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HISfOIY OF OEEGON;

6E06BAPHICA1 AND POLITICAl.

WITH *» WAMWATIOU OF THE rSOJICT OT A

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NATIONAL RAIL ROAD,

PROM THE ATLANTIC TO THE PAOJWC OOEAN.
BY GEORGE WILKES.

AIAO AN ACtJOtJNT OF THE CHARAOTKEISTICS AND PRESENT
CONDmON<» TOE OREGON T^&^ MEMBER OF

waui^iva ^J* \jx& tOSlCEStLY QBOANIZED

OREGON LEGISLATURE,
ACCOMPANIED BY A MAP.

'*"**• i

\ NEW-yORK.

WtLLUM H. COLYER, No. 5 HAGUE-STREET.

HOTOUKIfliS 4( Co., Bottw. N. HICKMAN, and SBURTZ « TAX-

1846.

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3l'

WILLIAM H. COLYER,

No. 5 Hague- s TREET .

1845.

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THU

HISTORY OF OREGOI,

GEOGRAPHICAL AND POLITICAL.

BY GEORGE WILKES.

IMBRACTNO AN ANALYSIS OF TIIE OLD SPANISH CLAIMS, THK BRITISH FRETKHk
8ION8, THE UNITED STATKS TITLE; AN ACCOUNT OF THE PRESENT CON-
DITION AND CHARACTER OF THE COUNTRY, AND A THOROUGH EXAMIN-
ATION OF THE PROJECT OF A

NATIONAL RAIL ROAD,

FROM THE ATLANTIC TO THE PACIFIC OCEAN.

TO WHICH IS ADDED A JOURNAL OF THI EVENTS OF THE CELEBRATED EMIGRA'
TING EXPEDTTION OF 1(^41 ; CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF THE ROUTE FROM y
MISSOURI TO ASTORIA, A TABLE OF DISTANCES, AND THE PHYSICAL AND
POLITICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE TERRITORY, AND ITS SETTLE-
MENTS, BY A MEMBER OF THE RECENTLY ORGANISED

i..

U'C^

OREGON LEGISLATURE.

THE WHOLE CONCLUDING WITH AN APPENDIX, CONTAINING THE TREATIESj
DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENCE, AND NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN SPAIN,
RUSSIA, GREAT BRITAIN, AND THE UNITED STATES, IN RE-
LATION TO THE NORTH WIST COAST.

\.i

NEW YORK:

WILLIAM H. COLYER,

No. 5 Hague-street.
1845.

I I ■

£a tired according to on Act of Congtctt >

BY WILLIAM H. COLYER,

Ik the Clork'i OAea of tho Southern District of New Yoric, ia the year 184%

PREFACE.

Th£ deep interest taken in the Oregon question at the present mo*
ment ; its paramount importance as a feature of our national policy)
and the prevailing inacquaintanco with its particular merits, have)
together, induced the author to prepare the following pages, in the
absence of the requisite work for the reference oi the public.

There appears to be a peculiar necessity for a publication of thig
kind at present, for recent events have shown it is no extravagance
to suppose that a period may arrive '.vhen it will be necessary for us
to be assured, whether we are to buckle on our armor, and to draw
our swords in a righteous cause or no.

In a monarchy, where the sovereign has a direct and absorbing
personal interest in every war, he pays pamphleteers to make it popular
with The People. In a Government like ours, this duty, when just)
devolves upon its citizens, and such of them as perform it, are re«
warded with consciousness of having acquitted themselves of a natural
obligation, and in the additional gratification of lending another impulse
to a righteous cause.

To accomplish his object in the best manner, the following pages
have been arranged in two distinct parts; the first embracing the
features of title, geography, and natural advantages ; and the second)
the descriptions of a traveller of the characteristics and capabilities of
the country in dispute.

In the preparation of the first, care has been taken to furnish a cleaT)
concise and straightforward relation of events, and to avoid the
technicalities and pedantries which usually confuse the mind in the
attempted consideration of such subjects. For the data of this portion
of the work, the author has availed himself freely of the best authorix
ties on the subject, and he takes this opportunity of acknowledging
his indebtedness to the work of Robert Greenhow, published for the
use of Congress in 1840, and also to the more recent journal of LieU"
tenant Wilkes.

It will be observed by those already conversant with the Oregon
Question, that the author has left what is called " the French Title"
from the category of our claims. He did this because he esteemed it
of but little weig it ; but those who are curious on the subject, will

,3^b-ifU. '

PREFACE.

find a careful deduction of it in the Appendix, as prepared by a Com-
mittee of Congress, in 1843.

The project of a National Rail Road across the continent, though
generally denounced as visionary and impracticable, has long been the
author's favorite idea, and he claims for it that attention which every
scheme deserves from its opposers. It was not his intention to
advance it as early as the present time, but the rapid progress of events
has precipitated his design, and a similar proposal from another source,
has induced him to bring it forward now, principally from an appre-
hension that the grandest scheme the world ever entertained, may
be prostituted to the selfish interests of a private corporation.

The second part of the work, consists of a journal, prepared from
a series of letters, written by a gentleman now in Oregon, who him-
self accompanied the celebrated emigrating expedition of 1843.

They make no pretensions in their style, but are merely simple,
conversational epistles, which, in their familiar, off'-hand way, furnish
a large amount of useful practical mformation to the emigrant, and
much interesting matter to the general "reader. The author has done
scarcely more to this portion than to thrpw it into chapters, and to
strike from it such historical and geographical statistics as had been
drawn from other sources, and arranged in the preceding portions of
the work. These letters fell into his hands after the adoption and
commencement of his original design ; and adapting them to his pur-
pose, by linking them with his own MSS., a deal of research was saved
him by the valuable and peculiar information they contributed.

In conclusion, though much of his labor has been performed in haste,
the author thinks it hardly necessary to offer an apology for the manner
in which it has been accomplished. Instead of fishing for credit, he
has desired only to be useful, and he would much prefer confirming the
just determination of a single man, than to pleasing the fancies of a
thousand critics. He has therefore been content to be correct, and he
will feel over-paid if he have opposed a single obstacle to the manifold
deceptions and misstatements of the calculating monarchists who
unhappily form a portion of the Citizens of this Republic, or have con-
tributed a mite to the great movement that will advance the destiny
of his country more rapidly than all other influences combined.

NoTF..— The map i'acinff the title-page is taken from an English publication on the Oregon
Question, and from the extreme haste with which the publisher has been obliged to proceed, is
the best he is enabled to furnish, for the present. Though shorn of two degrees of the
southern portion of Oregon, it is accurate in the profile of the coast, in the course of the rivers,
nnd in all the principal features of the territory. It will bo noticed thut along the line
of Frazer's River runs the words—" Route of Makenzio, in 1793 ;" and as no mention is made
in the following pages of Mr. Makenzie, it may be proper to state that he was a Scotch Fur
Trader, who had been engaged in the years 1789-90 and -91, in exploring the Great Slave River,
to the North Sea, and in 1793, descended Frazer's River, to its mouth. This exploit, however,
has no bearing on the question of title, as Galiano, and Valdes, and Vancouver had visited it some
weeks before. As a further explanation, it may bo necessary to say that Queen Charlotte's
Sound, and the Gulf of Georgia, are northern portions of the Strait of Fuca ; and an easterly line
from the southern point of the small island immediately, under mark of longitude 133°, to
the Rocky Mountains, is the northern boundary we claim.

HISTORY OF OREGON.

PART I.

Historical Account of the Discovery and Settlement of Oreaon Terri-
tory^ Comprising an examination of the old Spanish Claims, the
British Pretensions, and a deduction of the United States Title.

Oreoon is a vast stretch of territory, lying on the north west coast
of North America. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean ;
on the north by latitude 54° 40' ; on the east by the Rocky
mountains, and on the south by the forty-second parallel. This geo-
graphical arrangement separates the coast into three grand divisions ;
first, that below the forty-second parallel belonging to Mexico ; se-
cond, the section lying between 42°, and 54° 40' to the United States ;
and third, all above the last named limit, to the Russian crown* —
thus* shutting Great Britain out from any inch of seaboard territory.

The whole of this immense region (Oregon) is nine hundred and
sixty miles in length ; its breadth along its northern boundary is about
five hundred miles, and widening gradually with the south-easterly
course of the Rocky mountains, it stretches to about seven hundred
miles along its southern line. Its whole surface may, therefore, be
estimated at four hundred thousand square miles.

Previous to entering into a description of its general characteristics,
it is necessary first to analyze with accuracy the nature of our claims,
for the purpose of ascertaining the degree of interest we are warranted
in bestowing on it. This course will be found the more important, as
we shall see that Great Britain, with characteristic modesty, lays claim
to it for herself.

There are four modes by which nations may obtain possession and
sovereignty over countries ; and these are by discovery ; by settle-
ment ; by conquest, and by purchase — the latter, including all subordi-
nate modes of cession arising out of political arrangement.

These rules, or principles, are laid down and governed by a general
system called international law, the nature and qualities of which it
will be necessary for us to exactly understand, before we can proceed
satisfactorily with our inquiry.

International Law is simply no law at «//, for the first idea of law
implies a superior power prescribing and dictating to an inferior one —
a notion that is perfectly incompatible with the equality of nations.
International law is, therefore, merely a collection of moral maxims put
forth by certain ethical writers named Grotius, PufFendorf, Baron
Wolfius and Vattel, which, being founded in the main on accurate
bases, have-been generally used by diplomatists as ready elucidations
of the principles that should govern the general course and policy of
nations. The adoption of this course saves them the special trouble
of elaborating an argument on a natural right, by producing one ready

See Appendix, No. 1.

b HISTORY OF OREGON.

made to their hand. The custom of resorting to these writers by
diplomatists in the arrangement of their disputes, has given them a
sort of authority, which has been confounded with the notion of an
imperative rule. As, however, all nations are equal, there can be no
international law but the great principle of right. Wherever the
maxims of these writers square with this, they are doubtless as obli-
gatory as any law can be ; for all powers are subject alike to the rules
of everlasting justice, which are the type and essence of the only su-
premacy to which the nations of the earth must bow. But, whenever
on the contrary, they do not agree with this divine principle, it is
equally obligatory on all to reject them.

There is another view in which a government like ours has a spe-
cial and peculiar right to deny the obligatory nature of this collection
of essays, and that is embraced in the fact of their being drawn from
monarchial theories. We, therefore, who are Avorking upon a new
and antagonistic principle, are not bound by any scheme which con-
flicts with our own grand design ; for it would be absurd in the ex-
treme for a State which achieved its existence through the denounce-
ment of an arbitrary and unjust system, to admit the binding force of
its inconsistent parts. We want no such system of international law !
The prevailing sentiment of national honour, common to every free
people, is the best conservator of the rights of nations ; for while it
imperatively exacts immediate redress for every wrong, it rejects every
unworthy policy with unqualified disdain. The principles of justice,
eternal and invariable, are understood by all without the elaborate
filterings of an artificial code, and they have the advantage moreover,
of applying equally to Monarchies and to Republics. The just do
right without a written rule ; the bad outrage it in opposition to a
thousand — the first find their reward in the approbation of the world ;
the last their punishment in the alternative of war. No written code
can alter these tendencies, nor affect their results. No nation will
obey a rule which runs in derogation of its rights. What need then
of a system which offers no additional inducements and enforces no
additional penalties ?

We do not introduce these views of international law here, because
any of its principles makes against our claims to Oregon, but for the
opposite reason that they substantiate them ; for we wish to be under-
stood, that while we have a right to accept a proposition waged
against us, and turn its premises to our own account, we do not there-
by bind ourselves irrevocably to the whole system of which it is a
part.

Great Britain in support of her pretensions to the sovereignty of
Oregon, produces two principles from this code which relate to the
rights drawn from discovery and occupation. We accept the chal-
lenge, because it happens to be founded on correct principles, and
because it enables us to beat her on her own ground. The following
are the rules alluded to. They are extracted from Vattel, who is
considered the standard authority on international law.

"All mankind have an equal right to things that have not fallen into the hands of
any one ; and these things belong to tho person who first takes possession of them.
When, therefore, a nation finds a country uninhabited and without an owner, it may
lawfully take possession of it ; and after it has sufficiently made known its intention
or will in this respect, it cannot be deprived of it by another nation. Thus naviga-

HISTORY OP OREGON. »

tors going on voyages of discovery, furnished with a commission from, their lovereign,
and meeting with islands or other lands in a desert state, have taken possession of
them in the name of their nation ; and this title has been usually respected, provided
it was soon after followed by a real possession." — Book 1, Chap. 18, Sec. 207.

" When a nation takes possession of a country that never yet belonged to another,
it is considered as possessing th<fre the empire or sovereignty at the same time with
the domain."— JSooA: 1, Chap. 18, Sec. 205.

The correctness of these propositions cannot be denied ; they are
consistent with reason and natural rights, and though they derive no
additional force from being written down by Monsieur Vattel, they
are properly admitted by nations as principles which cannot be assailed
to the injury of the party enjoying the rights of the affirmative, without
aggression. Indeed, they would have been much better and more
correctly understood if Vattel had never said a word about them. It
is obvious enough that no claim can exist to a country which has
never been discovered, and it is equally Obvious that it must naturally
fall into the possession of the first nation who redeems it to the world ;
but it is not so apparent why a navigator should be armed with a
commission before his nation can derive a title to his discoveries.
Here we see at once the pedantry of the lawyer : the main proposition
is founded upon reasonable principles, but the latter condition is the
offspring of a quirk. It will be hereafter seen that England discards
this feature from the rule, in her assertion of the discoveries of
Meares ; and it was against such absurdities as this, that our protest
against international law was intended to guard.

There is one other principle of international law which has been
introduced into this controversy, that is of equal natural force and
validity with the foregoing ones. This is the well known and esta-
blished rule, that " he who first discovers the mouth of a river drain-
ing a country in a state of nature, and makes known his discovery ;
and the nation whom he represents, takes possession in a reasonable
lime, becomes the owner of all the territory drained by such river.'*

This proposition, like the former ones, recommends itself at once
to our reason and common sense. It is clear that such river should
belong of right to the nation first discovering it, and it is equally clear,
that to be of any use or benefit to them, they should have possession
of the whole country drained by it, so that its sources and its current
may not be at the mercy of inimical hands, who could render it use-
less at pleasure, by cutting off the first, or perverting the second in a
different channel.

THE OLD SPANISH CLAIMS.*

In 1491, the western hemisphere slept unknown in the abyss. 1491.
In 1492 Spain redeemed it to the world. Between 1512 and }^J^;
1541, she settled Mexico, occupied Florida, traversed the whole imi.
northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico, and explored the interior of the
continent as far as the fortieth degree of north latitude. In 1543 j^^g
she explored the coast under Cabrillo and Bartoleme Ferrelo, as

* Though it is hardly necessary to mention to the reader in this stage of our
examination, that the United States purchased from Spain in 1819, all the right
devolving to her on the North West coast above 42* north latitude by virtue of
her discoveries and settlements, it will do no harm to direct him to bear in mind
that in making out Ae;- title, we of consequence establish our own.

HISTORY OF OREQOIT.

1580. '^'S^ "^^ *'^6 forty-fourth parallel, and from that year till 1580 we
hear of no other adventure in a northern latitude. In the last
mentioned year, however, Sir Francis Drake appeared in the North
Pacific, and as the British government have seen fit to lay great stress
upon his discoveries, it is necessary that we should give them parti-
cular attention.

Drake was one of the most distinguished of the buccaneers who
cursed the face of the ocean during the latter part of the sixteenth
century. He had heard of the enormous profits derived from the
pillage of the South American Spanish settlements, and appealing to
Queen Elizabeth, (who secretly encouraged this system of warfare,
while she dared not openly deny to Spain the rights of her Pacific dis-
coveries,) received her aid to his nefarious schemes. With, therefor^,
no object beyond piracy and plunder, he entered the Pacfic in 1578,
and during the course of that and the following year, ravaged every
town of note on the coast of South America ; committing the most
barbarous outrages on their unoffending inhabitants. Being at last
gorged with spoil and satiated with ravage, his next object was to
secure a safe retreat ; but fearing to take the risk of a return through
the straits of Magellan, lest the exasperated Spaniards should con-
centrate their forces there to cut him off, he resolved to return home
by the way of the Indies and the Cape of Good Hope. He accordingly
ranged along the coast as high as the 42d or 43d degrees of north
latitude, when being pinched by the cold, he turned back and ran
into the bay of San Francisco, in lat. 38. Here he stopped five weeks
to refit, and for the purpose of awing the natives into submission, made
a pompous display of colors and music, which he afterwards very
modestly called taking possession for the British Crown. Though
Drake knew from the accounts of the natives, and the articles of
European manufacture he found among them, that the country had
been discovered and visited long before, he could not overlook so
favorable an opportunity of covering the dishonest nature of his enter-
prize ; so he assumed the character of a discoverer, and performed the
double service of saving both himself and his mistress from impertinent
inquiry b}' the evasion. He was rewarded on his return home for the
murders he had committed and the plunder which he shared, by a
baronetcy instead of the rope, and descended to posterity as Sir Francis
Drake, the celebrated navigator, instead of Drake, the bold pirate. On
this infamous basis do the British Government found their claims to
Oregon, and it may be regarded as significant of the ramifications of
the design. They insist that Drake explored the coast as high as 48°,
and rely upon the statements of a work called the " World Encom-
passed," published by an unknown compiler, froni " notes of the Rev.
Francis Fletcher, Preacher in this (Drake's) employment." But as
this journal was not made until sixty-three years after the voyage was
made, and as its incongruous statements are directly contradicted by a
work published immediately after the return of the expedition, when
this Mr. Fletcher and all the parties were alive, and able to refute
it, we are not bound to bestow a grave consideration on its statements.
The following extract will serve to show the consistency and veracity
of the Preacher's statement :

KISTOnV CF OREtlON.

" On the 3d June, (1580) wo came in latitude 42* N., but in the night -we found
'3uch an alteration of heat to extreme fold, as caused our men to grievously complain.
The land bearing farther out in to the west than we had imagined, we were nearer
on it than we were aware. The 5th of June wo were forced by contrary winds
io run in with the shore and cast an anchor in a bad bay, where we were not
without some danger by the extreme gusts and fiaws that beat upon us. In this
place there was uo abiding, on account of the extreme cold, and the wind still
directly bent upon us, commanded us south whether we would or no. From the
height of 48", in which we now were, to 38°, wefi/Und the land low and reasonably
plain, and in S8" 20' fell in with a tit and convenient harbor, where we anchored.
During all this time, we were visited with like nipping colds, neither was the air
during the whole fourteen days eo clear as to enable us to take the height of sun or
star. Though wo searched the coast diligently, even unto the 48ih degree, yet found
we not the land to trend so much as one point in any place toward the east, hut
lather running in continually north-west, as if it wc > directly to meet with Asia. "^

.Really this preacher expects a great deal from our symplicity, for
he coolly tells us that he accomplished a sailing distance of nearly,
if not quite, four hundred miles under the most adverse circumstances,
in two days. Moreover, vv^e find upon an examination of the maps,
that the coast between these latitudes, so far from ruwning continually
" north-west, as if it went directly to meet with Asia,'''' does not in any
part trend one point toward the west. By comparing the two
accounts, we find that the first historian, (Mr. Francis Pretty,) whose
relation being published immediately upon its conclusion, may be
regarded as the official journal of the voyage, sets the latitude of 5th
June at 43*^, while the other, whose work was not ventured before all
the actors had departed from the stage, marks it 48"^. It may be that
Fletcher's manuscript has it.-- degrees of latitude indicated by figures,
and that a peculiarity of fsrmation has confounded 43 with 48 ; but
if the inconsistency is not explained in this way, we must of necessity
conclude, that the Preacher, whose hard task it was, to make robbery
and ravage square with the ordinances of religion, has been gradually
brought to consider romance as his peculiar province, and to estimate
a serviceable fiction over a common-place fact. The character of this
production of .Af r. Fletuher's appears to have been pretty well under-
stood by the historians of the last century, for while but three writers
previous to 1750, (and those of but little reputation,*) adopt his state-
ments, tiiey are rejected by the great mass of authorities, comprising
Ogilby, in his History of America, De Laet, in his History of the
New World, Heylin, in his Cosmography, Locke, m his History of
Navigation, Dr. Samuel Johnson, in his biography of Drake, and Dr.
Robertson, in his Standard History of America, none of them allowing
Drake the credit of an advance above 43^, while the latter positively
states that he turned back at the 42d parallel. When in addition to the
indisputable veracity of these writers, we take into consideration that
they are all, with one exception, Britons, who cannot be accused of
an indifference to the glory of their country, we must reject the claim
"which is based upon the counter-statement, as without foundation.
Even admitting the latitude thej' ask, the very principles of inter-
national law they have advanced, plunges them into an inextricable
difficulty. By the rule which we have extracted from Vattel, « dis-
covery, to confer a title, is clogged with a proviso in the concluding
•clause, that a real possession must follow soou after. Now we shall see

* John Davis, Admiral Monson, and Captain Burney.

mSTORT OFOREGOIT.

in the progress of our inquiry, that one hundred and ninety-eight yearn
elapsed, before another English navigator entered the northern latitudes^
of the North-west coast. As the most romantic imagination ca»
hardly construe this into being soon enough after, we shall not hesitate
to strike the pretensions, on the score of Drake, from off' the record.
jjgj From the date of the expedition of Cabrillo and Ferrelo ( 1543,)
" we hear of no further discovery to the north, except what is-
contained in the account of a voyage made by Francisco Gali or
Guelli, a merchantman, who in his course from China to Mexico i»
said to have reached the vicinity of the American continent, in 57i-
degrees, and to have sailed along in sight of its coast, till he arrived
at the bay of San Francisco, in latitude 37 J. But little reliance i»
to be placed upon this account, however, as by Guelli's own statement,
the land first seen by him " was very high and fair, and wholly without
snow," which could not have been the case with the land in that
latitude. It makes but little difference whether he is entitled to all he
claimed or not, for subsequent discoveries cover all the ground which
this could have occupied, if it were ever so substantial,
jgg. The next discovery by the Spaniards on the North-west coast,
"took place in 15S7, by Jean de Fuca,a Greek pilot, who received
the direction of a squadron fitted out by the Viceroy of Mexico for the
discovery of a strait which was supposed to lead into the Atlantic
ocean. Arriving between latitudes 48 and 49, he fell upon the great
arm of the sea which separates " Quadra and Vancouver's Island"
from the continent, and which now bears his name. This he
thorougly explwed along its eastern course, and having remained in it
for twenty days, returned to Mexico. From the policy pursued by
the Spanish Government of concealing everything that related to their
American possessions, the' existence of this strait was unknown to the
rest of the world for a Ions; time, and when its discoverer disclosed it
to an English merchant some years afterward, it was derided as a-
fable.
j^^ In 1787 an Austrian vessel fell upon it and entered it to

the distance of sixty miles, and as it corresponded in all its
remarkable peculiarities with the one described by De Fuca nearly
two hundred years before, justice was at once rendered to his memory
by the bestowal on it of his name. From 1592 up to 1774, the Span-
iards occupied themselves principally in forming .settlements upon the
j„^^ coast and in the interior of their northern possessions ; but in the

latter year, another expedition was despatched under the charge
of Juan Perez, which traversed the coast up to the 54th degree,
down to forty minutes of which point the Russians had already ex-
tended their trading settlements. Proceeding south, Perez anchored
in a spacious bay under 49°, which he named Port San Lorenzo, but
which, on a subsequent visit by Captain Cook, received from that
navigator, its present name of Nootka Sound. After leaving Port
San Lorenzo, Pen^z saw the Strait of Fuca in his southern course,
J... but did not stop to examine it. In the following year another

expedition under Heceta, Bodega and Maurelle examined the
whole shore fiom 40° up to 58°, and the former, on his return voyage,
while between 46° and 47°, noticed an opening in the land at 46"" 16',
which appeared to be a harbor or the mouth of some river. He re~

HISTORY OF OREGON.

1778.

ported the fact, giving his opinion to that effect, and subsequent Span-
ish maps accordingly laid down a river there, which they called the
San Roque.

We have now brought the Spanish discoveries down to 1775, to
which time no other European nation had set foot upon the coasts
between 38° and 54° 40', neither had any ever reached a higher lati-
tude than 43°.

In 1778, three years after this latter expedition, Captain Cook
arrived in the North Pacific, and under 49iV' fell in with the port
San Lorenzo of the Spaniards. This, he named Nootka Sound, and
ascribed the merit of its discovery to himself in the face of numerous
evidences that Europeans had been there before him, for he teliis us
in his own account, that not only did the natives appear familiar with
his ships, but he found among them articles of Spanish manufacture.
Thus vanishes Cook from the shadow^' list of English discoverers of
the coast of Oregon ; for until the word discovery is born again and
receives a new definition, it will hardly possess sufficient elasticity of
application to stretch its qualities to two distinct visitations of the
same spot, separated by a distance of three years ; and unless its mean-
ing is considerably enlarged, it will scarcely extend from the outside
of an island twenty miles at sea, to the body of the continent behind it.

Having disposed of the two main pillars of the English title, we
next come to the examination of the filling in, the flimsy material of
which we shall find in keeping and correspondence with the unsub-
stantial quality of the first.

In doing this, we shall be obliged to extend the scope of our nar-
rative somewhat, as well to correct certain gross misrepresentations
which have been made to the injury of the Spanish title, as to afford
a proper idea of the unworthy subterfuges which the desperate di-
plomacy of Britain h.is employed to effect the establishment of their
own, in opposition to it. This course is necessary, moreover, to a
correct understanding of the whole subject, as the circumstances to
be related nearly kindled a general European war, and as they led to
a treaty, whose c/a/merf concessions on the part of the English, admits
virtually the integrity^ of the title of Spain.

j..g In the month of January, 17S8, two Portuguese vessels named
the " Felice," and " Iphigenia," arrived on the north-west coast
of North America. The former was under the command of John
Meares, a half-pay lieutenant in the British navy, and the latter was
under the direction of William Douglas, also a British subject. They
were engaged in the fur trade, and were owned by John Cavallo, a
Portuguese merchant of Macao. As it is important to establish their
nationality, it is necessary to state that they sailed under the Portu-
guese flag, and contained instructions to their commanders written in
the Portuguese language. These directed theui, in express termi?;
" to oppose with force any attempt on the part of any Russian,
EniiUsh or Spanish vessels to interfere with them, and if possible to
capture them, to bring them to China, that tUey might be condemned
as legal prizes by the Portuguese authorities of Macao, and their
crews punished as pirates." This, of course, conclusively refutes the
assumption that they were Eiicjllsh. The first of these Poituguese
vessels, the Felice, under the command of Meares, arrived at Nootka
on the 13th May, when that officer finding he would need a small

HISTORY OF OREOON.

(

vessel for the shallow inlets and rivers of the coast, immeiliately com-
menced building one. Leaving a portion of his crew to complete her
construction, Meares sailed towards the south to examine his trading
ground. He endeavored unsuccessfully to explore the Strait of Fuca,
and on arriving at the portion of the coast between 46" and 47^ — the
locality of the mouth of the Columbia — he sought for the great river
which Heceta three years before had asserted emptied into the ocean
in 46° 16'. Here he was unsuccessful again, and chagrined at the
result, named the inward curve of the shore " Deception Bay^"
and the northern promontory of the harbor " Cape Dmtppo'mtmeut^^^
chronicling the circumstance in his own journal in the following
Words : — " Wc can novo with safely assert that there is no such river
as that of Saint Roc exists, as laid down in the Spanish charts^
After his unsatisfactory search, Meares returned in the latter part of
July to Nootka. In September following, the American sloop Wash-
ington, Captain Gray, anchored in the same harbor. The little ves-
sel commenced by Meares h'ld been completed, and received the
name of the " North West America ;" and the Iphigenia, the other
Portuguese vessel commanded by Douglas, arrived on the 24th of the
same month. Elated with the success of his enterprise, Meaues
transferred the cargo of the latter vessel to his own with the utmost
despatch, and filled with new designs inspired by the result, set out
four days afterward for Macao.

In the following month, the ship Columbia of Boston, commanded
by captain Kendrick, arrived at Nootka, and a few days afterwards,
the two remaining Portuguese vessels, (the Iphigenia and the North
West America) departed for the Sandwich Islands, leaving the Ame-
rican vessels to winter on the coast.

j^g., Meares arrived at Macao in December, and finding that Caval-
" lo, his owner, had become a bankrupt, determined to turn his in-
formation and position to the best account for himself. An opportunity
was not long in offerins: itself to his designs. Two vessels belongins;
to a rival association, called the " King George's Sound Company,"
arrived at Macao under the command of James Colnett, another British
ofiicer under half pay. Meares immediately made overtures to an
agent of that association, who came in one of the vessels (perhaps
through some previous direction communicated by Meares, while all
parties were on the N. W. coast together in the previous summer)
to unite the interests of both concerns. The suggestion was adopted,
the interests conjoined, and two vessels, the Princess Royal and the
Argonaut, (the latter bearing Colnett, who had chief direction) were
despatched to Nootka, with the intention of esliiblishing a permanent
post there for the transaction of their trading operations. Meares re-
mained at Macao as resident agent, with all the affairs of the associa-
tion entirely at his control.-

In the mean time, Spain, who had heard with uneasiness of the
movements of the fur traders in the North Pacific, began to be alarmed
lor the safety of her possessions in that quarter, and remonstrances
were made by he;- to the' courts of England and of Russia, against the
encroachments of the subjects of those two nations, in particular. To
more effectually guard against these transgressions, as well as to resist
a projected seizure of Nootka by the Russians, the viceroy of Mexi-
co directed a squadron then lying at San Bias, under the command of

HISTORY OF OREGON.

Don Esteran Jose Martinez, to proceed at once to the scene of the
intended aggression.

Dufore the arrival of Martinez at Nootka, the Iphigcnia and North
West America, returned there from the Sandwich Islands, but in a
most forlorn condition, the former being a mere wreck, and almost
incapable of repair.

On the Gth of May, 1780, nine days afterwards, Martinez arrived,
proclaimed that he had come to take possession of the country for the
crown 6f Spain, landed artillery, and commenced the erection of a fort.
This was the first actual occupation ever n\ade of Nootka. The most
kindly feeling prevailed among all parties for a time, and the Spanish
commander afibrded the Iphigenia whatever materials she stood in
need of, in order that she might go to sea immediately ; accepting in
payment, bills drawn upon Cavallo, of Macao, as her owner. This
amicable state of feeling lasted but a week, for upon Martinez being
informed that the written instructions of the Portuguese vessels, di-
rected them to seize and carry to Macao any English, Russian, or
Spanish vessels, they could manage to overcome, he took possession
of the Iphigenia, and put her officers and crew under arrest. They
were liberated, however, in a few days, through the intercession of
captain Kendrick of the Columbia, and the omcers of the Iphigenia
signed a declaration to the effect that she had not been interrupted in
her operations, and that they had been kindly treated by Martinez
during their stay at Nootka. Viana and Douglas as captain and su-
percargo, respectively, engaged to pay for themselves, and for Juan
Cavallo, the owner of said vessel, to the order of the Viceroy of Mexico,
her full value, in case her capture should be pronounced legal. Mar-
tinez then fully equipped her for sea, and enabled her to make ^ vastly
profitable voyage ; a circumstance which could not have happened
without his special aid. Pretty lenient treatment for men whom he
might have sent to Mexico to be tried for piracy, and a pretty hazar-
dous policy moreover, when an additional force belonging '.o the same
company was daily expected to arrive, which might ha .re overpow-
ered him, and reversed the case by sending him, according to their
instructions, to Macao, to he tried on the same charge.

One of the vessels of the associated companies, the Princess Royal,
arrived at Nootka on the 16th of June, and brought with her the news
of the failure of Juan Cavallo ; upon which, Martinez determined to
hold the North West America (then there) as security for the bills
which he held on the bankrupt. The Princess Royal was well treat-
ed by the Spaniards, and sailed on the second of July from Nootka on
a cruise. As she was leaving the harbor, the Argonaut came in.
Upon being boarded by the Spaniards, Captain Colnett arrogantly de-
clared he had come to take possession of Nootka for Great Britain,
and to erect a fort there under the British flag. This declaration, in
connexion with some insolent conduct on the part of Colnett on the
following day, who even went to the extent of drawing his sword
upon the Spanish commander, in the latter's own cabin, determined
Martinez to trifle no longer with such intemperate offenders, so he
seized the Argonaut, and subsequently the Princess Royal, and de-
spatched the former, with the crews of b')ih, to San Bias, Mexico, as
prisoners under the charge of a Spanish officer. Those who were cap-
tured in the North West America, which vessel was merely held as

HISTORV OF OREOOrr.

r; I

•j

collateral security for the obligations of its owners, were sent in the
Columbia as passengers to Macao, their passages not only being paid
by Martinez, but an allowance being also made them for their wage*.
Having thus disposed of his mission, Martinez sailed from Nootka for
Mexico in November, leaving Captain Kendrick of the sloop Washing-
ton alone upon the coast.

The Columbia, with the news of these circumstances, arrived at
.j^gj Macao in 1789, and Meares full of his wrongs immediately took
' depositions from some of the seamen, and posted off to London to
see what capital he could make out of the circumstance. On his arri-
val there, he got up a memorial filled with the grossest misrepre-
sentations and downright falsehoods, and adopting a new idea which
probably had been suggested to him after his arrival, he asserted that
in 1788 he had purchased a vast district of country from King Maqui-
na, the monarch of Nootka, and that he had erected a fort there, with
other buildings, by way of taking formal possession of the place for
the British crown. '

This remarkable document then concludes by praying for an indem-
nification of the losses sustained by the memorialist and his associates^
through the seizure and detention of their vessels, in the very mode-
rate sum of six hundred and fifty-three thousand dollars ! This story
of the purchase of a territory for the crown of Great Britain, by a
Portuguese agent, in a Portuguese expedition, is peculiarly English
in its extravagant pretensions. That it was the scheme of an after-
thought is evident from a number of circumstances. In the first place,
Meares in his journal of these voyages, written and published before
the design of the memorial was conceived, makes no mention Avhat-
ever of any such purchase of territory from the respectable monarch
aforesaid ; neither does he speak of the erection of the fort or the
hoisting of the British flag. In the second place, he entirely overlooks
these all important circumstances in the depositions which he took from
the crew of the North West America previous to his departure from
Canton ; (none of whom say one word about them,) and in the third, to
render the assertions of the memorial on this point more than questional
ble, he was able to trump up only one pretended witness in the person of
a common seaman to sustain them, and that too on the very day of its
presentation to parliament. It is a significant fact, moreover, that
the king's speech which laid the grievances set forth in this memorial
before the nation, makes no allusion to the seizure of any lands or
buildings belonging to the British crown at Nootka, though ' that
assumption found its way into the treaty framed shortly after ; and it
is a positive fact, too, from evidence that will hereafter appear, that
there were no such lands or buildings there to seize. The British
government, however, demanded atonement from Spain for these
outrages on its flag, but though it prudently avoided representing the
Felice and Iphigenia as British vessels, it was guilty of the monstrous
inconsistency of claiming for itself the discoveries and territorial acqui-
sitions of an agent and employee of a Portuguese association. By way
of giving weight to its demands, the armament of two large fleets was
ordered, and similar warlike preparations resounded through all the
naval arsenals of indignant Spain. The latter, however, being disap-
pointed in expected aid from France, and being embarrassed, more-
over, in her finances, and in her foreign and domestic relations, was

nilTORT or OREGOK.

obliged to submit to the haughty terms imposed upon her. These
•are embraced in a treaty between the two high contracting powers
noo ^'g"^^ <^° ^^^ '^^^^ October, 1790, the first and second articles of
which, provide for the restoration of all buildings and tracts </
land on the continent of North America, or the islands adjacent, of
which the subjects of his Britannic majesty were dispossessed in April,
1789, by Spain, and for compensation for all losses by violence, hos-
tility, detention of vessels, &c. The third guarantees the right in
common, of navigation, of carrying on the fisheries of the Pacific
Ocean, and of landing on the unoccupied portions of the coasts for the
purpose of trade with the natives, or of making settlements ; subject,
nowever, to the restriction of the fourth article, that British subjects
should not navigate or carry on their fishery within the space of ten sea
leagues from any part of the coasts already occupied by Spain. By
the fifth, these common rights of fishing, trade and settlement are
«xtended to all colonies formed, or to be formed, subsequent to April,
1789. By the sixth, both are prohibited from forming settlements Im
^outh America to the south of those already formed by Spain, though
the liberty of a temporary landing is allowed for fishing purposes.
The seventh provides for the form of convention to settle subsequent
■disputes ; the eighth, and last, states that the instrument shall be
ratified in six weeks, and the treaty thus concludes without making
•any limit for the duration of its stipulations.* It will be remarked that
this treaty, though humiliating to Spain in the sense of forcing com-
pensation for the exercise of a national right, mak«s no concession of
« single claim of sovereignty, but rather secures to her, additional
advantages and protects her from further encroachments. The fol-
lowing language used by Mr. Fox, in the house, in opposition to " a
motion for an address to his majesty, congratulating him on the highly
-satisfactory issue to the late negotiation," &c., will serve to show the
estimation in which the whole affair was held by the leading minds
in parliament. ' * " ^ "^

" What, then, was the extent of our rights before the convention, and to what
extent were they now secured to us ? We possessed and exercised the free navi-
gation of the Pacific ocean, without restraint or limitation. We possessed and
exercised the right of carrying on fisheries in the South seas, equally unlimited.
This estate we had, and were daily improving : it was not to be disgraced by the
■name of an acquisition. The admission of part of these rights by Spain was all w«
had obtained. It remained to inquire what it had cost. Our right before was te
settle in any part of South or North-west America not fortified against us by previ-
ous occupancy, and we are now restricted to settle in certain places only, and under
certain restrictions. This was an important concession on our part. Our right of
fishing extended to the whole ocean ; and now it, too, was iimited, and to bo carriei
■on within certain distances of the Spanish settlements. Our right of making scttle-
mentn was not, as now, a right to build hots, but te plant colonies, if we thought
■proper. Surely these were not acquisitions.

" We have renounced the right of permanent settlement on the whole extent of
South America, and where the admitted right of settlement on the north-west coast
■commenced was completely undefined.

" By the third article, we are authorized to navigate the Pacific ocean and South
seas, unmolested, for the purpose of carrying on our fisheries, and to land on the
unsettled coasts for the purpose of trading with the natives ; but, after this pompous
Tecognition of right to navigation, fishing, and commerce, comes aaother article,
■which takes away all right of landing and erecting even temporary huts for any
gpurpose but that «f carrying on the fishing, and amounts to a comjalete derelictioa

' ""^Seo Appendix, No. 4j

insTORY or onsooir-

of all rights to lottl* in any way fur the purpoia of comtntrce with tho nntirni?!
fn ranouncing all right to makn •ettlomfiita in 8oulh America, we had giv«n to-
Spain what aho conaiderod inottitnablo, and had in return been contented with droaa.*'

In these opinions he waa sustained bv Grey, Lansdowne, and tho
other eminent whigs of tho house. This treaty, however, is made
the subject of another llourish of title by the English, who insist that
it concedes to them an equal right with Spain to any unsettled portion
of the coasts. We have Been tl>e opinions of the leaders of the British
parliament opposed to this assumption however, and we shall shortly
see its dtinial by Spain. But even admitting it to be so, they gain
nothing by it, for in four years afterward a war broke out between
the two contracting parties, which, by the rules of international
law, annulled all existing inter-arrangements that had no nrescribed
limits and that depended for their continuance i\pon a state of per-
fect amity, and Spain resumed at once, whatever she had resigned
by the Nootka treaty, if she had in reality resigned anything at all.
On the conclusion of peace, the treaty was not revived ; consequently
it is a nullity, and all that Britain accomplishes by advancing her
pretensions on it now, is the virtual acknowledgment of the integrity
of the Spanish claims which have fallen to us, and which she had so
perseveringly endeavored to acquire.

This convention being concluded, the next thing was to take pos-
session of the tracts of landj buildings^ forts , Sic. wrested from Mr.
Meares at Nootka in 1789, and the English Government in 1791
despatched two ships under Captain George Vancouver, to effect
,the purpose. This officer arrived at Nootka on the 28th August,
' 1792, where he found the Spanish Commissioner in possession and
ready to perform his share of the transfer. Negotiations between the
two parties were then opened, and it became necessary '' to ascertain
what lands on the North West coast of America were in the possession
of British subjects, and what buildings were standing in those lands in
1789, when the Spanish first occupied Nootka." For this purpose
Quadra applied to Maquina and his principal chiefs, who upon being
questioned, positively denied that any lands had been bought, or any
nouses built by the English at Nootka in 1789, or at any other time.
The Commissioner then applied to Captains Gray and Ingraham as
well as to the Portuguese captain of the Iphigenia, all of whom hap-
pened to be there at the time. The two ffrst replied at length in a
circumstantial account* (now on file in the office of the Secretary of
State, at Washington) which, after explaining with manly fairness
all the events that provoked the seizure of Colnett's vessels, contains
the following paragraph : —

"We observe your wish to be acquainted what house or establishment Mr.
Meares had at the time the Spaniards arrived here ? We answer in a word-^none /'
On the arrival of the Columbia in 1788, there was a house, or rather a hut, con-
aistint; of rough posts covered with boards made by the Indiana ; but this. Captain
Douglas pulled to pieces prior to his sailing to the Sandwich Islands in the same
year. Tne boards he tooii on board the Iphigenia, and the roof he gave to Captain
Kendrick, which was cut up and used as firewood on board the Columbia ; so that
on the arrival of Don Estevan Jos6 Marlines, there was no vestige of any house
remaining. As to the land Mr. Meares said he purchased from Maquina, or any
other chief, we cannot say further than we never heard of any, although we remained
among theae people nine months, and could converse with them perfectly well.

* See Appendix, No. 4*

HISTORY OK OREOON.

noiiilm tliJH, wo liavn •akfd M«qii!itA niiil nthor cliiofn liiicc our lito arrivnl, if
<;n|)l:»iii Mi'arfii Jivnr i)urcliii--"'d iiny Uml iii Nooiku »oui.<l ! Tli«:y aiinwi-rfMl — iin !
thitt Captain Ki iiJrick wui iliu only iiimi to whom tlicy had ever wuld nriy luiid.'*

The stnlciKPiUs ol lliis letter wm' confirnicd in all points by Cup-
tain Vinna, uiid thus tlic ^ ndaloiis ialsiiios of Mcan-s' iinsuiitainud
inomorinl were > riflusivtdy rtd'utfd. VancouvtT, wlio must hav(^ .
keenly lelt the morlifu'iiHou of the dileniitiB into which the nu'ndacity
of Meart'8 had placed him — " tin; Irnct of land " dwindling to u
hundred yards square, and the " erections " to the remains of one
miserabli' hut — had no resource hut to break ofl" the nea;otiution, and
wend to Hngland for new instructions. Quadra offered him the small
spot temjMH'arily occupied by Meares, restricted however, with the
express understanding that sitch cession should not interfere -with Ihc
riphts of his catholic Mnjcsly to Nootka^ or any other portions of tlje
adjoining coasts; but tlijs was refused by the Urilish comniissioner,
who having sent one of his lieutenants off with despatches, Kailcd
from Nontkii on thu 13th October, and left the Spaniards in pos-
session of the jjort. In 1794 Vancouver left the coast without
eli'ecting his object, and shortly afterwords, the Spaniards think-
ing it unnecessary to kc^ep up a military force at so inconsiderable a
place, withdrew to Mexico. Jn 1796, \vc have the authority of Lieu-
tenant Broughton (whose conduct towards Captain Gray we shall
have occasion shortly to analyse) for the statement that in the pre-
vious year, (1775,) the Spaniards had delivered up th« port to
Lieutenant Pearce, who had been despatched by the way of
Mexico to hasten the termination of the business. This account,
however, is denied by IJelKbam in his history of Great Britain, who,
though a Briton himself, and tenacious of the interests of his country,
says : " It is nevertheless certain from the most authentic subsequent
information, that the Spanish fag, flying at the fort and settlement of '
Nootka, was ivrer struck ; and that the v}hole territory has been vir-
tually rdiiujiiished by Great Britain.'''' This is by far the most re-
liable story of the two, as Broughton says he derived his information
from Maqninn only, who handed him a letter (he does not say from
whom) to that effect, in 1796; while Belsham asserts the contrary
on strength of his own inquiries and the pledge of his reputation as a
historian. The latter's account is also the most probable, as Great
liritain was at this time engrossed in a war with Republican France,
during which she would hardly consider such an obscure and insig-
nificant spot as Nootko, as worthy of so grave a notice. In
1796 Spain declared war against Great Britain, and all previously
existing arrangements were rendered null and void.

Having completed the abstract of the Spanish title up to 1790, our
attention is next claimed for an examination of the American disco-
veries, settlements, and purchases, which, in themselves, will be
found sufficient to establish our rights to Oregon against the world.
For the purpose of conducting the inquiry in a regular manner we
shall have to turn a few years back.

!»

KISTOttT OF OltEGOW

THE UNITED STATES' TITLE.

After the conclusion of the revolutionary war, the enterprise cA'
our People turned immediately to commercial pursuits, and before
three years had rolled over the Republic, her infant marine had plumed
its wings on the billows of every ocean. As early as 1787, an asso-
ciation of Bostqn merchants despatched the ship Columbia, Captain
Kendrick, and the sloop Washington, Captaire Gray, to the Nortiv
Pacific, t(y be engaged in the fur trade. They arrived at San Lorenzo,,
or Noolka, in the latter part of September, HS^B, where, as we have
seen, they spent the winter. In the following year, Captain Gray,,
in the sloop, explored the Strait of Fuea for fifty miles in an east-
wardly direction, and collected information from the natives on the
shore, which brought him to the conclusion that the passage commu-
nicated northward with the Pacitic, at an opening in latitude 61^^'
which he had previously discovered, and to which he had given the-
name of " Pintard's SouniJ." This opinion was the first intimation'
the world ever had that Nootka was situated on an island. An erro-
neous account of this expedition' was uent to England by Meares,
representing that Gray had sailed through and through the strait, and
had come again into the Pacific in the 56th degree of north latitude.
This, while it proves Meares to be incapable of a stra^htforward
story, also proves that he could not at that time have entertaifled an}'
notion of claiming the island for the British crown, for such a report,
by admitting the superior claim of another, is levelled directly against
that assumption. Sailing north, Gray next circumnavigated, for tho
first time, " Queen Charlotte's Island," lying between latitude ^l''
and 54° and believing himself to be the original discoverer, named it
Washington's Isle. He was not altogether correct in this opinion,
for its northern point had been reached by Juan Perez in 1774,
and in 1787, it was visited by Dixon^ an English captain, who, con-
ceiving it to be an island, named it after his vessel, the Queen
Charlotte. In the latter part of the summer, Gray, having completed
his trading operations, (ratlier unsuccessfully,) sailed on his return tO'
Nootka. The Columbia left Nootka in August, 1789, for Macao,
with the officers antl crew of the North-west America. On her way
out she met the Washington, when it was agreed that Gray should
take command of the ship, proceed to China, and from thence to the
United States by the Cape of Good Hope, while Kendrick remained
upon the coast. During the yeais '89 and '91; Kendrick ranged up-
and down the coasts discovering nany ne^v islands, sounds, and in-
lets ; and in August of tlie latter jo>r, he purchased by formal and
public arrangement, and by regular deed, several large tracts of land
near Nootka from Maquina, ^Vicannish, and other chiefs of the sur^
rounding country. This purchase is spoken of by tjeveral English
writers, one of whom describes it, as being in " a most fertile clime,
embraciiKj four degrees of latitude.'''' After making this parchase,.
Kendrick sailed for the Sandwich Islands, where he was killed by
the natives, at Owhyee. In September of this year, Gray returned
to the Pacific in the Columbia, followed by the brig Hope, under the-
tommand of Joseph Ingraham, the former mate of the Columbia.

HISTORY OF OREGON.

51^

Four other American vessels, also bound on the fur trade, arrived
shortly after, and with the Washington, made seven vessels in all,
bearing the stars and stripes on the billows of the north Pacific.

Gray in his return reached the coast near Cape Mendocino,
and sailing northward, observed an opening in the land in latitude
46° 16', from which issued a current so strong as to prevent his
near approach. Being convinced that it was the outlet of a great
river, he endeavored to enter it by repeated efforts, but being defeated
through a period of nine days, he abandoned the attempt and continued
his course to the north. In August we find him at 54° 30' north,
where he discovered the broad inlet in the continent, now called the
" Portland Canal," which he navigated in a north-easterly direction to
the distance of eighty miles. In the meantime the brig Hope and the
other American vessels were prying in every nook and inlet of the
coast, in indefatigable pursuance of their trading operations.

The Columbia, after wintering at Clyoquot, a port near Nootka, ,
set out with her enterprising commander in the spring of 1792,
to renew her explorations. It was about this time, that Vancouver
arrived upon the coast to meet the Spanish Commissioner, Quadra,
who was already awaiting him at Nootka. He reached the coast at
about 43°, and commenced a careful search for the river, laid down on
the Spanish maps at 46° 16'. Like Meares, he was unsuccessful, and
declares in his journal " though he had sought for it under the 7nost
favorable circumstances of wind and weather^ it was his deliberate
opinion no such river existed in that latitude.'''' He sailed onward, and
on the second day afterward, met Gray at the entrance of the Strait
of Fuca, who in his good old ship had just left his winter quarters.

Gray informed Vancouver of his northern discoveries, as well as
his discovery of a great river in 46° 16' ; upon which Vancouver
abruptly told him he was mistaken, and in noticing this circumstance
in his journal, very complacently remarks — ^" this was probably
the opening passed by us on the 27th," adding — "we have now
explored a great part of the American continent, extending nearly two
hundred and fifteen leagues, under the most favorable circumstances
of wind and weather, and have seen no appearance of any opening in
its shores, the whole coast forming one compact, solid, and nearly
straight barrier against the sea." A little piqued at the Englishman's
stolidity, Gray pushed on southward, determined to demonstrate the
correctness of his assertions. In his course, he discovered Bulfinch's
harbor, the name of which, in common with the appellations bestowed
by him on his other discoveries, the British geographers have altered
to suit their own purpo.ses: On the 11th May, Gray arrived opposite
the entrance of the river, and heedless of the risk, in his ardent spirit
of enterprise dashed boldly through the breakers on its bar, and in a
few moments slid out upon the tranquil bosom of a broad and majestic
river.* Gray spent nine days in it, trading meanwhile with the natives,
repairing and painting his vessel, and in filling the casks of the ship
with fresh water from the stream. On the 20th, after having navigated
it as far as the draught of his vessel would allow, (between 25 and 30
miles) he named it after his own good ship, spread his sails to the
wind, and beat out over the bar, against a head wind, into the ocean.

* See Appendix, No. 5.

HISTORY OF OREGON".

This would appear to bo pretty conclusive evidence of the discovery of
sovuilhhuj. But we shall shortly see that the diplomatic keenness which
could perceive a most wonderful discovery in the mere sailing past
a scollop in the shore, by Meares, crowned with the assertion that no
river existed in that quarter, cannot find in the actual entrance of a
river, in that very place, and in its navigation to the distance of nearly
thirty miles inland, any discovery at all. As xoe intend, however, to-
claim it as a discovery, and to have all the rights and privileges flowing
therefrom, we may as well here refer again to the rule that the nation
which discovers the mouth of a river, by implication discovers the
■whole country watered by it. Applying this principle to our discovery
of the mouth of the Columbia, we extend our own title with the limits
of its mighty branches, from the 53d parallel on the north, to the 42d
on the south ; and from their gurgling sources at the bases of the Rocky
.Mountains, to the resistless volume that swells the tide of the Pacific.
Having taken this principle as the rule of our rights, we will now
briefly advert to the disgraceful attempt which has been made by two
British officers to cheat Gray of his reward. As we allude to Van-
couver and one of bia lieutenants — Uroughton, we shall have to fol-
lowtheir cour.se for a while. We left them on the 7th May parting
with Captain Gray at the Strait of Fuca, from which point they sailed
in an easterly direction along its southern shore, landing once or twice
to beat drums, blow trumpets, and display flags and gaudy uniforms
to naked savages, by way of taking formal possession of the country,
in violation of the solemn convention whose stipulations it was their
special duty to conserve.* While they were thus engaged in amusing
the innocent and unconscious natives, two Spanish schooners, named
the Sutil and the Mexicana, which, under the command of Galiano
and Valdes, had been engaged in a minute survey of the northern
coasts, arrived in the .Strait for the purpose of thoroughly exploring
that also ; and getting the start of the Britons, they led the way along
its northern course. A meeting took place between the parties how-
ever, and to settle all disputes and jealousies, it was agreed to make
the search in company. This arrangement wsvs; faithfully carried out ;
the parties entered the Pacific at Pintard's Sound, discovered by
Captain Gray, and the territory on which Nootka was situated was
found, according to his predictions, to be an island. The combined
fleet shortly afterwards arrived at Nootka, when from the circum-
stances of the joint circumnavigation, it was called Quadra and Van-
converts island, the first branch of the appellation being the name of
the Spanish commissioner then at that place. We have seen that no
arrangement was efiected by the two commissioners, and Vancouver,
in view of the hopelessness of forcing any advantage from the resolute
Spaniard, prepared to take his departure. His preparations were
accelerated into haste by being informed by Quadra, that the indefati-
gable Yankee whom he had met in the spring, off the strait of Fuca,
had succeeded in entering the river, the existence of which he (Van-
couver) had denied, and, moreover, that he had explored it to a con-
siderable distance from the ocean. In proof of this, Gray's charts

* An omission has l>f!en niadn under the date of 1790, of a Spanish pxpedi'lion
under the comiinnd of liieiiteriHiit Qitiinppr, which siirvryed the Strait of Fuca for
100 miles, disciivorini; the harbors which Vaiicotiver in tiio above espedi'ioii named
" .Adrnirahy fiilct, Port Uisuovcry, Deception ratsHge," &c.

H13T0UY 0*" OREGON.

ivere laid before him. No man likes to be defeated in his prognosti-
cations and opinions, and least of ail, an Enc;lisbtnan. In this case it
v/iil be readily imagined the rule was not softened with Vancouver
by his rival's being iVoni Ijoston bay. Und(ir these bitter i'eelings of
disappointment and chagrin, Vancouver hastily set out for the river
on tlie 13th of October — five months after the discovery — vith Gray's
charts and descriptions for his guides, actuated by the resolute intention
of recovering his reputation by discovering it over again. On the 18th,
he arrived at Bullfinch''s J^ay, the name of which, maugre Gray's
charts, he changed to VVhildley's harbor, after one of his lieutenants.
Finding on his arrival at the mouth of tiu.- Columbia, that the draught
of his own vessel would not admit of her entrance, he sailed on to the
port of San Francisco, in Calilorniu, detaching liieiitenant Broughton
to the service. This worthy representative and coadjutor entered the
river in the Chatham, on the 2()th of October, (five tnonths to a day
from the time of Gray's departure,) and there, to his surprise, Ibund
anchored the brig Jenny, of Bristol, which vessel had also got its infor-
mation relative to tiieriver, fiom Psootkaa l<nvdays before. The stream
was found as Gray had described it to be, .seven miles wide at its
niouth, and decreasing to the extraordinary narrowness of a thousand
yai'ds, at a dista,nce of twenty-five miles from tbe sea. This remark-
able circumstance su^jresteil an idea to iJroujditon and Vancouver
when they laid their heads together afterward at San Francisco,
which, if it do not give them credit for an e.\lraoiH.linary stretch of
ingenuity, at least bestows upon them the most unquestionable title
for meanness and dishonesty that could jiossibly be contrived. These
gentlemen asserted that the river commenced at the distance of twenty-
five miles from the sea ; that Gray had not reached this point, but tl\e
part surveyed and explored by him was only an inlel or sound;
consequently, the discovery of the river itself, belonged of right to
Lieutenant Broughton ! Unfortunately, however, for the.^e maritime
lexicographers, the geographical definitions of these terms will not
consent to turn themselves wrong side out, either fur their purpo.ses,
or for the service of her most christian majesty, and " sounds," and
" inlets " of the sea, despite the ungracious straining of Captains
Vancouver and Broughton, will still, as before, stand for independent
arms, or friths, whose waters flowing up into the land, are necessa-
rily salt. The waters of the Columbia, on the contrary, ;ire fresh in
their whole volume to within ten mil<>s of the ocean, at wl.ich ])oint,
by the way. Captain Gray filled the casks of his ship. The conduct
of the British government in adopting such an absurd pretence as this,
is sulficiently discreditable ; but when contrasted with tlH> assumption
in favour of Meares, it receives an additional tinct of dishonor, and
betrays & desperation of molivt? approaching to insanity. in a
tSlatemenl* presented by the British plenipotentiaries in 1S2G, to the
xVmerican minister, embracing a number of pro{K),si lions of about equal
weight, it is alleged that Mearcs (!) is really entilletl to the merit of
the discovery of the Columbia, because, " he actually ealeiod its bay
in 1788, to the northern headland of which be gave the name of
Cape Disappointment, a name which it bears to this day." Thii-.
reasoning on both sides of the question, may be considered as the
climax of argument, and the world may now rationally hope to see

* Sec Appendix, No. 6.

|l *'!

.'hi

HISTORY or OREGON.

the long standing proposition, that black is white and "white is black,
satisfactorily estubiished by the transcendent genius of British diplo-
macy. What signifies it if the doctrine in favor of Mcares lets in the
superior claim of Heceta, or if the rule of Vancouver wages destruction
against Meares, the proposition is fortified at both ends, and those who
like ntiay fire away at either. Glorious, wise, powerful, magnanimous
England ! happy art thou in the possession of diplomatists, whose
sagacity has discovered that a false position backed with power, is
better than a true one supported only by the illusory strength of right,
and who have the moral boldness to adopt a principle, maugre the
whinlngs of all the theoretical ideoligists who dream of honor, and
who waste their lives in speculative lules of ethics !

