Page:The empire and the century.djvu/412

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THE NEED OF CAPITAL
369

of allegiance, hardly seems to have been allowed its full force hitherto. But organized effort is now accomplishing greater results, and the immediate future will show the extent to which the Old Country, as well as Canada, may benefit by the increased prosperity of settlers who do not go outside the limits of the Empire. Again, when Canadians note the violation of the rigid rules of orthodox economics involved in the subsidy recently voted to Atlantic liners to United States ports, they are inclined to argue that not much harm would be done by a further extension of the system to steamship lines that are British owned and that ply within the British Empire, Generous mail subsidies, such as the Annual Reports of the United States Commissioner of Navigation show to be quite common in other countries, would enable Canada to put on a trans-atlantic service equal or superior to that of the United States, and thus secure to her the advantage of her geographical position. Even some economic excesses would be pardoned to the Home Government by way of atonement for the deplorable lack of imagination and foresight shown some forty years ago—as, for example, when British statesmen solemnly bound Great Britain to give Germany equal rights with herself in the Canadian market. That may be mentioned here, because the denunciation of the German treaty stands to England's credit in her more recent dealings with her greatest and most prosperous Colony. Again, it might have been expected, in view of the close relations between the two countries, that British capital would by this time have got over its shyness of sound Canadian investments. Money is needed for the expansion of industry; for the development of agriculture and forest lands; of copper, coal, nickel, and other mines; of fisheries, etc.; and it is a matter of great regret that, when British capital could be judiciously expended, Americans should be getting so firm a hold on the best investments that offer. Nothing need be said here about the possibility that the Old Country may be