Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-04-23
WILL THERE BE FEDERATION
OF ANGLo-SAxON NATIONS?
II Is a Dream OF Some Visionaries.
but open.Eyed Men, Contem.
plating Canada, Face
the Facts

very thln slices. II NO can tOrctcIl sen
timcnt for year hc is gifted beyond tho
ma iority of US. It may be hundred
years. or moro likely two hundred years.
before any one can reach n we'll in.
formed opinion on the subject.
There arr many distinguished AmCri.
cans. Champ Clark and William II.
Taft among them. who are dreaming of
the annexation of Canada to the United
States. Others are persuaded that this
consolidation Of the English speaking
nations on this side of the ocean will be
the prelude to the political union of the
United Kingdom aud its other colonies
with the enlarged United States Of
America.
Some Of them have fixed upon Chi
cago as the capital of tho now world
power. regardless of tho feelings of st.
Louis on tho subject. They contcm-
plato with unalloycd lcasurc the pres.
cncc Of English. Scotch and Irish
members of III" now Congress com
batting the Lake Michigan winds in
order to get themselves into training to
stand up under the winds Of Oratory
which will sweep through tho legislative
halls of world power in which is in
cludcd more than ono third of tho pop
ulation Of the globe.
China will then b" the only compcti-
tor worthy of serious consideration.
France. Italy. Germany and Russia will
be reduced to the rank Of the duchy Of
Luxembourg in comparison with these
two great powers.
But this is only dream Those of
MS who arc awake do not take it Scri
ously. Aud those who are aware OF
the sentiment Of Canada do not expect
tho issue Of annexation to the United
States TO enter the realm Of. practical
politics during their lifetime.
The Canadian negotiations for cStab-
fishing an embassy in Washington arc
sufficient indication of the feeling across
tn" border. The Canadians properly
regard themselves a the citizens of
great nation with a splendid future.
The Peace Conference recognized their
nationality when 1t provided for their
representation in the assembly Of. the
League Of Nations, along with Franco
and Italy and Japan. Their troops
fought in th" great war aS the armies
of an independent nation. just as indie
pendent rs the United States.
The war has aroused the national
feeling in all the British colonies. and
the mother country i fostering that
feeling. 1t has not only raised no OBJ
icrtion to the Canadian plan to send a
minister to Washington. but it has ap-
proved il. aware that Australia. Now
Zealand and South Africa may desire
to follow the precedent Sct by Canada.
What effect tho growth Of national
feeling in tho colonies is to hav" on the
British empire no one can forctrll. The
colonial policy Of London used to be
based on the theory that it was the
duty Of the home government to train
tho colonies in tho arts Of self govern
mcnt so that when the time came for
them to assert their independence they
would be qualified to manage their own
affairs, 1t was n policy similar to that
which the United States is now follow
ing in the Philippines
But Joseph Chamberlain as colonial
secretary changed all that. He set out
to bind the colonies to the mother coun
try in order to pave tho way for great
federation Of states. He called n colo =
uiaI conference in London at which he
presided because the prime minister did
not think the gathering important
enough to command his attention. But
Chamberlain kept at IT, and the time
came when new colonial conference
was presided over by the prime minister
aud the delegates returned home i'm
pressed with tho greatness of the empire
Of which they were part
Now We arc confronted by one OF
those curious historical paradoxCs pro
duccd by events. because the war in
which the colonies fought for the pres .
ervatiOn of the empire has stirred the
national feeling as it was never stirred
before. It was imperial politics which
forced Lloyd George to insist that the
representatives of the self governing
colonies should be admitted to the as.
scmbly of thr League Of Nations or
equal terms with the representatives OI
independent powers.
Whether this tends toward >cparatsn
or not. time alone can tell. Canada is
expected to build some warships tC
strengthen the British navy. She has
an army. Now, nation with "A seat il
the conference Of Independent powers
with a navy and an army and with dip
lomatc rights in Washington, is a very
different entity from n colony such a.
Chamberlain had in mind. Whittier il
all tends has not been revealed by tho
Dclphic oracIcs or by the ouiia board,
or by whatever other receptacle of tho
mysteries Of the future may be pos
scsscd of the secret.
Rut we can be certain that the rcla
tions between the United States anC
Canada. which have been peaceful fO
more than a hundred years, will con
tinue friendly. We have had numerous
differences over boundaries and owe
fisheries, but they have all been settle,
amicably. for the reason that there wa,
no desire on either side for anything bu
n fair adjustment. Over the long from
tier extending from tho Atlantic to tho
po,iG, thoro IL mn hostiln fort bcpauc,