Geomechanics of Sand Production and

Sand Control Nobuo Morita

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Geomechanics of Sand
Production and Sand Control

Nobuo Morita
Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
Table of Contents

Cover image

Title page

Copyright

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter One. Fundamental rock mechanics theory of sand

production from oil and gas reservoirs

Abstract

1.1 Linear elasticity theory

1.2 Finding analytical solutions useful for petroleum engineers

1.3 Application of the linear elasticity theory to thick wall cylinder

test for predicting the onset of sand production

1.4 Application of plasticity theory to medium-strength rock

1.5 In situ stress

 1.6 General rock properties

Chapter Two. Natural completion

Abstract

2.1 Field and laboratory observations of sand production from

naturally completed wells

2.2 Evaluation tool of onset of sand production

2.3 Prediction of long-term sand production rate using an

analytical model

2.4 Prediction of perforation cavity evolution during early sand

production using Geo3D finite element code: sand release rate
coefficients obtained from SINTEF triaxial sand rate experiments

2.5 Discussion and conclusions

2.6 Pressure profile around perforations

Chapter Three. Completion methods for weak formation

Abstract

3.1 Gravel pack

3.2 Frac packs

3.3 Selective perforation

3.4 Cased hole completion with a compartmentalized screen

3.5 Openhole completion

3.6 No sand control

 3.7 Oriented perforation

3.8 Casing patch

3.9 Resin treatment

3.10 Skin damage and risk of completion methods

Chapter Four. Sand control for heavy oil reservoirs

Abstract

4.1 Heavy oil resources

4.2 Cold heavy oil production with sand

4.3 Field operation to identify the magnitude of matrix bypass

event and the plugging capability

4.4 Laboratory experiments observing long stable finger growth

4.5 Simulation of laboratory flow tests

4.6 Field simulation

4.7 Conclusion of simulation and laboratory test analyses

Chapter Five. Guidelines to solving sand problems for water or gas

injection wells

Abstract

5.1 Completion methods for water or gas injection wells

5.2 A phenomenon observed for perforated injection wells—rock

strength distribution
 5.3 A phenomenon observed for perforated injection wells—
injectivity

5.4 Sand settlement in the rat hole

5.5 Cross flow

5.6 Screenless frac pack

5.7 Guidelines for completing water and gas injection wells

Chapter Six. Erosion and sand production monitoring

Abstract

6.1 Typical high flow gas/condensate production facilities

6.2 Hot spots

6.3 Types of erosion

6.4 Equations of erosion

6.5 Erosion analysis of wellhead and Xmas tree

6.6 Sand rate monitoring

Bibliography

Appendix 1. Proof of continuity and uniqueness of displacement

with compatibility condition

A1.1 Gauss theory

A1.2 Stokes theory

Appendix 2. Strain nuclei method

Appendix 3. Erosion equations induced by sand particles

A3.1 Solid particle erosion rate

A3.2 Erosion equation for flowline and Xmas tree. (Empirical

relation, University of Tulsa consortium)

A3.3 WCU separator system erosion

A3.4 Upper completion erosion

A3.5 Wellhead and Christmas tree erosion

Index
Copyright
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Notices
Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing.
As new research and experience broaden our understanding,
changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical
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Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own
experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any
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Acknowledgments
This book uses laboratory and field data that the author and his
coworkers took efforts at measuring while at ConocoPhillips, where
the author had been employed as a research fellow and consultant
for 40 years. He appreciates the support from ConocoPhillips and his
coworkers, especially Donald L. Whitfill, Giin-Fa Fuh, and Kenji
Furui. The book also uses the sand rate measurements performed by
SINTEF under the aegis of Dr. Euripides Papamichos as the project
leader. All their efforts are deeply appreciated.
Introduction
A significant portion of the world’s oil and gas reservoirs is in
various degrees of unconsolidation with extensive sanding
problems. The problems are observed in both production and
injection wells in the oil industries. Similar problems are observed in
CO2 injectors and wastewater injectors in CCS (Carbon Capture
Storage) and wastewater management industries. These problems
include plugging the perforations and formations of production and
injection wells, plugging the downhole screens and the gravel pack,
surface facility erosion, and collapse of borehole and cased hole. On
the other hand, the controlled volume of sand production
significantly increases the well productivity and injectivity for both
light and heavy oil reservoirs.
The selection of sand control methods depends on oil viscosity
and oil and gas production rate. If the viscosity of oil is large, the
production of solid does not damage surface facilities. The problem
is in the sand-up where, if the density of the mixture of sand and
heavy oil is large, oil production stops due to gravity. The sand rate
is controlled using slotted liners for heavy oil to prevent the sand-up
problem. The oil rate is high if the oil is produced with sand, but an
excessive sand rate causes the problem of sand-up to linger. The
amount of sand production is also a problem which means sand
must be hauled away from the production site rather than leave it to
compound the well’s problems further.
If the viscosity is low, the velocity of sand particles is high, which
erodes the metal surface and narrow choke. Especially, the sand rate
must be reduced for gas since a small amount of sand cuts the choke
and erodes the inner surface of production lines with elbows.
 FIGURE 1 Selection of sand control methods
judging from production rate, sand production
rate, and fluid viscosity.

The allowable sand production depends on field conditions.

Normally, the standard allowable sand production is 10 lbs/1000 bbl
for oil and 2 lbs/day per well for gas wells. The erosion due to sand
production does not induce a sudden explosion. Normally, some
leakage starts around wellheads so that the problem can be fixed
without inducing accidents. However, if the leak occurs frequently,
the best method is to reduce the sand production rate causing
erosion.
 FIGURE 2 Allowable sand production depends on
field condition.

The selection of sand control methods varies between companies.

