Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-11-04
BOUNDARY CASE
Summary of Our Position
Prepared.
THE BRITISH CONTENTION
Is Shown to Be Wrong by a Number
Of Facts--Our Right OF Control Over
All the Bays and Inlets Of the
Coast.

washington. Nov. FIX Secretary
John w. Foster. a member of the joint
high commission to settle differences be-
tween the United States and Canada,
has prepared summary of this govern
ment's case on the Alaskan boundary 1t
was read last night before the American
geographical society. Mr.. Foster re-
views the history Of the Negotiations be-
tween Russia and Great Britain and show
ed that the British only sought to prevent
the extension OF Russian claims eastward
o the Rocky mountains. The British
government was then prepared to accept
a boundary line 100 miles from the coast
of the mainland Great Britain after
wards succeeded in reducing this strip
to width of 10 marine leagues. Russia
permitted a 10 year lE.ense to fish and
hunt in the estuaries. but declined to
make it permanent. That license was
terminated at the end of the period and
Mr.. Foster says is itself inconsistent with
any Interpretation of the treaty other
than the complete sovereignty of Rus
sia all over not only the strip of mainland
but all the bays and inlets.
Mr.. Foster showed that IN 1889 the Hud-
son Bay company leased from the Rus
sian government the very strip in ques
tion as shown by the Russian maps. and
in 1857 a parliamentary committee exam
lining the head of the company brought
out the fact that Russian sovereignty
extended 80 nautical mites inland follow
ing the indentatons of the coast. In
1873, he continued, a provisional bound
airy was established by the United States
at the crossing of the Stickeen river
which follows the present American con-
tention4and in 1876 a criminal being tried
and convicted was released by Canadian
courts because his offense was committed
on "American territory"
Mr.. Foster quoted the British secretary
Canning in his instructions to the Duke
of Wellington, where he says: "Enlight-
ened statesmen and jurists have long held
as insignificant all titles of territory that
are not founded on actual occupation and
that title is, in the opinion of the most
esteemed writer's on public law, to be
established by practical use"
With this as a basis, Mr. Foster made
the following presentation OF the Ameri-
can position regarding the boundary:
There is no claim or pretense that the
British authorities or subjects ever oc
cupied any of the territory now in dispute
except under the lease cited, or ever exer-
cised on attempted to exercise any acts
of sovereignty over the strip or waters in
closed by it.
First. soon after thr treaty Of 1926
the Russian government published a map
cha aiming the strip of territory and all the
interior waters of the sea inclosed by it.
Second, the Russian-American COM
pany established forts and trading posts
within the strip.
Third, by virtue of the lease cited,
which was a recognized assertion of its
CoVpYpontS. Russia tpnDOrarllV trans
ferred these forts and posts to the Brit
ish company.
Fourth. at the termination of the eX-
tended lease, it re-entered and took pos
session and remained in possession till
the accession of Alask- to the United
States.
Fifth it received the allegiance Of the
native Indians inhabiting the strip and
exercised supervision over them.
Sixth. Immediately after the cession
in 1867. the department of state of the
United States likewise caused a map to
be published setting forth the boundaries
Of Alaska in accordance with the treaty
of 1926 and the same claim as to the strip
was thereon made as By Russia in its
maps of 1925.
Seventh upon the transfer Of Alaska
a port ion of the United States army was
dispa tched to occupy the territory and a
deta achment was stationed for some TIM"
on this strip of the mainland.
II.
and post routes have been established
and maintained at various points on the
strip
Ninth cutom houses have likewise
been established a,ld duties collected
therein.
Tenth government and mission schols
have been ma intained and notably so for
nearly % years a the head Of Lynn canal.
Eleventh. the revenue vessels of the
United States have continuously since the
date of the cession patrOiied the interior
waters surrounded by the strip TO enforce
the revenue laws of the United States.
"Tweifth. the naval and revenue YES
sells OF the United States have for the
same period exercised acts of sovereignty
over the Indian tribes inhabiting the stfio
and esutcially about the head of Lvnn
canal and the latter have Welded unrues-
toned allegiance To- the United States.
"Thirteenth. in the ccnsnS Of 1880 and
1880 all the Indian trib' inhabiting tha
stlp were included in TIE pnn'Ia ton If
, tn. United States aud SO publish "a in the
official reports.
.sFourtaen'i1. The territorial govern
n1ent cf Alaska has exercised vaHf0''S I'D
ran4atad ac"S of Snv4rei2nfN o'-7" tho
str.n .:nl artn" H-'-...S in"l ~ " ~
i q al ;,a ;,rit. nf he t'ni;e1 Suites courts
ha,s, WIN fhr,ucNor. tic p-'-o'o s.-+-~.
,.E',e-o1ofh nn1or The '"r~itQ~i-,' "lo ~,
&c ~. FTa,ted S.a'ee on5 toa no. -, -
$50 q 1,.ern,,, ri,;-.s'-c ~ ~ r-,'.- :,
: s..-.as hevn oete~an I'd oc"u-e'on *Sa
lishea Industrial enterprises ,hare.
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