Secretary of State Root reports that some American vessels have been forbidden to fish off the treaty coast and details the expectations of the treaty between Newfoundland and the United States. Root also discusses a Newfoundland act that may be the source of the confusion: “An Act respecting foreign fishing vessels,” which makes it a crime for American vessels to have Canadian bait fish and other items necessary to fishing on them, but which also says that if these things are on the ship then they must be assumed to have come from Newfoundland, and the ship can be seized, thus abrogating the 1818 Treaty.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-10-19

Creator(s)

Root, Elihu, 1845-1937

Recipient

Durand, H. Mortimer (Henry Mortimer), 1850-1924

Language

English

Period

U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)

Repository

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Page Count

9

Production Method

Typed

Record Type

Multi-image

Resource Type

Letter

Rights

These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.

Citation

Cite this Record

Chicago:

Letter from Elihu Root to H. Mortimer Durand. [October 19, 1905]. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o51608. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.

MLA:

Root, Elihu, 1845-1937. Letter from Elihu Root to H. Mortimer Durand. [19 Oct. 1905]. Multi-image.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. January 29, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o51608.

APA:

Root, Elihu, 1845-1937., [1905, October 19]. Letter from Elihu Root to H. Mortimer Durand.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o51608.

Cite this Collection

Chicago:

Library of Congress Manuscript Division. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.

MLA:

Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. January 29, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division.

APA:

Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division.