Some companies have confidence in the benefits of gravel packing,
so field engineers tend to gravel pack for most sand-producing wells.
The merit of the gravel pack is that the field engineers do not need to
worry about damages caused to surface facilities from sand
production after completion. The oil production rate may be
significantly reduced after several years due to fine-particle
plugging. But the well can be re-completed by removing the screens
or by side-tracking. Normally, if the permeability is less than 100
md, the gravel pack damage due to fine-plugging does not cause
significant flow reduction. Having said that, the fact remains that the
skin may increase to 4–6 but without significantly reducing the oil
rate. On the other hand, some companies have confidence in the
benefits of rock mechanics. Most reservoirs are significantly
heterogeneous. If one section is strong, then another section may be
weak. The field engineers can measure the distribution of rock
strength using cores such that if the weak intervals are short, the
production rate is not reduced without perforating the weak
intervals. Again, if the rock has medium strength, then sand
production may occur after two-thirds of the reservoir life. The oil
production rate is reduced, and it no longer damages the surface
facilities. The skin will become negative due to some sand
production which enhances the oil production. Because the skin
becomes negative after some sand production, some companies
choose to use heavy-duty production facilities to tolerate a high sand
rate. If the erosion rate of facilities is monitored, then the benefits
ensuing from enhanced oil and gas production often overweigh the
trouble of sand production problems.

FIGURE 3 Applications of sand control methods

vary between companies for gas and light oil
reservoirs.

In oil and gas industries, injection wells are essential to maintain

the reservoir pressure and to sweep oil and gas with water and CO2.
CO2 is injected and stored underground in CCS industries.
Wastewater and contaminated water are injected and stored in
highly porous layers in wastewater management companies.
Injection wells are normally completed with perforations or a slotted
liner for a strong formation and with metal woven screens or gravel
packs. The injectivity of these wells is initially good, as expected.
However, as injection continues, the wells are sometimes shut in for
various reasons. Each time the well is shut in, the injectivity declines
when the well injection restarts. The main reason for the reduction of
injectivity is fine plugging during the well shut-in. The problem
starts with the fact that the formations are heterogeneous. The
permeability and the storage capability are different between layers.
Thus, when the well is shut in, the fluid flows from the layers with a
higher storage capacity to those with a lower storage capacity. Given
formation and screen plugging occur during the fluid movement, it
follows that a certain section of the perforations and open holes may
also become unstable during injection due to the reduced tangential
effective stress around them. However, these sections also produce
fines resulting in a fine-plugging problem in the formation during
injection without well shutting-in.

FIGURE 4 Cross flow during well shut-in.

This book describes the basic theory of sand production

mechanism and rock formation and screen plugging problems. It
explains the methods of forecasting the onset of sand production
and sand rate based on laboratory experiments and numerical
models. Various completion methods are described to mitigate sand
production problems which the author of this book has practical
experience of implementing while working in oil industries as a
research fellow and consultant.
Most of the pages in this book have one figure without detailed
explanations so that readers can interpret the graphs and figures for
their own field applications.
CHAPTER ONE

Fundamental rock mechanics

theory of sand production from
oil and gas reservoirs

Abstract
Fundamental rock mechanics theories are the subject matter of
this chapter. These theories are used for deriving analytical
solutions and numerical solutions for predicting the onset of
sand production. A simple analytical solution is developed
using a set of poro-plasticity-elasticity equations to illustrate the
controlling parameters inducing sand production. Oil
companies normally use the thick wall cylinder tests (TWC
tests) to identify the rock strength of perforation collapse. The
equations used for TWC tests are different between companies,
as is noted here with explanations on how to use these
equations. Since the in situ stress is the primary factor affecting
the onset of sand production, the calculation method of the
change in the in situ stress during reservoir compaction is
described.

Keywords
Stress; strain; displacement; stress-strain relation; equation of
equilibrium; displacement-strain relation; effective stress for
deformation; effective stress for failure; plane stress and strain
problems; analytical solution of incline well displacement and stress;
thick wall cylinder test; triaxial perforation stability test; nonlinear
stress strain; analytical solution of perforation stability; stress state
during compaction
This chapter describes the fundamental rock mechanics theories
controlling the sand production and the in situ stress change during
oil and gas production. Knowledge of the basic theories deepens the
understanding of sand production mechanism.

1.1 Linear elasticity theory

1.1.1 Stress
Force is a vector. It can be split between normal and shear forces
across and along a plane as shown in Fig. 1.1. For the structures with
a finite surface, the concept of stress is introduced where the force
divided by the area is the stress. The normal stress is the normal
force divided by the area and the shear stress is the shear force
divide by the area. For beam objects, forces and moments are used
since they have no area.

(1.1)

(1.2)

(1.3)
 FIGURE 1.1 Force vector.

For 3D object (finite surface area)

For beam object (infinitely small surface area, infinitely thin)

1.1.2 Stress components

Consider a cube (Fig. 1.2). The faces perpendicular to x-coordinate
are called x-faces. Similarly, y-face and z-face are the faces in
perpendicular direction to the y and z coordinates. On the x-face, the
stress has three components in x,y, and z directions. The normal
component is and the shear components are and . The first
subscript shows the x-face and the second subscript shows the
directions y and z. The normal stress is written as for simplicity.
Similarly, on y-face, the stress components are , and and, for z-
face, they are , , and .

FIGURE 1.2Stress components in a three-

dimensional object.

1.1.3 Strain components

If stress is applied on a structure, it deforms. The intensity of
deformation is expressed by the strain. Two types of deformations
are induced: normal and angular strains. Normal strain is the
deformation in x, y and z directions divided by the length for each
direction and the angular strain is the angular deformation between
xy, yz, and zx faces (Fig. 1.3). The angular deformation is expressed
by . However, for the convenience of computation, the
definition by is also used if the equations are expressed
by tensor notations. For beam analysis, the displacements and
angular deformations are directly used instead of the strains.

(1.4)

(1.5)

(1.6)
 FIGURE 1.3 Strains.

For 3D object (finite surface area)

For beam object (infinitely small surface area, thin)

1.1.4 Displacements
Suppose a structure is moving while deforming. Every point in the
structure moves in different directions. If the points move in parallel
with the same velocity, the movement is called “rigid body
movement.” The movement of a point from the original coordinate is
called displacements expressed by u, v, and w. Consider a square
structure in Fig. 1.4.
 FIGURE 1.4 Displacements.

