proclamation, so that the provisions of the above-mentioned treaty may be carried into effect, with regard to Newfoundland, at as early a date as possible. Should you think it expedient that a protocol should be signed, as was the case with regard to Canada and Prince Edward Island, I shall be happy to call at the Department of State whenever you shall be pleased to summon me. I have, &c., [Inclosure.] EDW'D THORNTON, ACT OF THE NEWFOUNDLAND COLONY. Anno tricesimo septimo Victoria Regina, Cap. II. AN ACT to carry into effect the provisions of the treaty of Washington, as far as they relate to this colony. [Passed March 28, 1874.] SECTION 1. Power to governor to declare articles of treaty in force. SEC. 2. Governor may make orders, &c. SEC. 3. Suspending clause and duration of act. Whereas a treaty between Great Britain and the United States of America was signed at Washington on the eighth day of May, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, and was duly ratified on the seventeenth day of June in that year, containing the following articles, viz: "It is further agreed, that the provisions and stipulations of articles eighteen to twenty-five of this treaty, inclusive, shall extend to the colony of Newfoundland, so far as they are applicable; but if the Imperial Parliament, the legislature of Newfoundland, or the Congress of the United States, shall not embrace the colony of Newfoundland in their laws enacted for carrying the foregoing articles into effect, then this article shall be of no effect; but the omission to make provision by law to give it effect by either of the legislative bodies aforesaid shall not in any way impair any other articles of this treaty." Be it therefore enacted by the governor, legislative council, and assembly, in legislative session convened, as follows: 1st. The governor may, at any time hereafter, by his proclamation to be published in the Royal Gazette of this colony, declare that, after a time to be therein named, the provisions and stipulations of the said articles eighteen to twenty-five of the said treaty, inclusive, as set forth in the schedule to this act, shall extend to this colony of Newfoundland so far as they are applicable; and after the time so named in such proclamation, the provisions and stipulations of the said articles shall come into full force, operation, and effect in this colony, so far as the same are applicable, and shall thenceforth so continue in full force, operation, and effect, during the period mentioned in article thirty-three of the said treaty, recited in the schedule to this act, any law of this colony to the contrary notwithstanding. 2d. The governor in council may, by any order or orders to be made for that purpose, do any act or thing, in accordance with the spirit and intention of the said treaty, which shall be found necessary to be done on the part of this colony to give full force, operation, and effect to the said treaty; and any such order shall have the same effect as if the same were expressly enacted in this act. 3d. This act shall not come into operation until Her Majesty's assent thereto shall have been given; and shall remain in force during the term of years mentioned in article number thirty-three in the schedule of this act. SCHEDULE. Articles of the treaty of Washington of the eighth of May, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, which are referred to in the foregoing act: ARTICLE 18. It is agreed by the high contracting parties that, in addition to the liberty secured to the United States fishermen by the convention between Great Britain and the United States, signed at London on the twentieth day of October, one thousand eight hundred and eighteen, of taking, curing, and dressing fish on certain coasts of the British North American colonies, therein defined, the inhabitants of the United States shall have, in common with the subjects of Her Britannic Majesty, the liberty, for the term of years mentioned in article thirty-three of this treaty, to take fish of every kind, except shell-fish, on the sea-coasts and shores, and in the bays, harbors, and creeks of the provinces of Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, and the colony of Prince Edward Island, and of the several islands thereunto adjacent, without being restricted to any distance from the shore, with permission to land upon the said coasts and shores and islands, and also upon the Magdalen Islands, for the purpose of drying their nets and curing their fish: Provided, That in so doing they do not interfere with the rights of private property, or with British fishermen in the peaceable use of any part of the said coasts in their occupancy for the same purpose. It is understood that the above-mentioned liberty applies solely to the sea-fishery, and that salmon and shad fisheries, and all other fisheries in rivers and the mouths of rivers, are hereby reserved exclusively for British fishermen. ARTICLE 19. It is agreed by the high contracting parties that British subjects shall have, in common with the citizens of the United States, the liberty, for the term of years mentioned in article thirty-three of this treaty, to take fish of every kind, except shell-fish, on the eastern sea-coasts and shores of the United States, north of the thirty-ninth parallel of north latitude, and on the shores of the several islands thereunto adjacent, and in the bays, harbors, and creeks of the said sea-coasts and shores of the United States and of the said islands, without being restricted to any distance from the shore, with permission to land upon the said coasts of the United States and of the islands aforesaid for the purpose of drying their nets and curing their fish: Provided, That in so doing they do not interfere with the rights of private property, or with the fishermen of the United States in the peaceable use of any part of the said coasts in their occupancy for the same purpose. It is understood that the above-mentioned liberty applies solely to the sea-fishery, and that salmon and shad fisheries, and all other fisheries in rivers and the mouths of rivers, are hereby reserved exclusively for fishermen of the United States. ARTICLE 20. It is agreed that the places designated by the commissioners appointed under the first article of the treaty between Great Britain and the United States, concluded at Washington on the fifth of June, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, upon the coast of Her Britannic Majesty's dominions and the United States, as places reserved from the common right of fishing under that treaty, shall be regarded as in like manner