1792 AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 



"United States fishermen, " the "inhabitants of the United States," the citizens of the United 

 States who are prohibited from taking part iti the fishery within the three-mile limit. Now, 

 I say, remember I am not talking about local legislation on the other side at all ; I am talk- 

 ing about treaties. I say there is nothing in any treaty which would forbid a Nova Scotian 

 or a Prince Edward Island citizen from going to Gloucester, hiring an American vessel 

 with an American register, and coming within the three-mile limit and fishing nothing at 

 all. If such a vessel be manned by a crew half citizens of the United States and half Nova 

 Scotians, who are fishing on shares, recollect, and who take the profits of their own catches, 

 where is the difference ? The United States citizens may violate the law, but are the citizens 

 of Nova Scotia doing so ? They are not the ''inhabitants" or fishermen of the Urn', ted 

 States" excluded from fishing within the three-mile limit. 



I do not like to say I was startled at that, because Mr. Trescot says I 

 am startled continually. Nevertheless I was. I defy the parallel of that 

 proposition to be found, uttered by any statesman or lawyer that ever 

 existed. Mr. Trescot stands alone in that view, both as having the ex- 

 traordinary faculty to conceive such an idea, and the yet more extraor- 

 dinary boldness to utter it in a civilized community, and before a tribunal 

 such as this. What ? Because the American ship-owners of Gloucester, 

 Welfleet, or anywhere along the coast of New England, choose to take 

 into their service Prince Edward Islanders, who are starved out in con- 

 sequence of their fish being stolen under their noses, he has the audac- 

 ity (I do not use the word offensively,' but in a Pickwickian sense) to 

 say that a vessel so manned is not an American vessel within this treaty; 

 but that a British crew makes an American vessel a British vessel. 



Mr. TRESCOT. That is not the statement of the extract you read. 



Mr. DANA. There is nothing about vessels in the treaty. 



Mr. THOMSON. I will read it again : 



" Now, I say," &c. 



Now, if he means that there is nothing in the Treaty of Washington 

 to prevent American vessels entering our waters to fish, I agree with 

 liim, but if he means that there is nothing under the Treaty of 1818, I 

 take issue. 



It is the boldest proposition I ever heard, that an American vessel, an 

 American bottom, manned by British inhabitants from Nova Scotia, 

 Prince Edward Island, or any other part of the Dominion, owned by 

 American owners, but simply manned by British subjects, could come 

 into our waters in the face of the Convention of 1818; I say I never 

 heard such a proposition before, and do not ever expect to hear it again. 

 iStich a proposition never emanated from any northern brain. It requires 

 the heat of the south to generate such an idea. 



At page CO Mr. Trescot says : 



That in valuing the exchange of privilege, the extent to which the privilege is offered is 

 i fair subject of calculation, and that a privilege opened to "all British subjects" is a larger 

 and more valuable privilege than one restricted to only the British subjects resident in the 

 Dominion. 



I have already dealt with that proposition. I have shown that if that 

 the case, the United States have given us the right to fish where there 

 are no fish at all, over an area of 3,500 square miles, and that they get 

 iiHler the treaty the right to fish over 11,900 square miles on our coasts, 

 where there arc fish in abundance. So his first proposition is necessarily 

 against him. Then take the second: 



That m valuing the exchange of privilege, only the direct value can be estimated, and 

 fuiisf<juencts to either party cannot be taken into account. 



It is difficult to see what is meant by that. Does he mean to say if 

 this privilege, which is given to the Americans to enter our territorial 

 waters and fish there, should have the effect of preventing the whole 

 jloucester aud American fishing fleet from being absolutely destroyed 