From the time of the breaking out of the war between Spain and
Great Britain in 1795, up to the year 1816, the monarchies of Europe
were too much engaged in wrestling with the energies of revolutionary
France, and in resisting the stupendous power of the Empire, to pay
any attention to a region so distant and insignificant as the North
West coast of the Pacific ; but the citizens of the United States,
whose happy geographical position preserved them from being em-
broiled in the inhuman strife, availed themselves of the peculiar fa-
cilities thus otiered to them, and carried on the trade exclusively
between the North West coasts and the China seas.
ISO;)" Up to the year 1803, the western boundary of the United
States was the river Mississippi, which shut from our possession
the vast region known by the name of Louisiana, now comprising
Iowa, Missouri, Missouri Territory, Indian Territory, Arkansas, and
the small portion at its southern extremity which still retains the
former name of all. This immense country, stretching from Canada
on the north, to the Gulf of Mexico on the south, and spreading
breadthwise from the Mississippi to the Rocky mountains, was origi-
nally owned by France, who obtained her title to it through the dis-
covery of the mouth of the great stream which drains it, by two of
her missionaries, in IfifiS, and by subsequent settlements under La
Sale and others. In 1763, France ceded Louisiana to Spain. In
1803. ^*^'"^ Spain ceded it back again to France, and in 1803 it was

' purchased from France by the United States for the sum of
$1.5,000,000. As soon as this purchase was made, the importance
of Oregon as a Pacific gate to our possessions, became at once appa-
rent, and Jefferson, under the direction of Congress, commissioned
Captains Lewis and Clarke " to explore the river Missouri and its
principal branches to their sources, to cross the Rocky mountains
and trace to its termination in the Pacific some stream, whether the
Columbia, the Oregon, the Colorado, or any other, which might offer
the mo.s't direct and practlcnbfe water commimication across the cunti-
jj^jj,^ neut for the piirpnites of commerce.'''' In 1805, these officers and
their men crossed the mountains, and descending into Oregon^
discovered a number of streams flowing westward, which, upon ex-
atnination, were found to disembogue into the Columbia or some of
its huge branches, whose comprehensive arms embrace within their
.s[)an the 42d and o8d parallels, and roll their silver bands from the
mountains to the sea. On the l.nth of November, they reached its
im. '"""*•'!) an<l building a fort hich they called " BW Catslop,"

'they spent the winter there- In the spring of 1806, (March

I
I

HISTORTf OT OREGON.

■

"j 3tTi,) having minutely explored the surrounding country, tlie party set
out on their return, and after proceeding sonie distance up the stream,
parted company ; the one to explore the region north, and the other
the country south. They met in the month of August following, at
the junction of the Yellowstone and the Missouri rivers, on the eas-
tern side of the mountalRS. Thus we find, that after having discov-
■ered the mouth of the Columbia in 1792, we explore the whole ter-
ritory drained by it in 1805, build a fort at its mouth in November of
that year, and thus take the actual possession " soon after," which is
the positive condition of the principles of international law previously
■quoted,

This^eing a difficult circumstance to overcome, the British govern-
ment were puzzled for a time how to rebut or to offset it ; but their
'natural fertility of resource did not leave them long at a loss, and re-
sorting to their old principle that bold assertion is as good as timid
proof, they affirmed — that " at least in the same, or subsequent years
(1805-6) Mr. Thompson, an agent of the North West company, had
established posts among the Flathead or Kootanie tribes (near the
.36th° of latitude) and that it was from this point he hastened down
in 1811 to ascertain the nature of the American establishment at the
mouth of the Columbia viver."

This is a part of the celebrated diplomatic Slatement of 1826, and
from its definite and satisfactory character, is worthy of taking place
beside the claims of Vancouver and Meares.

The accounts given by Lewis and Clarke on the return of their ex-
pedition, attracted the attention of commercial men, and John Jacob
a\stor, an opulent merchant of New York, who was then engaged in
the fur trade on the Upper Missouri, -conceived the foundation of a
'Company, whose efforts should be specially confined to the coast of
this region. Before his plans were consummated, however, the Misr-
-souri Company, another American association, established a post be-
yond the Rocky mountains on the head waters of the southern branck
of the Columbia in 1808, but it was abandoned in 1810 from a
difficulty, through the enmity of the neighboring savages, of ob-
taining regular supply of food.

In 1809, Mr. Astor had completed his arrangements, and the ^^^
Pacific Fur company by his exertions assumed a definite exis-
tence. In that year the ship Enterprise was sent into the north Paci-
fic "t© make preparatory researches and inquiries in the scenes (rf the
new company's operations," and in 1810 two parties were formed,
one to cross the continent under the conduct of VV. P. Hunt, the
«hief agent, and the other to proceed on the ship Tonquin by sea. In
March, 1811, the ship arrived at the mouth of the Columbia, and the
colonists immediately selecting a spot, erected a factory and a fort, and
in honor of the patron of the enterprise, called the establishment
Astoria. ]iy some means, the Mr. Thompson who is spoken of in the
'^Statement alluded to, heard at his station on Fraser's lake (between lati-
tudes r)4:^ 55') of this new settlement, and gathering together a party,
posted in hot haste down the northern branch of the Columbia, build-
ing huts, hoisting flags and bestowing names by way of taking posses-
sion as they passed along. They reached Astoria a little too late, for
on arriving there in July, they found the banner of the States waving
-over a fort — they found factories erected, farms laid out, and the

^'h'

124

HiSTORV OF OREr.O\.

isia.

!-^i

contented colonists eating of the produce of their already llourislunL'
j.';ardens. They were, therefore, obliiz;ed most reluctantly to retrace
their steps northward, after receivin<j; the unwelcome information that
the posts of which they had pretended to take possession on their way
down, had all been visited five years before by ofTicers of the United
States.

In the sprinf); of 1S12, the other party of emigrants under Mr.
Hunt, completed their journey across the continent, and arrived
safely at the settlement among their hrnlher traders. A few days
after this event, the ship Beaver arrived from New York, with still
further reinforcements and supplies, and it was decided that Mr. Hunt,
the chief agent, should sail in her in charge of an expedition to the
northern coasts, the aflliirsof the factory being entrusted (unfortunate-
ly as will be seen) to the charge of McDougal, one of the Scotchmen'
who had formerly been in the service of the North West company.
During the absence of Mr. Hunt, the news of the declaration of war
by the United States against Great Britain reached Astoria, and crea-
ted no small degree of uneasiness in the minds of the American mem-
hers of the companj', for they at once saw the diilicullies this would
lead to between themselves and their British associates. This infor-
mation w^as received in January from New York, and in June follow-
ing, an agent of the North West company arrived from Canada, bring-
ing news of the approach of a British naval force to take possession
of the American settlement. The Scotchmen and Englismen connect-
ed with the association received the report with ill concealed satisfac-
tion, and several of them withdrew from the service at once for that
of the rival company. Those who remained could scarcely be con-
sidered faithful, beyond the considerations of the pecuniary interest
that were involved in the affair. Anxious consultations were held,
in which the foreigners held a superior and controlling influence.
This was the natural consequence of their position, for having been
selected with a view to their superior knowledge of trading operations
gained in a previous service with the North West company, they held
all^he most responsible situations.

The latter proposed, in view of the approaching danger, to abandon
the enterprise altogether, unless additional reinforcements and sup-
plies should speedily arrive from New York to their assistance. This
the Americans strenuously opposed, choosing rather to trust to the
chances of their enemies not appearing, or in case they did, to risk
the hazard of a struggle; but the resolution prevailed, and the mi-
nority of interests was bound to submit. At length Hunt arrived, but
AVith all his efforts, was unable to change the determination of the
Scottish partners, and knowing the impossibility of conducting the
operations of the concern in case of their defection, h^ was obliged
to submit to the arrangement. He, therefore, in ;'ir.-uance of the
decision set sail for the Sandwich Islands, for the purpose of charter-
ing some vessels to convey the furs then stored in the factory, and
other properties of the company, to Canton. In the month following
his departure, a deputation from the North West Company descended
the river to Astoria, bringing the additional information that a British
fiiijaia having under her convoy a large armed ship belonging to the
N. W. Company, was on her way to the Columbia with the intention
of destroying every thing American in that quarter. The commuui-

HISTORV OF OREGON.

cation of this news was accompanied by an ofler on the part of the
leader of the deputation, to purchase out the whole stock in trade,
and other properties of the Pacific company ; adding as an additional
inducement, that thoy would engage, at a liberal rate of wages, all
who might choose to enter their service, and agreed to send liack to
the United Slates all who wished to return. This whole measure
had doubtless been secretly concocted by the Scotch partners of the
Pacific Company, who, to effect it, had got Hunt out of the way, and
the agents of the other party were proceeding exactly accorchng to
previously imparted directions. The proposal to employ, while it
looked like an emanation of generosity, was a most insidious piece of
treachery to entice away the employees on whom the Pacific Coni-
]jany depended for existence, and in such a state of society as existed
there, was deserving of the punishment of death. It, however, af-
forded the Scotchmen an opportunity to secede without an appear-
ance of absolute defection, and softened the opposition of those who
were not unwilling to return to a more congenial society in their own
country. The transfer was accordingly made, and the Pacific Com-
pany lost its identity in the North West Association.

From the time of their first arrival in the territory to the date of
this relinquishment, the Pacific Company had established fojr forts or
trading posts, besides the main one at Astoria. These were Fort
Okanegan, situated at the confluence of that river and the north
branch of the Columbia — Spokan House, on the river of the same
name, and a branch of the latter establishment pushed further west,
among the Flathead and Kootanic tribes — a post on the Kooskooske,
and one on the Wallamette river. All of these establishments were
included in the transfer of Astoria.

This inglorious termination of the enterprise took place on the jg.g
16th October, 1813. It was principally brought about by a
Scotchman, named Duncan McDougal, whom Hunt had unwisely
left in command of the fort, and wHo was strongly suspected of hav-
ing been bribed to his course by the rival company. At any rate, the
arrangement squared with his feelings, and he made it subserve his
interest.

On the 1st December, before the transfer was completed, the Brit-
ish sloop of loar Raccoon arrived at Astoria, expecting a rich plunder
by the capture of the magazines and treasures of the Pacific Com-
pany ; but all she found for prize was the American flag still waving
its glorious folds above the fort. This remained there, notwithstand-
ing the existence of the Pacific Company had ceased more than two
months before ; for the citizens of the United States who had be-
longed to it, insisted that this emblem of the Republic's sovereignty
over the soil, formed no portion of the transfer to the English com-
pany. The following account of the capture of Astoria, and the
taking possession of the fort, by Ross Cox, who gathered his in-
formation on the spot, shortly after the events took place, will not
inly serve to throw some light upon the motive of McDougal's
ueachery, but will also corroborate our claims to the first settlement
of that region.

" C'lptain Black," (the commander of the T?accoon,) " took possession of Astoria
in tho name of his Britannic Majesty, and re-baptised it by the name of Fort
Georjjn He also insisted on having an inventory taken of the valuable stock of

HISTORY OF OREGON.

{ati and other property purchaied from the American company, with a view to the
adoption of ulterior proct^cdinija ifi England for the recovery of the viilue from the
North West Company ; but he Bnbseqiicnlly relinquished this idea, and we heard
no more of his claims. The TndianA at the mouth of the Columbia knew well th.u
Great Britain and America were distinct nations, and that they were then at war,
but were iirnorant of the arrangement made between Messrs. McDougaland Tavish,
(the agent of iho North Wesi Company,) the former of whom still continued as
nominal chief at the fort. On the arrival of the Raccoon, which they quickly dis-
covered to be one of King George's fiirliting ships, they repaired armed to the fort,
and requested an audience of Mr. McDonj;aT. He was somewhat surprised at their
numliers and warlike appearance, and demanded the object of such an unusual visit.
Concomly, the principal chief of the Chenooks, (whose daughter McUougal had
married,) thereupon addressed him in a long speech, in the course of which ho said
that King George had sent a ship full of warriors, and loaded with nothing but big
guns, to take the Americans and make them all slaves ; and that as theij (the
Americans) tccrc the first v>hile men that settled in their country, and treated the
Indians like good relations, they resolved to defend them from King George's war-
riors, and were now ready to conceal themselves in the woods, close to the wharf,
from whence they would be able with their guns and arrows to shoot all tho men
that should attempt to land from the English boats, while tho people in the fort
could 6re at them with their big guns and rifles. This proposition was oflfered with
an earnestness of manner that admitted no doubt of its sincerity ; two armed boats
from the Raccoon were approaching, and, had the people in the fort felt disposed to
accede to the wishes of the Indians, every man of them would have been destroyed
by an invisible enemy. Mr. McDougal thanked them for their friendly offer ; but
added, that notwithstanding the nations were at war, the people in the boats would
not injure him nor any of his people, and therefore requested them to throw by their
war shirts and arms, and receive the strangers as their friends. They at first
seemed astonished at this answer ; but, on assuring them in the most positive man-
ner that he was under no apprehensions, they consented to give up their weapons
for a few days. They afterwards declared they were sorry for having complied with
Mr. Dougal's wishes ; for when they observed Captain Black, surrounded by his
ofRcers and marines, break the bottle of port on the flag-staff, and hoist the British
ensign, after changing the name of the fort, they remarked, that however much
one might wish to conceal tho fact, the Americans were undoubtedly made slaves ;
and they were not convinced of their mistake until the sloop of war had departed
without taking any prisoners."

' It is not our intention to assert that McDougal should have accepted
of this offer of the Indians against his own nation, but it proves that with
such friends as the aborigines of the country, the settlement could
never have been seriously distressed for supplies ; and, therefore, that
his representations, on which the resolution to abandon the place was
based, were false. Had Mr. Hunt possessed those means of resistance,
and been in McDougal's situation, the property of the company would
not have been sold, and the flag upon the fort would never have been
struck.

The war ended in 1814, and by the treaty of Ghent, signed on

the 24th December, of that year, it was declared " that all
territory^ places^ and possessions whatever, taken by either party from
the other during, or after the war, should be restored without delay. ^^
In accordance with the provisions of this article, the President of the
United States, in October, 1817, despatched the sloop of war Ontario,
with Captain Biddle and J. B. Prevost as Commissioners to Astoria,
and they duly received the surrender of that place by the British
authorities, on the 6th day of October, 1818.

In this same year a negotiation was carried on in London,

between the plenipotentiaries of the two Governments, for the
settlement of a northern boundary line,* which resulted in the establish-

* See Appendix, No. 7.

1814.

1616. ,

*«

HISTORY OF OREGON.

)t>ent of the 49th parallel, from the north-western point of the Lake
of the Woods to the Rocky Mountains, as the divitl line between
the British Possessions and the territory of the Staws, leaving the
portion beyond the Rocky Mountains, bordering on the Pacific, subject
to the restrictions of the following article :

'* Art. 3. It ia agreed that any country that may bo claimed by cither party on
the northwftst coast of America, westward of the Stony Mountaini, shall, together
with its harbors, bays, and creeks, and the naviuation of all rivers within iho same,
bo free and open for the term of ten years from the date of the signature of the
present Convention, to the vessels, citizens and subjects of the two Powers ; it being
well understood that this agreement ia not to be construed to the prejudice of any
r.laim winch either of the two high contracting parties may have to any part of the
said country, nor shall if be taken to affect the claims of another Power or State to
any part of the said country ; the only object of the high contracting parlies, in that
respect, being to prevent disputes and difficulties among themselves."

It is plain from the wording of this article that England relied very
lightly upon the strength of her own claims to the territory in dispute ;
the concluding clause being a virtual acknowledgment of the superior
rights of Spain, whose anger is carefully deprecated, by the assurance
that neither party aspired to her title, but that " their only object " in
making this arrangement in regard to the common privileges of naviga-
tion, fishing, &c., was to " avoid differences among themselves."
It is not necessary to explain that while this arrangement goes to
conclude the pretensions of its proposer it does not now in the slight-
est degree affect us. The whole aim of the manoeuvre is sufficiently
transparent to those acquainted with the political relations existing
between the courts of Madrid and St. James at the periods of its per-
formance. Impoverished and feeble Spain was looked upon by Great
Britain as a much less formidable opponent than the Bepublic
which had just emerged triumphantly from a war with her upon her
own element. Her object, therefore, was to preclude us at all risks.
She would be satisfied if she could make her own invalid title balance
ours, for then she would magnanimously propose a joint relinquishment
in favor of the third claimant whose cause she had so insidiously
fortified.* After, this it would not have been long, of course, before
exhausted Spain would have been forced to redeem one of the deep
involvements incurred in the peninsular war, by turning the north
west coast over to her subtle and grasping creditor. It would
appear that our ministers at London divined this motive in the course
of the negotiation, for an immediate offer was made on our part to
Spain, and that power, wisely concluding to sell rather than to give
away, closed with our overtures at once ; and thus England's over-
reaching diplomacy was skilfully turned against herself.

The negotiation with Spairi on this subject terminated on the 22d
of February, 1819, (four months after the treaty of 1818 of which j^jg
the above article is a part,) in what is now known as the " Flori-
da treaty." By this treaty the United States purchased all Florida,
and likewise all the territory belonging to the crown of Spain north
of the 42d d?gree of latitude for the sum of five millions of dollars, in
the shape of a release of that amount of claims held against her by our

* This opinion ia strengthened by one of England's present offers of compromise
which is, that both of us relinquish Oregon, for the common settlement of it for an
independent nation, and also by her recently developed intrigues in relation to Cali-
fornia and Texas.

lUSTonV OV OIIEHON.

1818.

inorclinuts, and of which tlio Unittnl States nssmnccl the payment-
Tliis arran<;i!iiiont of course rner!5(;d tlie Spani.sh title in our own,"
and by llius reinovin!!; the only possibh; coni.licling claim, phiced tiie
latter upon a basis oi'indir<pi)tahle validity.

The chief value however that w(? attach to this cession on the ))art
of Spain, is for its comph'te subversion of the pretensions of lOnijlani!,
on the principle of original discovery of points of the coast. Our own
uidividual title to Oregon is in itself made complete to O.T by the
.single principle of international law, which confers the whole country
drained by a river and its tributaries, to the discoverer of its mouth.
^Ve recognized this principle in the purchase of the immense territory
formc^rly comprehended under ihe name of Loui'^iana, and whih* we
have paid a penalty of ///"/te/i m'lUion of dollars in vindication of its
integrity, wo have a peculiar right to the benefit of it when it runs in
our favor. I

The treaty of 1818 expiring in IS'iS, the convention was re-
newed in 1.S20, but as before, no definite conclusion was arrived
at, and the negotiation resulted in the following year, ju ;; where it had
begun, the provisions of the former treaty being indefinitely extended,
subject only to the additional stipulation, that either party desiring to
abrogate it, might do so on giving twelve months notice to the other. ;j;

From the period after the sale of the Pacific Fur Company to the
North West Association, (now merged in the Hudson's Bay Company,)
and the consequent departure of most of the Americans, British
subjects, consisting entirely of attaches of this latter body, acquired n
preponderance in the territory, and by ingenious management of their
wealth and power, continued for a time pugresslvely to increase it.
This circumstance has been very seriout-iy brought forward by the
supporters of the English title, as a new right to the territory they
usurp ; as if the tyranny their monstrous wealth had enabled them to
exercise over every American citizen within the reach of their inllu-
ence, gave them an additional right to outrage the Government by a
usurpation of its title.

There is nothing overstrained in these remarks ; indeed, they but
very inadequately express the outrageous means resorted to by these
affiliated tyrants to crush every interest oppcsed to them. The fol-
lowing extract taken from the work of Thomas P. Farnham,a traveller
of ability and character, will afford some notion of their operations and
policy :

" Fort Hall was built by Captain Wyeth, of Boston, in 18.32, for the purposes
of trniio with the Indians in its vicinity. He had laiten goods into iho lower part
of the Territory to exchange for sahnon. But competition soon drove him from his

♦ Sec Appendix, No. 8.

t It may be captiously objected to this argument, that France derived hnr tiilf
from the cession of Spain In 1800, but it v^ill be rRcoliocted that France oriiiiiiaily
acquired a title to the vast region watered by the Mississippi by the discovery of the
mouth of tliat river by two French missionaries m 16G3. and sustained it by subse-
quent t'xplor.uion and 'settlement, which is our case exactly in regard to the Colum-
bia. On this claim she held it for a hundred years, till by a treaty of policy in 1763,
involvintr no question of validity of title, it was ceded to Spain, and by a similar
arrangement, on similar considerations, it was in 1800 ceded back to France. Its
so\ereignty passed from band to hand on the strength of the principle involved in
the original title, and by virtue of that principle, it ccine to us.

t See .\ppcndix, No. 9.

HISTORY OF ORKGOIf.

fisheries to tli'u romoto i<pot, where he hnped to be prrmillcd to purchmo fnra of tho
Indians wiflioiii. being molctitcd Ity tho Hudson'n Buy Company, whoso nenre»l|insi
was fit'vcn hiindrrd miles avviiy.

In tliiH hn wan disnppointcd. In piirsHanco of tho avowed doctrine of tlint company,
that no others havo a ri;j;ht to trade in tho furs west of the U(icl<y Moiinluins, while
tiieiisoof cnpiial and their incomparable hIuII and perscvernnceciiri prevent it, they
establinhed it fort near iiim, preceded him, followed him every where, «rid cut tho
throat of his proafierity with such kindness and politeness, that VN'yeih was induced
to sell his wliulu interest, existent and prospective, in Oregon, tu his generous but
too indefatigable, skilful, and powerful antagonixts.

Mr. Farnhnm has written \.\w. word " gtincrous" in good I'aith and
honest Roman characters, as if h« really thought it were generous in
the II. H. Company, to give Mr. Wyeth a price Tor his property, alter
forcing him to its sale by the basest means ! But Mr. Farnhain ate a
most superlative dinner afterward at Fort Vancouver, and this may
somewhat account for the tenderness of his construction.

\Vhile we are U|)on this subject we will furnish the reader with a
further insight into the corporate economy and operations of this
association, from the same author.

" A ehartor was granled bv Charles II., in 1070, to certain British subjectt
associated under tho name of "The Hudson's Bay Company, in virtue of which
they were allowed the cxctufivo privilege of establiahin;^ trading factories on the
Hudson's Bay and its tributary rivers. Soon after the grant, the company took
]io88PB3ion of the territory, and enji)yed its trade without opposition till 1787 ; when
was organized a powerful rival under tho title of the " North American Fur Com-
pany ol Canada." This company was chiefly composed of Canadian-born subjects
— men whose native energy and thorough acquaintance with the Indian character,
peculiarly <iualified thpm for the dangers ai,d hardships of a fur trader's life in the
frozen regions of British America. Accordingly we soon find the Northwest out-
reaching in et;terprize and commercial importance their less active neighliors of
Hudson's Day ; and the jealousins naturally arising between parties so situated,
leading to the; most barbarous battles, and the sacking and burning each other's posts.
This state of things in 1819 arrested the ulitnlion of parliaincnt, and an act was
passed in 1821 consolidating the two companies into one, under the title of "Tho
Hudson's Bay Company."

" This association is now, under the operation of their charter, in solo possession
of all that tract of country bounded north by the northern Arctic Ocean ; east by the
Davis' Straits and the Allaiitie Ocean; south anil southwestwardly t y the northern
boundary of the Canadas and a line drawn through the centre of Lako Superior :
thence northwestwardly to tho Ijake of the Wood ; thence west on the 49tii parallel
•f north latitude to the Rocky Mountains, and along those monntains to tlio 61th
parallel ; tlience westwardly on that line to a point nine marine leagues from the
Pacific Ocean ; and on tho west by a line commencing at the last mentioned point,
and running northwardly parallel to tho Pacific coast till it intersects the 141st
parallel of longitude west from Greenwich, Eng., and thence duo north to the
Arctic Sea.

"They have also leased for twenty years, commencing in March, 1840, all of
Russian America except the post of Sitka ; the lease renewable at the pleasure of
the H. B. C. They are also in possession of Oregon under treaty stipulation between
Britain and the United States. Its stockholders are British capitalists, resident in
Great Britain. From these are elected a board of managers, who hold their meet-
ings and transact their business at " The Hudson's Bay House," in London. This
board buys goods and ship them to their territory, sell the furs for which they are
exchanged, and do all other business connected with the company's tiansactions,
except the execution of their own orders, the actual business of collecting furs, in
their territory. This duty is entrusted to a class of men who are called partners,
but who, in fact, receive certain portions of tho annual net profits of the company's
business, as a compensation for their services..

" These gentlemen are divided by their employers into diflfercnt grades. The first
of these is the Governor- general of all the company's posts in North America. He
resides at York Factory, on the west shore of Hudson's Bay. The second class are
chief factors ; the third, chief traders ; the fourth, traders. Below these is another

itiiiTOiiY or ORCaON.

■%•■

citii, called elerki. Thois are usually youngor mnmbori of rmpcctable Scotliali
familiea. They are not dirnctly interfatcd in tlin comimny'* pruf'it*. Iiui receive an
anmi'il anlary of X 100, fooil, suitHUo clothing, and ii body it-rvnnt.duriiiK an npprcn-
tict'ihip of sdven yrnri. At the expirHliun of this term they orn eligible tu the
tradecnhipi, fHcter*hip8, i^rc., that m'ly bo vacated by donth or retirement from the
aervict.'. VVhiln WHilint; for iidvnncnment thny are allowed from X'80 tu £\iO per
annum. Tlio lorvanta omplovcd about their pottii and in their journeyinga are half*
breed IroqnoiH and (!!ana<lian Fronchrncn. Theto they enlist fur fivu year*, at wages
varying from 608 to 880 p^r nnnuni.

"An annnnl Conned componod of the Governor General, chief factors and chief
traders, \» liuld at York Knctory. Before this body iire bron^rlit tlio ropurtx of the
trade of each dintrict ; iiropusitions fur new enterprises, and modifications of old
ones; and all these and other matters deemed important, being acted upon, the pro-
ceedings had thereon and the reports from the several districts are forwardtnl to the
Uoard of Uirrctors in London, and subjected to its fiiinl order.

"This shrewd company never allow their territory to be overtrapped. If the
annual return from any well tra()ped district be less in any year than formerly, they
order a less number still to be taken, until the benver and other fur bearing animals
have time to increase. Tiie income of the company is thus rendered uniform, and
their business perpetual.

" Some ideo may be formed of the net profit of their business, from the facts that
the shares of the company'rt stock, which originally cost JiiOO, are at lUO per cent,
premium, and that the dividends range from ten per cent, upward, and tliis too
while they are creating out uf the net proceeds an immense reserve fund, lo be
txpendct! in keeping; other persons out of the trade.

" They also have two migratory trading and trapping establishments of fifty or
sixty men each. — The one traps and trades in Upper California ; the other in the
country lying west, south, and east of Fort Hall. They also have a steam vessel
heavily armed, which runs alont; the coast, and among its bays and inlets, for the
twofold purpose of trading with the natives in places where they have no post, and
of outbiddir.gand outselling any American vessel that attempts to trade in those seas.
They likewise have five sailing vessels, measuring from 100 to 500 tons burthen
and armed with cannon, muskets, cutlasses, &.c. These are employed a part of the
year in various kinds of trade about the coast and the islands of the North Pacific,
and the remainder of the time in bringing goods from London, and bearing back the
furs for which they are exchanged.

One of these ships arrives at Fort Vancouver in the spring of each year, laden
with coarse woolens, cloths, baizes, and blankets ; hardware and cutlery ; cotton
cloths, calicoes, and cotton handkerchiefs ; tea, sugar, colTee, and cocoa ; rice, tobac-
co, soap, beads, guns, powder, lead, rurn, wine, brandy, gin, and playing cards ; boots,
shoes, and ready-made clothing, &c. ; also, every description of sea stores, canvas,
cordage, paints, oils, chains and chain cables, anchors, &c. Having discharged these
" supplies," it takes a cargo of lumber to the Sandwich Islands, or of flour and good*
to the Russians at Sitka or Kamskatka ; returns in August ; receives the furs col-
lected at Fort Vancouver, and sails again for England.

"The value of peltries annually collected in Oregon, by the Hudson Bay Com-
pany, is about 8140,000 in the London or New-Yoik market. The prime cost of
the goods exchanged for them is about $20,000. To this must be added the per
contage of the officers as governors, factors, &c. the wages and food of about 400
men, the expense of shipping to bring supplies of goods and take back the returns
of futs, and two years' interest on the investments. The company made arrange-
ments in 1939 with the Russians at Sitka and at other ports, about the sea of Kams-
katka, to supply them with flour and goods at fixed prices. And as they are opening
large farms on the Cowclitz, the Umpqua, and in other parts of the Territory, for
the production of wheat for that market ; and as they can afTord lo sell goods pur-
chased in England under a contract of 50 years' standing, 20 or 30 per cent, cheaper
than American merchants can, there seems a certainty that the Hudson's Bay Com-
pany will engross the entire trade of the North PaciKc, as it has that of Oregon.

" Soon after the union of the Northwest and Hudson's Bay Companies, the Brit
ish Parliament passed an act extending the jurisdiction of the Canadian courts over
the territories occupied by these fur traders, whether it were " owned " or " claimed
by Great Britain." Under this act, certain gentlemen of the fur company were ap-
pointed justices of the peare, and empowered to entertain prosecutions fur minor
ofTences, arrest and send to Canada criminals of a higher order, and try, render judg-
ment, and grant execution in civil suits where the amount in issue should not ex-

HISTORY or ORinOIf

r<>ctl X300 ; and in ciia or non-payment, to imprison the debtor Rt their own forti,
or III ilifl jail* of Canada.

" And ihiiH in Hhown thnt the trade, and the civil and rriminnl juriadiciion in
Oregon arn ht-ld by DritiHli aulijecia ; that American citizena are deprived of their
own coinnH-rcial rnjlits ; that Ihny are hahle to be nrrei»trd on thf'ir own territory by
(iniccrn iif Urili-th ciiiirtK, tried iti tlis Ainoricun doiiiniii by Uritiah jud^jea, and im-
prisoned or hunj; iiccnrding to thn lawa ot the Uritiah empire, for acta don« within
the lerritorini limits of the U«pubhc.*'

We have hore an example of the very llbernl construction the
British govornmont have put upon th« common right to " navi-
gate the bays, creeks and harbors of the coast. In defianoe of 8
treaty expressly denying the arrogation of any riu;ht of sovereignty on
the part of either of the high contracting parties over the other,
it has seized upon the chief prerogatives, nay, the very essence
of sovereignty itself, by the establishment of courts of judicature
throughout the territory, and by the positive enforcement of its laws
on all within it.

That this course justifies any extremity of counter action on our
part, in the shape of immediate occupation, or otherwise, is plain to
the judgment of any unbiassed mind. Indeed, when we consider
the inimical influences that have been unfairly brought to bear upon
the interests of our citizens — withering their enterprise and para-
lyzing their energies — we can hardly restrain from advocating retalia-
tory proceedings to fulfil the measure of redress.*

Having traced, in regular detail, the progress of every important
event connected with the discovery and settlennent of the North West
coast and the territory of Oregon, we may now take a brief and com-
prehensive view of the whole subject, for the purpose of measuring
at a glance the aspect and merits of the entiie question.

We find, then, that a piece of territory, comprising four hundred
thousand square miles, and lying on the North West coast between
parallels 42"^ and 54° 40' north, is claimed by Great Britain and the
United states respectively.

We find that the English Government advance international law
in support of their claims, and base their pretensions upon the prin-
ciples which confer title by discovery, and which bestow the posses-
sion and sovereignty of the whole region drained by a river and its
tributaries, upon the discoverer of its mouth ; and we find that they
have nothing better to oflTer than the voyages of Drake and Cook to
entitle them to the benefits of the first, and that they seek to secure
the latter by the exploits of Meares and Vancouver !

The United States accept these propositions, rebutting all the
flimsy pretensions by which they are sought to be sustained on the
other side, by the Spanish title ; and confirming its own, independent
of both, on the exclusive merits of having first discovered, first ex-
plored, and first settled the territory in question. The conclusions
are established in the oiuer following.

First — We find that Spain, whose claims are ours by purchase,

* We have learned by recent information from Oregon, that the American aet-
tlcrs beyond the Koci<y mountains have resisted the exercise of British ciuthority,
and formed a local legislature of their own. If our citizens should be able to
sustain their new position, il does not alter the nature of the above aggression. The
oppressor is nor e the less deserving of condemnation because he is obliged to re-
tinquiah the victinis of his wrong.

HISTORY OF OREGON.

had explored the coast as high as latitude 43° north, nearly forty
years previous to the arrival of Drake at the same point, and we
find in a series oF national expeditions she stretched that exploration
to tlie 5Slh degree in 177"), three years previous to the arrival of
Captain Cook, on whose assumed discovery of Nootka, the English
place their heaviest degree of reliance.

Second— \Ye find that the impudent claim for Meares (!) of the
discovery of the Columbia, because he looked for and could not find
it, is subverted by the superior claim of Heceta, (if either exploit
furnishes a claim,) who sailed through its bay three years before, as-
serted its existence, assigned its precise latitude, and laid it down
upon the Spanish charts.

Third — We find that Captain Robert Gray, of Boston, in the
course of the years 1790 and 1791, discovered sounds, inlets, and
channels ; entered rivers and circumnavigated islands along the whole
line of the coast ; that in 1792, he next discovered the mouth of the
Columbia, and navigated it to the distance of over twenty miles in-
land, before any other white man had ever seen it ; and sorrv are we
to say, we alsJO find that a mean and dishonorable attempt was made
to rob him of the honor due to the daring exploit, by two British
officers, who, though they sailed thither, months afterwards, with his
charts for their guides, sought by a disgraceful quibble to appropriate
his credit to themselves.

Fourth — VVe find that during the years 1796 and 1814, the trade
and commerce of the jiorth Pacific was carried on exclusivel}' by our
citizens, and that they rendered the geography of that region almost
perfect by the numerous discoveries tliey made in ranging up and
down its north west shores.

Fifth — VVe find that the British reliance on the pretended conces-
sions of the Spanish treaty of 1790, is forced and fallacious, for the
war of 1796 annulled its imperfect stipulations, and their clinging to
it has no other eflirict than to substantiate the value of our purchase.

Sixth — We find that having triumphantly rebutted the English
claims on the score of discovery, we beat them likewise on the points
of exploration and settlement, for in 1S05-6, a scientific commission
appointed by our government, thoroughly explored the Oregon terri-
tory from the sources of the Columbia to the sea, and were in full
possession of it by settlement six months, or a year, before a British
establishment was made, even as low as 55° north.

And thus, to conclude, we find that every condition imposed by
justice, every formality required by international law, has been per-
formed by us to consummate our right to Oregon ; and while all our
dealings in reference to the subject have been straightforward, and in
gooil faith, we have been met with nothing on the part of England,
but arrogant assumption, low finesse, and vulgar cheatery. No MTong
has b{!en too bold for their attempt, no resource too mean for their
adoption, and the contempt that is in one moment excited by the
unworthy fetch of a pretended discoverer, or the miserable subterfuge
of a conspiracy of geographers, gives place in the next to the indigna-
tion aroused at the unparalleled arrogation of a foreign corporation, of
sovereignty over the free citizens of our Republic.

If we have submitted to this long enough, it is surely time for us
io say so. " '

,l-i
«

Right

knows of no degrees ,

Justice acknowledges no

HnXORT OF OREGON. 93

relatloni^hip with policy ; and we should reject the proffer of a com-
promise as unworthy of the dignity of our claims. The acceptance
of a composition, is at best but a submission to a portion of wrong,
and the nation which takes but a share of its due, when it is strong
enough to enforce the whole, is dishonored both in the eyes of its own
People and of the world. Let us therefore settle this question as
becomes us, and no longer stand in the humiliating position of negotia-
ting with Great Britain, whether we shall have our own or no ! We
should be baffled no longer with the absurd pretensions of the Drakes,
the Cooks, the Vancouvers, and the Meares, those diplomatic John
Does and Richard Roes, who are only introduced to confuse the
question, and to mislead its issues. We should disdain all comprom-
ises, and refuse all proposals of arbitrament. Monarchs are no judges
for Republics. We should, in brief, reject the entertainment of
any consideration short of the full, and unconditional resumption
OF ALL Oregon, whenever such a policy shall be deemed by us to be
Necessary.

GEOGRAPHICAL AND GENERAL VIEW OF OREGON.

ITS ISLANDS.

,!.■:.

Hatiirs satisfactorily established out title to Oregon, our next inquiry becomes,
^hat it is, and h«w we may most readily and completely avail ourselves of its ad-
vantages. We have already shown in the foregoing pages, that Oregon is a vast
«ountry lying on the Pacific ocean, stretching along the coast through twelve de-
grees and forty minutes of latitude, extending its eastern limits into the body of
the Rocky mountains, and embracing within those boundaries an area of four hun-
dred thousand square miles. Attached to this immense territory, and extending
along the whole line of its coast from the Strait of Fuca to its northern limit, and
even beyond that to the Arctic sea, is a continuous chain of islands, known by the
general name of the North Wcst Aicchipela<?o, which in themseves can scarcely
be regarded as less than a feature |of secondary importance. The largest are all
traversed by mountain ridges, in the direction of their greatest length, and the whole
archipelago may be considered as a portion of the westermost chain of mountains,
broken off from the main land at the Strait of Fuca, and running through the sea,
connecting those of Oregon on the south, with the range on the north, of which
Mounts Fairweather and St. Elias are the most prominent peaks.

The first and chief of these islands is Qdadra and Vancouvbr's. This extends
along the coast from 48^ 30', in a northerly direction, for the space of one hundred
and sixty miles, and forms, by its parallel course with the coast, (from which it is
distant about twenty miles,) the celebrated arm of the sea called the Strait of Fuca.
Its average width is about forty-five miles, and it contains a surface of about 16,000
square miles. The dimate of this island is mild and salubrious, and large portions
of its soil are arable and capable of advantageous cultivation. It has an abundance of
fine harbors, which afford accommodations for vessels of any size. The chief of
these, is Nootka Sound, the Port Lorenzo of the Spaniards, a spacious and secure
bay, running deep into the land, under parallels 49*^ 34', and containing within itself
many other harbors, affording most excellent anchorage.

A few mites south of Nootka, we come to another large bay, called Clyoquot, in
wbkh we have seen (bat Captain Kcadrick preferred to remain daring the winter of

'T*

HISTORY OF OREGON.

1789, to any other harbor on the coast. There is another, still further sou tit
named Nittinat, which lies at the entrance of the Strait of Fuca, and is filled with
an archipelago of little islands. The coasts of this island, and indeed, the coasts
of those above, abound with fine fish of various descriptions, among which the
■almon predominate. In consequence of their fisheries, the islands are more nu-
merously populated by the natives than the territory of the main land.

The next island of significance, is Washington, or Queen Chailotte's. It re-
ceived the former title from Captain Gray, who circumnavigated it for the first time
in the summer of 1789. It is triangular in its form, is one hundlred and fifty miles
in length, and contains four thousand square miles. A^fter Gray's visit, it became
the favorite resort of the American traders of the north Pacific. Its climate and
•oil are represented by Captain Ingraham as being extremely well adapted' for agri-
cultural purposes, particularly those portions in the vicinity of a" fine harbor in lati-
tude 5'3° 3' on its eastern coast, and at Fort Estrada, or Hancock's river, on the
north side.

The islands of the next importance below the southern cape of Prince-of-Walea'
Island, (which is the point of oar northern boundary line,) are Pitt's, Burke's,
Dundas' and the Princess Royal groups. Most of these lie between Washington
Island and the shore, and form a numerous archipelago, which renders the interven-
ing navigation extremely tortuous and difiicult. Between Washington and Van-
couver's Island, are a continuous line of others, of considerable size, lying closer to
the land, and following with their eastern outlines almost every sinuosity of the
continental shore. These latter groups are for the moat part uninhabited, and are
composed of granite and pudding stone, which appear to be the prevailing rock
north of latitude forty-nine. They are generally destitute of fresh water, and
having but few anchorages, the strong, intervening currents render navigation
perplexed and dangerous. They are only resorted to by the natives in the Dpring
and in the fall on account of their fisheries.

■1

■$

i:,i

THE COAST AMD ITS HABBORS^

The coast of Oregon from the forty-second parallel to the mouth of the Colum-
bia, pursues a northwardly course, and from that point, trends with a slight and
gradual westerly inclination to the Strait of Fuca. Its profile consists of a bold,
high, wall-like shore of rock, only occasionally broken into gaps or depressions,
where the rivers of the territory find their way into the sea. The first of these
openings above the southern boundary line, is the mouth of the Klamet. This is a
stream of considerable size,, issuing from the land in 42° 40', and exteixiiiig into it
to a distance of 150 miles. It has two large tributaries, called by the unromantic
titles of Shasty and Nasty rivers, an error of taste, which it is to be hoped the fu-
ture " Alleghanians" who inhabit their fertile valleys, will correct and reform. The
bay of the Klamet is admissible only for vessels of very light draught ; its whole
valley is extremely fertile, and the country adjacent to the stream abounds with a
myrtaceous tree, which, at the slightest agitation of the air, dififuses a fragrance that
lends to it another feature of an earthly paradise. Between this and the Umpqua,
river, disemboguing in 33° 30',. are two other small streams, neither of which,
however, afford a harbor available for commercial purposes.

The Umpqua liver is a considerable stream, entering the land to the distance of a
hundred miles. It has a tolerable harbor, navigable, however, only for vessels
drawing eight feet of water, and its stream, thirty miles from the sea, is broken by
rapids and falls. Its valley is blessed with its portion of the general fertility of the
lower region of Oregon, and consists of alternate groves of stupendous timber aixl
rich arable plains. The Hudson's Bay Company have a fort at the mouth of the
river, the site of which is the scene of a flourishing settlement. Five lesser streams
find their way into the sea, at intervals, from this point to the mouth of the Colum-

HISTORY OF ORECON.

bia, and contribute their aid in fertilizing the extensive region lying between the
<:oB8t and the parallel barrier running at the distance of a hundred or a hundred and
fifty miles, known as the President's range of mountains.

The mouth of the Oobmbia is found at 46° 16', but is only distinguishable from
the sea, by a slight and gradual inner curve in the shore. Like all the harbors
formed by the rivers on the sea coast, it is obstructed with extensive sand bars,
formed by the deposits of the river on its meeting with the ocean, and, according to
Lieutenant Wilkes, " its entrance, which has trom four and a half to eight fathoms of
water, is impracticable for two-thirds of the year, and the difficulty of leaving it is
equally great." It is thought by some, that these obstacles may be removed in time
t)y artificial means, but it is an extremely doubtful question whether it can ever be
made an available harbor for vessels of any draught.

Passing Cape Disappointment, the northern headland of the river's mouth, we sail
forty miles further north, where we find a secure anchorage in Gray's bay, for vessels
drawing ten feet of water ; but this harbor is considered of little importance on
account of the extensive sand flats, which usurp the greatest portion of its entire
surface. From Gray's bay, to Cape Flattery, the southern point of the strait of
Fuca, but two streams, and those of but trifling significance, break the overhanging-
barrier of the coast.

We have now traversed the whole coast of Oregon lying immediately on the
Pacific, and in its course of five hundred miles, find but two places of refuge for
vessels, (Gray's bay, and the mouth of the Columbia) and even these are of but
trifling importance in a commercial point of view. Indeed, all geographical autho-
rities agree, that none of the harbors on this portion of the coast, can be deemed
safe ports to enter.

The next branch of the coast demanding our attention, is that which lies along
the strait of Fuca. This immense arm of the sea cuts off the northward line of the
coast at Cape Flattery, in latitude 48° 23', and runs apparently into the land in a
south-easterly direction for about a hundred and twenty miles. It then turns north-
west by west, and following that direction for three hundred miles more, joins the
sea again at Pintard's sound. The southern portion of this strait varies from fifteen
to thirty miles in width, and the coast of Oregon along its course, is an exception
in its maritime advantages, to the portion immediately on the sea. It abounds with
fine inland sounds, offering a secure anchorage to vessels of the heaviest draught,
and there are no portions of the interior navigation, which conceals a hidden danger.
The straits can be entered in any wind, and the great rise and fall of the tides offer
facilities for building maritime establishments unsurpassed in any portion of the
world. Here, whatever direction emigration may for the present take, the commer-
Cfial operations of the territory will eventually centre, and the din of our naval
arsenals will proclaim to the world the fulfilment of the prediction that

" The course of empire has westward found its way."

The most important branch of this strait is a spacious arm descending from its
eastern extremity in a southerly direction, into the land to the distance of one hun-
dred miles. It is called Admiralty Inlet, and the lowermost portion of it is known as
Poget's sound. This inlet, like the other southern portions of the strait, is filled
with splendid harbors, the southernmost of which, has the peculiar advantage of being
within but little more than three hundred miles of the navigable waters of the Mis-
souri. Great quantities of bituminous coal have been found in its vicinity, and there
are other peculiar advantages attached to the station, which must eventually make
it a point of tho first importance. These circumstances have not escaped the
watchful eyes of the Hudson's Bay Company, and they have already established a
fort and a settlement there by way of securing possession of the point.* At the south-

*Theooiuiderationof the maritime advantages of the southern coast of the Strait of Fuos and
Fuget's Sound, suggests a pretty forcible view of the remarkable liberality of Oreat Britain^

HisTOKY OT ovtvaatr^

1 ■;

east end of Vancouver's island, there is a small archipelago of islands/which, tiiongb
well wooded, are generally destitute of fresh water. They are, consequently, for the
most part uninhabited. The coast of the main land along the north western course of
the strait, is cut up and penetrated hy numerous inlets, called from their perpendicular
sides and deep water, canals, liiey afford no good harbors, and offer but few
inducements to frequent them. One large river empties into the strait about latitude
49°, which pursues a northerly direction for several kundred miles. It is called
the Tacoutche, or Fraser's river, and has a trading post named Fort Langley,
situated near its mouth. The other portion of the coaet to the north is much of
the same character as that south of this river, on the stiait. It is cut up by inlete
and the numerous islands v«hich line it, and the heavy fogs that are frequent in th*
region, render it at all times- difficult to approach or to navigate.

THE NATURAL DIVISIONS OF OREGON. •

THK THKBE REGIONS. I

Oregon ia divided inta tlu-ee distinct regions, by three separate mountain ranges,,
with an additional inferior chain, binding the extreme outline of the Pacific coast.

Overlooking the rim upon the ocean edge, the first chain we come to, is the
Cascade Mointains, or as they are sometimes called, the President's Range. They
start below the forty-second parallel, and run, on a line with the coast at a distance
varying from 100 to 150 miles throughout the whole length of the territory ; rising
in many places to a height from 12,000 to 15,000 feet above the level of the sea in
separate cones. Their succession is so continuous, as to almost interrupt the com-
munication between the sections, except where the two great rivers, the Columbia
and Fraser's, force a passage through ; an achievement which they only accomplish
by being torn into foam, plunged down precipices, or compressed into deep, and
dismal gorges. This chain of mountains have obtained the title of the President'e
range, in consequence of their most elevated peaks having been named after the
chief magistrates of the United States, by a patriotic American traveller.

The stupendous line runs from Mount Jackson to Mount Tyler, and there is yet
room among their gigantic cousins, for several succeeding dignitaries. The idea
which suggested their adaptation to our natural history was a happy one. Perpetual
mementoes in the archives of our nation, they form no perishable notes of heraldry
for the contempt of a succeeding age, but basing their stupendous data upon the
eternal earth, pierce with their awful grandeur the region of the clouds, to tran<
scribe their records on the face of heaven. The first of them. Mount Jackfion,
commences the list, in 41° 10' ; Jefferson stands in 41* 30' ; John Quincy Adama
in 42® 10'; Madison in 43"» ; Monroe in 43° 10'; Adams in 4»<»; Washington
(the Mount St. Helens of the English) in 46° ; Van Buren, north-west of Puget'e
■ound, in 48° ; Harrison, east of the same, in 47 J, and Tyler in 49°. Of these,
Mount Jackson is the largest, and is said to rise above the level of the sea near twenty
thousand feet. Washington, which is next in size, is estimated at 17,000 to 18,000.
This is the most beautiful of ail. It ascends in a [wrfect cone, and two-thirds of its
height is covered with perpetual snow.*

The region of country lying between this range of mountains and the sea, i»
known as the fir it or lower region of Oregon.

The Blue moontains form the next division. They commence nearly in the centre
of Oregon, on parallel of longitude 43° west from Washington, and in 46° of latitude.

offer of the Columbia as the line of compromiie. This, while it secures to ber every navigable
harbor, does not leave us one.

♦ The limit of perpetual snow for these mountains is^ acoerdipc to Lieutenaat Willtes , 6,600
feetframthelevelofthesea. ^

Jf^

HISTORY OF OR^OOff^

h, thongfe
ly, for the

course of
)endicular

but few
It latitude

is called

Langley,
8 much of
) by inlets
lent in th«

kin ranges^
fie coast.
! to, is the
»ge. They

a distance
ory; rising
' the sea in
>t the com-
t Columbia
accomplish

deep, and
President'^
B after the

lere is yet

The idea

Perpetual
>f heraldry

upon the
Is, to trau'

JackRon,
icy Adams
(''ashingtOR
of Puget's

Of these,
lear twenty

to 18,000.

lirds of its

the sea, i»

the centre
of latitude.

y navigable
i^ilke8,d,eOO

They run southwesterly from this point for 200 miles in an irregular manner, occa-
sionally interrupted, and shooting off in spurs to the south and west.

The region between this ridge and the President's range, is called the second or
middle region.

Beyond the Blue mountains and lying between them and the Rocky mountains,
is the high country, or third region of Oregon.

The general course of the Rocky mountains is from south to south east. They
Tun South from 54<> 46', parallel to the coast (at a distance of 500 miles) for three hun-
dred miles, and, gradually extend their distance from the sea by a continuous south
easterly course to over seven hundred at the 40th degree. In these mountains, and
their ofTsete, rise the principal rivers which find their way into the Pacific to the west,
and the Gulf of Mexico on the east. Near the forty-second parallel is a remarkable
depression in the chain, called " the Southern Bass'" which experience has proved,
affords a short and easy reute for carriages from our states, into the territory of
Oregon. Above the 48th parallel, again, other passes are formed by the course of
the rivers, from either side, which find their way in some places between the moun-
tains. There are other ridges intersecting the face of this vast country, but they
are principally offsets or spurs of the three main chains already described. The
principal of these, is the wind river clustw, on the east of the Rocky mountains,
from which flow many of the head waters of the Missouri and the Yellow Stone
rivers.

CLIMATE AND CflABACTEKieTICS OS THE TtlBER REOIONS.

The third region or high country, is a rocky, barren, broken country, traversed in
all directions by stupendous mountain spurs, on the peaks of which, snow lies nearly
all the year. It is from two to three thousand feet abova the leve4 of the sea, and
in consequence, the rivers flowing through it, westward to the Columbia, are broken
at frequent intervals by the rugged descent, and rendered unnavigable almost
throughout the whole of their course. There are but few arable spots in this whole
section of territory, its level plains, except narrow strips in the intmediate vicinity
of the rivers, being covered with sand or gravel, and being also generally volcanic in
their character. The distinguishing features of the territory are its extreme dry-
ness, and the difference ef its temperature between the day and the night. It sel-
<({om rains except during a few days in the spring, and no moisture is deposited in
dews. In addition to these discouraging features, the climate, from its enclosure
between these snowy barriers, is extremely variable, a difference of fifty and sixty
degrees taking place between sunrise and mid-day. The soil is moreover much
impregnated with salts, springs of which abound in rcoRy places. It will be seen
by reference to the journal which forms the latter portion of this work, that some of
these possess highly medicinal qualities, and from the beauty of their situation, will
doubtless become, before time is done, the resort of the fashionable population of
Western America.

Notwithstanding all these unfavorable qualities, there are many small prairies
within its mountains, which, from their production of a nutritious bunch grass, are
well adapted for grazing purposes, and in despite of its changeable climate, stock is
founa to thrive well, and to endars the severity of the winter without protection.

The second or Middle Region of Oregon, between the Blue and the President Ran-
ges, is less elevated than the third, and consequently all the stern extremities of the
latter's climate and soil, are proportionately modified. Its mean height is about a
thousand feet above the level of the sea, and much of its surface is a rolling prairie
country, with the exception of the portion above latitude 48^, which is very much
broken by rivers and traverse mountain chains. It is consequently adapted only in
sections to farming purposes. Plenty of game, however, is found in the forests of
(he country, to compensate for its unfitness for agriculture. Below this parallel, and

HISTORT or ORKOOir.

in the middle of the section, are extensive plains, admirably adapted to stock raising,
from the perpetual verdure always overspreading them, and from the salubrious cli-
mate that prevails throughout their neighborhood. Cattle thrive even better here
than in the low country, and there is no necessity for housing them at any time ;
neither need provender be laid in, the natural hay found always in abundance on the
prairies, being preferred by them to the fresh grass upon the bottoms. It is in this
region the Indians raise their immense herds of horses, and here, whenever the
territory shall be numerously settled, may be bred clouds of horsemen, who woold
not be exceeded by any light cavalry in the world.

The southern portion of this region as it advances to the boundary line, becomes
less favorable to the purposes of man, and loses its fertility by rolling into swelling
sand hills, producing nothing but the wild wormwood, ntixcd with prickly pear^
and a sparse sprinkling of short bunch grass.

The first or lower Region of Oregon is that which lies along the coast and extend*
westward to the line of the President's range of mountains. The portion of this
lying north of the Columbia and between it and the Straits of Fuca, is a heavily tim-
bered country covered with forests of trees, of extraordinary sixe. It has, however^
its spaces of prairie on which good pasturage is found, and it has also some fine
arable land. This section is watered by four rivers, of which, the Chickelis, disem-
bogueing into the Columbia, and the Cowolitz, emptying into the sea at Gray's
harbor, are the most important. The forests of this portion of the lower region are
its great feature. They consist of pines, firs, spruce, red and white oak, ash, arbu-
tus, arbor vitas, cedar, poplar, maple, willow, cherry and yew, with so close and
matted an undergrowth of hazel, and other brambles, a j to render them almost im-
penetrable to the foot of roan. Most of the trees are of an enormous bulk, and thej
are studded so thick, that they rise before the beholder like a stupendous and im-
pregnable solidity, which decla es falile all ordinary attempts to penetrate it. This
astonishing exuberance is not confined alone to the timber of the section north of
the Columbia, for we have an account of a fir growing at Astoria, eight miles from
the ocean, on the southern bank of the Columbia, which measured forty-six feet in
circumference at ten feet from the ground, ascended one hundred and fifty-three
feet before giving off a branch, and vras three hundred feet in its whole height.
Another tree of the same species, is said to be standing on the Umpqua, the trunK
of which is fifty-seven feet in circumference, and two hundred and sixteen feet in
length below its branches. Prime sound pines, from two hundred, to two hundred
and eighty feet in height, and from twenty to forty in circumference, are by no means
uncommon. The value of this spontaneous wealth has already been appreciated by
the acute company who reign commercially predominant in this region, for already
their untiring saw mills, plied by gangs of Sandwich Ishinders and servile Iroquois,
cut daily at Fort Vancouver alone, thousands of feet of plank, which are transported
regularly to the markets of the Pacific Islands.

But to return to that section of the lower region lying between the Columbia and
the Straits of Fuca. The banks of the Cowelitz are generally bare of timber, but
the soil in their immediate vicinity is for the most part poor. The Hudson's Bay
Company, however, have a fine farm of 600 acres in its western valley, which ia
1841 produced 7000 bushels of wheat. The average produce is twenty bushels to
the acre. They have also a saw and grist mill now in operation there, both
of which find a market for their products in the Sandwich and other islands of
Polynesia. Live stock do not succeed well on these farms, and this is owing to
the absence of low prairie grounds near the river, and also to the extensive
depredations of the wolves. The hilly portion of the country immediately around,
though its soil is very good, is too heavily timbered to be available for agricultural
purposes, and this is also the case with many portions of the level land. There are,
however, large tracts of fine prairie at intervals between, suitable for cultivation,
and ready for the plough.

HISTORY or OREGOIT.

Proceeding northward, we came to Fort Naaqually, a fine harbor at the southern
point of Puget'a Sound. Here the Hudson's Bay Compnny have another fine
settlement, and raise wheat, (15 bushels to the acre,) oats, peaa, potatoes, and make
butter for the Russian settlements. On the islands of the sound and on the upper
sections of Admiralty Inlet, the Indians cultivate potatoes in great abundance.
These vegetables are extremely fine, and constitute a large portion of their food.

Having disposed of this section, we come now to that portion of the lower region
lying south of the Columbia, between the President's range and the coast. This
by universal agreement is admitted to be the finest portion of all Oregon. It
is entered by the Wallamette river, about five miles below Vancouver, which stream
extends into its bosom over two hundred miles. This river is navigable for
steamboats and vessels of light draught for nearly forty miles, when you come to a
falls — the invariable feature of the rivers of this territory. Above the falls are
the principal settlements of Oregon. Here the American adventurers have princi-
pally established themselves, and by the contributions of the emigrations from the
States their number is rapidly increasing. As these settlements are described with
some particularity in the journal which concludes this work, we will omit a particular
account of them in this place.

The fertile portion of the valley of the Willamette is about two hundred apd fifty
miles long, and averages about seventy in width, making hi all a surface of more than
17,000 square miles of rich arable land. The soil is an unctuous, heavy, black loam,
which yields to the producer a ready and profuse return for the slightest outlay of his
labor. The climate is mild throughout the year, but the summer is warm and very
dry. From April to October, while (he sea breezes prevail, rain seldom falls in any
part of Oregon. During the other months, and while the south winds blow, the
the rains are frequent, and at times abundant.

