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\ *

THE FRKNCII IN NEWFOlJN]:)LAND.

Jiy Major-a/irni/ A\ L. DASinVOOD.

Wothiesday, l"cl)m:iry 16th, ]H{)1).
Vice-Admiral Sir Wii.r.iAM \\. Ke.nnehv, Iv.C.l')., in the Chair

Sir W'ii.mam Kics'-VEnv, T-\i>ik,s and (liiNrr.icMRX, —

I HiWK, as the C'hairman has infoiiucil yon, had great facilitii"*
for l)ocomii>jj: aciiiiaiiilovl with the (lueslioii now lioloif us, as i have
spent many summiMs and autumns in the Island of Ncwloundland in the
hist ;{0 years, and know well iht- coast h'ui,' and also the inlerior. -

]\Fy ol)iect in !;ivin.'-i, this lecture is in the interests oi the people of
lh(> colon V, more espctialjy of the poor fishermen, to sliow how they
havr been treated l)y the J]rilish (Government for the last 100 years and
more.

'I'he italies in the printed part of the lecture are my own, the
(|uolati«.M)s from deNpalclics, opinions of the law ofiicers, etc., are from
olVicial sources, and will m.iinly l)e found in a Foreign ( Jltice .Memorandum,
dated .March, 1800, and July, IS?:?.

-I'::.:, io I7l;5 the freiich had made <:ertain lod.Ljments in tin' island,
especially at Placontia, which they had fortified, and. on oneoci-asioii thiy
marched a force from that i)!ace to St. John's, which cil} tlu-y captured,
hut shortly after were driven out and defeated hy a Ikilish expedition.

By Article XIII. of the 'I'realy of I'trecht, 171:?, it was a^'reed lliat i-vroijin
"The islam! (:allod.Jit\wf()nn(llanii, \ulh the adjaci-iU i-^l.mds, shall from oiVice humho.
this time forward belong of rigjit icJudiy to llreat Hritain, and to that end ••'«>0.
the town and fortress of Placentia, and whatever other j>!aces in the said
island are in the posst'ssion of the French, shall be yielded and t;;ivt n

4>p

"Nor shall lhej:nj_)st Christiiin Kin^',.*''^ hc'\rs and successors, or
any of llK'ir .subjects, at a>iv tii.'U- fiima/i,r lay cliu'in A' iinv light to tlic
Sir it/ isLiii.J.iUt<l i'slivuh, or to ony [nut of it or tliiiii.

"Moreover it shall not be lawful for the subjccis of l'"rance to
fordfv any place in the saiiL. island of Newfoundland, or to erect .my
buihiinj^s there -AWx.v sM!(f»- fiMdo »/ hd/ds, .ind lints ihussoiy anil tisim/
for itryiiig of jhii, or to reson to The siud i.-.tand beyond the time nicfssnry
for t'ls/iing <iii'! </rvi>ig (f fhh. Hut it sh.iU be allowi'd to the subjects of
France to caich lish and to dry ihem on land in that p;iil only and in ncj
other,'" which tl'.e treaty goes on to describe is between Cape Honavi.-ta

ffDncyf 14:4^ I

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T'"' '■'•'■•N'li IN- NT\n-oi:vi)r,,\Ni).

and Pninl Ki.l,.. .oin, M-n„,l Uy Uu- n,.,;h of th, island. Tho Krcnd,
. t tins tunc pnuhKvcl a n.a,' whrr.-in I'oinl Ki.h.< ua. ,.„l, .,, Cap. Ra-
liouT-UT. llH- (r.„nl u-as disruvrnnl l.y a Jlrilish a.In.ira! ^ '

% A,l,--I. V.ot llu. TM.ahof )>ans, 17<i;). it is staVd tl.al " Tlu-
M.l.j..ns„f ].,am-o shall hav. lil.Mly <>l >^... and ./„•;.. ,;a a pari of

A IH . X II. .,, the . ,va,y oi Utrecht.- _ Hy tia.^U:.als.. the Islands

S ': ?r " " 'f "'"'" ''"•'" '"'^ (>>'• tl>c convenience uf the
l..sl)cr> , an.l o keep upon then, a !r„ard of ai) men onlv for iho police "

y IH. lrcuxyo{ycrsM.^...im^^y\i,hl of ihe l^riti.h to Now-
loan lland an>U ,oju];ac(M>tj^^ ,„,,, j,, ^^,,j^.,,, ^j,, ,^^ ,,^^,

Treaty o I Irecht ,,_n,aiiiUnned. Tlu. ish,ndsoLapi„.re and Miqueion
an n-ded to ,he l-rench. and ,he French •'fishermen a.e to enjoy llu-

r.gh to .njoy that uh„-h was as^i^ned to the.n l,v the Trealv of Utrcriu "
and In- tins ireaty, • m, order to prevent the quarrels" uhiih had aris;,,
hctween the IreiK-h and i:n,,lish helueen Cape Honavista and Ca.e
bt. John, ,n consequence of the n>nnero,;s IWi.ish .settlers on that part of
he coast, the I.rench ^ave tq, the right to fish between those j.oints, and
nn.eu thereof the treaty shore was j.roh.n.oed from Point Ri,ho to Cape

-^r, ^^«l*';' "" ^^r'';"''''"" "'" ''■' ^''■''■'""'^' ^f".i^«ty, dated Seplemher
Jrd, 1 <S3, It wa.s declared : —

•;To this end and in order that the fLshernien of the two nations n,av
not g.ve <anse for daily ,,aarr<.!s. his Majesty will take the most positive
measures lor preventing his sn!>iects from i./.rrup/i„. /;; any manner hv
Ihar co.,M.f,,, .tluMlsheix^djh^^ th.. inn/>,.r,ny rvarise of

;^ ^y'"'-'Us.iminled Jo Hum nroTTnie m;v^ n-rri.. island ofNewfotmd-
and ;,ana^.h4=.uilM^:^,^^,,,^,vr (-flUa^Uliu^v.-./ .,///.w,v,A- which shall
be fonned there to he rcinoved. and hi^^k^^a^...;. .m.,j,,,^^. ,,j,, -^^

'''''^"'■■'^ tl'^th^-Vc-nch fishem,en Lt; nol inrnuu.ioded in cui.in. the wood
iiecessiuy for lUc. repair of their sca/R)lds._Liii^. and fishing-vessels

■; ihe Article XIII. of llu. Treaty of_Utreclu. and the method of
CHTTyiug on the fishery which l>as at^.,// //,,-, /,„, acUarU^eJ shall be
the plan iqn)n which the li.neiT shain^T^trried on there, it shall not be
deviated Ir.mi hy a//^rj>,u/y : the Frem:h fisl^.r.nen buildin-r rmly their
scanolds, contMi.ng Ihein^^jyvsjp the repair ot their fishing-ve.ssels and
notwinleruio there; the subjects of his ihitannic Majesty on their pnrt
not molestm- ni any manner the French fishermen durin's their tishin-
nor injm mg their scaflbld., during their absmre. ""

••The Kin- of Greal JUiiain in cediu.;;- the Islands of .Si. I'ierre and
Muiueh.n to Fraiu-e, rega.ds them as ceded for the purpose of serviiif. as
a ,r.i/ Mirr \o \\x,-. Freiuh fisherm.Mi and in full confid(-nce that these
pos.scssH)ns wdl not becouu. an ohj.ct of /.a/oi^.y between the two nations "
Acomit.>rJ)eclaration was made by the Freud. Kin- on the same ,\nv
.hit a.s pouiled out by the law officer.? on 2lih March, iS.'ifl, it was signed

L

■*',■; r*^"v Y^,w»ir V

IIIK |-ki:N( il IN NKWKOl-Ntn.ANJ).

after tlie HritisI, hcdar.iuon, willi uliichthe Kiu.q-of Fr.mci; decl.-nv.l "l,e
is fully salisfitii."

My tlu- TrtMiy of r.iris, IHI I. (h,. KhmicIi ri-.ht of nsliiup; " Hl\'n the
r.',/.v/i" ()f 111,. Jsliiul ,:,f x\<-\vf(.mHlhMKl ;i[i(l ;uli..cciit islands in Uu.. v-nc
finll of St. La\nv:uce, was rc-pkuiu! upon tho saiiu.- footing in wliicli it '^''*'«
stood in 1702.

This (;nactni«nt was niainfainid l>y the Tr>'aty of Paris of ]816.

Under ihi-ahuvc Trealies and Di-clarations the. Fronch iiow make the
followin;^ claims :--

1. An exclusive right of fishery on the treaty shore.

2. That all fixed British settlements of whj'tcver nature on that
portion of tho coast are contrary to llie treaty, and that the
French have the riL;hl U) demand their removal.

H. 'I'he ri;.;!it to catch fish of all descriptions.

4. The rii,di! to take salmon and other (ish in the rivers, both in
the fresh and .salt water.

5. The exclusive ri,<(ht to the shore for half a mile from tlu- sea.

6. The right to exercise jurisdiction on the ir<;aty shore as retrards
what they may consider breaches of iheir treaty rights by
the British fishermen.

7. The right to set up lobster factories on the treaty shore, and
|o K'^iil concessions to their .subjects to carry on that

industry.

Now as regards the claim_of exf-lu'iiv^o rfgiu to fish. It appears ibid
" from the nrchlves of the Koreir;u,airu;e," that briuecn 171;'. and ]7S0,
'Mhat Is to .say from the 'Frt-jitv of Utrecht to the breaking out of war in
17K0, the rights enjoNed by the iMeuch were ' comunrnr only, aiul tho
attempts made froin time to time by the latter to induce the jiritish
(Jovernmeiit to make their rights exclusive had been successfully resisted."

It also appi^ars th.'.t Mr. Fitzherbert at the lime of the making the
Treaty of 17.S;5 and tlu; Declaration, r(?fu-sed to concede the cxchisive
right of fishing demandt.-d by l"raiire, but promised that the FVench
should not be " molested."

