New-York tribune., 1867-04-11
wHIT We err BY THE TPEaTy

The Russian Treaty has been made public
apparently without authority, and is printed in
our columns to-day. In the first article the
boundaries Of the ccded territory are defined in
the second is transferred to the United States the
title of all public property, with the exception
of the Greek Churches, which are to remain
the property of their members; in the third, it
is stipulated that the inhabitants, excepting
unciyilzed tribes, shall, after three years resi-
dence he admitted to- citizenship of the
United States while the Esquimaux and
| Indians shall be subject to onr authority
in the fourth, the formal terms of the exchange
are defined the fifth provides for the with
drawa of Russian troops; in the sixth, the
cession of territory and dominion is declared to
be free and unncumbercd by any reservations;
and in the seventh, the date of ratification Is
fixed.
IL il at least q satisfaction to know that the
treaty binds our Government to no more than
the payment of a certain sum in gold, and the
admission OF Russian settlers to citizenship, and
that any slight value the ccssion may have
is not lcssened by reservations in favor of
British hunters and traders. To share the
questionable advantages of the territory would
things which are too small to be divided. But
though this is theoretically satisfaction, practi-
cally itwould have madcnoappreciablc difference
to the people of this country if all the traders
in North America had been given equal rights
i'm the territory by the treaty In the deserts
of Russian America the laws are not likely to
he enforced, and the hunters around the
Great Bear Lake will care little for the Hist
degree of west latitude We simply obtain
by the treaty the nominal possession
of impasSabe deserts of snow, vast tracts OF
dwarf timber, frozen rivers, inaccessible noun
tain ranges, with few islands where the climate
is more moderate and scanty population Is
supported by fishing aud trading with the
Indaps. Virtually We get, by an cxpend-
iture of seven millions in gold, Sltka
and The Prince of Wales Islands. All
the Iest is waste territory. and
no energy Of the American people will be
sufficient to make mining speculations in the
sxticth degree north latitude profitable, or to
reclaim wldeInessc, which border on the Arctic
Ocean We may make treaty with Russia but
we cannot make treaty with the North Wind,
or the Snow King. a glance at the
map will show that this mighty acqui-
sition. with the exception of few islands
scattered along mountainous aud sterile shore,
lies above the sXticth degree, and is divided
into nearly equal portions 10y the Arctic circle.
Ninety-nne hundredthS of Russian America are
absolutely useless; the remaining hmdredth
may be of some value tO the Russians
who settled it, but is certainly not worth
seven millions of dollars to q nation already
possessed of more territory than 1t can dcccntly
govern, and burdcncd with debt. On the con-
trary, il is certain that the expense and trouble
of a Territorial governmcnt-Or six govern
mcnts, as we hear Mr.. Seward propoScs-n this
distant and inhospitablc land, would far
outweigh any advantage from It's Goldfish or
bcar-skins. 70 Russia it was an cncumhrance (;
to lis it would be an embarrassment, and by
the next session of Congress we trust the folly
of the purchase will be made so plain that the
House will refuse to make the necessary appro-
priatiOn.