[GANONG] DOCHET (ST. CROIX) ISLAND 211 
boundary to be a line drawn “ along the middle of the River St. Croix,” 
and the middle line of the St. Croix lies on the east side of the 
island (fig. 4, also 10), hence throwing the island into the United 
States. On the other hand, if the decision had placed the mouth 
of the river at Devil’s Head, then the part below, in which the island 
lies, would have been a part of the Bay of Fundy, since the Treaty 
declared the mouth of the river to be in the Bay of Fundy and recog- 
nized no other waters. But the Treaty assigned to the United States 
all islands within twenty leagues of its coasts lying between lines 
drawn due east from the mouth of the St. Croix and the mouth of 
St. Mary’s River in Florida, “excepting such islands as now are, 
or heretofore have been, within the limits of the said Province of 
Nova Scotia.” Now, the old charters of Nova Scotia, on which her 
ownership was based, had granted to her all islands within six leagues 
of her coasts, and this is the reason why New Brunswick, the legal 
successor here of Nova Scotia, possesses to-day all the islands of 
Passamaquoddy Bay, except only Moose Island and two contiguous 
islets, which were in 1817 assigned to the United States chiefly on 
the ground of her long possession of them and in return for a partial 
claim she had to Grand Manan. Had the mouth of the St. Croix 
been fixed at Devil’s Head, Dochet Island would have been in the Bay 
of Fundy, and, being within six leagues of the coast of New Bruns- 
wick, would to-day belong to that province. 
But, although it thus fell plainly to the United States, it was 
not yielded without some symptoms of protest. In a manuscript 
draft of a letter of Ward Chipman, the ‘British agent before the 
Boundary Commission, to Governor Carleton, dated July 7, 1799, we 
read as follows (Ms. in possession of Rev. Dr. Raymond): — 
I take this opportunity further to inform your Excellency that I have 
received intelligence that the subjects of the United States residing on the 
western shores of the River St. Croix have lately taken possession of the Isle 
St. Croix lying in this river just within its mouth, and from which the river orig- 
inally took its name. Under the construction of the 2d article of the Treaty 
of Peace, which I had the honour to submit to your Excellency’s consideration 
in my letter of the 21st ulto. your Excellency will perceive that this island 
belongs to the United States as lying on the west side of the channel and of 
the dividing line between the two countries along the middle of the river from 
its mouth, and to the northward of a due East line from its mouth, and not 
therefore affected by the clauses affecting islands in this article of the 
treaty; but if this construction is erroneous, and the exception or reservation 
to His Majesty of such islands as have at any time been within the limits of 
the Province of Nova Scotia is to be considered as absolute and unqualified, 
and the clause descriptive of the Islands granted to the United States is to 
have no effect whatever upon the exception, this island still undoubtedly 
belongs to his Majesty as having been at the time of the treaty of peace 
within those limits. 
