MISCELLANEOUS. 1093 



which gave their fishermen a favoured position as compared with the 

 British, lay at the root of most of the trouble that had arisen. At the 

 same time, he communicated a copy of fresh Royal instructions to the 

 Governor of the Colony "to use his utmost vigilance and authority 

 to prevent our subjects from taking any exclusive possession what- 

 ever, as private propertv, ol any lands, rivers, or islands in the north- 

 ern parts of Newfoundland between Bonavista and Point Riche, or 

 from making any settlements or forming any establishments there, 

 which may in any degree have the consequence to prejudice the fish- 

 eries of the subjects of France, .... or to render ineffectual 

 the instructions that ships of both nations should choose their stations 

 as they respectively arrive." 



These instructions were accepted by the Comte de Vergennes as 

 satisfactory. 



IV. Negotiations of Versailles, 1782. 



31. It would seem, further, that the reference by M. Waddington to 

 the negotiations of 1782 is inaccurate. His Excellency states: "Les 



ne'gociateurs Anglais firent appel aux sentiments de 



moderation de la Cour de Versailles, et sans obtenir rienqui ressemblat 

 a un droit concurrent, obtinrent que la France renoncerait a la partie 

 des cotes envahies et accepterait en dedommagement une etendue 

 equivalents de territoire riverain & exploiter," &c. 



32. Tnis statement of the case is not in any way borne out by the 

 text of the communications which passed. The first formal proposal 

 came from M. de Vergennes in a note dated the 6th October, 1782, and 

 runs as follows : 



"La concurrence entre les pecheurs Francais et Anglais aiant etc" 

 une source intarissable de discussions et de querelles, le Roi pense que 

 le moyen le plus sur de les prevenir est de separer les pe*cheries respec- 

 tives: en consequence Sa Majeste consent a se desister du droit de 

 p6che qui lui est acquis en vertu de 1' Article XIII du Traite d 'Utrecht, 

 depuis le Cap de Bona Vista jusqu'au Cap Saint-Jean, a condition que 

 ses sujets pecheront seuls a 1'exclusion des Anglais, depuis le Cap 

 Saint-Jean en passant par le nord et le Cap Ray, &c." 



33. The English Government, in a note dated the 24th October, 

 declined to concede this exclusive right. 



34. They objected to an Article in the Preliminaries of Peace which, 

 without actually mentioning an exclusive right of fishery, was 

 explained as intended to establish that right, and they only agreed to 

 the insertion of an Article in the following words: 



Article V. "Les Pescheurs Francois jouiront de la pesche qui leur 

 est assignee par 1'Article precedent, comme ils ont droit d'en jouir en 

 vertu du Traite d 'Utrecht." 



35. At the same time, however, Mr. Fitzherbert, the British 

 Plenipotentiary, delivered to the French Government a note in the 

 terms of the eventual Declaration of the 3rd September, 1783, promis- 

 ing that His Britannic Majesty would take the most positive measures 

 "pour prevenir que ses sujets ne troublent en aucune maniere la 

 peche des Francois pendant 1'exercice temporaire qui leur est accord 6 

 sur le rdtes de 1'Ile de Terre-Neuve." 



36 The words "par leur concurrence" were subsequently added to 

 this Declaration, at the instance of M. de Vergennes, in the course of 

 the negotiations for the Definitive Treaty of Peace. 



