MR. J. a. BOURINOT ON CANADA'S MARINE AND FISHEEII^. -•o^ AT the usual monthly meeting of the Royal Colonial Institute, held at the rooms of the Society of Arts on February 4— the President, Hia Grace the Duke of Manchester, in the chair — Mr. J. G. Bourinot, of the Senate, Canada, read a paper on " Canada's Marine and Fisheries " : — He said : No country in the world possesses more admirable facilities for the prosecution of all branches of maritime enterprise than the dominion of Canada. Looking to the eastward, we see the provinces of Xcvv Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with an extensive line of sea-coaat, indented, especially in the case of the latter, with bays and harbours offering every possible induce- ment to commerce. Still further to the east lies the island of Newfound- land, the Prima or Buena Vista of the early navigators in the verj'^ midst of the finest fishery of the Continent, and destined ere long to form a part of the Confederation, and become the head-quarters of an immense trade. As one great island forms the eastern barrier, so another, smaller in extent, but equally important in a maritime point of view, defends the approaches ro the Pacific coast of the dominion. While the eastern and western extremi- ties of Canada are washed by two oceans — the one the road to Asia, tiie other to Europe— nature has given her a system of internal communicatiofls unrivalled even by the Republic on her borders. The St. Lawrence runs through a large portion of her most valuable, and at present most populous, territory, and carries to the ocean the tribute of the great Jakes and the noble rivers that water the provinces of Quebec and Ontario. Both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick possess numerous rivers, some of them of verv considerable length and magnitude, and connecting the most inland coun- ties with the sea-board. By energetically availing themselves of theeen fr.mous for their achievements on the seas. They take a.-* much pr^?e as the men of Devon themselves in the ref-ord of Grerivi^ie, GiJberf, Frobisher, Raleig]i, Drake, and all those gallant men Trhose names are so indissolubly associated with the maritime triumphs of the parent S^ate^and with the history of discovery on the continent of America. If there is an era in English hi.t to till the ** deep sea pastures" of American waters. From Dieppe, St Maio, Rochelle, and other seaports of France, came those maritime adven- turers who, in frail craft bardl}' larger than the smallest fishing schooners on our coast, dared all the dangers of the unknown seas, and planted the first colonies on the banks of the St. Lawrence or on the shores of Acadie. With wonderful discrimination they selected those harbours and bays which are naturallv best adapted for trade, and modern enterprise has not denied in ^ single instance the wisdom of their choice. Quebec, Montreal, and New Orleans still remain to attest the prescience of tbe French pioneers Louisbourg, it is true, is now only the abode of a few fishermen, but its natural position for trade is unrivalled, and sooner or later we must see a town rise above the green mounds which now alone remain to tell of its greatness in the days of the French regime. The early history of Canada is a record of tumult and war, and if we would follow her commercial and maritime progress we need not go bick manv years. Traffic in fish and fur was prosecuted to a limited extent during those times when the French and English were establishing them- selves on this continent, and struggling for the supremacy. Next followed the War of Independence, and many years later tbe war of 1812-14, to the injury of Canadian industry, then in its very infancy. But since those warlike times in the early part of the century, there has been an era of peace, only disturbed by the political dissension and strife of 1836-7, and Canada has been able to go steadil_v forward on the path of commercial and industrial progress. Year by year, since 1815, the pioneer has advanced np the St. Lawrence, and made his settlements in tbe western province. Craft of various sizes soon commenced to whiten the waters of the lakes, and eventually the population and commerce of the West so increased that canals had to be built to give speedy and secure access to the ports of Montreal and Quebec. Railways followed canals, and steamers the clumsy schooners and tlat-boats of old times, while cities and towns grew with unex- ampled rapidity throughout the province, where not a single settlement of any importance exi->ted iu the days of French rule on the St. Lawrence. Mr, y, G. Bourinot on Canada s Marine aud Fisheries, 