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Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mAthode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 6 6 ■ THE STRUGGLE I'oU oKECON.* HY JOHN A. WYKTII. XI. 1). IN 15-10 the eyes of civilizi'd innii lirst rested upiiii (Jreyoii. wlieli (_':ibrill<) ami Ferrer, sailiiiy mider llie S|)aiii.sli tia;;-. ooasted aloiiir iiiilil tliey reached a.s hij^li as Cape Hhiiieo. 4;{ iiortli hilitiide, wliicli Cape lihiiico, ill tlie year of our Lord 1S!»2. i.s ill Curry Comity. Orejron. and only a few miles north of the (.'alifornia line. If Captains Cahrillo and Ferrer thrilled with enthusiasm in conteniplatinj.'' the po.ssii)ililies of this ))ortion of the rim of the North American continent, they siic- ces.sfiilly concealed it in their reiiort to * Vnr inaiiy datn in this iiitioli' llii' iinllior is in- del)tci| II) till' folloHJiii; Miiirn's : /lixloi-ii of l/„ h.'.r- /xtliliiiii iiiii/ir III! ('iiiiiiii.iiiil itt' C'li/i/'iiiis I., iris, ml Cliivke ; VVn^liiiiL'liin liviim's As/m-i'i ; llii' saini' autliur's liiiiiui villi- ; 0>ryi)(/, liy Williiiiii Hiinows, 111 till' "AniiMiraii Ciiiniiionni'allli Siiiis"; (Irii/iiii: 'I S/iiirl IHsliirii •>!' ,i /..,/,,/ .loiinnii. Iiv .Inli'ii li Wyi'tli; till- l!i'|ji)its 1 11)111 tlif <'(.iisus Huioaii in WaaliiiigtDii (.'iiv. thai kiii^'' of tlieiis. Charles \'.. under who.se rei^n Curie/. )iillaye(l Mexico, Pi- /arro rol)l)i'd Peru, iiiid Aliiuijrro carried hack to Spain all thai was portahle of Chili, for nearly two hundred ycar.s elapsed before another white man ya/ed upon it ! Ov jierliaps Charles was too busy to settle Oreyoii then, since he had selilemeiits of a bloody kinil with Francis I. of FraiK'e, with (Jeiinaiiy. the N''lbei'- lands, 'riinis, Algiers, and a >iiiL:le round with hi.s Holiness. Pope Clement VII., .spendintJ more money in these Euro])eaii liastimes than his able lieiitenaiit.s could steal from the murdered natives of the Wesleni World. .\oiM'(' of iiorlli laliliulf, li>i;i'llicr with I lie i-t'iiiainiiij,' lai'lii and sea, incliul- iiij.'' Moiiiil St. Elias. wliirli was in s\<:\\\. L'p to this point cvi'i'vlhiiiir was Spain's, hul iioi'th of this a ^iiciily Kussiaii. wlio iiad lonLr hccn i'n^ai;r(l in hnildiiiL'' a town on tht; ( iiilf of Finland, haci put in a prior claim, liavin;;' hii'i'd a l>ani'. liy name \ itus liclirini;', to yo i'i'ui>injr aioiiir tin' iiortlicast coast of Sihcria. Tiiis I»anc (liscovcrcd a .sea whicii was named for him, and which the I'liitcd States liouylit. OP was siip|)os('d to have hon;^lit, <>clo'>er IS. ISiiT. Anyhow, lliey do not allow any otlier nation to "■o li>hiny in it. llcli- riiijr also fonnd out thai i( was on! v a few miles across from Sihcria to America, and on .Inly is. ITII. he •■discovered" thc> coast of .\la>l>'> a school of I'.ritish trading' vessids swarmeil in tliese seas, and tliev have swai'med there ever since. mm NATllAMKI. J. \VVIace River, jfot "snowed in" in the Rocky Mountains, oanipod there all winter; in May of the next year crossed the "Great Divide," and reached the Pacilic Ocean. 52° north latittide. .Inly. 17!):$, the Jirxl wliilc iiKin to cross the Xorth Aiiievicaii continent. On a rocky eminence ho en- praved : "Alexander Mackenzii', from Canada by land, the twenty -second of Vol.. t.XXXV. -No. .'>10. - 83 •Inly. Seventeen hundred and ninety- three." In IHDl Lewis and Clarke started on their famous expedition, reacliiny the (.'oliimiiia River November, I8()."), and re- turninu- to St. Louis .September, iMMi. In IsiKi Simon l<'ra/.er, a Can.idian, set- tled on Frazer River, iind is claimed to have l)een the lirsl white .settler wist of the Rocky Moiint.iins. in isos Mr. 1 len- ry. of the .\iie rican l<"ur ( 'ompany. eslab- lislied post Henry on Lewis River. Two years Liter Mr. Wilson Price Hunt, with about sixty persons, left St. Louis, and travelling overland, lifteen months later reached the mouth of llii> Cidiimbia, and l)uilt Astoria. He was driven out by the Rritish in IM.'i. and Astoria was recliris- tened Fort (ieorjfe. In 18I.S ii ayain fell into lilt; hands of tlie United Slates, and tilt! name of Astoria was restori'il. In 18^1) a resoliilitm was introduceil in Con- gress to e.staldish a chain of trading posts on the Missouri ami Columljia. and to se- cure immiLiration to Oregon from the I'liiled Slates ami China. In 1821 Pre- sitlent Mtniroe advised the military occu- pation of this territory, and President Adams, a year lattM', repeated this advice in his inessay:e. Tlie s.i'allant pioneer and trader Ashley hail, however, paved the way foi- military occupatit)n, for in \S2'.i he reached the head-waters of the I'latte; ill 1824 established a fort near Salt Lake, to wliicli, for purposes of del'eiice, ill ls2t!. he conveyetl a tipouniler cannon. Ill 1827 Pilclier, lient on a tradiii}.'- expe- dition, left Council Hhill's with -l.j men ami 10(1 iiorses, struck the iipjier waters of the Columbia at Fort Colville (now in Wasliiiiu|on», went northe;ist by the Co- lumbia, recrosseil the Rocky Mountains, ami in 1^2!) tlcscended the Missouri. At this dale. 1n27. there was not in the possession of an .