vi 
PREFACE. 
come known. The line separating these from the 
parts which remained unexplored and unknown, maf 
be considered as commencing at the PacifiG ocean u% 
latitude about 38d. north, and running along the highi 
lands and mountains between the waters which tall 
into the gulphs of California and Mexico and those 
^yhich fall into the Missouri river, and continuing in; 
that direction to the Mississippi ; thence up that ri- 
ver to the soui'ce of its highest north western brandi ; 
thence along the high tract of country which divides- 
the waters of the Missouri from those which fall into 
Hudson's Bay and the North sea ; from Vi'hence it 
will continue across the Rocky Mountains to the 
pacific ocean in latitude about 5 2d. north. To the 
south of this general division line, the known coun- 
tries will be Old and New^ Mexico and a part of 
Louisiana; to the Southeast, W^st and East Florida 
to the east, the United States ; to the northeast, Ca- 
nada, the Labrador country, part of New South Wales: 
and of other countries round Hudson's Bay ; and to- 
the north, part of New South Wales, New. North 
Wales, the Athabasca and other countriescontaining 
the establishments of the Hudson'is Bay and North? 
West Companies, and those explored by Hearne 
and M'Kenzie : leaving unknown and unexplored 
(except so far as the surveys made by navigators, 
of the coast oF the Facinc, and the iinperfect ac- 
counts of traders who have ascended the Missouri 
have furnished information) all that large interme- 
diate tract, containing in breadth about 1000 miles 
and in length, in a direct liife, about 1800 uiLlt s, anti? 
by the way of the Missouri and Columbia rivers, 
liearly twice that distance. This tract from its sltua-- 
tion may be supposed to contaili the chif f part oi< 
those lands m the great western division? oi the conti- 
iient of North America fit for tillage : and this cir- 
cumstance will therefore in a speci^^il manner claim, 
the attention of an agricultural people, reader inorc: 