In the valleys of the low country, snow is seldom seen, and the ground is so rarely
frozen, that ploughing may generally be carried on the whole winter. In 1634, the
Oolumbia was frozen over for thirteen days, but this was principally attributable to the
accumulation of ice from above. " This country," says Wyeth, " is well calculated
for wheat, barley, oats, rye, peas, apples, potatoes and dl the vegetables cultivated
in the northern part of the Union. Indian corn does not succeed well, and is an
unprofitable crop."

The following letter, recently received from Oregon, and giving an account of last
year's crop, will serve to show the wonderful productiveness of this delightfufi
region : *

" The harvest is just at hand, and such crops of wheat, barley, oats, peas and
potatoes, are seldom, if ever to be seen in the States, that of wheat in particular — the
stalks being in many instances as high as my head, lite grains generally much larger
— 1 would not much exaggerate to say they are as large again as tliose grown east
of the mountains. The soil is good, and the climate most superior, being mild the
year round, and very healthy, more so than any country I have lived in the same
length of time. Produce bears an excellent price — pork, 10 cents; beef, 6 cents;
potatoes, 50 cents; wheat, $1 per bushel. These articles are purchased at the
above prices with great avidity by the merchants for shipment generally to the Sand-
wich Islands and Russian settlements on this continent, and are paid for mostly in
stores and groceries, the latter of which is the product of these islands, particularly
sugar and cotTee, of which abundant supplies are furnished. Wages for laborers
arc high— common hands are getting from one to two dollars per day, and mechanics
from two to four dollars pe<- day. It is with difficulty men can be procured at these
pees, so easily can they do better on their farms. The plains are a perpetual
meadow, furnishing two complete new crops in a year, spring and fall, the latter
remaining green through the winter. Beef is killed from the grass at any season
of the year. If you have any enterprize left, or if your neighbors have any, here is
the place for them."

* The above is an extract of a letter from General McCarvcr, who is at present the Speaker
of the Lower House of Oregon.

HISTORY OF OREOOir.

■ »^f.

or this vaWcy Lieutenant Wilkes lays, <' the wheat yields thirty-five or forty-
bushels for one bushel sown ; or from twenty to thirty to the acre. Its quality is-
iuperiar to that grown in the United States, and its weight is nearly four pounds to
the buslicl heavier. The above is the yield of the new land ; but it is believed it
will greatly exceed this after the third crop, when the land has been broken up and
well tilled. In|coniparison to our own country, I would say that the labor necessary
to acquire wealth or subsistence, is in proportion of one to throe ; or, in other wards,
a man must work through the year, three times as much in the United States, to gain
the same competency. The care of stock, which occupies so nMich time with ui,
requires no attention here, and on the increase alone, a man might find support."

So>ith of the valley of the Willamette we come to that of the Umpqua, in which
is found large prairies of unsurpassable arable land, though the vicinage of the
river is chiefly remarkable for its gigantic pine timber. Some idea of the cxtraor-
dinary size of its forest trees may be obtained from the fact, that their seed cone»
are sometimes more than a foot in length. Below the Umpqua, we next arrive at
the country watered by the Tootootutna, or Rouges River, and beyond that, to the
voluptuous valley of the Klamet. These lower portions of the first region are
thought by many to be the paradise of the whole territory, excelling in richness of
■oil and voluptuousness of climate, even the celebrated valley of the Willamette.
Of this opinion is Lieutenant Wilkes, to whose exertions and researches we are in~
debted for most of our accurate geographical knowledge of the western portion of
Oregon. Indeed, probability seems to be in favor of regarding the vallies of the
Klamet, Tootootutna, and the Umpqua, as the gardens of the west, and the cause
of the preference of the northern portions is to be attributed mostly to t^e readier
access afforded to them by the avenue of the Columbia. Population, however, i»
already gradually encroaching further and further south, and but few years will
elapse, before coasters will be running down to the mouths of these three rivers for
their agricultural products.

The principal settlement of the Hudson's Bay Company is situated at Vancouver,
on the Columbia ; a point ninety miles from its mouth. At this st^tion^ the main
branch of foreign commerce i» carried on, and from it, the chief exports in the way
of pine plank, the grains, butter, dec, is made to the Russian settlements, and to-
the islands of the ocean. They have another farm upon the Fallatry plains, west
of the Willamette and about ten miles from Vancouver, which is also well stocked,
and in productive cultivation.

Before concluding our description of this portion of Oregon, it may be well ta-
state, that the continual influx of emigrants from the States at the station of the
Willamette, and the occasional conflictions of interest, rendered it necessary, in the
absence of protection from the laws of the Republic, that the American settlers
should establish a territorial guvernment for themselves. They have accordingly
proceeded to constitute two Legislatrve bodies, to appoint a Chief Justice, and
make the necessary ministerial officers to enforce his decisions.

The two houses meet at stated periods in the year for the transaction of
all the necessary business of the little body politic, and the degree of importance
which the new legislature has already obtained, may be estimated by the fact that
the ofircers of the Hudson's Bay Company have accorded their acknowledgement
of its powers, by applying through the chief governor of all the stations in the terri-
tory, (Doctor McLaughlin) for a charter for a canal around the Willamette Fall*.
The exclusive right was granted to him for twenty years, on the condition that he
should, in two years, construct a canal around them sufRcient for the passage of
boats thirteen feet in width.

This recognition of the authority ef the legislative confederacy would, however,
be a politic course in the resident governor of the Hudson's Bay Company, even
though he should bo ever so averse to it ; for such recognition would not affect the
interests of his association in case it were overthrown by bis own government, ant}

ti. »

HISTORY OF OREQON.

it would aflbrd him, meanwhile, an opportunity for 'he quiet pursuit of hii plans.
It is but just, however, to bear in mind that tho jurisdiction exercised by the com-
pany over all the citizens in the territory, previous to this legislative convention,
was not their own &nop?''-"\, but the investiture of the British Government, for its
own special objects , u..a ic is no less just to say, that this power was exercised by
the gentleman above-named, during his rule, with a temperance and fairness, but
seldom found in thoso who have no immediate superior to account to.

The letter that brings us this latter information, also tells us the Doctor hat
already commenced his work with a large number of hands, and that there is no
doubt of his perfect ability to complete it within the time named. He was likewise
constructing at tho date of this information, (last August) a large flouring mill with
four run of burs, which was to be ready for business last fall.

THE RIVBKS. '

Having completed a description of the general characteristics of the three region*
of Oregon, there remains but ono feature of its geography unfinished ; and as that
extends for the most part continuously from region to region, it could not be pro-
perly embraced in the particular account of any one. We allude to the courie and '
characteristics of the Columbia river and its tributaries.

The northern branch of the Columbia river rises in latitude 60^ north, and 116'
west (from Greenwich)' thence it pursues a northern routo to McGillivary's pass in
the Rocky mountains. There it meets the Canoe river, and by that tributary
ascends north westerly for eighty miles more. At the boat encampment at the
pass, another stream also joins it through the mountains, and here the Columbia is
3,600 feet above the level of the sea. It now turns south, having some obstruc-
tions to its safe navigation in the way of rapids, receiving many tributaries in its
course to Colville, among which the Beaver, Salmon, Flatbow, and Clarke's rivers
from the east, and the Colville and two smaller tributaries, higher up, from the west,
are the chief.

This great river is bounded thus far on its course, by a range of high, well wooded
mountains, and in places expands into a line of lakes before it reaches Colville,
where ic is 2,049 feet above the level of the sea, having a fall «f 550 feet in 230
miles.

Fort Colville stands in a plain of 2000 or 3000 acres. There the Hudson's Bay
Company have a considerable settlement and a farm under cultivation, producing
from 3000 to 4000 bushels of different grains, with which many of their « ther forts
are supplied. On Clarke's rirer the company have another post called Flathead
House, situated in a rich and beautiful country spreading westward to the bases
of the Rocky mountains. On the Flatbow also, the company have a post, named
Fort Kootanie.

From Fort Colville the Columbia trends westward for about sixty miles, and then
receives the Spokan, from the south. This river rises in the lake of the Pointed
Hetirt, which lies in the bosom of extensive plains of tho same name. It pursues
a north westerly course for about 200 miles, and then empties into the Columbia.
Its valley, according to Mr. Spaiilding, an American Missionary who surveyed it,
may be extensively used as a grazing district ; but its agricultural capabilities are
limited. The chief features of its region are, (like those of the upper country,
through which we have already traced the Columbia and its tributaries,) extensive
forests of timber and wide sandy plains intersected by bold and high mountains.

From the Spokan, the Columbia continues its westerly course for sixty miles, re-
cplving several smaller streams, until it comes to the Okanagan, a river finding its
source in a line of lakes to the north, and affording boat and canoe navigation to a con-
siderable extent up its course. On the east side of this river, and near its junction
with the Columbia, the Company have another station called Fort Okanagan.

HISTORY OF OREGON. ]

Though the country bordering on the Okanagin ii generally worthleia, this settle-
nent is situated among a number of small, but rich arable plains.

After passing the Okanagan, the Columbia takes a southward turn and runs in that
direction for 160 miles to Wallawalla, receiving irt its course the Piscous, th«
Ekama and Entyatecoom, from the west, and lastly, the Saptin or Lewis River,
from the south. From this point the part of the Columbia which wo have traced,
though obstructed by rapids, is navigable for canoes to the Boat Encampment, a di8>
tance of 600 miles to the north. The Saptin takes its rise in the Rocky Mountains,
passes through the Blue, and reaches the Columbia after having pursued a north-
westerly direction for 620 miles. It brings a large volume of water to the latter
stream, but in consequence of its extensive and numerous rapids, it is not navigable
even for canoes except in reaches. This circumstance is to be deplored, as its course
is the line of route for the emigration of the States. It receives a largo number of
tributaries, of which the Kooskooske and Salmon are the chief. Our previouH ac-
count of the arid and volcanic character of this region obviates the necessity of %
farther description here. There is a trading station upon the Saptin near the south-
ern boundary line, called Fort Hall, and one also near its junction with the Colum-
bia, called Fort Wallawalla. The Columbia at Wallawalla is 1284 feet above the
level of the sea, and about 3,500 feet wide. It now takes its last turn to the west-
ward, pursuing a rapid course of 80 miles to the Cascades, and receiving the Uma-
tilla, Quisnel's, John Day's and Chute Rivers from the south, and Cathlatate's from
the north. At the Cascades, the navigation of the river is interrupted by a series
of falls and rapids, caused by the immense volume forcing its way through the gorge
of the President's range. From the Cascades, there is still-water navigation for ferty
miles, when the river is again obstructed by rapids ; after passing these, it is navi-
gable for 120 miles to the ocean. The only other great independent river in the
territory is the Tacoutche or Frazer's River. It takes its rise in the Rocky Moun-
tains near the source of Canoe River ; thence it takes a north-westerly course for
80 miles, when it makes a turn southward, receiving Stuart's river, which brings
down its waters from a chain of lakes extending to the 56th degree of latitude.
Turning down from Stuart's River, the Tacoutche pursues a southerly course until
it reaches latitude 49^, where it breaks through the Cascade range in a successioa
of falls and rapids, then turns to the west, and after a course of 70 miles more, dis-
embogues into the Gulf of Georgia, on the Straits of Fuca, in latitude 47" 07 '. Its
whole length is 350 miles, but it is only navigable for 70 miles from its mouth, by
vessels drawing twelve feet water. It has three trading posts upon it belonging to
the company ; Fort Langley at its mouth ; Fort Alexandria at the junction of a small
stream a few miles south of QuisnelPs River, and another at the junction of Stuart's
River. The country drained by this river is poor and generally unfit for cultivation.
The climate is extreme in its variatiops of heat and cold, and in the fall months,
dense fogs prevail which bar every object from the eye beyond the distance of a
hundred yards. The chief features of the section are extensive forests, transverse
ranges of low countries, and vast tracts of marshes and lakes, formed by the streams
descending from the surrounding heights.

*' The character of the great rivers is peculiar— rapid and sunken much below the
level of the country, with perpendicular banks, they run as it were intrenches, which
make it extremely difficult to get at the water in many places, owing to their steep
basaltic walls. They are at many points contracted by dalles, or narrows, which dur-
ing the rise, back the water some distance, submerging islands and tracts of low
prairie, and giving them the appearance of extensive lakes.

" The soil along the river bottoms is generally alluvial, and would yield good crops,
were it not for the overflowing of the livers which check %nd kill the grain. Some
of the finest portions of the land are thus unfitted for cultivation. They are gener-
ally covered with water before the banks are overflown, m conseiiuence of the
quicksands that exist in them, and through which the water percolates."

141 ^

HISTORY OF OREGON.

" The riie of the atresmi flowing from the Caicaflc mountain! takoi place twice a
year, in February and November, and are produced by heavy and abundant raina.
The riie of the Columbia takea place in May and Juno, and is attributable to the
melting of the anowa. Sometimea the awoll of the latter ia very audden, if heavy
rains should also happen at that period, but it ia generally gradual and reachea its
greatest height from the 6th to the IRth of June. Its perpendicular rise is frem 18
to 20 foet at Vancouver, where a line of embankment has been thrown up to protect
the lower prairie ; but, it has generally been flooded during these visitations, and the
crops often destroyed.

"The greatest rise of the Willamette takes place in February, and sometimes as-
cending to the height of 20 feet, does considerable damage. Both this river and the
Oowelitz, are much swollen by the backing of their waters during the height of the
Columbia, all their lower grounds being at such times submerged. This puts an ef-
fectual bar to the border prairies being used for anything but pasturage. This hap-
pily ia fine throughout the year, except in the season of floods, when the cattle must
be driven to the high grounds."

The lakes of Oregon are numerous and well distributed in the different regions
of the territory. In the northern section, the Okanegan, (from which flows the
river of that name), Stuart's and Frazer's, near the upper boundary ; Quesnell's in
S3°, and Klamloop's ir 61^, aro the largest. In the central section, we have the
Flatbow, the Cour d'Al^ne, or, " Pointed Heart," and the KuUespelm ; and in the
southern district, are the Klamet, the Pit, and an abundance of inferior lakes, as yet
unnoticed on the maps, and for which geographers have not yet been able to dis-
cover names. Several of the latter, are salt, and, at intervals, we find chains of hot
springs bubbling in some places above the ground, like those of Iceland. The
smaller lakes are said to add much to the picturesque beauty of the streams.

The whole territory is well watered in all directions, and from the peculiar cha-
racter of its rivers, their descent, the rapidity of their currents, and their frequent
falls, there is perhaps no country in the world which affords so many facilities for
manufacturing purposes, through the agency of water power. .This is a peculiarly
happy circumstance, when taken into consideration with the fact, that the timber
overspreading the weastern portion and clustering around its mill sites, will, for a
long time, form one of the principal exports in the markets of the Pacific. This wilF
appear from the high prices which it now commands, and also, from the fact, that no
other portion of the north west coast produces it. Already, trading vessels resort
to the mouth of the Columbia to supply themselves with spars, and other necessary
materials, and the improving facilities of inland intercommunication, has directed
some of it from point to point within the territory.

Having now completed our account of the great physical characteristics of Oregon,
our attention naturally turns to those portions of its natural history which are equally
necessary to render a land serviceable to the wants of man. Of these, the first, and
most important, are the fisheries. " These," says Lieutenant Wilkes, " are so im-
mense, that the whole native population subsist on them." All the rivers, bays,
harbors and shores of the i ast and islands, abound in salmon, sturgeon, cod, carp,
sole, flounders, ray, perch, kerring, lamprey eels, and a kind of smelt or sardine,
which is extremely abundant. The different kinds predominate alternately, accord-
ing to the situations of the respective fisheries, but the salmon abound everywhere
over all. This superior fish is found in the largest quantities in the Columbia, and
the finest of them are taken at the Dalles. They run twice a year, May and Octo-
ber, and appear inexhaustible. To so great an extent is traffic in them already ad-
vanced, that the establishmet at Vancouver alone, exports ten thousand barrels of
them annually. There are also large quantities of oysters, clams, crabs, mussels
and other kinds of shell fish, found in the different bays and creeks of the country ;
and, to complete this piscatory feature, we are further. told, that whales are also

HISTORY or OREOOK.

found in numbers a\ong the coait nnd nt the mouth of the Strait of Fuca, where
thoy aro frequently captured by the pitcivoroua aborigine*.

Of game, an equal abundance exiats, In tho ipring and fall, the riven literally
■warm with goeao, duck, cranoi, iwani, and other ipociee of water-fowl ; and the
elk, deer, antelope, bear, wolf, fox, martin, bearer, muikrat, grizzly bbar and aif-
flcur make, with them, the harvoit of the hunter's rifle. In the middle section, little
or no game is to bo found, but in tho third region, the buffalo aro plenty, and form
an attraction to numerous hunting partiea of the Blackfoot and Oregon Indians.

The population of Oregon territory has been estimated by Lieutenant Wilkes, to
be about 20,000, of whom 19,200 or 300 are aborigines, and the remaining seven
or eight hundred, whites. This number, and its pioportions, have, however, in-
creased nnd varied considerably since the timo of his estimate. The years succeed-
ing his visit, beheld large emigrations from the States, and the white population
of Oregon may now be safely set down as being between two and three thousand,
of whom the majority are from the States. The largest portion of these are locat-
ed in tho valley of the Willamette, where, as wo havo already seen, they have
adopted a government of their own. The other white inhabitants are sprinkled
about in different portions of the territory, at the establishments of the Hudson's
Bay Company, whose ofTicers and servants amount, in all, to between five and
aix hundred, but this number does not include their Iroquois and Sandwich Island
serfs.

There are no means of ascertaining with accuracy the numbers of the aboriginal
population, as many of them move from place to placo in the fishing seasons ; but,
for tho purpose of furnishing thu reader with the nearest warrant for reliance, we
will hero insert a tabular statement, prepared by Mr. Crawford, of the Indian de-
partment, for the uso of last Congress.

Indians west of the Rocky Mountains, in the Oregon district, and their numbers.

Nes Percda

Ponderas

Flatheads 800

Cour D' Alene

Shoshonies 1,800

Gallapooahs

Umba-juahs

Kiyuse

Spokeua

Oknanagans

Cootomies

Chilts 800

Chinookes 400

Snakes 1,000

Calhlamahs 200

Wahkiakumes BllO

Skillutes 2,500

Sokulks 8,000

Chimnapuns 9,000

Shallatlos 200

Speannaros 240

Saddala 400

Wallawallahs 2,G00

Chopunniaheea 3,000

Catlashoots 4R0

Pohahs 1,000

Willewahs 1,000

Sinacaops 200

Chiliokittequaws 2,400

Echebools 1 ,000

Wahupume 1,000

Euesteurs 1 ,200

Clackamurs 1,800

Chanwappans 400

29,fiT0

The most numerous and warlike of the Oregon Indians are in the islands to the
north, but on the main land, they are generally friendly and well disposed. They
are, however, rapidly passing away before the advancing destiny of a superior raoe,
and with the wild game, vanish gradually from the white man's tracks. Those re-
maining, are a servile and degraded class, who perform the meanest offices of the
settlements, and readily consent to a mode of existence under the missionaries, and
other settlers, but little short of vassalage. In the Wallamette valley, there are nnvr
left but a few remnants of the once numerous and powerful tribes that formerly in-
habited it. At the mouth of the Columbia, there are some few of the Chenooks
still left, and about the Cascades and at the Dalles still linger considerable numbers

HIITORY or OREGON.

of thli ill-fated and tntt foding people. There ii no longer tny eplrit left in them ;
their hetrte are broken, their bowa unatrung, and from lorda of the auil, they
have aunk to the digradation of ita alavei.

The Kiuaea anJ Nea Porcna, atill maintain a portion of their independenre, but
numbera of them, through the exertiona of the mistionariei, have made considerable
•dvancee in civiliaation, and many more would doubtloaa adapt themaalvct »o a more
methodical tyatem of life, wore not tho first Iciaona of the science an exHction of
their labora for tho benefit of otheri. At the pretent, they can only be regarded
in the light of a iorvilo population, which, in the existing dearth of labor, i« render-
ed of vast service to the active eettler. In speaking of the influences of tho mil-
aionaries over the Indians, Lieutenant Wilkes remarka : " They have done but lit-
tle towarda Chriatianizing the nativea, being principally engaged in cultivating the
mission farms and in the increaae of their own flocks and herda. As far aj my
personal observation went, there are very few Indians to engage their attention,
and they seemed moro occupied with the aettlement of the country and agricultural
pursuits than in missionary labors."

The treatment of the Indians by the Hudson's Bay Company, is politic and ju-
dicioua ; they rigidly enforce that wise provision of their charter, which forbids the
•ale of ardent spirits, and in carrying it out, have even been known, upon the ar-
riral of a vessel at the Columbia with apirita aboard, to purchase that portion of
the cargo, to prevent others from defeating the wisdom of the prohibition. Schools
for the native children are attached to all the principal trading posts, and particular
care is extended to the education of the half breed children,* the joint offspring of
the tradera and the Indian women, who are retained and bred, as far as possible,
among the whites, and subsequently employed, when found capable, in tho service
of the company. The policy of this course is obvious. The savage is gradually
cured of his distrust, and coaxed into new connections. He abandons the use of
hia bows, his arrows and nil his former arms, and the result is, that he soon becomes
an absolute dependant upon those who furnish him his guns, ammunition, fiah-hooka,
blankets, &c.

The course obsrved by this Company to American settlers, is equally politic.
They are received with kindness, and aided in the prosecution of their objecta to
long as these objects are only agricultural ; but no sooner does any of them attempt
to hunt, trap or trade with the natives, then all the force of the body is immediately
directed towards them. " A worthy missionary, now established on the Columbia,"
says GreThow, " while acknowledging in conversation with me, the many acta of
kindnes'. Tec<>ived by him from the Hudson's Bay Company' i agents, at the same
timedecla.->d — that the would not buy a skin to make a cap, without their assent."
No Hoonrr is an American trading post established, than a British agent, with more
merchandise and a larger amount of ready money, settles down beside it, and by
the superior advantages he gives the Indians, in paying high and selling low,
drives the American trader to despair, and finally sonds him, with his hopes
crushed, and his enterprise destroyed, back to the States a ruined man. In pur-
suance of the same monopolising system, the Company endeavor to prevent the
vessels of the United States from obtaining cargoes on tho Nortii West coast, and
truth to say, they are generally successful in their object.

By its enormous wealth, its extensive stations, its able policy, and numerous
retainers, this Company has indeed become a formidable body, and it is a matter of
importance that we should make ourselves acquainted with its genius and ita ten-
dencies.

We have seen that it is the representative of the interests of Great Britain in
Oregon ; we have glanced at a few of the means it adopts to protect and further
them, and now that recent events have given a subordinate aspect to their political

* A natural obligation where so many are got. ,

■I'-;!

H^TORT or OREOON.

f'5 i!

position, it is of interest to examine tho mode their sagacity has devised to meet and
overcome the circumstances threatening their decline.

The original object of the Hudson's Bay Company's establishment in Oregon, was
for the purposes of fur trading alone, and to that their operations were confined, until
their investiture with the attributes of territorial sovereignty by the British Govern-
ment. From that time, however, it appears they considered no person should be
permitted within the . limits of the tenitory, except by their consent, and hence
their degeneration into a mere band of conspirators, as evidenced by the course of
policy we have already alluded to. At length, however, the fur trade in the countries
of the Columbia nearly ceased, and the Company were obliged to turn their atten-
tion to other objects. They have, it will be found, laid out farms on the most
extensive scale, erected mills, established manufactures, entered into the fisheries,
employed vessels for the purposes of commerce, and, in short, at the present mo-
ment, though they have lost the regal shadow, they present the aspect of a domi-
nant corporation, whose enormous wealth enables it to engross everything above the
mere pastoral and agricultural branches of industry, and to turn even the products
of those, into their already overrunning coffers. This is not presented as a matter of
complaint against the Hudson's Bay Company, for it is but the natural bent of wealth
and corporative enterprise, to monopolise and grasp, to the destruction of every op-
posing influence, but it affords a subject of reproachful reflection against our Go-
venment, for not checking these tendencies, and counteracting their effects, by
stretching its protection to those who fall within their reach. The maternal care of
England for her subjects stretches to the most obscure extremity of the earth ; while
the eye of the Republic overlooks its despairing children even in a portion of her
own immediate dominions.

r I

t .-:.

HISTORY OF OREGON.

i PROPOSAL FOR ,. ,, <

A NATIONAL RAIL ROAD, 7

FROM THE ATLANTIC TO THE PACIFIC,
!| FOR THE PURPOSE OF OBTAINING A SHORT ROUTE TO CHINA.

Havino ascertained wViat Oregon is, our next inquiry becomes, in what view it
is of the most importance to us, and how we may most readily and completely avail
ourselves of its advantages.

As an agricultural country it is of no great importance to a nation having con-
tiguous leagues on leagues of land yielding the same products nearer at home, the
abundant fertility of which has never yet been challenged by the spade or plough* ;
but as a commercial avenue to the wealth of the Indies and the riches of the Pacific,
its value is incalculable.

In any view, whether agricultural or commercial, the advantages and worth of
this territory depend upon the easiness of its approach from the States, and any
means that are adopted to facilitate this intercommunication, will, according to their
degree of efficiency, proportionably advance its destiny. Nature has already con-
tributed to the object more liberally in the country under consideration, than to the
tame extent of any other portion of the globe. From the Missouri to the Rocky
mountains spreads a plais scarcely broken by a hillock ; through that stupendous
ridge gapes a pass presenting no discouraging opposition to heavily laden wagons
with single teams, and from its western side the banks of the Saptin lead the tra-
Telter safely through to the navigable waters of the Columbia.

The time required fur the journey by the present mode of travelling is from three
to four months ; but though this might suffice for the gradual drain of a surplus
population, it will not meet the new designs which the full possession of this land
of promise opens to us.

These designs are legitimately the same which have agitated the commercial
world since the discovery of this continent, and they are now happily within out
reach and accomplishment, by means of a Rail Road. As it is one of the main
purposes of this work to urge this project upon The People of this country, and as
it is filled with considerations of the weightiest moment, it will be necessary to
treat it with that method and particluarity which its merits demand, and which will
adapt it to the ready and accurate comprehension of every understanding.

Our first purpose, therefore, will be to measure the value of the object we seek
by philosophical inquiry, and by the estimation of its importance by other powers ;
and our second, to glance at some of the refiults that will flow from it to our benefit
as a nation.

The commerce of the East, in every age, has been the source ef the opulence
and power of every nation which has engrossed it. By a silent and almost imper-
ceptible operation, India has been through centuries the secret but active cause of
the advancement of mankind, and while lying apparently inert in her voluptuous
clime, has changed the m&ritime balances of Europe with the visit of every new
nation that has sought the riches of her shores. Her trade imparted the first great
impulse to drowsy and timid navigation ; it revealed in the direction to its coasts
region after region before unknown ; it found for the guidance of the mariner new
planets in the sky, and its restless spirit has not even been content to make more

* Oar unoccupied public lands amonnt to 700,000,000 acres. '

HISTORY OF OREGON.

i; '::^-

tharf a temporary pause in the discovery of another world.* Like the Genii of the
fable it still offers the casket and the sceptre to those, who unintimidated by the
terrors which surround it, are bold enough to adventure to its embrace. In turn,
Phoenicia, Israel,t Carthage, Greece, Rome, (through her vanquished tributaries)
Venice, Pisa, Genoa, Portugal, Holland, and lastly, England, have won and worn
the ocean diadenu Our destiny now offers it to us !

To shorten, by a western passage the route to the Indies, which now must be
conducted circuitously around the fearful barriers of Cape Horn and Southern Af-
rica, is a design that has long occupied the attention and aroused the exertions of
alt maritime nations. The first and most 'remarkable effort to effect it was made
in the latter part of the fifteenth century, by Columbus, which resulted in the dis-
covery of another world, and the search has been maintained with but little inter-
mission, by the intervening ages, ever since. Exploring expeditions to both the
Atlantic and Pacific coasts have pryed in every sinuosity of shore from latitude £0°
South to the borders of the Frigid zone, and in the defeat of their exertions, pro-
jects have been formed even to pierce the continent to accomplish the design. As
early as the seventeenth century, a company was formed in Scotland to improve
the advantages offered by the Isthmus of Darien and Panama, for trade in the Pa-
cific ;t but the project being discountenansed by England at the violent remon-
strances of her powerful East India Company, the subscriptions were withdrawn
and the enterprise temporarily dropped. It was revived soon after by its indefati-
gable projector, who, having raised £700,000 and 1200 men, set sail in five ships
to found a colony ; but being denounced by the government and attacked by a Spa-
nish force while its reduced numbers were suffering under disease and famine, they
sunk under their accumulated misfortunes and abandoned the enterprise in despair.

From that time to this, the project r' dividing the Isthmus has been a favorite
theme with European philosophers aud statesmen ; but the subject appears never
to have advanced beyond the bounds of mere speculation until later years. In ISll
it was revived by Spain, who this time seemed to be seriously in earnest in 4he
matter. By a vote of her Cortes, dated April 30th, in the above year, the immedi-
ate commencement of the work was decreed, but the foreign and domestic troubles
into which she was plunged at this period, rendered her incapable of carrying out
the grand design.

The project found its next active and practical supporter in Bolivar, who in 1827
appointed a commissioner to ascertain, by actual survey, the best line either by rail
road or canal, between the two seas. The commissioner reported in favor of the
latter, and an estimate was subsequently made by a French engineer that a canal,
forty miles in length, might be constructed across it, at an expense of less than
three millions of dollars — but the untiinely death of the illustrious patron of the
scheme, put an end to its further proeecution. The next movement in the measure
took place in 1842, when the Mexican government, upon application, empowered
Don Jose de Garay, one of its citizens, to effect a communication across its territo-
ries, between the oceans, and invested him with the most ample rights and immu-
nities, on condition of his completing the work. Don Jose, in pursuance of his
grant, appointed a scientific commission that accomplished the survey in 1842 and
1843, the result of which, established the perfect practicability of a ship canal across
the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Upon these grounds and the security of his gover-

* The object of Columbus, was not, as has been erroneously supposed, the discorery of n
new continent, but a shorter route to Cathay.

f Envying the success of the PhoBnicians, David and Solomon, after having seized upon Idu-
mea as a preparative, sent their fleets through the Arabian Gulf to Tarshish, Ophir, and other
ports in Africa and India, and by this means diffused throughout the land of Israel " the wealth
of OnnuR and of Ind." It if to this cause, doubtless, that the latter monarch specially owes his
vast reputation for sagacity, as well as the splendor of his reign.

\ This scheme was projected by William Patterson, who was supposed to have been origi-
nally, a South American Buccaneer, cotemporary with Sir Henry Morgan.

HISTORY OF OREGON.

mental granti and privileges, its projector is now in London soliciting the aid of
British capital to carry out the scheme.

France, with the view of advancing the value of her oceanic possessions, is deeply
alive to the importance of this measure. Under tbo special patronage of Guizot
and Admiral Roussin, a private survey of the Isthmus has recently been made, the
importance attributed to which, may be imagined by the careful suppression of its
details from the public. Thus evidences multiply that the world will not much lon-
ger endure the petty olMtacles which bar them from the long-desired western pas-
sage to the Indies. How important, therefore, v.hat we, who have an engrossing
interest in this subject, should protect ourselves from being outstripped by those
whom our rapidly advancing destiny already prumisrs to leave behind.

The English government, though the junction of the seas has been repeatedly and
etrenuously urged by the representatives of some of her most important mercantile
interests, have betrayed an apathy upon the subject which, if not accounted for by
the principles of her usually selfish policy, would appear inexplicable ; but she doubt-
less reasons thus —

" ♦ Let well alone.' By the present routes around the Cape of Good Hope, and
through the Isthmus of Suez, we have a fair start with the best, and a superior
chance over most other nations for the Indies ; and while our established power in
that region and our superior marine secures us a preponderance in her trade, it
would be madness to contribute to afford superior facilities and advantages to others.
Through her geographical position, the United States, from whose wonderful ener-
gies and fearful strides toward maritime equality we have everything to fear, can
more readily avail herself of the benefits of this passage than any other nation. Her
fleets would stream in one unbroken line through the Gulf of Mexico, her naval
power would overawe our settlements on the North west coasts, and her impertinent
anterprise, of which we have had a late evidence in China, would extend itself
throughout our Indian possessions. The Marquesas Islands which, in case this pro,
ject be carried out, lie directly in the road of navigation, would at a step advance
into one of the most important maritime posts in the world, while the Society Is-
lands also in the possession of Franco, would enhance immensely in their value.
Worse than all, returning back, the vessels of all Europe, would ere long procure
their tropical products from the newly awakened islands of the Ocean, and in just
the degree that the value of Oceana would increase, our West India possessions
would depreciate. By changing the route and extending it across the ocean instead
of circuitously through it, we should voluntarily resign into other hands those com-
manding maritime and naval stations which we have won at the outlay of so much
diplomacy and perseverance. The power and advantages of St. Helena, Mauritius,
Capetown at the Cape of Good Hope, and the Falkland Islands commanding the
passage round Cape Horn, will be transferred to New Orleans and other cities of
the United States bordering on the Gulf of Mexico, to Cuba, Chagres, Panama and
the Marquesas Islands. Let us, therefore, ' let well alone,' and be content with our
present supremacy upon its present basis ; unless indeed we can gain a superior ad-
vantage through the Arctic sea,* or monopolize a Mexican route to the shores of
the Californias. The Isthmus passage must, however, be discouraged, and if per-
severed in, Cuba must at all hazards be obtained, to compensate in some degree for
the losses we shall sustain on the African coasts."

♦ Nkw Votaoi of Ducotkrt.— It is in the contemplation of tho British govorntnent to send
out another expedition to the Arctic Regioni, with tlio view of discovering the, or a North-
west passage, between the Atlantic and Pacific ; and the Council of the Royal Society, having
hcen solicited to give their opinion as to the desirableness of snch an expedition, have stated,
that independent of the great object to bo attained, tlie benefits, that would accrue to the sciences
of geography and terrestrial magnetism, render such an expedition peculiarly desirable. The
Erebus and Terror, which were recently employed at the south pole, under Sir J. Ross, have
returned in such good order, as to bo ready to bo made immediately available for employment
on similar service.— BngKiA Paper.

HISTORY OP OREGON.

k ^

'V.l

' f-

This supposition is by no means strained. Tt is but a fair inference from Britain's
well known scltish character and policy, and the United States would be justified in
turning the proposition against her.

Having thus measured the importance attributed to the design of shortening the
western passage to the Indies, by the immense sums which have been lavished, and
tho haiiarda which have been braved upon the mere hope of its accomplishment, is
it not incumbent upon us to inquire if we have not within our own boundaries the
means and facilities of eSccling it, and if we have, is it not likewise incumbent on
us to carry the long desired object to its fullilment 1 We owe this to our own cha-
racter, to our posterity, to the world — and we most specially owe to the genius of
the Fifteenth century (which in the prosecution of this very plan redeemed us from
the ocean) the completion of the purpose which wo barred.

Tho circumstance of England's opposition to the plan (or to a similar one) is alono
an urgent motive to the undertaking ; the revelations of each succeeding day
strengthen the opinion that our interests and policy are founded upon antagonistic
principles. We are her natural rival upon the ocean, and as we advance she re-
tires. Wo are the only power that ever baflled her arms, and the course of things
have marked us as the heir of her strength, and the successor to her trident. Al-
ready, the commerce of the globe divided into eight parts, gives more than^»c be-
tween us two, and a sub-division affords but one part less to us than to her.
Here, to use tho expression of one of her own writers, is a " great fact ;" — a fact so
pregnant that it turns Speculation into Prescience, and points to the decree of Fate
in our future and speedy preponderance. France understands the relative positions
and interests of this country and Great Britain as well as, if not better, than our-
selves, and is perhaps actuated to the interest she takes in the opening of the Isth-
mus by a mora comprehensive policy than that which springs merely from the influ-
ences of an immediate self-interest. The spirit of her people is akin to ours, their
natural bent of mind inclines them for democratic institutions, and their hearts beat
towards us with sentiments of warm affection. To quote the language of one of
their popular organs : She looks towards us as her natural ally and as the only power
which can eventually release the ocean from the tyranny of Great Britain. If this
hope live in France, how much stronger must its ray be cherished by those inferior
powers who dare not aspire to rise above submission ?

" Thero is a divinity that shapes the ends" of nations as of men, and we may
discern the fulfilment of the maxim in the continual defeat of the most daring enter-
prize of man as applied to this design, through a period of four centuries. Not
ripe for its great revolution, Providence has denied it to the world until tho hour
should arrive for the first great step toward perfecting the grand scheme of the creation.
A thousand combining influences tell us that the time has come ; the universal beams
of knowledge have driven Superstition and Ignorance from the stage of action to mope
in the dreary cells, which imprisoned under them too long the genius of mankind.
Science having stripped experiment of its terrors, measures with accuracy the
results of every assay, and despising the obstacles of Nature, whose elements, nay,
even tho forked lightning itself, she has fastened to her car, feels as capable of
beating down the barriers of a continent as of measuring the distance to a planet.
Anew principle has been evoked, which though simple in its pretensions, and matter-
of-fact in its operations, will share in future times the honor of the Mariner's
Compass and the Printing Press, in civilizing and advancing man. The object
of each is sympathetic with the other ; the result of each must tend to the same
end. Their principle is intercourse, and their spirit progress. The first, awoke
our hemisphere from its sleep in the abyss ; the second infused sentiments which
turned tho footsteps of our ancestors toward it ; and we must now invoke the third,
for tho final accomplishment of its destiny !

It is true thero is much that is startling in^the proposition of a National Rail
RoAU FBOM THE ATLANTIC TO THE Pacific ocbans, and ffluch that will strike tho

M «

HISTORY OP OREGON.

liasty •baerver as chimerical ; but when we have seen stupendous pyramids raised
by human hands in the midst of a sterile and shifting desert; while we know that
'despite the obstacles of Nature and the rudeneos of Art, a semi-barbarous people,
many centuries before the christian era, erected around their empire a solid barrier
of wall, thirty feet in height, and so broad that six horsemen could ride on it abreast,
carrying it over the most formidable mountains, across rivers on arches, and through
the declensions and sinuosities of valkys, to the distance of fifteen hu. ircd miles,
let us not insult the enterprize of this cnlij^^htened age, by denouncing the plan of a
simple line of rails, over a surface but a little greater in extent, without on j half the
natural obstacles to overcome, as visionary and impracticable.

Geographers variously estimate the greatest breadth of our country frjm ocean to
ocean at 1,7G0 to 2000 miles.* Taking the largest estimate, and adding to it 600
miles, to allow for occasional deviation of route, and we have a distance of 2,500
miles ; which at the moderate rate uf fifteen miles to the hour,t cam be accomplished
in seven days. We have already from New York, a continuous line of rail- road
and steamboat communication, laid out to Chicago, Illinois; proceeding from which
point .directly along the 42d parallel, we find a smooth and gently rolling plain,
without serious obstruction or obstacle in any part, until we strike the Great
Southern Pass, through the Rocky Mountains, into Oregon. The following accoun t
of an expedition in wagons to this point, in 1829, will serve to show the nature
of the facilities which olfei themselves to the traveller through the region lying
between the mountains and the States. It is an extract from a letter addressed by
Msssrs. Snith, Jackson, and Soublette, to the Secretary of War, in October, 1829,
and published with Prei^ident Jackon's message, January 25th, 1831 :

"On the lOth of April last, (1829,) we set out from St. Louis with eighty-one
men, all mounted on mules, ten wagons, each drawn by five mules, and two
dearborns, (light carriages or carts,) each drawn by one mule. Our route was nearly
-due west, to the western limits of the state of Misiouri, and thence along the Santa
Fe trail, about forty miles from which, the course was some degrees north of west,
across the waters of the Kansas,t and up the Great Platte River, to the Rocky
Mountains, and to the head of Wind river, where it issues from the mountains..

" This took us until the 16ih of .luly, and was as far as we wished the wagons
to go, as the furs to be brought in, were to be collected at this place, which is, or
was, this year the great rendezvous of the persons engaged in that business. Here
4he waggons could easily haee crossed the Rocky Mountains, it being what is called
the SOUTHERN pass, had it been desirable for them to do so ; which it was not, for the
reason stated. For onr support, at leaving the Missouri settlements, until we
should get into the buffalo country, we drove twelve head of cattle, besides a milch
uow. Eight of them only being required for use before we got to the buffaloes, the
otheis went on to the head of Wind river On the 4th of August, the wagons
being in the mean time loaded with the furs which had been previously taken, we
set out on the return to St. Louis. All the high points of the mountains then in
Tievv, were whito wiih snow ; but tire passes and valleys, and all the level country,
were green with grass. Our route back was over the same ground nearly as in
going out, and we arrived at St. Louis on the lOlh of October, bringing back the
ten wagons, (the dearborns being left behind ;) four of the oxen and the milch cow
were also brought back to the settlements of the Missouri, as we did not need them
for provision. The usual weight in the wagons was about one thousand, eight
hundred pounds. The usual progress of the wagons was from fifteen to twenty
miles per day. The country being almost all open, level, and prairie, the chief ob-
structions were ravines and creeks, the banks of which required cutting down ; and
for this purpose, a few pioneers were generally kept ahead of the caravan. This is

» McCulloeh, in his Gazetteer, compiled from all the authorities, estimates the breadth at
its widest stretch to be .1,700 miles— Professor Morse, in hi* Geography published in 1846,
at 3000.

t Our Boston rail-road cars frequently travel at Vxe rate of 32 miles to the hour, stoppage
included,

\ It must be borne in mind, that this departure from the direct line of route along the 43d
parallel, is pursued by travellers with a view of obtaining water, and also game ; which are
JBvariably to be found in the vicinity of great rivers.

HISTORY OF OREaOK.

the first time that wagons ever went to the Kocky mountains, and the ease im£
tafchj with which it was done, prove Ike facility of eommunimlinfr overland with the
Pacific Ocean ; the route from the southern pass, where the wa.<rons slopped, to the
Great Falls of the Columbia, hexng easier and better than on this side of the moun'
IOJ««, with grass enough for horses and vuiles, but a scarcitijnf grain for the sup-
port of men\

In addition to this account, which so satijfactonly establishes the feasibility of the
worit in view, we have the corroboriitive relation, if corrobration lends any strength
to indisputable testimony, of Thomas P. Farnhatn-, who, in his journal of a journey
made from the Mississippi to- the mouth of the Columbia, in 1840, gives us the fol-
lowing statement.

"Among the curiosities of this phice, (Fort Boia^, a trading post on the Saptin,)
were the fore-wheels, azietree and thills of a one-horse wagon, run by American
missionaries from the stale of Connecticut, thus far towards the mouth of the Co-
lumbia. It was left here under the belief that it could not be taken through the
Blue mountains, but fortunately for the next that shall attempt to cross the conti-
nent, a safe and easy passage has lately been discovered, by which vehicles of this
description may be drawn through to the Wallawalla." Here we harve the testi-
mony of an intelligent observer who has travelled over every inch of the route, as
well that on this side of the mountains as the portion unexplored by the former
party, whose account we have previously given. This, with numerous similar ac-
counts in existence, among which is the journal at the end of this volume, must
convince the most skeptical that a rail-road to and through this district of country
it practicable beyond a doubt. There is reason to believe, however, that upon the
careful preparatory survey which must be instituted, new notches through these for-
midable riiiges may be found, still better adapted to the work in view, and in a more
direct line with Pnget's Sound, in whoso commodious harbors our commercial
operations in the Pacific, from the absolute absence of the requisite facilities on
any southern portion of the Oregon coast, must necessarily centre.* Taking the
practicability of the work therefore as established, it will nut be improper to devote
ourselves to a short inquiry as l& tlte other modes and means of effecting the ulti-
mate design.

In these, Nature herself volunteers her assistance to tho enterprise. No ocean
is 80 remarkably adapted to steam navigation as tho Pacific. Its tranquil surface is
scarcely ever agitated by a storm, and propitious winds and currents accelerate the
course of the mariner across its bosom. The general motion of its waters is from
west to east, at the average velocity of twenty- eight miles a day. In consequence,
the sea appears on some portions of the coast to flow constantly from the land, and
Tessels sail with great celerity from Acapulco in Mexico to the Phillippine Islands,
on the coast of Asia. The N. E. trade winds bbw almost uninterruptedly between
latitudes 5° and 23'^ north, and with the assistance of the currents and the flow of
the sea, enable vessels within this region, to sail from America to Asia, almost
without changing their saib. Our course to the Indies from the mouth of the Co-
lumbia, or from the Straits of St. Jean de Fuca, would be South West to the Sand-
wich Islands, and from thence, directly along the twentieth parallel, across. Re-
turning by a more northwardly route, advantage would be taken of the polar cur-
rents which set N. W. towards the Straits of Behring, and also of the variable
winds prevailing in the higher latitudes. Having crossed our continent in seven
days, we span the Pacific in twenty-five more, and thus in thirty-two, reach the
ports of China : by the same route back, the products of the East may land upon
the shores of Europe in forty-six days ; a period of time but little more than one
third of that now taken to make the ordinary passages around the southern extremi-
ties of America and Africa.

♦ By crossing the river at Wallawalla and proceeding in a direct line along the banks of the
Eyakcma river, the distance is shorter to the harbors of Puget's Sound than to the [shores of
the ocean,

II »

HISTOBT OF OREGON.

The view that this opens to the mind, independent of its internal benefits,
staggers speculation with its immensity, and stretches beyond all ordinary rulei
■of calculation. A moderate forecant may, however, foresee the followfng results.
Tho riches of the most unlimited market in the world would be thrown open to
our enterprise, and obeying the now iinpulso thus imparted to it, our commerce
would increase till every ocean billow between us and the China sea would twin-
kle with a sail. By the superior facilities conferred upon us by our position and
control of the route, we should' become the common carrier of the world for the
India trade. " Britannia rules the waves," would dwindle to an empty boast,
and England would have to descend from her arrogart assumption of empire o'er
the sea, to the ley-l of a suppliant's tone, in common with the great and small of
the Euri"'- ^p for the benefits of this a-,-—" of nations. The employment

as comu... aarrie M be secured to ub hj imposition of a tonnage duty,
heavy enough to amount to a prohibition, upon all foreign bottoms arriving at our
Pacific coast. There is nothing remarkably selfish, neither is there any thing re-
pugnant to fair'dealing in this regulation; we are deserving of one special advan-
tage as a premium for conferring this benefit upon all, and we have the exampi} of
Great Britain herself, to justify us in the adoption of the rule. The rapid and ex-
cessive increase of our commercial marine would necessarily foUow this result.
Encouraged by the comparative ease and safety of ita service, and enticed by the
liberal wages which the demand for so many hands would ensure, thousands of our
young men, whom the dangers and privations of a seafaring life have heretofore
deterred from carrying out the natural desire of visitmg foreign climes, would em-
brace the sailor's occupation, and a nursery would thus be established, from whose
exhaustless sources the demand of our increasing navy would always find a supply.

Our contiguity and other peculiar advantages would ensure us the pre-emption
of all the markets of the Pacific. Our /apidly increasing cotton and other factories,
under this impulse would increase anew; our e.xtending agricultural operations
would widen till they waved their golden harvest o'er and o'er the land, and to-
gether they would distribute their products along the western coasts and diffuse
them among tho islands of the ocean. In return, Ooeana, whose trade and con-
sumption both would greatly multiply by the same imparted motive, would pour her
treasures into the bosom of our country, and render us, by her liberal supply of
tropical productions, independent of the West Indies. Our exportations of flour,
at the exorbitant rates which it commands in the markets of these regions, would
alone be a source of immense wealth, and on the other hand, the profits of a new
article of import from the coast of Peru, can scarcely be regarded as of less im-
portance. Guano, but little known in 1840, is now exciting the deep attention of
the cultivators of the soil of all nations, and to such an extent has its trade in-
creased, that from the importation of but a few Ions five years ago, six hundred
vessels of a large class are now employed in supplying the wants of Great Britain
and Ireland alone. It is already beginning to be introduced into this country, and
ere long we may expect to see its supply increase in a corresponding ratio v;ith the
European demand. Now, it comes to us surcharged with the expenses of a long
end dangerous voyage; then, it would be obtained at one half its present 'l.srgcs,
and we should be furnished with the most valuable fertilizer known to man, for the
benefit of the impoverished portions of our Oregon soil. The chief obstacle to the
dense population of that territory is, therefore, providentially obviated.*

Our Whale fishery and other branches of commerce in the Pacific, would be bet-
ter protected, and the prosecutors of the former would have convet)ient ports to refit
in ; to seek a hasty refuge at in case of war, and to obtain the speedy means of re-
dress from, should they be made the victims of the outrage of any foreign naval power.

' " There wilf bo no didiculty ," says a work written in Liverpool on the above suT)ject, " ia
obtaining I'rom tho coast of Peru for the next ICOO years, a supply of guano adequate to the want«
of tho British/armer."

HISTORY OF OREGOir.

■ *;

. s
if'';

-i^

An additional proof of the necessity of increasing our naval power in this quarter is
furniiihed in the lute account of the ravages of the Pirates of the Asiatic iHlen, upon
European vCssols.

Our relations with China would be guarded and strengthened, and in caso a ne-
cessity should arise to redress a wrong, resent an insult, or resist an aggression, wo
should he able, helped by the speed of our advices, to throw a preponderating mili-
tary force there three months previous to any European power.

There are other views which open at this Ktii;,'o of the analysis, upon which it will
not be improper tu bestow a share of our consideration.

The vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean has been as yet but imperfectly explored,
and there is reason to believe there are many islands reposing on its bosom whose
fertile shores have never met the eye of man. Some of these ocean gems lie di-
rectly in our eastward or westward track, and their value to us as resting places and
points of supply, as well as posts for the erection of our fortificatiouF, would be in-
estimable. This brings to mind the fact that there is one important branch of com-
mercial policy, hitherto overlooked and neglected by ua, which the course of things
now call upon us to adopt ; and that is the securing under our own flag and rule
of maritime posts in the dilferenl fields of our commercial enterprise. We may be
told that this is an infraction of our constitutional economy, a violation of the spirit
of our institutions, and that it springs from a wild and disordered lust for power which
will eventuate in our dissolution ; in short every argument will be brought forward
by philosophers learned in mill-stones, to oppose the aggrandisement of the country
on the principle of aggregation. Tiiese sachems have been told in their primary
classes at school, that Greece and Hume fell by their unbounded ambition, and it
would take little short of a defeat of Nature to dispossess them of the idea. Ti ey
therefore, make it a primari/ object to denounce every extension of territory as de-
morBlising and destructive, and point triumphantly to History to establish the asser-
tion. Admitting this to be the case, though it applied to the Greeks and Romans,
^n an early age, and might apply to any other nation in the same cycle, it does not
apply to us in thft' present time. We are a new people, in a new era, acting on new
principles, and working out a new and grand problem for the benefit of mankind.
"History," to make a grotesque application of a common term — " is behind the
age." But aside from our exception from their rule, their proposition is false as to
its facts, and carries absurdity in its very face.

How did Greece become great enough to decline — and how did Rome from a speck
upon a hill-top win the Imperial diadem that marked the mastery of a world ?
Surely not by building fences around their original limits, and vowing never to go
beyond. Such a resolution would share credit for sagacity with the refusal of a
handsome fortune by a needy man, because at some day he must die and leave it,
and might also be, compared to that stretch of forecast which would induce a states-
man to refu.'se all worldly power and honours, because forsooth, they must descend
to a successor. Nations do not perish in a moment ; they are neither swallowed
up in the earth like Korah and his com])any, nor do they go out like the snuff of &
candle ; they have degrees to their decline, and while it is perfectly easy to detect
all the natural causes of their decease, we have no excuse in closing our eyes upon a
fanciful hypolhcsi.s, which finds its basis only in the imagination.

How did Greece and Rome fall .' Not by the extension of territory as a cause,
(though to maintain its extreme points weakened her in her decline,) but by the vices
which crept into her constitution ; from the progress of those corruptions which arc
inseparable from aristocratical systems ; from ignorance of the true principles of
govennncnt, and consequently from the effect of unequal laws and unequal repre-
sentation. The distant tributary, suffering under the exactions of a subaltern des-
pot and his military bands, being too far removed from the jiarent government to
represent its grievances within a period to give redress a value, and at the same
time, too far removed to dread its enervated power, threw off the allegiance which

HISTORY OF OREGON.

only imposed onerauB conditions nnd conferrnd no benefits but a humiliating pcnco.
Thf example of defection thus safely set, was followed by another and another, and
nttackod at the same tinio by a new, vigorous nnd iniiumcfnblo enemy, Kumo fell.
She fell through her own debasement, and her genius retired before the superior
vigor and energy of an uncorruptcd race. The extreme extension of territory in an
ago when travelling could only bo accomplished with insuperable difficulty would
doubtless rather weaken than strengthen a nation's power, from the difficulty, of
striking rapidly at rebellion, but where the communications arc as speedy and com-
plete as they are in the present day, the comparison will not apply. Kiiil Roads.
Steam Engines, and the Magnet, have " annihilated space, and exploded all theories
which ro-ted on the accidents of time and distancn ;" an expanded order of intelli-
gence has shown the benefits of union in a common system, and though our do-
minion stretched throughout the boundaries of this hemisphere, with the elements
for our agents, nnd the lightning of heaven for our slave, we could bind its extremi-
ties together in a moment, and throw the impubes of our power from ci 'I to end,
with the rapidity of thought.

By overlooking the means of protecting our marine by the discovery or purchase
of those island stations, we are behind every nation in the world in commercial sa-
gacity. Franco roars her fortifications on the coasts of Morocco, in tho islands of
the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans, and by a late arrangement, even plants her
standard in the very mouth of Canton. Tho Dutch own the richest of the Asiatic
isles, and Spain rules absolute in the Phili])ine8. Russia, not content with ovet
7,000,000 square miles, extending from central Europe to the extremity of eastern
Asia, has made a lodgnicnt on our continent, and marks the line of her possessions
to the North, as a bar to our farther advance ; and even Portuiral and Denmark,
hold their warlike posts in many parts of the Atlantic ocean. The acquisitions of
England are so well known they hardly need recapitulation. It has been well said,
that the Sun never sets upon her dominions, and that the thunder of her mornins;
gun from post to post around tho world, falls into the measure of a continuous
salute.

Gibraltar, Malta and the Ionian Isles, give her tho control of the entire Mediteira-
nean ; St. Helena, Ascension Island, Cape Town and Mauritius, keep watch along
the coasts of Africa; she has settlements, fortifications and territorial governments
over all the shores of Hindostan, and her power extends throughout the whole of
tho Eastern region. Further south, her empire spreads over the whole of Austra-
lasia ; — Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Bermuda, tho Bahamas nnd her West India
Islands, command the entire stretch of our Atlantic coast and the entrance to the
Gulf of Mexico, while Canada environs us upon our Northern border ; yet probably
England would be the first to assure us, in connection with some of our own good ad-
visers, that extension of territory is the sure cause of a nation's eventual destruc-
tion. She, however, pursues this policy herself, with the knowledge that it adds to
her aggrandisement and power at every new stage of its consummation. With a
view of aiding her steam navigation across the Pacific, she has lately purchased a
little island in it, on which two coal mines have been discovered ; she has not even
thought a miserable patch of ground on the Mosquito shore,* too insignificant to
seize, and she is now, doubtless, intriguing for the prize of Cuba and the Califor-
nias. Russia is ready to devour Turkey or engulf another Poland. Austria has
long looked with a greedy eye upon the plains of Italy ; and every power
on the face of the earth, seek new acquisitions with the utmost avidity ; while
the United States, as if she had not recovered from the astonishment of falling sud-
denly into the possession of 2,000,000 square miles 68 years ago, folds her unas.
Burning hands, and with an amiable bow which betrays the modesty of her character,
exclaims, " thank you. Gentlemen Powers, not a bit moro if you please !"

' Tliis u-as seized on pretence of it being a bccjucst from an Alricafl cliii.'i.

HISTORY or OREOON.

I'-', I

The oppoiora of the course of policy wo advocate, if nut able to defeat it on th*
groiimlii of renton or prncedent, will ttnd their last resource in iho tyranny of preju-
dice, arid the opinion of Washington, will duubtless be apjiealcd to, as a tettler of
•he proposition out of hand. The ago, howevtir, has outgrown fhis species of con-
trol. Our notions of liberty have bcconiB extended to the degree that embraces the
right of judging fur ourselves ; and wo feel no fear of startling the horror of our
readers by the aasertion that there are at least half a million of people in the United
States, who, from the new principles which scirrice has envoked in the present ge-
neration, are better judges of the cfTects of the adoption of this policy, now, than
"Washington, or any other man, who died forty-five years ago, could possibly haTO
been. There is too much of this knuckling to precedent and old opinion. \/e
can benefit by the e.Tperiunco of a past ag'i, without becoming itie hereditary l)ond»«
men of their ideas : wo can treat its wisdom with all the cunsidcratinn it deaervoi*
without presenting the absurd Bpcctiicio, of a people claiming to bo free, who have
absolutely.signed away freedom's main component in the liberhj of mind.

Again, vast countries still lie in the fairy regions of the East, the productions and
resources of which arc scarcely known to us, and that only await the civilising influ-
ence of such a nchemo ns this, to throw down their barriers of prejudice and super-
stition, and embrace with the rest of mankind, the social blessings of the world. Of
this nature and character in the opt>lent empire of Japan. Though second but to
China itself, it holds no intercourse with foreigners, and only permits one natiot)
(the Dutch) to land upon its dominions. Ought it to be too much fur American
diplomacy to effect its comtnercial and social redemption and throw ita rich markets
open to our enterprise.

