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 T li E 
 
 UNDEVELOPED NORTHERN PORTION 
 
 o I T II K 
 
 AM EiaCAN CON TIN KNT. 
 
 A L i;(! T IK !•; 
 
 DKIJA KHEl) IN THE ( OIUSK 
 
 I! I. i (• i: I. 
 
 bi:ll\s co^BiERc ial college 
 
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 I. L. SCR11M»S. 
 
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 " DKMOCKATIC J'UKSS " 8TF,AM rillXTIXG UOl'SE. -i:. CLARK. SI'UFl.T, 
 
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I 
 
 CUICAOO, March 1, ISof. 
 
 ,o„„„d ■„, .he co»» U..0. Be,,. — ; ,,, *;„en,, .„.. Tac^ o..„o....-.n, -.i- 
 .„ Portic, of the American Co„t,nc„ , ^^ ^^^^^ ^„^„„,,,,, „.„^a ...pcctfu,,,- 
 
 ..Lit i« pu.,,ca.ioo, .« . »-» o. c U.„d,06 .„ ^ ^ ,,^,^.^^^ 
 
 W.B.Ogdc„, T„o.W.™na, J.. w.H.B,o»„, 
 
 J. Young Scamnion, 11. A. i^i ., ^^ ^^ ^^^(^^^ 
 Mark Skinner. 
 
 
o 
 
 THE TTNDEYELOPED 
 
 1 
 
 NORTHERN PORTION 
 
 OI' 
 
 THE AMERICAK COMNEHT. 
 
 BY J. L. SCRI3PPS. 
 
 nv, 
 rth-- 
 this 
 luUv 
 
 During the summer of 1855 I visited the Lake 
 Huperior country. Passing, for the first time, 
 fruui the rich alluvions and the deciduous flora 
 which rest upon the carboniferous rocks of the 
 Valley of the Mississippi, into a region of trap 
 and of granite, where the old volcanic action 
 hud left its marks of force and of fire in bold 
 upheavals, in great mural escarpments, in 
 huge metallic veins driven upwards to the sur- 
 face through rocky fissures, and where the spray 
 of innumerable cascades touched with a fresher 
 beauty the perennial verdure of the stately 
 pine— it was very natural that I should conceive 
 u sudden, an almost enthusiastic, interest in a 
 country thus abounding in forms of beauty and 
 of grandeur which to me were entirely new. 
 But when I came to consider the influence upon 
 the destiny of our country — upon our civili'sa- 
 tion and our politica' institutions — which must 
 follow the settlement and development of the 
 vast territory lying between the parallel of lati- 
 tude on which we are situated and the farthest 
 habitable limit northwurd, and between Labra- 
 dor and Canada on the east, and the Russian 
 Possessions on the west, that interest assumed a 
 greater intensity — a still more absorbing char- 
 acter. 
 
 After my return home I betook myself to the 
 study of this tiri'tt incoijnitii, I was surprised to 
 find, notwithstanding it has heretofore aitracted 
 scarcely any of the public attention, and even 
 the wull-infbrmed and cultivated classes rest in 
 almost total ignorance of its character and re- 
 sources, that nevertheless much, comparatively, 
 hud been written descriptive of it by a fen- in- 
 trepid men who, combining the qualities of trader 
 and explorer, had penetrated its wildernesses, 
 crossed its mountain ranges, rambled beside iti 
 water courses, furrowed with their bark canoes: 
 the placid bosom of its innumerable lakss, and 
 
 struck hands with the nomadic bands of IndiaoH 
 that inhabit it. 
 
 It was whtn in the midst of these studies that 
 I was solicited to contribute to the course of 
 "home lectures," for which the public are in- 
 debted to the liberality of our esteemed fellow- 
 citizen, Judge Bell, and being so deeply inte- 
 rested in the subject myself, I thought I could 
 not select a theme for an hour's discourse more 
 likely to command the attention of a Chicago 
 audience than the country lying to the north- 
 ward and westward of us, and which, for all 
 time to come, must bear a most intimate relation 
 to our city. If, thought I, we listen with rapt 
 delight to lectures upon Egypt and India, upon 
 China, Japan and Loo-Choo— countries around 
 upon the other hemisphere — surely we cannot be 
 wholly indifferent to information respecting a 
 country lying just beyond our visual horizon, a 
 part of which is ours by inheritance, the remain- 
 der of which is maturing, like fruit in autumn, 
 to full into our expectant lap, and all of which, 
 whether it become ours or not, must contribute 
 to the greatness and wealth of our city through 
 the coming centuries. Whether in this I judged 
 correctly or not, will be for you to determine 
 after you shall have listened to such facts and re- 
 lations as I may condense into the brief time al- 
 lotted to a public discourse. But whatever may 
 be your verdict on my effort to satisfy your ex- 
 pectations, of this I shall ever rest assured, that 
 un intensely powerful interest lies in the subject 
 whether I shall succeed in eliciting it in any de- 
 gree or not. 
 
 THK SUBJECT DEPINEB. 
 
 With this much by way of introduction, I pro- 
 ceed to the consideration of the subject. And 
 first I will clearly define the region of country 
 which it is proposed to pass in review. If we 
 draw a line on the map from the eastern ex- 
 

 trcriiu of Ijiikc .Sn])crior northward it will Htriko'iiift the ton(;iu-H of p(>])nlatioii, projuctin;; iiortli- 
 tliu soiittit.Tnniost Mrtui.'p of 11iii1s<iii'h li>\y. We wanl inio tin; wildurm-HH, rtach I'ur iibovoit, uud 
 tiik(! llii.s liiiL' lis ttiu castirii boiiiuliiry, lliu I'li- ii(.twillistandin;r tin re is nmch iiiisi'lllt'd (miim- 
 ci lie Ocean us the western, and Uie Arctic (ir try noiitli ol' it. Tliis line will pass ubout Imil' ii 
 frozen Ocean us the northern boundary id" the dcgreu Bouth of Ihu Saut St. .Mary, nearly ii <le- 
 counlry marked out for considiTatioii. The ijreu north of St. Paul, and enters tlu I'acilic; at 
 hoiitherii boundary is less cleiirly iK lined by nut- the nioiUh id' the 1,'olnnibia Itiver. 
 iiral land-murks. The tide ol' civilized iiopiili- tiik n ii comi'amks. 
 
 tioii, in its movement westwanl, cheeked in its A historical inti'iesl attaches td the country 
 jiro/jress by the j;rcat chain of .Norihwestern embraced within the boundaries thus desiKmHed. 
 Jakes, fell off to the southward, settlin;; the Fornearly two centuries it bus been tho Hold id' 
 thither shores of those inland seas, until urr.iv- operations of the Hudson l!ay Coiiipany, and f. r 
 iii^^ut the southern extreme id' I-ake Mu:liijfiiii it- u portion of that period of French traders, also, 
 sejiaruted into two streams— one (d which, eiirv- fpom Caniidii, who were followed, after the ces- 
 inn sharply northward, lollowed up the shore sion cd' (,'anadit to the IJriti.-h crown, by ii much 
 line of tiie lakes to the western extreme of liike .shrewder and keener cia.-<» of men (d Scoicli (h - 
 Superior, in latitude -17^ uorlh— tlu other, pro- scent. At a later jjcriod the American KurL'oni- 
 ;,'ressin>,' v.estward to the Mississippi, jtlanted pany, through its agents, eiitend the country 
 itself uloiifr that streuin and its tributaries in south of our national boundary to contest iho 
 ■Wisconsin and .Minnesota, to very nearly the lu-ize of the valuable commerce of tliis extended 
 sumo parallel. I'roceediiii^ westward over e.x- wilderness. The history of the Fui Tr.'de ii[)ou 
 tensive plains and by way of numerous lakes the American continent has yet to be written. It 
 and water-courses, we u^ain come to u civihzetl is a lield id' rare interest, abounding; in romantic 
 jieople, not drawn thither by the onlinary laws mi 1 thrilling; incident, and 8inj;ularly uttraciivi! 
 of euiijirution, but taken up bodily out of Muro- in that it tmfidds the effects rcsiillinjf from a 
 ])eau cuniDiunities by u jriant monopoly for it.s frLi[nent cidlision id' civilization and barbarism 
 <iwn Hellish purjioses, and planted down in this out ju the wilderness, with no restraints of civil 
 Western Hemisphere, on the Red Uiver of the law or of public opinion to temper orcontnd the 
 North, in the midst of u ;;reat wilderness. These insatiable {rreed of j,Min which characterized the 
 jieople ure the product ul' a colony established one, and with no hij;her jiower than thosO traita 
 there by Lord Selkirk, under the auspices id' the of native nobleness wh ch aoinetimes ure seen 
 Hudson Jlay Company, as early as 1^11. As the breakinjj lliroii;:h the environments of barbarism, 
 settlement increased in population il extended to stay the iiiijuilses of savai^e ferocity on the 
 along the banks of the Ucd Uiver from ue:.r the part of the other. With such a teniptinj; lield 
 48lh to the Tii'ih jiarallel id' north latitude. Con- as this, invitiiifj both the pen and the ])encil, il 
 tinuing westward through Minnesota and >'e- iiirelr will not be long before those who are 
 braska we shall lind no other settlements, except capable of occuj)yinK it worthily will be induced 
 towards the southern jiortions of those territo- to enter upon it. 
 
 ries, until we cross the Kocky Mountains, where About the year MuT Henry Hudson, an Eng- 
 we again discern a northern movement of pop- llish navigator, discovered the Bay which Ijears 
 uhition planting itself upon the I'aciliu coust, hi.-i name. A few years subsecpient to this, settle- 
 around Admiralty Inlet and I'liget Sound, along inents had been established u[)on the waters of 
 the Straits of Fuca and the (iiilf id' Georgia, up the Bay by enterprizing English traders for the 
 to our extreme northern bouiulury; und ]pass- purpose of engaging in triillic with the neighbor- 
 ing up the coast through the intervening British mg Indians. The French in (!,iiiada becoming 
 Possessions, we cuiiie again upon settlenients in .uvaro of these oper.itioiis resolved to eonti;st the 
 Uussiaii America. '.ground with the ]']nii;lish traders. In IGoO, pre- 
 
 Thesefour lines of settlement which v, c have cisely -'''' year»> iJgo, the Litter IJrst appeared in 
 thus hastily traced, constitiite the advanced the vicinity ui' the I'.nghsh settlement.-^, and ill- 
 guard of the great arniy id' occupation now blood between the two parties was speedily ec- 
 Steadily advancing northward, and which will genderod. About IGCO two \essels, equip- 
 ultiiuatelj spread itself out over the broad in- ped at Quebec, proceeded tii Iludson'.-i Bay, and 
 tervpning spaces, recovering thw land from bar- the j)arties concerned in the expedition eiicted 
 b.iric rule, and transforiniiig it into seats id' civi-;a few forts upon their arrival ; and from thence, 
 liziVtion and contre.s of great moral movements. | until the ratilication of the treaty of I'trechl, the 
 For the purjioses of this discourse it will unswerioperations of the tivo I'arl'es were conducted 
 to designate the 'tilth parallel of north latitude umid perjjetual strife iiiul fVei|neiit hlood.shid. 
 lib the southern boundary of the undeveloped! But the contest between these rival 
 muiherii jioriiiMi (d the continent, not withstand-' trr.ders had not coiitiniied a ".--re.it \ihilo 
 
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 i/.i'd III i;i;(;l.iii(l witli iiicii iiiul iiioiicy (<iil- iii;,' Id oxtutiil its (iixT.itii.iiH. Tlii' l.ittiT cltiii.iiif; * *;' 
 
 .7 
 
 
 ticifiit to sociirc it in its |>iis8L'Sf*ii>n« IkvuuiI cvi'- ihc ri)flit it Hcmplit to rxiTcisc uikIit tlic gr;iiit in 
 ry C(intiii;,'i'nry uhirh Imh brt;i!l>.ii it down i, rrinuL' Kii|ii.'rt ; ttivloniur on the rijjlit of din- 
 till.' iiriMi'iit liiiH'. This WHS l!n! Ill Dsdx !'.av cuvitv— it IvmIil;- l.cid Ijy Ilit; I'li'iicli tliiit Niw 
 CoMi'A.NV. lis cii-ij^iii li.tt. s hick to li^'i.', wliiii Fniiifo iiHjIiiilcd not i.nly il\e ('.mad^s lint iliiii. 
 t'hurli's lilt' II cr, lilted by rnyiil cliartir tn lll^ it extoiidi'd i.ir intn llu- inl.Tiur ul tin; fMiiiim in. 
 cinisii), I'liii.i U'ii<'vl, iii'.tl til M.vir.'il (iili't Tin; I'rt'iu'li tr idi'f.i pisuctl nil itiin I.iiku Siip''- 
 Miiuli«li NijIiIl'iiicii, all tli.it ]i(.niu:i I'f Ni'illi rinr, iniil trmii ir.-. Wcstrrn cMiffiiity Hprond 
 AiMiTicii lidiiiuK'd wi'st liy tliu I'.if'ilic Oci'iin :iiid tlictiiM ivi".( mit over lli>; couiitry wontwiirdly, 
 the Uiissiiiii ji.iSM'-sioii^, (111 tlin Ni'illi liy tlic islulili.-liiii;!; pcsis oil llio iiiipiT Mi-sisM|i|ii, on 
 Arctic Sim, (111 till- E i.<t by tlir Al'.iiiiic, und mi iiiiiiiy I.uki; Kurr, on lif iJ.il Kiv.T ot thi- 
 tbc Sipiitli by nil iiii.i;{,,i,iiy Iimj niniii''^ no tl '• Nnrlh, mi l!ii/ A>.-iniiibniii u'd Iliu .•' i^kiitclirw.i'i 
 St. l/uvri'iic- and Ibrou^iii tbu urcit I- ik. .- KivcTs. Tim Ki;!;ii.-h tin tin' oIIht b.nid, ndii-d 
 towariLs the Hettitijj .sun. It i.s iiittTt-.'^tin^; tn liiore upon induciii|,' tliu liulians t.i emu,' ini.i 
 obhorvo bow vury low iin tstlni.ite lliosf curly ihcir Corts on lIud>oii's Hay at lli'.- innnlh oC lb.- 
 i;n^;li.>.li iiiniiarcbs pl.itcd upon tin.- dcii'^iulciiclc.s .Wd-soii, tbt- Cbiircbill, nnd (iiImt rivciH, wiib 
 of ibe criiwuin America, lloru was ii lici' ^r.uil tjuir liir.f and pcltii^';-, ilic [roilnc! o| u ycur'- 
 (>r over thrc'j iiiilliiiiis ot sqii.iri' miles ol 'J'l'iri- innii, tlmn in scndii.;; out tin ir trmb-rs to tin- 
 tory, all (il it rioli in lurMand li.-li, iiiiicbor it in unmiuls occnpii-d by tlu! lopcciivc tribisi. Ii 
 Hdil, iiiniiiifrai, in imvij^ablo .streams, in v.ilni- wms a loii^ wtiilu lictoro Ibc hcrv.mt.s of ilic coin- 
 blu lorcHts- -ti territory in one of tlic pr, dries ot |,,ii,y juid pemtratcd uh f.ir south as LakoWinni- 
 wbicli "the fast uiicliorcd Isle" ilselt iii!i:iit bav. (n.^r, unu when tliey did, tbcy foiiml tlioir 
 been lo-l ; and the cbarter was so carefully rivals be.d pnjudiced ibu Indians against tbeiii 
 drawn ilial it hccnrHii to tlio g-.-ntees this stu- to bucb an extent that it was dilliciilt to indMCi- 
 )u;iidoiis territori.d manor ill perpetuity, and an ihciii to tradeal all. Throii;;hout tlie long coii- 
 cxelusive riglit of trade wiibin it forever. Of late nnued rivalry between the two parlies, tins ])nl 
 the legality of the I'rancbi.ie lias been denied, icy wa.s lollnwed. ll.icb titrove to iiillauie llii! 
 but so powerful is the coiii]iaiiy nt lioine, so niimls of the savages against the other, and cicii 
 great its iiilluence through its vast weallli iind tninislered to their passions and appetites to (iro- 
 tliroiigb it.s members ai '! coiiiieelioiis, tliai the pitiate their good will. This contest was carrii-d 
 iliiesiion has never _\ et been brou;;ht before llie on with varied fortune lo either jiarty until the 
 courts for luijiuliLalioii. In those d.iys, too, cession of Canada to Ijigland in 17n M, when tli'- 
 geographical knowledge was Very limited and l'"rciicii traders entirely withdrew from the (•nun 
 imperleci. The ideaof a Northwestern Passage to try_ 
 
 ibe I'acilic jiossessed the minds of the culliva- Jint the menibera of the Hudson liay Compa- 
 ted cl.BSes, anil the probable discovery of such a ny had scarcely more than congratulated thein- 
 jiassage through the waters llowing into Hud- selves upon this wiihdrawal of their ancient ri- 
 tion's l!av was made one of the .ostensible vals, before anot! '. .dats of traders took their • 
 grounds on which the grain was issued to I'rinee pbice. As nearly as I have been able to ascer- ,» 
 Uupert and bis associates. Undoubtedly there tain from the iiiitboritics which I have consult-.^ 
 were jiolitical and tuiiiily reasons at the Uasis ot ed, the lirst ajip' araiice ot the coiKiuerorsof Caii- 
 this charter, but tin; King had sullieienl J>ru- ada upon the waters of Lake Superior in the c;i- »•* 
 dence not to thrust them upon the Hitention o( picity of traders was in IVi''"'— three years after " , 
 bis !-ubJect,>. ihe cession of the country by Fnineo. Tinse ,' 
 
 Organized upon this charter, the Hudson 15ay traders were mostly of Scotch origin. To a 
 ('nmpaiiv has maintained an active and prolita- shrewdness in business, which .s proviriiiiil ol # 
 
 .4 
 
 l)h' existei.ce for iitNirly two centuries. Knthroned the Scotch peoide, they united an eiiteiprisc, a * 
 in Solitary grandeur, for most of ilie tin, e, in the spirit of ailveiiture, a bi>ldiie?s in iinrMr.i of, « 
 frozen North, it soon grew into a despotism more gain, and aa indoniilable jier.-everanc.; aini enrr- * f 
 riirorous than the climate. Its imperious edicts ^'y before which all ob^lacles melled awav. 'i ilt!^" • 
 have always been the sole law of its luinierous Scotchmen from (Janada enl.Ted sitifile-hanii- • . 
 servants, and it has ruled with ti|iii'l determiiia- cJ upon the broad field, in direct com|)(lition ** 
 lion the Indian tribes which have coiitiibiited with the powerful coinp:.ny of the North. Iiidi- 
 
 
 M » 
 
 « 
 
 
 to Its weidll 
 
 vidual enterprise oji ;ned the way and carried 
 
 The !• 
 
 rem 
 
 •ii t 
 
 r;tiler.< I'loill 
 
 (,'anada, niter thev these bold, energetic n.ei 
 
 were drivi n in. in Ihu 
 
 's Iniv bv th 
 
 eir mo 
 
 re French had jieiietratt 
 
 far v.L St Ward as ti 
 and even rurther imrll 
 
 powerful rival, sought n new channel ol trade by ward Inwards the princiii.d ise>il of the Hudson \ 
 w.av oflh(> Lakes with the same cnnnirv over i'.ay ('onijiany than tlipir jiredene-sors had vi !■ 
 
a| J» WiiN an iiiuiiual one, Wii oiiu nuif siodu a \n)\\- j„ iv,,]^ „.^. ii,,,,.„ soiiiotliiiitJ of tlio busmen 
 
 K > «rliil Cninp.iny, Willi wiMltli, wilh iiifii trunu'd the Northw.'stt'iii Cuminiiiy in lb.; turliur p«r 
 
 VT^ in iis Horvicf wbo kni'W no law Have such uh Iboir „i' ^^|^ exirttuncf. In 17«8— four jt'urB ufter 
 
 V V iiiiiiuriiiUi niii»li.TS dictalt'd, wilb ii jcrcul (jrccd ,,r(;iiiiizilion— thy j^ro.ns valnu of tbu advent 
 
 6 
 
 f yVhTrd to (?'•• Hill circnnmlatiCL'it Hooi: coiiMpirtMl tlio whob; wnbjccl was br<)n;{ht biiforo r4irliiitnenl 
 
 ' ^/ N(, di'ivt; ilicni into iin iiHhociution of capital and and resulted in ii coinproniiHU by wbicb tbi< two 
 
 ^Cy'iit' ill'iirt. Till' l'in)(l:hb, lindini; ibciii mort' dan- coinpanii'H wtTn iiniti-d iindt-r tbt' tiiiu of " llo.v- 
 
 I H Jf-ToiiM rivals tlian ilu; Fronch bad bufii, bi'caniu ouAiii.K IIimiskn'h 15av C'oMi'Asy," iimeo wbicb 
 
 / (.iiddfily (■on.>cioiis ol tliL- dan},'iT of Iohiiik the tiinu tbu only coinpt'titioii met witb La.^ come 
 
 Jm be,-.t portion of the tr.ide of wbii'b tbey bad cx- ir,,ni the Atiicrican liir (!onii):iny, whose operii- 
 
 tO peeled to enjoy the entire monopoly, uud coin- i,„„„ 1,^.^. i^,.,,„ (;„i,ducted Houtb of tbu purtillel 
 
 VrjNninced [inobinj; out tbeir posts lo tbu south uiid „( 4., X,„ih bilitude. 
 
