Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 20.pdf/344

 KATHARINE

326

B.

JUDSON

"5th. The position on the Columbia River occupied by the Americans, and now ordered to be restored to them in pursuance of the first article of the Treaty of Ghent, but under a

protest as to their right to the same." If actual douSt existed as to sovereignty, the commissioners were to consider a species of stipulation which would serve

the rights of all states from being prejudiced by a transaction which the British government were then parties so read

to

He urged them to adopt some prinsuch as a parallel, to save delay and expense of survey. The question was to be settled if possible by amicable discussion, or referred for adjudication similar to Castlereagh's instructions.

ciple of demarkation,

the 4th, 5th and 6th articles of the Treaty of Ghent. During the discussion on the North- West Coast of America, incident to the joint-occupancy treaty, three subjects: the

Columbia River, the North- West boundary, and the problem of captured negroes, the United States refused to submit to arbitration, because (1), of the difficulty of an impartial arbitration, its

own

and (2), because the United States preferred to keep affairs to itself. So wrote Henry Gouldburn to Lord

41 Castlereagh, August 29th, 1818.

A month later, September 26th, 1818, Gouldburn wrote to Lord Castlereagh with regard to the American claims on the North-West Coast of America, and one can fairly feel the gasp of amazement in his letter. The words in italics were underscored by him.

The

He

wrote

41a

"article for settling the

boundary

to the

westward of

Rocky Mountains, claimed on

the part of the United States, an extent of territory beyond what had ever been contemplated as belonging to them. the

"They stated it generally to rest on the right of prior discovery and occupation, but in the statements which they subsequently made, they appeared rather to address agreements mouth of the Columbia River,

in support of their claim to the

than to the whole of the interior territory which the terms of their article conveyed to them." 41 F O. 41 a F. O.

s,

5,

Vol. 138. Vol. 138.