ANDERSON, Raoul et al. North Atlantic Maritime Cultures. La Haye, Mouton, 1979, 370 p.
Notes de lecture :
p.111 From a political standpoint, the Lower North
Shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence is of special interest to the
anthropologist for two reasons. First, until 1963, none of the fourteen
fishing communities of this region possessed a formal political
structure. Second, after 1963, all of these communities were united into
a single municipality by a decision of the Quebec government, and
'local committees' were created in each of them.
Prior to 1963, the population of this area was incorporated in the
larger political units of Quebec and Canada. But political organization
on a local level, characterized by highly independent family production
units, was more comparable to those of bands than to agricultural and
fishing communities traditionally studied by anthropologists.
p.112 1820, which marks the end of the monopolistic
regime of royal concessions; and 1963, the year of establishment of the
municipality of the North Shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The period
before 1820 will not be treated here. In brief it was characterized by
an p.113 absence of a stationary population and the quasi-absolutist power enjoyed by holders in a feudallike era.
p.113 Absence of Formal Political Authority, 1820-1851
Following the abolition of the monopoly of the Labrador Company(2)
over salmon and seal fishing stations and fur trade with the Montagnais
Indians, the territory of the Lower North Shore was occupied in a
permanent way by settlers primerly from Quebec and Newfoundland. The
first to install themselves were former employees of the Labrador
Company who bought from the company rights to operate the fiching
stations and equipement left there.
(2) The Labrador Company was composed of English merchants from
Quebec and Montreal who owned all the salmon and seal fishing stations
between Natagamiou (western arm of the Petit-Mecatina River) and
Blanc-Sablon, the Eastern limiti with Newfoundland's Labrador. This
company declared bankruptcy in 1820 and was dissolved. The other salmon
fishing stations between Kegashka River and Etamamiou River belonged to
the Hudson's Bay Company which lost its rights on them in 1852.
p.114
Fishing Regulations and Fishery Officers, 1852-1921
The Union government first intervened in 1852 when it named an
officer responsible for fishery protection of the entire Quebec coast of
the Gulf of St. Lawrence. He soon had under his authority a boat armed
with cannon and small firearms. This was necessary to establish order
among the thousands of fishermen of different backgrounds who went to
the Gulf waters yearly at this time. Dr. P. E. Fortin and Capt. Wakeham,
holders of this position for fifteen and thirty-five years,
respectively, have left us valuable accounts of their activities in this
role (Fortin 1852-1868 [1855-1867]; Canada 1868-1917).
Relatively severe legislation for that time was enacted in 1857-1858.
It was designed to provide the legal tools requisite to effective
control of the fishing activities. This legislation sought to control
the number of salmon and seal fishermen by limiting the number of
fishing licences to the stationary fisheries, regulate distances between
fixed fishing gear, control the size of mesh in the nets, and to end
the egg-gathering industry. The officer in charge of the fisheries was
also stipendiary magistrate and was thus endowed with important
judiciary powers : He could judge all fishing law infractions and issue
orders in situations involving violations of the [p.115] criminal code (cf., Martin's discussion of the fishery officer's role in modern Newfoundland, this volume).
These strong legislative and administrative measures soon bore fruit,
and ten years after he entered the service, Capt. Fortin (1852-1868
[1862-1863:70] assessed the activities of the Fishery Protection Service
of the St. Lawrence Gulf in the following terms.