5 The population of Ontario or Upper Canada, in a ver}' few years from the date of the Union, considerably exceeded that of the French Canadian pro- vince, which had been given so long a start in the race of civilisation. The provinces by the sea, then politically isolated from the country on the St. Lawrence and lakes, also made steady advances during this era of peace, especially in maritime enterprise. But, in tracing the commercial progress of Canada, we cannot fail to remark that it really dates from the extension of her political privileges and the removal of those restrictions which Eng- land imposed on colonial trade and navigation during those times when sound principles of political economy were hardly understood, and commer- cial fallacies laj' to a great extent at the basis of all her commercial legis- lation. The result of the statesmanlike policy that the mother country within twenty or thirty years has adopted towards Canada in common with other colonies, h:is not only tended to stimulate the energy and enterprise of the Canadian people, but has actually benefitted the manufacturing and mercantile community of Grer.': Britain, inasmuch as the provinces are now consumers of British merchandise to a far greater extent than would have been possible under the old system of monopolies and navigation laws. Fifty years ago the whole population of British Xorth America was not equal to a million of souls, whilst at the present time it is in excess of four millions. The total trade at that time did not exceed the value of $12,000,000, whereas it may be now estimated at fully $170,000,000. This is the natural result of the peace and the political and commercial freedom which we have now so long enjoyed under the protecting guidance of the parent state. In her extensive range of sea and lake navigation, in her inexhaustible fisheries, in her wide sweep of forests, and above all, in the ener^-^y and endurance of her people, we see the elements which have enabled Canada to reach a foremost position among maritime nations — equal, in fact, to the country which gave birth to Cartier and Champlain. and far a head uf the Spaniards and Dutch, so supreme on the ocean in the daj's when the name of Canada was never heard of. So great is the change that has taktu place since the century when many a stately Spanish galleon crossed the <*cean from the Spanish main, and Trorap swept the seas with a broom hoisted at his masthead. The Fisheries have naturally laid the foundations of the maritime industry of the provinces. From the earliest times of which we have any record, fishermen from the Basque and Norman coast have flung their lines on the banks of Newfoundland, and carried home r'uU fares l<»ng before a single English vessel ventured into the same seas to pro- secute this lucrative branch of industry. But the French settlements on the Lower St. Lawrence, aud on the shores of the gulf •■xxi<^ the peninsula of Acadie, had but limited opportunities of following the fisheries ia the warlike times which preceded the conquest of Canada. Louisbourg was then the rendezvous of the French vessels which yearly resorted to these fisheries; and it is recorded that in the year preceding the capture of that stfongly-fjrtided town by the English fleet under Warren, ijnd the fishermen of New England under the command ^)i Pepperrtll, France had some 600 sail, macued by 20,000 sailors employed in our 6 Mr. J. G. B our i not m Canada s Marine and Fisheries, irafers. For many years after the conquest, the branch oi indusfr^- was not prosecuted to any great er^tent in these waters, but durin.i; the past forty rears it has rerived. Of all the possessions Prance once ovr ned in America, she noTf only retains the iy.signiScant i.sltets of St. Pierre an(J Alequilon, to the .juth of Newfoundland, and enjoys certain rights of ^^shing. drying, and curing on a large portion cf the coast of that isJand, Though thpe namber of vessels rary according as there is peace or -war in Europe, yet she has not failed to send out a f?eet from year tf> year to »t. Pierre, where a little colony of officials, merchants, and ii^\i^r- men hiia been established. Ths official statistics for 28o5 show that 580 vessels were in that year employed in the cod-Osheries, with a convbined capacity of 65,92D tons, and manned br nearlv ILOOOmefi, and, so ^dtt as 1 can learn from sources of information within my reach, th« amount of tonnage at the present time must be npwnrds of gO,800, and- the value of the catch may be put down at between $.Vf>0,m)0 and $4,0n9,n0&. Slight as- is \.