In the course of these negotiations Her Majesty's Government received the assistance of Sir F. Carter, Premier of Newfoundland, who was in England at the time.
The arrangement which was originally contemplated on this occasion was founded on Resolutions, dated the 23rd April, 1874, adopted by the Newfoundland House of Assembly, and concurred in by the Legislative Council, and it embraced the following stipulations :—
1. The establishment of a Joint Naval Commission to take cognizance only of such matters as related to the fisheries ; and in case of disagreement, reference to be made to the respective Governments ; all other questions to be dealt with by competent authorities.
2. That the existing British settlements in St. George's Bay, Cod Roy, and Bay of Islands, Bonne Bay, and White Bay should remain undisturbed, and no interruption to be made by the French to fishing by the British in those bays, nor interference with their buildings and inclosures there, nor with any erections or buildings on any part of the coast where the French enjoy a temporary right of fishery which did not actually interfere with the fishery privileges of the French, as should be determined by the Commissioners ; nor were British subjects to be molested in fishing on any part where they did not actually interrupt the French by their competition.
3. That no building or inclosure which had been erected for five years should be removed as interfering with the French fishery privileges without compensation to be determined on by the Commissioners ; but no compensation to be payable for any such building or inclosure hereafter erected without the consent of the Commissioners.
4. That the Commissioners should determine the limit or boundary-line to which the French might prosecute their fishery, the British having the exclusive right of salmon and all other fishing in rivers.
5. That the breadth of strand of which the French should have the right of temporary use for fishery purposes should be defined ; thus removing objections to grants of land for all purposes beyond the boundary so to be defined, and within the same for mining purposes ; right being reserved to the British Government to erect on such strand works of a military or other public character, and to the British subjects for wharves and buildings necessary for mining, trading, and other purposes apart from the fishery in places selected with permission of Commissioners.
It was further recommended that the Colonial Legislature should state to Her Majesty's Government that they were not prepared to agree to any concessions to the Government of France which would convey to the French rights of fishery which they did not at present possess under existing Treaties ; but that they would recommend the Legislature to consent that the valuable and important right to purchase bait, both herring and capelin, on the southern coast, should be conceded to the French at such times as British subjects might lawfully take the same upon terms which were to be agreed upon.
During the course of the negotiations which took place certain modifications of the above terms were introduced, which it is unnecessary to dwell

upon here, inasmuch as the negotiations came to no result ; but the above extracts have been quoted in order to show the nature of the arrangement which at that time was considered by the Government of Newfoundland as offering a satisfactory settlement of the Fisheries question ; and it is obvious that had an arrangement been entered into at that period on the above-quoted basis, it would have been far less advantageous to the interests of the Colony than the one which has now been signed by the British and French Commissioners in Paris.
A period of five years now elapsed before fresh negotiations, by means of a Joint Commission, took place. In the year 1881 a Commission was appointed, Admiral Miller being again the British Commissioner, and Admiral Pierre being named on the part of France.
During the negotiations Sir William Whiteway was in London, and was constantly consulted by Her Majesty's Government as the negotiations proceeded.
Draft Articles were drawn up by the British Commissioner, with the concurrence of Sir William Whiteway, which it was hoped would offer to the French Government a satisfactory basis for discussion, and lead to an agreement being arrived at between the Commissioners of the two respective countries for a settlement of the question.
The basis of this Arrangement consisted in the appointment of a Commission, to be called a Commission of Demarcation, whose duty it would be to define and allot certain parts of the strand on which the French might exercise the rights conceded to them by Treaty, and the remainder of the coast to be released from Treaty stipulations ; and it was contemplated to allot not more than one-half of any one harbour for the purpose of French use, and the amount of the strand inland was not to extend to a greater distance than one-third of a mile from high-water mark.
Moreover, in the allotments for French use there was to be reserved in each case to the British Government a sufficient space for the erection of wharves, &c., and other public works or buildings, which, however, were not to be erected without previous consent on the part of the French Government.
It was further contemplated that all establishments or settlements existing at the time, British or French, were, under certain provisos, to remain undisturbed.
In addition to the appointment of a Commission of Demarcation, a Mixed Commission was to be appointed, which was to be named the Fishery Commission, and was to act in conformity with Joint Instructions based on the Articles of the Agreement.
The duty of the Fishery Commission was to see that neither British nor French fishermen were interrupted in their fishing operations.
The Fishery Commission was to have power to punish any person contravening its orders or decisions, either by means of fines or seizure of property.
The French were to be allowed to leave their boats, &c., during the winter months, and to erect dwelling-houses for their guardians, who might be either French or British.

