That men-of-war of all nations have, with a view to insuring the safety of traffic, the power of verifying the flags of suspicious merchantmen of all nations, has already been stated above (§ 266, No. 2). non mutat § 279. The question as to the property in the seized Pirata piratical vessels and the goods thereon has been the domi subject of much controversy. During the seventeenth nium. century, the practice of several States conceded such vessel and goods to the captor as a premium. But during the eighteenth century the rule pirata non mutat dominium became more and more recognised. Nowadays the conviction would seem to be general that ship and goods have to be restored to their proprietors, and may be conceded to the captor only when the real ownership cannot be ascertained. In the first case, however, a certain percentage of the value is very often conceded to the captor as a premium and an equivalent for his expenses (socalled droit de recousse.) Thus, according to British Law, a salvage of 12 per cent. is to be paid to the captor of the pirate. to Municipal Law. according § 280. Piracy, according to the Law of Nations, Piracy which has been defined above (§ 272) as every un authorised act of violence against persons or goods committed on the Open Sea either by a private vessel against another vessel or by the mutinous crew or passengers against their own vessel, must not be confounded with the conception of piracy German Courts (see Perels, § 17). From article 104 of Stephen's Digest of the Criminal Law, there seems to be no doubt that according to English Law all pirates are liable to be punished. See details regarding the question as to the piratical vessels and goods in Pradier-Fodéré, V * See section 5 of the "Act to according to the different Municipal Laws. The single States may confine themselves to punishing as piracy a narrower circle of acts of violence than that which the Law of Nations defines as piracy. On the other hand, they may punish their subjects as pirates for a much wider circle of acts. Thus, for instance, according to the Criminal Law of England, every English subject is inter alia deemed to be a pirate who gives aid or comfort upon the sea to the King's enemies during a war, or who transports slaves on the High Seas. However, since a State cannot on the Open Sea enforce its Municipal Laws against others than its own subjects, no State can treat such foreign subjects on the Open Sea as pirates as are not pirates according to the Law of Nations. Thus, when in 1858, before the abolition of slavery in America, British men-of-war molested American vessels suspected of carrying slaves, the United States objected and rightly complained.3 1 See Calvo, $$ 488-492; Lawrence, § 123; Pradier-Fodéré, V. Nos. 2501 and 2502. 2 See Stephen, Digest of the Criminal Law, articles 104-117. VI FISHERIES IN THE OPEN SEA Grotius, II. c. 3, § 4-Vattel, I. § 287-Hall, § 27-Lawrence, § 111Phillimore, I. §§ 181-195-Twiss, I. § 185-Taylor, §§ 249-250Wharton, II. §§ 300-308-Wheaton, §§ 167-171-Bluntschli, § 307 -Stoerk in Holtzendorff, II. pp. 504-507-Gareis, § 62-Liszt, § 34-Ullmann, § 92-Bonfils, Nos. 581-582, 595-Pradier-Fodéré, V. Nos. 2446-2458-Rivier, I. pp. 243-245-Calvo, I. §§ 357-364Fiore, II. Nos. 728-729-Martens, I. § 98-Perels, § 20-Hall, "Foreign Powers and Jurisdiction" (1894), § 107-David, "La pêche maritime au point de vue international” (1897). in the $281. Whereas the fisheries in the territorial Fisheries maritime belt can be reserved by the riparian State Open Sea for its own subjects, it is an inference of the freedom free to all of the Open Sea that the fisheries thereon are open to vessels of all nations. 1 Denmark silently, by fishing regulations of 1872, dropped her claim to an exclusive right of fisheries within twenty miles of the coast of Iceland. (See Hall, § 40, p. 153, note 2.) A case of a particular kind would seem to be the pearl fishery off Ceylon, which extends to a distance of twenty miles from the shore and for which regulations are in force which are enforced against foreign as well as British subjects. The claim on which these regulations are based is one "to the products of certain submerged portions of land which have been treated from time immemorial by the successive rulers of the island as subject of property and jurisdiction." See Hall, Foreign Powers and Juris diction (1894), p. 243, note I. See also Westlake, I. p. 186, who says: "The case of the pearl fishery is peculiar, the pearls being obtained from the sea bottom by divers, so that it