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Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul clich6, il est filmd d partir de Tangle supdrieur gauche, de gauche d droite. et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'irnages ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m^thode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 'E I HO ^ 'REFERENTIAL TRADE REUTIONS r BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN AND HER COLONIES. AN ADDRESS DELIVERED BEFORE THE MONTREAL BOARD OF TRADE JANUARY 20th, 1896, BY THE HON. SIR CHARLES TUPPER, BART., G.C.M.G., C.B., Secretary of State, and for ihe Last Eleven Years High Commissioner FOR Canada in England. (Reprinted from the Annual Report of the Montreal Board of Trade,) MONTREAL : THE GAZETTE PRINTING COMPANY. 1896 \ C, 5 PREFERENTIAL TRADE RELATIONS BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN AND HER COLONIES. AN ADDRESS DELIVERED BEFORE THE MO]NTEEAL BOARD OF TRADE, JANUARY 20th, Hm, f BY THE HON. SIR CHARLES TUPPER, Bart., G.C.M.G., C.B., Secretary of State, and for the Last Eleven Years High Commissioner FOR Canada in England, {From the Montreal Gazette, Jan. ilst, 1896.) The Exchange flail of the Board of Trade, as the centre of the commercial life of the city, naturally draws within its walls the most important business men of the community ; but it is rare, indeed, to see such a large and representative gathering as assembled there yesterday afternoon. The size and quality of the audience were tributes at once to the eminence of the speaker. Sir Charles Tupper, Bart., up to a few days ago High Commissioner for Canada in England, and the importance of his subject— " Preferential Trade Relations Between Great Britain and Her Colonies." Sir Charles spoke for two hours, and dealt with his subject in a very vigorous and lucid style. His able array of the facts, showing the progress tlie question of preferential trade with the colonies has made in England during the last few years, was listened to with the greatest attention by the vast gathering which filled the ha.'l and overflowed into the galleries, and the eloquent advocacy of the fast Atlantic service, with which he closed, was heartily applauded. those present. Among the members of the Board of Trade present were :— Messrs. James Alexander, Andrew A. Allan, H. Montagu Allan, R. B. Angus, William Angus, A. A. Ayer, F. Bacon, John C. Badgley, George Baird, C. J. Baird, John Baird, Joel i'J C. Baker, John Black, "W. M. Blaiklock, E. H. Botterell, A. J. Brice, H. A. Budden, W. B. Bulling, H. Buhner, David Campbell, sr., David Campbell, jr., David N. Campbell, J. Stewart Carter, J. N. Chabot, Charles Chaput, Esmonde L. Clark, J. P. Cleghorn, William Clendinneng, C. E. Colson, John Corbett, E. F. Craig, W. W. Craig, John Crawford, A. M. Crombie, Charles H. Cunningham, James A. Cuttle, John Crowe, John Dillon, Hon. Geo. A. Drummond, George E. Drummond, John Dillon, Thomas J. Drummond, William Drysdale, William B. Evans, S. W. Ewing, Fred. Fairman, Thomas Forde, John Forman, A. D. Eraser, Donald Eraser, N. J. Eraser, Robert Gardner, Daniel Gilmour, W. E. Goodhugh, W. S. Goodhugh, O. M. Gould, A. W. Grant, Michael M. Green, Jacques Grenier, George Hague, Alex. Hamilton, M. Hannan, W. A. Hastings, Norman Henderson, Fred. C. Henshaw, Jonathan Hodgson, J. C. Holder, George R. Hooper, J. E. Hunsicker, Henry Joseph, Horace Joseph, J. H. Joseph, Edgar Judge, John Kennedy, John Kerry, G. M. Kinghorn, R. S. Kinghom, William Kinloch, J. M. Kirk. G. A. Kohl, Hospice ' Labelle, J. B. Learmont, James Leggat, W. F. Lewis, Charles Lyman, John Magor, Victor Magor, E. J. Magor, J. W. Marling, S. E. Marsan, Henry Mason, F. Massey Robert Meighan, Henry Miles, J. W. Molson, L. E. Morin, D. Morrice, J. T. McBride, J. T. McCall, W. C. McDonald, C. H. McFarlane, Alex. McFee, James H. McKeown, John McKergow, P. W. McLagan, D. W, McLaren, H. P. McLea, Ewan McLennan, Hugh McLennan, W. J. McMillan, W. McNally, James McShane, M.P. ; Arch. Nicoll, T. Nicoll, William Niven, W. W. Ogilvie, James Oliver, C. N. D. O.sgoode, E. W. Parker, Walter Paul, T. Peck, C. Feveriy, C. S. J. Philips, J. X. Porrault, Thomas Porleous, R. W. Reford, Captain Arch. Reid, James E. Rendell, F. H. Reynolds, John E. Riley, G. W. Robinson, J. D. Holland, J. R. Kolland, F. A. Routh, J. H. Routh, George W. Sadler, Thomas Samuels, J. J. Semple, S. O. Shorey, James Slessor, Charles F. Smith, Sir Donald Smith, G. F. C. Smith, R. W. ^^nepherd, J. H. Stiles, R. Wilson-Smith, George R. Starke, J. Al6x. Stephenson, Jas. Strachan, Jas. Thorn, F. Wolferstan Thomas, George A. Thomson, W. F. Torrance, Thomas, Trimble, J. O. Villen' uve, Hon. J. K. Ward, Alex. McTavish Watt, D. A. P. Watt, William Weir, Richard White, E. A. Whitehead, R. E. Wight, Thomas Williamson, A. A. Wilson, James Wilson, Walter Wilson, W. R. Wonham, and A. C. Wieland. The following members of the Chambre de Commerce were present :— Mayor Villeneuve, Messrs. J. D. Holland, L. E. Morin, J. X. Perrault, Charles Catelli, ex- Alderman Ciesse, and others. On Sir Charles Tupper entering the hall the