Salt Lake Tribune | 1911-03-16 | Page 14 | General Free Trade Was Never Proposed

GENERAL FREE TRADE WAS NEVER PROPOSED Finance Minister Fielding Explains Statement State-ment Attributed to President Presi-dent Taft, OTTAWA. Out.. March 15. No proposals pro-posals for general free trade between Canada and the United States were made to Canada by tho American commissioners commission-ers In the recent negotiations said Finance Fi-nance Minister Fielding in parliament today. to-day. "If the American commissioners had authority to make such proposals they were not given the opportunity, because be-cause at the very outset wo gave them to understand that, speaking generally, we were not prepared to havo manufactured manu-factured articles included in the list for reciprocity." The statement was made in reply to a question as lo what foundation there was for a statement credited to President Presi-dent Taft that he hail Instructed the American tnrlft commissioners to offer Canada mutual free trade in everything but that the Canadian commissioners would not consider free trade In manufactured manu-factured products, as they feared competition com-petition with the belter organized xmeri-can xmeri-can Industries. "While President. Taft is no doubt right In his statement." said Mr. Fielding, "sllll, for tho reason I have given, the offer was 'never formally made."