The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1845-05-20
THE DAILY UNION.
aGREENHow's HISTORY OF OREGON


This volume, upon which we republishcd yester-
day the favorable opinion Of the New York Eve
ming Post" has been compiled with great care, and
contains information particularly valuable at this
time to the American reader.
/ The work is dedicated to the authors venerable
and ever kind friend, General Morgan Lewis, late
governor of the State of New York." who received
it few DAYS before his death. II begins by geo.
graphical description of the whole division Of Amer
lea bordering upon the North Pacific ocean, which
is first considered as a whole, and afterwards ac-
cordng TO its subdivisions, with views of the con-
nections of each part with the other, and with other
portions of the continent Mr.. G. has bestowed
great labor upon this part of the work, which has
been written anew for the present edition, and much
enlarged by the employment of smaller type
As a specimen of the geography, we extract the
concluding part of the general view, presenting
coup Peil of the extent OF the claims of different
nations in the regions west of the Rocky noun
tains:
] "The settlements of civilized nations in the Pa
cihc section of North America are Uncomfortable in
extent Those of the Russians are scattered along
the coasts and islands north Of the latitude of 81 de-
grees 40 minutes; they all under the direction of
|
devoted entirely to the collection of the furs and
skins of the land and sea animals Astounding in that
quarter, of which large quantities are transported
for sale to Asia and Europe. Those Of the British
and Of citizens of the United States inermihgled
| throughout the regions south and east of the Rus
sian territory to California; the British, in general,
occupying the parts north, and the Americans those
south, of the Columbia river, which enters the Pa
cifc near the 46th degree of latitude. The people
of both the aforementioned nations have hitherto,
likewise, been employed principally IN the fur trade
but, that business having become less profitable of
late years, from the diminuton of the animals agri-
cultural establishments have been formed, especially
by the citizens of the United States, in the vicinity
of the Columbia The British are all under the
control ofthe Hudson Bay company, which possess
es in virtue of royal grant, the privilege, in ex-
cluson of other British Subjects Of trading in all the
Indian countries of North America belonging to, or
claimed by, that power and they are protected and
restrained by British laws, under act of Parlia-
ment extending the jurisdiction of the Canada
courts over those countries, so far as relates
to subjects of that nation The citizens of the Uni
ted States, the contrary, deprived of all pro-
lection, and are independent of all control as they
are not ject to British laws; and their gov
eminent exercises authority whatsoever over any
part of America west of the Rocky mountains. In
California south of the $50 of latitude, are many
colonies garrisons, and missionary stations founded
by the Spanards during the last century, and now
\ maintained by the Mexicans who succeeded to the
rights of Spain in 1921. They are all situated in
the immediate vicinity of the coasts, the interior re-
gions being yet almost unknown. 1t is worthy
| of remark that California, though thiny inhabited
bya wretched, ndolent population, is the only part
Of the Pacific section Of North America which can
be considered regularly setted--which possesses
an organized civil and social system, and where in
divduals hold property in the soil secured to them
by law.
'"Each of these four nations claims the exclusive
possession of portion of the territory the Pacific
side Of America, north of the Californian gulf and
each of them is party to some treaty with another
for the temporary use, or defnitIye sovereignty OF
such portion. Thus it has been agreed by treaty,
in 1919, between the United States and Spain--re-
newed in 1926 between the United States and Mex
ico--that line drawn from the Rocky Mountains
to the Pacific in the of the Add parallel OF
latitude, should separate the dominions of the former
power on the north from those of Mexico on the
south. Ii was in like manner agreed, in 1924, by
convention between the United States and Russia,
that the former nation should make no establish
ments on the coasts north of the parallel of 81 de-
grees 40 minutes, and that the latter should make
none south Of the ine but this convention was
neurazed, and ina fact abrogated, by treaty con-
cuded between Russia and Great Britain in the fol
lowing year, by which all the territories of the main
land and islands north and west of line drawn
from the latitude of "a degrees 40 minutes, north.
westward along the highlands bordering the Pacific
coasts 10 Mount st. Elias, ard thence due north 10
east and south of that line be the property
of Great Britain.
'sThus, on the western side Of North America
two lines Of distinct boundary, or partition, each
travcrsng the whole breadth Of the Pacific section
have been recognised; the one between two powers
Great Britain and Russia, the other between two diff
ferent powers the United States and Mexico mel
Their of which is, however, admitted by the third
power claiming, also, the possession of territories
contiguous to it. OF the vast division Of the CONT
nent aud the ad acent islands between these two
lines, no spot has yet been assigned by mutual
agreement, to any civilized nation. The United
States claim the territories norlhward from the AID
parallel, and Great Britain claims those extending
south and east om the other line, each to distance
underlined but far to for itself the whole
or nearly the whole, of the regions aversed by the
Columbia river The American government has
more that once proposed to adopt the forty-nnt,
parallel of latitude the dividing line the British
have, however, constantly refused to assent to that
or any other arrangement which should deprive
them of the coasts and territories north Of the Co
lumba river; and neither nation being willing to re-
cede from its preensions all the countries claimed
by both, west of the Rocky mountains, remain, by
convention between the two governments, concluded
in 1897 free and open to the citizcna subjects OF
both.
"Such is the present condition of the Pacific re-
gions of North America This anomalous state OF
things cannot, however, endure much longer. The
people of the United States rapidly colonzing the
fertile portions of the territory on the lower Coum-
bia; and no one acquainted with their character can
suppose that thew will submit be deprived Of their
political birthrght in those countries, while they
have the slightest prospect of vindcating it."
The map is large and beautifully engraved, pre-
scnting all the divisions of North America west Of
Mexico, the Mexican gulf, st. Louis, Lake Supe-
rior, and Hudsons straits, with part of Asia and the
Sandwich islands, to illustrate the accounts OF
the various expeditions to the northwest coasts, and
to show the political and commercial connections
between them and other parts of tho world. The
author has here, in former map of the same re-
gions introduced an Improvement which might be
applied advnntageousy to most other maps, as in
creasing the amount of information conveyed by
them, without any sensible increase of their size