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formed by the citizens of the United States, or under the authority of the said States, any establishment upon the north-west coast of America, nor in any of the islands adjacent, to the north of fifty-four degrees and forty minutes of north latitude; and that, in the same manner, there shall be none formed by Russian subjects, or under the authority of Russia, south of the same parallel.

"Art. 4. It is, nevertheless, understood, that, during a term of ten years, counting from the signature of the present Convention, the ships of both powers, or which belong to their citizens or subjects, respectively, may reciprocally frequent, without any hinderance whatever, the interior seas, gulfs, harbors, and creeks, upon the coast mentioned in the preceding article, for the purpose of fishing and trading with the natives of the country."

Conven

between

tain and

Russia.

Great Britain had also formally protested against tion of 1825 the claims and principles set forth in the Russian ukase Great Bri- of 1821, immediately on its promulgation, and subsequently at the Congress of Verona. The controversy, as between the British and Russian governments, was finally closed by a convention signed at Petersburg, February 16–28, 1825, which also established a permanent boundary between the territories respectively claimed by them on the continent and islands of North-western America.

This treaty contained the following stipulations:

"Art. 1. It is agreed that the respective subjects of the high contracting parties shall not be troubled or molested in any part of the ocean commonly called the Pacific Ocean, either in navigating the same, in fishing therein, or in landing at such part of the coast as shall not have been already occupied, in order to trade with the natives, under the restrictions and conditions specified in the following articles:

"Art. 2. In order to prevent the right of navigating and fishing, exercised upon the ocean by the subjects of the high contracting parties, from becoming the pretext for an illicit commerce, it is agreed that the subjects of his Britannic Majesty shall not land at any place where there may be a Russian establishment, without the permission of the governor or commandant; and, on the other hand, that Russian subjects shall not land, without permission, at any British establishment on the north-west coast."

By the 3d and 4th articles it was agreed that "the line of

demarcation between the possessions of the high contracting parties upon the coast of the continent and the islands of America to the north-west," should be drawn from the southernmost point of Prince of Wales's island, in latitude 54 degrees 40 minutes eastward, to the great inlet in the continent called Portland Channel, and along the middle of that inlet to the 56th degree of latitude, whence it should follow the summit of the mountains bordering the coast, within ten leagues northwestward, to Mount St. Elias, and thence north, in the course of the 141st meridian west from Greenwich, to the frozen ocean, "which line shall form the limit between the Russian and the British possessions in the continent of America to the northwest."

"Art. 5. It is, moreover, agreed that no establishment shall be formed by either of the two parties within the limits assigned by the two preceding articles to the possessions of the other. Consequently, British subjects shall not form any establishment, either upon the coast, or upon the border of the continent comprised within the limits of the Russian possessions, as designated in the two preceding articles; and, in like manner, no establishment shall be formed by Russian subjects beyond the said limits.

"Art. 6. It is understood that the subjects of his Britannic Majesty, from whatever quarter they may arrive, whether from the ocean or from the interior of the continent, shall forever enjoy the right of navigating freely, and without any hinderance whatever, all the rivers and streams which in their course towards the Pacific Ocean may cross the line of demarcation upon the line of coast described in article 3 of the present convention.

"Art. 7. It is also understood, that, for the space of ten years from the signature of the present Convention, the vessels of the two powers, or those belonging to their respective subjects, shall mutually be at liberty to frequent, without any hinderance whatever, all the inland seas, gulfs, havens, and creeks on the coast, mentioned in article 3, for the purpose of fishing and trading with the natives.

"Art. 8. The port of Sitka, or Novo Archangelsk, shall be open to the commerce and vessels of British subjects for the space of ten years, from the date of the exchange of the ratifications of the present convention. In the event of an extension of

this term being granted to any other power, the like extension shall be granted also to Great Britain.

"Art. 9. The above-mentioned liberty of commerce shall not apply to the trade in spirituous liquors, in fire-arms, or other arms, gunpowder or other warlike stores; the high contracting parties reciprocally engaging not to permit the above-mentioned articles to be sold or delivered, in any manner whatever, to the natives of the country.

of the Con

1824 between the United States and Russia.

