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



of the United States. I am not going to trouble you, Sir, by referring 

 to it. I am contenting myself with tlie statement — (it is tliere to be 

 examined by the Tribunal if they desire) — that it does not Avarrant 

 the inference drawn from it by my friends. 



Now the next illustration is the Greenland or Jan Mayen fisheries, 

 and they are referred to on page 168 of the Argument of my friend. 

 The paragraph is short and I will read it. It says: 



The seal fisheries of Greenland were the subject of concurrent legislation in 1875, 

 1876, and 1877 by England, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Netherlands, which pro- 

 hibits all fishing for seals by the inhabitants of those countries before April 3 in any 

 year, within an area of the open sea bounded by the following parallels of latitude 

 and longitude, viz., 67^ N., 75^ N., 5^ ¥.., 17° W. 



The mere reading of that sentence ought to dispense with further 

 comment. It shows that this legislation of a concurrent kind arrived 

 at by these several Powers, each of them recognizing that it has no 

 power outside territorial limits to bind other than its own subjects, — 

 the subjects of each of these Powers resorting to these fisheries are how- 

 ever bound by the legislation of their own country; and inasmuch as by 

 convention these Powers have agreed to legislate so as to bind their 

 respective subjects, then these laws have an extra-territorial applica- 

 tion to the subjects of England, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and the 

 Netherlands. 



The matter is explained, and clearly explained, on page 45 of the 

 printed Argument of Great Britain: 



The second group of enactments of other countries referred to in the United States 

 Case are based tipon Conventions; they therefore lend no support to the United 

 States contention, that they can by their independent action claim to enforce such 

 regulations against the subjects of other nations in respect of iishing in the high sea. 



The enactments in question are those of Great Britain, Sweden, Norway, Russia, 

 Germany, and Holland. They all deal with the Jan Mayen seal fisheries in the 

 Atlantic east of Greenland; and proceed on the principle here enunciated. 



The principle is at once explained by the section of the Act which I 

 am going to read. 



The first section of "The Great Britain Greenland Seal Fishery Act of 1875" is 

 shortly as follows: 



When it appears to Her Majesty in Council that the foreign States whose ships or 



subjects are engaged in the Jan Mayen fishery have made or will make witii 



respect to their own ships and subjects the like provisions to those contained in this 

 Act, it shall be lawful for Her Majesty, by Order in Council, to direct that this Act 

 shall apply to the said seal fishery. 



In other words, when the other nations have determined on their leg- 

 islation, then the Queen, by Order in Council, can apply the provisions 

 of the Act in question. 



It then proceeds : 



The legislation of the other countries is conceived in a similar spirit, and was 

 passed after negotiations between their respective Governments. 



The necessary legislation having been provided, the Queen, by Order in 

 1145 Council, dated the 28th November, 1876, put the Act in force against her own 

 subjects. 



The great difficulty of effectively njaintaining a close time in distant fisheries in 

 the high seas, and of protecting and regulating such fisJieries, except as against 

 subjects, has in many instances been dealt with by Conventions, as is stated in the 

 United States Case. 



These Conventions proceed on principles well established. 



The principles are: 



1. The determination of the limits of the exclusive fisheries of the respective par- 

 ties to the Convention. 



2. Except as expressly varied by agreement the respective national jurisdictions 

 are preserved intact. 



3. It is only by agreement that jurisdiction on the high sea over its nationals is 

 given bv one nation to another. 



