The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1849-01-24


foreign commercials permitted" The second stipulation
regulates the duties 10 be imposed the vessels oil me
contracting parties engaged in that commerce lhe 'hd
regulates Inc duties be paid the importation or ex
Ioraon Of their respective products ADMIT mat ny
The letter of these treaties this bill might Affect our com
meFcial relations under them hui Ihs- tha an com
pacts be construed according 10 lher manies, m
tention not by one stipulation alone but by all which
late 10 the same subject matter; and might apply these
observations with force to my FIRST position and say
that these treaties could have contemplated commercial
relations with colonial dependencies like Canada But
the whole of their stpu!atons shows them TO have
been designed 10 regulate commerce the and not
the interior traffic carried by the inhabitants of conn
tries separated from each other by statistical
boundary astronomical line They are~treatles OF
and navigatonnot OF alone, but OF both
combined.
When this measure was first proposed, | inquired Of
the State and Treasury Departments whether 1t would
affect commercial relations with foreign States under
both in the negative. My examination oil ihe SUD
iect has brought TO the same concuson--w helher
upon the same grounds, do not know. :,
Ii this construction be erroneous; II the privileges
proposed to be conferred Canada will be extended TO
The foreign States referred TO, then repeat we SHALL
the principle become entitled to the privileges OF
the Zoll- Veren. in Prussia and perhaps gam access
for our products through her. to all the other States OF
that political association, comprehendlng tweny-eght
Of the thirty seven States OF the GeHnanc conede-
ration. This would, pr7md fdcie. be an immense al
vantage though it rs not clear that would be oil any
practical benefit. But one dreampt, when our re-
cprocty treaties were formed that they conferred any
such privileges us; and venture to say II will never
any of those States that the proposed arrange
rnent with Canada will confer any new privileges on
them. ~
But if it were otherwise the privileges the bill coners
are reciprocal We concede nothing which we do not gain
in return If Hanover, Prussia, and Meckienburg-
SchweTin should acquire the privileges conferred on
Canada BY this,b we should acquire in respect to them
the privileges the bill confers on u.s. there would be en-
tire reciprocity Our chance OF profng by the arrange
ment would be good theirs The Hanse Towns might
find us few hams but there is scarcely article
enumerated in the bill, which can be brought to us with
advantage from thu States on the German ocean and the
Baltic. We are too distant for agricultural exchanges
Besides, essentially agricultural as they Wheat
isthe only article ke any circumstances to come
here, except in the most mconslderabie quantities In
1887, when flour ten, eleven, and twelve dollars
barrel. received over million OF bushels OF wheat
from Germany not half the quantity we sent in 1917 into
Canada Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick but in the
former year under the influence OF these enormous prices
England herself sent us over seven hundred thousand
bushels, nearly much as Germany and yet she I'M.
ported in ls47 eghty-six millions OF bushels OF
grain But such very rarely occur; and when
they do occur the tendency OF importation IS decidedly
beneficial lis influence is to check prices when they
reach the high point OF extravaganza.
Senators have expressed the apprehension that this
bill passes, shall, under the construction they give to
il, be dengcd with wheat from the Baltic Let us see
how much ground there is for this apprehension On the
Jst of February wheat will pay but one shilling sterling
quarter in Great 'Bnain-about three cents bnshe
She imports from US we export 10 her. The price of
wheat there must therefore, always be much higher
than the price here, when she has deficiency and we
snrpus,s the cost of carrying wheat to her from the
busheE When it is dollar here it isa dollar aud TWEEN
ty cents there Now, let us see what vessel laden with
wheat from the Baltic would De likely to do in such
She must to here, sail directly by the ports OF Great
Britain, where she get dollar and twenty cents
bushe deductng the three cents duty which she must
pay. She gets, then, dollar and seventeen cents Sup
pose she continues her voyage 10 the United States
how will the account stand! Admitting, for the sake
of the argument, that the wheat she brings will come
in free Of duty under our h, h mnt She She
must deduct twenty for cost of transportation from
Great Britain here She will get eighty cents here in
stead of one dollar and seventeen cents England
thirty seven cents less; and this cargo of
era thousand bushels will amount to inconsdera-
bic sum The northern Germans have the reputation OF
being rather easy, but they are far have had the
opportunity of observing them the Yankees Of the CONT
in bargaining; and think they will be found alto
gelhe too asiue to engage in any such enterprises as
we're competition with in supplying England with
wheat; but they just as unlikely to compete with
in our markets TO compete with Newcastle in
Under the construction, therefore, which senator's give
to the BILL am satisfied its operation would be beae
fetal to US to the States with which we have reci
procity treaties.
But contend that these treaties will not be affected by
this arrangement II am mistaken, the privileges we
confer will also be acquired by u.s. and we cannot In any
Let me now turn to considerations which directly con-
the commercial intercourse of Canada and the
United States.
In order TO understand the subject in all its bearings
will be necessary to see what Canada is, and wha, she
has done for in the removal of restrictions upon
commerce with her.
The population Of Canada q use general term as
the two provinces united) is l527,757 souls,
or, in round numbers, million and half. With less
variety and fertility of soil than the United States,
more rigorous climate, and with colonial restrictions cal
cuated under the most favorable view of the subject
to impede the development OF her resources 10 shacse
the operations of industry and TO abrdge the freedom
OF individual enterprise which always the pow
erfu stimulus to exerton, not 10 be expected that
her progress will keep pace with in population
or in social and physical Improvement The policy of
Great Britain has, within few years. undergone some
political view Canada is true, has lost some exclusive
privileges by relaxation of the colonial system of the
mother country, but the latter has extended to her some
facilities by surenderng the control OF the custom
house, so far respects the imposition of duties and
she has also conceded the principle of the responsibility
OF ministers which exists at home, that when the
governor is not sustained in his policy by the provin
cia Parliament he is bound TO change his advisers or
in other words his executive council, which NAV be con-
sidered the ministry of the colony. The Canadian
government is thus assmated to that of Great Britain in
the essential feature of responsibility the popular
volcea concession which has been gained after long
and patient struggle the part Of few able and patriotic
men in Canada,
Almost cotemporaneous with this fundamental change
in the political administration OF the affairs of Canada was
another Of equal importance respect to her commercial
independence In 1916 an act OF Parliament was passed.
giving the legislative authority OF the British colonies the
right TO regulate their duties of customs. respect to
British well foreign products. AT that time there
duties imposed by British acts on British goods
imported into Canada, although there were duties on
foreign goods imposed by such acts; but there were acts
OF the Canadian Legislature made for revenue, imposing
additional or cumulative duties on foreign goods; and
H.. Il H. % -