he British minister, in connection with Hon.
MacKenzie Bowell and Hon. George E. Foster, members of the Canadian
ministry, were received by the Secretary of State and a further
conference took place. In both of the conferences referred to Hon. John
W. Foster, at the request of the Secretary of State, appeared with him
on behalf of this Government; and the report of the latter conference
was submitted to me on the 6th instant by Mr. Foster, and is herewith
transmitted. The result of the conference as to the practicability of
arranging a reciprocity treaty with the Dominion of Canada is clearly
stated in the letter of Mr. Blaine, and was anticipated, I think, by him
and by every other thoughtful American who had considered the subject.
A reciprocity treaty limited to the exchange of natural products would
have been such only in form. The benefits of such a treaty would have
inured almost wholly to Canada. Previous experiments on this line had
been unsatisfactory to this Government. A treaty that should be
reciprocal in fact and of mutual advantages must necessarily have
embraced an important list of manufactured articles and have secured to
the United States a free or favored introduction of these articles into
Canada as against the world; but it was not believed that the Canadian
ministry was ready to propose or assent to such an arrangement. The
conclusion of the Canadian commissioners is stated in the report of
Mr. Blaine as follows:

In the second place, it seemed to be impossible for the Canadian
government, in view of its present political relations and obligations,
to extend to American goods a preferential treatment over those of
other countries. As Canada was a part of the British Empire, they did
not consider it competent for the Dominion government to enter into
any commercial arrangement with the United States from the benefits of
which Great Britain and its colonies should be excluded.

It is not for this Government to argue against this announcement of
Canadian official opinion. It must be accepted, however, I think, as
the statement of a condition which places an insuperable barrier in
the way of the attainment of that large and beneficial intercourse and
reciprocal trade which might otherwise be developed between the United
States and the Dominion.

It will be noticed that Mr. Blaine reports as one of the results of the
conference "an informal engagement to repeal and abandon the drawback