J. D. B. News Letter

While the memorandum, embodying the terms of the agreement made between the Protestant Board of School Commissioners and a committee of Montreal Jewish citizens, in regard to the Protestant-Jewish school controversy in Montreal, has been submitted to the Hon. L. A. David. Provincial Secretary, to bring before the Hon. L. A. Taschereau, the Premier of Quebec, it is rumored in the legislative circles at Quebec that the matter may go over for another session, unless some real and satisfactory adjustment is presented.

It was hoped that the present session would see a settlement of the problems in some form, although no measure was mentioned in the Speech from the Throne, but no official announcement has yet been made from Quebec, and in Montreal the group advocating for a Jewish panel and a separate Jewish school system are firm in their stand. At a meeting held last week, called by the Separate Schools’ Committee, the following resolution was adopted : “The mass meeting held in the Prince Arthur Hall on Sunday afternoon. January 27, 1929, after hearing a report on the present school situation, hereby resolves to repudiate any arrangement with the Protestants that does not embody in full the rights accorded the Jews in this Province in the judgment of the Privy Council. And be it further resolved that in the opinion of the meeting there is no solution of the school problem other than the establishment of a separate Jewish panel, and the meeting hereby calls upon the Provincial Government to establish such a panel. Be it further resolved that this meeting expresses its confidence in the Separate School Committee which is hereby urged to continue its efforts towards the creation of separate Jewish schools.”

Mr. Michael Garber presided at this meeting. The speaker included Alderman J. Schubert, Mr. Louis Fitch, K. C. Mr. S. Belkin, Mr. L. Zucker, Mr. H. M. Ciaserman, Mr. L. Rabinovitch, Mr. M. Dickstein and Mr. A. Schurim.

It is rumored that the Quebec Government does not want to force either of the religious parties concerned, the Protestants or the Jews, in this matter of the school question, or to do anything against their wishes, and for that reason it may be advisable to postpone the matter. However, the question of a Jewish school commission always looms in the background as an alternative to the project for representation of the Jews on the Protestant Committee of the Council of Public Instruction.

Both Mr. Peter Bercovitch, K. C. M. L. A., and Mr. Joseph Cohen, K. C. M. L. A., the Jewish members from Montreal in the Quebec Legislative Assembly, have expressed themselves as feeling that unless, under a basis of settlement with the Montreal Protestant School Commission, the Jewish people of Montreal will obtain all the rights given them by the Privy Coun- (Continued on Page 4)

As a result of the memorandum submitted by the delegation of the Montreal Protestant Central School Board, which waited on Premier Taschereau and the Hon. L. A. David, Provincial Secretary, it is assured that the education of the non-Protestant and non-Catholic children in schools under the administration of this Board will be made a first charge on the neutral panel of the various Montreal districts, on a per capita basis, by legislation to be introduced by the Provincial Secretary at the present session of the Quebec Legislative Assembly.

It was pointed out that since the passing of the 1922 law, education of other than Protestant children had cost Montreal Protestants $750,000 in round figures. Only financial figures were discussed at this meeting and the memorandum submitted applies not only to Jewish children, but to all non-Catholics and non-Protestants in the schools under the Board’s jurisdiction.

In an interview in Quebec, Major H. Leroy Shaw, Chairman of the Montreal Protestant Central School Board, stated : “The position is a serious one, for our various districts are asking the Central Board for funds, while carrying on the cost of this class of instruction. In Outremont, for example, which is asking for money at the present time, there is a forty per cent, non-Catholic and non-Protestant school attendance.” Major Shaw further explained that the rate in the various districts would be in accordance with their needs but that Montreal would be most affected, due to the large Jewish school population.

While Jews constitute the majority of Montreal’s non-Catholic and non-Protestant school children, there are also a number of Greeks and others of foreign parentage who receive instruction in the Protestant schools without professing the Protestant faith.

While Montreal is for practical purposes the only centre really affected by this problem of Jewish school education, the matter is one which may ultimately have to be legislated for the whole of the Province of Quebec.

IMMIGRATION TO COME BEFORE CANADA PARLIAMENT

The immigration problem in Canada, which is again agitating the public mind, and in no uncertain manner due to the recent order passed by the Deputy Minister of Immigration whereby the railway companies are instructed to curtail the number of immigrants from non-preferred races, will be thoroughly discussed at the coming session of Parliament in Ottawa.

The announcement released by the Deputy Minister of Immigration to the railway companies which are parties to an agreement for the recruiting of certain classes of European immigration from what are known as non-preferred countries, states: “It has been decided that, between now and the 31st of May next, the movement of immigrants under the railways agreement (from non-preferred countries) shall be reduced to not more than thirty per cent of the farm laborers moved by each company during the last calendar year. It is to be understood that the limitation does not apply, in any way, to domestic servants, agricultural families, with capital coming for land settlement, or to wives and children joining the head of a family already settled in Canada.”

The agreement between the two railway companies in Canada, the Canadian National Railways (owned and operated by the Government) and the Canadian Pacific Railway entered into in September 1925 and since then extended from October 1st for a period of three years, governs the movement of colonists from Czecho-Slovakia, Hungary, Jugo-Slavia, Poland, Austria, Russia, Roumania and the Baltic States, which countries are generally spoken of as the non-preferred Continental countries and which are classified in the agreement as those countries from which only agricultural settlers and domestic servants can be moved for placement in Canada.

It is of particular significance to know that the Railways Agreement, as this is known, never benefited Jewish immigrants as it was expressly stated that the agreement did not apply to citizens of the Hebrew race from any Continental country, whether that country was included in the non-preferred or the preferred list.

So that while the new order issued by the Deputy Minister of Immigration will in no way affect the number of Jewish immigrants coming into Canada the discussion it has aroused will, no doubt, do something to clarify the air in regard to Canada’s general immigration policy.

There is a feeling that with millions of acres of fertile virgin land in the country, what Canada needs at present is a speeding up of immigration. The shipping interests, in particular, will be hard hit by the proposed restrictions and the statement issued by the Deputy Minister of Immigration has come at a time when it is most inconvenient.

At the same time there are interests which are agitating for an increase of British-born immigrants and are expressing dissatisfaction with the Government’s achievements in that regard. When the question is brought up in Parliament this session, there will be many interesting discussions and those interested in Jewish immigration are keeping an eye on future developments and the bearing they may have on Jewish immigration into this country.