A Crooked Election? Perhaps. With Special Guest Donna Schlachter

Today we welcome special guest Donna Schlachter as she shares a historical tidbit about the setting of her book, The Physics of Love. 

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With the current presidential race going on in the US, this seemed like an appropriate topic for a blog this month. In particular, I am looking at the election in 1948 whereby Newfoundland became the tenth province in Canada.

As with most elections, the losers claimed the process was rigged or somehow contrived to accomplish a result that wasn’t entirely legit. In particular, the Conservative Party felt certain that the best path for the island to take was to join the United States.

Newfoundland operated as a Dominion of the British Empire, and as such, didn’t have any local representative or responsible government until 1882, although England still had the final say.

When several provinces decided to meet in 1864 at the Charlottetown Conference, Newfoundland didn’t send any delegates, but did send two representatives later that year to the Quebec Conference.

Although Newfoundland was the first colony in the New World, it was among the last to decide its political future, a decision the island was forced into because of increased debt to the tune of about $40 million in the 1920’s. That may not sound like a lot of money now, but at the time, it was insurmountable.

However, prosperity returned during the 1940’s and World War II, because the US “rented” space on the island and poured millions of dollars into the economy. Once the war ended, though, problems soon returned. Requests for Britain to assist in retiring the national debt were declined, as Britain had enough debt of its own, and frankly, hoped Newfoundland would decide to join Canada. When the island turned to Canada for economic help, the country said it would not assist unless Newfoundland joined Confederation.

Newfoundland Flag

Enter Joseph R. Smallwood, a tough politician and future premier of the island. He wanted the island to join Canada. His opponent, Peter Cashin, believed an independent Newfoundland under responsible government was the best choice, while Chesley Crosby advocated for closer economic ties with the US, hoping this would propel the island to become a state.

As for the US, its only interest, as the Cold War neared, was to use the island as a strategic military base. In reality, because of the small population of Newfoundland, statehood wouldn’t likely have been offered, and the island probably wouldn’t have accepted being annexed as a territory. And Canada, while it didn’t see that Newfoundland’s participation in Confederation would benefit the country, it didn’t want to see the island become part of the US.

So when time came for the referendum, there were three choices on the ballot: union with Canada; restore responsible government; or continue the Commission of Government established in 1934.

The first referendum, held in June 1948, resulted in a near-tie between Confederation and responsible government. Because at least 50% was required, a second referendum was held in July 1948 in which Confederation was selected.

So was the referendum fixed? Perhaps, but not against Chesley Crosby and his pro-US supporters because union with the US was never on the ballot. However, a glance at the demographics of the voting shows that the residents of St. John’s, the capital city, and surrounding communities overwhelmingly voted for Confederation, and carried enough votes to win the day.

Which just goes to prove, as Laura says in The Physics of Love, “whatever St. John’s wants, St. John’s gets.” 

About the Author:

Donna writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts. She is currently under contract with Barbour Books in a novella collection on the Pony Express. Donna loves history and research, and travels extensively for both. You can follow her on Facebook and Twitter, and online at: www.HiStoryThruTheAges.wordpress.com. Click here to subscribe to her free quarterly newsletter. Her books are available at Amazon.com in digital and print. Her next release in October is The Physics of Love: where the past, the present, and the future collide. Click here to purchase.

About Donna's Book:

The Physics of Love: where the past, the present, and the future collide.

A woman looking for love in all the wrong places; a boy-child looking for a forever family; and a man who finds everything he’s looking for. A poignant story of love, betrayal, loss, and coming of age in 1930’s Newfoundland.

Feeling Thankfull in Canada

In Canada, on January 31, 1957, it was proclaimed that the second Monday in October would be set apart as:

"A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed." 

Accordingly, up here in the North I'm stuffed with turkey, sweet potato and apple pie a full month and a half sooner than my friends to the South. For the fun of it, I thought a comparison might be in order. So here it is, a few things we share and a few things we don't as we celebrate Thanksgiving.

Similarities:

1. Both Canada and the USA have a holiday called Thanksgiving! 
2. Football is played. 
3. FOOD! Both celebrate with large and wonderfully scrumptious dinners, and often involve turkey.
4. Gathering as a family is often a focus.
5. Most importantly, though individuals may chose to not acknowledge Him or His hand in our lives and successes, both countries set this day apart as a time to thank God!

Differences:

1. In the South it's on the third Thursday in November, and in the North it's the second Monday of October (I always figured it was because we have an earlier harvest.)
2. Sorry, but average Canadians aren't nearly into football as average Americans. So, while there is a special game played, it isn't near as watched or loved as the American Thanksgiving counterpart. (At least, I've never watched it.)
3. Canadian turkeys are more tender...or not ;)
4. Americans are more set on the day they celebrate, while Canadians are generally more relaxed, celebrating whichever day of the weekend is more convenient. (But this should be no surprise as it took 150 years for Canada to finally settle on a official date.)   
5. Thanksgiving in the South launches the Christmas season, while I was given a lot of grief once for setting up my Christmas tree shortly after our Canadian Thanksgiving. 

So there you have it...

But mostly, I just feel bad that you poor Americans have to wait another forty-five days for this:

What's your favorite part of Thanksgiving? And what is unique to where you live?

My Family's Connection to the Titanic

It’s been over 100 years since the Titanic met its watery grave. Interestingly enough, my family has a connection to that famous, but ill-fated ship.

In 1911, my great-grandfather Tom Cadreanu left Romania to come to Canada, seeking a better life. He decided to brave the journey on his own to explore opportunities, find shelter and land. Once he was established, he sent word to his young wife, Amelia, to come to Canada with their daughter, Flora.

Passage was arranged for the two young travelers aboard the Titanic.

Given their economic condition, it was very likely that Amelia would’ve traveled third-class. And as everyone knows (thanks to James Cameron), the passengers at this level were not offered life boats. The third-class passengers sank with the ship. And so would’ve my great-grandmother…had she boarded that Titanic as planned.

 

Crowd awaiting survivors.

 

The saving grace was Amelia’s mother. She cried and begged her daughter to stay a little longer in Romania since she’d never see her again. Once they said good-bye, it would be forever. Handwritten letters that would take months to reach its destination would be their only connection. Amelia relented and delayed her departure an entire month.

You can imagine when Tom heard the news of the Titanic’s demise, he was devastated. He went months not knowing whether his wife and daughter lived or perished. I can only imagine that warm, Canadian spring day when they were reunited once again.

Tom and Amelia lived in the Niagara region and had 15 more children with 12 surviving.

I shudder to think the rippling effect of that one decision of a teenage girl to remain in her home country for four additional weeks. If she hadn’t, I wouldn’t be sitting at my computer writing this story now.

It also makes me pause to think about the moments when I feel that situations are out of control, that maybe they’re not. Perhaps God is working things out for a greater purpose than I can see or even know in the moment. Maybe that wrong turn that caused a 10-minute detour protected me from an accident. Maybe that rejection letter from an editor was meant to push me to be the better writer I can be. Maybe not getting a particular job spared me from a bad work situation. It’s learning to walk each day in faith, knowing my life is in His loving hands.

As Nazi Holocaust survivor, Corrie Ten Boom, once said, “Never be afraid to trust your unknown future, to a known God.”