Normal strain in x direction is calculated as follows:

(1.7)

The angular deformation between x and y planes is calculated as

follows:

(1.8)
 (1.9)

(1.10)

1.1.5 Symmetry of stress components

Consider the moment around a square structure with and width
w as shown in Fig. 1.5. The moment around the center must be
canceled if the structure does not rotate. Then, we have:

(1.11)
 FIGURE 1.5 Moment around the center of a square
structure.

Therefore, .
It shows that the stress components are symmetric.

1.1.6 Number of unknowns

For elasticity problems, we have nine components of stress. But
because of the symmetry, the number of unknowns are reduced to
six. The number of strain components are six and the number of
displacements are three. Therefore, the total number of variables are
15 for elasticity problems. Since we have 15 unknown variables, 15
equations are required for relating all these variables.

Nine stress components:

– x-plane toward x,y,z coordinate directions.

Six independent components:

By symmetry: .

Six independent strain components:

Three independent displacements:

1.1.7 Displacement strain relation

If the movements of points in a domain are not parallel nor do the
velocities move the same, the material expands and shrinks along
x,y, and z coordinates and in angular directions. The magnitudes are
called strains. Six equations are derived between displacements and
strains.

(1.12)

(1.13)

(1.14)

(1.15)

(1.16)

(1.17)

1.1.8 Equation of equilibrium (Fig. 1.6)

The forces in the x direction for a cubic body are given by:
 FIGURE 1.6 Forces in x direction acting on each
surface.

Body force:
The sum of the forces is zero if they are in equilibrium. Then, the
following equilibrium equation holds in the x direction.

(1.18)
Similarly for y and z directions, the equations of equilibrium can
be derived.

(1.19)

1.1.9 Stress-strain relation for isotropic linear

elasticity
If a normal stress is applied in the z direction, a structure shrinks in
the z direction and expands in the lateral direction. The strain in the
vertical direction is proportional to and the proportional constant
is called Young’s modulus.

The ratio of the deformations in lateral and vertical directions is

the Poisson’s ratio denoted by ν.

If a shear stress is applied, the angular deformation becomes

proportionally larger (Fig. 1.7). The proportional coefficient is called
the shear modulus.
 FIGURE 1.7 Linear stress-strain relation.

In three dimension, we have the following stress-strain relations.

(1.20)

1.1.10 Surface traction versus stress

The stress applied on a boundary surface is in equilibrium with the
internal stress. Suppose a tetrahedral body is considered as shown in
Fig. 1.8 where the lengths of the three peripheries are given by , ,
and . The directional cosines of the surface are given by
and the body force are given by . The triangular surface is
and the volume of the body is . The acceleration and the
density are and .
 FIGURE 1.8 Surface traction versus stress.

Then, Force equilibrium in i-direction:

where . If approaches zero, then,

(1.21)

This equation relates internal stress to the surface stress. We have

now 18 variables and 18 equations so that if the boundary conditions
are given, the system of equations may give a solution.
 (1.22)

1.1.11 Boundary conditions

The boundary conditions are specified with respect to displacements
and/or surface tractions. The mixture of the boundary conditions is
also possible. If only the displacements and stresses are the
boundary conditions, then the fifteen fundamental elasticity
equations are required. They are the six displacement strain
relations, the six stress-strain relations, and the three equations of
equilibrium. If the surface traction is included in the boundary
conditions, then the eighteen fundamental equations are required
adding the relation of surface traction and stress.

The following boundary conditions are often specified.

(a) The displacements are fixed:

(b) The displacement is fixed in a direction perpendicular to the

boundary surface:

(c) Pressure is applied on the boundary surface:

(d) Shear stress is applied in a certain direction:

1.1.12 Effective stress for deformation
Several definitions exist for effective stress. Depending on
applications, a suitable effective stress definition must be used.
However, if it is applied to analyze structure stability problems, the
Terzhagi’s effective stress concept is the most convenient form since
the effective stress for deformation and the effective stress for failure
have approximately the same form. Suppose a hydrostatic pressure
is applied through liquid on a granular material. The stress
is applied everywhere within the solid as shown in Fig.
1.9 and, then, the strain induced by the hydrostatic stress is given by:

where and are matrix elastic moduli.

 FIGURE 1.9 Stress-strain for porous media.

Now, let’s apply external stress without changing the pore

pressure. Then, the additional stresses are given by:

The above stresses are called effective stresses. Note that the
compressive stress is negative in this book. If the compressive stress
were positive, then the sign in front of p would have become minus.
With the effective stress, the grain shape changes where the external
stresses are transmitted through the grain-grain contact points. The
bulk stress-strain relation is given with the following equations:
 Then, superposing these two strains, the stress-strain relation for
porous media is given by:

(1.23)

1.1.13 Effective stress for failure

Consider now a rock sample with strength 100 psi. If you drop the
rock at 10,000 ft in a deep ocean where the pressure is 4300 psi, then
given the rock is permeable, it follows that if you apply
approximately 100 psi, the rock will break (Fig. 1.10). On the other
hand, the sample with an impermeable jacket requires
approximately 4300+100 psi to break. This is the concept of the
effective stress for failure. Strictly, the effective stress of failure is
defined by:

(1.24)

where for the standard sedimentary rock. Note that you

may make an artificial rock with η=0.6 or 1.3. However, since most of
the pores are connected for natural sedimentary rocks, the
experiments have shown η~1. Therefore, the Terzhagi’s effective
stresses have the same form for both deformation and failure,
respectively. Note that the effective stress defined by Biot is given
by:
which is convenient to apply the stress on fluid and solid separately.
Therefore, it is used for wave propagation problems. The Nur’s
effective stress is given by where α is Biot coefficient,
which is also convenient for linear elasticity problems since the
stress-strain relation is expressed only by the effective stress without
pore pressure terms.

FIGURE 1.10 Effective stress for failure.

1.1.14 Tensor form of the fundamental elasticity
equations
The basic elasticity problem consists of 15 equations. The expressions
of the equations must be simplified for derivations of other form of
elasticity equations. Especially, the transforming of the variables
from one coordinate to another is simplified using the tensor
notation.

1.1.14.1 Tensor notation or index notation

The following rule is applied to the tensor expression.

