missioner, James Gadsden.43 The boundaries (see figs. 3, 31) as established are as follows (Malloy, 1910, v. 1, p. 1121):

ARTICLE I. The Mexican Republic agrees to designate the following as her true limits with the United States for the future: Retaining the same dividing line between the two Californias as already defined and established, according to the fifth article of the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the limits between the two republics shall be as follows: Beginning in the Gulf of Mexico, three leagues from land, opposite the mouth of the Rio Grande, as provided in the fifth article of the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo; thence, as defined in the said article, up the middle of that river to the point where the parallel of 31°47′ north latitude crosses the same; thence due west one hundred miles; thence south to the parallel of 31°20′ north latitude; thence along the said parallel of 31°20′ to the 111th meridian of longitude west of Greenwich; thence in a straight line to a point on the Colorado River twenty English miles below the junction of the Gila and Colorado Rivers; thence up the middle of the said river Colorado until it intersects the present line between the United States and Mexico.

In the year following, a commission was appointed for surveying and marking this line, under the U.S. commissioner, Maj. W. H. Emory. The line was run and marked in the year 1855, and the report was transmitted in the following year (Emory, 1857a).

As settlement increased in the territory which this line traverses, it became evident that the line was insufficiently marked. Because some of the monuments had disappeared and because there were many large areas in which no monuments had ever been placed, the necessity of rerunning and marking the line became apparent. For this purpose a commission was created in 1891, under which the line was recovered from the original monuments, as far as possible, and between these monuments was rerun and fully and durably marked. The report of this commission, including maps, profiles, and illustrations of the monuments, was published in 1898. (See fig. 1; U.S. Cong. 1898a.)

ALASKA PURCHASE

Alaska was purchased from Russia, in accordance with a convention signed March 30, 1867 (Farrar, 1922), and proclaimed June 20, 1867, and was made a Territory by act of August 24, 1912. (37 Stat. L., pt. 1, p. 512.)

The boundaries of Alaska are described in the accompanying extracts from the convention of 1825 between Russia and Great Britain, as quoted in Article I of the convention of 1867 (see figs. 5-7; Malloy, 1910, v. 2, p. 1521):

"Commencing from the southernmost point of the island called Prince of Wales Island, which point lies in the parallel of 54 degrees 40 minutes north latitude, and between the 131st and 133d degree of west longitude (meridian

43 For references to the events which led to this purchase and a brief discussion of the boundary questions, see Bancroft (1889, v. 17, p. 491-518, 652).

of Greenwich) the said line shall ascend to the north along the channel called Portland channel, as far as the point of the continent where it strikes the 56th degree of north latitude; from this last-mentioned point, the line of demarcation shall follow the summit of the mountains situated parallel to the coast as far as the point of intersection of the 141st degree of west longitude (of the same meridian); and finally, from the said point of intersection, the said meridian line of the 141st degree, in its prolongation as far as the Frozen ocean.

“IV. With reference to the line of demarcation faid down in the proceeding article, it is understood

"1st. That the island called Prince of Wales Island shall belong wholly to Russia," (now, by this cession, to the United States).

"2d. That whenever the summit of the mountains which extend in a direction parallel to the coast from the 56th degree of north latitude to the point of intersection of the 141st degree of west longitude shall prove to be at the distance of more than ten marine leagues from the ocean, the limit between the British possessions and the line of coast which is to belong to Russia as above mentioned (that is to say, the limit to the possessions ceded by this convention) shall be formed by a line parallel to the winding of the coast, and which shall never exceed the distance of ten marine leagues therefrom."

The following paragraph is in the convention of 1867 only (Malloy, 1913, v. 2, p. 1522):

The western limit within which the territories and dominion conveyed, are contained, passes through a point in Behring's straits on the parallel of sixtyfive degree thirty minutes north latitude, at its intersection by the meridian which passes midway between the islands of Krusentern, or Ignalook, and the island of Ratmanoff, or Noonarbook, and proceeds due north, without limitation, into the same Frozen ocean. The same western limit, beginning at the same initial point, proceeds thence in a course nearly southwest, through Behring's straits and Behring's sea, so as to pass midway between the northwest point of the island of St. Lawrence and the southeast point of Cape Choukotski, to the meridian of one hundred and seventy-two west longitude; thence, from the intersection of that meridian, in a southwesterly direction, so as to pass midway between the island of Attou and the Copper island of the Kormandorski couplet or group in the North Pacific ocean, to the meridian of one hundred and ninety-three degrees west longitude [167° east longitude] so as to include in the territory conveyed the whole of the Aleutian islands east of that meridian.

