The Portland daily press., 1899-03-30
CANADA A GREAT MARKET
For The Manufactured Goods o.
United States.
MR.. OSBORNE HOwES ADDRESS
BEFORE BOARD OF TRADE.

Cons antIy ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Putting Many Canadian Products ON
Free List-Lumber, Ftsi "a nd Coal In-
terests Antagonists TO Reciprocity
Treaty.
Mr.. Osborne Howes of the Boston
Chamber of Commence delivered very
interesting lecture yesterday afternoon
in the rooms of the board of trade to "A
large gathering of business men.
A large map of Canada and the United
States covered one side of the hall and
this often referred to by Mr.. Howes in
the course of his address. MIR. Howes
smoke without notes and showed great
knowledge of his subject. The trade rela-
tions of the United States and Canada
were most carefully explained and facts
and STATISTICS given to pru'e the state
ments made by the speaker. He began
by saying:
'"As representative Of the views of the
Boston Chamber of Commerce, wish to
interest your association in the work OF
securing the freest possible trade relations
with the Dominion of Canada. not mere
ly to induce you to pass resolutions on
tbat subject, but to have the influence Of
your members brought to bear, MS far as
this Is possible, upon your Senators ana
congressman for the purpose OF making
mem realize that You have large
material interest in the success OF this
proposed undertaking. and that it be-
hooves them, rs representing you. to do
all that lies In their power to bring about
tins desited result"
MIR. Howts then went on to speak of the
Latural boundaries between Canauh ana
the United States H said that the Great
Lakes was the only body of water in the
world that separates two countries ana Is
used in common as If IL belonged to both
of them. While Notifications are built
on the Atlantic coast none are constructed
along our Canadian frontier. lie then
spoke Of the growth of trade between
Canada and the United States and of the
increase of trade along the great water
ways Ct the northwest. 1t has been I'M
parallel in the history of the world. The
Sault canal for eight months of the year
which it is open floats twice as much ton
mage as passes through the Suez canal,
although the latter canal is open twelve
months OF the year and is the artery Tor
trade between Europe and India and the
east. About So million tons pasted
through the Detroit river in eight
months, more than enters the com bined
ports of Hamburg Liverpool and New
York. Tie costs for this transportation
of freight by water amounts to twenty six
millions of dollars. III it were trans
ported by rail it would cost one hundred
and sixty millions of dollars. In 1869 the
transportation of wheat from the great
northwest cost sixteen cents bushel.
Last year 1t cost Z IS cents bushel. 70
interests of CANADA and the United States
are the same. The population of Canada
is only five millions against seventy
millions, but these people have the same
Iolitica ideas, religious views ana the
only things which divides them from the
United States is the artificial boundary.
We are all realizing that "a time has ar
rived in our rational development when
for tn. future Welfare of our industries
we must fiud markets for our products
b yond our borders. Whatever different
ecoaomic opinions we may have enter
talneu in the past, we are now substan-
TALLY u reed upon this POINT, which is
the underlying tasis of the expansion
Ioiicy that has recently obtained so
strong hold upou the minds OF the
people of this country. But in teeking
for forsign markets 1t Is well to bear in
mind, IL the effort Is to be of industrial
value. that we can sell only to those who
want what we produce, and, other things
being equal, that the higher tbs range OF
civilization the larger Is tAe demand for
all classes of manulac tured wares This
which we have with the Dominion Of
Canada is compared with that which We
have with other countries OF the Amerl-
can continent. Ne sold last year TO the
people of the Dominion fer their own
consumption nearly 100000, 900 worth or
our products. OF, on per capita ta;is,
about SIS 80 for every man. woman and
child. The'e sales CT the outputs of our
mines, our farms. our workshops and our
factories were approximately the equiva-
lent of the sales that we made during the
same year to all of the people OF Central
and South America. In other words,
while the Canadian people bought OF us
at the rate of SIS. SO per capita, the people
of Central and South America mas yur-
chases on the basis of about 81 per capita.
We have probably pushed our t'Ade in
these southern re ions quite as vigorously
through organizations and Pun Ameri-
can congresses as we have pushed our
tiade in tAe country TO the north Of us;
but the Canadians want what we have to
sell, and, more tnnn this, have the money
to ray for 1t, while the people III Sou n
and Central America DO not in many in
stances care for what we produce, and
even if they did they do not possess the
financial means to supply their wants. A
great c1nsumptive trade cannot te de-
yeloped among a people OF few wants and
small means. The tropical barbarian to
WHOiu EdtuIt litSl1 pio'iuSS looI, -ioth
ing and lodgings, can neye: bscome, until
his state of civilization has been Ievolu-
tionized, IA good customer for the com
modities produced in highly enlightened
community.
Canada's sale to the Unitel States are
mainly OF wood aud lumber fish and
coal. Our sale TO Canada are largely of
manufacture wares which represent the
work of 200, 600 people year. MIR Howes
then discussed the history of the re-
ciproci.y treaty with Canada which be-
came "a law in 1854 and was repeated in
1867. This places large amount Of
articles such as lumber, wheat. fish, etc. +,
ON the free list. The first idea would be
tlat in tnis treaty the American diplo-
mats had bean cheated by tae willy
Canadians. but during the fifteen years
this treaty was in force the Gales OF the
United States to Canada largely Increased
and this was brought about, according t
MIR. Howes by the fact that when
Canadians came over hers to sell goods
they bought our gocds teiore returning
home because our goods wera better than
those obtained in Canada.
Mr.. Howes said that the trouble OF
negotiating reciprocity treaty with