Russian authorities in 1892 were six in number." In regard to four of them the evidence was conclusive that their canoes were taking seals within the three-mile limit. In regard to the other two, though it was said that the "moral evidence" of the same fact was equally conclusive, yet as the canoes were not actually seen within territorial waters the Russian Government undertook to make indemnity." On February 12 (24), 1893, however, the Russian minister of foreign affairs, in response to an inquiry made in behalf of Canadian sealers as to the limits within which they would be permitted to carry on their operations during that year, wrote to the British ambassador that "the insufficiency of the strict application of general rules of international law to this matter" was admitted in the negotiations between Russia, Great Britain, and the United States in 1888, and that the necessity for exceptional measures had been "more lately confirmed by the Anglo-American agreement of 1891," which had placed Russian interests in an “absolutely abnormal and exceptional position." "The prohibition of sealing within the limits agreed upon in the modus vivendi of 1891 has, in fact," said the Russian minister of foreign affairs, "caused such an increase in the destruction of seals on the Russian coast that the complete disappearance of these animals would be only a question of a short time unless efficacious measures for their protection were taken without delay." On these grounds he stated that for the ensuing season, and pending the adoption of international regulations, Russia would, as a measure of "legitimate self-defense," prohibit sealing within ten miles of all her coasts, and within thirty miles of the Commander Islands and Robben Island. The British Government declined to admit that Russia had

a When these seizures of 1892 were referred to in the counter case of the United States, the precise facts were not known. The diplomatic correspondence was published in Great Britain while the tribunal of arbitration was in session. See Moore, Int. Arbitrations, I. 911.

Blue Book "Russia No. 3 (1893)." See Mr. White, min. to Russia, to Mr. Gresham, Sec. of State, June 17, 1893, MSS. Dept. of State.

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In explanation of the grounds of these measures, the minister of foreign affairs said: With regard to the ten-mile zone along the coast, these measures will be justified by the fact that vessels engaged in the seal fishery generally take up positions at a distance of from seven to nine miles from the coast, while their boats and crews engage in sealing both on the coast itself and in territorial waters. As soon as a cruiser is sighted, the ships take to the open sea and try to recall their boats from territorial waters. With regard to the thirtymile zone around the islands, this measure is taken with a view to protect the banks, known by the sealers as sealing grounds,' which extend round the islands, and are not shown with sufficient accuracy on maps. These banks are frequented during certain seasons by the female seals, the killing of which is particularly destructive to the seal species at the time of year when the females are suckling their young, or go to seek food on the banks known as 'sealing grounds.'"

a right to extend her jurisdiction over British vessels outside the usual territorial limits, but in order to afford all reasonable and legitimate assistance to Russia in the existing circumstances,” expressed a readiness at once to enter into an agreement with the Imperial Government for the enforcement of the protective zones proposed in the note of the minister of foreign affairs. Such an agreement was concluded in May, 1893.

August 15, 1893, the tribunal of arbitration made.

Award. the following award:

"Award of the Tribunal of Arbitration constituted under the Treaty concluded at Washington, the 29th of February 1892, between the United States of America and Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

"Whereas by a Treaty between the United States of America and Great Britain, signed at Washington, February 29, 1892, the ratifications of which by the Governments of the two Countries were exchanged at London on May the 7th, 1892, it was, amongst other things, agreed and concluded that the questions which had arisen between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Her Britannic Majesty, concerning the jurisdictional rights of the United States in the waters of Bering's Sea, and concerning also the preservation of the fur-seal in or habitually resorting to the said sea, and the rights of the citizens and subjects of either Country as regards the taking of fur-seals in or habitually resorting to the said waters, should be submitted to a Tribunal of Arbitration to be composed of seven Arbitrators, who should be appointed in the following manner, that is to say: two should be named by the President of the United States; two should be named by Her Britanic Majesty; His Excellency the President of the French Republic should be jointly requested by the High Contracting Parties to name one; His Majesty the King of Italy should be so requested to name one; His Majesty the King of Sweden and Norway should be so requested to name one; the seven Arbitrators to be so named should be jurists of distinguished reputation in their respective Countries, and the selecting Powers should be requested to choose, if possible, jurists who are acquainted with the English language;

"And whereas it was further agreed by article II of the said Treaty that the Arbitrators should meet at Paris within twenty days after the delivery of the Counter-Cases mentioned in article IV, and should proceed impartially and carefully to examine and decide the questions which had been or should be laid before them as in the said Treaty provided on the part of the Governments of the United States and of

a Blue Book "Russia No. 1 (1893).”

Her Britannic Majesty respectively, and that all questions considered by the Tribunal, including the final decision, should be determined by a majority of all the Arbitrators;

"And whereas by article VI of the said Treaty, it was further provided as follows: In deciding the matters submitted to the said Arbitrators, it is agreed that the following five points shall be submitted to them in order that their award shall embrace a distinct decision upon each of said five points, to wit:

"1. What exclusive jurisdiction in the sea now known as the Bering's Sea, and what exclusive rights in the seal fisheries therein, did Russia assert and exercise prior and up to the time of the cession of Alaska to the United States?

"2. How far were these claims of jurisdiction as to the seal fisheries recognized and conceded by Great Britain?

"3. Was the body of water now known as the Bering's Sea included in the phrase Pacific Ocean, as used in the Treaty of 1825 between Great Britain and Russia; and what rights, if any, in the Bering's Sea were held and exclusively exercised by Russia after said Treaty?

"4. Did not all the rights of Russia as to jurisdiction and as to the seal fisheries in Bering's Sea east of the water boundary, in the Treaty between the United States and Russia of the 30th of March 1867, pass unimpaired to the United States under that Treaty?