The consideration paid for Alaska was $7,200,000 in gold.

There is no possibility of misinterpreting the language of the convention as to the part of the boundary running along the 141st meridian, but when the wealth of the area was recognized the claims of the United States on the location of the part of the boundary from Mount St. Elias southeastward to the mouth of Portland Canal were questioned by Canadian authorities.

The coast of this part of Alaska is extremely broken, containing many fiords extending far inland, and no continuous range of mountains parallels the coast. It was for many years tacitly admitted by both sides that the second alternative of the treaty, that the boundary

should be a line 10 marine leagues distant from the coast and following its windings, should be the one finally adopted when the question of marking the boundary arose. This position has been consistently held by the United States from the time of the acquisition of the territory to the present day. Many maps prepared before the dispute arose, United States and Canadian, agreed on it. Many acts of sovereignty were performed by the United States within this territory, and no question of their validity was raised by the Canadian authorities. The discovery of gold in the basin of the Yukon in Canada, however, and the fact that the only feasible means of access to this region lay through U.S. territory made it extremely desirable for Canada to possess a port or ports on this coast as the starting points of routes to the Yukon mines, and it was only when this necessity appeared that a definite interpretation of the treaty was required.

The claim made by the British Government on behalf of Canada before a joint commission on the boundary in August 1898 was that this part of the boundary, instead of passing up Portland Canal, should pass up Pearse Canal, connecting with Portland Canal, up which it should follow to the summit of the mountains nearest to the coast, and then should follow them, regardless of the fact that they do

not form a continuous range, crossing all the inlets of the sea up to Mount St. Elias. This claim was refused by the U.S. commissioners. A proposition made by the British commissioners to refer the matter to arbitration was also refused by the United States commissioners, on the ground that there was nothing to arbitrate, inasmuch as the territory in question was in the possession of the United States and had been for many years without dispute, such possession being in full accord with the terms of the treaty. The commission was then dissolved, the only outcome being an agreement that the summits of White and Chilkoot Passes and a point upon the Chilkat River above Pyramid Harbor were temporarily adopted as points upon the boundary.

The convention of January 24, 1903, created an Alaskan Boundary Tribunal, to consist of "six impartial jurists of repute," three to be selected by each of the two parties to the controversy, to attempt a settlement of this boundary question. The United States was represented by Messrs. Elihu Root, Henry Cabot Lodge, and George Turner. The Canadian side was represented by Baron Alverstone, lord chief justice of England, and Sir Louis A. Jetté and A. B. Aylesworth, of Canada. After argument and discussion the majority of the tribunal, consisting of Baron Alverstone and the three Americans, on October 20, 1903, agreed on a boundary which satisfied the American claims. The boundary thus adopted may be defined as follows: It crosses in a straight line from Cape Muzon to the south end of Tongass Passage, then through the passage, up Pearse Canal, and up Portland Canal to the 56th parallel of latitude. Thence the line runs from one mountain summit to another, passing above the heads of all fiords. At the head of Lynn Canal it traverses White and Chilkoot Passes. Thence by a tortuous southwesterly course it reaches Mount Fairweather and from there follows the higher mountains around Yakutat Bay to Mount St. Elias.

A survey of the coast boundary, about 900 miles in length, was completed in 1914. More surveys along this line were made later to provide more monuments between controlling points. The boundary from Tongass Passage to Mount St. Elias is now defined by a series of tangents between turning points, the geodetic positions of which have been established. A report on this boundary is given in the annual report of the International Boundary Commission, United States and Canada, published in 1952. The line is marked by concrete monuments along the shores of Portland Canal, by 5-foot aluminumbronze monuments in the valleys of streams crossed, by conical monuments on easily accessible summits and by brass bolts on peaks less easily ascended. Inaccessible peaks on the line were located by triangulation.