PERIOD FROM 1888 TO 1909. 217 



application of any Colonial law to such vessels can be objected to is 

 that such application involves an unreasonable interference with the 

 exercise of the Treaty rights of the American fishermen on board. 

 The payment of liglit dues by a vessel on entering a port of the Colony 

 clearly involves no such interference. These dues are payable by all 

 vessels of whatever description and nationality other than coasting- 

 and fishing-vessels o^\'ned and registered in the Colony (which are, on 

 certain conditions, exempt either wholly or in part). His Majesty's 

 Government trust that in these circumstances such directions will be 

 issued as will prevent further refusals in the future, and they would 

 point out generally that it is the duty of all foreigners sojourning in 

 the limits of the British jurisdiction to obe}' that law, and that, if it is 

 considered that the local jurisdiction is being exercised in a manner 

 not consistent with the enjoyment of any Treaty rights, the proper 

 course to pursue is not to ignore the law, but to obey it, and to refer 

 the question of any alleged infringement of their Treaty rights to be 

 settled diplomatically between their Government and that of His 

 Majesty. 



Propositions 4, 5, and 6 state: — 



Proposition 4. ''The proper evidence that a vessel is an American 

 vessel, and entitled to exercise the Treaty right, is the production of 

 the ship's papers of the kind generally recognized in the maritime 

 world as evidence of a vessels national character." 



Proposition 5. "When a vessel has produced papers showing that 

 she is an American vessel, the officials of Newfoundland have no 

 concern ^^'ith the character or extent of the privileges accorded to such 

 a vessel by the Government of the United States. No cpiestion as 

 between a registry and licence is a proper subject for their considera- 

 tion. They are not charged with enforcing any Laws or Regulations 

 of the United States, As to them, if the vessel is American she has the 

 Treaty right, and they are not at hberty to deny it." 



Proposition 6. "If any such matter were a proper subject for the 

 consideration of the officials of Newfoundland, the statement of this 

 Department that vessels bearing an American registry are entitled to 

 exercise the Treaty right should be taken by such officials as con- 

 clusive." 



His Majesty's Government are unable to agree to these propositions, 

 except with the reservations as to the status of American vessels under 

 the Convention already indicated, and with reference to proposition 6, 

 they would submit that the assurance to be given by the Department 

 of State of the United States should be that the persons by whom the 

 fishery is to be exercised from the American vessels are inhabitants of 

 the United States. 



In point of fact the Colonial Government have informed His 

 Majesty's Government that they do not require an American vessel 

 to produce a United States' fishing licence. The distinction between 

 United States' registration and the possession of a United States' 

 fishing licence is, however, of some importance, inasmuch as a vessel 

 which, so far as the United States' Government are concerned, is at 

 liberty both to trade and to fish naturally calls for a greater measure 

 of supervision by the Colonial Government than a vessel fitted out 

 only for fishing and debarred by the United States' Government from 

 trading; and information has been furnished to His Majesty's Govern- 

 ment by the Colonial Government which shows that the proceedings 



