AWARD OF THE FISHERY COMMISSION. 1810 



they appeared to know a great deal about. Now, I think that t can con- 

 trast the testimony given on the part of Her Majesty's Government with 

 that given on the part of the United States, without fear of any damag- 

 ing conclusion being drawn against our witnesses. And I put it to your 

 excellency and your honors whether during the long period that we have 

 sat here, and witnesses on both sides have been called, a period extending 

 over twelve weeks, at least, one single witness called on the part of the 

 British Government broke down under cross-examination! And I ask 

 whether it can be with truth said that this was the result of the cross- 

 examination of the American witnesses I 



I consider that in many respects a number of the American witnesses 

 appeared to great disadvantage; and I am surprised not only at Mr. 

 Dana's remarks in this respect, but I am also surprised at his following 

 up his remarks on this point by saying: 



When we came to evidence to be relied upon, the evidence of men who kept boohs, &c. 



Why, if ever there was a breakdown that happened in this world, it 

 was the breakdown which Mr. Low made under the cross-examination 

 of my learned and clever friend and colleague from Prince Edward 'Isl- 

 and, Mr. Davies. That man came forward to represent the fishing-vessel 

 owners of Gloucester and the fish-dealers of Gloucester; and he brought 

 forward their books, or at least such books as they were pleased to 

 show, and not the books we required to have, but their trip- books; and 

 he put in statistics, to which I will have the honor hereafter to call the 

 attention of your excellency and your honors, for the purpose of showing 

 very small catches made in the bay, and very large catches oft' on the 

 American shore; and also for the purpose of showing that the catches 

 in the bay resulted almost in the ruin of those who sent vessels there, 

 while they made large sums of money out of their catches taken on the 

 American shore; but when under cross-examination by Mr. Davies, what 

 'was the result? It was this, that those figures which were intended to 

 establish, and which were brought forward here for the purpose of show- 

 ing that state of facts, showed conclusively and proved directly the 

 opposite. 



Mr. Low, under Mr. Davies cross examination, entirely broke down, 

 and was compelled to admit that his figures proved the exact reverse of 

 that which he had previously said and undertaken to prove ; and the 

 exact reverse of the pretended state of facts which his clients or his 

 principals sent him here to prove. I am not misstating this matter at 

 all. I will show you, when these statistics come to be considered, and 

 from the figures themselves, and from the very admission of Mr. Low 

 himself, that this was the result. If there ever was a man who was 

 utterly destroyed on cross-examination it was Mr. David Low, the great 

 statistician from Gloucester, who came up here intending to defeat us 

 by cooked statistics and manipulated figures. 



My learned friend Mr. Trescot, in the course of his observations, made 

 a very humorous allusion to a time during the Revolution when a schooner 

 came down to Prince Edward Island, captured the governor and council, 

 and took them off and presented them to General Washington, w 

 looked at them as curiosities, and then, as Mr. Trescot says, " 

 them as young codfish are treated, threw them back into the wate 

 told them to swim home again." Well, time brings its revenges, ai 

 premier of Prince Edward Island, I think, revenged that msu 

 island and his government, for the great Low from Gloucest irae 

 down here, prepared to destroy and bent upon destroying Iler 

 case; but when he fell into the hands of my learned friend . 

 I think that he revenged that insult to his island. He capture 



