The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-08-01
CANADA MADE A
STUPID BLUNDER.
Ottawa Opinion Of Government
Action in Deporting the
American Engineers.
Special to The journal.

l Op6Clhl 70 - u0 JOuIuals Il
Ottawa, Can, Aug. There is no
! foundation for the rumor that the
| United States government has lodged
a protest against the deportation OF
| American engineers hired by Fsthe.
Grand Trunk Pacific in connection
with their. transcontinental railway:
! The Dominion government u.s. Of
| course, strictly within it's rights IN
/ Insisting that United States engineers
| shall not be employed in the construc-
ton Of a Canadian railroad-especial-
| ly one that is more or less in the ma
ture of national undertaking; and
| it is also within it's rights in sending
the engineers back to their own side
of the boundary. The action was
taken on the strength of the Canadian
| alien labor act, which practically fol-
I lows the lines of the similar law
| enacted some years ago by congress.
/ Whether the Dominion authorities
/ were5we advised in taking such ac-.
ton is quite another question. Those
/ who uphold the government In TINS
matter point to the fact that the
/ United States has on many occasions
enforced it's own alien labor act with
the utmost severity Two wrongs
! however, do not make a right, and
co1l-headed politicians here in both
| parties feel that the administration
! has been guilty of a grave blunder,
tho forced by circumstances into a
4 position from which it was difficult
to find any other escape.
i Public Opinion Is Strong.
Beyond question, UP to the present
I time Canadian public opinion has
been largely with the government
in its action. At the same time 1T
must not be supposed that Canadians
bear any i'll feeling toward the gengi-
/ neers themselves. Public resentment
is wholly directed against the Grand
Trunk people, who, for reasons best
their way to hunt UP American engi-
neers, rather than employ Qualified
Canadians near at hand. The argu-
ment that capable Canadian engineers
were not available is, Of course, alb
u surd. There were scores Of them
ready and willing to take hold Of the
work, all men who had had years OF
experience in railroad surveying in va
rious parts of the Dominion. This
: was brought out clearly in the course
of the Investigations held lately be-
; fore the government commissioner.
That the people Of the Dominion
resented the imputation that Cana
dian engineers were not capable OF
laying out their own railroads, ano
= still more so the fact that the Crane
Trunk Pacific officers directly respon:
$ sible had written to American @5engi.
l neers expressing in rather contemptu'
Gus terms their opinion of Canadian
? engineers, is not to be wondered at
!, 4 When it is remembered that Cana
T; dian engineers had proved their met
r tie in surveying the extremely diff
f cult line of the Canadian Pacific thru
e the Rockies, and in many other, i'm
: portant undertakings, both at honl
r and abroad, it will be seen how,sun
o called for was the action of the Crane
d Trunk Pacific in giving all the reall,
J, important positions on their work t
d. Am orleans.
t May Cause Retaliation.
with all this, however, it is fel
i here that the Canadian government
:. might have abstained from taking tn
4 extreme step of deporting the Amer
: lean engineers. Discussing the mat
q ter this morning, a member of par
= lament, who is one Of the most inf1u
: entail supporters Of the adn1nistra
+ ton, declared that the government
q had been guilty Of a stupid blundei
- In order, to pander to momentar
a feeling Of irritation, it had taken tn
y risk of arousing much more seri
4 Gus irritation in the United States
a "The United States," said he, certain
y ly has an alien labor act, and enforce
it, but has never applied it, SO ia
= as know to our professional men, A
- the present m ON ent there are doze
Canadian engineers in theUnited State
:, for one American that the Gran
y Trunk Pacific employed on it's worl
= Just see how our government ha
:, played into the hands of the inter
y. 70 ests in the United States that ar
"a hostile to Canada and Canadians!
has placed in their hands a weapo
that may now be directed against GU
own engineers on the other side {
the boundary. Should pressure
brought on the Washington govern
u ment to apply their alien labor act I
IL Canadian engineers in the Unite
States, we would suffer far more s.
verely than if we had permitted II
Grand Trunk Pacific to retain !
70 American engineers. The governmel
es has practlcally lnVlteu IetaHat1o
A. from the United States by its tll-co1
Il sidered action"