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A NARRATIVE or IStient0 anil Biffitultitu IN THE COLONIZATION OF OREGON, AND THE SETTLEMENT OF CALIFOUNIA; ASD, ALSO, A HIstORY OF THE CJ^AIBi 9F AMERICAN CITIZENS TO LANDS ON QUADRA'S ISLAND : ** vw ■■*4' * '# TOOBTIIER WITH -^ •» AN ACCOUNT OF THE TROUBLES AND TRIBULATIONS ENDURED BETWEEN THE YEARS 1824 AND 1R52, BY THE WRITER, HALT. J. KELLEY. BOSTON: RINTED BY THURSTON, TORRY it EMERnON. 1852. '•■i *■,. ■%.. m % .V ». » «^ / p.- JM 9^^^ * # • # - H-. ^ r *^ i? ';i' t,^ « ■*. * ■ ,Ar- •» »(I, A HISTORY OF THE ('T,AIM OP AAH-'-RlCAN CITI/F.XS I'O LANDS ON QUADRA'S ISLAND ; TOOKTIIKIl WITH AN ACCOUNT OF TFIE TROUBLES AND TRIBULATIONS i:\nUREl) BETWEEN THE YEARS ISlM AND isrc', BY THE WRITER, }IA[,I, J. KMIJ.KY. n O S T O \ : PRINTED BY THURSTON, TORRY ic EMERSON. I STi'i. ,1, ! N.r 'w \ N A II \l \ T I V K . CHAPTKU I. Tm: coloiii/.ation of Orcf^'on was botli rouccivod and achieved hy inc.* History records, that the stroni;est in(hicenient for tlie iouiuUn^ of the first setth'nient in \ew England, was '• tin* hope of layin kinj^doin of Christ." The hope of acconiplisliiny; th(^ same tliinijj on the other side of tlic "new worhl," diieHy in(hiced the "services and sacrifices" so freely mad(> by me. 'I'liat colonization was an np-hill work, ])erfor!ned in the way and manner stated in my nieniorials of the last thirteen years l.ci'on; Coni;r(\ss. It was performed alone, without a single co- adjutor to ^o with and stand hy me. It retjuired <;reat sacrifices of time and property, and extraordinary personal efforts, on account of the war wai;-cd aii'ainst it, — the o[)- position hy the North-west coast traders and the friends and hirelini's of th(> Hudson I'avC'omiJanv, men interested to thwart mv nio\ements and to crush the nndertakinji;. 'J'houii'h ])owerfully oppui^ned. it was not a litth^ encour- aijcu l)v niniihns hihJ coniniittirs of Ctun/ir.s'f and hv the * S('(' llisi. ol'llic Colfiiii/juinii of Oregon, |i. .'). t Till' linn. I'. Kvcri'it, ( 'li.iiniiMii oT tlic liilnviry Cominittff, was iiislnictf'd 1(1 CDimnuiiicalc to iii'' tluit tli'' i-oimiiittc;' Ii;hI pliiccd at mv (lis|ius;il a s«>t ol'tlif laws iil'tlK' I iiitcil States : ami Mi". Afdu'r, cdiair- iiiaii (if Cnmiiiittci' 111 [•"(iiriirii Atlitirs, was instructed to say, that |)roli(:liuii would be givuu to any st'ltlciiictU wliicli I mifflit in:ikc in Oregon. Pacific N. W. History Dept PROVINCIAL LIBRARY VICTORIA, B. C. i, n Iu'^hIs otsoiiic otthc t'.rrrittin' (h-jntrtnu'tfts ; and my haiuls were stiTiiy a f(>w true-liearted and i»ul»li<- spiiited (iti/ciis. My {>arly eftorts \\( re made known in newspajxTarticleN, lectures, eireulars, pampldets. books, memorials to Con- gress, and in a j^M-neral correspondence with citi/<'ns in all parts of the Union, and with enter|»risino; I'renchnun and (iermans. Xothinu was (oncealed from the public view. Kvery mimitia. eitiier in plan or |)ur[)()se, Avas eNjMJScd to the scrutiny and e.\iK»sition of adversaries. Tlien' werr- otiier objects tliau tbat of malvinnt(Hl the selection and occu|)ancy of a lot of land in the Valley of the Wallamct.* and also the circumstances which de])ri\('d me of a participation hi the abundant harvest of the fields I had sown. I thought it my duty to 5»i)ply for help; and accordingly, in 1831), did * Capt. ^fcck, the ( )rcirnii a^ciit at Wasliiiigtoii, in 1S4N, saiil,tlia the; lands beloiniiiiiz ti> tli<-; tirst sfttlf-Ts were of jfroat value, being of tlio iii'st elidice and of the best f|iuility. Each lot, lie said, might Se reasonably estimated at >'-^(),00(). A lot oi'no inori' than the si/e eonfirmed by the ginernment to each person of that colony, made by me, and ut my expense, would have I)cen worth, long before this, from $'20,000 to $30,000. ■M appl). I then, :is now. iiskcd ii doiiiitioii. in land or nioncN, sntficitiit to sujiply ni<' awhili' >\ith a conqH'- tciK V of liicad, and to candl d('l)ts contracted when jirc- paiinu: *<" tlio cM'cnfion of tliat work of conntiy and linin;init\. 'I'lic fiist petition was presented in tlu; Senate, and reterred to the .s( lect committee on Oregon. It set forth rlie thini::s done and sntiered in colonizinij; Oreiion. and in i)rinuini:f ahont the settlement of llin'h California.* Ac- companying- docnnients snhstaidiated its ;dlei;ations, and v(>riHed every statement. The chairman of the committee hein<;' satisfied of this fa( t. wrote me. in IS-IO. as follows: — "AMien any thinj^ definite is done." (referring to the 'Ok- jj^-on (jiuNtion.*) "yijiir claims will tli<'n j)resent themsehcs. with a jiower not to be resisted. n[»on the moAennuenl ; and slionld 1 rcnniin in Congross, you may depend on, ;it least, my assistam'c." '' I'eelinj; deej) sympathy for your losses, hardships, and afHicticnis, I remain ." I had considered well the nature of the enter[)rise, and foresaw its results, and was inspired with the ho]K' that it Avould in no inconsiderable dciiree contribut<' to the amount of means dixinely used for hastenini^' the s]U'ead of Christianity. Avith civil freedom, over tin' world. J counted the cost, and was ready to make the sacrifiee. In 1824, beyond ])rovidinii' for my household, 1 resohed to d(>vote myself w holly to the enterprise ; and declined every proffer of business, or of silver and gold, which might turn my attention from it. The strength of that resolution was, in 18'}(), brought to a test. In that yettr, I was invited to take the lead of things in Texas ; and was pressed hard to engage in that service, — was offered * It \V!is originally my jmrposr to follow tiu; KCftk-mcrit of Oregon, with tliat of AltaCuliforiiia. I coiil 1 foresee that tin- tide of otnigration to the fonnor, when setting liigh, voulcl break across the Sierra Ne- vadii, and flow into the latter. One of the objects of niv (-irciiitousi route through the city of .Mexico and the Californias, was to make ar- rangements for accomplishing that purpose. See Appendi.x, under the head, Skttlement ov Camfoknia. i if in tlio outset, us roinijciisjition for tli(" Hist year, in hinds imd money, uliat WMs r<|ui\iil('nl to S ■-*<>.'''>• ^ - so con- sidered by on<' ol'tlie directors ot" the society instituted in New York, eni;a the ac(inisition of j)ro])erty my chief aiuj and object, kindred and friends forsook me. ]Iad their advice been closely followed, thiuii's, possibly, Avould have <,n)ne well with me, excepting- the cares and anxieties incidental to th(> possession of wealth, and a constant (piarrel with conscience. Tlu^ enterprise re(piirc>(l me to sacrifice* <;rratly on real estate. 'J'here was a loss of scleral thousand dollars on my estat(> in Milk JJow, Charlestown ; but, much more on other estates. There were four,* which alone, couhl the time have been spared to look after tluMU a few years longer, would lunx* made me wealtliy. They had been purchased in anticipation of imi»rovenu'nts which it was suj)j)osed would much enhance their value. Their worth to me, in 1840 and after, would have been ^.')(),0()() over the amount of their first cost. lIowcAcr, I was in haste, and could not be delayed ; and tlierefore, gave them u]) to cnnlitors aiul brutish men ; the latter fiercely grasping after them, j)artly with a view to im])overish me, and to break down the spirit of enterprise within me. * Oiii! comprised tsvclvc acres of liind ; and is .simate near Craui(;'s Point, ill Cliarlesiowii. It is intersected willi a railroad ; and made the foundation . at 8-000 |ii'r y«',ii', — !i rriisoiKiMi,' ratio, cKiisiilci'iii'^r wlitii I cdiilil liJisr nali/i'il, if in liraitli, at railinaii iiin;iiir('riii^ ...... Fil'li'di years, m|i to IN.VJ, (tlif y(l.'>00 |icr y«;ar I'niilisliin^ ln.uivs iuni iraiMs, wliicli were sjircail alioiit tin; fduntry, <'s|)ccially anniMif iIh' iiiililic. men at \\'asliiiit.rt((n . 'I'ravcllin^' Tor the |ii.i|i()si' ul' Icriuiin^', or latliiT talkinjr, to awaki'n aUniiuin to tlir oltjccts of tin; fntiTprisc, and to en- list scttlrrs ..." r..\|t<'nscs at Wasliinirton, scvrral sessions of Con^M'i'ss, to cnli^litcn coniTrniM^ tlie inlirrsts of iIk; I'niti'il States in Oreuon, and to secnre pnltlie |iatronaly and perilous journey of six thousand miles, niucli of Avhich was made throuj^h a >vilderness, and throuji^h coini- tries infest(>d with bands of savau^e men, — none of the domestic atHictions brought upon me by the enemies of the enter[)rise, — nothini; of this twenty years of terrible persecution. • Imnicdiatelv after th(! Oregon expedition was broken np, tlie amount received for stock and eertifieates was refnlnled, all but the above, which, circumstances rendc-ed inconvenient and improper then to restore. When able, I shall refund thr«m. 1] IJ 8 1 CllAPIEK II. REMARKABLE I'ROVIDKNCKS BKTWRKN THK YEARS IS'.irt AMI 1 835. In early youth, soparatiiii;' from idle ronipaiiioiis, and Icaviiiii' tlio sports and frivolities of boyhood, 1 bei;an to walk alone, and to eonsider on days to come. At tlie a<;e of twelve, it divinely ha]ipeni-d to me, as iie\er before, nor shice; I was then premonished of Avhat Avas to ))<> the manner of my life — an entire depend(Mice on (iod for help to do, in accordance with his will, the thiniis which my hands should tind to do ; and so it came to pass. 1 have been all day, at laborious service in the field, and no felloAV-mortal has Avrought with me ; but many Inne bec^n about, to hind(>r, to vex, and to crush ni(>. The Almighty has sustained me ; and in benevolent enter])rises, and acts of brotherly kindness, has made nn; " strong as a lion and swift as an eagle." The wavs of a riijhteous Providence arc inscrutable to mortals. In all my past career they have seemed i)artic- ularly and wonderfully merciful, yet mysterious. I talk of great achievements, yet am I one of the least of the instrumentalities employed in the spreading of knowledge, and the advancing of the work of the Iledecmer's king- dom. When feeling the strongest, I am made the most sensible of weithicss ; when prond, am made humble. Once, I increased in riches, " grew fat and kicked against the liOrd," and my adxersarics came, and took awat/ mij possessions. Confident in my abilities to declaim and, otherwise, to hold forth before the public on the side of l)hilanthropy ; and, great diffidence came upon me. After some mortifying failures, 1 h^arncd to be silent, was more wise, cared less to make an outside shoie,* and more; to * Since these c'vcnts, T have been unable to converse witliotit stn7n- JHcrini:, or to irritr rradih/, or .-uloni my compositions with the ordinary ombfllislimcnts of rlietoric. I never hail skill at composition; my thoutrhts being always occupied M make faith and woi'Ks my worth. I boj^an to hoast of what my coiiimunications with iiitcUiuciit and public- s[)iiit('d men, and my books and tracts, spread about tho land, were ctt'cctinii^ in tlio tick! of benevolent enterprise, witldioldinff"ect upon me ; and when I in other business. My aspiration has boon, morc^o the att..inmcnt of preeminonc»^ as an architect tiian as a painter. For the business of the former, I tiiink I have been measurably qualified with scit-nce and skill ; while, in that of tiio latter, have been an ordinary performer. My structures have, uniformly, l>e( n well planned, and made of durable materials; but my enemies, takinfj udvantafje of tho homely appearance my brush has given them, liave not a little injured my reputation. Seeking constantly to do me harm, they have ascribed every work of magnificence and utility performed by me, to the skill and industry of persons, who have not had mind enough to plan or execute the least of them. 10 could no loiipxi' 1)1' boi'iie on lioist'back. My strciif^tli had rapidly -vvabtc'd, and at times, I laintctl and fell from the saddle. "While in a thickly ^vooded mountain, it suddenly came on dark, and \\v were oblii^ed to sto]) for tiu^ nii^ht, in the midst of Avoods and thick darkness. Lowering- partly down from the animal, I fell ; the stones and leaves on which I fell composed my bed. In the morning', it was found that some of the horses and jjacked mules had strayed away. We, liowev(^r, proceeded on tMo or three miles, and encamped on an open patch of jj^round. ('a])t. Young-, my conductor,* and the men who had l)een of his Inmting })arty, returned to the mountains to search after the lost animals. This caused a ilclaj/. The five marau- ders who had attached themselves to mv i)artv, two davs after leaving the Bay of San Francisco, remained in camp, and were jocose and profane about the tire. I was uow shaking like an aspen leaf, prostrate and helpless in my tent. The place of this encampment was upon the high land near the sources of the principal rivers watering the two countries, to settle which, I had spent my best days, my fortune, and all my earthly comforts. l)eath appeared inevitable; earth seemed at an end; and the portal of glory, to h < -pening. Conversation in the camp paused ; and nov. ,i\i. angel came to comfort mo — " Cheer up, be iv ^ ;.im,d ; " '• Balm and a physician " arc here ; " God is thy helper, and he will deliver thee." In the solitude; of that wilderness, where none but Indians and hunters had roamed — at tliat still moment, I heard from a short distance, that shrill voice, so often heard in civilized lands — even the ^ oice of a cockerel, a domestic, bird, a chieftain among his race, so wont to celebrate his own triumphs, now loudly crowing, as though exulting in the triumphs of my enterprise, and proclaiming, " Xow it is achieved; now, in this wilderness, is fixed thy abode of civilization ; cond day, tlisinisscd the endemic monster. After two days at that [)lace, I was ahle to stand upon my legs, but, unable to walk. Before leaving the ever-memorable spot where my immortal s])irit had nigh taken its departure from earth, the Captain engaged an Indian chief to take me in a canoe, forty or iifty miles down tlie Umpqiui. At iirst the chief declined, saying, that the upp(>r part of the river was not navigable. Finally, in view of a bountiful reward, he consented to try. In the morning, I was placed on my mule, and borne six miles to the place of embarkation. The chief at one end. his son at the other, and myself sitting upright in the centre of the boat, we lloated swiftly along the current. The hoary-headed chief, with wonderful skill, descended the ra[)ids. Often was he in the foaming stream, holding on to the bow to saAc the boat from pitching or sinking into tlie angry flood. The voyage was made in a day and a hall', and there was much, in that time, to cheer my spirits, and gi^e me strength. The heavens were serene, the air salubrious, and the country on both sides was charming. At the landing, the faithful Indian received of my pro[)erty, a fine horse, sad- dle and bridle, a salmon knife and a scarlet velvi^t sash, and was satisfied. Rondeau, whom the Captain liad ap- pointed to be my attendant and guide, was ready at the 12 bank to conduct me, a few miles distant, to the camp of my new party. I mounted with a httle hel[), and rode off, feeling like a new man. My journeying in that wilderness, was full of interest- ing incidents, and things tm-rible. That nn ad\ersaries in Oregon conspired against my life, is to me clearly evi- dent ; and I have a reasonable suspicion that the feeble health which I have continued to suffer, the last eighteen years, is the effect of poison administered about the time of my departure from that land. The manner they treated m(^ was worse than brutal. It was their capiditif after Quadra's Island which led them on. It was this which gave great energy to their motives ; and made them fierce and resolute in abuse and outrage upon me. The result of hardships and their cruelties, is a nervous a^'ectkm in the head, and physical debilities. Though the body is made feeble, and the head eon/used, yet the heart is pure, and the hands clean, and the spirit within remains inflexible and invincible on the side of truth. Finally, a merciful Providence int(^rposed for me. The Mighty God, who will blast the hopes of my enemies and " bring their lofty looks to the dust," saved me. " Let not man glory in his wisdom, nor the mighty man in his migh*, nor the rich man in his riches, but let him that glorieth, glory in tiiis, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which cx(ucise loving- kuidness, judgment and righteousness in the earth ; for in these things I delight, saith the Lord." 13 CHAPTER 11 r. INSULTS AND ABUSKS A SYSTEM OF UNKIND DEALING IT:cOM»10N AMONG MEN. The ill success attending my aj)pliciition, bof'oic Con- ercss, the lust thivtetni years, for relief, is chieliv attributu- ble to influences working on both sides of the continent, to prevent a just consif' raticm of me itorious services in behalf of my country, and mankind ; and otherwise, to injure me. I have no enemies, it is presumed, in the halls of Con- gress. The illustrious ])erson3, there, have been deceived in like manner with multitudes of other just persons, else- where. It grieves me to see how prejudiced have; become tlie minds of the most candid of my acquaintance. Although the very secrets of my conduct have been before the eyes of the public ; and, I have been uniformly actuated by motives of patriotism and philanthropy ; and, in all my career, have been devoted to the interests of man ; yet, they scom to see nothing to entitle me to their esteem, or to the com- mon sympathies of their nature. Tlierefore, am I mis- judged. Soon after my achievements in Oregon, and return home, the friends and hirelings of the Hudson Bay Company began again to trouble mt;. Doubtless, they were instruct- ed so to do ; and to pursue a more merciless policy to- ward me. Previous to that time, as far back as the public announcement of my purpose to settle Oregon, those men began to fcix...v me about, and to abuse me at I'very turn. Their object, then, was more to break up the enterprise, than to break down its author ; but, after the infant was born, seeing it fair, and fast growing to manhood; and nothing could prevent it, tliey turned furiously upon its sire ; and sought, in (>very way their e> il hearts could de- mise, to destroy, literally, to destroy him. vrr- 14 Tlic company's cupidity ivuchiiig ul'ti'i- the lands bdoii^;- \\v^ to American citizens, on (iuadvus Island, is the oii arrival at Vancou>er, I was sutferinp: bodily debility, for Avhich th(^ best availal)l(> rem- edy would liave b( en nourisiiing food, and moderate rud Iuil)itual exercise in the 0})en air. Nevertheless, I was thrust into the Company's hospital. 