PERIOD FROM 1841 TO 1854. 103 



Mr. Stevenson s note closes with the request — 



that measures may be forthwith a(h)pted by her Majesty's govern- 

 ment to remedy the evils arising out of the misconstruction on the 

 part of its provincial authorities of their conventional obligations, 

 and prevent the possibility of the recurrence of similar acts." 



The course pursued bj" the British Government in dealing with 

 the protest of the United States as expressed in Mr. Stevenson's note 

 throws considerable light upon Great Britain's understanding of the 

 true intent and meaning of the treaty provisions under which these 

 questions arose. It will be found that instead of expressing any dis- 

 sent or protest in answer to ]\Ir. Stevenson's criticism of Nova Sco- 

 tia's proposed interpretation of the treaty, Great Britain promptly 

 referred his note to the Provincial Government with a request for a 

 report on which to base its reply. This delaj' obviously would have 

 been wholly unnecessary if the understanding of the British Gov- 

 ernment at that time as to the meaning of these treaty provisions 

 had differed materially from that expressed by Mr. Stevenson. 

 Moreover, as will appear in the later correspondence, after this report 

 was received, the British Government still refrained from stating its 

 position on the subject of Xova Scotia's novel interpretation of the 

 meaning of the word "bays" in reply to Mr. Stevenson's inquiry 

 until that question could be submitted to the Law Officers of the 

 Cro\\Ti for an opinion, and even after their opinion was rendered in 

 support of the Xova Scotian construction, Great Britain showed a 

 decided inclination to avoid the effect of such opinion by proposing 

 a relaxation of the narrow construction recommended by it, and was 

 only prevented from so doing by vigorous protests from Nova 

 Scotia.^ It will also appear from the subsequent correspondence 

 that no answer whatever was made by Great Britain to the other 

 question presented by Mr. Stevenson. 



By note of April 2, 1841, Lord Palmerston acknowledged the 

 receipt of Mr. Stevenson's note of March 27, 1841, and informed him 

 that he had "lost no time in referring Mr. Stevenson's representa- 

 tion to the Secretary of State for the Colonial Department," *» and 

 on the 28th of the same month he wrote again "to inform Mr. Ste- 

 venson that he has since received from the Colonial Department a 

 letter informing him that copies of the papers received from Mr. 



a Appendix, p. 465. b Infra, pp. 117, 118. 



92909°— S. Doc. 870, 61-3, vol 1 15 