 In; wrMt, fcjllowiii;; but never leading; the Scotch 1<[^^, |||ii>riiiiiide of tbu operations of these two 
 (/'anudiuiiB into whatever portion ol ibe country companies was eiiorinoiis. I''ruui 11 work en- 
 tile latter ventured to penetrate. The contest tiilfd Muekenzie'sVoyuj^cs, published in I-ondon 
 was an iiiiKiuai one. On one side stood a pow- j„ 1^1,]^ „.^. ii,,,,.„ soinethintJ of the business of 
 
 pvriud 
 
 fter its 
 
 ^ V imperious masters dictated, with 11 jfreat (,'reed ,,r(;iiiiiz ition— the j{ross value of tbu iidventuro 
 
 . f 'S'or jjaiii, viewing the whole country us le;;it- ,,f 11,^ y^^r anK.unicd lo liiou.ijoo. In 17'J5 it 
 
 ^^__ f iuiattly iind lexiilly tbeir peculiiir donuiiu, und imj reached more than jjhUhj.uih", and afterwards 
 
 from which they would be justified in expelliii); ^ f,till liirf;er sum. lu readinjf this boi-k I wa.1 
 
 v'lk ti all intruders ; on the other, a tew individuals, forcibly reminded of the wonderful improvement 
 
 nJ »% with separate interests, without concert of actiun'j,, fucilitieaof transit, both in mivijjulion and land 
 
 or conibiinilioii of ellort, with no civil law to (.nrri,i|,j.^ y^.j, id, i);iyy ^oun. into ijeneral use since 
 
 back them, or comiiel restitution when force and ,i y/^^^ wrilten. Here is an exampU of the slow 
 
 injustice bad deprived them of their rights. To process of that day : 
 
 make the situutior. of the latter still \vor,se, u The agents of the company stationed ia the 
 
 I ^ « freipient recurrence of rivalry and competition Xurthwest sent tbeir orders for goods to Mon- 
 
 lM >| took place among themselves, whereby they treal in October. These orders were forwarded 
 
 !^ •! were less able to meet the systematic attempt of to London, and the goods were shipped the next 
 
 their organized rivals to drive ihein from the spring, arriving at Moutrealin the summer. In 
 
 country. course of the following winter they were made up 
 
 /V I These circumstances were instrumental in into such articles as were wanted for the Indians; 
 
 y ^originating a powerful organization in Canada, ih^y were then put up into packages of ninety 
 
 15 • under the style of the NouTHWKST Coiii'axv, i" pounds each, and shipped from Montreal in 
 
 \J^ 4 the winter of 178-'5-4. From that date down to canoes in the month of May. The canoes thus 
 
 ^J J, IS'Jl— a period of nearly half a century— a com- loaded proceeded up the Ottawa River, crossed 
 
 ► A mercial rivalry, fiercer perhaps than any that over to Lake Nipissing, descended French River 
 
 ^ ^5 has ever been witnessed in civilized communi- into Lake Huron, then up the St. Mary's River, 
 
 <1 ^ ties, animated the two companies, and whereso- ;,nd coasting around Lake Superior arrived at 
 
 ever, throughout the Northwestern wilderness, Grand I'ortage, near the bead of the lake. Thence 
 
 these two parties made their appearance, there ti,ey were conveyed by way of the Kaministique 
 
 human ingenuity, a native shrewdness rendered liivor, Lake La I'luie, or Rainy Lake.and Rainy 
 
 ireternaturally acute by the emergencies of time 1^]^ Kiver, Lake of the Woods, Lake Winnipeg, 
 
 ""^ % and place, an individual courage nurtured by iim Saskatchewan River, and bo on across to 
 
 •■^^ coitstaiit familiarity with danger, were all em- (Jreat Slave Lake, the Athabasca country and 
 
 , iJfc > ployed in carrying forward the plans of the one the Rocky Mountains, arriving at their destiua- 
 
 and in thwarting those of the other, with but tion early in the winter, just two years after the 
 
 little reference to the iigencies made use of to ac- order had been sent for them. That winter these 
 
 coraplish the object. Time will not permit me goods were exchanged for furs and peltries, which 
 
 ')i/Tto give cveu an outline of this prolonged were sent off the ensuing spring, arriving at 
 
 j| 4 contest. Let it .suflice on this head to sax, Montreal in the fall. From thence tbey were 
 
 9^4 that after a sanguinary battle between sent to Europe and sold, and the returns received 
 
 ^Jl the servants of the two companies, at the settle- at Montreal the following June— just forty-two 
 
 J \ ment of Lord Selkirk, on the Red River of the months after the goods were ordered, thirty-six 
 
 ■4 
 
 ^" 
 
 North — an engagement in wbicb the CJovernor months after they had been shipped from England 
 of the Colony, Mr. Semple, and seventeen of bis and twenty four months after they had been for- 
 Hjllowers Were killed and tl.o remainder put to warded from Montreal. The world hati moved 
 Higbt by the Norwesterna— and after Lord Sel- forward some since that period, and it is easy to 
 kirk, by way of retaliation, bad captured Fort see how a "nimble sixpence" of the present 
 William, the principal depot of the Northwest-! day, when an enterprising trader may turn over 
 ern Company near the bead of Lake Superior, his capital five or six times in twelve months, is 
 
 
inoro |ir<)(lucti»i' lli m llf " i.l"W rfhillin),' ot rctiinis iiiul a i^rnull iiiurifin for profitrt." Therrt 
 tlml tiino. "^ '" ''" '''^'^ iloubl but Hi kt lli« milu rt'iLtoii why 
 
 Tlia Hii.l*itu 11 ly OimipiUiy'H iiperatioiiM were iho comjuny muintiiins itH iicmtn in Oregon ami 
 conducted on a Hcale of himil.ir iiiijjnitiKlo h> \Vus!iinj;toii is to indiico brnthi-r .lotiattiin to 
 that of its i(r.'at riv.il. ItH supplies howuver, "sliell out " liberally tor tti.-m. Mvownopin- 
 wero received from lluropo by w.iv of iludnon'ti ion i«, that brother .lonathaii will let the com- 
 Hay, and its furs were Bbipi)ed by the name p:iny hold these [losts until it voluntarily abii'- 
 cour.se. Slarliiijr from its foriH on tins great es- dons thorn, unless, indeed, it will sell alonx with 
 tuary, the company's servants penetrated the them tho orijfinal charter to I'rinee ittipert 
 same region of country already spoken of Hi|.I'>natlian would undoubtedly "come rlown " 
 occupied by tho Northwestern. If the luttei ,hamlsomely for that, without stopping to scru- 
 pioneercd the way in every instance, tho former 
 presHwd hard upon tliiir footsteps, nor bit them 
 for any considerable time in the undisputed en- 
 joyment of tho trade of new regions. Thus, 
 from the great LakiM on the east t(( I'uget't^ 
 Sound and the Russian I'osscssions on tho west, 
 
 and from the regions of tho Ks.|uimaux on thelj^y. " u js probable that two thousand would be 
 north to the (Julf of California at tho south, bavel ^ \■^^^^J^^^ estimate for this class. To their cbar- 
 tho agents of these companies traversed the ^^^4,,^ ,^,^1 mode of life 1 have already made inci- 
 country in every direction- crossing the conti-ij^.„t,ilullusion in speaking of the (verations of 
 nent with a lleet of bark canoes ladm^with ii,„ ^.„„,|,,jni^.j,_ Time will not permit me to say 
 goods for the Indians or with furs for llurope— („„re on that head 
 making, with few and short portages, the en 
 
 tinize very closely its legality. 
 
 IXIIAUITA.NTS OV TUB COl .STIIV. 
 
 I eoiiie lU'Xt to speak of tho jiopulatinn of Iht) 
 country uiuler consideratioi'. And hrst, um 
 to the number of whites employed by tho fur 
 icompanies who reside permanently in the coun- 
 
 tire distance from Pugel's Sound to .Montreal, or 
 to Hudson's Hay, through a connected chain of 
 rivers and lakes— on every water course with- 
 in the boundaries designated, on every Indian 
 trail, in every mountain gorge, on every plain, 
 and in. every forest, have the servants of these 
 two companies appeared, stopping wherever the 
 ascending smoku marked the presence of the na- 
 tives, and bartering tho products of European 
 looms — the scarlet cloth, the Haunting print and 
 ribbon, tho tinselled ornaments and Ilashing gew- 
 gaw, 80 attractive to barbaric life— for the rich 
 furs of tho north, destined in their turn to 
 minister no less to the vanity of those who 
 dwell in the centres of civilization 
 
 In tho next place, wherever tho various com- 
 panies have established trading posts, a portion 
 if their strvants have intermarried with the In- 
 dian tribes. 1 have no satisfactory data by which 
 to estimate the entiro population of mixed blood. 
 When Schoolcraft was sent out by tho (Jovern- 
 ment in l-'vJ, to visit the tribes inhabiting the 
 country around Luke Superior and on the head 
 waters of the .Mississippi, he found in those lo- 
 calities a total Indian j)opulation of 14,iiiio, of 
 ivhom l,.'J.')-3 were of mixed blood, or a little 
 more than one-tenth of tho whole number. Fur 
 ther out in tho interior the proportion is not 
 nearly so great, though this class is to be 
 found in considerable number throughout iha 
 
 „ .,..,., , .- J 1 ■ 1 whole area covered by the posts of the traders 
 
 Connected with these long-continued and wide- ■' '^ 
 
 ly extended operations are incidents of romance, 
 of courage and of daring, of endurance almost 
 Buperhutnan, of deeds of blood fit to appal the 
 stoutest heart. All these nro to be gathered up 
 and embalmed in history, but the time is not yet. 
 Some of them I had thought to present in my 
 present discourse, but tho subject has .so grown 
 upon my hands that I cannot. 
 
 The matter of the Hudson Hay Company pos- 
 sesses a special interest just now from the fact 
 that President Pierce in his recent Message ad- 
 vises the purchase of its rights and property in 
 Oregon and Washington Territories. It is un- 
 derstood that the company is anxious to sell. 
 Its trade in furs is nearly closed in those Terri- 
 tories, and in the limited mercantile operations 
 which it conducts there, whether in furs or other 
 commodities, it comes in direct competition with 
 the inevitable Yankee, whose motto is " quick 
 
 The Indians of the country are divided into 
 many tribes, and are mainly comprised in the 
 following : 
 
 The Ojibways, the Hioux or Dacotahs, the 
 Muskecgoose, the Crees, the Knisteneaux, the As- 
 siniboins, the Piegan.s, the Surcies, tho Ulood 
 Indians, the Blackfeet, the Flatheads, the Saii- 
 tenx, the Chepewyan, the Heaver, the Dog Rib, 
 the Htrongbow Indians and the Esquimaux. 
 These numerous tribes are undoubtedly the oil' 
 shoots of about four distinct nations, or people, 
 and may all be classified under tho heads of the 
 Algonquins, the Dacotahs, the Chepewyan and 
 the Esquimaux. 1 estimate their entire number 
 at about one hundred thousand souls. It should 
 be remembered that the Indian population of tho 
 included region was formerly much greater thau 
 now. Various causes have contributed to a dim- 
 inution of their number. First, the perpetual 
 
s 
 
 M'tto III \Mir wliicli i'Xi8t« bulwii'ii III. Ill' i>l lilt 
 tribi"*. Ht'C'iinlIj, thu intri)(lii(;li<iti nf unk'tif 
 H|iir>tn liy ilii> Cur L'iiiii|i;iiiii'ii ; lor luitv.itti-i.iinl- 
 iii;; ill" iii(,Mii liiw iil'li'iili ilu! llmUiiii it ly iii.'l 
 ilic Nortliwi'itturn Cuinpiinivit |iriiliiliilLil tiullu! 
 Ill lii'itnit H|<iritr>, iiiiil Miittvillist.iiuliii^' ilii< Aiikt- 
 iciiii i-'iir ('iiiii|iiiiiy u'li.-i |iriiliiljiir<l liy (<|n'(i'>l 
 lift. Ill r>iii);rcitM li'iiiii Hulling nr );iviti;; it in tln' 
 liiiliaiiH, Hill! till' liurco rivalry oxistin;; lu'twcni 
 llii'M" (:iiiii|i.iiiii's, ciiiiiltiiU'il witli ill)' kiKHvii I'.ict 
 tliittliu Indians wiiiilil tradu with llnit jiarty 
 wliicli Wiiiiid liiriiinli tiiciii tin; iiin.st riiiii, k'd tn 
 an niM'ii and ti!iaiiii.'li"is <liMri';;ird (it"llu' law, iiii'! 
 witli tlio dire-st rt'Mlitt^ tu thi^ llnlian:'-. ISllI 
 ilii; I'liiid iij^t'iicy by wliidi ilp'si- trilics Inivi.' bt'cii 
 ••III down to u iiii.Ti) lillii! Ill' their orijjiiiul miinhor 
 iviis tin- Mimll-jiiix, iiitnidiici'd iiiikiiij; llu'iii hy 
 tlifir inii-ruMiurrte with tlu; tnidtTH. Thu dill'or- 
 • nt iiiithiirH which 1 have ixaiiiincd iipun tlic 
 Kiiojt'Cl an- ut 11 loss I'lif ]aiis;iia;,'o to di-jnct llif 
 fri'i'iii's (if hiirror, nl dcva.slatioii -the ulu.T uii- 
 iiiliihiliiii) of whulu laiinlii'!!, iiiid HotiiutinieH of 
 liihi'.s— which ruijiiwi-'l niioii the lircakinjr out <'l 
 this disease iiiiiiHi;;- the Indians. On it* uiijii ir- 
 luice aiiioii); Muinu ijaiui.-', ii ;;eneral di.-iicr.i'ii'ii 
 would lake |ilaee, and the diSia^e would lliU.s lu- 
 tipn ad to iieijihboriii;; band;.. Others rciiiaiiieii 
 moodily where thu ili.sease lirsl iitlacked them, 
 uwailiii^ with Indian comiioMure and sloiciiiin ii 
 fate vvhifh tiiey re^tarded as inevitable. And 
 Miill oilierf, hhriiikinjj troni the liarliil ti^j iiy ot 
 ilie di-seas^e, iiiion ii.s ^lr^t iiiipeariince in their 
 !od<;ef<, would eill tiu'ir lamJie:^ aroiiiid thi'in, 
 uiid exhort their woiiion and cluldnMi in iivoii! it 
 by a f'-'il-iiillicUd deaili--tlie hand of tlie hti.v 
 bi.nd and lather coininjj to tho a-^sif^t nice of IIum 
 « ii<i lalteri'd, iil'li;!' wiiicli he would clotie tlie 
 .scene by iiuttiii); an tiid to lii.-^ own life. Such 
 ,ire .-ioine of the accouut.i we have of the et^cct^ 
 of this terrible inuludy ainon^ ilie ^drthw^^terll 
 I ndianr>. 
 
 .\ti to the moral and iiiciilal coiuiiiiou ot' ihc-ie 
 inbcs but littli! cuu bo said tliai would bu iiIcils- 
 .ml to hear. It was (nirt of the ]iolicy of the 
 r'reiich traders tu establish inis.sioiis iiiiion^ all 
 ihc tribes with which they traded. Sucii iiiis- 
 '.sions were idanted at the Saut St. .Mary, at l,a- 
 poiute, at Grand rortajfe, and as far west as the 
 l.aku of the Woods, alino.st two centuries ajjo, 
 aiid were maintained up to the cession of (.'anud; 
 ill ITiiu. lUil when thu Scotch traders went into 
 the country three years afterwards, with the ex- 
 ceiitioii ot some old I'Vetich trapjiers who liad 
 married Itidiaii wives and stiil remaiued, they 
 found no one who appeared to have the sligiht- 
 est idea of Christianity. The Hudson 15ay Com- 
 pany has generally kept up the forms id' the 
 Christian religion at its iiriucipal trading posts ; 
 and in Hiuiie instances has maintained schools 
 
 chiclly lor the bi'iirlit ol the taiiiiliis ol its bci 
 viititK, but liicidenlally relijjiou* ami iither in. 
 ilriiction liis bven ^ir.iiiiiiiu.ily • Hired to the 
 native.-. l!i|! Ihr au; out its vimt dojiait:, i«i 
 t'arai man may ,judp', lo. <u tll'ort.x to Cliriiiti.tn- 
 i/.*i lui iiiicirili/.i'd jiei'piti remain to this day 
 witlioiit Iriiif xcept in two or three iiihiaticiri 
 ill wli'.cii ii;rriciiltiiri* and mniu othur purHuitH ot 
 civilized life have been t.iuvrht tlitiii ulio. Thu 
 .\iiieri(iin Fur CoinpiiHy, I believe, has lu-ver 
 iiiudm miri.-^ioiiary laborii ii part of it« nbjeciM. 
 The Vuiikee traders were faiiions ainoiijf thu In- 
 dians for iiii.vin,: their nun with wat'T— but I 
 believo llu'y have never ^l■cllred much of a ripu» 
 tatldii, either in the Woods or among civili/ed 
 people, fur mixing bii.tiiii,-.* with religion. When 
 the ^■ankoe tr..des, he trades, and tradeH, too, 
 mainly to his own advautage ; when hu preaches 
 hu jireaclii s. Vet American missionaries have 
 followed clo.^e upon the footsteps of the Aiiieri- 
 can Fur Company, and wliilu they have accom- 
 plished more than their I'riiich and Knglisli pre- 
 decessor.", still it is painfully apparent that mis. 
 Bioiiary ellort auiong these iionherii Indiana is 
 u Sysiphian labor. 
 