reserved from the common right of fishing under the preceding articles. In case any question should arise between the government of Her Britannic Majesty and of the United States as to the common right of fishing in places not thus designated as reserved, it is agreed that a commission shall be appointed to designate such places, and shall be constituted in the same manner, and have the same powers, duties, and authority, as the commission appointed under the said first article of the treaty of the fifth of June, oue thousand eight hundred and fifty-four. ARTICLE 21. It is agreed that, for the terms of years mentioned in article thirty-three of this treaty, fish-oil and fish of all kinds, (except fish of the inland lakes, and of the rivers falling into them, and except fish preserved in oil,) being the produce of the fisheries of the Dominion of Canada, or of Prince Edward Island, or of the United States, shall be admitted into each country, respectively, free of duty. ARTICLE 22. Inasmuch as it is asserted by the government of Her Britannic Majesty that the privileges accorded to the citizens of the United States, under article eighteen of this treaty, are of greater value than those accorded by articles nineteen and twentyone of this treaty to the subjects of Her Britannic Majesty, and this assertion is not admitted by the Government of the United States; it is further agreed that commissioners shall be appointed to determine, having regard to the privileges accorded by the United States to the subjects of Her Britannic Majesty, as stated in the articles nineteen and twenty-one of this treaty, the amount of any compensation which, in their opinion, ought to be paid by the Government of the United States to the government of Her Britannic Majesty in return for the privileges accorded to the citizens of the United States under article eighteen of this treaty, and that any sum of money which the said commissioners may so award shall be paid by the United States Government, in a gross sum, within twelve months after such award shall have been given. ARTICLE 23. The commissioners referred to in the preceding article shall be appointed in the following manner, that is to say: One commissioner shall be named by Her Britannic Majesty, one by the President of the United States, and a third by Her Britannic Majesty and the President of the United States conjointly; and in case a third commissioner shall not have been so named within a period of three months from the date when this article shall take effect, then the third commissioner shall be named by the representative at London of His Majesty the Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary. In case of death, absence, or incapacity of any commissioner, or in the event of any commissioner omitting or ceasing to act, the vacancy shall be filled in the manner hereinbefore provided for making the original appointment, the period of three months, in case of such substitution, being calculated from the date of the happening of the vacancy. The commissioners so named shall meet in the city of Halifax, in the province of Nova Scotia, at the earliest convenient period after they have been respectively named, and shall, before proceeding to any business, make and subscribe a solemn declaration that they will impartially and carefully examine and decide the matters referred to them to the best of their judgment, and according to justice and equity; and such declaration shall be entered on the record of their proceedings. Each of the high contracting parties shall also name one person to attend the commission as its agent, to represent it generally in all matters connected with the commission. ARTICLE 24. The proceedings shall be conducted in such order as the commissioners appointed under articles twenty-two and twenty-three of this treaty shall determine. They shall be bound to receive such oral or written testimony as either government shall present. If either party shall offer oral testimony, the other party shall have the right of cross-examination, under such rules as the commissioners shall prescribe. If in the case submitted to the commissioners either party shall have specified or alluded to any report or document in its own exclusive possession without annexing a copy, such party shall be bound-if the other party thinks proper to apply for it-to furnish that party with a copy thereof; and either party may call upon the other, through the commissioners, to produce the original or certified copies of any papers adduced as evidence, giving in each instance such reasonable notice as the commissioners may require. The case on either side shall be closed within a period of six months from the date of the organization of the commission, and the commissioners shall be requested to give their award as soon as possible thereafter. The aforesaid period of six months may be extended for three months, in case of a vacancy occurring among the commissioners, under the circumstances contemplated in article twenty-three of this treaty. ARTICLE 25. The commissioners shall keep an accurate record and correct minutes or notes of all their proceedings, with the dates thereof, and may appoint and employ a secretary and any other necessary officer or officers to assist them in the transaction of the business which may come before them. Each of the high contracting parties shall pay its own commissioner and agent or counsel; all other expenses shall be defrayed by the two governments in equal moieties. XXXIII. The foregoing articles, eighteen to twenty-five inclusive, and article thirty of this treaty, shall take effect as soon as the laws required to carry them into operation shall have been passed by the Imperial Parliament of Great Britain, by the parliament of Canada, and by the legislature of Prince Edward Island, on the one hand, and by the Congress of the United States on the other. Such assent having been given, the said articles shall remain in force for the period of ten years from the date at which they may come into operation; and further, until the expiration of two years after either of the high contracting parties shall have given notice to the other of its wish to terminate the same, each of the high contracting parties being at liberty to give such notice to the other at the end of the said period of ten years, or at any time afterward. No. 323. Mr. Fish to Sir Edward Thornton. