CANADA AND THE STATES

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 260, 24 March 1911, Page 5

CANADA AND THE STATES

AN ANTI-RECIPROCITY DEMONSTRATION. By Cable —Press Association—Copyright. Received 23, 11.10 p.m. Ottawa, March 23. Clifford Sifton, during an anti-reciproc-ity demonstration at Montreal, was attacked by the McGill College students. His carriage was overturned and burned, and Sifton, who was uninjured, was compelled to walk for the remainder of the journey. The police made majiy arrests. The disturbance is not regarded as political. / Sir William, Mackenzie, the president of the Canadian Northern Railway, when in England last month, expressed himself to a Standard of Empire representative as being on the whole opposed to the reciprocity agreement. "I am convinced." he said,""that this arrangement with the United States is antagonistic to the best interests of the Dominion, and that tfce majority of, business men. throughout Canada share the same opinion. I base my reasons on general grounds. Canada has been getting along well enough up to > now, and I do not believe that anyone was really clamoring for any s-nch change in our fiscal policy. My own view is that it, would have been better to have left Canada entirely free, and that her hands ought not to be tied in any way. .... While perhaps the free entry of fish into the United States may act beneficially to an extent, I regard the removal of the duty on Canadian wheat as a serious mistake. This will mean that Canadian wheat will be sent to the United States to be turned into flour there, and then exported to the English markets, whereas Canada's surplus wheat should be shipped direct from our seaports to the Mother Country. On the whole, I think this will be a loss to Canada." Asked whether he considered that the reciprocity agreement would in any way affect the relations between Canada and Great Britain, Sir William Mackenzie replied:—"l do not think that it will greatly affect the British preference, although it may have the tendency to divert trade within this country to the United States, particularly as regards I dairy produce. It is anticipated that I the farmers of Eastern Canada will now be able to find a better market for their produce, in the United States than in their own country. Tf this is the case, the consequent depletion of the Canadian markets is certain to re-act upon the cost of living in the Dominion, and higher prices for dairy produce, bacon, ham and such like commodities will be the natural result.