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ported in The Globs of April 15, 1926: *"'1. That the agreement repre-- senis not only the most important achievement effected to date by the Hydro Commission during the regims of Chairman G. A. Magrath, but one of the most striking advances in the whols history of power development. "'*2. Construction ¢f the transmis-- slon lines would be commenced im-- "'4 The terms of the were "very satisfactory."' "The statement that the cost of the: Gatineau power delivered to the Ni-- agara Syst>m at Toronto "will be from $7 to $8 per horsepswer less than the cost of producing a similar quantity of pow:r at the maximum load factor provided for from steam plants a~ prosent prices for coal and equipment' may have been literally correct, but that was not the real issue as between the two policics, and Premier Fergu-- son did not give the information which would enable the two policies to be compared. "In an interview given to the press _ the same time. the statement was "The Premier's statement was more | remarkable for what it left out than| for what it stated, as will shortly ap--| pear. Notwithstanding Mr. Gaby's' previous memoranda in favor of steam; and the letter on the 12th of October. | 1925, the Chief Engineer of the system | now swallows himself and prepares to justify the transaction. On the 21th of April, 1926, Mr. Gaby forwarded a | memorandum to the Commission in : justification of the contract. In this| memorandum Mr. Gaby gives the esti-- mated peak loads for subsequent year51 as follows: Year--1924, h.p., 597,000; 1925, 664.000; 1926, 731,000; 1927. 803.000; 1928, 884.000; 1929, 972,000; 1930. 1.069,600;: 1931, 1.176,600; 1932, 1. 294. 300. "It is perhaps no condemnation oxi the honesty of Mr. Gaby that the ac-- tual peak load of 1934 was actually less than his estimated peak load of 1928. He may have been just a very bad prophet, but it is a matter of censure that his very estimates, wild as they are, were no justification for his abandoning the Beck policy of steam plants for the carrying of the actual peak. He cmncluded his memo-- randum with the statement: 'After full consideration of the agreement and an analysis of its terms, I am _"The Commission and the Govern-- been magt o LUit U vwuiIlIneliv 123 j ment accordingly proceeded to close tlxl\e?'l;(tler-ln-Councu. as required by | the deal. ig "(¢) Without any consultation Appearance in Minutes. ... _ whatsoever with the municipalitics in the minutes of the Commission affected. appears in the record of the m'ffi'c'g "(d) Without _ recommendation | dated May 3. 1926, at w from the Hydro Commission's En-- | were present Chairman Magrath, and gineering Committee. { Messrs. Cooke and Maguire. In these "(e) Without any analytical com-- minutes the following mmraph ap-- parison of the Gatineau pml ars: PC 'After several months' negotiations ;i;:g.sth'eorebsu:'.'mms;?pwal. or : Mt+ | with several interests in the Province "(f} Without explanations from | | of Quebec, the proposal of the G@UN-- * yroccrs Gaby and Clarkson of their eau Power Company for the deUV@T¥ _ byigting memoranda in favor Of the of from 230,000 to 260,000 h.p. whith _ yooy Woinjeg » was made to the Commission on 6 April 1, 1926, was finally brought . | Secret Agreements. before the Commission. A great | l The Attorney--General then laid deal 'i'!{.a o Nt lt\gd ib:" ':":';c':;: bare the facts concerning the "secret in see a e interes ' | agreements," never before, he said, Commission were properly protected ; !made public. under this contract, and in addition| | "pet us turn now to these mys-- to the counsel, chief engineer @NG| | terioys documents," he commenced, cther technical officers of the Com-- l | "and observe if you will the most out-- mission Messrs. Clarkson and Kilmer | | right betrayal of the power--users of were engaged in the negotiations| | im« province," which were errommihes c m";':' | _ 'The wording of the first supplemen-- days, on three occasions. was d¢* | tary agreement follows: "The com-- cided to embody some provisions in | nany shall not be liable for any par-- supplementary agrecments for reas0ns --| };;,; opr total failure to deliver electrical that are obvious, and these were PT€" |power or energy under the principal sented to the Commission. | agreement. which is due to the act of * ' the Provirce of Quebec." prepared to recommend the accep-- tance of the contract for the delivery of power from the Gatineau Power Company's properties on the Gati-- neau River.' 3 agreement of . pany under most disadvantageous cir-- | the : cumstances. The failure to obtain an no=« | option of renewal is a complete | ftoer ;capuula.uon by the Commission to the ent | owners of this source of power, Nof | am _ only so, but: ep-- |__ "(a) The agreement was accepted ery by Chairman Magrath before the wer matter was submitted to a mecting ati-- _ of the Commission. | "(b) Before an application had irn-- been made to the Government for ' lose an Ordsr--in--Council, as required by | the act. ' "As a matter of fact, there were: four supplementary agreements and the reason for their being supple-- mentary to the main agreement which could not itself be kept secret is as obvious today as it was then, on May 4, 1926, to the members of the Hydro Commission and the Prime Minister and his Cabinet Council. mentary agreements by another Order-- in--Council. The reason for passing two Orders--in--Council for the approv-- ing of one matter is also obvious. It was to facilitate the deception of the | Hydro municipalities and the psople : of Ontario, which the Commission and ! the Government @iready had in con-- : templation. "On May 4. 1926. Chairman Ma-- grath wrcte to Premier Ferguson, for-- warding executed copies of the main agreement and the four supplementary agreements, and recommending that the main agreement be approved by one Order--in--Council and the supple-- I "On May 14. 