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THE PETITION of Richnrd Hall and William John •^Joepel, of Victoria, in the Province of British Columbia, trading; under the firm name of Hall, Ooepel & Co., Ferdinand Henry Siewerd, of Victoria, B, C, master mariner, Caesar Doring, of the same place, able seaman, on their own behalf and on behalf of the officers and crew of the schooni-r " Araunah " generally, HUMBLY SHEWETH: 1. Your petitioners. Hall, Goepel & Co., were owners of the British schooner " Araunah," which was registered at the Port of Victoria, in the Province of British Columbia, and Dominion of Canada ; your petitioner, Ferdinand Henry Siewerd, wa.s master of said schooner ; your petitioner, Caesar Doring, wa8 an able seaman on tho said schooner. 2. In 18S7, the "Araunah" was purchosed at the port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, by your petitioners. Hall, Goepel & Co., for the sealing business in the waters of the North Pacific Ocean. Ferdinand Henry Siewerd was placed in command, and the "Araunah" sailed for the Port of Victoria, British Colundiia, arriving at the latter port in the month of March, 1888. 3. The said .schooner cost your petitioners Hall, Goepel & Co., the .sum of six thousand six hundred dollars, at the port of Halifax, and there was added to this the sum of twelve hundred dollars, as the outlay for bringing the said schooner to the port of Victoria, repre.seiiting in all .seven thousand eight hundred ($7,800) dollars, as the cost of the .said schooner at the pert of Victoria. ••. The said schooner wis outfitted at the port of Victoria, in the uionth of April, 1S8H, for a sealing and hunting voyage in the waters of the North. Pacific Ocean, at a cost to your petitioners of two thousand and thirty-two dollars and sixty- i \r)'4'^\t m i 3221-0." ■ =3K/^r''T^^SSlii ; Vi , i> t f|' ^ ii two cenU, and placed again under the coinnmnd of Fenlinand Henry Siewerd, aforesaid. The crow of the said vessel con- sisted of : N. P. Bonde, mate ; W. Standish, steward ; and G. Brun and C. Dorin^, and another wliose name is now unknown to your petitioners, able seamen ; also a spare man named Glazier. Twelve Indians were cngaj^ed with their canoes and canoe outfits on a contract forhuntinjj. Standish, the steward, is now dead, and the present address of Brun and Glazier is not known to your petitioners. 6. Strict instructions were given to the master by your petitioners, Hall, Ooepel & Co., to avoid territorial waters, and he was enjoined to confine his hunting entirely to the high seaa. 6. The said schooner was seized by the Russian author- ities on the Ist of July, 1888, when, as j-iur petitioners believe, she was outside of the juri.sdictiunal waters of Russia, being about six to eight miles off the extreme end of Copper or Medney Island. 7. The officers and crew of the schooner were made prisoners, and, after great delay and detention on bo-inl a Russian ship, taken to Vladivostock. 8. These facts were promptly communicated to the Cana- dian and British authorities, and are referred to in some detail in a Return presented to the House of Lords, by command of Your Majosty, in June, 1890, entitled, " Russia, No. 1 (1890), Correspondence respecting the Seizure of the British Schooner ' Araunah ' off Copper Isliind, by the Russian Authorities," and to this Return your petitioners crave leave to refer. 9. Correspondence, as by the said Return appears, took place between the British and Russian authorities. In a dis- patch from the* Most Honourable The Marquis of Salisbury to Mr. Gosling, dated May 9th, 1890, the following passage " Her Majesty's Government are of the opinion that, even if the ' Araunah,' at the time of the seizu'e, was herself out- side the three-mile territorial limit, the fact that she was by means of her boats carrying on fishing within the Russian waters witliout the prescribed license warranted her seizure and confiscation according to the provisions of the Municipal Low regulating the use of those waters. They do not, there- fore, as at present advised, propose to address any further representation to the Russian Government in regard to this case." 10. Your petitioners have only lately become aware of the contents of this Return and of the rea.sons for the position of Your Majesty's Government. 7 mi-. *r 8 11. Your pi^itioniTs, Hall, (Joupfl it Co., Iiail hitherto nimply been informed that Your Majesty's Ooverniiient had declined to prj.iN the matter of this seizure upon the attention of the Rufwian Government. 12. Your petitionerH now crave leave to rcpresoiit to Your MtijeRty NUch fautH us they wouiil gladly have done had an opportunity been hitherto afforded them by Yo :r Majesty's advisers. 