 There is one remarkable in.it uice, however, in 
 which these l.ibors have been crowned with sue- 
 cesd. This in a settlement of about livu hundred 
 Cret; Indians, oii the Rid Kiver of the .North, .i 
 short distance below the Selkirk Colony. Havid 
 Dale Owen, the eminent (jeulogist, visited this 
 settlenieiit (d' Indians in l>h, and I have cojiied 
 t'roni his otlici.il roj-ort to (Jovernmont the fol- 
 lowing account of them ; 
 
 "Taty ftro (l"e'.ilccU,v tJK' iiKLit eUili/.i-'d Irilio wfileli I 
 havo.ii.'en or lioiinl of in tlit; North. Tla-y i.e.pp(iri 
 ili'Miistlves inainl.v liy thu proiluee of their f.iriDs which 
 ilay eullivatiMvitli tnelr iwn haiiMJ. Thi-y dwell in 
 ooia'Drlahlc .MinarnlIoK bmhliiiKS. erocteil. thatched 
 and whilewaih. d liy theinst^lvi's. Tiny are aoquaiuted 
 with the use of the aimii e t'armln>; utinsila. and tie-- 
 iiu'clii\iiii;id (d"-ratinri.-i n'TUfsary to keep their farni.s 
 and homes in order. Kaih faiaily eultivatea from live 
 to ten ai'ie.s (if laud which i.s lupt well fenced. They 
 mow their own hay, and fold their cutllo on it in win- 
 ter. A lew oeciiiDnnily hunt (lurinif a month or more 
 in the sumnur wli»/n their crop i do not roMuire miuli 
 attention, lait this ii more f(ir reereation than .^uppori. 
 , " The reiimrkalile ehaiiKO in the msnuera and enstoniM 
 nf these pe(>ple h:is heen wroiiKht mainly ihrouKJi the 
 'lores of exumpU, hy >Ir. Smilluu-st, who reside.-s amonn 
 Uhem as Nli.ssionary. That Krriilenian U remarkable 
 for his love of order and arrauKemerit, and is devoted 
 10 AKrieiiUure and IlortieuUure. '.iis house is situated 
 ; n the midst of a delightful llow.rKarden, kept in ticaii- 
 ' li'ul order, wilh llourishiiiK Ii .ids of»,'rain and meadows 
 in the rear. The Indians ImvlnK continually tiefori' 
 their eye.s so pleasiiiK and praetioal an exami>le of the 
 '.•omfortsof eivili/.'d life, as well a» an illustration of 
 ;he nil ana by which Ihty may he enabled to provide a 
 support far more stable and eerlain than thai derived 
 from the chase, liaveKradualiy fallen into the habits of 
 their Instructor, and by ihxrtes have nathered around 
 their permanent homes, the implements and appur- 
 I ;nanees. and even some of ilie comfort» and luxuries. 
 
 i 
 
9 
 
 lielonitlriB (0 lUe ,"'l»l>llifimpnt of ih>- thrifty furniff. 
 
 tliMiii'iliiu'ii llivy Hii- m "liil iiiiiifiiiiiiiiDiiily l.y lliv r 
 
 MfKlilxirn, the (,'hli)i"w»'<. ami rlMiiMlr.l j(« ",,iii', 
 Viiriiiit" iiIkI "(/ (•«/■« ,'• Imt tln'y nnw fliift upon llifiii ; 
 " Wi»it nil till- winter Hff't III, mil ilicn yon will i''iiiii? tn 
 lit, hi-KUiiri for uiir rcfu^^ putatut-t »iii| itiilliri'rtut 
 
 prM." 
 
 TIIK CiifNTIir. 
 
 I'liKMiti^ fruiii tliu |iii|iiiluiiiiii, li't uit ciiiiHidur 
 iiinv tliu ciiiiiitry itxL'lr', And herviii iiru wi\ ui> 
 citizi'im of' (;iiJLM^{((, (li'i'|ily intcri'iiied. V'>t if 
 llirre bo to ihu Nurihward und \V\'i»tWMr(l <•( ii.* 
 u uduiitry Citpiiblu u( Mii»tiiiniii(; liir^e und llniir- 
 ixhiii^ voiiiiiiuiiitii'rt, wIii'IIrt iif a^'rlc'ulluri>ti<, 
 iiiiiKT.s IIP iiiiiiiiir.icturi'r.'', llmHe cuiiimuiiitiih 
 iiitiMt t'oruVL-r liiild n-latimis id' thu iiiiiBt intiiiiiiti- 
 chiiiMctiT witliiirt. N.ituri', hy Uif iiiUTpmiitiDn 
 iiC tliu KPciit cliiiiti of laki'S wliich HirutcliU!* 
 Niiriliwiird of uh tlimujfh Meveii dojfrt'eB of luti- 
 tndf und to wiihJii two d>');ri'fH of tlio Moiitli>Tii 
 liiiiils of lliiil;<i)ii*s It.iy, h:i.s iii.uk' our city thf 
 iiiuvitublu ^fiituWiiy to and Irniii this country. 
 Siliiatcd as it Ih iiiioii tlit- hi-ad wiili-rs of llic 
 (jult of St. L;iwn.'iici,', und wilhiii utrlkiiijj 
 (liHtance of thu nuvi>; iblu waters fallini; into the 
 (iulf of Mt;.xicii, und having; both railway and 
 water cotiiniunicatiiiu with the hitter, C'hicu^jo 
 holds a position which enables Ler to collect 
 within her storehouses the jirodiicts of all the 
 •ioiies, and here they will meet and be exehaimid 
 for whatever Nature, Industry and Art uiay pro- 
 duce in the hij^lRr latitudes above us. U be- 
 comes a subject therefore of no little intirest, to 
 understand what this country holds in store for 
 its future occupants, and what inducenients it 
 presents to secure eurly settlement. In con- 
 sideriujf the mutter of soil, climate, water, min- 
 erals, kc, I think I shall be able to dispel some 
 erroneous impressions that prevail respectiiijj it, 
 as well as to present some facts and cousideru- 
 lions not generally known to the public. 
 
 I.AKKS ANII WATKU-COLHSKS. 
 
 Ono of the most notable features of the coun- 
 try under consideration is the great multiplicity 
 of lakes and water-courses with which it is fur- 
 nished. It contains within il the water-sheds 
 I'rom which nearly all the great river systems ot 
 the continent, west of those which How Iroin the 
 slopes of the AUeghanies, derive their sources, i 
 If wo make the western CA'treme of Lake Supe-' 
 rior our starting iioint for a general view under 
 this head, we shall liud, after passing westward 
 u short distance, a grand water-shed comi)rising 
 iruiny hundred Kijuare miles of area in which 
 the following rivers, beside several others, have 
 their sources. First, the St. Louis Uiver flow- 
 ing into Lake Superior and seeking an outlet to 
 the ocean through the River and Gulf of St. Law- 
 rence. This stream may in fact be regarded as 
 the head waters of the St. Lawrence. Secondly, 
 
 the .Mii*itliiMip]ii and a large number of itii tribu> 
 iirieK, Kuch III* the Chipfieway, the Crow-SVmg, 
 thu MinnHHotii, the St. Crux and oihi'm - fl<iwiii|; 
 into the (iulf of Mexico. Tliirdly, the Ktd 
 Hirer of the North and its tribiititrieH, flowing 
 into Luke NVimp'g, wlmh like disehiirgeM 
 tlifiiUk'h tlie Nelson and .Severn Kivers into Iliid- 
 ton'ii Hay. This grand water-shed, unlike all 
 otherii on thu continent which give rise to im> 
 portaiit river systems, in retnarkahlo for being 
 situated upon u vast plateau, instead of occupy- 
 ing u mountainous region. The HourceM id' ull 
 the rivers which I li:ive naiiied are reached by h 
 gentle ascent just sulllcieut to promote drain- 
 ugu of thu country and nlart thu nevrral Hlreaiim 
 upon ihiir long journey. 
 
 Proceeding westward on nearly the H»me par- 
 allel of latitude wo coino upon another grand 
 water shed Mtuiited among the inountnins, 
 Kroin the peaks and spurs of the Kocky, the 
 CiL'ur d'Alenu und the CuHcade Mountains trickle 
 down a thousand little rivulets which, CDllecting 
 themselves in tlie deep gorges and canons, and 
 receiving constant accessions to their volume, 
 after much apparent fretting .ni foaming in 
 surmounting the rocky barruTs piled in their way, 
 emerge finally upon the plains —somu on the thith- 
 er, some on the hither side of the mountains 
 11 half dozen or more grand rivers, running 
 in us many diflerent directions. On the North- 
 ern confines of this water-shed the Columbia, 
 thu Frazier and the Athabasca Kivers have 
 their sources, the two former discharging into 
 the Tucilic, und thu latter into Slavu Lake, which 
 lakt' has its outlet in the Arctic Ocean through 
 Macken/.ie's Uiver. A little further south the 
 .Saskatchewan Uiver, which discharges through 
 Lake Winipeg into Hudson Bay, takes its rise. 
 Still further southward the MisAuuri, with its 
 principal tributary, the Yellow Stone, and the 
 llio Colorado— the former flowing into the (Iulf 
 of Mexico, the latter into the Gulf of Californiu, 
 collect their head waters. 
 
 The concurrency of these two great water- 
 sheds, with several others of u minor character, 
 from which descend the chief rivers of the con- 
 tinent in every direction to thu ocean, within 
 the territory under consideration, most admira- 
 bly fitted it for the operations of the powerful 
 companies which have so long occupied it. Hy 
 means of the ten thousand lakes, which occupy 
 the first plateau, and which, in fact, are scatter- 
 ed freely all over the Northern portion of the 
 continent that is not mountainous— by means of 
 the great rivers of the two systems and their in- 
 numerable tributaries interlocking with each 
 other on the plains and among the mountains, 
 breaking down the barriers of the the latter into 
 an easy open pathway, a t'aousand lines of water 
 

 
 coiiiinunicalioii suitable for canoe niivipfdlion l(|uite, rqiial diincnHiona cf Lnke Mi(;liij;iiii? it 
 wiia opened from tlie principal ira(liii}^iii)sl« with is no iiii|)eachnieiil ol' their (general iiitdli^enco 
 every portion (if the coiiiilry. t)ecasiun.illy the l(» sniijiose most of theni are not, V>'t ^uoli a 
 bri^nide of canoes would come to un impassable lake has an exi.steiiee. Fkancuk'if, wlio.^i' nar- 
 rui»id or waterfall ; but the hardy voyujjeurs re- rative of a trip from the iiuiiith of the Columbia 
 jjarded such an obstruction of but small mo- liiver to Mouireal, in l-'l'f, possesses nmch inter- 
 ment. The floods or furs constituting the ciirKo est, says of J/uke Winipei; -the lake to which 
 were made up in packajjes of ninety pounds each, I allude — that " it visibly yields in extent only to 
 from three to six of which, in jiroportion to theiLake Superior and the i^reat Slave Lake." Its 
 length of the portage, were usually a load for a southern extreme is on the parallel of .01°. Jjih' 
 single person ; taking this load upon their backs, |"/' tin: \V<j(>ii-< is also a large body of water, being 
 confining it therewith a broad strap brought nearly half the size of Jiake Ontario. It receives 
 forward and jiassed over the forehead, detailing its name from the large number of islands within 
 two to share the burden of each canoe, they it, which are covered with a luxuriant growth 
 would move oil" on a free lope, rarely slack-iof forest trees. It forms ]iart of the boundary 
 ening their pace until arrived ut the jjointjline between ilu United States and the liritish 
 of reembarking. In the same manner portages possessions. Without attempting to jjarticular- 
 were made from the head waters of one stream ize further, let me close this branch of the sub, 
 to the nearest point on those of another — contin- ject by saying, tliiit the region of country em- 
 uing onward by the most direct route until the, braced between latitude luo north and the (.loth 
 proposed destination was gained. It is a curi-jp«rallel, and between Hudson's IJay and Lake 
 0113 fact, and one which I presume is known to 'Superior on the east, and the J'acilic Ocean on 
 but very few, that there are numerous routes oljthe west, is better watered throughout .ts entire 
 water communication, with occasional ])ortagesjextcut than any other equal portion of the world, 
 from twenty yards toeight or ten miles in length, So numerous indeed are the streams and lakes 
 
 through the country we are considering, from 
 the Great Lakes and from Hudson's Bay across 
 the continent to the Pacific Ocean. Instances 
 are upon record in which persons have passed 
 from Montreal to the mouth of the Columbia 
 
 that, according to Sir Alexander Mackenzie, who 
 spent eight years in that country us Chief Super- 
 intendent of the Northwest Company, the i)laee 
 was of rare occurrence from which a person set- 
 ting out and ])roceeding in a direct line for eigUi,; 
 
 River, and t'K'<? (v;-,?!;, with merchandise or with or ten miles would not come upon one or the 
 furs, making the entire distance in the same'other. 
 
 bark canoe. j These streams and lakes abound in fish of the 
 
 Some of these rivers are navigable for a much finest quality, lioth the Indians and the Fur- 
 more pretending class of boats than the bark i Traders rely much upon them for the means of 
 canoe of the Fur traders. The Minnesota, the subsistence. It is a singular fact, that all the 
 St. Croix, the Crow Wing and the Blue Earth, great sea-fisheries are in the North. Not that 
 tributaries of the Mississippi, have all, I believe, j fish are not abundant within the tropics, but be- 
 had their capacity for steamboat navigation ^cause those taken in high latitudes, or in the cold 
 
 tested. The lied lliver of the North is capable 
 of steamboat navigation for four hundred miles. 
 So the Saskatchewan, the Assinniboin, the 
 
 cuireiits which sweep down from thePoles toward 
 the Equator, are far superior in (juality to the 
 Bsh of the tropics or those found in the thermal 
 
 Athabasca, the Mackenzie, and perhaps othcr|Currents setting Northward. Lieutenant Maury, 
 
 rivers of which 1 have not the data to warrant 
 me in speaking definitely, have likewise a suf- 
 ficient depth of water for steamboat navigation. 
 Jn some of these water-courses a great many 
 
 in his Physical Geography of the Sea, gives 
 numerous illustrations of this fact. The same 
 conditions appear to govern the quality of the 
 lish in our Northwestern lakes. The Mackinaw 
 
 rapids, and sometimes considerable cataractsj trout are famous for their fine quality beyond 
 
 occur, suggestive of the manufacturing establish- 
 ments that will sooner or later derive from them 
 the motive power to propel their machinery. 
 Many of the lakes are also navigable, some of 
 them for the larger class of vessels. We not un- 
 fre()uently find mention of those which are 
 from ten to thirty miles in extent. There are 
 two of very remarkable size. Are my audience 
 prepared to hear, that not more than two hun- 
 dred and fifty, or three hundred, miles northwest 
 of Lake Superior there is a lake of nearly, if not 
 
 those taken from Lake Jlichigan in the latitude 
 of Chicago. The lish of Lake Huron are supe- 
 rior to those of either Lake Erie or Michigan ; 
 while the fish of Lake Superitir are esteemed by 
 epicures of far more delicate flavor than those of 
 Lake Huron. By analo^j-, therefore, we should be 
 warranted in asserting the sujierior quality of 
 the fish which are found in the lakes and rivers 
 of the high northern latitudes in which the sub- 
 ject of this discourse is situated : while the uni- 
 form declarations of independent explorers and 
 
 h .. 
 
11 
 
 "l ^, 
 
 tho 
 Fur- 
 
 8 Cif 
 
 the 
 that 
 t be- 
 cold 
 ward 
 
 the 
 rnial 
 lury, 
 
 same 
 f the 
 iinaw 
 yond 
 titude 
 8upe- 
 lifriiii ; 
 ed by 
 08e of 
 uhi be 
 ity of 
 rivers 
 I? sub- 
 e uni- 
 •rt and 
 
 uf the Fur-Traders, entablish tho correctness of first was to maintain a constant silence respecting; 
 the analogy. it ; the other, ta spread reports prejudicial to ii. 
 