Mr. Fitzherbert, .ij.i_a further d(;spatch of .May Ith, 1783, "stated
that ]\f. de VcMgi'imes continued to ui\qe the insertion of such words in
the Declaration, a.< would .secure the t.xr/usiW riglit of fishery to the
I'Vcnclu

"This attoinpt to obtain exclusive rights was, however, resisted,"
and "it wiU._Le _.alii;a:^ed that neither the Treaty of 1783 nor the
Declaration aiUK'xed tliereto confers any exclusive rights of fishery upon
the French."

In additir)n,the_very wording of the Declaration which sa);S "it shall
not bf ileviated hovnjyj ,(iA<r /nrrfy'' shows clearly thal"both nations
were to fish. In f.ict, prior to %- De. lar.ition, the rights of the J*' reach
were " not onl; coiii'urrt;nt but equal." /Vfter the J>eclaiation, concurrent
without interrujiiioiL which g^ave the French niore or less a pre-emption. »«
Governor Darling, in a despatch to Air. Laboucheie in 185G, stales that

I'oiv'n 11

Oliici" i)k HUP,

0<1i>'<- nil

mi>.

» IIIK IRKNCH IN NKUFOUNOLANU.

scvfral proclamations of Governors hc-twoon llui y<Tirs irCi.'l aiul 17^3
spo.ik of the French ri<;Lit_s as " ri-lils in common."

In 1818, tho siiiu; rii^lits of /ishing were kivoii to the- jxHiple of thf
United States, nor did UicUl'-rcnch inUa:frr(' with thc-in. It was lema-ked
l»y a Ilrilish naval r^iiiccr, Commander Knowlos, in his roporl, that the
Frcnrli naval offic rs interfered with the Enjjlisli, while tht.7 Id the.
Americans alone.

J.ord ralmerslon, in a despatch dated Forei/^^n (Mfiee, Jnly 10th,
183tt, in reply to Count Schastiani, who elaimcd, on the wordin;? of tlu'
Declaration, an exclusive right of fishin,i(, among other things, says:--

" The Treaty of Paris of 18M declares that the French right of
fishery at Newfoiuulland is replaced upon the sami; footing upon which
it stood in 1792.

" In order therefore to come to a right undcrstanJing of {he question
it will he necessary ... to a>^certain wha« was the precise footing
upon which the French fishery a tually stood ■ 1702.

*• Nwit is evident that specific evidence would hi- necessary in order
to show that the construction w)iich the French '".ov. .nmcnt now desire
to put upon the Declaration of 178.1, is the intc.prt union which was given
to that Declaration at the period when the Declarafi .1 was framed, .md
when the real intention of the parties must have hcon best kn'>H-n. It
would be requisite for this purpose to prove that upon the conclusiori o!
the Treaty of 1783 French .subjects actually entered upoa the enjoyment of
an exclusive right to catcli fish in the waters oj/" //i,- r",;r/ in (juestion . . .
at the commencement of the war in 1792 ; but no evidence to such < ff. rt
has yet been produced . . . and moreover it does not appear that sucli
right was claimed by France, or aduiitted by l^ngiaiul, at th.e termination
of the war in 1801, or at the Peace of 18M."

And referring to the prohibitory proclamations of the ICnglisli
Governors after 1783, which were issued " from time to time on
occasions when it was found thai IJritish subjects while fishing wiliiin
the limits in question, have caused interruption to the French fishery,"
Lord Palmer.ston says tliat "neither in the Act of Parliament of 1788,
passed for the express purpose of carrying the Trealy of 1783 into effect,
nor in any subsequent Act of Parliament relating to the Newfoumlland
fishery, nor in any of the instructions issued by the Admiralty or Colf)nial
Oflice, nor in any i)roclamation whicli has come under my view, issued
by the Governor of Newfoundland, or by the Ikilish admiral upon the
station, does it appear that the right of French subjects to an exclusive
fishery, either of cod-fisli or fish geia-rally, is specifnaHy recognised."

And, in conclusion, he adds " . . . . exclusive rights are privileges
which, from the very nature of things are likely to !)e injurious to parties
who arc thereby debarred from souie exercise of industry in which they
would otherwise engage, such rights are therefore certain to be at some
time or other disputed, if there is any maintainable ground for contesting
them ; ai;d for these reasons when negotiators have intended to gr.ant
exclusive rights, it has !)eeu their invariable practice to convey such rights
in tlirect, unqualified and comprehensive terms, so as to prevent the

T)IV: FRKNi n IN NEWKOUNDLANU. 7

possibility of fjituri-. dispute or ilouhl. In the present case, Ijowevi-r, such
forms of exjiression are ciitin ly v.aiUinp' ami tlic claim put forward on
tilt' part of France is founded simply upon inference, and .upoi an
assumed interpretation of words."

Such are the chief poir.ts in the celebrated despatch of T.ord
Palmerston, one of ihe few British statesmen who have really safeguarded
our Imperial interests.

The law olTieers of the Crown were consulted at different periods as

to the exclusive riglU to ftsh. 'I'hey generally laid down that British

subjects might fish on the treaty shore, provided they could do so without

interrupting the French. Sir E. Lytton, in his instructions to the

Newfoundland Fishery (.'ommissioners in 1850, said, "The French right ,^rt!.^^'^'"

• 1 r 1 r .o, , ■, r ^ , • r OOici; memo.

js therefore not thnt of an exchisu i> fishery, but that of r fishery tree from i^g.j^

disturbance by British compclition." This is the claim made by the

British Government up to the present time.

For

FiXKi) Si: m.KMKNT.s.

This hitherto has been the most difficult point of the treaties and
Det'larations, the French claiming that fixed settlements of any kuid
are contrary to the treaties, the Fnglish maintaining that the Declaration
only referred to fixed fishing settlements, and that settlements of any
other kind arc not t'ontiary to the Declaration. As a fact almost every
settlement on the treaty shore is more or less a fishing settlement.

Now, in order to get any clear idea of what was really meant to be
granted to the French by the undertaking to remove "fixed settlements,''
and the causes that led to such uiulertaking, it is necessary to refer to
jiistorical facts, which appear to have been overlooked in dealing with
this question sine- the treaty of 1815, by Secretaries of State aiul law
officers of the Crown.

I'p to the breaking out of the war in 178:i the fishery was a ship
fisherv — that is to sav, was carried on almost entirelv bv fishern:en
from France and Fngland who came to Newfoniull iid for the season
only, and then returned home. Up to that date permanent si-tlle-
menl by the Ikilish was not only di.scouraged, but contrary to the law
of the colony. The- fishery appears to have been consitlered a sort of
lirescrve for certain Knglish adventunMS. The masl<'r of the first British
vessel lo arrive in any bay in the spring became the "fishing admiral,"
as lie was termed, for ihat bay for that season only. 1 le had the right to
choost; any portion of tlie beach he Hl;ed on which to establish his "room,"
;tf it is called, that is. the area on \»hieh lie erected his stages and scaffolds
for drying and curing fish (cod). These stages are practically a wharf
built out over the water, the lower part used for splitting the fish
preparatory to saltini; and drying ; tlie heads and offal being thrown into
the sell. Above are poles forming a kind of wooden gridiron, on which
the fish arc spread lo dry. The fishing admiral had also juri.sdiction to
.settle disputes, .md other vessels as ihey arrived chose places for their
" rooms." It was fiv^t come first s(;rvcd.

A

HIIIIIM

i'

Foreign
Ofliii- inei
ISC.C.

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8

Fore

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ISdCi

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l- IIUMIIO.

TriK rKl'.NCH IN NK\VrOU\I)I,ANI>.

But (he possession of ;i cert.iiii place one year did noi carry possession
for the- next. On this h<!ad Ciiicf jiislicc Kufvcs in \7'X\, bol'orc a
cominiilci' of the lloiisc oi' Coinnions, staled, " Ships' rooms and all
vacant and void spaces which may be tinned into ships' rooms, by those
who choose to occupy them an- in common lor the first taker, who may
possess one for the season, at the end of w iiich he must ItMve it ... .
for some other person the next season." I'he abtni* rules existed also
on the treaty shore, wlicre the French fished in common, but the control
of these fisheries was up to 1783 in the hands of the British.

It appears that even at this dale British subjects had settled
on the treaty shcre, especially between !?onavista and Cape St. John,
whicli was the cause of the French limits being altered, the French com-
plaininj^ that these seltleis on the j)lea of private owneishiji, and beini,'"
on the sp(jt before the Ficncli ship lisherinen had arri\ed on the coast,
obstructed the French in their fair choice of "rooms" on their arrival,
ll was ai^aiust such umr(|ual conditions that llie French pn-lesled. For th.e
Declaration says " <ui'f /'"/■ //:is pitrposi;" viz., to prevent i)il,rn(plion by the
British. (This is clear by the context.) " Mis i\Iajesty will cause the fixe<l
seltlements that shall be found there to bo removed." Therefore it may
be maintained that even at that time, all lixed settlements which did not
actually interrupt tlie French fishery were not contrary to the Declara-
tion, non-interruption being the pith of lh;il document.

After the treaty of \1'^\^ a number of the .settlers on the treaty shore,
who had gone there durini; the war, were removed without compensation,
some to the inhospitable coast of r.al)rador, where Newfoundland history
states many of them starved to death! What a disgraceful chapter in tin;
history of this country!

"During the period of war between 1793 and 181.'), the Freiu li
having been tolaiiy excltidtHl from the fishery, many British settlers
established themselves witliin the former French limits," and at the
Bcice of 1H15 the old order of thiiigs ui longer existid but had entirely
chatiged. There were then no ship fislierm-Mi from I'liigland ; the fislury
was t\irrit;d on on the part of the British entirely by seiilers. The
J^eclaration gave to the French a pre-emption as to choice of fishing
places and areas for drying, etc. The reasons for which the fixed settle-
ments were to be removed, therefore, no lon;,er existed. That pari of
the Declaration was practically dead, and has never since been acted on.

