JL .FS D c.2 Reprinted from the 1967 Annual Review of the Fisheries Council of Canada. s n its first one hundred years of nationhood, Canada has been fortu- I nate in the calibre of men responsi- of Canada 1867-1967 ble for the administration and development of its fisheries resources. by R. N. WADDEN Federal responsibility for fisheries was 111/ormation & Consumer Service, written into the British orth meri- De partme nt of Fisheries of Canada, Ottawa ca ct \vhich listed "Sea-Coast and lnland Fisheries" among the subjects within the exclusive jurisdiction of the from 1856 to l 61, and in the Legisla- Parliament of Canada. Over the vears, tive Council from l861 to 1867. He certain aspects of the fisheries ha ve was a member of the Tillev adminis- been delegated to the provinces for tration from 1858 tO 1865. in 1864 he administration, but it is Parliament was a delegate tO the Quebec and which must approve and enact any Charlottetown conferences which re- amendments to fisheries legislation. su lted in the Confederation agreement, During most of its first century, the and he appears in the famous "Fathers federal fisherie service formed a of Confederation" painting of the branch or division of what was kno\\'n Charlottetown group. as the Department of Mlarine and He became Premier of New Bruns- Fisheries. There were brief period , wick in April, 1 66, on the defeat of too, when it was anached to other the anti-Confederation government of department, but by 1930, it \\'as finally l864-65. As Premier, he attended to recognized that the many problems of the final arrangements for the entry· the fisheries required the anemion of of New Brunswick into Confedera- a ;\linister of the Cabinet, and a tion. separate Fisheries Department then In May, 1867, he was appointed tO came into being. the Senate, and as a Senator entered The importance of fisheries was the fir t dominion government a realized from the earliest years, not Mlinister of Mlarine and Fisheries. He only because of the industry's impact resigned his Senate seat in 1872 and on employment and export trade, but Hon. PETER MITCHELL was elected a an lndependent Liberal becau e of the extensive international in Northumberland constituency. He negotiations required for discus ion of A a matter of interest, the total remained a Minister of Marine and fisheries problems. The admini tration expenditure for the Fi heries Branch Fisheries until the defeat of the first of Canada' fisheries was marked by a in the financial vear from J uly 1, 186 MacDonald government in 1873 but constant effort to protect the resource to June 30, i 6 ' amounted to continued to represent his constitu- from outside exploitation and from 32, .49. During the ame period ency as an independent Liberal until over-fi hing by its own fishermen. there was collected as fishery revenues J 878, and again from 1882 to 1891. At Confederation, responsibility for the sum of 19,536.51. Another turn in his career came in fisheries was entrusted to the Depart- Jn the 100 years since its e tablish- l873, following his term as a cabinet ment of ,\larine and Fisheries. The mem, the fisheries service of Canada minister, when he became editor of Fisherie Branch of the Cro\\'n Lands ha been administered by no fewer the Montreal Herald. Twelve years Branch of the old Canada (i.e. On- than 30 individual cabinet ministers. later he became its proprietor. He. died tario and Quebec) was incorporated Sixteen of these headed larger depart- in Mlontreal October 25, 1899. in the new Department, which was ment , which included fi heries among Peter Mitchell's term as Minister of divided into two branches, one dealing their responsibilities; fourteen have Marine and Fi heries established a with ,Mlarine and the other with erved ince a separate Department of panern of administration which was Fi heries. Fisherie was created. Over the vears, largely- followed by hi ucce sor . Ir the list of ministers has included many was the permanent staff of the fisherie Royal ssent in 1868 outstanding Canadians - provincial branch which continued this pattern. premiers, lieutenant-gO\·ernor , judges, Legislation creating the new depart- as the attention of succeeding minis- senators, war heroes, la wyers, profe - ters was largely directed to interna- ment and outlining it re ponsibilitie , sors. Several \\'ere honoured with ''An Act for the Regulation of Fishing tional fisheries questions. knighthood or, in more recent years, Sir Albert mith. who erved a and the Protection of Fisheries," was with university doctorates, be towed J. 6 ,\larine and Fisheries Minister 1873-7 , given Royal As em on May 22, 1 . in recognition of their services to The Fisheries Act incorpo;ated exi t- Canada's fisheries. had been a leader of the anti-Con- ing provincial laws and included Canada's first ,\Jinister of Fisheries federation government of Xew Bruns- among it provis ions the establishment was Hon. Peter .