PERIOD FROM 1888 TO 1909, 215 



entitled to fish in British North American waters but for the fact that 

 they were entitled to do so when they were British subjects. Amer- 

 ican fishermen cannot therefore rightly claim to exercise their right 

 of fishery under the Convention of 1818 on a footing of greater freedom 

 than if they had never ceased to be British subjects. Nor consist- 

 ently with the terms of the Convention can they claim to exercise it 

 on a footing of greater freedom than the British subjects ' 'in common 

 with" whom they exercise it under the Convention. In other words, 

 the American fishery under the Convention is not a free but a regu- 

 lated fishery, and, in the opinion of His Majesty's Government, 

 American fishermen are bound to comply with all Colonial Laws and 

 Regulations, including any touching the conduct of the fishery, so 

 long as these are not in their nature unreasonable, and are applicable 

 to all fishermen alike. One of these Regulations prohibits fishing on 

 Sunday's. His Majesty's Government have received information that 

 several breaches of tliis Regulation were committed by American 

 fishermen during the past fishing season. This Regulation has been 

 in force for many years, and looking to the insignificant extent to 

 which American fishermen have exercised their right of fishery on 

 the Treaty Coast in the past, it cannot be regarded as having been 

 made with the object of restricting the enjoyment of that right. 

 Both its reasonableness and its hona fides appear to His Majesty's 

 Government to be beyond question, and they trust that the United 

 States' Government will take steps to secure its observance in the 

 future. 



As regards the treatment of American vessels from wliich American 

 fishermen exercise the Treaty right of fishery. His Majesty's Govern- 

 ment are prepared to admit that, although the Convention confers 

 no rights on American vessels as such, yet since the American fishery 

 is essentially a ship fishery, no law of Newfoundland should be en- 

 forced on American fisliing-vessels which would unreasonably inter- 

 fere with the exercise by the American fishermen on board of their 

 rights under the Convention. The United States' Government, on 

 their part, admit, in Mr, Root's note, that the Colonial Government 

 are entitled to have an American vessel engaged in the fishery refrain 

 from violating any laws of Newfoundland not inconsistent with the 

 Convention, but maintain that if she does not purpose to trade, but 

 only to fish, she is not bound to enter at any Newfoimdland custom- 

 house. 



Mr. Root's note refers only to the question of entry inwards, but it 

 is presumed that the United States' Government entertain the same 

 views on the question of clearing outwards. At all events, American 

 vessels have not only passed to the fishing grounds in the inner waters 

 of the Bay of Islands without reporting at a Colonial custom-house, 

 but have also omitted to clear on returning to the United States. 

 In both respects they have committed breaches of the Colonial 

 Customs Law, which, as regards the obligations to enter and to clear, 

 makes no distinction between fishing- and trading-vessels. 



His Majesty's Government regret not to be able to share the view 

 of the United States' Government that the provisions of the Colonial 

 Law which impose those obhgations are inconsistent with the Con- 

 vention of 1818, if applied to American vessels which do not purpose 

 to trade, but only to fish. They hold that the only ground on which 

 the apphcation of any provisions of the Colonial Law to American 

 92909 — {S. Doc. 870, 61-3, vol 1 22 