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 14th instant, conveying the information that the act of the legislature of Newfoundland, passed by that body on the 28th of March, 1874, for the purpose of extending the provisions of articles XVIII to XXV, inclusive, of the treaty of Washington, to that colony, was specially confirmed by Her Majesty on the 12th instant, and inclosing a copy of the colonial act. Presuming that the special confirmation mentioned is meant as signifying the assent of Her Majesty contemplated by the provisions of this act, I have the honor to state that the act of Congress, in pursuance of which the President is authorized to issue his proclamation extending the provisions of the articles in question to the colony of Newfoundland, provides that such proclamation may issue when the President shall have received satisfactory evidence that the colony of Newfoundland has consented "in a due and proper manner" to have the provisions of the said articles extended to it. And the act of the colonial legislature contains the following provision, namely: "The governor may at any time hereafter, by his proclamation, to be published in the Royal Gazette of this colony, declare that after a time to be therein named the provisions and stipulations of the said article shall * extend to this colony of Newfoundland, so far as they are applicable." The issue and publication of the governor's proclamation would therefore seem necessary to complete the required action of the colony in a due and proper manner. I inclose herewith for your information a copy of a draft of the proclamation which the President is prepared to issue on the subject, and have the honor to suggest the first of June proximo as the day when the reciprocal privileges secured by the arti cles of the treaty referred to shall become operative. I will thank you, if convenient, in the mean time to furnish me with a copy of the proc lamation proposed to be issued by the governor of Newfoundland. Should any other date than that suggested be fixed by the latter, the President will no doubt adopt it, in order to have the provisions in question take effect simultaneously in regard to citizens of the United States and Her Majesty's subjects in Newfoundland. I have, &c., No. 324. HAMILTON FISH. Mr. Fish to Sir Edward Thornton. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, SIR: With reference to the draft of a proclamation submitted by you at our interview on Saturday last, and which it is proposed shall be is sued by his excellency the governor of Newfoundland, in relation to extending the provisions and stipulations of articles XVIII to XXV inclusive, and Article XXX of the treaty between the Government of the United States and Her Britannic Majesty, concluded at Washington on the 8th of May, 1871, to that colony, I have the honor to inform you that, with the modifications proposed to bring the proclamation into conformity with the act of the legislature of Newfoundland, passed March 28, 1874, and the further verbal change which I have indicated on the margin of the draft in question, i. e., substituting the word "citizens" for "subjects," where the latter term is used in reference to citizens of the United States, the draft in question, it is conceived, will fulfill the requirements in regard to such proclamation. I transmit herewith for your consideration a draft of a protocol, similar in form to that entered into on the 7th of June of last year, with reference to Canada and Prince Edward's Island. Upon the conclusion of the protocol on the subject, the President has signified his willingness to issue his proclamation simultaneously with the issuing of the proclamation of his excellency the governor of Newfoundland. By this arrangement it is believed that the provisions and stipulations of the articles named of the treaty of Washington may be given effect to between the citizens of the United States and Her Majesty's subjects in the colony of Newfoundland, on the 1st of June of the present year. I have, &c., HAMILTON FISH. No. 325. Sir Edward Thornton to Mr. Fish. WASHINGTON, May 26, 1874. (Received May 27.) SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your two notes of the 18th and 25th instant, respectively, relative to the act of the legis lature of Newfoundland, passed by that body on March 28, 1874, for the purpose of extending the provisions of articles XVIII to XXV, inclusive, of the treaty of Washington to that colony, which act received the assent of the Queen on the 12th instant, as I had intended to convey in my note of the 14th instant. I have been in telegraphic communication with the governor of Newfoundland since I received your note of yesterday's date, and I have received from his excellency this morning a message, informing me that he will issue his proclamation on Saturday next, to carry into effect the provisions of the treaty of Washington on Monday, the 1st of June next. This proclamation will be similar to that of which I handed you a printed copy on the 23d instant, modified so as to bring it into conformity with the act of the legislature of Newfoundland passed March 28, 1874, with the further verbal change which you indicated, i. e., substituting the word "citizens" for "subjects," where the latter term is used in reference to citizens of the United States. I shall have much pleasure in waiting upon you at the Department of State on any day which you may think proper to name, for the purpose of signing with you the protocol which accompanied your note of yesterday's date. I have, &c., No. 326. EDW'D THORNTON. Mr. Fish to Sir Edward Thornton. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 26th instant, relating to the act of the legislature of Newfoundland, passed by that body on the 28th of March last, for the purpose of extending the provisions of articles XVIII to XXV inclusive, of the treaty of Washington, to that colony, which act received the assent of the Queen on the 12th instant, and informing the Department that you are in receipt of a message from his excellency the governor of Newfoundland, stating that he will issue his proclamation on Saturday next to carry into effect the provisions of the articles above referred to of the said treaty on Monday, the 1st of June next, and that this proclamation will be similar to the printed copy which you furnished me on the 23d instant, modified so as to bring it into conformity with the act of the legislature of Newfoundland, of the 28th of March, 1874, with the further verbal change indicated by this Department substi tuting the word "citizens" for "subjects," where the latter term is used in reference to citizens of the United States. You also inform me of your readiness to call at this Department on any day which I may think proper to name for the purpose of sigu |