\litchell of New \\'ick in l 65-66. He \\'a created a of a staff of federal fishery officer , Brunswick, one of the Fathers of Con- K.C.M.G. in I 7 for his services in introduction of federal licence and federation. Born in N ewcastle, N.B., connection with the Ha li fax Fishery lea e , clo ed sea ons for salmon and on January 4, 1824, he rudied law and Commission established under the other major species, prohibition of was called to the Bar of New Brun - Treaty· of W ashingron, by· which water pollution, and prohibition of wick in 18 48. H e served in the Legis- Canada received an award of ap- unday fishing. lati ve Assembly of New Bruns\\'ick proximately- $4.5 million to be paid by 1 rhe Cnired rates. The interest of rhis Hon. Cyrus Mac illan sum was allocated for the payment of On June 17, 1930, Hon. Dr. Cyrus annual fishing bounties to Canadian MacMillan was sworn in as Canada's Atlantic Coast fishermen. first Minister of Fi heries. His ap- SucceedincrMi 1inisternisterss responsible for pointment followed the division of fisheries are in brief, with the old Department of Marine and the term of office in brackers: Fisheries into two eparate depart- Hon. James C. Pope (1878-1 2) as ments. (The Department of Marine, Premier of Prince Edward lsland op- establi shed at the same time, was in- posed entry into Confederation in corporated in 1936 into the Depart- ment of Transport). Hon. P. ]. A. 1867, seeking more favourable .terms, Cardin, who had served as Minister of but Jed his province into union in Marine and Fisheries from 192+ to 1873. 1930, became \linister of Marine un- Hon. A. \ W. McLelan ( 18 2-1885) der the new division of duties. of ova Scotia headed the department Dr. \1acMillao, a native of Prince when the M ari ne and Fisheries Edward Island, had been a member branches were placed under separate of the Royal Commission on the deputy ministers. This arrangement Fisherie of the Maritime Provinces ended in 1892. He was a Senator for and the Magdalen lslands in 192 -192 . 12 years but resigned to win election Earlier he was a member of the Royal to the Commons prior to his appoint- Commission on Maritime Claims. In ment to the cabinet. He was later 1929, he was appointed by the Govern- named Lieutenant-GO\·ernor of ova ment of Prince Edward Island as cotia. avy. He wa appointed to the Chairman of its Commission on Edu- Court of Canada in 191 l. He Sir George E. Foster (1885-1888) .of Supreme canon. N ew Brunswick had a long and dis- re igoed in 1923 but died shortly after He \\'as born at Wood's Island, tinguished career of public. service, accepting appointment as Lieutenant- P.E.1., September 12, 1882. He was beginning with his term as Minister of Governor of Quebec. educated at Prince of \ Vales College, \larine and Fisheries, and highlighted Hon. Rodolphe Lemieux ( 1911) Charlottetown, McGill niversity, by a period as Acting Prime Minister served le s than two months as Marine Montreal, and Harvard niversity of Canada in 1920 when Sir Robert and Fisheries minister when the Lau- where he obtained his doctorate de- Borden was absent through ill health. rier government was defeated. He was gree. On the staff of McGill niver- He was appointed a Senator in 1921. appointed a Senator in 1930. sity from 1910, until retirement, he Sir Charle Hibbert Tupper ( 1888- Sir John D. Hazen (1911-1917) was became Professor of English and Head i894) of Nova Scotia was the son of Premier of New Brunswick from 1908 of the English Department in 192 5. ir Charles Tupper, one of the Fathers to 1911 when he resigned to enter the During the First \Vorld " ar, he of Confederation. He was created a Borden government at Ottawa. In served O\'erseas with the Canadian K.C.M.G. for his services as agent of 1914 when Fisheries was transferred Expeditionary Forces. He assisted in the British Government in the Bering to the newly-formed Department of organizing the 7th Canadian Seige Sea arbitration in 1893. Naval Service, he became Minister of Battery and in 1917 was placed in Hon. John Costigan ( 189+-l 96) of that Department. H e was appointed command of the 6th Batten' with the New Brunswick was chief spokesman Chief Justice of New Brunswick m rank of Major. He was twice men- in his day for Irish Roman Catholics 19 1 7. tioned in despatches for gallant con- in Canad.a.