The Scandal

It has taken a little searching but I am closing in on the case of Premier John Oliver versus R.T. Elliott, K.C., lawyer for the Dolly Varden Mines. It all stems from two telegraphs sent from the lawyer to the politician.

The first telegram from Elliott, which Premier Oliver read to the Legislature charged that the government "had been corruptly Influenced to pass the Dolly Varden Mines legislation, and by means of secret lobbying to (?) a measure, depriving the Dolly Varden Mines interests of property which' was handed over to the Taylor Engineering Company."

When the second telegram arrived, there was some discussion between Oliver and other politicians. It was first thought R.T. Elliott K.C. of Vancouver should be hauled before the Bar of the House to explain his statements and prove his assertions. Premier Oliver felt it would be better served is the matter of Elliott's allegations were left to public opinion.

There was some disagreement among the politicians. There were those who felt Elliott should have to answer for his libel statements. After all, he wasn't only insulting the premier but also the entire Government of BC.

Premier Oliver agreed it was an attack on the entire legislature and if anyone felt there was a grain of truth to the matter, then he would leave it in the hands of the House.

As premier, Oliver was always getting letters and such accusing him of vile deeds and he was tired of defending his honesty and integrity. Getting such communication from someone as noted as R. T. Elliott was disturbing. But they had found cases where the mental capacity of brilliant men declined and that's what may have happened here.

Elliott was accusing Oliver of land speculation and Oliver had enough. He sued the Vancouver lawyer for libel.

Oliver requested $50,000 in damages. After all, Elliot's accusations were read in the Legislature, causing Oliver undue embarrassment and the premier's honesty and credibility were called into question.

The Premier eventually won the case but was awarded a lot less than he sued for. The courts decided he had neither lost his reputation nor had he suffered from this accusation.

I would like to thank The Daily Colonist newspaper, April 18, 1920 edition for some of the above information and the Dictionary of Canadian Biography website for other facts.

I hope you find the beauty around you.

Dolly Varden

While I was looking for an idea on what to write about today, I was looking over the headlines for the May 1, 1920 edition of the Vancouver Sun. The biggest headline read: City to Have Daylight Savings. Okay, interesting I guess. There was also something about the deadline for getting your tax returns in being extended until May 31, 1920. Nothing to inspire a blog entry. Then I saw Premier Oliver Declares Courts Lack Power to Deal with Dolly Varden dispute. Hmm, something interesting here?

Of course, my first thought was a politician and a female. Could it be a steamy story? Something whispered in the parlours of the day. Surely, my readers would be interested in that! However, with a little more research, I discovered Dolly Varden was, and is, a silver mine. 

I did an Internet search on Premier Oliver and the Dolly Varden mine and realized I had written a bit about it when I had featured Premier Oliver in September of 2013. (Yes, I sometimes forget what I have written on and what I haven't!)

So today I am going to revisit that story but be more thorough. I'll start with a look at the history of the Dolly Varden Silver Mines.

In 1910, four prospectors of Scandinavian descent discovered the Dolly Varden mine. The name is from a heroine in Charles Dickens' novel, Barnaby Rudge and it came to a relative of one of the prospectors in a dream. 

Those four prospectors didn't become rich of this find. Instead, in 1915, they sold it to Chicago financiers who had the foresight to build a railway, the last narrow gauge railway built in BC. It ran just 16 miles but it enabled the mining company to transport equipment and supplies to the mine and transport the rich ore to the tidewater in Alice Arm for shipping to the smelter.

In 1918, conflicts arose between the Dolly Varden Mine and the Taylor Engineering Company who had built the Dolly Varden Mine Railway. These disagreements led to the Taylor Engineering Company going bankrupt.

In a decision reached with the help of the BC Government, the mine properties were turned over to the Taylor group and the previous owners were reimbursed for their investment. A year later, in 1919, the Taylor Mining Company took over the Dolly Varden mine and the railway. The Torbrit deposit was discovered and explored while the Dolly Varden Mine continued to operate. (I looked up the Torbrit deposit and as of 2013, it is still in operation.)

Here's an interesting fact for my American readers. From 1919 to 1921, the Dolly Varden and North Star Mines produced 1,305 ounces of silver from 36,000 tonnes and Herbert Hoover financed the operation. This was before he became president, of course.

In 1920, the price of silver dropped to below $1.00 an ounce. There were high costs associated with bringing the mine into production and producing the silver. Taylor was forced to turn over the title of the properties to George Winfield's interests. It was 1922 when the Goldfield Consolidated Mines Company took over and reorganized into Northern Mining Properties, later renamed Dolly Varden Properties Limited.

Whatever does this have to do with a BC Premier? I'll tell you, next time. I realize this isn't a story set in or about Vancouver but it happened in our province and I think it's interesting.

I want to thank the edition of the Vancouver Sun where I got the idea and the Dolly Varden Silver Corporation website where I got the information on history of the mine. The photographs are of Commercial Drive in Vancouver.

I hope you find the beauty around you.