Canada is Foreign?

Is Canadian a language? If so, is it foreign to an Englishman? Is Canada a country--or not? Last week these three questions agitated two of His Majesty's Parliaments.

In London brisk Alexander Wilkinson Haycock, a Labor M.P. born in Ontario, but now representing an English constituency, was caught up short while addressing the House of Commons in his mother tongue, Canadian. Interrupted peppery Walter James Womersley, Conservative, addressing the Deputy Speaker:

"Is it legal--I demand to know--is it legal for a member to address this House in a foreign language?"

Sharply and instantly the Deputy Speaker rebuked Conservative Womersley for calling Canadian a foreign language, forced him to withdraw.

Meanwhile, at Ottawa, the members of His Majesty's Canadian House of Commons were listening to the Hon. Hugh Guthrie, M.P., first lieutenant of the Dominion Conservative Party.

"You would think that Five-Power Conference in London was a Six-Power Conference, or goodness knows what!" stormed he. "What is the Defense Minister of this Dominion [Col. Hon. James Ralston] doing at this moment as our representative at that Conference? Why should we be represented? We are gradually being drawn into interference with the affairs of Europe. We are posing as a nation, when we are not a nation at all!"

In thus repudiating Canada's nationhood, Mr. Guthrie spoke of course as a member of the Opposition. The Canadian Government of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King takes exactly the opposite view, holds that "dominion status" is substantially "nationhood," makes every effort to parade this fact by establishing diplomatic legations abroad.

In attacking Mr. King's pet policy last week other Conservative speakers who followed Mr. Guthrie scathingly asked whether the Canadian Legation in Washington (maintained at an annual cost of $100,000) is being used to protest the U. S. tariff. " One thing we do know!" roared Conservative Thomas Kaiser. "We have never had so many troubles with them [the U. S.] over liquor as since we established our Legation!"

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