PERIOD FROM 1871 TO 1905. 945 



communications with your Government, a modus vivendi such as you 

 have described, and also for arriving at an understanding in regard 

 to a lasting adjustment of our commercial relations. 



In the earnest hope that your proposal for the settlement of this 

 vexed question may result at an early day in a solution satisfactory 

 and beneficial to both countries, 



I remain, yours faithfully, CHARLES TUPPER. 



Mr. Bayard to Mr. Phelps. 



No. 659 'bis.'] DEPARTMENT OF STATE, 



Washington, July 12, 1887. 



SIR: On March 24th last the Marquis of Salisbury made reply to 

 your note to him of December 3, 1886, and communicated the views of 

 the Government of the United States, under date of the 15th of 

 November preceding, for the settlement of the fishery disputes. 



This reply of his lordship and the " observations " of the Canadian 

 authorities upon the proposal for an arrangement were conveyed in 

 Mr. White's dispatch of March 20, and received at this Department 

 April llth last, when it had my immediate consideration. 



An answer was prepared forthwith to the note of his lordship as 

 well as to the " observations," and for your information I now inclose 

 two copies thereof, which for convenience and intelligibility have been 

 printed as a third parallel column to the original proposal and the 

 Canadian " observations." 



This document would have gone forward to you in continuance of 

 the negotiation so commenced between yourself and the British for- 

 eign office, but I was indirectly made aware that the Canadian Gov- 

 ernment, to whom, as it appears, all communications from this Gov- 

 ernment to that of Great Britain, touching the matters under consid- 

 eration between the two Governments in relation to the fishery ques- 

 tion under the treaty of 1818 had been invariably submitted before 

 reply, sought to make an informal communication to this Department 

 on the subject. 



Thus informed, and desiring to lend every aid in my power at this 

 juncture toward a practical settlement of serious and long-standing 

 difficulties, I delayed my response to Mr. White's dispatch of March 

 30, and on May 21 Sir Charles Tupper, the Canadian minister of 

 finance, called upon me at this department, introduced by the British 

 minister at this capital. 



The object of this visit was to discuss informally the present condi- 

 tion and prospects of commercial relations between the United States 

 and the Dominion of Canada, especially in connection with the fish- 

 eries and the commercial questions involved. 



The visit here of Sir Charles Tupper, on behalf of the Canadian 

 Government, was received with cordiality, and expressions were ex- 

 changed of a mutual desire for the settlement of all existing difficul- 

 ties, and for an increased freedom of commercial intercourse between 

 the United States and Canada. 



In consequence of the statements made by Sir Charles Tupper on 

 the occasion referred to, I wrote him a personal and unofficial letter 

 92G09* S. Doc. 870, 61~3, -90! 3 1 



