The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1922-04-11
SHE IS OLDEST
BRITISH COLONY
NewfoundIand's Pride in Senior
ity Permanent Bar to Union
With Canada.
DATES BACK TO 18th CENTURY
Was a FuII-FIedqed British Colony
With Governor When Canada
Was New CHARACTERIZATION 10
Important geographically.

] Washington. - Renewed discussion
BY the neighbors of the United States
to the north of the desirability of New
foundland's becoming part of the
Dominion of Canada raises a point
upon which probably many Americans
| are hazy-that there are two distinct
British realms, not one, in the portion
| of North America above the Canadian
border. Newfoundland and it's rela-
| lions to Canada are brought out in
the following bulletin from the WASH
! Geographic society.
Sentiment plays It's part in history
and historic geography says the bulle-
tin, land the fact that Newfoundland
has insisted on standing alone while
| all the other British possessions of
! North America have united to form the
Dominion Of Canada Is probably partly
| due to the pride that NewfOundlanders
have always had in being able to boast
that theirs is the senior British col
ony-the first of the children of the
motherIand to make it's home beyond
the seas.
Dates Back to 18th Century.
Newfoundland had it's settlements
as early as the seventeenth century
and was a full-fedged British colony
with governor when Canada was
New France, South Africa was in the
hands OF the Dutch, and not a single
white settler had landed in Australia.
Newfoundland has a geographical
largely blocks the broad gulf into
which the st. Lawrence river widens,
and which forms Canada $ front door,
from Europe. Moreover, Newfound-
land is the closest part Of North
America to the British isles, being
only 1,64O miles from Ireland 1t Is
natural that the first transatlantic
cable should have been laid to the
shores of Newfoundland in 1858 and
the North Atlantic IL first touch Amer
lean soil either on Newfoundland or it's
neighboring islets. And when in 1919
airplanes finally conquered the Allan
tic it was from Newfoundland that
both the American and the British ma
chimes took Off
Newfoundland has an area of more
that $4,000 square miles and is there
fore practically half the size of Great
Britain. Excepting only Cuba, which
barely exceeds it in size, it is the |
largest island of the western hemi- |
sphere outside polar waters. With it's |
cliffs of brown stone rising 200 to 300 !
feet. broken here and there by deep
fjords and bays, Newfoundland has a
bleak and barren appearance which
bellies conditions in many parts of the
rolling timbered interior. Along q
number of the streams are fertile val
legs in which agriculture and stock
raising flourish.
400 Years of Fishing.
In late years mining, stock raising,
the manufacture of wood-pulp and
newsprint paper, and a number Of
other industries have been developed
IN Newfoundland, but throughout its
more than 400 years Of history the
central story of the island might be
told in one wOrd-dsh. Boston and I
have felt deeply In
debted to their sacred cod but after
all, that important creature came
from the Newfoundland banks; and
however valuable it has been to New
1t has meant much more to
and through New
to Great Britain.
"A good case even could be made
FOR the cod as claimant for place
IN the British coat-of-arnfs for that
owly fish Ia way bid the fodntlas Il
Ion OF the worldwide British en-
Dire Before the discovery of New
'oundland Britfshers were OF little
Importance as seafarers. The great
wealth OF Goldfish which John Cabot's
hiding OF the island disclosed imme
lately drew the men of the British
sizes out of their insularity.
1.-The next year after the discovery
-149S-a feet of Devon fishermen
.rossed the Atlantic and returned
aden with fish, and from that time on
or centuries the annual crossing and
ecrossing OF the Atlantic took place.
The British king looked upon the
-oyages Of thousands of men to and
rom Newfoundland as the best kind
Il training for seamen and dellber
ltely discouraged the settlement OF the
sland in order to perpetuate the fish
ng from British base. Great Brit
in quickly became a seafaring ma
ion; the navy grew, and with its
,rowtx the British empire spread
round the world
/