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tions of which have been established. A report on this boundary is given in the annual report of the International Boundary Commission, United States and Canada, published in 1952. The line is marked by concrete monuments along the shores of Portland Canal, by 5-foot aluminum-bronze monuments in the valleys of streams crossed, by conical monuments on easily accessible summits and by brass bolts on peaks less easily ascended. Inaccessible peaks on the line were located by triangulation.

In accordance with the convention of April 21, 1906, commissioners were appointed under whose direction the 141st meridian has been established and intervisible marks placed along the line from the Arctic Ocean to Mount St. Elias, a distance of about 647 miles, the fieldwork having been completed in 1913. (See fig. 7). A vista 20 feet wide was cut through the wooded areas. The final report of the commissioners, dated December 15, 1918, was published in 1919 and is accompanied by an atlas containing 38 maps. The report is entitled "Joint report upon the survey and demarcation of the international boundary between the United States and Canada along the one hundred and forty-first meridian from the Arctic Ocean to Mount St. Elias." This report contains copies of treaties and historical data relating to the location of the boundary. (Foster, 1899, 1904; Riggs, 1909.) A report of the Boundary Commission (Special Rept. 4), published in 1966, gives the 1927 N.A.D. adjusted values of markers on this line, with ties to primary triangulation, and information on the maintenance of the boundary line.

The 141st meridan boundary was retraced and remarked in 1973 and 1974 by the International Boundary Commission. A total of 233 stations were recovered and 29 lost stations were reestablished. The new marks were bronze disks set in bedrocks or large boulders. Recovery of the original stations was relatively easy. The work was necessary because of the deterioration of some marks and the increased activity of mineral and oil exploration. Some distance checks along the line were made with electronic distance-measuring equipment. A report on the work by two of the U.S. engineers who worked on the project, F. X. Popper and C. R. Moore, was presented at the 1975 annual meeting of the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (Popper and Moore, 1975).

The only part of the boundary not defined at present is that through Dixon Entrance between Cape Muzon and the entrance to Tongass Passage. Agreement between the United States and Canada for this section has not been finalized.

By Article XXVI of the treaty between the United States and Great Britain of May 8, 1871, the navigation of the Yukon, Porcupine, and Stikine Rivers, Alaska,

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was declared free for the purpose of commerce to the citizens of both nations.

It is an interesting fact that the area of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, if superimposed on the conterminous United States in true north-south position so as to touch the Canadian boundary a short distance west of the Lake of the Woods, would reach the Atlantic Ocean near the line between Georgia and South Carolina, cross the Mexican boundary in southwestern New Mexico, and touch the Pacific Ocean in southern California. (See fig. 9.)

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

The Hawaiian Government in 1851 seriously considered the transfer of sovereignty of the Hawaiian Islands to the United States, but the plan was for the time being laid aside. Annexation to the United States was authorized by the Hawaiian Constitution of 1852, "if indispensable to free it from insults and oppression of any foreign powers." Annexation was again under consideration in 1854, and a draft of a treaty was prepared whereby the islands would be ceded to the United States, but the sudden illness and death on December 15, 1854, of King Kamehameha III, who had favored the treaty, put an end to the negotiations."

The Republic of Hawaii was formally annexed to the United States by the voluntary action of its citizens and a joint resolution of Congress approved July 7, 1898. The transfer of sovereignty took place August 12, 1898. The area was constituted a Territory by act of April 30, 1900, effective June 14, 1900.45

The Hawaiian Islands and adjacent islets are scattered over a considerable area which extends nearly 2,000 miles in a general northwest-southeast direction and has a width of about 150 miles. (See fig. 6.) The eight inhabited islands, which lie between 19°00′ and 22°15′ N., long 155°00' and 162°00′ W., have a total area of 6,412 square miles and a total coast line of 957 miles, as follows:

Hawaii: greatest length, 89 miles; greatest width, 72 miles; area, 4,021 square miles; highest point, Mauna Kea, 13,796 feet above sea level.

"This information is taken from an address presented by Prof. W. D. Alexander before the Hawaiian Historical Society on July 2, 1897 (Hawaiian Hist. Soc. Papers, No. 9).

45 31 Stat. L. 141. For a summary of legislative acts relating to this transfer, see Moore (1906, p. 475-520).

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Maui: about 48 miles long and 26 miles wide; area, 728 square miles; highest point, 10,023 feet above sea level.

