In 1897, during the Jubilee celebration in London, I saw Lord Salisbury, and he was much gratified at the action of the Canadian Government in establishing the British Preference, and said that they had been anxious about the attitude of the Liberal party, until Sir Wilfrid Laurier’s first speeches in the House after his accession to office. I laughingly said, “You need not have been anxious, for I wrote telling you it would be all right and not to be uneasy.” His reply was, “Yes, I know you did, but we thought you were too sanguine.”
As soon as the new Government were sworn in, we endeavoured to press our views of preferential tariffs upon them, D’Alton McCarthy and Principal George M. Grant exerting themselves on that behalf, and during the autumn of 1896 a deputation of the Cabinet consisting of the Hon. Wm. Fielding, Hon. Sir Richard Cartwright, and the Hon. Wm. Patterson travelled through the country inquiring of the Boards of Trade and business men as to their views on the question of revision of the tariff.
Our League naturally took advantage of this opportunity to press our views upon the Government, and urged Mr. Fielding and his colleagues very earnestly to take steps to secure a system of preferential tariffs. A curious incident occurred on this occasion that is worth recording. While our deputation were sitting in the Board of Trade room in Toronto waiting our turn to be heard, a manufacturer was pressing the interests of his own business upon the Ministers. It was amusing to hear him explain how he wanted one duty lowered here, and another raised there, and apparently wanted the tariff system arranged solely for his own benefit. There was such a narrow, selfish spirit displayed that we listened in amazement that any man should be so callously selfish. Mr. Fielding thought he had a good subject to use against us, so he said to the man, “Suppose we lower the duty say one-third on these articles you make, how would that affect you?” “It would destroy my business and close my factory.” “Then,” said Mr. Fielding, “here is a deputation from the British Empire League waiting to give their views after you, and I am sure they will want me to give Great Britain a preference.” The man became excited at once, he closed up his papers and in vehement tones said, “If that is what you are going to do, that is right. I am an Imperial Federationist clear through. Do that, and I am satisfied.” “But what will you do?” said Mr. Fielding. “It will ruin your business.” “Never mind me,” he replied, “I can go into something else, preferential tariffs will build up our Empire and strengthen it, and I will be able to find something to do.” “I am an Imperialist,” he said with great emphasis as he went out.
I turned to someone near me and said, “I must find out who that man is, and I will guarantee he has United Empire Loyalist blood in his veins.” He proved to be a Mr. Greey, a grandson of John William Gamble, who was a member of a very distinguished United Empire Loyalist family. I am sure this incident must have had some influence upon Mr. Fielding, as an illustration of the deep-seated loyalty and Imperialism of a large element of the Upper Canadian population.
The members of our League were delighted with the action of the Government in the Session of 1897, in establishing a preference in our markets in favour of British goods. It will be remembered that we had been disappointed in our hope that Lord Salisbury would have denounced the Treaties in 1892, when the thirty years for which they were fixed would expire, but five years more had elapsed and nothing had been done. I believe the plan adopted by our Government had been suggested by Mr. D’Alton McCarthy, our former President, and in order to get over the difficulty about the German and Belgian Treaties, the preference was not nominally given to Great Britain at all, but was a reduction of duty to all countries which allowed Canadian exports access to their markets on free trade terms. This of course applied at once to Great Britain and one of the Australian Colonies (New South Wales). All other nations, including Germany and Belgium, would not get the preference unless they lowered their duties to a level with the duties levied by Great Britain. The preference was first fixed at one-eighth of the duty just to test the principle.
Shortly after this was announced in our Commons, Kipling, who saw at once the force of it, published his striking poem “Our Lady of the Snows,” which emphasised the fact that Canada intended to manage her own affairs:
| Daughter am I in my mother’s house, But mistress in mine own. The gates are mine to open As the gates are mine to close, And I set my house in order Said Our Lady of the Snows. . . . . . . . |
Another strong point was illustrated in the lines:
| Favour to those I favour But a stumbling block to my foes, Many there be that hate us, Said Our Lady of the Snows. . . . . . . . Carry the word to my sisters, To the Queens of the East and the South, I have proved faith in the heritage By more than the word of the mouth. They that are wise may follow Ere the world’s war trumpet blows, But I, I am first in the battle, Said Our Lady of the Snows. |
This poem pointed out to Great Britain that Canada had waited long enough for the denunciation of treaties which never should have been made, and which were an absolutely indefensible restriction on the great colonies.