 son,. Kach of these plans has, in its turn, been acted 
 
 l!ut water, althon-h an essential element, does "P""" '"^^"'""^ "" "'^" kn"«-led-e that is avuila- 
 not, of itself, make a country desirable for resi- ^^^ ^^ ^'"'' I*"^'"^ concerninR the country eame 
 dence. Other considerations, as, for example- '^'"'"^^ ^'"-"'" interested sources. M(,reover, 
 ol soil, of fuel, of minerals, and .,f climate, must ^''"^ ^^'^ ''"■■ =«""I'-'>>ies been inclmed to report 
 also be taken into the account to determine the ''^^ '="""*''>' correctly, the fact that their line of 
 question. Hut before entering „pon these top- ^^''"""^ "''^'^ '''""f^ ^'''-' «-^i<*-'r courses and only oc- 
 ics, let us take a brief survey of the extent of su casionally passm- across small portions of the 
 much of this country as I hold to be well adapted country, from one stream to another, rendered h 
 to the occupation (,f a civilized people. Our own ''"Possible for them to obtain full and accurate 
 Kovernment, it will be reinen.bered, once claimed k""«'l«'R« "»' it themselves. It is curious to ob- 
 np to 540 K)', but (inally " backed down " tol'io. ''*^''^*'> "''"' "■'^''' erroneous impressions the ear- 
 On whatever side justice may have been, I cannot '>' ^XP''"-^''-" ""^d first settlers of a country form 
 help Ihinkin- that, had our statesmen entertained "f" '*• ^ ^'^'"•^ well remember when the opinion 
 any correct idea of the country between the par-'"'"^ universal that the great prairies of Illinois, 
 allels of .i;io and .'1° 40', the subject wouM hare Wisconsin, Iowa, and Northern Missouri would 
 remained much longer under discussion, a..d our "c^'^'' '^'^ ^'^"''^'^ ^'^^^ »'"''" ^^'''P^ of them, 
 present possessions, in all probability, would ex- '^^'"'"'^ ^^'^ edges, in the vicinity of wood and 
 tend north of the boundary finally agreed upon. «'''''-"''- ^ can well remember when tho opinion 
 Taking the facts us we timl them, the i,„devel-;P''^^'''''^'^ ^'■^■^''"'*'''^''-^ ""'* ^'^^ country upon tho 
 
 head waters of the Missouri and of the ilissis- 
 
 sippi were adapted only for tho abode of unciv- 
 
 The first Americans who went into 
 
 oped area between latitude -ltj° and -l;i°, west 
 of the lakes, comprises '.)'t7,(_nH) square miles, or '" 
 suflicient territory to make six and a half States '''^^d man 
 of the s./.e of Illinois. The undeveloped area of'<^'»''«'^'-°''^ *" search ,.f gold, reported tho country 
 the British Possessions west of Lake Superior ^^ entirely unadapted to agricultural pursuits, 
 and lln(ls.>n's l!av, comprises l,:i7.-.,-2o<) square ^^'^ have lived to see all these ideas exploded, 
 miles-or sullicient territory to make twenty-five l'^"^ immense prairies of the west are now justly 
 rttatesc.iual in si/e to Illinois. Our own and the '"'-■K'^'''^'^'' as the garden of the world. Immi- 
 habitable portion of the IJritish Possessions to- Sr^^t'on has poured up the Mississippi and Us 
 Kether ure, therefore, more than thirtv-one times '"'S^'-"'** tributaries, almost to Lake Itasca, 
 larger than the State of Illinois. This computa- ''"^ s'""-ce "f that great river; a similar 
 tion carries us no to the (ioth parallel of north lat'^""'^"^ '^ '''•'"'"P '°"> Nebraska and Kansas 
 itude. Considering- the extreme severity (,f the '"'^ stretching away over the immense plains 
 present season, it will probably occur to some of ^liat border the Missouri. While California, the 
 my audience that t/„>f, is pushing the subject to co«"try so recently thought to be entirely unfit 
 an unreasonable extreme, but from causes that f"'' agriculture, besides growing enough to sup- 
 I shall xention presently, when I come to speak P"'"' ''« "^^° population, exported to New York 
 of the climatology of the country, I shall be able '^"'^ other places during last year nearly half a 
 to show that, in a very large section of the coun- 'niHion bushels of wheat. Now, when I ccyne 
 try, the temperature at the I'.inh parallel is before you this evening, and lay down the pro- 
 quite endurable, if not positively agreeable. position, that a very large portion of the vasi 
 
 ft is the popular idea concerning this vast re- region lying between the 4Gth and 60th paral- 
 giou of country, that i^ is "a waste howling wil- 'i-'s "*' I'ltitude, and between the Lakes and the 
 derness," abounding in sandy plains, and every- Pacific, is susceptible of a profitable cultivation^ 
 where unadapted to cultivation, both on acc(mnt that it is eminently adajjted to manufactures by 
 of its poor soil and its high latitude. But this is reason of its vast resources of water power, that 
 a mistake, as I shall show. It is quite natural lin'Re sections of it are rich in valuable minerals 
 however, that such notions should prevail re- — "'"^ '^'^ *•''"• •""' '^^ ^he face of current opin- 
 specting U. The fur companies that have occu- '«"» directly to the contrary, I would have you 
 l)ied it have always been opposed to its settle- *^car in mind the interested sources from which 
 ment. The presence of civilization in any por- •l^'-'^c opinions originated, as well as the fact that 
 tion of it would put an immediate end to the busi very similar opinions formerly prevailed of por- 
 ness of these companies within the district thus ''"'"* "'' "•"" "^" ^'"'« "'"^ "^^'cr parts of the 
 occuiiicd. It was essential, therefore, to main- country which are now considered as among tho 
 tain the undisturbed possession of it to the In- 'n^^'st desirable portions of the Union. 
 dian tribes which were found within it. There Now let us see for a moment what facts can be 
 were two ways by which this might be done. Thejadduced, even in the present imperfect state of 
 
['2 
 
 'Mir knowledfji) of tbu coutitrv, i" support of the "The popular impressioiiliasljeotithiittliebulk of tlio 
 prnpositioD just laid down. And in doinjr so, 1 rerUle InndH of the t.rriiory, arc tohe foun^l In tlie riv 
 .,. ■ , , . .• •. 1 er valleys, uiid thai hiifk (if lliusc tlirrcU no liiiliiceineiif 
 
 will commence at the eastern limit and iiro^ress f„rexph^ra, ion or settlement, from rep..rt.s .• .ntinu- 
 westward. The country bordering upon Lake ally reachloKUH we ar'satislMMl tlmt this 1." h Kreat er- 
 Superior has become widely famous for its min- ror. It Is true that all our valley* -the t'liperMij.slshlp- 
 ural deposits and extensive minin;; ojierations. Pl. the Minnesota, the Cannon Klvrr. the /unihro. and 
 ,,,.,,,,„ , . , the Uoot River— are anioTiK the most he.intiful in llie 
 
 horn little while after population commenced ^^^,,,_ g^,,^,, ^^^^^^^ ^^ pralri-.l rollinK and dotted 
 
 tlowin^j in, similar impressions prevailed ^ith openlnss seemlnnly dutlfd hy hand, s-o uniform 
 resjiectin//; its ajjricultiiral capacities to those and reijular is thtirKrowih : wi'h a soil of Kreat depth 
 which the first American explorers of Calilornia »""' riehness; and ril.l.oned at eonvenient intervals 
 , ~ ., , „,, with ele.'irand rapid lirooks and .-itreatns. which tumble 
 
 entertained of that country. Ihe country wu.. ^^.^,^ ,,a,,rfaiis. and eontrihn.e to the health, no le.s 
 supposed to be too mountainous and br(;ken, too than to the rapid development of the seetlons whieh 
 many rocks on the surface, the soil too thin, and they beautify; these valleys, thus fashioned and adorn- 
 fheseasons too short. But 8ubsc(|uent experi- «''• "'""''' In them.^elves. make Minnesota llonrishioK 
 
 ^ , J ^L .. r .1 1 and populous beyond any Other portion of the West. 
 
 nient has proved that none of these conclu- ..TheremaininKporiionsofth-Territory are not, a«is 
 sioiis were correct. T! e finest esculents in generally supposed, either uncomely or barren. On the 
 the world are grown in that region. The grass- contrary, if we rely upon the statements of intellifteni, 
 
 es llonrish as if native to the soil. Oafs are a 
 
 men, the hixh table lands whieh lie between our beauti 
 
 ,, _,, , , . . ful valleys, comprise (lualities Iwhich must ultimately 
 
 sure and large crop. The more hardy varieties ...^^g ^,g„, „„^ prominent reliance for HKricultural 
 of Indian corn succeed well. Add to this, that purposes. This is peculiarly true of the sertion lyinR 
 the characteristics of the soil are such that crops between IheMlnnesotaand Mississippi River?. Afrierjd 
 require very little attention beside planting and *•>" "at^'y ^""^ a tripsome thirty miles l)ack from Chas- 
 u »• Tiru 1 u 1 » JO- _ > ka. on the Minnesota, has given us KlowinK accounts of 
 
 harvesting. Wheat has been grown at ditlerent ..,„,. , . , .„ , ... . , , 
 
 " " this section of country— b'autiful rolhng prairle«, oak 
 
 points on Lake Superior ; but it is now thought ^^j n^^pi^ openinRs, and forests covered with the larR- 
 that the snows immediately upon the coast and c'st and finest growth of timber to be found in the West. 
 on the highlands of tho coast range, are general- The soil, which he took occa-sion to examine at intervals 
 I J 4U i iu- ij u „ .u J averaged from three to four feet in depth, and "could 
 
 Iv so deep that this crop would be smothered. , „ , , •. ..i , u .. ju n r 
 
 ^ ' not," as lie expressed It, have been bettered by Profes- 
 
 Hut this is no drawback to the country, since the sor,Mape3 himself." 
 
 prairies of Wisconsin and Illinois are near "B„me twenty-five railes'fromOhaska. he was surprised 
 enough at hand to supply tho want. Further by the sight of a large neat looking settlement, to which 
 west the snows are not so deep, and an excellent *l>e name of Glencoe has been given. It is located in 
 .iiiality of wheat is grown in Minnesota, as well 'he centre of a charming prairie, and skirted around by 
 ,, ^, ^, ^- 1 f I i J highland and forests. Coal, in considerable abundance 
 
 as a 1 the other articles I have enumerated. , „ , , „„„ <• , i »v, j , r • i i i 
 
 had been found there, and our friend saw a laborer 
 
 I' Northern Wisconsin there are occasional throwing out with a spade fl atin« parti.-les, from a eel- 
 strips of poor land — of country almost destitute lar which he was diifning. The seitlement was com- 
 of soil— sandy and arid, made up mainly of the >"«"''ed last spring by a single family, and now every 
 , . , ^. r »i 1 . ■ "i i quarter section within a srare of ten miles fouare is 
 
 disintegration oi the lower protozoic sandstones. ..„i„i„„,i„,,„ ,, , „,„„ r, m . i .i 
 
 " ' claimed by actual settlers. On his return, hn met be- 
 
 There are also occasional districts in which the tween seventy and eighty men, with teams and packs, 
 surface is nearly covered with huge boulders, going into that vicinity for purposes of settlement. So 
 and others in which a great multitude of lakes rapidly and quietly is Minnesota lilling up in every di- 
 
 abound, having low banks and swampy mar-; ..m.' ,„„„,.„,,„„ ,.,„„ . ... ., 
 
 ' " f.' ] "The description given us by this gentleman, we arc 
 
 gins. Mr. Owen, in his report of a Geological gj^ured may be applied with equal truth to the great 
 
 Survey of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, ad- body of country lying between the .Minnesota and Mif 
 
 vises Government not to incur the expense of sl^^sippl Elvers. It is a section of va«t extent, large 
 
 enough to form whole States of the New Kngland size. 
 
 surveying these marshy grounds. You will re- 
 
 and blessyd with a soil strong and fertile enough to sup- 
 
 member that this is precisely the advice whichportthedensest population. ' 
 the first government surveyors sent out to Mich-: qj- ^■^^^ country lying to the northward of that 
 igan gave respecting that State. A little drain- ^j^,,, described we have reason to believe that it 
 age will make the Lake region thus contemptu- j^ ^^tof a very different character. When Mr. 
 ously slurred over and dismissed by Mr. Owen, y^i,„„,pr,^ft ;„ ^gga triced the Mississippi to its 
 one of the inost productive and most desirable '^^.y^ce, in Itasca Lake, he found the Indians cul- 
 districts in Wisconsin. , ' 
 
 Respecting eastern Minnesota, I need scarcely <^"'ating corn on its head waters. At Cass Lake 
 say anything, for its agricultural capacities are '^^y informed him that the crop was always re- 
 now well known and appreciated. It will be 'i«d on, that seed corn was preserved from year 
 suHicieut on this head to read a brief extract '» J^ar, and tho crop never known to fail. At 
 from the St. Paul .I'ioniv.t; respecting tho coun- Red Lake, north of the 4Sth parallel, the traders 
 try lying between the Minnesota and Mississippi 'Assured him that corn was a profitable crop, and 
 Rivers, of which but little has hitherto bee« ^^^^ "^ ^'''^ grown there in such quantities that 
 known: lit was sometimes furnished to tho posts on the 
 
ll[)pcr Alississlppi, iuid cvi'ii :is fir ua'^t us Fond 
 du Lrtc, nt the ln-ad of I/iku SiipiTior. I'ran- 
 clii-re, whofte work li;i-> ylrcac'v bei-n niontioiipil, 
 tViiis fjieaks of ono of thi? NiiPthwcst conipiiny's 
 tiMdinjT posts on Ijiike Winipt>2j in 1*^1 1, niirtli of 
 the 5iHh ]iaruilel of lititiule : 
 
 "This tra'llntT pnst lin'l mnrt' the appt'ariincf nf a 
 KrifP unil wfllcultivHterl farm than of a fur tr^uhr's 
 fsctory; a n";it ami dopant iiKin^iou biiUt on a sliwht 
 eniinciice ami surrniiii<l>-'il with Iri.nis, stahhs, stole- 
 kousi.'s. 1*1'.. iiii'l l)y lithls of li.irl'-y. pvas outs atnl pnta- 
 to'.-^, reiniiidcd ui oT thf civiU/.-'il countriu'9 w^ icli we 
 Iiail left so long bko." 
 
 A ver)' domestic picture truly, and we thank 
 Mons. Franchere for limning it awiiy out there in 
 the wilderness lor our iiifortuation and iijratiticit- 
 tion. A few days afterwards Franchere and his 
 companions had their visions of civilized life re- 
 newed by comitifj upon another farm on Rainy 
 Lake quite e(iual to the one they had >eeii at 
 Ijuke Winijjejir. 
 
 It is n well known fact that the Indians of all 
 this rpfjion make lar,d:e quantities of maple su^jar, 
 and it may be set down as an established truth, 
 that the jjresence of sii^-ar maple is a sure indi- 
 cation of a rich and [jrodnctive soil. 
 
 Flowini; southward from the hij;hlands which 
 terminate the basin oilcake Superior on the North 
 is one of the loveliest and nio.-,t romantic rivers 
 upon the continent, bearincj the beautiful name 
 of Kaministi(iuo, or, following more closely the 
 Indian ortho<jraphy, KaministaipK-ia. Franchere 
 was tilled with ecstacy while contcmplatin;; the 
 mai^nificent scenery through wh'ch thi>i river 
 makes it way. Numerous cascades and three or 
 four cataracts serve to add the element of gran- 
 deur. ():^e of the latter, Franchere esteiMns 
 scarcely inferior in this respect to the Falls ol 
 Niagara, Nearly the whole of the Kanunistiiiue 
 A'^alley is susceptible of j)ro(itable cultivation. 
 Sir George Simpson, in his recent work, entitled 
 "An Overland Journey around the World," 
 speaks of it in the following terms : 
 
 "The riverdurinK the (tty's iiuirch. p:is<orl throuuli 
 forests ol (.liTi, calf, pine, bin-h, Ac, beiriK studded with 
 isles not h.'ss fertile and lovely than its !)anks ; and many 
 a spot reminded us of the rich and quitrt scenery nf Kng- 
 land. The pa'hs of the numerous portaijes were span- 
 Kled with volets, roses and many other wild (lowers, 
 while th.c currant and gooseberry, tlie cherry, and even 
 the viae were abundant. All this bounty of nature was 
 itnlMed as it were with life, by ilie cheerful notes of u 
 variety of birds, and by tlie res' less tlu'.ter of butterllies 
 of the brJRhtest hues. Compared with tlie adamantine 
 deserts of Lake Superior, the Karainistaquoii presented 
 a perfect paradise. One cannot pass through this fair 
 valley without feeling that it is destined, sooner or later, 
 to become the happy home of civilized men, with their 
 liieating Hocks and their lowitnth'-Tds, with theirschonls 
 and their churches, with their full garners and their fo- 
 clal hearths. At the t me of our visit the great obstacle 
 in the way of so blessed a consummaMon, was the hope- 
 less wilderness to the eastward" " which seemed 
 to bar for ever the march of settlement and 
 cullivation. Hut tlmt very wildernesss, now that 
 
 it is to yield up Us long hidden store;. hidH fan to re- 
 move the Uiipi'dinienl-i wh'..'h hitherto it has lt'<e!f pre. 
 sc'ited. The mines of l.iisi: -nperl'ir, besides estahii-*)! 
 Ing a eont.iiiui'.v of rou'e h-'.weeii til ' east and the west, 
 will t';id th'ir n'Mirept anil clienp.-st Kiipply of agrioiiHii 
 r.il pri'diiee in 'he vaMey ofthi- Kiiiiln'-.faquoia." 
 
 Further westward, the same author speaks in 
 no less enthusiuslic terms of the character of 
 thi! country, and of its ad iptntion to ))opul(nts 
 settleineit. llctwein Rainy Lake and Lake of 
 the Woods he f.>und a region especially fascinal- 
 inir as will appear by the following passage : 
 
 "The river which empties I ao W I'luie into the l,ai<e 
 ; of the \V(j0ds is di.-cid.'dly the finest mi ream on the wh rile 
 route in more llian one respect. Froni Tort Fnn<'in 
 ilow-nw-ards, a -stretch uf nearly a Imiirlred iiiile<, it is 
 not interrupted by a single iiiipediiueiit. while yet the 
 i-urrentls not strong enough materially to re'ard an 
 ascending travell'jr. Nor are the banks less favorHble 
 tJ agriculture, th-m the waters themselves to naviga- 
 tion, respmhling in some measure, those of the Thames 
 near Richmond- b'roin the v^ry brink: of the river 
 there ri<es a gentle slope of green sward, crowned in 
 many places Willi a plentiful growth of liinh, poplar, 
 b'.'ech, elm and oak. Is it too much 'or Iheeye of ptiilan- 
 throphy to discern through the vista of futurity, this 
 noble stream, connecling as it does th-.' fertile shores of 
 two spacious lakes, with crowded steamboat.! on its ho 
 ioni, and pipulous towns on its borders ?" 
 
 liut I must proceed another stage westward to 
 the valley of the Red River of the North. A col- 
 ony was planted on this river about the year 
 1^11, by Lord Selkirk, under the auspices of ilie 
 Hudson l{ay Comiiani". It has reiiniined there, 
 with varied fortune, to the present day, increas- 
 ing in po[, Illation, in comfort and iu wealth. 
 The total jiopul.ition of the settlements is esti- 
 mated at the piesent time to be between 7,UtM) and 
 -*,0(N). The town of Pembina was origirnilly the 
 cujiital of the colony, but when the boundary line 
 wasrun between the United States aud the Rritisli 
 possessions, it was found to be south of the 
 4'.ith parallel. The Governor and the other otli- 
 cials, on learning this fact, at once removed fur- 
 ther down the river to the other side of the line. 
 I5ut I'etnbina continues to be <iuite an im- 
 portant settlement. It has been organized into 
 a county of Minnesota, and last summer, while 
 (ju Lake Superior, I had the pleasure of meeting 
 with the Represeiit-.itive from that county to the 
 Territorial liegialature, from whom I learned 
 many facts respecting the colony and the coun- 
 try. Churches aud scliools artf organized and 
 maintained in these settlements, and the so- 
 ciety is such as you would expect to find in a 
 conimuniiy of simple-minded, industrious people 
 entirely removed from the whirl and excitement 
 (if f peculation and thefrivolities and inanities of 
 fashionable life. There are some eighteen wind- 
 mills and two water mills in the settleiiients. 
 Wheal of a very superior ([uality is grown there, 
 as would undoubtedly be the case at mostof tho 
 posts of the Hudson Bay Company, in even 
 higher latitudes than h's, were there mills to 
 
14 
 
 uniid it. .\^ It is, inw louri.-jls siiuak (inly (pI ivcii iihto livish in laT '.'ilis nl' soil llmii in her 
 "licldH <it' o:its, biirley, ])eiiH, iiiul potaii.r.-.." cli;iiuii'ls of (■(irpiiimiiiiMti'Pii. Tlir iiunicroiis liiket* 
 hVdiM ulhliiit I Ciiii li'Mrii n!' thi'iiniilii_v(pf the Ui-d hi'twi'i'ii tliv; ,Mis.sissiiP|ii .uid ?'■■ HlmI River art! 
 Uivtr whfiit, 1 C(jncliKli) tliiitii is sujiurior toiuiy .siirnpiiiKKM! by a ;,'iMitlv iiiiduliilin;; country ot' 
 
