ORAL ARGUMENT OF SIR CHARLES RUSSELL, Q. C. M. P. 49 



Lord Hannen. — I suppose as in the case of fisliing vessels of con- 

 siderable size, they are fitted for fishing, and though they could be 

 converted, it would be a considerable expense to convert them to other 

 purposes? 



Sir Charles Eussell. — No doubt that is so. 



Senator Morgan. — All these fishing schooners carry from five to 

 fifteen small boats, armed with men. The evidence is that the boats 

 go out and d(» the sealing. 



Sir Charles Russell. — Oh, no doubt. They do not shoot at the 

 seals from the schooner really. 



Senator Morgan. — Kot at all. 



Sir Charles Russell. — The real sealing is done by the boats that 

 are sent out from the side of the schooner. That is quite true. I 

 may state the information which Mr. Tupper gives me, which I have 

 no doubt is correct. Tlie great majority of these schooners, probably 

 not all of them, are boats that come from the Atlantic side of America, 

 and that have been principally used for fishing on that side. They are 

 brought around to the west coast of America. There is, of course, a 

 great field for fishing on the west coast, but like a great n^any other 

 places where there are valuable products of that kind, the communica- 

 tion is so defective that if they caught fish, as there is no doubt they 

 could, there is no means of readily utilizing them to any extent; so that 

 the mere pursuit of the fishing industry, in the ordinary sense, of that 

 word, is not pro iit able. 



The President. — There is no cod-fishing organized on the north- 

 western coast as yet"? 



Mr. Tupper. — So far as the Canadian portion is concerned, the deep 

 sea fishing is not yet really developed. 



Sir Charles Russell. — What I have said applies to a great many 

 of these schooners, not all of them, as Mr. Tupper has said. You are 

 aware, Sir, that railway enterprise may, in a few years change the 

 whole aspect of things there. The Canadian Pacific, which traverses 

 the whole of that continent at that point and has its terminus at Van- 

 couver, may in time with the further development of railway enter- 

 prise, make a very great change; and so regards Washington Territory. 



The President. — You mian for the building of schooners'? 



Sir Charles Russell. — ISTo; I was talking about the development 

 of fishing in the ordinary sense. 



The President. — That is so as to allow these boats to be applied for 

 other fishing besides sealing? 



Sir Charles Russell. — At some future time perhaps. They prob- 

 ably will not be fit when that time comes. 



The President. — Our regulations must be framed before that time. 



Senator Morgan. — The difficulty about fishing in Behring Sea is 

 that they have no sun-shine to cure the fish, and it is too far away from 

 the market to permit of the fish being transported to the market. 



Sir Charles Russell. — That is, no doubt, the fact. I am not speak- 

 ing from my own knowledge at all, but from what others say; — the 

 difficulty is not really insuperable at all as regards the sun, because 

 they can preserve the fish, if there were a market for it, — (that is the 

 real difficulty) — quite sufficiently without any sun to dry it, if they 

 have the salt. 



The President. — I suppose that is the real reason, — that there is no 

 market"? 



Sir Charles Russell.— That is the real reason. 



B S, PT XIV 4 



