Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1846-01-09

/ The seventh conference was heiu al .iie
partner, Of State on the 10Th OF July, 1919, ",
tween the Hon. James Buchanan, Secretsi5 ~
State, the American p,enlpo'entiary, apu ra-
Right Hon Richard Pakenhan, me DIV. .;ar re-
nootenliafy: when the pending negotiation ,, y.
speclirr The Oregon territory was resumed. - ne
American penipolentiary presented 10 lne ~ :,
isb plenipoientiary a statement, lmarRen ! ~
hea,ina dale I2h July, 1915, made IN complains
with the request of le latter contained ~ ~
statement (inarked ID that The American piea,,
po,enliary would propose an Arrangement ,ol on
| equitable adjustment of the question:, anu dleo
dr6ne The nature and extent OF The claims OF lhe
United States 10 the territory Norm OF 'he 'a'-
ley OF The Columbia. ,o,,,I,N
r. PAKENIiAM.
(A.) 49,,
WAsHrsaToN, Sd September, 1911.
| The undersigned, American plenlp"tehlialY
declines The nropusal OF the British plenipo'eh'
ary. on the ground that il would have inc eise' =.
| restricting The possessions oil Ire Uhi'ea o'a's
I ), i,no;,s far more circumscribed than thcir
claims CLEARLY entille lhemlo. II proposes 70 itil
| their northern boundary by line drawn iso,'i 'ne
Rocky Mountains along The 49ih para'iei u , "a
Jude 10 the nor;heasternmost oranch oi 'ne ~
lunbia liver and thence down me ,i'.uuie " ''"s
4
conn,ry north. and 10 The United States all SOUTH
4 az ,bai line except detached territory extending
/ an Tho Pacific and the straits oil Fuca, from But
+! 6nch's harbor 10 Hoods canal To which IL IS
nroposrd. in addition, 10 make tree 10 Tue Ohi'eu
S,,,ss any mort which the United States govern
men, might desire, either on the main land OF on
| Vancouver's island, south OF latitude ~ degrees
By turning 10 The map hereto annexed, ana on
which the proposed boundaryis marked 10 pencil
In, ,Is1
mo.r he entire region on lis north sideI Grained
hv Tho Columbia river living on lis northern bank
II is MOI deemed necessary 10 state a, large the
claims Of The Unied States 10 this territory, ana
tho grounds on which they rest, in order 10 make
GOOD The assertion that il restricts The possessions
1f he United States within narrower bounds man
,hev are clearly entitled 10. IL will be suficient
tor his nurpose 10 show, lhal they arc iairly emil.
lied 10 lhc enlire region drained BY the river, and
10 The establishment Of This point, The undersigned
nroposes accordingly 10 limit his remarks at pre-
sent.
Our claims 10 the portion OF the territory dram
% by The Columbia river may be divided into
those we have 10 our own proper right, and those
we have derived from France and Spain We
ground The inrmer as against Great Britain, on
priority Of discovery and priority OF exploration
and settlement. We rest our claim 10 discovery,
as against her, on that of Captain Gray cili-
zsp OF The Un.led States, who, IN The ship Colum-
bia of Boston, passed its bar and anchored IN the
river len miles above lis mouth, on The In oil
NAV 1892; and who afterwards sailed up the riv-
- twelve or fifteen miles and lett on The 20!h ct
OF the same month calling il columbia, after
his shir, which name i, still retains.
