"leagues of any part of the shores of the United States, and "lying between lines to be drawn due east from the points "where the aforesaid boundaries between Nova Scotia on "the one part, and East Florida on the other, shall respec" tively touch the Bay of Fundy and the Atlantic Ocean."

The only difference between these words and those used in the treaty, consists in the substitution above stated. But all the sentences in the treaty in which the Bay of Fundy is mentioned, are found expressed in the same manner and for the same purpose, in the agreement of October, 1782. The River St. Croix in the treaty, the River St. John in the agreement, are respectively declared to have their mouth in the Bay of Fundy. In both instruments, the southern boundary is declared to terminate in the Atlantic Ocean. In both, the boundaries between (the United States and) Nova Scotia on the one part, and East Florida on the other, are said respectively to touch the Bay of Fundy and the Atlantic Ocean.

Since it is now fully demonstrated by Mr. JAY's map, that, notwithstanding that apparent distinction between the Atlantic Ocean and the Bay of Fundy, the River St. John was clearly intended and understood in the agreement of October, 1782, to be a river falling into the Atlantic Ocean; it is impossible that the same identical expressions should have been preserved in the treaty, for the special purpose of excluding that river from the class of Atlantic rivers, and of making thereby the treaty a perfect non-sense. Such, however, was the pretended inference, and such the frail foundation, now completely subverted, on which alone it rested.

It is evident that, in both cases, the words Bay of Fundy were introduced, only for the purpose of defining, with precision what river was intended. It was inserted in the agreement of October, 1782, in order that the intended River St. John might not be confounded with another River St. John, mentioned in the Proclamation of 1763, which coming from the north falls into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It was inserted again in the Treaty of 1783, for the purpose of defining with precision the locality of the intended River St. Croix, and of excluding all the rivers having their mouth west of the Bay of Fundy, which might bear the same name. And this precaution was the more necessary, inasmuch as Governor POWNALL had previously asserted, in a work published under his name, and often appealed to on the part of Great Britain, that there were several rivers, having their mouths west of the Bay of Fundy, which were, by the French, called also "River St. Croix." It is well known that subsequently, one of the British agents asserted that, if it had not been otherwise determined, Great Britain might under the treaty have claimed the River Penobscot, as being the true River St. Croix intended by that instrument.

In all that which I have now stated, I have admitted, that no other line was traced by Mr. JAY on his map, than the red line which he calls Mr. OSWALD'S line. This admission has been made, not only in order to avoid a discussion on debateable ground, but also because I believe the admission to be consistent with the fact. I believe so, not only on account of the general character of the coloring of the map, and for other reasons already alleged, but also because Mr. JAY did not correct the map in another quarter, so as to make the boundary agree with the terms of the treaty. From the point where the forty-fifth parallel of latitude intersects the River St. Lawrence, the treaty substituted, for that which is called Mr. OswALD'S line, the boundary line which, as you well know, runs through the River St. Law

rence and the middle of the Lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron, Superior, &c. This line prescribed by the treaty is not delineated on Mr. JAY's map.

It is, however, proper to state that, in relation to our NorthEastern Boundary, it was not necessary for Mr. JAY, and indeed it was impossible for him, to have delineated it on the map. If you suppose, indeed, that the map came into his hands without being colored, and that the line, red on one side and yellow on the other, which, from the mouth of the River St. Croix to its source, and thence in a due north course extends to the southern boundary of Canada, did not exist on the map when he received it, it follows, that it was delineated by himself: and this supposition would conclusively settle the question as to the understanding of the boundary line by our Commissioners. But if, as I believe, that line had been previously delineated, Mr. JAY stood in relation to the map in the same situation as is now the case with ourselves. If we were asked to delineate on that map, as it now stands before you, the boundary line claimed by the United States, our answer would be: We cannot do it, for it is already done; that red and yellow line is precisely that which we claim. This was the situation of Mr. JAY. The treaty line was then delineated with great precision, and he had in that respect nothing to alter or to correct. As to the line claimed on the part of Great Britain, there is no trace of it on the map,

Exclusively of the question respecting the character of the highlands, on which the map throws no light, but which I believe now to be definitively settled, both as to principle and as to fact, the only British argument, which is not completely demolished by Mr. JAY's map, is that which relates to the intersection of the River Ristigouche by the due

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north line, as claimed by the United States. And it is proper, when arguing upon that map, to point out the only misconception of the negotiators of the treaty of 1782, with regard to the topography of the country, which may in any way have a bearing on the questions respecting our NorthEastern Boundary.

It is well known, that there are great errors in the longitude of the maps of that epoch, and particularly in that of Mitchell. Had that error been uniform throughout the map, its only effect would have been to place that part of America sixty or one hundred miles nearer to the observatory of Greenwich, and to Europe generally, than it is now known to be. But this would not have affected the relative position of the various places in America delineated on the map. The error, however, is not uniform. The geographical notions in England of the River St. Lawrence, from its mouth upwards, were in 1755 exclusively derived from French maps, whilst those of the Atlantic shores were chiefly derived from British observations. And it so happened that, although the errors were on the same side, the difference was greater, by nearly one degree of longitude, on the River St. Lawrence, than on the Atlantic shores. Hence it followed, that the position of the several short rivers that fall into the River St. Lawrence from the south, and of the places determined in reference to those rivers, was placed on the maps from forty to fifty miles east of their real position, relatively to the various places along the Atlantic shores, or whose position was determined in reference to those places.

The position ascribed to the northern extremity of Mitchell's Medousa Lake was not derived from any survey of the River St. John and its branches; but it was known and is

designated on the map as a carriage to Canada. It was an ancient well known portage, by which the French inhabitants of the Bay des Chaleurs and the Miramichi communicated with the River St. Lawrence. Its position on Mitchell's map is taken from the French maps; and, as has already been stated, that position is quite correct in reference to the rivers that empty themselves into the River St. Lawrence. But, on the other hand, the position of the River St. Croix, on that map, was determined in relation to places along the shores of the Atlantic, including the Bay of Fundy. The due north line from the source of that river had never been run, and is delineated on the map in reference to the position of that source. The consequence of that difference is, that the due north line which, when surveyed, was found to terminate at the source of the River Metis, is placed on Mitchell's map about forty miles west of that source; and that the course of the Madawaska River from its junction with the St. John up to its source, is represented as being north, instead of northwest, and almost to coincide with the due north line. So that, that source of the River St. John, (that is to say, of the Madawaska,) which, according to the agreement of October, 1782, was considered as the northwest angle of Nova Scotia, is on the map placed only five miles west of the termination of the due north line, whilst in fact those two points are about forty-five miles apart.

The consequence of that topographical misconception, on the part of the negotiators of the treaty of 1783, was first, that it made the line, agreed to according to our understanding of it, to appear much less disadvantageous to Great Britain, with respect to the communication between her provinces, than in reality it turned out to be; secondly, that the negotiators entertained no suspicion, that the due north