\meric;iii citizen a siii- frle setlli'iiient or Iradint!' jiosl in all this vast reoion. Tlii» ownership of the coun- try was in warm ilis|)ute. It had been claimed in turn b,v Spain. Russia. (Jreat Britain, l-'raiice, ami the I'liiteil States. In the struirjfle rt)r possession prior to 1827 Spain had sold out to France; tiio latter, for a consideration paiil Na|)oleon Roiiaparte. had disposed of her interests to the United States, while Russia had retired within the icy circle of Alaska. The battle was now between the British F.miiire and the United States. The An- glo-Saxons were holding; on. Time and ir>3BHl 8BH Il.\i;i'Ki;S NKW MONTHLY MAOA/INK. tiiiu' nt;iiin it simmiu'iI tlial war could not 1)C iivfrlril. Tliitt lilood \v:is iinl slicd WHS ))rolt!ilily due to \\n\ Hlatf.slii;iii.slii)i of Wflislcr, and llial cloiiiicnl cliaiiiiiioii of |K'ai'c, Hut'iis C'lioalf. Alllioiitrli tlic ('olutiil)ia Uiver was discovori'd bv ("a])- tain Gray in 17".i"^. tii«' tivaly wliicli sfttlrd niion tlu' llttli parallel as the l)(nindary lino l)ctWL'eii Itritisli Colinnida and llii' Vnilid States was not sijrnfd until .liilv 17, IMt'. nor were all llic details (dosed nnlll lelt to tlic arUitr'alioii of Kniperor William of (iernianv. who y:ave the linal decision Oelolier 2\. Ih71. In IS'iU till! excitement loni/,e and hold this remote reii'ioii. and the (piestion was aslced, "Was Oreiron worth win- ning f" (Jreffou, with its .{al.OOd squure miles of territory. il.s hundreds of miles of seacoast. its fertile valleys, wide ran^res of )iaslure-lands. rich de|)osils of miner- als, iis mairnilicent i-ivers sweeping from mountains of perpetual snow with im- petuous hasle to |iay their tribute to the yreat I'acilicl 'I'he verdict of thr(M' (|uar- ters of a million inhabitants to -day is that it was worth tin; striifrple. I have before m(^ the jirivato corre- si)ondence and diary of a nnin who in ISU was fai'sij^dited enou^-'h to see the value of acquirinjr a territory .so vast and important, and that to ac(|uii'c it. it was neces.sary to colonize it with Americans. 'riiouifh l)ut twenty nine years of ajre. with a courat'e. skill, and enei'py whicli challen}r(> admiration and deserved suc- cess, he ortranized a movement for the colonization of Orojion. anil between lb;}l and IS.'fC) led two e.\])editions across the American continent in the ell'ort to found a State in the yreat Northwest. With what enthusiasm ho was lilled to ;,'ive U)) a prosperous business, a liap|)y home commandin;r the comi'oi'ts of life in the centre of American civilization. to part from a loving wife, family, and friends, and tempt fate in u jjerilous jour- nev of thousands of miles throngh track- less forests, across seemingly Iwmndle.ss ])rairie.s, over rugged and unknown mountains, at every turn exposed to dun gei-s fi-oni lio.stile .sav.igvs as brave as they were cunning and merciless: No one can read this old and musty diiirv, stained wilh frequent wettings froinover turnetl bull-boats or di-oncliing rains, iu nnmy i)laces illegible by actual wearing out of the leav(>s by frij'lion upon cai-li other, williont paying the tribute of jno found resp(!ct aiul admiration for the nuiii. Of liim Wasliington Irving wrote; '■ His enterjirise was pro.secuted with a spirit, intelligence, and perseverance thnl merited success. All the details that we have met with |>rove liini to l>e no ordi miry man. lie appears to have the nund to conceive and the energy to execute ex- tensive and striking jilans. Me had once more reared the American Hag in the lost domains of Astoria; and had lie been en- abled to nniintain the fooling he had so gallantly elVecled, he iidght have regained for his country the opulent trade of tlie Columbia, of wliich our statesmen hav(> negligently sutl'ered us to 1h^ disi)ossesseil." This extract from his diary, written January 11, l.SJiS, when "snowed in " in the mountains, at last convinced that after all he Inul done or could do Oregon nuisl bo given up, speaks with a pathos d'ie]>er than I can command: "The crackling of the fntling trees and iho howling III' ilie lihist lire, mure gniiid tliun ciini- fiirtalile. It iiiiikes two iiiilividiiiilii feel tlitir insigiiilicaiice in the cveation to lie seiiliil ini- (Icr a tiliinket with three and oiie-lialf I'ccI nf snow nlioiit tliPiii and inon- roinliig, and no tt'llhig when it will hIoji. The thonglils tliiil liave run tliroiigli my lirain while I liave lieoii here in tlie snow woiihl till a voliiino ; iiiv infancy, my youth, iii.v manhood's tmulili'il Hti'ciuii, its vagaries, its iilans, iiiixt'd wiih tlie g.ill of liilleniess, and its results, viz.: umltr a liliMikel, hundreds, perliapH tlioiisands, of miles from n friend, the lihist howling alioiit, smothered in snow, jioor, in detjt, nearly naked, and considered a visioiniry." Nathaniel Wyeth lived to see Oregon a Territory of tlu^ United States, and al- though he died before it was admitted as a State in 1859, his last years must have been happier in the knowledge that he had done much to make the occupation of this territory possible to his fellow-coun- trymen. Barrows, in his Ch^egoti, pays a tribute to his genius and skill in the selection * lionnevUU. m NATITANIKL J. WYETII, AND THE STRUGGLE FOR OREGON. 