THIRTY-THIRD DAY, JUNE 6^", 1893. 



The President. — Before you begiu, Sir Eichard, Mr, Gram wishes 

 to say something. 



Mr. Gram. — The Appendix vol. I to the United States Case gives 

 the text of the hiw and regidations rehiting to the protection of whales 

 on the coast of Finumarken. It was my intention later on to explain to 

 my colleagues these laws and regulations, by supplying some informa- 

 tion about the natural conditions of Norway and Sweden which have 

 necessitated the establishment of special rules concerning the territorial 

 waters, and to state at the same time my opinion as to whether those 

 rules and their subject matter maybe considered as having^ny bearing 

 upon the present case. As, however, in the later sittings reference has 

 repeatedly been made to the Norwegian legislation concerning this 

 matter, I think it might be of some use at the present juncture to give 

 a very brief account of the leading features of those rules. . 



The peculiarity of the Norwegian law quoted by the Counsel for the 

 United States, consists in its providing for a close season for the whal- 

 ing. As to its stipulations about inner and territorial waters, such 

 stipulations are simply applications to a special case of general princi- 

 ples laid down in the Norwegian legislation concerning the gulfs and 

 the waters washing the coasts. A glance at the map will be sufficient 

 to show the great number of gulfs or " fiords ", and their importance 

 for the inhabitants of Norway. Some of those "fiords" have a consid- 

 erable development, stretching themselves far into the country and 

 being at their mouth very wide. Nevertheless they have been from 

 time immemorial considered as inner-waters, and this principle has 

 always been maintained, even as against foreign subjects. 



More than twenty years ago, a foreign government once complained 

 that a vessel of their nationality had been j)revented from fishing in one 

 of the largest fiords of Norway, in the northern part of the country. 

 The fishing is carried on in that neighborhood during the first four 

 months of every year, and is of extraordinary importance to the coun- 

 try, some 30,000 people gathering there from South and North in order 

 to earn their living. A government inspector controls the fishing going 

 on in the waters of the fiord, which is sheltered by a range of islands 

 against the violence of the sea. The appearance in these waters of a 

 foreign vessel pretending to take its share of the fishing, was an unheard 

 of occurrence, and in the ensuing diplomatic correspondence the exclu- 

 sive right of Norwegian subjects to this industry was energetically 

 insisted upon as founded on immemorial practice. 



Besides Sweden and Norway have never recognized the three-mile 

 limit as the confines of their territorial waters. They have neither con- 

 cluded nor acceded to any treaty consecratingthat rule. By their munic- 

 ipal laws the limit has generally been fixed at one geographical mile, 

 or one-fifteenth part of a degree of latitude, or four marine miles ; no 

 narrower limit having ever been adopted. In fact, in regard to this 

 question of the fishing rights, so important to both of the united king- 

 doms, these limits have in many instances been found to be even too 



522 