1 consented, though unwillingly, and was ke[)t there while a sufficient op- jjortunity was alforded to overhaul my baggage, and to examine its contents. In a trunk made of a wild bull's hide, were deeds, charts, historical accounts, and other pa- pers, showing myself to be in ])ossession of the evidences (if a fjood title in the Americans tn the fairest portions of the island j list tunned ; and also, showing myself to be the attorney/ and advocate of the claimants. Aft(>r the discov- eries in the baggage, measures were inunediately taken by the chief factor of the compain, to prevent intercourse and concert of action between me and mv settlers ; believ- ing, as undoubtedly he did, that to put Kelley o^it of the nuni would render it less difHcult to break up the settle- ment, and to retard emigration ; and to per]x?tuate th(^ Com})any's hold upon the lands belonging to the Ameri- cans. AVherefore, 1 was represented as an impostor, and as slandering the settlers, w lio, becoming incensed against me, threat(>ned, by letter and otherwise, to take m) life. The orders, then, were — d(>stroy him, and destroy the nucleus of the settlement. Martvi'dom seemed inevitable. The orders, afterwards, in this coimtry, were — treat him, at all times, and in all places,* with insult and abuse; fol- * I am greatly injurod in cliaractcr and property, particidarly in Bos- ton and I'almer. Tlic latter is the town of my i)resent residence. Sec pamphlet attached to tiiis book, entitled, '•'' Letters from an alllieted Husband to an estranged Wife." See also, the Appcndi.\lo that pam- phlet, wherein is given a detail of the particulars of " hard usage." • l;-) low him hard up with calumny and outvago ; and break him down, mind and body, — utterly destroy him. Some of those wlio devise my hurt are wealthy mer- chants in our chief cities, participating in tlie profits and loss of the business of the Company. Others are such unprincipled men as favors or portions of the Company's secret fund* (.*5{8()(),()00) can easily induce to act against m(\ '"^ These, all have concerted together, not only to destroy public confidence in my statements, and to conceal the facts supporting the rights of their countrymen on Quadra's * I was toltl, in 18H4, hy tlio-hjecfs of this fund 'vero to turn iVoni the coast, American vessels; and to keep oir (-oinpetition in th<^ Indian trade ; and to prevent settlements heinir made in the " Hudson Bay Company's Ti'rritories ; "' and, otherwise, chmdestinely to l)e used in promoting tlie interests of tlic ('oni[iany. Authors of hooks eoncernin|j jilfairs in ()rey;on, have mentioned tiie same fact. It is stated in the " Te-n Years in Oregon," p. 78, hy l>an- iel Lee, tlial " Tlie Hudson l?ay Com[tany possess a I'und of two million Ntcrlitii;, for the ]uirpose of competing with every vessel that maycomt^ U|)on the coast for trade," and '' to control the destinies of Oregon." It is, also, stated in some puhlicjititHi hy J. K. Townsend, as follows: — •' Travellers, naturalists, and all who are not traders, are kindly and most hospitahly treated ; hut, the moment the visitor is known to trade a heaver-skin from an Indian, that moment he is ejected from the com- nnujity, and all comnuuiiciition hetween him and the oflicers of th(! Company ceases. When Captain Wycth, with his party, arrived at Walla- VValla fort, on his passage down the Columl)ia, he was required by the superintendent to /;ro?? every heaver-skin from the Indians on the route at a price which h(! (Wyeth) coultl not aiford to pay. It is a fact, notorious in that country, that the hononihh^ Company lias a sum of money, aiiioitnl- in^ to screral hundrrd thousand /lonnds sivr/ing, laid asidt; nt Vancou- ver, for the sole |»urpose of op|)osing all who may come to inlrrjeri; with its monopoly, by purcluising at exorbitant prices all the furs in possession of the Indians, and thus forcing the settler to come to terms, or drivint^ him from thr rounlri/. If it he an individual who is thus starved into submission, he then usually clears a piece of land on the VVallammet River, takes an Indian wife, and purchases furs of the natives, which, hy previous contract, he is hound to sell to the Com- pany, at an advance which is fixed hy th(> Covernor." I k; Island, but to (loccivc oiu- national legislators both con- cerning thos(> rights and my individual claims on tlio country. A\'itli htNirts as hard and as cold as the ice of (ircenland, they liave long continued to treat mc more un- civilly than 1 treat my dog, and more unfeelingly than I treat the viper that bites nie. Tliey have brought upon me the greatest of evils ; and, they are the bloody butch- ers of my earthly enjoyments. Taking advantage of my friendless condition, and the merciful forbtnuance manifested towards them ; and also, of the direful misfortunes which they tln'mselves hnve brouglit upase(l to be a virtue ; and it be- hooves mo, sc\(n*ely to rebidve them, and publicly to de- monstrate the reality of the monstrous evils which they have done and are doing me. There are a few, (I know them and their folly,) wliose popularity and positions among their fellow-men gi\e tliem greater influence than ordinarily belongs to slandeiers, the connnon devils* lireathing their pestilential bn^ath upon the conmiunities about me. A word or nod from them is sufficient to blast the character of any powerless and humble individual like myself, however pure and exemplary it may be. These, partly for their friends' sake, I shall spare awhile longer ; ho])ing they will consider on their ways, turn about, and deal justly and mfU'cifuUy with me. * ./(rt-ji./oi,-, sonifMinics translatnd slandornrs. Snn 1 Tim. ("hnp. iii. v«r. ll! i 17 CHAPTER IV. I gray's discoveuy of Tun onF.noN ktvkr. I wrix now ])roroed to sliow by whom, nnd in what ways, the ciuisc of Orcfjon and of Imnianity was oppugned; j)ul)lic confidence in my eharaeter and writinjjjs destroyed ; myself abused and made tlie ^■ictim of books ; my coun- try decei\e(l and made tlie victim of intnj4:ue; and how the pubHc concession of (Quadra's Iskuid,* and other northern parts of Oregon to Great Britain were brought al)out. I do it in vindication of myself. Tiie Oregon (piestion was long ago settled, and I have no desire it should be discussed anew, or tlie public mind be agitated so much as by the mention of it ; but the false-hearted citizeus interfering to deceive the people, and to turn aside from me public justice, remain to be re- proved, and to be })osted, as deserving objects of the scorn and indignation of their countrymen. They were remarkably cunning, and strangely success- ful, in making the public believe, that " our claim" to Ore- gon, only extended to the outlines of the Columbia \ alley ; and rested, only, on "four grounds." They carefully * Tliis island in 1791 and "92, was convoyed by the Indian chiefs to Kendrick, and throiiirli Quadra to tlie king of Spsjin. For tliis reason it was calUnl on Gray Jind Kendrick's charts, and by early American navi^iators, Kendrick and Quadra's Inland. It was first discover(>d by tlie Spaniards, and bt-lore Vancouver was seen on the Pacific side of America, every place on or about that island was examined and named by them, ai;(l, also, most of the; places by Kendrick and CJray. It appears to me, that (Ireenhow, on the Hilst page of his book, " On the North- West Coast," docs the memory of Quadra injustice. It is very doubttul wliether he can furnish better authority than his own for some of his statements in that book. The friends of the Hudson's Ray Comjiany, either to honor Hritish subjec's, or to give plausibility to the pretences made by Great Britain to rights in Oregon, changed the names of all important places on that coast, substituting British instead of Spanish and American. IS kopt out of sifjlit the best of all eoncoivable grounds, tlu)«;(^ showiiiL;- an uiKpUNtionable title to tlie rouiitvy ex- tendiii'' Car north of that vallcv, a stioniic'r claim to tlio teriitoiv north of the forty-ninth parallel, or the line su^- gest(>(l by \\\\\. Stiir^is, VjHi\., of Doston, for the northern boundary* of Oregon, than to any part soutli of that ])arallel. It was contended tliat nothing there had been done, on the ])art of the United States, to ac(juiro a title. ^Mention was scarcely ever made of acts done by Ameri- cans and Spaniards north of the Cohunbia river. Too much im[)ortance was attached to C-ai)t. llobert Gray's discovcn-y of the Oregonf in 179*2, and to John J. Astor's trading establishment at the moutii of that river in ISll ; while the truly meritorious acts of Gray, of Kendrick, and of the Spaniards were considered unim- ])orlant, and were k(>pt back, as though they did not stnnigthen the American claim, and were not the very best evidences of our title. It was inconsistent to ascribe to Capt. Gray the discov- ery of that riv(n- ; for it had been previously discovered, and often entered. Capt. John Mcares, a British subject on that coast in 1788, admits this. He notes in his joiu- nal, — " W(? were i)leascd with the expectation of its being Cape San Hoc of tlie Spaniards, near which they are said to have found a '■'■ iiood port.'' lie again notes, "We can now witli safety assert, that no such river as that of San Hoc exists, as laid down in the Spanish charts.'' * Tliis lino is crooked, and bonds round the southern extremity of Qutidni's Island. It was sug!j;csted by one of tlie strongest advocates of the Hudson Hay Coinpjiny. f Orciion, the Indian name of this river, was traced by me to a large river called Orjnn, in t'hinese Tartary, whose latitude corresponds with that of Or: unn^ in America. The word KilUimncks, the name of a tribe, :i little south of the mouth of the Oregon, was, also, traced to a people called Kilmnc/is, who anciently lived near the mouth of the Orjon in Asia. It is evident the Oregon Kilmucks were among the early settlers of North America, and brought with them many of the proper names used by our Indians The word Mexico (Mecaco) is identified with the name of the ancient capital of Japan. Identifications of both proper and common names are numerous. \^' ' 1!) Capt. Gray, as has been said of him by others, was an cap;lo-(>yed iiavi<;at<)r, and unsurpassed by any of his con- temporaries. Jle entered the river in \1\)'2, and tliere arc circumstances whicli incline me to believe, that Maurelle's chart turned him thither. However, he did his country a ^ood service. The jjublicity f:;iven to the event, excited the attention of our fiovermnent, awakened a spirit of en- terprise am()nlonging to the Spaniards, and of their freciuent \ isits to the same. The yiceroyalty of Mexico, in 1775, fitted out from San nias an expedition consisting of two vessels ; Bruno lleceta being commander of one, and Antonio Manrelle, pilot, of the other, for the purpose of examining the coast ; and, it is believed, to determine on some good po- sition for the establishment of a colony. On the IGtli of August, (St. Roc's day,) the Spaniards entered the Ore- gon, calling it St. Hoc ; and Maurelle laid it down on his chart — the distance of twenty or thirty miles ; probably, as mucli as had been examined. From that to the year '8*2, Spanish vessels often ploughed through the foaming surf to the " good port," but after the last mentioned year, on account of the difficulties of ingress, and of the fre- qu(>nt disasters occurring there, turned from it. Mr. E. II. Butler, at the Sandwich Islands, in 1835, in- formed me of several Spanish shipwrecks at the mouth of that river. He went there in 1808, in the ship Mercury, Ca[)t. G. W. Ayres, and lived with the Cheenook tribe nearly two years. He was convinced, that in the year 1782, a Spanish v(>ssel from Manilla, with a cargo of bees-wax, dollars, &c., was wrecked at the entrance of the river. He, himself, dug from the beach a quantity of both the wax and dollars. The age of the Indian with " sandy hair and light complexion," of whom Lewis and Clarke made mention, enabled him to determine upon the exact time of the disaster. He learnt of two other Spanish ship- wrecks which had occurred two or three years previous. 1 20 \i\ Other facts indicate that the first iiihahitants of tlio Nortii V/cst Coast came from Asia, the coast of Japan, and the Ishnuls in the Chinese Sea. The jiotfrn/ of tlie ^lexiean and Calii'ornian Indians Avas formerly like that of the Ks. AN'lun in J^ower California, I saw females spinnini,'' thread by means of a top, after the ancient manner of the Chinese. But this is not the |)lace for a history of the American abori- gines. I have written somewhat u])on this sid)ject, and much concerninjjr the history of Oregon ; but all I have published has attracted no public attention. I will now in further remarks, relative to the river Oregon, suggest one of the reasons of my ill success. A writer of some distinction in the public journals, and an author of a book of notoriety, both ])articular friends of the Hudson's Bay Company, have gi^en to the public their opinions concerning the word Oregon ; stating immediately after what I had written, which had come to their notice, that it must be derived from Origano, the S[)anish word for sweet nn rjoram, which they igno- rantly supposed grew on the banks of the Columbia ; and, t'lc interesting fact concerning the Killamucks, was wholly l)asscd unnoticed by them ; as was, also, many other items of history from my Indian researches. It was an attempt to impose upon the public the belief that information coming from me, was not reliable ; and was intended to weaken the force of my advocacy of the clainj. of pur citizens to Quadra's Island. This disposition with certain influential men to do me wrong, is one of the things that drives me to undertake the i)resent defence of mv char- acter. 1 I* i 21 CIIAITFJI V. ASTOU S TllAI)IN(i ESTAIIUSIIMENT IN OKLCiON. 1 Tin; liiic John J. Astnr. of Now York, a man of no onlinnry sa^'acity in bnsincss transactions, or>;aniy.(»(l the Pacific I'Hr ('()mj)any, in ISIO, for the i)ur[)os(' of carry- m<^ on the Fnr trade in Orciion. Witli tliis solo ohji 't in view, he estahlisiied a trading post on the sonth side of the estnary of tlie Colnnd)ia, which jjost, to ma<^nify the ini])()rtance of his doin<^s in that territory, has since been called the " Town of Astoria." * No toini bearinfj^ this name over existed in Oregon, save in romance, until after the connnencement of my settlements ; unless two or three toq huts, -with a stockatU^ fence about them, con- stitute a town. I am fre(^ to say, having had opijortuni- ties to know about it, that be did not so much as con- tem[)late a pernument settlcinent or occupancy of the country. Nothing ever indicated his having entertained, for a moijcnt, a thought of that kind. It is true, in 18'2'2, he proposed to invest ,$f2()(),00() hi the building of a town at the mouth of the (.'olumbia, provided the gov- ernment of the I'nited States would establish for his * The innjinifiponce of Astoria, at any period of its prosperity, was not iiiilii{)U were not of a charac- tor to give strength to the American claim to the territory. Thev were all morallv wionij ; in violation of the laws of God — contrary to the j)reoepts of that religion given to the world by Jesus Christ, re(juiring perfect obedience to the divine commands — requiring all men, of what- ever tongue, or tribe, or nation they may be, to live in brotherly kindness with each other — each, to commu- nicate good, and not evil, to his neighbor ; and, the w « n •■ -n ! 24 • f stronger, whether an individual person or a nation, to protect the weaker ; the civilized to enlighten the un- civilized — imparting to all, as circumstances favor, that knowledge of the ways of God, which, more than all other knowledge, dignifies, adorns, and sweetens life. The transactions of the fur dealers, in Oregon, up to the time of the first settlement in the Wallamet Vallev, uniformly tended to demoralize, degrade, and make mis- erable the Indians, and to the extinguishment of that race. They were hostile to the common interests of man- kind. The trappers and hunters beyond the Rocky Mountains, with a few exce[)tions, have evinced a great want of that elevation of character, which, in part, dis- tinguishes the human from the brute species ; and they htive deserved to be driven from the Oregon Territory with the same speed with which they have driven nine- tenths of its unoffending population from the world. Such brutish men are not identified with the heaven-adopted instrumentalities by wliich the " desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose ; " and " the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord." Tlieir history is full of unfair dealings, and unprovoked murders. I cannot be silent, when I call to mind the wrongs and outrages practised by them, upon their fellow- men. Should my pen ever gain sufficient ability for the task, histc^ry shall not belie the oppressed people driven out from that goodly land. i i 25 CHArXER VI. CnOlTNDS OF THE AMERICAN CLAIM TO OREGON OVERLOOKED. ^'> Sincerely do T regret to recount events in the history of Oregon, which once so mucli disturbed the pubHc mind, but arc now put away, to be thonglit of and to trouble no more. I repeat it — the defence of my charac- ter and rights, ;nid also, the vindication of the rights of countiTmen claiming protection of the go\err'nent in regaining their property on Quadra s Island, require me to do it. The re-discovery of the Oregon, and Aster's trading establishment at that river, have been sufficiently con- sidered ; and now, as to the acts of the Spaniards in that quarter. The Spaniards, before any other civilized people, dis- covered and examined every part of the northwest coast ; and commenced the colonization of Quadra's Island. Francisco Guall(>, in 1584, I>orenzo Ferrez de Maldonado, in 1588, made discoveries. Juan de Fuca, pilot of the vessel in which lie sailed, entered the straits b(^aring his name. Sebastian Viziaino, in 1(502, Admiral Fonte, in KUO, made discoveries and examinations as far north as the ()()th parallel, entering rivers, straits, and bays ; and taking possession of the country in the name of their sovereign. In 1774, Juan Perez was sent from San Bias with two public vessels to explore the whole coast, in view of its annexation to the Spanish dominions. He examined Nootka Soitnd^ which he called San liorenzo ; and entered the Straits of Fuca ; and traded with the nati\ es, paying them in exchange for furs, as is inferrible from a. 'jounts of subsequent English and American vov- agers, clothing, iron, articles of silver, brass, »S:c. In the following year, Ileceta, from San Bias, made the expe- dition in which was discovered the Oregon lliver. Owing partly, perhaps, to the wars between Spain and 4 I 26 Franco, and tlio United States and Great Britain, but few voya<;es from lllo to 17«"^S were made far up the coast; and those few, to pre\ cut competition in trade, were care- fully concealed from other nations. 