Tho Oregon route, should this project be carried through, would, for its shortness,
for its safety, for its comparative comfort and llic accuracy with which the duration of
its travel could be calculated, be selected in preference to any other by all travellers to
the East, or the regions of the Pacific. These would' comprise among their number
ambassadors and their suite:) ; consuls and other government oflicors to China and
the Indies, lo New Holland, to the jjorts of the western coast, and the islands of
Polynesia, and enticed by the facilities afforded to them, many who otherwise wuidd
never have attempted the perils and discomforts of the old voyage, would make a
trip to the Indies or some island paradise in the Pacific, leaving us as they passed
leisurely through our territory, a portion of their wealth. Add to this source of profit,
the toll of the enormous amount of foreign mf rchandize which must seek this avenue,
or be shut out from a market altogether, and the postages which the great number of
letters pouring in from every part of Europe would afford, and its revenues would be
immense indeed. Yet the sources of all this vast income would be surplus profit,
for a short experience would prove, that our own internal trade, communications
and postages, would not only pay the current expenses of the road of themselves,
but woukd afford a liberal per ccniagu on the amount of capital invested.

Experience has pr6ved that no direction which can be given to human enterprise,
is so active and effectual in developing the resources of a country, as thai involved
in rail-roads; and without a'ty regard to its stupendous national advantages, both
external and domestic, immediate anC ultimate, it would be found that the result
of this project would justify the undertaking merely as a measure of internal
improvement.

The navigable distance to the mouth of tho Columbia is now, by the route around
Cape Horn, about 19,000 miles from the port of New York; by the proposed route*
it would he less than 3,000; which affords tho enormous saving of 16,000 miles-
The natural effect of such a communicatioi) across the continent would be the rapid
settlement of Oregon, the sudden growth of a great commercial and manufacturing
city at its Pacific terminus, and the establishment of a naval station on Pilget's Sound.
For both of these latter objects, every facility is providentially afforded. Fine
building stone abounds in every direction, the best timber in the world stud its

HISTORY OP OREGON.

foreita, tho country in the neighborhood of the ocean abounds in favorable aitea for
water power, and for the auatenance of ateam navigntion, large minea uf coal Hro to
bo found in difTerrnt parta of the country. For the eatablishmentof a naval atation,
the harbora of St. Jean do Fuca and Puget's Sound, ufTer, aa wo have alrnady
acen, peculiar facilitiea for the erection of the worka of a great maritime nation.

The coat of the work ia the next branch of inquiry that demanda our attention.
For a guide to an eatimato of thia wo have tho tabular atatements of the American
Rail-ruad Journal, (a reliable authority,) which by a late computation, aeta the
ogg'^gnte number of tnilea of rail-way in thia country at 5,000 ; the coat of which
bat been S 125,000,000, or $25,000 per mile.

Aa a portion of thia expense ia occaaioned by land damages, or land for the track,
moat of which liea in thickly aettled, and, consequently, valuable aertiona of the
country, wo are entitled to a deduction in favor of the work under oonaideration.
The rate of thia may be obtained from the example of the Boston and Lowell Kail-
road, the land damagca on which amuiuited to 92,842,47 per mile. We will apply
thia substraction to but 1600 miles of tho prupoaed work, and alao strike the amount
down to $2,500 a mile, to make a smoother computation. Thus we have

2,500 miloa of road at tho rate of $26,000 per mile, $62,000,000

A deduction of $2,500 per mile from 1,500 milca, 3,750,000

$58,250,000
Making an aggregate of tifty-eight millions end a quarter for the completion of a
design which will render t very nation on the globe iur commercial tributaries This,
however, is a most extravagant estimate, and the coat will probably not amount to
within several millions of that sum. Tho distance is very roughly calculated from
the absence of accurate information on tho subject, and the cost is purposely amplified
to secure being on the safe side of the calculation. We arc justified in the opinion
that it will be much less, by the fact that there is at present a private project before
Congress which proposes to perform the work at a cost of $25,000,000, on the
somewhat modest condition, by the way, of receiving a grant of public lands sixty
miles in width along the track, from Illinois to the Pacific ocean.

The cost of the work, therefore, even though it should amount to a hundred or a
hundred and fifty millions, is no argument to urge against the undertaking, for it
would be disgraceful to our national character to impute to government an inability
to carry out a design which is within the scope and means of a company of private
individuals. The resources of our country are fully equal to the enterprise. No
patriot believes, no statesman daro aflirm, that we are unable to sustain the expenses
of a three years' war with the most powerful nation of Europe ; yet this undertaking,
at its utmost estimate, will not cost as much as a three years' war, and instead of
leaving us, as a war would do, enfeebled, exhausted, and depressed, its completion
would find us regenerated with new life, with our impulses awakened, our energies
strengthened, and advancing forward with a rapidity and vigor that would astonish
even Destiny itself. Let us deprecate, therefore, from the consideration of this
work, that fatal spirit of Economy which has been the Evil Genius to so many a
great design.

Economy is the besetting sin of Representative governments. Deceived by its
plausible exterior, and tickled with the notion that it is an essential element of
primitive simplicity, philosophers, whose mental scope reaches no further than the
piling up of particles on the simplest rule of simple addition, oppose its blighting
influence to every noble scheme, and advocate it on all occasions and with the
utmost vehemence as a cardinal principle. They do not see, or they do not care to
see, that the thrift which )ioards the seed to defeat us of the harvest, is the grossest
form of waste ; that it amuses the present with a straw, to cheat the future of its
golden fields. They proceed upon the false idea, that the multitude more readily
appreciate the rule that saves a penny now, than tho design which subtracts one

fi8

HltrORY OF OREGON.

• ']1

:ni

on tho hnzard of tlie return of a pound hereafter ; and it if through thii corrupt and
contemptible conaidprntiun, this pin-liook angling in the muddy wateri after popu-
larity, iliat we find h provniling mfnnnets in all our nuiSBures of expenditure. A
mennneis that runs from tho remuneration of tho chief mngistrate of tho Union to
the purchase of a territory, from tho starvation of an Afrionn lion,* to tho preiien-
tation to an Imaun of a piece of lac(|uernd plate ;t till at length it degenerates into
injustice and dishonesty in its disregard of the rights of rcvolutionaiy claimants,
and in the non redemptions of the continental paper which gave its illusory conoid-
oration for th« blood of ihnuaands of patriotic hearts.

A suflTicicnt amount of funds can be obtained for the commencement, nay, tho
entire rumpletion of the whole work, from tho sales of the public lands alone. As
suon as the survey is made and the route laid out, tho land in the immediate lino of
the track will be sought with the utmost eagerness by speculators, for investments of
their capital. It will rise at once to an immense value, and it would not bo extrava-
gant to expect that in less than one year froii^the marking out of the line, more than
thirty million of dollars would pour into the treasury of the Receiver of Sales. Ad-
ditional sales could then be made as tho road progressed, to a still bettor advantage,
and before the completion of the work, the Government would flnd its waste domain
of unavailable prairie turned as if by magic into marketable acres.

The road, as it progressed, would bo employed up to tho point of its completion,
by our merchants, our traders, and our emigrants. The great amount of trade and
travel, which sets out from this point, (New York,) through the western states to
the Mississippi, an^ returns the seme way back, would enable it to go very fi\t to-
ward sustaining its own existence.

It may strike some as superogatory in the Government to undertake this work
when it is offered to be accomplished, and all its consequent advantages secured to
our hand, by private enterprise ; but there are many, and insurmountable reasons
why it should be a national undertaking, and not left at the mercy of a band of spe-
culators, whose narrow objects would be private gain.

It should be national, because its objects and purposes are national ; and because
its accomplishment will advance tho glory as well as ensure the safety of our coun-
try, and beneficially affect the interests of all its citizens.

Because being the high road for all nations, its transactions will have an impor-
tant bearing upon our ''reign relations, and its regulations will consequently bo
govermental in their nature and policy.

Because the undertaking is too gigantic for the successful enterprise of individuals,
who, if ever able to accomplish it at all, will not be able to do so with that despatch,
which the general interests of the country, our views in relation to Oregon, and the
ardent wishes of our people demand.

Because the immense revenues arising out of it, and the wide domain accompany-
ing the grant, (Whitney's memorial asks for a strip of public land 00 miles in width,
from Lake Michigan to the Western ocean,) would create a monopoly liable to tho
most, dangerous abuses. From the "great number of its employees, tho numerous
settlers upon its lands, most of whom it would be able to coerce, and its enormous
wealth, it would grow into a stupendous power, which, if not capable of rivalling the
Government itself, might at any rate, exercise such a control by these combined in-
fluences over Its representation in Congress, as would place our dearest privileges
at its disposal. As a protection, on tho other hand, against a perversion of its pa-
tronage by the Government, wo should have to rely on the honor, the purity, and

* The Emperor of Morocco sent us tho present of a lion of tho desert, which, after its arrival,
barely escaped starvation through tho humanity of a showman, who subsequently purchosed it
for his menagerie.

fThe Imaun of Muscat, as an overture for a commercial arrangement, sent us two superb
milk white Arabian coursers, with a slave accompanying each. Wo returiieil among other
things, a row boat with silver ttlaUd rowlocks. The pure ore would not have cost a hundred
dollars more.

HISTORY or OREGON.

patriotintn of our Preiidonti ; a fiinrantcn Momewhnt mora lubttintinl it muit b«
•dmilted, ihnn the cupidity of individiiali.

BccauaR, the object of a Democracy, while it lecuroi to Enterprise and Talent,
their rnwnrdi, is to cqiinliae the unnofit* of hoaren to nil, and the act which would
avowedly confer apecial facilitioi for the amastmont of onormoua wealth on any body
of men, is in derogation of its own comprehensive scheme, A bounteous Providene*
has made the productions of the earth equal to the wants of all its creatures, and it
is a demonitrablo rulo that every usurpation of an excess is followed in tome quar-
ter by a corresponding loss. This tendency, through the peculiar construction of
society, cannot be helped at present, nor can it be corrected in a day, but it is in-
cumbent upon us, whom a wise director has delegated to work out a system for the
elevation of mankind, to interpose no obstacle to its consummation, by specially
encouraging an infraction of the plan.

The first results uf a private grant of the nature of the one proposed t^ the last
Congress, would doubtless be as follows : As soon as the route had been surveyed,
maps would be prepared, dividing the whole into ser : ions for sale. Then t formal,
and ostentatious opening of the rond would follow. A vast collei .ion of people
would gather together to see the show, and amid the thunder of cannon, the waving
of colours, and the swell of martial music, some public spirited g ntleman would
strike a spade into the ground while the wild huzzas of .he admiri" , multitude ould
make the welkin ache again.

This herculean effort ovdr, the company, after staving in the heads of a *■ ■ v oairela
of beer to whet the whistles of the crowd, would retire to a sumptuous din .e; to de-
vise plans anew, and to felicitate tjiemselves over the vast p > ^^tages they had
cozened from the Government.* From that lime out, their afeniic i would be de-
voted entirely to land speculations. The maps would be industriously circulated,
and adopting te their use the science of pufTing, newspapers would teem with glowing
rnprescntaiions to attract the attention of purchasers. The domain parcelled out
by the company, would be described, on account of its facilities for transferring the
produce of its fertility f.'om ocean to ocean, as the golden belt of the continent.
Speculators would rush to make investments of) their capital ai 1 undeterred by the
exorbitant advance from day to day in price, the poor man would hasten with the
tribute of his hard won gains to cast a golden anchor in the future. After this
course of things had been pursued long enough to swell the pockets of the company
with a plethera of millions, we should have no stronger guarantee than what cxista
in the failability of man that the work ever would be prosecuted. The whole result
would be, that the company who had simply assumed for a time the United States
ownership of the public lands (for none but tii <rt,y mile strip would sell during
this delusion) would good naturedly pocket Thr f' pie's money till they fell off from
very surfeit ; and then, declaring themselves incapable, for want of means, of carry-
ing out the objects of the gram, they would either sell out their privileges to others,
or Government, impelled by the complah fs and distresses of those who had been
their victims, would have to complete tbe object after all herself.

But supposing their intentions u bo sincere and their measures for the immediate
commencement of the work earnest, there is yet another consideration against it
outweighing all the res^ As soon as the grant was made, plans would be drawn
out, and one of the directors despatched to London (as in the present cas« of Von
Jos6 de Garay in relation to the ship canal through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec) to
solicit the aid of British capitalists to sustain the work. Its importance would at
once strike all, and perhaps attract the attention of the British government itself, and
under the direction of her wily minister, funds might be placed in private hands for
purchases of stock. At any rate, there can bo but little doubt that tho stock would

' It must b(! borne in mind that tliese observations though based on the provisions of Whit-
ney's ])roposa1, arc merely suppositive against its theory, and are by no means meant as an im-
putation of his intentions, or a reflection on his character.

HISTORY OF OREGON.

■! It

T
1 -J
t»1

tA\ rnpidly be taken up, and the result would be, that British stockholders, and pw
haps the British government itself, would control the whole enterprise. It an any
rate would afford her a pretext for interference on the score of protecting the pro-
perty of her subjects. This principle has already been vociferously claimed for her
by many of the creditors of our non-paying states, and the probability is, that in a
matter of such vital import to her as this, it would ripen i ito a governmental assump-
tion. In short, the necessary consequence of any private company must be, the in-
troduction into our very bosom a foreign influence that will pierce our continent
from shore to shore, and, in a double sense, divide our happy land.

Lastly, it should be national, because its vast revenues would not only enable the
Government, after paying off" the cost, to relieve the oountry of the burden of almost
every tax, whether impost or otherwise, but afford a surplus, which might be expend-
ed to advantage in the gradual increase of the navy, and in strengthening our sea*
board and harbor defences to a state amounting to impregnability.

Having settled the feasibility of the work, both as to geographical facility and as to
means of defraying the cost, the next thing to be considered is the Time necessary
for its completion ; and though our arrangement brings this third in order, it is alto-
gether first in importance.

The time allowed for its completion should be limited to five years, in which peri-
od it could as easily be accomplished by the energies of our government, as it could
in twenty -five !

If 20,000 men* can complete 500 miles a year, there is no good reason why the
result should be delayed to bestow the monopoly of the labor on 5000 who can only
perform 125 miles in the same time.

Our country is as capable of a great effort as a mean one, and we have a right
to expect one worthy of her genius and character. We repeat that time is the
great object ! A series of rapidly developing political events prove that the antago-
nistic principles of liberty and feudalism are fast approaching their (inal struggle.
Alarmed at our astonishing progress, the monarchical governments of Europe are
preparing to bring their centralized force to bear upon the genius of Republicanism,
and when the collision takes place, we, as the grand promoter and defender of the
latter, will have to sustain the whole brunt of the shock. Let us, therefore, arm
ourselves against the crisis in time ! Let us extend our communications across our
CAuntry's length and breadth ; secure the possession of the points that will ena*
ble us to protect the interests of our commerce in both oceans aivd the East, and
assume a position worthy of the champion of the ^vorld's emancipation.

As many men should be employed upon the work as is possible to be obtained,
even if the number run up to 20,000, or should go even beyond that. This would
furnish employment to all the languishing labor of the great cities, and force, by the
gradual progress of the road, an immense mechanical and laboring population into
Oregon. This result would of itself peaceably settle our title against the world,
and obviate entirely any necessity of further negotiation or force. These artizans
and laborers having long been in the receipt of wages which they have been obliged
to hoard, would, by the time they arrived in that distant territory, be possessed of a
handsome competence, and taking advantage of the government bounty to settlers,
become at once substantial landed proprietors, whose patriotism and obedience to
the laws, would be securely guaranteed by their interest in the soil. Our govern-
ment in exchange for its eastern substratum of suffering population, would find ita
broad and fertile western territories sprinkled with hamlets, and, owning a class of
intelligent and happy husbandmen, who would be the chief pride, boast, and de-
pendence of the country.

* This number ii not offered as a portion of the rule for the accomplishment of the work
within the specified time. If, however, a larger number of workmen t*":.! ihe above could be
obtained, and paid, and the work completed in a stUUess time than five years, so much the
better f jr every tutereit concerned, i

[VJj I

HISTORY OF ORSnOIV.

These settlements wonid be formed, in great part, by the artizans and workers
on the road, who having built temporary habitations for themselves and families in
the neighborhood of their work, and foreseeing that for years to come they would
reap a rich harvest for their agricultural labors in the wants of the immense army
of pioneers who had gone before, and afterward in the markets of the Pacific,
would yield to the love for a stationary home and the dignity of independent own-
ership, by settling permanently in every fertile portion of the road- side. The places
of those who thus dropped out of the line would be supplied by the new emigrant,
whom the increased price of labor in our Atlantic cities would have enticed to our
shores, and thus the generous spirit of the enterprise would go on, redeeming man
after man from the abasement of ill-requif<"l servitude into the majesty and perfec-
tion of human nature — lord of the land, and with no master but his God.

The price of labor in our great cities would be progressive from the commenco-
ment of the work to its completion ; and thus would be drawn from capitalists a
portion of their hoards for its beneficial diffusion throughout all classes of the com-
munity, ^hs rights of labor would be vindicated by the enforcement of a more
equal division of its returns between it and its mercantile deputies, and a great step
would be taken towards elevating it to its true importanee in the social scale. The
annual drain of population to the interior, and the new direction to be given to it
south, would at the same time reduce landed property nearer to its true level, and
modify that last remnant of feudalism, the landlord's power, into a bearable evil.
These two influences combined, will do more at a stroke to elevate the condition of
the masses, to check the fatal tendency to a division of interests and distinction of
castes as in the old world ; to divide the national domain among the people, and
thus consummate the original scheme of the creation, than all the agrarian laws,
8t>cial chimeras, and visionary legislation could in centuries !

Here we bring our inquiry to a close. We have, in the first place, made a satis-
factory examination of our title to Oregon ; in the second, proved the capabilities
of that region for suppoiting a numerous population ; in the third, examined the
facilities which are offered for easy communication between it and the States, and
in the fourth, we have established the perfect practicability of a rail-road to and
through It, and following out the examination of this feature of our subject, we have
glanced at the most obvious of the advantages that will be aeeomplished through its
agency. In conclusion, we repeat that the earliest practicable time should be
adopted to carry out the design. While France and Mexico meditate the segrega-
tion of the continent, and while England is despatching another squadron to the
Arctic sea, we certainly are called upon to inquire at least, by an actual survey,,
whether we have not within the bosom of our own territoiies, superior facilities for
accomplishing the same grand purpose which impelii them. The immediate com-
mencement of the work itself, would not conflict witu any treaty stipulation, nor
could it justly give umbrage to any other power, and h> addition to afTordiiig a
pledge to The People of the sincerity of the Government's intentions towards Ore-
gon, the actual prosecution of the measure would defeat the British jugglers in
their design of circumventing our rights by protracted negotiation.

Let them negotiate and let us work, and while they are mousing through the
pages ofBynckershoeck ant: PuffendorfT in cabinet caucauses, and solemn diploma-
tists are exchanging assurances of profound consideration, thousands of our hardy
citizens will keep pouring though the gaps of the Rocky mountains, and at the
conclusion of the grave dispute, be smoking their pipes in every fertile nook in
Oregon.

The rail road is the Great Negotiator, which alone can settle our title more
conclusively, than all the diplomatists in the world.

Aside from the considerations of national aggrandisement, this project is war-
ranted as a measure of political economy which makes its appeal directly to the

HISTORT OF OREGON.

■■■■I Wf

heart of every philanthropist. It would be a benefaction to the oppressed masses
that would come with a peculiar graco from a parental government to its suffering
children, and in addition to its being a measure for their gradual elevation and re-
lief, it would also be an evidence, that among all the chartered privileges lavished
time and again upon the rich, the government could find it in its heart to make at
least one charter for the poor.

Lastly, if the magnetic telegraph should be added to this comprehensive scheme,
where shall calculation look for the limits of its vast results ? Basing our conclu-
sions upon our wonderful advance in the present century, it is no extravagance to
predict that in less.than fifty years, we shall behold in our beloved country a govern-
ment, holding the preponderance of power, owning a population of a hundred mil-
lions, with a central capital in the great valley of the Mississippi, commanding
from its nucleus of power an electric communication over three millions of square
miles, and dLf<.a!ng its congregated science, art, philosophy, enterprise and intelli-
gence ; its enlarged spirit of liberty, philanthropy, peace and good will, to the utter-
most ends of the earth in a fullness that will realize at last the fondest dreams of
the millenium!

Arouse then, America, and obey the mandate which Destiny has imposed upon
you for the redemption of a world ! Send forth upon its mighty errand, the spirit of
enfranchised man ; nor let it pause until it bears down every barrier of unrighteous
power; till it enlarges the boundaries of freedom to the last meridian, and spreads
its generous influence from pole to pole !

HISTORY OF OREGON.

PART II.

TRAVELS
ACROSS THE GREAT WESTERN PR.\IRIES AND THROUGH

OREGON:

With a description of the line of route, and the distances between the

intermediate points from Missouri to the Pacific Ocean. Also,

afull description of the characteristics, capabilitiesand present •

condition of the North Western Territory, prepared

from the Journal of a member of the recently

organised

OREGON LEGISLATURE.

CHAPTER I.

TJie Start— Arrival at the Rendezvous — The Features of the Gathering — The
Rival Fat Gentlemen — The humors of an Evening in the Camp.

It is not necessary to the object in view, tliat the writer of this journal should
fninish the reason which induced him to turn his face towards the wilderness. Let
it suffice that on the morning of the ITth May, 1843, I, (to drop the third person,)
mounted my horse in Independence, Missouri, and set out for the general rendez-
vous. This was situated in a little spot about twenty miles distant, in a south-east
direction. I did not start alone. A family of the name sf Robbins, from the
northern part of Pennsylvania, were my companions. This party consisted of a hus-
band and wife, two chubby boys, one six and the other eight years of age, and a
bouncing baby of eighteen months, or thereabouts.

After having examine'd for the twentieth time if all the necessaries requited for
the journey were properly stowed in the wagon, anti after having for the last time,
jerked at a trace, settled this and that portion of the harness, looked under the
horses, passed his hand over the near one's llank, and walked completely around the
whole concern, John Robbins mounted his seat;, gave a sonorous ahem ! in evidence
of his complete satisfaction, and describing a preparatary circle with his lash, was
about bringing it down on the backs of his team, when a little circumstance in the
body of the wagou interrupted his purpose, and softened the threatening sweep of
the gad into an oblique flourish, that spent its elegance in a faint snap near the
ground.

He had turned his head for the twenty-first time to see th^t all was right iu the
canvass domicile behind, when he disoirned that Mrs Robbins was yielding to the
weakness of her bosom at the separation of the last link that bound her to the asso-
ciations of early youth, and to the ties of friends and home. The husband kissed away
the tears that were tumbling over her full and rosy cheek, s^oke a wrrl of encour-
agement in her ear, and then, with a moistened eye himself, turned hastily to his
place, brought the whip sharply down, set his features as rigid as a uecemvir's, and
rattled off at a pace that soon jolted off every vestige of sadness or depres-
sion, amid the cheers of a large circle of friends and well-wishers, who had gathered
to see us off, and whose benizons floated after us upon the air, as if they were un-
willing to resign this living evidence of their continual guardianship.

The morning was magnificent. The soft fresh breeze was both bracing and bland,
and the sun poured down his brightness, with such superior glory, that his rays
seemed to stream through our very hearts, and to change every doubt and dark fore*
bodmg into cheerful hope. As I gazed out upon thai lovely landscape, and saw every

HISTORY OF OREGON.

bladn and leaf quivering in gold, I ceased to wonder that the savage turned his face
abuve to look for God.

Our course, as I remarked before, lay south west, along the Santa Fe trail. After
we had proceeded on our way for about three hours, the fresh morning air served its
challenge on our appetites, and wo made a h»lt in answer to its summons. In com-
pliment to the smooth green sward, tho Robbins' family tumbled out of the wagon
and spread iheir cloth upon it. Then followed the tin cups and tin plates, and then
the edibles. Of the lust, we made most speedy disposal. Mrs. Robbins had re-
covered from her momentary depression, and was now chatting away in high glee,
only pausing occasionally, to tickle tho baby in the neck, to knead its stomach with
her fists, or to roll it over and over on the grass. The two boys had left the meal
with their cheeks yet full, and were now scampering away after each other in a race
over the fields, while one other member of the party, whom I must apologise for
having overlooked, sat beside the hearty John Robins, looking like the impersona-
tion of Gravity itself This was a large white dog, named Jack, who I understood
had long been a member of the family. He appeared to perfectly understand his
social position, for though there was no evidenceof improper levity in his character,
or any indication of intemperate importunity in his manner, one might see by the
decided cock of his head, and the equally decided interest he bestowed upon every
movement of John Robbin's knife and fork, that he knew his rights to a hair. His
calculations were not disappointed, and his lunch finishing the meal, I mounted my
horse, the Robbins stowed themselves away under the canvass canopy, and off w«
jogged once more, to the great delight of Jack, who went gamboling away be-
fore us.

We had not proceeded far before we were met by a wagon returning from the
rendezvous to Independence.

" Hallo, sMangers ! bound for the encampment 1" shouted a voice from the box.

" Yes ; are we far away 1"

'• A^iut three mile. You'll find a nice party there. We're only goin' back to
Independence for some articles we forgot, an'l then we're with you ! Good day."

In about an hour we arrived at the rendezvous, or encampment, as our roadside
friends had called it. We found there already over three hundred people preparing
for one of the most arduous trips ever undertaken in modern times. About fifty wag-
ons were arranged in a huge semi-circle, in the centre of which little groups were
busying themselves in the usual occupations of life, while others were whiling away
the hours in idle conversation. Here a smith was tinkering at a rivet, there a
female bustled over her domestic pots and pan^; in one quarter an artisan was
engaged in mending a shaft or resetting a wagon top, while in another, a hardy
huntsman was rubbing up his rifle. Numerous herds of cattle browsed about the
plain, while the horses reaped their harvest of the generous herbage within the cir-
cle of their tether. All the concomitants of civilization were there, yet so intermixed
with savage instances, as to startle the observer at the social hybrid. There was
something in the unusual scene and its object, >hat challenged the reflection and
led the mind off in its own despite, in search for the causes that induced it. Curi-
osity asked why a large body of human beings, possessed of a fair share of the com-
forts of life, should renounce, of their own accord, all the advantages of society, and
submit to a voluntary banishment in a region of which they had only heard by
rumor, and that was almost beyond the bounds of civil life ? Why, with vast plains
before them, offering the most bounteous fertility to the lightest summons of the
husbandman ; possessing a certain climate, and promising assured comfort ; asking
no purchase but those of the ploughshare and the spade, they chose rather a toil-
some pilgrimage and the uncertain perils of an almost unknown route, to seek the
same advantages in the extremity of the continent .' It certainly was not from mis-
anthropy, for the very manner of the enterprise denied it ; they were not flying from
the persecutions of intolerance and bigotry ; neither were they the victims of ill
balanced laws, but they were obeying that restless impulse of ambition which Li-
berty implants and fosters, and which displays itself in a passion for experiment and
adventure. This spirit, which has imparted to us energies that have astonished the
world, and still puzzle the monarchies of Europe, has spread its effects from the
Atlantic even thus far into the wilderness ; it is now directing the movements of
this enterprise, and stamps it as the first sign of the enlargement of the boundaries
of Freedom to the western ocean. Liberty and enterprise are inseperable qualities,
and were it not for the obstacle of inadequate means of travtl, no corner of our
country would be left unpeopled.

We were received on our entrance with a shout of welcome, and as we drove in

HISTORY OF OREGON.

re in

a dozen busy hands were instantly lent to assist ns in arranging the disposal of our
articles. Our wagon was drawn to a proper spot, our horses were watered and
staked, Mrs. Robl)iiis was introduced to Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Harris; the liiile
Rohbinses received the overtures of the juvenile Bakers and Browns, and Jack
followed suit by making oioiit decided advances to a liandsLme terrier bitch, who
was doing the atniable in a series of cavortings that would have been most de«
lightful for any lovsr of natural philosophy to see.

As this was also my lirst visit to the rendezvous, I was received in like manner,
and some acquaintances whom I had made a few days before in the town of Inde-
pendence, came forward to welcome me and to show me the ins and outs of the
encampment.

" H'ar you, sir ! H'ar you !" was the greeting which, accompanied by hearty
and earnest grasps of the hand, met me on all sides, and in the course of half an
hour I had become acquainted with two thirds of the whole party. Among otiiers,
I was introduced to a fat old gentleman in a round jacket and very short pair of
corduroys, responding to the name of McFarley, and who, by the way, aspired -to
the command of the enterprise. Another fat old gentleman named Dumberton was
also introduced to me, who was McFarley 's rival for the chieftianship. He had the
advantage of the latter, however, in a face of aldermanic redness, and likewise in a
long-tailed snufT colored coat.

This latter gentleman, immediately on taking my hand, informed me that he came
from "East Tennessee, al a place high up on Big Pidgeon, near Kit Bullard's
mill ;" and then feeling convinced that it was quite unnecessary to take any further
measure to secure my profound respect, threw his head on one side, and waited
for his communication to produce its ef!ect.

Dumberton, or the Captain, as he was called, had the advantage of McFarley in
several other points. I have already mentioned the superior contrast of the snuflF-
colourcd coat with the round jacket, and I might also havo alluded to the sub-
stantial claims of a pantaloons of the same color in opposition to the me"': preten-
sions of the corduroys; but the great superiority of the Captain laid chiefly in a
profuse shock of siifTgray hair, which, being contrasted with the rich crimson of his
countenance, and further set off by the white of his neck cloth, rendered his appear-
ance imposing to a degree. Besides, his home department had a most superlative
curve, while McFarley's, on the other hand, was a sudden projection, which looked
as if he had just bolted the hump of a bufTalo, and from its absolute abruptness,
conveyed no idea of dignity at all. McFarley made up for these natural disadvan-
tages, however, by industry, perseverance, and superior tact, which being opposed
to the Captain's natural gifis, about balanced the materiel of the struggle.

The last of these remarkable gentlemen running one of the sleeves of his
snuff- colored coat through my arm, fairly took me prisoner, and turned mc off in
the direction of a neighboring cluster of trees, for the purpose of securing my influ-
ence in his own favor, and in opposition to his opponent. It is impossible to de-
scribe McFarley's face, at this attempt of the other to make capital at his expense ;
suffice it, it outblushed his rival's, and his teeth were set in fierce determination.
He was not long at a loss for an expedient to interrupt the Captain's design, for he
bribed a boy to tell me " my horse had run a spike in his foot, and that Mr. Rob-
bins wanted to see me at once." This was as great a relief to me, as it was a
comfort to Mr. McFarley, for fat man the first had just commenced some dispDra-
ging reflections upon fat man the second, that I could not have listened to without
compromising the neutrality of my position.

I had four men who had linked their interests with mine, and who had put them-
selves under my special direction. They were still at Independence, and I did not
expect them till the afternoon of the foljswing day, when they were to bring along
our common team, cattle, wagons and " fixins." For want, therefore, of anything
to do, I lent a hand to Robbins, iu getting up his tent, and setting his things to
rights. The remainder of the day was spent in making acquaintances, and project-
ing arrangements for future guidance, a precaution which I considered by no means
unnecessary, now that I had discovered that the struggles of selfishness were likely
in a greater or less degree, to agitate our little community. I should not omit to
mention here, that I was also introduced this afternoon to Mr. Peter H. Burnet,
who was subsequently made captain of the expedition.

After the evening had set in, I laid down in the wagon of an acquaintance, and
overcome with fatigue, soon fell asleep. An hour could not have elapsed, however,
before I started .wide awake. While I lay endeavoring to recover my disturbed
repose, I had a chance to hear how my neighbors were disposing of their time. In

HISTORY OF OREGON.

one direction the sound of a violin rasped the air; in another, a little farther otf,
the mellow wnrble of a flute stole softly on the night ; while hard by my ear, a
harmonious voice poured forth a measure of reproach to the

" False hearted Jane Lom'so."

Unable to sleep, and desirous of taking a share in the enjoyment, I arose and
went forth, and approaching the tent from which the last pathetic strain had issued,
peeped into its centre. It whs filled with a motley group, who appeared to have
given themselves up to the last degree of merriment. In the rear, on a huge trunk,
which was used as a table, sat two bottles, and a corpulent little jug, all of them,
doubtless, contributions from ditferent members of the company. On the right hand
of this imposing platform, sat McFartey, and on the left, honest John Robbina, with
dog Jack between his legs, who was looking, if possible, graver than ever. Behind,
and mounted on a high seat, made by a trunk turned endwise, with a flask m hi»
hand, and his hat cocked gaily into an cxirems angle, sat the ruling spirit of the
party. He was one of those peculiar geniuses whom Nature by the gift of a rich
fund of humor and invincible gaiety marks for a practical philanthropist. In his owr>
way, Jim Wayne was the source of more re-'t pleasure and enjoyment, by his
inimitable drolleries, during the long journey which followed, than any dozen other
causes put together. His songs were sung by the whole camp ; his stories were
told over and over, for the edification and amusement of every sub-circle, and
wherever he went, his presence of itself, appeared to possess galvanic power, which
operated immediately in distending the muscles of every face.

" Gentlemen !" said Wayne, at the conclusion of his dittv, with an air of impres-
sive solemnity, "it is my painful duty to communicate to you my apprehensions,
that we have an individual among us of the most suspicious character ; an individual,
who, so far from entering into our proceedings with that def .J of hilarity and good-
fellowship which are the guarantees of honest intentions, has preserved a dogged
silence, and has moreover given more than one indication that he is incapable of
appreciating the sentiment of our enlightened proceedings ; in short, gentlemen, he is
a creature, as a man may say, without a soul. Gentle.Tien," continued the speaker,
after the buzz of surprize and rapid scrutiny which sweptt he circle from man to
man, upon this startling communication, was over, "gentleman, the nature of our
enterprize, the peculiarity of our situation, demands our utmost care, and I appeal
to your intelligence, if an individual be found in this company, guilty of the demeanor
I have charged him with, shall he not forthwith be summoned before this bar, arraigned
for examination, and, if necessarv, I will add, for punishment?"

"Yes, Yes, where is he? Who is he 1" shouted a dozen voices, while some
of the bronzed faces around frowned stern resentment.,"

Wayne turned, and after looking fi.Tedly at John Robbins for several moments,
as if it pained him to perform his duty, at length broke silence. " John Robbins, I
command you to produce the body of an individual now in your possession,
commonly known as dog Jack, that he may ansvver to the charge now about to be
preferred against him."

At this conclusion, the whole company broke into a general peal of laughter, in
which John Robbins, who was relieved from his temporary uneasiness, heartily
joined.

" McFarley, arraign the culprit," cried Wayne, in a stern tone, which though
apparently intended to check the levity of the group, only elicited another burst
of merriment.

Jack was lifted on the box by his master, and McFarley, who acted as clerk of the
court, made him face the Judge, setting him on his haunehes, and holding up his four
paws for the purpose of accomplishing a respectful atti'tude.

The President then addressed the otfender at length, and with nnuch dignity and
force. Jack, while this was going on, never once altered the solemnity of his
demeanor. The only departure from his usual stoicism, was an occasional glance
which he now and then stole over his shoulder at McFarley, who was holding him.
At length the President finished his address, and wound up by saying, that "as morcy
was thedivinest attribute of dogs as well as men, he would forgive him for this first
offence, and allow him an opportunity to retrieve his character, by making him an
honorary member of the association." Saying which, he baptized the animal on the
end of the nose, with some of the contents of the flask in his hand, " to learn him,"
as he said, " to be a jolly good fellow.''

Jack had stood everything quietly, until this, but no ssoner did the alcoholic

. . CHAPTER rr.

■Arrival of my Cam

On tho followins dav m,,

the plea of pressinabisi.?/, "^ '" '*^^''^ '"'^'^"^7 S? ?TT'^ '"'"' '"terrupted
the day, whTch rZllTTn'J"'' °^"' ^ 'ne;t n, ias h«M^ ^ T' "^^'" "C
"fke .„qu„ie3 of liolwST' ' ■ ''"'""tee to ^urn 1 lit' ^'T' P»" °"
VVallawalla, respecting thr"' ""ssionary, who Wl « '" '''Pendence, and
^ade to the 2o5, to Fl n rP'"*^'"^*''ili"es of the 1,1 . ''''"''''^hmont on t £

fnalarrange,„e.tK^^:;;«'«'a lutledistan;;^^^^ ff 't" ^'j""'"""""' - s

recruits kept pourinp in L^^ '''^^'"'""'nent of the pv' ,v P";P"«e of .nakin^

the designitei place' '"' '"' ^' '''^ pointed time LaX al 'Z ^''""'^"''' "<^!^

. As all the preparations which f emigrants were at

K Proper o..!.;: r "^" "'"^^ ^^^ -3- a^S.r a^^I

^Zr '^^ -- '^^ --:Srr - - ;X;^nc. as on it de.

The wagons for the trio shnnU u ^ "' "'^ •"'=ce«« of

fecure as though you Ij l"*"- ^"h your waff3h, ^^ ""^^ Possibility of
heavy brown of «o^„ drHlln V" ^^T"' Tents and wa?^"!''"^ '''"P'"""''' ^"" are as
aer, Jaet well al the wl"' v*^ '''^ ''"'^r, if secure^JTJ /'' ""«''•=«' '"adeof
tra iron bolts, ly„chpT„?',J°" '^^'^^ '«><« along witfc^ ^'"'.lil^e the foj!
pounds of aseorfed wrCht n-ir- ^'"'' '"'"^« ^or^he axles 7 7/''f.« ^ew ex-
Punch for making hoTs f t ' / '""u""'' P^P^" of ud's 1 At "f".^'^ ''"^^'' ^ ''-^"^
of„axea, and ,ndfed a "I ,' 1^!^.'^-'^. « handsal^t d^ wil'.te'™"- -^ a

do not weigh Too murh ^^''r,'" '«?«*""?• Al th' i^" '"« '" ^"g^"-. «« thev
if your wagVn^are 2 ' '''r''i*^*''«"ght along Whl '^°" " ™«" has, if the?

HISTORY OF ORSOOKT.

I; <:

' I

and the nails following, and being driven home, all will be found as tight as ever.
If your wagons are even ordinnrily good this will not happen at all, and you will not
pcrhiips have occasion to make a repair of any consequence during the whole trip.
Any vehicle that can perform a Journey from Kentucky to Missouri, will stand the
trip well. In proof of this, there are many wagons now in use in Oregon which wero
brought throuffh last year, though they were in quite ordinary condition when they
started from tTie Status. Beware of heavy vehicles ; they break down your teams,
and light ones answer every purpose to much better advantage. The latter wil
carry every thing you want, and as there are no obstac'^s on the road, in the way of
logs or stumps, or even rocks, until you get more thf> half way, (when your load
Js very mvch reduced,) there is but little danger of accident. You meet with no
stumps on the road, until you came to the Burnt river, and there they are very few,
and you encounter no rocks until you get among the tail of the Blfick hills, and
these are not formidable in their character, and only last for a short dis.anco. From
this poi.it you meet with no more ohstiuctions warth speaking of. 'uni,! you reach
the Grtjat Soda Spring on Bear river, which is situated in the intricacies of the
mountain passes. E-tperience has proved, however, that tho OnEculties there, are
readily overcome. If an individual should have several wagons, some good and
Bomo indifllerent, he might start with all ; the latter would go to the mountains,
where the loads being reduced one half, their burdens might be transferred entirely
to the strong ones, and the former could roll through empty. It is not necessary
(o bring along extra axle trees, as you seldom break one, though you should take
with you a few pieces of well seaoned hickory, to be used for wedges and for other
little useful purposes.

Teams. — The best teams for this trip are ox-teams. The oxen should be from
three to five years old, well set and compactly built, thongh thoy should not be too
heavy, as their feet will not bear the wear and tea'r and hardships of the rcuio as
•veil as those of lighter animals. This, though well to be observed as a jeneral
rule, is not imperative upon the emigrant, as we had with us in this trip several very
large oxen, of seven and eight years of age, which endured the continued labor of
the task very well, though not so well as the younger and lighter ones. Young
cows make just as good teams as any other, as previous to your reaching Fort Hall
on the west of the mountains, it is merely the continuance of the travel, and not the
hardship of the draught that challenges the physical powers of your cattle. To
make cows serve all the purposes of oxen, therefore, you have only to bitch a double
number and you will go along as comfortably and as easily, as with *he best oxen in
the world ; besides, cows in addition to furnishing you with a nutritious beverage,
night and morning, stand the trip better than the male members of their species.
Either of the above, however, are better for tb<> emigrant's purposes than mulesi.
They are, moreover, more easily managed — _ are not so subject to be lost or
broken down on the way — they cost less at the start, and they are worth four times
as much when you arrive at the end of your journey.

Those who come to this country with oxen, will be in lovo with them long before
they gel here. Their patient, gentle, persevering good will, are each a claim upon
your warm attachment. They will plunge through the heaviest mud, dive into
thickets, climb mountains, however great their previous labor, without the slightest
refusal, and in their frugal habits are content with the reward of almost any pro-
vender — willows alone satisfying their humble cppetites for days together.

I would most strongly urge emigrants to bring all the cattle they can procure ;
and horses among the rest, as with proper care, the latter stand the journey as well
as mules. If a person setting out would invest five hundred dollars in young heifers,
and drive them here, they would be worth five thousand dollars to him on his arrival ;
and by pursuing the enterprise in the way of stock raising, if he did not wish to sell,
he could in a short time make a fortune. Milch cows are exceedingly useful on the
road, as they give an abundance of milk all the way, with the exception of the
latter part of it, where, in consequence of the frequent interruptions of the previously
rich herbage, the supply somewhat decreases. This edible is of great value to the
traveller, as when thickened, it effects a great saving of flour, and its rich and deli,
cious qualities afford a fine and nourishing food for your children. Its other advan-
tage is, that the giver of it gathers it from the pastures from day today, and relieves
you of any trouble of carriage, by beari'iig 't herself.

We found that yearlings, nay even sucuing calves, stood the trip well, but the
objection to the latter is, that 4hey get all the milk of the mother.

Provmions. — As this is the most important branch of preparation, it is necessary
that we should bostow a careful attention upon it. Every one thinks he must eat,

HISTORY OF OREGON.

rocure ;

as welt

heifers,

nrrival ;

to seli,
I on the

of the
iviously

to the
nd deli-
• advan-

relieves

t)ut the

Icessary
list eat,

and so tntllcd is the notion, that it would amount to little short of a separation of
soul and body to be persuaded to the contrary.

One hundred and Hfty pounds of flour, and liTty pounds of bacon, must bo allowed
to each person, and this must lie taken as n fundamental rule — a jroleclivc provision
as the lawyers say, which must not be overlooked or departed from. Besides the
above, as much rice, corn meal, parched corn meal, and raw corn, peas, dried fruit,
s'jgHr, tea, coflfoe, and such necessary articles of food, as you can find room for,
should by all means be brought along. Flour and parched corn meal will keep sweet
the whole way, but corn meal only lasts to the mountains. The parched meal ii
luost excellent in making soup — a few beef cattle or fat calves should be taken to
kill on the way, as before you fall in with the buffalo, you will need fresh meat Pc^.!*
wdl be found to be very useful also, and your dried fruits by being brought out
occasionally, will supply with their delicacy and nourishing qualities, many of the
deprivations of absence from a settled home.

The loading, in short, should consist mostly of provisions. Emigrants should not
burden themselves with much furniture or many beds. It is folly to lug these
articles two thousand miles over mountains and rivers, through a mere prejudice of
habit and notion. A few light trunks should be brought to pack clothes in, as they
will be found to be better than any other article for the ssme purpose ; boxes are
too heavy in an expedition where every pouml tells in every hour of draught.

All heavy articles, therefore, should be left behind, with the exception of the most
necessary cooking utensils, and these should be of tin, or of the lightest materlHls.
If you are heavily loaded, let the quantity of sugar and coffee bo small, as milk is

Deferable as a beverage for health, and, because, as I saiJ before, it tr'tvels fur itself,
ou should provide yourself with a water keg, and you should likewise have a tin
can made after the fashion of a powder cannisior, to hold your milk. A few tin cups,
(iibjure all crockery,) tin plates, tin saucers, a butcher's knife, a shovel, and a pair
of pot-hooks, will go very far toward completing your culinary arrangements, and a
small grindstone joined to their company, to keep them in edge, will also lend a
valuable assistance to this department. There are many other articles apparently
triflitig in their nature, which must not be overlooked, and these tho good sense
of the emigrant must suggest fur himself. Such are cord, bits of linen, leather, drc.
Rifles, fowlinrr pieces, pistols, powder, shot, ball, lump lead, and all the accompanying
articles of destructive warfare upon game, are, I hardly need say, of the fit A impor-
tance. Man's inheritance of destructiveness must be borne with him to this region
as well as to every otiier. The double inducement to carry articles of inherent
usefulness, is their wonderful advance in value — thus, a rifle worth twenty dollars
in the States, enhances to the worth of fifty dollars in Oregon, and fowling pieces
increase in price in proportion.

The clothing you take, should bo of the same description used in the middle
states, and enough should be laid in to last a year. Care should be taken that,
amongst tho rest of your wardrobe, a half a dozen or a dozen pair of strong shoes
should not be forgotten.

These directions will suffice to give the emigrant a notion of his wants, and of
the means he will require to procure them. What I have omitted, will be supplied
hereafter in the course of this narratiye, and the remainder left unmentioned will be
suggested as I said before by the intelligence of the emigrant himself.

On the 20th of May we moved to Big Spring in obedience to the previous reso-
lution, and found upon our arrival there, a large accession to our party. Our num-
ber was now found to amount to near five hundred souls, men, women and children,
of which 263 were men able to bear arms.

Here was an enterprize of inoment indeed ! The greatest confidence appeared
to prevail throughout the whole party, and self-reliance and determination were-
stamped on every countenance. Every now and then, as some rough looking back-
woodsman would swagger past, armed to the teeth with pistol and bowie knife, or
squads of his companions skirr on horstback over the surrounding plains, rifle in
hand, and blade in belt, an apprehension would start upon the mind of the difficul-
ties to be fonnd in harmonizing the incongruous elements, and of subduing them into
one reasonable, order loving mass.

With the gathering of the grand couni 1 came the climacteric of Mc Farley's and
Dumberton's etrujrgle.

After the meeting had assembled, and the temporary officers of it had been ap-
pointed, came the proposals of organization. The ripening of the proceedings to
this stage showed that the fdt gentlemen were not the only aspirants emulous of
supreme distinction. The strange assemblage was gathered from various sections of

'r i

HI8T0RT or ORlr.OX.

'il

;' IS

^^f

the country ; they wore agitated with vaiioui virwa, nnd naturiilly scpamted inta<
VHfious cliquex. Most of them litul their favorite plana alrnady rut and drif>d,iind
their noinincts were nil ready to wnar tlie chieftain's mantle. A stormy scRsion was
the conacqucncc, and it was evident that the (|uestion of coinmanderHhip would not
be decided this day. In the middle of the uproar of the hmt hour, Dumbertoii, who
had given his hair an extra intellectual rush from the front, and airaneed the anuflf
coloiud garraenta in a style of xuperlntive finish, managi^d to ubMin the ear of the
asauinblage. After having waved thi 'rowd into profound silencu, ho commenced
a (nilugiuin upon the character of Washington : made |)atriotic nllusionuto the reso-
lution and the late w^tr, touched on tlm battle of New Orleans, apostrophised the
American eagle, and then wound uji his introduction with a very meaning sentiment
levelled with great force and earnetitncsa at the "iron arm of despotism.'* Imagin-
ing ihiil he had fairly taken captive the admiiationof his audience, iMr. Dumberion,
of Big Pigeon, came to the point of hia addrfss, nnd gravely proposed that the
emigration shioild adopt the criminal laws of Missouri and Tennessee for its future
government.

No sooner had the speaker delivered himself of his proposition, than Mc Farloy,
who had been chating like a stung hull for the last half hour, sprang up, and remarked
that since the genileman f/Oin Big Pigeon had found out we had robbers and thieves-
amoii(<; us, he, (Mc Farley) would move that a penitentiary bu engaged to travel in
company if his proposal ahould pass.

Mr. Dumberion, replied with a savage irony intended to nnnihiUte his oppo-
nent, that '*the gentleman who had sugirestcd the last resolution, would doubtless
find himself taken in if it did." Mr. Mc Farley denounced Mr. Dumberion as a^
demagogue, whereupon Mr. Dumberion appealed to the Geinus of Liberty for the
purity ol his intentions in a most beautiful apostrophe.

But the Genius of Liberty not respoiidin<» to ihe call of the gentleman from Big
Pigeon in time, some othpr fiery spirits interfered, a/.d shifted the dispute to new
quest ioM» and characters, extinguishing in a moment the hopes and pretensions of
the Big Pigeon and its opposing faction.

Afier soma deliberation of a more quiet and sensible character, the council result-
ed in adopting a set of re«olution4 as its guiding principles, and postponing for the
time the election of a commander and his aids, leaving the chief direction tempora-
rily in the hands of Captain John Grant, who was employed as our pilot for the route.
An adjournment then look place with the understanding that wn should siart finally
and altogether on the morning of the 22d, and halt at thu Kanzas river, for a final
organization in the election of the commander and other officers.

As the resolutions adopted are interesting in a philosophical point of view, pre-
semiiig as they do the spectuclcof a free body of people, voluntarily assuming regu-
lations and restrictions for the common benefit and safety of all — and as they are-
calculated to be of service ta future companies of emigrant-.!, I will here insert them.

RESOLUTIONS OF THE OREGON EMIGRATING SOCIETY.

Resolved — Whereas we deem it necessary for the government of all societies,
either civil or military, to adopt certain rules and regulations for their government^
for the purpose of keeping good order, and promoting civil and military discipline ;.
therefore, in order to insure union and safety, we adopt thu following rules and regu-
lations for the government of said company.

Rule 1st. — Every male person of the age of sixteen or upwards shall be consider-
ed ii legal voter in all the affairs regulating the company.

Rule 2d. — There shall be nine men elected by a majority of the company, who-
shall form a council, whose duty it shall be to settle all disputes arising between in-
dividuals, and to try, and pass sentence on all persons for any act of which they
may be guilty, which is subversive of good order and military discipline. They
shall take especial cognizance of sentinels and members of the guard who may be
guilty of neglect of duly, or of sleeping on their posts. Such persons shall be tried
and sentence passed on them at diseretion of council. A majority of two thirds of
the council shall decide all questions that may come before them, subject to the ap-
proval or disapproval of the captain. If the captain disapprove of the decision of
thu council, he shall state to them his reasons, when they shall again pass upon the
question, and if the decision is again made by the same majority, it shall be final.

Rule 'Sd. — There shall be a Captain elected, who shall have supreme military
command of the company. It shall be the duty of the Captain to maintain good
order and strict discipline, and as far as practicable, to enforce ail rules and regu-

IHSTORY OF OREUON.

who
In iii-
1 ihey
(rhey
jiy be
J tried
Ids of
le ap-
lon of
In the
}al.
lUtary
1 good
jregu-

latwrts adopted by the compflny . Any man who ahnll be guilty of diaobeying orderi,
•hall bfl tried and sentenced at the dincretion of tho council, which may extend to
oxpiilxion from the company. The- Captain ahall appoint the requisite number of
duly Horifeant, one of whom shall take cliargc of every guard, and who (hall hold
their otfices at the pleasure of the Captain.

Rule ilk. — Thcso shall bo an orderly sergeant elected by the company, whose
duty it dhail be to keep a regular roll, arranged in alphabetical order, of every
person subject to guard duty in tho company, and shall make out his guard details
by commencing at the top of the roll and proceeding to the bottom — thus giving
every man an equal turn of guard duty. He shall also give the member of every
guard notice when he is detailed (or duly. He shnji also parade every guard, call
the roll and iriNpect the time of mounting. He shall also visit tho guard at least
once every night, and see that they are doing strict military duty, and may at any
time give them the necessary instructions respncti' ' their duty, and shall regularly
make report to the Captain every morning, and u.: considered second in com-
mand.

Rule blk. — The Captain, orderly sergeant, and members of the council, shall hold
their offices at the pleasure of the company, and it shall be the duty of the council,
upon tho application of one third or more of the company, to order a new eledlion,
for rither captain, orderly sergeant, or now member, or members of the council ; or
for all or any of them as the case may be.

Rule 6lk. — The election fur nflicers shall not take place until the company meet
at Kansas river.

Rule Ilk. — No family shall be allowed to take more than three loose cattle to every
male inemt>er of the ago of sixteen or upwards."

I hardly need state that many of these remarkable regulations remained as from
their very nature they needs must, a dead letter. The convocation, however, had
performed the chief uusiness they were called to accomplish, and each man at the
adjournment, sought his quarters with the conviction that he had taken part in a
prucuedin<r but little short in points of dignity and grand importance to the declara-
tion of independance itself.

It was grey dusk when iiin council of Elm Grove broke up, and the ceremony of
supper to which I hnntened with a t\\!,\\K j^ood will, led ine into the night. When
my meal was over, I paid a visit to ilin tent of John Robbins, and after passing an
hour with his family, strolled out to take a view of the camp. Elm Grove is a spot
eitiiatcci in the plain of a vast prairie, and receives its distinction and its name from
two beautiful elm trees tli.it stand as solitarv (?) land marks upon its surface.
Though this was the first time 1 recognised the term of '• grove " as applicable to
but two trees, I felt willin;j from their extreme beauty to allow them any pre-
rogrttivoof definition they pleased to arrogate. The night, the scene, tho stars, tho
air, were beautiful. The moon shed her silvery beams upon the white sheets of
sixty wagons, whose arrangement marked the parallelugramic boundaries of our
camp. A thousand head of cattle grazed upon the surrounding plain, fifty camp
fires sent up their enlivening beams of comfort and good cheer, the cheerful sentinel
whisllwl a lively air as he swaggered up and down his post, the sound of the violin,
the flute, the flageolet, the .'iccordion ; the rich notes of manly vuicps, some in love
ditties and some in patriotic strains, conjoined to lend roniat ce and excitement
to the scene. All was mirth, joy, and contentment, " save where i'ome infant raised
its fretful pipe," or where some party of infatuated gam»j3tf:r3 were cursing the
treacheries of a game of chance.

I passed by the tent of the Big Pigeon, and overheard a fierce discussion on the
new application of the veto [)0\ver, as bestowed upon the Captain of the Company,
and heard Dumberton denounce it, as " an absurd innovation Jupon a conservative
system, and a most gross violation of a cnrdinal principle of political jurisprudence."
Mr. Dumberton owned a circle of most ardent admirers, who if they did not exactly
understand the meaning of all he said, (a matter that would have puzzled the gentle-
man from the vicinity of Kit Dullard's mill himself,) were most devotedly resolved
to firmly believe every thing that fell from his lips, to be sound doctrine. There are
in all societies classes of people, who would rather adhere and sacrifice to principles
tht'v do not understand, than abide by propositions, however good, that they do.
There is something to hope from a mystery which confounds the senses, but a pro-
position that any one can understand is altogether bonealh the notice of an aspiring
iiiiHrrination.

HIBTORV OF ORCOON.

i: I

CHAPTER III.

The start — Crosaing of the Walpaliiaia— Visit of Pollaifattomics — Cronsinn of the
Kamas— Sinking of the raft — New recruits — Cathvltc Missionaries— Hlerlidn of
officers — Crossing of liig Sandy — an Indian visit— Crossing of the Hliir—a
thunder storm — Novel race after blankets — Meeting with the Osagcs and Kanzas
— Green and thn Cam — More rain — New organization and new election — Fntndt
in the desert — The dead I'awnee — Buffalo — chase of an antelope.

Early on the morning of tho 22(1, the signal waa given for prpparntion, nnd tho
csinp WH8 Noon in oiio universal bnbel of excitement. Our arrnngementi, however,
were not all completed until after midday, when the team* hein|{ all hitched, the
cattle liurded, the tents struck and stowed, and the wagons all ready to take their
places in the line, assigned them for tho route, the bugle, (blown by Jim VVtiync,
who galloped up and down, as an aide-de-camp to the temporary commander,) soun-
ded Its Ia8t signal of departure, and away wo streamed to the distance of two miles
over the unduTating billows of tho prairie, at last fairly embarked fur the region of
our future homo. The country we passed throot^h this day, was one succes-
sion of gently undulating swells, clothed with a verdure thatovincod the rich forti-
lily of the soil. After a journey unmarked by any incidents, except the delays aris-
ing out of the confusion of a first start, wo encamped about an hour before sumtiH ;
having accomplished but it distance of three miles. On the following day we suc-
ceeded no better, only making in all, four miles. Our cattle gave us a great deal of
trouble, as they had heretofore been allowed unrostricled liberty in wandering over
the plains, and had nut yet been broken into the regularity of an onward march.
Wo encamped this evening on tho banks of a beautiful little river, called the Wapa-
luaia, a tributary of the Kanzas. It was but about twenty yards wide ; its clear
pellucid walera rolled over a pebbly bottom, and its abrupt banks were studded
with tho cotton wood, and a.sh, wliich on some portions of its cout-ae, intermingled
their foliage acrosH the stream.

As soon as we had (alien into our regular disposition for tho night, and slaked
our horses, several of us turned out with nets and fishing-tackle, to sweep and to
tickle the stream. But though we were Hiiceossful in furnishing ourselves with some
amusement, we were not so successful in the object of our endeavors — being
only I'ortunato enough tu secure a few trout, tnust of which fell to the shar^ of the
female dep.irtment of the expedition.

On the morning of the 24ih, we made preparations for crossing the stream, but
in consequence of the steepness of its banks, were obliged to let our wagons down
with ropes, and to draw thcin up in the same way. This was the first proof wo
had, of the advantages possessed by the vehicles with falling tongues, for they
were easily lifted out of danger, while the others ran against the bottom in their
descent, and one of them was snapped off. Our cattle plunged into the water
without any hesitation, and all crossing without ditficulty, we were in a short time,
regularly lollowing our onward movement. We might have avoided all the delay
and trouble of this crossing, if we had searched a hundred yards farther up the
stream, for there we would have found a practicable ford.

