EXECUTIVE MANSION, _December 8, 1886_.
_To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States_:
I transmit herewith a letter from the Secretary of State, which is
accompanied by the correspondence in relation to the rights of American
fishermen in the British North American waters, and commend to your
favorable consideration the suggestion that a commission be authorized
by law to take perpetuating proofs of the losses sustained during the
past year by American fishermen owing to their unfriendly and
unwarranted treatment by the local authorities of the maritime provinces
of the Dominion of Canada.
I may have occasion hereafter to make further recommendations during the
present session for such remedial legislation as may become necessary
for the protection of the rights of our citizens engaged in the open-sea
fisheries in the North Atlantic waters.