26 CANADA AND THE EMPIRE.

possible for themselves.! Were this their only
reason for advocating the policy it would be
difficult to understand their excessive ardour,
seeing that a natural preference already exists,
as will be shown later, and as a consequence
immigrants are pouring in as fast as it is
possible to settle them on the land. But there
are other reasons. It is undoubtedly to their
interest that Free Trade shall cease to exist in
England, and with it the ideals of their political
opponents in Canada be shattered. They also fear
the possibility of a treaty of reciprocity with the
United States, and every business instinct urges
them, if a commercial treaty has to be made, to
make it with a country which refuses to accommodate
 itself to Canadian demands rather than with
one who is only too ready to supply them. They
fear worst of all invasion of the home market, and
they stand united in strenuous opposition to any
policy which may lead to this. The present preference
 they consider gives Britain much too free
access to the Canadian market, and they prove
their contention by quoting the cotton and woollen
industries. They have passed far more resolutions
asking for re-adjustment of the tariff than they have
in support of Mr. Chamberlain. Most of Britain's

! The authors found that when a manufacturer was
willing to admit any line of British goods on terms that
would permit competition with a Canadian manufacture
it was always some line in which he was not himself
interested.