83!t •xpo.se" upon cacli lnl)iit no on 11 lave tlio mind to cxociite <;x Ml' Iifid oiipft Ifip in thf. lost (1 lie licoii en- •iff lie liail so liaveiTjrniiiHJ trado of tlio ilesnion liavc lisi)f)ssessc(l." iarv. written lowpti in" in iivinced tliat Id do OrcfTon ritli a pathos ; trees ami ibo iinil than nim- iials loel ihiii ' lit' .sealed iMi- !ie-)ialf I'erl „( iiiiiij;, and no thouKlitg that e I have lieeri vol a me ; ni.v >(!'» ti-diilili'il ixud wiih tlie ■*, viz. : niider hoii.sands, nl' vvliijg alidiit. nearly naked. see ( )rp).'oii itcs, and al- adniitted a.s must liave Ige tliat lie cupation of ellow-coun- •s a tribute e selection of iv site for Fort Hall (Idaho), which ho l)uilt ill is:u. Ill a It'tler ho say.s; "I have built a I fort on f.owi.'' or Snaku River, in latitude i;t iV N. and loin,ntudo li:r;t()'. wliii'li f named Fort Ilaii. We inaniifactured a niajjrniliceiit tiaj,' from some iiiroieachtMl slieetiii^', a liltlo red tiaiinei, and a few bhic patches, .saluted it with dainay-ed powder, and wet it in villanous alcohol, and after all it makes a very respectal)le appearance," Nino years later, in 18j;{, when, in the race for the occupation of Orcj^on, Dr. Marcus Whitman led his ^jreat caravan of about two hundred watfoiis and eiyht hiiiidred souls, ho selected tlio route by Fort Hall, which (>vassed "the Chimneys" iCIiiMiiiey Uo<'k, Haiiner County, Nchraska) ; reached the I'.lack Hills ijiresent State of Wyouiinyi June l.Mli, and liock [nde(K'iidenec, on Sweet- water l{iver (Wyoiiiinpi, on the 21st. "From this time to .Inly 2, frost each iii^fht. and siuiw. ' July 2d: "Thisniyhl. at about twelve o'cliK'k, we were at lacked hy Indians. ])rolialily tli(^ I'.hK'l'fcei. They lired about forty shots and .some arrows into the canii)." On ,lnly S. ISH'i.tlieexiiedition iirrivedat Pierre's Hole, and remained there to ,luly 17th. " durinp which lime all my men but eh^ven left mc" .Inly I8lli. " when near Ktai'lin^r we observed two |)arii(s of lilack- feet Indians comintr. alxiul two hundred ill iiinnber. A skirmish ensued. and one of the IJIackfeet was killed, and his blanket and I'ulic )ironj;hl into cam)). The women and children were seen llyinir into the mountains. The Indians made for the tindx^r, ami fortilied themselves in a mas- terly manner. We atlackt.'d them, and continued the attack all day. There were about twenty of them killed, and thirty- two horses were found chad. They de- camped durinir the niyht. leaviny their lodv'es and nnmy of tlieir dead. We lost three whites killed; eitrht badly W()undeth the remniintof tlie(\\|)odi- tion. eleven in nnnd>er. with a small i)ar- ty of Nez Perce Indians, continued tlieir march for tlie v.'illey of the C'olumbia. On the 21st o: Augrust they encounter- ed a villafre of Snake Indians wlio were friendly. Ten days later, followinjr the bed of ;» creek, "the rcK-ks on each side closed over the to]> and formed a natural bridffe. elevated alioiit fifty feet." From Pierre's Hole the route of the * 111 Irving'.s /totnierillc tliirr i< .1 lliiilliiij; dc- PcriptioM of ilii.s IiIimmIv tMu'ouMtiT wiili ilic Mliuk- foot. in wliich Natliiiiiifl Wyi'tli !■: «poKin nf in iho liiL'lii'st torni3 of jiraiRc for tlio notivo p;iii ho took in i)ie fl<:lil. expedition was west and a little norUi unlil the Snake ru' Lewis IJiver wa* reached, then alontr this stream, a-rririj^i' at Fort Walla Walla, it trading tt^itoti of the lfuds(ui Kay Company. (JcloWr 13. Jh;I2, having on the way Ite^en foroMi U« kill their horses ftu- food. On ili* iJnL they left Walla W;illa, and trjvelJwi down the Columbia in cancx'S to Fort Vancouver, another stiilion of tlie Hud son Hay Comnany, arrivin;j there < Mo her 211, IMi2. " Mere I was n-ceived tmiJ,; the III nosi kindness and liospitaiilr lersiiiia]!y kind and courteous. It was in ma.tt<-rs <>f business they were harsh. <'xaciinj:. auij ultimately ruinous to com|M>titioii. Later in a rejiort to ( 'on^ress be wrtMie. " Hvjierieiice has satisliee mad« U» bear on any tradtu- who shall alt«'tn]4 tm prosecute his liusiin --s within its ri-nrh.' ' He was imiiressed with the productiT*" ness of the country around 1^'ort Vanof»u ver on the Columbia: "They raise ♦o'l" bushels of wheat; barley, atKKi; Indtan corn. Huoo; potatoes, 15()(i: i>efise. Sonn and a larjri' quantity of iiuinpkiiis. Tbere are about eifflit selllei-s on the Muli^itK*- mall ( Williamette). old ' I'utjagiji' of tlj*- Company. The soil is jrood. timber » heavy and thick, niid almost imju'iielra- ble from uiiderbrush and fallen treies." November 4th, on<' of the remainii,.;; seven men of the twenty-one which ]•'' Poston eiifht months before dieil. and u- olbei's. becomiuff discour;i}reurc>e» of the country, determined to return to the States and enlist a larp-er and 1>et.l«r- f'(|uipped exi)edition, and apain seek « home and fortune in the v.-illey of Cf^ Columbia. His will was indomitable "»* ♦ IIoiis« of Reiiioscntatives, No. 101, rebme-7 Ifi, ISHfi. l!;irrow.