While crossing, we received a flying visit from three Potawattomie Indians.
They were out on a hunt, and were mounted on superb horses arrayed in sadilles,
bridles and martingales. They stopped but a moment to gaze at us, and then
scoured away at top speed towards the south.

On the forenoon of the 26th, we arrived at the borders of the Kanzas river, and
finding it too high to ford, were obliged to come to a dead halt, and to devote the
rest of the d.iy to devising means to overcome the unuxpected obstruction. Here,
however, the unfortunate differences which arise out of the vanity of opinion, pre-
vented the adoption of any practical measure, and tho debate went over till the
next day. On the following morning, 27ih, a committee of three, received the
delegated opinions of the whole, and were directed to make arrangements for cross-
inggiho river. Content with the compromise, tho rest of us who chose, went to
work at fishing for a fresh dinner.

The committee applied to a Frenchman, named Pappa, who had a log house and
a little spot of ground in cultivation at the cros.siiig, and endeavored to hire his
platform. But the old fellow insisting on the most unreasonable terms, no ar-
rangement could be made with him, so the convention between Pappa and the
plenipotentiaries of our republic, was broken abruptly off, and we were obliged to
commence the construction of a raft upon our own account. This proceeding

HltTORV OF ORCaON.

land

the

leie,

|pre-

the
the
toss-
It to

I and

his

ar-

ihe

j(l to

Iding

brought the old curntmlgpon to his ien«ct, but not bning able to regain the commit-
teo, he threw himielf open to the itnpHtirncn of n KPctioii of our party, who aviiilcd
thcrnsftlvea of hi* reduced oliVra, and cominviicfd C'Olllin^ Lcforu l|io main body.
ThiN gave great dinHatufaction to lh« rent of the com|iaiiy, and inflamed (he (>!••
incnta of ducord anew in the cnoip On tint 38lh, Pappa's platform whilpcroiking
with an inonlinato load, xuddnniy nunk, and levrral women and children raina
very near bi>in){ drowned ; but ooinu dozen or two of iturdy armi, lOon brouuht
thetn tu the «bore, and the mixhap was conliiicd to tlio luia of lome property
alone. I'appa'a platform was then giiflered to float down the stream, and our own
being now tinighi^d, we all resolved lo croMit over afterwards upon a common foot-
ing. On the following morning, SUth, the gencial erusning commenced, but incon-
sequence of the greiit number of our caille, it wbh not finished until the Olst.
The want of orgnniialion was the great object which retarded our movements.
While we wore lingering on the banks of this river, a number of wagon* from
the Platte country, e.amu in to join the expedition. On the SOlh, two Culholio
miHmoniiries arrived at the ford. They were pilgrims through the wilderness on a
mimiion of faith to ilin Flathead Indiana. We treated them with every observance
of riHprct, aritl cheerlully lent ihcm the ansistance of our raft.

'I'he Kansas river is at this point about a quarter of a milo wide, with sandy banks
and bottom, and its waters are muddy like those of the Missouri The crossing, aa
I KOid before, was completed on the .'list, and the whole party were encamped safely
on the other sido, at Ulack Warrior Creek.

Having now tcHted tu our heart's content the evils of too large an exercise of Vhe
" largest liberty," the desire became universal for the election of an absolute com-
mander of arrangements. Accordingly, a general meeting was held, %nd the or-
ganization was consummated by the election of Peter H. Burnett, as commander
in chief, and Mr. Nesinilh as orderly sergeant.

This election took place on tho 1st .June, and on the 3d we left our quarters for
an onward movement. Right glad were we to get away, for our situation had been
very uncomfortable during tho whole lime from the 2Gth, and our stock kept con-
stantly sticking in the mud on the banks of this miserable creek. On the 3d, we
travelled n distance of filceen miles, (more than nil accomplished during the previous
eleven days.) and on the following day seventeen miles more through a section of
the most beautiful prairie lands that had as yet ever met my eye. This day's jour-
ney took us across a larfju creek with high banks, called " Big Sandy," but in con-
sequence of the thorough organization which had already been effected by our
commander, and his prompt measures, it offered but little obstacle to our progress.
We encamped at close of day, some miles beyond its western bank. W bile sta-
tioning our wagoi's in their quadrangular order, and pitching our tents, we received
a visit from some Kanzas chiefs, much to tho terror of the women and children,
who gazed with any feelings* but those of admiration upon the grim visages of tho
warriors, made more grim by the bars of black and red paint drawn across them ;
or who looked with any thing but a serene sensation upon the threatening toma-
hawks and scalping knives which grinned beneath their girdles. These lords of the
soil, however, were by no means disposed to be savage with us, and after a tempo-
rary stay, during which they received some tobacco and a few loads of powder and
shot, they retired in an opposite direction from whence they came. On the fifth,
we crossed the east fork of the Blue, a large creek which is a tributary to the Kan-
zas, accomplishing this day over twenty miles. On the afternoon of the sixth, we
arrived at the west fork of the Blue, fifteen miles west of the branch we passed
the day before. We found it to be a small river about fifty yards wide, and coa-
trary to our expectations, it was fordable, a rain during the previous night h»v ng
e.Tcited our apprehensions that we should find it swelled into a torrent. First
uriving in our cattle, we next propped up our wagon beds with large blocks of wood,
and thus conveyed them over safe and sound. The prairie on the other side waa
level and dry, and wo encamped quite content with the day's performance.

Alas, our satisfaction was bound lo be of short endurance ; for about ten o'clock
at night, tho sky waa covered with a darkness so dense as to fairly acho the sight
that peered upward in the vain attempt to pierce it. A close heaviness oppressed
the air that portended the coining of a thunder storm. A signal was given to us
by tho guards, and every one was up in a moment to make all secure about his tent
or wagon as the case might be ; but while yet bustling about, the inky pall was
rent in twain, and a tremendous burst exploded over our very heads, that absolutely
struck some of us to the ground. A sullen moan followed, increasing gradually
into a wild shriek of the elements, as if every demon of the night was lending to

fci )

HISTORY OF OREGON.

t il

■ "

■|

',1

i;'

the moment |hi8 croak of horror. Al length the howling tempest struck ui, and
before we had fairly recovered from our first stupefaction, several tents wore blown
down, and two or thrte which had be>'n carelessly staked were lifted in the air, and
passed off on »hp breath of the hurricane like puffs of down. I stood near the
scene of one of these mishaps, and could not restrain from a burst of laughter
when, as the canvass departed, a hisband and wife jumped up in their scanty night
clothes, and on their hands and knees chased the fugitive sheets which curled over
and over provokingly before them. My merriment startled the female pursuer, who
on discovering mo and my roaring companions made a rapid retreat and crept under
the mattrass.

These were not the worst of the visitations of the storm, for the wind was ac-
companied by a tremendous deluge of rain that flooded the whole surface of the
prairie, and the entire platform of our encampment ; and it is not too much to say
that there was scarcely a dry inch of skin in it. Our condition during the night
was, consequently, very uncomfortable, and it was not until a pretty advanced hour
in the morning, that we had recovered from our condition. This learnt us a new
lesson of precaution, which was to dig a trench around the tents on pitching them,
80 as to lead the water off.

Ou this day (6lh,) we were encountered on our march by a party of Osage and
Katizas, or Caw Indians, in all the horrid accoutrements of war. They numbered
about ninety in all, and had evidently studied every means of making themselves
dis^'ustiiig and terrible. They ail rode ponies, and had their heads closely shaven,
wilh the exception of the stiff lock in the centre, which their [)oliteness to their foes
reserves for the scalping knife. The advantages of this international regulation of
courtesy is obvious, for when a warrior has conquered a foe, instead of being obliged
to ri[) off his scalp in a tedious operation with his teeth, he relieves him of it grace-
fully and easily hy the assistance of his top knot. He is thus allowed to pay atten-
tion lo d greater number of foes, and the natural increase which thus takes place in
deeds of arms, encourages the martial spirit of both nations. The exploit of this
party had not been highly creditable to their character, for they, had waged destruc-
tion only on one brave Pawnee, whom they had surprised and run' down like a
wild beust, but who, however, had wounded two of his pursuers badlyjbefore he was
overcome. The miserable devils had his scalp with them, and they had also se-
cured portions of his cheeks and nose, which were distributed among the chiefs.
They had ripped the former from the head of their victim with considerable skill,
the ears being attached to it, and upon inspection, I perceived they still contained
their unfortunate owner's wampum ornaments.

The Kanzas and Osages are the most miserable and filthy India\iS we saw east
of the Rocky mountains, and they annoyed ns excessively whenever we fell in
with them, through their mendicant propensities. We gave to this party a calf
and gome bread, as they importuned us \ -ith great earnestness, stating, to strengthen
their application, that they had not tasted food for three days. One of the chiefs
with an ear of the slaughtered Pawnee swinging around his neck, approached
Green, a strapping .Missuurian, who stood leaning on his rifle, and gazing at the
crew with a stern expression of niirifilcd )scorn and abhorretice. The savage im-
portuned liiiii by a s.gii for some powder and ball.

" Some powder and ball you want, eh V said Green, slowly rising from his
slightly incumbent position. "Some powder and ball, eh.' Well, I can spare you
jist one load out o' here !" saying which he significantly touched the muzzle of his
gun with his finger, and then slowly raised it to his sight. The savage hesitated
for a moment, uncertain of the white man's purpose, but perceiving that the wea-
pon gradually travelled to a level, he stepped back and opened his hands, as if to
explain the friendliness o( his purpose.

But the hooshier's blood was up, and advancing as the Caw retired, he raised
the but of his rifle in a threatening manner, exclaiming in an imperative tone : •' Out
o' my si^ht, you d — d nigger, or by — , Pll spile your scalpin for ever." The Indian
slouched sullenly away, and Green, when tired of chasing him with his eye, turned
off in another direction growling: "I'd like to spend a few private moments with
that fellow in the open prairie."

Iri addition to their other bad qualities, these Indians have the repntation of being
the most arrant thieves in the world. They satisfied us as to their rascally propen-
sities ou taking their departure, by the theft of a couple of horses, which disappear-
ed from the time of their leaving us. One of the animals was the property of the
indiifiiaiit Missourian.

On the 7th, we removed our camp to the distance of half a tnile further on, and

<vi >

HISTORY OF OREGOW.

e
(1

rcRoIved to pause the whole day in order to dry our goods and repair the injuries
done by the previous storm. The night, however, ended most of our labor, for we
were visited by another severe shower, which again flooded the whole camp. On
the following morning we started ofT in the rain, which was falling in torrents, with
the determination of finding ground high enough to prevent our camp from being
continually swamped. After a weary and miserable peregrination of five miles, we
came to a grove of young elms on a slightly elevated knoll, v/hich secured us just
the advantag^.s we sought. The rain still kept coming down, but after our tents
were pitched, we were able to defy it.

Several of us had caught severe colds by the drenching we had received, and
among the rest, Mr. Burnet was badly attacked with so serious an indisposition,
that he was forced to resign the command.

On the 9th the clouds dispersed, the sun broke through them with its enlivening
rays, and we started off at an early hour to reach a grove afcout five miles distant,
where we would have superior facilities in wood and water, for drying our clothes
and recruiting ourselves. We reached it about twelve o'clock, and making a
halt, in less than half an hour, forty or fifty huge fires were roaring and crackling in
the plain. After we had thoroughly dried our garments and recovered our things
from their previous confusion, we turned our attention to supplying the vacancy in
theoiRceof commander. A council was held which resulted in a separation of the
two divisions, one under the command of Captain Jesse Applegate, and the other,
after adopting a new organization, elected William Martin commander. The latter
division was the largest of the two, having in it seventy-two wagons and one hun-
dred and seventy-five men.

On the lOth, we started out under this new arrangement with fine weather, and a
beautifully undulating landscape beckoned us on into its fertile depths. I rode on
amongst the advanced guard on the look out for buffalo, and yielding to a spirt of
gaiety and spirit in my horse, I suflered him to carry me far beyond the rest. Hik-
ing at length to turn back to my companions, I paused to take a momentary scru-
tiny of the horizon, when I suddenly perceived in the extreme of the south west,
two or thi'-e little dots just waving on its edge. " Buffalo, Buffalo !" shouted I,
waving MV hand to those behind, and dashing off with a dozen clattering fast be-
hind ine in the direction of the objects. We were not long left in doubt as to the
nature of the new corners, for we were approaching each other, and in a few minu-
tes were shaking hands with the mounted outposts of a trading caravan from Fort
Lurimic, on its way to Independence with furs and peltries. When the wagons
came up, they were cheered by our people, and welcomed with the same enthusiasm
that hails a sail upon the ocean after a joyless solitude of months. It being noon,
and a brook running hard by, we insisted on a pause, and we accordingly spent a
couple of happy hours together, after which we separated, and boih moved on
again. Surely there is something good in human nature ! Such scenes as this
go very far to destroy the injustice of the assertion, that man's heart is continually
evil, and that he naturally inclines to it as the sparks fiy upward. The converse
is the rule.

Upon our start, I resumed my position as a scout, and faNing in with Green, the
sturdy Missourian, we kept company together. As we led the advance with Capt.
Ganl, our attention was attracted simultaneously by a flock of large birds hovering
over some object on the plain, and occasionally stoopmg down towards it. For the
purpose of ascertaining the f/Ause of their operations, we rode toward them, and
on approaching the scene, found them to be a lot of buzzards feeding upon
the dead body of a man. Upon a close inspection, we discovered it to be
the body of an Indian, whose dissevered head, badly scalped, lay within a few feet
of his body. It was evidently the victim of the war party of the Kanzas and
Osages whom we had encountered a few days before.

" Pd give another horse to have a turn with one of the niggers who helped in
this '■' said Green, as we turned away.

The road was smooth all the way to-day ; nothing within eye-shot, but a gently
undulating landscape, relieved occasionally by little colonies of saplings, and cover-
ed with a generous crop of grass, in wliich our cattle found an elysium of proven-
der. We had another fall of rain on the evening of the 1 1th, but it was slight, and
so far from doing damage, it scarcely occasioned inconvenience.

On the 12ih, as we were jogging along at a comfortable pace, the whole camp
was suddenly thrown into a fever of excitement by shouts of: " Buffalo! Buffalo !"
At the welcome and long wished for cry, several of us who were mounted, galloped
ahead to lake a share in the sport. On reaching the advance, our erroneous im-

HISTORY OF OREGON.

pressions wore corrected by the information that the sport was over, and that Capt.
Gant and others had just killed a iargp biilfalo, and were waiting until the caravan
arrived at the scene of the exploit, to taite charge of the carcase. It turned out to
be a VPteran bull who had been discovered by the hunters grazing by himself about
two miles distant on the lead. The horsemen immediately run upon him, discharg-
ing their rifles to slop his career, and when they had sufficiently shortened their dis-
tance, drew on him their large horse pistols. This proved effectual, and the
old soldier bit the dust a victim to seven balls. He appeared worn with grief at
his desolate condition, and his flesh, toughened with age, proved hardly an enviable
refreshment. The old fellow had probably been left here in the spriny; when sick,
by the other buffaloes. These animals come down to Blue river in great numbers
to spend the winter among the rushes, which are abundant in tho bottoms near the
stream, but leave in the spring.

On the 14th, we entered and passed over a broad district of prairie land, equal
for farming purposes to any soil in the world ; but it was all solitary wild prairie,
and scarcely relieved by the slightest rise or fall.

For the last three or four days, we had every now and then seen an antelope,
but in consequence of the extreme shyness of the animals none of us had been able
to get a shot at one. To day, however, Jim Wayne, who to his character of hu-
morist and musician, added the qualities of a capital huntsman and woodsman,
brought in a young doe slung across the saddle of his horse, singing —

" Merril}- the wild stag l)OiinJs I"

with his gun crossed in the hollow of his arm, and his hat cocked more gaily than f ver.
•' Hollo, Jim !" shouted McFarley, who had just came up, " so you've had some
luck, I see !"

" Yes, and I have discovered a new ..lethod of making cheap bread."
" Say It, my hearty I"

"Bv finding doe to my hand in the prairie."

" Faith an you'll find it well kneaded too, (needed,) or my stomach's no judge,"
said the politician with a moistening mouth.

"That last execrable pun entities you to one of her rump stakes, and I'll see
that it is bestowed upon you if it should be the last official act of my life," replied
the humorist with dignity as he moved on.

On the following day, 16ih, I had aijreed with Jim that he and I should take a
skirr together, lo see if we could not bW upon another animal of the same species ;
but an incident occurred in the course of the morning that diverted our intei.iioiis.
A shout from the rear turned our attention in that direction, and splitting away at
top speed, wo saw a splendid buck antelope coming towards us, followed by sotne
of our dogs in full chase. He had been hiding in a little thicket on our trail, f nd
just as the last wagon passed, some loitering hound had caught the scent and started
him up. Instead of striking away from us across the prairie, the frightened animal
came direct along the lino, and ran down its whole length, extending over two miles,
at a distance of not more than two hundred yards. It was a most beautiful, and at
the same time a most gxciting sight. Away he flew like the wind, at every mo-
ment the pack scouring in his rear, receiving new accessions as the chase advanced,
and at the distance of every few hundred yards a rifle would send its ineffectual
messenger to arrest his course. At length, however, a large hound from one of
the foremost wagons seeing tho squad approaching, lan down to meet them. The
affrighted buck, terrified out of his wits, though plainly headed off, did not sheer an
inch from his course, and the dog meeting him with a spring, seized him by the throat
and tumbled him to the ground. The animal contrived to raise and shake him off
before the rest of the pack arrived, but a rifle ball caught him in the shoulder, and
Jo yielded to his fate by dropping l:ist on his knees and then rolling over on his stde

''^Thl'^antTolie is a most beautiful animal, and perhaps there is no other creature
in creatS capable of an equal degree of speed. He is tall, graceful, ''''^ « '^t^'X '
Iped something like a deer, clothed in a hide of the same color ; and like deer,
the bucks have branching horns, though blacker and smahcr '" \';f' r,;;f "^^ ,^,„,„
I had a conversation over the body of the animal, with an old ^ack-wood nan
who tdd me i.. instancing the animal's fleetness, that he }^onr.e^-;::^:i:';j:;iZ
grey houml, which was
ing manner. The ante

istancing the animal's fleetness, that he had once a very superior
1 was bVought into contest with one of the species in the tollow-
c antelope and dog were running at right angles towards c:.ch
not disc'ovoring the hound ^^1^,}^^^^ :-^^^-]!^": ^'^flT.^i

other, the former
each other.

The strumrlo then commenced, but the antelope shot aw.iv Itom lUe

HISTORY OP OREGON.

dog with the most astonishing swiftness. The race lasted for a quarter of a miU,
earih doing his besi,, bnt tho antelope had then outran the dog so far, that the laiier
actually stood still and gazed after him in utter astonishment. Yet this houm had
often run down deer and wolves with ease. Tho antelope is a very wary animal,
and consequently extremely difficult of approach. His curiosity is, however, very
grcnt ; and the hunter adapting himself to the habits of the animal, conceals him-
self behind a hillock of sand, or some other object, and putting his hat, cap, or hand-
kerchief upon the end of his ram rod, waves it gently to and fro to attract his atten-
tion. As soon as the antclopo sees it, ho slowly approaches, occasionally pausing
with a snort; then gradually advancind again, snifts the air with the utmost suspi-
cion, and tliough no breath is heard above the humming of a mosquito, will some-
times turn and dash off several yards, to return in like manner again. "At length,
however, his fate coaxes him within reach of the trusty rifle — a crack follows, and
down he goes. He is not very tenacious of life, and a slight wound will bring hitu
to an almost immediate surrender. Notwithstanding his cxceedmg fleetness, he
can be run down when very fat, on horseback, if the chase is continued for twenty
miles. My communicant, who had spent several years in the region of the Rocky
Mountains, informed me that they were frequently run down by wolves, and that he
had often snatched the jaded prey from these carnivorous banditti at the conclusion
of a long chase, and appropriated it to himself. I found the flesh of the antelope
very delicious eating. It is very juicy, and is generally priaed above venison.

CHAPTER IV.

ro
|r,

Visit of Pawnees — Arrival at the Platte — Its valley — lis stream — Buffalo patks —
Climate— Dodging a sleeper — Buffalo kuiils — Buffalo hunting — Directions how
to follow it — Buffalo meat.

Our course from the 13!h to tho 17th, lay up the Republican fork of the Bi 'c,
and at the close o( the latter day we had accomplished two hundred and tifty miles
from the rendezvous, giving an average of ten (niles a day from the start ; stoppages
and all incliidcd. The Katizas country, which is tho section through which we had
passed, is nineteen twentieths very fertile prairie, butscatilily furn.shed with timber,
except upon the streams. This conaisis generally of elm, low bur cak, cotton wood,
small swamp ash, and a few willows, and these ap J said before, only grow (w;' i a
ff;\v solitary exceptions) on the margin of the alrea-i!! In consequence of this de-
fect, there are but few portions of it suitable for J-r. 'iig purposes. The whole
coutilry is very scarce in game, and we ."jtw none ('),.. ring ihr veteran buffalo) but
a few deer and antelope.

The only description of smaller game wc sa^/, v, js a small kind of snipe, and a
very few small birds of otlier descriptions. The o .cast, of a half-starved wild cat,
killed by oni; of the company, attested the paucny of h3r ;angr, ;;:,,ong this descrip-
tion of prey. The streams also were very ' ,, rd \n their yield of fis',;. The road
from Independence to this point, (the crossing p,>int lo tie line of the Platte,) is
through prairie almost altogether, interrupied on!\ by occasional swells, which are
far from being an obstacle to travel. The only dirficuliies are experienced at the
fords upon the streams, which Hre miry, abrupt, and as I have shown, sometimes dif-
ficult to cross. You will, nevertheless, not ha driven more ilian once to a raft.

In the afternoon we encamped foi the last time upon the Ulue Hivor, and this
circnmstance in connection with the rapid progiess of the last three days, put us in
a most excellent humor with ourselves. While we were employed in the usual
duties and amusemfiits of such a pause, we received the visit of a large party of
Pawnees, who approached us from the south, in which dfrectiun they had been on
a hunt. They had with them several packs of buffalo mer.t ; (he reward of their
expedition. They cut this when they butcher it, into long, thii. :>d wide slices,
with the grain of the meat, and then cure it by drying it in tlie sun, After it is thus
dried, they have a mode of |)re8sin^- it between two pieces of wood, which gives !
a very smooth and regular appearance. They gave us of it very liberally, and ask-
ed for nothing in return. These Indians are a much superior race to the Kanzas
and Osages ; ihcy wear their hair like the whiles ; their stature is athletic, and their
mien noble. While with us, they straggled freely through the camp, and amused
themselves very much by imitating our mode of driving the teams. We informed
them, before they left, of the massacre cf Ihcit brother by tho Osages and Caws,

■f 1l

I IK.

HlilTORY OF OREUON.

upon which they set up n howl of wo, and swore revenge with the most violent ges-
ticulations. They left us as they mot us, in the moat friendly manner, and we did
not sulTer from their depredations as we had from tho^e of their enemies.

" Hurrah, for the Platte ! tira la ! lira la !" cried Jim Wayne from his mouth,
and blew Jim Wayne on his bugle, as be galloped up and down the line, on the
morning of the 18lh. " Hurrah for the Platte ! Good morning, Mrs Robbins !—
inornin, Mc Farley — come, stir about, bustle, bustle, we must reach the Platte to-
day ! tira la ! tira la !" and away went the mad devil repeating the summons in
every quarter. All was stir and bustle ; the Platte had long been sighed for us the
direct line of route that was to lead us straight to the passage of the mountains,
and on its banks we had been assured of finding a constant and abundant supply of
game. I^eing twenty miles or more away, it was necessary we should bestir our-
selves at an early hour, to reach it before night-fall. We accordingly got an tiirly
breakfast, and soon the long line of the caravan unwound itself over the undulating
fields, to spun the main dividing ridge between this tributary of the Kanias and the
Great Platte. Wo travelled all day without any interruption, over the finest road
imaginable, and just as the sun was gcing down behind the bleak sand-hills on its
northern bank, wc caught our first view of the wide and beautiful valley of the
American Nile. Being yet two miles distant from its bank, we halted in the fertile
bottom land, after having accomplished a distance of twenty-five miles, congratula-
ting ourselves with the prospect of plain sailing, and plenty of fresh provender, until
we siriick the mountains. This was all wo had to console us for a cold supper, in con-
sequence of the complete absencie of fuel where wc were. In the morning, (liJth,)
we had to start without breakfast, in consequence of this want, but after travelling
a few miles, we found plenty of dry willows to serve our purpose, and then made a
most voracious meal We struck the Great Platte near the head of Grand Island.

This was a beautiful island, lying in the centre of the stream, (very wide at this
place,) seventy-five miles in length, and covered with the finest timber, while not a
solitary tree grew on the south side of the river, where we were.

Having now brought the reader to the grand avenue, which leads the emigrant
direct to his future destination, I will not trespass upon his patience by a description
of every day's journey and proceedings, but shall content myself with giving him a
general view of the route, its characteristics, facilities and extent ; thus advancing
with greater rapidity to the main subject of inquiry — Oregon itself; and thus avoid-
ing the unnecessary repetitions of diurnal trips, nine-tenths of which would be in
their description mere counterparts of those that went before.

Tlie Great Platte, is one of the most remarkable rivers in the world, and when
considered with a view to the facility its level banks afford for intercommunication
with our Pacific territories, its value is immense. It lakes its rise in Wind River
Mountain, (in latitude 42^) a little north of, and near the Great Southern Pa-ss,
and runs due east, with scarcely a pemepiible deviation of course to the traveller
along its banks, for a distance of 600 miles, to its junction with its southern branch,
and t'rom that point 3U0 miles more, when it disembogues into the Missouri, in lati-
tude about 41*^, 30'. Like the Nile, it runs hundreds of miles through a sterile
wilderness, and like the .Nile it unrolls its strip of green across the vastness of the
desert, and is the father of all the vegetation near it. In the way of navigation, it
is useless ; its waters being too shallow in great portions of it even to float a canoe,
and in the winter it is boinid in ice. Its banks are low and sandy, its waters mud-
dy like the Missouri, and its current very rapid. In consequence of its shallowness
it is very easy to ford, except when rams have swollen the stream, and then its ad-
ditional force makes it in places extremely dangerous. Though it varies greatlv as
to width, its average breadth is about two rniles, and its centre is frequently diversi-
fied with most beautiful islands, large and small, covered with the finest trees whose
rich and clustering foliajje contrast splendidly with the sand-hills and wide prairie
plains on either side. On each side of the river, and at the distance of about three
miles from either bank, run a continuous line of eand-hills. From the foot of these,
to the water's edge, is spread a sheet of lively verdure, and on the other side, the
boundless level is only lost in the line of the horizon.

The banks of the Platte ar« generally devoid of trees, and we suffered a great
scarcity of wood previous to reaching Fort Larimie in consequence ; but we fre-
quently found bunches of willows, and more than once, the remains of Indian
wigwams of the same material, eked out a substitute for cooking purposes. Our
general expedient was to pick uj) pieces of drift wood from the river, during the day.
These we could get at the expense of wading to our knees, and they supplied all our
necessities with a little care. But little fuel is required if proper means are used in

HISTORY OF OREGON.

consuming it ; and to proceed correctly, with a view to saving, a narrow ditch should
first be dug in the earth about eight inches wide, a foot deep, and about a yard long ;
this arrangement confines the heat, and |)revcnts the wind from scattering and
wasting the firo.

The valley of the Great Platte is from fifteen to twenty miles wide, beyond which
line, on either side, the prairies lose a portion of their fertility, and gradually extend
towards the west in arid and cheerless wastes. The strip along the banks, of which
I spoke before, is filled with the most luxuriant herbage, the sand hills which bar it
from the plain beyond, are about three miles" through, and the outer prairie intermi-
nable. Within these sand hills you will find numerous vallies covered with a profuse
bottom vegetation, and leading by easy tracks from plain to plain. Upon the
outer plain, and sometimes in the sand hills, you will nnd bufl'aloes and numbers of
white wolves, and upon the intier one, range the antelope and deer. When the
season is wet, the buffalo find plenty of water in the ponds or puddles of the outer
plain, and, consequently, are not forced to the inner one, or to the river on its edge,
for water. As the summer advances, and the ponds dry up, these animals gradually
approach the stream, and are found in numbers in the inner section. As you go
along the edge of the river, you are struck with the numerous beaten paths diverging
in the direction of the sand hills, and leading across the surface of the farther plain.
A stranger is at a loss, at first, to account for such signs of population in a wilder-
ness, but, upon inquiry, they arc found to be the tracks made by the buflfalo, in their
journey to the banks of the stream for water. These paths are cut to the depth of
six or eight inches in the soil, and indicate by their narrowness, the habit of the
animals in these excursions to proceed in narrow file. In travelling up the Platte,
we crossed one of these paths at almost every thirty yards, and they were about the
only annoyance we met with upon the surface of the plain. They are serviceable in
a high degree in one view, '"or they aiford a perfect security against your getting lost,
your simple resource when having strayed far away on a hunt, being, merely to
strike a buffalo track, and you are sure to be ui a road leading directly to the river,
by the nearest route.

The whole road along the line of this stream, is doubtless the best in the world,
considering its length. The greatest inconvenience attendant on its travel that I
know of, is the unconquerable propensity it occasions in one to sleep in the day time.
The air is so bland, the road so smooth, and the motion of the vehicle so regular,
that I have knowti many a teamster go to sleep while his team stood winking idly in
the road without budging a step. The usual custom with us when such a case as
this would occur, was for each wagon in turn to drive cautiously around the sluggard,
and leave him to have his nap out in the middle of the road. It would someiimes
happen the sleepur would not awake for two or three hours, and when he arrived
that time behind in camp, he would cither swing around in a towering passion, or
slink out of the reach of our merciless tiiuntiiigs, heartily ashamed.

On the 22(1 of June we saw the fir.si band of buffalo on the plain near the river.
Til. re were about fifty altogether — and tliey were on their road through the sand
hil;s to ll'.c river o drink. We immediately mounted and gave chase, and being
fortunately to the leeward, ihey did not get scent of us until we were well down upon
them ; then by pushing our horses to their utmost speed, vve managed to get near
enough for a shot, and a general discharge succeeded in bringing down two of the
finest of the lot.

As the buffalo is sometimes a very important'item in the emigrant's calculations
for food, it will not be improper for me here to devote a few remarks upon the
manner of obtaining them.

There is perhaps no chase so exciting to a sportsman as a buffalo hunt, and the
reader can readily imagine the '.remendous addition its interest receives when the
stomach has been in rebellion .•'or hours, perhaps for days, from the insidious
excitements of the fresh prairie air The mode of hunting these noble animals is
very simple. They are most generally found upon the outer range, grazing near the
head of some hollow, leading up towards the sand hills. The sight of the buffalo
is very dull, but their scent, by its superior acutencss, compensates for this defect.
You must, therefore, always manege, if possible, to get to the leeward of them, or
you are almost certain to see the whole herd scamper off before you arrive iti pulling
distance. As an instance of this, I one day saw a band of about a hundred buffaloes
at two miles distance on the opposite side of the river running up its line on a par-
allel with our train. They did not see us, but the wind being from our side, they
Ctught the scent when fibout opposite our centre, upon which they turned off
instantly at a right angle and scoured away like mad. Approach t.hern to the leeward,

\ J

£::T

HISTORY OF OREdON.

however, and you are almost certain to get within easy shooting distance When
you have discovered a herd close up lo tlie line of the hills, you should station your
horses in some hollow near at hand, (but out of sight,) ind then creep cautiously up
to your position, pick out your animals, and fire, one at a time, in slow succession.
If you give them a volley, they directly scamper off, and a rapid succession of shots
is followed by the same result ; but if you load and fire slowly, you may kill several
before the whole herd take alarm. I have seen three or four reel down, or bound
into the air and fall, without exciting any attention from their indifferent com-
panions. When you have fired as often as you can, with effect, from the posi-
tion you have taken, and the animals have moved beyond your reach, you should
hastt-n to your horses, mount with all speed, and approach as near as possible
without showing yourselves ; but when you do, put your horses up to the top of
their speed and away after the game as fast as you can go, You may dash at a
hand of buffaloes not more than a hundred yards off, and though you may think you
are about to plunge into the very midst of them in a moment, you will find if your
horii) is not well down to his work, that they will slip away like le^;erdemain.
Though they appear to run awkwardly, they contrive to " let the links out " in
pretty quick succession, and if you suffer them to get any kind of a start, you must
expect to have a hard run to overtake them. The better plan, therefore, is to put
your horso to the top of his speed at once, and thus by bringing the matter to a
Climax, you obviate the inconvenience of being drawn to a ilistance from the camp,
ami of making your jaded steed carry a wsarisome load »f veral miles, back.

If you hit a bull from cover and he sees no enemy, he will at once lie dawn, but
if you press him on the 0[ en plain, when injured, he will resent the wrong, turn
short round, bow his neck and waving his tail to and fro over his back, face you for
a fight. At this crisis of affairs, it is well to show him some respect, and keep at a
convenient distance. If you will content yourself with fifty yards he will stand and
receive your fire all day. As soon as vou bring him onc<! at bay you are sure of
him, for you may fire as often as you please, and the oiiiy indication he gives before
going down, of having received a wr.iind, is by a furious kicking at the assaults of
his deadly visitant. You must not attempt to kill him by shooting at his head, for
you will only spatter your ineffectual lead upon his frontal bone, but shoot him behind
the shoulder at the bulge of the ribs, or just below the back bone in the same
latitude, and you will pass your ball directly through the thick part of the lungs.
This is the most deadly of all shots, for the flow of blood stifles his respiration and
suffocates him at once. When excited these animals are very hard to kill, and unless
when wounded in this fatal spot, I have seen ihem so tenacious of existence as
to live for hours, even with two or three bullets through their hearts.

Ttie animal though it generally flies pursuit, is capable of the most romantic deeds
of daring. An instance of this kind occurred on the 27th of June. We had stopped
our wagons at noon within half a mile of the river, and while enjoying the comforts
of our mid-day meal, we discovered seven large buffalo bulls slowly moving up the
opposite shore of the river. When they got directly opposite our encampment,
they turned and plunged suddenly into the stream and swam directly towards us as
ttraight as they could come, in the face of wagons, team, cattle, horses, men and
&l\. Every man prepared his gun, and those on the extreme ends of the line,
stretched down to the bank of the river, thus forming a complete semicircle of death
for their reception. Notwithstanding we were thus prepared for their approach, we
all felt certain they wow';' turn ■ '1 and recross the river; but to our complete as-
tonishment, on they cfi regai iless of our grim and threatening array. They
were received with a iienendous bombardmcn' and down wont every bellowing
vagabond to the grounc'.. Several o! them ros. lO their feet, but the storm of death
bore them back again u^^on the sod and not a single one escaped to profit by this
lesson of imprudence.

There is perhaps no flesh more delicious to a traveller's appetite than buffalo
meat, particularly that cut from a fat young buffalo cow ; and it has the peculiar
advantage of allowing you to eat as much as you please without either surfeit or
oppression. I shall never forget t>he exquisite meal I made on the evening of the
first ot June. I had been out hunting all day, was very weary, and as hungry as a
whole wilderness of tigers. Out of compassion for my complete fatigue, Mrs
Burnett cooked six large slices from a fat young buffalo for my supper. My extrava-
gant hunger induced me to believe when I first saw the formidable array served up,
that I could readily dispose of three of them. I did cat three of them, but I found
they were but the prologue to the fourth, the fourth to the fifth, and that to the
aixth, and I verily believe that had the line stretched out to the crack of doom,"

HISTORY or OREGON.

I should havo staked my fate upon another and another collop of the prairie king.
This story hardly does me credit, but the worst is yet to come, for two hours af-
terward, I shared the supper of Dumberton, and on passing C'tptain Gant'a tent
on my way home, I accepted an invitation from him to a bit of broiled tongue ; yet
even after this, I went to bed with an unsatisfied appetite. I am no cormorant,
though I must admit I acted very much like one on this occasion. My only contio-
laiion and excuse, however, is that I was not a single instance of voracity in injr
attacks upon broiled buffalo meat.

CHAPTER V.

Progress nf travel — Grand complimentary ball to the Rocky Mountains — Route
through the m.mntains — Its points — lis general character — Passage through the
past — Arrival in Oregon.

On the 29th of .fune, we crossed the south fork of the Platte. On the Ist of July
we crossed the north fork at a distance of thirty-one miles from the passage the
day but one before, and tken proceeded along its northern bank for a period of nine
days, passing in succession the points on the route known as " Cedar Grove," " the
Solitary Tower," " the Chimney," and " Scott's Bluffs," until we arrived at F'ort
Larimie on the 9th ; thus averaging, from the time of our crossing the south fork
on the morning of the 29th nf June, about sixteen miles a day. During this period,
and this space of march, the weather was uninterruptedly fine, the thermometer
ranging from 74'^ to 83°, and the face of the road suffering no sensible variation.
We paused for a day at Fort Larimie, and resumed our march on the morning of
the 11th. From this point thereout, we suffered no further scarcity of timber, but
we now began to encounter a few more difficulties from the surface of the ruad.
This we found to be interrupted by bolder undulations, and after we had travelled
eight imiles further westward, we came to the debris, as it may be called, of the
Black Hills, whose occasional abrupt inclinations, now and then caused our teams
a little extra straining, but did not require us to resort to double ones. This lasted
but for a short distance, however, and we were soon on a level route again. On
the 16th we struck the Sweetwater, a beautiful little tributary of the Flatte, and
following its course for one hundred miles, at last came in view, on the afternoon
of the 30th, of the eternal snows of the Kooky Mountains. We still had an open
route before us, and a portion of the day remained to avail ourselves of it if we
pleased ; but this event was worthy of the commemoration of an encampment, and
we accordingly wound up the line two hours earlier than usual. The hunters of our

Earty had been fortunate this day in obtaining some fine antelope and two fat young
uffaloes, and we set out for a regular feast. 'A hen the meal was over, and when
the prospective perils which lay in the entrails of those grim giants had been can-
rassed again and again, we broke from all grave considerations to consecrate the
evening lo merriment. The night was beau'iful, scarcely a breath stirred the air,
and the bright stars in the blue vault above, looked brighter than ever. The camp
fires streamiiig upwards from the prairie plains, flooded the tents with their mellow
light, and made the tops of the quadrangular barricade of wagons, look like a forti-
fication of molten gold. Jim Wayne's fiddle was at once in request, and set after
set went in upon the sward to foot a measure to its notes. McFarley and the rep-
resentative of Big Pigeon forgot in the moment all the bickerings of their ambi-
tion, and formed two of a party (amongst whom was my old friend. Green, the
Missuurian,) who listened to the Indian traditions of Captain Gant, and then told
their own wonderful stories in return. The revelry was kept up till a late houj,
and the result was, that the whole party went to bed worn out with pleasure and
fatigue. From this point we pursued a directly western course, croiisiiig in our
route two creeks called '* Big Sandy" and." Little Sandy," and three or four others,
until we struck Green river, a tributary of the Colorado, which eiipties its waters
into the Pacific, in the Mexican bay of San Francisco. We followed Green river
down its course through the mountains for twenty miles, where we (truck a branch
of it called Black's fork. From thence we turned off in a westerly direction for
thirty miles, to Fort Bridger. Still west we proceeded for twenty more, to a branch
of the Great Bear river, called Big Muddy, and down this branch for thirty-seven
miles of fine travel, in a north westerly direction to Great Bear river itself. We
now took up the course of Great Bear river, and following it in a north westerly

i'l

HISTORY or OREGON.

direction for fifty-seven miles, passed a range of hills which run down nearly to it9
bank ; and continuing our conrss fur thirty-eight miles more, arrived at the Great
Soda springs. Frora the Great Soda Sprrngs, which we left on the 27th August,
we took the course of a vnlley leading to the great dividing ridge between us and
Oregon, and after paning up it to the distance of about forty-five or fifty miles,
came upon the wide depression of the mountains that was to lead us into the pro-
mised land. This remarkable pass is so gentle in its slope, as to afford no obstacle
for the heaviest loaded wagons ; and, without any difficulty at all, our most cum-
brous teams passed through it into the valley of the Saptin, the southern branch of
the Columbia. This aaturul avenue, though surronnded, nay, almost overhung, in
pattH, with immense cragH of frowning desolation, was covered, generally, with the
softest and most delightful verdure that had for a long timo met our eyes. A
beautiful little brook meandered through it ; flowers and trees were flourishing
along it in profusion, and tha sweet scent and soft air that floated in our faces ofT its
fields, half persuaded us that we were suffering the delusion of some fairy dream.
Impatient of delay, some dozen or two of us on horseback, plunged into the inviting
scene, and led the way at a gallop to a view of the region beyond.

We soon arrived at the waters of the Portneuf, and from this point reined up
our panting steeds to gaze upon the valley of the Saptin which lay at last before
us. In an instant every head was uncovered, and a cheer rang back into the
gorge to the ears of our companions, which made every team strain and wagon
erack with renewed exertion. It is impossible to desctibe the ei. husiasm which
this event created in our party. Each wagon as it arrived at the | nt unfolding
to the view the region which had been the object of our dearest ii>^ [les and the
occasion of our weary travel, set up a cheer, which taken up by those behind^
rang through every sinuosity of the pass and reverberated along the sides of tho
beetling crags which hemmed it in. Jim Wayne who was always " about"
when any thing of moment was afoot, was among the foremost to reach tha
point of sight, and there, with his bugle which he had burnished and swung
around his neck for the occasion, he planted himself, receiving every wagon with
"Yankee Doodle," "Hail Columbia," or "The Star-spangled Banner," and only
pausing in the tunes, to wave the instrument in the air, in immense sweeps, to the
measure of the answering shouts.

This passage was performed on the 39th of August, and on the afternoon
of that day we pitched our tents in the valley of the southern arm of the great
River of the West. The region we had passed through from the 30tli July up to the
29th August, comprised all the passes through the Rocky Mountains, and was by
fiir the most arduous and difficult portion of the whole journey. We performed it,
however, without sustaining any loss or injury beyond the bursting cf a single tire,
and yet averaged while doing it, the distance of about twelve miles a day. In many
pnrts of this region we had to move sharply to secure water and range for our cattle,
and the scarcity of game, forced us, so far as we were personally concerned, pretty
much upon the resources of our private larders. Though consisting to a large extent
of beetling rock, arid plains, craggy defiles and frowning gorges, Nature has provided
throughout a large portion of this route, a continuous line of valleys, nourished by
gentle rivers, whose fertile banks furnish abundant pasture for your cattle, and pro-
vide a road from the eastern to the western limits of the Rocky Mountains and through
the spurs of the intermediate region, better than many of the wagon rcutes in some
of the aastem states. The greater portion of this country, however, is a sterile,
flinty waste, and except in occasional dots, and in the green ribbons that bind the
edges of the stream, is worthless for agricultural purposes. One of the features
of this section, of singular interest, is the number of soda springs it contains, of a
most remarkable character. They are situated mostly on Gfreat Bear river, at tho
end of the valley leading up to the pass. There you will find them, bubbling, and
foaming, and sending up from their clear depths and gravelly bottoms a continual
discharge of gas and steam, as though they ware sunken cauldrons of boiling water.
They are represented to possess highly medicinal qualities, and it is said the Indians
set a great reliance upon their virtues for a numerous class of disorders. One of
these springs makes a loud bubbling sound, which can be heard at a great distance,
and there are others which eject their waters some distance into the air; and others,
m addition to these peculiarities, have a temperature above blood heat. To such an
tTtent do these phenomena prevail, that the surface of the river, in the neighborhood
of those on the shore, is fretted for several hundred yards with large number»
ot ihem, some of which force their jets many inches above the surface. The
scenery aboun this spot is wild and impressive ; but though composed mostly

HISTORY or OBEOON.

of towering rocks, the fnithful bunch of gross still fastens to the vb1«b, and ofltrs id
tribute of sustenance and rcfreahninnt to the cattle.

On the nnorning of the 30th, we performed our orisons for the first time in Oregon.

For the first time in many dreary days the beetling crags of the Kouky Mountains
ran their frowning barritrs in our rear, and a broad unbrekcn plain spread out
before us. Our hearts swelled with gratitude and joy, and with these combined
emotions came a mingling of surprize, that the passage through the valley and the
shadow of that misrepresented gorge, had proved so slightly fermidable in its char-
acter. This can only be accounted for by the fact that most of the pioneers upon
the route, from need of the experience of others who had gone before, in the direction
of their preparations, set out without providing properly sgainst the difliculties and
privations of the route. Neglecting the important item of provioions, they havo
relied entirely upon their rifies, and their chance for game, and the rcHull has been,
that their stomachs, pinched by occasional deprivation, have spread their dissatisfac-
tion to the mind, and magnified and discolored every difficulty and trifling inconve-
nience into a monstrosity of hardship. It may readily bo imagined, that a traveller
on horseback, who was obliged to fly from rise to set of sun, over a barren patch
of desert to obtain range and food, would be anything but flattering in his descrip-
tions of the scene of his sufferings and perils ; but a well appointed caravan, carrying
water in their vehicles, and driving their provender along with them, would enjoy a

J;reater measure of contentment, end be inclined to treat the account of their way-
aring with a far greater degree of fairness and liberality. I do not hesitate to say,
as I said before, that any wagon which could perform the journey from Kentucky to
Missouri, can as well undertake the whole of this route, and there need be no dread
of difliculties, in the way of natural obstruction.s, of a more serious character.
I would be willing to traverse this road twice over again, if I possessed the means
to purchase cattle in the States, and this opinion will appear less strange, when I
assure the reader that several of the female emigrants feel in the same wajr disposed
for the pleasures of a second expedition. It is true, there is a good deal of labor to
perform on the road ; but the weather is so dry, ard the air so pure and bland, that
one turns to it, as ho does to the savory meals of the prairie, with a double alacrity
and relish. Besides, many of the cares as well as troubles of a first expedition,
would be avoided in the second. Experience would be uur pioneer, and th» con-
tinual apprehension of difficulties of an unknown eharactcr ahead, would vanish.
We would not be continually harassed, whether we should abandon our horses at
the pass, whether we should be out of provisions, or whether the route was practi-
cable for travellers like us, at all ! These uncertainties are dispersed farever.
Emigrants may come naw without fear. They will find a road broken to their use ;
they know the quantity of provisions they need ; they know also the supplies they
can gather by their rifles ; they know that they will not suffer for want of water,
and they have also been made aware that all the property they bring with them, ia
worth double its value as soon as they arrive. Fuel, it is true, is scarce at some
|,:int8, but proper care and a little trouble, will provide against any sufl'ering for
want of that.

You travel along the banks of streams all the way, and you can almost alwaya
reap a harvest of dry willows en the surface of the waters, and where these do not
offer, you find an equivalent resource in the sedges of their shores.

CHAPTER VI.

Arrival at Fort Hall— The three regions of Oregon— Salmon Falls— The Saptin
and (he Platte— Fait Boise— Burnt River—The Lone Pine—" Woodman spare
that tree "—The Grand Round— Scientific speculation of Mr. M'^ Farley— A fall of
■An Indian traffic.

snow-

We killed a bullock this morning in a fit of extravagance, and after replenishing
ourselves with a most substantial breakfast, set out with rcaewed energies and
brightened prospects. We arrived in the afternoon at Fort Hall, a trading post be-
longing to the Hudson's Bay Com|)any, on the Snake or Saptin River, and en-
camped in a fine piece of timber land, under cover of its wooden battlements. We
past a most pleasant evening in exchanging civilities with its inmates, who were not
a little surprised at this tremendous irruption m their solitude. Some of the
members told us that they could scarcely believe their eyes when they saw the im-

:-i''l

. .f.

HISTORY or ORKOON.

J'N.<:

V: : ,;:„.

■^

W:l

mnnse ntretch of our line, the number of our lowing hcrdi and our iqunds of prancing
horsemen, nnd iliey inquired laughingly if we had coinn to conquer ()regon. or devour
it out of hand. They treated ui, however, with every attention, and an* ored with
the utmoat patience and particularity, all uur inquiriea in relation to the country.

We paused here a day to recruit our cattle, end when we act out in the morning
following, (lat Sept«mbfcr,) we received a paninfr aalutc from one of tf>r gunaof the
fort, and answered it with a volley from our amhll arma. Our journev to day com*
mcnced through a piece of country well timbered, and ponaeaiins \ fijii apparently
capable of raising the graina and vegetables of the Statca. I learned, however, that
the climate of tliia region la aubject to frequent froata, the aeverity of which are
fatal to agraulturrl operations of any magnitude.

Oregon, or the territory drained by the Columbia, ia divided by immenae mountain
range* into three diatinct regions, the climate and other natural tlmracterialica ef
which are cntirelv dilTerent from each other. The first region ia that lying along
the coat>t of the Pacific, and extending in the interior to the line of the Cascade
range ; the second region lies between the (Cascade chain and the Ulue mountainii
and the third, between the Ulue and the Kocky mountains.

The first of tliese haa a warm, dry and regular climate, and it ia the abode of
continual fartility. The second, or middle region, conaista chiefly of plains between
ridges of mountaina, the soil of which is poor. The timber also ia very scarce upon
it, and what there ia \s soft and poor. The climate during the summer is agreeable
and salubrious ; but tho winter brings with it frequent rains. Many of its plains,
though generally unfit for agricultural purposes, aro covered continually with an
abundant crop of short grass, which renders it a splendid field for raising stock, and
for grazing po'posea.

The third region is called the high country, and is a mere desert, consisting of
ridges of rocka of volcanic strata and alternate sandy plains. It has its occasional
fertile spotn, it is t. ue, but they are few and far between. Its distinguishing features
are its excessive dryness, and the extraordinary difference of the temperatuio be-
tween night and day. Thia extremity amounting sometimes to a variation oi 40 or
even 60 degrees, ia modi'ied aomawhat in the approach toward the middle region,
but this outsi'ie section ia doubtlcaa incapable of being reclaimed to any great extent
by the hand of ncan * We emerged from the patch of vegetation around Fort Hall
in a few hourf o^on wide barren plains of yellow sandy clay, which among its abort
a; <1 dry grnss, bore nothing but the wild wormwood and the prickly pear, with hero
and Utcii «oine stunted cotton wood or willow.

We croasfid the Portneuf at the distance of eleven miles from our starting place,
and still kept along the lower bank of the Saptin, the country remainmg the same
in its character — 'a desert wilderness except in the partial vegetation on its streams.
We found tho evenings now getting to be quite cold ; the nipping air driving us to
our camp fires and directing our attention to extra coverlets ; but the morning sua
after getting an hour high, would give us another temperature, and till evening came
again, we would have genial summer weather.

Wo reached the Salmon Falls (or Fishing Falls, as they are called from the great
numbers of fish which abound in them) on tho 11th, after having passed through a
piece of country still the same in its barren and volcanic character, for the distance of
one hundred and forty miles from Fort Hall. We here caught an abundance of
fine salmon, and after a short enjoyment of the sport, moved onward on our course.
Our eagerness, now that we had conquered the Kocky mountains, to get to the
limit of our final destination, was extreme.

On the 14th we arrived at Boiling Spring. The country around this spot was
wild in the extreme, the same arid, volcanic plain, flowing its sterile billows on be-
fore us — a vast lake of barren waste, hemmed in and bound by shores of beetling
crags and towering mountains.

We were all the journey up to this point, still on the western bank of tho Snake
or, Saptin rivsr, but we crossed to its eastern shore above these springs, and followed
the course of the other side. As this river is of the same importance to the emigrant
for his travel in this region, as the Great Platte is for the Western Prairies, it is
deserving of a special notice. The Platte is a tributary to the Miaaouri, and unrolls
its loveliness and vegetation from the States to the base of the Rocky mountains ;
while the Saptin takes up the task on the western side of this stupendous barrier
and leads the wayfarer in the same manner along its banks, until it yields its
waters to the Columbia near Wallawalla.

• Mr. Wyeth saw the thermometer on the banks of Snakn river, in August, 1832, mark eighteen
degress of farenheit at sunrise, and ninety two degrees at noon of the same day.

HISTORY or OREGON.

priricing
ir devour
!rei) with
(untry.
morning
ns of the
day com*
ppiirenily
ever, that
which ate

mountain
leriatica ef
^inR along
le Cascade
mountainii

te abode of
lis between
icBice upon
9 agreeable
f its plaioa,
illy with an
I »tock, and

sonaisting of
s occasional
hing featurea
iperatuie be-
iiion oi 40 or
iddle region,
J great extent
|nd Fort Hall
long its short
lar, *"ith hem

torting place,
Sng the same
[i its slreama.
idriving us to
I morning sun
Weniug came

torn the great
led through a
l\e distance of
Inbundance of
In our course,
get to the

khis spot was
lillows on be-
es of beetling

[of tht) Snake

and followed

the emigrant

IPrairies, it is

^i, and unrolla

mountains ;

[jdous barrier

it yields its

I, mark eighteen

k of the 8nptiu into a vHllKy stretcli-
VVe crossed thia stream at its junc-
HitHt, '11 bank of the latter fur eight or
'his IS on the morning of the 20th
'trv had changed its character en-
dp ~t', instead of parched anil sandy
were j^laildoned with green vales,

Another striking feature of similarity is, that the country on either side of the
Rocky niountairia is a dry and barren deiicrt for the space of two hundred miles.
I'hroii^h thiiie Nierraa roll the streams oi the renpective rivers, trellicing llie vast und
naked waHies witli their 8tri|i» of fruitful green.

The head watura of the Lewi«, Snake ur Saplin river, as it is variously called, rise
in tile mountHUiH between the 4V!d and 44lh degree of latitude. Thence it flows
westwardly, pa«8iii|{ through a ridge uf the Hluo mountaina, and su on north-west-
wardly to its junction with the Columbia, receiving in its way the Malado, the Wap-
titacos, the Salmon liiver, the Malheur, the Burnt Kiver, Powder Kiver, and oihers
of le«s signiticanre. hs waters are very clear, and its current is, at some places, ex-
tremely swift. The rapida on it are extensive and frequent, and in consequence,
the river is not navigiible, exce|)t in occasional spots of still water between.

Forty-eight miles more through deserts spriDkled with volcanic rock, and we struck
the Uois^ river. We had diverged fioin il
iiig north west, which brought us to ihe II
tion with the Snpiin, and thence follows
nine miles, until wo arrived at Fort IJo
September. For the last twenty miles, i .
tirely, As soon as we struck the r.illey o
plains, cut rock and frowning craf>x, our

flowering shrubs and clustering timber lands. The grateful sight was welcomed
with a common spring of joy, and our wearied and hunger pinched cattle revelled in
the luxuries of its heavy herbage.

On the 23d we left Fort Boise, and after travelling over an excellent road for
fifteen miles, we came to a creek in the latter part of the afternoon. This wo cross-
ed without serious difficulty, and encamped upon its western bank. Throughout
this day the wind had blown quite cool from the N. W. and we had to suti'er also
from an impoverished and scanty range and a scarcity of fuel.

On the 23d we started oH again with the same cutting wind that had visited us
the day before, and which staid with us over night. Our road to day was tolerably
good, and after having accomplished sixteen miles over it, we brought our day's jour-
ney to a close on the bank uf a dry creek, with no water at hand, except what we
found in a sort of puddle in its bed. Two miles further on would have taken us to
a good encampment, with plenty of fine range and water, but the Indian pilot who
had been employed for us by Ur. Whitman was ahead, and out of reach with the
foremost wagons.

On the 24th we had to encounter a very hilly road, which retarded our progress
most seriously. The lulls, however, were not high, neither were they rugged or
abrupt, but they were frequent and thence our ditficulty. We saw the Saptin to
day for the last time, for it now left our track in a bold northward curve till it re-
turned to the Columbia near Wallawalla. We were able to make no more than ten
miles to day, encamping at the close upon another creek called Burnt river. This
stream derives its title from the numerous (ires which have consumed portions of the
timber in its banks. This consists principally of cotton wood and birch, which
abound in its valley ; and these are also intermixed with aspen and willow. The
stream docs not deserve ihe name of a river, being merely an ordinary sized creek,
but as others of less importance claim that title in this region, it may as well be
accorded to it.

September 25th we started up the line of the Burnt river. The valley of the
stream is very narrow, at some points being not more than twenty yards across, and
it is hemmed in by mountains on cither side. Though it abounds in timber, quite
a safe and passable road could be made through it by clearing out the space for a
track, but to do this effectually, several crossings of the stream would have to be
made. This could easily be performed in consequence of its low banks and firm
bottom, but we had no time to clear out the way, and of lute, the tortuousness of
the roads had so scattered and divided our company, that we proceeded hcltcr
skelter along in separate detachments, each following, as best it could, the careless
lead of those who went before. We were thus betrayed into many difficulties that
might have been avoided, if an orderly arrangement had been preserved. Some-
limes the turn only of a few yards would have saved us the most obstructive hi'ls
and hollows, and I am informed that the course of the river could have been avoided
altogether by a turn to the left, which strikes the trail near Powder river, running in
an extensive plain, remarkable for a solitary tree in its midst, known as " The Lone
Pine." But if this should not bo the case,* I would advise future emigrants to

' It is the case-

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Sciences
Corporation

23 WEST MAIN STMET

WnSTH.N.Y. USSO

(716)872-4503

HISTORY OF OREGON'.

seleit some eight or ten good men to send on ahead, to search for the most eligible
route, and, if necessary, to clear one. This will sare them much trouble. The
rango from this spot to the end of the journey is most excellent ; the bunch grass
is plenty in the valleys and in the sides of the hills, and there are plenty of rushes
along the banks of this stream. We made but eight miles to day.

On the 26tb, the road got worse, if anything, than before, and after floundering
through hills and hollows, for six miles, we struck a hill of most difficult ascent, that
required us to double our teams. Vet even this hill, as well as another still more
difficult, which we descended, might have been entirely avoided by an advance
of two hundred yards farther up the stream, where nature has furnished an easy as-
cent round the sides of both. This, however, was not discovered until all the wa-
gons had passed. The sbove hill is the first that we have met in our road, which
obliged us to double our teams.

