APPENDIX TO COUNTER-CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 445 



America, starting from an indefinite point to the southward, 

 and extending up to Behring Strait, which is defined as 

 the northern limit. (3) That in one or other form it has 

 nevertheless been loosely employed in an indefinite way as 

 a general name for various different parts of the west coast 

 of North America. 



The term North-west Coast, or, more fully, North-west Northwest 

 Coast of North America, is in fact a desi;riptive one of a *^*'''*^*'- 

 somewhat peculiar character. 



Looking at the map, it will be seen that the coast which 

 has not infrequently been so named is in reality the coast 

 of North America which faces west or south-west, and 

 forms the eastern and north-eastern coastline of the North 



Pacific. 

 lOG This term, however, appears in the title of some 



very early Maps, such as that by Miiller, dated 17G1, 

 which is entitled, "A Map of the Discoveries made by the 

 Kussians on the North-west Coast of America;" that ac- 

 companying the original edition of Cook's third voyage, 

 dated 1784, and entitled, "Chart of the North-west Coast 

 of America and the North-east Coast of Asia;" and that in 

 Vancouver's voyage (1798), named "A Chart showing part 

 of the Coast of North-west America." 



The last-named map, however, affords a clue to the orig- 

 inal meaning of the term, and shows that, in these instances, 

 we should read in full "Coast of the North-western part of 

 the North American continent," and, conversely, " Coast of 

 the north-eastern part of the continent of Asia." 



It is very probable that the meaning of the term North- 

 west Coast of America began to be ditierently understood 

 at a later date, when it came into common use in the United 

 States, for the coast in question was actually situated to 

 the north-west of all the inhabited centres of that coun- 

 try. Thus it became ]possible and apx)roi)riate to drop the 

 words "of America." 



But, in admitting this, it is also evident that the North- 

 ivest Coast, as thus secondarily applied must have included 

 the whole coast lying north-Avesterly from the point of ob- 

 servation, or trending from any given point of departure 

 on the west coast of the continent in a general north- 

 westerly direction. 



It appears, however, to be maintained on the part of the 

 United States that, at some still later date, the term north- 

 west coast came to bear a quite definite signification, as 

 referring to a certain particular i^art of the western coast 

 of North America. 



In this case such usage may be expected to be found 

 recorded in writings or on maps at some particular epoch, 

 and thereafter to have been continued Avith precision. 



The term is seldom found as a geographical one defined 

 verbally. In fact, the only such attem])t at i)recise defini- 

 tion so far met with is that of Greenhow (in 1810), already 

 (luoted in the British Case (pp. 66-67), from which it apj^ears 

 that he understood the north-west coast to extend from the 

 40th parallel to Behring Strait. 



In Burney's "Chronological History of North-eastern 

 Voyages of Discovery," London, 1819, chapter 19 is euti- 



