Lincoln telegraph. [volume] (Bath, Me.) 1836-1846, 1839-02-28
It. Gouernor Of N,e,c Bruns,oick i:


1t. Gouernor Of .Ne,c Brunswick:
Sr:-i have the honor to acknowledge.
the receipt of your Excelency's letter of
the 18th lust. by express, and avail myself
OF the return of your Messenger, r. Eng
lish, Esq. ia make reply. You say II
have just heard, with the utmost surprise
and regret that without the courtesy ofany
previous intimation whatever to this Gov.
ernment, an armed force from The State Of
Maine has entered the territory the claim
to which is in dispute, &c.
In reply, cannot but regret that your
ExcelIency should have thought the use of
such language suitable to be employed.
upon this occasion. III am amenable TO
charge Of want of courtesy" in any thing,
| have heretofore done, will endeavor to
manifest enough Of that accomplishment in
this reply, not to handy epilhe,s with one,
of whom had formed so high an opinion
as of your Excellency-and will only say
further, that, while have the honor TO hold;
the place | now occupy, trust a sense Of
duty TO my State and her interests will all
ways predominant over mere blind regard
to the artificial rules Of etiquette. Think.
however, that your Excellency would not
have used that term, if you had considered.
ior a moment, that the proceedings Of our
Land Agent were in execution of Re-
solve ofthe Legislature of this Stale, adopt.
ed in secret session. and that, no notice of
their proceedings could have been given
without an unqualified breach Of faith and
duty =.
In speaking of the disputed territory,
your Excelency says 'the claim TO which
is in dispute betwixt Great Britain and the
United States, and which it has been ag-
reeu betwixt the two General Governments, /
81 all remain in the exclusive possession and
jurisdiction of England until that claiin
shall be determined
Now sir, cannot hesitate 10 say that,
in my opinion, your Excellency is laboring
under an entire misapprehension in regard
TO the facts. No such agreement am
persuaded, has ever been made between
the two governments. | have looked in
vain for it among the numerous documents
which have grown on: Of this question, and
have never heard of any recognition of it,,
verbal or otherwise, on the part of the off,
GERS ofthe General Government. IF how
ever, such an agreement exists, your Elk
cellency can undoubtedly point it out. At
all events, such an agreement car never be-
recognized by this State. A decent sell,
respect will eyer forbid it, if there were no
other considerations in the way.
Your Exceency entreats me immedi-
-ately to recall the force now upon the ter
titory and adds--''it is proper that | should
acquaint your Exceency that | have dir
ected a strong military force of herr Maj
estys Troops to be in readiness TO support
her Majesty's authority, and protect her
Maesty's subjects in the disputed territory
inthe event Of this request not bciag im-
medialely complied with" III
In reply nave to say, that the territory
bordering upon the Aroostook River has
always been, as regard the facts, in the
possession and under the jurisdiction of
Massachusetts and Maine-that more than
thirty years ago Massachusetts surveyed
and granted large tracts oft, which 'haye.
ever since been, IN some way, possessed
by the grantees and those claiming under
ihem-that the rest Of it was surveyed by
and some Of it deyided between Massa-
shusets and Maine, soon after the latter
became an independent State--that both
States have been in the habit OF granting
permits TO cut timber there without being
molested from any quarier-that many per-
sons have purchased these lands of Maino
and entered into their actual occupation
and that in various other ways, Maine has
exercised jurisdiction which may fairly
be regarded as exclusive, oyer this territory.
Under these circumstances, information
was received that body of armed men has
gone into this territory and were cutting
vast quantities of the timber, defying the
power of this Statefto prevent them. On
these facts being communicated to the
Legislature, the two branches Immediately
directed the Land Agent to take with him
a sufficient force 10 arrest these dePreda~
tors. and 10 break up their enterprise. !,
The party ofthe Land Agent u n2v 81