The French were to be allowed to purchase bait, both herring and capelin, on shore or at sea, on the southern coast of Newfoundland, at such times as British subjects might lawfully take the same, free from all duty or restriction not equally imposed on British subjects.
The French Commissioner, on being made acquainted with the substance of the draft Articles, reported at a meeting of the Commission that the French Government were unable to accept the arrangement embodied in them, stating that the principle of British and French occupying the same harbours and fishing-grounds could never be entertained.
It is not necessary to enter further on these negotiations, as they did not result in any agreement being come to.
On comparing the provisions of the various proposals enumerated above with those embodied in the present Arrangement, the advantages to the Colony offered by the latter will at once be seen.
The result under its provisions will be—
1. That fixed settlements of every description will be allowed on the very extended portions of the coast which are tinted in red on the Map, with the exception of fishing establishments which Her Majesty's Government have never contended to be permissible under the Treaties.
2. That the claim of the French to an exclusive right of fishery will be withdrawn, as the Arrangement recognizes the concurrent right of British fishermen to fish everywhere on the coast between Cape St. John and Cape Ray, under the condition of not interfering with or molesting French fishermen when in the exercise of their fishing industry.
3. That the claim of the French to the right of fishing in rivers, except at the mouths, as far as the water remains salt, is withdrawn, and the practice of barring the rivers is prohibited.
4. That all fixed settlements, fishery or otherwise, at present existing within the limits of that portion of the coast over which the French enjoy Treaty rights, will not be disturbed.
In previous negotiations the subject of fixed establishments received the earnest consideration of the British negotiators, and it was, on more than one occasion, contemplated to appoint Mixed Commissions to assess the amount of compensation which should be paid to the owners of property whose buildings were to be removed.
However desirable such a course might have been, great difficulty would probably have been experienced in carrying it into effect, and it might have given rise to many vexatious and complicated questions.
No such inconvenience can result under the very satisfactory provision of the present Arrangement dealing with this branch of the subject.
In return for the advantages to the Colony above enumerated, Her Majesty's Government would, under the present Arrangement, recognize little more than the de facto state of things existing as regards the acts of authority exercised every fishing season by the French cruizers in the waters over which the French Treaty rights extend, and the exercise of these acts on the part of French cruizers would only take place in cases of infraction of

In conclusion, I have to inform you that Her Majesty's Government have thought it desirable that the British Commissioners who attended the Commission in Paris should proceed to Newfoundland, in order to offer any explanations of the present Arrangement which your Government may desire to receive ; and Her Majesty's Government confidently trust that your Ministers will view the Arrangement in the same light as that in which it is regarded by Her Majesty's Government, namely, as being a most advantageous one to the interests of the Colony, and as affording a means of avoiding the recurrence of those irritating questions which have so constantly arisen in connection with 10 the Newfoundland Fisheries question, and, moreover, as greatly diminishing the risk of any conflicts between the fishermen of the two nations.
The British Commissioners will sail for Newfoundland on the 17th instant, and will present this despatch to you on their arrival.
Her Majesty's Government would be gratified if your Ministers should find it in their power to convene a special meeting of the Legislature as soon as may be possible, in order that the necessary Acts may be passed to give effect to those portions of the Arrangement which require legislative action, so that its provisions may be brought into operation at as early a date as possible.

[1927lab]