The Sun.
London, England, 1859-10-10 00:00:00

complete and exclusive sovereign rights within the
fairly disported limits. The President of the United
States at the same time recorded the expression of
sincere hope that by following this reasonable course
" all differences will be avoided, until an adjustment
of the line (of boundary between the territories of
England and America) can be made in a manner
mutually satisfactory."
This friendly invitation of the United States Go-
vernment was accepted willingly as soon as made ;
and from that time—in the year 1855—t0 this day
neither the British Government nor the local (Co-
lonial) Government, nor any individual British sub-
ject has done, nor committed, nor allowed, nor in-
stigated, directly or by implication, a single act
contrary to this understanding, or in contravention
or evasion of the tacit arrangement then come to.
The state of affairs which existed on the Island of
San Juan in 1855 has been continued unaltered.
No land has been sold, donated, or promised, and no
further settlement than then existed has been made
or attempted. The understanding then established
between the two Governments has been scrupu-
lously observed by Great Britain and her subjects,
although their long-formed convictions of our inde-
feasible title to the island have been much strength-
ened in the interval, as the nature of the respective
claims to its sovereignty has been more closely exa-
mined.

I assert again that Great Britain and her sub-
jects kept the arrangement of neutrality strictly
and honourably, and it should be known, to their
credit, that they did so in the face of much provo-
cation, annoyance, and loss during the last year
from American squatters. To this assertion I
challenge contradiction. We observed the neu-
trality. Not so, however, our more impulsive and
less scrupulous neighbours.
Last winter an " excitement" was got up in our
very midst in Victoria among the American resi-
dents for "speculation" in land on San Juan, and
the machinery usually applied to the settlement of
new territory was set in motion to bolster the specu-
lation. A surveyor was despatched to the scene, a
full and complete survey of the best " locations" on
the island was promised, and " claims" were pre-
ferred to favourite spots for "homesteads," so as
to secure the pre-emption rights of American citi-
zens when the island should be taken possession
of by America—a consummation which the " specu-
lators" promised to be near at hand. All this was
done publicly and without disguise. Nor was this all.
During this present year American squatters on the
island began to act with so much boldness and ar-
rogance towards the English subjects as created a
suspicion in the minds of the latter that this high-
handed conduct received countenance from high
quarters. This suspicion was well-founded. A
squatter whose conduct was exceedingly ruffianly
told me on the island that the authorities of Wash-
ington territory had promised him before he left
that place that the United States' Government
would protect him and all other " citizens" in their
squatter rights in San Juan.
These breaches of neutrality and other unjusti-
fiable acts of American squatters the local Govern-
ment of Vancouver's Island endured in silence,
although requested to interfere to protect British
property, out of respect to the understanding come
to with the American Government in 1855.
In this state of affairs, without any notice whis-
pered, without any complaint preferred, and with-
out waiting for a settlement of the question of
sovereignty, the invasion is suddenly and secretly
made, accompanied by a band of armed " citizens"
of the neighbouring territory as volunteers, whom
the officer in charge of the military liberally invited
to help themselves to locations of land wherever
their choice might lead them, and to whom he pro-
mised protection in their squatter rights.
The officer in charge of the detachment of United
States troops loses no time in explaining his posi-
tion. On the date of the day of his landing he
issues a public notice, which in its arbitrariness
sounds like a parody of one of Napoleon the Great's
decrees when he was " annexing" his neighbour's
territories. This notice declares the island to be
United States territory ; establishes a military post
thereon ; and kindly places the island under the
aegis of American laws exclusively. The conquest
would appear to be consummated to the satisfac-
tion of the parties engaged in it, by a sort
of proclamation, issued in the name of a person
brought with the expedition, styling himself a
" Resident Magistrate," appointing a couple of
" constables on and for the precinct of San Juan,
county of Whatcom and territory of Washington,
whom all persons are commanded in the name of
the United States to obey as such."
This sapient " magistrate" ignores the fact that
there are British subjects on the island, who will
naturally look to their own Government for pro-
tection to their lives and property, in preference to
" the Magistrate of the precinct" or his two con-
stables. This gentleman would seem also to ignore
the fact that there is a vast amount of British pro-
perty on the island, although I'll be bound he did
not forget it. In fact, it was not long till he began
to talk of taxing it, and all along he hal his eye on
it.

It needs no commentary of mine to show that all
hese insolent proceedings are in violation of the
arrangement made with the United States Govern-
ment, that " no exclusive sovereign rights should
be exercised by either party; and that neither
party should exclude the other by force until the
title is settled ;" and that they are equally in viola-
tion of the law of nations, and of the usages which
guide the conduct of civilised Governments towards
each other both in peace and in war.
I stated that on the part of any other country
such inconsistent proceedings as I have described
would be inscrutable.
On the part of America they are not inexplicable.
They are traceable to the national thirst for the
acquisition of territory, and to what a clever writer
in Blackwood the other day described as " the
eagerness with which Americans will press forward
to seize even the most unpromising districts, espe-
cially when these aggressions tend to bring their
own Government into contact with the Crown of
Great Britain." When it is added that their public
men, military and civil, find their account both in
creating and in encouraging these cravings, Gum.
Harney's conduct is to my mind intelligible.
The press of Oregon and Washington has been
kept very well informed of all the proceedings in ad-
vance. It has been enlisted as an auxiliary of this
enterprise; and a very willing aid it has lent to it.
The assistance of the press was considered of such
importance that a newspaper, even in San Francisco,
was made acquainted with the intended expedition
in anticipation, so as to prepare public opinion—an
element very easily acted upon in such a case. The
press frankly declares the object of General Har-
ney's measures to be to keep the island, and all the
other islands in the Haro Archipelago. The reason
is given with equal candour by some of the papers
of the General's party, the Democrats. "The

island of San Juan is the key to the Gulf of Georgia.
We want it and were bound to have it." If thes©

candid publicists would add what they know and

believe, " and we can keep the Britishers out o

their gold country of British Columbia and annex

that and Vancouver's Island, whenever our Govern

ment erects fortifications on San Juan, &c. We

shall have every British ship for Fraser River pass
under our batteries. We shall Filibuster a bit on

our neighbour's territories ; and our own navy now
fast increasing in our new dockyard in California,
will protect us ; and our good friends the Russians
will assist us, and in 10 years we shall bring all the
British possessions west of the Rocky Mountains
under the dominion of the stars and stripes," they
would the-n tell the whole truth, but they think it
premature to speak so plainly yet.
The press gives an unhesitating and unanimous
approval to all General Harney's proceedings. lie
is just the man for the people, and the General for
the occasion. From what I have heard of him hii
character may be given in one word. He is revkle.
The cnly point on which the press and private
parties differ is as to whether this Geueral is acting
of his own volition or upon the orders of his Go-
vernment. •It is idle to speculate upon this point.
I will, therefore, examine the avowed reasons for
his proceedings.

The first reason given was that a military post on
San Juan was required as a protection against
Indians. This was the ostensible reason given, ani