The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1846-06-02

magnitude OF the greatest crime | read the treaties
which showed the mistake thought II very prooa-
BILE the hfty-four-fores had never read the Russian
| treaties and aid not know what they read. | pro-
duced the Biographies to instruct them IN Frazers
river, for thought they were ignorant OF dd
all clearly ntelligibly indisputably. | waited Tor
the result. In fact | waited long, and until delay
was dangerous, before | could venture to set them
| right. knew the frailty OF poor human nature,
and that instead Of thanks, resentment would more
probably be my reward Well, II has come per-
sonal attack on mysef-readng mutllated scraps,
furnished by caterers, to show me inconsistent ana
then not able 10 do it-not able TO help out their
miserable deception even by any words culled from
my innumerable speeches, and muulated for the
| purpose, and then misappied. What was said OF
islands applied continents; what was said OF the
Columbia river applied TO New Caledonia what
was said Of the Oregon river applied to Frazer's
river. Miserable perversion everywhere 10 turn me
| against myself, and make me party 10 the decep-
tlon of the people.
| They quote fifty -four-forty on the continent as
the line for which the people must fight. repeat,
on the continent. l must be careful about that for
| II omit the repetition once the whole speech Is
knocked in the head. am quoted against MYSELF
| am proved TO admit IT, Thus II has been to-day.
the senator from Michigan has found one mention Of
the line without continental repeated Immediately he
fastens himself upon it, when all know that made the
distinction between islands and the continent when
! spoke until IL must have been wearisome TO the
n
coald now repeat the words. Yes, have said MY
four-fory thousand times, perhaps ten thousand,
and always knowing what | meant--a line IN the
ocean at the end Of an island, and that line made
! by Russia with Great Britain well as with the
United States. But perhaps can tell the hny -four
fories something about that hne-l mean the actual
line at the end of the island-of which they still
seem to be ignorant. They seem to look upon It as
| a real ad ustment Of boundary nice and critical
adjustment OF utle-a wise settlement OF mutual
rights upon great elaboration No such thing.
No question OF right or title was ever considered
about it-all the result OF fur-trading enterprise.
Russian fur-rsders in the last century settled upon
the Prince Of Wales island the south end Of which
was supposed to be in hhy-hye. The Emperor
Paul. in 1893, the year before his assassination gave
them charter to that extent; and when the Empe-
ror Alexander came TO make the treaties with Great
Britain and the United States, in ls24-'25, he gov
| erned himself by the charter and thus Russian
fur company made that line, far il is one, at the
end Of an island, without caring straw, and per-
haps without caring fg, for the titles Of any power
in the world The coast was derellct, and they
settled upon it.
This is the origin Of the line; for after agreeing
upon $50, as granted by the charter it was extend
ed to $40 40, to cover point or leg Of the island,
running down twenty minutes south. This Is
the way that 6hy-four-fory came TO be
established at the end Of Prince of Wales
island - rather accidentally to become the
exact and sacred measure OF right, for which a
nation must 90 to But little more truth will
make II more accidental still. The fact is the EN-
peror Paul had recalled the traders for misconduct
they about lose their establishments; TO pre-
vent ii, one Of the rich partners married his daughter
TO Of the emperors courtierS, and gave him her
whole fortune in bills of exchange on the future
earnings Of the company. The Emperor Paul as
all the world knows with the kndest impulsons
was little caprIcious; he not only revoked the
recall of the traders but actually gave them an ex-
Il, "A o.. ~. 49,
tory Of $40 40, 80 far it has its aqueous exis
tence the end Of Prince of Wales island. And
this is in fact, the line and the history Of the line,
and the OF the line which, limited to island,
our hfly-fnur-fortles extend FIVE hundred miles on
he continent and then attach to it sacred and in
vlolable character, being the wise and exact de-
termination, upon great diplomatic consideration, Of
national boundary Was there ever anything so
ndculouS ever anything 50 farclcaE ever anything
so meritng the rebuke of the people, thus misled
and deceived, at first by ignorance and now by de-
signi
The senator from Michigan reads from my old
speeches to show that the Spaniards claimed to Go,
and that pronounced their title better than that Of
the English. Certainly did, but always confined to
coasts and islands, where the ships sailed and al
ways ending with saying that neither Spain nor
Great Britain had made permanent settlements that
the whole coast a derelict after the Nootka
controversy, from Cape Mendocins in 400, to the
Russian settlements, until Mr.. Astors settlement at
the mouth of the Columbia in 1911; and that the
whole coast, north of the Columbia, and south of
the Russians, is a derelict to-day That being a de-
relict at the time of the negotiations of 1924 the
United States and Great Britain went by the con-
unent, ana not by the coast, divided the continent
according to discovery and settlement, and let the
islands go with the division in front Of which they
lay.
The senator picked hole, or thought he picked a
hole in word of mine, in one Of my speeches, and
a very short word-the word sail" | said all the
statesmen Of twenty and forty years ago left Fra
zers river to Great Britain, and offered to divide by
400 He denies the "aH," and instances that Mr..
Monroe's administration in 1923 offered $40 That
is beautiful read you, in sundry places, that they
offered $40 a first proposition and upon prnci-
pie known to be erroneous and be rejected to be
followed Immediately by the offer of ago; which
was done, and, in fact, as good agreed to by Mr.
George Canning, the prime minister. Yes; they Of
tered So and upon objection to it offered 400; but
by leaving out the Ago the senator from Michigan
undertakes to pick hole in my "aH" If he had
done it, it would have been nothing; but he has not
done it, and now repeat and reaffirm my assertion,
and invite him to put all the to work to find
an error in it if they can | affirm that every Amer
lean statesman of twenty and forty years ago--Mr.
Jefferson and Mr.. Madison in 1907 Mr.. Monroe and
his cabinet in 1923, offered to divide by 49o, leav
ing Frazer's river wholly to the British, and that
because it belonged to them.
The senator from Michigan is greatly pleased
Will the OucT Vi lnOSe WHO OHeTeu IL hneW IL
was untenabe, and sent the real proposition along
with it. Upon what principle was it offered Why,
that the Columbia headed as far north as $40, and
so we would follow that line to the sea- That is
not the principle which governs title to river and
its valley, and this Mr.. Monroe and his ministers
we'll knew. They knew the principle to be the rim
of the basin which contained the of the river
and this would bring possession to point at the
mouth where the Columbia has valley. They
offered SO to get AGO. which includes three de-
grees outside of the valley of the Columbia at its
mouth. Try the principle of drawing straight lines
from headwaters. Apply it to the Mississippi.
There line from the head to the Gulf of Mexico
would split the valley in two, leaving half each
side, and which side would we take' Try it with a
line from it's fiirhest western branch-the head of
the Missouri would run through Mexico and
enter the Pacific ocean. Try it on the other side
the highest water of the Ohio away up above Clean
in the State of New York, and it would cut the At
lantic States and reach the Gulf through Georgia.
No; Mr.. MoDroe's cabinet meant such absurdity. |
They offered $40 feeler-49o as a real line, and
IoG