IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET {MT-3) V // {/ *^ €J^-> bJ- 4 V, 1.0 jfi I.I 1.25 2.6 M 2.2 t li^ 12.0 1.8 U 11.6 V] ^^. A •^f^ 5> ,>> ^^ ^ o 'W M CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiquf-3 1980 Technical Notes> / Notes techniques 1 The Institute has attempted to obtain the best original copy available for filming. Physical features of this copy which may alter any of the images in the reproduction are checked below. L'Institut a microfilm^ le meilleur exemplaire qu'il lui a 6t6 possible de se procurer. Certains d6fauts susceptibles de nuire d la quality de la reproduction sont notds ci-dessous. i f 1 v/ Coloured covers/ Couvertures de couleur Coloured pages/ Pages de couleur Coloured maps/ Cartes gdographiquos en couleur Coloured plates/ Planches en couleur f Pages discoloured, stained or foxed/ Pages d^colordes, tachetd'as ou piqu^es Show through/ Transparence r i Tight binding (may cause shadows or distortion along interior margin)/ Reliure serr6 (peut causer de I'ombre ou de la distortion le long de la marge intdrieure) Pages damaged/ Pages endommagdes I t f Additional comments/ Commentaires suppl^mentaires Bibliographic Notes / Notes bibliographiques Only edition available/ Seule Edition disponible Pagination incorrect/ Erreurs de pagination 1 Bound with other material/ Reli6 avec d'autres documents Pages missing/ Des pages manquent Cover title missing/ Le titre de couverture manque Maps missing/ Des cartes gdographiques manquent 1 . i Plates missing/ Des planches manquent Additional comments/ Con->"-ientaires suppldmentuires The images appearing here are the best quality possible considering the condition and legibility of the original copy and in keeping with the filming contract specifications. Les images suivantes ont 6X6 reproduites avec la plus grand soin, compte tenu de la condition et de la nettetd de I'exemplaire film6, et en conformity avec les conditions du contrat da filmage. The last recorded frame on each microfiche shall contain the symbol —»► (meaning CONTINUED"), or the symbol V (meaning "END"), whichever applies. Un des symboles suivants apparaitra sur la der- nidre image de cheque microfiche, seion le cas: le symbole — »> signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbole V signifie "FIN". The original copy was borrowed from, and filmed with, the kind consent of the following institution: National Library of Canada L'exemplaire filmd fut reproduit grdce d la gdndrositd de I'dtablissement prdteur suivant : Bibliothdque nationale du Canada Maps or plates too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper Inft hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartel, ou les planches trop grandes pour dtre reproduites en un seul cliche sont filmdes i partir de Tangle supdrieure gauche, de gauche d droite et de haut en bas, en ^renant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Le diagramme suivant illustre la mdthode : 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 2) D(MJU^-^^ -/i-^^^>tA^ ZU> /- ADDRESS OF Mr. Henry W. Darling, MERCHANT, T(3RONTO, AT THE BANQUKT OF THE Union League Club of Chicago, WASHINGTON'S BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION, FEBRUARY 22ND, 1889. x.^^^^1-^--,^ (S; "7] PRESS OF THE BL'lHiE'J', 64 HAV STREET, SPEECH. .!//•. President, llou. (li')itleiii>')i, ton/ (leiifleinen : I desire to express my .sense f>f the lionor you 1 iive clone nie in inviting me to l»e present ;it tliis uiiiijfniHcttnt demonstrution ; iind in iiskin<< me to ad('ress so distinguished and I'epresentiitive a gath'M'ing upon the subject of the rehition; l)et\veen tlie United States and Canada, present and prospective, commercial and political ; and this I am ex])ected to do from a Canadian standpoint. The phraseology used by your President in communicating to me the subject upon wliiili I was expected to speak, implied a reference to what you understand on this side of the line as Annexation or Politi- cal Union ; and I ask your indulgence wiiile I touch brieHy upon this point, tiist of all, assured that you will not misapprehend me if T speak with all candour and V)h>'iiiness. To thoughtful Canadians tin; word Annexation has an ominous and unattractive I'ing, conveying to them an impression of a confession of failure in the mission committed to them l)y their forefathers as to the future destiny of their country — an impression that they ar(> adopting voluntarily in despair, the only course open to them, if they a'-e to escape irreparaljle disaster, or an impression of coercion and force at which their whole nature revolts, and which they are bound to resist. I think I correctly describe the prevailing sentiments of Canadians generally when I say tiie word Annexation is extremely distasteful to them. You would probably despise tliem were it otherwise. The tie that binds them to the Mothei'land is a silver thread that can be broken practically at will ; but their atl'ection for the land of their forefathers is a feeling which is, and always will be, predominant in their i>reasts. British Canadians cling to the glories and traditions of the race. They hope to be able to preserve all the characteristics of England's pro- sperous polity. They have neithe»' sympathy