«'s Orrtioii. U U'liev JlllSSlI lu- ll can Mult< cover^ c»'rnii tlie f.ij toin-> not I'i •ty seen tlie wil Iflhi point fiiltil on tl inir li nietll' pall> but NATHANIKI. .1. WYFTII. AND TIIK STHroriLF FOR OUF/JON. 841 ''ivfr w»* '" fonped 1. 'II iJif Ji«u. »<•« I'- ¥4^ 'f 111*- Hu(' of l]j<- li ruber j* IllJX'lifll-A I trvies."^ "eiuninin^ viiiclj Jefi 1. and lijt Ct. Vlljjl-lj in the al 'nj}»er 35. and HID I . but in videnfie."' orc-t- Mr. ■^'Itim 1-0 id )iet1*T I seek ■■) y of ti.f tab]^ Jj^ , FebnuTT U'licvod in himself, and if sncocss was [HHSilde lie would iK'liieve il. Uy Novemhei- .'tdlh, with two miMi ami Ik r;irio«>, "I siMl'ted up llie Wallamot or Miiltonom:ili l{ivfi'"' on ii voyitj.''' of (lis I Dviry. Tlir diary is rich in notes con- f.rnini.' ihe to|i<)iri'a|iliy of this rc'_'io»i, till- forests of heavy pines; "on tin- bot- toms tliere i.s rnnsiderahle oak of a kind not I'liimd in tlm States, of e.vcellent qiial itv for ship building." " I have never veti a CI .iiili'v of e(|nal beauty except tiie I\aniie day sustain a laru'c ))o|)nlalion. If this country is ever colonized, this is the point to oonimem-o." This iirojiheey is fullilled. for I'orthm 1 Orepon, is built on tliis location. In .lantiary, is;);t. hav- iiii_' linished liis r>x))eariy startin^r to the Northeast, but the (rovernor would not consent. '■ which I interpreted iiiio a jealousy of niv motives." L'inlcr date of .laniiarv 1(>, 18;i;{, from F'i>rt \ ancouver, is a letter tf> his ])apeiits: "After much delay and some dillicul- lie> in the shape of Ion ;• nnirches on foot, I am at last liere. You can have but little idea how much men improve in some points of character in situations like tiiese, and if polite carHa^re and shrewd intellect are best acquired in the more populons parts of the earth, jjoner- ous feelinjrs nvi'. fostered in the wilds, and amon^r savages the civili/ed man seems to uphold liis character better than nmoiiL'' his fellows." To .Messrs. Tucker and Williams on s.ime date: " My men have all left me, and I am about returninf,' acniss the mountains with two men that I have hired for this ])urpose.'" He left for Walla Walla February :?, 18:J3. arrived there on the l.'Uh, and by Ajjril 2.'id was '' fairly in the danperons countrj*. Near here two hundred Flatheads, Coulerays, Punderays. and other.s were killed by the BlacktVet Indians." On the 2i>lh he encountered ji villajre of friendly Tndians of "one hundred and sixteen Iodides, containintr upwards of one tliousand souls." Here he ren\ained for some days, studying the custonisand char- acter of these Indians. April .'50, 18.'{,'{: " Kvery inorninp some important Indian addresses either heaven or liis countrymen, exhortini: them to gootl conduct to each other and to tin; stranirern aiiujupf them. ( )u Sunda.v there is more jira.ver. and nothintr is done in the way of trade or t'ames. and they seldom lisli. kill tranie, or raisy have i nild. play fill, laii>;liiu;{' disposition, 'm* ncirtpiali ties are stroiiyly jjoi'trayed ii, their coun tonunces; they are p< 'to and unobtru sivo, and. liowever p"'.i do noi Im'h; except as i)ay for services They are cry ijrave. and li>rhl the I'lackfeel. who continually steal iheir horses The; wi'ar as little clothinjras the weatlu r will ]ierniit. Tlie women are closely covered and chaste, and theyounjT women are tfcKxi-lookinp." These friendly tribes were chietly Ne/. I'erces !ind Flatheads, and evidi-ntly they had been inlluenced by association with missionaries, and cliielly those of th'! Catholic tMiurch. On May 5th there was some excite- ment amotijr the Indians. "There is a new 'great man' here t'cttinjr ii]) in the camp, and like the rest of the world he covers liis desijjns under the ^rreat cloak of relipion. His followers are now dancinp to their own vocal music, and perhaps one-lifth of tju! cami) follow him. He is {rettinff uj) some new form of reli- gion ainoni; the Indians more simi>le tliaii himself. I.iike otlnu-s of liis class, he works with the fools, women, and chil- dren first. While lie is doinpr this the men of sense stand by and laiifjli ; but thi'v will soon liud out that fools, wo- men, and children form snlarg'eamajorit.\ that with a bad erace tliey will have to yield. These thinffs make me think of the new liifhts and revivals in New Eng- land." The Messiah craze and the phost dances of 1800 created a little more disturbance than in is;t;{! May 21st: "Snow as usual." 24th: " liain. hail, snow, and IhuiKkM';" ami then follows the only etl'ort at beinff joc- ular in the diary. "We are so near wluM-e they make weather that they .send it to us as if it cost nothing!" This joc- ularity is, liowever, short-lived, for the next entrv is: "Twenty lodg'es of Black- feet are now camped at our last camp; 842 HARPER'S NEW MONTTTLY MAGAZINE. moved seven miles." Juiie 5th: "The 'Tliree Buttcs' caiiu' in sifflit one by one, and then the Train Tetonx."' On tlie 7lh, '•moved lifteeu miles, without walei- the whole route; enou<,di dust to sull'ocatc one." loth: An Indian was mortally gored by a hutl'alo ; "he very composedly made his will by word of mouth, the Ind- ians responding in concord at the end of each sentence; he appeared nut in (he least intimidated at the approach of death. I think the Indians die ijetter than the wliites. Perhaps they have less super.sti- tion in regard to the future, anil argue that as the Deity makes Ihem happy here, he will also lioreafter, if there is existence for them." June 15th : " Last night .some Blackfeet fired into our camp." For one of the crip])led Indians a novel stretcher or lit- ter was made. " He has a good bed inade on (Miles, the points of which, like shafts, were carried by a horse led by his wife; the hinder part, by si.