The Reciprocity Agreement in 1911 was much more than a debate over a trading arrangement between the United States and Canada. The colonies in British North America had first signed a reciprocity treaty -- as a free trade deal was then called -- with the Americans in 1854. The arrangement was terminated by the Americans ten years later in 1864. American protectionists and annexationists believed that the loss of the treaty would cause severe economic turmoil in the British colonies and thus force them to join the United States. Ironically, the cancelation of the treaty helped to foster a sense of nationalism among the British North American colonists and led, in part, to the creation of Canada. Even so, the new nation state continued to hope for a renewal of the free trade deal with their southern neighbour which remained a large market on Canada's doorstep. While more than half of Canada's exports went to Britain compared with less than 40 percent to the United States, nearly 60 percent of Canada's imports came from south of the border. Likewise, American direct investment of $254 million in 1909 in the Canadian economy, especially in the manufacturing sector, was more than double that of the British investors who continued to have indirect investments in Canada. *An ideal trade connection is when foreign countries import more from your country than you import from them.
When Prime Minister Sir Wilfrid Laurier and his Liberal government succeeded in negotiating a free trade agreement for natural products and a short list of manufactured goods with the United States in late January, 1911, the debate and the subsequent election on the issue turned into a plebiscite on the nature of Canada. The opponents of reciprocity, led by businessmen in Central Canada and the Conservative Party, argued that the choice was one between Canadian nationalism with its strong British connections, and the continentalization of North America, with the United States as the dominant centre. With free trade, the opponents argued, Canada would be Americanized and the British heritage would be destroyed. The supporters of reciprocity argued unsuccessfully that it was simply just a good economic deal for Canada. Not so, the Conservative leader Robert Borden repeatedly told the voters; the Reciprocity Agreement represented a crucial juncture in Canada's history: 'We must decide whether the spirit of Canadianism or that of continentalism shall prevail on the northern half of this continent.' Borden waved the old British flag and beat loudly on the patriotic drum as Canada's first Prime Minister, John A. Macdonald, had done in his last election in 1891.
Laurier, who had now been in office for more than 15 years, could scarcely defend himself against such nationalist rhetoric. To compound Laurier's problem, he was seen in Quebec as being too imperialistic in his proposal for a Canadian navy and his involvement of Canadians in the Boer War. In a moment of despair during the 1911 campaign, he commented, 'I am branded in Quebec as a traitor to the French and in Ontario as a traitor to the English ... In Quebec I am attacked as an Imperialist, and in Ontario as an anti-Imperialist.' Such is the nature of Canadian politics. The supporters of free trade lost in 1911, and Borden replaced Laurier as Canada's prime minister. For the time being, at least, the British connection was secure, especially when Canada joined in the conflagration brought by the Great War just three years later.
http://www.mta.ca/faculty/arts/canadian_studies/english/about/study_guide/debates/reciprocity.htmlGet back in the boat!
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