with, nor encouragement for, the enemies of the British Empire. They may bo inistakcii aa to their ultimate destiny ; and they may over-estimate their al)ility to make the North American Continent the home of a j^reat and infhspendent Anglo-Saxon race ; but if their political Halations ai'e to be. changed, it will come about as the natural se(|U(;tice of events, and not purely as the nisult of an appeal to sordid or material considerations. I can conceive of a policy of injustice to one of the Provinces being carried to an extent that might produce a movement in favor of tlie separatioti of that Province from the Confederation, with a view to union with the United States ; but, such an agitation, if based upon righteous and equitable grounds, would be almost certain of accomplisli- iiig the removal of the injustice, or the defeat of the party in power perpetrating it. The feeling against Americans bred l)y your revolutionary waj-, which drove the Loyalists who founded Canada into exile ; by tiie war of 1812, and by subsequent misunderstandings, has largely passed away ; but the growth of good-will is a different thing from readiness for Political Union ; and I cannot help eariiestly adjuri' g you, while we are discus-iing the advantages which I hope to lay clearly Ijefore you of another union, to dismi-ss from your minds the question of Political Union. T refer to what is known as CoMMKiu'iAL Union, or Uni'estricted Recipi-ocity, or Continental Pree Trade, whichever of these terms may best convey the idea to your minds. I would ask you to look at the map of North America, and say wliether it is not in violation of all the indications of nature that artificial bari-ierfi to trade and commerce should be erected alon'' an imaginary line stretching from the Atlantic to the PaciHc, between peoples of common descent and common language, who are en_ V You are aware that from 1854 until 180(1 a Treaty was in existence between the two countries, proviclin;^ for the free interchunge of natural products, which w;is admitted to have been hi<^lily beneficial to the people of both countiies. This was terminated by the (Jovern- m(;nt of the ll(ipublic, not so much becausi; it was U^ss advanta<,'eous to lier than to Canada, but because tlie Government desired to iwiivk in this way its disapproval of the sym^u ^hy which, it was supposed, she liad extended to the peoph^ of your Southern States durinj; the time of the rebellion. You niay form an idea of the effect this Treaty had on the trade of the two countries when 1 state that in the (Mi,'ht yeui-s from 181G to 18r)3, tin; a,<,'<;re:irs from ]!<7'-^ to 1S77 the a;,'ti;rei,'ate trade with l>ritain was .'i/oout >* 1 7S, 000.000, and with the I'liited States ."^H o,- 000.000; while durin;,' the hist live years from |SS:? to |SS7 the a,i,',ij;re!j;at,e trad<^ with IJritaiu fell to -irtl 1,000,000, l.ut it has risen with the irnited Stat(>s to !i<4;iS,000,000. Tins is the n»ore rcniai'kal)le in view of the l)arriii's to radewith the United States in the sliajie of a hostile taritl' on liovn sides, while Britain admits all our i)r()(lucts free. The I'nited States duty on a,<,'ricultural products alone is over 32 pel' •jeni..and taken all round the duty on imports isahoutiL' ))er cent, it is true that after the ado])tion of a Protective Polii;y in Canada, our iniportatioiix for home consumption from the States fell ott" some forty two million dollars for tlu; first five years, namely, from two hundred and forty-nine million dollai's in lS7;ito IS77, to two hundred and seven million dollars in 1S7H to 1SS2. but they have increased to two luindred and forty-four million dollai's in the period from ISf^.'J to 18^7 : and durint; tlie same periods our a,'(ite Tiado with the Hiiiti'd States. *4I*),000,000 .•{77,000,000 4;{8,000,000 Aggri'giito Iiiiport.s from the rniteil States, .vJ4!l, 000,000 •-'07,000,000 •-'44,000,000 Aggrogiito Kx ports to the Uiiitftl States. S I (Ki, 000,000 170,000,000 104,000,000 These ti^niros take no account of the contral.and trade between the United States and (Canada, on the on(i hand, nor do they include any- thing hut exchanges in merchandise, and the l.ahmce in cash ; while in the casf , ^ritain we liave to send her large exports in payment of the interest . ^ ,< -rowed capital, a constantly increasing it(nn with us. I think it must be accepted from these facts that there is a natural exelmiu/e between the two countries, wJiich is increasing, and mi'st .still further increase ; and if the present i)arriers were removed, the greater suitableness of many articles of the UnitfM States manufacture for our market would untjuestionably displace similar articles which we at present receive from abroad, and an immense in^jetus would be given to reciprocal trade to the advantage of the consumers in both countries. For your general information, and to enable you to understand the relation of the figures I have (juoted, I may say, for the last lifteen years or so the total exports of Canada havt^ averaged about eighty-six millions ; and the total imports about one hundred millions, of which twenty-eight millions were free goods. Our foi-eign trade is estimated to be al)out !i?41 per head of the population, as against .