Evening star., 1951-05-06

she represents In the councils
where the leadership and power
1of the United States predomin-
IateS.
Two Points of Issue
/ Behind MIR. Pearson's criticism
of United States failure to head
Canada's voice in our joint affairs
lie two specific matters of diff
ference.
/ Foremost. perhaps, is the old
matter of the st. Lawrence water
way. for which Canada has been
waiting 20 years or more. Al
though the Truman administra-
tion has advocated congressional
approval of the agreement Of 1941 !,
under which construction of the
$8l8 million waterway was pro-
vided for, Congress has taken no
action. The House Public Works
Committee recently completed its
hearings. but has taken no vote.
The waterway includes really
two projects: d) Construction of
a 27-foot ship channel from Nom
treal to Lake Ontario, permitting
ocean-going ships to 60 into the
Great Lakes, and (2) a hydro
electric project in the Interna-
tional Rapids section of the st.
Lawrence, which would develop
vast amounts Of power for equal
division between the United States
and Canada.
The waterway has taken or
fresh urgency in the light of
United States and Canadian par
tlcipation in the Atlantic area
defense preparations and Canada's
arguments in its favor, long in
effective as far as the American
Congress is concerned, are being
pressed with fresh energy. The
failure OF those arguments up to
now has been one point of Ca
madam evaporation with United
States attitudes toward its neigh
Dor.
The defense factors in the
waterway are three: Cd There is
a pressing need for steel and the
waterway would make available
to the Cleveland-Pittsburgh steel
area new supplies Of high-grade
iron ore from the Ungava field of
Labrador; 90 1t is urged that
shipbuilding facilities be moved
from the exposed East Coast areas
to the Great Lakes, and (3) the
protected waters of the st. Law
renee would reduce considerably
the convoy route to Europe and
eliminate the long haul off the
American East Coast along which
NaN submarines took a heavy toll
in 1912.
A more immediate cause for MI.
Pearson'S criticisms is the fear
that the United States will pursue
the war against the Chinese Com
munistS to the point of outbreak
Of World War III.
Mr.. Pearson's address at To-
ronto was delivered before Presi-
dent Truman removed Gen. Mac
Arthur. Now the fear is great that
Gen. MacArthur's vast popularity
may ultimately force the American
Government to make some change
in the direction he advocates, and
Canadians do not like the pros
pect.
These points of sharp disagree
ment have tended to obscure.
however. the vast field of CO.
operation, both for defense and
for other purposes, which exists
today in Canadian-American re-
lationS.
Although there is no provision
for a joint Canadian-American
military command in case we
are called on to defend this con-
tinent together. there is the
Permanent Joint Board of De-
fense. which was created inI
August. 1910. This board consists
of five Americans and five Cana
dians-one chairman for each
group, one representative of each
of the armed services on each
side, and one representative of
each of the foreign offices.
Mobilization Group
Under this joint board Amer
ican and Canadian armamentsI
are being standardized and Cal
madam forces are being equipped
with all American-type weapons
Canadian arms plants eventually
will produce only types of equip
ment which have been standard
lied with the United States
British-type equipment is being
eliminated entirely from CanadianI
services. Much Of it is going toI
Belgium under North Atlantic
Treaty Organization arms aid
arrangements.
Newer, but working in a field
equally vital to defense, is the
Joint United States Canada In
duStrial Mobilization Planning
Committee, established April IL.
1949. This was followed last Octo-
ber by agreement on a Statement
of Principles for Economic CO.
operation" Under these principles
the two governments are:
Co-ordinating their require
ments, production and procure
ment of goods for defense
production;
Co-ordinating their controls
over the distribution of scarce raw
materials and supplies.
Consulting on the formulation
and application of emergency
controls over raw materials and
supplies;
Exchanging technical knowl-
edge and productive skills involved
in essential production;
Removing barriers to the free
1