The French on being granted their former rights in 181') did not
insist upon the removal of these fixed seltlements. but made use of their
occupants to guard their boats and other gear during their absence,
which, contrary to the inaties, th<!y left behind. 'J'hey also made such
so-called toleration on their part an excuse for extending their fishery to
I^brailor and Belleisle north, and they took possession of the sahmv.i
fisheries up the rivers, exported wood to St. Pierre and IMicpielon, an I
erected permanent eslalilishmerits, ;ill of which acts were ccMitrary lo l'\e
treaties; but of which it ajipears f6r some years the Briti.di Goverune'nt
took lit' or no notice.

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TMi: IRKXCH IN NKWKOrNDI.ANl). U

The IJriJsh })0i)iiIali(m on tin- tiiaty shore :ii tin present <)at(? is
over 13,000, of whom cvor 99 per cent, .-u.- native-born.

■ Thi: Ridirr to Catch Fisn of any Kind.

Now, althougli the word " fish " :ipii'>ar.s in the treaty, and not " co>l,"
yet the wording of the Ireaiy when- it refers to stai^es, etc., for the <!>yiiif;
of fish is ineompatihie witli that of any oilier fishery l)Ut tliat of a cod
fisliery, as neither salmon nor lobsters an; dried. \n addition, at
the time of the 'IVeaty of Utreeht no other fishery was carried on
commercially, and the word "fish" in Newfoundland has from time
immemorial meant "eod" only. If a man wishes to ask ibout salmon,
lierring, or any other kind of fish, he alhides to them by name. Admiral
Sir Hugh Palliser, gov<'rnor of the colony in 17<)3, slated the l-"rcnch
fishery right included a co,l Jisht'tyonly, and gave no riglii to catch salmon.
This view is also held by the colony, but the Hritish Ciovernment seem to
take the view that fish of any kind are included, although Count Sebastiani,
in a communication to ],ord Palrnerston in 18:}0, speaks of a cod fishery.

It has been affirmed that the word in the draft of the treaty of 1713
was "rod," but that " fish" was snbstituleil, as giving a greater purity of
language. The original treaty was in Latin: " Tiscaturam exercere et
pisees in terra exsictare permissum erit " are the words used ; literally to
exercise a fishing, to carry on a fishoy. '1 here is no diMibt but what the
fi.shery to l)e exercised was a coil fishery only, and this ])oint should be
vigorously maintained by our (lovernuient. Some lo years ago there
was an action tried in iJie highest Courts of Newfoundland, wh'cli
depended on the meaning of the wortl '■ fish," and it was decided that
" fish " in Newfoundland meant " cod " and nothing else.

The RuiiiT to 'J'akic Sai,mon in- iitic Rivkk:-^* norii in the Frksu

AND Salt Watku.
This right is denied by the British Covernment. The fishery in the 1"o'i.m;s'ii
treaties is describetl as on " //n-cons/s," which is not up the rivers. The law ^^'^','^'-' ""■""^'•
ofliccrs of the Crown concurred (1^59) in the '. i.-w taken by T.oid
Clarendon respecting fishing in the rivers especially for salmon, "that
they arc not within the scope of the Treaties and Declarations, and that
the French have no right thereto, nor to fish in any of the rivers or
mouths of rivers in Newfoundland."

The (Practicam.v) Exclusive Rtgfit to thi: SiioiiE for a
Distance of Halv-a-Mii.k i-rom the Sea.

The French claim that the British have no right to occupy a yard of
land or erect any building within the half-mile limit, ou the plea that
such occupation may interrupt their fish.ery ; also that the British are not
at liberty to enquire into the botia fulfs of such alleged interruption, which
" may be a mere contrivance to get rid of an inconvenient population " ;

i

Report o
', Comiiiaiv
i, Howortli
; Admiral I
i 1874.

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TMr. KUKNCH IN NKWlOtJNOLANI^.

Report ol"

Comiiiamlo
Howortli t(
Admiral l\-,
1874.

the Kroiicli claim tluiL tlicy arc to he llic sole arbiters as to wiiat con-
stitutes an interruption to bo judge jukI jury, in fact— a virtual claim to
territorial sovcreij^nly of the shore ; a claim which ?»lr. Wacldington in
188G actuiill) made wlu;n he maintained that this right to the shore " was
vested in them a^; part of their ancient sovereignty of the island which
they had never relinquished." Such a cl.iini is absolutely untenable, as
it is dincdy ;it variance witii the text of the Treaty of Utrecht, whicli
debars tin; French from claiming "'//{.)' r/;'-/// /o the said ishuid," etc.

" At most the French, by the treaty stij)ulations, have a right only to
the shore which they can use," or bond fnk. require to carry on their cod
fishery. There is no mention in the Treaties or Declaration of the half-
mile claimed by them.

Now the area occupied by a " room " in which fish caught, in .say
10 miles of sea, are curetl, dried, etc., would not be more than about
300 yards long and 200 wide. The "stages" arc erected close to and
partially over the salt water. At the prcse.it time there are only about
seven French rooms in the 800 miles of coast that forms the trealv
shore, if measured by following the indentations thereof. The amount
they really require is therefore infinitesimal, considering the length of the
treaty shore.

Tlie mf)st uncalled-for and groundless compjaints of the Frenclj are
included in their determined opposition to the erection of wharfs for
the exportation of minerals and other produce, and especially to the
opening of mines within treaty limits. The British (iovernment has
more or less given in to such complaints on the part of the French,
though, provided the oi)ening of such mines or building of wharfs does
not in any way interrupt the French fishery, it is hard to see the necessitv
of giving way to complaints that are really frivolous ami unfounded, and
the admission of which involves great hardship on thir colony, and
directly prevents its dcvcloiuaent.

As ail i-v:^nijlc, in 1H7I ^fr Fov H^niu.ff r.pKwiil n ».;,,,, „p^,.-&|-

Gcorgu's Hay — IXtJ-kuiaiut built a w'li'irf, '"■■' ''■"' errcted spmc >>iiilfi;n|v<
jilld -g«l-^imiie--»«»-4o-alu:__su£lace. The l-'rench strongly objected.
Commander Iloworth, R.X., in his report stales "That as thise buildings
were 12 miles from ihc nearest French fishing station, he. could not
conceive that the Freijch can ever be injured by the prosecution of these
most important works." J]ut under pressure from the Hriiish Govern-
ment Mr. JJennett closed down his mine. Two years ago another mine
was opened at Point Blulf, 20 miles from any French fishing station, to
which the iMcnch also objected, especially to a wharf there. And the
Britisli Government not many years ago actually forbade the building of a
railwa)' that was jirojected, because its terminus was to be on the treaty
shore at .St. (ieorge's Bay, and that French treaty rights mi!;ht pos.iibly
be "affected," although no Krenchman had been near the spot selected
for many ><.ars. At the present time there is a railway st;>.tion at St..
George's Bay. Other whaifs had been removed at various times by
orders of the British authorities. Some have not been interfered with.

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TIIK KKKNCH IN NKU FOUNPLANl).

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Thu Ricirr to TCxi:iu:i.se Iitkisdiciion on tmk Tkkaty Siiori:.
It is an axiom uf iiiti'rualiou.il law that the sovcroigii power ahjne
can exercise aiitliority within its own hiiiils. ]iy tlic 'J'reaty of Utrecht
Great IJritain was eonlirmeil in the cxrUisive sovereif^nly of the entire
island and adjaeint islands ; the French, tlicrefore, cannot have jurisdic-
tion on tlie treaty short;, jji 1863 the Queen's Advocate laid down " 'I'lat Puroii;!)
by thu Xieat^' stipulations the l''ri-ni:h <'pj(\v no xLiiliL-of jurisdiction Oftui^ miviia.
within tlieir fishfiry llii>|t^s." Mr. Addington, in a despatch to the ^^^*'-
Admiralty in the same year, stateil that '* We altogether deny the right
of the French to take the law into their own hands and to drive away
English fishing- boats from the Treaty limits." In 1H52 a British war-
shij) was stationed olf the coast of Newfoundland to protect the liritish
fishermen, hecause the French Iiad taken the law ii\lo their own hands.
Lords Ciari.'iidon, Cowhn', Rosebery, and other .Ministers have protested
against such action on the j)art of tlie French ; but it still continues !
TJiough since our surrendc^ronlhe lobster ciuestion, the Fiench men-of-war
have more or less ceased their aggressive acts, which prior to that date were
very frecpient. Some light is tlirown on this by the instructions of Sir E.
Lytton, who was at the. Colonial Oflice in 1851>, to the Newfoundland
Fishery Commissioners, in which, whilst he fully admitted that the French
had no right to take the law into their own hands, yet he goes cm to
say : " Ihit Her Majesty's Government have to instruct you not to entertain H)•^^{,
any objection to such proceedings on the part of the Frencli, etc."
That is to say, our (Jovernment, whilst protesting on paper against
such actions by the French as contrary to treaty, and pretending to
protect tlie Newfounilland fishermen from such dejiredations, give secret
instructions to their agents to shut their eyes ! Many people would
consider this hardly straightforwanl and not a very creditable i)roeeediiig,
but I dare say it may be quite in acc(jrdance with the traditions of the
Foreign Oflice. It was not until 18C- ih-it ilin-i- Kriiiv;li inpn-nf-uvir won-
ever)' fishing season, statiojied^ olV the treaty shore of Newfoundland to
control the fisheries. Such a task cannot be a very pleasant one, for it v.ill
probably~be admTued that both sailors atid soldiers are above all things
lovers of justice and fair play; that being so, naval otiicers on the treaty
shore would, no doubt, sometimes have a lepugnance to carry out their
instructions from Downing Street, when such orders, whi ;h they are bound
to obey, press li.'irdly and even unfairly on the fishermen of the colony,
which sometimes they do, especially as the complaints made by th.o
French men-of-war to ours as to allegtxl actions by the natives contrary
to the treaty, to which our officers are obliged to pay attention, are
frequently ev(;ntually found to be groundless and frivolous. In fact, if it
was not for the tact disjdayed by our naval oflicers there would have been
a serious disturbance on the coast long ago.

