BRITISH, COLONIAL AND OTHER CORRESPONDENCE, ETC. 279 



they endeavored to practice what they claimed they had the right to 

 do, by their fishermen coming within our territorial limits, in conse- 

 quence of which there were frequent seizures made of their fishing 

 vessels before the Treaty of 1818. In point of fact immediately 

 before the Treaty of 1818 much bad feeling existed among our neigh- 

 bors on this subject, and we were very much in the same position as 

 during 1886-7. By this Treaty of 1818 a definition was attempted 

 of the rights which the United States fishermen should be entitled to 

 exercise along our coasts, and I would like to recall to the memory of 

 the House the precise language of that Treaty. By its terms, which 

 are very short, it was declared that : 



" It is agreed between the high contracting parties that the inhab- 

 itants of the said United States shall have, forever, in common with 

 the subjects of His Britannic Majesty, the liberty to take fish of every 

 kind on that part of the southern coast of Newfoundland which extends 

 from Cape Kay to the Kamea Islands, on the western and northern 

 coast of Newfoundland; from the said Cape Kay to the Quirpon 

 Islands; on the shores of the Magdalen Islands; and also on the 

 coasts, bays, harbors, and creeks, from Mount Joly on the southern 

 coast of Labrador, to and through the Straits of Belleisle, and thence 

 northward, indefinitely, along the coast, without prejudice, however, 

 to any of the exclusive rights of the Hudson's Bay Company; and 

 that the American fishermen shall also have liberty, forever, to dry 

 and cure fish in any of the unsettled bays, harbors, and creeks of the 

 southern part of the coast of Newfoundland hereabove described, 

 and of the coast of Labrador, but so soon as the same, or any portion 

 thereof, shall be settled, it shall not be lawful for the said fishermen 

 to dry or cure fish at such portion so settled, without previous agree- 

 ment for such purpose with the inhabitants, proprietors or possessors 

 of the ground ; and the United States hereby renounce, forever, any 

 liberty heretofore enjoyed or claimed by the inhabitants thereof to 

 take, dry or cure fish on or within three marine miles of any of the 

 coasts, bays, creeks or harbors of His Britannic Majesty's dominions 

 in America not included within the above-mentioned limits: Pro- 

 vided, however, That the American fishermen shall be admitted to 

 etner such bays or harbors for the purpose of shelter and of repairing 

 damages, therein, of purchasing wood, and of obtaining water, and 

 for no other purposes whatever. But they shall be under such restric- 

 tions as may be necessary to prevent their taking, drying or curing 

 fish therein, or in any other manner whatever abusing the privileges 

 hereby reserved to them." 



The limits to which a part of this clause refers are limits with 

 which we need not deal now limits within which certain privileges 

 were granted to the United States fishermen; but that portion of it 

 does not now necessarily come under our consideration. But while 

 granting the privileges mentioned in the treaty, it declares that in 

 using them the fishermen shall be under such restrictions as may be 

 necessary to prevent their taking, drying or curing fish within the 

 prohibited limits, or in any manner whatever abusing the privileges 

 thereby reserved to them. That was in 1818, and for thirty-six years 

 we lived under the regime of that treaty. During that period, grad- 

 ually the same class of difficulties arose as those which we had experi- 

 enced before 1818, only they were more pronounced in their character, 

 inasmuch as there was a more definite law which we claimed was 