\\^ hold France now retains on the Northern half of this continent, she- values it highly, and clings to it with tenacity becau-se it gives her a ■poini d'uppui^ or base, for the prosecution of the fisheries, which she has for so many centuries followed with such valuable results to her laaterial com- mercial wealth, and her naval strength. She may colonise St. Pierre anfl Mequilon, but she cannot burld fortifications or keep a large armed force ori these insignificant islands. Under the same treaty with England it was allowed the subjects of France "to catch fish, and to dry them on the land, in that part only, and in no other besides, of the said isfand of New- foundland, which stretches from the place called Bona Vista to the northerly part of the said island, and from thence runninj? down by the western side, reaches as far as the place called Point Riche.'' By a subsequent treaty, it was agreed that the French rights should extend from Cape St. John to Cape Ray. The French: have n^ore than once asserted an exclusive right to the fisheries on that coast, but it is now under- stood that they onh' enjoy ** a concurrent right ^ with British suhjecis. These rights have long caused considerable irritation to the people of New- foundlaind, and no doubt in the course of time, when the island forms apart of the Confederation and the French coast is required for purposes of trade and settlement, some understanding will be arrived at with the French (iovernment on the subject of their cJairos. The people who have most coveted the British American fisheries are the inhabitants of the Atlantic States, who have long fished in our waters and drawn from thena a con- siderable portion of their wealth. The importance and value of our fisheries can be immediately seen from the disputes and difficulties that have for more than half a century arisen between England and the United States, on account of the determination of the latter country to have access to oar fishing ground at all hazards. The British Government, however, have never acknowledged the validity of their claims, but have excluded them from the Bays of Chaleurs, Fundy, and the Straits of Causo, and from tishing anywhere within three miles of the shores, harbours, and bays of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Cape Bretin, and Prince Edward Island, The Reciprocity Treaty, however, threw open all the fisheyies to the Ameri- Mr. J, G. Bourinot on Canada! s Marine end Fisheries, 7 • cans, who immediately embarked in thi3 enterprise with a vigour which astonished the people of the maritime provinces. The fisheries they value most are those of mackerel, which are only to be prosecuted with profit in Canadian waters — off Capo Breton and Prince Edward Island, and in the Bay of Chaleurs especially. During the time they had access to the fisheries they also availed themselves largely of their right of fishing for cod and herring in the Bay of Fundy, and in other bays within the three miles limit of the shores of the maritime provinces ; but it is the mackerel that they chiefly covet, and for which they have always been prepared to make certain commercial concessions. Now that they are again to enjoy the rights they possessed under the Reciprocity Treaty of 1854-65, it is important to consider the value of the fisheries we concede to them, and the value of the concessions we receive in exchange ; 1 shall therefore at- tempt to present some facts and figures which may illustrate a subject of considerable interest at the present juncture, when a Commission must shortly sit at Halifax to consider the question whether any pecuniary com- pensation is due to Ui over and above the right which we are to enjoy of taking our fish free into the American markets. It is very difficult to get at full and accurate estimates of the tonnage and value of the fish actually caught by the Americans in our waters. According to a return lately issued by the Secretary of State, Washington, the following represents the tonnage employed for a number of years in the deep-sea fisheries : — Mackerel Cod Mackerel Cod Year. Fishery. Fishery. Year. Fishery. Fishery. 1820 . . • • ■^'•* . , , 60,843 1863 . . . . 51,019 ... 117,290 1830 . . . . 35,973 ... 61,555 1864 . . . . 55,498 ... 92,745 1840 . . . . 28,269 ... 76,036 1865 . . . . 41,209 ... 59,288 1850 . . . . 58,112 ... 85,646 1866 . . . . 46,589 ... 42,796 1860 . . . . 26,111 ... 136,654 1867 . . . . 31,498 ... 36,709 1861 . . . . 54,296 ... 127,310 1868 . . . . 83,828 ... 1862 . . . 80,597 ... 