The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

ber can express their opinion, i'm for any means of accomplishing that end." cry of, "I'm not afraid to do this. I'm not very partial to refer-- endums or plebiscites, but if the validation of those contracts can be held up until such time as the peo-- ple who were double--crossed by the Premier and his followers last Octo-- Mr. Roebuck implemented his ar-- gument with an amendment, which Mr. Macaulay seconded with the When that move failed, Mr. Ma-- caulay with W, A. Baird (High Park), again as his seconder, demanded de-- letion of the clause in the Beau-- harnois contract, which he said "provides for a decrease in the load factor from 85 per cent to 75 per cent, thereby creating a loss to the power users of Ontario of approxi-- mately 12 per cent for thirty--nine years." This move was also defeat-- ed on a standing vote. Macaulay Backs Rocebuck. "Are you in favor of the purchase by the Hydro--Electric Power Com-- mission of Ontario of an aggregate 430,000 additional horsepower at $12,50 per horsepower from the| Beauharnois Light, Heat and Power | Company, the Maclaren -- Quebec Power Company and the Gatineau Power Company?" Two Amendments Beaten. Mr. Roebuck charged that the Government, in campaigning on a "back--to--Niagara" policy and then embarking immediately after the clection upon negotiations with the Quebec companies, had departed en-- tirely from British practice and had taken a course of action that had no mandate from the people. The Houck bill, validating the new contracts, should only come into operation, he submitted, after the feeling of the electors had been taken by general plebiscite on the following question: Earlier in the evening, when the bill was first called, Mr. Macaulay tried to block validation by moving two other amendments. First, he called for deletion of clauses in the contracts which, in his opinion, pro-- vided "for an increase in the price of power in the event of the Com-- mission (Hydro) making further purchases of electric power gener-- ated in the Province of Quebec or from Quebec water in the Ottawa River at increased prices." Combined efforts of former Hydro Commissioner Roebuck and Opposi-- tion Leader Macaulay to have the Legislature endorse a submission to the Ontario electorate of a plebis-- cite, plumbing public opinion as to the principle of the new Quebec power contracts, went down to de-- feat in the House late last night amid scenes of clashing tempers and tempestuous tongues. Attempts to Send Issue to Electors SCENES IN LEGISLATURE TEMPESTVOUS Macaulay and Roebuck Join Forces in Futile Effort to Postpone Contracts Validation -- ITwo Other Moves for Deletion of Clauses Also Fail When Bill Passes Committee Blocked in House order, whereupon he said, "Give me lanother chance," and launched @ 'fresh attack on the Governmnent's alleged lack of mandate to enter | into new Quebec contracts. | Wants People Consulted. ' "Last December," he said, "when these contracts were announced, I | told the press that the Government had deliberately double--crossed the electorate and that they should go to the people to explain their re-- versal of policy. I insist now that they consult the people." Immediately the latter accused Hon. T. B. McQuesten, former Hydro Commissioner, of supporting the "back--to--Niagara" policy ana reversing his stand after the ballots had been counted. The committee Chairman promptly called him to On a standing vote, the amend-- ment was overwhelmingly defeated. The validating bill was then given formal committee approval. It is anticipated that when third read-- ing stage is reached today, the Op-- position will demand a recorded vote of every member. Mr. Roebuck claimed that having not consulted any one about his amendment, he consequently had no seconder. "I'll second it for you," said Mr, Macaulay. '"Yes, I did," said Mr. Macaulay, "but you people campaigned in the election saying you'd never revise them. Now, I'm going to support the amendment of my honorabie friend from Bellwoods (Mr. Roe-- buck), and I expect all my support-- ers to do likewise." The hectic situation developed when the validating legislation was in committee stage. Major James Clark, Chairman of the whole House, ruled Mr. Roebuck out of order when he was expounding his case for a plebiscite and Mr. Macaulay promptly leaped into the breach. "The reason you didn't," flared John Newlands, the successful Lib-- eral candidate in that Hamilton by-- election, "was because you knew you'd be beaten." "Oh, go ahead and vote," clicked Mr. <HMHepburn. "Let's get it over with." "Oh, there are a lot of things about that election my honorable friend do'e._ex_r'_t know," said Mr. Macaulay. "Didn't you plead for revision of these contracts for three years?" asked Minister of Labor M. M. Mac-- Bride. "I can tell you why we didn't," said Mr. Macaulay. "What do you want, another East Lambton?" clicked Premier Hep-- burn. "Oh, Oh," said Mr. Macaulay. "Do you want another Hamilton ?" persisted Mr. Hepburn. "Why, you didn't even put a candidate up there." Vote Called for. A'n\\ 1 Attorney--General Conant could not see what the suggestion had to do with the validation legisla-- tion. Premier Hepbhurn emphasized that Mr. Macaulay must know that even if the agreements were rati« fied by the House, they were not settled until the bondholders had their say. The process of negotia~ tions was still going on, and until the agreements were finally signed he saw no reason for getting rid of the acts complained of. Roebuck Springs Surprise. Mr. Roebuck then sprang his mine on the simple clause which ruled: "This act shall come into force on the day upon which it re-- ceives Royal assent." A great deal had been said, he remarked, about whether Ontario should go back to Niagara or on to Beauharnois. '"Why don't you go the whole hog and give every one the right that you have given to the Maclaren ang other Quebec power companies?" he asked. '"'The Prime Minister says there were no negotiations prior to the election and we as members of the House must accept his statement no matter what we might privately think. But the fact stands out that the Government in going to the people asked for a mandate to de-- velop its own resources and that they got that mandate. Mr. Macaulay subsequently ge. manded of the Government the reason it did not amend that sec. tion of the Power Commission Amendment Act, 1937, which made it impossible for a private cCitizen, even granted he got judgmen in a damage action from Hydro, to collect. "*The fact remains that according to British--" the speaker was here interrupted by Major Clark, Chair-- man of the House Committee, who held that his remarks were ir-- relevant to the clause. Mr. Rocbuck then revealed he was going to move an amendment as to the time the bill could come into effect. Asks "And the reason I am moving the amendment is, as I say, because it is the practice in British countries, that a mandate which has been re ceived from the people of the Prov-- ince cannot be set aside immediate-- ly after the mandate has been re-- ceived." He made his motion demanding the plebiscite and added: Obligation to Constituents. "That is the only way, I suggest, that members of the Legislature can justify themselves to their con-- stituents, we who told our con-- stituents we were going back to Niagara." Mr. Roebuck emphasized that members had an obligation to their constituents, and the only British way, the only democratic way, was to consult them again, because "we have no business to change our votes immediately after the man-- date has been given by them." House Committee Chairman Clark tangled several times with Mr. Roebuck over the relevancy of his argument to the particular clause of the bill under discussion, and finally ruled him out of order. "Then," said Mr. Roebuck, "am I to understand that I'm not privi-- leged to say anything more about this mandate." ; "You are not speaking to the point," said Chairman Clark. _ --_"That is a most extraordinary ruling," said Mr. Roebuck. s "And I'll rule that statement out of order, too," retorted Mr. Clark. Why Section Stands. LA