Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-05-15


they did not wish it to appear by implica-
ton that we had secured new grant, but
that we held to our doctrine of the treaty
of 1888 being an executed grant, perpet-
ually secured, and which they challenged.
The English themselves passed several
laws for seizure of vessels violating the
terms of the treaty of 1918. Many of
these we claimed to be in excess of the arI-
thority Of the treaty. Seizures and confs-
cations followed. Mackerel fishing sprang
up, and the whole matter became more
and more vexatious to both parties For
instance, an American fisher ten Or fifteen
miles from the coast in the Bay of Fundy
would be seized as within three miles of
shore, the British claiming that the limit
counted from line drawn from headland
to headland, while we contended it meant
line parallel with the meanderings of the
shore of the bay, and three miles distant
therefrom.
SO matters continued with increasing
! friction, and many demands, yoluminous
| diplomatic correspondence, ETC., until 1855
when we agreed to a Commission to arbi-
trate The umpire decided our construc-
ton of the three-mile limit TO be correct,
because the Bay of Fundy was $50 miles
long and not u bay at all, within the mean
ing of the~treaty of 1918.
In 1854 treaty Of reciprocity was con-
Guided. The first article gave, i'll addition
to the liberty secured by the treaty of 1918,
the right to fish along the shores of Canada,
New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince
Edwards Island and adjacent islands,
without regard to distance from shore; and
the right to land on such shores and those
| of Magdalen Island to dry nets and cure
lisa, provided these did not interfere with
the rights of British subjects in private
property or in occupancy
This settled matters until 1866, when
we abrogated the treaty, and claimed as a
result that this revived the treaty of 1918.
The British resisted this construction. and
revised their local laws TO punish for in
vasion of their waters, until in 1870 Can
ada absolutely forbade American fishermen
her waters for fishing at all. The dispute
gave birth to the treaty Of Washington
in 1871.
This new Convention revived the first
article of the reciprocity treaty of 1854,
fixed ten years as its lease of life, with two
wears added after either party should give
notice to terminate it. One article gave
the British the right to fish on our eastern
coasts north Of the 39th degree of latitude
it had formerly been the 36th degree 1t
was provided that fish and fish oil of salt
waters should be duty free in the United
States and the British American colonies.
Presently the English claimed that we
had the best Of the bargain, and demanded
compensation from us for the fishing prlvi-
leges we then enjoyed. y Commission
was appointed and met in 1877. Our man
was clearly incompetent, and permitted
an award Of S5,500,000 to be made against
us, although prior to that we had offered
$4,000 600 to purchase the right to inshore
fisheries in perpetuity i'll common With
British fishermen and we considered the
sum fully enough But we were bound by
the award, paid the S5,500,000 and con-
tented ourselves with cursing our incom-
petent representative, IA New England
rural lawyer named Kellogg.
March, 1888, Congress gave notice of
intent to terminate the ten-year treaty of
1871, and ii was accordingly killed off
July, 1885, but by agreement was held
good to the close of the fishing season of
1885. This brings us up to the present
date, and leave us, according to our con-
struction, with rights under the executed
grant Of the treaty of 1918, and with the
British denial of such construction. Our
fishermen, therefore, when out OF bait,
enter British ports to procure it, and
colonial authorities seize their vessels I'M
der colonial laws for violation of fishery
laws
Those who are DESTROYS of more detailed
treatment of this interesting subject should
consult Hon. Eugene Schuyler's Ameri-
can Diplomacy" and the several recent
papers in American reviews on the ques-
tons involved Mr. Schuyler quotes in
full from Science of February 5, 1886, as
expressing the views of the United States
Fish Commission. In brief, this is, that
the fishery privileges Of Canadian waters
are no longer of value to us, though
the Secretary of State adheres to
the old time doctrine that they
are of great value. Americans
have been led to believe that our fishing
fleets no longer visit the Gulf of st. Law
renee, because the fish they seek have
temporarily deserted those waters, But in
fact that has little to do with it. Since
the Washington treaty was negotiated in
1871, a revolution has taken place in fish
cries and the fish trade of the United
States This revolution took place be-
tween 1871 and the commission of 1877
that gave the British S5,500,000 of our
gold for concession no longer of value to
our fishermen, in addition to the several
millions of dollars to which the RENTED
duties on Canadian fish have amounted in
fourteen years. So, says Science, we have
been paying subsidy to the British
fisheries, and developing Canadian fisheries
at the expense of our own. Our fisher
men complain bitterly of Canadian COM
/ petition, but our traders in cured fish resist
the restoration of duties as there is larger
profit in handling the Canadian product.
Since the early period there has been a
revolution in the methods of fishing. We
have introduced the purse-seine, an elon-
gated melted bag, by which we take the
fish far out at sea, and in great quantities.
Formerly they were taken by the "chum-
ming process the throwing out of guam
titles Of oily, mushy bait to attract the
schools of fish, and then take them by hook