$23.50 per head in the United States. From Great Britain we receive about forty millions, and from the United States forty-tive millions annually. Tn 1887-8, of a total trade of one hundred and ninety million dollars, ninety-one million dollars was with the United States. As an example of The Effect of the Removal op the Duties •on products exchanged by the two countries, here is a return placed 8 upon the table of the House of Commons at Ottawa the night before last. The value of Canadian importations from the United States of green fruits, seeds, trees and other articles placed on the free list from April 13, 1888, until Feb. 1, 1889, wa& .^831,399. The amount of revenue wiiich would have been collected upon such importations if they had not heen placed on the free list is ^292,670. The value of such im})ortations from the United States for the corresponding period of the previous yejir was $498,183. The value of Canada's exports to the United States of these articles from April 13, 1888, to Feb. 1,1889, was $1,480,022, of which apples were valued at $1,31."), 452. Since 1886 numerous attempts have been made by the Canadian people to induce your Government to resume these more intinuite trade relations, which seemed so beneficial to both countries, but without suc- cess ; and the alternative policy which has been adopted with a view to bind together more closely the various Provinces which extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific, would probably still have been silently persisted in, had there not been a disposition shown on the part of some of your eminent statesmen (notably the Honorable Robert R. Hitt, Mr. Whar- ton Barker, the Honoral)le Mr. Butterworth, and others), to discuss the question of closer commercial relations; and especially in connection witii the Fisheries dispute, which has been so fruitful a source of irritation and annoyance. While the Government of Canada were somewhat reticent upon th6 subject ; what we conceived to be indications on your side of a nioi'e favoral>le consideiation of the question, gave rise to a discussion of it from one end of Canada to the other. No agitation that 1 am aware of ever matured more rapidly in the minds of the people of Canada than this did ; and if, during the past few months, it has not i-eceived that prominence which might have been expected, it has been due to The Retaliation Bill, and other unfavorable indications of the minds of your public men upon this side, which, however, we are disposed to btdieve, were more the outcome of political exigency than as reflecting the minds of your people generally. I hope I may be at liberty to trace ; and that the people of Canada may be warranted in assuming from the fact that you have lie-^'n kind enough to extend this invitation to me to address you, because I have- I I 9 1 I I lieretofore expressed somewhat liberal sentiments upon this subject, that there is a desire upon the part of the people whom you so fully represent, for a thorough investigation into the merits of the proposi- tion. One proposition is that the Custom Houses upon the l^oundary lino from the Atlantic to the Paoitic should be abolished, or maintained only for the purpose of statistical information ; and that there should be the freest interchange of products and commodities between the two countries— that to prevent the smugging of foreign goods from the country which might have a lower tariff into the country having a higher tariff, an assimilation of the tariffs of the two countries should take place. This should not l)e difficult of accomplishment ; for the buoyancy of your revenue seems to point in the direction of a reduction of your tariff; while the policy of protection to manufacturers adopted in Canada, somewhat after the example of the Republic, tpymh tovmrds nu increase of duti/, and the difference in the duty between the two, taken all round, is pi-obably not more than ten to fifteen per cent., so that if approached in a spirit of compromise, an intermediate figure might be reached with advantage to both countries. The internal revenue duties would have to be dealt with in a similar mann.n-. As a large proportion of Canadian imports reach Canada through your American cities on the sea board, the loss of revenue to Canada in this way would have to be adjusted by a contril)ution from the common purse, the details of which would not be difficult to arrive at ; and there would l)e involved in this an arrangoraent for TfiE Pkrmaxencv of tiir Fiscal Policv ok tiik Countrie.s for a fixed number of years, which would have to be long enough to induce our manufacturers to adapt themselves and their n)acliinery for the supply of the hirger market which the changed circumstances would require. Another proposition is, that reciprocally the duties should l)e abolished by both countries upon all products and commodities, the growth, produce, or manufacture of the other country, leaving freedom to each country to levy what duties they might think proper upon the goods of other countries. The object, you will notice, is the same, namely, to secure Con- tinental free trade ; and the methods by which it may receive effect may be very well left to the diplomatists and statesmen to arrange, the principle being once affirmed by both parties. 