The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-08-18
IS
PROPAGATION
IS WEEKS OFF
Canadian Parliament Likely to Be
Doing Business Until Middle "a.
Of September.
Liberal Leaders Will Probably Dis
suade Laurier From Making
Appeal to Country.

fTOl1l h OIdIL correspondent.
Ottumwa, Aug. 18.-The Judgment of
leading men Of both parties In parliament
Is that the present session will be con-
tinued at least until Sept. l.. Farther than
this opinions differ some saying that
propagation cannot come until the middle
Of the month, and others that it, ought. to
come in the first week Of the month.
Meanwhile. nobody has any definite in
forma ton. There is no limit tosdebate iii
either house. and If speeches Oh the Grand
Trunk Pacific railroad~bilf.are to continue
las at present, It may well be the middle
Of the month instead Of the first before
the end comes.
This question of propagation is very i'm
portant stoi those in the United States who
are anxious for meeting this fall of the
high joint commission. Liberal leaders
here agree with advocates of reciprocity in
the states. that If the commission does
not meet this fall any serious considera-
ton OF reciprocity must be postponed for
at least two years, owing to the presfden-
tial campaign in the United States next
year. These liberal leaders have tried as
best they have been able to arrange par
l1amentary matters so as to prorogue that
body as early as Sept. /; they now
accept the possible fact Of sittings until
the middle Of the month. The prolonging
Of the session beyond the customary linz
fs-parl1ament met five months ago-has
caused the liberal leaders to join in the
belief that the high joint commissions If
reconVened this. year, ought to meet in
Washington rather than In Ottawa. This
of itself is an earnest Of the genureness
of the desire Of the Canadian government
to secure treaty at an early day 1t be-
leVes that If the commission shall meet
in Washington, Senator Fairbanks and the
other American members of it can be
present at it's sittings, Notwithstanding
the TACT that congress IS to meet In No
vember. Were Ottawa to be insisted on,
however, nc meetig would be possible this
fall. as Senator Fairbanks and his COL
leagues would probably not feel justified
In absenting themselves for an indefinite
period from Washington.
Liberal members of parliament talk very
freely of their views concerning reciproc-
ity with the United States They are en-
tirely willing that treaty be made, and
Will place no obstacles in it's way, Some
fof them, like John Charlton are pro-
nolnced champions of reciprocity;9oa and
have placed themselves on record RE-
peatedly before the country They viii
trust the high joint commission to deal
fairly with the question of trade between
the two countries, but are somewhat in
clined to doubt the ability Of such a
treaty's friends to get it thru the Amer
lean senate. Word from the American
SIDE, however, is reassuring, and the Ca
nad1ans do not insist quite as strongly as
before on the inability Of the American
senate to solve the reciprocity problem.
The disposition Of the liberal leaders to
ask for a reconvening of the. commission
this. falldn their desire to have; that meet
ing held in Washington instead of in ;Ot-.
tawa, and their endeavor here SO to shape
matters as to permit Sir Wilfred Laurier,
the Canadian premier, to. reopen GORE
spondence with Senator Fairbanks at an
early day, show in a. general way the at.
q n .ff1o anti
On high authority 1 am able to, state
that the question of. an appeal to the
country following propagation, while it
has been discussed to some extent in the
liberal ministry, has not yet come up for,
definite determination. 1t is understood
that the premier for a time was rather
inclined to think that there should be An
appeal, perhaps in October, but the .coun-
sci OF his advisers was strongly against 1t,
and he now holds himself ready to con-
slider the matter, de novo, when it shall
come up formally, which will be immedj-
ately following the close of parliament.
1t may be said that. the conservatives have
Tor some time assumed that there would
be an appeal this fall, and have governed
themselves accordingly in all the prov
inces. Only last Wednesday night there
was an enthusiastic meeting Of prominent
conservatives, several: hundred strong. III.
toronto. In anticipation of fall elections
ALI such movements, and all definite talk
OF an election, however, are premature
Sir W1lfred Laurier has said to his ADVISE
ers that the question will not be consid
ered until parliament Is out Of the wav.
Meanwhile, he does not know what viii
be done, and Is ready to discuss the stu
alton without prejudice While not desir
ing to make prediction, may vet saw
that from the best information attatnabJe
the prospects for fall election are NOT
promising II Sir Wilfred orders It. he
Will do so against the advice of his
strongest and wtsest supporters The lihI
eral party has been In power during but
three parliaments. It Is always the cusI
tom IN this country for party to have al
least five parliaments before an election,
For Sir W1lfred to go before the country
now would be for him to lay himself omen
to the charge that he Is deficient 1o..conr.
age. This is one of. the liberal a re,1n, ents
against fall election aside from tbe q =
suments connected directly with the "a.
sues mat would present themselves q
The fact that the conservatives are "a
anxious for an election may itself throw
the liberals the other way. even assn,aiy,.,
that liberal sentiment might with this
conservative desire out of the wav Lou
towards an early appeal to the voters '0
WV. Jermane.