• The vector of order one in three-dimensional space is

expressed by or where the subscript i implies 1,2,3.
• A vector of order two in three dimension is expressed by
or , where ij implies 1,2,3.
• If the same subscript appears twice in the same term, the
subscripts imply summation without a summation symbol.

Examples:
is the Kronecker delta which means for i=j, and for

• The comma implies partial differentiation, for example,

implies:

These variables are related with the following 18 equations.

(1.25)
 (1.26)

Stress-strain relation for poro-elasticity problems:

(1.27)

where

(1.28)

1.1.15 Cylindrical coordinate

Strain displacement relation:

(1.29)

Equation of equilibrium:

(1.30)

Stress-strain relation:
Using the effective stresses, , the stress-strain relation is
derived (Fig. 1.11).

(1.31)
 FIGURE 1.11 Cylindrical coordinate.

1.1.16 Spherical coordinate

The relation between the spherical coordinate and the Cartesian
coordinate is given by:
, ,
Transforming the equation of equilibrium gives,

(1.32)
The strain deformation relation is given by:

(1.33)

The stress-strain relation is given by:

(1.34)

Fig. 1.12.
 FIGURE 1.12 Spherical coordinate.

1.1.17 Elasticity constants

Since the stress-strain relation of the isotropic linear elasticity is
defined as the following three equations, the coefficients of each
equation is related.

(1.35)
 (1.36)

(1.37)

In above equation G=μ.

1.1.18 2D problems
If a structure is long, and a uniform stress is applied in the
perpendicular direction to the structure boundary, the displacement
in each section is expressed with a function of x and y. It is called as
a plane strain problem. The displacement is expressed by:

Therefore, the stress and strain are also expressed only by x and y
functions.

If a uniform shear stress is applied on the boundary, each plane is

no longer a plane. However, the displacement can still be a function
of x and y. It is called a general plane problem.

If a structure is very thin, the displacements u,v are expressed with

a function of x and y without z. Since the structure is very thin, the
surface stress in the z direction is set to zero.
 For a finite thin structure, the average displacement, stress, and
strain are used (Fig. 1.13).

FIGURE 1.13 Plane strain and plane stress

problems.

1.1.19 Eight elasticity equations for plane strain

problems
For plane strain problems, the fifteen fundamental elasticity
equations are reduced to eight equations.
Equation of equilibrium:
 (1.38)

Eliminating the differential terms in the z direction from the strain

displacement relation gives:

(1.39)

and w(x,y)=constant implies . Setting , and eliminating the

stress in the axial direction, the stress-strain relation becomes:

(1.40)

Thus, the following stress-strain equations are obtained for a plane

strain problem:

(1.41)

Where is the Biot coefficient.

1.1.20 Eight elasticity equations for plane stress

problems
For plane stress problems, the fifteen fundamental elasticity
equations are reduced to eight equations.

Equation of equilibrium:

(1.42)

Eliminating the differential terms in the z direction from the

strain displacement relation gives:

(1.43)

For plane stress problems, , then,

(1.44)

Thus, the following stress-strain equations are obtained for a

plane strain problem:

(1.45)

1.2 Finding analytical solutions useful for

petroleum engineers
The fundamental elasticity equations are solved with two methods:
displacement method and stress method.
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{60}
The city of Winnipeg appealed to the Privy Council, and that
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already quoted says: 'An appeal shall lie to the
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and expressly declared to be so on the ground that it had not
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the time of the Union, how could there be an appeal from it? …
The Governor-General, however, consented to refer the question
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"Still the undaunted Archbishop of St. Boniface went on, and

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be held exempt from all payments towards the support of any
other schools. In a word, the Governor-General and Sir
Mackenzie Bowell's Administration, exercising, as it were,
appellate jurisdiction, decided that the minority were
entitled to all they claimed. The Government of Manitoba,
however, had hardened their hearts against the minority in the
province, and refused to obey the remedial Order. …

"The refusal of the provincial Government 'to accept the

responsibility of carrying into effect the terms of the
remedial Order' for the first time brought the Parliament of
Canada into the field, and empowered them to pass coercive
legislation. A remedial Bill was accordingly, after an
inexplicable delay, brought into the Federal Parliament to
enforce the remedial Order. … The Cabinet recognised that the
Federal Parliament had no power to spend the money of the
province, and so all they could do was to exempt the minority
from the obligation to contribute to the support of schools
other than their own. The Bill bristled with legal and
constitutional difficulties; it concerned the coercion of a
province; it contained no less than 116 clauses; it was
introduced on the 2nd of March 1896, when all Canada knew that
the life of the Federal Parliament must necessarily expire on
the 24th of April. Some fifteen clauses had been considered
 when the Government admitted, what all men saw, the
impossibility of the task, and abandoned the Bill. … While the
fate of the remedial Bill was still undecided, Sir Donald
Smith and two others were commissioned by the Federal
Government to go to Winnipeg and see if by direct negotiations
some sort of tolerable terms could be arranged. … Sir Donald
Smith proposed that the principle of the separate school
should be admitted wherever there were a reasonable number of
Catholic children—thus, wherever in towns and villages there
are twenty-five Catholic children of school age, and in
cities where there are fifty such children, they should have
'a school-house or school-room for their own use,' with a
Catholic teacher. … In the event the negotiations failed; the
baffled Commissioners returned to Ottawa, and on the 24th of
April 1896 Parliament was dissolved. The Government went to
the country upon the policy of the abandoned Bill. On the
other hand, many of the followers of Mr. Laurier in the
province of Quebec pledged themselves to see justice done to
the Catholics of Manitoba, and let it be understood that they
objected to the remedial Bill only because it was not likely
to prove effective in the face of the combined hostility of
the legislature and the municipalities of the province. …
Catholic Quebec gave Mr. Laurier his majority at Ottawa. …

{61}

"When the Liberal party for the first time for eighteen years
found itself in power at Ottawa, Mr. Laurier at once opened
negotiations with Manitoba. The result was a settlement which,
although it might work well in particular districts, could not be
accepted as satisfactory by the Catholic authorities. It arranged
that where in towns and cities the average attendance of
Catholic children was forty or upwards, and in villages and
rural districts the average attendance of such children was
twenty-five or upwards, one Catholic teacher should be
employed. There were various other provisions, but that was
the central concession. … Leo the Thirteenth, recognising the
 difficulties which beset Mr. Laurier's path, mindful, perhaps,
also that it is not always easy immediately to resume friendly
conference with those who have just done their best to defeat
you, has sent to Canada an Apostolic Commissioner."

