Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1904-02-27
CANADA AND AMERICA
WHAT cHAk9ERLAIN'S TARIFF
MEANS.
1t Is In Our Power, by a Reciprocity
Treaty, to Secure the Canadian Mar
kets-Matter Worth Prompt and
Serious Thought.

serious nou9nt
Mr.. Chamberlain's scheme" Presl-
dent Schurman of Cornell told the
New York Manufacturers association,
would inevitably reduce the volume
of agricultural products you now send
to Great Britain, and the volume OF
manufactured products you now send
to Canada and other British colonies
That such would be the effect OF
Mr.. Chamberlain's policy there can be
no doubt. Mr.. Chamberlain's plan is
to enlarge and make more nearly
self-sufficient the British imperial in
dustrial plant. To do this he must
first get greater food supplies from
within the British empire. This he
proposes to do by giving British colo
NAL agriculture a tariff preference in
the English market, thus stimulating
its extension
Then he proposes to protect British
manufacture at home by a tariff on
foreign manufactu1 es. With the home
market thus secured, British manufac-
ture will be strengthened for competi-
ton abroad, and especially in the colo
mes. Canada has already given Brit
ish manufactures tariff preference.
With a reciprocal preference for her
agriculture she would maintain this
preference, and perhaps increase it.
Other British colonies would incline
toward a similar exchange of tariff
preferences. The result would be cur
tailment of American exports of both
agricultural and manufactured prod
ucts to the British empire.
1t is true that the success OF this
plan involves a sacrifice by Canada of
her aspirations to economic independ-
ence. If she ADOPT the Chamberlain
plan she must be content to let Great
Britain be the mill and Canada only
the farm. While far-sighted Cana
dams may see that it would be better
in the long run to reject the Chamber
lain plan, its adoption offers large i'm
mediate profit to the agricultural inter-
est, which in Canada is overwhelm-
ingly stronger than the manufacturing.
1t also involves an economic turning
away from America, and an economic
turning toward Europe, with all the
social and political implications of
such a change of attitude, while the
Canadian spirit is more American than
European.
Nevertheless men are wont to pre-
fer immediate to remote advantage
the rule. That men will close their
eyes to their highest future welfare
to obtain present profits was well
shown in the long resistance of the ag-
ricultura1 south to the policy of protec-
ton. Even to the point of taking
up arms the South preferred immedi-
ate profits of agriculture to the ma
tional economic independence which
only the combination of manufactures
with agriculture could give. In spite
of Canada's essentially American
spirit-in spite of the REIMBURSEMENT
of economic self-suficiency it involves
Canada will prefer the Chamber
lain plan, because it offers immediate
profits to agriculture, unless she re
ceives solid inducements to reject it
I'm view of the facts said Presi
dent Schurman, would it not be pres
cient craftsmanship and shrewd poll
tics for us to negotiate without delay
a treaty of reciprocity with Canada:
The attitude of Canada toward Mr.
Chamberlain's scheme will settle its
fate. 1t is still in our power to-day
to secure the Canadian markets. ano
keep Canada politically anchored te
this continent Tomorrow it may be
too late"
win MI chamberlain plan, dan
gerous to our commerce and hostile tc
the ideal of a wholly American Ameri
ca, as il is, we cannot directly NEEDLE
The action he proposes is wholly with
in the sphere of British domestic Iegis
lation- We have no more right to OBJ
ject automatically to his tariff bills
than England has to ours We can de
feat his plan if Englishmen have any
common sense left, only by making il
worth while for Canada to reject it.
Is it worth our while to make Il
worth Canada's to reject it? Is it tc
our interest to prevent Canada from
becoming European? Shall we keer
Canada American? These questions
are certainly worth prompt and seri
GUS thought.-Chicago Record-Herald
Foreign Trade in Iron and Steel.
The government figures of our iror
n0rf- nd