The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1911-02-23
CASTORIA
For Infants and Children.
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CANADIAN RECIPROCITY.

To THE EDITOR OF THE JOURNAL: Re-
ciprocity with Canada is not wholly a
one-sided question. The producer side,
upon which all farm products, fish and
logs, are free, with tariff on all manu-
featured articles, farm machinery and
all the farmer buys, including the sugar
on his table, is certainly not fair and
even deal with the producers. But there
are some things apparently interchangeable.
Congress has always had large sprink-
ling of rogues, billiards, toadyism and
self interest, and farmers, fishermen
and lumbermen are sparcely represent
ed, and when the manufacturing interests
want free fish and free potatoes and a
tariff 90 fishballs they can get it.
But there is something larger at stake
in this issue. Larger than the bubble
about where to look forr the high cost Of
living. If the farmer sells potatoes at
ninety cents per barrel that cost the city
family ten cents per quart, that restaur-
ants serve to customers at ten cents a
piece, reciprocity with Canada will not
furnish the remedy.
Reciprocity is no doubt intended as an
entering wedge to make closer relations
between the United States and Canada,
and consequent weaker link between
Canada and Great Britain, with the ulti
mate object of great commercial union
that may ultimately unite all the terri
tory between the Suez Canal and the
North Pole under one confederacy of a
hundred great States, with absolute free
trade among them. Under such a great
union we should have very little use for
Dreadnaughts, because then our mere
refusal to have any trade relations with
any of the European nations would fill
them with internal turmoil and distress
they could not long endure.
If this treaty should result in such a
drop in the price of farm products as to
cause the making of close union among
the farmers to control the price of their
products, which is very probable, We
shall never regret the treaty.
Canada in area is about as large as the
United States and the Canadian tory ele-
ment is very jealous Of any move that
tends to make closer relations between
Canada and the United States, and Great
Britain is equally jealous, and it is by no
means certain that if Congress accepts
the treaty the Canadian Parliament will
also accept it. Immediately, the major
ity of benefit is on their side, but ulti-
mately it bids fair to be mutual bless
ing of greater magnitude.
1t looks as though Mr. Taft is stalking
his political future upon great issue
which depends solely upon whether we
shall balk against immediate losses or
sustain him for ultimate good. The con-
bined interests never sacrifice anything
for patriotism or for the nations advan-
tage.
Men get rich by looking out for their
own selfish interests, first, last and all
the time, and Mr.. Taft cannot coax, and
Mr.. Roosevelt could not kick, them into
any self sacrifice, and the producers are
not so united that they can exact an even
deal from the combined interests. We,
the producing class, need to be kicked
into closer union, and better prepare
ton for caring for our own interests.
The treaty may not prove as bad as it
looks. {. S. GRIFFIN.