ILLINOIS

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

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,-.T?sanDECISION

OF THE

Alaskan boundary tribunal

UNDER THE TREATY OF JANUARY 24, 1903,

BETWEEN

THE UNITED STATES AND GREAT BRITAIN.

~^J"HEREAS by a Convention signed at Washington on the 24th_ day
t "01 January 1903, by Plenipotentiaries of and on behalf of His
Majesty the^ King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, and of
and on behalf of the United States of America, it was agreed that a Tribu-
nal should be appointed to consider and decide the questions hereinafter
set forth, such Tribunal to consist of six impartial Jurists of repute, who
should consider judicially the questions submitted to them each of whom
should first subscribe an oath that he would impartially consider the argu-
ments and evidence presented to the said Tribunal, and would decide there-
upon according to his true judgment, and that three members of the said
Tribunal should be appointed by His Britannic Majesty and three by the
President of the United States :

And whereas it was further agreed by the said Convention that the
said Tribunal, should consider in the settlement of the said questions sub-
mitted to its decision the Treaties respectively concluded between His
Britannic Majesty and the Emperor of All the Russias under date of the
28th (16th) February A D 1825 and between the United States of America
and the Emperor of All the Russias, concluded under date of the 18th
(30th) March A D 1867, and particularly the Articles III, IV and V of
the first mentioned Treaty, and should also take into consideration any
action of the several Governments or of their respective Representatives,
preliminary or subsequent to the conclusion of the said Treaties so far as
the same tended to show the original and effective understanding of the
parties in respect to the limits of their several territorial jurisdictions under
and by virtue of the provisions of the said Treaties2

And whereas it was further agreed by the said Convention, referring to
Articles III, IV and V of the said Treaty of 1825, that the said Tribunal
should answer and decide the following questions:—

1.	What is intended as the point of commencement of the line?

2.	What channel is the Portland Channel?

3.	What course should the line take from the point of commencement
to the entrance to Portland Channel?

4.	To what point on the 56th parallel is the line to be drawn from the
head of the Portland Channel, and what course should it follow between
these points?

5.	In extending the line of demarcation northward from said point
on the parallel of the 56th degree of north latitude, following the crest of
the mountains situated parallel to the coast until its intersection with the
141st degree of longitude west of Greenwich, subject to the conditions
that if such line should anywhere exceed the distance of 10 marine leagues
from the ocean, then the boundary between the British and the Russian ter-
ritory should be formed by a line parallel to the sinuosities of the coast and
distant therefrom not more than xo marine leagues, was it the intention
and meaning of the said Convention of 1825 that there should remain in
the exclusive possession of Russia a continuous fringe, or strip, of coast
on the mainland not exceeding 10 marine leagues in width, separating the
British possessions from the bays, ports, inlets, havens, and waters of the
ocean, and extending from the said point on the 56th degree of latitude
north to a point where such line of demarcation should intersect the 141st
degree of longitude west of the meridian of Greenwich?

6.	If the foregoing question should be answered in the negative and
in the event of the summit of such mountains proving to be in places
more than 10 marine leagues from the coast should the width of the lisihre,
which was to belong to Russia be measured (1) from the mainland coast
of the ocean,, strictly so-called along a line perpendicular thereto, or (2)
was it the intention and meaning of the said Convention that where the
mainland coast is indented by deep inlets forming part of the territorial
waters of Russia, the width of the lisiere was to be measured (a) from the
line of the general direction of the mainland coast, or (6) from the line
separating the waters of the ocean from the territorial waters of Russia, or
(c) from the heads of the aforesaid inlets?

7. WThat, if any exist, are the mountains referred to as situated parallel
to the coast, which mountains, when within 10 marine leagues from the
coast, are declared to form the eastern boundary?

And whereas His Britannic Majesty duly appointed Richard Everard,
Baron Alverstone, G.C.M G. Lord Chief Justice of England, Sir Louis
Amable Jett£ K C M G Lieutenant-Governor of the Province of Quebec,
and Allen Bristol Aylesvvorth one of His Majesty's Counsel, and the
President of the United States of America duly appointed the Honourable
Elihu Root Secretary of War of the United States, the Honourable Henry
Cabot Lodge, Senator of the United States from the State of Massachu-
setts and the Honourable George Turner of the State of Washington, to
be members of the said Tribunal.

Now therefore we the Undersigned having each of us first sub-
scribed an oath as provided by the said Convention and having taken into
consideration the matters directed by the said Convention to be consideredVV!



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MAP SHOWING AWARD OF C«jm Ont^UAfr

ALASKA BOUNDARY TRIBUNAL

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rati TH£ DKPAPTMtNT OF STATS
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by us, and having judicially considered the said questions submitted to us,
do hereby make Answer and Award as follows:—

In answer to the first question

The Tribunal unanimously agrees that the point of commencement of
the line is Cape Muzon.

In answer to the second question

The Tribunal unanimously agrees that the Portland Channel is the
Channel which runs from about 550 56' NL and passes to the north of
Pearse and Wales Islands.

A majority of the Tribunal that is to say Lord Alverstone Mr Root
Mr Lodge and Mr Turner decides that the Portland Channel after pass-
ing to the north of Wales Island is the channel between Wales Island and
Sitklan Island called Tongass Channel. The Portland Channel above men-
tioned is marked throughout its length by a dotted red line from the point
B to the point marked C on the map signed in duplicate by the members
of the Tribunal at the time of signing their decision.

In answer to the third question

A majority of the Tribunal that is to say Lord Alverstone Mr Root
Mr Lodge and Mr Turner decides that the course of the line from the
point of commencement to the entrance to Portland Channel is the line
marked A B in red on the aforesaid map.

In answer to the fourth question

A majority of the Tribunal that is to say Lord Alverstone Mr Root
Mr Lodge and Mr Turner decides that the point to which the line is to
be drawn from the head of the Portland Channel is the point on the 56th
parallel of latitude marked D on the aforesaid map and the course which.
the line should 'to'liow is drawn from C to D on the aforesaid map.

In answer to the fifth question

A majority of the Tribunal, that is to say Lord Alverstone Mr Root
Mr Lodge and Mr Turner decides that the answer to the above question
is in the affirmative

Question five having been answered in the affirmative question six
requires no answer.

In answer to the seventh question

A majority of the Tribunal that is to say Lord Alverstone, Mr Root,
Mr Lodge and Mr Turner decides that the mountains marked S on the
aforesaid map are the mountains referred to as situated parallel to the coast
on that part of the coast where such mountains marked S are situated and
that between the points marked P (mountain marked S 8,000) on the
north and the point marked T (mountain marked S 7,950) in the absence
of further survey the evidence is not sufficient to enable the Tribunal to
say which are the mountains parallel to the coast within the meaning of the
Treaty.

In witness whereof we have signed the above written decision upon
the questions submitted to us.

Signed in duplicate this twentieth day of October 1903.

ALVERSTONE.

ELIHU ROOT
HENRY CABOT LODGE
GEORGE TURNER

Witness

Reginald Tower:

Secretary.This book is a preservation facsimile produced for
the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
It is made in compliance with copyright law
and produced on acid-free archival

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Preservation facsimile printing and binding
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