PERIOD FROM 1871 TO 1888. 183 



I have to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch of the 9^^ May- 

 last, transmitting a Memo drawn up by the State Dep* of the U. S. 

 Gov* upon certam Acts of the Legislature of Newfoimdland for the 

 regulation of the fisheries in the waters of that Colony. 



This ^Memo was communicated to you by M"" Frelinghuysen in 

 answer to the request of H. M's Gov*^ to be favored with any sugges- 

 tions which the U, S. Gov* might be prepared to offer with a view to 

 the friendly consideration by the two Gov*^ of such amendments of 

 the Fishery Regulations as might be reasonably called for in the inter- 

 ests of both countries. 



H. M's Gov* regrets to find that the Memo contains no suggestion 

 of any kind tending to that object, but that it reopens a discussion 

 on the construction of the Treaty of Washington which it was hoped 

 had been exhausted in the previous correspondence. 



The Memo cites the following extract from a dispatch written by 

 M"^ Evarts in 1878, as representing the views of the U. S. Govt: — 

 ''This Gov* conceives that the fishery rights of the U. S. con- 

 " ceded by the Treaty of Washington are to be exercised wholly 

 "free from the restraints and regulations of the Statutes of New- 

 "foundland, now set up as authority over our fishermen, and from 

 "every other Regulation now in force, or that may hereafter be 

 "enacted by that Government." 



H. M.'s Gov* however, have never accepted that construction of 

 the Treaty and on tliis point I have nothing to add to the views 

 expressed in the Note wliich I had the honour to address to M'' Lowe" 

 on the 27*^ of October 1880. 



In that Note I used the following language: — 

 "Without entering into lengthy discussion on this point, I feel 

 bound to state that, in the opinion of H. M.'s Gov*, the clause in 

 the Treaty of Washington which provides that the citizens of the 

 U. S. shall be entitled 'in common with British subjects,' to fish 

 in Newfoundland waters \\nthin the limits of British Sovereignty, 

 means that the American and the British fishermen shall fish in 

 these waters upon terms of equalit}^ and not that there shall be 

 an exemptioii of American fishermen from any reasonable regula- 

 tions to which British fishermen are subject. 



"H. M.'s Gov* entirely concur in M"" Marcy's Circular of the 28*^ 

 of March 1856. The principle therein laid do-wTi appears to them 

 perfectly sound, and as applicable to the fishery provisions of the 

 Treaty of Washington as to those of the Treaty which M^ Marcy 

 had in view, they can not, therefore, admit the accuracy in M'^ 

 Evarts' letter to M'' Welsh of the 28'*^ Sepf 1878, 'that the fishery 

 ' rights of the U. S. conceded by the Treaty of Washington are to 

 'be exercised wholly free from the restraints and regidations of 

 'the Statutes of NcAvfoundland,' if by that opim'on anything 

 inconsistent wdth M'" Marcy's principle is really intended. H. M.'s 

 Gov*, however, fully admit that, if any such local statutes could 

 be she\\Ti to be inconsistent with the express stipulations, or even 

 with the spirit of the Treat}^, they would not be ^nthin the category 

 of those reasonable regulations by which American (in common 

 with British) fishermen ought to be bound; and they observe, on 

 the other hand, with much satisfaction that Mr. Evarts, at the cIosg 

 of liis letter to M"" Welsh of the 1^* of August, 1879, after expressing 

 regret at ' the confhct of interests which the exercise of the Treaty 

 92909°— S. Doc. 870, 61-3, vol 1 20 