J. G. Snead Cox,
Mr. Laurier and Manitoba
(Nineteenth Century, April, 1897).

CANADA: A. D. 1895.
Northern territories formed into provisional districts.

"The unorganized and unnamed portion of the Dominion this year

was set apart into provisional districts. The territory east of
Hudson's Bay, having the province of Quebec on the south and
the Atlantic on the east, was to be hereafter known as Ungava.
The territory embraced in the islands of the Arctic Sea was to
be known as Franklin, the Mackenzie River region as Mackenzie,
and the Pacific coast territory lying north of British
Columbia and west of Mackenzie as Yukon. The extent of Ungava
and Franklin was undefined. Mackenzie would cover 538,600
square miles, and Yukon 225,000 square miles, in addition to
143,500 square miles added to Athabasca and 470,000 to
Keewatin. The total area of the Dominion was estimated at
3,456,383 square miles."

The Annual Register, 1895,

page 391.

CANADA: A. D. 1895.
Negotiations with Newfoundland.

Negotiations for the entrance of Newfoundland into the

federation of the Dominion of Canada proved ineffectual and
were abandoned in May. The island province refused the terms
proposed.
CANADA: A. D. 1896 (June-July).
Liberal triumph in Parliamentary elections.
Formation of Ministry by Sir Wilfred Laurier.

General elections held in Canada on the 23d of June, 1896,

gave the Liberal Party 113 seats out of 213 in the Dominion
House of Commons; the Conservatives securing 88, and the
Patrons of Industry and other Independents 12. Much to the
general surprise, the scale was turned in favor of the
Liberals by the vote of the province of Quebec,
notwithstanding the Manitoba school question, on which
clerical influence in the Roman church was ranged against that
party. The effect of the election was to call the Liberal
leader, Sir Wilfred Laurier, of Quebec, to the head of the
government, the Conservative Ministry, under Sir Charles
Tupper, retiring on the 8th of July.

CANADA: A. D. 1896-1897.
Policy of the Liberal Government.
Revision of the tariff, with discriminating duties
in favor of Great Britain, and provisions for reciprocity.

"The position of the Canadian Liberals, when they came into

power after the General Election of 1896, was not unlike that
of the English Liberals after the General Election of 1892.
Both Liberal parties had lists of reforms to which they were
committed. The English measures were in the Newcastle
Programme. Those of the Canadian Liberals were embodied in the
Ottawa Programme, which was formulated at a convention held at
the Dominion Capital in 1893. … A large part of the Ottawa
Programme was set out in the speech which the Governor-General
read in the Senate when the session of 1897 commenced. There was
then promised a measure for the revision of the tariff; a bill
providing for the extension of the Intercolonial railway from
Levis to Montreal; a bill repealing the Dominion Franchise Act
and abolishing the costly system of registration which goes
with it; and a measure providing for the plebiscite on the
Prohibition question. Neither of these last two measures was
carried through Parliament. Both had to be postponed to
another session; and the session of 1897 was devoted, so far
as legislation went, chiefly to the tariff, and to bills, none
of which were promised in the Speech from the Throne, in
retaliation for the United States Contract Labor Laws, and the
new United States tariff. …

"The new tariff was a departure from the tariffs of the

Conservative regime in only one important direction.
Protective duties heretofore had been levied on imports from
England, in the same way as on imports from the United States
or any other country. The 'National Policy' had allowed of no
preferences for England; and during the long period of
Conservative rule, when the Conservatives were supported by
the Canadian manufacturers in much the same way as the
Republican party in the United States is supported by the
manufacturing interests, the Canadian manufacturers had been
as insistent for adequate protection against English-made
goods, as against manufactured articles from the United States
or Germany. The Conservative party had continuously claimed a
monopoly of loyalty to England; but in its tariffs had never
dared to make any concession in favour of English goods. In
the new tariff, preferences for England were established; and
with these openings in favour of imports from Great Britain,
there came a specific warning from the Minister of Finance
that Canadian manufacturers must not regard themselves as
possessing a vested interest in the continuance of the
protective system. …

"When the Minister of Finance laid the tariff before the House
of Commons, he declared that the 'National Policy,' as it had
been tried for eighteen years, was a failure; and … claimed
that lowering the tariff wall against England was a step in
the direction of a tariff 'based not upon the protective
system but upon the requirements of the public service.'
During the first fifteen months of the new tariff, the
 concession to England consists of a reduction by one-eighth of
the duties chargeable under the general list. At the end of
that time, that is on the last of July, 1898, the reduction
will be one-fourth. The reductions do not apply to wines, malt
liquors, spirits and tobacco, the taxes on which are
essentially for revenue. While England was admitted at once to
the advantages of the reduced tariff, this tariff is not to be
applicable to England alone. In July, it was extended to the
products of New South Wales, the free-trade colony of the
British Australasian group; and any country can come within
its provisions whose government can satisfy the Comptroller of
Customs at Ottawa, that it is offering favourable treatment to
Canadian exports, and is affording them as easy an entrance
through its customs houses as the Canadians give by means of
the reciprocal tariff. It is also possible, under a later
amendment to the Tariff Act, for the Governor in Council to
extend the benefits of the reciprocal tariff to any country
entitled thereto by virtue of a treaty with Great Britain.
{62}
Numerous alterations were made in the general list of import
duties. Some of these involved higher rates; others lowered
the duties. But if the changes in the fiscal system had been
confined to these variations, the new tariff would not have
been noteworthy, and it would have fulfilled few of the
pledges made by the Liberals when they were in Opposition. It
owes its chief importance to the establishment of an inner
tariff in the interests of countries which deal favourably
with Canada."

E. Porritt,
The New Administration in Canada
(Yale Review, August, 1897).

CANADA: A. D. 1897 (June-July).