\ men and women, on their shoulders." On July 9lh lie was again at Pierre's Hole, where the big battle was fought a year previous. Six days later there were new alarms that the terrible Blackfeet were upon them, l)Ut still no enemy in sight. "On this dav killed thirty buf- falo." On July 18, 18:53, Mr. Wyeth wrote Mr. Ermatinger: "I arrived here nine days ago, saw no Indians, but saw the bones of ^Ir. Moore, killed by the IJiack- feet last yi'ar, and burieil lliem. He was one of my men who h'ft me in Pirrre's Hole. A Mr. Nudd was also killed. I have letters from the Scates .... Cholera has killed live thousand i)eo|)le in New- York. . . . General Jackson, I'resident. . . . Insurrection in Southern Slides on ac- count of the tariff." .luly 2(lth : "Country covered with bulValo. Shot a cow with a very young calf, which followed oiu' mnl(> for a long way before it discovered its mistake." 28tli : " I foiinil a grizzly in a thicket, and after firing pistol and throwing ston(>s. he came out as though he meant light. I gave him the shot of my rille through the body. He then rushed on us, and I ran as fast as I could. "Mr. Sublette al.so ran." August I, lS.'i3: "Mr. Bredger sent four men to look for lis. Smith. Tliom))son, Evans, and a half-breed. Fifteen Snake Indians came up to them, and after smoking departed. After they had gone, Thompson, having been out hunting and fatigued from loss of sleep, was dozing. He was awakened by a noise among the horses, and, ojjening his eyes, the first thing that presented itself to his sight was the muzzle of a gun in the liands of an Indian. It was immediately dis- charged, and so near his liead that the front piece of his cap alone saved his eyes from being put out by the powder. The ball entered the head outside of the eye. and breaking through the cheek-bone, lodged in the neck. While insensible an arrow was shot into him from the top of the shoulder downwards." August 7th: "Camped on Gray Ball River. Here I found a ])iece of about live pounds of bitundnous coal, which burned freely. Its fracture was too per- fect to have come far." August 11th: "Saw four grizzlies. 12tli: Arrived at Big Horn River, and went out to get bull- hides to midie boat.'' This boat was eighteen feet long, and was made in this way: Slender willow poles or branches were cut and the butts forced a short distance into the ground in an elliptical shape, corresponding to the rim of the boat. These were about one foot apart. Tin* ends of opposite poles were now bent towards each other until the proper curve for the bottom of the boat was secured, and then tied together with leather thongs. Other poles and branches were interwoven in an antero- posterior direction until a strong wicker frame was completed. The skins of three l)u Haloes were .sewed together with thongs, and these were laid raw side out upon tlie frame, to which they were securely stitch- ed. A slow (not blazing) lire was then started underneath the shell, and in this way the skins were dried and made to contract tiglitupon the frame. In this boat, on August 15, 183;5, accom- l)anied by Mv. Milton Sublette, two Indian lads and two half-breeds, !Mr. ^Vyeth un- dertook one of those perilous voyages oc- casi:'nally recorded in the annals of fron- tier life. Tlie starling-point was near the fatal ground wlier(\ in 1876, the gal- lant Custer and his entire command per- ished at the hands of Sitting Bull and his merciless braves, and not very remote from the place whore this unprincipled savage met a bloody end, December, 1800. A thrilling description of this voj'agc is given by Mr. Irving in Bonnevilli'. Down the Big Horn they floated into the NATHANIEL J. WYETII, AND THE STRUGGLE FOR OREGON. 843 Ycllowston'^, and thoiico into tho Mis- souri, iiiul on to St. Loiii.s, travel's ills' WyoTTiinjr, Moiilan-i, DaK-ota, Iowa, No- l)ra.ska, Kan.sas, and Missouri, tliousands of niili^s (if perilous windings, over rapids, l)ai's. drift-wood, siia{,'s, and rocks, requir- inj; as much vigilance to keej) their frail bark from being sunk as to keej) out of ritle or arrow shot of tlie cunninp savages who prowled along the banks. With all their precautions of crawling into the willows and dragging their boat after them at break of day. and travelling only at night to j)revent their l)eing seen by ♦ he Indians, they were taken in by a large liand of Crows. Fortunately tliey ni'-t witli this mishap so near to Fort (Jass, a trading-post at the junction of the Big Horn and Yellowstone, that the Indians, fearing to kill, only robbed