Oahu: about 43 miles long and 30 miles wide; area, 602 square miles; highest point, 4,040 feet. Kauai: nearly circular, about 26 miles in diameter;

area, 553 square miles; highest point, 5,240 feet. Molokai: about 38 miles long and 9 miles wide;

area, 259 square miles; highest point, 4,970 feet. Lanai: about 18 miles long and 12 miles wide;

area, 141 square miles; highest point, 3,370 feet. Niihau: about 18 miles long and 3 to 6 miles wide; area, 72 square miles; highest point, 1,281 feet. Kahoolawe: about 11 miles long and 6 miles wide;

area, 45 square miles; highest point, 1,477 feet. More than 100 smaller islands are included in the group. Among the larger of these are:

Nihoa or Bird Island: lat 23°06' N., long 161°58′ W.; about three-quarters of a mile long and a quarter of a mile wide; area, 166 acres; highest point, 910 feet.

Gardner Island: lat 25°01' N., long 167°59′ W.; an inaccessible rock 190 feet high and about 600 feet in diameter.

Laysan Island: lat 25°42′ N., long 171°44′ W., 13⁄4 miles long and 1 mile wide; area, 1.56 square

miles; highest point, 35 feet.

Lisiansky Island: lat 26°00' N., long 173°50′ W., about 1 mile long and half a mile wide; area, 378 acres; highest point, 20 feet.

Kure Island: lat 28°25′ N., long 178°25′ W.; an atoll about 15 miles in circumference; area, 211 acres; highest point, 20 feet.

Kaula: a barren, rocky crescent-shaped island about 20 miles southwest of Niihau; area, about one-sixth of a square mile; highest point, 550 feet; set aside by the Territorial Governor in December 1924 as a site for a lighthouse.46

PALMYRA ISLAND

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Palmyra Island, lat 5°52′ N., long 162°05′ W., is approximately 1,000 miles south of Honolulu. It was discovered in 1802 by Captain Sawle of the American ship Palmyra. It was annexed to Hawaii in 1862. When Hawaii became a State, Palmyra was excluded from its boundaries. An Executive order of October 10, 1961,

46 For reference to other islands belonging to this group, see U.S. Coast and Geod. Survey (1923); Moore (1898, p. 555); U.S. Cong. (1893; 1898b). The source of information on areas and altitudes is "Research Report 15, Geographic Statistics for Hawaii" of the Dept. of Planning and Research, Hawaii.

47 Information on unincorporated territories and possessions of the United States is summarized in "United States and Outlying Areas," Geog. Rept. of the Geographer, U.S. Dept. of State (1963a).

The Office of Territorial Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior, publishes a booklet entitled "Territorial Areas Administered by the United States." Some of the information on the islands under U.S. administration is used in the following pages.

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PUERTO RICO

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Puerto Rico was ceded to the United States by Spain by the treaty of peace concluded December 10, 1898. (Malloy, 1910, v. 2, p. 1691.) Article 2 of that treaty is as follows:

Spain cedes to the United States the island of Puerto Rico and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies, and the island of Guam in the Mariana Islands or Ladrones.

Puerto Rico's area is 3,497 square miles, its extreme length is 109 miles, its width is 39 miles, and its greatest height is 4,390 feet. The largest of the other West Indian islands referred to is Vieques; others are Culebra, Mona, Muertos, and Desecheo. The total area of the smaller islands is 86 square miles. These islands, including Puerto Rico, all lie in the area between lat 17°42′ and 18°31′ N., and long 65°20′ and 67°55′ W. Possession was taken by the United States October 18, 1898.

48 For information on the insular possessions of the United States, see U.S. Cong. (1907; 1909; 1912; 1914).

Congress ratified the constitution of Puerto Rico on July 3, 1952. It was established as a "commonwealth" at that time, and has most of the powers and responsibilities of a State of the Union. Major exceptions are that Puerto Rico's residents are not subject to Federal taxation and do not have voting representation in the U.S. Congress nor the right to vote for President and Vice President of the United States. Most of the activities of the Federal Government found in the States are also found in Puerto Rico. The Federal Government has in Puerto Rico the same authority that it has in a State of the Union. Puerto Ricians are liable for military service under the Selective Service Act. Immigration laws pertaining to the United States also apply to Puerto Rico. However, the Commonwealth regulates its own customs and collects its own import duties.

