40 FISHERIES ARBITRATION AT THE HAGUE 



"Secondly. There has also been conceded to the United States the enor- 

 mous privilege of the use of the Newfoundland coast as a basis for the prose- 

 cution of those valuable fisheries in the deep sea on the banks of that island 

 capable of unlimited development, and wlilch development must necessarily 

 take place to supply the demand of extended and extending markets. That the 

 United States are alive to the importance of this fact, and appreciate the great 

 value of this privilege, is evidenced by the number of valuable fishing-vessels 

 already engaged in this branch of the fisheries." 



That is to say, in 1877, and with the rights of the treaty of 18 18 

 only. They said, further: 



"We are warranted in assuming the number at present so engaged as at 

 least 300 sail, and that each vessel will annually take, at a moderate estimate, 

 fish to the value of 10,000 dollars. The gross annual catch made by United 

 States fishermen in this branch of their operations cannot, therefore, be valued 

 at less than 3,000,000 dollars." 



That bait is an absolute necessity for the continuance of that 

 important industry is also shown by the statements of these Hali- 

 fax coimsel. They said, at p. 551 of the same Counter-Case 

 Appendix, begiiming near the foot of the page: 



"It is impossible to offer more convincing testimony as to the value to 

 United States fishermen of securing the right to use the coast of Newfound- 

 land as a basis of operations for the bank fisheries than is contained in the 

 declaration of one who has been for six years so occupied, sailing from the ports 

 of Salem and Gloucester, in Massachusetts, and who declares that it is of the 

 greatest importance to United States fishermen to procure from Newfoundland 

 the bait necessary for those fisheries, and that such benefits can hardly be 

 overestimated; that there wiU be, during the season of 1876, upwards of 200 

 United States vessels in Fortune Bay for bait, and that there wiU be upward 

 of 300 vessels from the United States engaged in the Grand Bank fishery; 

 that owing to the great advantage of being able to run into Newfoundland 

 for bait of different kinds, they are enabled to make four trips during the 



Further down on the page, they said : 



"It is evident from the above considerations that not only are the 

 United States fishermen almost entirely dependent on the bait supply from 

 Newfoundland, now open to them for the successful prosecution of the Bank 

 fisheries, but also that they are enabled, through the privileges conceded to 

 them by the Treaty of Washington, to largely increase the number of their 

 trips," etc. 