September 27th. — We were visited last night by a sharp, keen frost, and when
we turned out in the morning we found the shivering chill utill lingering among the
valleys of the surrounding nountains. This morning we emerged from our trou-
blous passage through the immediate valley of the river, and struck a beautifully un-
dulating valley which fringed with its luxurious productions the border of a lovely
plain. In the mixed vegetation which here abounded in rich profusion, we found
red hawes and cherries in abundance, and also a description of elder berries, which»
unlike ours, that are of an insipid sweet, have a delicious tartness, somewhat simi-
lar in flavor to winter grapes before they are touched with the frost. In the course
of the day we passed a Kiuse village, and after completing twelve miles over a
good road, halted for the night.

September 28th. — Our route to-day lay through a beautiful valley surrounded on all
sides by the overtopping ridges of the Blue Mountains, their huge bases clothed
with immense forests of majestic pines, and their stupendous tops gleaming with
everlasting snow. Above their dazzling peaks were piled in grand confusion,
masses of fleecy clouds, through the irregular breaks of which the clear azure of the
vault above showed its softening contrast, and the sharp rays of the sun poured their
floods of radiance. But through all the towering terrors of these mountains, our
sweet little valley still wound on, offering its velvet verdure and its gentle surface
to facilitate our progress. In the afternoon we emerged upon an extensive plain,
which I have mentioned before as remarkable for a solitary tree in its centre. This
noble monarch of the plain is a magnificent pine, rearing its head alone amid
the level blank of the prairie, that bears no other object on its surface for miles to-
gether, higher than a stunted shrub. As we approached this lonely hermit, I could
not resist an impression of sadness, and the idea was forced upon my mind that it
had stood there a sapling amid a million of its kind, and that when centuries ago,
the mastodon and the behemoth abandoned forever their sombre depths, the forest
followed on, leaving this solitary scion of their race behind, to mark the spot over
which they had waved their sheltering foliage since the beginning of the world.

This splendid outcast has lang been known to all travellers ia this region as
,' The Lone Pine," and it could not possibly have received a more expressive and ap-
propriate designation. I was about six miles distant from it when it first attracted
, my attention, and as we progressed I kept regarding it with admiration, at intervals of
•very few moments. When but a little more than a mile off, I noticed that the
leaders of our line were circling round it, and making demonstrations of an encamp-
ment. From the surface of the plain my eyes travelled naturally to the summit of
the tree, when I was struck with its unusual motion. I thought Lsaw it tremble. I
was seized with a sudden apprehension, but unwilling to yield to it, I rubbed my
eyes and looked again. In the next moment my horse was galloping at top steed
over the space that separated me from it, while I, regardless of the distance, was
waving my arms to those around it, and shouting to them to desist. I was too late ;
before I had accomplished half the distance, the majestic monarch toltered for
a moment from its perpendicular, then sweeping downwards through the air,
thundered in ruin upon the plain. I could have wept for vexation, to see this nuble
land-mark, which had braved the assaults of time through a thousand winters, thus
fall an inglorious victim to the regardless axe of some back-woods' Vandal. L had
been cut by some inconsiderate emigrants for fuel ; a necessity that could have
been more easily and much better supplied, by a profusion of small dead willows
that were strewed about ; for the pine was so green that it could not be made to
burn at all. We this day accomplished eighteen miles.

September 29th — We left the plain and- its prostrate land-mark this morning
and in the middle of the day entered anather valley, as rich m its fertility as the one

HISTORY OP OREGON,

«7

te;
for
air,
ble

Had
ive

|W8

«r tlM day before, and like it, it also ran between two immenie parallel ranges of
«now-topped mountains, the sites of which, a little way below the vegetation line,
irere covered with thick forests of pine to where their bases were lost in the bot-
tom swells. The range along here, was very superior, and the surrounding proofs
of general fertility gave evidence of its being admirably adapted to grazing purposes.
The soil is most excellent, but the drought at the same time, must often be severe.
Mo!<t of this beautiful valley might be irrigated from the tributaries of Powder River,
<itself u, tributary of the Saptin,) several of which we had to cross in following the
course of this wide valley prairie. Twelve miles to-day.

September 30th. — Travelled nine miles over an e.xcellent road, with the exception
of the last half mile, which was rocky and perplexed ; but this might have been es-
caped as we afterwards found, had we turned, down an opening to our right, which
W9 had rejected on passing, but which led through a smooth and easy passage di-
rectly to th« place where we finally encamped.

October 1st. — We this day came to the " Grand Round," the name of an im-
mense valley, one hundred miles in circumference, which will vie in fertility with
the valley 'of the Missouri, or indeed, with any spot in the world. Trees of all kinds
are sprinkled throughout its suiface t shrubs, flowers, brooks, singing birds, meadow
lark, and other winged game, diversify it, with many other of the attractions of more
lavish regions, and its general temperature is guaranteed by the evidences of its prodi-
gal vegetation. The Grand Round is nearly circular in its form and lies embosom-
«d in the Blue Mountains, which here, like their predecessors before described, are
covered from b«ttom to top with lofty pines in studded forests. The bottom of this
magic circle is rich, level prairie laud, trelliced with crystal springs issuing from its
surrounding mountain border, which, with but slight assistance from the art of
man, could easily be made to irrigate the whole surface of the valley.

In this region abounds a peculiar vegetable called Kamas root, which has a sweet
and pleasant taste, and which is also very nutritous food. It is about the size of a
partridge egg, and is cured by being dried upon hot stones. We purchased large
quantities of it from the numerous Indians we found in the vicinity.

In this region also may be found one of the most wonderful creations of nature,
existent in the world. This is a pond, or well, of boiling salt water, hot enough for
cooking purposes, and bottomless in its depths. The steam arising from it may be
seen at the distance of several miles, and resembles the vapor arising from a salt
furnace. It occasioned no small degree of conjecture among the various savans and
philosophers of our party, and not a few were the opinions expressed as to its cause.
McFarley, however, gave the most satisfactory account of any, to the inquirers.
He represented the nteridianof Grand Round to be exactly opposite to Mount Ve-
suvius, en the other side of the globe ; that that tremendous volcano " had been
burnin long afore Christ, and it stood to reason, as it eat deeper and deeper into
the bowels of the earth, it must eventually £ome out on tiie other side." He believ-
ed this spring to be an indication of its approach to the western surface, and that
** the superincumbent weight of water upon the spot was all that kept it for a time
from burstin to a vent." He then added his deliberate opinion, that ere long, the
area of the Grand Round would be the scene of a tremendous eruption and the cir«
cle of mountains which hemnted it in, would be the rim of its crater.

This notion created no small alarm among some of our f ks, and a very extensive
opinion prevailed that it was better to move on as soon as possible, and give Vesu-
vius a chance.

I should have mentioned before, that on entering the " Grand Round," we had
to descend an abrupt declivity of three or four hundred feet, covered with loose
rocks, as large, and, in some cases larger than a man's head. This was by far the
worst hill we had yet descended, but by locking both hind wheels, and with teams
80 well trained as ours, we all descended in a^ut three hours without hurt or in-
jury to a single soul, and no damage was done to our truck beyond a slight crush of
one side of a wagon body.

October 2d. — We ascended a hill, or rather a mountain, at the edge of the " Grand
Round," and then descended it in an extensive declivity on the other side, ending
at a fine running creek for which I could find no name, but on the banks of which
we encamped. Both of these hills, the one at the entrance and the other at the
outlet of the Grand Hound, might be better avoided by turning to the Inft upon the
mountain side and passing them altogether. We passed during the latter part of
this day, through large bodies of heavy pine timber, and I will take this occasion
to remark, that the timber of the Blue mountains were the first considerable boilies
we had seen since we left the banks of the Kanzas.

i ■'

HISTORY or OREGON.

it
i

October 2d. — We were obliged lo-dny to ascend and descend three very bad hills,
and to pasa over eight miles of n very rough and difficult road, a portion of it run-
ning through a track heavily timbered with pine. We cut through this a road for
the wHgons, and it now offers much superior facilities for those who follow.

October Ath, — This day our route stretched through tho still continuous pine, but
they wera more sparely scattered than before, and our progress consequently was
more easy. The weather was cold and bleak.

October 5ih. — .\ slight fall of snow this morning brought us to our heaviest cloth-
ing, and increased the size of our early camp-fires. The roads were excellent be-
fore us, but in consequence of two bad hills, and the disposition to linger round our
fires, we did not make more than eight miles, after completing which, we went early
to camp.

On tho 6th, we descended the Blue mountains, by an easy and gradual declina-
lion over an excellent road, and encamped on the banks of the Umatilla river near
a Kiuse village. This stream, like most of the rivers we had crossed in Oregon,
was nothing more than a go«>d sized creek. Its waters were beautifully clear and
its banks were studded with an abundance of cotton wood timber. We were no\v
in the second region of Oregon, and from the moment wn had descended from the
tnuuntains, we felt the difference of the two climates. The one we had left being
sharp and severe, and this being mild and dry, and offering in its abundant grasses
superior facilities for stock raising and grazing.

After descending from the region of the pine, we had now come into a country of
broad sandy plains, intermixed with a yellowish clay, productive, as I have said be-
fore, of abundant herbage, but destitute of timber, except upon the margin of the
streams. From this point to the Columbia at Wallawalla, is between forty and
fifty miles through continuous plains, varied only with occasional hills of sand. This
surface, except in the vallies of the streams, is sandy ard sterile, yet in its least
favored sections it bears a description of scattering brnch grass, upon which the
cattle become very fat. '

We found the Indians of this village very friendly, and exceedingly anxious to
trade with us. They proved their degree of civilization and advance in the arts of
agriculture, by bringing us large quantities of Irish potatoes, peas, corn and kamas
root, for which we gave them in exchangP,'clothes, powder, ball and sundry trifles.
They raise a large number of horses, by the luxuriant pasturage of the surrounding
country, and were continually pressing them upon us for sale, offering two of the
finest that we might select, for one of our cows. Seduced by the delights and com-
forts of this place, after the weary wayfaring we had just passed through in the up-
per region, we determined to remain here a day to recruit, and we accordingly gave
ourselves up to a regular frolic, during which the peas, corn and potatoes, with nice
spare ribs, Ash and steaks to match, vanished from the earth like witchcraft.

Let me remark, for fear th^t I may overlook it, that while travelHng on the
Burnt river, and while passing through the Blue mountains, we had much trouble in
finding our stock in the morning, as they wandered off in the bushes during the night,
and often strayed out among the hills after the bunch grass. We found the road
along this river, and through these mountains, the worst of the whole routs, and
indeed, nearly all the bad road we saw at all. Lieutencit Fremont who came be-
hind us, and who had Mr. Fitzpatrick for a guide, wc rther dojvn the Grand
Round to the right, came out at a different point, an e his way through the

Blue mountains by a route, which ho states, to be mort o.>fe and easy by far than
the one by which we came. Our route, at any rate, can be so improved with a small
amount of labor as to be quite practicable, and even as it was, we came through
it with our wagons in perfect safety, without even unloading them at a single point.
Many, if not most of the bad hills we had passed, could have been avoided oi over-
come, with a very little labor.

CHAPTER Vn.

Arrival at Doctor Whitmari's Mission — Perplexity — Confllicting Counsels — Dim-
gion into Squads and successive departures — Progress of the Advance Guard to
Vancouver — Our arrival at Fort Wallawalla — Arrangements with its Commander
— Naval Operations — Boat Building — the Grand Rapids — the Falls — the Little
Dalles — the Grand Dalles — the Whirlpool — Death in the Rapids — General Cha-
racteristics of the Middle Region; its Indians, their Habits and Pursuits.

On the Sth October, we moved on and encamped in the afternoon within twenty

HISTORY or ORGQON.

lOl-

to
ider
Itlle
'ha-

inty

miles of the Methodist mission establishment, kept by Dr. Whitman, on the bankt
of a little tributary of the Wallawalla; but not finding the pasturage to our liking,
we moved on the nrxt day a few miles further in advance, and finding a prairie
offering us all the advantages we sought, the section to which I was attached, de*
termined to make a halt for a few days, to recruit our weary and way worn cattle.
Most of the party had advanced before us and were alieady at the mission, but we^
in consequence of our halt, which continued through a period of five days, did not
reach there until the lAth. The mission establishment is situated on the north
east bank of a small stream emptying into the Wallawalla, around which there are
two or three hundred acres in good cultivation, and on the other side of the stream,
was the grist mill, where the Doctor converted his grains into flour. It was in a
very dilapidated condition when we saw it, but the Doctor informed us that he had
made arrangements to rebuild it, and make it an efficient feature of his little colony.

This settlement has existed here under the care of the doctor and his excellent
wife, ever since 1834, and by his persevering industry he has fairly coaxed civiliza-
tion into the very bosom of the wilderness. The stream on which the mission
house is situated is from fifteen to twenty yards in width ; its clear cool waters run
over a gravelly bed at the rate of five or six miles to the hour, and its banks, on
either side, are ornamented with groves of flourishing timber, and flowering
shrubbery, that are the usual accompaniments of fertility of soil and geniality of
climate. The valley of this stream is about thirty miles in circumference, and is a
favorite spot with the Kiuse for raising horses, numbers of which we found gallop-
ing about in all their native freedom over its plains.

Upon our arrival, wefoond the pasturage in the immediate vicinity of the mission
much eaten out by these animals ; but a few miles further back, towards the moun-
tains, it flourished in unsurpassed profusion. We found at Doctor Whitman's
every thing to supply our wants, and he furnished us with fine wheat at one dollar

Eer bushel, and potatoes for forty cents. His supply of the first gave out, but he
ad corn and potatoes in abundance.
While pausing at this place, we were agitated and perplexed in the extreme what
course to take in relation to the arrangements we should make for the successful
conclusion of our expedition. Wr were assailed wich various opinions from every
one we met, and in the general indecision were for a time brought to a dead stand.
Most of the residents of the mission agreed in advising us to leave our cattle and
wagons at this point, or if we did take them to the Dalles or narrows (a point on
the Columbia, 120 miles in advance) to send them back here to winter. Others
told ns that we could not reach the Dalles with our teams, as jaded as they were,
as we would find no range along the course of the Columbia. All, however, seem-
ed to think that it would be impossible for us to get our wagons, or our cattle, to
the Willamette this fall. But we had already overcome too many difficulties to
admit the word impoisible as a part of our vocabulary. We could not remain where
we were for a number of reasons. The pasturage in the immediate vicinity was
too scanty ; the width of range would not allow us to keep our stock together, and
we suffered an additional danger of their loss from the dishonest practices of the
Indiana, who, if they did not steal them outright, led them off, for the purpose of
being paid to bring them in. Many of us were obliged to pay a shirt (the price
uniformly charged by the Indians for every service) for three or four successive
mornings, to get back the same animal, and this was a kind of tribute that if kept
up, would make fearful inroads'upon our wardrobe. The majority of the emigrants
therefore resolved to attempt the threatened dangers to the actual evils that now
beset us. Accordingly they set out in squads, on successive days, and before the
end of the month, all had reached the Dalles in safety. What surprised them most,
after the representations which had been made, was the fine pasturage they mot
with all along the way, and especially at the Dallas, where, we had been led to
believe, the cattle could not subsist at all during the winter. As the parties to
which I now allude, preceded me, I may as well continue this anticipatory account
of the route as far as it concerns their progress. They struck off in a south west-
erly direction, leaving the sterility of the river's bank, and instead of perishing for
want of range, their cattle even improved ail along the way. Some of them left
their wagons at the Dalles, and drove their cattle through the Cascade mountains,
conveying their baggage and families on pack horses through the mountain paths ;
and some went down the river by the boats. But the greatest portion of them con-
structed rafts of dead pine timber, a few miles below the Dalles, large etiough to
carry six or eight wagons, and upon these floated safely down to the Cascades on
the Columbia. Their cattle were driven down the river's bank about thirty miles.

HISTORY OF OREGON*

then swum icrosfl and were driven down the other bank to VancouTer. Here the party
obtained boats from Or. McLaughlin, the Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company's
establishments in Oregon, and returned to the Cascades for such of the families,
wagons and baggage as had been left behind. This method was found to be, of all,
the most successful. By the first of December, all the emigrants had arrived at
Vancouver, but the greatest portion of them had reached there as early as the
fifteenth of the preceding month.

The large portion of the emigration t« which I belonged, arrived at Fort Walla-
walla, on the ICth 0' tober. This we found to be a rough parallelogram constructed
out of the drift wood drawn from the river during the annual rise of the Columbia,
in June and July. It is situated on the northern bank of the Wallawalla, just where
it joins the Columbia. We found a Mr. McKinley, a very intelligent Scotchman,
in charge of this post, and at Ms hands received every civility and attention.
This gentleman proposed to us a conditional arrangement, subject to the ratification
or refusal of Doctor McLaughlin, his superior, at Vancouver, in regard to our cattle.
He represented the impossibility of our conveying them to Vancouver, and to save
us any loss, offered to take them for himself, and give us an order on the Doctor
for an equal number of Spanish cattle of the same age and gender, in the possession
of the latter at the before-mentioned station. If Dr. McLaughlin disapproved of
the arrangement, Mr. McKinley was to hold our cattle subject to our order, and to
teceive one dollar per head for their keeping. This was a pretty acute arrangement
of his, as we afterwards found, but as it eventuated in nothing but a temporary
deprivation of our beasts, we did not have occasion to regard it as a very serious
matter. As soon as this arrangement was made, we went to work briskly in build-
ing boats from material which we sawed out of the drift wood of the stream, and
having all our preparations completed on the 20th, we set out on that day with
Indian pilots for our guides.

The Columbia at Wallawalla, is a beautiful clear and calm stream, and about as
wide as the Ohio at Louisville, Kentucky. We made fifteen miles the first day,
and on the morning of the second, passed in safety the Grand Rapids, one of the
most dangerous points on the river. From this point to the falls, about ten miles
above the Dalles, we passed through many severe rapids and narrow passes. At
the falls, where the whole Columbia tumbles down a perpendicular ledge of rocks
from a height of ten feet, we were obliged to draw our boat from the stream and
make a portage of about throe quarters of a mile, and then launch her anew. This
was dono with the help of a party of Indians, thirty-five in number, whom we founii-
at the place of our landing, and whom wo employed to shoulder our baggage and
carry our boat the necessary distance ; giving to each of them for the service, five
loads of powder and ball, and to their chief, a shirt and some tobacco. These fel-
lows appeared to understand their interests very well, and subserved them often with
as much acuteness as thorough Yankees. Employ all, or none, was the word, and
until we had made a fair business arrangement with the chief, not a lop ear would
lend a hand to any of our work. The chief spoke English very well ; was a tall,
fine looking fellow, dressed in the broadcloth costume of a white man, and wore
upon his feet, instead of moccasins, a pair of very fine shoes. His authority ap-
peared to be absolute, and the moment he gave the word of command every thing
was performed with the regularity of clock work. Our boat, which was a superior
one, that I had procured by especial favor from Mr. McKinley, had now far out-
stripped all the rest, and indeed, when we left the river for the portage, the remain-
der of the flotilla had been out of sight for several Lours. After our launch, we
pursued the stream for four or five miles, when we struck the little Dalies. This
is a narrow channel, rushing in whirlpools and dangerous rapids through two pre-
cipitous walls 6f rock. Here we were obliged again to put our families on shore to
lighten the boat, and to procure some Indians to take her through the gorge. Be-
low this point, and between it and the Grand Dalles, we encountered some severe
and threatening rapiJs, all of which, however, we safely overcame. The Grand
Dalles is a narrow channel cut through the solid rock, over which it used to flow
and fall, by the mere force of the stream. This channel is about two miles in
length, and runs between perpendicular walls of basaltic rock, which fence it in on
either side, to the height of four or five hundred feet. When the river is low, it
may be navigated with but little danger, but if swollen, it is death to attempt it, and a
portage must of necessity be made. We employed some more Indians here, but
Isaac Smith, our intrepid waterman, insisted upon acting as the coxswain. It was
fortunate for us he did, for when we were about in the middle of the pass, the stroke

' lie snapped in two, pitching the Indian who worked it, nearly over the bows,

HISTORY OF OREGON.

we
'his

>ws.

and the boat suddenly twisted around and shot down the stream stern forwards.
Smith alone was calm, and seizing a paddle fiom the red skin nearest to him, shout-
ed in a voice of authority, which danger sanctions in superiority, " Down ! down !
every soul of you !" Fixing his eye upon a whirlpool ahead, he waited until we
reached it, and then adroitly striking his paddle in the water, by a dexterous move-
ment whipped her head into the iorce of a circling eddy, and checking it instantly
on the other side, before she could repeat the motion, our little craft shot like an
arrow from the perilous spot, head on again, into a smoother current. Smith drew
a heavy sigh of relief as he handed the paddle back, and sat down in his place with-
out evmcing any other sign of satisfaction at the triumphant result of his exploit.

The Columbia river above this point can never be made safe for boats of any
size ; the navigation being difficult and uncertain, even at low water ; and when
high, as I said before, it is quite impassable. But the day after our passage, one
of Captain Applegate's skiffs upset with three men and three boys. Two of the
boys and one of the men were drowned. The former were about ten years old-
one of them being the son of Captain Jesse Applegate, and the other of Lindsay
Appiegate. The man drowned was an old man named McClelland, who steered
the skitf.

During our passage from the Wallamette to the Dalles, we saw no timber on the
Columbia river, or near it, indeed no bolder vegetation appeared than a few occasional
willows near its brink. The Indians are numerous all along its line, and are exceed-
ingly thievish, stealing without hesitation everything they can lay their hands on.
The reason of their being so numerous in this quarter is, that the Falls and the
Dalles are the great Usheries of the Columbia river, where immense numbers of
salmon are annually taken by these primitive fishermen.

Before leaving this region, I will remark, that the portion we saw of it in eur
passage down the river, was of a description that should by no means be taken as an
evidence of its general character. Beyond the immediate line of the Columbia,
which is a tract of blank, discouraging sterility, stretch numbers of fertile plains,
which, though not adapted to the general purposes of agriculture, produce a rich|
continual and luxuriant herbage, admirably adapted to grazing purposes, and indeed
rendering it second to no region in the world for raising stock. Its surface is al-
most a thousand feet above the level of the sea, and it is generally a rolling prairie
country, with the exception of that portion about a hundred, or a hundred and fifty
miles to the north, which is barren and rugged, and much broken with rivers and
mountain chains. It is in this section that all the horses are reared for the su(^ly
of the Indians and the traders of the interior. '* It is nut uncommon," says Captain
Wyeth, " that one Indian owns hundreds of them. I think this section for produc-
ing hides, tallow, and beef, superior to any part of North America; for with equal
facilities for raising the animals, the weather in the winter when the grass is best,
and consequently the best time to fatten the animals, is cold enough to salt meat,
which is not the case in Upper California. There is no question that sheep might
be raised to any extent in a climate so dry and so sufficiently warm, and where so
little snow^or rain falls. It is also the healthiest country I have ever been in,
which, I suppose arises from the small quantity of decaying vegetable matter, and
there being no obstruction from timber to the passing winds."

The premium portion of this whole region, I have been informed, is the Nez
Perces county, which takes its name from one of the tribes inhabiting it. The
region, however, in the vicinity of Mr. Spaulding, an American missionary, who has
an establishment on the Saptin, a few miles above its junction with the Columbia,
is thought to be the finest of all. He has a fine herd of cattle and a very numerous
lot of sheep, and I am informed upon good authority, that his ewes have lambs twice a
year. The whole surrounding country is covered with a heavy bunch grass which
remains green during the whole winter. This generally dries up during the sum-
mer heats of July, but it is then as good as hay, and the slight rains in the fall
make it shoot up at once, after which it remains green till the succeeding sum*
mer. I saw it in October as green as a wheat field. *^

» The followini; extract from the letter of Nathaniel Wyeth, in the report of the Committee
of the House of Representatives on the Oregon Territory, February 16th, 1838, will serve to
confirm this description. Wyeth was the enterprising trader who established Fort Hall.

"This country, (the miildle region,) which affords little prospect for the tiller of the soil,
is perhaps one of the best for gra/.ing in the woild. It has been much underrated by travellers
who have only passed by the Columbia, the land along which is a collection of sand and
rocks, and almost without vegetation ; but a few miles from the Columbia, towards the hills
and mountains, the prairies open wide, covered with a low grass of a most nutritious kind,
which remains good throughout the year. In September there are slight rains, at which time
the grass starts ; and in October and November, there is a good coat of green grass, which re_

HISTORY or OREGON.

While at Wnllawalla I saw Ellii*, the chief of the Nez Percea. He spoke the
English language very well, and I found him to bo quite intelligent and well versed
in the value and the rights of property. He has a fine farm of thirty acres in good
cultivation, a large bai.d of cattle, and upwards of two thousand beautifdl horses.
Many of the Kiuse^ have, as vVyeih says, hundreds of these noble animals. They
havp a groat desire to acquire stock, of which they have already a considerable
quantity, and yearly go to the Willamette and give two of their finest horses for
one cow. In a few years from this time these Indians will have fine farms and
large herds of cattle. They have already made great progress in civilization, and
evince a strong desire to imitate the whites in everything they do. This is shown
in a very remarkable degree, by their fondness (n our dress, the meanest portion of
which, strange to say, they have the strongest passion (or. As I said before, thojr
uniformly charge a shirt for every service they perform, and to such an extent do
they carry their admiration of this graceful article, that I have seen some of them
with nothing else on under heaven besides, but a pair of old boots and a worn out
hat, parading up and down for hours with the most conceited strut, as if they were
conscious of attracting universal admiration.

Grain grows very well in the vicinity of Mr. Spaulding's, as also do potatoes and
garden vegetables generally. It also produces fine corn, but for this the soil requires
irrigation. Mr. Spaulding last year raised four hundred and ten bushels upon four
acres. The ground was measured in the presence of five gentlemen, and its
quantity accurately ascertained. It was sown in drills.

I I

CHAPTER VIII.

Arrival at the Dalles Mission — Continuation of journey down the river — Scenery
of the Columbia — The Cascades — Indian tradition — Arrival of Vancouver — The
Chief Factor — Mr. Douglass — Conduct of the Hudson's Bay Company to
Emigrants — Jumping the rapids — Penalty of braving the Cascades — Stock
raising — Condition of the settlement at Vancouver — Prices of goods in the
territory.

'•!;*

After we had passed the narrow and dangerous channel of the Dalles, we came
out into a smooth and calm surface of river, over which our little craft glided with
a quiet rapidity. Wo now for the first time caught a glance at a seal, occasionally
popping his head above the level of the stream and as quickly witdrawing it on our
approach, and as we progressed we found their numbers increased. This animal
abounds in the Columbia from this point to the sea, and it is also found in conside-
rable quantities in the Willamette, below the falls of that river.

A mile's sail from the fret of the Dalies brought us to the Methodist mission
establishment under the charge of Messrs. Perkins and Brewer, which is commonly
known as the Dalles Mission.

The mission houses stand on a most commanding and eligible site on the south-
west side of the river. When you ascend the bank, the sward runs before you in a
gentle and regular inclination for about a mile, when it joins a line of hills of mode-
rate altitude, covered with a profusion of pine timber, intermixed with some scat-
tering white oak. Just at the foot of the hill, and on the edge of this timber, stand
the mission houtus, and between them and the river, are sprinkled numerous Indian
huts or lodges, whose rude inmates are the object of the missionaries philanthropic
care. Immediately to the south-west, is a fine mill stream, and directly below it a
rich bottom prairie, skirted with yellow pines and oak. This plain is about large
enough for three fine farms, and can easily be irrigated from the stream I have
alluded to. The grazing in the vicinity of this spot extends in a circumference of
twenty or thirty miles, and offers facilities at a very trifliag expense, for raising
great numbers of sheep, horses, and other cattle, and the mast from the white oak
will support numerous droves of hogs.

mains so during summer ; and about June it is ripe in the lower plains, and drying without
beins wet, is made like hay. In this state it remains until the autumn rpins again revive it.
The herdsman can at all times keep his animals in good grass, by approaching the mountains
in summer, on the declivities of which almost any climatt! may be had."

HIITORY or OREGON'

:e of

iBing

oak

hont

re it.
tains

The Dalles miision is at the head of the practical navigation of the Columbia, and
I regard it aa one of the most important stations in the whole territory. It is a point
which all who go up and down the river must pass, and I have no doubt that in s
few years steamboats will be running between it and the Cascades. In addition to
the facilities which I have already mentioned, it has a mild and dry climate, about
the same as that of Nashville, Tennessee. It is slightly colder than Wallawalla, in
consequence of its nearer vicinity to one of the stupendous Titans of the Cascade or
President's range, called Mount Washington, about fifty or sixty miles to the south-
west. I was at the Dalles on the 23d of November last, and there had up to that
time been no visitation of cold weather, nor no fall of rain heavy enoagh to wet the

Sound two inches deep. To this place, moreover, from its peculiar situation, and
e characteristics of large portions of the adjacent country, both north and south,
will all the cattle raised in the second region have to be driven to be slaughtered,
and here the inhabitants from abovo will purchase their general supplies.

The beauty of this situation and the auvantages it possessed over any to which I
had yet arrived, determined me to leave my folks und effects there for a time, and
make a voyage to Vancouver myself, to carry out the provisions of the arrangement
I had made with Mr. .^IcKinley, at Wallawalla, in relation to our cattle. I accord*
ingly set out on the 6th of November, and continued my route down the river.

The Columbia, between the Dalles and Cascades, is a calm and clear stream,
without a rapid in it, and as safe in its navigation as the Ohio. The current is slow,
but there is at all times an ample supply of water. The distance between the two
points is thirty-six miles. Immediately after leaving the missionary landing, the
river which was about a mile wide, passed for two miles through high walls of per-
pendicular basaltic ruck standing in square columns, sometimes of a feet, and some-
times ef two feet in thickness. These rocks, which are the same in character as all
that I had seea on the borders of this stream, were perpendicular in their position,
except at two points where we found them gently inclining inward tovrards the
river. After we had proceeded some three or four miles from our starting point,
the hills gradually ran towards the river's sides, Those on the southern bank are
covered with pine and white oak, and those on the northern side bear scarcely any-
thing but scrubby white oak. As we neared the Cascades, the mountains inoreased
greatly in height, and the pines upon their sides grew larger in their rize than those
on the introductory hills, and became more thickly studded, until the mountains were
covered with them. We frequently passed tall walls of rock many hundred feet in
height, that raised their castellated sides on the very brink of the river. In fact, the
river is so shut in with these natural bastions, both above and below the Cascades,
for twenty miles on either side, that within this whole space, there is no bottom
lands at all with the exception of a single spot of fertility three miles below, 3r,d
occasional scollops, stolen from the mountains, bearing in their semicircles nc '^h;^
but the liut of some Indian fishermen. On our way down, we passed several rain
carrying the adventurous members of our expedition, their families and their baggage,
and arrived there ourselves on the seventh.

The Cascades are made by the Columbia forcing its way through the Cascade
or President's range of mountains over an immense field of rocks, which at this
point strew its bottom and peep above its surface. This point of the river bears
no resemblance to the Dalles at all. Instead of being confined between perpen-
dicular walls of basaltic rock, it is lined on either side by the slopes of towering
mountains studded with evergreen pine, and birch and oak. Immediately at
the Cascades, the mountains rua close in to the shore, but, as if satisfied with the
experiment at this point, they start away from both sides to the east, and leave seve-
ral spaces of high, yet tolerably level land. As we approached the Cascades, the
roar of the waters fretting in their uneasy course, gave token of its vicinity, and the
increasing current of the river lent to our little vessel an additional speed. The
growing (mm, and gathering obstructions in the shape of rocks in the bed of the
stream, at length warned us to the shore, and we were obliged to give oar boat
again to the Indians on the bank, and make a portage to escape the danger. The
water is here very deep, and the bed of the river is filled with huge deta«lhed rocks,
with intervening patches of white sand. From the compression of its volume in a
trough of three or four hundred yards, and its fall of one hui:died and fifty feet in
the distance of a mile and a half, the current here sets downward with immense
force, and renders the passage dangerous in the extreme.

These rocks are generally conical in form, and stand with their small ends op,
like gigantic hen's eggs, deposited in the bed of the stream. They are all worn
smooth by the continual friction of the current, and many of them are from ten to

HISTORY or OREGON.

I! ■; i

fifteen feet high above the water leTel. It it a moat beautiful eight, aa the water
luabes down with reaiatleia impetuoiity, ragigg and foaming at the reaiatanee made
by theae [atubborn opponenta m the very centre of ita volume, to atand and gaie
upon, from the commanding poaition on the northern bank. In all the whirl and
turmoil of thia watery Babel, I noticed a aeal or two occaaionally popping up their
head* on the lee aide of the rocka, aa if to make an occaaional inquiry aa to the
cour8e of matter* out of doora. The Indiana have a remarkable tradition in rela-
tion to these Cascadei. They aay that about aeventy or eighty veara age, they did
not exist at all, but that the river ran amoothly on under the side of a projecting
mountain, from which an avalanche alid into its bed, and drove it into ita preaent
fretful confine. This aeems almost incredible, but appearancea go atrangely to con-
firm it. The river above the Cascades haa all the appearance of being dammed up
from below, and for many miles above, you will see atumpa of treea in thirk aquads
extending, at aome points, more than a hundred yards from the shore along the
bottom. Those have all the appearance of timber that haa been killed by the over-
flowing of water, aa you will sometimes sea it in a mill dam. The tops of aome
of them approach to within a foot or two of the aurface, while in many placeai
others rise above it for ten or fifteen. What is strongly conf:.^mative of their report,
is the fact that you can find no such appearances at any other point on the river.
It is certainly beyond dispute, that these trees could ever have grown there, and in
absence of any other mode of accounting fur the phenomenon, we must come to
the conclusion that they have been drowned by aome great overflow, caused by «
coBvulsion, or a lapse of nature. On the south bank, commencing at the foot of
the Cascades, and extending half a mile up the river, and spreading between it and
the mountains, ia a space of level land, about three hundred yarda wide, which if
covered with pine, and ia elevated, at low water mark, some fifty or aixty feet. Among
these pines, scattered over the surface of the ground, you will see numbers of these
loose rocks, a portion of which have tumbled into the flood. It is also worthy of
remark, that the pines growing here are all young treea, none being more than a
foot in diameter.

The portage here ia about half a mile, and ia made on the north bank going up*
and on the aouth bank coming down. The boata, however, are not taken out of the
water and carried around aa they are at the Falla, but ere drawn alons by ropes ex-
tending to the bank, and in some places are lifted over the rocks. The Caacades
form another great salmon fishery. The Indians have speculated and practically
experimented upon the dootrines of internal improvement in application to this ob-
ject, by making artiflcial channels by an ingenious arrangement of the loose rock,
ao aa to form a number of natural canals, into which the great body of the fish find
tkeir way in passing up the river, when they are taken with great ease.

The Cascades are a very important point of the Oregon territory in a busineas
point of view. All the commerce and travel up the river, are compelled to pasa
them, and to make this portage. There is fine grazing, fine timber, aome good
soil, and an incalculable amount of water power m the immediate vicinity. The
piece of level land I have already alluded to as lying on the south bank, would form
a fine situation for a small town er a farmer's residence. The ripids below the
Cascades extend down about three miles or more, and ofTer almoat insurmounta-
ble impediments to navigation at low water, especially to boats ascending the stream.
It requires, perhaps, a full day's time to pass from the foot of the rapids to the Caa-
cades with a loaded boat. Portions of the loading have to be taken eut and car-
ried a few yards, at some two or three different points. In descending the river,
the Hudson's Bay Company always pass through them without unloading, and their
mode of passage is very descriptively called " jumping the rapids." From the Cas-
cades to Cape Horn, (a perpendicular wall of rocK about five hundred feet high,
and ^running ^long the bank of the river for the space of half a mile on the north
tide,) is twenty miles ; and down to this point the mountains continue to be tall,
and to run close to the margin of the stream. On the sides of these, both above
and below, there are many beautiful waterfalls. There is one in particular, just
above Cape Horn, formed by a considerable mountain stream, whose whole volume
falls in one perpendicular pitch of five hundred feet amid the caverns of the rocks.
^At Cape Horn, which is midway between the Cascades and Vancouver, (a distance
of forty miles,) you can perceive the mountains dwindle rapidly into hills, and what
remains of them when you arrive within ten miles of the fort, turn off abruptly from
the river on both sides, almost at right angles, and leave, spreading from Us banks
towards the sea, level, yet high districts of fertile country, many miles wide, cover-
ed with an immense body of pine, fir and white cedar timber. On the north bank.

ni»TORY or OREGON.

thii strip of country rum lome diitnnce below Vancouver, anil on the louth it
•tretches to the Willamette. The Willnmotto is a fine rivor entering the Colum-
bia five milei below Fori Vancouver, and running nearly in a louth easterly (lirec>
tion from the parent stream. This course, aided by a slight southern inclination of
the great river, immediately after receiving it, forms a triangle, the point of which is
formed at the junction, and the base of which extends about five or sii miles up
the bsnks of both rivers until it reaches an equilateral breadth. This is low bottom
prairie covered with scattering u«h and cotton wood. It is overflown every sum*
mer, and forms an exception to the high but level land, which I mentioned as stretch-
ing along the nhore for twenty i/r thirty miles above. On the north side of the Go-
lurnbia, in this lower region, the soil is rich, but gravelly ; on the south side it
it richer still, ^d is spread upon a substratum of yellow clay.

On the tenth of November, I arrived at Vancouver and could scarcely believe mj
•^•s, when on approaching it, I beheld moored securely in the river, two square
rigged vessels and a ste^boat. My very heart jumped as I set eyes on these
familiar objects, and for the first time in four months, I felt as if I had found a sub-
■tantial evidence of civilization. The impressions of the refinements of the mission^
and the peculiarly domestic comforts which the excellent ladies attached to the es-
tablishments spread around them, were as nothing compared with the yards and
masts of these coursers of the ocean.

The river at Fort Vancouver is from 1600 to 1700 yards wide. The Port, which
is the principal establishment of the Hudson's Bay Company in Oregon, is on the
north bank of the Columbia, 90 miles' distance in a direct line from the sea. It
stands a considerable distance back from the shore, and is surrounded by a large
number of wooden buildings, (among which is a schooNhouse,) used for the various
purposes of residences and workshops for those attached to the establishment. This
colony is enclosed by a barrier of pickets twenty feet in height. On the bank of the
river, six hundred yards farther down, is a village somewhat larger in extent, (con-
taining an hospital,) which is allotted to the inferior servants of the station. Two
miles further down the river, are the dairy and piggery, containing numerous herds
of cattle, hogs, sheep, &c., and about three miles above the fort, are grist and savr
mills, and sheds for curing salmon. Immediately behind it, is a garden of five acres,
and an orchard filled wiln peach, apple, fig, orange, lemon, and other fruit trees,
and containing also grapes, strawberries and ornamental plants and flowers. Be-
hind this, the cultivated farm, with its numerous barns and other necessary buildings,
spreads off towards the south. The land appropriated here for the purposes of ar-
ming, is from 3000 to 4000 acres, and is fenced into beautiful fields, a great por-
tion of which has already been appropriated to cultivation, and is found to produce
the grains and vegetables of the States, in remarkable profusion. To cultivate these
immense farms, and attend to the duties arising from the care of flocks, the drud-
gery of the workshops, the heavy labor attendant upon hewing timber for the
saw mills, the British residents do not hesitate to press into their service the
neighboring Iroquois, and even to avail themselves of^ human transplants from the
Sandwich Islands ; many of the natives of which are already here working in
gangs for the benefit, and at the direction of this shrewd and able company.

On my arrival I was received with great kindness by Doctor McLaughlin and
Mr. James Douglass, the second in command. They both tenderded me the hos-

fiitalities of the fort, which ofler, it is scarcely necessary to say, I accepted willing-
y and with pleasure. Dr. McLaughlin is the Governor or Chief Factor of the
Hudson's Bay Company, a situation most diflUcult and arduous in its duties, and
requiring most consummate ability in the person aspiring to fill it. The Hudson's
Bay Company have been most fortunate in their selection of Doctor McLaughlin
for this important trust. Possessed of a commanding person, a refined, benevolent
and amiable manner ; owning extensive acquirements drawn from study, travel and
intercourse with mankind ; a profound knowledge of human nature, and withal »
firmness that ensures obedience and respect, he is peculiarly qualified to protect
the important interests of tKis powerful company, and to control its wayward ser-
vants, while thus far removed from the reach of other civil authority. Doctor
McLaughlin is upwards of six feet high, and over sixty years of age. In person he
is robust, erect, and a little inclined to corpulency, one of the natural results of con-
tentment and repose. The clear flush of rosy health glows upon his cheeks, his
eye still sparkles with youthful vivacity while ho is in conversation with yon, and
his fine head of snow white hair, adds not a little to the impressivsness of his ap-
pearance. His hospitality is unbounded, and, I will sum up all^his qualities, by say-
ing that he is beloved by all who know him. ^

HISTORY or ORRQON.

li ?

Mr. DougUii ii alto upwards o( sii feat, and about forty five yeara of age ; ha
ia likewiao incliiiud to bo corpulent, and hia hair it also gently receiving ii« aifl-
ing from the salt of Time. He ia like hia auparior, n man of accompliahcd man*
nora Hnd great buaineaa habile. He came to America in hia boyhood, filtered
the aervice of the H. B. Company, immediately on hia arrival, and baa renmined
in it ever aince.

The mmlut operamli of thia wonderful corporation it remarkable for the perfect
accuracy of ita lyttem. A code of catabiiahad rules, embracing within it* tcopa,
the chief Factor and the meaneat aervant, ia the inflexible rule which guverna
all. Every man hat hia allotted department to fill, and hia regular tatka to do,
and he ia held reepontible for the faithful performance of that and nothing more.
A ayatem of far aighted policy ia brought to bear upon the manngemont of every
department, whether it be the trapping of a territory, the trantpitinting of nntivea,
the reinforcement and aupply of any of their numeroua fortt, the occupation of •
point, or the aisumption of a privilege.* A regular price it set upon every thing,
and it ia labor thrown Awa;jr to attempt to underbid it. Their gooda are all of a
moat auperior kind, and it ia no leaa a rule to aell them at reaaonable rate*, than
it is to have them good, Vancouver is the grand depot of all the other furta of
Oregon, and it ia likewiae the grand magasine of their auppliea. The vcaaels that
bring the comforts of other dimes in at the mouth of the Columbia, here unload their
freiuht, and the fertile valley of the river yields up its abundant storea at the
aligntest aummona of their wants.

Their mode of transportation, and the carriage of their cooda from place to

Itiace, is peculiar, and worthy of mention. They pack all their (joods in uniform
ots, of one hundred pounds each, and their boats being all of ono size and form, ara
consequently all loaded alike. When they make portages, in aacending or descend-
ing the stream, an eatablished rule, which on no account must be departed from,
directa the number of packages to be taken out to lighten the craft, and this direc-
tion varies according to the navigation of the place. Thia regulation ensures the
aafety of every expedition, and prevcnta many losses and dangers that would
otherwise arise out of the indiscretion and daring of the boatmen. A f-^ yeara
ago, a party of eight of the company's servants were descending the river in a boat,
and when they came in contact with the Cascades, and were about landing to make
tho portage, according to custom, one of the party proposed, as they were anxioua
to arrive at home, that they ahould run through them. T^e proposal, though
Btanling at firat, wna graduaflv asseiiled to by ulTof the party but one. This was
an old pilot, who had been in the Company's aervice for a number of yeara, and who
waa well acquainted with all the dangera of the passage. He held out stubbornly
against their united wishes, until accuaed of cowardice, when he relinquished hia
opposition, and partly to vindicate himself from the charge, and partly out of spite
to their reckless folly, determined to give them a chance of proving his correctness
by actual experiment. The boat passed aafely down for some two or three hundred
yards, when multiplyine dangers whirled and foamed on every side, and the increasing
ones that roared and moke ahead, struck them suddenly witn a panic, and for a
moment they ceased to pull their oara. The pause was fatal. The edge of a
whirlpool caught the tail of the boat, awung her broadside to the stream with sudden
velocity, and rushing it in this helpless condition among the moat fearful rapida,
it waa suddenly overwhelmed by the lashing waves, and all on board periahcd, save
the old man who had oppoaed the experiment, and one other hand. The pilot seized
on an oar, and was picked up with it firmly enclosed in his senseless grasp, at a
apot four miles below the scene of the disaster. The other man, by an equally stranse
caprice of the current, waa cast insensible upon the bank immediately below the
Cascadca.

Whatever may be the cauae of complaint existing against the Hudson's Bay
Company, in their treatment of former emigrants from the United .States, the kind-
neea of Dr. McLaughlin to this emigration has been very great. He furnished them
with goods and proviaiona on credit, and such as were sick were aent to the
Hospital free of expenae, where they had the strict and careAil attendance of Dr.
Barclay, a akilful physician, and an excellent and humane man. The Chief Factor
likewise lent the emigrants the Company's boats, to bring down such of the familiea
and baggage as had been left at the Cascade* by the advanced guard of the expedi-
tion, which had preceded me ; and he also furnished them with the same facilitiea

* Along deicription of the diflerent trading posts belonginff to the H. B. Co., has been left
out, inconsequence of the previous supply of that information id the demonstration of title and
in the Oeographical sketch.

HISTORY or ORCr.ON.

I Bar

kind-
jthem
the
Dr.
actor
lilies

S' edi-
_ itiM

hnleit
[leand

fbr croiiinff thn rivnr with their cattli), nt Vancouver. Had it not been for tb«
kindtiou ofthii etcellont man, many of ua would have aufTurod ureally, and I havt
no doubt, that much injuitico haa been dona him, bv confounding hia ueraunal
eonduct with that of many of hia countrymen. The policy of the cfompanj
toward the Indiana, haa, it ia true, been very aeriautly condomnod, aa will be atiea
by Mr. Spnutdiiig'a communication, embraced in Mr. Pundleton'a report, but it ia
very quuationable, whether Dr McLaughlin ia jiiitly chargeHblo with all tho evila
that have nriaon out of tt. It ia certainly true, thnt he haa been in aome inoaiure
the victim of miarcproaentation ; for I know uf my own knowlHlge, that tho Indiana
of Southern Oregon, and ihoao tribea bordering on the' Californian line, Inaiead
•f being inoflenaive and well-diapoaed, aa deacribod by Mr. Spauiuinir, are on tho
eontrnry hoilile, thicviah, and treacheroua. Thia ia aomethitig towarda a general
Tefutntion. It ia certain that the Doctor liimi^clf haa uniformly aided aetttura, by
■upplying thom with farming implemonti, and with aced grain, aa n loan, to bo
returned out of the auccceding crop. He haa oven went ao far aa to lend them
hoga, to bo returned two or three yoara afterward, by their iaaue of the aame age ;
to furnish oxen to break their ground, and cowa to aupply milk to their familiea.
Thia certainly appeara to me to bo a vury poor way to retard the aottlcment of the
legion, and to diacouragn adventurera wlio nrrive in it.

A great deal hna boeri aaid againat him hocauan ho hna refuaed to aell the cattle
belonging to tho Company, but thoae who have made theae complainta, have
eerlainly reflected very littlo upon tho aubjcct, and aro incapable of inoi^auring the
enlarged acopo of the Doctor*a policy. The aupply of the cattlo ■ nd aheep of the
■ottlementa waa very limited, and the great object haa been to increaae it. Thia
could only be carried out by secure meaauroa for their protection ; and it would have
been abaurd, indeed, while tho authoritiea of the Fort were denying themaelvea the
hizury of beef or mutton, to carry out this important object, if they ahould huve
sold cattle to thoae whose caprice mighl destroy them at pleasure. Doaidea, all the
- cattle, with the exception of a very few, were inferior Spanish animals, and it was
a matter of necessity to improve the stock, by crossing them with thoae of the
Engliah breed. The same case existed with regard to the sheep, which were from
California, but which, by repeated crossings, huve at length not only been greatly
increased, but but huve been improved nearly to the condition of full blooda.

The Bcience of atock raising, the rouifh mountain men who were tho first aettlen
from the States, did not understand. They could only undersfand that brutea wore
made to kill, and hence the disaatiafaction, and consequent rumplaint. Having
improved his stock, and accomplished a propter degree of increase, the Doctor waa
ready enough to sell on reasouHble terms, though, to say the truth, he did not find a
very ready market. The buainesa of aheep raising on a small scale is acarcely
worth attention. The wolvea are sure to kill the animals, unless they are continue
ally attended by a shepherd, and carefully folded at night ; and besides, woollen
goods can be had here so cheap, that their fleece hardly pays for the care required
to raise it, and the raising of nomed cattle, and wheat, is much more profitable.
So far as its own individual interests are concerned, (without regard to the claim to
sovereignty from exclusive occupation,) it is not the interest of the Hudson's Bay
Company any longer to retard the settlement of this country. The beaver have
nearly been exhausted from the region ; the Indiana are year by year rapidly
paasing away, and even those that remain, can bring nothing to the Company in the
way of trade. By aettlement from the States, tho Company, who monopolize the
commerce and manufacturos of the place, obtain white mori for cuatomers, the trade
of one of whom ia worth that of forty Indiana, who have nothing to sell.

The prices of groceries and clothing at Vancouver, are, upon a general average,
the same as in the States, aome that cost more, being balanced by those that come at
less. Loaf sugar of the firat quality, is worth 20 cents per lb. ; coffee, 2i cents ;
brown sugar, 12^ cents. Tea is better and cheaper than in the States, the road
to China being so much shorter than from the Atlantic coast, and lying aa it were
right oppoaite the door of the Columbia river. Woollen gooda and ready made
clothing being introduced here without duty as it is considered an English pott, are
greatly cheaper than with us. A very good strong quality of blue broadcloth six
quarters wide can be had for one dollar and twenty-five centa per yard. A very
neat cloth roundabout, comea at $4,37^ ; pantaloona at five dollars ; heavy, well-
made cotton shirts are worth 13 centt Ivlackinaw blankets of superior quality,
$3,50 each. All articles of cutlery are r.Lo cheap from the same reason as the
above. Calicoes and brown cottons are about the same as in the States. Iron is
about 10 cents a pound ; gunpowder 86 cents ; lead 12i cents, and shot the lame.

HiaTORT or OREGON.

Boots and shoes are yet very high, and crockery tf al) descn'ptiont is aTso dlBsr
Chains, tools, and farming implennents, are very reasonable ; the best Gary ploughir
ean be had to order from an excellent blacluniith at the place at 314 cents per
pound. Wheat is worth one dollar a boshet ; potatoes^ 40' cents ; fresh pork 19
cents, pickled 12^ ; frdsh beef, 6 cents per pmmd. American cows bring from
S60to$75v and Spanish from S30 to $40; osm from $7S> to 1125, per yoke;.
American horses from 950 to 76 dollars each. There ia a» abundance of poultry
in the country, and there are also a plentiful supply of the two cheees of domestic
animals known by the familiar appellations of eats and dogsy but stilf I wouldl adviso
emigrants to bring dogs with them that are of a good breed, a» in a country where
so much game a^nds, and where there are herds to watch, they are calculated to-
be very useful.

All the goods sold ait Vancoaver are of the most superior qnolity, and tho purcha'
ser in thie region of general honesty and enterprise, receiveo them at twelve montho
credit ; so thus the greatest obstacle to the poor emigrint after hia arrival here, va-
nishes at once. This is a country of peace and good will ; every new comer is re*
eeived as a brother ; the poor man's wealth lies in his arms, and the industry and
enterprise which brought him here to claim by hia labor heaven's first gifts in the
riches of the soil, is accepted aa the substantial and sufficient guarantee of hia good
feith.

The utmost liberaKty characteriaea all the dealinga with tha stranger and even
with the resident. If your fortunes have been adverse, and you are not ablo t» pay
for last year'a dealings you are required to give your note, drawing.inteveat at
five per cent. Instances have come to my knowledge since my arrival, in which
Dr. McLaughlin has extended the credit of some of his customero for two or three
years together. He has supplied most of the members of last year's emigration witb
such articles as they needed, taking in payment only thepledge of theii honest faceo
and bard hands.*

CHAPTER IX.

The Chief Factor's frohity — Departure from Vancouver — Wajrpato latmiA — Game
— The Willamette — Lirmtan — FaUatry Plaint — The Klackamus — The Fallt—
Fallatry River — Thomas McKay — Yam Hill Xiver—Multonomah — MeFarley
and Diemherten — Theirnew positions — The half heeds.

I iiAvi stated before that the special object of my journey to Vancouver Was to*
consummate the arrangement I had made with Mr. McKinley of Fort Wallawalla,
in regard to the exchange of our cattle. On the morning after my afrival^ I there'
fore opened my business to the Doctor, and presented hin» with the aforesaid gen*
tleman^s order. The old gentlemen at once gave evident signs of displeasure. He
saw in a nrament that Mr. McKinley had taken advantage of out ignorance to drive
a sharp bargain, and gave an immediate and decided dissent t» the whole proceed-
ing-

" Are yeu aware," said he to me, " that enr Spanish cattle are muck' inferior to-

yours 1"

I told him I thought they were from the specimens I had seen at hia place.

" And yon have learned," continued he, ^ that cattle may be safely driven front'
Wallawalla to this post V

1 admitted that the success of our emigraatain buinging throagh their atoek, had
convinced me of that fact.

** Mr. McKinley has done very wrong," said he, shaking his head, " very wrong^
indeed f Tour caAtle are superior to those I should be obliged to give you, and
you would be mucb the losers by the arrangement. I will net consent to* profit by
your reliance on eur good faitb. I wiil write to Mr. McKinley to take good care of
your animals, and to deliver them to you whenever yeu have settled upon your final
residence. If yen should decide upon settling near us, we shall have the advantage
of improving the breeds by them. But coma, Mr. , leave this matter to me r

* There is nothinif wonderfiil in all this. The Doctor could do buiineu in no other way
witk the claii of customen he leeki, and as foirthe taking of the note at the end of the year,
when the niifortunet of his creditor have left nothing eUe to take, it is a measure itnctly
protective of liimseir, and has nothing of generosity in ft.. The Doctor is doubtless a very •X'-
caUent man, but the fcbove ciroumstances only prove him to be a very good merchant.

mS'TORY OF OREGON.

e
o-

I-

»
a-
e-
nH
he
od

ren

>ay

ich
ree
nib

ice»

Is—

irley

IS to-
alia,
lere-
len-
He
rive
leed-

srto-

|rron»

[had

ponjf
ana
ft by
ro of
I final
luge
Ime V

jwoy
■year,
Victty

•XT

let us .drop business for the present, and lake a turn down towards the river ; T wish
to give some directions to an expedition to Fort George, and then I wish to show
you a splendid stallion which I bought from an Indian this morning."

It may be supposed by some, that Dr. McLaughlin, under the idea that I was one
«r the leaders of our formidable expedition, was practising upon me a piece of most
adroit Anesse, t« enlist my favor at the outset, but, as I have had mucn the best op-
portunity to judge, I siiall not hesitate to decide in favor of his entire sincerity.

That I may not overlook it, I wilt take this opportunity to state that when I was
«t Vancouver, the cattle of our emigration which had been driven clear through to
the'Willamette, were improving rapidly, and many of the o.xen were already ao far
recruited as to be able to be worked daily in the plough.

Having concluded my business at Vancouver, and after having spent three very
pleasant days in the hospitable society of the place, I determined to proceed on to the
Willamette to make a selection of my final location.

Five miles sail down the Columbia brings you to the eastern mouth of the
Willamette. The first object that strikes you immediately upon your entrance is
Saury's Island, or as it is sometimes called, Willamette or Wappato Island. This
is a long tract of low land about twenty miles in length, and about five in width.
It lies directly in the mouth of the river, and thus splitting the stream, causes it to
disembogue by two outlets into the Columbia at a distance of fifteen miles from
each other. Its surface is mostly a low bottom prairie which overflows every sum-
mer, and it is intersected in every direction with small shallow lakes in which grows
a species of Indian potatoe called " Wappato," similar in flavor to the Irish potatoe,
and being a most excellent and nutritious description' of food. There are, however,
several spots of fir timber on it, on high ground above high water, and also a large
•mount of cotton wood, white oak and ash timber in several portions of it. There
are immenee numbers of wild hogs upon the island, the issue of some placed there
several years ago by the Hudson's Bay Company, which find u plentiful subsistence
in the Wappato root, and on the mast of the oak. On the lakes, marshes and
rivers of this place, may be found innumerable swarms of wild fowl, consisting of
ducks, geese and swans. These the Indians kill in great numbers and sell to the
whites at extremely low rates, the former being charged at four, the second six, and
the latter at ten loads of powder and shot each. A family could easily be supported
here on wild fowl alone. After you pass up the river for two miles, you come to the
Willamette slough where tho stream divides itself ; the smaller portion turning to
the left and running down in that direction along the island till it reaches the
Columbia 15 miles south of the northern mouth. From the slough starts a ridge of
lofty mountains about fifteen hundred feet in height, running parallel with the bank
of the river up along its course. These are covered with immense forests of fit,
white cedar, hemlock, cherry, maple, and some other kinds of trees, but the fir and
cedar constitute nine tenths of the whole body of the timber. The space between
this ridge and the river is low bottom land, which overflows in some years, except
at a point five miles from the river's mouth that has since been laid out by
General M'Carver and myself under the name of Linntan. This stands upon a high
piece of level land about five feet above the level of the stream, and from its being
the nearest eligible site for a settlement on the Willamette, it appeared to us to
ofier superior advantages for a town. As 1 may be supposed, from the fact I have
above stated, to be interested in this point, I will pass it without further remark.
When you reach Linntan you have as yet seen no fine farming or grazing country,
except that which is covered with immense bodies of timber requiring too vast a
labor to remove. From Linntan, there is a good road passing over the ridge of
mountains I have mentioned, and leading out ten miles to the famous Fallatry
Plains. As you approach within five miles of this region of exhuberant fertility, the
timber, which is mixed fir and cedar, becomes more scattering, and the country
gradually more open. These plains, as they are called, consist of a succession of
small prairies about three miles long, and two broad, separated from each other by
small groves of timber, and stretching west from Linntan, until they connect
with the Yam Hill country, which I shall hereafter describe. These beautiful plains
are almost encircled by a ridge of verdant mountains, in the form of a horso shoe ;
its convex sweeping towards the Willamette and the open end running into the Yam
Hill valley. This ridge of mountains is in many places heavily timbered, and in
others the timber is very scattering, the surface of the mountain being covered instead,
with fine grass, constituting an inexhaustible range. How far apart this horse
shoe is at the base, I cannot with exactness tell, but I suppose it, from a cursory
observation, to be from twenty to thirty miles, and enclosing in its boundaries land

• i I

'.ii

_J^ -^

100

HISTORY OF OREGON.