10 I have said tliat natiirc .seems to point most umiustakal)ly to tlie bBiiefits of an arrangement of this kind. For e.xample, we tind in tlie Maritime Provinctis, wliich nature has placed witliin sueh easy leaoli of youi- nianiifacturing State of New York, .iti almost uidimited supply «)t' coal, peculiarly .suited for their purposes. A similar state of thin,u;s exists in British Columbia, wlien^ almost at the water'.s edj^e the coal can l)e placed in ocean-i..foinjj; ships, and conveyed to San Francisco and otht'i- ports on your Pacific Coast. The very articles, which at these points, nature has practically deprived you of. Then looking at the Province of Ontario, which nature has dove- tailed almost into (he heart of your country, we are short of tlu^ heat and steam producing fuel, which youi' mines in Pennsylvania, and Ohio seem to have been j)lace(l by a l)eneticent Providence to supply : but the politicians stepped in and for a time, placed the barriers of cus- tom house duti engage in the development of our vast natural resources. I have said that the discussion of this question has arisen in connec- tion with the Fisheries dispute. If that has not been amicably settled, the people of Canada are not to blame. The distinguished plenipotentiary representing Great Britain in the recent atteujpt at settlement, was sensible enough to bring to a successful issue, en route, as it were, delicate negotiations personal to himself, reciuiring equal tact, discriminotion and judgment. That the negotiations in the one case were successfully consummated and not in the other, was no doubt because "Barkis was willin'" and in the other case Pegotty wasn't ! I believe it to be the earnest desire of the thoughtful people of Canada, that all difTerenjes which have a tendency to endanger the amity and fricMidship which so largely and so happily exist between us slionhi he removed ; and J am not without hope that the most satis- factory and permanent adjustment of the question at issue will be attained by boldly grappling with tlie commercial relations and coasting trade of the two countries as a wliole. The settlement of them in this way, according to the dictates of enlightened reason and broad statesmanship, would be a triumy^h of diplomacy infinitely superior to the paltiy pottering of retaliatory legislation, now on one side and now on the other, which can never be otherwise than hurtful to the best interests ot' both countries. These views which I have been led to adopt from a careful study of the matter, and which [ have been presumptuous enough to present to you as those of a private citizen, have been approved in many in- fluential quarters in Canada — they have been made a prominent plank in the platform of one of the great political parties, endorsed by the representatives ot' the Governments of all the Provinces of the Do- minion, assembled for conference upon subjects of common interest in the City of (JueWec ; and universally api)roved by the agricultural, classes where the subject has been fully discussed. 1 shall not trouble you with moi-e than stating The Ohjections to ti:km in Canada, where 1 think they have been successfully refuted. 13 It is said we would be discriminating against Great Britain, to whom we owe allegiance, and in favor of a foreign country. The geographical con- tiguity of the two counti-ies is a sutHcient answ,.r to this. Canada has already asserted h^r right to the largest measure of liberty in the framing Cf her fiscal policy to what is most advantageous* to her- self. It is said we would divest ourselves of the right to regulate our own tariff; and that this would-be adjusted for us at Washington, to which no free people would submit. Tt is further alleged that Continental free trade would close our factories. It is also said that the Republic, having obtained control of our markets, Annexation would follow as a matter of course, at the expiry of the Treaty. Canada is doing well as she is, say some— let well enough alone. The importing business done i,y the wholesale m.erchants in our large cities would be closed ; and New York would thenceforth be the distributing centre of the Continent. Canada and the United States having a surplus of the same description of products, are rivals in the foreign markets of Great Britain ; and have no n;.r,ural trade with each other. Britain is the true and the proper market for what we have to sell. ' The people of the United States are the hereditary enemies of Canadians ; and we should have nothing to do with them ; give them no countenance or encouragement, but shoot them down in their tracks as opportunity offers. Such are the principal objecti.)ns made to these proposals in Canada, urged with great for'ce, but not with much success. The remaining objections are more serious, naliiely, that the people of the United States have always been, and are now, utterly opposed to any extension of the trade relations with Canada. 14 It remuins for such roi.reser.tntive ,n.m as [ Imve the honor to address to say how far this is correct. Should it ho otherwise, I think vou .nay rely upon any efforts you may make in the direction 1 Imve indicated, ho.ng generously responded to by the people of Canada