348 FISHERIES ARBITRATION AT THE HAGUE 



cannot predicate any obligation upon that ship under those 

 circumstances. 



As Mr. Lansing suggested the other day, when we were speaking 

 of this subject, it is as if one man were to grant to another a right of 

 way over his land, and then were to put up a toll-gate and charge 

 him toll for passing over the way; and do it upon the excuse or for 

 the alleged reason that he had improved the road. It is a privilege 

 of the man who has the right to pass over the way to say whether 

 the way shall be improved at his expense or not, and a new charge 

 for the privilege of using the way already granted cannot be imposed 

 upon him without his consent. 



Now, all these statutes cited by Great Britain are merely stat- 

 utes which fix, determine, what the obligation of vessels coming in 

 to exercise the privilege shall be. They determine the exaction 

 that shall be made. They are merely the merchant fixing the price 

 of the goods on his shelves which shall be charged to the customers 

 that come in. They have no relation at all to determining whether 

 ships that are not subject to any obligation shall be subjected to it. 

 They have no bearing at all upon the question whether a vessel 

 coming in for the exercise of a right already granted to its country 

 shall be required to pay again for the exercise of the right. They 

 tell what the vessel shall pay if it is bound to pay. They regulate 

 the exactions, but that is all that there is to them. Of course they 

 are couched in general terms because the legislatures of these states 

 and colonies in passing their laws and fixing their Hght dues, and 

 so on, are not studying the treaty of 1818. 



I have been considering this as if there were no question of 

 discrimination. I do not think there is any strict right — any 

 lawful right to exact against our will these dues from us, whether 

 there be discrimination or not; but, I have one observation to make 

 upon the position taken by my learned friends on the other side, as 

 to discrimination. 



Their view is that although the statutes of Newfoundland do 

 not impose these hght dues upon their own fishing vessels, never- 

 theless that is not a discrimination, because they say all citizens 

 of Newfoundland have paid taxes. Newfoundland is supported, 

 they say, by a system of indirect taxation, and every citizen of New- 

 foundland pays his share. 



