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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
IH^H] iMi II .V II Y, 1 sr)(;
i: Y
I. L. SCR11M»S.
iaS9
V
4i
O lEI I C .A. C3- O r
" DKMOCKATIC J'UKSS " 8TF,AM rillXTIXG UOl'SE. -i:. CLARK. SI'UFl.T,
i B G e -
^^- .11' .Ow
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
&^i
I
i!ti in.t.i'».ll'l*
(j.lA 1! .1
uAOJU Am« • ^„„vp ^'.G:' 'U'Uir^v-, «iuu u.
.U
Ci
I
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/