BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 447 



156.  RKSOM I 'IO»* ASKING FOR I Hi: ABROCATION OF THE l-lsn- 

 ERV CLAUSE OF THE WASHINGTON TREATY, PASSED AT A CON- 

 VENTION OF NEW ENGLAND FISHERMEN WHICH MET AT 

 GLOUCESTER, DECE1TIRER 27, 1S84. 



Whereas, the Government of the United States, by the treaty of 1818 

 with Great Britain, took from the fishermen of the United States the 

 rights guaranteed them by the treaty of 1782 to fish in all the waters 

 bordering on the coast of the British possessions in North America, ex- 

 cepting a small portion of the coast of Newfoundland and the Magdalen 

 Islands, and the right to go upon the shores thereof for the purpose of 

 curing fish, and the right to enter the ports of the British Provinces for 

 the purpose of procuring supplies, and without either obtaining from 

 the British Government any equivalent for the fishermen or making 

 any compensation to them for the rights thus.summarily taken from 

 them ; and 



Whereas, this surrender of our rights has been a source of great an- 

 noyance and injury to our fishermen, and our vessels have been unjustly 

 seized by armed cruisers for alleged violations of the stipulation of the 

 treaty by which these rights were surrendered, and these vessels have 

 been condemned in the colonial courts without legal authority, and that 

 to an extent to make it unsafe for our vessels to pursue their legiti- 

 mate voyages, therefore it is the duty of the Government of the United 

 States at once to take such action as will protect the fishing interests and 

 render it safe for the fishermen to pursue their lawful business ; and 



Whereas, the action of the Government of the United States, by the 

 treaty known as the reciprocity treaty of 1854, and the Washington 

 treaty of 1871, modified the rights of our fishermen and materially af- 

 fected their interests, and in both treaties to their great injury, we 

 heartily approve the action of the Government in terminating those trea- 

 ties, and we are decidedly opposed to the making of any treaty with 

 Great Britain having like provisions in relation to our fisheries. The 

 only effect of the provisions of those treaties has been to damage our 

 own interests and to foster and encourage those of the British Provinces ; 

 and the Government of the United States, instead of adopting a policy 

 such as is pursued by all nations toward the fisheries, has taken from 

 our fishermen that encouragement which for many years was given them 

 by bounties and otherwise, and has brought our fishermen into an un- 

 just competition with the fisheries of the British Government, which 

 Government gives its fisheries a support which our Government with- 

 holds from ours : Therefore 



We most respectfully request that the Government of the United 

 States will take prompt action to restore to our fishermen 'the rights 

 taken from them by the treaty of 1818, or provide for them a full and 

 just compensation therefor, and that the Government will return at 



