Page:Journal of the Sixth Legislative Council of the Territory of Michigan.djvu/151

5.] not intersect Lake Erie, or if it should intersect the said Lake Erie, east of the mouth of the Miami river, then in that case, with the assent of the Congress of the United States, the northern boundary of this state shall be established by and extend to a direct line, running from the southern extremity of Lake Michigan to the most northerly cape of the Miami bay, after intersecting the due north line from the mouth of the great Miami, as aforesaid, thence northeast to the territorial line, and by the said territorial line to the Pennsylvania line." The constitution, proposing this modification, was submitted to Congress, and referred on the 23d of December, 1802, in the House of Representatives, to a committee of which Mr. Randolph was chairman. This committee reported on the 2d of February following, that with respect to the change proposed by Ohio in her northern boundary, "as the suggested alteration was not submitted in the shape of a distinct proposition, by any competent authority, for approval or disapproval, it was not necessary or expedient for Congress to act on it at all."

On the 19th of February, an act was passed, extending the laws of the United States over the State of Ohio, and the preamble to this declares, that the people of the eastern division of the North- Western Territory, had formed a constitution and state government, in pursuance of the act of Congress before referred to, authorizing such state government to be formed. And on the 3d of March, 1803, another act was passed assenting to certain propositions made by Ohio; but in neither of these acts is any notice taken of the proposed change in the boundary.

The Territory of Michigan was established by the act of Congress of January 11, 1805, and its southern boundary was declared to be a line drawn due east from the southern extreme of Lake Michigan to Lake Erie. And by another act, passed May 20, 1812, the Surveyor General was authorized to cause to be run, under the direction of the President, so much of the northern and western boundaries of Ohio, which had not already been ascertained, and as divided said State from the Territories of Indiana and Michigan, agreeably to the boundaries as established by the act entitled, "An Act to enable the people of the eastern division of the territory north-west of the river Ohio, to frame a constitution and state government, and for the admission of such State into the Union, on an equal footing with the original States, and for other purposes," "and to cause to be made a plat or plan of so much of the boundary line, as runs from the southerly extreme of Lake Michigan to Lake Erie," &c.

The events of the war upon this frontier prevented the execution of the duties enjoined by this act; but on the 16th of April, 1816, another appropriation was made for carrying it into effect, and under the directions of the President, the line was run, in conformity