I

The Right to Skt up LoitsTER Factories on the Treaty Shorii
ANi> TO Grant Concessions to their ScnjEcrs to Carry on

that iNinrSTRY.
The first Briiish lob.ster factoryerccled on the tjcaty shore of Newfound-
land was in 1882 at St. Barbe, another in 1883 at Port Sanders. Up to 1887

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Tin: l)<KN( H !\ Si;\Vl OUNDI.ANI*.

thore was no protest ;i;',;iiiisi or iiilci rciciici- with iIum- r.ulorios, iliiii.;!li
some corii'spoiuIiMK"!; p.issfd lictwcfn tlic I'Viiu'li and iWilisIi n.ival oH; 'cis
on the siiltjiMl. Hut ill llic iatti»r year, alt. t iln- passing of iln- Hail Ai i, u
Fri-ncli man-of-war, witluMit, notice or forin.il protest, di'siroycil a mnnin.!
of Iol)sit'i- traps at tlif aljovc-niciitioni'il pi, ices. In Jiinc, IMSO, ;i rrcncli
war-ship (hsiroycd traps at Port Sanders, and in July el that yoar, ;"i('(i
traps at ^^ea,!,dler's C't)\c The l-'rench senior naval ulliier. Captain
Iluinaini, also complained to the senior liritish naval nliicer that tlum;
lohster ttajis interfered with their fishini; operations, viz., the catehin,!; of
capelin for bait. These, complaints turn<n! out to be alloi^eiher frivohnis,
as capelin tlo not freciuont the nioro or less rocky port'cus of the. toast
where iohster traps are set. Capelin come to the shore niily on sandy
beache.s, vvheie lobster tia[is arc not set. Asa fiirtliei proul that thesu
complaints were groundless, there are now some forty Kn,i;lish lobster
factories on the treaty shore, and some tin I'"rench, and no complaints
whatever are jnade by the latter, lhiiLii>l)sler tra|)s iiiterinpt their fishery..

In ISHCi I.ord Jddesleii^h j)rotested in advance to .Mr. Waddington
against the erection of lobster factories by the French; he said " that such
a course is not allowed i)y the treaties and must bo disi(nitiniied." It
would have been well if f)ur Government had stood to these words.
Before ISSS the French objected to our factories on the plia that sucli
industry interfi'rcd with their fishery, but in ISHH tlu'y set up the conten-
tion that they had the right (lobsters being fish witliin the meaning of
the treaties) to take them ami also erect factories to pack tluin. This they
proceeded to carry out. In September, ISSS, the Foreign ( >Uice addressed
a note to l-' ranee calling attention to the illegality of rreni:h lobster
packing, and a. farther protest was made by Lonl Salisbury early in ISHt*
"against an assumption of territorial riglits in derogation of the
sovereignty of the British Crown." Nevertlu less, the French continued to
erect lobster factories. Lord Salisbury then suggi sted arbitration, but this
very rightly was refused by the Colony; another atletn])t was math; to go to
arbitration before a court, that also failed. The British (jo\erniiient then
without the consent, nnd .irr.iiimt the wishes (^f the legislature. eoncUlded a
fiioi/us rivtnih\ which is in force ii)> to <h(; pri^seiU date, by whicl7~all
fnrtori<,'f; woil;iii;»; on the Kl July, ISSO, were to .st-iiul. both French and 1
Knglish. and no new ones were f* h'' h"'lt by cither party, w ilhoul mutual

consiuit. ■ — — —

The legislature protested most strongly against the iihi'ius r'ivi'iuii,
Avhich gave the French a locus standi in any future negotiations to which
they were not entitled, and the fact of its i)eing made without their
consent, they considered was practically an infringetnent of the promise
made to them in 1857 by Mr. Labouchere, "that the consent of the
community of Newfoundland is regarded liy Her iMajesty's (jovernment
as the essential preliminary to any modification of their territorial or
maritime rights," nor was even the Government consulted as to the final
form of the modus vivtndi.

It is perfectly clear that at the time of the Treaty of Utrecht no such
industry a;; lobster packing was ever contcmi)lated or even dreamt of; it

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rur. rKixcM in nt.w KorNDi and.

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is still, if possilili-, iuor«' clfar (ImI tin- l;ingii:i.!,M' iixil to ilcs( lil'.' " tlio
fiNlicT)'" in tli.'it In aty is uttfily inaiiplicablc U> lobster catclnn'^ and
fanniiii;, as the woiils limiting tlir crrction u\ bniKliii^'s to ",v/./... t iiiinh'
of hiiaiils auil liiih tisn,}/ aiul ihtissiiir for Jnint; of jish" cannot l»y any
ingenuity hr mailr to covrr a lohsltT faclory, uhctlicr roofed l>y canvas,
wood, or iron sluctiii!:, with a boiler and furnace on a brick foimdation,
liniiinj,^ apparatus and ail llic rest ol it. As rejrards tlie. lobster industry
bein;; an interruption of ibe Freiuli cod fislury, of course a lobster
factory on shore cannot alTcct the capture of fish in the sia. Cod
fro(juent deej) wati-r, lobster shallow water. Therelore lobster traps arc
not set in the places freipienled by cod, neither is the capture of heirin,t(s,
capelin, or scpiids interfennl with by lobster traps. I'roviiled, tin refore,
that the factory does not occujiy tin; ground A'//c/ //(/< rcipiin li by the
French for iheir " rocinis" or drying places, it cannot in any way interrujH
thoin.

As to tiie Krench granting concessions to their subjects to build
factories on the treaty shore, which ihey did in ISSH, it was an audacious
move, and a gross infringement of the treaties. 'I'hc French also try to
make out that our lobster factories are illegal as coming under the head
of fixed settlements, sedentary establishments, as they call them, that is
to say, establishments that arc permanent and occupied all the year
round. Now as the lobster season is only in the summer months, there is
no necessity for our people to remain in these establishments beyond
that period, in which case they would not be fixed seitlemenis, even I
allowing tlie Trench claims on that head, which we dispute.

With such a strong ca^^e, absolutely unassailable as far as the
factories are concerned, it is a j)ily that our (lovi-rnment, who on this
question showed great weakness, esi)ecially Lord knulsford, who was at
the Colonial Oflice, instead of giving way. did not say to France in efleci:
Your factories are absolutely contrary to tlie treaties, and must be removetl.
We shall supj)ort our subjects in the lobster industry, provided th;'y do
not in any way interrupt your fishing operations. This stand should be
made at the expiration of the modus rvVvwr// which shoitly lakes place.

This f/io</us7'nv/i(/i, which has now lasted for eight years, bore especially
hardly on those .setthrs who liad not erected a factory by 1st July, lS8!t,
for while the more fortunate peoi)le obtained a UKuiopoly, the othi-rs,
although they could catch lobsters, were prevented from packing them,
and if they did so, their factories were destroyed ; at the same time they '
saw tlic French with over a dozen factories, quite contrary to treaty,
carrying on a lucrative business on Uritish territory, honi which they,
British subjects, were precluded.

As at the peace of 1713, when we first gave rights to France, and
also in 1814 and 1815, when wo re-granted those privileges, we were the
conquerors, surely we have a prior right over the French to inieri)rel
wliat it really was at that time we made them a present of.

The pfiitted paper here ended, and the lecturer spohe as follcnvs : —

[Jt'^'^

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THK I'RKNCII IN- Nj; WFOUNDr.AND.

Now iheri: liavi; I>0(Mi si'Vci.i! atlomjiis toiiKikc rirraMi;:t'ineii(s uilh ibc
J'rrnclias fotlu^ir lu-.u.y vif^hls on tlic isliuul ; j^mh.-.- IStr, ili,-rr' l|,-]vv !, ■, v.
ci;;iil. A in'iiisal of the lioniTn, nts nl.itivc to llicse ananj^emonts sh.ws
that, what the lirilisli (Jovoriiiiictil w.iiUcd was to gel rid of a vory tlisuque-
able qiustion.j,l all Jiazirds, aiid itAvu.s_qiiiLe a sccou^l'iry considuiaiiou
\vlujlliri N'cwfoiiiull.tittl ramo offsfcund best or not. Ail thcso arri;ii:;i:-
iiK'nfs fcli to the Ltroumi bL'tatisr the Colony very rii^hlly protcstinl very
stroriL^ly against thtui, as they were very one-sidi:cI, and much in the
interests ol I'laimc rather than XcwJ"oundjau(L - l"liii_iast^jirrimg.enH;iit,
which I will explain to you— as more or less a sample of the remainder
— was made in 1SS5.

