AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 1695 



having learued by heart this cantalina " the consumer pays the duty" 

 perfectly satisfied in their own minds that they had spoken the exact 

 truth, say that it did not make any difference. What school of poli- 

 ticians, what course of public lectures, what course of political speaking, 

 what course of newspaper writing, may have led to that general belief, 

 or at least expectation, of those fishermen who came here as political 

 economists, of course it is not for me to say. But I have observed one 

 thing, that even with my limited knowledge of political economy (which, 

 I confess, is very limited), and with my moderate powers of cross-exami- 

 nation, not one of those witnesses could explain what he meant by the 

 phrase, "the consumer pays the duty "; nor could he answer one ques- 

 tion that went to test the truth of the maxim. "Suppose the duty had 

 been five dollars a barrel, would it have been true that the consumer paid 

 the duty, and that it would not disturb you at all ?" Well, they did 

 not know but that, in that case, it might be a little different. " But the 

 principle would be the samef No, they didn't know how that would 

 be. " Will the demand continue at that price?" That they did not 

 know, but they assumed it would. The truth was, as the court must 

 have seen, that they were simple, honest men, who had a certain phrase 

 which they had learned by heart, which they used without any evil in- 

 tent, which they supposed to be true, and which, to their minds, cleared 

 the matter all up. They seemed to think there was a certain law they 

 did not know what a law of nations, a law of political economy, by 

 which it came to pass that, whenever they brought a barrel of mackerel 

 to Boston to sell, the purchaser went kindly to the custom-house and 

 paid the duties, and then, having paid the duties, was prepared to deal 

 with the owners of the fish on the same terms as if he had not done so, 

 buy the fish, and pay them just what he would pay an American; and 

 by some law, some inexorable law, the duties were paid by this man ; 

 and, the duties having been paid by him, the owners might go into the 

 market to sell as low as anybody else. 1 think the question was not 

 put, but it might haVe been put to them, " Suppose th duty, instead 

 of being laid by the United States, had been laid by the provinces ; 

 suppose the Dominion, for some reason or other, had laid a tax of two 

 dollars a barrel on the exportation of fish to the United States!" where 

 would this political economist from Gaspe and from Shediac have been 

 then t Why, certainly he would have had to pay his two dollars a bar- 

 rel before his fish left the provinces, and he would have landed in Bos- 

 ton with his barrel of mackerel, so far as the duties went, two dollars 

 behind the American fisherman. 



I suppose it to be the case that the British subject can catch his fish 

 and get them to Boston cheaper than the American can. We have bet- 

 ter vessels, we pay higher wages, we must have larger, stronger vessels 

 to come here and go back, to and fro; we cannot fish in boats; they 

 can catch cheaper, and therefore it is true that in fair, open competition 

 they have an advantage. I give them that credit on this calculation, 

 and I hope your honors will remember it when you come to consider 

 what they have gained by the right to introduce their fish on free and 

 equal terms with us. They are persons who can catch cheaper and 

 bring cheaper than our own people. However, without reasoning the 

 matter out finely, we must come to this result: that if the Americans 

 can supply the market at the rate of twelve dollars a barrel, and make 

 a reasonable profit, and the Canadian can furnish his fish at the rate of 

 eleven dollars and make a reasonable profit, and has two dollars duty 

 to pay, he is one dollar behind, and so on. This is an illustration. It 

 must ordinarily be so. And the only time when it can be otherwise, is 



