Neill, R.

English

Histoire sociale / Social History (E-Journal, York University)

496 HISTOIRE SOCIALE- SOCIAL HISTORY Kenneth J. Rea- The Prosperous Years: The Economic History of Ontario, 1939-1975. Toronto: UniversityofTorontoPress, 1985. Pp. xvi, 287. This is the third volume of a three volume economic history commissioned by the Board of Trustees of the Ontario Historical Studies Series. The first two volumes, covering the periods to Confederation and from Confederation to the Second World War, are, as yet, unpublished. The task of writing recent history, that is of distinguishing the forest from the trees, while still in the forest, makes this volume a special case. Rea has achieved a prodigious feat in recounting all aspects of Ontario's economy with as complete research as anyone could expect. His procedure, that of dividing the economy into standard census categories and of dealing with each separately, tends to accentuate the trees, rather than the forest, but it has authoritative precedent in Marr and Paterson's standard text, Canada: An Economic History. A second hurdle Rea had to overcome was the relatively small and dependent character of his subject economy. Much that happened was the result of, or the spilling over of, developments in the North American economy as a whole, if not the global economy. It is understandable, if not commendable, that no attempt was made to elaborate theories of endogenous cause and effect in economic development. At least, we have been spared a history of Ontario's contribution to world development in the postwar period. Alternatively, Rea could have developed a neo-Marxian or neo-conservative interpretation of events, if they are subject to such interpretations; but, again, arguably, that, too could not have grown out of elements endogenous to the subject. We have been spared a postwar history of Ontario as a case study of the legitimization crisis hypothesis, or of the vindication of the marlcet system. Rea does make a contribution, particularly in Chapter 10, to our understanding of what might be the basis for such hypotheses. There are Jesser themes that could have been used as the main theme of the volume: the degree of Ontario's reliance on primary product exports and foreign capital, on the one hand, and endogenous factors in economic growth, on the other; the Seaway Saga; the problems and organization of agriculture in its years of decline as a source of income in the province; the problematic relations of Ontario with other regions of Canada; the surge of manufacturing activity during and after the war and the subsequent problems in the era of de-industrialization; the continuing rise of Toronto and the Golden Horse Shoe. These, and other themes, are pursued in the context of the census categories; not as thoroughly as one might want, but as minor themes of sufficient strength to make the book a recommendable reference worlc. Pemaps some easily recognizable chronological sign posts should have been erected in the narative of each census category. Pemaps a division by wars: the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Middle East wars; or by some equally anchoring set of internal events (an example does not come to mind after reading the volume); even a clear division by decades would have helped. But the same complaint could be made about the Marr and Paterson volume. The complaint may be against this specific example. Rea does develop one theme in some depth. Ontario entered the postwar period proclaiming the virtues of planning. In the context of its proclamation, planning has to be understood as "rational, central direction" of the economy, "socialist planning", if you will. Over the thirty years of development following the war, the Ontario government became deeply involved in many aspects of the economy. Rea does not characterize this involvement as ''rational, central direction' ' , and wisely leaves the reader to choose an alternative characterization. The theme is pursued exclusively in Chapter I 0, ''The Economic Role of the Provincial Government,'' making this chapter usefully readable on its own. Ontario attempted, or seemed to attempt "rational planning" but "The problem involved was fundamental - how to incorporate appropriate political processes for determining objectives in a technically sound framework of policy.'' The problems of political process seem to have shown in the provinces' relations with municipalities, with regions, and with the federal government. Chapter 10 left this reviewer with the impression that, when