RELATING TO THE TREATY OF 1871. 

 Sir Edward Thornton to Mr. Fish. 



WASHINGTON, June 19 ', 1873. (Received June 19.) 



SIR: In compliance with instructions which I have received from 

 Earl Granville, I have the honor to transmit herewith copy of an act 

 which has been passed by the legislature of Newfoundland to carry 

 into effect articles 18 to 25 of the treaty of May 8, 1871. I am at the 

 same time instructed to inquire whether the President of the United 

 States will be prepared on the 1st of July next to issue a proclama- 

 tion with reference to Newfoundland, in accordance with the 2d 

 section of the recent act of Congress relating to the treaty of 

 Washington. 



In that case, the governor of Newfoundland would be instructed 

 to issue a similar proclamation, fixing the day on which the act and 

 the articles of the treaty applicable to Newfoundland shall take 

 effect in that colony. 



I am, therefore, instructed to propose to you to sign a protocol 

 with regard to Newfoundland similar to that which I had the honor 

 to sign with you on the 7th instant, with the addition of a clause 

 following as nearly as possible the proviso at the end of the first 

 article -of the Newfoundland act, namely, that the laws, rules and 

 regulations of the colony relating to the time and manner of prose- 

 cuting the fisheries on the coast of the island shall not in any way be 

 affected by the suspension of the laws of the colony which operate 

 to prevent articles 18 to 25 of the treaty of Washington from taking 

 full effect during the period mentioned in the 33d article of the 

 treaty. 



With respect to the day on which the above mentioned articles 

 should take effect in Newfoundland, Lord Granville has been in- 

 formed by the colonial office, that, under the imperial act of the last 

 session of Parliament, relative to the fishery articles of the treaty, the 

 governor of Newfoundland can only issue his proclamation extend- 

 ing those articles to Newfoundland during the suspension of certain 

 acts of Parliament, which acts will only be suspended when the act 

 of Congress of the United States shall have come into force. As this 

 will not take place until the 1st of July, it appears that the govern- 

 or's proclamation cannot be issued before that date, and the protocol 

 should therefore fix the 2d or 3d of July as the day for bringing the 

 articles of the treaty into effect in Newfoundland. 

 I have, &c. 



EDW'D THORNTON. 



92909 S. Doc. 870, 61-3. vol 6 21 195 