applause was loud and long. He was accompanied by Messrs. James A. Cantlie, President ot the Board ; John Tor- rance, First Vice-President ; John McKergow, Secona Vifce-President ; Charles F. Smith, Treasurer ; George Hadrill, Secretary ; L. I. Boivin and Sir Donald Smith, who occupied seats on the platform. The President briefly introduced Sir Charles Tupper, and stated the subject of his address, for which, he observed, no more fitting place could be found than the Board of Trade of the commercial metropolis of Canada, tb" head of ocean naviga- tion, and the largest shippiiig port of the Dominion. They ail recognized the value the work done by Sir Charles Tupper in forwarding the commercial interests of Canada, not only in Great Britain, but in other parts of the world, and, he was sure that those present, who were engaged in commercial pursuits, would find the address most instructive and valuable. (Applause.) HOW THT'! ENGAGEMENT WAS MADE. Sir Charles Tapper, who was very warmly received, said : Mr. President and Gentlemen of ihe Board of Trade,-'-I huve greatplcasure in meeting yon hero to-day. I may say, in a few words, how I 'came to be here. Inmiediately after my arrival from London, and when I expectc'd, and, I may say, hoped, very shortly to return there, I had the pleasure of meetinii: your President at dinner, and I took tlie oi»por- tunity of pointing out to him my ,;reat anxiety that the Board of tliis, lh< great commercial metropolis of Canada, should pay great attention to an invitation which, I knew, had been forwarded to theni, to send representatives to attend the great Congress of the Chambers of Commerce of the Empire, to be held in London in June next. I mentioned to the Presidei'.t the great advantage that I l)elieved might result to Canada, if the various Boartls of Trade and Chambers of Commerce all over this great Dominion availed themseives of the opportunity that they would then have of bringing under the notice, not only of the people of England, but of all th(; outlying portions of the Empire, whic'i would be represented on that occasion, the views and sentiments on commei'cial questions that were held in this country. I had the great pleasure of co-operating 'vith the delegates whom you sent to repre- sent you, and who represented you so ably, at the second Congress of the Chambers of Commerce of the Empire, and I had reason to believe that the interests of Canada would be promoted in a very important degree, if you availed yourselves of the in- vitation now tendered you. Mr. Cantlie was kind enough to suggest that, as I attached so much Importance to this question and was desirous of reaching the people, not only of thic great commercial centre, but of all the commercial centres In Canada, that, perhaps, it would be well for me to deliver an address to you on the subject. I at once said that, if invited to do so, I should be very happy to comply with the request. I am glad to know that we have still some questions in this country, and very important questions, too, that are outside of the domain of party politics, I am very glad to know that this is one of them. 1 took up the groat organ of the Liberal party of this country — the Globe newspaper, of Toronto— and I found it there stated that Sir Charles Tupper proposed to deliver an address on pre- ferential trade, in the city of Montreal. I was glad to find the statement that, on that question, every person in this country, of all parties, would hold up both hands in favor of preferential trade. (Applause.) That statement warrants me in believ- ing that this question is outside the domain of party politics, and is one of the great questions on which gentlemen of all parties, interested" in the progress and prosper- ity of Canada, may unite heart and hand. The Globe, however, went on to say that this was not the place to deliver the address— that no one required to be converted to these doctrines in Canada, for w^e were all agreed on them, but that England was the place to which we must look for the purpose of giving expression to what we so much desired, for upon England would rest the responsibility of carrying such a scheme into eflect. And it went on to express a great fear that it would be a long time before we would be enabled to impress the people of the Mother Country with the value and importance of this great principle. I quite agree with the Globe ; and it is with a view of pointing out to you some of the reasons why I think we ma.y entertain the hope that, at no very distant date, we shall see this ^reat princij^'le of preferential trade recognized throughout the British Empire, that I ap- pear here to-day— (applause)— to see if 1 can offer some encouragement from the standpoint which was calculated to advance the progress of this great question. 