The San Francisco call., 1899-07-26

claims and insists that the United States
shall agree to submit the whole question
to arbitration and in any event give her
free port on Lynn Canal, leading to the
Yukon country.
Pyramid Harbor, commanding the Por-
.cupine district and the Dalton trail, over
Chilcoot Pass, is the port designated.
Speaking before the Canadian Parlia
ment in behalf of the Government, Sir
Wilfrid Laurier, the Premier, has de-
clared that the United States must either
fight or agree to submit to arbitration the
question of her ownership of territory
over which she, with Russia before her,
has mad sole and until quite recently un-
disputed possession and jurisdiction for
three-quarters of a century.
The boundary line claimed by our
Government is the same that has peen
given by every photographer English.
European and American, from 1925 ION
deposits in the valley Of the Yukon made
the control of some or all of the sea-
port approaches thereto matter of para
mount Importance to Canada.
To secure this control Canada is insist
ing upon an Interpretation of the meaning
of the treaties defining the boundary lines
that will give her possession of Whites,
Chilcoot and Chilcat passes, with Skag-
uay, Dyea, Pyramid Harbor and other
ports leading thereto; also the lately dis
the United States out entirely from the
waters of the Lynn Canal, and that we
and submit the whole question, with some
others not directly connected herewith,
to the uncertainty of arbitration before
tribunal which would undoubtedly be
composed of Europeans naturally more or
less disinclined to favor American inter-
ests. This demand is not made with any
definite expectation that her claims TIl
find any real merit before the court, but
that by insiStent contention she may Sc
cure a compromise that will give her con-
troll of one or more Of the ports desired.
But to guard against any possible miscar-
riage of her plans in case the court should
decide the boundary question on its well
understood merits and adversely to her,
she wants to bind the United States be-
forehand that, no matter what the. results
of the arbitration may be, Pyramid Har-
bor is to be given over to her.
Secretary Hays emphatic refutation of
this proposal was the cause of Premier
Lauriers beligerent utterances. How
ever. the astute and practical diplomats
of Great Britain may get the better of us
in the end, it is very certain that such
Government will not tend to promote a
spirit OF concession on our part.
The United States acquired and holds
title to Alaska by the treaty of cession
from Russia, made March 80, 1867, in
which the limits and boundaries of the
territory ceded were given in the exact
treaty of 1926. by which the boundaries
between the Russian possessions in the
known as Russian America, and the
British possessions adjoining them, were
set forth and defined. The whole ques-
tion hinges on the Interpretation of the
meaning of the language of that part of
the treaty which relates to the boundary
along the southeastern part or panhandle
of Alaska, which is as follows: Com
mencing from the Southernmost point of
the island called Prince of Wales Island
which point lies in the parallel of "a de-
grees 40 minutes north latitude, and be-
tween the 131st and 1880 degrees of west
longitude, Greenwich meridian, the said
line shall ascend to the north along the
channel called Portland Canal as far as
the 56th degree of north latitude. From
this aforementioned point the line of de-
marcatfon shall follow the summit of the
mountains situated parallel to the coast
as far as the point of intersection of the