'J'here wore, however, voyages in tlioso years, particularly to the Oregon River; as is evident from the shipwrecks, spoken of by Ikitlor, as having occurred at the entrance of that river, — the last, in 1782. After those teriiblo disasters, in which were lost vessels and crews, the Spaniards may have be- come discouraged, and resolved never again to risk prop- erty, or to ])eril life, at that seemingly forbidden spot of N'^ptune's dominions. In ITiSS, learning that the Ilussians wore preparing to form settlements on the coast, south of their establish- ment at /odiak near the GOth ])arallel, the Viceroy of Mexico dispatched Estovan Jose ]SIartinez with two pub- lic vessels to inipuro into their movements, and to prevent the threatened encroachment upon Spanish rights. ISIar- tinez, immediately after his return, Avas ordered to proceed with the same vessels to Nootka Sound ; and, there, to take possession of the country in the name of his Catholic Majesty, and to commence occupancy. lie sails amply ])rovide(l with men, cattle, agricultural stores, &c. »K:c., and was accompanied with three ^Missionaries,* who were * Those Franciscan padres were iloiabtless sincere men ; and hoped to improve the cliaracter and condition of tlie Indians ; but I am not one to believe timt any good was ever aecomplislied, in behalf of civilization, by papal missionaries. In my apprehension, they are not the best qiialilied of (inspel heralds to lead in the high and dignified work of civilizing savage men. It would seem, their faith is too weak and too defective ; and they are altogether too antichristian for that holy calling. Being so, and standing in th(^ relation they do to Jesus Christ, they can understand but little of that system of morality, so perfect, and so transcendendy excellent, given to the world, by tlie compass!ona"e Redeemer, for the happiness and glory of mankind. It was a (lark period in the history of S|)ain and Mexico, when those missionaries acciimpanied Martinez to the northwest coast. They knew nothing, as they ought, of the nature and power of Christianity, then soon mightily to exert its energies among heathen people — to com- mence a more rapid march to im[)rove and beautify the moral world. Indians are Indians still, while their teachers and c.\amplers are in *;» 27 to load in tho civilization of the Indians. IIo arrives at the place of destination, on the (kli of May, 1789, and laid the foundation of a roloni/. r sliall (lei'er for some other chapter the account of the settlement, at tliat time commenced ; and will close this, l)y mi\in<4- some of tlw e\iJenees of early Spanisli voya<^es. British and other navies amonij^ the islands between latitudes 54 and 5() X. — " beiuii; <^iiided by a Ljood narrative of Juan ^lartine::, 2)ifot niaf/or, a very old man of much experience." Juan de Fuca represents himself as luninjif been pilot. and not chief otHcer in the voy.iji'e in which the straits of his name were disco\ered ; and, also, '"■ ptrerionsitj, a pilot of three vessels, sent from Mexico arm(>d with 100 men to discover the Straits of Anian." I'uca was one of the unfortunate crew of the shi[) Santa Anna, which Caven- dish, in 1 ")8"I, burnt, after i)lunderino worth half a million of dollars. That pilot was in the marine ser\ ice of Spain forty years. •^1 darkness, nnd [hmtoivo not tlm tliiiiirs of Clirist's kingdom, and arc ictioraiit of human rights — ohuy nut the precepts of the (rospcl ; and honor and worship the cartlily mother, more than tl>e lieavenly Fatlier of the Lord Jesus. Sixtv years ago, tliere was a hetter excuse for tlie ignorance of Spaniards, in hi)th earthly and sjiiritual things, than now. Then, tho light of heav(Mi did hut dimly shine ; and the government of (Christ, and the fimilani'Milal pi'inciples (tf civil and religions freedom, were less understocKJ and appreciated. Then, knowh'dgr iiad made hut slow advance in Spanisli America, and in the papal and infidel parts of the world. The light, now coming with such hright radiance from heaven to earth, had tlien Sv-arcely hegan to shine npon the moral desolation, continuing to spread with its darkest as|)ect over those nations, pre- tending, more than others, to civilization ; and lo a knowledge of the Creator, and of temporal and I'tfu'ual things. I shall indulge in further remarks relative to the intcux'sling and heart-felt suhjecl of Christianity, under the head of liclleclions, suh- pended to Chap. VIII. 2S , » Martinez was pilot in 1774 ; and ^Maurcllo pilot in 1775 ; both to hiii'li latitud(>s. The very fact of a per- son's beiniy pik)t, supposes his liavinjj: been on the coast previous to the tim(^ mentioned of acting; in tliis capacity. The three sliipwrecks, at the entrance of the Cohunbia lliver, Avere tSpanish public ressris, known to be such from the identity of the costume of the officers, and the articles of the cargoes. ('a[)t. Dixon, in 1787, ucnv the 56th degree of latitude, notes in his journal, that '• An old Indian i>ave them to understand, that a i^ood while ago, two vessels had been at anchor at that pl.ice ; and tliat they carried a great nvmd)er of guns. The old uian showed a white shirt, which was found to be made after the Simuish fashion. An Indian chief was noticed to have on a scarlet cloak, with old fringe about the shoul- ders."' Dixon supposed '• this and some other showy articles, once belonged to some Spanish Don.'' Ca])t. Portlock, associated with Dixon, expresses his disappointment while searching after the island of St. Maria la Costa, laid down -on old Spanish rhck of an Indiiui chief," which he thought were from Mcwint. These are the vnijmje.s and evidences of voyages, by Spaniards, to the shores of Oregon. They were all na- tional, made with a view to discoveries and explorations, and to preparations for colonizing that country. ■i - y 29 pilot in ■ a per- 10 coast i»[)acity. )liimbia )e such nul the icar the ^t '-An d -while :-c ; and )ld iiiau le after deed to [> shoul- showy sses his I of St. ^•" then es about )u ; and to the )eaks of • spoons hich he iges, by all na- )rations, ■S ' nUITISH VOYACSF.S CHAPTER VII. ACTS OF CAPTAIN MEARES ON THE COAST' '•NOOTKA SOUND DIFFICULTY PRETENDED LAND PURCHASE. Capt. Cook, early in the year 1778, touched at Xootka ; wlu^re, havino^ traded with the Indians, and made some repairs of his vessel, de[)arted. Tins was th(^ first voyage to the coast of Oregon, by a ]h'itish subject ; and in this, there were neithcn- discov(nies nor explorations, south of the GOth degree north latitude. Between the years 1787 and 1789, captains Duncan, Dixon, Portlock, ]Mcares, and some others, made voyages. Most of them were from the l^ast Indies, in the East India Company's vessels ; or, from Macao, under Portu- guese colors — all for the sole purpose of collecting furs. The only British voyages worthy of consideration, in this book, were those made by a Portuguese company, at Macao, in which John Meares, a lieutenant in the British navy, on half pay, was concerned. As these afforded the British nation a pretext, though an unreasonable one, for a difftcuHij with Spain, they deserve particular notice. The Portuguese company, composed of Cavallo and others, fitted out two expeditions to the coast. I shall detail, somewhat minutely, the circumstances of each, in order the more clearly to explain the Nootka Sound difficulty, so called, Avhich resulted in what is also called, the Nootka Convention ; and to show how destitute of importance or interest to Great Britain were any of the > oyages made by her subjects ; and hoAv groundless was her claim to any part of the territory of Oregon. Both expeditions were from ISIacao, a Portuguese port ; and by a Portuguese company. The vessels of both had Portuguese captains, and Portuguese and ('hinese crews; and had papers, only, in th(^ Portuguese language ; and sailed under the flag of Portugal ; so that tliere was Ml 30 m m nothing English abont thorn, sa>o tlic porsons of houten- ants J. Moan^s and J. Cohiotl, t\\v roiinnandcrs. In the first, yvvYv vn\\)\o\cd tlic two vessels, I'ehco and Iplii- genia, wliieh siiik'd early in 17SS. Meares, apjiointed to the eonnnand, arri\ed in the l'"elice, at Xootka, in May, where, having obtained of Macininna. the chief, the xse of a fi'ir sqnuri' i/ttnis of (/rnntiil, in friendly love, he erected a temporary bnihUng or hut, and ])ut up a vessel of forty tons. 'J'he building or shanty (the latter a mod- ern and better name) was for the safety of stores and the shelter of workmen. Having made these arrangements, he sailed on a cruise southward ; and tiaded with the Indians in t'lyoquot Bay, and on each side of tiie en- trance of l)e Fuca's straits ; but did not enter that sea. He i)roceeded southward as far as the river San l{oc, (on Maurelle's chart before him.) whi{ h, also, he did not enter ; nor did he care to go into llu' " good ])ort " of the Si)aniards. Tliere were strong indications of some estu- ary, or bay, or other indentation of the shore, worthy examination ; and he was assured of the existence of some hirire river. But, for some reason known best to himself, perhaps a want of contidence in his own skill as a navigator, he was induced to tack about shi[), and leave tluit fearful and foaming surf, and that wild roar of iloods, for the more (piiet and parljic shores further north. He called the opening. Deception Bai/ ; and the high rock, on tlie northern side, C r^ [% m m y 31 ci rortugucso coiiipaiiy, Ins romitryman, Portlock, Avho could lia\o had no possible motive to nusrc|)ros(>iit the fact, and \vho sailed iVoiii Macao a short time before ^I(>ares. testifies in his journal, that Meares had engaged in a Porfnt/iicsc 1:1 pcdltioii. In the other ex))edition, besides the two vessels on the coast, uere t^^(» other M'ssels, tlu> J'rince lloyal and the Argonaut, uhich sailed in April, ll^i), -James Colnett, also a lieutenant in the Urltish navy, on half ])ay, being- appointed to connnand. A\'hile Colnett. in the Argonaut, was on his way to Xootka, the Iphigenia and Northwest America ])ut into that place in distress. Six days after- wards, conuno(U)re j\Iartim>z arrived with his squadron, and immediately informed the ofHcers of the Portuguese vessels, and of the American ship Columbia, that he had come to take possession for the kinf/ of Spain, and re- quested to see the })apers of each vessel, and to know why they were in Nootka Sound ; alleging, that the country b<;lon annonnced it to be his object, in coniin<;. to take jiossession of that phice. Say tliey, " Cohn^tt informed the Spanish commandant, tliat he had come to hoist the JJritish tiaij^, take formal possession; — and was answered, tliat ])ossession had been taken, already, in the name of liis Catholic Majesty. Colnctt asked, if he wonhl l)e prevented from bnilding a house, in tlie port. The answer was, he could er(>ct a tent, ^et wood and water, and then would be at liberty to depart. A^ain, he wanted to know, if he would be ])crmitted to build a block-house, and fort, and settle a colonv for the crown of Great liritain The commandant answ(n*ed, No ; to do that, would violate the orders of his king ; and, it would be relinciuishing the Sjianlard's claim to the coast ; besides, the vessels did not belong to the king of Eng- land ; nor was he (Colnett) intrusted with powers to transact such public business." Colnett now drew and brandished his sword, and threatened the Spanish officer on board his own ship, in his own castle. The Argonaut was then ordered to be seized * The sloop, I'rince lloyal, soon after this event, came into port, the second time, and she, also, was taken into possession.f In my way of thinking, Commodore Martinez acted in support of the honor and rights of his nation. The vessels had come into a Si)anish harbor with intentions to invade. Insults had been offered the Spanish flag ; and a bold attempt made to break up the settlement just commenced at Nootka — a manifest violation of the rights of Spain. * ^ Howoll, R. Gray, anri J. Ingraham, were eye witnesses to the seizures Their statements are among Ingraham's papers in the national archives, at Washington. t Tlie ofTicers and crews were treated with kindness. The cargoes were given up at the times of the seizures; and the vessels themselves were finally restored : nevertheless, the difficulty nigh involved the two nations in a war; and, it cost Spain over $1,000,0U0. :/ ■^. •>•> 9 .1 i Thoso arc all the Icadinfj^ farts rclativo to tho seizures of tlic l*oi'tuditi(ni of no interest to th« British nation. To give it, then, national importance, some nohle lord may have recpicsted Meares — most likely did, to represent to tho House of Commons, that, besides the vessels taken from him by the Spaniards, he was dispossessed of hnids which he, a British subject, had purchased of Indian chiefs.* This would better meet the policy of his nation ; and some considerable advantage might be made to accrue to her. She would have, at least, a plausible pretext for exacting the desired indemnity ; and for dictating to Spain the conditions of a treaty which she, doubtless, hoped would vest her with rights of domain on that side of America. Meares, therefore, asserted claims, at London, not thought of at Macao. The memorial states as follows ; — " Your memorialist, immediately on his arrival at Xootka, purchased from Maquinna, the chief, a spot of ground, whereon he built a house for his occasional residence, as well as for the more convenient pursuit of his trade with the natives." # # * # n That during the absence of your memo- rialist from Nootka Sound, he obtained from Wicka- ninick, the chief of tlie district, situate in latitudes 48 and 49 degrees, in consequence of considerable presents, the promise of a free and exclusive trade with the natives of tlie district." * * * * « That he purchased of Tatooche, the chief of the country bordering on the m-A • See Hist. N. W. Coast, p. 113, by R. Greenhow. ■t ^,.J^^;: ¥^^ ■>;'/^1 34 Straits of Juan De l-'iicn, ii tmct of land within said Straits." The ninnorinllst iuhnits, that tlic Spaniards " built batteries, storehouses, — " and that tiiey declared tlio country to helouL; to his Catholic Majesty, and took formal possession of tlie same; and •• i)ert'ormcd such ceifuionies, as are usnal on sucli oceasious." The journal of Meares' voyaj^c is silent as to the purchase of lands ; and tliere is positive and clear evi- dence, that lu! purchased no lands, and obtained no %(iexclusive ])rivilefj;es of trade with the natives — did nothing of that kind on the coast. lie, uiulotibtedly, at the time of puttini; up the scliooner, in Friendly Cove, had a perfect ri<;lit to purchase lands of those Indians ; it being prior to the commencement of the occupancy of the territory by the Spaniards. Tlie first thing, after Vancouver's arrival at Xootka, in 1792, to act with Quadra in carrying into effect the Nootka treaty, was to ascertain what lands and huildhiffs belonged to British subjects "in May, 178!)." Inquiries were made of Cai)tains Gray and Ingraham, and other Americans, and of Douglass, a Portuguese, the ca[)tain of the captured Iphigenia, an acquaintance of Meares; and, also, of the Indians themselves. Their answers were uniformly and distinctly, that no lands had ever been purchased by Meares. It is stated by Gray and Ingraham, in their reply to Quadra, that, Maquinna, executed a 'iced, conveying to the king of Spain, lands, and accompanied the same with a declaration, that he had sold no brad to Mr. Meares, or io any other person except Captain John Kendrick. This deed and declaration was witnessed by ]Mr. Howell and Captain Magee. It is further stated by Gray and Ingraham — " You wish to know what house or establishment Mr. ^Meares had at the time of the arrival of the Spaniards. We answer, in a word, none. On the arrival of the Columbia, in the year 1788, there was a house, or rather a hut, consisting of rough posts covered with boards, made by the Indians ; but this, Captain Douglass pulled down prior to his sailing 4 4B' 86 for the Snndwich Islands tho same year. The boardi ho took on the Iphif^eiiia, and tlie root' ho ^iwv to Cap- tain Kendiick for firewood, on hoard the Cohunbia; so that, on the arrival of Don E. J. Martinez, there was :.o vesti«;e of a lionse remaininpj." 'J'he commissionei*8, therefore, findinf>: that no Ihitish subject had ever pos- sessed " lauds or l)uildin<)s at or near Xootka," could restore none, as required in the first article of the tr(\"itv. ■.'i*\ 'iWl ^ »■>'"' CHAPTER VIII. * ATTEMPT or SPAIN TO COLONIZE THE NORTHERN PART OF OREGON — UNIIEA'^ONABLK INTERFEKENCE OF OUEAT BRITAIN THE AMERICAN CLAIM NORTH OF THE 49tH PARALLEL. The Spaniards, by order of the Viceroyalty of Mexico, in 1789, took possession of the northwest coast Avith a view to its colonization. Commodore Martinez arrived, as stated on the 27th page, with two war vessels, the Princessa and vSan Carlos, having tlirie Missionaries to propagate Christianity among the natives. Immediately on his arrival at Xootka Sound, he laid the foundation of a tc»vn, on the western bank of Friendly Cove, which is on the southern side of Kendrick's (Nuchatlet) Island, forming the sound. Dwelling-houses, stores, a church, and otlier edifices were erected ; and a fort was built on Uquatlc Island, a short distance easterly of the town. Farmers, mechanics, and the padr(>s were active at their respective callings ; and much was done, in a little time, to prejiare for bringing that portion of Oregon under such improvements, physical and moral, as that people were, then, capable of making. The affairs of the colony went on prosperously for eight months ; when, Martinez received orders to gather up its elements, and return to Mexico. This movement ;,.«lf/- 'TiH'^-:^4y ;.'■»>. ..t. %h^.'X. fr. ili ■ill' 4«iT >1 ■" * * ^'4^ 36 ffas owing to the difficulty which had grown out of the seizure of the Portuguese vessels. ' In th(> spring of WM), Don Francisco Elisa, with more Vessels, a greater number of settlers, and an increased amount of (effects, resumed the settlements. The village, in Friendly Cove, was extended ; and the people were again busily t'mpljyed in farming, mechanical and trading industry. Another settlement was now commenced ; that at Nittenat, iv the entrancp of ])e Fuca's Straits. Capt. Ingraham, in his journal, July iJO, 1792, speaks concern- ing tliem — "I accompanied Capt. llaro (Spanish officer) to view the place which was recently a wilderness ; but, now, a garden. The village consists of sixteen dwelling- houses, several store-houses, a bake-house, a hospital, &c. I saw cattle, sheep, hogs, Sec. Haro informed me, they had three frigates and two schooners. The day before our arrival, a frigate of forty guns sailed for San Bias, taking away a part of the men and stock of the set- tlenients. One of the frigates was stationed at the set- tlement, in the straits ; and another, with the two schooners, was em])loyed in making examinations of the coast. He remarked, the}' expected shortly to evacuate the country.' The " Nootka difficulty," at this date, having assumed a threatening aspect, discouraged the Spaniards in their enterprise, and they began to think of giving it up. The colony had been planted in a fruitful soil ; and, for a while, it was tlirifty ; but, all at once, i'u b^gan to decay, and to appear, as under the withering effects of violence. It continued, liowever, gradually declining, until March, 17J)5, when it was found dead, root and branch. Early in the spring of 1792, Juan Francisco de la Bodega Y. Quadra was sent to Nootka to succeed Elisa in the government of the colony ; and, at the same time, to act with the Britisl. commissioner, A'ancouver, under the convf^ntion ])roviding for the settlement of thq, troubles which the false statements, in IMeares' memorial, had caused between the British and Spanish courts. He ^ ;!^ m-fi'v&^'Wi 37 left in the fall of the same year ; and was succeeded by Salvador Fidalj^o, who commanded one of the sliips of the squadron which arrived in the sprincf of 1790. Quadra, before his departure, received for his h'mg^ as stated in a fonner chapter, a convei/ance by deed of a part of Maquinna's territory ; in whicli deed, was a derlaratton that no lands had been sold to any person excepting to Copt. John Kendrick, who was acknowledged to be jor'?