"Mr. Potter gave the name, 'O. S. Wood, Superintendent of the Montreal
Telegraph Company' - a gentleman, he said, of wealth and the highest
respectability in Montreal.
"Some one asked whether Wood was a born Canadian.
"Mr. Potter replied he was not, but came originally from New York.
"The Republican journals in the West have since taken up this tone, and
Mr. Morrill, the Protectionist chairman of the 'Committee of Ways and
Means,' echoed it even in conference with the provincial delegates at
Washington last February: - Witness the following: -
"'Chicago Tribune' (Republican), Jan. 6th, 1866.
"The 'Tribune' concludes: - 'The Canadians will soon discover that free
trade and smuggling will not compensate them for the loss of the
Reciprocity Treaty. They will stay out in the cold for a few years and
try all sorts of expedients, but in the end will be constrained to
knock for admission into the Great Republic. Potter was right when he
predicted that the abrogation of the treaty would cause annexation.'
"(Mr. MORRILL, Chairman of Ways and Means, "Washington, Feb.
6th, 1866.)
"'Mr. GALT: We would not build those canals for our own trade alone.