1926. the Ferguson Government approved the agreement ;m separate Orders--in--Council as hadt been suggested by the Commission. | one of which was to validate and be | attached to the main agreement, which 'might be mad> public, and the other | was to validate and be attached to the | four _ supp'ementary agreements, | which were to be, and have been, kept secret. """S'o" far as I know, no public rel-- erence has ever bsen made, un;l{_the present moment, to the terms of these seoret agreements, in the words of the Chairman, 'for reasons that are Oob-- vious.'" Main Agreement. "The main Gatineau agreemeni, . Mr. Rosbuck declared, "is remarkable for what it contains, and equally re-- markable for what it omitted. _ If it could be justified at all, it would be on the ground that it secured to the Pr3vince of Ontario certain power re-- sources of the Province of Quebec. It was entered into on the expectation that the power requirements of the Province would increase until the de-- mand at some time equalled the sup-- ply. Thus the losses of the early years might be overcome by the ad-- vantage secured for future years. But if binding at all during its term, it is terminable at the end of thirty years without any agreement as to renewal I® at the end of the thirty years the Commission is dependent upon this power to satisfy a Provincial aemand. it would have to treat with the com-- "(e) Without any analytical com-- parison of the Gatineau proposal with the steam proposal, or Mr. Hogg's forebay plan. "(f) Without explanations from Messrs. Gaby and Clarkson of their existing memoranda in favor of the Beck policies." Secret Agreements. The Attormey--General then laid bare the facts concerning the "secret agreements," never before, he said, made public. "(¢) Without any consultation whatsoever with the municipalitiecs whose interests were so seriously alfected. "Let us turn now to these mys-- terious documents," he commenced, "and observe if you will the most out-- right betrayal of the power--users of this Province." "(d) Without recommendation from the Hydro Commission's En-- gineering Committee, _ _ March | ___"In other words," the Attorney--Gen* eral declared, "the Commission had | undertaken an agreement requiring the construction of transmission lines, | transformers, switching stations, and | condensers at a cost of at least $14,-- | 000,000 for power which might be ter--| | minated at any moment, with or with-- | | out the connivance of the Gatineau| | Power Company, by simple act of the Q- Legislature or the Cabinet of Quebec. \ That is to say, the Province of Ontario i is bound for forty years, and the | Gatineau delivers at will. If at any ' time in the unknown future a power | shortage should raisse the price above | $15 per horsepower. Quebec is in a | position to cancel without liability on the part of the Gatineau Company,. with the express consent of the Gov-- ernment of Ontario, and the industries of Ontario can go hang. Is it any| wonder that on this point alone such a' term was expressed in a separate Order--in--Counil and separate agree--| ment in order to facilitate secrecy a.s| against the people of Ontario?" | "Shame." a member shouted. | | _ "Why, it's terrible," Mr. Roebuck put . || in,. and added: "A more abject sur--| | render has never been placed on the| i| records of any Government." | 4 | "Perhaps," he said, "the best excuse, + » for the keeping secret of the supple-- | --\ mentary terms was the shock to the| , discerning public which might be ex--| " ! pocted to follow the publication of the | " terms of the main agreement." » i Second Agreements. | 1t ' *""That is to say," he continued, , '"'that the Ontario Hydro--Electric: | Power Commission, with the approval| | of the Ontario Government at that}! i time, bound the power--users of this| | Province in the chains of an agree-l " ment which was thought to be bind--| \ ing and inviolable, and delivered them | | Into bondage to the Province OIi | Quebec. It may be some shock to | the business interests of this Prov-- ' ince to learn the solvency of its chief business enterprise is directly de-- | pendent upon the sweet pleasure of | the Legislature of Quebec, and to real-- 'The second supplementary secret' agreement, the Attorney--General ex--| plain:d, stipulated in brief that any new or increased tax which the Leg-- islature of Quebec or the Dominion Parliament may impose "or any in-- creas> in water rentals which the Legislature of Quebec shall see fit to levy, shall be added to the $15 per horsepower and shall be paid by the people of Ontario. The third supplementary agreement; Mr. Roebuck Geclared, was not so | open to criticism, and might have " been included in the principal agree-- tmem. It concerned the nonobligation | of the Gatineau Company to insta'll 'apparatus of capacity. The Attorney-- \ General passed this agreement over | with the following explanation: "I; 'may not have been unreasonable for | the Gatineau Power Company to limil 'itself to apparatus recommended by | the manufacturers, but such docu-- ment, duly signed and executed, left the Commission at the mercy of the !manufacturers. with or without the | connivance of the Gatineau Power \ Company." ize that every ability to obtain power at rates which will enable them to sompete with the industriese of Que-- bec Is dependent on the forbearance of the Legislature of Quebec. Third Agreement. Fourth Agreement. The "ngger--in--the--woodpile" of the fourth "secret" agreement, the At-- torney--General stated, was not easily discernible until one knew if the use intended to be made of it. "In cother words, if the company should fail to conclude its purchase of the Paugan water--power, it should be at liberty to cancel the agreement, unless the Commission consented to a reduction in the amount of power to be supplied presumably to within the capacity of the company's Farmers and Chelsea plants. ns milu WERRRPRICC AECPRRCCNEC "On the first of June, 1926, said the Attorney--General in explaining the fifth agreement, "Harris, Forbes & _ _ s m oo n id llividl ApgACCIICLA®V» sE Ee 0 C ie T C:mpany, Limited, offered for public subscription in New York and Mont--