SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CANADIAN MIGRATION 815
nothing of the statistics, but he has a fixed feeling that their name is legion ; for a Canadian may always be relied on to disclose his nationality at the earliest opportunity. This trait, I presume, he has inherited from his British ancestors. Then, the presence of the many Canadians here, together with a firm conviction that the United States has the best government on earth, even if poorly administered, gives rise to the popular belief above noted.
Just at this point it may be well to inquire to what extent migration from Canada to the United States has existed and does exist. This movement of population differs, of course, from early migrations known to history. The people have not sallied forth to try to dominate a foreign land. That would be impos- sible. They have not gone in a mad stampede to the slogan of gold, as in the rush to the gold-fields of Australia in 1850 and 1851, of California in 1849, anc ^ f ^ e Yukon land much more recently. Individuals have been quietly slipping away, for rea- sons which seem satisfactory to them. Some steadfastly refuse to see any special significance in this movement, and regard it as of no more import than the movement of population from state to state in the union, or from province to province within the Dominion. Such persons, however, fail to grasp the delicate situation existing between the two countries.
Before attempting to account for the causes, however, or to discuss the possible results of this migration, I shall try to present the actual facts, as they reveal themselves to the investigator. Anyone at all interested in Canadian development cannot fail to be impressed by a study of the population statistics of the United States. From these figures it is my intention to try to show the number of Canadians resident in the United States, and the influ- ence, from the standpoint of numbers, which they exert in the industrial and political life, and thereby seek to find an answer to the questions propounded. Of the countries supplying immi- grants to the United States, Canada 8 stands third 4 in point of numbers; Germany and Ireland coming first, in the order men- tioned. The foreigners in the United States for the last three
- In figures given in the United States census reports. Newfoundland is
included.
Shown as follows by the Chicago Tribwt*, December n, 1904.
