The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1878-11-07
The Fishery Trouble.

The Fishery Trouble.
Differences have sprung up between
his Government and Great Britain
growing out of the subject of Amer
cans fishing in Canadian waters. The
State Department has furnished the
New York Herald the following un-
official account of the cause which
Secretary Evarts toreopen
with the English Gov
ernment upon the subject:
1t appears that for many years
American fish hermen nave been going
to the New toundlsnd coast after her.
ring, for which there is an increasing
market in this country. Usually they
have either bought the fish OF New
foundland fishermen OF hired these
fishermen 10 fish for them, and SO long
as this was done there seems to have
been no complaint Of their violation
of local laws. The increased demand
for fish and competition of the Colo
nists-who bring their fish to our mar
kets free of fduty-Compelled our fish
ermen at last 10 set their ingenuity to
work, and this year about twenty ves-
sells went to Newfoundland with the
large seines which they use in summer
for mackerel, and intended to seine
herring, as, under the treaty, they
claimed an indisputable right to do.
They had discovered that seined fish
keep fresh better and longer than fish
caught in gill nets, such as the New
fOundlanders use, and being Ameri-
cans they naturally cOntrived the best
ways to prosecute their business. The
Newfoundlxnders tried in various
ways to make the use of seines inn
possible. 1t is in evidence that they
not only planted their gill nets along
the shore in such way as to prevent
the use of seines, but they sunk skitfs,
ladened with stones at different points
to tear the seines OF our people.
Sworn testimony shows, further, that
on a certain Sunday morning New
foundlanders were in their boats TAX
ing fish from their gill nets, the au-
thorities taking no notice of the viola
ton of their own laws. Moreover,
the first crew that spread seine that
morning was Newfoundland crew.
Recently, however, herring very un-
expectedly came in in vast schools in
side of the range of gill nets, and
thereupon our people spread their
seines and prepared to take the fish.
Being deep-water fish, and coming to
the shores at uncertain times, it is nec-
essary to take them when they appear ;
but when our twenty vessels had
spread their nets a drunken crowd OF
New wfoundlanders, numbering from
loo to 200, came to the shore, ordered
our people to take in their seines, vio-
lently compelled them to do SO, and in
the case of two vessels whose Cap
tains refused, tore the seines, let out
the fish and dragged the net away. In
some cases they came in boats to at
tack our vessels and coerce our people
In one case the American Captain, a
Newfoundlander by birth, defended
his seine and fish with reyolvers, and
he was permitted to gather in the fish
ne had caught. An American fishing
crew consists, it seems, of but half a
dozen men, and their force was too
weak to resist the mob. In the eve-
ming, after the days violence, the
Newfoundlanders celebrated their
victory with the firing of guns, the
beating of drums and shouting, and
some of our people testify that they
were boastingly told that the intention
was to drive them away from those
shores, and prevent them from catch
ing fish there. To the above. which
is the story as disclosed in the sworn
statement of our fishermen, it must be
added that this is not the only case in
which the Newfoundland men have
interfered in lawless manner with
our treaty right. On the 18th of July
1877, the schooner Mist, Of Gloucester,
went into Bread Cove 10 buy squid
for bait. The price asked was toe
high and the Captain refused to bny
preferring to catch the squid himself
Thereupon the Newfoundland men
who were catching them alongside the
Mist, threatened to mob the vessel and
drive her out of the bay, and to pre-.
vent his fishing if he did not buy Of
them. and he was forbid to compro.
mise with them. The British claim is
that our fishermen were served right
and have no cause of complaint, be-
cause they violated local, Colonial
! law. But if these local laws are to bt
applied to our fishermen, Secretary
| Evarts holds they ought to be enforced
| by the lawful authorities, and not by q
mob.
1t is expected that Lord Salisbury:
reply to the American note will be re-
ceived here on the steamer reaching
New York November 9th. Mean
while the So. 100000 fishery award Is
! in London, ready to be paid.