6 ^ i I may say that since I met Mr, CantHe I have received a letter from the central committee, the orRaniziug committee o' the great Congress of Chambers of Commerce of the Empire, in which they have done me the honor to invite me to become one of the Vice Presidents. The Rt. Hon. Joseph Chamberlain, Secretary of State for the Colonies, has accepted the position of Honorary President of that Congress, and I was gratified— as I am sure you will be— to find that the first ques- tion that Is to receive the attention of that great body Is " commercial relations between the mother country and her colonies and dependencies." (Loud applause) I feel quite sure that you will agree with me in attaching great importance to Canada having as large and as able representation as possible from all the Chambers of Commerce and all the Boards of Trade throughout this wide Dominion. I may say, In passing, that it Is not necessary absolutely to send a delegate, because any Board of Trade, or any Chamber of Commerce, will be entitled to name, as Its dele- gate, if It Is not convenient for It to send one from Canada, a gentleman who would have Its confidence, and who resides on the other side of the water. I may say that I believe that the present moment Is one singularly favorable for the consideration of this great question of preferential trade between the United Kingdom and her various colonies and dependencies, spread all over the world. ENGLAND'S POSITION NOT SATISFACTORY. The trade position of England Is not a very satisfactory one. She Is face to face with the important fact that, since 1890, there has been a decline in Briti.sh ei'cports of no less than £47,700,000 sterling. I think that I only require to mention these figures to you to show the great importance of that country turning its attention to- the best means by which that decline, that serious, that vast decline, of something like 18 per cent, shall be arrested and the trade of that great country restored to Its- former position. Not only Is that the case, but at this moment, as one and all of you are perfectly aware, agricultural depression is beir.3 felt most seriously throughout the United Kingdom. Public men, from the leader of the Government of that great country down to the humblest man who takes an interest in the affairs of the nation, are engaged in deploring the constant.steady decline in the great and important indus- try of agriculture throughout the United Kingdom. Since 1870, no less than 3,000,000 acres of land have gone out of wheat cultivation, and have been laid down to grass. And with what result ? Land that, for the cultivation of wheat, would require twelve men can be tilled by a man and a boy when laid down to grass. The conse- quence is that there is a vast and steady procession of agricultural laborers, through- out the United Kingdom, wending their way to the great towns, and there becoming buriihensome upon the country by furnishing an amount of labor for which there is no employment, and leaving hundreds and thousands of industrious and good men in the miserable position of having no work to do. This is a condition of things that has received the attention of the first minds in the United Kingdom and I may briefly turn your attention to what is regarded by the highest authorities as the cause of this decline in the manufacturing industries, and which has given rise to such a tremendous falling-ofF In the export trade of England. When I refer to her trade, I refer to a decline ot nearly £48,000,000— £47,700,000— sterling in the exports from Great Britain, which represents the manufacturing industry of that country. What Is the cause? No less an authority than Lord Salisbury dealt with this subject in a memorable speech at Hastings in 1892. He said : " Forty or fifty years ago everybody believed that free trade had conquered the world, and they prophesied that every nation would follow the example of England, and ^ve itself up to absolute free trade. The results are not exactly what they proplic! led, but the more au/erse the results were, the more the devoted propliets of fre(i trade dechirod tliat all would couie right at lust; tli;! vvorne tliu fcarills of foreign countiies became, the more confident were the prophecies of an early victory, j^ut we see now, after many years" experience, that, explain it how we may, »oreiKri nations are raising, one after another, a wall -a brazen wall— of protection around their shores which excludes us from their markets, and, so far as tney are concerned, 22,405, or an increase of 30 per cent, over the period from 1870 to 1874. The proportion of colonial and Indian trade to the total export trade was 33 per cent. The average exports to the colonies, excluding India, between 1870 and 1874 was £40,193,061. This represents 17 per cent, of the total average export trad(\ From 1875 to 1879 the average was £4.3,294,.")85, or an increase of 7 per cent, over the period from 1870 to 1874. It represented 21 per cent, of the total export trade. In the .P ■ I Tllllff.M* . ' 10 period from 1880 to 1884 the average expor^ was £50,517,116, an incrpase of 25 per cent, over the period from 1P70 to 1874. It also represented 21 per cent, of the total export trade. Between 1883 and 1889 the average wf.s £48,305,051, an ir '"ease of 20 per cent, over the period from 1*^0 to 1874. It represented 21 per cent, ot the toial export trade. From 18P0 to 1894 the average was £48,362,883, an increase of 20 per cent, over the period from 1870 to 187.t. It also represented 21 per cent, of the total export trade. It will be seen, therefore, that while the average decrease in the exports to foreii^i couiit i s in the periods in question, compared with 1870 to 1874, has been 15 per cent., the average increase in the exports to the colonies and India in tie same periods has been 26 per cent. In the case of fcae colonies^ excluding India, the aver- age increase has been 18 per cent. No better evidence could be f,707,0ing into England so as to favor our colonies, because, if we do, those countries will retaliate, and we shall have our great foreign trade interfered with." Retaliate— how can they retaliate ? When you get a fence as high as it is possible to erect it, you cannot get it any higher. Knowing that England was bound hand and foot by this policy of free trade to which she nad committed herself, that whatever they did they could do it with impunity, foreign countries have gone on iHiilding up their tarifls against her. Show me the country in the world that has exhibited the slightest appreciation of the magnificent generosity of England in deling what no other country in the world has done for them, that is, allowing them to send evtirything they manufacture or produce into the United Kingdom to strike down and paralyze British industvv, agricultural and manufacturing, from one end of the country to the other, and yet receiving no consideration whatever. (Clieers.; We have had an opportunity of seeing how grateful countries are for the favor with which England has treated them. What is the fact with reference to the great Rejniblic to the south of us? In 1890, when they sent 94,000,000 of American products into England without having to pay one farthing of duty, and only received something like 32,000,000 of British products in return into the United States of America, one would have supposed that that would satisfy the most greedy nation in the world so far as reciprocal trade was concerned. But it did not. What did they do ? They sat down and devised a McKinley tarilT, by which they could see how much more they could strike down this 32,000,000 which they were taking in exchange for 94,000,000. With what object? With the object of paralyzing the trade of the United Kingdom, with the object of ruining industries in the United Kingdom, and with the object of striking a severe blow at England's great dependency, the Dominion of Canada. (Applause.) They not only constructed this McKinley Tariff to break down what little trade England was able to send Into their country, but they adopted a reciprocal clause. With what object ? Why, with the object of being able to say to the South Ameri- can Republics, " Unless you give us the trade of your country, unless you shut out tL>i trade that comes from Great Britain, and give your trade to the United States of Ame'' , we will impose special duties against you to force and compel you to do it." And the result was that under those clauses consul after cousul throughout South America wrote to the Foreign Minister in London to point out that their trade was all bein j; swept away by this grasping policy of the Great Repuolic. Now, I have not a word to say in reference to their adopting such a policy as may seem most wise and beneficial and advantageous to tb*»raselves ; but I think you will agree with me, gentlemen, in th« statement that they would not be the country that would venture to say that they must retaliate upon England if she imposed 10 per cent, duty In place of the 30 per cent, or 40 per cent, or 50 per cent, they impose. ■-:,% 24 (Applause.) Nor do I see how it would be possible for any country in the world to •take such lines. Lord Farrer, the great apostle of free trade, and a roan who resists in the most strenuous way, of any peisoc that I know in England, any attempt at favoring the outlying portions of the Empini in their commercial relations with the mother country, Lord Farrer says, " I am opposed to all restrictions of trade. I am un- wiUng to do anything that will cause trade restrictions- " I say to him, "There is only one means by which you can remove the restrictions that limit and cabin and confine the trade of England, and that is by placing yourself in the position that if a country deals with you without the slightest consideration for the commercial advantages that you give her, you are not bound by any policy, however old, you are not bound and tied f^nd preven';ed from considering the interests of the outlying portions of your own Empire in preference to those of foreign countries." I not only givc you „/j It as sound doctrine, as my belief that if you want to remove trade restrictions, if if you want to pull down those gigantic tariffs that are being >)uilt higher and higher to shut out ths trade of England, the mode is the mode I sugp;est, the adoption of a policy by which a portion of the revenue of the United Kingdom shall be raised from the products of f jreign countries which corae in to compete with the interests of the people in the United Kingdom ; but