- jirietor of lands about Nootka. The deed and declaration were witnessed by C'a])t. j\Iag'e(^ and Mr. Howell. (See Ingraham's papers, in the national archives.) 1'he commandant, Fi(hd<;o, continued until the begin- ning of 171)4, wh(>n the settlements were placed under the care of Colonial Alava. 'J'he king ot" Spain, finally, determined to discontinue those attem[)ts to colonize, which the cupidity of the government and subjects of Great Britain had rendered so difficult. The S])aniaids, th(>refore, obedient to the royal command, in ^larch, l79o, collected their efiects and forces, and departed from that portion of the Spanish domain. Concerning the settlement at Nootka, the late John R. Jewett, who left that i)lace, in IhOiJ, after being three years in captivity among those Indians, says, in his nar- rative — " The foundations of ♦^he church and the gov- ernor's house are still to be seen ; and the European plants continue to be self-propagated." The commissioners, .Quadra an ^ A'ancouver, found no lands or buildings Avhich had ever been possessed by Britis/i subjects, to be restored ; but they found lands, extensive tracts of lands which had been purchased by Kendrick ; and a tract, perhaps, the balance of Maquin- na's t(>rritory, which had been //ranted to the King of ' Spain. No ])art '• of the coast, or its adjacent islands," were surrendered to Great Britain; because, none be- longed to that nation. Nothing was restored; and, noth- ing was surrendered. They agreed to report to their respective governments, and av/ait further orders. .Subsequent to Vancouver's report, Mr. Fox, in Parlia- 4 % » ,:^S-y'r ■*■?*>>;? ;i ersv. In all mv iii'iuiries, I have not vet discovered the least claim possessed by (iiroat Ih'itain, previous to 184(), to any part of the northwest coast. Previous to the occur- rences, at Nootka, conceining the Portuguese vessels, she p; rtended to none ; and had, more than once, in her iva/i'ractions with Spain, admitted the fact of having none. i y <'i^4f^ t *t ^ ?#v' 'k' 40 After those occurrences, it is believed, she thought to get up something through the "said Mcares," on which to ground some claim, but wholly failed to accomplish the object. The Spanish claim to Oregon was not weakened by the Nootka treaty. There was, as I conceive, no call for that treaty — no occasion for the national misunder- standing whicli it settled. Spain acknowledged in it, no rights as belonging to Great Britain ; nor surrendered rights of her own ; but, she was threatened with the horrors of a war ; and yielded to the dictations of Eng- land, as a weak man sometimes yields to the unreasonable dictations of a strong one. I will' cite from liib : n instance showing public opinion as to the national antagc to be derived from a ffranf of Indian territory, such as was made to Spain by the Indians of Quadra's Island ; or from purchases, such as were made by lyendrick. Tlie East India Company obtained from Indian princes certain grants of land. A question being raised as to tlie company's right to hold, a petition was presented to the king, which was referred to the attorney and solicitor-general, which report laid down the following principles : — •' In respect to such places as have been acquired hy purchase or gra fit, youv Majesty's letters patent are not necessary. The propertt/ of the soil is vested in the company subject only to your Majesty's right of sovereignty."* English history furnishes other precedents recognising the national right, which, under some circumstances, is acquired by purchases oi grants of Indian lands. Captain Kendrick, in his letter to Mr. Jefferson, in 1793, supposed that his purchases vested the United States with a right to sovereignty ; and so undoubtedly it would, had not Spain, by her public acts, already acquired that right. The validity of the Kendrick })urchases, was explicitly admitted in tlic Nootka treaty ; the first article of which reads as follows : — '' The buildings and tracts of land, at and near Nootka, of which the subjects of his Britannic I t ' * Bolt's History, App. Vol. I. ^i' 41 a Majesty wore dispossessed by Spanish officers, shall be restored to the said Britisli subjects." The hxnds which the Ih'itisli subject ^Icares pretended to ])ossess, re i)ortions of tlie identical lands purchased by K(Muhi(k. It', then, ^leares had a right to ])urchase, Keiuhick had a right : and a better one too ; because, he and other Americans had niad(^ discoveries and explor- ations on tliat coast ; and had taken ])ossession of the purcliased territory in the name of their country ; and had biult forts on the same ; and had kept up for years, a friendly trading intercourse with the natives. The first article of that treaty, also, clearly recognises the principle of right in individuals to purchase in their own name, lands of independent Indian tribes. Fhudly, without fear of contradiction I say it, the Kendrick ])urchases were more available in strengthening our country's claims to Oregon, than any other acts per- formed by our citizens in that territory. The principal fiicts concerning those purchases have been collected by me, and were intended to constitute the 9th and lOth chapters of this book ; but they are here omitted, for the reason, a committee in the Senate of the United States, I am told, have prepared a report upon that long deferred claim ; and will soon, I am also told, furnish the public with a full history of it, — undoubtedly more complete and lucid than is possible for my feeble pen to do. I am glad the petitioners, at length, have so fair a prospect of coming into po>^session of their rich paternal inheritance ; for, while some of them are widows and orphans, others are active and useful men, deservedly classed among the most worthy of our citizens. 4 6 42 CHAPTER IX. i ^ ifil ir ! PUBLIC MEN DECEIVED CONCERNING THE AMERICAN CLAIMS, PUBLIC AND PRIVATE, TO OREGON; THE CHIEF PIONEER IN EFFECTING THE SETTLEMENT OF THE POSSESSIONS OF THE UNITED STATES, IN THE FAR WEST, PERSECUTED. On tlio preceding pages are given, in detail, the leading facts within my knowledge, relative to the nature of our claims to the north-eastern shores of the Paciiic ; and are described in my broken and plain-spoken way, with- out poetry or imagery or rhetorical flourish, the adroit acts of Spaniards and Americans, on and about Quadra's Island. It now becomes my painful duty to describe the artful and treacherous acts of Englishmen and of my own countrymc^n, performed on the Atlantic, as well as the Pacific shores. The first acts consummated the American claims. The last concealed their best evidences from tlie public view. The treaty-making power being deceived, acted with too little understanding in settling, in 1846, with Great Britain, the question of titlo to that territory. The illus- trious members composing both branches of the national assembly, doubtless, sought to promote the interests of the people ; but they reposed too much confidence in the individuals, public and private, who volunteered to lead in the investigations. I hope it is no hazard thus freely to express my senti- ments. They arc the honest sentiments of a free-hearted and oppressed son of American freedom. Though it should cost me the last remaining comforts of life, I shall express them. Risk Avhat it may, I shall brave it. I must bear it. Resolved to be true to conscience and to the cause of humanity, while God spares me, I shall continue in my place — shall fight manfully, wherever divinely directed — be it where it may — be it "in the fore-front of the hottest battle." A. a T i^ up •J i 43 The late John Q Adains, once remarked, in a debate, tliat lie was ii;noiant uj)on the subject ; and relied for in- formation on those who were givin*^ particular attention to the (question. So Senator Benton, if recollection ser\es me correctly, (I have a voucher, though not at liand.) >irtually said in some ap[)ropriate remarks con- cerning the treachery of the author of the book Avhich had been specially prepared for the Senate, that Congress was decei\ed by him on whom reliance had been made for correct information. A zealous and ever-busy advocate of the Hudson Bay Company, a priAate citizen, says, in a certain lecture, printed in Boston, and widely diftiised over the country, in substance, the same thing ; that many in Congress were ignorant of the real merits of the ciuestion. Among my notes is an extract appearing to be taken from that lecture. I will venture to give it as being cor- rect ; — "I have thus," said the lecturer, " endeavored to give you the material facts, in relation to our claim to territory west of the Rocky Mountains, and to the pre- sent state of tlie dispute with Great Britain, in relation to it. There is, evidently, a lamentable ignorance upon the subject, both among those who call loudly for action, and those whose position gives them the poAver to act ; and it seems to me, that many, both in and out of Congress, "who are most clamorous for taking immediate possession of the wliole territory of Oregon, know little, if any thing, of the real merits of the (luestion." The whole territory. He would not, by any means, have the com- pany dispossessed of Quadra s Island. How artful ! How thick the moral darkness covering the ])lans and purpose s of the com[)any I How entirely concealed by that lecturer were the best grounds of " our claim " to Oregon ! From a personal acquaintance with the lecturer, I am persuaded he was not of those who know but " little." It apj)earcd to me, he knew much of tlie " merits of the question ; " and was exceedingly anxious to keep out of sight all the " material facts." He was the leading op- *./: wm m 44 e can to ])erpetuate the hold of the company upon the territory north of the line, (unreasonably crooked,) suggested by him, as being proper for the northern limit of " our claim." The public were told, and made to believe, that there were " four grounds " sustaining the claim ; and, that they were all south, and none, north of the 49th parallel. One of them, Astor's doings on the banks of the Colum- bia, really weakened the claim. The very naming of them, as grounds, was an imposition upon the wisdom of Congress. J^othing was said in the lecture concernmg the attempts of Spain, to colonize north of the 49th par- allel ; and nothing concerning the land conveyances to his Catholic ^lajesty, and to American citizens, things wliich gave title, if any transections between those civil- ized and savage men, could do it. Furthermore, that lecturer, the earliest and ablest ad- vocate of the company, that fluent talker, talked much, before and after my visit to Oregon, talked unreasonably about that country, the enterjjrise, and the benefits wliich I had predicted would accrue to mankind. I will now notice other men, whose mouths, for many years, have been full of evil-speaking ; and hearts, of deceit and intrigue. If I can prevent it, those friends of the company, and servants of the devil, shall no longer deceive public men ; nor persecute him whom they ha\e made to suffer most terrible evils for the country's sake. With the worst of objects in view, scores of lying tongues and pens have been employed during the last twenty years, to circulate falsehoods among my friends and acquaintance ; and in the ears of public men. At first, much Avas said about the " cold and barren " coun- try beyond the llocky Mountains, and of difficulties in going to it — about savage Indians and disasters happen- I • 45 ^ ing to hunters. INlisroprcsontations of this kind Avcrc iVo([n(.'nt, piirticuhirly in those parts ■where emigration ■was likelv to set the stronij-est. After this manner, the coh)ni/ation of Oregon was retartk'd mitil after the offi- cers and servants of the Hudson Bay Com})any had sek>eted the best tracts of kind, and the best farming positions ; and Quadra's Island had been conceded, in tlie treaty of 184G, to Great Britain. After tliosc events, the settk'ments ■were k'ft to increase and prosper ; but myself to be made the subject of horrible persecution. Great injustice has been done me, and is doing me in misrepresentations, by multitudes of interested individu- als, and in the reports of certain public officers, and in books giving historical accounts of Oregon. These men and authors, duty requires me to notice with severe, though just animadversions ; because, they have deceived and treacherously treated the government of the United States, and disregarded the interests of the people ; and because, they have seized the opportunity afforded by the misfor- tunes brought upon me, partly, through means of their own, to bind, hand and foot, and send me into exile, and to blot out my name from the catalogue of the faithful. Their revenge thirsted for blood, therefore, have they con- tinued with hounds and bidl-dogs to follow close after the faint and wearied victim of their cruelty. The men whose conduct first deserve censure from my pen, are the late Jason Lee, and the living ])aniel Lee, the first missionaries whom the New England conference of the Metliodist ]"ipiscopal church ordained and sent to the Indians in Oregon. They arrived in that territory in l!S;54, a few da}s previous to myself. Their mission was the first west of the llocky Mountains. That it Avas founded througli my instrumentality, will be seen by the afHdavit of "William C. Brown, Esq., who, for many years, was the editor of /ion's Herald, the leading paper of the Methodist community in New England. He testifies as follows: — "I published for Mr. Kelley a series of letters, addressed to a member of Congress, developing fully his plans for settling the Oregon territory, and also the true ■ • Ty wi - 46 I principles and objects of colonization, as he understands them. " At other times, Mr. Kelley made philanthropic ap- peals to the public, throu<>h the medium of our ])aper, chiefiv, with tlie view to excite the minds of the ('hristian community to the importance of foundinja: religious insti- tutions in that territory. " Perhaps to his zeal and persevering efforts, is the re- ligious community chiefly indebted for their missionary establishments in that countrv." I had a personal accpiaintance with Jason Lee, the uncle of Daniel, and had particularly a knowledge of the plans and operations of both, during the short period of their acting the part of ambassadors of Christ. Experi- ence and observation, and what I have read in the book of nature, concerning them, qualify me to judge as to the consistency of their course of conduct, while missionaries. Mr. llobinson and his church declared, that, one of the reasons of their coming to America, was, the extension of the Redeemer's kingdom ; but, there was nothing dis- coverable, in the disposition and strange conduct of the Lees, indicating this to be one of the inducements which led them to that distant field of missionary enterprise. To learn tlie particular circumstances of their mission, see History of the Colonization of the Oregon Territory, under the head of Origin of the Colonizing oettlements. Those men, like numerous others of the friends of the Hudson 15ay Company, have mocked me. In all they have said and written, relative to Oregon, they have in. jured me. Wliilo it casts no reproach upon Christianity, it argues a high degree of individual depravity, that, a professed disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ persecutes an unoffending fellow-mortal, one striving hard to be emi- nently instrumental in doing good to his sinful race. The following is found in the report of Lieutenant Howison, a government agent : — " The American missionaries commenced the settlement of Oregon." The persons here meant are the missionaries of whom I am speaking. Now I know they did nothing often clandestinely left the fort, and came into my cabin, and conversed freely about his j)lans and intentions. He once said, he was preparing for a great farming estab- lishment, where, to produce supplies for other stations; and also said, he was opposed to persons eomimf to settle in that territory, exce])ting such as Avould belong to the missionary family, and aid in missionary enterprise ; and, he should do nothing contrary to the wisbes of Dr. McLaughlin, who had agreed to loan him .