It was at the end of IHS:'. that the British Government and the
I'reneir (Jovernuienl arranged to try and come to some agreenu-rit ;
four C-ommissioners were to meet in Paris, two British and two l''ri.-i;i_h.
Sir William Kennedy, our Chairman, at that time Captain Kennedy,
liad an idea that he would be tniploycil as one of the JJritish Com-
missioners. Of couise, a better selection could not possibly have been
matle, because Captain Keimedy had just come oil the coast of the
Newfoundland fisheries, after three years' service there ; but the Cioverr.or
of Newfoundland at that time, Sir John (jlover, who was quite aware of
the anxiety of the British (government to come to some settlement — in
fact thai they were more or less riding for a fall -warned the Colonial
(Jifice that Cajjtain Kennedy knew too much! 'I'lierefore he v\as
not sent, but instead, two gentlemen, one connected with the I'Vireign
Onice, and the other with the Colonial Office: Mr. Clare Ford, ami Tdr.
JVnnell. There was not verv mueh fear of those gentleiutin knowing too
much, because leally they knew nothing at all, or very little. 1 believe
"dr. Clan had been once to Ikdifax, v.hich is 550 miles from Newfomnl-
land. Xom; of them knew anything about the coast line or the way the
fishery was carried on, and very prob;d)ly they would not havi.' been .dile
t(t tell you the dilVerenee between a cod-fish and a capelin. The Kiench
Co e.inis.-ioners iiuiudcd a naval uiileer wlio had been yi-ars on l!u" coist
of .S'ewfdiindlanil. 'J'hese gentlemen, Mr. Ford ami ?*lr. IVimeli, went to
Paris, and ai the end of two years thoy made a final ariang'emen!. I will
explain 1. 1 you its piovisit, is. I must lirst of all tell you what witc the
so-calleil concessions given to Oreat Pritain. (ire;it liritain was to be
alli)wed on the jiait of the map markeil red to have; seltlemenis t)tlier
than fishinjr sedlements. The; Piitish (jovermnent h.ive always contended
\\c had a right to have settlemetits which were not lishing si>liKnients
anywhete on the shore of Xewfoundl.md, and as a matter of fact practi-
cally almost all ihe lisliiiir', fiettlements on the treaty shnre of Newfound-
land are fishing setileniei.ts. 'iTiere are at present some Bi.OOO people
there. We had these setleMnen'is evi-rywhere, |>rovided they did not
actually interrupt the French in their fishery operat'ons. Another thing
is that the. red mark on the map is wli.it is known in the colony as the
slrai.'^ht shore, thai is lo say, it ii . shore of more or less perpeiidictdar
clilfs, where you could not la»id e\ .11 in a canoe, devoid almost of harbours.
Tlie only harbours j^iveii tons v,') ih much wore in St. (.ieorge's ]?i'.y, ilu;

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TllK KUKNH It IN NK W TOt.'NDLANl).

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Hay of Islands, and liouii'' Hay. so ihal il was roally no concession to us
at all. 'nicn.,-+m>ud(.'.d-lt!i!t. niinrsjAij^ia ioHntl in- Hhe~fiar( of the map
■inarkftl uliiui^ "'»' \v<'re-tn hi'.-alUmu:iiiJii_v\:iiik ihiMU-uw-U^ fcrlain ve i ;•
.sLrin^;fi)i and hanipciiMf; conditions. A ilriiish naval olfRtTand a l''rcni-h
naval ollici r nii^dit njjrco as to tlic silr lor tlie wharf (this ^avo the Fivnch
a veto), and havin.L,' done so, a wharf uiiL,dil be built on the shore, l»nl
all the jiarapliernalia connceled with the mines, that is, dNwiling-house.s,
slioj)s, nan.'liouses, etc., were to he placed at a dislanci.' of 80') yards back
— in sonn- feu- cases 500 yards— and were to be joincul to the wharf by a
railway Icneed in. Some tenipor.iry shelters were allowed to be put
within !•) yards of this railway fctr the provisional storasjjc of minerals
and tools. 1 do not hesitate to .say that if llie mines ihat arc workinsy
and liavi' been workint^ in Newl'oundland wtTe ham[jered in that way,
lliose rest I ictioPiS would have addi-d most enormously to thrir expense.
To build a railway half a mile back on that precipitous rocky coast
wouM be vt'ry expensive indeed. Not only ih-il, but v.e havc^a riijht.and
the .British (iu\ernment maintain that we have the ri;;ht, to have settle-
ments on any juirt of the treaty shore which are not llshing settle-
ments, anil therefore provided we do not interfere with the I'Vench, whicli
wo are nol likelv to do, wc havi; a perfeit ri;,dit to have those fixed s<-tlle-
ments. So this .so-called mining conce .sion did not give us anything
worth having. .\s I have alr(\'idy observetl, \\e ha\e a right to any kind
of settlement if il does not interru|>t \]ic Frc-mh fishery.

Tlu'u the I'Vi'iich gave up their claim to the exclusive right to fish.
'I'hat claim they had no right to, and wc have always exercised a con-
current right up to this date. Therefore we got nothing out of that.

Now 1 will explain to you the very solid concessions which on that
occasion were given to i'raiice. In the liisl place, these parts marked
white on the map contain every single harbour of any value on the 80U
miles of treaty shore, with the exception of the three 1 liave mentioned.
'J'hesc harbiiins, in the ]»arts left white, in f ict, were to be practically
tcserved exclusively for the use of the l'"rench. It is tpiite true tlial in
these harlxiurs reserved, any Hrilish .seltlers living there, al llirit time
might be allowed to remain, but no new dwelling-housi's were, allowcid to
l)e built. That was a great concession to b'rance, anil a guat blow to the
Colony, becau-.e hitherto tliere had been nothing to pn-veiit any .settler
building llou^es on any jtart of the shore, ])rovided he did not interrupt
the Kreiich. .Moreover, it put an entire stepper to any increase of the
Jiritish population on that part of the treaty .shore.

TIkmi the IVench said they abandoned the fishing in the rivers,
hut wen' to be alloweil to fish as far as the \,al(^r remained salt. Here
ihoy made a virtue of giving' u[) what they h;id not the fiMitest right
«.n the world Vk Then this clause goes on to say, they (the 1'Vench) are
nol to be alhjwed to put fixed barriers in the rivt-rs capable, of impeding
the fish or navigation. Now. as far as the water is salt is up to the top of the
tide, a considi-ralile distance in some place:;, a mile or a miU- and a hvilf.
'I'iic N(nvf<unullander is only allowed to fish with a net in the tidid waters,
nol in the fresh waters. lie is also restiicled to a certain extent by

\

'*'?■->•»»»

16

TIIH l-KI'A'CIl IN NEWIOI XI)I,-vNl).

local laws witli roc^ard to tlic length ol' liis nets, (Ik" al/r o\ the nicsii,
and till" ilisl.mre of in'ts from (.'acli other. Tiie l''i"eiuli woiikl liavi; he.-n
t'-ntirely exeiupt from aiiytliii;;'; of that Uiinl. aiul, iirovidi A {][■. v left rooie;
for a boat, they might luiiUl a fishing weir, ami lluy niitjit have as
many nets as they liked one beliind the olhei-. In lai I, that clause
handed ovei to the I'n-nrli jiracticaliy the entire control of iveiy .saimMii
river on the treaty shore, 'i'he Xewfonndlaiulers would not lu; able lo
put nets in front of the I'Veiuh, because thi- I'leiich wouiil be jjrolecti'd
by the j)ro\ iso of non-interruption. Putting ?i nt'l in front of another
man's net would certainly be interruption ; all they could du would he, if
there was room, to put their nets behind the French i\i.\>, an<'. there.
would not be much chance of getting a fi-.h in such ;i piare. A good
many of the settlors living on the estuaries and mouths of lliosc rivers
Jiave added to their liveHhood considerably by caleliim; .'.nliaou ; thev
might do a good deal more only the ri%XTs are unfortunate!}- e;.>nsidcrably
])oached, and the cod traps outside are making great Iiavne with the
.salmon, 'i'liesc men have a sort of presc rip'.ive right to urtaiu salmon
j)0Sts, as they are called. It very often has i).i>sed from fatlur to son tcjr
generations. If tliis salmon clause had been passed, all the riglits tlu'sc
men had enjoyed fcjr years would have, bie.n s\M'|)t awa.y. Tins clause
was a most abominable giving away of an important rig!u ( \clnsively
lield by the ("olony.

U^'I'he next clause gave tlu^ French the right to purt Iiim bait at anv
time in the j)arts of the shoie which art; non-treaty. Tiiat was a very
important concession indeed. That 1 will explain ]»resei)!ly .Xnotlnr
clause allowed the I'rench to import free, of duly anything- thiv lil:ed. They
ivere to pay no light dues or jiort dues. Jf the l-"rencli wen- allowed, in
the harbours where they liave exclu.sive pos,->ession, to laii.l lubacco and
rum and all that sort of thing, it would circiilaie in the comitry, and every
French harbour would be a holbed of smugiders.

Then there was another clause which, allowed to (lie, I'renel)
jurisdiction on Ihiiish territory on the tre;ily shoie, provided there was no
Fnglish miiiuutoviix-m-sight. Considering that the tre.'ily sliore is SOi)
miles long, and that there are only three I'rilish men-of-w;ii tin re, iiisnoi
very often they would be found together, au'.! ilu' brencl: g( r, -lally crui:>e
alone, 'i'herefore the Frendi had a riglii to exercise; jurisdietioii, lo pull uji
and remove the nets and fi.-hing g^ar of llriiish settlers on the plea thnl 1
they were interfering with I'rench lishernien. TheyeouUi also, if damag<'
|l was done, either at sea or on shore, hold a cinnt and asstss the damngc,
\atKl tlie report of th.it court was to be received as (!vi(K:ne(> in a British
Ucourt of justice, 'lliurwa.'; deiuivintj tt Ufiti<iJi_;iubjecj^fjiliiilJsJj^ lH5'-^i-.
'sacrcd^right he owns in t;^L;.i:y|rrrt~.)T lh,t-~;irtir"lvTreiT T^ Ktandn on
•BritLsh territory, tliatis^ta-R^4i«--«--+H4efr ^^Tr^t^f-tlm4l"^ <ji I'l!^

own peoi)le. It is a right every Frenchman has, We cannot try ;i
FreTicliiTtan in h'rance ; why should a I'roichman be allowed to try an
Englishman in Nevvfoundl.uul ? } think this was a most a!)ject and
monstroii.s surrender on the j)art of Great Ihit.iin. Is it lik< ly that New-
foundland lljhermen would get even-handed justice; from I'lench nav;d
oHiccrs .''

iiir, n:i:\(ii in M;wiorNi-)r,ANl).

