The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1869-05-11
The BIenacing Attitude OF C.unda.

The men in authority in the Dominion With
one accord assume a defiant and rather ag-
gresslye tone toward the United States just
now. When this country has hardly recov-
cred from Mr. Cats speech in which he pro-
posed making us pay for the Fenian raid, a
resolution is passed recalling licenses issued
to American fishermen and Mr.. Rose, the FL
nance minister, makes a speech in which he
says that the Canadians can "stand it, as
long as the United States can without recipro-
city, but that the latter country need not al
ways expect to enjoy the right of navigating
and taking fish in the Canadian waters, be-
cause Canada has permitted it to do SO since
the expiration of the former treaty. 1t is
true. as Mr.. Rose says, that the United States
can be put to great inconvenience in the mat
ter of the fisheries and the navigation of the
St Lawrence 1t might be Troublesome, per
haps, to carry the proscriptive policy SO far as
to enforce what is known as thet'headlapd
doctrine" with respect to the fisheries.-tbat
is, reckoning the three miles from shore with
in which foreign vessels are not allowed to
fish, from line stretched from headland to
headland-but very serious embarrassments
would result to this country from what Canada
might legitimately do But these hostile
measures favored by the government party in
Canada, are based upon the idea that the Do
minion can afford complete commercial es-
arrangement from the neighboring country,
and that il. can view with indifference
the antagonisms excited by its proposed
policy Mr.. Rose boasts that a COM
MERGE sufficient for Canadian purposes
can be established with other countries
meaning, no doubt the West Indies and
and South America. But meanwhile the
West Indies seem to be gravitating toward
the United States, and perhaps it will not be
many years before greater part of the Islands
will be Incorporated with the Union. Then
Canada will be out in the cold again.
The idea of establishing intimate commercial
relations with remoteYcountries in lieu of the 4
United States began to be acted upon immedi-
ately after the expiration of the old reciproci-
ty. but it has not yet reached so satisfactory
proportions as to wean the Canadians, outside
of government and Tory circles, from a long
ing to return to the natural system of trade
with the United States.
The real state of things in the Dominion is
curiously different from what one would sup
pose from the spirit displayed in the recent
discussions in the Canadian Parliament. 1t
is no secret that the laboring people are emf
grating SO fast as to threaten the absolute de-
population of certain parts of the country. 1t
is acknowledged that emigrants cannot be
kept in the Dominion, unless an impossible
wall is built along the whole frontier. The
general condition of things is described in the
extract from the Montreal Star which we pub
fish elsewhere. But more important than all
else is the fact that the louder the government
and royalist faction boasts and hurls its def
ances at the United States, the louder grow
the whisperiDgs of the annexationists There
is no reason to doubt that if the aggressive
movements of the government are persisted in
with respect to this country such conduct will
only have a tendency to deepen and strengthen
the annexation feeling of the masses. The
prostration of industry and the lack of pros
perity throughout the country will be attrib-
uted, and with much reason, to the alienation
existing between the Dominion and the great
Republic, and the conviction will grow every
day stronger that there can be no permanent
state Of prosperity and no satisfactory gain in
population and wealth for the Provinces till
the destinies Of the two neighbors, divided by
a mere geographical line, are united. The To-
cal uneasiness in Nova Scotia, which the adj
hesion Of Mr.. Howe to the government seems
to have quieted in some degree for the mo-
ment, is mere trife relative to the general
discomfort that is disclosed in the newspapers
and the occasional frank utteranees of indi-
viduals in all parts of the Dominion.