152 CASE OF THE UNITED STATES. 



Magdalen Islands; and enjoy freedom also to land and cure fish on 

 certain of the unsettled shores of the Labrador Coast. 



"Wherever any settlement exists within those limits, the privilege 

 of landing and curing fish may be enjoyed by previous agreement 

 with the settlers or proprietors of the ground."** 



The Order in Council of May 10, 1870, referred to in this report 

 concurs with the statement of the Minister of Marine and Fisheries 

 " that the Canadian Government never contemplated any inter- 

 ference with rights secured to United States citizens by the 

 treaty in question between the British and American Govern- 

 ments," and that ''Mr. Thornton was therefore quite right in assur- 

 ing Mr. Fish, in general terms, that there could be no intention 

 to abridge any rights to wliich citizens of the United States are 

 entitled by treaty." ^ 



Questions of treaty interpretation rest with the British and not the 



Colonial GovernTnents. 



Before passing from this period, attention must be called to one 

 peculiarly significant feature of the situation in connection with the 

 differences which arose between the British and Colonial Govern- 

 ments in regard to the interpretation and enforcement of the provi- 

 sions of the treaty of 1818. It will be remembered that frequently, 

 during the course of the diplomatic correspondence previously 

 reviewed, the United States had occasion to insist that the interpre- 

 tation of the provisions of this treaty rested with the United States 

 and Great Britain rather than with the British Colonies, and it will 

 be found upon an exammation of the correspondence between the 

 British and Colonial Governments with reference to these differences 

 during this period, that the British Government not only fully con- 

 curred with the view of the United States on this point, but took 

 occasion to impress it upon the Colonial Governments in no uncer- 

 tain terms. 



When the proposal for issuing special licenses to American vessels 

 for the purpose of continuing to them the privileges in the inshore 

 fisheries under the reciprocity treaty was being considered by the 

 several provinces in 1866, the Government of Nova Scotia expressed 

 an unwillingness to join wdth the other provinces in adopting this 

 proposal, preferring to insist upon the enforcement of the rights 

 asserted by them under their interpretation of the treaty of 1818. 



"Appendix, p. 619. ^ Appendix, 588. 