17

]?y .'in'(l,lii'r rl.nisc (Ih- l-'it'iich wcpl' to ho iillowid lo luivc Iwo
faiiiilit's \)cr hatlnmr — '\vi l.iiei.' liarl)()iirs iwc, ami in stivill harbours oiio.
'I'liis iniisl hr ioiikod upon rai.lior u< llu.- thin t-iul oi llic wvulge of
coliinisatioii, and in tli,- 'Truatv of Ulroclit it was very carcfuliv
provided atj^ainsl. The wnvi] "family" is rallier an iiulefiiiite term.
'' l'*nniily " ma',- mean a man and his vife and cliikh-en, or all liis relaliojis.
To jnd!.fe troin our [ufvions kiiowledife eif th(; Freueh who are very
clever in Ihi-se matter.., and are very ready, if yoii give them an inch, to
take an ell lliey would U'l donbt have put tlu; more iilx.-ral interpretation
on tlie word "family." F l)i-lit!ve at tlu; jtresenr moment tln^ po]>u]alion
of France is nearlv slali'inar\, hut the climate of Xorth .America has,
api)arcnTly, a peculiar ■H'ect. on the French ])eople who live in thai part
of the woriil, as it rendeis ihctn e.xtrem"ly ))roliric -a baker's dozen is a
common number in a I'rinrh family in <,hu'bec. 1 do not know that
there is any rea.son to suppose but what the climafi! of Newfoundland
would have a similar effei:l. Vou i-aii jud:;e for yourselves the number of
people there would have been in thosi- harbours in the course of tweniy
years, not to say thirty or forty, if they had been allowed to h.ive one or
two famine's there. 'I'lu;sc f<imilies niii.^t have had permani'nt habitations,
and when they v.ere i>ot lishini^ in the winter, they would be lompeting
with our setth rs in cafihin.;; furs (which ari; very valuable. esi>ecially that
of the fo.x), sho'iiin^f dee-r, ,ind soon, althouijh l-.y the treaty the l''rcnch had
not the ri;;hl lo shoot even a musk-rat. In the course of forty vears that
part of the coast would have been to all intents and purposes a French
coloiiy.

Now, I liope I have made clear how hieless were the right.s con-

ceded to (ircat r.nlain am

_ ! how e.Kceedim;ly advanta,i;eous were those

given to I'rance, and, moreover, how very important pri\ ilei^es, e.\clusively
o\\

.•ned by the ( Hlony, were handed over in pari or uholly to tin- French,
without our nceis ing in exchange anything a.pptoacliing to an equivalent.
The Colony was, in fai I, entirely given pw.ay.

Well, this precious document was signed and agreed to In- both
(lovernmenfs. Tin- l"~rench wen- very cork-a-hoop, and were prepared
lo do all sorts of things on the treaty shore, lo gi\-e ccineessions
to catch salmon tip the rivers, and so on. The Ihitish Ciovernmeiil
thought thai al la.'t they liavl got their wicked way, brcau-i,' they hail
managed 'dmeiiow or oilier to get over to their views the gentleman wh-
at thai timr was I'remier oC Xewloundland. He wasa lawyer, and had no
personal intere>t in the lisliciies. Fie j)!ay(.'il iiito the hands of the iJritish
and I'Vench ( ioverninents. lie happened to have been made a knighl
two or threr vears before, and i)ossibl\- if the thing came off he might
h;ive been promi>ed a baronetcy, without paying the fd\y thousand j^ounds
which wi- were lold the otlur day was the luii e of that h(Mioiir. Nowt^ver,
he was urged to call the lej'.islature of Xewfoumlland tog.'theras soon as
|)o.ssiblo to ratify the treaty, as all it re(|tiired was ralifieatioit by the
Colony. However, there is man}- a slip. The Ihitish (iovennnenl were
not yet out of the wootl. l''ortituately, biiloie the legislalttre of New-
foundland ci.uld tin;el there was a general election, ami the people in

Iluo-t)0ok

If iss:..

I ^

I

18

THK rUliNXir IN' NKWFOUNnLAND.

iluo-tniid;
iraiigiMU'

If issr..

power wiMTlluowtj out oil this very arranp^oinfiiit, and tlic p.uly wlio came
in ilecliiuul lo ratify it. Tlui Fori.-ijrn Ollicc was vcryaii,uiy, aiul triod to
bully and compel the new ( Jov^Tunirnl to af;rei', to tlu; arraii.^'c mint on the
pica llial ilu\v were bound by the promise of their pridecessois.
But the CJoverninent of the Colony declared thiT were bound by nothinjf
of the kind, and they flatly refused to ratify it. Tln' I'ord-Pennell
arran;;emenl. of 1885 was lln.Tofore dead, but the colony had an exceed-
ingly narrow escape.
rr The promise of 1S5V was respected, although Lord John Russell, in

'»• a despatch dated 1800, pro])osed to ignore it, and make an agreement
in defiance of the wis!it!s of the Colony. Lord Derby discribed this
arrangement as "most advaniageous to the Colony." Colonel Stanley
followed suit. Lord Salisbury said he "entirely concurred" with it, and h«
wrote a der,i)atch in whicli ]u'. highly complimented Mr. lord and Mr.
Pennell on their labours, and for their services on that occasion Mr.
Ford becani'.' Sir Clare Ford and was not long afterwards promoted ; and
i\Ir. Penneli was made a C.l>. I think this shows preily clearly that
failure ami difeaiin the diploniatic service arc not a bar to promotion and
lionours on the contrary, it is likely to lead to them. We once shot
an admiral fur errors of judgment, to encouri.ge the other; — as Voltaire
said. I do not mean to suggest that a diplomatist who al)>oluicly fails in
the mission he is .sent to jierform, and who gives away his( ouinry, should
be hung or shot, but surely he sliould not be a gainer thereby .

Now, in IS.^i) 1 happiMied to go out to Newfoundland, and on my
arrival I spoke to some of the leading people, and said I \\as very glad
to sec they had got rid of this iniquitous arrangement. I fiirihcr said,
" Yon must not rest on your oars. It is a very important mallei that the
public at liome .should know all about it and how unfair it wa.s to the
Colony. St>iiie of you should write to the 7'//ft,s or to a magazine and
expose the whole thing. If you do not" (it was not dcme , " vou may
depend U})on it that if any diflicuity croi)s up in future alioui the treaty
.shore (pu-stion, the Hritish Cifivernment will turn round on you and .sav,
'this is all your fault, because you did not agree to that excellent
arrangement of I8<sr>."' It is a rather risky thing to proplir-y in these
days, whatever it might havi- been ;<,000 years ago; but on tlii- occasion
my prophecy became absolutely true.

In two or three years the lobster cpiestion came up, ;nid Lord
Knutsford, in response to some memorial from the < loverjunent oi
the Colony dealing with mines on the treaty shore, anion;; other
matters, threw it in their teeth that they had not agrct'd lo this
arrangement. Lord Salisbury, about the same time ^pc.d;ii:g in tlie
House of Lords, was reported to have said, in alluding to the arrange-
ment : — " It became my province to sign an arrangi-incnt initiated
by my noble friend opposite. Lord (jranville, in my opinion a most
equitable and v.-orkable arrangenuMit, which I'u: people of Xi'wfound-
land, apparently at a heated time of election, threw out and iheieby lost
a golden oi>jiorlunity." .\ golden opportuniiy indeed ! Where is the
golden opportunity.^ Xowlieie, but for the iMonch, who were very

«r

*

THK KRl'.NCH JN Ni:\VKOt;Xm.\N'l).

10

I

Olli.

\sm.

IIU-IIIO.

anxious to avaii ihiinsclvcs of il, l)nl wrre forliin.itcly not permiltdi to do
so. Aftorwanls I liapponcd to sif Mr. l''jii!i''ll, ami I i.ske.d liiin ; - " Did
you jxople at lint Colonial Ofl'irf- pul up Lord S;)li^l)ury to say wlial Ik;
did the oOior day in tlio House of Lords?" " OIi dear, no," s;iid INIr.
IVnnoll, "those arc >L-. Waddington's views — Mr. Waddington, the iMcnch
Ainha.'-.sador " ! I ihiid; no furlliL-r coninu-nl is nt'rdod.

I will just say a wt)rd as to tiic iiilriij.ncmont by France of tlu> treaty Ioh-'kh

.stil)lllations. 'L'lj.' |''rcn.-h lu-]rnii in ISTi tn full up iUn i;aliiii.i|jj_^-<.i-;

, jiQiiu! Lcd on the f.aliradur coast. vvinti..'tcd in <crlain )i1iucs..crecto(| build ■
in^^s of a more substantial character tli.-m ;dl(n\<'d bytlu- fn-.-iiif-s, I'yj^nrtp.l
hmdter to St. I'icrrc and \'^''P";l':^>'i b.irr.-tl-ikQ rWtT^ ujili fish'",':" ^yfirs,
l)uilt vessels_ins(.oad of mcrf ly i-'p''irin:: thrill. t"^'V '!"• I'^f '"tf 'l'--i« """
hands, and IctVtlicir boats and oihcr^iy,\r "" the mnsK, ^yhich they had
no rikdiLlQ-do hv treat>:x-

Thcse infringements of the treaty are chiefly to be found in a report by
Mr. J'crley, who was a Nov^-Scotian, employed by the I'oreign Ollice. He
was sent out to Newfoundland in 18.')7lo enquire into the alleged grievances
of the French, who coinjilaincd that our settlers had interrupled ihcnj in
their fishery rights. I\[r. I'erley used to tell the following story. He was
over here before sailing for Newfoundland, and went to the l'"oreign (.)liice
one day, when one of the Permanent Secretaries said to him :• " When
you are about it, Mr. I'erley, you might as wtdl make a report on the
fishing difficulty which has turned up at Vancouver." Mr. Perley said :-- -
"Certainly I can do that after I have finished with Newfoundland, but
it will take mo some time to get there" (he would have to have gone
round by Cape Horn in those days). "Why," .said the gentleman at the
Fon-ign (Jflicc, "the two places are close together, arc they not.'" 1
hope the geographical knowledge of the Foreign Olliee has improved
since that date. With regard to the Islands of St. Pierre and .Micpielon,
the French have a right to fortify them, because the proviso made iu the
treaty of l('n'>) which jirovented them iloing so was not repeateti iji the
ne.\t trtsity ; but they can only fortify them to the ext(!iit that they must
not become an ol\je( t of jealousy. That is rather indolinile, but that is
the opinion of the ]a\v <jflicers of tin- Crown.