 /fidwii ii| the ciintinunt. Thi; lust Illinois tho v//".v' fir/ili r/,//; i/. ■'(/•, uiul iibiuidiiiuly mi|i- 
 
 wlii'iii wcijjhs troriMio lo li:; lis. to tho iiHMsurt.(l plied with nil ti:o I'oresi trees common to so 
 lpii>lii'l. The best (ieiiesee from I'.o to I'l'i !''S. iiDrthuni i; iulittidr. llr tr.iversed the cnuntry 
 Kfd Kivi'r whe.it \veit;bs I'roin fl.') tip To lI'S. to the I'loiii north in smiili, w. di.stiUK'e of live Imiidred 
 iiieiisiircd bushel. Forty bushels to the iicre is iiiile,s, and, with the exci'[)iion of ii tow swiimiis, 
 the iiveriijfe on new pnpund, and thirty busluls s;iw not one acre of unprodpictive land. The 
 is an (prdinary yitdd. The crop very rarely fails, soil, he says, is ilu^ idack nionld, severi.l feel in 
 So niin'h I have heard verbally from citi/eiis ot thiekiuss, with various proportions <pf !<and su(- 
 the cniiMtry. Now let us turn ajjain to cair wit- Ijcienl to i.'ivi' the neeiss.irv warialh. The valley 
 ti II anthoritii.'s. iof the Iteil Kiver, which, us I have already staled 
 
 '.'ipI. lionir, who visilei' this ri'L':ion in I'^-.-^sOn his anlhority eoniprises -l.'iipoo i-(|naro miles, 
 .says af;riculture isatte:ided with suecess ; wln'at, he rt.'jires.jnts as pri'seiitin;; in its whole extent 
 barley, millet, pulse, ])otatoes, and (Jther culiii- an alniost nnbrok.'n level of rieh prairie, ipiter- 
 ary npots are cnlliv^ited. seated by heavily timbered tributaries of thr 
 
 Sir(!eor;!;e Simpson, wh(pse residence ns ( o)V- river, the nniin river itself beinu^ also lieavily 
 iirnor of the Hudson Jiay (,"ipm]p ny is there, iiiitinibered on both baiiks uith o:ik, elm, ash, ma- 
 speakin^c ipf Fort Garry, which is north of the pic, Ac. This valley, he s-.ys, is anion;: the fine- 
 ."•oth iPiirallel, describes l!ie eipuiilry as bein;:, on est wheat cipuntries of the world, 
 the west side <pf tin. river, one vast i.rairie, and ^^^^ Thomas Simjison, of the Hudson lia.y 
 -n the other side- wooded with' Inreh, (p,ik, elm, (.,„„j,.,„^-_., service, in Hie " narrative of his 
 and pine; that the sipil yields fprty bushels ol fijscover'ies on the north coast of America in 
 wheat to the iicre, and even after bein^r cullivaled m^,;,.-..^ ,.,,.^ „,- „,^, Jhmitoba House, situated 
 twenty years, yields lifteen to twenty-live bush- Hi,„„t„n(. hundred miles north of the Red River 
 fls per acre. colony, that the "s(pil and climate of this jplace 
 
 Sir.Iohu Richardson states that the vei^etath.n ,„|,„^,'^ p^^^j j^i^^^^ Barley, wheat and potatoes 
 III the valley of the Ked Kiver is similar lo th:it ^.;^.,^ j,, ,„,,^t seasons excellent return.s. The 
 of the Srate of New Hampshire. The <'"nner is j^i-y produces very fine white fish ou some (pf 
 about live degrees north of the latter. | k^ tributary stream's ; tolerable .salt is obtained 
 
 1 have, in the preceding part of this discourse, , from saline sprin^js, :;nd the wild hcpp {irows in 
 read you an extract from Havid Dale Owen's re hiiany jilaces in jrreat profusion and of f!;o(pd ([ual- 
 port, concerninp; a settlement of civilized Cree ity." 
 
 Indians, who reside u;)on this river, lo wliicli \\ If further jiripipf of the existence of a vast and 
 now add tiie folbiwing remark by the same au- fertile retcion fripin two to five hundred miles 
 Ihor: "The general agricultural character of west (pf Lake SupiTiipr were needed, it could be 
 the Red River c(puutry is excellent; the land furnished, but tlie aliove will certainly be regard- 
 is fiighly pripductive, especially in small grain, ed as entirely sutisfictory, 
 
 The principal drawbacks are occasional jirotract- Procecdinga few hundred miles northwestward 
 t'(f droughts during the midsummer inonilis.and from the Selkirk settlement, vre strike the valley 
 freshets during the spring, which from time to of tiie Saskatchewan River. The Saskatchewan 
 time overflow large tracts of '.ow prairie. Its is au important stream, adapted to steamboat 
 tenacious subsoil insures its durabiliiy." navigation, having its sources in the Rocky 
 
 The valley of this river is ;'. mi by l."<o miles inMountains, and discharging its waters into Lake 
 extent, containing 4."p,oo0 5([uare miles- -largerjWinipeg. The French, originally, and after- 
 than many of the States of the Union. Captain wards the Northwest and Hudson Bay Cotnpa- 
 I'ope, of the I'. S. army, whom many of you |nies, established trading posts along the entire 
 know personally— a native (pf Hliiicpis, and soni valley of both branches of the Saskatchewan. It 
 (pf tlie late lamented Judge J'ope, a young gen-iis described as a most charming region of coun- 
 tleman of line abihties ai:d solid attainments— try, fertile and well wooded. Sir John Uichard- 
 e'Piiducted an exploration into this countryby son states that wheat grows finely in it, that it 
 onh'r of the (bivernment in jsl'J. After stating ripens well in the dryer limestone districts, and 
 in his repiirt that the Mississippi was navigablci better in tlie jirairie country ; but in the hitter it 
 •ioo miles in Minnesota ; the Red liiver the same 
 distance; the St. I'eters li^i', and the Janie 
 
 is subject to periodical ravages of the larva- ot 
 caterpillar!?. He adds, however, that this plague 
 liiver, a tributary of the Missouri, nearly liooj might bo lessoned were the country mipro gener- 
 miles, Capt. I'ope remarks, that nature has beeujally cultivated, and rooks and domestic poultry 
 
 
 Judton 
 gotiatio 
 
 Bt«ted tc 
 Airs o( til 
 as') tbd I 
 
 Jfot'a Boui 
 
 rtiuinn ol 4 
 
 »btch anioni 
 
 /quldatc and 
 
 'oa naa out 
 
 ■ppeaia ijiat 
 
 .ernipeiit ar 
 
 '«■ miortiK 
 
 aem it A Hr 
 
 tan oc the 
 
 ft»e now in! 
 
 ufliolfnt— 1* 
 
 ho exact am 
 
 becoapnuy, 
 
 land, not to 
 
 < the IntMtK 
 
 louie, i>rovl< 
 
 retty soon, t 
 
 nter into neg 
 
 .etefred to. 
 
 I bare aoi 
 
 iiUoos bad 
 
 nve bay* n 
 
 ome inleretl 
 
 3t correct, i 
 
 unpaof expl 
 
 le tact tbat li 
 
 foy a UpeuM 
 
 SM-s. The ol 
 
 > «>comnui7 
 
 eataren or ] 
 
 rant {nolnded 
 
 ilea. And wai 
 
 ' twooikiani 
 
 Dilaod sbonJ 
 
 hare ane aboi 
 
 Is a stnpexi 
 
 .ente. Tba ] 
 
 }me member! 
 
 iOO.OOO woMii 
 
 le territory ol 
 
 (is, a fort is n 
 
 iveinment of 
 
 7 governors a 
 
 ;rs, at thdr 
 
 ;hicb Is the 1 
 
 jry. Bed KITS 
 
 I Utn from i 
 
 ennejrlvania t( 
 
 de pretssure ai 
 
 Id New Jsrse 
 
 iJirit \)f 11 
 
 5'... 
 
 '^ I 
 
 '»'■ t ;' 
 
 7 
 
 T' 
 
 > t, 
 
 )'., 
 
 'V 
 
 po 
 lo\ 
 sol 
 
 pei 
 (la; 
 
 mi 
 va 
 
 r 
 
 tha 
 
 wh 
 
 is i 
 
 rea 
 
 of 
 
 doi 
 
Do 
 
 r<i- 
 ird 
 
 ley 
 
 ail 
 
 iiiit 
 
 cky 
 
 like 
 
 tor- 
 
 ipii- 
 
 tire 
 
 II 
 iiii- 
 inl- 
 t it 
 iiiul 
 ;r it 
 
 ot 
 
 lOrVK! 
 
 lUrv 
 
 I'llS well 
 
 basra, Sir Ak-xamlerMiickenzic Ciuiif in.inii maiir 
 ..^liarmiiij; viinvs, ii ilc<criiition nt' one I'f whii'li 1 
 
 Wamhi.\gton, Ue3. ii, LiM, 
 l^jdton Bay Vcmjicmy—lU Eightt in lAt NvnhnttL— 
 0o(M(ion: lo Putohait them—SKttiary Gulkrit aitd 
 .'cluinan'i Cabinri. 
 Bt«ted f ome time ilnoe tbkt tke CommltiM on Foreign 
 
 Airfl o( Ui« Home y/ » about to repoi *. t. bill u> por- 
 
 Bse the puiacuory nghte of Uio Madooc'' liiy and 
 Jfbt'a Bouad AgriGuHural aouipaay , aud tiitit ua appro* ' 
 rtititnn ol $26«,00O would 1)6 a&kfld by ttio committoOi <>:< 
 rblehaniotiDt ii was nniioritood wculit ko auliKiK'U*. to ],, j ,i|t traiisi'ril»' : 
 ^qullato and latlafy the partlei Interested Tlim laforina- ~ ' ■ 
 
 •on naa obtained iroai tue dtate Oettariuout; but it now iho.i, ••Wiilmi n milt' df ilie tiTniiimiimi cf iln' rnrtn^i- !■« a 
 •ppeai«tliat Blnce It baa been asoortamed tuatov.rgo- ♦ ('nin- proc.^ico, wliioli ri^e- upranl nf a ili'nwaml ffit iili'iv*- 
 . ernweot are oenlrooB ol maklni: tbe piirtimao, the par- ', ,1,^ pi„in i,ei„-aili it, ami cdinmantN a m ut rxtriHivr. 
 
 ,€« miortitea Uere, wJjo are KnglUhmen-aud oue of turtlkr , , , .„..io,;nu' i,r..«pc,-t From tlimi-..- ilu- 
 
 aem !• R Mr, Lum!ey, wto baa been alicBOiog tbe biul- ,i,.., „t >•'"";'"' '"" ras^sumu '''"P'''' ,,;'7' ^ i.vsom.^ 
 •SB ol'lUe ISKatlon sinoothe dlsmUal or Orampion- '" ' .■:-..■ ;o,.k» .low,, onili.. cours.-of tholli 1« nv ■r.l.ysmn. 
 ave now Iniornied our government tiiat $360,000 '>« not > <"^ ''"' califil tli« Swan, and by (itlit-rs tlio , Clear Water aim 
 .ulllolent— riiat they will Inl'orm tbe propar autborttinii of - >i,,„n. I'tlican Itiv.r, h-autitully nieamlfrinK f<ir 'upwards nf 
 be exact aBiomrt recinlred, atsoon aa they aicecialu from ' tiiiriy mlii'" Tlu' valley whicli is a' cnei' rerrestiedand 
 
 hocompany. ThegoverBiueMMredeUrinlncd, luuder- ips ii'id ,,,.„,.■ „,,, ,,„■;, ;, ,,„o„t ii,ree mile- in i.rendih, an.l ii 
 land, not to allow tttep^ to exceed $300/)00, and that U .....hcit '"" '""^ '•'"'''?. . f „ , i.,.,t ,r, .,i.,vinL' 
 
 I the IntMitKMi of tb«.ODiiBlttoe, both of the fanateand '^ ^'"^•" """fi"^'' ''V two lofty r,d«^8 of ..iuai l..iK!it. ti-.>i.iynk' 
 iouie, provided there )8 not somo arrangement made n' Cuni- a most (|p|i(<liifnl intcrniixture of wooii and lawn, aim 
 retty soon, to report a hiU authorizing tbe Precldent to ii,,,.i,,.r,. stretching on till ;lieliUi.; mist nbscure-i tlie vrospeci. 
 nter Into negoUaUoBs for the purcaase of the rights aooye ' >^<>iiieparis oftlie inuiinint; ii''i»;lits are eover-d with 
 
 .elemdto. *, . ^_ . .^ °'' !'''■'" .-taulv fore-ts, relieve.l by prnmontories of the fineM 
 
 I have acme InformatJon IB referenoe to the oon- » Tlii-i i i .» n.„ i i.Mfv.i f,n,i m-iiure Thes,. 
 
 atlons i.ad workings of thta comeany, wbloh I be- " ' ' N' ■■I'"'-'. 'l-ro the elUand imiial . find i-a tu e. in s.^ 
 
 ^5ve have nevw boen aUted, aad ai it is ezcittag J"' 'j"'-**- ar.cmtra-ied by ppois where hre hu< d •■'troy, a m- 
 
 Dmo interest just now, I will give It publlOtty. It la Hm svl- «■""''" and left a dreary void behind it. Nor. when I 
 ot cortect, as haa been stated, that thedtaarterot tho bohehlthi.s wonderful din>lay of nnenltivateil nainre, 
 
 iinpany expire * MM. The error probably arlMs fro» piissii!,'^ , . f ^ occipation wantinK to 
 
 le lact that In 1W8 Oie British Parliament gave the cojp- «»^u .nm.oK i ...... i Mt„i-oii l 
 
 (inyalloenstof eiolMlTe trade with tne Inaians for 21 oomple.e the picture. Vron, tins elevated -^^ >'■"•/ 
 
 ears. 'Hie charter w«« granted in 1670. by Cbarlaall., omposed beheldiny people, dinnnished as u were, to half tnu.i 
 >«£Om||^]r styled "Tbe Governor and Company of Ad- tie to d ^ise. employed .in pitehinK their tents in a charnnnK 
 eDtarers or EaglUd, Sradlnf to Hudson's Bay." The .« ,vh.ch mtadow and amonKthe canoes which beinn turned on 
 rant inclndedterrttorieeeempriBlie half a mlillOB square "y ,,^. ,heir sides, presented ihen- reddened bottonm in con- 
 
 ^'i^Ardi^i'^eii^t.Tb'^s^vrrr fove'^w ' 'n <^^- "-^ -'•" •'"' --■->'-• v.-<>'-- " -« !" I"; 
 
 nglsod BhOUld tIsII tbeni. It wis. made perpMual. loiter in teonth of .'September when.Ienjoycd a scene of which I 
 
 here Me abomt two hundred members In tbe company. Unhand do not presnnie to Kive an adei;uate description ; and as 
 
 Is a BtnpendOUB mCBOpoly. Its vroQtS aWJ nowlm- .,i . , :,, . it was the ruttin«sea.-nn of the elk. the whi*tlinKofthal 
 
 ,ente. Xbe profit of a ahare last year was glO.OOO. .'u'l animal was heard in all the varidy which the edioes 
 
 }me members own several shares. Itiseatlmatedthat •^■'"'^^ „ 
 
 iOO.COOworthoffnrsarelarnteUodtothccompanyflrom « "v the ■"""»"""'' " 
 
 le territory of the UnUed States Annually, fo prevent ds whieh ^^i- J'lli" Uichardson savs ;;1 Ibu Cduntry in Ib^ 
 
 ds, a fort IB noeded on the Bed River of tlio Xorth. The , and '.r same vicininitv, that from Methv I'ortaifo west- 
 
 >veinment of the company's territory is Bdmiulat3red .i^,,., n,.. ' , , , \ ,• . i i... 
 
 ygovernorBaDdcotmolirofchlefthotorBaiSlXef wa H H '"''"^^ '^^^^ "" '''"' •^' '"''"' ' 
 
 ';rs, at thUr various eatablUbments, the prlndpil of '^" ," river coursos iind ravines, ami more or less 
 
 »hlch Is the Red Etver Bettlement. They have trUl by '^'^ '^''■*"' ,.,, , , .i . ,.v ,>c „ ,.,..,i,i . 
 
 iry. Bed KlveraetUemeBtlB 650 miles above St. Paul, re by the thickly wooded, varlaku^ so inucb ot u iiiaiii. 
 I lean from a gentlenan who recetitly returned from fouks of character that hor.seiiien nuiv travol over it to 
 enneyitrania to thli dty, that there Is a trenieadeai out- p refresh , ^.m r i . i ,i, , ■j. i-.ii,.b.».-,n In 
 
 de prerture among* Wain mtereat in Pennsylvania I' ,,^ I'^'S'^'-''- ^'"^'^' ^^''^'^ =""^ ^l'" Na>kdlthe«.in. m 
 id New Jersey, la ftiTorofthe retention of Secrslary *'''-^''"' ,he vallev of this river Sir (ieorcfo .Smiiisou en- 
 i)»r!« bf me nut .IdnlSiXratlOn. ud Ut^ tt/X^;;;;;. countered etid^^ratits iron, lied Kiver, niuvinj, 
 
 to myself, with horses and wagons to Orejro", wliieh tact 
 
 I- '^y Imman imjicates clearly the iiracticiible character of the 
 
 ■* ' . \',^y''\" •I'r.nn country. Indeed Sir OeorKe, in another place, 
 
 iropesomany mentions that from Carlton House follow Uiver, 
 
 r own an inch about one hundred miles, he jiasscd ihroiiiih a 
 
 jir country for (,,„,,^try very much resemblinjr an l•;nn;ll^h i'ark. 
 
 
 'i-t\ 
 
 
 7" 
 
 '<•'.. 
 