neo conservatism became fashionable in the nineteen seventies, the Ontario government seized upon it with a sigh of relief, and used it as an excuse to extricate itself, wherever possible , from the difficulties of these relationships. COMPTES RENDUS- BOOK REVIEWS 497 The Prosperous Years is not exciting reading. It does not develop grand or profowxrtheories. Given the commission, however, and without the first two volumes on which to build, Rea is to be congratulated on having chosen a more modest goal and on having achieved it. * * * R.F. Neill Carleton University Julius R. Ruff- Crime, Justice and Public Order in Old Regime France. The Senechaussees of Libourne andBazas, 1696-1789. London, Croom Helm, 1984, 211 p. Le developpement progressif de I 'Histoire, de plus en plus orienree vers une his to ire sociale soucieuse d'analyser, souvent a I' aide de methodes quantitatives, les attitudes et comportements du peuple, explique powquoi, dans les annees 1960 et 1970, les historiens se sont davantage interesses aux crimes et crirninels des societes pre-industrielles. En France, de nombreuses etudes sur des bailliages et presidiaux de Normandie, de Ia France du Nord et du Languedoc ont permis de cerner certains des cornportements deviants des peuples de ces regions. La monographie de Julius R. Ruff s'inscrit dans le prolongement de ces recherches en s'attachant a !'analyse de Ia justice criminelle d'une region encore peu etudiee par les historiens fran<;ais: le sud-ouest de Ia France. Plus specifi-quement, elle porte sur deux senechaussees de Ia region de Bordeaux: Libourne et Bazas au XVIII< siecle. Procedant par echantillonnage, le professeur Ruff a choisi d' etudier Ia justice criminelle du roi et Ia criminalite legale a trois epoques differentes: 1696-1700, 1738-1742, 1770-1789. II a pu recueillir ainsi I 141 affaires criminelles. Le volume que Julius R. Ruff a pub lie en 1984 est l'essentiel d'une recherche comrnencee il y a plus d'une dizaine d'annees et couronnee en 1979 par !'obtention d'un Ph. b . a l'Universite de Ia Caroline du Nord. L'ouvrage s'ouvre par une breve description geographique, administrative, eoonomique, sociale et culturelle des senechaussees de Libourne et Bazas. II traite ensuite de l'appareil judiciaire mis en place dans Ia France d' Ancien Regime puis il verifie comment dans Ia pratique, a Libourne et Bazas, cet appareil fonctionnait. Dote d'une bonne connaissance des institutions ju-diciaires, !'auteur conclut que Ia justice criminelle du roi a Libourne et Bazas etait lente, couteuse et peu efficace pour controler les conduites deviantes. La region se distingue done tres peu des autres territoires fran<;ais etudies, et Ia comme ailleurs les juges font preuve de commiseration et attenuent Ia rigueur de certains chatirnents qu' ils considerent trop severes. La deuxieme partie de Ia monographie est consacree a I' etude specifique des I 141 affaires criminelles retrouves. Regroupees en crimes de violence contre Ia personne, contre Ia propriete d'autrui, l'ordre public et les mceurs, les cas sont analyses selon Ia methodologie habituelle ace genre d'etudes . Chacune des categories de crime est examinee en fonction des types de delit, de ceux et celles qui les comrnettent et en sont victimes, des saisons, des jours et des lieux. La criminalite qui se degage de cette analyse en est une de violence contre Ia personne, principalement. En particulier, nous somrnes en presence d'une criminalite de peu d'importance ou les voies de fait et injures pre-dominent. Bref, une criminalite comme il s'en rencontre a l'epoque dans d'autres regions de France. Des crimes contre les biens, l'ordre public, Ia religion et les rnoeurs ont aussi ete commis dans les deux senechaussees etudiees mais leur nombre n. a jarnais aussi ere important que les violences contre Ia personne. Utilisant les methodes quantitatives, Julius R. Ruff a mene son enquete de fa<;on rigoureuse et methodique. n a du bien decrire ce que ses sources lui montraient mais malheureusement son etude s'arrete Ia: a Ia simple description des faits. Le professeur Ruff semble manquer d'irnagination pour aller au-deli\ des chiffres. II ne faut d'ailleurs pas considerer les donnees quantitatives fournies par 

Kenneth J. Rea — The Prosperous Years: The Economic History of Ontario, 1939-1975.

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Kenneth J. Rea — The Prosperous Years: The Economic History of Ontario, 1939-1975.

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Histoire sociale / Social History (E-Journal, York University)