1660 NORTH ATLANTIC COAST FISHERIES ARBITRATION. 



as to the sovereign rights of Great Britain, but as Mr. Monroe per- 

 suades himself that the British Government upon further inquiry, 

 might, without prejudice to its own interests, accede to the proposi- 

 tion, which he was desirous of making to them through you, His 

 Royal Highness authorizes you to learn from the American Govern- 

 ment the precise extent and nature of the accommodation which it 

 seeks to obtain." 



That is a very significant paragraph. I need not have troubled 

 about any sentences yesterday which involved the slightest possi- 

 bility of ambiguity with this paragraph there because, what is the 

 fair construction to put upon it? What does it indicate? In the 

 very sentence previous to it, which I ought to have read, it says : 



"The Prince Regent fully approves the motives which induced 

 you to decline receiving any counter pro jet from the American Secre- 

 tary of State." 



They were refusing to receive any counter project from the Ameri- 

 cans. Then, Mr. Monroe had succeeded in making Lord Castle- 

 reagh, or some other English representative, believe that it would not 

 hurt British sovereignty. 



"No" says Lord Castlereagh, "negotiation could be entertained 

 which might .... seem to imply any doubt .... as to the sov- 

 ereign rights of Great Britain." Mr. Monroe persuades himself and 

 has persuaded Lord Castlereagh that Great Britain need not fear 

 that. So that, if anything was said about servitudes it strengthens 

 my case. It shows that although probably the word " servitude " is 

 never mentioned, because only the French, apparently, talked about 

 servitudes, and inasmuch as the word was unpleasant in its import 

 it would not be used by the Americans to Great Britain, still, there 

 was the idea that this proposition to obtain British territory for a 

 specific and economic purpose might possibly attach to it a servitude. 

 Now Lord Castlereagh says, as Mr. Monroe thinks not, we are pre- 

 pared to think it over and we will hear what they have to say. 

 There is the only mention of the word "servitude" and when one 

 comes to look at the surrounding circumstances it is not a mention 

 which helps the case for the United States. 



JUDGE GRAY : Is the word mentioned there ? 



SIR W. ROBSON: No; I say the word is not mentioned, but it looks 

 as though the thing had been the subject matter of consideration. 

 The word is only mentioned in the letter of Mr. Gallatin and then 

 mentioned as a French term rather than as one which had passed 

 between the parties. 



Now then, I come to the second mention of the word in the record, 

 and that is in a speech made by Mr. Trescott before the Halifax 

 Commissioners. It is in the British Counter-Case Appendix, at 

 p. 187. Mr. Trescott is arguing for the United States, and he says 

 this: 