Conference of colonial premiers with
the British Colonial Secretary.
 See (in this volume)
ENGLAND: A. D. 1897 (JUNE-JULY).

CANADA: A. D. 1897 (October).

Self-government for the Northwestern Territories.

By an Act passed in October, a system of self-government,

going far towards the full powers of a provincial government,
but having some limitations, was provided for the Northwest
Territories.

CANADA: A. D. 1898 (January).

Encyclical Letter of the Pope on the Manitoba School Question.

On the report made by his delegate, Monsignor Merry del Val,

Pope Leo XIII. addressed an encyclical letter to the Roman
Church in Canada, concerning the duty of Catholics in the
matter of the Manitoba schools (see above: A. D. 1890-1896),
which was made public at Quebec on the 9th of January, 1898.
The letter has great general importance, as defining with
precision the attitude of the Church towards all secular
school systems. With a few unessential passages it is given in
what follows:

"It was with extreme solicitude," wrote the Pope, "that we

turned our mind to the unhappy events which in these later
years have marked the history of Catholic education in
Manitoba. … And since many expected that we should make a
pronouncement on the question, and asked that we should trace
a line of conduct and a way to be followed, we did not wish to
decide anything on this subject before our Apostolic delegate
had been on the spot, charged to proceed to a serious
examination of the situation, and to give an account to us of
the state of affairs. He has faithfully and diligently
fulfilled the command which we had given him. The question
agitated is one of great and exceptional importance. We speak
of the decision taken seven years ago by the parliament of
Manitoba on the subject of education. The act of Confederation
had secured to Catholic children the right of education in public
schools in keeping with their conscientious convictions. The
parliament of Manitoba abolished this right by contrary law.
By this latter law a grave injury was inflicted, for it was
not lawful for our children to seek the benefits of education
in schools in which the Catholic religion is ignored or
actively combated, in schools where its doctrine is despised
and its fundamental principles repudiated. If the Church has
anywhere permitted this, it was only with great reluctance and
in self-defense, and after having taken many precautions,
which, however, have too often been found unequal to parrying
the danger. In like manner one must at all cost avoid, as most
pernicious, those schools wherein every form of belief is
indifferently admitted and placed on an equal footing—as if in
what regards God and Divine things, it was of no importance
whether one believed rightly or wrongly, whether one followed
truth or falsehood. You well know, venerable brothers, that
all schools of this kind have been condemned by the Church,
because there can be nothing more pernicious nor more fitted
to injure the integrity of faith and to turn away the tender
minds of youth from the truth. … For the Catholic there is but
one true religion, the Catholic religion; hence in all that
concerns doctrine, or morality, or religion, he cannot accept
or recognize anything which is not drawn from the very sources
of Catholic teaching. Justice and reason demand, then, that
our children have in their schools not only scientific
instruction but also moral teachings in harmony, as we have
already said, with the principles of their religion, teachings
without which all education will be not only fruitless but
absolutely pernicious. Hence the necessity of having Catholic
teachers, reading books, and textbooks approved of by the
bishops, and liberty to organize the schools, that the
teaching therein shall be in full accord with Catholic faith
as well as with all the duties that flow therefrom. For the
rest, to decide in what institutions their children shall be
instructed, who shall be their teachers of morality, is a
right inherent to parental authority. When, then, Catholics
demand, and it is their duty to demand, and to strive to
obtain, that the teaching of the masters shall be in
conformity with the religion of their children, they are only
making use of their right; and there can be nothing more
unjust than to force on them the alternative of allowing their
children to grow up in ignorance, or to expose them to
manifest danger in what concerns the supreme interests of
their souls. It is not right to call in doubt or to abandon in
any way these principles of judging and acting which are
founded on truth and justice, and which are the safe-guards
both of public and private interests. Therefore, when the new
law in Manitoba struck a blow at Catholic education, it was
your duty, venerable brothers, to freely protest against the
injury and disaster inflicted; and the way in which you all
fulfilled that duty is a proof of your common vigilance, and
of a spirit truly worthy of bishops; and, although each one of
you will find on this point a sufficient approbation in the
testimony of his own conscience, learn, nevertheless, that you
have also our conscience and our approbation, for the things
which you sought and still seek to protect and defend are most
sacred. The difficulties created by the law of which we speak by
their very nature showed that an alleviation was to be sought
for in a united effort. For so worthy was the Catholic cause
that all good and upright citizens, without distinction of
party, should have banded themselves together in a close union
to uphold it. Unfortunately for the success of this cause, the
contrary took place. What is more deplorable still, is that
Catholic Canadians themselves failed to unite as they should
in defending those interests which are of such importance to
all—the importance and gravity of which should have stilled
the voice of party politics, which are of much less
importance. We are not unaware that something has been done to
amend that law. The men who are at the head of the federal
government and of the Province of Manitoba have already taken
certain measures with a view to decreasing the difficulties of
which the Catholics of Manitoba complain, and against which
 they rightly continue to protest.
{63}
We have no reason to doubt that these measures were taken from
love of justice and from a laudable motive. We cannot, however,
dissimulate the truth; the law which they have passed to
repair the injury is defective, unsuitable, insufficient. The
Catholics ask—and no one can deny that they justly ask—for
much more. Moreover, in the remedial measures that have been
proposed there is this defect, that in changes of local
circumstances they may easily become valueless. In a word, the
rights of Catholics and the education of their children have
not been sufficiently provided for in Manitoba. Everything in
this question demands, and is conformable to justice, that
they should be thoroughly provided for, that is, by placing in
security and surrounding with due safe-guards those
unchangeable and sacred principles of which we have spoken
above. This should be the aim, this the end to be zealously
and prudently sought for. Nothing can be more injurious to the
attainment of this end than discord; unity of spirit and
harmony of action are most necessary. Nevertheless since, as
frequently happens in things of this nature, there is not only
one fixed and determined but various ways of arriving at the
end which is proposed and which should be obtained, it follows
that there may be various opinions equally good and
advantageous. Wherefore let each and all be mindful of the
rules of moderation, and gentleness, and mutual charity; let
no one fail in the respect that is due to another; but let all
resolve in fraternal unanimity, and not without your advice,
to do that which the circumstances require and which appears
best to be done. As regards especially the Catholics of
Manitoba, we have every confidence that with God's help they
will succeed in obtaining full satisfaction. This hope is
founded, in the first place, in the righteousness of the
cause, next in the sense of justice and prudence of the men at
the head of the government, and finally in the good-will of all
upright men in Canada. In the meantime, until they are able to
obtain their full rights, let them not refuse partial
 satisfaction. If, therefore, anything is granted by law to
custom, or the good-will of men, which will render the evil
more tolerable and the dangers more remote, it is expedient
and useful to make use of such concessions, and to derive
therefrom as much benefit and advantage as possible. Where,
however, no remedy can be found for the evil, we must exhort
and beseech that it be provided against by the liberality and
munificence of their contributions, for no one can do anything
more salutary for himself or more conducive to the prosperity
of his country, than to contribute, according to his means, to
the maintenance of these schools. There is another point which
appeals to your common solicitude, namely, that by your
authority, and with the assistance of those who direct
educational institutions, an accurate and suitable curriculum
of studies be established, and that it be especially provided
that no one shall be permitted to teach who is not amply
endowed with all the necessary qualities, natural and
acquired, for it is only right that Catholic schools should be
able to compete in bearing, culture, and scholarship with the
best in the country. As concerns intellectual culture and the
progress of civilization, one can only recognize as
praiseworthy and noble the desire of the provinces of Canada
to develop public instruction, and to raise its standard more
and more, in order that it may daily become higher and more
perfect. Now there is no kind of knowledge, no perfection of
learning, which cannot be fully harmonized with Catholic
doctrine."

