The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-10-10
CRUSHING AN INDUSTRY.
EHGLdND'S WARFARE ON VIEW
EOUSDLASD,S LOBSTER MEN.
mer waeships ItnvasInE Her Coiony's Coast.
DESTROYING CnnucrS' I1uts. nRd WrecLinG
Their Ouinis-Thr Misery ANA Desperation
That Ars Caused Among tho Fishermen.

Els JullN - ~ re oNls os~Al 10 IN IhNllVN
fiction with tho average Englishman that the
Union Jack is n banner which shields every
man who holds TO IL as the standard Of his 10y.
atty. but here In Newfoundlj nd the people have
como TO look upon IL as the emblem Of persecu-
ton and tyranny. The flag which in Africa Is
used to prevent slavery is used here TO crush
and harass England's own subjects.
Everybody who has studied international his.
tory knows that France has certain fishery
rights on tho west anu northeast coasts of this
island, and that the French shore question is n
prolific source of discomfort among the diplo-
mats OF both countries. Every VEN the coast
Is patrolled by the warships OF tho two powers,
and between them they %cuntrivc TO make life II
burden to tho people who live or fish along that
region. Two kinds of fishing AFRO pursued there,
catching cod and catching Holsters. Tho lob
ater fishing Is the one over which the present
trouble has arisen, and at this writing six ships
are securing the coast, destroying the fishing
Appliances and confscating the canned prod
ucts of the factories. The dispute really arises
out Of the question whether the French have
any right to take the Holsters there at all; but
tho actual condition of things is the amazing
spectacle Of British warships destroying the
property Of British subjects on British terri
troy to satisfy French demands.
The history of the region is that in 1Tl3,
/, after tho peace of Utrecht, England conceded
to France, in return for the empire of which
she despoiled her by Wolfe's victory at Que
bee, the possession Of the Islands of st. Pierre
Miquelon and the right to catch and dry fish
on one-third of the coast of Newfoundland.
At that time there was only one fishery pur-
sued-the cod fishery. When one speaks of
fish here the word is understood.to mem cod.
ish, so the French word poisson fish was in.
sefted in the text. Of the treaty. This word
hrs sufficed to provide tho French with
means Of perpetual quibbling ever since. They
awaited themselves of 1t especially in relation
TO the lobster industry. This is of compare
lively recent growth; only within the last
twenty years has it become Of commercial i'm
portance. People here first went into the bust
ness, and Us the coast fairly swarmed with
the crustaceans they succeeded 80 we'll that
tho French were induced to participate in the
venture also. Then the trouble began, in 1889.
BY the treaties the French have only the right
to catch fish in the Httoral waters and to dry
the fish on the strand. they being permitted to
build temporary structures for the purpose. but
no permanent structures. On the other hand,
the British bound themselves not to interfere
with the French by their competition, and
though there Is a specification that the fisher
men of both nations are to have concurrent
rights" the French stand out for the fulhlment
of the pledge not to compete with them.
Inc computation worked out LnuS. Inc
French started to build lobster factories. and
the Newfoundland Government stopped them
on the ground that Holsters were not fish and
that permanent buildings were not temporary
drying places. nor was the canning Of lob
sters TO be construed into the drying" of fish.
The French retorted by demanding that the
resident fishermen withdraw from all the most
desirable cod-catching locations, on the ground
that these were interfering with them by their
competition. A long correspondence ensued be.
tween tho French and British Foreign Minis
tiers, as a result of which it was decided to sub
init the whole lobster question to arbitration.
and. pending the decision Of the arbitration
tribunal, q nlodus rirendi was agreed upon be-
tween them, recognizing all the lobster fac
tories of both nations then in existence on the
treaty coast, but forbidding the erection of any
others unless by the mutual consent of the
Commodores of both squadrons on the stations
and with the understanding that the addition
OF IA factory for one nation would be followed
by the addition of one for the other. Thus the
whole administration and policing of the treaty
coast, in its. international aspects, were placed
3n the hands of these two officers, despite the
indignant, protests OF the whole people, OF New
shore and portioned it out among the factory
owners, whose. business was legalized by this
factories, but the number has been Increased
TO sixty. The annua! output of the territory is
ABOUT aSS :, 10000 1000, cases ss 20 Of four dozen o. ss sans o each 3, val
OF the total, the resident, or Newfoundland, pack
ers, put up some 25.OO0 cases. the French stock
making up the remainder.
These legal concerns. having a virtual mo-
nopoly, of the industry on the coast, were able
dustry is prosecuted by means OF wicker bas-
kets or traps, which are set in the tidewey
pursuit. Of the bait. The fishermen visit. the
traps daily and take out the %lobstersss, which
they bring to the nearest factory. The fish
ermAn had. in the early daya of the TJoHua
i I{s s.;, to Il. the ut lf;sa ~ l.sStoTles'r ~ which nstHT;
prices, contrasted with the immense profits
the factories were making. opened the eyes of
similar trade. Consequently, one and then
another Of them started canningI,necessarily
need any very great experience or large capt
tai, and the new Gamers enlarged 1t, as they
s wsnt al All thSs IS Sans ne. sss % Is so ny ~ them ias t aish
the meat and solder on'the lid. OF course, for
the first first year c or tive br the 9, qpSeelit Z of Of the output
and the whole coast line Is dotted with illegal
Though this was an infringement of tho
paodus pipendi, 1t was winked at by the Brit
ish Commodores. AS long as the Illicit deal
the areas Of their more fortGhsts FELLOWSHIP.
1ects no trouble was made, but when, en-
SHlaeInSd 1 {hs III Fre 1Slsr prStss tsiy an nsdsdd em "s5si%
the suppression of these Illicit concerns alto.
gether. A further reason moving them was
nav lhO Diuhy bSttih6 IIo tlC
business were destroying the French trade.
Now nearly every hsheEman on the coast ia
SANITY plying to and fro, purchasing The pre-.
continuing the work. Several Of the large
legal factories, finding their territory invaded
ct all points by the smaller ones, abandoned
packing, finding that it paid better to supply
these with all the requisites and to accept
from them the finished pack, which they then
would ship TO market. The Frenchmen have
hension, and this season their complaints could
no longer be disregarded. Representation
were made by the French Government to the
British Foreign Office, and Instructions were
sent out to the British warships to abolish
these factories and return TO the conditions which
prevailed at the time Of the modas ripendi.
Commodore Bourke, who commanded the
squadron, started TO suppress these factories
and though he did not altogether succeed. he
contrived TO infict a lot of trouble and misery
upon a quiet and inofensive people. The set
tiers along the coast, DO 1t understood, had nc
voice or vote In the conclusion of the interna
tional agreement: They live on the coast ant
sec themselves forbidden to take from tn,
will save them and their families from starry