The circumstances of the treaty were peculiar; but here they need to be touched but briefly, and only so far as they affected the western boundaries.  The United States, acting together with France and Spain, had just closed a successful war with England; but when the peace negotiations were begun, they speedily found that their allies were, if any thing, more anxious than their enemy to hamper their growth.  England, having conceded the grand point of independence, was disposed to be generous, and not to haggle about lesser matters.  Spain, on the contrary, was quite as hostile to the new nation as to England.  Through her representative, Count Aranda, she predicted the future enormous expansion of the Federal Republic at the expense of Florida, Louisiana, and Mexico, unless it was effectually curbed in its youth.  The prophecy has been strikingly fulfilled, and the event has thoroughly justified Spain’s fear; for the major part of the present territory of the United States was under Spanish dominion at the close of the Revolutionary war.  Spain, therefore, proposed to hem in our growth by giving us the Alleghanies for our western boundary. [Footnote:  At the north this boundary was to follow the upper Ohio, and end towards the foot of Lake Erie.  See maps at end of volume.] France was the ally of America; but as between America and Spain, she favored the latter.  Moreover, she wished us to remain weak enough to be dependent upon her further good graces.  The French court, therefore, proposed that the United States should content themselves with so much of the trans-Alleghany territory as lay round the head-waters of the Tennessee and between the Cumberland and Ohio.  This area contained the bulk of the land that was already settled [Footnote:  Excluding only so much of Robertson’s settlement as lay south of the Cumberland, and Clark’s conquest.]; and the proposal showed how important the French court deemed the fact of actual settlement.

Thus the two allies of America were hostile to her interests.  The open foe, England, on the contrary was anxious to conclude a separate treaty, so that she might herself be in better condition to carry on negotiations with France and Spain; she cared much less to keep the west than she did to keep Gibraltar, and an agreement with the United States about the former left her free to insist on the retention of the latter.  Congress, in a spirit of slavish subserviency, had instructed the American commissioners to take no steps without the knowledge and advice of France.  Franklin was inclined to obey these instructions; but Jay, supported by Adams, boldly insisted on disregarding them; and accordingly a separate treaty was negotiated with England.  In settling the claims to the western territory, much stress was laid on the old colonial charters; but underneath all the verbiage it was practically admitted that these charters conferred merely inchoate rights, which became complete only after conquest and settlement.