them, and allowed them to depart. On August 21.st: " Pa.ssed the mouth of Powder River, and on the 24th struck the Mi.s.souri. Here tlie bull-boat wa.s aliandoned for a canoe, or a ' pirogue.' " September 3d, they came in siglit of twenty-one lodges of Indians. "I imme- diately had the boat put into a thicket and fortified as well as I could. As soon as it was dai'k we proceeded forward with a high wind and cloudy sky. All went well until we were just o])positc the vil- lage, when we unluckily went aground on a sand bar. Here we worked liard for some time to get otf, and had the Indians .seen or heard us we could have made little resistnnce; but they did not, and after some time we got off. These were the Aricaros. and would have scalped ns." With all these dangers the trip was not without its fascinations. On Septenilier 4th, after tipping tl " boat, getting wet. and then goi.ij.,- ashoi-e to dry, they '■floated through the night eleven hours, a beautiful still niglit. the stillness inter- rupted only by the neighing of the elk, the low of tlie buil'alo. tiie hooting of the largo owl and the screeching of the small ones, and occasionally tlie siilashiiig of a beaver in the water," — a picture of wild- ness and solitude now only possii)le in retrospeci on. September 6, 1833: "Seeing an elk on the snnd, killed him. Very acceptable, as we had luKl nothing to eat .since yester- dav noon; saved his horns for my best friend, Mr. F. Tudor, of Boston. Ifith: "Run on a sand bar and was unable to extricate tlio boat in the dark ; the mos- quitoes almost murdered us 1'' Septembei- 21st: "Passed Council BIulTs;" and on September 27th the voyagers readied Fort Leavenworth (Kansas). On the 28th this long and exciting boat voy.'ia'e ended at Lil>erty. Missouri, wliere Mr. Wyeth took a steamboat for St. Louis and tlie East. The indomitable energy and undaunted pluck of this man is evinced in the im- mediate execution of his purjiose to again go over this terrible journey to tlie Ore- /o.i country. He would not give up his dream of civilizing tliis valuable territory. His clear mind saw in the near future a vast commonwealth, dotted with farms, villages, and cities, on the Pacific slope of the Rocky Mountains, and this a part of the Union! Scarcely half a century has elapsed, and lo! in this wilderness, out of which he was forced to go, dwell to-!itrick wiis voldx'd liy Ihi) Crow liidiiius, lint. I was ill lni]pi's you would not lii'iU' of it. I knew of It lii'foro I left Caniliridjii', lint did not wish to aliirni you. I do not think there is ninrh danger wiili so lar^e a pinty as I shall have. Mr. Xiiltall, and Mr. 'I'ownsend, anodiiT natiMJiJisf, ])assed through this ]il.iee to tho relidezvrnis last week,,.. Ihiptisle* eoMtiiiiies a jiretty j^ood lioy. I shall not foiuel my jnoniiso to send for you if there is any ehanee of doin;^ NO Willi jiropriety, but you must not he. too san}i;nine ; a thousand eirciinistanees may |)ievent, althonjfh I desire it niiich. I feel as much as you eaii the loiiesoiiieness of my Wiiy of life, but you know thf Kiivcem of nliut I hare iiiHlcrliikiii in life itself lo me, ami if 1 do fail in it they shall never say it. was for want of persever.iure, lam yof Han);niiie that I shall sueeeed, I will take f^ood rare of myself, and perhaps the life which hegaii in turmoil may yet end in (piiet and peace, and our sun ;;o (low 11 from a clear sky, I cannot hut. reproach myself that I have made you in some measiir j * The Indian boy who accoinpaiiind Mr. WyctU on his first return trip from the Paoifio const. a widow, niid I fear you will hn.od over liope.s that have heeii hlasted Iiy me. These thini^s make me melancholy, and I helicvo 1 have f;ot the hliiiH. Oood-hye, my dear wife, and mav (iod hiesa you. N. J. Wyetii." On May 5, 1834, our explorer was again on his way acro.ss the continent, with sixty men and a sullicient number of horses and uuilcs, starting from Liberty, Missouri, crossing the Kansa,s near its confluence wilii the Mis.souri, day after day pushing on in a direction slightly north of vest through Kansas (of our present map) into Nebraska, striking the Platte about 41' north latitude and 99" west longitude, following the nortii fork of this stream into Wyoming, passing the Black Hills, and on June 9, 1834, the expedition ar- rived at Rock Indei)endence, on the Sweet- water, 42 30' north latitude and 107° west longitude. Beyond an occasional bout with Indians, nothing occurred worthy of note, although the diary faithfully details the march of each da,y, June 1, 1834: "Crossed Laramie Fork." 8th: "This day killed two grizzlies." Kith: "The grass is miserable, and my horses are starving." Several hunters had also not returned to camp, and the diary reads, "Fearful they have been scalped," .lulySth: "Made northwest to a iilace where there is a soda spring, or, I may say, fifty of them. There is also here a warm spring which throws out water with a jet," This location is now within the National or Yellowstone Park. They were now on Bear l^iver, and it was well named, for on July lOtli they " killed three grizzlies." From July 14th to