ARGUMENT OF MR. ROOT 151 



the same sentence. All of these are police regulations, and they 

 constituted aU there was in the way of regulation in Newfoundland 

 either in 1783 or in 1818, or at any time between those dates and 

 for many years after. 



Sm Charles Fitzpatrick: There was the prohibition of fishing 

 on Sunday contained in clause 16 of the Act of 1699. 



Senator Root: That was repealed in 1775, as stated by Lord 

 Elgin, in the letter which he wrote to Governor MacGregor at the 

 time we were talking about the modus vivendi, so that did not exist. 

 Lord Elgin, in that letter, states very clearly what the situation was 

 after the treaty of 18 18 was made. The Tribunal will remember 

 that in 1855 there was a call made for a statement of all the regula- 

 tions there were, for the purpose of presenting them to the United 

 States for its consideration with respect to the application of 

 the treaty of 1854, and that the Attorney- General reported that 

 there were none. My learned friend the Attorney- General fell 

 into an error in regard to that report, he following, I think, Mr. 

 Ewart, in supposing that the report was erroneous, or that the 

 report was limited only to local regulations. The report was quite 

 accurate. Senator Turner calls my attention, with reference to my 

 answer to Chief Justice Fitzpatrick on the question of the Sunday 

 prohibition of 1699, to the fact, and it does appear to be the case, 

 that it was a Simday observance provision which had no particular 

 reference to fishing. 



Sir Charles Fitzpatrick: The words are "shall strictly and 

 decently observe every Lord's day, commonly called Sunday." 

 It depends on what that means. 



Senator Root: I have known of one fishing club where observ- 

 ance of the Sabbath was enforced by a rule against playing cards, 

 but they fished, and another where the observance was enforced by 

 a rule against fishing, but they played cards. I do not know what 

 the construction of that would be, but at all events the subsequent 

 statute of 1775 disposed of it in so far as fishing was concerned at 

 least. 



The President: But does the statute of 1775 relate to fishing 



