BRITISH, COLONIAL, AND OTHER CORRESPONDENCE, ETC. 333 



put before the Government of France an arrangement, in draft, 

 which will terminate the rights of French fishermen to land and to 

 dry their fish on the shores of Newfoundland, but which will leave 

 a concurrent right of fishery, the regulating and policing of which 

 will be in the manner provided in the North Sea Fishery Conven- 

 tion of 1881, Articles 14 to 38, and in the Convention of 1887 (also 

 North Sea Fishery). The Imperial Government to compensate the 

 owners of all existing French establishments on the Treaty Shore 

 of the Island; and that His Majesty's Government presume that 

 they may state that the Newfoundland Government will approve of 

 this, and will undertake to pass the necessary permanent legislation 

 to provide for the carrying out, policing and regulating, on the lines 

 above suggested, the joint fishery. 



ALFRED LYTTELTON, 

 Secretary of State for the Colonies. 



No. II. 



Despatch from Governor Boyle to Secretary Lyttelton stating 

 Government's objections. 



[Sent 18th January, 1904.] 



The objections raised by the Premier the Right Hon. Sir R. "Bond 

 are (1) the uncertainty of the powers and jurisdiction of the Com- 

 manders of the policing cruisers to be employed; (2) the extent of 

 the French fishing rights in tidal waters and bays; (3) the absence 

 of powers for obtaining redress in Colonial Law Courts in cases of 

 French vessels who may oft'end, and (4) the absence of assurance 

 that French concurrent rights will not extend to catching of salmon 

 and taking of whales in territorial waters. I would suggest that as 

 much as possible of the draft agreement be telegraphed. 



CAVENDISH BOYLE, 

 Governor of Newfoundland. 



No. III. 



Despatch from Secretary Lyttelton assuring Newfoundland Gov- 

 ernment that no new fishery rights are conceded to the French. 



[Received 22nd January, 1904.] 



His Majesty's Government have never admitted any right of French 

 to catch whales or that they have any such rights and no change is 

 proposed to be made. His Majesty's Government do not propose to 

 concede any rights to fish for salmon in the rivers or to use stakes 

 or fixed nets. The Articles of the North Pea Fisheries Convention 

 fully define the powers and jurisdiction of the cruisers. 



We now ask the assurance of your Government that if we can ob- 

 tain an abandonment of the rights to land and dry fish they will 

 undertake to obtain the necessary legislation for policing and regu- 