 •■(,,» ./"/*' / 
 
 i/A'i » 
 
 port only herds of wild animals? Will men alwayj \^^s^^„ 
 
 ^:^:^:Z The a,ricultural value of the Atha- 
 .ain unoultivatfd basca valley increases as it ai>i)roac!ie,>< 
 (Phy do they sup- ihu niountians, the riiror of }he climate 
 
 more 
 
 strikinjrlv modified by th 
 
 love better to vesetate all their lives on an un«ratefal ..-inds from the I'acillc. lUit thron^jhout 
 
 soil than fo seek afar fertile regions in order to pass in ,, • i ii „ 
 
 ^eace and plenty at least the last portion of their its entire length, us well as in a considerable ,o- 
 .laysV" tion of the valley of Mackenzie s River, the IIikI- 
 
 With which profound and knotty (luestions we son 15ay and Northwest Companies have i^rowii 
 must leave Mons. Franchere aud the charmine; at their several posts, oats, barley, potatoes. 
 vallev of the Saskatchewan. pnlse, and at some places wheat. Indeed wheal 
 
 The next most important valley westward is has been crown at Fort Laird, on a tributary ol 
 Ihatof the Athabasca River, with its tributaries, the M.ickenzie River, in latitude r,iio ,v North, 
 which Hows into Great Slave Like. This region ■•.hile barley, potatoes, &c., are grown up to .l.-.^ 
 is spoken of by most of the writer.^ we have al- North latitude. At Fort Simpson, on the >Lu:- 
 ready quoted in a similar strain to their notices kenzie, in ^Vi° North latitude. Sir John Richard- 
 of the Saskatchewan vallev. While passing son states that " barley is usually sown from the 
 down one of the minor tributaries of the Atha- '20th to the 'J.-.th of May, and it is expected to be 
 
14 
 
 ;a.R'R 
 ■took 
 
 I 910 
 
 aup- 
 
 j;nn(l it. .\'< it is, our tourists sjn'iik cmly ul' fvcn iin'ro l.ivi,«li in 1i..t ;;!! 
 "' lii.id.i ()(' <i:its, bariuy, [icuH, iind jiotatocs." clianm-ls of ciiiiuniinicitt 
 Fniiu ill! Ili;it 1 cuii le:irn "t tlif qnuiitv nt' tiiu Kid betwtcn tin; .Mississipiii ,i:i 
 Uivir wlu'iit, I CDiicliuli! tli;ilit in siiiiurior to any .siirrouiKlud hy a (.aiiliy ray. 
 LMiiwii iiniiii the contiiiciit. Tlit! bi'sl lllinoi.s tlio ///p,s7 /i /•/;/, ,■/,(//(/.'./■».?■, 
 wlifiit wrij,rtis Ironi I'.ii to •):; ll.,s. to the iiieiisured plied with nil thi^ I'oivst' ' 
 l)ii>lii'l. 'I'lio hi'si (iL'iK'sce f'niiii till to (i"> t!'H. iiortlaTii ii lulitudu. Hr t: 
 Kfd Kivt'r wheat weighs from O.") to 7<i ilin. to the tVoin north to soiiijj. n dist 
 measured bushel. I'orly bushels to th(! acre is iriile.x, iind, wiili the cxci-p 
 ihe avera^'e on new p-roiind, and thirty bushels saw not one acre of uiif 
 IS nn ordinary yield. The eroj) viTy rarely fails, soil, he says, is the black treek 
 
 So much 1 have heard verbally from citr/ens of thickness, with various ]ir " 
 
 the country. Now let us turn iif;ain to onr wit- Ijcjent to jrive the necess.ir'''*** 
 len authorities. of the Ued Iliver, which, ail. 
 
 Col. lionir, who visited this rrtjion in l'^-'--', on his authority coniprisei '■ 
 .>-.iys af^riculture isattetided with success ; whrat, he n.'jiresents as preseiitinjleup 
 barley, millet, jjulse, jiotatoes, and other cnliii- an almost unbroken level ^^ 
 ary roots are cultivated. sected by hcavilv timber 
 
 Sirdeorsje Siiupson, whose residence! as < i<iv- river, the main river itseiSS* 
 enior of the Hudson J!ay (,'omp iiy is there, in timbered on both banks wjjf 
 s[)eakiiii^ of Fort (larry, which is north of the' pie, i^c. This viiUcy, be 8 
 ."■oth parallel, describes the country as beiiij.', on est wheat countries of thai, AT 
 the west side of the river, one vast, jirairie, and; ^^j. t1)o„,;,s .Simp.-dn,ier«4 
 on the idher side wooded with" blieli, ouk, elm, (i,i,,i.,.^„^ -^ service in t'.iSSL 
 and pine; that the .soil yields forty bushels ol fji^g,,^,,^;^^^;, „„ ,iie' north 
 wheat to the acre, and even after beinj; cultivated }>;,",(;_;',-" (^.ly.^ of tlie Ma£'!i_ 
 twenty yeans, yields lifteen to twenty-live hush- ,^^,„^,^ „„y hundred miles n 
 uis per acre. jcolony, that the "so 
 
 Sir John llichurdson states that the vegetation ^,nnalrt Red Iliver. ]),irle' ' 
 HI the valley of the lied Iliver i.-; similar to tint ^j^.,^ j,, ,„,,^f seasons e.v. 
 of the State of New Hampshire. The f-nner is i,,,,^. ^,^,,,,,,,.^3 ^.^.^^ fj,,^, ^ 
 about five degrees north of the hitter. jitstributaiy stream's ; toleif 
 
 1 have, in the precediusr piirtof this discourse, from snliiii,' sprin;js, nd C 
 read you an extract from liavid Dale Oweu's re many places in p;reat profui 
 port, concerning a settlement of civilir.ed Cree ity." ^ 
 
 Indians, who reside up(ni tliis river, to whicli 1 ll' furtherproof of the e. 
 
 ^Tel- 
 
 KAABItt, COI 
 OOLLABSandSKTTS. 
 7M Mroxurmy, coraer of W 
 
 AOm FA MOT f OBH. 
 
 Qeanla^itek taAjv: 
 
 BMnUtalmlHk vMortaMud 
 BM«ttfatmlnk««*. 
 
 ro]«l armliM, 
 
 kMlBl 
 
 lOHBi 
 
 M" 
 
 Vwy Am 
 Wtth ertrjr athar deMrl»Uoa «r ftur at o^: 
 
 K. B.-AUoiiriloekktfrtBai*Nv«M 
 
 LAOi'dTBTAIKA 
 JAM BB OBOPSCT, Ml BroUn 
 Hm Juat raoalTAd a larga aaaortmaot of laoc 
 meat alflSMt deaorlpUoD, whieh be la aeUli 
 wlSdaiy camp a Uttoa. 
 
 -IS8E8> ANB OBILDBBK'S VURS- 
 
 OBBIX'S BAZAAR* SU BROAD 
 Nlaaea' ennlM o^^aa, euffa aad aiaflk; 
 
 MiMea' mink oaiMa, evt 
 MlMaa'al 
 Bora' 
 Xlnk cttttMn, gkattt and mlttanai 
 
 ParUeular attenUoD havtBf baan paid to U 
 for buitaaaa. Uultea wiU flnd^ tba only place 
 a eoaBilataaBBoruniMk of fan for Miaaaa, 
 itiaimmntaied asprawly fMr the baiaar, aod 
 greach modaa. 
 
 NOTIOB 
 THl FOBTT DOUAB SILK Db 
 We hare been aeUlac at 
 
 2S DOLLABS 
 
 WiUbeoflbredti 
 
 A T. BIT 
 Broadw ay. Obambera ai 
 
 OATSUON I» FLOVJi 
 
 OSlwatollat 
 
 Fna flrat alaaa heaaaa b| I 
 
 TruthAilaadorariliSB 
 
 JAMBS TUOr~ 
 
 n 
 
 PBBDBMTS FOR OBNTLBMEN. 
 Smoking Jacketa, 
 Telret robea, tlO. 
 
 Fine, loarlb, eollan 
 Wbotesale or retail. 
 
 IBa FBREaO A RON, 
 Mo. 61 1 
 
 pRESBMTS FOB THE HOLIDATB- 
 
 ORKIN'S BAZA.a^, 613 BBOA)} 
 Mlaaea' walking ooata, 
 
 Miisea' dreaaes. 
 
 Boya' eoata. 
 Infants' cloabg. 
 
 Boys' salts, 
 
 Bo; 
 
 v\j*kj AlJbW AJUJ«0 
 
 now add the folhiwinsj remark by the same au- i'ertile region from two to 
 Ihor: "The general agricultural character of west <d' Lake Sujierior were 
 the lied River country is excellent; the hind' furnished, but the above will 
 is highly productive, especiaU,^, in small gram, ed as entirely satisfactory. 
 'I'lie ])riiicipal drawbacks are occasional jirotract- J'roceedingafew hundred mi 
 ed droughts during the midsummer months, and from the Selkirk settlement, wt 
 freshets during the spring, which from time to of tiie Saskatchewan River. Tl 
 time overflow largo tracts of low prairie, hs m an important stream, adajitt 
 tenacious subsoil insures its durability." navigation, having its sources 
 
 The valley of this river is o.H) by llO miles in Mountains, and discharging its wi. 
 extent, containing 4.'),ooo .«(|uiire miles — larger jWinipeg. The French, originally, and aftcr- 
 than many of the States of 'he Union. Captain, wards the Northwest and IIud.>oii Uay Compa- 
 I'ope, of the U. S. army, whom many of you, nies, established trading posts along the entire 
 know iiersonally— a native of Illinois, and soni valley of both branches of the Saskatchewan. It 
 (if the late lamented Judge Pope, a young gen-! is described as a most charming regi(m of coun- 
 tlcman of tine abilities and solid attainments— 'try, fertile and well wooded. Sir John Richard- 
 conducted an exploration into this country by son states that wheat grows finely in it, that it 
 order of the (Joveriimcnt in l^ I'.i. After stating ripens well in the dryer limestone districts, and 
 in his report that the Mississipj)i was navigable better in the prairie country ; but in the latter it 
 400 miles in Minnesota; the Red Iliver the same! is subject to periodical ravages of the hirv.'i- ot 
 
 Tt.fanig' (Iresoea. 
 
 XnfhT 
 
 j.i't's' orer> t'f'i"V» 
 
 i..ti>:le«, toOcfc a< cb»aor». 
 luiiat ai 
 
 distance ; the St. I'elers \'2i>, and the Jame 
 River, a tributary of the ilissouri, nearly lioii 
 miles, Capt. Fo|)e remarks, that nature lias been 
 
 caterpillars. He adds, however, that this plague 
 fxiight be lessoned were the country more gener- 
 ally cultivated, and rooks and domestic poultry 
 
;S ud 8KTTS, 
 
 UAABBd, COI 
 
 '» Bwairay, eonw of W 
 
 MOT rOBH. 
 
 111 mink MMti 
 
 iMiillfiyiiiwt TMorlMsaad 
 ■^It».ur«l mil* ij;*. 
 
 tBdrw*: 
 
 )T»ltndaat 
 
 KmIB 
 
 ▼"T 
 
 llMaiitai 
 
 nr lUMk at frMi a I* N f«r M 
 
 'aMM OBOFSBT, 481 BroUn 
 iTiid » terge UMrtmeot of Um 
 deMripttoD, whiok he la aaUli 
 
 le Utioa. __^__ 
 
 n9 OBILDBBM'S FUB8- 
 
 flll'B BAZA.AR, 513 BROAD 
 I oapaa, eufla aad ■laflh; 
 
 Mtoaea-miakoagw^ew 
 
 BOTi' 
 
 rloraaaBdmlUaaa; , ^ ..^ 
 
 ttentlon hariag been paid to U 
 adlea wiU fliiftt the only place 
 ionmi«t or Con for Mliaea, 
 axpr»«l7 (iMT the baiaar, and 
 
 I. 
 
 I FOBTT DOUAB BILK Db 
 We hare been eeUlng at 
 
 26 D0LLAB8 
 
 WUlbeoOBredti 
 
 A T. BTT 
 Broadway. Ohambere ai 
 
 [ DBFLOVA 
 
 n toilet attnoMoM ° ^. 
 riMi flrat olaM hoMOe fta Pa 
 TrulhAd aad oi; HllA B 
 JAMB8 TPOKBB. 
 
 I POB OBNTLBMEH. ^^ 
 
 BmoUng Jacket*, 
 robes, tlO. ^ 
 
 Fine, ioarfh, eollait 
 e or retail. , „,.„ 
 
 IBA PEREOO A BON, 
 Mo. 611 
 
 rFOB THE HOLIDATis" 
 
 tNIH'S BaZAaB. 61S BBO AI 
 
 Dgooats, 
 
 BlMea' dre«WB, 
 
 Boys' sulta, 
 
 Bo; 
 
 IB, 
 
 Tt,f«iit8' drpRBfi, 
 
 Infn.- 
 
 (trr- 
 ipu- 
 t i I'u 
 11 
 )iin- 
 ani- 
 I It 
 
 UII'l 
 
 sr it 
 ' ol 
 p;tlo 
 nei- 
 Itrv 
 
 ir. 
 
 I'titMiirnpeil. Uu iilso says lliut maize ii|i('ns wdi 
 lit (.'iirlliiii llmisf, II p<ist (iC thu lliidsim H iv 
 ('iini]ianv, in r.:i'' ;",!' iiiirth laliliiili', lit ii lifiu'lit 
 ot'elt'Vi'n liiiiidri'd loct iiljuve tin; lovtl of tlif sr;i, 
 iiiul 111' bcliorcs it is cultivitod likewise at Ciiiii- 
 lieriaiul lionso, which it) sitiiutud u decree I'urthcT 
 mirth, where the siimiiUT heat t'xci'ods that ol 
 Unissels (ir Paris. At F'orl IvInmiKllon, on the 
 Haiiio river, in latitude .'-1°, near the Hocky Miiiin- 
 tiiins, (lov. Simpson says potatoes, turnips, and 
 ther hardy ve^ri'tahles are ;;r(iwti, hnt the whe.it 
 is destroyed by tlie early frosts. At the Ciuii- 
 berland I lonse, another tradiii^j post, Franchere 
 saw cultivated fields in HI 1— barley and iiea> 
 especially proniisir.jj an abundant h:irvest. This 
 last mentioned writer, althoufjh a practical busi- 
 ness man, was rendered (piile poetic by the syl- 
 van beauties of this re|;ioti. 1 ([uote a pussa^^e 
 from his narrative: 
 
 "The Uiver Sjiskaleliewan Mows over a bi'(l cnmroseil 
 of mild ami marl, whicli eoritriliutes nut a little to d;- 
 ininisli lli^ purity and ti-ansp;irfiic.vi>f its waters, wliicli 
 like tliose of the Misfoiiri are tarliid ami whiti.'ili. Ex- 
 cept fur fliat, it is one of tli'- prettiest river.^ in llie 
 world. The hanks are perfectly charmiriK, and oiler in 
 many places scenes the fdirest, the most srailinK and 
 l".e best diversifled that can lie seen or itnairined ; hills 
 ill varied fortiis crowned with siipevh groves; valleyi- 
 a:,'reeahlv embrowned at eveuine and morning tiy the 
 prolonKcd shadow of the hills and of the woods which 
 adorn thiMii ; herds of lii^ht-limheil antelope, and f.l' 
 heavy colossal hiifTalo— the former houndiiiK alonK the 
 slopes of the hills, the latter trampling under their 
 heavy feet the verdure of the plains; all these cham 
 paiKn beauties rellecteil and doubled as it were by the 
 waters of tlie river; the melodious and varied son^s of 
 a thousand birds, perctheii on Mie tree tops; the refresh 
 ini{ breath of the zephyrs : the serenity of the sky ; the 
 purity and salubrity of the air ; all in a word pours cnu 
 tentuientand jny into tlie soul of the enclianted specta- 
 tator. * • » How comes it to pis-", said I to myself, 
 that so beautiful a country is not Inhiibited by human 
 creatures? T)ie sodk^', the hymns, the prayers of the 
 laborer and the artisan, shall they never lie Iieard in 
 these fine plains? Wherefore, while in Kurope so many 
 thousands of men do not possess as their own an incli 
 of ground, and cultivate the soil of their country for 
 proprietors who scarcely leave them whereon to sup- 
 port existence — wherefore do so many millions of acres 
 of apparently fat i;nd fertile land remain uncuitivatcd 
 and absolutely uselet's? Or at least, why do they sup- 
 port only herds of wild animals? Will men always 
 love better to veKctale all their lives on an uuarateful 
 soil, than to seek afar fertile regions in order to pass in 
 peace and plenty at least the last portion of their 
 ilays?" 
 
 With which profound and knotty ([uestions we 
 must leave Mons. Franchere and the charmine; 
 valley of the Saskatchewan. 
 
 The next most important valley westward is 
 that of the Athabasca lliver, with its tributaries, 
 which Hows into Great Slave Ltike, This region 
 is spoken of by most of the writers we have al- 
 ready quoted in a similar strain to their notices 
 of the Saskatchewan valley. While passing 
 down one of the tninor tributaries of the Atha- 
 
 basca, Sir Alexander Mackenzie came unoii inaiir 
 charming vii'ws, a de.-.cnption of one nf which I 
 transcribe : 
 
 " Within a mile of the termination of ;he piirtaze \*'i\ 
 precipice, which rines upward of a thnu-iiiiid feet above 
 111'- plain beneath it, and cdnimands a m i.-tl c)ilfMisi\ r. 
 romantic and ravishinij prospeii, l-'roiii Ihenci; the 
 eye looks down on tli" course of Ihelll'le liver, by Fome 
 CMlled the .''wan, and by fithers the, Clear Water and 
 i'elican Uiver, b'!iiitiriilly meanderinK for "upwards of 
 th'rty miles. The valley which Is at once refreshed and 
 adorned by It, is about three miles In breadth, and is 
 confined by two lofty ridif^g of ei|iial h..'i)»''it, di.•p1ayin^; 
 a most deliKhlful iiitenuixturi; of wood and lawn, anil 
 stretchiiiK on till the blue mist obscures the prospc.-i.. 
 Some parts of the inclining h'.-inhts an' eovernl with 
 •"tately forests, relieved by promontories of the finest 
 verdure, where tlie elk and bull'al i find pasture. These 
 are contra^tiil by spuls where lire ha-" destroyed the 
 wiiods and left a dreary voiil behind it. Nor, when I 
 beheld this wonderful di-iplay of uncultivated nature, 
 was the moving scene of human occ'ui.'ition wantiiiK to 
 complete the picture. l''rom this elevated situa'ion, I 
 li'helil my Pi.'ople, diminished as it were, to half their 
 size, employed .in piti'hinK their tents in a charminK 
 miad.iw and anionKthe canoes, which beiuK turtieil on 
 their sides, presented their reddened bottoms in con- 
 trast with the surroundiiiK' verdure. It was in the 
 inonlh uf September when, I enjoyed a si;ene of whicli 1 
 do not presuTue to Rive an adeiiuate descriiition ; and as 
 it was the ruttins season of the elk, the whijtlinKof that 
 animal was heard in all the variety which the echoes 
 could aibird it.'' 
 
