"In considering the main question, I all along held that we erred in claiming the Rosario Channel; for the reason that although I have no doubt whatever it was the channel intended in the Treaty (as against the Haro Channel, and excluding consideration of the middle channel), we cannot prove to demonstration that it was so. In getting up a grievance it is now doubly dangerous to claim it, as we know that, comparing it with the Haro Channel, it is decided against us, on what we must suppose to be good reasons. On the above contention, too, we absolve our Government of their blunder, and make a scape-goat of the Emperor of Germany. The words of the Treaty define the boundary to be a line drawn southerly through the centre of the channel from the centre of the channel separating Vancouver's Island from the mainland. Had the existence of three channels been then known, one of them--the one meant--would certainly have been named. Only one channel, Rosario, was known at the time, and the presumption is that it was meant. Making too sure of this we claimed it. It is, however, clear to my mind that the whole space between the Continent and Vancouver Island was treated as one channel. The Douglas, or middle channel, would then fulfil to the letter the words of the Treaty, and give us all we wanted, and still leave a channel free to the Americans. It was, I contend, a fatal error to abandon this position. Having done so and departed from the words of the Treaty, it was really a toss up which of the two other channels was selected by the umpire. Though we argued that Rosario was the only channel known at the time of the Treaty, the Americans argue (as you know how) that it was not so, and moreover that there was no intention to give us more than Vancouver Island. Why such a red herring as this was allowed to decoy us from the straight path of the words of the Treaty is what, in the words of Dundreary, 'No fellah can understand.' "I hope I have made myself clear to you, and that you will ventilate the subject in Canada (through the press), where and in British Columbia there must be a deep feeling of disappointment and disgust, without a just appreciation of how we came to be so befooled. "Don't forget to send me any paper that may be published on the subject through you. I feel as if I had been personally swindled and insulted, and have lost all confidence in our present ministry. I am writing this again at midnight, having been from home all day. "Yours truly, "A. G. DALLAS. "P.S.--Laing passed through Inverness to-day, on his way to canvass the Orkneys."