116 The Frederick Gerring, Jr. 



any liberty heretofore enjoyed or claimed by the inhabitants 

 thereof, to take, dry or cure fish on or within three marine 

 miles of any of the coasts, bays, creeks, or harbours of His said 

 (Britannic) Majesty's Dominions in America. 



By the Imperial statute^ it was enacted that if any foreign 

 vessel should be found fishing, or to have been fishing, or preparing 

 to fish, within three marine miles of such coasts, bays, creeks, or 

 harbours, she should be forfeited, etc. And by our own Act' it is 

 enacted that if a foreign ship (unlicensed) has been found fishing, 

 or preparing to fish, or to have been fishing in British waters with- 

 in three marine miles, etc., she shall be forfeited. The question, 

 therefore, is not strictly whether under the treaty the Gerring, at 

 the time of the seizure, was "taking" fish, but whether under the 

 Imperial as well as the Canadian statute, she was "fishing." In 

 my view there is not, and it never was intended that there should 

 be, any difference between the two, but strictly speaking it is the 

 statute which governs; and the vital question, therefore, is: Was 

 she "fishing" at the time of the seizure, or was she notf 



It is, I think, desirable that we should have a clear under- 

 standing as to what the crew of the vessel were actually doing at 

 the time of the seizure. It is, I suppose, a matter of common 

 knowledge what constitutes purse seine fishing, but a brief descrip- 

 tion of it. as I understand it, may not be out of place. 



As to tlie kind of seine used in this case the evidence is not 

 clear, but it would probably be from 150 to 175 fathoms in length 

 and from 10 to 12 fathoms in depth. It is rectangular in shape. 

 When a school of mackerel has been descried the captain, accom- 

 panied by most of the crew, proceeds as quickly as possible in the 

 seine-boat to encircle the school with the seine, while the cook is 

 left to look after the vessel. The seine is paid out by two of the 

 men in the seine-boat. As soon as the first end of it has been 

 thrown overboard two of the crew, who did not get into the seine- 

 boat, row up to the spot in a dory, and seize the buoy attached 

 to the cork-line at the end, which they hold until the seine-boat 

 has made a circle. The seine is kept in proper position by means 



159 Geo. III. ch. 38. 

 2R. S. C. ch. 74, Sec. 3. 