«^I5()(). About the time of his making these remarks, he recei^■ed, in my presence, a part of the loan from the Company's store houses. The " American missionaries " were thus bought to co- operate in opposing the incipient movements towards the colonization of Oregon. Neither of them were ever known to speak respectfully of me. AVhile on a visit to the States, Jason Lee was asked, at his boarding-house in the city of New York, if Kelley had not something to do in settling Oregon ; he, then, replied, as afterwards, in other places : that " a man by the name of Kelley came there, without mind or means to do any thing ; and went away." How ungrateful ! His being, himself, in that delightful country, where so many things could con- tribute to his comfort and happiness, was all due the Kelley whom he abused. It was as though I had taken him by the hand and conducted him thither, all the way from New England. He knew me to be encompassed by implacable and determined enemies both in that and this countrv. It v/as, therefore, unkind. It was cruel. It had, somewhat, the appearance of sinning against God with a high hand and a loud voice. Jason Lee is dead. He was cut down in the vigor of manhood — in the midst of his days. I would not utter a harsh word in reference to his memory ; but the living force me to do it. Deeply do I regret the circumstances 48 which drive me, in this instaiiee, to the vindication of my blc(>dinl(is of heaven. J)aniel liCe has Avritten a hook entith'd "Ten Years in Oreii'on, ' which serves well th(> jjurposes and interests of the Hudson liay Company; and deceives those who ivnd its pa|4es. Like many other hooks concerninj'' that ter- ritory, it makes me its victim. Its author was not i<;no- rant of my devotion to the cause of Christianity, and my benevolent achievements in behalf of mankind ; vet, he is silent concerniiijUf me, — says nothins of Christian civilization into the very country of which he pretended to <^ive a fair history. He, however, makes a singl(> allusion to me, and to the party which constituted the first American scttk'mcnt beyond the llocky ISIountains. It reads as follows : — "A party headed by Mr. Ewing Young,* an American from one of the western States, arrived in the Wallamet from California, embracing about a dozen jiersons, most of them from the United States. Some of them had been sailors, some hunters in the mountains and in the region bordering on California to the south, and one Mr. Kelly was a traveller, a New England man, who entertained some very extravagant notions in regard to Oregon, which he published on his return." I shall not trouble myself to say much in regard to this unfeeling man ; or to this act of brutal cruelty towards the victim of his book. It will be noticed, that one part of my name is omit- ted ; the other part miss])elt. It was purposely so done to deceive the reader, to conceal the real New England man. " On his return, he published some very extrava- gant notions." Have I been patriotic and faithful, and represented that country as being the finest on which the t Vl' * Hist, of the Colonization of Oregon Territory, attached to this book, page 7. I li) Nun sliincs ; iind as possrssliif.!; natural a(lvanta'4('s for n^ricultiMC and coiiinu^'cc, uiisiirijasscd in any otluu' part of tlic rarth { I liavc so been, and so published ; and my notions are not <'.vtr(n'(((f..M, the soil yi('l(le the whale fishery and to railroad enterprise ! The Columbia and its tributaries were, lite- rally, choked with salmon." The American missionaries named above, •were the hist nie.i in the workl, who shouhl chiim to have coni- mcnced tlic colonization of. Orer twenty years' forbearance. They belong to a class of enemies who know mv manner of life, and mv sunerings ; yet, they have no sympathy for mo ; yet, to I 51 their coiKliict IS to be attributed the loss of my health, tlio entire l)erea^■emellt of ;i beloved family, tlie severest of afHictioiis ; and the perseeution armed with a thousand dangers, followinj^' me up and ])iercing me thron<>h. I say, it is not my (hity, sik'ntly, (piietly, vvitliout a decree of tlie resistanee my fe(l)le nature is eapable of maknio-, to submit to be robbed of my Oregon achievement by persons liaving neither hearts* to i)lau, nor abilities to execute a work of tliat sort, a work, 1)enr>volent in pur- pose and herculean in [)erformance, and replete with ben- efits to mankind CIIAPTEli X. PKRSECUTFn BY THF, HUnSON RAY COMPANY ATTEMPTS TO BREAK UP THE FIHPT SETTLEMENT IN OREGON CHARACTER OF CAPT. YOLNCJ HIS TROUBLES WITH MCLAUGHLIN HO'vV PERSUADED TO BECOMr. A SETTLER. It was the policy of the friends of the Hudson Bay Company, botii on this and the other side of the conti- nent, for the reasons assigned on the 14tli page of this book, to under-estimatc my cai)abilities, and to kee]) concealed from the knowledge of my countrymen, my worthy deeds and achievements. In the event 'of failing effectually to do this ; then, to depict me, as being a humbug and an impostor. This they have secretly and cowardly done; and, having entirely 'destroyed mv use- fulness to the public, the last sixteen years, in "things appertaining to Oregon. To give a farther explanation of those reasons. — The Comi)any had in its employment, west of the Rocky Mountains, for nearly thirty years, from fifteen hundred to two thousand nu'n, whose business it was to hunt and trade with the Indians ; to speak plainly, to cheat and hill Indians, and get gain. The objects of my enterprise m 52 in the same territory, was to colonize and to humanize^ and to mva life, as fiir as divinely permitted ; to subdue those wild regions, and make them appear charmincj like unto the fair fields of Christendom. Another object, one liiii,hly ofi'eiisi\(^ to the company, was to drive the heathen out from the Modlv land, bevond I)e Tuca's Sea. The Header, therefore, will percei\e a conflict of int(n-ests, a tlneatened ruin to the company's monopolies, and the final o\erthrow of its pow(U'. Doctor John ]McTiaughlin, the chief officer of the coini)any in Orci^on, was kept informed of my movements in the States. The persecuting- monster, anticipatiui>' my cominu; to the place of his abode, was ready, with sword in hand, to cut me down ; and, I was treated, at and after my arrival, with every demonstration of inhuman- ity. The lyini:!- spirit was busily engaged in spreading falsehood and cahunny among the settlers and strangers, and in tm-ning all against me. Much was said, to have an itiifavoiyihle l)earing upon my character ; and, perhaps, a thing or two done to have -dfafdl bearing upon my physical nature. It was in part to break up the settle- ment which had cost me ten years of continued sacrifice and effort to forni. The conduct of McLaughlin, then, seemed brutid ; and I know not, that, since he has ceased to be chief factor, it has been Ijetter. ]3oubtless, he has continued to oi)erate with the friends and hirelings of the company, devising cunning plans, and employing to the utmost, his prolific powers of invention, to prejudice the minds of the public men, and prevent progress in my well-doing. Describing things in general terms, is not enough in my case. It is nec(^ssary to particularize. I will, there- fore, relate the leading particulars of the treatment expe- rienced at and after my arri\al at ^"ancouver, when, worn down, at the end of a perilous, wearisome and lonely journey, a journey of nearly six thousand miles, mostly through half-civili/ed Mexico, infested with robbers, and wilderness infested with bloody hunters. From the landing on the bank of the Columbia, to the 53 fort, I saw none of McLaughlin's household, none of his American guests, nor other persons, save my conductor, (Ilondcau,) and him (I'lanibois,) on ^\h()S(' arm I leaned for support: nor, afterwards, did any one come into the room where I was tem[)orarily seated, but McLaughlin, who, after a few minutes, retired, leaving me alone. An hour of solitude elapsed, and a messenger came in, say- ing it would be incon\enient to accommodate me within the fort; but comfortable (quarters would be afforded without. I was then led to a habitation outside of the stockade. So I '• suffered outside of the gate." It was a cabin, opening on the back side, into a shed, which, liaving been long a place for dressing fish and wild game, was extremely filthy. The black mud about the doors, back and in front, was abundantly mixed with animal putrescence. There was one good thing about it. It was the habitation of a respectable and intelligent man, a tinner by trade, who, with his occasional visitors from other parts, furnislu'd me with much Aaluable infor- mation, concerning the statistics and g(M)graphy of that country. After a few days, I was conducted to the hos- pital, which, also, was an unsuitable place for my al)od(% and no more favorable to the improvement of my health, than was the cabin ; but it was for a short Hnie. while the purposes suggested on the 14tli page, a I suppose, could be accomplished. Tiie first person, after the i)hysician. to \isit me in tliat prison-house, Avas Captain lowing Young, the veteran hunter, and the conductor of my party. His call was not so much to sympathize, (slander had, already, measurably repressed within him any generous feeling of that kind,) as to spt\ak of jiersonal abuse just received from Dr. ^IcLaughlin ; and of cruel treatment which he and the party began to rec'.>i\e, at the moment of their arrival in the Valley of the A\'allamet. lie remarked, in substance, that McLaughlin had insulted him, to provoke to a quar- rel, and to get an excuse for hostilities ; and that the com- pany's farmers on the AVallamet had peremi)tory orders not to give or sell supplies, nor afford ([uarters or relief 54 to any of the party. That, U]) to that clay, he had not h(>on able to procure from thein, al any price, any of the necessaries of life. lie was satisfied, he said, of its beinj^f the conij)any's intentions to (hlAe hiin and the party, if possible, from the country, and [)revent the settlement, ('apt. Youno- refers to his troubles with ]\[cLaui>hlin in a statement made, in 1845, to liieut. Slocum, the <;overn- ment acent to Orey-on that \car. In that statement mv name is mentioned, evidently witli mistaken views about me; and with unfriendlv feeliui's. In a letter addressed to me, not lonjji; after my release from the hospital, is a full demonstration of a deadly hate. lie was one to threaten my life should I come into his neighborhood. As has been before stated, he and others of the party were made to believe me an impostor, and a defamer of their characters. There never was, 1 affirm it, the least personal misunderstanding bt^tween me and Capt. Young. His inimical feelings were wlioUy owing to the lying s})irit going out from Vancouver, and going about to de- ceive those who were most likely to be friends and to stand by me. I first became acquainted with him at Puebia, in Cali- fornia. Afterwards, the accpuiintance ])ecame more inti- mate at the place of my encampment ncuj. r.[umcic>, where, at times, I listened to the thrilling accounts of his eventful life. He seemed bold and enterprising. 1 was jiersuadeil, he was the right kind of a person to accom- ])any me to Oregon; and he was '"pcrsnat/ar' to go. He did go ; and in despite of the loudest thunder of the com- jiany's power, became a permanent sc ttler; and grt^atly, a promoter of the public interest in that t(>rrit:)ry. llv had been, twelve years, a hunter about tiie wilds of Oregon, California and New Mexico ; and had lost, perhaps, some of the refinements of manners once possessed ; and had missed of some of those moral improvements peculiar to Christian civilization. Nevertheless, he was instrumental, imder an overruling Providence, of much good in Oregon. He placed the settlers, and, hideed, the whole nation, un- der obligations to him for his uncommon courage and de- 55 terniincd pcrstneraiicc in maintaining the interests of the settlement. Bnt for these noble traits of his character, ]McLau,i2.hlin uould have at once driven him away ; and the infant colony would lla^•e been broken up. He was, in otlun' respects, us(>ful. In 18o(), he made a journey into California, bought and brought back several hun- dred head of cattle, and a largo band of fine blooded horses. Ewing Young was a native of Tennessee, and a true American. II(^ died sotne years ago, on his estate in the A\'allamet A^dley. AVhile in Oregon, he was greatly per- secuted along with myself — slandered by McLaughlin, and rei)resented to our government agents, as belouging to a ])arty of marauders, and as one of " twelve or fifteen stragglers ; and as a man unworthy the notice of his coun- tryman." His statement of troubles experienced for the country's sake, furnished a public officer, and constituting an item of some importance in the history of the settle- ment of Oregon, remains unprinted in the State ])epart- nient.* O, justice, where art thou! — Gratitude, where art thou ! After fifteen or twenty davs of confinement, the door of the hosjntal was opened, and I was glad enough to walk out into freer si)ace, and breathe a purer air. Healtli had not been a whit improved by the incarceration. Debility was the trouble at the time of ffoiny: in: and debility, at the time of coming out. llelating cAeiits in chronological order, I will, here, remark concerning my baggage, which was now brought to m(>, after having been retained for several weeks at the house of t)ne of the company's farmers. The pack- ages AV(>re open ; and there is no doubt, judging from facts which came to my knowledge, of their having been overhauled, and their contents thoroughly examined. Another circumstance reflecting on McLaughlin's hu- manity, may be mentioned. Xeither, Avhile in the hos- * Some further rouiiirks (■nnccriiiiiff that iisolul pin;-, arc to bo found on j). 7, History of the Coloniziition of Oregon — a paniplilet attached to this book. 5G I)ital, nor out of it, nor, at any time durinf»' the six months' sojourn at Vancouver, did that man care, so mucli as once, to visit n;e ; or. in a single instance, to permit his American guests who Avere, sometimes within a iew rods of my sick bed, to come, even when ap^jarently suffering the pangs of death, to come and administer com- fort; or make to me a show of generous sympathy. I had not the happiness, even for once, of behokling the faces of the two naturahsts wlio were tlie recii)ients of the company's civilities and liberal liospitality, and were receiving their " good things," while, mys(>lf. "evil things." One of them had resided in Cambridge, Massachusetts, for many } ears, within a mile of my place of abode, and had read my books, seen my works, and learnt, more or less, about the spirit which moved me. He was not ignorant of the fact that the only path leading to the country of pretty Jfowers west of the llocky Mountains had been opened, wholly, at my expense ; and his journey thither, had been made easy and pleasurable through my means. Some of the party, after receiving information of my discharge from the hospital, made me several visits. The first were friendly. One was to invite to the Falls of the Wallamet, to survey and lot out the land as I had pro- mised to do ; and to lay out a city according to a plan prepared before leaving tho States. A day for that ser- vice, two or three weeks oft', was appointed ; but, prior to its coming, other visits were made of an unfriendly nature — chiefly, I thought, to alarm my fears ; and to discourage and vex me. Also, two letters were received from the party, threatening my life, if seen on the Walla- met. All things considered, 1 thought it prudi nt to keep from that quarter. Xotwitstanding the threatening power of the euemy, and tho circumstances of peril surround- ing me, I was, daily, when strength enabled me to walk, making explorations ; and was much about the woods. Seeing that falsi^hood was mnking such sad work Avith my character ; and, that calumny and mockery were the orders of the day, I addressed to John McLaughlin, Esq. 57 a manifesto, prcpnrcd, of course, with a focblc hand, dc- ( hiring myself not to be a public a<5ent acting by author- ity from the United States, as represented at Vancouver ; but, to be a private and humble citi/en of a great nation, a freeborn son of American Indc[)endence — moved by the spirit of freedom, and animated with the hope of being useful among my fellow-men. To increase uncomfortables about me, a young man, half Indian, suffering a i)ulmonary disease, and fast near- ing the spirit world, (in less than six Meeeks from that time, was in it,) was turned into my cabin to be a com- panion. I was glad of it. It seemed })rovidential ; for, he was intelligent, and had become pious ; and had a mind well stored with knowledge of men and things, as they were, in that region. He had been a clerk to the phy- sician, and employed in compounding medicines — had made lots of pills — made t wo kinds, black and white. The former were for sick Indians, and were fatal in their effects. This dying man, whose stories I believed to be truthful, revealed to me astonishing secrets be- longing to the company's inhuman policy towards the Indians. In the latter part of November, I requested a passage to the Sandwich Islands in one of the company's vessels, commanded by Capt. Lambert ; but was refused. I had means to pay the fare, having brought from California a valuable mule and several fine horses. McLaughlin was cunning about it. He undoubtedly knew concerning ar- rangements made, when at Monterey, with Capt. Thomp- son and Mr. Nathaniel Spear, for them to come, after notice should be given, with a vessel, and bring from the islands supplies for the settlement, and commence in the trade and commerce of the territory. Though the fact, itself, might not be known to him, my having stated it was known. The party had spoken of it; and slander had noised it about. Now, it is rationally conjectured, that he supposed the objects of the voyage were to basten the coming of the vessel. He may, also, have supposed, I should return back with a recruit of settlers, and other 8 o8 means for accomplishing^ the objects of my coming to that country. ^Misrepresentations could effect more, at tlic islands, in breaking up plans for advancing the interests of my colony, in my absence, than presence. The middle of December, I was suddenly reduced to prostration of strength, and to sickness. For twenty-four hours, I continued to vomit, and to have a severe relax of the bowels. My food, to all appearances, had been whole- some ; and I temperately partook of such as was set before me, and knew of no particular exposure of health other than wliat would arise from tlie atmospheric impurities about the cabin. I continued sick and feeble, twelve days ; at times, vomiting, and exercised with bodily pains. The physician, often sent for, declined to come; but, sent an abundance of pills and powders which were swal- lowed down. No visit was made me by any person inside of the fort, excepting my kind friend, Cyrus Shepard, a member of the missionary family. A silver dollar was sent to the store-house for necessa- ries. The articles, called for, were refused, under pre- tence that the money was not genuine. The dollar was current, and tlie metal pure. About the middle of February, I went into the fort to inquire after an acquaintance who had just come from the upper parts of the Columbia ; and was met by Mc- Laughlin himself, and told that the person whom I wish- ed to see was engaged. The door was then insultingly closed upon me. The next day, the acquaintance with a countenance sadly changed from former days, came into my cabin, and strode across the floor. Sternly looking towards me, he uttered these words, viz., " AVell, Kelley, how did you get here?" After making some abusive remarks, he walked out. His only object seemed to be to afflict, and to fill my soul with sorrow. This man received from me his first impressions of Oregon, and the spirit of enterprise which led him into that territory. In the States, he enrolled his name in my emigration books, and was with me ; but, at Vancouver, he joined my enemies, and was against me. 59 4 These were the acts and influences of McLaughlin. So lie persecuted me, a stranger, sitting and sorrowing " in solitary places " in a strange land. ^^'hen about to leave Oregon, the chief factor of the company presented mc with a draft of seven pounds sterling, payable at the Sandwich Islands. A part, how- ever, was paid at ^'ancouver, in articles of comfort. This was kind, and I felt grateful for it. All which a[»i)eared to others, generou.? hospitality in that man, did not clearly appear so to me, though I have ever had a respectful regard for him. I will take this opportunity to correct an error, in my account of Oregon, published soon after my return home. Too liberal credit was given him, in that publication, for civility and kindness. I have an excuse, a plausible one, at least, for giving it. At the time of preparing the account, cruelties practised by him and his friends, which, more than all other things, had shattered my nervous system, and broken up an iron constitution, had, to a sad extent, enfeebled the mind. Furthermore, almost annihi- lation was threatened me ; and I could see no friend coming to save me from the wrathful vengeance of the company's hirelings, gathering together for my utter destruction. Fear came upon me ; therefore, in reference to personal treatment, I carefully omitted what might be offensive, substituting what was true only of his conduct towards other ^Vmericans. I acknowledge the sin. It was the first, and shall be the last of the kind to be put to my account. On the 15th of March, 1835, 1 embarked on board the company's brig Dryade, for the Sandwich Islands. A berth in the cabin was to be given me, at the mouth of the river ; but, Avhen the time came, it was refused. However, I was thankful for one, any where. That more comfortable place in the vessel was occupied, while de- scending the river, by three of the company's sea cap- tains, and a young Indian female, not then in her teens. One of the captains and the Indian girl landed at Astoria, then called Fort George. While the cabin was thus 60 being occupied, 1 was very content to be in tlie steernji^e ; to be, as far as possible, one side of a beastly debauebery, never again, I could liope, to bo practised, or to find its parallel upon tbe pure waters of tbe (.'olunibia. The vessel, on tbe same dny of setting sail, anchored a little below Wappato Island, and nearly oj)posite Wycth's establishment. When the shade of niglit had come on, there being no moon, and but the dim light of the star-bespangled heavens, a noise, as of a gang of ruffians, was heard on sbore. Lupiiring to know the cause, I was told that so ic of the men had come from the Wallamet to take me from the vessel, and abuse me. Capt. AVyeth was providentially on board, then in the cabin. I knew he was there, tliough I saw nothing of him. His presence, or his interposing humanity, may have given a check to their proceedings. 