(enough for two fine countries. These plains are ffently underlating smooth ptgimea',
with a black fertile soil upon a clay foundation. The fir timber comes immediately
up to the prairie, so that in five stops you can be out of the open field, in whose
velvet smoothness not even a twig can be seen, into the dark green recesses of an
everlasting forest of the tallest, straigbtest timber, studded in the thickest and most
formidable array. I should think there was rail timber enough upon ten of these
acres to fence five hundred.

There are no deep branches running through these plains, but the water runs off
in little vallies about ten yards wide, and where these vallies reach the forest, they
are covered with black ash and white oak timber. There is also at various places
around these prairies fino bodies of white oak timber. Take them altogether, I havo
never in my life seen prairies more beautiful than these are, or that were situated
more advantageously for cultivation. The first settlements in this voluptuous region
were made about three years ago, and they now extend to about fifteen miles into
their bosom, and already embrace many fine farms, some containing as much as a
hundred and fifty acres in fine cultivation. Were I possessed of a poet's imagina-
tion I might describe in spontaneous song the superlative loveliness of this delightful
scene as viewed from the slope of one of the encircling bills, but not being gifted
wifh the poet's frenzy, I must leave the features of this delightful region to the
imagination of the reader.

The Willamette river is navigable for ships for five miles above Linntan, bat
after passing up that distance, you come to a bar which forbids the further passage
of vessels of any draught. Small vessels and steamboats, however, can ascend
to within a short distance of the Falls. Three miles below the Falls, you come
to the mouth of a stream called the Klackamus, which enters the river from the
east. It rises in the President's range, and in its course of thirty miles, collects a
considerable body of water, which it contributes to the main stream. Its current
is rapid and broken, and not navigable to any available degree, and its tide sets with
so strong a force into the Wallamette, as to offer a serious impediment to boats
stretching across its mouth.

As we neared the Falls, the water was shallow and fretted by the irregular surface
of the bottom, and we were obliged on coming up to it to make a portage beyond.
At the place of our debarkation, on the eastern bank, rose a perpendicular wall of
rock, stretching somo distance down the river. Through this, however, you find
an easy avenue, but recently cut, to the high land above, which as soon as you as-
cend you find yourself amid the forests and the prairies of the upper plains.

After rising above the Falls, we came in view of Oregon City, the town of secon-
dary importance in the territory. Here is situated, at the present time, from eighty
to an hundred families, with stores, mills, workshops, factories, and all the conco-
mitants of thriving civilization. They have likewise an independent government
of their own, and as far as things have progressed, every thing has gone well.
Great improvements arc meditated at this place, and Dr. M'Laughlin, who is the
owner of the first establishment you meet in rising from the lower bed of the
river, meditates the project of cuttii>g a canal around the Falls for the purpose of
the more easy transportation of the harvests and manufactures of the upper settle-
ments of the Columbia.*

The Falls presented a beautiful sight as they rushed |in alternate sheet and foam,
over an abrupt wall of dark rock stretching obliquely across the stream, and the
hoarse uproar of the waters as they tumbled into the bed of the river below, lent an
additional solemnity to the imposing grandeur of the scenery around.

The river's edge, for several miles above them, is bordered by a row of moun-
tains, shutting out the surrounding prospect by their continually intervening bulks,
from us who sailed upon the silvery bottom of the immense green trough between.
There was nothing forbidding in their aspects however, for their sides were cov-
ered with umbrageous forests of thickly studded timber of the most magnificent
description. About fifteen miles above the falls, these hills, by a gradual modifica-
tion of their altitude, roll into verdant undulations, spreading at last into level
grassy plains, and alternating with fiourishmg clumps of timber land. At this point,
we came upon McKay's settlement, which is situated on the eastern bank, and pre-
sents all the evidences of a flourishing [little town. Thomas McKay, its founder,
is a native of this region in the fullest sense of the word, being the joint descendant
of one of the early fur traders belonging to the Pacific Company, and a Chippeway
squaw. The son, following the fortunes of his father, grew up in the service of

, * We have already seen that this project is.in course of cozuummation. ,

HISTORY or OREGON.

101

as-

ihe
of

ittle-

oun-
ulks,
^een.

COT-

icent
ifica-
level
loint,
pre-
ndeTr
bdant
pway
se of

the North West Assoeiatiun, and transferred hinnself, at the time of its dissolution,
into that of the Hudson's Bay. Having at length acquired a competence, he re-
tired from their arduous service, and estabhshed himself in his present location.
Ho may now be said to be the most wealthy man in the valley of the Willamette,
having an extensive and well stocked farm, and being the owner of a grist mill of
superior construction, which must have cost him several thousand dollars to erect.
He is a fine specimen of the two races, and combines the energy and perseverance
of the one, with the strong passions and determined will of the other. His life has
been one scene of wild adventure, and in the numerous conflicts of tho ea ly trap-
pers with the savage tribes, he was always foremost in the fight, and the most re-
markable in his display of daring bravery and enduring courage. Many a red man
has fallen in conflict beneath his rifle, and tho warlike bands that have gradually
moved away, or been subdued into obedience, well recollect the terrible prowess of
their dreaded cousin.

Between this town and the mission establishment above, (a distance of forty
miles,) farms are sprinkled all along, and at twelve miles above McKay's, we meec
another flourishing village, called iarvis's settlement, containing between thirty and
forty families, which are about divided as to national distinction. It was originally
a mere collection of retired Hudson's Bay servants, hut the gradual accession of
American settlers, has thus changed its co'nplexion. This is a significant circum-
stance, and clearly indicates that it is our destiny to first alter and then reverse the
political balance of every settlement in Oregon.

In my progress up the river I omitted to mention the fact that at a short distance
above the falls, wo come to the mouth of another small tributary on the west, called
the Fallatry river. It takes its rise in the northern portion of the range of moun-
tains which I have described as encircling the Fallatry plains, and in its course
t(irough,them, pursues a southeasterly direction until it empties into the Willamette.

The next stream entering the Willamette on its western bank, is the Yam Hili
river. This tributary rises in a west, or south west direction from the point of its
junction with the Willamette, in the range of low mountains that run along the
edge of the coast. It starts from its source in a northwest direction, and receives
a number of smaller tributaries in the shape of creeks. The valley of this stream
is a very fine country, consisting of prairie, spotted with groves, and oak timber
growing upon the same rich vegetable soil that is spread upon its plains. It ex-
tends to the bases of the mountains in which tlio Yam Hill takes its rise, and from
its westernmost limit the roar of the adjacent ocean can be heard. The route to
California passes some distance along the line of this valley, and a most excellent
load can be had leading from it, through the Fallatry plains, to Linntan.
, The country all along the eastern bank of the Willamette, above McKay's set-
tlement, is as good as tho Yam Hill country, or tho Fallatry Plains, and is much
the same, both in regard to its natural productions, and its soil. There aro fine
facilities for intercommunication with its different points ; the line of travel is level
and easy, and it has in consequence, secured throughout its course, a row of settle-
ments which in a few years will extend into a continuous chain.

After you leave Jarvis's settlement, you proceed up the river for about thirty
miles, when you come to the principal town of Oregon. This is situated on the
eastern batik of the Willamette, and is ninety-four miles from the Columbia river.
It was first formed in 1834, by a party of American missionaries under the direc-
Jaon of Messrs. Lee, Shepherd, and others, and its vicinity had, even previous to
that period, been selected by several retired servants of the Hudson's Bay Com-
pany. It has, ever since the above period, been the seat of the Methodist Episco-
pal mission, and has now become the head quarters of the operations of the dis-
trict. Passing the period of my first visit to it, I will take this opportunity to state
that there are at the present moment, (March, 1844,) at this place over two hun-
dred families, and that there are in the whole valley of the Willamette, more than
a thousand citizens of the United States. A church, a hospital, an academy, mills,
workshops, comfortable |dwellings, a herd of five thousand head of cattle, and all
the accompaniments of 'civilization and refinement are to be found here, and any
man who can be content to live beyond the limits of a densely populated city, can
find at this place all the comforts and enjoyments which a rational being, uncor-
ruptpd by false appetites, can crave.

Already a court-house has been erected, and a military organisation formed, the
object of which is, protection against any formidable attack from the border In-
dians, or a means of resistance to any attempted aggression on the pnrt of the
Hudson's Bay Company. It is, however, proper for mo to say that there is not the

102

HISTORY or OREGON.

ft :

slightest dread of either of these circumstances, as no hostile 'demonstration hav
been made, for several years, upon any of the white settlers in this region, and we
have received evidence upon evidence, that the authorities of Vancouver are will-
ing that we shall take the burden of civil and criminal jurisdiction from their shoul-
ders, so far as regards the government of otuselves. It is, doubtless, their wisest
policy. An American from the States grows up with the notion that he has a right
to help govern himself, and he submits with a very bad grace to any exercise of
sovereignty on the part of an Englishman. Indeed, he will not aobmit to it at all,
and I have no kind of doubt that had the Hudsan's Bay Company been unwise
enough to truckle to tho policy of their national government, and to insist, in despit»
of their own interests, on exercising legal control over us, the peaceful valleys of
this region would, ere now, have been dyed with baman blood.

McFarley and Dumberton, both appear to appreciate the value of the field that
is here thrown open to their ambition, and already these aspiring spirits have adopt-
ed a system of harrangueing '* The People," with a view of effecting new political
arrangements. Each evidently thinks Nature intended him for a legislator, and con-
stantly endeavors to lend Destiny some aid in the immense up hill nature of her
task. As might be supposed, in a rivalry of this kind, the opponents represent
opposite sets of principles and opinions. McFarley being a red hot, ultra radical,
and Dumberton, representing the cold and calculating conservative. Each have
managed already to secure a clique, and whilc^ McFarley is regarded by his faction,
as " a thunder-an-lighmin-smart-feiier ;" Dumberton is revered by his " following"
as '■ a tremendyers man." I am inclined to think McFarley will get the best of
the struggle, if there is to be any best about it, for he advocates extending the elec-
tive franchise to the Indians, with whom he has already secured an extensive in-
terest and admiration, by his expertness with the rifle and in spearing fish ; while
Dumberton confines himself to prc»found and ponderous speculations on the more
abstruse propositions of political <iconomy.

Whether Messrs. McFarley or Dumberton will have anything to do with it or
not, I have no doubt, that the civil and criminal government of the little colonies
of this territory will shortly bo perfectly organised ; and in a manner too that will
render us entirely independent of the jurisdiction or assistance of the United Slates ;
.in which case, inasmuch as she has neglected this region so long, she must look
out, say some of the old settlers, that she does not lose it altogether.

There are a large number of Indians about this settlement and valley, who are
under the care of the missionaries, and who perform much of the servile labor of the
mission establishment. Indeed they are employed the same way by these religious
establishments, throughout the territory, as they are by the Hudson's Bay Company ;
so if there is anything which smacks of slavery in the one case, it necessarily follows
in the other.

. There is another, and pretty numerous branch of population growing up here,
which cannot be passed without notice. This is the class of half breeds, the issue
of the Indian women, who are either married to, or fall otherwise in the haads of the
careless trapper, or the indifferent woodsman. As there is a great scarcity of white
women in the territory, this state of things naturally results, and the consequence
will be, that the half breeds, during the next five or six years, will form by far the
most numerous native born of the population. Some of these are fine specimens
of the two races, and if the cross turns out many such men as McKay, there will
be no reason to regret this perversion of ft^icy, or rather this push of necessity (»>
the part of their male progenitors.

At a short distance above Multonmah, a stream called the Santa Ann I believe,
enters the Willamette from the cast, along the banks of which there is a vast body
of fine country. It takes its rise in the portion of the President's range in the vici-
nity of Mount Jefferson.

The portion of the Willamette valley lying between the Cascade ridge and the
range of low mountains next the ocean, is from fifty to one hundred miles wide, and
about two hundred and fifty, to three hundred feet long. It consists of rich prairie
land and timber, and let who will say to the contrary, is one of the finest pieces of
farming land to be found in any country. There is very little difference in the seve-
ral portions of this valley, with the exception of the circumstance, that the timber
is larger and a little more abundant in some places than in others, and no>w and then
the prairies vary to some extent in size. This section constitutes the great body
of the prime farming and grazing section of the lower region of Oregon, though
there are other beautiful portions in the valleys of lh& Tootoatutna^ the Umpqua
and the Klamet farther south.

HrSTORY OF OREGON.

103

are
the

the
and

seve-
iinber
then
body
ough
xtp^ua

CHAPTER X. ,

iP«»ei/fe 'dotrn the Cohimbi*— Astoria— The mouth of liu Columbia — Lawyer a in
Oregon — Lmo twit — A^Uition oj the comununily — iMtninous view of the gentle-
men from Big Pigean — The phtlosophv of $oul saving and mode of converting
savages in Oirgon — How in raise wheat — FacilUies for farming purposes —
■General view of the (otiley «/' tke WillameUe.

To reach the Willamette, I had procveded down the Celumbia to the eastern
ineuth 'of the foriner river at Wappato Island.; and for the purpose of completing
<the r«ute to Astoria, I will now uUe the river up at that pemt again and trace it to
the ocean. Passing along Wappato for fifteen amies, you come to the western
tnouth of the WiNam«tte. The Island at this point is high and has a bold rocky
shore, right up te which, the water is of sufficient depth to allow a large class vessel
to lie up and unload, an important advantage in case the point should ever be select-
ed f«r commercial purposes. On the southern bank of the river itnmediaiely below
the lower mouth «f the Willamette, is « situation which would afford a fine site for
a settlement er a town, ft is true it ts covered with fine heavy timber, but it rises
gently from the river, «nd through the forests in the rear, a natural gap may be seen,
which off' " facilities for an avenue directly to the riches of the Fallatry plains be-
hind. Thti 11 jdson's Bay Company perceiving the advantage of the situation, have
already built a house there and nave established one of their servants in it. They
faave many beuses thus spotted about on eligible sites, the whole object of which
in many cases must merely be the eventual assumption of a prior right, by pre-occu-
pation, in «as8 others should wish to eettle in the same place.

As you .pass down the Columbia, you find no plains along the river, but it is still
twrdered with its row «f mountains running al«ng the banks on either side, and
bearing upon their sides the everlasting groves of timber. A few miles below
Wappato Island, «n the other side of the river, you strike the mouth of the
Coweliic river, in the valley of which I am told some very good land is to be
found, though most of the soil on the north bank of the Columbia is poor, and is
unfit for the production of wheat or the esculent grams, except sparsely and in
epots. Thia feature increases as you proceed northward, and the land in the vicinity
of Nisqually, on Puget'e Sound, is incapable, as I ant) told, of ordinary production.*

Below the Cowelitc river, the Columbia begins to widen, and at the distance of
ten milea from the sea, it spreads to a width of several miles, forming by its singular
extension at this part, the portion which British navigators have called Gray's bay,
for the purpose of making the world believe that Captain Gray did not discover the
Columbia, but only entered the bay into vAick it disembogues, to the distance of
twenty or tUrty miles,

Astoria, or Fort George as it is now called by the company who have it in pos-
session, is situated on the soutb bank of the river, about ten miles from the ocean.
it stands on a hill side, and consists only of a few acres which have been redeemed
by industrious clearing from the immense forests running behind it. Some of these
trees are «f the most enormous size, and the soil can enly be got at with immense
labor in the way of dealing. Until our arrival, it consisted only of three or four \of
houses in a rather dilapidated condition, but now it is revived by its old name of
Astoria, by Captain Applegate and others, who have laid off a town there, and
<livided it into lots. It will hardly answer the expectations of those who go to it
The ground is rendered too wet for cultivation, by numerous springs that run
through it in every direction, and the ocean air is sure to blast the wheat before it
can ripen. Garden vegetablea, however, grow there finely.. Beyond Astoria, and
nearer to the ocean, you find a small prairie about two miles long by three wide.
It has been formed, it is said, by the ocean, and its soil is represented to be a rich
black sandy deposit, varying from eight to fifteen inches deep, when it comes to a
foundation of pure sand.

The HMuth of the Columbia is the only harbor for ships upon the whole Pacific
coast of Oregon. Its channel is very difficult, being tortuous in its course, and per-
plexed by sand bars, and on account of the violence of its breakers, caused by the
sudden confluence of the river's descending volume and the ocean tides, it is
extremely dangerous for more than two-thiids of the year to attempt to enter it.

♦This is at variance with the account of Lieutenant Wilkes, who represents the Nisqually
establishment as a very good one, and as furnishing, by its productiveness, supplies to other
stations and to the Russians.

!!i

104

HISTORY or OREGON.

it- '

Once in, however, nnd there is good anchorage and safe navigation. The whole'
coast, in fact, is perilous to approach, and a north-east wind by giving navigators a
lee shoro of black overhanging rocks, heightens their danger not a little. The only
place of refuge for vessels south of the Columbia on the Oregon coast, is the mouth
"f the UmpquB, a river entering the Pacific in 42° 51', where vessels drawing eight
feet of water may securely enter, A similar harbor may be found between forty
and fifty miles to the north, called Gray's Harbor, which also affords like lecurity
for vessels of the same draught.

Having now completed the account of the line of route from the state of Missouri
to the mouth of the Columbra, I will now return to tho valley of the Willamette as
the point of the greatest interest, and after a. few more remarks concerning it, will
turn my attention to some of the general featirrea of the territory.

As I said before, ships ascend the Columbia to the lower mouth of the Willa-
mette at Wappato island, (and as high as the Cascades, in a direct onward course
if they please,) and turning into the river, sail five miles up it to Linntan, and!
beyond that, five miles more. There, a bar forbids the further progress of any but
small vessels which may proceed onward to within seven or eight miles of the falls^
and boats may go nearly up to it Above the falls, t.ie river is navigable for steam-
boats for over fifty miles.

Before passing Oregon city, I will take this opportunity to mention a circumstance-
in relation to it, which is not a little amusing in its character, as well as significant
of the progress of civilization and social refinement in this primeval wilderness.
It appears that Doctor McLaughlin, and some of the missionaries of the settlement
above, are rival claimants to a portion of it, and one of the reverend gentlemen
connected with the mission, hits given way to his litigious feelings and employed a
Mr. Ricard, a lawyer, (we have lawyers here too you see,) to institute a suit against
the doctor for the site in dispute, in the United States courts, with the hope of
compelling an ejection of the trespasser. Mr. Ricard has commenced proceedings,
by putting up a very large hand bill, giving an abstract of the title of the mission,,
and notifying the doctor and all other persons to quit the premises — warning those,
moreover, who have not as yet encroached, by no means to do so, withoat obtaining
■f)ecial leave from the owners aforesaid. I know very little about the merits of this
dispute, but I do know that this is the fruitful source of one-half the debates of the
settlements. It takes the place of. foreign and domestic news of other portions of
the world, and wonderful are the speculations that are projected on its score. It
may be readily supposed that such a circumstance as this, has not been overlooked
by McFiirley and Dumberton ; on the contrary, both snapped at it with the avidity
of hungry tigers. McFarley is very strenuous in favor of the claims of his own
countrymen, and has made out a deduction in their favor, which is based, I believe,
on the treaty of Utrecht^ or sonte other equally satisfactory basis. He is very
decided in his intention of sustaining them with his personal influence and talents,
and has solemnly pledged himself even to the extent of fighting it out with the rifle.
Dumberton, on the other hand, though equally decided in favor of the mission claim-
ants, avers that ho cannot but regard the circumstance of this dispute with the
highest degree of satisfaction. "An opportunity is now furnished us," says he,
" through this insignificant controversy, to settle the title of the whole country, and
to expel the govermental trespassers from every point and portion of its dominions."
"This," he adds, "will bring war between the United States and Great Britain ;
Ireland will revolt ; Canada will secede ; the monarchs of the Indies will throw off
their slavish yoke ; Russia unrestrained will snap up Turkey as a famished mastiff
would deal with a fresh kidney, and, in short, the whole world would bo revolu-
tionized, and the balances of power altered by the controversy in relation to
this scrip of land." Tbia opinion, backed as it is by the weight of Dumberton'*
enormous reputation for profound sagacity, has created no slight sensation in our
little world. I believe Doctor McLaughlin has been made acquainted with these
views of the gentleman from Big Pigeon, but whether their forcefulness created any
serious alarm in his mind, or whatever other effect they have been attended with, f
have not been able to ascertain.

So far as the philanthropic objects of the mission are concerned, I do not see that
they can derive any direct or indirect benefit from the possession of the place they
strive for ; though I, for one, am decidedly in favor of their relinquishing no right
of settlement they have acquired in any portion of the territory ; but I here feel
bound to say, as a portion of my general remarks upon this territory, that all the
Missionaries whom I have seen within it, have succeeded much better in making
farms, raising stock, erecting mills, establishing stores, and improving their own

HISTORY OF OREGON.

105

tny
h,I

worldly condition, than they have been in saving the louls of the Indians. I have,
however, no rishl to criticise and condemn the peculiar system of these gentlemen,
for they should certainly know more about the redemption of souls than I who
never worked at it. It, therefore, is not for me to say that the Indian will not more
readily imbibe regenerating grace by digging the ground and carrying logs on his
shoulders, than in wearing out his knee-pans in fruitless ejaculations.

The Yam Hill River, which I have spoken of before as entering the western bank
of the Willamette, is navigable for canoes and keel boats up to its forks, about fif-
teen or twenty miles from its mouth. Above this still, and at the head of naviga-
tion on the Willamette, is another town laid out, called Champoe, but I do not know
that any lots have as yet been sold at that place.

I look upon the Willamette valley as one of the finest agricultural countries in
America. The soft, rich soil of the prairies is easily broken up from its original
imbedJudness with a single yoke of oxen, or a team of horses, and the moderation
of the climate allows you to sow spring wheat as early as the middle of February,
and from that until the \6th of May, as the season happens to run. You commence
ploughing in October, and plough and sow wheat fronj that time to the fifteenth of
May, to suit the spring or fall crops. There is not much difference in the yield of
the early and late sowmgs, but you must put about twice as much seed in the ground
for the latter as for the former. The land yields from S5 to 40 bushels to the acre.
I saw a field of five acres sown about the I6th of May last, in new ground, which
produced one hundred and ten bushels of the most excellent grain.

The wheat of this country is better than that of the States. The grains are
larger and plumper, and a bushel weighs several pounds more.

This country produces oats, peas, tomatoes, and' garden vegetables generally, in
great abundance. Irish potatoes and turnips grow better here than in the States.
Sweet potatoes have not yet been tried, with the exception of an inferior specimen,
from the Sandwich Islands, and they did not succeed well. If we had some good
seed from the States, I have no doubt wecotilJ mak« them produce very well. In-
dian corn does not succeed well, and it is not so prt^able a crop as other grain,
yet it can be raised here in sufficient quantities for all useful purposes, for you need
but little, in consequence of not being obliged to feed your siock.

Fruit, such as apples, peaches, cherries, plumbs, pears, melons, &c., thrive here
exceedingly well ; while wild fruit and berries abound in the utmost profusion.
Cranberries are found in great quantities near the mouth of the Columbia, and are
brought up here and to Vancouver, by the Indians, and sold for almost nothing.
Blue-berries, raspberries, sal-lal-berries, thorn-berries, crab-apples, a kind of whortle-
berry, and strawberries are found in large quantities in every direction in this sec-
tion of Oregon. The strawberries of this country are peculiarly fine ; they are
larger in their size than those of the Slates, and possess a more delicious flavor.

As regards the country for grazing, it is certainly all that any one could wish it.
Cattle require no shelter nor feeding, and upon the Yam Hill plains numerous salt
springs supply another necessary of their fodder. Cows calve here when fifteen
and twenty months old. This is also a good country for raising hogs ; upon the
Willamette below the falls, and on the Columbia, they live upon the wappato-root,
and upon the plains they find a plentiful subsistence in tho grass and fruit of the
white oak. The grass of this country as I have had occasion to say before, is pe-
culiarly nutritious, and cattle who have been put here to recruit, recover their phy-
sical energies with wonderful rapidity while feeding on it. In the last of November,
the period of my first visit to this place, I saw a fine sorrel horse, which had been
brought to this country by Mr. John Holeman of Clinton County, Missouri, (hat was
turned upon the grass in Fallatry Plains in the middle of the previous month. He
was then so reduced and feeble, with the fatigues he had undergone during the trip
from the States, that he could barely raise a trot ; but when I saw him, he was ia
fine condition and cMrvetting about the plains as gaily as any of the other horses,
with whom he was enjoying primitive independence. Cattle that were worked from
the States to the Dalles, and from there brought down to the Willamette valley
last year, have borne the winter well, and are now thriving rapidly.

The climate of this lower section of Oregon, is indeed, most mild. Having now
passed a winter here, permanently and most comfortably established at Linntan, I
am enabled to speak of it from personal experience. The winter may be said to
commence about the middle of December, and to end about the 10th of February,
and a notion of the genial nature of its visitation may be gained from the fact, that
I saw strawberries in bloom about the first of last December in the Fallatry Plains,
and as early as the 20th of February the wild flowers were blooming on the hill-

106

HI8T0RT or OREGON,

•

H ■ !

, tM

•idet. The grait hat now twen growing linee the 10th of Februanr, and toward!
the end of that month, the trees were budding and the ehrubbery in bloom. About
the 26th of November, we had a apelt of cold weather, and a alight fall of anow,
which, however, was gone in a day or two. In December, we had very little mow,
•U of it melting ai it fell ; in January we had more, but all of it like the previ-
ous falls, melted as it came down, with the exception of one visitation, that manag-
ed to last upon the groend for threo days.

The soil haa not been frosen more than one inch deep during the whele winter,
end ploughing has been carried on without interruption throusmut the winter and
fall. As regards rains in the winter, 1 have found tnem much less troublesome than
I anticipated. I had supposed, from whnt I had heard of the incessant atorma of
this region, that out>door work could not be done at all here, during the rainy sea-
son, but I have found that a great deal more labor of thia description can be per-
formed hero, than during the same period in the western states. The rains fail in
gentle showers, and are generally what are termed dritzling rains, from the effect
«f which a blanket-coat is an effectual protection for the whole day. They are not
the chilly rains which stins you in the fall and spring seasons of the eastern states,
but are warm aa well aa li|^t. They are never hard enough in the worst of times,
to wash the roads or fields, and consequently, you can find no gullies worn or cut
in your fields, by this means.

As to wind, I have witnettei lesn, if such a terra car^ be used, than at any other
place I have ever been in, and I have but to say, that if the timber we have here,
epread their lofty branches in the States, they would be riven by the lightning, and
blown down to an extent that would spare many of them the blow of the settler's
«xe. Here, I have heard no thunder, and have aeea but one tree that had been
struck by lightning.

:•'<•, vi->»

CHAPTER XI.

- *

Aborigines of Oregon — Their nuti^ers and character — Their eanoet — Their mode
of fishing— Game — Timber — Fisheries — Water power-*Mountains — A volcano
— Oomtitercial, Agricultural, and Manufacturing features of Oregon — Value of
the arm of labor.

Thv aborigines of Oregon form, at present, nine-tenths of the population of the
whole country, and from their newly adapted habits, are deserving of a place in the
social census. They were formerly much more numerous, but like all the savage
race, they melt away from the white man's approach like shadows before the ad-
vancing sun. I have no means of accurately ascertainins their number, as large
bodies of them are in the habit of moving from place to place to reap the varying
harvests of the fisheries, but I believe they somewhat exceed 20,000. They are
most numeroua in the Nez Perces country, which extends eastward from Wallawalla,
and considerable numbers of the Cheenooks attracted by the fisheries, are to be
found at the Dalles and at the mouth of the Columbia river. They are, however,
degenerate and broken, and instead of the proud and warlike being which presents
itself to the imagination when the idea of an American Indian enters it, they but
offer to the actual beholder the specimen of a creature degraded almost to the level
of A beast, and capable of submitting to the most servile abasement. Indeed, so
completely are they under the control of the superior intelligence of the Anglo Saxon
settler, that they can scarcely be considered in a much more dignified light than as
a race of natural villiens or serfs. The Nez Perces Indians retain in a greater de-
gree than any other, their ancient independence ; but even the members of this
tribe fall readily under the control and mastery of the whites.

The Indians between Wallawalla and the Dalles are a cowardly and thievish set,
and the portion of them situated at the latter place, in addition to being degraded
and ignorant in the extreme, are so addicted to stealing, that they lay hands on
every trifle that comes within their reach. Those portions at Vancouver and in
the valley of the Willamette, are abject, servile, and filthy in their habits, and most
of them go half naked during the whole year. In both this and the adjoining region,
they perform a great deal of work for the whites, and where labor is so scarce as it
u iiere, they are of no slight assistance to the settlements. Many of them make
very good hired hands, and they are found particularly useful in rowing boats, pad-
dling canoes, herding cattle, and in the menial operations which require a sort of

HISTORT or OBEQON.

107

<■

id-

nfau labor, if inch • term etn b« uted, that would be dear at the ootlay of a valu-
able aattler'a time. You can hire a Chenook to work upon a farm a week for a
ahirt worth 83 centi.

These Indiana conatruet the fineat canoea in the world. They make them out
of the cedar which growa at the mouth of the Columbia, from twenty to thirty feet
long, and from three to four feet wide. Their bottoma are flat, like thoae of akiffe,
and being light, thii construction, together with the aharp form of the bowa, makea
them very awift. In fashioning the ranoe, they commence upon the middle and
taper it gradually to a sharp point at each end, not turning it up with a flourish like
the bows and atern of ordinary vessels of the kind. The only ornament they put
upon them, ia a aort of figure head made of a aeparate piece of wood, which is fitted
on the bows, and is generally beautified with a rude moaaie of aea-ahella imbedded
in various figures in the wood.

The conduct of the Hudson'a Bay Company towarda the Indians, haa been prompt
and discriminating, both in the distribution of benefits, and in the punishment of
offences. They have not held a whole tribe responsible for the unauthorised acta
of individuals, but have in all eases carefully sought out the real perpetratora and
punished them without fail. When the country was first visited by the whites, the
nativea were of a ferocioua and warlike character, and it recjuired sixty men to pass
up the Columbia in boats, to ensure the safety of the expedition ; but now, a aingle
individual can pass without molestation to the Palles, and a aquad of six or eight
may travel in perfect security through any portion of the territory. The Flatheads
ana Snakes, formerly the most incorrigible, have long been peaceable, honest, and
friendly. One of the gentlemen belonging to the Hudson's Bay Company, told me
that in the many trading expeditiona they nad had with these tribes, they had never
loat the first article, and many times they had purposely exposed their goods to tri-
fling depredationa, for tho purpose of testing their honesty.

All of the tribes of Oregon wear their hair long, and are exeeedinsly fond of the
dress of the whites ; but nothing holds so strong a claim to their admiration, or ao
firm a seat in their affections, as a thirt. A pair of pantaloona holds the next place,
a coat next, and so on through the inferior articles of apparel. They ahow the
most extravagant delight when dressed in these garments, but still prefer to display
the shirt on the outside of all. Candor, however, compels me to declare, that those
who are fortunate enough to possess one of these articles, generally make it do the
duty of a full dress. They call the Americans, "Bottom" which title they have
adopted in consequence of having been originally informed by Captain Gray, the
first pale face who ever entered their territory, that he came from a place called
Boston. The English they call King George.

The Indiana of Oregon are exceedingly addicted to gambling, and have been
known to pursue this demoraliaing passion to the fatal length of even atakiiig their
liberty on a game, and playing themselves, by a run of ill luck, into a state of per*
petoal alavery. When we estimate the love of a savage for independence, we can
arrive at some measurement of the degree of the passion which cxacta its sacrifice.
Upon the whole, these Indians are of vast benefit to the whites of this region. Ia
the present condition of (he settlements, we should lose much by their absence.

F1SHKRIK8. — The fisheries of this country are very great, and foremost among all
the varietiea which they produce, is the unrivalled salmon. It would be imfiossible
to estimate the numbers of this excellent fish annually taken in the Columbia and its
tributaries ; but they have been aet down at ten thousand barrels a year, which
number I do not think by any meana too large. The salmon in this country are
never caught with a hooK. They are sometimes taken by the Indiana with a email
acoop net, but generally are caught with a sort of spear of a veiy peculiar descrip-
tion. These are made by the nativea after the following fashion. They take a
pole, made of aah, or of some hard wood, about ten feet long and one inch thick,
and gradually tapering to a point at one end. They then cut a piece, about four
inches long, from the sharp prong of a buck's horn, and hollow out the large end ao
that it fits the pole. About the middle of the buck horn, they make a small hole
through which they put a cord, or leather atring, that runa along the pole and fas-
teas to it about two feet from the lower end. When they spear a fish with this
weapon, the pole is withdrawn and the buck horn barb ia left imbedded in the ani-
mal's body, or having run through and through it, remaina faatened on the other side.
Escape is thus rendered impossible, and the prey unable to elude t^^^ prong, is se-
curely drawn in by the string. All the salmon caught here are tt.:.en by the In-
dians, and sold to the whites at about ten cents each, and frequently for leaa. One
Indian will take about twenty upon an average per day.

108

HISTORY or OREGON.

?{»"

Thn Ralmon takon at different pointa, diflfer greatly in kind and quality, and it ia
only at particular pincfa that they can be taken. The fattcat and beat are thoac
taken at the mouth or the Columbia, and the next heat are thuie taken in the
Columbia, a few milra below Vancouver, at the Caicadea, and at the Dallea.
Those taken at the Willamette falla, are amaller in aize, and inferior in flavor, and
•re aaid to be of a different kind. What ia ainKular, thia fish cannot be taken in
any considerable numbera with largo aeinea, and this ia only to be accounted for, by
their remarkable shyncas, and their auperior activity. I believe no white man haa
yet succeeded in taking them with the gig. They make their appearance in the
vicinity of Vancouver, tirat in the Klackamus river, and the boat quality are taken in
June.

There are aeveral other kinda of flah in th» bays, rivers, and creeka of the
territory, of which a apeciea of cod and the sturgeon are the most important. The
latter are a large fish, and afford great sport in a leisure hour to take them with a
book and line. They arc taken in the Willamette, below the falls; in the Colum-
bia, at all pointa, and in the Snake or Saptin river, as high up ns Fort Bois£. Of
shell-fish, we have the crab, clams, muscles, and a small description of oyster.

Game.-^The wild animals of this, the first section of Oregon, are the black bear,
black-tailed deer, raccoon, panther, polecat, rabbit, wolf, beaver, and a few othera.
Of these, the deer and the wolves are the moat aumeroua. We have no buffaloea,
antelopes, or prairie chickena here, but in the second aection the latter apeciea
of feathered game are plenty.

Of fancy birds, we have blue jay, larger, and of a deeper blue than thoaa
of the States ; the nut-brown wren, a moat beautiful and gentle little atom, acarcely
larger than the humming-bird ; also a apeciea of bird, which resembles the robin in
form, color, and aize ; and also a apeciea of nightingale, that sings the livelong
night ; but though I havo heard these evening songsters, time and again, I have
never yet managed to get sight of one. The bald eagle, so well described by
Wilson, ia found along all the rivera ; but here, he ia obliged to compromise a

Eortion of his lordly character to hia necessitiea, and to work for his own living,
aving no fish-hawks to catch his game for him. He feeds principally upon the
dead salmon he gleana from the aurface of the water, as they float downward in the
atream, and changes hia diet by an occasional awoop upon some unlucky duck,
which ho catches either while on the wing, or while feeding in the river. If the
duck when pursued in the air, can reach the surface of the water, he doea so with
the utmost speed of wing, and seeks a momentary refuge by diving under it. The
eagle, balancing himself over the spot of hia victim'a diaappearance, waita until he
rises, and then strikes at him again and again, until the latter's strength becomes
wasted with the unusual effort, and giving out at length, the relentless conqueror
hears him off aa he rises languidly and for the last time to the surface of the water.
We have also pheasants in abundance, likewise partridges, grouse, brant, pelicana,
plovers, wild geese, thrush, gulls, cranes, swans, and ravens, crows and vnlturea.
For a sportsman, this region is a paradise, and a dog and a gun will afford him a
chapter of elysium every day of h<s life.

There ia one peculiarly attractive luature, which thia country possesses over most
others, and that is, that like Old IrelanJ itself, it haa no poisonous reptiles or
insects, and better than Ireland, we are not burdened with obligationa to any
saint for the saintly office of extirpating them. The only snake we have, ia the
harmless garter-snake, and there are no flies to annoy the cattle.

Timber. — The timber of this section of Oregon, constitutes the main source of ita
wealth. It is found in isezhaustible quantities on the Columbia, and on the Willa-
mette, just where the water power ia at hand to cut it up, and where ships can
easily take it on board. The principal timber of thia section is the fir, the white
cedar, white oak and black ash. There are three kinds of fir ; the white, yellow,
and red ; all of them fine for plank, shingles, boards and rails.

The white fir makes the best shingles. The fir is a species of pine, which grows
very tall and straight, and stands very thick upon the ground. Thick as they
stand, however, when you cut one, it never lodges in ita mX, for the reason that it
never forks, and the limbs of the others are too small to stop the descent of its
enormous bulk. In the Cascade mountains, and near the mouth ot the Columbia
river, they rise to the height of three hundred feet. They split exceedingly well,
and miike the finest boards of any timber I have ever seen. I cut one tree, front
which I sawed twenty-four cuts of three foot boards, and there are plenty of such
specimens all around me, yet untouched.

The white cedar is very fine timber, and is nearly if not quite equal to the red

HISTORY or OREGON.

100

eadtr of the SUIm. In the vicinity of Linntan, il growi to the tixe of Ihrre feet
in diameter, niid ia tall enough to make lix rail cuts to the tree. I have cut two
ware-houae logi, thirty feet long, oflT one tree, nod three of the aame loga otf a red
fir, which waa only about fourteen inchaa in diameter at the stump. 'I'he cedar
aplits remarkably well, makea fine raili, ihinglea, or houie-loga, and latta a
lifetime.

The white oak timber ia better for wagon-making than any apecimena to be
found east of the Rocky Mountains, and it ia the best wood that can be had for axe>
handlea, and for similar purposes. It grows about aa tall as in the Siatea. The
black oak, which also grows profusely in our foroats, makes excellent fire-wood, and
answers likewise for many 'other purposes.

In the range of mountains back of Linntann, we have plenty of the hemlock, the
bark of which is fine fur tanning hidea ; and I have no doubt that ere long, the skina
that will be stripped from our large herds of atock, will be extensively converted
into leather, by ita agency. We have also the dog-wood and cherry-maple, sprinkled
among the fira and cedara. The hazel of thia country ia four times largtir than
that of the Statea, and ia also much tougher in ita textnre ; it is extenaively used for
hoops, and for the manufacture of a coarse kind of scrub broom. The fruit of thia
tree iaof a lighter color than the hatel-nuta of the Stales, and thoy are of the shape
and aixa of a chinkapin acorn. Persons coming from tlie States will find very little
timber here like that to which they have been accustomed, for all of it is un a
grander s:ale. The black ash and dog-wood are very similar to those of Tennessee
and Kentucky, and the white oak is perhaps but little diiTeront from any eaatward
of the mountains. But we have no walnut, hickory, percimmon, pawpaw, locust,
coffee-nut, cheatnut, sugar-tree, box-elder, poplar, sycamore, or elm.

Water Power, — The water power of this country is unequalled, and ia found dis-
tributed through every section. That at the falls of the Willamette cannot be aur-
paaaed in the world. Any quantity of machinery can be put in motion there ; but
the good water power is not confined to the Willamette falls, for in many placea on
the Columbia, the Willamette, and the other rivers, there are mill aitea as good,
though none of them are quite ao large. These advantages for converting the tim-
ber which surrounds them, into a marketable commodity of great value in the
neighbouring ocean, will ere long be appreciated to a far greater extent by even thia
region, than at preaent.

ilfountatn*. — We have the most beautiful scenery of North America — we lie
upon the largest ocean, we have the purest and most beautiful streams,* the loftiest
and moat majestic treea, and the most stupendoua mountains of the continent. The
latter, as I have had occasion to mention before, are divided into three great rangea,
but aa tho description of the featurea of the lower region is at present my especial
object, I will pass over the Rocky mountains and the Blue, and confine myself to the
President's range which forma the eaatern wall of our valley. The several peaka
of thia range are grand and imposing objects. From Vancouver you have a full and
fair view of Mount Hood, to the south, which ia called by some the tallest peak of
the Cascadea, and rises more than aixteen thousand feet above the level of the sea,
and ten thouaand above the mountaina immediately around it. Thia lofty pile riaea
by itself in a regular and perfect cone, and ia covered with perpetual anew. It
ia the only peak you can see from Vancouver, as the view in other directions ia ob-
scured by tall fir timber. At the mouth of the Willamette, aa yNi enter the Co-
lumbia, you have a full view of Mount St. Helena or Mount Washington, and alao
of Mount Hood. From Linntan you have a very fair view of the former mountain,
which ia almoat fifly miles distant from this point, though it looks as if it were al-
most within reach. This peak is very smooth and perfectly conical in ita form. It
ia nearly aa tall as Mount Hood, and ia the moat beautiful of the range. It lies im-
mediately on a line with the mouth of the Columbia, and ia a land-mark visible
aeveral miles at sea and useful in directing vessels to ita harbor. Like Mount Hood
it atanda alone in ita solitary grandeur far above all surrounding objecta and awing
them into inaignificance. This mountain, which until last year, towered aerenely in
the air covered with ten thousand perpendicular feet of snow, suddenly burst into a
burning volcano, in which atate it now remains. The crater is in ita aide about
two-thirda of ita distance from ita base, and by the account of the Indian inhabitant!
in its vicinity, it emitted a flood of lava at the time of its eruption, which poured ita
stream of fire through the whole depth of the virgita abeet that wrapped ita aides. A

* We protest against this claim for their rivers, for it is at variance with the writer's own
description of the whole line of streams which he traversed from the Rocky mountains to the
ocean.

..;i"' . Mi

110

HltTORY or ORBOON.

;..»

Hvage who had been hunting dtter lome diaUnoe up the mountain, Andin^ bit re*
lurn to hie wigwam thua cut otf, tuuk • run and attamptad to jump acroaa it, but not
being able to oitfar ita breadth, ha fell with one fool in the glowing torrent, and waa
ao aeverely burnt, that he came very nearly being lamed for life. He haatened to
Vancouver, however, and by the aaaiatance of Dr. Barclay nt the Fort, waa gradu*
ally cured.

Thia mountain ia aecond in hei|fht to but one in the world, (Cotopaxi in South
America,)and like other volcanoea it burna at intervala. On one aide of it near ita top, ia
diacovered a large dark object amid the aurroundin^i anew, which ia auppoaed to ba
the mouth of a huge cavern, and doubtloaa ia the ancient crater of aoine expired iaaue.
On the 16ih February 1844, the mountain burned moat magnificently. Denaemaaaea
of amoka roae up in immenae columna and wreathed the whole creat of the peak
inaombre and ma«aive clouda ; and in the evening ita fire lit up the flaky mountain*
aide with a flood of aoft yet brilliant radiance. Tlie range, of which thia ia the moat
dialinguiahing feature, runa throughout the whole length of the territory and i« re*
markable for ita aeperate and independent conea.

Commeretoi, Agricultural and Manufacturing advantages. — The commercial ad*
vantagea of thia country are very great. Ttie trade with the Sandwich lalanda ia
daily increaaing, and aurroundad aa we are with a half civilised race of men, our
manufacturing power will aoon have a home market for itaelf ; beeidea. South Ameri*
ca, California and the Sandwich lalanda, muat depend upon ua for their lumber.
Already large quantitiea of ahinglea and plank are aent to the latter market, and
we ahall alao have a full demand for all our other aurplua productiona at the aama
port, for moat veaaela viiiting the north Pacific, touch at theae iaiaida for the pur*
poae of obtaining auppliea of freah proviaiona. The Ruaaian aettlementa are already
dependent upon ua, and even the marketa of China are within our reach. For the
aupply of the regiona of the Pacific, and the more northern aettlementa of the coaat,
there can be no competition with ua in the way of proviaiona, aa we have no neigh*
bora in the producing lino.

I conaider Oregon, in many reapecta, auperior to California, aa in the latter
country, the climate ia ao warm that pork ana beef cannot be put up, and conae*
quenily the graier loaea half hia proiita ; beaidea, its enervating temperature like
that of all warm countriea, haa a degenerating eflfect upon the enterpriae of the in*
babitanta. For a commercial and manufacturing people, the climate of Oregon ia
warm enonsh. We can here preaerve our pork and beef without danger of it* taint-
ing before tne completion of the packing ; and we have finer timber, better water
power, and are not aubject to the ruinoua droughta of California.

Since our arrival, the proapecta of the country have very much improved. Buai*
neaa of all kinda ia active and timea are flouriahing. We live in a atate of primitivo
aimplicity and independence ; we are the victima of no vicea ; there ia no drinking
or gambling among ua, and Labor meets with auch ample inducemente and ready
rewards, that laiy men are made induatrioua by the mere force of the influencea
around them.

Farming is considered the beat boainess of thia country. The buaineaa of making
and putting up butter, which ia never worth leas than twenty cents per pound, ia
Tery profitable. A good freah article is, I am told, never worth less than fifty cents
and often brings one dollar per pound in the Pacific islands. There are -now in
operation, or will be thia summer, milla enough to aupply the whole population with
flour. There ia no acarcity of proviaiona at the pricea I have previoualy stated, and
I find that the emigrants who came out last year, live very comfortably, are per-
fectly content with their change, and are much improved in their appearance since
the time of their arrival.

We have the finest spar timber, perhaps, in the world, and vessels arriving at the
Columbia often take off a quantity for that purpose. The saw mills at the Willa-
mette Falla cut large quantities of plank which they sell at two dollars per hundred.
In speaking Of the fir before, I omitted stating that it made excellent coal for black-
smith's purposes ; and I will farther remark that it is singular that neither the fir nor
the cedar, when burned, makea any ashes. It has been supposed that the timbered
land of this country will be hard to clear up, but I have come to a difTorent conclu-
aion from the fact that the fir timber haa very little top, is easily kindled, and bums
readily. It also becomes seasoned very soon, and it is the opinion of good farmers
that the timbered land will make the beat wheat-fields of the country.'

When an individual has any idle time, he can employ himaelf in making fir and
cedar ahinglea, for the first of which he can get four dollaia a thousand, and for the
aecond, five ; any quantity of them can be disposed of at theae rates. Carpenters

MI8T0RY or ORKUON.

■nd other meehanici ebtitin thr«« doKars p«r day and found. Th«r« it •mploymont
in ■bun<lnnca for every one deairing ii, and it it only neceeiery for a man to bo in-
duitrioui lo aecompliah aura euccei* and auiiwund himaelf wilK all Iho eomforta of
an earthly paradiao.

irs

CHAPTER XII.

Concluding rtnutrka—Direetiont lo Emigranti—Lint of route and tMt of iiit*n-

CtM, At,

Havino now completed an accoont of all the material pointa of our eipediiion
into Oregon, and furniahed the inquirer a general idea of ita character and capabili-
tiea, the only thing ^hat remain* for me to do in the limita of thia aketch, ia to
add a few more directiona for the emigrant, for whoae particular benefit, aa I aaid,
before, theae imperfect notea are furniahed. I have ahown, indeed the reault of our
general expedition proved, that the route from the Rendeivoua in Miaaouri, to thio
point, ia practicable for any deacription of conveyance, and the auoceaa of our caltl*
m coming through, adda an aaaurance that it ia remarkable aa well, for ite extraor-
dinary emigrating facilitiea. If thia needa any corroboration, a world of evidence can
b« furniahed to auatain it, aa well aa every fact I have advanced ; but in aupport of
the peculiar feaaibility of the route acroaa the Indian territoriea of the Statea and
along the line of the Platte, I will merely refer the reader to the fact, tliat Mr. Aah-
ley, m an expedition in 1836, drew a field piece, (a aix pounder) from Miaaouri, aoroae
the prairiea, through the aouthern pata, to a fort on Utah lake (to the aouth of our
aoutnern boundary line,) the whole journey being a diatance of 1300 milea ; and to
the additional fact that in 1838, a large number of heavily laden wagona performed
the aame journey with eaae and without an accident, aa will bo eeen by a reference
to Conareaaional documenta on file.

It will be remarked that I have alnrred over portiona of tho route and neglected
the regular incidenta of much of our dnily travel, but when it ia remembered that
the journey laated aix montha, and that the eventa of m»ny aucceaaive daya acarceiy
varied from each other, the reader will come to the concluaion that it would hav*
been hardly wiae in me to have taxed hie patience with each day'a dull routine. The
great object, I conaidered to be, the furniahing the courae of the route, a view of ite
general aspect and difficulties, the diatancea between pointa of travel, (the muin ob*
jact of the present chapter) and to impart an accurate notion of the region which
the aettler must make his future home. I have therefore avoided everything that
did not contribute to this design, with the exception of a few trifling moident* of
humor inseparable from such an expedition, which I introduced to enliven the mono-
tony of the narrative, and which, moreover, I considered useful, aa affording an idea
of camp life, and the amusements of a journey over the prairiea.

Emigranta should start aa early aa possible in ordinary aeaaons. The firat of
May Hnould bo aet down if poasible as the outside limit, and even aa early aa the
firat of April, would do. For those coming from the Platte country, it is thought
to be moat advisable tocroaa the Missouri at MePherson'a ferry in Holt county, and
to take up the ridge between the Platte and the Kanzaa rivers.

Companies of iorty or fifty wagona are large enough, and I would adviae bodiee
of traveliera for thia region to keep within that measure. Large bodiea prove un-
wieldly to arrai>ge and to control ; the numerooa atock attached to them become
troublesome, and moreover large bodiea of Americana are proae to differ in opinion.
Small collections offer but few inducements to a diaordered ambition, but largo onea
are conducive of selfish strife and discord. This has been seen to have been the
caaewilh our expedition ; which divided after croaaing the Kaniaa ; and which waa
further subdivided afterwarda, on the other aide of the mountain*. I did not par-
ticularize this latter circumatance becauae I considered it of minor importance
at the time, and it is now suflicient for my purpose to mention it here, aa a cautioo
against the error which induced it, in the future.

In driving stock to this country, about one in ten is lost ; not more. Having
atarted, the best way to proceed to save your teama, ia to drive a reaaonable diatance
every day, and to atop and go into camp about an hour before aundown. Thia givea
time for all the necessary arrangementa of the encampment and afforda the teams
an opportunity to rest and eat before the night seta in. About eight houra drive in
the long daya— reeling an hour at noon— ia, I think enough for one day's travel, and

112

HISTORT or OREGON.

you should make it a rula never to drive irregularly if you can help it. Along the
whole line of the Platte, on the Bear and Bois^ rivers, and in many other places,
you can encamp at any point you please ; but at some points of the route you will
be compelled to drive hard to get water and range for your cattle.

When you reach the country of the buffalo, never stop your wagons to hunt, as
you will consume more provisions during the delay than you will save by the amount
of your game ; for it is generally consumed at once from the difficulty of curing it,
in consequence of the warmth of the weather. Let your horsemen and scouts per-
form this duty, and supply this want for you ; and if (hey use proper exertions, they
can keep you all in fresh meat throughout the whole of the country of game. Any
one wishing the amusement of this sport, should bring along an extra horse, and not
use him until he reaches the buffalo region, as the hunting of this animal is rough
work, and emigrants must needs be very careful they do not break iheir horses down.
A prudent care should be taken of horses, teams, and provisions from the start, and
no extra exertion should be required from the two first, and nothing of the last should
be thrown away that can be eaten.

If a prudent course is taken, the trip can be made in ordinary seasons, in four
months. It is true it took us longer, but we lost a great deal of time upon the road,
and besides, we had the way to break. I have reason to believe, that other and
better routes than the one travelled by us can bo found. Captain Gant, our pilot,
was decidedly of the opinion, that to keep up the south fork of the Platte, and to
cross it just above the stream called the Kooshlapood, and thence[up the latter stream,

Etassing between the Black Hills on your right, and the Rocky Mountains on your
eft, and striking by this course at last the ordinary route by Green river, would be a
better and nearer way into Oregon, and more plentifully supplied with game than the
one we took. He had travelled both, and only brought us through the road he did,
to avoid the large bands of Sioux and Black feet Indians, whom he hikd been informed
Tvere hunting upon the southern route.

The following table of distances, it is proper for me to say, is a rough calculation
made up from an estimate of our daily travel. It consequently does not claim the
accuracy of a geometrical admeasurement, but it is thought by those to whom I have
submitted it, to be not far out of the way. ....... ,,....

A TABLB or DISTANCBS FROM INDEPENDENCE, HI8S0DRI, TO THE TNTBRMBDIATE POINTS
BETWEEN THAT TOWN AND ASTORIA AT THE MOOTH OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER.

Miles.
From Independence to the Rendecvous, • 30
RendozTOUs to Elm Orove - - - 15
From Elm Orove to Walpalusia, - • 33
Walpalusia to KanzaiTiver, • • - 31
Kanzas River to Big Sandy creek, - ■ 31
Big Sandy to Hurricane Branch, • • 13
Hurricane Branch to East lork of

Blue River, 30

East fork to We8t fork of Blue River, ■ IS
West fork to where we came in light of the

Republican fork of the Blue lUver, • 41
Up Republican fork of the Blue River to 1
where we left it to cross over to the > 60
Big FlaUe River, . . . )
Up the Platte to where we saw the first herd

ofbuftalo, ..•-..
Up the same to the crossing on the South

fork of same

South fork to crossing on North Fork of

same,

Crossing of North Fork to Cedar Orove, •
Cedar Orove to Solitary Tower,
Solitary Tower to Chimney Rock, -
Chimney Tower to Scott's Blufl's, •
Scott's Blaffs to Fort Larimie, •
Fort Larimie to Big Spring at foot of Black

Hills,

Big Spring to Keryan on North fork of

Platte,

Keryan to crossing of North Fork, •
Crossing of North Fork to Sweetwater

River,

Up Sweetwater River to where we first f
saw the eternal snows of the Rocky >
Mountains, . . . . )

From the above point to main dividing
ridge of Rocky Mountains, •

117

31
It
18
18
30

Miles.
From dividing ridge to Little Sandy River, 16
Little Sandy to Big Sandy, - - - 14
Big Sandy to Oreen River, • ■ -30

Down same, 13

To Black's fork of Orcen River, - ■ 33
From Black's fork to Fort Bridger, ■ • SO
Fort Bridger to Big Muddy River - • 39
Big Muddy to Bear River, - - • 87

Down Bear Riverto range of hills mentioned

as running up to its oank, - • 67

Down Bear Riverto Oreat Soda Spring,' • 38
From Soda Spring to the Fortneuf River,

the first water of the Columbia, - • 35
To Fort Hall in the Snake or Saptin River, 68
From Fort Hall to the Fortneuf again, • 11
Fortneuf to Rock Creek, - ... 87
Rock Creek to Salmon Falls on the Saptin, • 43
Salmon Fall!* to crossing on the Saptlii, - 37
From crossing of Saptin to Boiling Spring 19
Boiling Spring to Boise River, - - '48
Down same to Fort Boise on Saptin, • • 40
Fort Boise to Burnt River, ■ • -41

Up Burnt River for, 36

From last point to Powder River at " the

Lone Pine," 18

From " the Lone Pine " to Grand Round, . 16
Orand Round to the Umatilla River on the

west of the Blue Mountains, . • 43
Umatilla to Dr Whitman's Mission, • * 39
Mission to Fort Wallawalla, • . 35
Wallawalla to the Dalles Mission, - • 130
Dalles to Vancouver, . . • . lOO
Vancouver to Astoria, ■ ... SO
Astoria to the ocean, 10

Making in all from Independence to the
Pacific ocean,

3036

HISTORY OF OREGON.

118

From Independence to Vancouver by the above computation is 1946 miles by the
route we travelled I am well satisfied that the distnnce does not exceed 20O0 miles
fbr the reason that our ox teams could not have accomplished a greater distance
within the time of their actual employment.

The trip to Oregon is neither a costly nor an expensive one, and an individual can
travel here at as small an expense, as he can move from Tennessee or Kentucky,
to Missouri. All the property he starts with he can tiring through, and it is worth,
upon his arrival, more than when he set out.

To conclude, there is no country in the world where the wants of man can bo so
readily supplied, and upon such easy terms as in this ; and none where the beauties
of nature are displayed upon a grander scale.

The chief value of this country, I must remark in closing, lies in the advantages
it offers to the Unvtei States for a direct route to the East Indies and the ports of
the Pacific ocean. Already these have been embraced by the Hudson's Bay settlers,
and even now, the products of this region have grown to an importance that would
make them sadly missbd by several of the island markets and settlements upon the
western coasts which they have of late supplied. Every day adds to their amount
and their demand, and an ordinary sagacity may see in this fact, the promise of our
future importance in the commercial world. There are many considerations in'
volved in the first steps of our advance which it would please me to allude to in
detail, but they are not embraced within the scope of my present purpose, and I leave

them to the treatment of abler political economists.

