Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 19.djvu/211

FEDERAL RELATIONS OF OREGON 199 into an awkward situation where, if the matter were followed up, Castlereagh must abandon his temporizing policy. As we have noted above the events of 1822 and 1823 had brought to the surface the whole question of the relation of European states to the American continent, and this relation was being weighed by American statesmen, especially by Adams. Russian claims upon the Northwest Coast and the Holy Alliance's plans for the revolting American colonies of Spain conceivably might form parts of a single scheme, since the Emperor Alexander was a potent factor in European coun- cils. Russia had invited a discussion looking toward a settle- ment of the issue on the Pacific and Baron Tuyl had stated to Adams that Bagot, the British minister at St. Petersburg, was empowered to take up the same question so far as it affected England. Up to a certain point the, interests of the United States and of Great Britain marched together so far as they tended to combat the pretensions of the Czar hence nothing was more logical than combined action in settling as much as possible of the controversy. So, too, since the Northwest Coast was the bone of contention, nothing could be more rea- sonable than that the whole matter be cleaned up at once; with Spain out of the way, there remained but three interested nations and if these could jointly agree it would be indeed an occasion for mutual congratulation. Not only was Adams ready for joint negotiation but he was prepared to outline the plan which, in his mind, should be satisfactory for all certainly it met with the approval of the United States. The whole thing was simplicity itself; Russia should agree with the United States that the boundary south of which the former should not go would be 55 ; Great Britain likewise was to concur in fixing her southern boundary and the United States' northern limit at 51. Each country should surrender all claims to title within the region set apart for each of the others. 25 The Russian commissioners had been brought with little difficulty to adopt this plan in its essential points, for their claim to anything south of 54 40' was base- less. 25 See instructions to Rush, 22 July, 1823, Am. S. P. For. Ret., V, 791-3.