The Portland daily press., 1899-03-24
UNITED STATES AND CANADA.

There has been some very acrimonious
de batting in the Dominion Parliament the
past week over the relations between the
United States ana Canada, with especial
reference to the proceedings OF the joint
high commission. Sir Charles Tuppe.
made the onslaught upon the government
charging it with fooling the country with
preferential duties in favor of England
which were mere sham, and huIniliat-
ing Canada before the joint high conf
mission by listening to proposals In re-
gard ia the ALASKA boundary which were
"dishonorable. Mr.. Topper always
uses language that is very strong even
for "a Canadian statesman, and his attack
upon the government was bitter and
malignant.
The reply OF Sir wilfrid Iaurier, the
premier, was in caliner and more oourte-
Gus vein. He denied that the preferential
tariff was sham, clai ming that since it
had bsen in operation it had increased
trade with great Britain per cent, and
would increase it more In the near future
MIR. Laurier said that TO have ended
the negotiations in regard to the Alaska
boundary, as Sir Charles had suggested,
would have been an affrort 10 Lord
Herschell, the British commissioner He
also pointed out that to impose discrlmi-
mating duties upon articles brought out
of the Klondyke region by Americans as
Sir Charles had suggested, would really
have done Canada the most harm since
for a considerable part of the year the
only outlet from the Klondyke wps b.
way Of the Yukon rivsr which was con
trolled by the Americans.
But the most interesting part OF the
Premi Ter S speech was his frank deelarA-
| ton that the Canadians no longer de-.
sired unrestricted reel procity. Not many
years ago Mr.. Laurier was the apostl1 of
that policy. and even when hs made the
campaign which placed him at the head
of the ministry he based 1t largely upon
| close relations with the United
States. Unrestricted reciprocity up
| to very recent date has been Laurier' s
speciality, SO TO speak, his fad, and he
promised the canadians over and over
again to bring it about il the Liberals
were placed in honor. He has seen a new
| ght now, however. Tho Canadians, ho
has discovered, no longer desire unreslriot
ed reciprocity. Perhaps that discovery
was FASTENED by the discovery that the
| United States did not desire it and that
therefore 1t could not be had. He W .
forced to admit, however. that some of
the Dominion's interests would be very
much benefited by better access to the
American market. But "cold storage"
and the preferential tariff, he seemed to
think. would ultimately produce as favor
able results as he used 60 hope or expect
from unrestricted reciprocity. Mr.. Lau-
rier's speech has an important bearing
upon the joint high commission which
adjourned to meet in the fall. II the
former advocates Of reciprocity in the
Dominion have been converted to protec-
tionism there is very little chan ce Of the
commission accoml fishing anything in
the direction of freer trade between the
United States and Canada, for the very
good reason that there will be no urgent
demand for it on the part of the latter
country and plenty of determined oppos-
ton on the part of both.