13. On examination of the dispatch of Lord Salisbury, it will be found that Your Majesty's UoverriUient was led to express an opinion adverse to the case of the " Araunah " on the following grounds : — (a) The master of the " Araunah " was said to have signed an " Act of confiscation which involved an admission of the alleged offense." (b) The evidence of the position of the " Araunah " and her canoes at the time of the seizure was said to be c. >: f 1 f %' ^H H 1 i -4 1 1 k., a ■ H i'' ^'M ■ ^^K m ""^ (^ ' iniiii- eil to liiin to lie that it .xkniiwlv(l);i'il his Hliip wiin wi/.i-il for huntiii|j; witliin " HiiHsinn limits," tlioxn lii>,iti Ijuiii^ ilcHurilxMl to liiin at tho tiiiiu iih covering tlio puNition of his wtvn:] nt b point six to uight iniiofi from ImikI and far more. 18. Tho action of th.' iiiiiHter of the "Araunnli" at VimlivoHtock, Au^just 0th, 1N8N, liy hi» petitii)n (p. 0, " Kimnia No. 1, 1490,") tho firHt opportunity for Huch action on liis part, supports hiH statement .s to the circuniRtancev under which the Ho-called ' Act of Confiscation " was obtained. 19. No British authority, on your petitioners helieve, certainly no one interetiteil in the ship " Araunah " hus ever seen tins so-called "Act" or Dead of Confiscation since it»< execution. 20. Outside of this paper, obtained under the circum- stances detailed in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Master's solemn declaration, and drawn up in Russian, it is not pretended that any trial ot tho vessel took place. 21. This "Act of Confiscation " was signed under protest — notwithstanding the Russian statement to the contrary^and as .''oon as the Master possibly could, he protested in the most complete aftd unequivocal manner, and communicated his pro- test to British authority. 22. The re^nlations under which the "Araunah" was seized are set out on p. 23 and 24 of the correspondence, " Russia No. 1, 1890." They are of course wholly Municipal Regulations. 23. After referring to regulations concerning hunting in jurisdictional waters, M. Qiers, in a dispatch printed in the Return above mentioned, says : — " All the legal cases arising out of the application of the Regulations above mentioned are within the jurisdiction of the Qovernor-Qeneral of the Amour, who decides on them in the lost instance. Conformably to this article, the documents relating to the ueizure of the ' Araunah ' were sent to Aide-de-camp General Baron Korf, who, after having examined the procea-verbaux drawn up by M. Grebnitzky, as well as the demand of the Captain of the xessel in question, decided that the seizure had been made under the conditions provided for by the Regula- tions, and pronounced the confiscation ol the ' Araunah.' " (Russia No. 1, 1890, page 23.) 24. All your petitioners know of the proceedings against the vessel is contained in the sentence quoted from M. Giers as above in paragraph 23 of this petition. 25. Such proceedings as are referred to by M. Giers were wholly " ex-parte," and your petitioners are not aware whether r m any record of them can Ijc fuuntl in any court or tribunal tu thin day. 20. A unndonination nf thin character, it \n iinhtnitted, ought not to prejudice in tlie eyeB of a BritiNh (lovornment a cane of a Britivih vtwNel Reized outride of her juriwiictional liniitu by a Foreign power. 27. Moreover, it in reitpectfully nuI'ih led tliat if thiH pro- cedure be sanctioned, there is no redress when fraud ih pruc- tined upon inasterH of Hritinh vowel* v hen under illegal arruNt. 2H. The statements in tl' cloratiuns of the Master of the " Araunali," Caesar Doring, and Willium, tho Indian, hereto appended, make it clear that the " Arnumi)* ' wns never within the jurisdictional waters of Russia, .uid that thi're was at no time any intention on the part of anyone connected with the said schooner to violate the laws of Russia or to go within the limits of her jurisdiction. 20. At the most, from all the facts, it might reasonably be argued that one or two of the canoes, owned or coutroiled by Indians and not belonging to the " Araunah," accidentally drifted within the jurisdictional waters of Russia. 30. Your petitioners humbly submit that there is no evidence of any character to support the statement upon which Your Majesty's Government have apparently acted, viz.: that the " Araunah " was, by her boats (or canoes) carrying on any operations in the waters of Russia. 31. Your petitioners understand that it is not unusual, in the practice of nations, for a Power whose ship is attempt- ing to violate the revenue or other laws of a friendly nation to refrain from complaint where that Nation, in defending her coasts, happens to exercise authority and acts in so doing at a reasonable distance outside of its jurisdictional limits. 32. Upon such idefs the theory of hot pursuit, the exer- cise of authority in case of smuggling vessels, quarantine Acts and hovering Acts may be baaed. 