On,hese iac,s our claim 10 The discovery ana
entrance into lhe river ress. They are 100 well
a,,es;cd 10 be controveled. But they have been
opposed by the alleged discoveries oil Mears and
Vancouver 1t istfue that the former explored
norton Of The coast through which the Columbia
hows into the ocean in 1888, Give years before
Capt GRAY crossed The bar and anchored in The
river in order TO ascertain whether the river, as
laid down in The Spanish charts, and called The
81 Roc existed or moi: bu! il is equally True that
b.. did moi even discover it, On Inc contrary, he
expressly declares, in his account Of the voy-
age as The result Il his observations, that "recan
mr. saslv assert tiat there IS no such r1rer as MI
nh ST. Rec as taid dorm IN Inc Spanish cta'ts;
and, as il 10 p-rpeluaic his disappointment, he
rsi!cd the pIomontoty lying north OF The inlet
where he expe. led 10 discover it, Gaze Disap-
noin,menr, aud The inlet itself Deception Bay. It
i al-u!!ne, that Vaacou:er in April. 1872, ex-
nlorcd The same coas bur il is no less so tliat ne
;ailsj 10 discover The rivcr-of which MS own
;nntnal furnishes the most conclusive evidence, as
,r.u rs ths strong conviction that no such river
existed 81 strong was il, indeed thar when ne
fe,; in with Capt Gray. shortly afterwards. and
was informed by him thai he had been on The
mouth OF a river in lat ~ degrees 10 minutes,
whose guile, was so strong as 10 prevent his en-
,efins. he remained increduous, and strongly
expressed himself 10 that effect in his journal
|; was shortly after this interview that Captain
GRAY again visited lis mouth crossed lis bar, and
sailed M The river, as has been stated. Aiier
he lei, il. he visited Nooika Sound, where he COM
nnnica,ed his discoveries 10 0uadrd, The Span
Sb conmandant al that place, and gave him
chart anu description OF the mouth OF The rlVer-
After his departure, Vancouver arrived there,
in September; when he was informed OF the dis
coverics of Captain Gray, and Obtained from
Quadra copies Of The chart he had LETT with man.
Ia consequence OF the information thus obtained,
he was induced 10 visit again that part oil Inc
coast !, was during this visit that he entered
the river, on The 20th October, and made his SUI
vey.
leoeJ discoveries of Meares and Vancouver
cannot. in the slightest degree, shake the claims
of Captain GRAY 10 priority OF discovery. In
deed 81 conclusive is the evidence OF his favor,
ina, i, has been attempted 10 evade our claim on
lie novel and wholly unenable ground that his
discovery was made, not in national, but pr
vale vessel. Such, and SO incontesli5le, is The
evidence of our claim. as against Great Britain
from priority of discovery, as to Inc mouth OF
the river crossing its bar, entering II, and SAIL
ing IN its stream, on The voyage oil captain
GRAY alone: without taking into consideration
Inc prior discovery OF the Spanish navigator, ne
ceta-which will be more particularly referred 10
hereafter. j..
Nor is the evidence OF the priority OF our dis
coverv of the head branches OF the river and Ms
.Ynloralion less conclusive. Before the trealy
was ratified BY which we acquired LOUISIANA
in 1903. an expedition was panned-at Inc mead
Of which were placed Meriwether Lewis and
William ClaTke-lo explore the river missouri
and lis principal branches TO their sources, ana
then 10 seek and trace 10 It's termination IN ,le
Pacific some stream; 'rheshcr tae C",hHo'a, "e
Ofee0n. The Coiorad0 or any ON" Ta'ea Mts"
odsr the mos, direct or prdeieaole n1o1 eo"'"'"1
ag;,,,;on oeross the continent for The purpose ~
co, mere" The party began 10 ascend the Mis-
800; n Nav 1901 and in The summer oil lSOo,
ataJ tho head waters Of the Columbia river.
49, crossing many Of the streams falling into
:, ~ reached the Konskooshee, in latitude As
Irsss "a minutes-dcscended that 10 the prn-
o;5al Southern branch, which they called Lew
;s's-followed that 10 its junction WIN Inc Sred!
Northern branch which they called Clarke-and
hence descended 10 the month Of The river, where
,hev landed and encamped on the North side,
on Cane DlSdFptlHlinCHI anu "ih'Gltu. ~
next spring. they commenced their return, and
continued their exploration up The river, no.
linz lis various branches, and tracing some Of
The principal; and finally arrived al 81. Louis in
! September, 1885, after an absence OF Two years
/ and four months.
| II was this important expedition which brought
| 10 the knowledge OF The world this great river
| the greatest by far on The Western side Of this
/ continent with its numerous branches, and the
| vas, regions through which il flows, above tie
I points 10 which Gray and Vancouver had as
cended. |, took place many years before it was
visited and explored by any subject Of Great
Britain, or OF any other civilized nation, SO far
a. we are informed. II as clearly entities US 10
The claim of priority of discovery as 10 lis head
branches, and the exploration Of the river and re-
gion through which il passes, as the voyages Of
Captain Gray and the Spanish navigator, Heccta,
entitled US 10 priority in reference 10 its mouth,
/ and The entrance int lis channel.
! Nor is our priority of settlement less certain.
| Establishments were formed hy American Gill.
GEMS on tn. Columbia as early as 1909 and 1910.
I In The latter year, a company was formed in New
York, al the head Of which vas John Jacob As
tor, wealthy merchant Of that city, the object OF