'I'his is all I know of that occurrence. I made but few inquiries, and cared but little about it. Head winds retarded for several days the descent of the vessel to the ocean ; which circumstance gave me an opportunity to make particular examinations of the river, and to collect materials for a correct map of the same. It, also, gave the beastly captains an opportunity to find out something more than they had previously known of him whom thev had on board, and Avere, doubtless, instructed to mock. I have reason to suppose, they had received orders, brutally to abuse their passenger ; hoping the final effect of all would be distraction or death. But they were greatly mistaken in the man. One after another made attacks upon him ; but, in every instance, they were glad to retreat ; and were, finally, ashamed of the service, and of him who had appointed them to it. Oppression and sufferings compose the subject of this chapter ; or I would stop, awhile, the narrative, and, in vindication of self, speak of the cock upon his own dung- hill, — of triumphs, and of the vanquished enemy. (See paper marked A., at the end of this book.) I was terribly sea-sick through the voyage. The food furnished me was scanty and unsavory ; and at no time 01 "Nvas it such as 1 could relish. Jh-cakfasts consisted, of'toiitimcs, of lea made in an iron toa-kottlc, which uas sweetened with molasses, and drank from a horrowed tin cup ; of coarse ship-hread, and cold boiled beef, or stur*;eon, served in a small tub as dirty, inside and out, as the floor upon which the whole was placed. Dinners generally consisted of boiled salt beef, cold, lean, and hard ; and of coarse bread, with, sometimes, duff, a pud- ding composed of Hour and mashed potatoes, half-baked and clammy, — all without jdatc, kniie, or fork. The sailors, at times, spat upon my bed and wearing apparel ; and, in divers ways, injured or destroyed the cxjjosed articles of my effects. liate, one stormy night, I was alarmed with the noise of water pouring into the steerage by the side of my berth. The tarpaulin over the hatchway, settling in the middle, filled with rain, and then sinking, (probably forced down,) on one side, discharged a bucket or more of water upon a trunk and clothes lying on it. To put the climax to these cruelties, and to render my situation in the highest degre(^ distressing, after I was found retired to rest, two or three sailors, besides the two whose berth was in the steerage, were in the practice of coming in, each with a pipe in his mouth, smoking at both ends. The wicks of the lamps were then raised high, the scuttle-door brought down, and the room, which was small, ke[)t close. These were suffo- cating times. I'hc condition of one who never used a particle of tobacco, and was reduced to great physical debility, is hardly conceivable by any, but the sufferer himself. This operation, often repeated, with others tending to enfeeble the body, contributed much, I think, in causing the present morbid state of the optic nerves. Inquiries w(>re often made of the captain, — Why all this abused He, as often, implied in his answers, that he Avas acting in conformity to orders. I solemnly affirm that once, when near the time of our reparation, and in the way of excusing his conduct, he replied in these words, — "I must obey orders." G2 I am not ill'tlisposrd towards ^[r. Mcl.aup;hlin, or any of his friends ; luive said nothing; in malice ; have said nothing? to injure the feelin«;s, character, or fortune of any of them ; nothing which reason, religion, and my conscience do not well ai)provc. CIIAPTEll XL LIEUTENANTS SLOCUM AND HOWISON DECFIVED AND DUPED CONDUCT OF GREENHOW, LIBRARIAN TC THE STATE DEPART- MENT, U. S. THE nation's EXCHANGE. Very seldom has the author of any book, or public document, identified my name with the first settlement of Oregon. The public agents, the late Lieutenants Slo- cum and Howison, kept silent, although they had seen and conversed with the first settlers. The former was told, in 1835, by the settlers themselves, that H. J. Kelley " persuaded " them to settle in that territory, and conducted them thither. He was furnished with a written statement to that effect, which he evidently intended to publish. The paper was marked E, and referred to as composing a part of the appendix to his report to the government. But it was not printed ; and he neglected to make any allusion to my name, on account, doubtless, of the very same influence at Washington, which, for so many years, has been working against me. Mr. Slocum, after his return from Oregon, came to Boston, and put up at the Tremont House, where, agree- able to his request, I called upon him. He stated, that he had found in the hands of the settlers my book, called " The Manual of the Oregon Expedition," a book devel- oping the plan of the colonization of that country. He expressed himself satisfied that the settlement was com- 03 mcnccd tliroufjfh my instrumentality; and proposed to niontion the fact in his public report. Here is u denioustrution, in part, ef what I have so often stated ; that, to accomplish some evil device ujion me, and to carry out some plan of intriji;ue upon our country, unprincipled and treacherous mow have caused me to he made the victim of all books and reports con- cerning Oregon ; my very name to be suppressed in them ; even some of the material vouchers to my statements to Congress to be ahstrncted from the tiles of the committees, or, otherwise, to be taken from their possession ; and my clipracter to be aspersed and defamed in periodicals and newspapers, and in all the variety of ways which sland(^r is wont to do in effecting its purposes ; and they would cause a bloody extinguishment of life itself, if that could be done without incurring the imputation of right-out murder. The report of Lieut. Ilowison to the commander of the Pacific squadron, Feb. 1, 1847, while it is profoundly silenU as to the founder of the first establishments in Oi'^p- ,/i, makes the following declarations, namely : " The American missionaries were the first persons to attempt any establishment in Oregon, independent of the Hudson Bay Company." " A few American hunters, not number- ing over twelve or fifteen," (the number of persons in my ])arty from California, including myself,) " straggled into the country about the same time." (See Report, p. 14.) It Avould have had more the appearance of truth to have chronicled, that a few American hunters, skilful laborers, enlisted hi/ Hall J. Kelletj, came into the country to finish the foundation of the Nation's Exchakge, — a building which that engineer had planned and commenced, — a structure to be of stupendous magnitude, whose lofty dome, ere long. refiectinir the effuliient liurht beaminu; from the highest heavens, will be seen from the darkest and most distant parts of the earth. Howison, very likely, was deceived and led into errors by McLaughlin and the Lees ; the one who would have Kelley deeply buried in oblivion ; and the others would 64 rob him of plumes which they themselves had never earned, and were incapable of making. My opinion is, that those two lieutenants were worthy men, lionesf and patriotic; and that the injustice done me, in their reports, is to be attributed to misrepresenta- tions made to them, on both the Pacific and Atlantic sliores, by tue Hudson Bay Company, and those, our own countrymen, who, in some way or other, had been induced to promote the special interests of that company. The History of the Northwest Coast of North America, by liobert Greenhow, translator and librarian to the state department, was printed by order of the Senate of the United States, under the expectation of its being a plain and candid memoir. In my apprehension, it is not such ; is neither plain nor candid ; but, as far as the book treats concerning the colonization of that coast, and the Ameri- can claims, as it was previous to 1846, to the Pacific shore north of the 49th parallel, it is delusive; and is calculated to deceive on certain subjects of great private and national interests, both the people and government of the United States ; and artfully adds, it seems to me, quantity and variety to the tissue of misrepresentations, contrived at Vancouver. I find myself abused, on account )f fidelity to my countrymen, throughout the book ; beginning on the map prefixed to the title-page. The medal, of Avhich impressions are there givon, was handed by me to the Hon. Caleb Cushing, to be deposited in the libnivy of Congress. Credit, therefore, should have been given to Kelley, and not to Cushing. I put into the hands of the late Hon. L. F. Linn, chairm .a of the select comn.es on (^niidra's Island, included among tlu^ [)apers in his posse>.>ion, he remarks on page r22, — " Thar tin.' transartions here described, between Kcndrick and the savage chiefs, did really take place, there is no reason to doul)t : it is, how(>Aer, scarccJi/ jirohahle that t/ie lyaJidit^ of t lie jiHrcJniscs will ever be recognised by the civili/.ed nation whi( h may hen after possess the country adjacent to Nootka Sound." Wiis this candid ? Did ho gi\c a reason whv tliev sliould not be recoffuist'd ? lie may have ])resumed too much on the stupidity of the Xh'^n advocate of the claimants ; and thought, that, with a single^ {^ftbrt of his pen, ho could strip the ])urchases of all their worth ; and, with a single ol)lique thrust, could kill a clain. demonstrated by numerous indubitable facts, to be reasoTiable and just, and of great value, a claim* of widows and ori)hans. "NVhcni at Washington, in IP t8, 1 inquired of Greenhow for som(> of those [)apers ; particularly, an advertisement printed in London. 17f^5. in four different languages. I ■\vas curious to regain possession of that ancient docu- ment, lie denied knowing where it was. I, also, Avished to know about the medal. That, he said, was in the patent-ofHce. It was not in the ])atent-office, nor had it been thee. I next called at the library which was under his care, to seeCapt. Ingraham's journals, having obtained permission to examine them, with the intention of copy- ing some statements relative to Kendnck's vovage and the land purchases. At tirst, Greenhow being absent, the second librarian said th(^ journals a])iieared to be missing; but he would make further search. After call- ing several times, some days intervening the calls, and finding they had not been returned to the archives, I ii.l * Tliis claim is powerfully opposed by the friends of the Hudson Bay Company. 9 ()(i addressed a note to the Sccretaiv of State, and tlien, two or tlirce weeks after my first iiuiuiries, those journals, full of valuable information concerning the claim, Averc forthcoming. My name (a part only) occurs but once in the history by (jreenhow; although the things which I had done and suffered for On^gon were known to that author ; and my memoir, embraced in the congressional document, (Kep. No. 101, House of Representatives, 1839.) showing what led to the settlement of that territory, was before him, showing that Hall J. Kellc.tj, without even a single coadjutor by his side, to assist, planted the germ of empire on the Pacific shores ; an event sufiiciently remarkable to have attracted his attention, and to have entitled me to some more respect than he seemed dis- posed to pay me. On the 14th page he briefiy speaks of me, omitting, as is the policy and uniform practice of my enemies, a ])art of my name; and misspelling the other part. The Chris- tian names of all other ])er.sons, and they are numerous, introduced into the book, even the longest of ^Spanish names, requiring two or three long breaths to utter, are remembered and correctly written ; but, strange as it is, the short Hall /., printed with fair type, in a multipli- city of papers which were before his eyes, was unseen, and the Kellct/ so indistinctly recollected, as to be mis- s])elt. In Lee's book it is Kclljj, and so in Grcenhow's ; which thing indicates their having concerted what to say. After marking my name as nothing Avorth, he throws to me a sugar-plum, calls me patriotic ; and then, as if w^holly to turn the mind from thoughts of Kelley, sud- denly, with a sort of admiration, turns to the name and exploits of Capt. Wyeth, whom he makes the hero of the remaind r of his book. In dc^scribing (p. 191) the expe- ditions of Wyeth and 15onneville, he slips meanly by the origin of those enterprises, and keeps dark concerning him who caused them. With great injustice to me, (p. 199,) he says, — "The II ()7 first emigrations from the United States, for the pur])ose of settlement, Avitliout any s[)ecial commercial views, apiiear to have been made in 1832." There is a sentence in Howison's report, of similar meaning. The style of this and that are so similar, I should think one pen AvroU" them both. However, it matters not who writes, if the truth is told. Two persons, only, that year, reached Oregon for the ])nrpose of settlement. Others leaving New England in their company, were frightened by decei^'ing hunters in the ser^■ice of some fur com])any, and turned back before far ascending the eastern slope of the llocky Moinitains. John liall, Esq. and Mr. Calvin Tibbets, men of principle and inflexible integrity, were induced to emigrate by me. They tra^^Ued with Wyeth in Capt. Sublette's party ; but had no connection in the business of any one whose views were commercial, and adverse to colonization. These facts Avere kno^^ n to Greenhow, at the time of writing the book ; and he should not have been so careless of my character, as not to have mentioned them. He further says, " Three } ears afterwards, a small colony of Americans was established on the AVallamet, under the direction of Mr. Jason Lee and other Methodist clergymen." This statement is false; and was made to award the credit of the "first establishment" in that country to the " American missionaries," There were no persons with the Meiliodist clergymen to compose a colony. Of course, no colony -was estaldished under their direction. Two years afterwaixls, not three, a colony of Americans was estaldished on the A\"allamet, includiuir the missionaries, by the " patriotic American," whose naiTK^ is so artfully and cruelly kept out of sight in Greenhow's statements. His silence concerning me is not a matter of which I w ould complain, farther than it has a hard bearing upon my character and fortune. It lias had a terrible bearing upon both. He might, with consistency, ha^e intersperscxl his book with things relative to my enterprise and adMnturcs, — 68 spoken of ])liilaiithropic projects and niii^lity achieve- ments, — of hardsliips, perils, and " liaiv-brcadtli escapes," — and of remarkable interi)osinfore or since. 'i'he objects of my journey through the ^Mexican do- minions, were to benefit others more than myself. Not only did that journey subject to incredible hardships and sufferings, but greatly exj)osed me to the ])ursuing and subtle enemy. At New Orleans and \'era Cruz, the hos- tile troops made bold and fierce attacks. They, there, almost ovc^rcame me. That circuitous route, instead of a direct one across the Ilocky jNIountains, was \\ holly induced by a dc>sirc of effecting some arrangements with ofHccn's of the jNIexican government and distinguished indivichials in that country, relative to the lumber and fish trade between the Colum- 70 bia lliver and the Mexican western ports ; * anrl for cx- tcndini":, in proper time, my colouizinu operations into Tli/jh California ; and, also, by a desire of tnrning tlie attention of the people in tlie cities of INIexico to some better system of edncation than had ever been adopted by them ; and, generally, to such internal improAements, moral and physical, as would most likely lay a better foundation for freedom, and multiply in tlieir land the conveniences and comforts of life. Thirty years ago, my lamp was trimmed and burning. Then, devot(^d to the cause of humanity, I planned for improving the condition of the North American Indians ; and devised a system of humane and fair dealing with that benighted and oppressed race of men. More than twenty years ago, partly to bring about the good planned for the Indians, I projected a railroad to communicate between the valley of the Mississippi and the shores of the Pacific. Keference to that project is made in my Geographical Sketch of Oregon, printed in 1829; and in the ISIemoir to Congress, in 1839, relative to the statistics and topography nf that territory. It has often been mentioned to scientific and enterprising men ; and is described in my journals and papers. Had ene- mies let me alone, the road would have been graded from one end to the other before this ; and Oregon, before the year 1840, would have teemed with a population from our own blest country ; and Alta California would have become the possession of the United States earlier than it did ; and have cost less monev, and no blood ; and that whole wilderness, dark as it was, ere this day, would have been changed to shining fields and flowery gardens ; and society there, would have been dressed in lovely at- tire, and robed in charms of moral beauty. * I obtained the exccutUc permission to hold correspondence with the Mexican government on tiiosc matters. Ileahh becoming im- paired, nothing was done relative to the trade ; nor npon tiie other si.ibj(?cts directly witli tlie government. I applied to that government through Mr. Muntoya, Charge d'Atfaires at Washington, for permission to conduct across that covmtry (from Vera Cruz to Acapulco) a com- pany of emigrants, with their eiFects. I 71 The route begins on tlie bank of the IMissouri near the mouth of the Kansas, crosses the back-hone of the continent through a dei)ression near tlie 4-]d parallel, lays along the valley of the Snake lliver, and crosses the Columbia at ^^'alla^valla ; and, again, it makes a moun- tainous transit on the -westerly side of the valley of Clarks lliver, where, intelligent hunters su])posc no for- midable difficulties exist to be encountered ; and termi- nates in a delightful and fertile tract of country near the southern extremity of Puget's Sound, there, to connect with the interminable tracks of the ships of the great deep. The