Show THE PRESIDENT MEANS BUSINESS r 1 f An important and significant letter of President Cleveland on the subject of retaliation is made public The letter is in reply to a communication from the American Fishery Union of Massachusetts Massa-chusetts suggesting that in case it may become necessary to apply to Canada the I retaliatory act passed by the late Congress q c f c Con-gress the object might be fully attained if the proposed retaliation was confined to the closing of the United States markets mar-kets to the Canadian fish products In other words the scope of retaliation suggested sug-gested by the Massachusetts fishermen is that if American fishermen suffer any interference with their rights on the coast of Canada the importation of Canadian fish shall be prohibited if Ie the fishermen were the only citizens whose rights and interests are concerned But the President in his reply takes higher ground The action of Canada he says if it is in violation of the American fishing rights and unjust and unfriendly towards one class of our people constitutes a national affront to be felt and replied to by the whole nation On this point he says The existing controversy is one in which two nations are the parties concerned The retaliation contemplated by the act of Con gross is to be enforced not to protect solely any partioular interest howerer meritorious or valuable but to maintain the National honor and thus protect all our people In this view a violation of the American fishery fish-ery rights and unjust or unfriendly acts towards a portion of our citizens engaged in this business is but an occasion for notion and constitutes a National affront which gives birth to or mar justify retaliation This measure once resorted to its effec tiveness and value may well depend upon S the thoroughness and extent of its applica tion and in the performance of international duties the enforcement of international rights and the protection of our citizens This Government and the people of the United States must act as a unit all intent upon attaining the best results of the retal iation upon a basis of a maintenance of National honor and duty This is very broad ground and the principle which the President announces as that on which he shall base such action as may be necessary is easily comprehended He regards the issue not as a question of petty rivalry between neighbors of the same trade but as a controversy in which two nations are the parties concerned and in this spirit while avoiding the infliction of unnecessary unneces-sary injury upon an interest of our people peo-ple he declares that he shall be unflinchingly un-flinchingly guided by a sense of what the selfrespect and dignity of the Nation demand de-mand The President clearly means that prohibition pro-hibition of fish imports alone would not be a sufficient execution of the retaliation retalia-tion act but that the full scope of retaliation re-taliation allowed by the act should and if once resorted to shall be applied thereby not only denying Canadian fishermen commercial privileges in our ports but stopping all maratime intercourse inter-course between the two countries There is nothing of the jingo tactics in the Presfdents letter but throughout a quiet tone of dignity and firmness which shows that he fully appreciates the responsibility placed in his hands by Congress but is not disposed to shrink from its exercise on any proper occasion He seems to have no doubt as to the justice jus-tice of the position assumed by our government gov-ernment in regard to the rights involved and no inclination to hesitate in applying the policy of retaliation to whatever extent ex-tent may be necessary for the vindication of the national dignity |