1612 NOBTH ATLANTIC COAST FISHERIES ARBITRATION. 



Now, let us confine our attention for a few moments to these fishing 

 rights and ask what antecedent enjoyment the colonies now forming 

 the United States had had in regard to these fisheries. What did 

 they have? Really, you will be astonished when you come to look 

 at it very closely. 



We are concerned here with fisheries on the coast of Labrador, the 

 western coast of Newfoundland, southern coast of Newfoundland, 

 and the Magdalen Islands, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and part of 

 Canada. 



Now, what is the enjoyment which they had of them ? 



Take Canada first. Canada was only ceded in 1763. The revo- 

 lutionary troubles began in 1774. I think that is the year in 

 975 which the historic tea was emptied into Boston harbour, and 

 made a brew that we have not yet finished drinking. So that 

 there was only from 1763 to 1774, eleven years, during which there 

 could be any enjoyment of the fisheries so far as Canada is concerned. 

 And, I should doubt very much that they troubled the Magdalen 

 Islands during those eleven years. Their interests and their attentions 

 were concentrated on the bank fisheries, far away from the Magadalen 

 Islands. 



But, still, they do appear to have used them in some degree. But 

 what is said about the degree of user that they had of them ? What 

 is said in the document with which the Tribunal is now so familiar? 

 Everybody says on the United States side at that time that they made 

 very little use of them, that they were very little good to them, that 

 perhaps their principal advantage was that they had been found 

 rather inconvenient to England, which was a perfectly sound reason 

 from the international point of view. For instance, Mr. Adams 

 writes to Mr. Russell : 



"This privilege," (that is the fishing within 3 miles) "without 

 being of much use to our fishermen, had been found very inconvenient 

 to the British : " 



I will give the reference to that, which is British Counter-Case 

 Appendix, p. 162. 



Therefore, without being of much use to the United States fisher- 

 men it was of considerable use to the United States diplomatists; but 

 as to the user by these hardy fishermen whose rights we are supposed 

 to be hearing in this question, I doubt if they ever went near the 

 Magdalen Islands in the eleven years prior to the revolution. Now 

 that refers to the Canadian fisheries. 



Now, next, what about the west coast of Newfoundland? That, as 

 we know, was a coast over which the French had especial rights under 

 the Treaty of Utrecht, which had been reaffirmed under the treaty of 

 1763, so that there would not be much American fishing there. There 



