Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1909-10-15
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and independence were to be found on the bars
of the Forty Mile, the Stewart, and at Circle
City.
With the increase OF population came the rep
resentatives of the American and Canadian gov
.ernments. custom-houses were established and
court decisions took the place of the rude JUS
tice dispensed by miners meetings. With the
new order of things came also the necessity OF
" determined line between the two countries.
The United States claimed under the old Rus
sian treaty. line running up Portland canal to
the 5Gth parallel of north latitude. thence to fol-
low the summit of the coast range to its inter-
section with the 141st meridian. In the absence
of definite mountain range near the coast, the
line was to be not more than ten marine leagues
distant from tide water.
Canada claimed that the line should follow the
coast range paralleling the general contour of
the coast, and cutting across all inlets and iords.
There were other contentious of minor impor-
tance, but the real trouble was that Canada
thought she was entitled to a seaport which
would allow of shipments through Canadian ter
ritory to the now valuable Klondike
AS to the 141st meridian being the rest of the
boundary, there was no dispute This line starts
sat ridge of Mount Saint Elias and runs through
70 Denarcation Point the Arctic ocean.
Maps showing strip of land along the coast
were made, archives were rummaged, every avail
able bits of history and tradition searched,
and the whole mass submitted as evidence to a
tribunal of three Americans, two Canadians and
Engshman, which met in London In 1903.
The sitting of the evidence required three months
4Fhe opposing counsel helped by the geographic
Experts put forth their best arguments, vote
,;as taken. and the result showed four to two for
nc United States, the lord chief justice of Eng
md, Lord Alverstone, casting his vote with the
mericans.
Naturally the Canadian representatives felt
Greatly disappointed, but the evidence too
conclusive to allow of any other outcome
Then camo the question of what mountains
i;ttutcd the coast range In places a compro-
ense effected departing slightly from the
claims OF the United States
Ii ives decided that certain welldefined peaks
the mountains lringing the coast should con-
stituto the main points on the boundary. Lord
Alyerstope, welding blue pencil marked on the
maps what appeared to the tribunal to be the
proper mountains. The members of the tribunal
were nl eminent jursts, but this did not make
them proficient in the intricacies of contour maps
and the advice of the experts was constantly re-
Guested.
The location Of the boundary was left to two
commissioners, Mr. o. H. Tittmann, superintend-
ent Of the coast and geodetc survey, for the
United States, and DR.. w. +. King. chief Domin-
ion astronomer. for Canada.
Wherever the blue-pencil mark appears on the
map. this point without any recourse is boun-
dary pcint even though higher and better point
may bo but a short distance away.
TO follow the sinuosities of the mountain
ranges in this country would be hopeless, so the
commissioners win probably decide that a
straight line connecting athe various bue-penciled
points shall constitute the boundary.
The actual demarcation of the boundary to be
satisfactory to both governments. must be done
5LiELy l.; this It Is not meant that there is a di