CANADA: A. D. 1898 (September).

Popular vote on the question of Prohibition.

Pursuant to a law passed by the Dominion Parliament the

previous June, a vote of the people in all the Provinces of
the Dominion was taken, on the 29th of September, 1898, upon
the following question: "Are you in favor of the passing of an
act prohibiting the importation, manufacture or sale of
spirits, wine, ale, beer, cider, and all other alcoholic
 liquors for use as beverages?" The submitting of this question
to a direct vote of the people was a proceeding not quite
analogous to the Swiss Referendum, since it decided the fate
of no pending law; nor did it imitate the popular Initiative
of Swiss legislation, since the result carried no mandate to
the government. It was more in the nature of a French
Plébiscite, and many called it by that name; but no Plebiscite
in France ever drew so real an expression of popular opinion
on a question so fully discussed. The result of the voting was
a majority for prohibition in every Province except Quebec,
Ontario pronouncing for it by more than 39,000, Nova Scotia by
more than 29,000, New Brunswick by more than 17,000, Manitoba
by more than 9,000, Prince Edward's Island by more than 8,000,
and the Northwest Territories by more than 3,000, while
British Columbia gave a small majority of less than 600 on the
same side. Quebec, on the other hand, shouted a loud "No" to
the question, by 93,000 majority. The net majority in favor of
Prohibition was 107,000. The total of votes polled on the
question was 540,000. This was less than 44 per cent of the
total registration of voters; hence the vote for Prohibition
represented only about 23 per cent of the electorate, which
the government considered to offer too small a support for the
measure asked for.

CANADA: A. D. 1898-1899.
The Joint High Commission for settlement of all unsettled
questions between Canada and the United States.

As the outcome of negotiations opened at Washington in the

previous autumn by the Canadian Premier, relative to the
seal-killing controversy, an agreement between Great Britain,
Canada and the United States was concluded on the 30th of May,
1898, for the creation of a Joint High Commission to negotiate
a treaty, if possible, by which all existing subjects of
controversy between the United States and Canada should be
settled with finality. Appointments to the Commission by the
three governments were made soon afterwards, Great Britain
 being represented by the Lord High Chancellor, Baron
Herschell; Canada by Sir Wilfred Laurier, Premier, Sir Richard
Cartwright, Minister of Trade and Commerce, and Sir Louis
Henry Davies, Minister of Marine and Fisheries; the United
States by Honorable John W. Foster, ex-Secretary of State,
Senator Charles W. Fairbanks, Senator George Gray,
Representative Nelson Dingley, and the Honorable John A.
Kasson, Reciprocity Commissioner. Senator Gray having been
subsequently appointed on the Commission to negotiate peace
with Spain, his place on the Anglo-American Commission was
taken by Senator Faulkner.
{64}
The Joint Commission sat first in Quebec and later in
Washington. Among the questions referred to it were those
relating to the establishment of the boundary between Alaska
and British Columbia; the issues over Bering Sea and the catch
of fur seals; the unmarked boundary between Canada and the
United States near Passamaqnoddy Bay in Maine and at points
between Wisconsin and Minnesota and Canada; the northeast
fisheries question, involving the rights of fishing in the
North Atlantic off Newfoundland and other points; the
regulation of the fishing rights on the Great Lakes;
alien-labor immigration across the Canadian-American border;
commercial reciprocity between the two countries; the
regulation of the bonding system by which goods are carried in
bond across the frontier and also the regulation of traffic by
international railways and canals of the two countries;
reciprocal mining privileges in the Klondyke, British North
America and other points; wrecking and salvage on the ocean
and Great Lakes coasting waters; the modification of the
treaty arrangement under which only one war vessel can be
maintained on the Great Lakes, with a view to allowing
warships to be built on the lakes and then floated out to the
ocean. The sessions of the Joint Commission were continued at
intervals until February, 1899, when it adjourned to meet at
Quebec in the following August, unless further adjournment
should be agreed upon by the several chairmen. Such further
 adjournment was made, and the labors of the Joint Commission
were indefinitely suspended, for reasons which the President
of the United States explained in his Message to Congress,
December, 1899, as follows: "Much progress had been made by
the Commission toward the adjustment of many of these
questions, when it became apparent that an irreconcilable
difference of views was entertained respecting the
delimitation of the Alaskan boundary. In the failure of an
agreement as to the meaning of articles 3 and 4 of the treaty
of 1825 between Russia and Great Britain, which defined the
boundary between Alaska and Canada, the American Commissioners
proposed that the subject of the boundary be laid aside and
that the remaining questions of difference be proceeded with,
some of which were so far advanced as to assure the
probability of a settlement. This being declined by the
British Commissioners, an adjournment was taken until the
boundary should be adjusted by the two Governments. The
subject has been receiving the careful attention which its
importance demands, with the result that a modus vivendi for
provisional demarcations in the region about the head of Lynn
Canal has been agreed upon [see (in this volume) ALASKA
BOUNDARY QUESTION] and it is hoped that the negotiations now
in progress between the two Governments will end in an
agreement for the establishment and delimitation of a
permanent boundary."

