708 APPENDIX TO BRITISH CASE. 



Congress, and at as early a day as possible I shall transmit the 

 remaining portion to this date, accompanying it with the joint pro- 

 tocols of the conferences which resulted in the conclusion of the 

 treaty now submitted to you. 



You will thus be fully possessed of the record and history of the 

 case since the termination, on June 30, 1885, of the fishery articles of 

 the Treaty of Washington of 1871, whereby we were relegated to 

 the provisions of the treat} 7 of October 20, 1818. 



As the documents and papers referred to will supply full infor- 

 mation of the positions taken under my administration by the rep- 

 resentatives of the United States, as well as those occupied by the 

 representatives of the Government of Great Britain, it is not consid- 

 ered necessary or expedient to repeat them in this message. But I 

 believe the treaty will be found to contain a just, honourable, and, 

 therefore, satisfactory solution of the difficulties which have clouded 

 our relations with our neighbors on our northern border. 



Especialh* satisfactory do I believe the proposed arrangement will 

 be found by those of our citizens who are engaged in the open sea 

 fisheries, adjacent to the Canadian coast, and resorting to those ports 

 and harbors under treaty provisions and rules of international law. 



The proposed delimitation of the lines of the exclusive fisheries 

 from the common fisheries will give certainty and security as to the 

 area of their legitimate field; the headland theory of imaginary lines 

 is abandoned by Great Britain, and the specification in the treaty of 

 certain named bays especially provided for gives satisfaction to the 

 inhabitants of the shores, without subtracting materially from the 

 value or convenience of the fishery rights of Americans. 



The uninterrupted navigation of the Strait of Canso is expressly 

 and for the first time affirmed, and the four purposes for which our 

 fishermen under the treaty of 1818 were allowed to enter the bays and 

 harbors of Canada and Newfoundland within the belt of 3 marine 

 miles are placed under a fair and liberal construction, and their en- 

 joyment secured without such conditions and restrictions as in the 

 past have embarrassed and obstructed them so seriously. 



The enforcement of penalties for unlawfully fishing or preparing 

 to fish within the inshore and exclusive waters of Canada and New- 

 foundland is to be accomplished under safe-guards against oppres- 

 sive or arbitrary action, thus protecting the defendant fishermen 

 from punishment in advance of trial, delays, and inconvenience and 

 unnecessary expense. 



The history of events in the last two years shows that no feature 

 of Canadian ^administration was more harassing and injurious than 

 the compulsion upon our fishing vessels to make formal entry and 

 clearance on every occasion of temporarily seeking shelter in Cana- 

 dian ports and harbors. 



Such inconvenience is provided against in the proposed treaty, and 

 this most frequent and just cause of complaint is removed. 



The articles permitting our fishermen to obtain provisions and 

 the ordinary supplies of trading vessels on their homeward voyages, 

 and under which they are accorded the further and even more im- 

 portant privilege on all occasions of purchasing such casual or need- 

 ful provisions and supplies as are ordinarily granted to trading ves- 

 sels, are of great importance and value. 



The licences which are to be granted without charge and on appli- 

 cation, in order to enable our fishermen to enjoy these privileges, 