I say further, and perhaps I can best bring i/lie point home to you bymeans of an illustration which actually occurred. I have read a portion of Lord Salisbury's speech at Hastings. In the course of that speech he said he was afraid the Government might have to arrive at the conclusion that if they ccuid get no justice from foreign countries owing to being shackled and bound by the policy of free trade, they would ha^e to consider the means by which they could retaliate upon those countries. It was only the expression of opinion, it was only the word of a single man, and yet what did it do ? It contributed largely to the election of President Clevelaxi J in the United States of America, and helped to bring about a very extensive modification of the McKinley tariff. That speech was de- livered just at the time of the Presidential election. In the New York. Herald, which was sent all over the States, great importance was attached to Lord Salisbury's speech. They represented him as saying "England is not going to stand t>:je McKinley tariffs any longer," and they said to every farmer, every man engaged in exporting wheat in the United Kingdom : " If you want to keep the advantage you have got, we have get to change our policy and pull down this i»IcKinley tariff and these increased ta 'es upo^^ the commerce of other countries." I do not say that that speech elected President Cleveland, but I say that tens of thousands of the agricul- turists find artisans in the United States, whose interest lay in maintaining the advantage that they had in free admittance to the English market, went to the polls to vote for the man who would pull down the McKinley tariff. ■ 4i AMERICAN OPINION. Therefore, I say that that speech of Lord Salisbury's at Hastings exercised ft wide influence in removing tariff restrictions. (Applause.) It was said on the floor of the House of Commons that, not only would there be retaliation, but bittc ani- mosity, and that people would complain of any such action on tlie part of the Par- liament of the United Kingdom. But I sought in vain the colunu>s of the Americau papers to find a sing'e word of threat in reply to that speech. I found such state- ments as this, which was made by Representative McCall, of Winchester (Repub- lican) : "Hirt (Lord Saliabury'a) idea of tarilFi , as expressed-in his speech, is the idea of the Republican part^ . The McKinley bill, in numerous instances, recognized 25 J-" ou that it was better to make our tariff laws with special reference to the tariff laws of other nations rather tlian to make a general law covering '.very case, and not pro- viding for getting some benefit in return. Lord Salisl)ury's idea is reciprocity pure and simple, Undoubtedly England can, by levying a tariff against certain of our products which she consumes largely, compel us to make some concession to her. As Lord Salisbury says, that is business like. As we would say in America, that is reciprocity. I do not think the position of Lord Salisbury will strengthen the posi- tion of the so-called tariff reformers in this country who are trying to legislate for the benef o of the whole world, and not for America. The speech Is good Repub- lican campaign mat' rial." So that the worst thing that resulttd from the veiled threat of Lord Salisbury that England might be compelled, in order to get fair play from foreign countries, to take up this question of retaliatory duties, was, on the part of the United States, to strengthen at the polls the men who were disposed to pull down the high tariffs against Canada and the United Kingdom, and who declared that it would force them to the adoption of reciprocal arrangements with the Mother Country. In dealing in Parliament with this subject on February 17th, 1891, Mr. Goschen said : " T i-hink it possible that the advantages of the consolidation o" the Empire may be so great that, if the increase in the price of the loaf is extremely small, the producers, with whom the power now lies far more than with the consumers, may not object. I differ with the honorable member for Leeds, who supposed that if we had any customs union or ar/angement by which favor was shown to the colonies, the United States would have a right to interfere. I do not think the United States would have a right to remonstrate or interfere in the way he suggested. The right honorable gentleman suggested England would he brouglit to her knees, but I must enter my protest against such an extreme vie^ -, that under no circum- stances could we make any arrangements with our colonies without bringing in the other bread-producing countries. If we find we could make tli<^ whole Empire one as regards customs, surely we have the same right of zollvcrein union as Ger- many has with Bavaria or the United States among themselves. I claim for our- selves the same right. We ought to have securities from the colonies, not merely that they would put a 5 per cent extra on foreigners, but that their tariff itself should be such as would be likely to protect this country from loss." I give you, therefore, the opinion of the ablest men in the Government