932 NORTH ATLANTIC COAST FISHERIES ARBITRATION. 



In the following year, 1877, an Act, to be found at p. 707 of the 

 Appendix to the British Case, was passed which extended the Sun- 

 day provision to all kinds of bait-fishes, which are named : 



" That the Fourth Section of the said recited Act shall be held to 

 include and apply to the jigging of Squids, and to the use of any 

 contrivance whatever, and to any mode of taking and obtaining Fish 

 for Bait" 



That is, that all kinds of fish to be taken for bait are not to be 

 disturbed are not to be taken on Sundays. 



I may make the explanation here that this was necessary, because 

 the bait-fishes in Newfoundland, and particularly herring and the 

 other fish called caplin, are of such habits that it was believed, and 

 still is believed, that it is necessary to give them what is called a day 

 of rest somewhere or other; that the unbroken continuous prosecu- 

 tion of the fishery has the effect of driving the fish away from the 

 places to which they are in the habit of resorting; that if one small 

 place to which the fish go is continually being fished, nets being set 

 out, and boats brought there and their moorings put out, and nets 

 put out, and catching going on continually without any intermission, 

 the effect of it is ultimately, in the course of time, to drive the fish 

 away from these grounds, and that it is necessary that there should 

 be an intermission at some time or other of the practice of continuous 

 fishing. And it was believed that that purpose, as well as the observ- 

 ance of the Sabbath, could be combined by making Sunday a sort of 

 day of rest for these two fishes. 



JUDGE GRAY : Did that Sunday law permit the staking of nets that 

 might work in the absence of their owners during Sunday ? 



SIR JAMES WINTER : No. That Act, I think, prohibited the actual 

 placing of the nets on Sunday. 



JUDGE GRAY : But, in practice, could they place such a net, as Mr. 

 Turner intimated they could, on Saturday night, in the secular part 

 of the week, and let it remain until Monday, so that it might work 

 in the absence of the owner ? 



SIR JAMES WINTER : Oh, it might be left in the water, if it was set 

 out on Saturday night. It might be left in the water until Monday 

 morning. 



JUDGE GRAY: Well, then, that would not effectuate the object of 

 giving the herring a rest, would it? 



SIR JAMES WINTER : Oh, yes, it would. 



JUDGE GRAY (continuing) : Although it gave a rest to the owners of 

 the nets ? 



SIR JAMES WINTER: I must correct that misapprehension. The 

 Sunday prohibition applies only to seining, not to nets. It has not 

 the same effect at all. The 'effect of a net, with a few herring in it, 

 as described by counsel, struggling in the water, would not do any 



