1234 MISCELLANEOUS. 



Bay of Fundy which from its geographical position may properly be 

 considered as included within the British possessions; and also to 

 maintain that, with regard to the other bays on the British American 

 coasts, no United States fisherman has, under that convention, the 

 right to fish within three miles of the entrance of such bay, as desig- 

 nated by a line drawn from headland to headland at that entrance. 



"Lord Aberdeen, however, informs the undersigned that, although 

 continuing to maintain these oositions as a matter of right, her 

 Majesty's government are not insensible to the advantages which 

 might accrue to both countries from a relaxation in its exercise; that 

 they are anxious, while upholding the just claims of the British crown, 

 to evince by eveiy reasonable concession their desire to act liberally 

 and amicably towards the United States; and that her Majesty's 

 government have accordingly come to the determination 'to relax in 

 favor of the United States fishermen the right which Great Britain has 

 hitherto exercised of excluding those fishermen from the British por- 

 tion of the Bay of Fundy, and are prepared to direct their colonial 

 authorities to allow, henceforward, the United vStates fishermen to pur- 

 sue their avocations in any part of the Bay of Fundy, provided they 

 do not approach, except in the cases specified in the treaty of 1818, 

 within three miles of the entrance of any bay on the coast of Nova 

 Scotia or New Brunswick.' 



"The undersigned receives with great satisfaction this communica- 

 tion from Lord Aberdeen, which promises the permanent removal of a 

 fruitful cause of disagreement between the two countries, in reference 

 to a valuable portion of the fisheries in question. The government of 

 the United States, the undersigned is persuaded, will duly appreciate 

 the friendly motives which have led to the determination on the part of 

 her Majesty's government announced in Lord Aberdeen's note, and 

 which he doubts not will have the natural effect of acts of liberality 

 between powerful states, of producing benefits to both parties, beyond 

 any immediate interest which may be favorably affected. 



"While he desires, however, without reserve, to express his sense 

 of the amicable disposition evinced by her Majesty's government on 

 this occasion in relaxing in favor of the United States the exercise of 

 what after deliberate consideration, fortified by high legal authority, 

 is deemed an unquestioned right of her Majesty's government, the un- 

 dersigned would be unfaithful to his duty did he omit to remark to 

 Lord Aberdeen that no arguments have at any time been adduced 

 to shake the confidence of the government of the United States in their 

 own construction of the treaty. While they have ever been prepared 

 to admit, that in the letter of one expression of that instrument there 

 is some reason for claiming a right to exclude United States fishermen 

 from the Bay of Fundy, (it being difficult to deny to that arm of the 

 sea the name of 'bay,' which long geographical usage has assigned to 

 it,) they have ever strenuously maintained that it is only on their own 

 construction of the entire article that its known design in reference to 

 the regulation of the fisheries admits of being carried into effect. 



"The undersigned does not make this observation for the sake of 

 detracting from the liberality evinced by her Majesty's government 

 in relaxing from what they regard as their right; but it would be 

 placing his own government in a false position to accept as mere favor 

 that for which they have so long and strenuously contended as due 

 to them under the convention. 