of the United Kingdom to show that there is nothing impracticable in carrying out this question of preferential trade, and that no foreign country could have the slightest right to complain. I venture to say that no foreign country would complain, if a small duty were imposed on the products of foreign countries, whilst Uiuse from the outlying portions of the Empire were allowed to go into the United Kingdom free. It is said, " You will increase the price of bread." Well, if wheat were worth a little more at Mark Lane than it is now, I don't think any of these ruined agricul- turists would complain. I don't believe that it would increase the price of bread ; but, presuming that it did, it would be an insignificant result, compared with tho enormous advantages that would follow. I believe the day is not far distant when you will have ♦^he agriculturists of England standing side by side with the artisans and the men engaged in the manufacturing industries throughout that great coun- try, standing shoulder to shoulder, and demanding that this policy shall be estab- lished, this policy which, we claim, would be so essential to the benefitmg of the Empire, and would be, in the highest degree, advantageous to the carrying on of the industries of the Mother Country. (Applause.) FAST STKAMSHIP SERVICE. I want, now, to say a word or two with referenct to the fast steamship tsrvlcei Tou are so familiax with the subject, that I need not detain you at any length ; hnt, -'m M mmmmm 2d maa r I am proud to say, that our efforts have at last culminated in success. With the aid of an able and distinguished man, and the Minister of a powerful Government, we have brought the question ,o a happy conclusion. I am able to speak on this sub- ject, also, as a non-party question, because I am glad to say that the vote of £150,000 sterling for ten years was carried in Parliament without a single division, and the attitude of the conference in that regard was thus ratified. Therefore, it is a question upon which all public men seem to be agreed, and I think every person who knows what the construction of the Canadian Pacific Rail- way has accomplished for Canada must acknowledge its importance. You have got a great inter-oceanic line ot railway, constructed at vast expense and imposing a heavy charge upon the revenue of the country, and if you want to derive all the ad- vantage that is susceptible of being derived from that line, you have got to supply the other link in the chain. You have got to hare rapid communication with England just as you have with Australia and with China and Japan. Yc i will then make Canada a great way oi inter-communication between great and rapidly extend- ing portions of the Empire. Canada will then have advantages that any person who looks at her geographical position will only wonder that she had not long ago. This great object may now be said to be already attained, for Mr. Chamberlain has stated that Her Majesty's Government are prepared to give us such substantial assistance as will bring the enterprise to a happy conclusion. But he says that they can give no aid to any line between Canada and England that does not attain a speed of 21 knots on a trial trip, and 20 knots across the ocean. Give us that and we are noc only in a position to compete with the fastest ships that now run to New York, liut we will be able to reach, not only vast portions of our own country, but a groat part of the United States quicker than they can be reached in anyother|,way. (Applause.) As I said, in my interview, the very day before I left England, when I had a long conversation with Mr. Chamberlain on this subject and the determination of the Imperial Government to take up this question with us :— " You are not only drawing the colonies physically closer to yourselves, but you are adding most valuable strands to the rope that strengthens the ties that bind the Mother Country to her colonies." 1 believe that the increased development and advantages that will accrue to Canada in consequence will be far in excess of anything that is disclosed. I had a long interview with the President and Vice-President of the Grand Trunk Railway before I left London. I told the President I wanted their hearty co-operation and support in this great measure. He said: — "You shall have that. AV'e recognize at once the enormous advantage it is going to be to Canada, to have this fast service. We do not see any immediate direct advantage that we are likely to obtain, but knowing that whatever benefits Canada is going to benefit the grout enterprise in which we are engaged, we are heart and soul with you, and ready to do anything that lies in our power to assist in carrying this project to a prompt and thorough conclusion." I said, " I think I can point out to you that it is to the direct interest of you and your shareholders. One of the great features of this fast At- lantic serviije will be not only to provide accommodation to passengers that will be equal to any that can be found floating upon the ocean in any part of the world, it will not only be attractive to passengers and