83. In the case of the " Araunah," however, the facts establish that che was at no time within Russian jurisdiction, that neither her r. ''cers or master, or any member of her crew contemplated violating a law of Russia, and your petitioners aver that none of them ever did violate such law. 34. It is humbly submitted that even should the Indians have gone with their own canoes into the waters of Russia for the purpose of hunting, such conduct on their part gave Russia no right against the ship ; but it is not established that the Indians violated any law of Russia, and so far as your peti- tioners can learn, they are satisKed that no intention to violate Russian law existed on their part. .■■.(•.I.''-I,'i . < IV. • ■ti\ • ,-'f=->l V- • y '. ... „"..r' •i '.?■'. ' ,1 fc - ,.' ; i •■:■■'!:_ -fr,, / t -1 ' . . 1 ••-, • fi 1' -'- : '\t J.- %. . > :■ < "^ y.; . ' ' ■■.• ; ' >• JT f 1! ■' 1 , • r . 'JCli 5^1?.. ! . '■■'',"-i» ", rKt.J- .4 : .Rf 1 >' .-J-: .,.. :t: ':■} ", , "Mr-, f^Jfjj •^ ■ _. i: 1 ^-y - ■• I,-- ■ t = r >;-:ni^rf^^- -UP.-L- 35. Your petitioners believn that they are ahle to satisfy any tribunal or cominissiun appointed by Your Majesty that there never was any intention on the part of the owners or master of the " Araunah " to enter, directly or indirectly, by means of the " Araunah," or by means of her boats, or the canoes carried on hoard for the Indian hunters, the jurisdictional waters of Russia, and that neither the " Araunah " nor the "Araunah's" boats ever did enter such waters, and if this 1* so, it is submitted that even outside of the strict rules of Interna- tional law, it is not fair to your petitioners to maintain in any sense, as Lord Salisbuiy has said, that the seizure of the " Araunah " was " warranted." 36. From the facts already set out, it is submitted that the seizure and confiscation cannot be justified under the principles of International Law. 37. The present Lord Chief Justice of England when Attorney-General, in conducting the case of Your Majesty before the Tribunal of Arbitration convened at Paris in 1893, dealt exhaustively with the subject, and in his oral argument before that tribunal, successfully established that outside of the ordin- ary three-mile limit, no State in time of peace had a right, exon for the purposes of self-defence and self-pteservation, to do what it conceived to be necessary to protect its property or its inter- ests. He exposed the confusion of those acts which " a nation vnll do in defence of what it conceives to be in its interest with what it may legally do under the sanction of International Law." (Stenographic report of oral arguments of British counsel at Paris, page 1703.) 38. The Attorney-General for Kngland on this occasion discus.sed Revenue Laws and Hovering Acts, and among other things said : — " Upon what principle do these Acts rest ? On the principle that no civilized state will encourage offenses against the laws of another state, the justice of which laws it recognizes. It willingly allows a foreign state to take reasonable measures of prevention within a moderate distance even outside territorial waters; but all these oflTenses and all offenses of the same class and character relating to revenue and to trade, are measures directed against a breach of the law contemplated to be consum- mated within the territory, to the prevention of an offense against the Municipal Law within the area to which the Muni- cipal Law properly extends. But it does not follow that all Acts of this kind will in all cases meet with assent. It certainly would not and could not be expected to meet with assent, if the right were attempted to be exercised — I use the word ' right ' in the laxer sense of the word : I would prefer to .say ' if the Acts were attempted to be enforced,' — at a considerable distance from land, and I affirm that in no such case by International Law, could it be maintained as of right as against an objecting nation." : ^ . ., ,f.„«8 ;^ 'iWR ., '< >f; •'; 39. Again, dealing with the subject of hot pursuit, Sir Charles Russell said : — " I have already referred, Mr. President, to this question of the hovering Acts, and I do not intend to repeat myself upon them except to make thi.s comment : that, althoui « It -10 r' I I 9 In the Matter of the seizure of the schooner " Araunah " in 1H8M by Ruiwia. r, Caebar Dorino, of Victoria, British Columbia, residing at ths AIMon Hotel, Earl Street, mate, do solemnly declare as follows: 1. I was born in the year 1863 in Dantzic, Prussia. 2. In 1887 I shipped on the schooner " Araunah " at the port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Siewerd, master, bound for the port of Victoria, British Columbia, where I arrived during the month of March, 1888. I shipped again on the articles of this schooner as able seaman on a sealing voynge in the North Pacific Ocean under the same master, my wages being S30.00 a month, and having no interest in the catch. 