PERIOD FROM 1841 TO 1854. 117 



of rather less than three hunch-ed miles, wouki in this way constitute 

 a bay from which United States fishermen would be excluded. 



The undersigned, however, forbears to dwell on this subject, being 

 far from certain, on a comparison of all that is said in the two notes 

 of Lord Aberdeen of the 10th instant, as to the relaxation proposed 

 by her Majesty's government, that it is not intended to embrace the 

 waters of the northeastern coasts of Cape Breton, as Avell as the 

 Bay of Fund3^" 



This correspondence was closed by Lord Aberdeen's note of April 

 21, 1845, informing Mr. Everett that his note of March 25, 1845, had 

 been brought "under the consideration of Her Majesty's vSecretary 

 of State for tlie Colonies" and that his reply to its contents, there- 

 fore, would be postponed ''until he shall become acciuainted ^^ith. the 

 results of that reference,'' but he adds: 



In the meantime, however, the undersigned thinks it exi)edient to 

 guard himself against the assumption of Mr. Everett, that it may 

 have been his intention by his note of the 10th ultimo, to include 

 other bays on the coasts of the British North American provinces, 

 in the relaxation which he therein notified to Mr. Everett, as to be 

 applied henceforward to the Bay of Fundy. That note was intended 

 to refer to the Bay of Fundy alone. *» 



In reporting this correspondence to the Secretary of State Mr. 

 Everett says, in his despatch of April 23, 1845, that I^ord Aberdeen's 

 previous note of March 10, 1845, had left some uncertainty as to 

 whether the relaxation referred to was intended to be confined to the 

 Bay of Fundy or to extend to other portions of the coast, and that 

 in answering that note he was careful to point out to Lord Aberdeen 

 that all the reasons for admitting the right of Americans to fish in 

 the Bay of Fundy applied to the waters where the Argus was 

 captured and with superior force, inasmuch as they were less land- 

 locked than the Bay of Fundy, and he adds that ''the merits of the 

 question are so clear that I cannot but anticipate that the decision 

 of the Colonial Office will be in favor of a liberal construction of the 

 convention." " 



Mr. Everett's expectation, as expressed in this despatch, that the 

 decision of the Colonial Office would be in favor of a liberal con- 

 struction of the treaty proved to be well founded, for the Governor 

 of Nova Scotia was officially informed by a letter dated May 19, 1845 

 that, after mature deliberation. Her Majesty's Government deemed 

 it advisable for the interests of both countries to relax the strict rule 



o Appendix, pp. 499-500. & Appendix, p. 505. c Appendix, p. 506. 