August Gth they were busy in building Fort Hall, on Lewis River. The strategic imiwrtance of this fort has already been referred to in the introduction to this article. The expedition now bound for the Pa- cific coast numbered "in all twenty- nine." The.y wore now entering the section of country in which Mr. Hunt's party in 181 1 suffered so severely for food, being forced finally to .scatter in small detaelmionts to seek subsistence. Some of these perished in the mountains. August 15th the expedition struck Snake River. Food was getting scarce. " Kill- ed somc! dusky grouse, and dug .some ka- mas root, which assisted in living a little. Saw one Indian at a distance on hoi'se- back." 19th : "This day found a colt left wmmmmmm. NATHANIEL J. WYETH, AND THE STRUGGLE FOR OREGON. 846 ll)y the Indians, on which we will Ijreak- ' fast, as provisions are running short." ! ]{ations were still shorter two days later, for the entry on the 21st, with a grim sug- gestion of a joiie, says, "No l)rei',kfast; feel very much purified in the Hesh." 2-tth : "Scorpions are quite common. Two nights since, ,iust as I v.-as about ly- ing down, I saw something move on my blanket, and found it to be a good-sized scori)i()n." "Our i)arty now numbers scvent('(>n — Indians, literati, and all." The literati referred to were Mr. Nuttall, the botanist, and Mr. Townsend, the orni- thologist. Sejjteniber 1st: "Canii)ed at ten o'cloclc, having found no water, and tlie whole country as bare as my hand, all'ording a had prospect for our poor horses." On the ne.Kt day. preltj- well worn out, the remnants of i,he expedition reached Walla Walla. September 4'.h : Mr. Wyeth left Walla Walla in a canoe for Fort Vancouver. Dth, had reached "The Dalles" (or Nar- rows) of the Columbia. " Party arrived with news that they had drowned one of the horses and the jackass. I valued him more than ten hoi-sos a.s a breeder. " Down the Columbia was not smooth sailing, for September lOtli "the gale swami)ed one of our canoes, which frightened tlie Ind- ians back." 13th: " Made the portage of the Cascades; and ne.x^ day, Sei)teinber 14, 18;J4, arrived at Fort Vancouver, nine- teen months after leaving this place for the East, hai'iug in this time tirice trav- ersed the American C(nitinent." September IStli: "Early in the morn- ing.baving hired another canoe, put ahead down the Columbia, and at twelve o'clock met the brig ^falJ Dean. Boarded her, and found all we'll." This ship Mr. Wy- eth had loaded with supplies and despatch- ed from Boston. "She had been struck by lightning and n:' ' ■':::\i.. ', having put into Valparaiso tor repairs. Cajitain Lambert brought me twenty Sandwich- Islanders, two coopers, two smiths, and a clerk." Sei)tember 22d Mr. Wyeth settled ni>on a large ])i'airie near the Wallamette River, about lifty miles from its nn^uth. "It is about fifteen miles long, seven wid(>. surrounded with fine timber, and a good wide stream on it." On the 2r)th he was back at Fort Vancouver, making l)r('i)arations to send out parties on ex- ploring and trading expeditions. 27th: "Sent Stout up tin v'allamet with two men and implement.-^ lO commence farm." Vol.. LXXXV.-No. .MO. -84 From this date to October 13, 1S34, he was i)usy "making preparations for an expedition into the Snake c(»untry. and in building a fort on the Columbia River, forty miles from its mouth (Fort William). October (i, 1834, he wrote to his old friend Mr. Frederick Tudoi-. of Boston, " I am now making an establishment on the Multonomah [Wallamet, now called Willamette], about fifty miles above its mouth, and one on the Columbia forty miles from its moutli. This winter I go up Lewis River to make one more fort on its waters, and one on the south side of Great Salt Lake." On November 23d, Mr. Wyeth with four men descended the Walla Walla and Co- lumbia to the mouth of the River Des Chutes, along which he ascended directly .south into the neart of Oregon. By December lOth they were well into the unknown country, across "an extensive plain. ))eyond which, white and high, ro.se a range of mountains, disheartening to look at; but ahead is the irord, and the s|)irit seems to rise to the occasion." By December 25th they were reduced to such straits that one of the horses was killed for food. "Snow and raiu all day, and a miserable Christmas." Januai'y 2, 183.5: "Made snow-shoes, but they were too small. I fi-equently sunk into the snow, and it bothered me much to get out again." 5th: "Killed two swans .so fat we could not eat all the grease. Seems good to live well after poor hor.se-meat." which suggests an ad- age, Scotch in origin, I believe, that a mighty little does a poor body good. " One swaii furnished two of us only two meals; they do not eat so in the States." On the Kith the thermometer was below zero. One of the men had his feet badly frozen. The snow was four feet deep now, so that furtiter advance was im- po.ssible. Fearful of perishing, and as delay was dangerous, " we abandoned everything but our blankets, books, and anununition, axe and kettles, and took it on foot with about sixty pounds each on our backs. Made six miles, killed one deer, and camped. Am tired and hungry, but the deer will cure all." .lanuary 22, 1835; "Snowed all night; breakfasted on two beaver tails." 