tion must have been, whether it was proper to enter into a negotiation for a compromise, which implied a partial abandonment of absolute rights, and converted the question of right into one of mutual convenience? In deciding this, the relative position in which the two countries were actually placed by the course of events, must necessarily be taken into consideration.

The award of the former Arbiter, the fruitless negotiations of the ensuing eleven years, the failure even of the attempts to conclude an agreement preparatory to another arbitration, the delays with which this would be attended, together with the uncertainty of the result, the opinions or prejudices prevailing in England, the irritation and the collisions in the contested territory, were positive facts, which had a powerful effect on both Governments, and controlled their conduct. That of Great Britain did, by the special mission of Lord Ashburton, give an unequivocal proof of its desire for the preservation of peace, and that an amicable arrangement might be concluded. Under all the circumstances of the case as it now stood, I am clearly of opinion, in common with a great majority of the nation, that it was right and proper to meet this overture with a similar spirit. The assent of the State of Maine was indispensable. This once obtained, the intrinsic value of the concessions, which have been accepted as equivalents for the territory yielded by the treaty, is a matter of opinion, and of very secondary importance.

I regret that it should have been necessary to resort to a compromise, and that the question had not been settled according to strict justice, and in conformity with the express terms of the treaty. It is regretted, only, because an adherence to these principles, in treaties as in private contracts, is necessary for the preservation of mutual confidence and of sincere friendly relations between nations or individuals. But in this instance, the compromise has proved satisfactory, and has already had a happy influence on both parties. And the hope is cherished, that the settlement of this long vexed question may pave the way to an amicable adjustment of other important subjects, and lay the foundation of perpetual peace and amity between the two countries.

G

Mr. GALLATIN having concluded the reading of his Memoir, the First Vice-President, WILLIAM BEACH LAWRENCE, Esq., rose and addressed the Chair as follows:

Mr. PRESIDENT,

Extraordinary as it may seem, that the document on which you have dilated, should have remained unnoticed during the protracted discussions to which the Boundary question gave rise, it is, perhaps, no source of regret that it was not adduced during the late negotiation. I well remember, Sir, to have heard you frequently remark, when it was my privilege, in former days, to be brought officially in contact with you, that the greatest difficulty, on our side, was that our case was too strong-that there was not enough of doubt in it to justify a compromise. I am very sure, Sir, that no one, who reads the American statement, drawn up by yourself, or the concise argument of Mr. WEBSTER, in his note of the 8th July, 1842, to Lord ASHBURTON, can question the conclusiveness of the reasoning, deduced from the language of the treaty. In this last paper the Secretary of State refers to the familiar principle, that what is doubtful may be ascertained by that which is certain, and applying it to that part of the definition of " the highlands," which requires them to be at the head of the rivers emptying into the River St. Lawrence, about which there is no dispute, sustains, even if we concede to the English their quibble as to the distinction between the Atlantic proper and the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of St. Lawrence, the American claim to its fullest extent.

The map of Mr. JAY, the authenticity of which has this

evening been proved, establishes, beyond controversy, that the source of the St. John, contemplated by the instructions of the old Congress of 1779, and in the Agreement between Mr. Oswald and the American Commissioners, of October, 1782, was that of the Madawaska, the source of which is marked as Lake Nipissigouche on Mitchell's map, and not the source of the southern or western branch; though the latter is on that map designated as the main St. John. It is that northern source, which was identical with Mr. OswWALD'S northwest angle of Nova Scotia; and though, when that fact was asserted by the Commissioners of Maine, Lord ASHBURTON treated the idea almost with ridicule, the document now before us, with the explanation which we have just had from you, Sir, of the geographical error as to the longitude of places near the St. Lawrence, compared with those on the seaboard, would have left the British Plenipotentiary no room for refutation. But, Sir, is there not reason to suppose that, in that case, the inherent goodness of our cause would have defeated what is infinitely more important than a diplomatic triumph-the conclusion of any treaty? The assertion of our extreme rights would not have procured for us the navigation of the St. John, more valuable to Maine and Massachusetts than the whole district claimed by them; it would not have quieted the title to the contested territory in New-Hampshire, Vermont, and New-York, nor acquired what has been obtained by our negotiator-a tract at the northwest, nearly equal in extent to all the land supposed to have been given up at the east. But, aside from all these matters of territorial compensation, a few millions of barren acres cannot be put in competition with the removal of all causes of irritation, between two great nations, and which, God grant! may be followed by those further treaty stipulations, which an enlightened political economy dictates, and which will render even a tariff-that prolific source of domestic contention-no longer a subject of discussion.

I should, Sir, were this an ordinary meeting of the Society, offer some remarks on the map supposed to have been traced by Dr. FRANKLIN, and of which a most unworthy use has been made by English writers, including our old friend the soi-disant U. States' Geologist-British Commissioner, who, like the condottieri of the middle ages, passed at once from the service of the one country to that of the other. But, Sir, the American negotiator, especially after what has been said by you, has no occasion for any advocate, and, least of all, for so humble a one as myself. I will, therefore, simply remark, that the charge of concealment of documents comes with a singular ill grace from England, when we recollect that the only arguments, by which the late Special Minister supported the pretensions of his country, were derived from supposed admissions on our part, or from communications from one American functionary to another, and which according to the usages of all other Governments would have been inviolate secrets.

I now fulfil, Sir, my intention in rising, which was to request our distinguished Guest, whom we are proud to recognise as an associate, to present such observations on the matter that has brought us together this evening, as he may feel at liberty to communicate to a Society, whose object is, to preserve the record of events worthy to be commemorated in our national annals.