eligibility of that place for a terminus, and for an entrepot and depot, can be fully conceived of, only by those wdio understand the natural advantages of that portion of Oregon for commerce and agriculture ; and know the chart and all about I)e I'uca's Straits. That sea has an entrance nearly twenty miles in width ; and is spotted with islands exuberantly fertile. Its shores are indented with many fine harbors ; and its surface is a smooth expanse, seldom agitated by furious winds ; and the largest ships that float can safely enter it, and can safely sail over, and anchor in any port of it. My plans differ, in some res[)ects, from those by ^Ir. Whitney, now before the public. His, I think, are well devised and matured. Plis ideas, as, in 1848, I under- stood them from the projector himself, in regard to the routes, to the execution of the work, and to the benefits to accrue to the world, especially, to our nation, seem consistent and sound : in my apprehension, there can be none better. He would have the one half of a strip of territory sixty miles in brc^adth. The United States to retain the other half, — every alternate section. ]\rine propose just half of that bn^adth ; and looking to Indian ameliora- tions, give to the native tribes a portion of the lands for a possession, and appropriate a portion for their Chris- tianization, and for improvements in their affairs and fortune. When in California, in ISfU, exjiloring the valley of 72 p. '■'( the Sacramonto, whore, at that time, none hut wild men dwelt ; and, none hut savage liunters roamed ; cogitatin*:^ upon internal improvements, 1 planned a hraneh to ex- tend from some point in the route, after the transit of the llocky ^lountains, to the Bay of San l^'rancisco. This coineides with the views of the Hon. T. II. Benton, ex- pressed in a speech made hy him in Congress, upon the subject of a a railroad to the Pacific. j\[y thoughts are still on the execution of these de- sirable and heaven-suggested imjirovements, and on the resources which the road would open to the people of this country for wealth, kno^Aledge, and national superi- ority. Should health and strength ever again he equal to so great a labor, and my enemies loosen the cords that hind me, hand and foot, the two ])rojects, Indian and rail- road, remaining unaccomplished, I shall engage in thc>m with what science and skill I possess, and with my ac- customed zeal and perseverance, hoping to be able to add them to the list of my achievements. I intended to have gone into the work, as soon as practicable, after my re- turn home ; but sickness, and almost entire prostration of strength, interposed to prevent. I had fallen among robbers, who half killed me ; and my wounds remained undressed. Even to this day, they are ludiealed. Never- theless, feeble as I was, and suffering extremely from the nervous affection in the head, I wrought, in 1837, at rail- road engineering. Debts* contracted in 1832 to advance the colonizing of Oregon, compelled me so to labor. * One of the debts (about $400) cancelled, from the carninfjs of that year, was due a firm of mercliants in the city of Now York. In 1832 was purchased a variety of articles for culinary, mechanical and farming purposes, such as were thought indispensably necessary to the use of those whom I was about to settle on the Wallamet in Oregon. They were packed in a tierce, and constituted a part of the baggage, which was lodged for safe keeping, a few days, in the custom-house at Vera Cruz, and was taken from mo. The property, under the circumstances of my travelling, was not dutiable. One of the objects of the custom-house ofiicers, and the others by whom they were led, was, doubtless, to plunder, and to induce my return home. While in that city, 1 was daily urged to return ; and I should have had 73 1 expivssod on the foiirtli page an earnest desire to help th(! Indian race, llef'erencc; is, there, made to tlic Appenchx. Papers concerning tlieni, and the raih'oad project, are marked 1> and C At the earliest opportu- nity, Axhen the pen has completed its ser^•ice, they will be liereto aj)pen(led. In an enlargement of this book, and in papers to be ap[)ended, in order for a per[)etual record, will be told what remains untold about my manner of life ; plans and purposes of doing good ; patience, faith, and charity ; and nun-e about the terrible persecution ; and will there be told, in my loudest tone of Aoice, what misanthropes did to break up an enterprise, now^ resulting in perma- nent good to our countrymen ; and concerning jn-ojects long ago concei\ed, which, partly on account of feeble health, but chiefly, the cupidity of covetous and wicked men, are unaccomplished. j\Iy claim for indemnity was preferred against ^lexico in 1840; and a more just claim could not be. I think it probable, the minds of the American and Mexican conmiissioners w^re so darkened by my enemies, about them, as to sec no merits in the claimant, and not to care to open liis case. In the year 18^37, 1 surveyed three railroad routes in the State of Elaine, each, lioweAcr, of short extent, having the assistance, only, of two or three men unacquainted with cnginei ring, and employed on the out-door work. I planned, figured, drafted, and performed the office-work ; besides, tlu; entire labor with the field instruments. The service was laborious ; ([uite too much for my broken-down constitution. I suffered through the whole season of making these surveys, se\ere pain in the head, proceed- ing from the affection of the optic nerves. In the begin- ning of the following year, I did what I had never u plausible excuse for iloino; it. One of the villains whom I had caused to bo released i'nnn |)rison at New Orleans, was there, seeking an opportunity to demonstrate his murderous intentions upon me. I was aware of the manojuvring of those officers, and of tlie men who had thus far followed me, and of him who was stationed there. 10 m: ])of()ro (loiio; conscd lor a -\\liili' iVoiii liaid liil)nr. 'J'lu* ii(l\ic(> of tlu' al)Icv-t plivsiciaus in our land A\as. to j^i\e ([uii't to the iicrNcvs. Ursi to the ('}(>s, and idso to tlio mind, in their o[nnion. couhl allord the only ground of Lope in my case. Althonuh this advice was ^ood. yet I could not wholly comply witli it — could not all at once, br(>ak iVom long- continued habits of intense thinking' and hard workini;,'. .Still 1 believed it iinsai'e to do any thing re([uiring severe (>xercise of eye^. either in usinu,-, person- all}, the i)eu or optical instruments; but, miuht with impunity, under circumstances, such as would not tend to nervous excitenieut or irritation, or impair usefulness, superintend work in my professional business. I, there- fore, determined to continue in some field of useful enter- prise ; and turned to a i)roject then on foot, from another (juarter; that of u canal or railroad across the Isthmus to Panama. That choice was made, partly to pre le for memorializing C'ongrcvss ou the subjects of the construe- tiou of the Pacitiv" railroad, and the civilization of the Indiaus in the United .Statcvs' territories. It was thought, that working in the conspicuous position of a chief engineer, two or three years, in a southern climate, would limber the limbs for oj)erations in a northern ; and the work itself would render honorable testimony to my capabilities ; and be commendatory letters to men in the councils of our nation. Accordingly, I Avent to Washington, in the close of 1838, hoping, under the government auspices, to nudve myself useful, in opening to the world a railroad thor- oughfare between the two great oceans. I conferred with Mr. Mercer, Chairman of the Committee of the Senate, on lloads and Canals, who said, a report would be made, favorable to the enter[)rise. Such a report was submitted and accepted ; but no appropriation was made, and nothing further done by Congress upon the subject. This is not all which the s})irit of bencAolent enter- l)rise, and the love of doing good, ha\e led me to do, and attempt in that direction. While ex})loring the country between Vera Cruz and the City of Mexico, u r brraiiio sntisficd of tlio frnsibility of fi railroad routo li('t\\('(>ii the one iiiul the otlici' of tlios(> jjliifcs. Desirous of s('('iii<4' .M<'\i<"<) Ix'iictitcd \\h]\ the smimc kind of insti- tutions antl improvcnicnts. as those etfectini; sueli ^reat tilings for my iiati\r \ew England, I ])lan!ied and advi-ed that improvement — especially, would 1 have internal inij>ro\emi nts connneneed without the least pos- hlu delay, in a country. ^^ her*' the connnon people \verc> hut a little in advance of the heathen; where most of the roads were in a stat(> of nature, and the earth bon; hut few marks and e\i(lences of civilization dwelliufj^ there. 'J'he improvement suiifi'csted hy me was a topic of frecjuent conversation with "NN'ilcox, the Ain(>rican c^msnl at ^lexico, wliU \\hom I quartered several weeks; and with other enter[)risini;' foreij^ners. It was one of the suhji^cts of a communication to I'residont Santa Anna, descrihiufj, accin'dinfr to my approlunision, what would he the utility of railroads and some better system of com- mon school education, to the Mexican Republic. The immediate consideration of them both, was uv^cd with all the pathos and force of elo(iuence at my command, which was not much. From the time railroads first came into use, I have been strongly imprc'ssed with the belief, of their being among the powerful means, under Divine Providence, of improving the condition of man ; and of their consti- tuting one of the principles of progress in the march of mind and spread of freedom, civil and religions — one of the prophetic thunders which, in these latter days, with a voice louder than when lions roar, utter know- ledge. AVhile the im])rovements to which I refer, beau- tify the country they intersect, they bring distant places near ; and strangers to hold converse, and to commune together ; mind is brought in contact with mind ; and sentiment is enlightened with sentiment. l>y hicreasing intelligence among the people, and the means and facili- ties for magnificent undertakings, they accelerate great moral movements, and bring about wonderful things in the earth. 76 'I'lio ronsnl was an imdorstnndiniQ: man, and influential. II(^ and others -\visliiny; ■well to Mexico, promised to do what tluv could to cause tlu; ininrovemeut. Shortly ui\vv my letiirn to Massachusetts, 1 had the satisfaction to l(>aiii, tliat the road had heeu conmienced. It does not follow, as a thin^j,- in course*, that the nndertakinj; orii^inated from any thin<,^ I had said ; hut, there is u possibility; Acs, a ])rol)al)ility, and some strong indica- tions of such being' the fact. Ilaviuf^' spoken, qnit(> enouj^h, of j^ood deeds to others, r will now make further mention of (>vil deeds to myself A\'ho are those who do me harm ? They aic ill- dis])ose(l and treacherous countrymen ; mean and un])rin- cipled men; hirelings of the Hudson Hay Company; contemptible tools, employ(>d to impoverish, harass and vex me. Some to pick my pocket ; otluns to atHict, and to overwhelm with troid)les — all to prev(>nt my onward course. They have followed me from place to ])lacc; from l)Ost()U to Vera Cruz; and plundered and abused mo from New JiULiland to OrcLjon. Thev brutallv treated me at Vancouver, and during my passage to the Sand- wich Islands ; and have continued to slander throughout my ac(piaintance ; and to persecute in the cities of Ijos- ton, New York, and Washington ; and to mock and ridicule in public journals ; in the Comic Almanac, of which twenty thousand copies were printed in 1838. They converted the ])oweriuI press into au engine for my destruction, and turned it against me ; and for the last thirteen years, luuc oppressed and A'exed mo in the dark village of Three Hi vers, Mass., the place of my present abode, and place of my exile. See pamphlet called '•'•Hard Usa/je in Three liivers.'' Plmider and slauderons imputations arc some of the ways by which they would accomplish their devilish purposes upon me. In the beginning, to thwart my movements, and to break up an expedition preparing for Oregon, to consist of several hundred emigrants who had enlisted for it, they sought to get from me every dollar of property in 77 my pnssossion, wlu^tlu'r bolono-infr to otluTS or myself; and l)y {•unuiiif,' iind trickisli niaiKnivrinfif, succccdi'tl in {i'cttiii^- hold of my cstatt'S, iind a larj^o amount of ]H'1-- sonal property. 'l"akiii<;' advantage of the near apjjroach of the time fixed for m\ departure with the exijedition, and of my lonely and almost friendless condition, they jj;ot from me, first of all, the homestead in C'harlestown, at less than one third of tlu^ true value of that i)rineely estate; nor, did they deal hetter hy me in rej^ard to other estates. One of the ])lunderers, at the commencement of his inhumanity towards me, was young-, sprij^iitly, and to all app{>arances, harndess, and of i^'ood hal)its ; hut soon l)t>canie dissipated and vicious; and induisi'ed in heastly carnalities; and died as sometimes a diseasi'd hrute dies, a loathsome ohject, — to he ])itied, ^^hen li\in<>-, to he sure. This event, like many others which could he mentioned, seems to show, that we have ahout us an avenlons, rel(Nis(Hl tlirongh my merciful i'vcl- ings from ])ris()n, carried away, am*^niited to several hundred dollars. See C'ha]». L. p. I. The damaged pro- perty thrown o\erboard from tlic M'ssel •which carried mc on her (juarter-decl:, dnii'i^- nnnarkahle extr(MHes of wcatlu^r across tlie nuif of .Texico, added to that Avhich Avas stored in the custom-hoiise at \'era Cm/, and of which I was [)lundere(l by Mexican ofhcers, in conni- vance with certain American citizens, was a ^ery con- siderable amount, and miicli more than I was willing to lose at that staL>e of the ]>rogress of the enterprise. 8ee Chap. T. and 11, of llic History of the Colonization of Oregon. 'Diere were other losses l)(>tw'.'en Ijoston and the (Jo- Inmbia llivcr. A ves-el liad been engaged to bo at Acai)rdco at a certair. time, to take myself and party, with my ctiects, to the Sandwich Islands. 'J'he party having been disnnsscd at Ne^ Orleans, and a large pari of the effects taken from mo at Vera Cruz, and, in con- sc(pience of the latter occurrence, having been detained over two months at the Citv of Mexico, rendered it impracticable to l)c in season, at tlie place appointed. These and other distressful circumstances caused a change of my route; and more than a year of delay in my arrival at the final plac(> of destination. The enemy came to Three Rivers, or ratlnn-, in 1842, came again to vex me, and to plunder my propert} ; to load my mind with troubles ; and to hasten the decay of my nature. Here they hav(> made- a bold descent, at- tempting to carry off my hard earnings, and what had providentially come into my possession, e\en all the earthly substance belonging to me. About the place of my residence tliey continue cunningly to n'nnieuvre as though the devil himself was at the head. 79 l> C)])piv«si()ii bccoiiiiiiii; iiitolcrabl(\ I felt provoked to ivsi^i ; ;i!i(l in iS-^Tj, brought ;i suit in law against certain ind'AicUials ot" tlieni, in (lef'-nce of my rights. ])aniages, here, up to the prescMit, may justly be estimatcHl at sonu- tliing more lliaii .S'^OOO, lIoAvever, the suit, and the pcH'uniary eml)arrassments caused by their conduct, out- raging all that is di-cent in business transactions, Avill soon det(n-mine the ]>recise amovnir. See A])pendix* to the pamphk^t, to ■^^•hi(•h reference has been niiule. Thus, I hav(> bri(>il} pointc^l out the circinnstancc^s of their ati ^mjjting to impoNcrish me, and to d<^prive nie of means, the only means, as they su])])osed. ot' progrt-ss in the benevolent and patriotic enterprise, which they, with all their Nicaits^ — cunning. ])lottings, zeal, treachery and Avealth, — so powerfully opposed. Choosing darkness, th(>y ha\(' continued therein, being deceived anrl deceiving others concerning the man whom they would destroy. There is no lack of persons who, in Aiow of irwdnls or (Kh-(fHf(ial jnstly and truly v,ith me. It' tlu\\ Avill not do this, then, let them go on ; iterate falsehood and eal- unuiv as njucli as thev i)lease ; but not in the cowardly manner they have hitherto dcme, making their thrusts in tlu> dark. It rem.ilns to reu'.ark p;ulicularly, as to the slanderous imputations of those acnng with so much tidelity to the Hudson ]5ay Company ; and so faithlessly to their coun- trAUien. I'lsioitdn/, cni::[i/, stnjjid, no means or mind to do auif thi)i- its work. These ()i)probrious appellati\(^s were a])plie(l to m(^ in public journals, and from the mouth of calumny, when all devoted to the cause of Innnanity ; Avhen planning* and ctfectin<^ o'l-cnt and i>ood things for the peo))le of my country. ^ly projects were xmncfoun but not idle. They were no more than, with a chutr head and a sane mind, I could accom[)lisli. The following is a list of the prin- cipal of them. How far they indicate mental imbecility or deran^(nn(>nt, the candid who have been about me can judi^e. 'J'he Colonization of Oregon, and the Settlement of the Avild parts of Alta Calitbrnia : A System of Hu- mane ])ealin^- with the Indians of Xorth America; A Canal from 15oston to the Connecticut Ixivcr (before rail- roads were understood) ; Improvements in the System of I^ducation in my adopted State ; Im}U'ov(>ments in the ■first class of lllementar}- School Ijooks, used in the Com- mon Schools; The tirst Sabbath School IJook usi'd in New England ; The Organization of the first Sabbath School in the same ])ortion of country ; Several Kail- roads, such, as it was supposed, would be of public utility. These, and many others, \\v\v my plans ; and they were all ])racticable ; and most of th(in were brought into operation through my instrumentality. T ])lanned, though not lastly, a course of conduct, \\hich, with faith in the Lord Jesus ('lirist, Avill fix, I trusr. my abcde b(>yond llie ])ersecutions of this (>\ il world, where tlie '• wi( ked cease from troubling, and the w(\uy b(^ at rest." (Se(^ pajter C, in Appendix to History of the Coloni/ntiou ot' Oicgon.) Ik' it, in the ojnnion of mireasonable men, that I am a visionarv, a crazv maii, or a humbui''. It is not tlu^ de- sign of my remarks t;) prove to the contrar'> , n)y handy works, every where in the fields of my Ial»oi', sUi!!""icntly 81 Ic mo. isly to esteem X relief c-j/ — I ly face, ^\■o^k. mi^ ill ', ^vlieii iiio- and of my They iiiiiul, 1 e pi'iii- beeility me can tlenieiit of lln- •ica; A irc rail- stem of in the Com- scd in bbath Kail- ntiHty. y \\ere it into iiou*>h in the nd the (1 cease paper !('t>()n.) I am a lie de- handv "ientb- SI testifying in these respects ; hut to show how cruel, and how niuc]i like madmen my persecuting enemies liavc heen. Stupid — stuj)i(l as tliey are pleased to re])vesent m(\ I have intellects eiiouuli to (Hscriininate between friends and foes; to judge, and that justly, of the good feelings and the merciful regards of the one ; and of thxC Avicked de- vices of the other. It is true, the ken of tlu^ greatest understanding can ])enetrate bur a little way tlie mind of the wise, to kiunv its secrets ; yet one of ordinary acute- ness can peneti'iitc^ thi'ougli that of my worse than stu])id defamers. As stupid as I ;un, I can (hscern the intents and purposes of those seeking to (U^prive me of my good nam(\ of my earthly substance, anpeated in otlier places ; and in tlie hearing of DubHe ukmi. imphing that I had done nothing towards s(>tt!ing Oregon. 