Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1903-07-25
GAINS ALL ONESIDED
CANADIAN IDEA OF A Reel
PROcITY ARRANGEMENT.
II 10 to Limit the Bargain to the Free
Interchange of National Products,
Whereby the American Farmer
Would Find Himself a Loser.

The mi1lers of St Paul and Mime
apolis favor reciprocity so they can
get their wheat cheaper, and we pre-
sumo other interests affected would
favor reciprocity for the same reason.
While declaring that they wish re-
ciprocity because it would be an adj
vantage to this country, the fact is
they want 1t because it would benefit
themselves. Do they pretend that this
cheaper Canadian wheat, If admitted
free, would benefit the American
wheat grower as we'll as the Mime
sofa millers? They have not the face
to make such a declaration because
they know it would be laughed at
They are after cheaper wheat, not
dearer, and cheaper Canadian wheat
means cheap American wheat.
This is also true of oats. barley,
potatoes, poultry, eggs, cheese, butter,
hogs, cattle, sheep, wool, vegetables
and fruits. They are all much cheaper
in Canada than in the United States.
and their free entry into this country
would most assuredly cut down prices
now paid American farmers for those
staples.
Let us look at the situation as it
really is. The Canadians are trying
by every means in their power to
build up their country and develop its
resources. This is right and proper,
and altogether commendable. But
they find that to attract people to the
great Northwestern territory from the
western shores of Lake Superior to
the Pacific, markets must be assured
for the products they would raise. I'm
der present conditions their market
Is Liverpool, and thousands of miles
must be traversed by railway before
a shipping port is reached. which is
certainly a great handicap to the set
tiers who may go there. and has pre-
vented the rapid settlement of that
big country. Now, if those settlers
could market their grain and live
stock across the border in the United
States it would be of great advantage
to them financially, and settlers would
flock there by the thousands. Even
as it is, q good many American farm
ers have moved to that country, and
thousands more would take advan-
tage of its cheap lands could a mar
ket for their products be assured over
the border. The cost of transporting
their products to the markets of Great
Britain eats up all the profits and
leaves nothing for the producer.
1t is to give the farmers of the Do
minion a better chance that reciproci-
ty with the United States is desired
by Canadians, not to help American
producers. They know quite well that
the staples produced in the Canadian
provinces are those that can >be pro-
duced in endless quantities in this
country. They also know that the
cheap lands and virgin soil of the
Canadian Northwest could compete
advantageously with the high priced
lands in the older states, more or less
denuded of their original fertility.
Reciprocity, therefore, would simply
mean the development of the Cana
dian Northwest and older provinces
at the expense of American producers,
and with that development would
come the milling industry and COM
peting lines of transportation that
would finally rob the Minnesota miller
of the advantage he would enjoy for
a few years. And he would be aiding
all the time in the development of
his finally successful competitor.
The Canadian Northwest is SO i'm
mense a country that if fairly popu-
lated it could grow all the grain re-
quired by Great Britain and the i'm
porting countries of Europe. 1t would
be suicidal for Americans to aid in
putting that country in a position to
do so.-Michigan Farmer.