** * * ♦ » * ♦ *•#•

The more extended political organization of which I before spoke, is about to take
place, and I was waited upon two or three days ago by a party from the Fails, to
consult upon a plan of a general territorial government, with a legislature of two
houses, and a Chief Justice for its first executive officer. This arrangement will
embrace all the settlements of the valley into one common government, the repre-
sentatives of which will convene in general congress, at stated periods, at Multono-
mah or Oregon city, and there transact all the necessary business for our little
body politic. When this plan is adopted, (as it doubtless will immediately be,) it will
perhaps, be the peculiar honor of your hnmble servant, to sit in a curule chair of
the first Republican Goverment beyond the Rocky mountains. We shall then bo
able to make our own laws, and likewise to do our own voting and our own fight-
ing. Let not our bretheren of the States mistrust our ability to maintain ourselves
in our new position ! We have strong arms and stout hearts ; we have despised the
toils of two thousand miles of travel to build our homes upon the soil, and we will
never leave its face, until we sink beneath it.*

CONCLUDING NOTE.

35
68
11
87
43
27
19
48
40
41
36

18
16

39
35
130
100
SO
10

FALCONER'S RECENT WORK ON THE OREGON QUESTION.

The author cannot say his last word without allusion to a British re-;»ublication
which appeared when the foregoing pages wei'e in press. It is entitled , " Thk
Oregon Question ; or a Statement of the British Claims, in opposition to
THE Pretensions of the United States, by Thomas Falconer, Barrister
AT Law, op Lincoln's Inn."

It is unnecessary to our purpose to travel after the writer though all his tortuous
sophistries, as thoy are fully answered by the plain statements of \he previous por-
tions of this work; but, as Mr. Falconer is a special advocateof international law,
end advances some rather novel and interesting positions, it m»y not be amiss to
glance at the main points of his performance. The '.earned barrister somewhat in-
geniously commences by adjudging us the French Title as the foundation of our
claims, and having given it this position as his least formidable obstacle, pelts away
at it with evident satisfaction. He is welcome to his pains, for if he succeeds in
destroying it altogether, it will not affect our claims a jot. He next insists upon the

■ » Recent accouts from the west inform us that there nre now gathered near Independence,
Missouri, about 7000 emigrants, all destinded for Oregon, and California. They ore to set out
in convenient detachments about the 1st of June.

114

HISTORY OF OREOOIf.

discoveries of Drake with the utmost pertinacity, though he succeeds but poorly, anJ
can manage to defend the varacity of the freebooting Preacher, on whose romantic
statement!) they depend, no better than by nailing — what motive he could have to lie 1
This appeal, in the face of the fact, that navigators had for nearly a hundred years
previous been struggling for the renown of the furlhercst northern advance, is the
very superlative of absurdity, and is undeserving of a grave reply. Mr. Falconer
lays great stress upon the concessions of Spain by the Nootka treaty, (a rather
strange mode by the way of fortifying the antagonistic claims of Drake and Cook,)
and insists that, " this convention was an admission of the right of the English Go-
vernment to make settlements." Well, suppose it was, what then ? She did
not consummate that privilege by any settlement, as we have before shown, previ-
ous to the succeeding war of n96i which swept the right away with the other con-
ditional agreements and reciprocal privileges dependant upon a state of amity !
Had she, in the mean time, made an actual settlement and retained it through the
war, her proposition that " the right to make settlements was t cession of terri-
tory," would, m its application to this case, wear a graver aspect. But throwing
aside the Nootka treaty, and granting Britain the privilege of settlement in unoccu-
pied wastes as a natural right, and stilj she gains nothing by it, for, by her own
rule : " discovery alone and an alleged intention to occupy do not give a perfect
title, unless an actual occupation take place." This is an unfortunate quotation of
the learned barrister's, for we have seen that Britain's very first settlement in any
part of Oregon, was at Astoria, after the purchase of the Pacific Fur Company's
effects in 1813; while on the other hand, the United States reaps the harvest of
the principle by a number of explorations and settlements extendmg frojn 1792 to
the above period. But these formidable circumstances must be overcome, and the gen-
tleman of Lincoln's Inn seeks to accomplish bis purpose by a farther burrowing into
international law. By the outlay of a little industrious research, he findi> that this
grand system accords to the subjects of monarchial governments privileges by dis-
covery and settlement,' which it denies to the Citizens of a Republic ; that while
the former may be empowered by their sovereign to discover countries, to take pos-
session and establish laws, the latter cannot receive similar powers from the Presi-
dent of the United States, "and without such authority," continues he, " ihey are
mere outcasts and vagabonds upon the face of the desert, and no political inferences
can be drawn from their acts. Hence," concludes the learned barrister, " the Bri-
tish settlement on the Columbia in 1813, was the first of a national and legal charac-
ter, recognizable as such, by foreign nations." This is all very well as an ingenious
obliquity of argument, but we understand the political distinction between Americans
and Britons in a different sense. By our institutions every Citizen of the United
States is in himself a sovereign, and possesses, as a matter of course, every natural
right and its consequences, that monarchs grant by special act of grace to their obe-
dient subjects. While Europeans range in varying subordinate degrees, the Citi-
zens of our glorious Republic have a right to rank with kings.

Satisfied with his deductions, the learned gentleman finally winds up with an
appeal to the commercial interests which will be injured by a state of war, and
with a suggestion that the whole dispute be referred to the arbitration of some
foreign ]iower.

Do we need more than this to prove the absurdity of international law as applied
to us 1 Is not the above insulting construction of our institutionn, a sufficient argu-
ment to induce us to reject at once the system it is based on with the contempt
it deserves ! Instead of gravely inquiring what might have been the opinion of this
or that monaichical writer some hundreds of years ago, would it not be more dignifi-
ed — more just, to decide for ourselves upon the merits of thecasci and according to
first principles )

APPENDIX.

CONTAINING THE DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENCE— TREATIES
AND NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN RUSSIA, SPAIN, GREAT BRIT-
AIN AND THE UNITED STATES, REFERRED TO IN THE FIRST
PORTION OF THE FOREGOING WORK.

(No. 1.)

Convention between the United States and Russia, signed at St. Petersburg, on the

lllh of April, 1824.

Article 1. It is agreed that, in any part of the great ocean, commonly called
the Pacific Ocean, or South «ea, the respective citizens or subjects of the high coa-
tracting powers shall be neither disturbed nor restrained, either in navigation or in
Ashing, or in the power of resorting to the coasts, upon points which may not
already have beeu occupied, for the purpose of trading with the natives ; saving
always the restrictions and conditions determined by the following articles.

Art. 2. With the view of preventing the rights of navigation and of fishing,
exercised upon the great ocean by the citizens and subjects of the high contracting
powers, from becoming the pretext for an illicit trade, it is agreed that the citizens
of the United States shall not resort to any point where there is a Russian estab-
lishment, without the permission of the governor or commander ; and that, recipro-
cally, the subjects of Russia shall not resort, without permission, to any establishment
of tht United States upon the north-west coast.

Art. 3. It is, moreover, agreed that hereafter there shall not be formed by the
citizens of the United States, or under the authority of the said States, any estab-
lishment upon the north-west coast of America, nor in any of the islands adjacent,
to the north of 54 degrees and 40 minutes of north latitude ; and that, in the same
manner, there shall be none formed by Russian subjects, or under the authority of
Russia, soutA of the same parallel.

Art. 4. It is, nevertheless, understood that, during a term of ten years, counting
from the signature of the present convention, the ships of both powers, or which
belong to their citizens or subjects, respectively, may reciprocally frequent, without
any hmderance whatever, the interior seas, gulfs, harbors, and creeks, upon the coast
mentioned in the preceding article, for the purpose of fishing and trading with the
natives of the country.

Art. 6. All spirituous liquors, fire-arms, other arms, powder, and munitions of
war of every kind, are always excepted from this same commerce permitted by the
preceding article ; and the two powers engage, reciprocally, neither to sell, nor
suffer them to be sold, to the natives, by their respective citizens and subjects, nor
by any person who may be under their authority- It is likewise stipulated, that this
restriction shall never afford a pretext, nor be advanced, in any case, to authorize
either search or detention of the vessels, seizure of the merchandise, or, iri fine, any
measures of constraint whatever, towards the merchants or the crews who may
carry on this commerce; the high contracting powers reciprocally reserving to
themselves to determine upon the penalties to be incurred, and to inflict the pun-
ishments in case of the contravention of this article by their respective citizens or
subjects.

(No. 2 )

THE FRENCH TITLE.

Extract from the Report of the Commillec on Military Affairs, made in Congress

in 1843.

The treaty of Utrecht was concluded in 1713. By the tenth article ii was agreed
between Groat Britain and France, to determine within one year, by commission-
en, the limits between the Hudson's Bay and the places appertaining to the French

116

AFTEJUDIX.

The same commfssfoners were also authorized to settle, in like manner, (he bonn-
darics between the other British and French colonies in those parts. Commissioi>-
ers were accordingly appointed by the two Powers, and there is strong reason tc
believe they actually established the boundaries according to the terms of the treatyr
although no formal record of the fact now exists. The eTidence that the boundaries
were thus established is, first, " the fact of the appointment of the commissioners for
that express purpose ; and that two distinct lines may be found traced on the dif-
ferent maps published in the last century, each purporting to be the limit between
the Hudson's Bay territories on the north and the French possessions on the south,
fixed by commisstoners according to the treaty of Utrecht/' One of these lines " is
drawn irregularly from the Atlantic to a point in the 49th parallel of latitude, south
ef the southernmost part of the Hudson's Bay, and thence westward along that
parallel to Red River, and, in some maps, still further west. This line is generally
considered in the United States, and has been assumed by their government, as the
true boundary settled by the commissieners agreeabty to the treaty above mention-
ed." Thus we find Messrs. Monroe and Pinckney, at Madrid, in I80&, writing tc
the Spanish minister as follows ; " In conformity with the tenth article of the first-
mentioned treaty, (treaty of Utrecht,) the boundary between Canada and Louisiana
on the one side, and the Hudson's Bay nnd Northwestern Companies on the other,
was established by commissioners by a Hne to commence at a cape or promontory
sn the ocean in S9 degrees 31 minntes north latitude ; to run thence southwest-
wardly to latitude 49 degrees north from the equator, and along that line indefinitely
westward." These extracts are taken from the Memoir of Mr. Greenhow, who, it
is proper to add, considers the opinion that these boundary lines were actually esta-
blished by the commissioners " at variance with the most accredited aathorities."'
In this opinion the committee does not concur ; so far from doing so, it is thought
the presumption that the 49th parallel was adopted by the commissioners under the
treaty of Utrecht, is strengthened by the line of demarcation subsequently agreed on
by the treaty of Versailles, in 1763, between France and (rreat Britain, and also'
by the treaty of peace of 1783, between the United States and Great Britain. By
the former, the " confines between the British and French possessions were irrevo-
cably fixed by a line drawn along the middle of the Mississippi, from its source to
the Iberville," etc. By the lattcr,'that part of the northera boundary of the United
States which is applicable to the sublet is described to be through the Lake-of>the-
Woods, "to the most northwestern point thereof, and from thence on a due west
course to the Mississippi river." The most northwestern point of the Lake-of-the-
Woods is perhaps a few nninutea north of the 49th parallel of latitude. By the con-
vention of (818, between the United States and Great Britain, in the second article,
it is agreed that a line drawn from the most northwestern point of the Lake-of-the-
Woods, along the 49>.h parallel of north latitude, or if the said point shall not lie in
(he 49th parallel of north latitude, then that a line drawn from the said point due
north or south, as the case may be, untii the said line shall intersect the said par-
allel of north latitude, and from the point of such intersection, due west, ak)ng and
with said parallel, shall be the Imi of demarcation between the territories of the
United States and those of his Britannic majesty ; and that the said line shall form
the northern' boundary ef the said territories of the United States, and the southern
boundary of the territory of his Britannic majesty, from the Lake-of-the- Woods to
the Stony Mountains."

This line, it will be observed, is a deviation from the boundary established by the
treaty of 178ft; for that was to extend due west from the northwestern point of the
Lake-of-the- Woods, without emij referente to its latitude. By this, we are in the
eontingency named>to run by the shortest line from the specified point on the Lake-
ef-the- Woods to the forty-ninth parallel of latitude. Whence, it may be asked, the
solicitude to- adopt this particular parallel, except as it corresponded with preexisting
arrangements, which could have been made under the provisions of the treaty of
Utrecht albne ! for under no other had any reference at that time b^en made to the
said forty-ninth degree.

This coincidence between the boundaries established by Great Britain and' France
in 1V63, and between Great Britain and the United States in 1783 and 1818, can
scarcely be accounted for on any other supposition, than that the said linu had been
previously established by the commissioners under the treaty of Utrecht. This
conclusion is strengthened by a further coincidence in the boundaries fixed in the
said treaties of 17C3 and 1783. In both, the Mississippi is ad( ted as the boundary.
One of the lines then (the Mississippi) previously established uetween Great Bri-
tain and France being thus, beyond all cavil, adopted between the United States

APPENDIX.

117

and Great Britain, mty it not he fairly inferred, in the absence of all proof to the
contrary, and with strong corroborating proof in favor of the inference, drawn from
the stipulations of treaties, lines of demarcation on old maps, etc., that the other
line, (forty-ninth parallel,) equally beyond cavil established by the United States
and Great Britain, was also the same one previously existing between Great Britain
and France 1 but such line had no existence, unless under the stipulations of the
treaty of Utrecht. For these reasons, the committee has adopted the opinion, that
the forty-ninth parallel of latitude was actually established by the commissioners
under that treaty. It may not be unimportant here to observe, that this forty-ninth
parallel is not a random line, arbitrarily selected, but the one to which France was
entitled upon the well-settled principle that the first discoverer of a river is entitled,
by virtue of that discovery, to all the unoccupied territory watered by that river and
its tributaries.

We have seen that, by the treaty of 1783, the Mississippi, from its source, was
adopted as the line of demarcation between the British aud French possessions.
Louisiana then extended north as far fas that river reached ; in other words, it
stretched along the whole course of the Mississippi, from its source, in about lati-
tude forty-nine, to its mouth, in the gulf of Mexico, in latitude twenty-nine. By
the stipulations, then, of this treaty alone, without without calling in the aid of the
previous treaty of Utrecht, the northern boundary of Louisiana is clearly recognized as
a line drawn due west from the source of the Mississippi : we say due west, because
the ease line alone of the boundaries of Louisiana being specifically and in express
terms established by the treaty, her surface can only be ascertained by the extension
of that whole line in the direction in which her territory is admitted to lie. This
simple and only practicable process of giving to Louisiana any territory under the
treaty, fixes as the whole of her northern boundary, a line running due west from
the source of the Mississippi, which may, for the purpose of this argument, be
fairly assumed as the forty-nmth parallel, without injustice to any party.

Having thus ascertained the northern boundary of Louisiana, it becomes impor-
tant to inquire what were its western limits, as between Great Britain and France :
we say between Great Britain and France, because here another competitor ap-
peared, (we speak of 17fi3,) in the person of the king of Spain, upon whoso title
we shall insist, if we fail to establish that of Franco.

The treaty of 1V63 professing to establish and actually establishing lines of de-
marcation between the contiguous territories of the contracting parties, it cannot be
denied, except upon strong proof, that all the boundaries about which any dispute
then existed, or subsequent disputes could be anticipated, (that is, where their re-
spective territories touched each other,) were then definitely adjusted and settled.
These territories are known to have touched on the north and on the east ; and ac-
cordingly in those quarters wo find the lines clearly described. Is it not evident,
that had they touched in other points, had there been other quartess where questions
of conflicting claims might have arisen, the lines in those quarters also would have
been fixed with equal precision T But to the south and west there is no'allusion in
the treaty ; an omission conclusive of the fact that in those directions Great Britain
had no territory contiguous to Louisiana. But Louisiana extended, by the stipula-
tions of the treaty, west from the Mississii)pi ; and Great Britain, having no terri-
tory or claim to territory which could arrest her extension in that direction, is pre-
cluded from denying that the French title covered the whole country from that/iver
to the shores of the Pacific Ocean.

The parties to the treaty of 1763 made partition of almost the whole continent of
North Atnerica, assigning to England the territory east of the Mississippi, and north
of the forty-ninth parallel of latitude. No claim was at that time advanced by
Great Britain to territory in any other quarter of this vast continent ; a very preg-
nant conclusion against the existence of any such claim. Her Government, ever
vigilant for the increase of her territory, with a view to the extension of her com-
merce, manifested upon the occasion of this treaty an avidity of acquisition which
the continent was scarcely-large enough to satisfy. Never very nice in scrutinizing
the foundation of her protonsions, nor over scrupulous in the selection of means to
enforce them, she was at this juncture in a position peculiarly auspicious to the
gratification of her absorbing passion of territorial aggrandizement. Conqueror at
every point, she dictated the terms of peace, and asserted successfully every claim
founded in the slif^htcst pretext of right. Still no title is either advanced or even
intimated, to possessions west of the Mississippi.

Mr. Gushing, of Massachusetts, in a report from the Committee on Foreign Re-
lations, to the House of Representulives, made January 4, 1839, has the following

lis

APPENDIX.

sentences : " As between France and Great Britain, or Great Britain and the TJniteir
Slates, the successor of ail tlie rights of France, the question (of boundary) would
■ccin to be concluded by the treaty of Versailles, already cited, in which Great
Britain relinquishes, irrevocably, all pretensions west of the Mississippi. On the
footing of the treaty of Utrecht, ratified by our convention, of 1818, England may
posssilily, by extension of contiguity, carry her possessions from Hudson's Bay
across to the Pacific, north of latitude 49° ; but by the treaty of Versailles we pos-
sess the same right, and an exclusive one, to carry our territory across the conti*
nent, south of that line, in the right of France."

It may, perhaps, be urged thai the limits of Louisiana, on the west, are confined
to the territory drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries ; the e&tent of her
claim, founded on the discovery of that river, being restricted to the ccuntry so
drained. The principle upon which this limitation is attempted may be safely ad-
mitted, without in any degree affecting the right for which we contend ; because,
first. Great Britain is precluded from asserting it by her admission, in 1763, that
Louisiana extended indefinitely west from the Mississippi ; and, second, becau8eth&
principle being of universal application, if the discovery of the Mississippi by the
French confine Louisiana to its waters east of the Rocky Mountains, the discovery
of the Columbia by the Americans will extend their claim to the whole country
watered by that great river, west of those mountains, and our true claim has this
extent. Yet, to avoid unprofitable disputes, and for the sake of peace, we have
expressed a willingness (met in no corresponding spirit, the committee is sorry t»
say,) to confine ourselves to much narrower limits.

(No. 3.)

Copy of ike Conmntion between his Britannic Majesty and the King ef Spain, com
manly called the Nnotka Treaty, of October, 1790.

•' Article 1. The buildings and tracts of land situated on tho north-west coast
of the Continent of North America, or on the islands adjacent to that Continent, oC
which the subjects of his Britannic majesty were dispossessed about the month of
April, 1789, by a Spanish ofEcer, shall be restored to the said British subjects.

" Art. 2. A just reparation shall be made according to the nature of the cate»
for all acts of violence and hostility which may have been committed subsequent to
the month of April, 1789, by the subjects of either of the contracting parties against
the subjects of the other ; and in case said respective subjects shall, since the same'
period, have been forcibly dispossessed' of their lands, bildings, vessels, merchandise,,
and oiher property whatever on the said Continent, or on the seas and isliands ad-
jacent, they shall be reestablished in the possession thereof, or a just compensatipa
shall be made to them for the losses which they have sustained.

" Art. 3". In order to strengthen the bonds of friendship, and to preserve in
future a perfect harmony and good understanding between the' two contracting par-
ties, it is agreed, that their respective subjects shall not be disturbed or molested,,
either in negotiating or carrying on their fisheries in the Pacific Ocean or in tho
South Seas, or in landing on the coast of these seas, in places not aliready occupied,,
for the purpose of carrying on their commerce with the natives of th? country, or of
making settlements there ; the whole subject, nevertheless, to the instructions
specified in these following articles.

" Art. 4. His Britannic majesty engages to take the most efJectual measures to
prevent the navigation, and the fishing of his subjects in the Pacific Ocean, or in the
South Seas, from being made a pretext for illicit trade with the Spanish settlements ;
and with this view, it is moreover, expressly stipulated, that British subjects shall
not navigate or carry on their fishery in the said seas, within the space of ten sea
leagues from any j-art of the coasts already occupied by Spain.

" Akt. 5. As well in the places which are to be restored to the British subject "
by virtue of the first Article, as in afl other parts of the north-westerrj coast of
America, or of the islands adjacent, situate to the north of the parts of the said
coast already occupied by Spain, wherever the subjects of the two powers shalf
have made settlements, since the month of April, 1789, qr shall hereafter make any»
the subjects of the other shall have free access, and shall carry on their trade with-
out any disturbance or molestation.

" Art. 6. With respect to the eastern and western coasts of South America^
and to the islands adjacent, no settlement shall be formed hereafter by the respective
subjects in such part of those coasts as are situated to the south of those parts of
the same coasts, and of the islands adjacent, which are already occupied by Spain r„

APPENDIX.

119

fravideJ, that the said respective subjects shall retain the liberty of landing on the
coasts and islands so situated, for the purposes of their fishery, and of erecting
thereon, huts and other temporary buildings, serving only for those purposes.

"Art. 7. In all cases of complaint, or infraction of the articles of the present con-
vention, the officers of either party, without permitting themselves previously to
commit any violence or acts of force, shall be bound to make an exact report of the
affair, and of its circumstances, to their respective courts who will terminate such
diflerences in an amicable manner.

Art. 8, The present convention shall be ratified and confirmed in the space of
six weeks, to be computed from the day of its signature, or sooner, if it can be done.
" In witness whereof, we, the undersigned, plenipotentiaries of their Britannic and

Catholic majesties, have in their names, and by virtue of respective fuU powers,

signed the present convention, and set thereto the seals of our Arms. Done at

the palace of St. Lawrence, the 28th of October, 1700.

[l. s.] " El Condk De Florida Banca.

f L. S.] " AlLEYNB FlTHZHEBBKT."

[No's 4 and 5 of the Appendix, consisting of a correspondence between Captains Gray and
Ingraham and the Spanish commissioner at Nootka in 1792, and an extract from Captain Gray's
log-book rev|>ecting the occurrences in the Columbia river on his first visit, though referred to
in the preceding pages, were deemed ta be of not enough importance to warrant any further
increase of this portion of the work.]

(No. fl.)

BRITISH STATEMENT, OF 1836.»

Thb government of Great Britain, in proposing to renew, for a further term
of years, the third article of the convention of 1818, respecting the territory on the
north-west coast of America, west of the Rocky Mountains, regrets that it has been
found impossible, in the present negotiation, to agree upon a line of boundary which
should separate those parts of that territory, which might henceforward be occupied
or settled by the subjects of Great Britain, from the parts which would remain open
to occupaiicy or settlement by the United States.

To establish such a boundary must be the ultimate object of both countries. With
this object in contemplation, and from a persuasion that a part of the difEculties
which have hitherto prevented its attainment is to be attributed to a misconception,
on the part of the United States, of the claims and views of Great Britain in regard
to the territory in question, the British plenipotentiaries deem it advisable to bring
under the notice of the American plenipotentiary a full and explicit exposition of those
claims and views.

As preliminary to this discussion, it is highly desirable to mark distinctly the broad
difference between the nature of the rights claimed by Great Britiin and those
asserted by the United States, in respect to thf" territory in question.

Over a large portion of that territory, nan ly, from the 42d degree to the 49th
degree of north latitude, the United States claim full and exclusive sovereignty. t

Great Britain claims no exclusive sovereignly over any 'portion of that territory. X
Her present claim, not in respect to any part, but to the whole, is limited to a right
of joint occupancy, in common with other states, leaving the right of exclusive
dominion in abeyance.

In other words, the pretensions of the United States tand to the ejection of all
othernations, and, among the rest, of Great Britain, from all right of settlement in
the district claimed by the United States (j

The pretensions of Great Britain, on the contrary, tend to the mere maintenance
of her own rights, in resistance to the exclusive character of the pretensions of the
United States.

Having thus stated the nature of the respective claims of the two parties, the

» This statement is here inserted in full, because it is a complete synopsis of all the pretensions
of Great Britain ; and being the groundwork of Iier claims, is particularly interesting as show-
ing the other side of the itory.

t At the period of this convention, the United States plenipotentiary was instructed to agree
io the extension of o\ir northern boundary line, westward from the Lake of the Woods, along
parallel 490, to the Pacific ; with the further instruction, that in case such compromise should
not be accepted, wo should feel ourselves entitled thereafter, to insist upon the full measure
of our rights.

\ She has exercised it nevertheless.

kj Truly so ; and this must always be the case between rightful owners and mere pretenders.

120

J^PPINDIX.

British plenipotentiaries will now examine the grounds on which those claims arc
fouoded.

Tiio claims of the United States are urged upon three grounds :

Ist. As reBulting Irom their own proper right.

2dly. Am resulting from a right derived to them from Spain ; that power having
by the treaty of Florida, concluded with the United States in 1819, ceded to the
latter all their rights and claims on the western coast of America north of the 4Sd
degree.

3dly. As resulting from a right derived to them from France, to whom the United
States succeeded, by treaty, in possession of the province of Louisiana.

The first right, or right proper, of the United States, is founded on the alleged
discovery of the Columbia River by Mr. Gray, of Boston, who, in 1792, entered
that river, and explored it to some distance from its mouth.

To this are added the first exploration, by Lewis and Clarke, of a main branch of
the same river, from its source downwiirds, and also the alleged priority of settle-
jnent, by citizens of the United States, of the country in the vicinity of the same river.

The second right, or right derived from Spain, ia founded on the alleged prior
discovery of the region in dispute by Spanish navigators, of whom the chief were,
1st, CHbrillo, who, in 1643, visited ihat coast as far as 44 degrees north latitude;
3d, De Fuca, who, as it is affirmed, in 1598, entered the straits known by his name
in latitude 49 degrees ; 3d, Guelli, who, in 1682, is said to have pushed his
researches as high as 57 degrees north latitude ; 4th, Perez and others, who,
between the years 1774 and 1792, visited Nootka Sound and the adjacent coasts.

The third right, derived from the cession of Louisiana to the United States, is
founded on the assumption that that province, its boundaries never having bdea
exactly defined longitudinally, may fairly be asserted to extend westward across the
Rocky Mountains, to the shore of the Pacific.

Before the merits of these respective claims are considered, it is necessary to
observe that one only ou*^ of the three can be valid.

They are, in fact, claims obviously incompatible the one with the other.* If, for
example, the title of Spain by first discovery, or the title of Franco as the original
possessor of Louisiana, bo valid, then must one or the other of those kingdoms have
been the lawful possessor of that territory, at the moment when the United States
claim to have discovered it. If, on the other hand, the Americans were the first
discoverers, there is necessarily an end of the Spanish claim ; and if priority of
discovery constitutes the title, that of France falls equally to the gj-ound.

Upon the question, how far prior discovery constitutes a legal claim to sover-
eignty, the law uf nations is somewhat vague and undefined. It is, however,
admitted by the most approved writers that mere accidental discovery, unattended
by exploration — by formally taking possession in the name of the discoverer's sove-
reign — by occupation and settlement, more or less permanent — by purchase of the
territory — or receiving the sovereignty from the natives — constitutes the lowest
degree of title, and that it is only in proportion as first discovery is followed by any
or all of these acts, that such title is strengthened and confirmed.

The rights conferred by discovery, therefore, must be discussed on their own
merits. .

But before the British plenipotentiaries proceed to compare the relative claims of
Great Britain and the United Slates, in this respect, it will be advisable to dispose
of the two other grounds of right, put forward by the United States.

The second ground of claim, advanced by the United States, is the cession made
by Spain to the United States, by the treaty of Florida, in 1819.

If the conflicting claims of Great Britain and Spain, in respect to all that part of
the coast of North America, had not been finally adjusted by the convention of
Nootka, in the year 1790, and if all the arguments and pretensions, whether resting
on priority of discovery, or derived from any other consideration, had not been
definitively set at rest by the signature of that convention, nothing would be more
easy than to demonstrate that the claims of Great Britain to that country, as
opposed to those of Spain, were so far from visionary, or arbitrarily assumed, that
they established more than a parity of title lo the possession of the country in
question, either as against Spain, or any other nation.

Whatever that title may have been, however, either on the part of Great Britain

*By no means! An eqnitahlo settlement might at one time have divided tlie territory
between tlie two first parties claimnnt ; and tlieir Joint release in favor of tlie United States,
wliile it makes absolutely against Great Britain, strengtliens the title ol the United States in
the same degree,

APPENDIX.

121

or on the part of Spain, prior to the convention of 1790, it wai from thenceforward
no longer to be traced in vague narratives of diicoveries, aevernl of them admitted
to be apocryphal, but in the text and stipulations of that convention itself.

By that convention it was agreed that all parts of the north-western coast oi
America, not already occupied at that time by either of the contracting parties,
should thenceforward be equally open to the subjects of both, for all purposes of
commerce and settlement ; the sovereignty remaining in abeyance;

In this stipulation, as it has been already stated, all tracts of country claimed by
Spain and Groat Britain, or accruing to either, in whatever manner, were included.

The Tights of Spain on that coast were, by the treaty of Florida, in 1819, con-
veyed by Spam to the United States. With those rights the United States neces-
sarily succeeded to the limitations by which they were defined, and the obligations
uuder which they were to be exercised. Ttom those obligations and limitations, as
Ctntiacted towards Great Britain, Great Britain cannot be expected gratuitously to
release those countries, merely because the rights of the party originally bound have
been transferred to a third power.

The third ground of claim of the United States rests on the right supposed to be
derived from the cession to them of Louisiana by Franco.

In arguing this branch of the question, it will not be necessary to examine in
detail the very dubious point of the assumed extent of that province, since, by the
treaty between France and SpRin of 1763, the whole of that territory, defined or
undefined, real or ideal, was ceded by France to Spain, and, consequently, belonged
to Spain, not only in 1790, when the convention of Nootka was signed between
Great Britain and Spain, but also subsequently, in 1792, tho period of Gray's disco-
very of iht mouth of the Columbia. If, then, Louisiana embraced the country west
of the Rocky Mountains, to the south of the 49th parallel of latitude, it must have
embrac-d the Columbia itself, which that parallel intersects; and, consequently,
Gray's discovery must have been made in a country avowedly already appropriated
to Spain, and, if so appropriated, necessarily included, with all other Spanish posses-
sions and claims in that quarter, in the stipulations of the Nootka convention.

Even if it could be shown, therefore, that, the district west of the Rocky Moun-
tains was within the boundaries of Louisiana, that circumstance would in no way
assist the claim of the United States.

It may, nevertheless, be worth while to expose, in a few words, the futility of the
attempt to include that district within those boundaries.

For this purpose, it is only necessary to refer to the original grant of Louisiana
made to De Crozat by Louis XIV., shortly after its discovery by La Salle. That
province is therein expressly described as " the country drained by the waters en-
tering, directly or indirectly, into the Mississippi." Now, unless it can be shown
that any of the tributaries of the Mississippi cross the Rocky Mountains from
west to east, it is difficult to conceive how any part of Louisiana can bo found to
the west of that ridge.

There remains to be considered the first ground of claim advanced by the United
States to the territory in question, namely, that founded en their own proper right
as first discoverers and occupiers of territory.

If the discovery of the country in question, or rather the mere entrance into the
mouth of tho Columbia by a private American citizen, be, as the United States as-
sert, (although Great Britain is far from admitting the correctness of the assertion,)
a valid ground of national and exclusive claim lo al* the country situated between
the 42d and 49lh parallels of latitude, then must any preceding discovery of the
same country, by an individual of any other nation, invest such nation with a more
valid, because a prior, claim to thai country.

Now, to set aside, for the present, Drake, Cook, and Vancouver, who all of them
either took possession of, or touched at, various points of the coast in question.
Great Britain can show that in 1788 — that is, four years before Gray entered the
mouth of the Columbia River— Mr. Meares, a lieutenant of the royal navy,* who
had been sent by the £ast India Company on a trading expedition to the north-west
coast of America, had already minutely explored that coast, from the 49ih degree
to the 45th degree north latitude ; had taken formal possession of the Straits of
De Fuca, in the name of his sovereign ; had purchased land, trafficked And formed
treaties^ with the natives ; and had actually entered the bay of the Columbia, to the

* Meares was o Portuguese hireling', and not in any branch of English service, and though
a speculating lialf-iiay lieutenant, was, to all intents an<l purposes, as much a private citizen as
Captain Gray. See Appendix, No. 10.

t The only treaty he formed, was an agreement With Maqulnna, the king of the surround-

123

APPENDIX.

northern bend UnJ of which be gave ibe nime of Cape Diaappointmtnf-'t, name
which it bnar* to thit day.

Dixon, Scott, Duncan, Strange, and othor privatp Britiih traders, had also viaitnd
theae ihurea and countriea aavcrat yeara before Gray ; but the single example of
Meares auflices to qunah Gray'a claim to prior diacovery. To tho other navigators
above mentioned, therefore, it ia unnecessary to refer more particularly.

It may be worth while, however, to obaervc, with regard to Mcaios, that hit vc*
count of his voyaaes was publinhed in London in August, 1790 ; that is, two
yeara before Gray is even pretended to have entered tiie Columbia.f

To that account are appended, first, extracts from his log-book; secondly, maps
of the coasts and harbors which he visited, in which every part of tho coast in quet-
i\on,including the bay o^ the Columbia, {into which the log expressli/ at alea that Meares
entered,) is minutely laid down, its delineation tallying, in almoitt every particulari
with Vancouver's subsequent survey, and with the description found in all the best
maps of that part of the world, adopted at this moment ; thirdly, the account in quee-
tioii actually containa an engraving, dated in August, 1790, of the entrance of De
Fuca'fl Straits, executed after a design taken in June, 1788, by Meares himaelf.f

With theae physical evidencea of authenticity, it ia needless to contend for, as it
is impossible to controvert, the truth of Mearea's statement.

It wns only on the 17 th of September, 1788, that the Washington, commanded
by Mr. Gray, first made her appearance at Nootka.

If, therefore, any claim to these countries, as between Great Britain and the Uni-
ted States, is to be deduced from priority of the discovery, the above exposition of
dates and facts suffices to establish that claim in favor of Great Britain, on a basis
too firm to be shaken.

It mirst, indeed, be admitted that Mr. Gray, finding himself in the bay formed
by the discharge of the waters of the Columbia into tho Pacific, was the first to as-
certain that this bay formed the outlet of a great river — n discovery which had es-
caped Lieutenant Meares, when, in 1788, four years before he entered the very same
bay.

But can it be seriously urged that this single step in the progress of discovery not
only wholly supersedes the prior discoveries, both of the bay and ther.oa^t, by Lieu-
tenant Meares, but equally absorbs the subsequent exploration of thi' rtver by
Captain Vancouver, for near a hundred miles above the point to which lit Gray'e
ship had proceeded, the formal taking possession of it by that British navigator, in
the name of his sovereign, and also all the other discoveries, CAplorations, and tem-
porary posseasion and occupation of the ports and harbors on the coast, as well
of the Pacific as within the Straits of Do Fuca, up to the 49th parallel of latitude 1^

This pretension, however, extraordinary as it is, does not embrace the whole
of the claim which the United States build upon the limited discovery of Mr. Gray,
namely, that the bay of which Cape Disappelntment is the northernmost headland,
is, in fact, the embrochure of a river. That ra*^re ascertainment, it is asserted,
confers on the United States a title, in exclusive sovereignty, to the whole extent
of country drained by such river, and by all its tributary streams.

In support of this very extraordinary pretentiion, the United States allege the
preoedcMt of grants) »nd charters accorded in former times to companies and indi-
viduals, by various European sovereigns, over several parts of the American conti-
nent. Among other instances are adduced the charters granted by Elizabeth,
James I., Charles II., and George II., to sundry British subjects and associations,!!

ing country, granting him leave to make n temporary building, on tho express condition,
that when he tinally left the coast, " the house and all tlie goods thereunto belonging" should
fell into that chiePs possession ; a condition, by the way, which Meares dishonestly failed to
fulfil, for tlic boards were struck oA', and taken on board one of his vessels, and the roof was
given to Captain Kundrick.

• " Cape Disappointment," because he failed to discover the river he sought.

t That is to say, he was " disappointed" two years before Captain Gray was satisfied.

\ It will be recollected it was " Meares himself" v/ho despatched word to England of the
wonderful discoveries of Captain Oray, in the Strait of Fuca.

^ No ; we claim these latter, on the ground of other discoveries, and also on the score of Speun.

II This is a wilful perversion, to say the least of it. The United States, in proving the prin-
ciple, merely alluded io these latter charters as instances of Britain'.s recognition of the rule
with her own subjects, or in other words, when it ran in favor of heritlf While the correct-
ness and usage of the principle was otherwise indubitably proved, tho above instances were
merely brought forward as a conclusive rebuke to Britain's opposition to its ap])llcation to us.
It was on the ground of these charters, together with the application of their rule to the pre-
tended discovery of the Columbia river by Vancouver and Meares, that we felt warranted in
asserting uu the 31st page, that Great Britain Tdvauces the principle herself.

APPENDIX.

•I nlao tho grant made by Loiii* XIV. to Do Crozat over tho tract of country
WHtcrcd by tho Mistissippi nnd ita tributHrien.

lint can •Mch chartur* bo convidcred an acknowledged part of thp law of nntioni«1
Wuro they any thing ninro, in fact, than a coiiion to tho (;rnntoe or graiiteps of|
whatever ri|jht« the gratitor might aiippoRo himaolf to posacai, to tho excluaion
of other Biil)joct8 of the lame rovrreignl — charters binding and restraining those
only who wure within tho jurisdiction of the grantor, and of no force or viilidity
against the subjects of other states, until recognized by treaty, and thereby becoming
a part of intornittional law.

Had the United States, thought proper to issue, in 1700, by virtue of their na-
tional authority, a charter granting to Mr. Gray the whole extent of country watered,
directly or indirectly, by the River Columbia,* such a chorter, would, no doubt, have
been valid in Mr. Giay'a favor, as against all other [citizens of the United States.
But can it be suppoacd that ii would have been acquiesced in by either of tho
powers. Great Britain and Spain, which, in that same year, were preparing to con-
test by arms the possession of the Tery country which would have been the subject
of such a grant?

If tho right of sovereignty over tho territory in question accrues to the United
States by Mr. Gray's discovery, how happens it that they never protested against
the violence dono to thai right by the two powers, who, by the convention of 1790,
regulated their respective rights in and over a district so belonging, as it is now as-
serted, to the United States ?

This claim of tho United States to the territory drained by tho Columbia and its
tributary streams, on the ground of one of their citizens having been the first to
discover the entrance of that river, has been here so far entered into, nut because
it is considered to be necessarily entitled to notice, sinco the whole country watered
by the Columbia falls within the provisions of the convention of 1700, But, because
the doctrine above alluded to has been put forward so broadly, and with such con-
fidence, by tho United States, that Great Britain considered it equally due to her-
self and to other powers to enter her protest against it,

The United States further pretend that iheir claim to the country in question is
strengthened and confirmed by tho discovery of the sourccd oi" the Columbia, and
by the exploration of its course to the spa by Lewis and Glarko, in ISO.'i-S.

In reply to this allegation. Great Britain affirms, and can distinctly prove, that,
if not before, at least in tho same and subsequent years, her North- Western Trad-
ing Company had, by means of their agent, Mr. Thomson, already established their
posts among the Flat-head and Kootanie tribes, on the head-waters of the northern
or main branch of the Columbia, and were gradually extending them down the
principal stream of that river ; thus giving to Great Britain, m this particular,
again, as in the discovery of the mouth of the river, a tillc to parity at least, if not
priority, of discovery, as opposed to the United States. It was from those posts,
that, having heard of the American establishment forming in 1811, at the mouth of
tho river, Mr Thomson hastened thither, descending the river, to ascertain the na-
ture of that establishment.!

Some stress having been laid by tho United States on tho restitution to them of
Fort George by the British, after the termination of tho last war, which restitution
they represent as conveying a virtual acknpwledgment by Great Britain of the title
of the United States to the country in which that post was situated — it is desirable
to stale, somewhat in detail, the circumstances attending that restitution.

In the year 1815, a demand for the restoration of Fort George was first made to
Great Britain, by the American government, on the plea that the first article of the
treaty of Ghent stipulated tho restitution to the U'iited States of all posts and
places whatsoever taken from them by the British during the war, in which descrip-
tion. Fort George, (Astoria,) was included.

For some time the British government demurred to comply with the demand of
the United States, because they entertained doubts how far it could be sustained
by the construction of the treaty.

In the first place, the trading post called Fort Astoria (or Fort George,) was not
a national possession ; in the second place, it was not a military post ; and, thirdly,
it was never captured from the Americans by the British.

It was, in fact, conveyed in regular commercial transfer, and accompanied by a

• These F.nglishmpn arc crazy— thn Columbia was not discovered by Captain Gray till
1793. If tlic above is intended as an illustration only, the instance is as weak as the previous
arguments are inconclusive.

t Wc have seen that Mr. Thomson came a year too late.

134

APPENDIX.

bill of mle, for » Kum of mon«y, to (hit Dritiih company, who purchniod it, by (ho
American compnny, who loUi it of their own fret will.

It it trti« (hnt a Ilritiih Muop of war \\i\A, about that time, been tient to tnke pot-
■eiaion •( (hnt post, but the arrived aiibacquoiitly to the traniaction above men-
tionnil, bfltwnrn the two companiet, and found the Uritiih company already m legal
occupation of their iielf acquired properti/.

In cniiie()ionce, however, of thiit Nhip having; been cent out with hnttile vinwi,
althou){h thoKe viowa were not carried into effect,* and in ordrr that not even a iha-
dow of a reflection might bo cast upon the good faith of tiie British Kovcrninont,
the latter determined to give the noost lllioral exter)tion to the terms of Iho treaty
of Ghent, and, in 1818, the purchase which tho Dritish company had made in 1813
was restored to the United States.

Particnjiir care, however, was taken, on thia occasion, to prevent any miHappre
henaion as to the rutefit of the concession made by Great DritHJn.

Viscount Castlereagh, in directing the Briti«h minister at Washington to intimate
the intention of the British government to Mr. Adams, then secretary of state, uses
these expressions, in a despatch dated 4th February, 1818:-—

" You will observe, that, whilst this government it not disposed to contest with
the American gouernment the point of |iossossion as it stood in tho Columbia
River at the moment of the rupture, theij are not prepared to admit the validitij of
the title of the government of the United States to this settlement.

"In signifying, therefore, to Mr. Adamt tho full ncquiescenco of your govern-
ment in the reoccupation of the limited position which the United States held in
that river at the breaking out of the war, you will at the tame time assert, in suita-
ble terms, the claim of Great Britain to that territory, upon which the American
settlement must be considered as an encroachment."

This instruction was executed verbally by the person to whom it was addressed.

The following is a transcript of tho act by which the fort was delivered up, by the
British, into tho hand of Mr. Piav«4t, the American agent: —

" In obedience to the command of H. R. H. the prince regent, .signified in a des-
patch from the right honorable the Earl Bathursl, addressed to tho partners or agents
of the North-West Company, bearing date the 27lli of January, 1818. and in obe-
dience 10 a subsequent order, dated tho 26th July, from VV. H. Sheriff, Esq., cap-
tain of H. M. ship Andromscho, We, tho undersigned, do, in conformity to the first
article of the treaty of Ghent, restore to the government of the United Slates, through
its agent, J. P. Provost, Esq., tho settlement of Fort George, on the Columbia river.

•'Given under our hands, in triplicate, at Fct George, (Columbia River,) this
€th day of October, 1818.

" F. HicKEY, Captain H. M. ship Blossom.
"J. Keith, o/MciV. W. Co."

The following is the despatch from Earl Bathurst tb the partners of the North-
West Company, referred to in tho above act of cession : —

DowNmo-STiiitcT, 27M January, 1818.

" Intelligence having been received that the United States sloop of war Ontario
has been sent by tho American government to establish a settlement on the Colum-
bia river, which was held by that state, on the breaking out of the last war, I am to
acquaint you, that it is the prince regent's pleasure, {without, however, admitting the
right of that government to the possession in yuestion) that, in pursuance of the first
article of the treaty of Ghent, duo facility should be given to the reoccupatio* of
the said settlement by the officers of the United States ; and I am to desire that
you would contribute as much as lies in your power to the execution of his royal
highnesses commands.

•' I have, &c. &;c.,

" Bathufst.
" To the Partners or Agents of the North- West Company,
residing on the Columbia river."

The above documents put the case of the restoration of Fort Astoria in too clear
a light to require further observation.

* Those views were carried into fffect. The place was regularly taken possossion of in
the king's name en the 1st December, 1813, and the British flag was run up with all ,the for-
malities of conciucst, in place of tho American staudiird

APPENDIX.

135

Tho cflie, (hen of drrat Britain, in reipect to tho country wcit of the Rucky
Moiiiitnini, ii •tuirtly thm ; — ,

Admitting thnt ihn Unitfil Stntai have acquired nil tho rights which Spain poa-
iciiod, ui) to tha trnaty of Florida, either in virtue of divcovery, or, na ii' pretended,
in right liOuiainnR, Oreat Uritnin maintaina that the nature and extent of thoao
right*, aa well na ul tlid ri|{hta of Great Britain, are fixed and defined liy tho con-
vention of Noolka ; thnt thcic righta are equal for both |/artina ; and that, in aucceed-
ing to tho rights ol i^pnw), undnr that convention, the (jnitod Ntates must also have
succerdi'ii to the ubii. itions which it imposed.

Admitting, further, (ho discovery of Mr. Gray, to tho extent already stated, Great
Britain, taking tho wholo line of the coiiat in question, with its straits, hnrhors, and
bays, haa stronger claims, on tho ground of prior diarovary, attended with acta of
occuoancy and settlement, than the United Statca.

Whether, therefore, tho United Statea rest their claima upon the title of Spain,
or upon that of prior discovery, or upon both. Groat Britain la entitled to placo her
claim* It least upon a parity with those of the United States.

It is a fact, admitted by thu United States, that, with tho exception of the Colum-
bia river, there is no river which opens far into the interior, on the whole western
coast of the Pacific Ocean.

In the interior of the territory in question, the subjects of Great Britain have had,
for many years, numerous settlements and trading posts— several of these posts on
the tributHry streams of the Columbia, several upon the Columbia itself, some to the
northward, and othcra to the southward, of that river ; and they navigate the Colum*
bia as the sole channel for tho conveyance uf their produce to the British station!
nearest the sea, and for the shipment of it from thence to Great Britain. It is also
by the Columbia and its tributary streams that these posts and settlements receive
their annual supplies from Great Britain."*

In the whole of the territory in question, the citizens of the United States have
not a single settlement or trading post. They do not use that river, either .u: the
purpose of transmitting or receiving any produce of their own, to or from other parte
of the world.

In this state of tho relative rights of the two countries, and of the relative exer-
cise of those rights, the United States claim the exclusive posaessioo of both banko
of the Columbia, and, consequently, that of the river itself; offering, it ia true, to
concede to British subjects a conditional participation in that navigation, but subjecti
in any case, to the exclusive jurisdiction and sovereignty of the United States.

Groat Britain, on her part, offers to make tho river the boundary ; each country
retaining the bank of the river contiguous to its own territories, and the navigation
of it remaining forever free, and upon a footing of perfect equality to both nations.

To carry into effect this proposal, on our part, Great Britain would have to give
up posts and settlements south of the Columbia. On the part of the United States,
there could be no reciprocal withdrawing from actual occupation, aa there is not, and
never has been, a single American citizen settled north of the Columbia.

The United States decline to accede to this proposal, even when Great Britain
haa added to it the further offer of a most excellent harbor, and an extensive tract of
country on tho Straits of De Fuca — a sacrifice tendered in the spirit of accommoda-
tion, and for tho sake of a final adjustment of all differences, but which, having been
made in this spirit, is not to be considered aa in any degree recognizing a claim on
the part of the United States, or as at all impairing the existing right of Great Bri*
tain over the post and territory in question.

Such being the result of thn recent negotiation, it only remains for Great Britain
to maintain and uphold tho qualified rights which she now possesses over the whole
of the territory in question. These rights are recorded and defined in the convene
tion of Nootka. They embrace the right to navigate the waters of those countries,
the right to settle in and over any part of them, and the right freely to trade with the
inhabitants and occupiers of the same.

These rights have been peaceably exerci.^ed ever since the date of that conven-
tion ; that is, for a period of near forty years. Under that convention, valuable
British interests have grown up in those countries. It is fully admitted that the
United States possess the same rights, although they have been exercised by them

* Hero ia an assertion that Great Britain has been accruing title, through the operations of
her Hudson's Bay Company, ever lincc the treaty of 1818. This gives an additional 8igni&<
cance to her praiit of the civil and criminal jurisdiction of tho territory, to that incorporation.
It will be well for our renders here to recollect tho declaration of our Oovernment made in
1833, that thenceforth no portion of the American Continents were to be considered as snbjects
for liluropean Colonizatfon.

126

APPENDIX.

If, I

only in a single instance, nnd have not, since the year 1813, been exercised at all.
But beyond these rights they possess none.

To the interests and establishments which British industry and enterprise have
created, Great Britain owes protection. That protection will be given, both as re-
gards settlement and freedom of trade and navigation, with every attention not to
infringe the coordinate rights of the United States ; it being the earnest desire of
the British government, so long as the joint occupancy continues, to regulate its
own obligations by the same rule which governs the obligations of any other occu-
pying party.

Fully sensible, at the same time, of the desirableness of a more definite settlement,
as between Great Britain and the United States, the British governnient will be
ready, at any time, to terminate the present state of joint occupancy by an agree-
ment of delimitation ; but such arrangement only can be admitted as shall not dero-
gate from the rights of Great Britain, as acknowledged by treaty, nor prejudice the
advantages which British subjects, under the same sanction, now enjoy in that part
of the world.

(No. 7.)

Convenlion between the United States and Graet Britain, signed at London, Octo-
ber 20th, 1818.

Article. 2 — Tt is agreed that a line drawn from the most north-western point of
the Lake of the ^iV^oods, along the 49th parallel of north latitude, or, if the said point
shall not be in the 49lh parallel of north latitude, then^that a line drawn from the
said point due north or south, as the case may be, until the said line shall intersect
the said parallel of north latitude, and from the point of such intersection due west
along and,with the said parallel, shall be the line ofdemarkation between the territories
oi the United States and those of bis Britannic majesty ; and that the said line shall
form the northern boundary of the said territories of the United States, and the south-
ern boundary of the territories of his Britannic Majesty, from the Lake of the Woods
to the Stony Mountains.

Art. 3. — It is agreed that any country that may be claimed by either party on the
north-west coast of America, westward of the Stony Mountains, shall, together with
its harbors, bays, and creeks, and the navigation of all rivers within the same, be free
and open for the term of ■■ en years from the date of the signature of the present con-
vention, to the vessels, citizens, and subjects, of the two powers ; it being well un-
derstood that this agreement is not to be construed to the prejudice of any claim
which either of the two high contracting parties' may have to any part of the said
country, nor shall it be taken to affect the claims of any other power or state to any
part of the said country ; the only object of the high contracting parties, in that re-
spect, being to prevent disputes and diiTerences among themselves.

(No. 8.)

The Florida Treaty, signed at Washington, February ZZd, 1819.

Article 3. — The boundary line between the two countries west of the Mississippi
shall begin on the Gulf of Mexico, at the mouth of the River Sabine, in the sea,
continuing north, along the western bank of that river, to the 32d degree of latitude ;
thence, by a line due north, to the degree of Utiiude where it strikes the Kio Roxo
of Natchitoches, or Red River ; then, following the course of the Rio Roxo west-
ward, to the degree of longitude 100 west from London and 23 from Washington ;
then crossing the said Red River, and running thence, by a line due north, to the
River Arkansas ; '^ence following the course of the southern bank of the Arkansas,
to its source in latitude 42 north ; and thence, by that parallel of latitude, to the
South Sea; the whole being as laid down in Melish's map of the United States,
published at Philadelphia, improved to the 1st of January, 1818. But, if the source
of the Arkansas River shall be found to fall north or south of latitude 42, then the
Une shall run from the said source due south or north, as the case may be, till it meets
the said parallel of latitude 42, and thence, along the said parallel, to the South Sea ;
all the inlands in the Sabine, and the said Red and Arkansas Rivers, throughout
the course thus described, to belong ts the United States ; but the use of the wa-
ters and the navigation of the^Sabine to the sea, and of the said Rivers Roxo and
Arkansas, throughout the axtent of the said boundary, on their respective banks,
shall be common to the respective inhabitants of both nations.

APPENDIX.

127

The two high contracting parties agree to cede and renounce all their rights,
claims, and pretensions, to the territories described by the said, line ; that is to say,
the United States hereby rede to his Catholic Majesty, and renounce forever, all
their rights, claims, and pretensions, to the territories lying west and south of the
above-described line ; and, in like manner, his Catholic Majesty ceeds to the said
United States all his rights, claims, and pretensions, to any territories east and north
of the said line ; and for himself, his heirs, and successors, renounces all claim to
the said territories forever.

(No. 9.)

Convention hcttceen the United States and Great Britain, signed at London,

August 6th, 1827.

Article 1. All the provisions of the third article of the convention concluded
between the United States of America and his majesty the king of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, on the 20th of October, 1818, shall be, and
they are hereby, further indefinitely extended and continued in force, in the same
manner as if all the provisions of the said article were herein specifically recited.

Art. 2. It shall be competent, however, to either of the contracting parties, in
case either should think fit, at any time after the 20th of October, 1828, on giving
due notice of twelve months to the other contracting party, to annul and abrogate
this convention ; and it shall, in such case, be accordingly entirely annulled and
abrogated, after the expiration of the said term of notice.

Art. 3. Nothing contained in this convention, or in the third article of the
convention of the 20th October, 1818, hereby continued in force, shall be construed
to impair, or in any manner afTect, the claims which either of the contracting parties
may have to any part of the country westward of the Stony or Rocky Mountains.

(No. 10.)

The Instructions of the Merchant Proprietors, to John Meares :

««»♦*♦

Should you, in the course of your voyage, meet with any Russian,
English, or Spanish vessels, you will treat them with civility and friendship, and
allow them, if authorized, to examine your papers, which will show the object of
your voyage. But you must, at the same time, guard against surprise. Should
(h^y attempt to seize you, or even carry you out of your way, you will prevent it by
every means in your power, and repel force by force. You will on your arrival in
the first port, protest before a proper ofBcer against such illegal procedure ; and
ascertain as nearly as you can the value of your vessel and cargo, sending such
protest, with a full account of the transaction to us at China. Should you in such
conflict have the superiority, you will then take possession of the vessel that attacked
you, as also her cargo, and bring both, with the officers and crew to China, that they
may be condemned as legal prizes and their crews punished as pirates. Wishing
you a prosperous voyage, etc.

(Signed) " "The Merchant Proprietors."

ERRATA.

From the haste with which the foregoing work has been hurried through the press
to meet the demand of the pubhc, a number of errors have been overlooked, which,
in the present edition can be corrected in no other way than by this final notice.
The erroneous dates resulted chiefly from want of sufficient time to refer to the
MSS., in reading the proof-sheets, and the occasional mistakes of expression are
chargeable entirely to the haste of composition.

For the words, " while she dared not openly deny to Spain the rights of her Pacific
discoveries," commencing on the 12th line of the 8th page, read — in flagrant viola'
lion of the laws of humanity ami of the rights of Spain to her Pacific discoveries.

For the date " 1587," occurring twice on the 20th line of the 10th page, read — 1592.

For the words, " returned to Mexico," on the 27th line of the 10th page, read —
sailed again into the Pacific at its northern outlet iri 51", and then returned to Mexico.

For " 1780," on the 7th lino of the 13th page, read— 1789.

For " 1775," occurring twice on line 24th of page 17, read — 1795.

For " 61°" on the 14th line of page 18, read— 51°.

For the word " Canada," on the 28th line of the 22d page, read — British America.

For "the whole territory," on the 7th line of page 23, read — the greater portion of
the territory.

For the word " all," on the 5th line of the 34th page, read — most of them.

I »

[Unmutilated and Oaly Genuine Edition.]

THIMriiFfieFJIiriLEIIf

WITH SUPERB STEEL ENeRAVINaS.

)

FOB SBVBIfTT-PIVF. CfiIITS»
tif i!!fild Itt Adraaee]

W. H. COLYER hftiyjig been at graat expense to procure a copy of this unri-
valled woriE, now publishes

PART !•

or TRX

mm OF TAB mmm m mwm

FRANCE UNDER «]K»OLEON,

By M. a. THIERS,

LATE PRIME MINISTSR OF FRAlipE.

Wii. H. CoLYBR*s edition of this splendid work» The Life of Napoleon, is deci>
dedly the best in this country. Ills parinted on fine paper sdod new type* according
to thed•s^[(n of the -author, M. A. Tnien^ and oft coimpansoii with ol^er editions
will be found fi^ superior. *

TliEIS' IB

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TO BE COMPLETED IN SIX PARTS, AT 12 1-2 CENTS EACH.

TO BE COMPLETED IN TEN NUMBERS.

THE MYSTERIES OF BERLIN,

FROM

THE PAPERS OF A BERLIN CAIMINAL OFFICER,

I TRANSLATED FROM Tfi GERMAI4

By C, B. BURfjIARDT.

With lUustratiom on Steely hy P. Habehnann.

This work in Euiope has been universally pronounced far superior to M. Sue's
celebrated "Mysteries of Paris," and we confiaanlly predict, that the popularity of
this translation will be without a parallel in the history of light reading.

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