3. There were oii board two hunters, named respectively N. P. Bond, who was the mate of the said schooner, and G. Brun, called and known as " Brown." W. Standish was steward or cook. There was a spare man named Glazier. I do not know the present address of Brun (or Brown) ; Standish is dead. I do not know the whereabouts of Glazier. We had on this said sealing voyage six canoes and twelve Indians. In addition to this outfit we had two boats, one of which was for hunting purposes and used by the mate and two men, Brun (or Brown) and another known to roe as " Charlie," who is now dead. Charlie was also an able seaman. 4. I remember the voyage of the schooner " Araunah " in the direction of Copper Island, and I distinctly recollect hearing the captain caution the mate and the hunters to keep away from the land when hunting, and I recollect the mate giving instructions to the Indians in reference to the same subject, though I could not understand the language in which these instructions were given. 5. I have no reason to believe that we were ever nearer the Russian Islands when hunting than we wjre at the time of the seizure of the schooner. The day before the seizure I understood in common with the rest of the crew that we were a very long distance — .some 20 to 25 miles away, and after the fog cleared on the next day I was surprised to learn we were about 8 or 9 miles ofl from the nearest land. 6. On the morning of the seizure about 6:30 a.m., the six canoes with the Indians were put overboard in foggy weather for the purpose of hunting, the mate taking the boat about 20 minutes before this in order to get ahead of the Indians, in the operation of hunting, the canoes being able to travel more quickly than the boat. 7. On this occasion I heard the captain tell the mate that in his opinion we were about 16 miles away from the islands. 8. From first to last on said voyage I had no reason to believe that ine captain or mate was willing that the hunters should go within the 3-mile limit. 9. In foggy v.'eather it is quite unusual for Indians to go far from the .sealing vessel ; the danger of being lost being sufficient to prevent this; 'i '.* J . J-i'-,!) ., I ) li-' (I P!^ f !f r 10 • and on clear days the (^rcatent distance the Indians had ever pone from tlie ship I verily believe to be from 10 to 12 miles. 10. After the seizure of the " Araunah," I was given to underHtaiid by the captain of the S.S. "Alexander 11" that I couhl be employed on that steamer as an abl? seaman as well as one or two more, but the captain of the " Araunah" informed the crew of the " Araunah " that he desired them to stay with him, as he expected the vessel would be tried, and he desired their evidence. Consequently we remained with the captain of the " Araunah " for this purpose, but finally returned with him to Victoria 11. No trial took place, but we attended before Her Britannic Majesty's Consul at Nagasaki, to whom we deposed to the facts concerning (he said seizure, on or before the 27th day of August, 1888. 12. About a week or more after, we arrived at Petropoulovski and had no judicial or other formal proceedings of which I heard. 13 The stores, including the salt, guns and ammunition on board the said schooner, were sold by the Russian authorities at a public auction. 14. On the morning of the seizure, when we arrived at Qlinka, M. J. Mallinvincsky purchased the canoes from the Indians, giving S3.00 for the poor canoes and SH.OO for the best, the canoes belonging to the Indians, and Mallinvincsky apparently being well aware of that fact. And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing it to be true and knowing that it is of the same force and effect as if made under oath and by virtue of the" Canada Evidence Act, 1893." Declared before me at Vic- toria, this 13th day of December, A.D. 1898. Notary Public. In the Matter of the seizure of the schooner " Araunah " in 1888 by Russia : I, William, an Ou-Ou-Kinsh Indian, of Vancouver Island, Province of British Columbia, do solemnly declare : 1. I am about thirty years of age. I was born in Ou-Ou-Kinsh aforesaid. 2. I have been hunting seals ever since 1886 on the North- West Coast of America and Behring Sea, both east and west. »■ , rt • U tfc'!* tf' ( 1 -^iwy; ^ T i^»" 11 3. In 1888, the chief of my tiibo, Navaayok, and myself, took our canoe, guns, ammunition ane four miles from the land, and then moved away accordingly.) We also were in the habit of going a short distjince out of the sight of the schooner and then turning back to get sight of her, in order to get our bearings. Navaayok, to whom I re- ferred, is still alive and is on Vancouver Island. 5. The other Indians on the " Araunah ' had the same arrangements with the scho<}ner as Navaayok and I, bringing their own ammunition, guns, spears and canoes, and hunting on the same terms. 