§ MR. JAMES ROCHE (Kerry, E.)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, when the 894 territory of Alaska was purchased from Russia by the United States, the rights and obligations under all Treaties existing at that time and having reference to that country also passed under such sale, whether, under the Treaty of 1844, entered into between Her Majesty's Government and Russia, the Harbour of Fort Wrangel and the inlet to the Stikeen River was constituted a free Port as far as concerned the trade of Great Britain and her Colonies; and whether the United States Government now propose to establish an excise supervision over that Port and levy therein their Tariff on all foreign merchandise, as well as a poll tax on all passengers passing through to the North-West Territories of Canada, although neither merchandise nor passengers are consigned to any portion of United States territory?
THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRSIn the Treaty of March, 1867, between Russia and the United States, by which Alaska was ceded to the latter Power, certain Articles of the Treaty of 1825 between Great Britain and Russia, with regard to the geographical limits of the ceded territory, were recited, and Her Majesty's Government are advised that the United States are bound thereby, but that is not the case so far as the rest of the Treaty is concerned. There is no Treaty between this country and Russia of 1844. By Article XXVI of the Treaty of Washington of 1871, it is provided that the navigation of the rivers Yukon, Porcupine, and Stikeen, shall be free and open for the purpose of commerce to British subjects and to citizens of the United States subject to any laws and regulations of either country within its own territory not inconsistent with such privileges of free navigation. Inquiries are being made by Her Majesty's Ambassador at Washington as to the regulations applicable to the navigation of the Stikeen river.