1 pronounce this a consunnnate falsehood, uttered with a malicious design. T have on some j)re\ious page truly said; the con- >ti()n was mir.c. 'l\\r saciifices Avere min(>, great as t \ W(M'e. The achievement A\as inin(\ witlunit morta' hr'lp ; A irtually mad(>, before I lelt this for that side of the continent. The enduring of twenty years of a mer- cil(>ss persecution, has been, alone, mine. Mean and misantliroi)ic men ])icked my pocket ; and decinving, induced the benevolent to withhold their munificent proffers, and their hel[). A\'hat of that '? My means for carrjing clvili/atiou and the knowh dge of ( «od into Ore his glory, " Not by might, nor by pow(T, but by my spirit." i have said much concerning self, and now find it in- dispensi'.ble to say more. A\'ith as little self-(^stcem as self-n^spect, I shall be able to describe- the powers and a 82 qualities of my mind ; and to satisfy, that it is not strictly true, that I am " without mind to do any thing." For natural ondownKnits, I havi- notliing to hoast of; yet, tlio operations of jii\- mind, T tlihik, indicate sfniifi/, and siu'h ^it'ts as elevate character, as high above the characters of my grovelling enemies, as the clouds are above the ground. It is due chiefly to early parental instruction and train- ing, that my mind is what it is. Blessed with intelligent and i)ious parents, who led me in early youth to fear God, I came into active life serious minded ; and nuich inclined to consider on my ways, and to seek to know ^^•hat could make me useful and happy. Before the years of manhood, I resolved on a fearless obedience to the divine connnands ; and to the pi'csent, I have con- tinued to desire and to pray for the ])ossession of capa- bilities and substance to bless the suffering mortals about mc. There is nothing like the godly instructions and virtu- ous examples of a mother. She can better mould the mind for I'ure motives and generous actions ; and can better guard against e> il propensities, and prevent bad habits in children, than the father, or the school-teacher. It was a mother wlio taught me never to take the name of the Lord my Ciod in vain, — never to be guilty of the sin of insulting the Almighty with the breath he gives. She impressed my mind with a profound and pious reve- rence for Jehovah, and with a high and solemn venera- tion for the institutions of Christianity ; and so impressed it with the love of truth, that not a single doubt, as to the divine authenticity of the Scriptures, ever profaned the sanctuary of my heart. Her instructions and ex- amples inclined me to be diligent and persevering in business, and faithful and patient in the discharge of duties ; to be hospitable and merciful, — when (>nemies hunger and thirst, to feed them, and give them drink ; and to bless them that jiersecutc. Finally, by the grace of God, I hope I liaNC the love for my neighbor, which meets the divine reciuisition ; and am disposed to do aii 83 is not thing." :>ast of; ' sail iff/, »ovc the •uds arc id train- tclli<>ent to fear d miicli to know "ore the ience to ive con- of ca pa- ls about id virtu- )uld the md can ent bad teacher, e name y of the e gives, us reve- vcnera- pressed t, as to I'ofaned ind ex- iling- in arge of nemies drink ; ; 'jiace , which 3 do aii the good in my power for him, and for the country, and mankind in general ; and to endure every evil coming upon me, with [latience and }>ious heroism. 1 say, therefore, I liave mind ; and have been measura- bly useful. Intellectual gifts, purity of motives, benevo- lent actions, and a spirit of public and high-minded enterprise, have made me so. I will take this o})portunity, for the first, and probably the last time in my life, to explain what is of no interest to the public, my position in society, as to politics and religion. I will do it in a few words, and in hmguage of di\ ine inspiration. Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty ; tliere is indiA idual freedom ; there is, also, the spirit of philanthro[)y ; and th(> spirit of martyrs to meet any event, or to encounter any difficulty in obey- ing the connnands of God ; and there I am, steadfast and true to my brother man, — ready to march with, to fight with, and to die with freemen, godly heroes, valiant sol- diers under the all-merciful, all-wise, and all-powerful Prince of Peace. It cannot be denied, but I have had a mind capable of doing much for Oregon. The vcny nature and magnitude of the undertaking to colonize that territory, bespeak a mind as gifted as the mind of any one of its op[)oscrs ; and the eleven years of entire devotion to it, also, bespeak a philanthropic spirit, which never moved in the bosoms of such narrow-minded men as its enemies. The testimony of my works, showing the possession of an ordinary amount of mental power, is adduced more to rebuke those who deny me that possession, than to prove the reality. Those works are not so numerous, nor so mighty, as, under different circumstances, they -vAOuld have been. 1 have not accomplished even all attempted ; nor attempted all 1 woidd, on account of interferences and evil reports of slanderers. The overseers of the field'- ^f enterprise were made to believe me incapable of doiiig " any thing "' ; and, therefore, refused to employ me. They were told that snow-white was jet-black ; and belie^' ;d it. Notwithstanding all the opjmsing diffi- 8-1 .^ !i culties -which cnoniics were nblo to tlirow in my Avay, I forced forward into the work ; and liave labored hard, beariiiy,' the burden and heat ot" the dav ; and iniiratitiide and persecution seem to bo the reward for it aU. I am not k'ft Avithout comfort. There is cond'ort in the appro\als of cons(it>nce, and smiles of llea\en ; and great satisfaction in the belief of liaAing directly caused good to numkind ; and indirectly, other good, by exciting in others, of greater cai)al)ilities, corresponding zeal and efforts with my own, which are ])roducing new means and moral influences. They, perliaps, ultimately, will cause far more j'lorious results in the earth, than anv I have been, directly, the feeble instrument in bringing about. Tlieie are items of credit to be placed to my account, Avbich the [)ublic think not of My books and i)amphlets had gone into the hands of leading judjlic nu>n, and into all })arts of the country, describing the Oregon T(>rritory, the prospects of tratk'rs and farmers who might settle there ; anil the benefits of a commercial intercourse with the islands and shores of the broad 1'a.cific, long beibre Lieut. Slocum's Mission, or the JSouth iSea Ex[)edition was planned. I confess, my mind has suffered a diminution of its powers : nevertheless, my enendes are liars. It is a sad tru'th, and sorrowing do I s])eak of it, the nnnd has suf- fered violence, and is not all it once was. It has been enfet'bled with the body, and has lost a portion of its elasticity. ()[)[)ression has done it. Between the years l8o() and 18'3"^, when law-suits, unfounded in justice, were brought against me ; when harassed, and followed about by sheriffs and constal)les, fear came mightily u])on me. I was not afraid of men, evini coming, blood-thirsty and ferocious like wild betists ; but, trend)led, and often hid myself, fearing delays and hindrances to the expe- dition preparing for Oregon ; and disasters to the ent(n'- prise. Then, the nnnd receiAcd its first shock. The second was received at \ew Orleans, and during the pas- sage to \'era C'ru/ ; and the third, and most terrible, at the Columbia liner, and on board the Uryade, aaIuIc "e^wcw 'fHF'- 85 "vvay, I 'd hard, ,ratitiidu nlbrt in oil ; and ' caused cxcitiiij>' awl and >aiis and 11 cause I luive d)()ut. account, ini])hlets uul into ciTitory, It set tie ISC with 'j; bcibro tion Avas )n of its is a sad lias suf- as been u of its U": years justice, ollowed ly u])on thirsty d often e e\i)e- ent(>r- The he ])as- ihle, at ■wliili^ makini;- a voya<^-o to the Sandwich Islands. Those shocks, tou'ether with hardships, broke down my constitution, and brought on a premature di'cay of my nature. They j)rodii(ed a nervous ali'ection in the head, which, for nearly twenty years, have confused my thoughts; and lia\(> disabli'd me to writ(> without se\"ere ])hysical sutfer- in<4-, or to converse without stanimerin' a while, jier- secuted me. It '\\ill i>o to develoj) their triu* characters ; and to show the unreliability of their statements. ]Most of them, jud<;inr of life, when, in truth, thev know much about it. My p(n-formaiiccs liavc> been on open and liigh ground, ami in daylight, before them. Books, i)ainphlets, luwspaper essays, and a hundred tongu(\s, have been the heraitls proclaiming in their cars my ca])abilities, enterprises and aciilevements. Unfortunately, in some respects for me, there existed among the iuhcrent qualities of my mind, power and dis- 86 j)osition to bcfririul my ronntrymon, and to brcnk away the liold Avliich tlie rupidity of tlio Hudson Bay ('onipany had fixed ui)on (^uuh-a's Ishiiul. It was this, that ahirined them; {iml tliey soiiuht bj- every strata^'em and device to crusli that po^^el■ and (hs[)osition. Tliis is the secret of the whoh' nmtter. It is not t?tian<2;e, Congress men shonhl find it difficult to understand my merits, since so few espouse my cause, and so many ennniiij^ and j»ow(U'ful men misrepresent and defame my clinracttn'. How my wearied spirit woukl feel cheered, and (hink in consolation, should even one of the illustrious delegates of this great nation, assend)led at AVashington, invc^stigatc and understand the things I allege to have suti'ered and done, and attempted to do ; and in his })lace, should exi)ress sympathy for me ; and advocate my cause, but no pitying voice is heard in my behalf; and no tear has i'allen for me. I live on. like some aged oak, lonely, on some bleak summit, withstanding storms and tempests, and smitten by thunderbolts, a branchless trunk. By the help of God I li\ <' on ; suffering poverty, the loss of health, and the berea\ ement of companion and children, and a per- secution, terrible : and, in resi)ect to duration and the number of powerful and cruel ])erpctrators, doubtless, unparalleled in this age and country. } °3a I 1 i 1 •mm ak away ^'oinpaiiy t aliinned ik'vico to secret of ; clifKciilt ly cause, 'Sent and ould feel le of tlie nbled at liings I to do ; no; and d in my 10 bleak smitten help of th, and a pcr- md the ubtless, APPENDIX. A.- To hasten the universality of Christian civilization and freeJoni was very near tiic leailiiig ol)j('ct of my travels through the Mexican domin- ioiis. Of course, I was unlike the many travellers in foreign countries, who write useless hooks; untliinking, unknowing, unohserving, and idle, indiifercnt to every thing ahout tiiem, hut what administers to self, and the little things which usually attract the attention, and gratify the curiosity or propensities of little minds. Enough of facts have heen detailed, on the preceding pages, to show tlie objects for which I have lived ; enough can he cited from my journals, to show to what cause has been the entire devotion of soul and body, the most of life ; and enough from my correspondence with distinguislied and magnanimous-minded individuals, to satisfy of the good planned and attempted for those inhabiting the dark regions of tlie earth. However, without a particular desire to magnify self- imjiortance, 1 will give a few extnicts from tlie journal of my travels to Oregon, to remove from my character the vile aspersions which vile men have cast upon it. From a letter to tbc Second Comptroller of tlie United States Treasury, dated City of Mexico, August •2\, 183.'}. "I am making arrangements to leave immediately for San Bias, expecting, on the way, no ' |irotection by virtue of the laws of the land ; no otiier than the kind which vultures give to lambs, taking and de- vouring them' — no other carllily security than such as will be afTordcd hy unarmed servants, and my personal defensive weapons. " Ahout twenty days ago, the cholera, in its fearful and desolating march, reached this city, and has slain thousands. In the space of five days, four thousand persons are said to liave died. A remedy brought with me, furnished hy W'illiam Darrah, M. D., Professor of Principles and Practice of Medicine in Pennsylvania Medical College, Philad(Mphia, has saved, it is belicveil, the lives of some thousands of the higher class of population. For the poor who fill the streets, there seems no escape from death. Their condition, and that of those in all 88 h i| the villages, is truly (Ifplornblo. Slpfpiiij^ upon flic frrnund hrtwofii rush mats or filthy blaiikcts, witlwiut physicians or niodiciiics, or I'vcii knowledge of means for rrlicf, liicy an- piTiiiiarly cNpuscd t(j tin; terrible destroyer. The work ol' ileutii ;^oes on among them undp- poscd. "(len. Santa Ainia has found in the monster a formidable enemy, irresistible in atta<'k, and (;niel in vietory. There; were slain !)y that foe, near (Jiiadlajara, in one battle, over two thousand of his army; and many who escaped \v<'re panic-struck, and are deserting. The patriotic and intre|)id |)- li' f'lic'iiiy, ill hy tliiit his army ; iii^'. Tlio 1 1)0 able, (Ml. Arista in Mexico le [)('()|tle. t, iiiorc in 10 ffovorn- wliilo tlio till- youth, lorioiicod, itioii, tliiit ■|)lll)lic!Ul. [ponies, — S I'OgOIIO- iid useful stroiigosl. us Christ iirljitraiy ill cease, great and Mglibors. er sister ler, and usively such a ion, are rs, war, remain God will ucation suggest, lyself a that of art of system moral, ere, the niiiiil is iKJi matured at the ixpeiiso of the; body, uiid mind and body an: invigorated with wholi'Sduii! exercise ; and the pupil comes into manhood with health :md strength, evincing in his avocation skill and dexterity. The same benevolent gentleman who furnished the prescription lor treating tiie cholera, also, favored nie with pamphlets and jiapers, developing the plan of tin; Manual Labor Academy of Pennsylvania. The system of discipline and instruction in that institution seemed preferable to that in any other of my enlightened land. This plan and system were communicated to Richard M. Jones, Esq., Principal of the State Institute, at (luadlajara, in which youth were taught on the Laiicasterian mode of instruction. Mr. .Jones was satisfied of its pre- eminent advantages, and engaged to exert his influence for its general adoption in that country. I was particular to explain it to other foreign- ers in other cities, whose intelligence and positions gave tiicin influence with the loading citizens. VACCINATION AMONO THE MEXICAN INDIANS. I received from the benevolent hands of N. II. Smith, M. D., of Baltimore, and William Morton, M. D., of Georgetown, D. C., a supply of vaccine matter, which was carefully applied to the benefit of Mexicans. SOME OF THE THINGS WHICH LED TO THE SETTLEMENT OF THE WILD PARTS OF ALTA CALIFOUNIA. I had conceived it to be within the scope of my means, to colonize the upper parts of Calil'ornia, and to do as much for the growth and prosperity of settlements there, as for those I should make further north ; and intended, on reaching the metropolis of Mexico, to apply for the powers of an cinpresarias, but found in that countrj'' my state of health such, and the state of public atlairs such, as forbid a direct application to the government. I had, however, conferences with iiniividuals upon the subject, — with Col. A. Yhary, Col. Qucvido, and other distinguished public men. My proposition was favorably re- ceived, and 1 was encouraged to hope the right of colonizing would be secured to me by charter. Col. Yhary assured me it would be on certain conditions, such as we had conversed about, and as were unobjectionable on my part. fjxtracts from a letter, dated Nov. 1, 1833, Guadlajara, Al Exrno. Sor. Don Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna Presedante de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos. " A few days before leaving the City of Mexico, Col. A. Yhary and another gentleman attachec to t'le army, with patriotic intentions inquired to know the terms ou \ hich I would engage to introduce settlers into Alta California. I was very ready to give an answer, and 12 IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // ^ >^ 1.0 1.1 l^m |25 140 ■ 2.0 M ■•25 III 1.4 1 1.6 < 6" ^ '^ t *" // '/ /^ Hiotographic Sdences Corporalion 33 WIST IM.»4 i,fRf i^ WnSTIR.N.Y. MSM (716) •72-4903 '^'^1^ ^ ^U"" 90 i to converse upon a suhjeot wliirli was so in accordance witli tlic feelings of my heart. "The country adjoining on tlio nortli, is the Oregon Territory, wl-.icii it has been the sole object ot" my lal)()rs, for several years |)ast, to o'i)o- nize, anil am now on my way thither to cunsiunmate my plans. " I have collected much t( este Territoris hsista la linea donde confma la Hepubliea para levantar un niapa esaeto (pie de a conoser al mmido geo^raliciMHiite, la cituacion, producciones, y deniiis clensentos di; rijruera (K; (|ue es susceptible csto pais, y (pie nun son descoiiosidos. Muclm plaser tondria yo en contribiiir a inios descubrimientos tan iinportanies, pero me encucntir sin facnitades para protefer la euipresa, por es'ar rcservntlas al supremo (lovierno (Jeneral tanto el concedcr la licencia para levantar niapas, coino el decretar la erogacion cuales(piiera oira enipresa. '' Kn tal conce|it(», y en el de rpie deseo vivaniente los adelantos de mi patria, reconocido ala generosa disposicion (pie \^ m(! inanitiesta j)ara em| illustration is the project of surveying the uncultivated landa 5^^^^^^v^^t£ of this territory as far as the boundary line of the Republic, for the purpose of constructing a map which would geographically show the world the situation, productions, and other elements of wealth of which this country is susceptible, and which, as yet, are unknown. "• [ shall feel much pleased in contributing towards such important discoveries ; but [ fmd myself without faculties to protect the under- B2 taking, it being reserved to the supreme government, us well tlie granting of license to construct maps, us the furnishing of funds for this or ony other undertaking. " Therefore, and because I earnestly desire the prosperity of my country, grateful for tiie generous disposition which you have mani- fested to undertake a work as difficult us dangerous and expensive, I am of opinion you should submit your project to the supreme govern- ment, to which I will remit it and recommend it with the efficacy it deserves ; but this I shall not do until you inform me whether it will be agreeable to you, and whether you propose to wait the answer. " 1 have the honor to assure you of my respect and consideration. '^ God und Liberty. Monterey, June 226, lb34. Senor Don Hall J. Eeli.et." 'Jose Figueroa. I i^'--'* ^* I %y v,.^^* } well the f funds for rity of my lavc mani- spensive, I ne govern- efficucy it ther it will iswer. Jcration. GUEROA.