1588 NORTH ATLANTIC COAST FISHERIES ARBITRATION. 



local officials seemed to be discriminating between vessels on regis- 

 ter and vessels with license to fish, and Mr. Root said: Can they 

 not be instructed that they have no right to make this discrimina- 

 tion? Almost immediately in the despatches sent back it was re- 

 plied that vessels on register had not been forbidden to fish. Some 

 notices apparently were given. If any notices were given forbidding 

 registered vessels to fish, the position was almost immediately re- 

 ceded from ; but that is the way the question arose, and the corollary 

 of the British proposition is, that if a fishing-vessel, though duly 

 authorised by its United States register to trade, cannot trade, then 

 the opposite of it will be true that a United States trading-vessel 

 on register, and therefore with permission to fish, cannot fish. And. 

 as I understand it, the question before this Tribunal is whether there 

 is anything in the treaty of 1818 that would justify Great Britain in 

 taking that position and excluding our vessels on register, who have 

 the right to trade, from fishing or, of course, the reverse. 



THE PRESIDENT: There are two sides to the question. One is, 

 whether trading- vessels may fish, or whether one may fish from a 

 trading-vessel ; and the other question is, whether one may trade from 

 a fishing- vessel. 



MR. ELDER : That is it, precisely. 



THE PRESIDENT: And I think the more practical side of the ques- 

 tion is the latter one, that is the question of buying bait. 



MR. ELDER: Yes. 



THE PRESIDENT: The historical offspring of the question was per- 

 haps the first, the question in the Bay of Islands, whether they might 

 fish from a trading- vessel ; but now the more practical side of the 

 question seems to me to be the other, whether one may buy bait from 

 a fishing- vessel ? 



MR. ELDER : It wants to be remembered, and undoubtedly is borne 

 in mind by the Tribunal, that the United States register is a register 

 which permits both trading and fishing. The United States in its 

 authorization duly authorizes commercial rights and fishing rights, 

 and the question is whether Great Britain can forbid it. Now, one 

 distinction should be made. Newfoundland statutes have nothing 

 whatever to do with this question. It is not a question whether 

 Newfoundland may prohibit its inhabitants from selling bait. It 

 gets back to our Question 2, but the sole question is whether there 

 is anything in the treaty of 1818 that authorizes Great Britain or 

 Newfoundland to discriminate against our fishing-vessels. 



THE PRESIDENT: And then as to the exercise of commercial rights 

 by fishing- vessels, has not that question two sides again ? One ques- 

 tion is, whether the fishing- vessels may buy bait or ice or other 

 962 supplies? and the other question is, whether the fishing- vessels 

 may buy herring for sale? There are two different questions. 

 Do you consider both under the head of commercial privileges? 



