CHARLES I. : FISHERIES AND RESERVED WATERS 223 



together from the unwritten law as to the " reserved " waters 

 pertaining to Scotland, the Scottish people had some ground 

 of complaint against the king for his sudden proposal to 

 open up the whole of their seas and lochs to the English ; 

 for it was well known that in the Draft Treaty of Union 

 which James had caused to be prepared in 1604, and which 

 would also have conferred important privileges on Scotland 

 in matters of trade, words had been inserted reserving to 

 each nation the fishings within all lochs, firths, and bays 

 within land and up to a distance of fourteen miles from 

 the coast. This treaty was drawn up by commissioners ap- 

 pointed by the respective Parliaments, the most active of 

 whom were Secretary Lord Cecil (afterwards Earl of Salis- 

 bury) and the illustrious Sir Francis (afterwards Lord) Bacon 

 on the English side, and Lord President Fyvie and Sir Thomas 

 Hamilton (later Earls of Dunfermline and Haddington) on 

 the part of the Scots. It was signed by thirty -nine of the 

 forty-four English and by twenty-eight of the thirty Scottish 

 commissioners ; it was approved by the king and adopted 

 by the Scottish Parliament, and it was thus an instrument 

 of high authority with respect to the delimitation of the 

 waters of exclusive fishing. The clause in the treaty deal- 

 ing with freedom of commerce contained the reservation 

 referred to, which was as follows : " Exceptand also and 

 reserveand to Scottishmen thair trade of fisheing within 



o 



thair loches, ffirthis, and bayis within land, and in the seas 

 within fourtene mylis of the costis of the realme of Scotland, 

 wheir nather Englishmen nor ony stranger or forinaris haue 

 use to fishe, and soe reciprocally in the point of fisheing on 

 the behalfe of England." 



Unfortunately, the treaty was never ratified by the English 

 Parliament, and therefore did not come into force. But 

 the objection of the English members was not in the least 

 degree founded upon the reservation of fishing rights, 

 but upon the nationalisation clauses, which caused them 

 to dread the influx of an army of "hungry Scots" into 

 England, Scotsmen being at the time very unpopular in 

 London. 1 



1 Acta Parl. Scot., iv. 369. Statutet of the Realm, 1 Jac. I., c. 2. Retj. Priry 

 Cwne. Scot., vi. Nat. MSS. of Scot., iii. No. 85. State Paper*, Dom., 1604, x. 



