84 ARGUMENT OF GREAT BRITAIN. 



channels, and arms of the sea, belong to the people with whose lands 

 they are encompassed. It was intimated that the law of nations 

 would justify the United States in attaching to their coasts an extent 

 into the sea beyond the reach of cannon-shot." 



The French Government complied with the demand of the United 

 States. Since that time the United States have continuously treated 

 Delaware Bay as their territory, and have prescribed regulations for 

 fishing which apply to the whole of the bay. 



In 1804, the question of the extent of territorial waters became 

 important in connection with the British assertion of the right of 

 search for British seamen, in United States ships, on the high seas. 

 During the discussion Mr. Jefferson (the President of the United 

 States) wrote to the United States Secretary of State (8th Sep- 

 tember) defining the position of the United States in respect of bays 

 as follows. (British Case, App., p. 59) : 



"As we shall have to lay before Congress the proceedings of the 

 British vessels at New York, it will be necessary for us to say to them 

 with certainty which specific aggressions were committed within the 

 common law, which within the admiralty jurisdiction, and which on 

 the high seas. The rule of the common law is that wherever you 

 can see from land to land, all the water within the line of sight is in 

 the body of the adjacent country and within common law jurisdic- 

 tion. Thus, if in this curvature \j^/ x T x vjL-' you can see from 

 a to >, all the water within the line of sight is within common law 

 jurisdiction, and a murder committed at c is to be tried as at common 

 law. Our coast is generally visible, I believe, by the time you get 

 within about twenty-five miles. I suppose that at New York you 

 must be some miles out of the Hook before the opposite shores recede 

 twenty-five miles from each other. The three miles of maritime 

 jurisdiction is al\tays to be counted from this line of sight." 



Commenting in its Counter- Case upon the reference to this letter 

 in the British Case, the United States say (United States Counter- 

 Case, p. 71) : 



" The British Case omits to state, however, that the position taken 



by Great Britain at that time was that three marine miles 



96 from shore was the limit of maritime jurisdiction, and could 



not be extended by one nation beyond that distance from its 



shores so as to affect the rights of another nation, without the consent 



or acquiescence of that nation." 



But Mr. Jefferson's letter was dealing with the subject of the width 

 of territorial bays and the headland theory, while the comment of 

 the United States Counter-Case refers to jurisdiction upon unin- 

 dented coasts. The comment, therefore, is without point. 



In 1806, during the negotiations with reference to freedom of 

 United States vessels from British seizure, an attempt was made to 

 fix by agreement the limit of United States jurisdiction upon its 



