The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1888-09-03
THE FISHERY SURRENDER.
The Story Told by Man Familiar
With the Subject.
And One In Hearty Sympathy with
the Fishermen.

the Fishermen.
Speech OF Capt. Babson Of cIouces-
ter at ogunquIt.
OGUNQUIT, Sept. 1.-The Republicans of
this place unfurled to the breeze last evening
large and handsome campaign flag and
were afterwards addressed by Capt Fitz j.
Babson, of Gloucester, Mass. There was a
large audience present, for whom seats had
been arranged upon the lawn in front of the
Maxwell House. and the grounds were bright
ly Illuminated by lanterns and torches. The
speaking was from the yeranda of the hotel.
The Berwick Band was in attendance and
rendered fine selections. The address of
Capt Babson was devoted principally to the
question of the fisheries, a subject in which
the people of this community are especially
interested, and one with which Capt. Babson
is peculiarly we'll qualified to deal, he having
been engaged, under Secretary Evarts, in
collecting and arranging evidence touching
that matter. The argument was fair, candid
and logical, and was received with close at
tention, the speaker being frequently inter-
rupted by applause. Capt. Babson spoke as
follows:
CAPT. BABsoN's-s1EEcH.
Mr. President and Felloig Citizens:
am pleased to be here upon this occasion,
and am pleased to see that when you organ
ize your meeting you do it under the Ameri-
can flag, and am glad to see that you honor
that flag with cheers Of welcome. 1t has
been my fortune, my friends, to stand when
that flag was in danger with some OF the
noblest and best men / ever knew, and
to have seen some go down in the struggle
which placed that flag, as the symbol of
American liberty and independence, over
every foot of our national territory; and it is
with pride that see you hail It with cheers,
recalling to memory in those cheers, in this
gathering and in the floating of this flag to
the breeze, the sacrifices of those who have
made it possible for US to be Americans.
am not here tonight to abuse any man be-
cause he may differ with me, or differ with
the party which represent here before you.
acknow ledge the right of every man to diff
and claim for myself the right l freely ac-
cord to him. But wish to speak tonight Of
that interest which understand that this
place has as its principal industry, and to
speak Of it from the first history of this c0un-
try up to the present time. what has been
the course of legislation respecting it, how it
has been affected by diplomacy and treaties,
and to tell you what, in my opinion, is the
present aspect OF tnaJ business.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, you will re-
member that, at the time of the settlement
of affairs at the close of the war for our in
dependence, in the treaty of 1888 we received
from Great Britain our title to the very soil
upon which we stand. In that treaty which
was, to all intents and purposes, a deed CIV
ing us the inherent right to own forever the
privileges and the rights which 1t conveyed,
the rights of territory and soil were mingled
equally with certain rights on the ocean and
fha chorQc of Rritich AmQrIQa We
possessed, under that treaty, the entire right
to use those waters freely for our boats and
vessels and to take fish anywhere upon that
coast. Now, under the colonial policy of
Great Britain which existed at that time,
you will remember that none Of her colonies
were allowed to trade with any other nation
except the mother country. You know that
European nations, wherever they held colon
ial dependencies, claimed the right to govern
the trade of those colonies and no other ma
tion was permitted to share or participate in
that trade. But, under the able workman
ship of John Adams and Benjamin Franklin,
we did possess that fee and that right in
those waters by that treaty, and | believe
that it has never actually been vitiated, and
that it ought not to have been taken from us
in the manner in which Great Britain today
claims that it has been taken from us.
Now, gentlemen, the war of 1872 occurred,
and then Great Britain said to the United
States that the war had terminated all the
privileges which we held under that treaty.
If the privilege of fishing upon those shores
was then terminated, upon the same basis of
argument, the right we have to this soil was
also terminated. And it was upon that poll
ey that Great Britain, in 1915, began to cap
ture our vessels for trespassing. as she
claimed, while in the exercise of those fish
ing rights upon her coast. You will remem-
Der, also, that is 1916 the allies were in the
possession of Paris, and Napoleon was over
thrown. England, with her magnificent
army and navy, stood in power in the world,
almost without peer. She was competent,
almost, to dictate her own terms, and we, as
we stood at that time, were unable to cope
with her. Commissioners were appointed to
settle the difficulties and to admit or reject
the claims which she made. The result was
that the treaty of 1918 was negotiated, and
in that treaty we were deprived OF portion
of our rights on that coast, and today that
treaty is claimed to be in existence and in
force.
Now, we went along under the treaty of
1918 until 1854, when, as you know. there was
desire and an ambition on the part Of Can
ada to share the markets of the United
States with the American producer, and to
compete with us in the products OF our farms
and our fisheries, and the treaty OF 1854 was
negotiated, called the reciprocity treaty.
That treaty existed for twelve years. and
was terminated in 1866, largely in .conse-
quence of the inhospitable position Of Can
ada toward us during the war Of the Rebel
lion, and the sympathy which she entertain
ed and she had expressed for the Southern
cause all through the war. Halifax was the
rendezvous of blockade runners and raiders
on our border, and the United States, in JUS
tice to herself and in sympathy with the feel
ings OF the people, terminated that treaty:
From 1866 we were without any treaty OF
any kind except that of 1918, and Canada
commenced the licensing OF our vessels at
from 90 cents ton up to So tor, In the
three succeeding years. When the licenses
were placed at So ton our people refused to
pay, as 1t was more than the privilege was
worth, and the result was that the coerclng
principle of Canada came into operation. ou
may have seen in the newspapers lately that,
at that time, President Grant being called up
on, issued proclamation that unless the
depredations which were made upon our hsh-
ing vessels ceased, he desired Congress TO
give him the power Of retaliation. l had the
honor to draw up the memorial, which was
endorsed by large meeting of the fishing IN
terests in Massachusetts more especially,
and placed it in the hands of General Butler,
who at time had great influence with the ad-
ministration, and it was through those infiu-
that President Grant issued that proclama-
tion. notice now that some of the Demo-
cratic papers are claiming that the pr0cla-
nation issued by President Cleveland is OF
the same nature and character as that issued
by President Grant | wish to say right here
that lat ithat ttime the transportation which
Canada enjoyed over our territory was
simply transportation from the ports OF
DOSbOus duul OItiduu WHICH gave HcI al
opportunity to take goods across our terri
tory in bond on account of her harbors being
largely frozen up in the winter time, and 1t
was looked upon at that time as nothing
more or less than an international considera-
ti0n and did not then comprise what is in the
act which President Cleveland now asks for.
The Canadian Pacific road not having been
built, the treaty of Washington was not in
force on our Northern border, and you see at
once that the result of retaliation under the
proclamation of President Grant would have
been very different from what would be the
result of retaliation under the proclamation
of President Cleveland made at this time
Now, gentlemen, after the treaty of Wash
| ington had been negotiated and had been in
| existence for some ten years, it was termi-
| mated by action of the Congress Of the
| United States by the motion Of your own
| Senator Frye. We find that that treaty hav-
| ing been terminated in July, 1885, the pres
| ent administration has had no treaty of
reciprocity under which to act, but we find
| that the same course has been pursued by
| Canada: that the moment that treaty termi-
| mated, as has been expressed in the debates
| in her parliament she then endeavored once
| more. bv force and coercion, to obtain a re-
| newal Of the reciprocity terms of that treaty.
| Upon the accession OF the present admins
tration into power, Mr.. Bayard being Secre-
tary of State, |, at the time holding the office
| of Collector of customs for the port of Glou
cester. was summoned by Mr.. Bayard to
| WASHINGTON for conference with him rela-