Turnips, Hay & Fish

Two neighbors sometimes agree; four neighbors, very rarely. In 1911 the Liberals were in power in Canada, and W. S. Fielding, Minister of Finance in Sir Wilfrid Laurier's Ministry, negotiated a reciprocity tariff agreement with Secretary Knox of the Taft Administration. Champ Clark swung the Democrats of the House of Representatives for reciprocity. Thereby three neighbors came into agreement: the Republicans (U. S.), the Democrats (U. S.) and the Liberals (Canada). The Conservatives (Canada) were the fourth neighbor. They overturned the pudding--and the Laurier Cabinet--in a special election. At the end of twelve years' political vicissitudes Mr. Fielding is again Canadian Minister of Finance. The Liberal party, strong in the agricultural regions of the Canadian West, is in power, and meanwhile that section of the country has grown in voting strength. Last week he proposed to the Canadian House of Commons that "if the President of the United States, under the authority of the United States Tariff Act of 1922, determines to reduce by 50%" the duties on cattle, wheat, wheat flour, oats, barley, potatoes, onions, turnips, hay and fish, the Canadian Government be allowed to make similar reductions. His new proposal would produce reciprocity on a much more limited scale than the unsuccessful agreement of 1911, and so is perhaps less likely to produce opposition from the Canadian Conservatives. In this country, however, the attitude seems to have changed. The Democrats, always for a low tariff, might accede to the agreement. But the Republicans ?

Opinion is that President Harding would be taking an unwarranted extension of his powers if he should try to use the flexible clause of the Fordney-McCumber Tariff to enter into reciprocity with Canada. Moreover, to do so, would seriously antagonize certain groups of Republicans--notably the farm bloc who fought for a high tariff on farm products. And their votes will be needed by the Administration--to maintain its narrow majority in the Senate. So even if two of the neighbors--north of the 49th parallel--can agree with one to the south (the Democrats)--the fourth is still likely to be an insuperable obstacle.