has a physical connection with the stable element of the locality which is wanting to the Since, however, vessels pursuit of fish swimming in the water. When carried on under State protection, as that off the British island of Ceylon, or that in the Persian Gulf which is protected by British ships in pursu ance of treaties with certain chiefs of the Arabian mainland, it may be regarded as an occupation of the bed of the sea. In that character the pearl fishery will be territorial even though the shallow. ness of the water may allow it to be practised beyond the limit which the State in question generally fixes for the littoral sea, as in the case of Ceylon it is practised beyond the three miles limit generally recognised by Great Britain. 'Qui doutera,' says Vattel (I. § 28), que les pêcheries de Bahrein et de Ceylon ne puissent légitimement tomber en propriété ?' And the territorial nature of the industry will carry with it, as being necessary for its protection, the territorial character of the spot." Nations. Fisheries in the remain whilst on the Open Sea under the jurisdiction of their flag State, every State possessing a maritime flag can legislate concerning the exercise of fisheries on the Open Sea on the part of vessels sailing under its flag. And for the same reason a State can by an international agreement renounce its fisheries on certain parts of the Open Sea, and accordingly interdict its vessels from exercising fisheries there. If certain circumstances and conditions make it advisable to restrict and regulate the fisheries on some parts of the Open Sea, the Powers are therefore able to create restrictions and regulations for that purpose through international treaties. Such treaties have been concluded-first, with regard to the fisheries in the North Sea and the suppression of the liquor trade among the fishing vessels in that Sea; secondly, with regard to the seal fisheries in the Behring Sea; thirdly, with regard to the fisheries around the Faröe Islands and Iceland. § 282. For the purpose of regulating the fisheries North Sea. in the North Sea, an International Conference took place at the Hague in 1881 and again in 1882, at which Great Britain, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland, and Sweden-Norway were represented, and on May 6, 1882, the International Convention for the Regulation of the Police of the Fisheries in the North Sea outside the territorial waters was signed by the representatives of all these States, Sweden-Norway excepted, to which the option of joining later on is given. This treaty contains the following stipulations : 2— (1) All the fishing vessels of the signatory Powers must be registered, and the registers have to be 1 Martens, N.R.G. 2nd ser. IX. P. 556. 2 The matter is exhaustively treated by Rykere, Le régime exchanged between the Powers (article 5). Every vessel has to bear visibly in white colour on black ground its number, name, and the name of its harbour (articles 6-11). Every vessel must bear an official voucher of her nationality (articles 12-13). (2) To avoid conflicts between the different fishing vessels, very minute interdictions and injunctions are provided (articles 14-25). (3) The supervision of the fisheries by the fishing vessels of the signatory Powers is exercised by special cruisers of these Powers (article 26). With the exception of those contraventions which are specially enumerated by article 27, all these cruisers are competent to verify all contraventions committed by the fishing vessels of all the signatory Powers (article 28). For that purpose they have the right of visit, search, and arrest (article 29). But a seized fishing vessel is to be brought into a harbour of her flag State and to be handed over to the authorities there (article 30). All contraventions are to be tried by the Courts of the State to which the contravening vessels belong (article 36); but in cases of a trifling character the matter can be compromised on the spot by the commanders of the special public cruisers of the Powers (article 33). in the § 283. Connected with the regulation of the Bumboats fisheries is the abolition of the liquor trade among North Sea the fishing vessels in the North Sea. Since serious quarrels and difficulties were caused through bumboats and floating grog-shops selling intoxicating légal de la pêche maritime dans la Mer de Nord (1901). To carry out the obligations undertaken by her in the Convention for the regulation of the fisheries in the North Sea, Great Britain enacted in 1883 the "Act to carry into |