bring capitalists and other people through Canada that otherwise would never see it, but one of the leading features is to be that of cold storage. It is going to biiiig- Canada wfthin five days of the United Kingdom, and with an admirable cold storage arrangt-ment you can spnd your dairy products, your beef and mutton, and cheese and butter, and eggs— evory- 27 thing that is prodaced in this country of that kind, perishable things— you can have them distributed in the London market with tlie sarr? facility and in as fresh and prime condition as they can be gathered from any of the provincial towns in any part of England. Your lines of communication all over Quebec and Ontario will be bringing down to the ocean this dairy produce for cold storage, and thus you will have an immediate and direct advantage that your shareholders will appreciate at a very early day." I am glad to be able to say that this proposal, which has now been brought to a happy conclusion, with the hearty sanction of the public men of all parties aad all classes, will be of vast importance to the great lines of railway inter- communication, which are of such vital interest to us. Nothing is so damaging to the credit of Canada, nothing is so injurious to the commercial interests of this countrj% as for capitalists to find that they have invested their money in the country and that they do not get an adequate return. I say that every one of these measures that is calculated to expand the commerce, and increase the commercial facilities of the country, and enable capitalists to get a satisfactory return from their invest- ments in Canada, is going to be of incalculable advantage to the whole country, from end to end. A BRITISH VIEW. I thank you for listening to me so patiently ; but I want to say one more word for the benefit of those who are a little incredulous as to the progress that this great question is making in England. I will quote from the Saturday Review, one of the most independent and influential journals that is to be found in the United King- dom, and ifi it you will find a word picture that illustrates the progress that this great question has n ade. But, before I do so, I may say— and I regard it as evidence of no unimportant character— that I met a gentleman who has long been a member of the House of Commons for a Welsh constituency, and he said to me : " Four of my colleagues who were doing business in the same town with myself, and who, like myself, were supporters of Lord Rosebery's Government, were defeat- ed at the general election, whilst my majority was reduced by 1,000." I said: " You surprise me very much. You were for Welsh dis-establishment and every- thing the Welsh people wanted. How do you account for that ? " He replied : "I will tell you, and when I do, I give you one of the most potent of all reasons that influenced the general elections. My 1,000 votes were taken off at the poll by the tr; e question. The people of tLis co'intry, agriculturists and those engaged in manufacturing industries alike, have come to the conclusion thatj under the present fiscal policy, the industries of Great Sri tain are not getting fair play from foreign countries. That was what defeated my colleagues, and that was what reduced my majority by 1,000 votes. I tell you this, that, at an early date, this principle you are advocating so strongly of having an import tai iff upon goods from foreign countries coming into competition with our own, and of consolidating the Colonial Empire with the United Kingdom, is going to take such a position that people will be perfectly astonished and unprepared for." I mention that as a,n evidence of the faith that is in me, and as an overwhelming proof of what we may look for at an early date. And now as to the Saturday Review. It said, in its issue of the 4th inst. :— "And as soon as America is conciliated we must proceed to set our house in order. The greater part of the emigration into the United States comes from these islands. It would need Imt little to deflect the major part of it liom the American Northwest to the Canadian Northwest. A 10 per cent differential duty in tavor of our colonies would settle up Manitoba in ten years, instead of settling up Minnesota and Dakota. This differential duty would restore prosperity to New Zealand and enrich Australia and Canada, ^yhile reducing to hardship and to straits the popula- tion between the Alleghany Mountains and the Rockies, which is now clamoring for war. There is a kernel of good even in things evil. Pressui-e on the outside, science tells us, increases the cohesion between the units that compose the body corporate. The threat of war by America will cause Englishmen to hold more closely together, and will diminish that selfishness on the part of the mother coun- try towards the colonies which has Litherto been regardc i as the true commercial policy of the nation, and which has never deserved the name of policy, because it makes for disunion and not for union, for weakness and not for strength." (Loud applause.) I agree with every word there except one, and that is, that the people