1788 NORTH ATLANTIC COAST FISHERIES ARBITRATION. 



defeating the revenue. ' But when a vessel comes in from outside the 

 jurisdiction this law then applies. It is not a case of discriminating 

 between two classes of vessels. It is a case of one class of vessel, by 

 the very nature of its habitation and its circumstances, alone coming 

 within the danger that is aimed at by this legislation ; and therefore 

 it alone can be made the subject of these safeguards and pen- 

 ties. 

 1081 All foreign vessels therefore are subjected to this burden. 



Now, that related only to England, and it was not until 

 William of Orange, William the Third, that the same principle was 

 applied to all plantations, that is, all the colonies. They were then 

 just beginning to be of fiscal importance, and the King was collect- 

 ing his revenue there, though, of course, he was only collecting it for 

 local purposes, never for transmission to England, but the same pro- 

 vision was applied to all the plantations, all the colonies, so that 

 every foreign vessel had to be subjected to that. 



Then, in 1763, comes the first hovering statute. That is 4 Geo. Ill, 

 cap. 15, and it gave power to visit and expel any foreign vessel 

 hovering within 2 leagues of the coast of the colony. That is the 

 first of the statutes, and, of course, it is soon discovered it needs a 

 little strengthening, so in 1767, 7 Geo. Ill, cap. 46, provides for entry 

 and clearance of all vessels arriving at any British colony in America 

 or departing therefrom, and for declaring on oath by the master as 

 to the business, destination, and cargo of his vessel. 



So that under that act every vessel arriving at a British colony, 

 whether trading or fishing, whether it came from Massachusetts, or 

 Nova Scotia, or Newfoundland, in inter-colonial trading they all 

 had to make the report and declaration. 



Now, there was a case where we were not taxing our vessels, at 

 least not necessarily taxing our vessels. There were vessels coming 

 from one part of the Empire to another, and it was not for the pur- 

 pose of collecting revenue from them, but for the purpose of making 

 sure, that they were not contravening the customs laws. I have not 

 a full recollection of all the sections of the statute in my mind, but 

 its main purpose obviously is a safeguard. You cannot tell where 

 the vessel has come from. It may have come from some place where 

 it could get hold of dutiable commodities, that is commodities subject 

 to taxation on coming to England or the colonies, and it may be dis- 

 charged without anyone knowing. So that there is an obligation put 

 by way of protection and safeguard upon every vessel including our 

 own. We put this obligation upon our own vessels when they come 

 from outside the territorial waters concerned. In the old days 

 vessels coming from England had special privileges in Newfound- 

 land, because Newfoundland was regarded as a sort of peculiar kind 

 of private property of the British Crown. Senator Turner read 