 Sir John Uichardson aays ef the country in the 
 same viciniiiity, that from Meliiy Portage west- 
 ward the country, though deeply furrowed by 
 river courses and ravines, and more or less 
 thickly wooded, partakes so much of a jirairii- 
 character that horsemen may travol over it to 
 Lesser Slave Lake and the Saskatchewan. In 
 the valley of this river Sir George Siini)soii en- 
 countered emigrants from lied lliver, moving 
 with horses and wagons to Oregon, which fact 
 indicates clearly the practicable chtiraeter of the 
 country. Indeed Sir George, in another jilace, 
 mentions that from Carlton House to l>ow River, 
 about one hundred miles, he jiassed through :i 
 country very much resembling an lliiglish Park. 
 The agricultural value of the Atha- 
 basca valley increases as it approaches 
 the niouuti.ius, the rigor of fhe climate 
 being more strikingly modifitd by the 
 warm winds from the Pacillc. Hut throughout 
 its entire length, as well as in a considerable por- 
 tion of the valley of Mackenzie's Uiver, the Hud- 
 son Hay and Northwest Companies have grown 
 at their several posts, oats, barley, potatoes, 
 pulse, and at some places wheat. Indeed wheat 
 has been grown at Fort Laird, on ti tributary of 
 
 the Mackenzie River, in latitude 
 
 North, 
 
 while barley, potatoes, itc, are grown up to 'l.'i® 
 North latitude. At P\)rt Simpson, on the Mac- 
 kenzie, in IJ'J° North latitude, Sir .John Richard- 
 son states that " barley is usually sown from the 
 '20th to the '2.">th of May, and it is expected to be 
 
lU 
 
 riiic 111) tilt' li'iili of Aui^iisl, iil'tiT an iutiTviil ofluntil tliit* clnns of men liiid bfjii HUi>t.'r!<uclod by 
 'JL' (liiyp. Ill Hciine sinisinis it bus ripoiii'tl on tlu'' motliiT, imd then tlio \*urlil v. us ustdiiiided with 
 IMli. ()i>t:\ wliiiih taki- a iiinjjcr tiuif, do not iihe discovi-iiuM winch rnU"('rd. TIk' muim 
 ihnve K» wtll, and wheat dot's not coint (.•iusi* of inun have occiijiii'd tho iron and 
 to hiatiirily. I'oiiitot'S yifid woU, iiiul (.vipinT-hcarinjf rcj^'ion of l.akf SnpiTJor, i'or 
 no disease! liatt alVi'flL'd thiMii, tlioiijih tliu early nearly two centiirio.«, but thu vast iiiiiie- 
 I'rosts Hoineliines hurt thy croii ." ral weiillh >jxi!<tinjj Ihere — i^reator in all proba- 
 
 TliistiikeHiis into the niDiintains, ami beyond bility than that of California— was left unnio- 
 into Oreuon, Wa-hin-ton and tln> a.ljacent ' Itri-, l^'«'t''l '" i'« "'H'vo bills, and its is only within tho 
 ti^h |',.^^es.sions, of allof which loan only say ;••'»* t'-'n years that the world has been made 
 that it is a niafrniticent country, prorincinn wheat, ;«ven partially cognizant of its niiifjnifndo and 
 and other small ^rn.in nj. to" the '.tih parallel, I ncbne.ss. It is true, that copper bad been 
 irnnviiiu' all the fscnleiits, abnnnding in wood, j l«n'iwn to exist on tho marRin of Lake Superior 
 w.iier, lish, C(ial and ii'mo, and donl)lIe.ss „ihei i ''"• 'nmy yearn previous. Tip; Indians had som« 
 Valuable minerals I knowlod^je of it, unJ cotnmuiiicated what they 
 
 The ronle by which wo have tlms traveled jknew on the subject to tho traders. A large 
 over the continent has inclined in a Northwest- 
 erly direction, on which account thu Northern 
 portion of Nebraska lias been avoided. This 
 section I have ipiirposely Ifft for the last, becaiise 
 of the impression which j^enerally obtains, that 
 it is a barren waste, an arid desert, which must 
 forever remain unpeopled, beside provinpan im- 
 passable barrier to all attempts to extend our 
 tines of railroiid across tho continent ti) the I'a- 
 cilic Ocean. Tinu; will not permit of u detailed 
 description of this country. I will content my- 
 self with jfivinp; you the observations of a simple 
 person respectinj; it, after a critical jiersonal ex- 
 iiminalioii. Mr. A. W. Tinkbam, brother of our 
 fellow-townsman, K. I. Tinkbam, Esf(. — a civil 
 engineer and a ij;entlemiui of sn])erior ability. 
 
 boulder of vir),'in copper was exposed to view 
 upon one of the forks of tho Ontonnfjou River 
 by the iictioii of the water, tind this was talked 
 ')(■ by the yi>yiii,'ours and trapjiers on returniiiff 
 from their excursions to tho posts of the respec- 
 tive companies, and occasional notices of it 
 found their way into tho imblic prints. Hut this 
 would jirobiibly be the present sum-total of our 
 knowk'djfe of the subject, hud not the triippers 
 and Indians piven place to a class of men jios- 
 *essed of the enterprise and requisite knowledge 
 to trace u]) to their orifjiniil sources these 
 metalliferous formations, by the debris carried 
 down the water-courses and by other well 
 known marks. 
 
 We have the same evidence of the existence 
 who held a prominent position in (Jov. Steven's of mineral districts in other portions of the 
 survey of the northern route for a railroad to the country under consideration that formerly com 
 I'acilic, thus sums up briefly the leading charac- 1 prised our entire stock of knowledffe lelative to 
 teristics of the section in (juestion : jtlie copper and iron of l^ake Superior. The In- 
 
 •• A ({00(1 (leal of the countr'/ is poor, ill-wooded, and .dians from time to time have displayed metals of 
 with a poor soil. Tliere Is no such tliinx as desert itijjjerent descriptions at the trading: posts, 
 country or destitution olwat.r any wl,ere. Pti" there Ijj^,,^ ^j^^^ j^.^^,^ ,^^,j seldom disclosed tho 
 is a ureal deal of country 'vliieh is not promising for , „ ',-,,, ^ i t. ■ 
 
 miitivation. and is not likely ever to be thickiy settl.d. : P'^^ces from which they were taken. I'erhaps 
 • • • All of this country produces wrasi. and ,they wore not hard-pressed on this point by the 
 is roamed over liy the bufTalo. and I should jud«emiKlit traders for the reasons before alluded to. I 
 be used in exteu-ive KiazinR. Kut even in thii<. the;,j,ygt^ ij(,^.j.yer, do the Hudson Bay Company 
 most unproniiJiiiK part of the route, at intervals arc • , . ,. . , i i i ji .. " 
 
 pleasant and fertile spots which will repay cultivation- ;'h^' J"'^*"=« '" ""l*-' "^ remarkable eflort, on 
 asihe valleys of some of the smaller streaiii'^-and be I Ibeir part, to discover a copper mine, intima- 
 twefii Kra7,in({ and tiliinK it will perhaps be possible toltions of which had been repeatedly given by the 
 occupy the Kreater part of the lands. It should be re-| j;„jj,j„g_ ji,._ ile„rnc, an odicer of that company, 
 collect ■(!. too, that the country has been but very piir I . ,. ^ ^^ ^ ,^ ■ nr i j . i • 
 
 ti.liy explored, and that the examinations will brloK to j'''^«"''"R '^^ ^''''^ ^ '"''*"' ^^''''-'«' ""^ertook, and 
 liKht valuable lands." ! after two or three failures, succeeded in conduc- 
 
 mxKUALS. I ting successfully, an expedition to the Arctic 
 
 The subject of minerals must be dismissed .Ocean, near which the mine was reported to be. 
 with a very brief and cursory notice. Fur tra-' He found the precise spot designated by the In- 
 ders are not much given to explorations for min-! dians, found some copper also, but not being pro- 
 erals. California and Oregon bad been roamed, vided with tho requisite means for prosecuting 
 over for a century or more by them— the gold- discoveries, returned to Fort Prince Wales very 
 bearing streams and gulches and canons had little wiser on that subject than before, 
 been traversed and trapped over again and Some of the oxides of copper have been found 
 again, but the secret of their untold treasures, in various localities upon the head waters of the 
 lying almost on the surface, remained unknown Mississippi, and it is not improbable that subse- 
 
17 
 
 quent '!X|iliir.iti((iis will revcil ilieir exisiteiice in upon Disco I.slaml and upon thu F.iroi.' Isliuidtt 
 suffii-icn qiKiiitily t(i justify the ostiibli,«him'nt nl'iiir tlu' cmist of (Jri't'iilatid thus indiciitiiiff the 
 furruiC'.'H for wi>rkiiij{ thiMii. womlcrful I'connrny <if iiamre, or nithor the ex- 
 
 Irou i» of frtquMiit occurriiiiC'.', nototily iu the isttiicu of u bLiulioent IVoviflentiiil desifjii, by 
 eustern and soulhirii scctiotia of the district uii- which nxioiis deMlitute of timber lire supplied 
 der review, biif almig its* northern bouridiiry 'with an easily accessible fuel, 
 also, and on the I'aefie coast, and anionir the Sir Alexander Mackenzie found bitumen fotin- 
 mounlain rnnjjeH. Indeed I am tempted to be- tainw in tliu valley of the Athabasca, into which he 
 lieve that a very lar^ji' proportion of the northern thrust polos twenty feet in length without (ind- 
 part of the continent will ultimately be found to in;; bottom. In Sillinian'.s JfHviinl I find an nc- 
 be rich in nearly all of the valuable minerals — theieount of usimilar lake of pitch, or bitumen, on 
 metalliferous districts termimiting only with the Trinidad, ono of tho West India Islands. Silli- 
 terminus of land. This hypothesis is «tren;;th-;inan says: 
 
 ened by rcent discoveries made in (<reenland,| It Is belleveil to h- a snijmcrRPd lied of ve(?etal)lf mat- 
 which countrv is in reality but a continuation of ler, uiuierKolnpc slow distillation by voleanlc action un- 
 ., ,,, , ■ ,, . . . . 1 IV • . li.rni h. Thin store of bitumen appears to be lne«- 
 
 the West.-r.i Hemisphere. An AnKlo-Hani.sh „^„^^_,,|,. jj.,^,^^.,, with wooaior fuel by tbe Amori- 
 
 Company is at this time enfyaged in carrying onjitan titeaniers plyinKon the Orinoco Uiv.T. Mixed with 
 niininp; o[)erati()n8 tliere, ami ono of the Com-polible.-i a^d s'nul it inakLs excellent pavumunts, and 
 panv's vessels not lonp since arrived at London «'-oaiul Hoom of hoiws. With ten per ce- t. of roainoll 
 , : L 1 1 11 • J- LI ,, it malies KO(.d pitch for !-lilps. The Karl of Dundonaid 
 
 havi.ifr onboi.rd valuable specimens of black ;,^^^^ p„^^,,^^^.,, ,^ ,^,^^.^ „f .,; ,^^,^,„ „f ,t_ ^„,, ,„^^ j„,,„^, 
 
 leail, plunibi;,'.), silver, lead, cojiimt and tin ores, ' ^,,1 i.xpcriiaentH 'o discover, if possible, some means l'>r 
 native Sliver, li;;nite and coal. The presiinip-.maiunK it a substitute for India-rubber and Kutia per- 
 tion is by no means an unwarrantable one, that^'''* water-proof or vulcar,ized fabrics ; and he has al- 
 . ,, ,, ,, ,. 1 ■ ,, .ready niude Hoiiie vuicanizjd cloth, which, from appear- 
 
 Con;re„..rs of all the ores discovered in (.reen,.^„^^.^_ i,.,j^ ^^.^ „f f,„^^^. ^^^^.^.^^ 
 
 land exist m groater or 1l-.ss quantity upon the; xhus, when this vast country comes to be 
 
 continent, also. That some of them do isa welllpe„pied, not only will good soil be found there, 
 
 established fact. \\i\\i material, in fjreat abundance, for fuel and for 
 
 But to return from the field of conjecture, I jinauufacturiiig purposes. Think of a manufac- 
 
 remark in the next place upon the existence of jtory, away up there on Athabasca River, aend- 
 
 coal in a large portion of the country. FranchereliniT down vulcanized fabrics made from these 
 
 \ and Gov. Simpson sjieak of its outcropping atibi'.uniinous fountains, and competinpf with the 
 
 j difTerent places ou the Saskatchewan. Lewis India Rubber and gutta percha water-proof 
 
 I and Clark saw bituminous coal between Fort | clothing of Horace II. Day & Co., of New York ! 
 
 Chirk and the falls of the Missouri River. Cul-j Lead has been found in the Cascade Moud- 
 
 bertson also saw coal in tho same localities. Itains, And the Indians of that region have of- 
 
 Wyeth saw large quantities of it on the Yellowiten brought into the posts of the Hudson Bay 
 
 Stone. Gov. Stevens' party found the whole Company platiua and silver ore — though they 
 
 country from the falls of the Missouri westward have never revealed the locality in which they 
 
 to the nuiuntains, nearly five hundred miles, tin- jprocure it. Gold has recently been discovered 
 
 derlaid with lignite. Bmineville speaks of re-lat Fort Colville, and men wholly unskilled in 
 
 gi(ms among the mountain.s near the head wtiters the occupation have taken out from ten to twen- 
 
 of the Yellowstone, which abound in anthracite'ty dollars per day. Fort Colville is in the Bit er 
 
 coal. In fact, coal has been traced along thelRoot range of mountains, in 48° 45' north lati- 
 
 47th parallel of latitude for a distance of nearly 
 ten degrees of longitude, with a southern out- 
 crop, rendering it more than probable, when 
 considered in connection with the discoveries of 
 coal in the Saskatchewan, the Athabasca, Mac- 
 kenzie's River, and Great Bear Lake, that a coal 
 field of greater extent than any other in the 
 world exists in the western half of the district 
 of country included in our subject. Further ev- 
 idence is found to support this hypothesis in 
 the discoveries of coal nearly all around the 
 northern rim of the North American continent 
 by the captains of whaling vessels, and by the 
 hardy explorers who have tempted the Arctic 
 
 tude. The discoveries already made indicate 
 the existence of an extensive gold-bearing re- 
 gion in Washington Territory ; and it is not im- 
 probable, that the entire chain of Western 
 Mountains, from the Gulf of California to the 
 mouth of Mackenzie's River, will ultimately be 
 found to contain deposits of this precious metal. 
 
 The most extensive systems of salt springs 
 and lakes abound in this region, in dilFerent loca- 
 lities, both within the American and the British 
 Possessions, and in some districts the mineral 
 itself is found in great purity and abundance. 
 
 Considering thu vast amount of miuvrals al- 
 ready discovered, with scarcely any scientific ex- 
 
 seas in search of a northwest passage, by the ploration, the hypothesis is by no means an un- 
 presence of both coal and lignite in Greenland, I reasonable one, that no portion of the continent 
 
 3 
 
18 
 
 uxcenls ihis Ta«t untleTulopud Northwest In allds of latitiuli' diiiguniilly, until they piiHS the 
 niinertil ruHuurcua. Uocky Mountuinii, alter which thuy run north 
 
 /"" CLIMATIC. I ward nearly ])arulk'l with tho count of tliu I'u- 
 
 (i But notwithHtundiiig the resources of soil, oihc. Thun. at tjuubec, ft;r example, in latitude 
 the extensive mineral deposits, und the vast 470^ tj,u ,„un„ teinperulure lor the year is 4(i<' 
 supplies of name which the plains, forests, riv ,,.jjjjp^.„,,^.n Aline drawn I'rom (Juebec west- 
 ers and lakes of tho country contain— still ""-wurdly, to puss Ihrounh every point at wliicti the 
 other fatal prejudice in the way of the early ^,„^.a„ touip.ruture, for the year, .s the same, 
 settlement of the country remains to he removed. ,^.,,^1^ bend southwardly at the hlart, ullected. 
 According to the popular impression ll'« riP'"" doubtless, by the cold winds which sweep down 
 jf the climate, the length of tho winters, "'"l|„„,,bHtructedly from HaUln's Hay through Hud- 
 the depth of tho snowB, render most of the coun- ^^,jj,g jj^^^ j^^j curvinj? northwardly again 
 try uninhabitable. This is a sheer fallacy. ^^^ j^ approaches Lake Superior, passing through 
 
 I It is now understood, generally, that the tetn-^^j^^^ ,^,^y mirth of the tsih parallel. I'roceed- 
 peraturo of any given portion of the earth's ^^^ westwardly fn.m Lake Superior, the line 
 surface does not depend entirely upon its I'lti-I^^m ^.^^^^^ northward, pa.s8ing nearly half a 
 tude. About three-fourths of the earth's surface |j^^j.^.^, ^^^^^^^^ ^^, j^^^^^. ^,. ^^^^ vVoods, which is on 
 ia covered with water, and the diurnal motion of j^j^^ ^y^,^ parallel, cutting the southern terminus 
 our planet, with other causes, maintains per- „f l,,^^ Winipeg north of the parallel of .')"<', 
 petual ocean currents from the K<iuator towards crossing to tho north side of the Saskatchewan 
 tho Poles. Thus, that wonderful current in the j^^^^^ ^j, „„nriy the 52d parallel, and then pro- 
 Atlantic, knowu us the (;ulf Stream, by carry- gyj.ji„^ ^^^ ^,.(,1 Cur ^ short distance, where it is 
 ing a largo volume of heated water through tliei,,,^^ ^y cold winds from a snow-capjied range of 
 ocean directly to the coast of Kurope, gives to |^,jy u^^i^y Mountains, which again curve the 
 that country a climate fur more temperate than |j„„ southward along tho eastern base of the 
 corresponding latitudes on this side of the -unj^^ u„tii „n.uting with a depression it passes 
 Atlantic. west of the mountains, where it suddenly bends 
 
 Late researches in the Pacific, cspoci-i to the north again, passing out into the Pacific 
 ally those conducted by tho oflicers attached to Ocean nearly ten degrees north of Quebec, the 
 the Japan Expedition, have established the oxis- starting point. I have carefully examined such 
 tence of tt current in that ocean, entirely analo- meteorological tables of the country as have 
 gous to the Gulf Stream of the Atlantic. This been kept at tho forts and trading posts ivithin 
 gulf stream of the Pacific exerts the same influ- jt, uU of which, without exception, indicate a 
 ence upon the climate of tho western coast of dilate in those high latitudes much more lem- 
 our continent in modifying the temperature, that iperate than would prevail were it not for the 
 
 its congener of the Atlantic does upon the west- 
 ern coast of Europe. Astoria, at the mouth of 
 
 causes which I have mentioned, and perhaps 
 some others which future scientific research and 
 
 the Columbia, and Oljmpia, on Puget's Sound, , discovery may make manifest, 
 the one near the 46th the other near the 4«th ^a regards snows a word or two only is ne- 
 parallel of North latitude, have a climate similarLgg^ry. ju no part of the country treated of 
 to that of Baltimore, in latitude 39>^. j^^^ ^{^^ ^^^^^ ^qual in depth to those of New 
 
 The influence of these thermal waters extends England. This fact is well knowu to the fur 
 
 far into the continent. The great water-shed of 
 the mountains, spoken of In an early part of 
 this discourse, occurs in a most marked depres- 
 sion of the coast, it being only about 5,000 feet 
 above the level of the sea. Through this gap in 
 the mountains, several hundred miles in width, 
 and sucking up through the valleys of the inter- 
 locking streams, through the canons and gorges, 
 
 a vast body of warm air direct from the ocean is progress southward to u milder regon. Those 
 
 carried constantly out eastward over the plains, 
 tempering the climate in all its course, until 
 
 meeting with the colder winds from the Atlantic, emitted from the thermal currents of the Paci- 
 
 an equilibrium of temperature is effected. fie, diminish its capacity for retaining mois- 
 
 As a consequence, Isothermal lines— or lines ture, and in effect wring it perfectly dry, 
 
 traders, and there are physical causes why it 
 should be so. Recorded observations at the 
 trading posts, and of lute years in Minnesota, es- 
 tablish tho fact that the prevailing winds of win- 
 ter are from the West und North. Those coming 
 from the North, instead of precipitating moisture 
 in the form of snow or rain, constantly have their 
 capacity for retaining moisture increased as they 
 
 from the West must first cross the mountains, 
 whose snow-clad peaks condense the warm air 
 
 of equal temperature — drawn east and west 
 aoroBS our continent, after passing west of the 
 Lakes, begin to curve northward, cutting par- 
 
 wheu it passes in this condition over the coun- 
 try to the east of the mountains. 
 In a letter from Hon. H. M. Rice, the present 
 
19 
 
 Kenri'iienfutive ill Cot) jfredfl from MitincHotrt, to' very mod.rmc, anil driircfljr i v er lie l<in;{'T idnn on' 
 Gov. SievetiM, of Wii»hiii«l<>ii Territory, iindi-r """i"""'* •Im.' until ih.-y ,lu.»|.p.-nr. Tlu' .•llnmi.- I« a 
 dutoof June Od, 1S.',4. I Hnd the following in. «;"•';'''•;'■''''';'*'•<'•/'''»' '■' <•"• ►'»'"'., Hui.h. Th. 
 