With respect to .Mr. Perley's rejiorl, the law officers remarked: — i.iw nilkris
"We do not discover in these paj)ers that any just cause of con!i>iaiiu m l.urd
against the IJritish fishernnui or settlers exists. The onh- grievances M.-ilnu'sinirv,
seem to be those sustained by them."

As regards St. Pierre not being an object of jealousy, it is certainly
so, as it is a nest of smugglers. We are not even allowed to have an
agent there; while at St. John's there is a l"rench agent, a M. des Isles,
who performs all tlu duties of a consul, is, in fad, a spy, who is at the
bottom of a good dial of the friction between the two nations.

Our <;overnn)ent up to that time did not appear to have taken much
notice of these illegal actions by the French. On this lu^ad the law offi-
cersofthe Crown made some very jjerlinent remarks, referring to the (Irey
Islands and Tkdle Isle North, where the I'rench had attempted to exercise
exclusive rights. The law officers say these islands, being in the

lliid.

l.s,-,{).

j;nv otYuoi
S.V.).

T OlVai- I
1S7K.

'.'0

THK TKICNl 11 IN NKWIOl'Nln.AM).

Atlantic, anil not in llic (Julf oi St. I.iwrcnci-, \vl

l(.T(r IS!

and

s on till' ( oast

I. mil

arr alone lui-ntiom.-d in the tu-atics, the I'Voncli have no right lh<ii'; and
l!uy };(» on tosaytliis. "This a|i|i(virsto us to Ix- only one of th.' nnnn nms
ilim'slMiiy, in-tanii's in uhich llio i'rfmh Iiy cncroachnicnl, and j)roriliui; liy ihc
pincncss or tacit a^ .luiosconcr of (Iroat Britain, arc .sti;adily proiccdin^'.
1. 'i\) convcr* 'jascinrnt-^ or ris;hts of u^cs in property.
'J. To extend conciirri'iil ri;;lits into (.•vcliisivo rights, and
;{. To interrupt and destroy Jlritish cxxlusive rights in a wanton

Ml

maiuier.

They fiirtlicr say : -" We venture to point out that ll

lie rncroacn-

nieiits and violations of sti|iuIalioiis appear to hi; entirely iM.-nrh ; we.
would therefore suL,',L;;est the importance, first, of vigorously asscrtini; all
British existing rights, and bein,!r prepared to maintain tliinii for the fiitiiri',
in case of need, a/^ainst their entire tlestruetion ur total interruption by
France. We do not observe that this has ever been done on the coast of
Xewfounilland." The satno thing might have been said yesterday, or at
all events up to the time of the present riovcrnnu-ut coming intf) .power,
up to which (late, at any rate, the e.vcellent advice has. been more or less
ignored.

Now as to I'ie general grievances of the people of tlie islands
residing on or frecjUeiiting the treaty shore. 'I'luy have been ilriven out of
harbour by Krench men-of-war wlien not fisliing at all, or when fishing
where no Krenchmen were near, in which case there could be no inter-
ruption, i'hey have had their nets and fishing gear destroyi'd by French
naval ollicers even when not molesting French tisherinen. In any case,
the French have no right to take the law into their own hands.

\ery

)'i>ii'ijjii

( HVici" rncino

IS7:<.

gross case is referred to in the Foreign Office nieniorandumof 187;?, when
]|ie ct)mmander of the French war-ship " Dianiant " destroyeu the- nets of
lui^lish fishermen without warnjug^-in -*, b.iy where no Frenchmen had
\J"ie(|uented for thirty years, and wlien; none were i)resenl. This was con-
sidercd a direcj_assertioji_fiMhe^French claim of exclusive i ight to llsh.
^ur '^'•'■VjTPmrnl pr'^Mrstvd,.aiid the only answer I.(jr71 ( iranville received
was thiitjlheseacts of the French naval ollicers were tiefeiided.

No NewfouiuUaiidor has ever, as far as 1 can ascertain, n-erived any
comjiensation for such illegal destruction of his jin^per'y. 'i'o a poor
fisherman the destruction of hi> nets is not a mere "pin-prick," but a
stab in his vitals. Of late years it is not the J'li-nch fishermen against
whom there are complaints, but the French naval officers. C'ommander
Knowles stated in his report about 1S73 that tin- French and J'lnglish
fishermen got on well enough, but when a Frencli man-oCrwar appeared
it interfered with our people.

For many years the treaty shore was a sort of no man's land, and
the residents were not rei)rcse!ited in their Ilousi; of Assembly.

'I'he Hritish Government refused to allow Newfoundlanders to have
grants of land on that part of the coast, and also refused to allow the
(joveniment to appoint magistrates there. ]n 1H73 the Colony made a
very strong appeal to allow the appointment of magistrates on the treaty
shore. 'I'here were then a good many people .settled there — some 0,000.

I

•f

^

TMK krt;ncii in Mwi-oi'Nitrwn.

21

h-'s.

CI

\.

I.onl rininvillo, ulio u.is llnii in oilier, asked llic Imcik h il'lhcy objccliHi.
Tlicy (ii(i not :ins\vt>r for six niontlis. and then they said thoy would not
c'l^'ire lo it. ,-l''ox_u^i wIhi (i\vti ilu- ( nliu- sovereignity ot" the inland, to ask
a foreign' I'nwiT for liliTTty lO eany fni jiiristlielion in (UiTTjwm territory,
and appoint mag-L^ralxi.s tkerLvuiiljjJlQLiLMlv (|iiil<' nnneeessarv. l)iit a Vijiv
ignominious proceeding,'. J.ord (jranville alterwaids actually ask''d tiie
Fri'iudi if they" had imj^ohjeclioii l<i onx-liaviiiy lit'-l44liou-.es,jiii tiir t,"''i<y
shore. - 'I'I.e Krench on this occasion tvere j^;i^(il to s.ny ilw^ |i.-ifl ao
objection, j^-i^ist rates were not appointed until IHS 1 .

RkSPEC TINC. liAir AND HoUNriKS.

lVrha|)s now I had Ix'lter heijin hy telliii!;!; you wliat bait is. 'i'iio
l)ail early in January is herrings; then come capelin, a vt^ry small fish
about as big as a smell, which comes in countless millions to the shore.
Then later on come sijuids, which is a small cuttlotish. J-'.arly in the
cij;lities the French incri'ased their bounties considerably, l-'ormerly the
Frcncli only gave bounties to vessels fitted out in I'rance. I/iter on they
gave f)oiinties to vessels fitted oul in St. Pierre; this had the effect of
increasing their c.'itch, .so they invaded neutral markets. Formerly most of
their |]sh was consiuued in France. The bounty was sometimes 60 to
70 per cent, of the value of the fish. They also b(!canie rather a^gressivt;.
antl the Xewfounill.inders in retaliation determined that tliey would not
allow the l-'rench U) buy bait on the non-treatv shorty so they brouglit in
and passer] ^ Haj'. An , Ullt the Drilish Ciovernment tlecliiieti toaL're>- to i_L
They brou;j:ht it in a^i^Min th.e folj owing year, in IHST, Init the Hrilish
(jovernmeiit a;;;!!]! refns('d asseiiiralthoiiurh tlu < ioveriior. Sir W. Q.s
Vcoux, backed up the Colony in a vi-ry powerful des|Kitch. Loid
Knutsford gave as the reason that ih-- IVench objected to it ! \'ery likely,
as it was biought in especially to hanij); r them. In the same year, 1HK7, all
the Colonial i'renn'ers came over Ikmc, and all the other C'oluni;d Pn-micis
snpj)ortcd the Newfoundlanders about this ikn't Act. 'I'he (iovernmrnt
gave way, and the Koyal assent was at length given lo the Act, v\hich a
few months before was refused. 'J'his JSait Act was brought inl<» force the
ne.\l year.

Now the herring ar(> found in th(\se twi' '>ays. viz., T'oitiine and
Placentia, which are only about JO miles from tne ' inks, in January, three
or four weeks earlier tlian on the tpaty shore at St. ( leorg'j's, which is
round Cape Kay, which is some '-'(10 miles from the banks, wliere any one
can fish. If in these first three or lour weeks the iMeiich cannot get bait
in Fortune and I'laceiilia Jiays, then they cannot ;;ei fresh herring at ail.
It is certainly true that the I'rench have cat;ghl a species of shell ti.,h on
tlie bank wliich serve as bait. It i^ not so good as lln' other bail, and
the supply is not unlimited, and mouover it has to be caught in tia]>s,
which iakes time and trouble, '"onmrly the French on the banks got all
llic bail they wrnied Irorn ilie Vcvifoundland fish, i men. l>ut wln-n that
supply was cut nfl" they had to go round Cape Ray to the treaty shore
lo catch bait, nearly two hundred miles away, sometimes more; this
entailed much, loss of time. A great object is to have the bait fresh, an<l
if the I'Vcnchman lias to go so far ke cannot get it fresli.

l'..r
Oti'i

IS-;

■■.■•fftjumk,

A

'>')

ii!i': ii;km II ix VKWioixhi wn.

