UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA The Treaty of Washington, Concluded THE JAMES BRYCE HISTORICAL PRIZE ESSAY BY HUGH TAYLOR GORDON BERKELEY THE UNIVERSITY PRESS 1908 THE TREATY OF WASHINGTON, CONCLUDED AUGUST 9, 1842, BY DANIEL WEBSTER AND LORD ASHBURTON. HUGH TAYLOR GORDON. INTRODUCTION. The Treaty of Washington of August 9th, 1842, commonly called the Webster-Ashburton Treaty, was described by Mr. Webster, himself, as "something for the peace of the world." The whole truth of this characterization was not appreciated at the time it was spoken. Webster intended his description of the treaty for its relation to past events, for its results in settling questions which had actually been verging upon war. But the same description is equally true of the far-reaching effects of the treaty in its subsequent relation to international law and the fundamental principles of peace between nations. The treaty stands between two long periods of history, one including the events which led to its negotiation, the other, those which resulted from it. In its relation to both of these periods the treaty is primarily a security of international peace. The long history of the Webster-Ashburton treaty begins with the boundary question originating in the treaty of 1783. Around this question a whole series of complicated disputes were added during the ten years preceding |