6. I fully remember the seizure of the " Araunah " by the Russians, my cance being the one taken by the Russian vessel " Alexander II." I judged the schooner to be seven miles away from tho land, and my canoe six miles from the land. When the fog cleared I saw the steamer and immediately turned to make for the schooner when the steamer took me. We had no skins on board when taken and had not taken a seal that day. I never took a skin inside of three miles of the Commodore Islands, or any otiier foreign land. I was never so near the Commodore Islands as I was on the morning when the Russian vessel took me as befor'i mentioned. When out that morning, I observed the tide to be very strong running into Behring Sea. The captain told us the morning we were put over, not to go in the fog further than we could hear the fog-horn or whistle, and we were within hearing of the whistle all that day. 7. All the Indians on the " Araunah," to my knowledge, were afraid to approach the land, and I believe they all tried to keep seven miles away from it. And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing it to be true and knowing that it is of the same force and effect as if made under oath and by virtue of the " Canada Evidence Act, 1893." Declared before me at Victoria, in the Province of British Columbia, this 12th day of December, A.D. 1898, the same being first read over and explained to the above named William in his own language, com- monly called Chinook. Notary Public. 4' t'tii'' •..: Til. ,.'. •■ 12 In THK MAriBH of the Helwiro of tho Hcli(M)ner "Arftunali" in lh88 liy BiiHsiii. I, FEitniNANi) Henhv Sieweki), of the City of Victoria and Province of Ki'itiMli ColiiiiibiH, mafiter mariner, do NoiHiniily lieciare : 1. Th« piiHHUgeH in a !ftl ,J 11 16 RU.spect would be found to be what actually happened, that the schooner was outside the 3-raile limit, but one or more of the canoes inside it, would a Russian ship have had a legal right to capture the " Araunah " outside the limit, that is on the high seas, for an infrar'tion of Russian fishing laws by her canoes within the limit." While this is the question put, Lord Salisbury, I submit, does not deal with the facts thus specifically put in the paragraph above, but expresses the opinion that if the " Araunah " was " by means of her boats carrying on fishing within Russian waters, then her seizure was warranted." 10. There is no evidence that I am aware of which can be said to eRtablish anything more than that one of the canoes owned and operated by Indians who were conducting sealing operations under a contract with the " Araunah," for the consideration of so much per skin, was found in- side the Russian limits. I have heard of none which suggest that they were found hunting within those limits. So far from the " Araunah," by means of her boats, carrying on fish- ing within Russian waters, I sa}' that every reasonable precaution had been taken hy me to prevent either her boat or the canoes of the Indians from going within those waters at all. 11. In the dispatch of Sir R. Morier, to which I have referred (pages 7 and 8), the following paragraph appears: — " Before concluding, I mu.st allow myself an observation with refer- ence to the description given by the master of the " Araunah " of the position of his ship at the time of her capture, and of the circumstances which cau.sed her being there. He says, that at 6:30 a.m. he calculated that the schooner's position was 1 6 miles south by west of the southern extremity of Copper Island. At this time, there being a heavy fog and calm, he ordered the six canoes out for hunting. At 7:30 a.m., that is, an hour afterwards, the fog lifts, and the schooner is found at 6 miles distant from the south point of the island, with the canoes to the south and west of the schooner, at a distance, with one exception, of not more than 8 miles from her. The inference of the master is, that he was carried by an unknown current from the spot at which he was at 6:30 to that at which he was captured at 7:30. If the diagram annexed to the aflSdavit taken before Her Majesty's Consul at Nagasaki is correct, this distance would be 17 2-5 miles. It would, of course, not be fair to assume too great accuracy in a diagram of this kind Nevertheless, the distance cannot be estimated at less than between 10 and 17 miles. I do not know whether such currents exist, but, if they do, it seems strange that the master and crew of the ' Araunah ' should not have been fully aware of the fact from the begitming, and still stranger that the six seal canoes should have placidly carried on their hunting operations under its impulse, which they must have done, seeing that when the fog lifted they were within a two mile radius of the ship." As to this, I have to say that I never was given an opportunity at any time to deal with this criticism, and my explanation of the difficulty sug- gested in the above paragraph is, that my calculation respecting the dis- tance from the islands as 16 miles at 6:30 was obviously erroneous. I never pretended to have definitely ascertained mj' po«i*ion at that time . r — -1