The Savannah morning news., 1903-06-01
CONTINENTAL UNION.

Goodwin Smith says he hates the
word annexation in connection with
discussions of the political unity of
North America, since it suggests some
thing humiliating to Canada. He is,
however. satisfied that continental I'M
ion in a free and honorable way will
come, when Canada and the United
States will be under one government,
and commerce throughout North Amer
lea will be free and unrestrained. 1T
probably will not come in the time of
any one as old as l am, but it will
come" he says. Mature" he adds,
intended the whole country to be one
in politics and trade" and there is no
use trying to argue against nature. The
Dominion and the states each produce
things wanted by the other. Frontiers
and tariffs and politicians may keep
the sections apart for few years, but
they cannot keep them apart for all
time.
There are already forces at work
that will tend to augment the move
ment towards union. 1t is estimated
that there are in the United States not
less than 100000 Canadians, who are
engaged in all walks of life. To coun-
terbalance this a great stream of i'm
migration is pouring into Western Can
ada from the northwestern part of the
United States. Hundreds of thousands
of Americans have sought homes in
Canada within the past twelve months
and the movement continues undated.
On both sides of the line these people,
born and reared in one country and
going to the other, are missionaries of
union. In Canada there is a violently
anti-Anl erican political party, but it is
gradually moderating its opinions and
before a, great many years in all prob
ability it will have ceased its opposi-
ton. When the people come to under
stand the advantages that would accrue
to them from union, it is pretty certain
that political parties will amend their
tenets of faith to suit the conditions.
One thing, MIR. Smith says, that re-
tards the formation of Canadian pub
lie opinion in favor of union is the
weakness of American craftsmanship"
and in this connection he makes a
Characteristic assertion that is very
interesting. He says: THE American
people, l have always thought, are
statesmen, but the American statesmen
are traders. The American people are
statesmen because, while they are we'll
informed and sensible, there is gen.
orally nothing to prevent their taking
a broad national view. The view of
the American statesmen is not ma
tional, but narrowed by the local or
sectional interests which they person.
ally represent. - Unfortunately Con-
gress seems to be under the control of
a group of log-rolling monopolies which
cares for nothing but the perpetuation
of the protective tariff" Isn't that
true? Our statesmen. in their eager
ness to preserve the protection of the
tariff for interests of their own sections,
are unable to perceive the benefits that
would be derived by the country at
large from the adoption of a more lib
eral policy. The wood-pulp business
will illustrate the point. The whole
country uses white paper, in enormous
quantities. Every person who buys a
book or newspaper is interested in that
business as a consumer; yet for the
protection of a few manufacturers and
a few rich lumbermen a heavy tariff
duty is placed on Canadian wood-pulp.
If it were left to the people, the duty
on wood-pulp would be quickly re-
moved; but the log-rolling monopolies
represented in Congress get together
and combine to keep up tariffs for their
own benefit. and let the people make
the most of it.