The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-11-27


the capacity of the Northwest to sus-
tain a great newspaper press as the
Silver Anniversary Edition possible.
RECIPROCITY MUST COME FIRST.
1t comes with little grace from Sen
ator Hale to predict, as he did In
speech in the United States senate on
Monday, that the Dominion Of Canada
will become within fine slifetime of men
now living an integral part Of the
United States. Such prophecies are
mostly bootless anyway; and the max
ing of them belongs to those who are
doing something to bring about their
realization, instead Of standing as OBJ
stacles in the pathway Of progress.
Senator Hale is one of the leading
representatives Of the party and the
policy that stand for making impossi-
BILE any union between Canada and the
United States. These men and that
policy have kept the two countries
apart have deepened and widened the
gulf between them and are responsible
for the growth. of a. bitterness Of feel
ing and a hostility of interest that the
believers In their common interest and
their united hope win have to over
come before a step In that direction
can be taken, 1t is the. wretched, RI
diculous and Ubiquitous tariff laws that
we have put in operation against Cam
ada which hold the two countries apart,
and have been sunderfng them more
| widely instead Of tending to draw them
together for the best part of genera
ton.
1t is perfectly true that the best in
terests of Canada and of the United
States both would be Served by their
legislative union. The United States
would profit by the addition Of sturdy
population Of the highest character,
and Canada would gain by her incor-
poration in the great republic with it's
| manifold resources and it's unlirn-
tied markets.. There is nothing on
earth to keep them apart except
a sentiment of national loyalty
that has now been pretty well
quenched by the indifference of the
| mother country-and feeling Of un-
70 1,I1n Dir 70 IN tn
| upon which we have insisted.
All the theories on which protective
| system is founded laugh the idea Of
tariff against Canada to scorn It is
supposed that protective duties are i'm
posed in order to shut out the cheaper
products of old world countries where
| labor is poorly paid. Canada is a new
er country than this, and labor is cor
| respondingly scarcer and higher.
There is not a product of Canada
which we could not receive duty free
| to- our great benefit. Her wheat al
| ready mingles with ours in the worlds
| markets and helps to fix the worlds
prices exactly the same as if it came
over the boundary without hindrance.
We have excluded her lumber for
| years, with the result that our own
splendid forests have disappeared and
| the settler on the prairie has had to
pay high prices for his lumber, while
| the big lumber barons have aceumu-
| lated millions. We keep out her wood
pulp, and the paper trust in the United
| States sends its agents abroad to place
| upon the distribution of intelligence
through the press whatever tax 1t
| pleases. So it goes all down the line.
We have leveled our protective system
against@a country where population is
| scantier and wages, therefore, higher
| than in our own. It has been an act of
| n1alevolence, rather than an economic
policy, however unWise: and we have
suffered both in pocket and in interest.
| The abolition of the tariff against
| Canadian products. must come before
| any closer community of interest can
be thought Of The first step toward
a union OF the two countries will be
reciprocity agreement. For that the
whole country longs It has been
urged and approved by almost every
association of business men before
whom the subject has been brought.
1t commends itself highly to the masses
of our people. 1t is opposed only by
| that gigantic trust which proposes to
| maintain at Washington all the exist
ing tariff rates unaltered. of which
Senator Hale is a conspicuous repre-
sentative and apologist.
It is Idle to set before the public