AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. Tfi99 



Great Britain to United States, Dr. 



To saving of duties ou fish and fish-oil for 12 years, averaged from the 

 returns of 1874, 75, and '76, from Appendix O $4,340,700 00 



Cr. 



By value of mackerel caught within 3 miles of coast for 12 years, at $3.75 

 "per barrel, allowing one-third to have been taken within 3 miles of 

 the shore, and assuming the catch for each year as equal to that given 

 in the Port Mulgrave returns for 1874 (63,076 bbls.) 946, 177 60 



Balance due United States 3,394,522 50 



We were obliged to take Port Mulgrave returns for the year 1874, 

 because, as your honors will recollect, nothing could extract the returns 

 for 1875 and 1876 from the hands of the British counsel. No words of 

 advice, no supplication, no bended knees, nothing could get from them 

 those returns, so favorable to the United States, and we took the returns 

 of 1874. 



But, supposing it to be true that the exporter does not pay all the 

 duties of course, nobody believes that he pays nothing ; but give him the 

 fairest possible chance, supposing he pays one-quarter, and the consumer 

 pays three-quarters, the result then is, that against the $946,177.50 

 credited to Great Britain, we put one-quarter of the United States 

 duties remitted, $1,085,175, and it leaves a balance of $138,997.50 in 

 favor of the United States. 



So that, bringing this matter as far as statistics can bring, it getting 

 the value of the fish in Prince Edward Island, irrespective of the labor 

 put upon it afterward, assuming one-third of the fish to be caught with- 

 in the three miles, and to be of equal value with those caught outside, 

 which certainly is not true ; and supposing that of the duty of two dol- 

 lars a barrel only one-quarter is paid by the consumer, still the balance 

 remains in favor of the United States. If, gentlemen of the Commis- 

 sion, such is to be the mode of treating this subject, by taking values 

 and balancing one against the other, that is the result. 



I do not suppose, myself, it is possible to arrive at any satisfactory result 

 by any such close use of statistics, on the other side oron ours. But a few 

 general principles, a few general rules for our guidance, certainly are to 

 be found in all this testimony and in all this reasoning. You have the 

 United States able to put on what duties it pleased. You haveits actual 

 duties at two dollars per barrel, substantially prohibitory, which every- 

 body said was prohibitory, except those deeply instructed political econo- 

 mists who come here with the impression that some good friend paid the 

 duties for them, to enable them to get into market on equal terms with 

 everybody else. That you have with certainty. Against that you have 

 the most speculative opinion in the world, and that is as to the valne re 

 us of a franchise or a faculty, or a privilege, or a liberty to pursue the free- 

 swimming fish of the ocean a little further than we ordinarily pursue him, 

 with every vessel of ours coming into competition with fishermen from 

 boats, who have every advantage over us, and to ascertain the value of 

 that franchise, privilege, faculty, or whatever you may call it, irrespec- 

 tive of all the capital or industry that must be employed in its exercise. 

 .Will your honors, before I take my seat, allow me to recapitulate, at 

 the risk of tediousness, so that there may finally be no misappre- 

 hension, the points upon which the United States expects a favorable 

 decision from this tribunal ! I mean, not merely a decision in favor of 

 peace, which we all hope for, but, technically, I mean a decision of this 

 sort: that, having before you a matter of clear money, and of the abso- 



