The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-06-08
ALASKA BOUNDARY DISPUTE
PROSPECTS AGAIN LOOK BRIGHT
 FOR 4 SE1TLElIENT.

Arrangement of Modus yivendt to
 Govern the Relations of the United
 States and Canada on the Disputed
 Boundary Receiving Much of Am-
 bassador Choate's Attention.
 Washington, June 1.-The hopeful
 views of Joseph Chamberlain, the Brit ish colonial secretary, expressed in Lon
 don to-day regarding the Alaskan bum
 diary dispute was read with intense ir-
 terest by department officials. Late in the day the officials learned the details of the latest negotiations in London.
 Secretary Hay and the British charge d'affaires, MT. Tower, conferred on the subject. The details of the proposition were not made public. It is known that the arrangement of a modus viven- di to govern the relations of the United States and Canada on the Alaskan boundary is receiving a great deal of
 
 basis for the temporary determination of the boundary in the neighborhood of the passes leading to the Klondike will, if the present effort succeeds, be on White Pass on the east and on Chilkoot Pass in the middle at the points where the Canadian custom houses were estab- lished about eighteen months ago. On the Dalton trail the point has not yet been selected, and as the pressure to- ward the sea on this westernmost trail by the Canadians has been more severe than at any other point, very naturally great difficulty is experienced in recon- cling, even temporarily, the conflicting claims to jurisdiction. While Pyramid lIarbor is not insisted upon at this june ture by the Canadians as part of the temporary arrangement, they are deslr- ous of getting as near to tidewater as possible and their claim in this quarter includes the important Indian village of Klukwan, a town that has long been un- der the protection of the United States and which our goverent is indisposed to surrender, even temporarily, Into Cana dian control.
 It is said however, that too much as- s,1rance should not be taken that a complete accord is certain. The officials agree with the London view that the outlook is rather brighter, because ne- gotiations are on again, but they quail fy this by saying that the agreement is not yet concluded and that when it is concluded it will still leave much to be settled by future negotiations
 In view of the fact that the protocol | recording the proceedings of the joint high commission in Washington on | February 18th last has been made pub lie in the Canadian legislature while | an abstract of it's contents has been al- | so published in London as well as in | this country, the state department has | deemed it proper to give out for publi- ca ton the entire protocol.
 This particular protocol is regarded by the department as of great import ance for it marked the failure of the commission under peculiar conditions The record shows that the joint com mission met at 10 o'clock that morning; that the British side proposed arbitra- tion and that the Americans accepted the proposition in general using it as basis for a treaty. However, 1t is shown that when the Americans offered an amendment the British side prompt ly refused to accept it and without af- fording opportunity for the erection of an arbitra tion treaty, stopped the nego- tiations and referred the matter to their own government notwithstanding the urging of the Americans that the commission at least conclude their ne gotiations upon the remaining subjects.
 These facts were the basis of the American contention that the Canadians had not afforded a real opportunity for arbitration and were responsible for the disruption of the joint commission. The points of the British arbitration pro- posal and also of the proposition put for ward by the Americans as an amend ment have already been indicated in the cabled despatches and the following points are given as those upon which importance is laid by the American side. In putting forward their proposal, the British said: 'They therefore made the following as a basis to be proceeded upon in fram- ing a treaty." the attitude of the Americans upon this is set down as fol- lows: '"The commissioners of the Unit ed States announced that they accepted the proposals made as the bases of ad- iustment, but desired an amendment in relation to the arbtral tribunal, and a modification of Rule c, to make it con- | form to the present local conditions in Alaska" The British objections to the American counter proposal have also been published and the record on that point reads: :, Holding this view the British com- missioners are of the opinion that no : useful end would be served by further 4 pressing at the present time the nego- 4 tiations and must refer the matter to their government"