The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-12-19
'CANADA'S CAPITAL
More Interest in Reciprocity There
81 Than Elsewhere in the Domin-
81 ion Nowadays.
A Member Of the Joint High Com,
mission Gives His Impressions
of the Difficulties.
From a Staff CORRESPONDENT.

?, Ottawa. Ont. Dec. 1S.-Eastern Canada
/ gives a curious impression of being
a country both older and younger than
7 the United States. In Montreal the pre-
\ dominance of the French in numbers, the
great cathedral. the old French houses
$ and monuments. the frequent suggestions
= of the time when France ruled SO much
OF the new world the reminders in every
street of the days when Frenchman and
Englishnan fought for the mastery of
the continent, make one forget those piny
, hills that stretch away to the north and
those grassy prairies that roll away to
the west--both still unconuuered by civ
ilization, both still awaiting the master
ing hand Of man.
A New Country.
= And when you come from Montreal to
Ottawa. you are at once impressed by the
countrys youth and rawness. The gov
! eminent buildings here are impressive
enough and superbly situated-it is worth
travelling hundreds of miles to stand on
i that height and view the river and valley
and distant hils-but the city is rather
crude, and you are reminded rather Of
one of the capitals Of our western states
than of the seat of power of country
that likes to call itself nation. though
1t Is still in frocks. and to overestimate
its future. assuming with boyish enthusi-
asm that every square mile of Canada
from Maine to the Arctic ocean and from
Quebec to the Yukon, is productive.
Ottawa Is Liberal.
AS every capital always agrees with
the party in power. admires it and swears
by it. l was not surprised to find more
free trade talk. more willingness to con-
slider reciprocity with the United States
desira Bile. In Ottawa than elsewhere. Sir
Wifrid Laurier came into power a
low tariff man, and majority of his fol-
lowers, especially the officeholders, cling
to the idea that the liberal party is a
3low-tarif party. But even here the uni
3versal watchword of the Canadians, that
:? there shall now be no reciprocity that
Uncle Sam does not ask for. can be heard
on every side. Start to talk with gov
eminent official and before you can say
"reci-" he will out with a TRADE about
the selfishness Of the United States and
those figures about the balance of trade
that are dinned into the ears of every
iAmerican that comes into Canada with an
inquiring mind. But if you will promptly
plead guilty, he will paint a glowing pic
=. ture Of the mutual advantage to the two
coun tries of free trade, and he will re-
mind you that in the great west there is
i, no hope for protection; that out there free
or freer trade liberalism will grow and
flourish and dominate. More than that,
ne will say before he is through, that
much as he resents the Am erican policy.
he is not disposed to retalia to and would
be pleased to see a good opening for the
IllllSlTy, before IL IeLlfeS from
I power. to do something to bring the
United States and Canada closer together.
A High Commissioners View.
I was so fortunate as to meet here one
of the Canadian members of the interna-
tional joint high commission who talked
freely of the days when the commission
was in session in Washington. What
chiefly impressed him then as to the
American attitude towards improved trade
r1. s,,cs
y ference of members of congress. In talk
about better citations between the two
countries they seemed unable to find an
interest. They didn't care about Canada
and they were hardly more than polite
enough to make mere pretence Of con-
. cealing their Indifference. The worst of it
is that. there is about much Indifference
at Washington now as four years ago.
For all our reciprocity talk. we have not
yet persuaded many Of our lawmakers to
care about Canada. Canadian reciprocity
is only one Of the questions that are be-
fore our colossal Uncle Samuel and some
how he doesn't seem to think it worth
while to concentrate his thoughts on it.
DngIey Converted.
This high commissioner went on to say
that there was no doubt that the late
President Mckinley was a sincere friend
of reciprocity. but from the standpoint of
reciprocity he regretted the death of Con
gresham Dngley. even more than that
of the president. He asserted that the
architect Of modern high protection legis-
Ia ton in the United States was fully con-
verified during the sessions of the joint
high commission by. the Canadian argu-
ments for reciprocity-it was the Cana =
dams who wanted it then-and that il
Dingley had lived, his conversion would
have borne rich fruits. But I came
back from Washington said the. com
missioner, "heartsore and disappointed.
Theodore NJ. Knappen.