122,863 Massachusetts is that State of the Union which devotes most attention to the mackerel fishery; the total value of the catch in 1855 having been $1,355,332, and in 1865, $1,886,837. The value of the cod fishery of the same State during the same years was $1,413,413 and $2,689,723 respec- tively. The total value of the American fishery in 1864, when the Reciprocity Treaty was still in operation, but the Civil War had sadly disturbed this branch of industry, is put down as follows by the same American authority : — Whale-fishery $4,871,347 in gold Cod and mackerel-fishery . . , 4,026,849 „ Total $8,898,196 But if we go back to 1860, before the war occurred to cripple thi» branch of industry, especially in the case of the whale fishery, we find the amount of tonnage employed was in the aggregate nearly double that of 8 Mr. J. G. Bourijiot on Canada^ s Marine and Fisheries, 1865, and the catch may be fairly valued at between $14,000,000 and $15,000,000 — the value of the whale fishery alone having been $6,504,838. Mr. E. H. Derby, in his official report laid before Congress during 1867, cites authority to prove that " during the two last years of the Reciprocity Treaty the United States had fishing in the Gulf of St. Laurence and ]^^^y of Chaleurs, no less than 600 sail, which must have taken fish to the amount of $4,500,000." The same authority says that " nearly one fourth of our fishing fleet, with a tonnage of 40,000 to 50,000 tons, worth $5,000,000 to $7,000,000 annually, fish near the three miles limit of the provinces " — " near" being Mr. Derby's euphemism for " within." Since the repeal of the Reciprocity Treaty, and the disturbance of commerce and industry by the civil war, the fisheries have not b-^en prosecuted to the same extent that they were up to 1865 ; but the moment the new treaty comes into force, American fishermen will flock in larger numbers to the Gulf and Bay, and enter into the most active competition with our own people. Even under the license system, which was so persistently evaded, 454 licenses were issued in 1866 to American vessels — which by no means represented the total number known to have fished within a marine league of our shores. The Minister of Marine and Fisheries of Canada calculates that the Ameri- cans employ between eight and eleven hundred vessels in our fisheries, and that their annual catch, chiefly within the three miles limit, may be valued at upwards of $8,000,000. It is safe to say, with all these facts before us, that the money value of the concessions made to the United States will be between $6,000,000 and $7,000,000 Canadian currency — a very moderate estimate, if the New England fishermen go into the fisheries hereafter with anything like the energj'- they displayed under the Reciprocity Treaty. Now in considering the value of the concessions on the part of the United States, we may as well leave altogether out of the account the privilege of fishing on the American coast, a privilege which will not be used by the Nova Scotians or New Brunswickers to any extent worth mentioning. The repeal of the duties on the Canadian fish brought into the American market, however, is a valuable concession to a leading interest of the Dominion, but it is still very far from being adequate compensation for the use of the fisheries. According to the same authority from which we have previously quoted— and on a question of this kind it is advisable, when practicable, to quote from American official documents — the United States received the following produce of the fisheries from all British North America, and col- lected the following duties thereon in 1867 : — Value. Duty paid. Mackerel . 77,503 brls., $675,986 $155,006 Herring . 97,595 „ 321,404 97,597 Salmon . . . 6,216 „ 125,413 18,648 Other fish in brls. . . 152,688 „ 152,688 36,943 Eish not in brls. . 6,505,942 lbs. 199,686 32,529 Oil, seal . . 340,035 gals. 185,132 18,513 Oil, whale and cod . . 180,504 „ 115,360 23,072 $1,773,669 $382,300 Mr. y. G. Bourinot on Canada's Marine and Fisheries. 9 The same authority gives the following statement of the value of the fish imported from the provinces for a term of years : — 1858 1,500,000 1860 1,600,000 1861 1,797,722 18C5 2,193,384 1866 1,627,00(> 1867 1,773,669 1862 1,078,073 1863 957 166 1864 1,477,155 If these figures prove anything it is this, that the value of the export from all British North America into the United States Las varied very little before and since the Reciprocity Treaty. The Canadian returns give the total value of all the fish exported to all countries by the Dominion in 1870-1 at $4,000,000, of which less than one-third was sent to the Uuited States. It may be safely estimated that half a million of dollars will, for some years, represent the total value of the remissioa of duties on Canadian produce. It may, indeed, be urged that since