25th: "We he.'ird a gun, and fired in return, and a Snake Inpaloo Island." This islaiul is near Porilaiid. This "ca- noe was sixty feet long, dee]) enough to chamber twenty- live barrels, clear of knots, shakes, and almost of sap." The diary of Mr. Nathaniel J. SVyeth ends with this dat<\ If any further rec- ord of his labors was kept it is lost. From a study of his character I think it is more than likely that the .iournal was con- tinued, for he not only was industrious and exact in keeping his diary uji to this )(eriod. but even kejit cojiies of his corre- spiuidence. which cojiies. covering this in- teresliiig chapter of his career, are now in ni.\ ])ossession. From these letters I gather that he established a settlement, which he hoped would be jiermanent, on Wajipatoo Island, about four miles from till' mouth of the AVallametle. From Fort William, in the winter of 1831. the brig Ltd, loaded with luiiil)ei'. coopers' material, etc., liad sailed for the Sandwich Islands, returning on April 3, ]s;j,5. He had. in addition to building Fort Hall on Lewis River (now in Idaho), built Fort William on the Columbia, about forty miles above its mouth, opened a large farm fifty miles up the Walla- mette, and made an eslablislimenl on Wap])atoo Island. About this time he was ])rostrated by an illness, brought on by overwork and reckless exjiosure, which long threatened to terminate liis careei-. Ill the mean time his men became dis- couraged and demoralized in the absence of their leader, upon whom their hopes rested. The Indians, fearing that they were about to be supplanted by the settle- ment of theirlauds by enterprising whiles, t'lok advantage of the demoralization; and, as Barrows, in his History of Ore- ijoii. suggests, it is (irobable tliat the Hud- son Bay Comiiaiiy, .seeing in Mr. Wyeth's jiersistent energy and i)luck a formidable comiielil(U' for the trade and jiossession of this country, were silent abettors of tlie jierseculion and ultimate destruction of this expedition. Governor Pelly, of this conijiauy, writes in 1838, "We liave conijielled the American adventurers to withdraw from the contest."' This was doubtless their jiolicy, for they av(jwedly built Fort Boi.se, near Fort Hall, for the purpose of killing oil' the trade and intluence this establishment rapidly acquired. Mr. Wyeth, liowever, always acknowledged the jiersonal cour- tesies and kindnesses he received from the ollieers of this conii)any, and did this jiub- licly in one of the Boston newspaiiers after his return. After a terrible strug- gle, well deserving a better fate, and more than this, deserving a recognition of his services for Oregon, which his country- men in that section of the country have not yet accorded him, broken in health and bankruiit in ])urse, and dcseiled by those of his followers who survived, he gave up the fight. Here is liis last letter written from Oregon : '•Cdi.iMniA RivEn, fiepl. •ii'l, lira's " ItK.Mt Wli'i:. — 1 liiivc^ lieeii very sick. Imt have got wi'll,aiiil sliall lie on my wa,v tii tin' iiioiihtaliis, to wiiitci' at Fort IIiill, In ii1)oiit six (lays. I cxpecl to lie lioiiic nlioiit tlin lirst of Novi'iiilicr, IHIitl. Mr. Nutliill islicri'. unci wi'll. 1 liiive sent yon ii liaU'-liarirl of siiliiioii, wliicli I liojift will tie ill gooil onler. 1 cannot at- tiiid to jiiiltiiig tliciii up niysulf, tlierol'ore iiPiiffppm PPPMWn they may ""t lie so }{oo(l. Tlic season liiis been very sickly. We have lost by (li-owniiij;, disease, and warfare seventeen persons u\> to this date, and fourteen now sicli." Tlio people of Oregon, Washington, anil Idaho will no doubt do honor to his memory, now that his services are a mat- ter of record. General Fremont was styled the Pathfinder in 1846, yet Whit- man had gone over this route in 1843. and Nathaniel Wyeth had four times made the trail between 1832-(5. During his life, which ended in 1856, he shrank from publicity to a degree that was almost morbid. In one of his letters from Ore- gon to a friend in the East he clo.ses by saying: "Now I do not wish this letter published. I hate anything in print." He never would consent to have a por- trait or photograph of himself, and <5ie only one in existence was taken after his death. Ho was only twenty-nine years old when he led his (irst expedition over the "Rockies,"' and but thirty-four when, after five years of i)erilous labor, having four times traversed the American Conti- nent from ocean to ocean, he reached the fireside of his home in Cambridge, "a visionary and a failure." Will Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, with their three-quarters of a million in- habitants within fifty-five years of the time he left it, when there was not a sin- gle American settler in that country, their busy cities, fertile farms, their trans- continental railroads, their ocean steam- ers, clearing for China, Japan, and the Orient, and their glorious future, of which tb.is is but the dawn, deem Nathaniel Jarvis Wveth a failure?