DESTINY OF CANADA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18387, 1 May 1923, Page 9

DESTINY OF CANADA.

FEARS OF AMERICAN IS ATI ON.

INFLUENCE of periodicals.

STRONG NATIONAL SENTIMENT,

[from OUR own correspondent.] » TORONTO. March 17. The Canadian Parliament the other day spent four hours discussing a minor phase of the "Americanisation of Canada." Facts brought out will tend to confirm the worst fears of tho pessimists in Canada and in Britain, particularly those in Britain, who predict the gradual absorption of the Dominion by its big neighbour. Second thoughts about the House of • Commons debate should demonstrate that it proves the exact opposite of what the pessimists think it proves. If the country was really becoming Americanised, Parliament would not be spending hours debating the fact. There were no such debates in bygone days, when in many ways United State? domination was greater than it is now. That protest is aroused now is proof not of the decay, but; of the upspnnging of a very definite and live Canadian senti ment. : . The phaso of the Americanisation of Canada that engaged the attention of Parliament was the flooding of , the country by American magazines, Sunday newspapers, and other periodicals. It was brought up by Mr. H. C. " Hocken. M.P. _ for a Toronto riding, obviously speaking from a brief prepared by the Canadian National Newspaper and Periodical Association. Indicating a widespread interest in the situation were a long list of resolutions deploring the present stale of affairs, passed by various bodies, ineluding Women's Liberal Clubs, the Canadian Manufacturers' Association, Imperial Order of Daughters of the Empire, Canadians Authors' Association, Chambers of Commerce, Association of Canadian Clubs, and so on. . Huge Import of Magazines. Trie discussion demonstrated .with facts and figures what every observer of Canadian news stands has known in a general way, namely, that the periodical literature read in Canada is largely American. Mr. Hocken said there ie only one magazine in Canada that has a circulation of 75,000, while there are American magazines whose Canadian circulations alone considerably exceed that figure. In 10 years the value of American magazines entering Canada has grown from £160,000 to £600,000. The Canadian mails are carrying millions of pounds a year of United States periodicals under the same nominal rates that apply to home production. Some years ago the Canadian Post Office extended a preference in postage to British periodicals, with the result that in a short time the circulation of British periodicals doubled. But the arrangement was discontinued', Canadian Ministers said, because the British Post Office would not bear its share of the cost. .i ; - ..' As for Canadian publications, it was complained they were losing in the competition with their American rivals for the home market, partially at least because their cost of production was 25 to 30 per cent, higher than across the line. - One speaker said it would pay Toronto publishers to move their plants over to Buffalo. , , • Taxation Proposed. ' ' Various proposals were put forward for cutting down the .' imports of American periodicals.- ' One was ;to tax them 10 cents a pound. . Another advocated I;by Mr. Hocken was to tax their advertising contents 15 cents a pound. On one American magazine alone this would, yield £1400 an issue and on four magazines it would yield £130,000 a year. _ Another proposal was to assist Canadian, publishers by placing their- raw materials on the customs free list. . Unfortunately the tariff remedy cannot be made to apply to brains which it was sorrowfully admitted migrate to the 'best market. If a Shakespeare, said Mr. A. Meighen, Leader of the Opposition, were in Canada to-day and if he were writing for gain, as Shakespeare did, ho would move to New York. • , Another suggestion was that in the case of objectionable material it should be banned altogether. But to many of the speakers the whole circulation of American publications in so far as they disseminated American views and tastes and ideals and' glorified American life and conditions, was objectionable. Free Trade in Literature. . Some of the members declared . that whether the protection; of industry was desirable or not, no impediment should be placed in the way of the free circulation of literature, and that the public should be allowed: to buy the kind of reading matter it wanted, and from whatever source it wished. A general resolution proposed by Mr. Hocken was unanimously adopted. It declared " That, in the opinion of the House, it is desirable that measures should be adopted to encourage the publication of Canadian magazines and periodicals." Outside Parliament the debate inspired Mr. Stephen Leacock to rush into print with a statement. "We might as well put a tax on the Bible so as to have a new one written in Saskatchewan," was his view. But in Parliament all attempts to put teeth in Mr. ' Hocken's resolution by the j addition of some concrete proposal fell to the ground. It is obvious therefore that the " Americanisation of Canada " as far as the circulation of American reading matter is concerned, is to go on uninterrupted. To attempt to stop it would be, said Mr. Andrew McMaster, K.C., to adopt the role of Mrs. Partington, or King Canute. _ There will undoubtedly be "much wagging of herds over the situation, although in the 10 years that the circulation of American periodicals in Canada has. trebled, there has been a greater development of Canadian national spirit than in the previous 25 years. Western Canada's Situation. Another situation that is worrying the national pessimists is the economic condition of Western Canada. They fear that this situation, if not alleviated, is coing to lead to a. movement for annexation to the United States. But in these reprehensions the pessimists forget that if the national problem of Canada was purely an economic one, there probably never would have been anv Canada. There would certainly be no Canada now. j Even if it is true that Western Canada is called upon to make an economic sacrifice for the sake of a patriot : idea, the { West will not thereby be. differentiated | from Ens'en Canada. For if there were no j I international boundary it is conceivable 'that the. provinces of Ontario and Quebec j ! would bv now have populations comoar- | able with those of the States of New 1 York end Pennsylvania. Were there no | international boundary, the centre of the ! motor industry of America micht now be j !in Windsor. Ontario, instead'of across the j ! river at Detroit, and the seaport, of Mon-1 \ treal. owing to its far inland position, j would undoubtedly be a close rival of j I New York. _ ] It is not economics that has preserved i Canada's identity on the American oni tinent. And it is not likely that- j I " Snappy Stories " and the like will sue-j i ceed in* Americanising Canada, whore j i serious economic pressure has failed. j | ========== . i —