to facilitate conversation. The fresh fall of snow. and the erisp.brir,rht atmosphere gave a lovely setting and Changes in License Laws Fore- shadowed. an exhilaration to the outside scene, and the Canadian winter was seen at. its best. Brimant Gathering Witness Legislature's Function. Prosperity of the Year a Matter of Conttratu1ation-soeectt Does Not Contain Lengthy Programme. Whatever bitterness and patty TORONTO, FRIDAY, JANUARY 15, 1aoi--'riiii'irjir?iii'ii, Owing; to the .dericicncy oi farm labor in the Province and consequent embarrassment to agriculture, spec- ial efforts were made by my Govern. ment to induce. immigration of agri-. cultural laborers from Great Britain, with the result that many farmers were supplied with mucheneeded as- sistance during the harvest and autumn season. Extension of Government Road. Satisfactory progress has been 1natle""iith" thtf"construetitin of the Temiskaming & Northern Ontario Railway, and the advantages which have already resulted to the, Province demonstrate the great '. value of the undertaking. The suivttys made during ' the past year show that the railway; asylum-s, Hospitals and other pubhe'iu- stitutions of the Province, for which the Legislature has made such liberal provision for many years. You will be pleased to know that buildings to be used as a hospital for cpileptics are in process of erection, and are ex' pected to be. ready for the reception oi patients during the current year. It is also gratifying to notice that sew eral counties that have not yet estab- lished houses of refuge for the indi- gent are preparing to do so. The gen- erosity oi the municipalities in this rc- spect is worthy of the highest t'CT11- mendation. In order to further protect the ior.. est wealth of the Province. large ad.. ditional tracts oi timbcred lands, non- agricultural in their character, have been set aside as forest reserves, [rem which settlement will be excluded, and in which it is proposed to apply new conditions as to the cutting and con- servation of the timber. Progress continues to be made inl developing the mineral resources oil the Province, and recent discoveries; of new and valuable ores emphasize at: once the latent wealth of our northern) regions and the wisdom of providing; railway facilities to render them no. cessible. The means adopted for tln. protec- tion of the public health against con- tagious diseases have been effective in their results, and the general measures taken to improve the sanitary condi- tion of all parts of the Province hive received the cordial r-o-r/pct-nth," oi the local authorities. , Through Divine goodness, the bless- ings of a bounteous harvest have been vouehsaied to the husbandmen in every portion of the Province, and it is an additional cause for gratitude that prices for all the products oi the farm, and especially for those of the dairy and orchard, have been very satisiac- tory during the past year. The signs oi continual prosperity, not in agricul- ture alone. but. in every important branch of business and industrial en- terprise, gave cause for hearty congra- tulation. The attendance at the Agriculturall Coilesw continues steadily to increase. The buildings erected through the] generosity of Si; William Macdonaldi are approaching completion. and for; the first time in the history ts,t" the' Prtrvince instruction is provided for;f the. daughters oi Ontario farmers. The: A Prosperous Year. @13be Measures will be submitted ior the !improvement of the license laws, thc' iamcndmcnt oi the assessment act, {the conservation oi the timber re- !sourccs of the Province, a bill to en- 'iable Municipal Councils in cities, "own: and villages by by-law to sub- :stitutc one board oi trustees for the existing High School Board. Public School Board and Library Board. a bill to amend the election act and the act respecting the supplementary rev- enue of the Province. Way be profitably prolonged at mod- erate cost through the centre of the rich agricultural district northwest of Lake Temiskaming, at least as far as the proposed line of the Grahd Trunk Pacific Railway. A measure enabling the Government to proceed with the extension will be submitted to you, extens1on Will be submitted to you. There will be laid before you the repC/rt of .the Select Committee ap- pointed at the last session of the House for the purpose of collating ret ports oi committees or commissions or other authorities on the subject of municipal trading or municipal owner- ship, br the operation-oi public utili- tics'.' as well as. other tit1tladritative de hvernnccs on these subjects. License Measure Promised. The House adjourned at 3.40 p.m. A Veteran's Dispute. Mr. MacKay will inquire: Have cer- tain volunteers, under the land grants act, made application to be located in the townships of Paterson and Har- dy? li so, have the applications been granted? If not, why not? The estimates for the current year,. prepared with as great regard to econ- omy as is consistent with efficient ,ervice and the growing wants of the Province, will be submitted for your early consideration. Formal Business. Irrs' Honor then retired. and the Speaker informed the mem- hers that he 'had received no- tice of vacancies which had occurred since last session, and had issued new; writs for elections in Aluskoka. North Oxford and Sault Ste. Marie. Returm of the elec- tion, in Muskoka, Sault Ste. Marie and North Renfrew were then pre- sented. _ " The Speaker informed the House, in the language of precedent, that. "to prevent mistakes he had obtained a Cnpy of his Honor's speech, which he would read." A Mr. Ross then introduced the time- hnnored bill to provide for the ad- ministration of oaths oi oftice to per- suns appointed Justices of the Peace. He also moved that a cotmpjttet.be appointed to strike the Standing Committees of the House "Dispense," said the Premier, and the second treat was lost. A _ l