Year: 1860

The SAN JUAN DIFFICULTY IN PARLIAMENT.-In
the House of Commons, on the 3rd inst, Mr.. S.
Fitzgerald asked the Secretary of State for For
eign Affairs whether he has prepared to give the
House any information to the present position OF
the negotiations between this country and the
United States with reference tie the island of San
Juan, and whether he had any objection to lay the
correspondence with the United States govern
ment on that subject upon the table of the House.
He wished further to ask, although he had not
given notice ofhis intention to do So what the
present condition of affairs as to the occupation of
and jurisdiction in, the island OF San Juan, in con-
sequence of the arrangements made with General
Scott. He also wished to know whether the noble
lord had received any counter proposition from the
United States, and whether he had made any 9TH
er proposition to the United States in consequence
of the compromise which he proposed having been
rejected Would the noble lord also state what
was the nature of the compromise that had been
rejected by the United States?


Lord J. Russell.-As to the last question, can
not properly give an answer at present, for 1t
would not be convenient to explain now the nature
of what the honorable gentleman calls the compro-
mise we proposed, which we think fairly in ac-
cordance with the terms of the treaty of lS46 The
present state of the question is this We made a
proposition in August last which was refused by
the American government, they stating over again
their claim to the channel which they had original
ly claimed soon alter the treaty. We intended to
reply to that, and there was some question wheth-
er the American government wolld give any reply
to our despatch, but the last intelligence received
was that Gen. Cass expected to receive orders from
the President to prepare an answer to our despatcn
1t depends upon the terms of that answer whether
lay the correspondence the table, or whether
some further reply the part OF her Majesty S
government will not be Necessary. AS 10 the state
of the occupation of the island OF san Juan, tne
House is aware that General Harney thouSnt II
necessary to place eight hundred men and battery
of runs 0n the island. Gen. Scott sent there
with orders from the President to use his own dis
cretion on the basis of MIR. Secretary Marcys des-
match. which is well known to all of us. General
Scott. acting in the spirit of that despatch, i'm
mediately sent away from the island all but one
hundred men, and declared that neither party
ought to have exclusive jurisdiction while the uues-
tion was pending. He also sent away the guns
and informed the Governor of Vancouver's Island
and our Admiral of what he had done. The Gov
ernor of Yancouver's Island did not consider him
self authorized to enter into any compromise or
agreement with General Scott, not having had
any orders from home. Orders have since been
sent to the Admiral to land 100 marines-the same
number of men as the United States had on the
island We said at the same time that it fairly in
accordance with what the American government
had declared that there should be no exclusive
Jurisdiction exercised in the island. There has
been some doubt in the mind of the Governor OF
Vancouvers Island whether we should have a
magistrate on the island, lest it might create con
fusion. How that has been decided | cannot saw
but such was the state of affairs at the date of my
last intelligence.


The New York krpress saws that they had occa
sionally published letters written by Walker, who
was expelled from the reporters gallery of the
House OF Representatives on Thursday, but he had
not been Prominently engaged by the proprletors o
that paper as its Washington correspondent


The late Clark G. Pickman, of Boston, bequeath
ed his valuable library to Harvard College.