the free use of our fisheries will increase the catch of the American fishermen, the sale of our own maybe conse- quently diminished to a certain extent in the American market. At all events it is reasonable to suppose that the quantity henceforth exported by Canada to the United States will not be very much greater than hereto- fore. The Americans under any circumstances, are forced to bu}" our lumber and fish, and in case of a duty the consumer must pay it of neces- sity. We must remember, too, that instead of the repeal of the Reciprocity Treaty crippling Canada to the extent anticipated five or six years ago, it has really stimulated the energies of her people, and forced them to seek new and remunerative markets elsewhere for the sale of their surplus pro- ducts. It is now within our power to supply South America more cheaply with the fish which the Americans have been in the habit of buying from us and re-exporting to those southern countries. The growth of the fishery interest of British North America has been steady during the past twelve years. In 1860 the value of the fish caught in the Dominion waters was about $4,000,000, and adding $4,440,000 for Newfoundland, and $272,532 for Prince Edward Island, we have an aggre- gate value of $8,712,532. In 1866, the value of the Dominion catch was estimated at $6,263,000, and that of the product of all the provinces at $10,837,000. The actual quantity of fish, exported and consumed within the Dominion, was estimated in 1870 by the Marine and Fishery Depart- ment at a value of $8,000,000, and adding as much more for Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island, we have a total of $16,000,000. While the tonnage of the American fishing interest has been steadily declining, since 1860, the value of the same branch of industry in the Dominion as well as in all British North America, has doubled. The value of the exports in 1871 was as follows : — Nova Scotia $2,852,255 New Brunswick .... 374,379 Quebec 678J162 Ontario 89,479 Total for the Dominion . . $3,994,275 Newfoundland .... 7,825,159 Prince Edward Island . . , 350,000 Total for all B. N. America . $12,169,434 lo Mr. y. G. Bonrinot on Canada'' s Marine and Fisheries. Tho value of all thf fish caught in British North America waters mav be pstiniated as follows : — Bv B. N. Am erica . . , . $16,000,000 Bv United States .... 8.000,000 By France 3,000,000 Total $27,000,000 British Columbia, as yet, prosecutes the fisheries to an extent worth mentioninf^, but she possesses great quantities of salmon, and is within easy reach of the valuable whale and cod fisheries of the North Pacific. At the present time California has some thirty vessels engaged in the cod- fishery, principally in the vicinity of the Chamagouin and Fox Islands. British Columbia also sends several small schooners to the Russian coast, where there are numerous cod- banks. Of late years the number of American whalers that resort to the northern waters has been steadily decreasing — from 278 in 1852 to some 80 or 90 at the present time — and the whales are consequently becoming tamer and increasing in numbers ; and perhaps when the Canadian Pacific Railway is completed, and population and capital have at last found their way into that distant province on the Pacific coast, it will engage energetically in the whale and cod fisheries, and help to swell the aggregate of the product of the Dominion. In the men that sail the fishing-fleets of Canada, we see the elements of a very powerful marine, which will be found invaluable in times of national danger. For should ever a national emergency demand the services of this cla.«s, they will prove as useful auxiliaries as ever were the fishermen of New England, who first captured the most formidable French fortress on this continent, or as ever were their descendants who, a century later, again rallied to ^^e public defence, and manned the navies of the Republic. It may be eslimated that the total strength which the fisheries employ through- out all British North America is composed of some 75,000 men. On the energetic prosecution of the rich fisheries of this continent rests the very foundation of our national strength in the future. It would, indeed, say little for our energy or industry were we to allow ourselves to be beaten by foreigners in the competition in our own waters, but the figures we have just read prove conclusively that we have made more rapid progress in the devoilopment of this source of wealth than any other country in the world, and now stand the foremost in the prosecution of the sea fisheries — the aggregate of the product of British North America now ex- cee