The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1903-10-20
Canada GIUen the Portland
Canal and Too Islands,
But United STATES Com
nlaHdS Ocean Passage and
Entrance.
ITS STRATEGIC VALUE
Is OF NO IMPORTANCE
rdAEoezStone'S SDecLarafion
in FaOoC of Alien Dispu-
fafion Regarded VIII BIZ
fesneSS by Dominion.

LONDON. Oct 2O.-The Alaskan
boundary award was signed by Lord
Alverstone and the American commits
sioners this afternoon.
The award proves to be an over
whelming vindication Of the conten-
tions of the United States. inasmuch as
America obtains all she claimed, with
but few minor exceptions, and these
latter are practically abrogated by the
Importance of the concessions to Amer
lea. Canada. II is true. obtains Port
land Canal and the islands of Pearce
and Prince of Wales, but the United
States gets the islands of Sitklan and
Kannaghunat. which command the en-
trance TO Portland Canal and the ocean
passage to Port Simpson. thus prac-
tically destroying the strategic value of
the two islands awarded to Canada.
Complete Land Barrier.
Again. the line of demarkation gives
the United States a complete land bar
rier between Canada and the sea, from
Mount St. Elias to the head of Port
land Canal The report of the commits
sioners opens with the sentence:
The majority of the commission has
decided" etc.
The word majority is used because
the Canadian commissioners Jette and
Aylesworth refused to sign the report,
as they claimed the just rights of Can
ada had been ignored therein. This
fact caused some surprise in lay circles
at first. but later it transpired that
the Canadians had not taken an active
part in the deliberations since Lord
Alverstone declared himself in favor of
the main claims of the United States a
week ago. The Canadians seem bitter
over the result
In Secret Session.
The commissioners met at 11:3O this
morning in secret session. They dis
cussed some minor points, which dis
cussiop occupied half an hour. Then, it
is said. the Canadians raised objections
sbout signing, which the others tried to
overrulc At l o'clock Canadian Com
missioner Aylesworth left the. room in d
hurry. An hour elapsed, and still he
had not returned. The commissioners,
having decided that he would not re-
turn, handed their report TO ]. w. Fos-
ter and Clifford Sifton, agents for the
United States and Canada. respectively,
and they gave out the summary to the
press.
Tha lee 70
the award I'm any way. Mr.. Foster, OF
counse. for the United States, however.
said:
I'VE are satisfied with the way the
award has gone through. OF course we
would have liked to have seen Portland
Canal given 10 US. We have no criti-
cism TO make anyway"
Line of Demarkation.
The new line Of demarkation, as de-
cided on by the majority OF the tribunal
is as follows:
"A line of peaks starting at the mead
of Portland Canal and running along the
high mountains on their outer edge.
shown on the maps of survey made in
1888; from these mountains the line ex.
tends 70 Mount Whipple. thence along
what - hhO"H as the hunter Line OF
1915, crossing the Strikine River about
twenty-four miles from its mouth;
thence nOrtherly along the high peaks
70 Katis Needle and from Katis Needle
to DEVILS Thumb.
From the vicinity Of DEVILS Thumb
the line continues 70 the Continental
watershed; thence through White and
Taiya or Cherkoot Passes. westerly 10
q mountain indicated on the map at
tached to the treaty as '6s5O feet thence
to another mountain. $500 feet, from
that point It goes in a somewhat curved
line across the head Of Glaciers Bay 70
Mount Fairweather"
p'- the Canadian outposts on
fN.a lcd on seventh Page.)