New-York tribune., 1879-09-29


word for the fishermen if you cam Looking at his
bronzed face grisly beard and snewy figure as he
held the wheel, and at the seven fine stalwart
young fellows hosting the mansail, could not
help sympahizing with appeal for the protection
of an industry that MIXTURES such manly seanen'
No wonder IL seems strange to these men that the
Government, which protects many advocatlons
on land against injurious foreign competition.
should abandon one which trains thousands of
brave fellows TO battle with the waves and hts
them to man its fleets time OF war. The claim
for the fisheries that they nursery for AmerI-
can seamen is well founded. When the KeDelnotls
broke out the fishermen were the cher reliance ol
the Navy for the recruits 1t needed: Tie irlgato
Nagona shipped an entire crew here az Glou-
cester Hardy lads from all along the New-Eng-
land coast, accustomed to face the winters storms
on the Newfoundland bank, and hlied WIN ihe dI-
dent patriotism all good sailors feel Hooked 10 the
navy yards at Portsmouth, Boston ana NeW-ioIh
to enlist, and their intelligence, zeal and seaman
ship made them good man-0t-wars men almost as
they got their blue jackets on since the treaty
abolished the tariff on fish thousands OF thes pest
men have abandoned the business. 10 some eAt1hl
their places have been hled by canadians ana ny
Portuguese from the AZOre lsiands-tO some eXtent
they remain untitled, and the vessels once manned
by them are laid up: Americans will not Work ior
starvation wages. If they cannot make enough IN
hazardous life at sea t. support their families com
fort bly, they will try some occupation On lahd INC
areument for "a dny on fish Is Just as good ~ l"I
duty iron. We must have furnaces ana iorges
10 make iron for ships and guns so rs not to ne
dependent on foreign nations III time oi war Dut
must also have men to man our slilps anu Not
the guns and If we drive twenty or thirty thousand
men out OF the fisheries by failing TO protect then
we shall seek IN for supply ol trained Ahei-
lean seamen when the need comes.
EFFECT or ABOrIsHING THE DUTY on FISH.
Before tho Treaty of Washington took effect the
Provinces sent very few fish to our markets. How
the trade has Increased to their advantage may be
Judged from the following statement OF the value
Of Canadian fish inspected In New-York FOR each
fiscal year since the treaty became operative; 1871
$40, ,5s1; 1875 $l52.S97i 1875 Sl76511i 1871
S294.3SO 1873, 1919 255; 1879, $44S,55S. The
figures OF the British Custom-hOuse show heavy
increase up to 1875, when the total was 81 2o9,S3O
decline In 1870 and 1877, and another increase
in 1879 Tho receipts at these two points do not
represent the whole Importation however. for
large quantities Of cod and mackerel are shipped
directly to Chicago and other interior
cities. During tho year 1873. according
to official Canadian statistics. the Dominion
exported TO the United States fish vaWed
at 2392, ,217. This did not include Newtound-
land, which does not belong to the DOMINION
These reports were classified as follows: Cod,
S27s. 800; mackerel $S35, ,962; herring. $l5S.35Oj
Holsters. SlSl ,O5S; salmon, $)ZO.4OO.
lt will be seen that the amount OF hsh we get
from the Provinces is not very large. but our nsl
ermen say it ~ large enough to control prices. ana
that Its increase from year to year dlscourages en-
ternrise ON their part. They are disposed 10 take
gloomy view of their industry. looking ON II as a
business that IL running down hill-one In which IL
Is almost impossible TO earn fair return Tor the
capital invested or 10 secuse moderately good re-
mnneratIon for labor l am told that vessei Is
lucky to earn per cent wear on her
cost As the average life of vessel running 10 the
Banks and taking the risks OF snlpwreck IN the
Winter gales Is only about twelve years, this Is
small compensation. Every year vessels are lost
I'm fine great gale of 1852 fifteen Gloucester vessels
went down with all on board. That storm made
seventy widows and 100 iatherless chldreh Ill tiiS
am indebted to the editors OF The Cape Ann i'd
| rertiser a paper which gives much attention 10
fishing Interests and l. always Wen on the te
! arenment of American fishermen chat tho Provin-
clais take the bulk of their catch IN small boats
which put out from shore and cost very nttle To
| equip and man. According to these Statistics
which from Dominion official sources,
| Nova Scotia has "a neet Of IJ3 nshng vessels en-
| plOyng 1907 men, but has also lO,o11 fishing
boats, costing the average of $50 each aud EN-
ployIng 1870 men. New -Brunswick has 30 yes
sells employing 1,090 men, and 4,36l boats, EN-
! ployng z, ,622 men. Prince Edwards Island, whose
nackerei comes to Boston, has only fifteen vessels
manned by scyenty-nine men, her catch being
chiefly made by l759 boats, employing . 1877 men.
Thus il appears that in these three provinces s,226
men employed IN fishing vessels, and 32,2lJ III
fishing III small boats.
ATTITUDE OF THE PR0yGNCIALS.
The Gloucester fishermen who run to the Banks
and the Gulf of st. Lawrence say that the
people of Newfoundland and the maritime
provinces of the Dominion ar@sRQt disposed
TO Weld to their American rvMs the rights
guaranteed them by the treaty. In fact. they
not fond of the treaty themselves. None of tue
money paid by the United states has benefited
them. and as for the privilege of sending their fish
duty free 10 our markets, they don't feel at all
grateful for il, but rather take il as right they
had under the old Reciprocity Treaty. ana one
which We unjustly deprived them OF when we abro-
| gated thar contract. Meanwhile they claim the
right TO make such local laws hamperlng the in
shore fisheries they please, and to enforce them
upon our fishermen their own way. 80 the old
| irritation winch mas existed for ha.t century
is Kept up. The Pr0vinclals look npon the fishing
grounds their Own preserves on when Ainericans
| are poachers while the American view Is that hsh
have no value In the water ana belong to anybody
VINO has the enterprise skill aud capital TO cake
them out aud ind Il narke; for them. Sooner orlater
the only effective remedy for these annoying hshing
troubles VIII be recognized by statesmen III both
coun lrics. and when once adopted the wonder VIII
be that its application was so long delayed. That
remedy. | need hardly say. Is To wipe out the
bOut Diary line between the United states ana Gan
ada ana make Of the Provinces free and independ-
ent States of the American Union. 4. V. 5.
m L.. II IL