CANADA: A. D. 1899 (October).

Modus Vivendi, fixing provisional boundary line of Alaska.

See (in this volume)

ALASKA BOUNDARY QUESTION.

CANADA: A. D. 1899-1900.
Troops to reinforce the British army in South Africa.

A proposal from the Canadian government to assist that of the

Empire in its South African War was gratefully accepted in the
 early stages of the war, and a regiment of infantry called the
Royal Canadian, numbering a little more than 1,000 men, sailed
from Quebec, October 30. In the following January a second
contingent of more than 1,000 men was sent to the field. This
latter comprised squadrons of mounted rilles and rough-riders,
and three batteries of field artillery. In the same month the
Canadian government accepted an offer from Lord Strathcona to
raise, equip and transport at his own expense a body of 500
mounted men from the Northwest.

CANADA: A. D. 1900 (November).

General election.

The general election of members of the Dominion House of

Commons was held November 7, resulting as follows:

Provinces. Liberal. Conservative.

Independent. Total.

Nova Scotia. 15 5
0 20
New-Brunswick. 9 5
0 14
Prince Edward Island. 3 2
0 5
Quebec. 57 8
0 65
Ontario. 33 54
5 92
Manitoba. 2 3
2 7
Northwest Territories. 2 0
2 4
British Columbia. 3 2
1 6

Totals. 124 79
10 213

As in the election of 1896, the Liberal Ministry of Sir

Wilfred Laurier found its strong support in the province of
Quebec. Its party suffered unexpected losses in Ontario. The
slight meaning of the election was summed up by Professor
Goldwin Smith as follows: "The net result of the elections
seems to be a Government resting on French Quebec and an
Opposition resting on British Ontario. The minor provinces
have been carried, as usual, by local interests rather than on
general questions. Apart from the distinction of race between
the two great provinces and the antagonism, before dormant but
somewhat awakened by the war, there was no question of importance
at issue between the parties. Both concurred in sending
contingents to South Africa. The Liberals, though they went in
at first on the platform of free trade—at least, of a tariff
for revenue only—have practically embraced protection under
the name of stability of the tariff, and are believed to have
received from the protected manufacturers contributions to
their large election fund. The other special principles, such
as the reduction of expenditure and discontinuance of the
bonus to railways, proclaimed by Liberals before the last
election, have been dropped. So has reform of the Senate. It
is not likely that the Liberal victory will be followed by any
change either in legislation or government, or by any special
reform. Mr. Bourassa and Monet, of the French-Canadian members
who protested against the contingent, have been re-elected.
Great as may be the extent and warmth of British feeling, the
statement that Canadians were unanimously in favour of
participation in the war must not be taken without
qualification. For myself, I felt that so little principle was
at stake that I voted for two Conservatives on their personal
merits."
{65}

CANAL, The new Bruges.

See (in this volume)

BRUGES: A. D. 1900.

CANAL, The Chicago Drainage.

See (in this volume)

CHICAGO: A. D. 1900.

CANAL, City of Mexico Drainage.

See (in this volume)

MEXICO: A. D. 1898.

CANAL, The Elbe and Trave.

See (in this volume)

GERMANY: A. D. 1900 (JUNE).

CANAL, Interoceanic, The Project of the: A. D. 1581-1892.

The early inception of the project.
Movements towards its realization.

"The thought of uniting the two great oceans by means of a

canal across the American isthmus sprang up, as is known, from
the moment the conviction was reached that the passage which,
from the days of Columbus, was thought to exist towards the
Southern Sea, was not a reality. … Nevertheless the first
survey of the land was not carried out until the year 1581,
when, in obedience to superior instructions, Captain Antonio
Pereira, Governor of Costa Rica, organized an expedition and
explored the route by way of the San Juan river, the lake, and
the rivers emptying into Gulf Nicoya, Costa Rica. Thirty-nine
years later Diego de Mercado submitted to King Philip III his
famous report of January 23, 1620, suggesting the route by the
river and lake, and thence through Costa Rican territory along
the Quebrada or Barranca Honda to Salinas Bay, then called
Puerto del Papagayo. Either because the magnitude of the
undertaking was at that time superior to the necessities of
trade, or, as was said, because Spain considered the canal
antagonistic to her interests, the era of independence arrived
without the execution of the project ever having been entered
upon. After independence the Congress of Central America, in
which Costa Rica and Nicaragua were represented as States of
the Federation which succeeded the Colonial Government,
enacted on June 16, 1825, a decree providing for the
construction of the canal, and in that same year Don Antonio
José Cañas, Diplomatic Representative of Central America in
Washington, addressed the Secretary of State, Mr. Henry Clay,
informing him of this resolution and stating that: 'A company
formed of American citizens of respectability was ready to
undertake the work as soon as a treaty with the United States
insuring the coöperation of the latter was signed; that he was
ready to enter into negotiations for the treaty, and that
nothing would be more pleasant for Central America than to see
the generous people of the United States joining her in the
opening of the canal, sharing the glory of the enterprise, and
enjoying the great advantages to be derived from it.' The
Government of Central America could not carry the undertaking
into effect, notwithstanding that among the means employed to
reach the desired result there figures the arrangement
concluded with the King of Holland in October, 1830. But,
though the hopes centered in the undertaking were frustrated,
to the honor of Central America the declarations of that
Congress, which constitute, like the concession for the canal
itself, one of the loftiest public documents ever issued by
any nation of the earth, have become a matter of record. The
Central American Federation dissolved, this important matter
attached to Nicaragua and Costa Rica directly, and the
boundary line between the two republics having been determined