 " writfrN from 111'' 1 plliiwritciiii' »|iiwn «rB imii'li mori! »• 
 tercitlinK fucU on Uhh stul.JL'ct ; y^re. tl." ■(now iliiriMK hiKh win.l* iJrifUnn «.>, ilmt It In 
 
 "Nikvl. all"n of till' Mis»|.(!(lppl Klvur cloifM from lhei|mpii!nililf l.ir ttn? Irnvil.r t'l iiiitn.li iliirlriK iliett 
 loth III till' J.'it'i of Novi'iiilicr, anil opi'iis froiii Ihi- l»t 111 sloriii!i; tli<'y, liKWi'Vrr, Ki'lilniii Ian' over twenty four 
 the liiihipf April, Ttiiil of the Ki'd lllver of Ihf Nurlli lioiir.i, I hiiv' w\'-r Hi'uri tnow drift ili-ip cnouKli tc 
 clout's troiii Nt 111 l.'i h NoVfint)or. and opi-iij from Idih "'"P '"^' "" "i^" "iiv" 
 
 to !l'i li April. I havi- oilen traviUid from ft. Paul tn Tin; f'lict thut, on tlin huud wiitcru of tlu) (!o- 
 Crow WliJK a dlstancL-ur one hundred and fifty inilej, Intiibiu iiiid thi; Mi.'M<iiiirl, iiml IhIiIikI t)ic s^iirn 
 with ft -lirmlc h.ir.Hi' iiud aUd, without I. track, iind hiivi' '"'d in the j>or>;i'n of the iiiuiiiitiiiiin, and iivviiv 
 never lijutid th..' .tnow deep enouRh to Impede my pro northward up to llo- :>'2i{ piinilli'l of liitilnde, iiu- 
 gres-i. I have also gone from Crow Winn, heyond the menHo herd,-* of biilf.ilo and nr<''»t drovt-rt of wild 
 heail wateriofthe .MlnBlJiippI, to Ihe watetHOf the Hud- horHest, I>iisrt liu' wiiitiT in >r,,iid nuidition, livinp 
 von Hay, on fojt and without unow shoes. I dpi-nt one "I"'," ''"' >f '"*•"* which is not kilU-d out, is of itse.f 
 entire winter traveliiiK throu.h that reKlon. and never '*""''-''''"^i'''i''^''":'' t'"'' l'"" simws ol the ri'f^iori 
 fouri I the .sii iw over elghieen Inches deep, and *cldoiu "'"': ""' .'^.'-'T. "I"" *•>'-' t-linnit« v. ry riirorous. 
 over nluu luvhei, Lut this sul!iL'i,> on that head, with the Mingle 
 
 "For j'.'veral years I had tradlnnpostH cxtendlnK iiddilioiiiil remark, that so loin( as niilroads can 
 from LaWe Superior to ihu Re,l Rivtjr ol the North fron be operated in New Kiinlaiid and aroniid lliese 
 4ii dfRrei'i to 4) deijreea north latitude, and never found lakes in the winter season, it is simply absurd to 
 thesii'W SI deep as to prevent supplits heliiKirannport- '"■>?'-' '''" deptli of silow as an objectiiui to tht 
 ed from one post to another with horseB. One winter,. Northern route for the J'acitic Kaiiroad. 
 i.onhofCrciw WIiik, aav 17 decree* north latitude, 1 This ioiifj discourse must here etui, although 
 wintered about sixty head of horses and eattl' wihoiu I'"' MUhject is far from beiiijf exhausted. Fn fact, 
 Kiv.nKtheai food of any kind except such as they could while eiifrajred in its preparation, I was all the 
 procure themselves under the snow. Iletween the «ih *''•"'« P'U'dully imjiressed with the magnitude of 
 and Wli deKrees north latitude, the snow does not tall '*!'-" «"'>.i»'C>, constantly reali/in^r how utterly fu- 
 so deep iH It does between the 40:h and Uh deKre, „ ; '''« "'""' ^'i the attempt to do ade(|nate justice to 
 thLs is easily accounted lor upon thesatneprlnclple that '*'""""'«'^' 'f^'"'"'-'- ""^ ' '."""^^ ' >"ive said 
 in the fall they have frosts .uuch earlier near the 40ih '^"""f'' t'' '^^kf" "" interest in that wonderful 
 that, tliey do near the 45th deKree. I say this in refer- ^^rlhwest which Htrutches away from ..ur city 
 ence to the country watered by the Mississippi Kiver."" 'V'"".f' illimitable extent, and which holds 
 „ . , ,. ,, . .... ■ ,1,11 within It so much ot promise for us and for hu- 
 OwuiK to Us altitude he atmosphere is dry ''eyond be- ,„,^„i r^^^.^^^ -^ ^j,,' ^^ ^^.^j,^,,, .^^^ developed 
 
 lief which accounts for he absence of frosts In.the fall, j ^.^,„f„t ^^i^.^un a doubt. A hardy, enterpri- 
 and for the s uall quantity of snow that falls In a coun- ^- ^ace has already commenced a Krand exodus 
 try so far north. \ oyaKeurs traverse the territory Irom ,,.„,„ jt, ,„r,„yr seats to those inviting regions 
 Lake Superior to the .M.ssouri the entire winter with '„^^,r „.,,ich ^y^. have been traveling in imagina- 
 horses and bleds. haviuK to make their own roads, and ^[^^^^ (;,r the last hour. Hailroada will, ere long, 
 yet wiihh-avy roads are not detained by snow. Lum- penetrate theold solitudes. Agriculture, mining 
 bermen. In Kreat numbers, winter In theplne reKlonsof .,„d manufactures will supersede the pursuits of 
 Minnesota with their teams, and I have never hear J of the chase. Flourishing villages and popuh)U8 
 theirflndinK the snow too deep to prosecute their labors, neighborhoods will start into being as if under 
 I have known several winters when the snow at no time, the enchanter's wand. Ceres will invert her 
 was over six inches deep." | cornucopia over the favored laud. The blighting 
 
 Hon. H.H. Sibley, of Minnesota, who has had hoof of slavery shall never touch its green swurcT 
 
 mam- vuur,^ avn^ri..i<nu ;„ >tw> v<irt>.,»<>af ,.a a <-...■ bttt frcedoiii ofbody uud of luiiid shall there 
 many years experience in itie i>ortnwe8t as a lur , . u' i . i- •■ i ..i l n 
 
 , ,. . • , .. hiiVti its highest realization, and there shall 
 
 trader, confirms the stutemeuts given by Mr. American Civilization achieve its noblest tri- 
 Rice. He further remarks that it is a peculiari- umphs. 
 
 ty of that climate, that calms prevail during the ■ • ■ 
 
 cold weather of the winter months, consequently 
 the snow does not drift to anything like the ex-; 
 
 From the Daily Diiiiocrutle PrcKiof March 17- 
 
 The Hudson Hay (.'oiiipaiiy's .>lMiioi>oly. 
 
 ^ , , . »T r, , , »r », . ! Whoever has read the article upon the Uude- 
 
 teut experienced in New England or New "koi-k.^gi^puj Northern portion of the American Con- 
 
 Mr. Sibley says he has never believed that rail- linent, the publication of which was completed 
 
 road communicatiou in that Territory would be '" ^^'^ P"?,^"" y*^'*'?''<^.">'' Y'" ^" have failed to 
 , . J J , ,, , , , .„ ^ arrive at the conclusion, that the rights claimed 
 
 seriously impeded by the depth or drift of snow, ^y the Hudson Bay Compai.y over a large por- 
 unless, perhaps, in the extreme northern portion lion of America are directly antagonistic to the 
 of it. By Mr. Rice's statement, however, it interests of the included country, and that if 
 _ .,ij„,„™4v. * »u ic 4- ■ 1. \f that giant monopoly shall be left much longer 
 
 would seem that the qual.ficatmn given by ^i^- i^ ti,^ ^nd\stnrhld'poss^ss\ox^ oiii^ quau title, 
 Sibley to his opinion, is hardly necessary, Mr. jt will be at the expense of the rights of human- 
 Culbertson, an old fur trader, gives the result of ity. It was stated in that article that the validity 
 his observation for twenty years of the snows o^ '^e company's charter had been called in 
 ^, , , , . ,, ... . „. question of late years, but that through the in- 
 
 on the head-waters of the Missouri River, as. g^yn^e of wealtfi, of numbers, and of influential 
 follows : jconnections at home, it had been able to prevent 
 
 "The average depth might be e-timated at twelve adjudication upon the subject. A recent exhibi- 
 inches, say from the first of December until the first oftion of its power, to the extent even of controlling 
 March ; frequently, however, the snow does not exceed grieve interests of the British Government, is fresh 
 six inches. In the vicinity of I'ort Benton snoWs arei'" the public mind. We allude to the compact en- 
 
20 
 
 torr'I into by tht> C.impiny withtht'Oovernmfnt 4 willfti(fneM for the itPttlement of th« 
 
 
 tat 
 
 A> 
 of t 
 aoroi 
 Lak« 
 
 Mm 
 
 if tho KiiHHiiin I'oxHKNHioiiM ill AintTirii, 
 
 ciiuiitry, uiui thiH fxct-ptinn tn lU tri'iicrul policy 
 
 Ky iipt<:i,il Hjfreeinenl Hut IIihIhiiii Itny ('mii wmm tor tin; Moitt piirjinitt! of liiirriiitHJn); u liuli'd 
 piuiv, mufiiil yriirrt aj(o, cHUbliHhid 11 iniiiihcr o( riviil iiiiil driviiij; it Irorn tliu field. Since iho 
 irndiin; piinlH witliiii the IdiHniiiii I'uKHensidiiN. iitii<pii of the two (Juinpiinii s no fiiither eiicour- 
 
 Wlicii the w ir between UiiH'«ia iiiul the AllieH ii)f eiit him been oll'er-d I.. iiiinii);riilion to thia 
 
 coninieiiced, iheHt! poHiM, art well U8 Koine olht-rn ■"olitiiry colony; on thu coiilrHry tho oppoHlt« 
 n tho iicichlioihood of the IIiinhIhi, I'lmHeHsionM, policy han been piirHiied. Ovcr'ihtme who aru 
 
 were at llie im-rcv of Hie liuMsi.ni aiitln.ri there tliH C 
 
 tiei. 
 
 I'hile the ItiMHittn V 
 
 oinpany exercinen an iinrhecked den- 
 
 HeKH'otiH were potinm, nor havi; coinplaintH ouhniitted by the 
 
 at th • mercy of llie Allies, in thin Ktite of <'oloni.stM to the home frovermiient been followed 
 thu cote tho lliidHoii Hiiy (Jompuny enteri'd into by any relief. In every enMential of xovereixnlv, 
 .1 cuiiipiict with the (iiivernor n( IluMHiiin Amen- It may therefore be Haid, thu (Jovi rument "of 
 ca by which the rijjhtH of euch were imitiially (Jioat iiritain hiis hurreiidiTed itH cl.iiiiiH to thu 
 iruiiriiiteed diirinif the procrexn of the war, country to a conunercial corporation who^e in> 
 The poHneMsio'iM of llu) Conipiiiiy which were en- lurewtH are inliruly adverMC to iln Hcttleniint. 
 ■ lanxireil rtnioiinted to only a lew thousand dol- Therein Home prospect that hlejts will whurtly 
 iars The v;iliie of ICus.-iaii Aiiiunca to the be taken wheri'by the claim wet up by Ihc liud- 
 Allies it would be dillieult to esliuiale. itiil son Hay Company will be lesleij as rejf.irds a 
 Huch was the power of the lludsoo Hny Company portion' at hast of the territory. There is an un- 
 al home, thai the (;ovenimcnt.(if(in'ai Britain ac- settled ((uehtion touching the boiindariert "Tif 
 • Ml'. >ced^ ill the iirr'.nueiiient. The splendid Canada which the latter apjiears (Imposed lo 
 tievt of Kreiich and lvi;;li»li ships sent into the press lo an issue. Tlicjiirisdiction which France 
 Pacific for the e.\|irefs jmrpose, doiibtlesH, of ceded to (Jreut Hritiiin in 'TH.'l, it is claimed, 
 .•<eiziiiK upon iliissian .Viiierica, wa.s diverted included not only the Canadas. but th.it it ex- 
 ♦"rotn it.-i duslinalion, and cro.Msinjj over to the tended westwaid'over a l.ir>je |ioriiou of terriio. 
 bleak coast of Kamschalka iiiaile II descent upon ry now occupiid by the ('(Jinpaiiv, This sub- 
 the iiisif,'iiillcant RusJ-iaii post of retnipiinlovski, j.'Ct is bcitij,' diccussid in sonie of the (j.iiiadian 
 M posse.s.sion of which was of no earthly con- paiiers, and has excited some attention on the 
 
 icqueiico whatever to the Allies 
 
 other fide of the Atlantic. A writer in the M 
 
 on- 
 
 18 
 
 there is Houiethinj^ in this procedure entirely ,treal llaZilli, fjelore alluded to in tliisarticL, ._ 
 inexplic.ble to lis in the jiresent state of our in- presenfinjj a series of able and intirestiiijr pa- 
 formation. Why the interestH of a company, [ers on this fulject, from one of which we (|uoto 
 consistiiif; of only Home two hundred and lifiv the following passajje 
 
 sleiuld t 
 
 dii 
 
 the 
 
 persons, sliiuitlliave liecn tliiis regarded by the There can be little doubt that, whenever i 
 (Jovernineiit of (« rout Hritain, while iia own iobjects and acts of that corporali m sh.ill have 
 interests, (if inlinitc'ly /greater magnitude, were'bcen thoroughly iiKjuired into and discussed, 
 unhesitatingly Kiicrilicetl, can only be acco lilted and have become tlioroughly understood, bv 
 tor on tliu hypothesis that there is somethiiij; moans of thu I'rcss, so unanimous will be the ex- 
 beneaUi the suif.icu which the parties interested pression of opinion, both in Kngland and Cium- 
 would not willingly have divulged. A writer in ada, against the (Company, that the latter will be 
 the Montreal (litZfUe estimates the jirobable loss made to feel that power which they now iippa- 
 to the Hudson Bay Company t.t from ten to rently despise, and thus have cause to regret 
 iweiily thoiiriaiid pound.s, had the English (iov- that their conduct and pretensions have been Mich 
 urnment refused to sanction the compact. Had as to arouse the attention of the Press and to ob- 
 there not been some other cause than is piiteni tain, as well as to merit, general condemnation, 
 upon the surface of the transaction. Great IJritain The Hiiglish I'ress is awakening, us well as thai 
 would undoubtedly have indemnified the Com- of Canada, to f, sense of the importance of briiig- 
 pany for its lo!is, and have seized upon the iiine'iiig to lui early issue the iiiieslion of— whether 
 hundred thousand ytpiure miles of territory the Hudson's Hay ('ompany shall be permitted, 
 belonging to jliissia, Willi its arsenals, towns, etc:, for purely seltish objects, to condemn forever 
 
 Hut our object in this article was mainly to call a portion of this continent, as large as the whole 
 attention to thu attitude in which the (Jovcrn-, of Europe, to the darkest gloom V A (|uestion 
 ment of Great Britain stands before the world which must soon come before the legislatures of 
 in toleiating any longer the existence of the HiiJ- both countries, but which will be decided prin- 
 son Bay Comjiany. Here is un inmienae habit- cipully by the action taken upon it here, 
 able domain, possesssed of great natural resour-j We write on this .subject in no spirit of uution- 
 oes, and eminently adapted to the abode of civil- jal prejudice. The interests of humanity de- 
 ized communitie.", kept securely locked against : maud a wider and loftier sweep of thought than 
 settlement by a few individuals, whose original: those of individuals or of natiouulities ; and 
 right there is more than questionable, and which those interests require that the giant 
 right is said to have been forfeited again and monopoly whicli now holds the Northwest in its 
 again, if it were valid. And this is done through jgrasp, be driviMi out of existence, and the whole 
 the agency of tho government whose interesis'country thrown open to settlement. We stop 
 all seem to be upon the side of the speedy settle-! not to inquire whether or not, in the course of 
 ment and developiiieut of the country claimedihuinan events, a closer bond of sympathy may 
 by the Comiiany. unite us with tlie communities which will ulti- 
 
 During the continuanc(» of the fierce rivalry 'mately be organized there. That is a matter of 
 which existed between the Hudson Buy and thelsmall importance compared with the consid. ra- 
 Xorthwest companies, the former, that they jtiou whether communities shall be permitted to 
 might cut oir the profitable trade which the lat-'grow up there at all or not. Only let Great 
 ter were carrying on with the Indians on theBiitain see to it that this broad field for human 
 Red River and about the head waters of theleuterprise is thrown open to occupation, and 
 iMiasfesippi, established a colony on the foraierlthen let the future take care of itself. We hope 
 river. This colony furnishes the only instance to see this subject agitated until the desired re- 
 in which the Company have inaDifestcdlsults are obtained. 
 
 'i 
 
 3 
 
 
« 
 
 l! 
 
 khtt 
 
 icy 
 
 Itvd 
 jtliu 
 J)ur- 
 flhlB 
 iHite 
 lire 
 
 lltH- 
 
 thu 
 
 |)Wf<l 
 
 it of 
 lo thu 
 in- 
 Ill. 
 
 ^inrtlr 
 llu.\- 
 |,ir<l!« a 
 III) un- 
 
 U-H t.f 
 |ir<i'il 10 
 
 Fruiice 
 litiini-d, 
 
 I il I'X- 
 
 tfrni'i- 
 111!* tiiib- 
 
 Ulilllilll 
 
 II nil the 
 ill.' Moii- 
 irlicli', IS 
 stun: Jiii- 
 
 VH: IJlltite 
 
 iK'VtT the 
 
 li.ill liiive 
 (lihC'iissi'd, 
 ■t(t<io(l, by 
 
 bo ilifox- 
 iiiid ('iiiirt- 
 tter will be 
 
 now mipa- 
 e to ri')jret 
 e been Mith 
 s iiiul to iib- 
 idemiiiition. 
 wull "» thiit 
 iceof brill j;- 
 i)t'— wbi'ibtr 
 L' permittod, 
 •mil forever 
 us the wliolo 
 
 A (jnesiion 
 pislaiures of 
 fcided prin- 
 hcre. 
 
 rit of uutiou- 
 unmnity de- 
 tbought than 
 alities ; and 
 thu giant 
 rthwest in its 
 lud the whole 
 at. We stop 
 
 the course of 
 (Tinpathy may 
 iiich will "Ill- 
 is a mutter of 
 the coiisidrrii- 
 e permitted to 
 July let Great 
 "Id for human 
 ccupation, and 
 
 jelf. VV« h"P^ 
 Lhe desired re- 
 
 1/