Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-02-15
POLITICS IN CANADA.
Jour NORTHERN NElGIIBORS.
Bv FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

1 On account of the reciprocity tariff
agreement now pending in Congress, the
| American people are more interested III
the Dominion of Canada than they have
been for genera tons. Whether or not
President TAFT and Premier Lauricr sue
| ceed in their efforts 10 make a preach
| in the tariff barrier that separates the
two countries their action in negotiating
this agreement certainly will result In the
| two nations getting better acquainted
than they every have been.
| The Canadians know us better than we
| know Them but there is All astonishing
! lack of knowledge of each others aHalrs
on both sides of the line. Americans. as
| rule, care very little for foreign pontlcs'
! and they are rarely curious to know WHAT
| is going on in other countries. even II
| there Is only the separation OF an lmaGl-
nary line and string of custom houses.
| OF course. the people along the po!oer
| have mutual intercourse That lMpeiS them
| to get acquainted. but by far the greater
| number of Americans know little or no.n-
| ing about Their northern nelgnbors. Inc
Canadians, on the other hand dispiaE q
| hearty interest in America affairs. but
| they have been repealed by the colo IN
| difference Of the Yankees.
| The twentieth century is Canada s.
say the Canadians. They believe, and
! with some show
! cnn fidencA in of reason, that
| the great devel-
Odudud EutuAc. opment that took
place in the United Sta .es IN the latter
half of the nineteenth century VIII DC
| repeated in their own country IN the I'M
mediate future. They are prosperous
they are growing. they a:e progressive
in thought and energetic in action. lhey
are developing a distinct national feehns'
and proudly refer to Canada as ma
| ton. They are not on the whole satls-
| fled with their estate as a dependency
upon The British crown, but with practlcal
unanimitv they prefer that relation to
possible absorption into the United states.
| They are anything but Engisll-are most
| Canadians-but they have seized win u
firm grip upon that most admlrabie OF
English political traits. the disposition 10
pay more attention to substance than 10
! form. Nominally. Canada Is an appan-
! age of the British empire. Certainly II
would fight for the integrity Of the en-
pire. But actually, in the ordinary course
| Of affairs. Canada is as independent ana
free as any nation on the face OF the
earth.
| Curlously enough. they think Americans
! have only the form and not the SUBJ
| stance of political freedom. But that no.
ton may be the product of ignorance On
| the Canadian side of the truth concern
ing their neighbors of the south.
X
Canada IS bigger that the United States.
| exclusive of
LARGER in Area Hudson bay,
Than United States. 1avreree and
all tidal waters has a total area Of lib
665 square miles, while continental United
States. including Alaska, has only 3,616,-
4s4 square miles, a balance IN taFor oil
our lady of the SHOWS of 113,1sl square
miles. But over two million square miles
of the Canadian area is in the frozen ana
undeveloped north, much of it above the
arctic circle About half million square
miles Of the american area, In Alaska, IS
of the same character.
However. it would be foolhardy to say
what proportion of this icy waste is
hopeless of development. Millions of acres
| of superb wheat fields have been carved
| out of that northern waste IN the past
| few years. and millions more wait to De
| claimed by the husbandTnan. Perhaps II
| is fair guess to say that Canada has re-
| sources Of undcveloped virgin land ABOUT
| equal to that Of the United States IN
| 1890.
a
Canada as there are in the United states.
According to the estimates of the Cana
dian census of 1911 the population OF the
Dominion is 1.35s000. The population OF
continental United States, including Alas
ka, in 1910 was 9.,u92,o!O. Two of the
states of the American Union, New York
and Pennsylvania. each has more popula-
ton that all Canada. During the last dec
ade the percentage OF increase in Canada
was 81. as against 30 for teh entire
United States, ZIG for Pennsylvania and
o1.4 for New York state. So. after all,
Canada is not doing SO badly in the mat
ter of increase.
| Much of the increase Oh the Canadian
side comes from immigration from the
United States. For
Increase Due century and a
to immigration. can renublic was
the great haxen of refuge and land OF
promise for the man about to move from
one country to another. II still ls receiv-
ing the greatest tide of immigration
known in the history of mankind. But
the great change came when, half dozen
wears ago, Americans born and bred ue-
cided to em!grate. They went to Canada
at first by the hundreds. then by the
thousands. and now they are crossing the
border into western Canada. by the hun
dreds OF thousands each year.
Since 1902 more than half Q. million
American citizens have cmigrated into
Canada Two-thirds OF them have for
sworn their allegiance to the Stars and
Stripes and are now British subjects. Not
citizens mind you. but subjects! Subjects
Of an English king. an English George.
But. stranger yet, they like it, And a
newly fiedged British subject. erstwhile a
sovereign citizen of illinois. now voter
in Canada is more than likely to tell you
that he is unalterably opposed to anneXa-
ton to the United States. How does that
state of facts agree with your old-time-
Fourth July Observation-Disclosures ome-of-
, zebra ye- Cncle-Sam orations?
1t is often remarked that Enslishmen
!: W0n1am's Safe