ARGUMENT OF ELIHU ROOT. 1955 



shall have the liberty to take fish, &c., and then proceeds: 



1 the Inhabitants of the United States shall have liberty to take fish 

 of every kind," &c. 



You can see that all these denominations are used as equivalent 

 terms. 



SENATOR ROOT: There is a third "that the American fishermen 

 shall have liberty to dry and cure fish." 



DR. DRAGO: Yes. So that we have here that the "people of the 

 United States " shall have liberty to take fish, then the " inhabitants 

 of the United States " shall have liberty to take fish, and, in the third 

 place, " the American fishermen " shall have liberty to dry and cure 

 fish. 



SENATOR ROOT: I think that supports the view that I have taken 

 that these were interchangeable terms. 



THE PRESIDENT : Have all these terms the same significance as being 

 expressive of an identical idea, or do they express different purposes? 



SENATOR ROOT: I think they have the same subject-matter, but it 

 was viewed from different aspects. I think that when they say 

 " people of the United States " they are thinking rather of the right 

 which came by virtue of independence. 



JUDGE GRAY : A sovereign right ? 



SENATOR ROOT: The right which appertained to a sovereign inde- 

 pendent State. I think that when they were speaking about the 

 " inhabitants of the United States " they were thinking rather of 

 how the right which they were granting to the United States was to 

 be exercised by individuals, as a business enterprise that individuals 

 must enter upon. And when they spoke of "American fishermen " 

 they had reference to the method by which the right was to be exer- 

 cised that is by vessel. 



SIR CHARLES FITZPATRICK : Only a limited class of Americans would 

 exercise the privilege, and that class would come under the descrip- 

 tion of American fishermen. 



SENATOR ROOT : Well, that may be. 



SIR CHARLES FITZPATRICK: They would be the only people who 

 would require to land and dry fish? 



SENATOR ROOT: Bankers, merchants, and clergymen would not be 

 there. But they did, in fact, know that it would be the American 

 fishermen, and when they were speaking about the practical exercise 

 of the privilege they spoke about the people who would be there. 

 1184 SIR CHARLES FITZPATRICK: Each one of these words has a 

 of the privilege they spoke about the people whowould be there, 

 clause gave a special meaning to each of these words. 



SENATOR ROOT: I do not doubt that. Now, a further word about 

 the meaning of " American fishermen." Plainly it is a personification 