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5. Has the United States any right, and if so, what right of protection or property in the fur-seals frequenting the islands of the United States in Bering Sea when such seals are found outside the ordinary three-mile limit?'

"And whereas, by article VII of the said Treaty, it was further agreed as follows:

"If the determination of the foregoing questions as to the exclusive jurisdiction of the United States shall leave the subject in such position that the concurrence of Great Britain is necessary to the establishment of Regulations for the proper protection and preserva- . tion of the fur-seal in, or habitually resorting to, the Behring Sea, the Arbitrators shall then determine what concurrent Regulations, outside the jurisdictional limits of the respective Governments, are necessary, and over what waters such Regulations should extend; "The High Contracting Parties furthermore agree to cooperate in securing the adhesion of other Powers to such Regulations;'

"And whereas, by article VIII of the said Treaty, after reciting that the High Contracting Parties had found themselves unable to agree upon a reference which should include the question of the liability of each for the injuries alleged to have been sustained by the other, or by its citizens, in connection with the claims presented and urged by it, and that they were solicitous that this subordinate ques

tion should not interrupt or longer delay the submission and determination of the main questions,' the High Contracting Parties agreed that either of them might submit to the Arbitrators any question of fact involved in said claims and ask for a finding thereon, the question of the liability of either Government upon the facts found, to be the subject of further negociation;'

"And whereas the President of the United States of America named the Honourable John M. Harlan, Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and the Honourable John T. Morgan. Senator of the United States, to be two of the said Arbitrators, and Her Britannic Majesty named the Right Honourable Lord Hannen and the Honourable Sir John Thompson, Minister of Justice and Attorney General for Canada, to be two of the said Arbitrators, and His Excellency the President of the French Republic named the Baron de Courcel, Senator, Ambassador of France, to be one of the said Arbitrators, and His Majesty the King of Italy named the Marquis Emilio Visconti Venosta, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Senator of the Kingdom of Italy, to be one of the said Arbitrators, and His Majesty the King of Sweden and Norway named Mr. Gregers Gram, Minister of State, to be one of the said Arbitrators:

"And whereas We, the said Arbitrators, so named and appointed, having taken upon ourselves the burden of the said arbitration, and having duly met at Paris, proceeded impartially and carefully to examine and decide all the questions submitted to us the said Arbitrators, under the said Treaty, or laid before us as provided in the said Treaty on the part of the Governments of Her Britannic-Majesty and the United States respectively;

"Now we, the said Arbitrators, having impartially and carefully examined the said questions, do in like manner by this our Award decide and determine the said questions in manner following, that is to say, we decide and determine as to the five points mentioned in article VI as to which our Award is to embrace a distinct decision upon each of them:

"As to the first of the said five points, We, the said Baron de Courcel, Mr. Justice Harlan, Lord Hannen, Sir John Thompson, Marquis Visconti Venosta and Mr. Gregers Gram, being a majority of the said Arbitrators, do decide and determine as follows:

"By the Ukase of 1821, Russia claimed jurisdiction in the sea now known as the Behring's Sea, to the extent of 100 Italian miles from the coasts and islands belonging to her, but, in the course of the negotiations which led to the conclusion of the Treaties of 1824 with the United States and of 1825 with Great Britain, Russia admitted that her jurisdiction in the said sea should be restricted to the reach of cannon shot from shore, and it appears that, from that time up to the time of the cession of Alaska to the United States,

Russia never asserted in fact or exercised any exclusive jurisdiction in Behring's Sea or any exclusive rights in the seal fisheries therein beyond the ordinary limits of territorial waters.

"As to the second of the said five points, We, the said Baron de Courcel, Mr. Justice Harlan, Lord Hannen, Sir John Thompson, Marquis Visconti Venosta and Mr. Gregers Gram, being a majority of the said Arbitrators, do decide and determine that Great Britain did not recognize or concede any claim, upon the part of Russia, to exclusive jurisdiction as to the seal fisheries in Behring Sea, outside of ordinary territorial waters.

"As to the third of the said five points, as to so much thereof as requires us to decide whether the body of water now known as the Behring Sea was included in the phrase 'Pacific Ocean' as used in the Treaty of 1825 between Great Britain and Russia, We, the said Arbitrators, do unanimously decide and determine that the body of water now known as the Behring Sea was included in the phrase · Pacific Ocean' as used in the said Treaty.

And as to so much of the said third point as requires us to decide what rights, if any, in the Behring Sea were held and exclusively exercised by Russia after the said Treaty of 1825, We, the said Baron de Courcel, Mr. Justice Harlan, Lord Hannen, Sir John Thompson, Marquis Visconti Venosta and Mr. Gregers Gram, being a majority of the said Arbitrators, do decide and determine that no exclusive rights of jurisdiction in Behring Sea and no exclusive rights as to the seal fisheries therein, were held or exercised by Russia outside of ordinary territorial waters after the Treaty of 1825.

"As to the fourth of the said five points, We, the said Arbitrators, do unanimously decide and determine that all the rights of Russia as to jurisdiction and as to the seal fisheries in Behring Sea, east of the water boundary, in the Treaty between the United States and Russia of the 30th March 1867, did pass unimpaired to the United under the said Treaty.

"As to the fifth of the said five points, We, the said Baron de Courcel, Lord Hannen, Sir John Thompson, Marquis Visconti Venosta and Mr. Gregers Gram, being a majority of the said arbitrators, do decide and determine that the United States has not any right of protection or property in the fur-seals frequenting the islands of the United States in Behring Sea, when such seals are found outside the ordinary three-mile limit.

"And whereas the aforesaid determination of the foregoing questions as to the exclusive jurisdiction of the United States mentioned in Article VI leaves the subject in such a position that the concurrence of Great Britain is necessary to the establishment of Regulations for the proper protection and preservation of the fur-seal in or

H. Doc. 551-58