2364 NORTH ATLANTIC COAST FISHEBIES ARBITRATION. 



Af. Delcasse, Minister of Foreign Affairs, to the Ambassadors of the 

 French Republic at Berlin, Berne, Constantinople, Madrid, St. 

 Petersburg, Vienna, Washington, to His Majesty the King of Italy, 

 to the Pope, to the Minister of the Republic at Tangier, and to the 

 Diplomatic Agent and Consul-General of France at Cairo. 



PARIS, April 12, 1904. 



The great interests both of a moral and material nature which are 

 involved in the entente between England and France called forth a 

 peaceful settlement of the questions upon which the two countries 

 were divided and whence under certain circumstances a conflict might 

 have arisen. Both at London and in Paris the two Governments took 

 these matters into consideration. The visits exchanged last year 

 between King Edward and the President of France showed that 

 public opinion on both sides of the Channel was favourably disposed 

 toward an arrangement. 



In the course of the conversation which I had the honour to engage 

 in with Lord Lansdowne on the 7th July, the eminent Minister of 

 Foreign Affairs of the King and I examined one by one all the 

 problems which presented themselves before us. It was recognised 

 that it was not impossible to find a solution equally advantageous to 

 both parties in the case of all of them. 



Our common efforts which a like spirit of conciliation at all times 

 directed, resulted in the agreements of the 8th April of which I 

 append hereto the authentic text, adding some explanations upon 

 their nature and their import. 



Newfoundland. The affairs of Newfoundland were among those 

 which on numerous occasions had given rise to discussions increas- 

 ingly troublesome. Their origin lies in the remote past. Article 13 

 of the Treaty of Utrecht had abandoned to Great Britain Newfound- 

 land and the adjacent islands. It was only on the western coast and 

 on a portion of the eastern coast that we could take and dry fish and 

 then only during the customary fishing season. Every permanent 

 establishment was forbidden to us. 



The increasingly frequent difficulties to which the execution of the 

 Treaty of Utrecht led necessitated a special clause in the Treaty of 

 Versailles of 1783, which was completed by the declaration of King 

 George of the same date, the object of which was the avoidance of 

 daily quarrels between the fishermen of the two nations. 



In spite of all precautions taken it may be said that in the course 

 of the last century hardly a year passed in which the exercise of our 

 privilege was not the cause of complaints or collisions. The popula- 

 tion of Newfoundland, which in the beginning numbered hardly 

 4,000 or 5,000 souls, increased gradually to 210,000. In the desiro 

 of the latter to develop the resources of their island the French shore 

 presented itself to them as closed to all progress; they could enjoy 

 no benefits in a region in which they hoped to find mines and soil 

 favourable to agriculture, and which we ourselves could not utilise. 

 Thus hostile opinion began to arise against our privilege. The irre- 

 sistible pressure of the necessities of existence in an uninviting and 

 hard climate weakened in an increasing measure day by day the 

 barriers of the ancient servitudes (" servitudes anciennes ") and in 

 spite of our constant protest the inhabitants of the island established 

 themselves gradually along a portion of the coveted shore. 