between the Alleghanies and the Rockies are clamoring for war. (Hear, hear.) I believe that the people of the United States, like the people of Canada, appreciate too highly the blessings of peace ; but, at the same time, no person can be surprised that the attitude taken by the President of the (Jnited States, anu endorsed, as it apparently was, by the Senate and the House of Representatives, in regard to every portion, under British rule on this continent, engaged the serious attention of this country. And I rejoice to say that this is another question which is not a mat- ter of partisan politics. (Applause.) I l^ave read with the most unfeigned satisfac- tion the statements made ir* vh2 great organs of the Liberal party in this country, and I have been delighted to find that the press of Canada has uttered no uncertain sound. There is no Canadian who would not regret a war between the two great English-speaking families of the world as the most frightful calamity to which civilization could be subjected. There is no C^jiadian who does not appreciate to the full the gigantic and enormous interes*-s that Canada has at stake in such a question, but, notwithstanding that, I have been delighted to find that, from ocean to ocean, neither public men nor any portion of the press have ex- hibited any uncertain sound— (applause)— and we present, to-day, the magnificent spectacle to the world of being prepared to stand side by side, shoulder to shoulder, men of all parties and men of all classes, in this country, without respect to race or creed, in defence of those glorious British institutions of which we are all so proud. (Loud applause.) Such a sight cannot, in my judgment, be over-rated by any intel- ligent man. It showc that our neighbors to the south, instead of looking to Canada as a country where they might find sympathizers with their policy to bring us under American control, would find that they would be confronted by the men of the North united as one man in favor of this gre^t heritage— half a continent— that has been placed under our control. The effect upon the American mind will be of th» great- est importance, for they will know that, while we feel it the first duty we owe to ourselves and our families to maintain the most pacific relations possible with our American neighbors, yet, at the same time, we have thrown in our lot with the Mother Country, and that we are, if necessary, prepared to do and die in maintain- ing the flag that, for over " a thousand years, has braved the battle and the breeze." (Great cheering.) SIR CHARLES RETURNS THANKS. On the motion of Mr. Hugh McLennan, seconded by Mr. Robert Reford, a hearty Tote of thanks was accorded Sir Charles, who, in reply, said :— I thank you very much for your very kind and enthusiastic reception of me to-day, &nd, I assure you that I feel very deeply the importance of having had the opportunity ■u 29 of putting before you the views to which you have so patiently listened. Z had no idea that I was encroaching upon your time so much— so great was the pleasure of address- ing you— until I looked at my watch and found bow long I had trespassed upon your patience. However, I want to say one word more, and that is in reference to a question to which, perhaps, the attention of Englishmen has been turned more within the last few weeks than for many years before, and that is the dependent position in which Great Britain stands as a country that has an import of £150,000,000 sterling of food products every year. The i 'portance of a country that only raises one-sixth of the wheat she requires being placed in such a contingency as might occur at no distant date, in case of war, has brought the subject home to the people of England in a way that has not happened in a great many years. I had the pleasure of delivering an address to the Tyneside Agricultural Society, at Newcastle, shortly before I left England, and you can hardly imagine the astonishment with which ^ey heard the statement I was able to make, that, in the Province of Manitoba and the Northwest Territories, where we had only touched the fringe of the wheat ' th;3 Dominion possessed, we had this year produced more wheat than the whole of the United Kingdom. The impor- tance of England depending for fruit and meat on importations from abr ad, and the importance of her having half a continent here, within five da>s' sail, and easily protected by her fleet, able to furnish at an early date all the products that she would require, is a thought brought out in the Saturday Review, and it is one which is going to carry to the minds of the English, in a way that nothing else can, the vital importance of uniting the Mother Country and her colonies, and of her looking to the development of the outlying portions of her Empire in order to maintain that dominating position we are all so proud to know she possesses to-day, ftnd wWch, I b-jlieve, wise arrangements in connection with her imperial possessions ■will enable her to occupy in a grander and more important degree in future. (Loud applause.) 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