.\llli('i!<rli thi, l;;iii ^\( 1 .v,is vi.'i\ i)iiiliv c.irrii'ii am, it div!. ;ui-.i!-iliii^

to

■ml

1 I'(JL11II\S,

uioi

(1".\I1

li'-ir ciitt-h ti) n

i;iriv

hail.

ill the /■/','/(■.? i( is stated tin- i'n.'iicli catch (ni ihc l)uuk> last
Irl! <ilT 2K [ifi 1 1 111. since tlie Hail ,\ei was in I'mi e.
IHeicn'd tlial they can ch") without oiir bait, Imt ihal is .-il
and is contravHcted hv their dUicia! reports. 'I'

,'( ar

'li licli

I ildliselisi'

peop

IIVIM'.

in

OltlMK!

and r

ail

nlia in tliis Imv inadc a trood ilea! of nioiu'v out ui'

ait lliev una:rine that all the. rest

.1' N

e\\'!(

iindl

iinl ami

■,!

ihrador

iinisl i;ivi; way to tliein, and ihev t'\ ailed the A( I in ''Veiy way ihey could,
ir this I'.ail .\cl is verv carcfnlh- canictl out, whii h I do not think it can

he witjuiul the assi.>lanco of I!ni;land, it will bi

a verv [^i

)iid t

1 1 n '.

they hail a do/en or fifteiMi steam lannclies uianned bv time-expired 1)1

•ket

s, witli a smal

but

field-i

Ue-
)icce on board — von uoiild not want to hurt

th

.f the' first

anyone, Init only to put a sliot ihroii^n me main.sa
that would not lay to -it \n,>uld create such a scare that bait bloi kad.e
nmniii;; would i-ioon cease. ( 'J'here is no tloiibl but that the prevention of
the I'Vench <.;iltini; bait froTii the non-treaty shore wouM (lam.i;;e tlu'ir
bank fishery (;ni>nnonsly, and y^n fir to ruin it alloLreiher. j Th'' IV'/nch
bank fishery is a very valuable commercial fishery, .md -a very valuable
nur cry fonluir seamen. .\s 1 have already expiained, il is open to the
world. Theo' arc plenty of Americans and Canadians thcii". It i-.-,
vahi.ible for seamen lor the j-'reinh Xavy. but not so valuable as it was
Mhentho inovcmetils of ships depended on sails and sailors instead of as
now on .steam and stokers. Commercially it is very valiiabU , and there
are, according: to a Xewfoundkind authority. ]'2,(i(i() men emplov^d
on lliese banks and some oCit \e>^( is. ( )n thetnaty siioro the fishery i--
worth very little indeed. 'i'ln're ate oidy now some 7 l'"rencli lishimy
sl.'i'Jons. eini)io\"inir some '_'')(• men, where foiineiiy there were moiethan
70. and the \( rv fad tliat they ha\e liwmdled ilown Iroin 70 to 7 shows
llvil the lislierv c.in no Ion^;er be a valuable one. .\ I'Veiuh .Vdmiial
)>as slated most jtositively that the shore fisheries are a > i,'ood to liie Na\y
!)ecaiise the men employed there are broken-down old fellows.

About the ye.ir IS'.il.a Fri;nih naval ollicer landed at St. (icor;;.-'s
J>av am! p'-evenled our li-^hermeii t'rom seiiin,!^' bait to the .\nieiiians- a
most oiitratfeoiis action, which the l''rench (iovernment < vi iitu.tHv
disowned and apoloL;ised for. ,'-^ubse(|nently, re;.;nlations were maile
resjiectiiiL; the scale of bait at St. ( ieor;;e's; certainlv with the concurrence
if not at till! in>ti^-.ition of the home authorities, by which I'lc I'reiich
were f^iven a pre-emption in buying bi'fore others. .Moniover, the piice
was fixed. This may have beeii convenient, i)iu u was not leLjal, there
w.is nothing of ''the open door" about il, for while the door was held
open I'oi iho l"'renili, il was slammed in the (mv of ihe \'ankee ;ind tie'
Caiiadi.aii. There is anothrr poiii' touching l>.iit. If whit we gave
to Franci! at the I're.alv o| 1,'ireehi w.i^ leave ti) prosecnle a cod li.^hiry
only, which can be m.iinlained, ikIi, naturally, would carry ])ermissioii
to lake the bait uhereuilh to eateh the cod, but this would not p. ■riiiit
b,-il to be expori'd for u--e outsiile tre.ily limits. I'he ]''ii'neh .,re
j)crmitt"d to cut wood to build si, eves on the treaty shore, but not to

i

h

I

iniii

Ill; l'KI\(..ll !N Ni:\Vl-olNhI..\M>.

2'.\

•XV-

fH

(■\|)oil siu'li liml'rr lo St. I'iiriT or ]Mi([iirliiii lo build

(iiTiiii;, lU'ilp.iT >li'iiikl ilir
r.itch llu: f'h

\)V

[r llii'l'ij Id!'

|>i.'riiiilt(.'ii 111 i'\|)()rl b.iit lo l!ir l-.m'us u>

lliai ;ire ilricd on (In

il)ovi'-!;n li'.ioin'tl islands.

lliiiij^s arc on all Imirs.
Jf NcwfonuiUand 1

1,'Ul

loi

ncd the Domininii of Canai

Iv,

as sac

liould

linvi; (lone, slie \\(ju!d

nave

had

a strou^^>r
I.

hani

nis

th

Iwilisli were i|uiir aware, lni Lord drauvilK-, in a di'spaich relcrrniLi^ to
an a}>;ri.HMiu'iil which in ISC'.) ihcrc was an alliMiijil lo niaki' willi I'lamc,
said that Uu- sclllcinrnt of llir (jiirstion was prissin.i;, "as iIn
ini;: union of Nrufoinulhuul lo ('anada nii!',hl ri-nder ihc <|Ui'siion Us-
tractabit' In- increasing the nmnlier and ini|)orlani;e of ihose inUresicd ir

"' have Uvaied Xewl'ianhllanii

i]»proacli-

Oil;

I Mil

''■!-'."
ci- nu'iiu

l'"or liiev dare not ireal Canada a<

'I'licse ladies and ,L,''entlenien, :is i'.ir <ts I have been able to explain in
tlic lime' al my disji )sal. are the main |)oints in this lisher\ (jneslion of
Xcwroundland. and I think they show very i-learly howernel lias been the
treatment of our oldest lolony by the molie-i eoumry ; how vw lia.vc
yielded to tlu; i-.s.iL^Li^eraled preient' nis of l-'ranee ; iiow the li^dits of
NewfoiMulland have been .s.icrifieed in a wanton manner; and iiow an

unreasonabli

lear -imreasoi

lable bei:aiise basi'lL-ss — lA' orCendinsr the

snseei>tibilitie.s of the l''reneli has so iVeqiienlly dominaleil |)owning
Struct.

I have only one more word lo say. 'J'liere has bi'cn a i\oy.'d Com-
mission. We have no reason lo have mueh faitli in tluMn. as thev are

often merely appointed b

:el ri(

1 of.

or postpone, an awkwarti siibjeel

Somcliines they are packed, a! other limes they are burked, bui. j hope
this one m.iy be an exception to the ride. The oidy thiiiL; now is, what

is to be don

■lit stale of thinLjs in Newl<iundland

l.^

nomalotis and intolciable. What are we "o'iil: to do '-

to ahroirate the treatv .- I tliiid; not.

Kiis>,i,i mtu'lil have lioiie sr)

re we iroiiu

.\r.

We going to send Ino more i^cnilemen from the foreign (Jliiee to iiy and

make an arra.ie^enient wnh I'rench naval o.le or

Cerlaiuh' not ; we

liave had ipiite c iionL;h of that. .\re «»• ,^oin,•; to arltilration .^ 1 liojx
not, for we are sine lo be done

aliogetlier. We inav have lo pa\'
tl

-omo

.\re vf to buy tliem on',
thin;' I rememl

Not
rememi)er ;!l the time of

lid lo hiive dritnk ours

)nl of th

ic "Alabam;'." award, we were .saui lo n;ive urmiK ourseivi ; oiii oi me
" .\labama" dilfieiilly. I do not know what the driid; bill will i'e this year.
It mav be a lon'j "m.'. and we may b," able to diink oursilves out of the
Newfoundland diHienlly. What more is iij l.ii' done .-' Well, ust; (lie weapoti
which is in our hands, and use iteflectually -that is, the liait Act. Carry tlie
Mail Act out to its utmost limit, and you will more or less ruin the i'reneh
bank lisht-ry, which, as I have already said, is very vahiabK!, wlK.'ieas the
shore fishin.!; is worth very little indei-d.

As the |icop!e of all elas-es .iiul [lolilieal o|iinions have come (o t!ie
conclusion thai they an- tir.-d of being put ujion by I'lance in various
parts of the earth, ami, what is more, are not y^oing to stand it any
longer, we may ho))e lliat this matter will before long be I)roughl to a
satisfaelor\- eoneiusion — a eonchision thai will satisfy not only l''rai;c(.',
but Xcwfouiidlaiel.

•:\

\ I

IK MM Nl 'I 1

N M,N^ l'l'>M»l \N''

h i, WW Inrliui lU

lliiU

h.ivc ui.nv ill

llli: ( "I'li

ji'il <^l 1''''

M

,,,,,, r.r.iiivillc ov l.ora Kuul^lo

111!', a !r^:!i "'

oic'ivi.r,

Mr. Chaiiilurlain app-.-ai.

a" .IcUT'.uni:

aiiil coil

Iv UlUU'!

i]iu'Sti<>;i,
otiiciai -•

;,,,^1 i, not ilu .cloiv rh.' nu
V,,rw.-liavrlia>lquitrMOU

, lo Kiorou;

'h ot' < 'i()Vi.'nirati;l li;-

lc!>lani

irrr of liis i.( iinain

1 1 1 ■•
111

CkTl-

lo CN)

lU ui anv '-I

11 l1 l^

illUioii ol 111'- (lUC

lion i1h-. very

tl.

ihal Ihr 1"'"1

,lr ol' Ncwloairii and slia.

ihi'ir daily Hvoi

;ilioiri wi'liuiit wn ,i.

11, 'oa! inb.Ticr

■ncc. aiii

,; we nave uii
,,• .'.hi.' lo car.
1 ilial {\'x\ ^•l^

loni-n'i'. Ill

;i inainu I ii<

,1, oblij.;alory

1)V Ifcalv.

W lull lit -.i and L

(H'H 1

CI

[\\LV I'V, Ul 111

the intcrc-t- '>'- !i

fotcisii l'<J«'cr.

■«■