GUAM

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States. It is located at the southernmost end

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of a chain of volcanic islands in the western Pacific Ocean known as the Mariana Islands. Its relations with the Federal Government are under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior.

The island of Guam lies about 6,000 miles southwest of San Francisco and 1,500 miles east of Manila. It is the largest and most populous of the Marianas, 30 miles long and varying in width from 4 to 81⁄2 miles. Guam, whose inhabitants are citizens of the United States, has a population of approximately 100,000, of whom 22 percent are military personnel and their dependents.

The Government of Guam was established by an organic act of the U.S. Congress, which became law on August 1, 1950. It is administered by a Governor and a Lieutenant Governor who are elected by the people. Since 1972, the residents of Guam have elected a Non-Voting Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives. Government headquarters are in Agana, the capital city of the Territory of Guam.

AMERICAN SAMOA

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American Samoa is located about 2,200 miles southwest of Hawaii and about 1,600 miles northeast of New Zealand. It is composed of seven tropical islands, the land area of which is 83 square miles. The Government of American Samoa is administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior. Of the land, 96 percent is owned communally and is regulated as to occupancy and use by Samoan custom. The population is about 29,000 (1974), and the people are not U.S. citizens but are classed as U.S. nationals and have free access of entry to the United States. Samoans are among the last remaining true Polynesians, and they cling steadfastly to their Samoan culture and traditions. Trade winds and frequent rains make American Samoa's climate pleasant. American Samoa normally receives about 200 inches of rain annually, most of it falling from December to March. The temperature range is between 70° and 90° F, and the humidity is usually 80 percent. English is the official language, although the Samoan language is used more often and more extensively.

For several years the United States, Great Britain, and Germany exercised a joint protectorate over the

49 For reference to legislative action leading to the acquisition of the Samoa group, see Moore (1906, p. 536-554) and Malloy (1910, v. 2, p. 1595).

Samoa Islands (Thorpe, 1909, v. 6, p. 3675). For various reasons it was deemed best to bring this situation to an end. England withdrew, and the islands were divided between Germany and the United States, the latter taking all the islands of the group lying east of longitude 171° west of Greenwich. This adjustment was reached by a convention between the United States, Germany, and Great Britain, concluded December 2, 1899, and proclaimed February 16, 1900.

Western Samoa was taken from Germany during the first World War by New Zealand, who governed it under a mandate from the League of Nations. After World War II, Western Samoa became a trust territory of the United Nations, administered by New Zealand. Since 1962 it has been a self-governing nation.

The natives of Samoa had no part in this convention, but certain chiefs of islands in 1900 and 1904 made cessions to the United States which were accepted by the President but not ratified by the Senate. A bill to remedy this apparent oversight was introduced in the Senate April 5, 1926, but did not become a law until February 20, 1929.50

Tutuila Island, the largest of the Samoan group belonging to the United States, has a length of 20 miles and a breadth of about 6 miles. Its extreme height is 2,141 feet (fig. 10).

Aunuu Island, about a mile from the east end of Tutuila, has a length of 1 mile, a height of 275 feet, and an area of half a square mile.

About 60 miles to the east are the three Manua Islands, the largest of which is Tau, 61⁄2 miles in length, 3,056 feet in extreme height. Olosega Island is 21⁄2 miles in length and 2,095 feet is height. Ofu Island is about 3 miles long, and its highest point is 1,587 feet. Its area is 3 square miles.

Rose Island is the name given an atoll about 3 miles in diameter, partly under water at high tide, 80 miles southeast of any of the other islands of the Samoan group. It was designated as a Wild Life Refuge by the National Wild Life Association in 1974. Public use of the atoll is restricted to scientists and educators on a permit basis. At least 16 species of birds live on the atoll and it is an important nesting area for the green sea turtle which is a rare reptile. Sand Islet, the smaller of the two islets of the atoll, is about an acre in extent and its highest part is 5 feet above high tide. Rose Islet has an area of about 8 acres, and its highest part is 11 feet above high water. It is covered in part with a dense grove of Pisonia trees but is without fresh water and is uninhabited. This islet has the distinction of being the southernmost land under the control of the United States. Its geographic position is lat 14°32′ S., long 168°11' W. (See fig. 10.)

50 U.S. 70th Cong., 2d sess., Pub. Res. 89. See Cong. Record, Apr. 10, 1926, p. 1952-1954, for historical description of this accession.

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