I 



897 



|o tlic last (Irm-fc of niorlincation.cdiitciiiliiiR: lliat tlio Gulf (ishcrirs lia«l mliiml them to 

 |)«';(Sni->, tliry li.ixin- lost sonu' ;t'25 .Inllars, ollicrs onlv I2S dollars, mi rvcrv Irip llicy 

 had made tlicrc diiriii;;- scores of years in siuxo.siiiii. i'co|ili; ulio do not know llioso 

 nardy and eonrai-cmis llsliermen of (iloiicesler, would hardly Itrliove llml some of (licin 

 liaye -one tliroii-li 17U triii.s consecutivclv, witlunit ever Hineiiinf;- in llieir Sjiarlan 

 sloieisni, under an avera;,a« Ions of 225 dollars each trip! Who hIiouM wonder, if, in 

 their dis>,Mist of such an unjjratefnl acknowle<l(;emcnt, mackerel should hiivo gone to 

 ilistanl /ones, where thoy could be hetler apjireeiatcd. 



Cool philosopliers thought they wen; hound to reduce to nine the wonders of iIh; 

 world. Tliey were mistaken. Hire is that wonderful town of Gloncestcr, State of 

 MaBsachusetts, in ilie United States of America, which lias been bnilt, and has prown np 

 rich and prosiM rons, hy aeeumnhiliuft- losses and ruins upon former losses and ruins. 

 The painful history of its disasters shouhl he inserihed as the tenth wonder. 



Kishini,', no ilnulil, like all other industries, has its fluctuations of success and partial 

 failure; Inn as ii rests upon an inexhaustilile siip|)lv to he found somewhere, it never 

 can be said to he an al)S(ilute failure. It was only within a few years that experime|ital 

 science wni* ajjplied to (ish. Science is dijlidcni. "as shown by Profes.sor Hnird ; in fact, 

 science leaches nncertaii\ty and unlx-lief. Ikm ause tlie niore'.i man learns, the more he 

 finds hiiiKself i!.Miorant, fhemore he labours lo know if what he lhoiii,'ht to be one thiuff, 

 is nt)l anollie.' tllill^,^ The witnes.>*cs from (iloucesier iire foremost in tliat school of 

 |)hilosoplicrs. who douht of their own existence. Their town is already a myth ; their 

 families would have .soon been the same; and alas! themselves, if' they' had been 

 too Ion;,' before this ('omiiiis.sion, would have lu kick each other to know whether they 

 were myths or livintr beiiii^s. 



I will have a more liiiiu!,' occa.siou for review 1110; (lie evidence brou<,'ht on behalf of 

 the United States j^eiiendly. Kor the niomenr the contrast was rather temjjfinp;, 

 between what Americans ot' our days ihouudil of (Mir fisheries, and what tlieir ancestors 

 thouylit almo.st a century ;vsi>. I [iroceed now to show that the IJritish claim has boon 

 proved. 



Mr. hiinn.— That was as to the cod-lisherv. 



Mr. Diiiiiri'. I think they have made very little dillcrcnce. 



Mr. Dana. — rod-jishinjr js prosperous now. 



Mr. Ihiulrr. — It must not be foru'oiten, as one of our learned friends expressed 

 liimsi'lf in reterenee toother mailers, they liave now a point to carry. Wlieii Mr. Adams 

 Was eollectiiiL; his informalioii he had no point to carry, but sim])ly to give a jilain 

 statement of facts. Tliose rich lisheries which were spoken of in siicli ;;lowin2; terms in 

 ISI.') have, it i.- a.xscrlcd, declined to nothing;, because we ask for their value. I never 

 heard the matter more iilainiy ami s(piarely laid down than it was yesterday, by my 

 learned Irienii. .Mr. Wliitiwjv, when he sai<l, " Now, that you possess these fisheries, 

 how much woidd yon \\>^[i lor tlieir surreiuler i' " If we were to turn the tables in 

 this manner, we would see ti;e (ilouccstcr u'entlcmen rominj;; here and describing; the 

 fisheries in ('riiteniiial colours. 



Mr. Dana. — ( )ur lestiinoiiv w k ail to ijic cU'rci that the cod-lishery is still profitable 

 in (iloucesier. 



Mr. I)ii. hi'. — I think ai llii> hour wi miisi luulerstiuid the bciirinu: of the leslimony 

 or we will iic\cr do so. 'I'lic lishi'i'ies in ^laine ha\c been completely ilcslroyed ami no 

 loii;.;ci- exist. I will n ad from ihe testimony on thai point in a tiwv moments, 



'I'lir iiiin,!>cr ol .\iii( lira.i msscIs iVicpicntin^' lite Mrilish-Ameriean waters <'oitId 

 not ill- i>timaleil willi any di;;re. of precision. Witnesses <'oiild only speak oi what, 

 thrv had SI (11. and Imt very frw <■!' them coidd. witliiii a siiorl time, no over all the 

 jisiiiii;: ;:iiiiM;i!s and make an 1 .-liiiialc. even if ihey liad jroiie round with tiial oliject 

 in view. 'fh< A li.id lo Inisl to what lln'\ had licard Iroin oilier parties, who about llio 

 same li.iic had been in other portions of these waters, and by coml)iiiinf; the knowled!>;i' 

 acijiiircd fi-oin others with liiejr own, thev were able to |.;ive a statenuMil of tlie number 

 of xesscls irei)nenliii'jj those walei'~. 



Captain l-'ortin, jia^c .S'is of Mriiish evidence, slates that in the I'rovinee of (Jiiebec 

 onh, the extent ol' tlie coast on \* hicli the li.-heries ot' Canada are eondiieted is i'.hout 

 l.oilO miles ; and I'rot'essor Hind, jiaire vii of his valuable jiaper, estimates the area ot' 

 coa.slal waters conceded to the I'liiled ;>^tales by tlic 'I'rcaly , to be about II ,',I(H) s(|nare 



.Americans have been in liie hai)it of lisliiiif; ail around the Bay ol' Kiind\, and 



but the bulk iif ll;e 



mile 



on the .-oulh-east c»la^l of Nova ."^cotia. without conntin!;' the (m 



American licit entered the (nilt'. priiMipalls li\ iju 



rouiul Cape Iif' Ion, or b\ tiie Strait .<{' I>e 



tint ot Caiuso, and also by goin^' 



l^le, comiuf; from Newroiimilaiul. 



2X2 



Wi 