The 10th and 11th articles contain regulations respecting British or Russian vessels, navigating the Pacific Ocean, and putting into the ports of the respective parties in distress; and for the settlement of all cases of complaint arising under the treaty.1 (a) Expiration In the mean time, the period of ten years, established vention of by the 4th article of the Convention between the United States and Russia, during which the vessels of both nations might frequent the bays, creeks, harbors, and other interior waters on the north-western coast of America, had expired. The Russian government had chosen to consider that article as the only limitation of its right to exclude American vessels from all parts of the division of the coast, on which the United States stipulated to form no establishments; disregarding entirely the 1st article of the Convention, by which all unoccupied places on the north-western coast were declared free and open to the citizens or subjects of both parties - American vessels were consequently prohibited by the Russian authorities from trading on the unoccupied parts of that coast, north of the parallel of 54th degree 40 minutes. The American government protested against this prohibition, and at the same time, proposed to the Russian government to renew the stipulations of the Convention of 1824, for an indefinite period of time.2

In the letter of instructions from the Secretary of State, Mr. Forsyth, to the American Minister at Petersburg, it was stated, that if the 4th article was to be considered as merely applicable

1 Greenhow, History of Oregon and California, p. 469: Proofs and Illustrations, I. No. 5.

(a) [In the treaty of commerce, of June 11, 1843, between Great Britain and Russia, it is provided that the convention of February, 1825, shall govern as to the trade on the north-west coast of America. Parliamentary Papers, 1843.] 2 Greenhow, pp. 343-361.

to parts of the coast unoccupied, then it merely provided for the temporary enjoyment of a privilege which existed in perpetuity, under the law of nations, and which had been expressly declared so to exist by a previous article of the Convention. Containing, therefore, no provision not embraced in the preceding article, it would be useles and of no effect. But the rule in regard to the construction of an instrument, of whatever kind, was, that it should be so construed, if possible, as that every part may stand. If the article were construed to include points of the coast already occupied, it then took effect, thus far, as a temporary exception to a perpetual prohibition, and the only consequence of the expiration of the term to which it was limited, would be the immediate and continued operation of the prohibition.

It was still more reasonable to understand it, however, as intended to grant permission to enter interior bays, &c., at the mouths of which there might be establishments, or the shores of which might be, in part, but not wholly, occupied by such establishments, thus providing for a case which would otherwise admit of doubt, as without the 4th article it would be questionable whether the bays, &c., described in it belonged to the first or second article.

In no sense could it be understood as implying an acknowledgment, on the part of the United States, of the right of Russia to the possession of the coast above the latitude of 54 degrees 40 minutes north. It must be taken in connection with the other articles of the Convention, which had, in fact, no reference whatever to the question of the right of possession of the unoccupied part of the coast. In a spirit of compromise, and to prevent future collisions or difficulties, it was agreed that no new establishments should be formed by the respective parties to the north or south of a certain parallel of latitude, after the conclusion of the agreement; but the question of the right of possession beyond the existing establishments, as it subsisted previously to, or at the time of the conclusion of the convention, was left untouched. The United States, in agreeing not to form new establishments to the north of latitude 54 degrees 40 minutes north, made no acknowledgment of the right of Russia to the territory above that line. If such an admission had been made, Russia, by the same construction of the article, must have acknowledged the right of the United States to the territory

south of the designated line. But that Russia did not so understand the article, was conclusively proved by her having entered into a similar agreement in a subsequent treaty (1825) with Great Britain; and having, in fact, acknowledged in that instrument the right of the same territory by Great Britain. The United States could only be considered as acknowledging the right of Russia to acquire, by actual occupation, a just claim to unoccupied lands above the latitude 54 degrees 40 minutes north; and even this was mere matter of inference, as the Convention of 1824 contains nothing more than a negation of the right of the United States to occupy new points within that limit.

Admitting that this inference was just, and was in contemplation of the parties to the Convention, it would not follow that the United States ever intended to abandon the just right acknowledged by the first article to belong to them under the law of nations, i. e. to frequent any part of the unoccupied coasts of North America, for the purpose of fishing or trading with the natives. All that the Convention admitted was an inference of the right of Russia to acquire possession by settlement north of 54 degrees 40 minutes north. Until that actual possession was taken, the first article of the Convention acknowledged the right of the United States to fish and trade as prior to its negotiation. This was not only the just construction, but it was the one both parties were interested in putting upon the instrument, as the benefits were equal and mutual, and the object of the Convention, to avoid converting the exercise of the common right into a dispute about exclusive privilege, was secured by it.

These arguments were not controverted by the Russian cabinet, which, however, declined the proposition for a renewal of the engagements contained in the 4th article, and the matter still rests on the same footing.1

Claim of

States to

The claim of the United States to the territory bethe United tween the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, the Oregon and between the 42d degree and 54th degrees and 40 minutes of north latitude, is rested by them upon the following grounds:

territory.

1 Mr. Forsyth's letter to Mr. Dallas, Nov. 3, 1837. Congress. Documents, Sess. 1838-9. Vol. i. p. 36. Greenhow, pp. 361-363

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