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ARGUMENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
77

tien Det ween our possessions on the northweet coat of America and those which England thought herself entitled to claim. 1 thonght that it would) be hetter to meet the uestion frikly. Conseynently, aveiding ciremuloontions [EP sail], that the Imperial Government woul think that it had noade all the concessions required by it= moderation and its earnest ctesire to dniutain a good noderstanmd- tng with all foreign powers by fixing the boundary between the Rosrian and Engli-h possessions at the fifty-fourth degree of hititude, and by giving for the longitude saehoa line as in ite prolongation in a straight line towawl the pole woukd leave the Mackenzie River outside of the Russian frontier.

Chevalier Vawot, after a toment’s reflection, replied, that the point of cenar qition whieh T hal jet designated wae very far from being that which his (rov- ermncent woull have wished te fix.

THE THIRD SUGGESTION AS TA A LENE,

The third snygestion was made by Sir Charles Bagot. This wis communicated to M. Poletica in Oetuber, 1828. Sir Charles says in a letter to Mr. Canning:

=

And £ then wave him te nnderstend that the British Government would, 7 thonght, be satisfied to take Cross Sound. lying about the latitude of 574°, as the houndary Letween the tie powers on the coast and a merlin line drawn frou the heal of Lyi Canal. as it is laid down in Arrowsmith’s last sap, or abent the Hath desvee of west longitude, az the bhonndary in the interior of the

continent?

This nndowhtedly put all of the west const of Lynn Canal im Russian territory.

Mr. Canning understood Sir Charles Bagot to mean the 13th degree of longitude, for be says in his Jetter to him of January 15, Ts24:

Bat if that were too meh to insist npon the lMidth degree of hengitude as sigvested Fy Yorr Excellency. northware front the heat of Lanns Harbour might stuttiee,

hi woulkl, bowever, in that case be expeatient to assien. wilh respect to the mninland southward of that point, a limit. sav, of i or 10) miles from the cagat, hevend whieh the Rnssian posts should wot be extendiul to the erstwind. We suitist net on any account admit the Russian territery to exten) at any point to the Rocky Mountains.c

This would pat both shores of Lyou Canal, throughout its whole extend. in Russian territory.

  1. Ul8. C. App, 18Y, eC. 8. OC. App, U8,

Sp. S.C. App. 131.