DESPATCHES, REPORTS, CORRESPONDENCE, ETC. 651 



American fishermen shall have liberty to dry and cure fish in any of 



the unsettled bays, harbours, and creeks of Nova Scotia, Mag- 



389 dalen Islands, and Labrador, so long as the same shall remain 



unsettled; but so soon as the same, or either of them, shall be 



settled, it shall not be lawful for the said fishermen to dry or cure 



fish at such settlement, without a previous agreement for that purpose 



with the inhabitants, proprietors, or possessors of the ground." 



This article, it will be observed, recognised an existing right and 

 practice in respect of American fishermen exercising their calling not 

 only at sea on the banks of Newfoundland, but in all places in the 

 sea, within what would be strictly British waters. And it will be 

 observed also that this treaty said nothing on the subject of com- 

 mercial intercourse between the people of the United States and 

 those of the British provinces. 



The next treaty was that of 1794, by the Illrd article of which it 

 was provided as follows : 



It is agreed that it shall at all times be free to His Majesty's subjects, arid to 

 the citizens of the United States, and also to the Indians dwelling on either 

 side of said boundary line (being the land boundary line between the United 

 States and the British provinces of North America), freely to pass and repass, by 

 land or inland navigation, into the respective countries of the two parties, on the 

 continent of America (hte country within the limits of the Hudson Bay Com- 

 pany only excepted), and to navigate all the lakes, rivers, and waters thereof, 

 and freely to cany on trade and commerce with each other. But it is under- 

 stood that this article does not extend to the admission of vessels of the 

 United States into the sea-ports, harbors, bays, or creeks of His Majesty's 

 said territories; nor into such parts of the rivers in His Majesty's said terri- 

 tories as are between the mouth thereof and the highest port of entry from the 

 sen, except in small vessels trading bond flde between Montreal and Quebec, 

 under such regulations as shall be established to prevent the possibility of 

 any frauds in this respect; nor to the admission of British vessels from the sea 

 into the rivers of the United States, beyond the highest ports of entry for 

 foreign vessels from the sea. 



A later article in the treaty of 1794 (article XII) provided that 

 for a limited period, named in the treaty, citizens of the United 

 States might engage in carrying trade to any of His Majesty's islands 

 and ports in the West Indies under certain conditions named. A 

 later article (article XIII) provided that vessels belonging to the 

 citizens of the United States should be admitted into all the sea-ports 

 and harbors of the British territories in the East Indies, &c. A 

 later article (article XIV) provided that there should be between 

 the dominions of His Majesty in Europe and the territories of the 

 United States a reciprocal and perfect liberty of commerce and 

 navigation, &c. Another article (article XIII) provided for admit- 

 ting American vessels in distress into all of His Majesty's ports on 

 manifesting its necessity to the satisfaction of the Government of the 

 place. 



So far as the present question is concerned the foregoing repre- 

 sents the state of the treaty arrangements between the United States 

 and Great Britain down to the close of the war of 1812. By the treaty 

 of 1815, following the treaty of peace of 1814, it was provided in 

 article I that there should be between the territories of the United 

 States and all the territories of His Britannic Majesty in Europe, 

 reciprocal liberty of commerce, &c. 



In a later article of the same treaty (article II) it was provided 

 that the intercourse between the United States and His Majesty's 



