FISHERIES OF AMERICA 158 



years that the interior of the island has 

 been properly explored. One might say 

 that, to the European, the Newfoundland 

 fishery is the oldest industry in the New 

 World. And it has the imprint of age- 

 long methods. The large steam trawling 

 company is almost unknown ; centralized 

 effort is absent ; every man fishes for him- 

 self, arid generally his ideas ,of fishing are 

 the same as those in vogue in Britain a 

 hundred years ago. The enmity caused 

 between the French and British by con- 

 flicting interests has been in the past almost 

 a casus belli, until in 1904 the differences 

 were amicably settled by treaty. To-day 

 the value of the fisheries to Newfoundland 

 is 3,000,000 per annum. All this product 

 was before the war salted and exported, 

 chiefly to the Mediterranean countries 

 through French agencies. The natives of 

 Brittany and Normandy are greatly 

 occupied in this work, and much of their 

 simple life is in evidence. The coast vil- 

 lages retain many of the picturesque 

 features of the Old World fishing craft, and 

 often Sicilian barques can be seen in the 

 different ports bringing salt from Southern 



