Reprint Department: The History of Oregon, Geographical and Political (Continued)

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REPBINT DEPABTMENT

George Wilkes: History of Oregon, Geographical, Geological and
Political. (New York, Colyer, 1845.)

[The reprint of this rare work was begun in the first number of the
Washington Historical Quarterly and has been continued in portions of
varying lengths. For the sake of librarians and others who have kept the
files, the work is here continued. — Editor.]

As to wind, I have witnessed less, if such a term can be used, than at
any other place I have ever been in, and I have but to say, that if the
timber we have here, spread their lofty branches in the States, they would
be riven by the lightning, and blown down to an extent that would spare
many of them the blow of the settler's axe. Here, I have heard no thunder,
and have seen but one tree that had been struck by lightning.

CHAPTER XI.

Aborigines of Oregon — Their Numbers and Character — Their Canoes —
Their Mode of Fishing — Game — Timber — Fisheries — Water Pow-
er — Mountains — A Volcano — Commercial, Agricultural, and Man-
ufacturing Features of Oregon — Value of the Arm of Labor.

The aborigines of Oregon form, at present, nine-tenths of the pop-
ulation of the whole country, and from their newly adapted habits, are
deserving of a place in the social census. They were formerly much more
numerous, but like all the savage race, they melt away from the white
man's approach like shadows before the advancing sun. I have no means
of accurately ascertaining their number, as large bodies of them are in
the habit of moving from place to place to reap the varying harvests of
the fisheries, but I believe they somewhat exceed 20,000. They are
most numerous in the Nez Perces country, which extends eastward from
Wallawalla, and considerable numbers of the Cheenooks attracted by the
fisheries, are to be found at the Dalles and at the mouth of the Columbia
river. They are, however, degenerate and broken, and instead of the
proud and warlike being which presents itself to the imagination when the

(207)

208 Reprint Department

idea of an American Indian enters it, they but offer to the actual beholder
the specimen of a creature degraded almost to the level of a beast, and
capable of submitting to the most servile abasement. Indeed, so completely
are they under the control of the superior intelligence of the Anglo Saxon
settler, that they can scarcely be considered in a much more dignified
light than as a race of natural villiens or serfs. The Nez Perces Indians
retain in a greater degree than any other, their ancient independence; but
even the members of this tribe fall readily under the control and mastery
of the whites.

The Indians between Wallawalla and the Dalles are a cowardly
and thievish set, and the portion of them situated at the latter place, in
addition to being degraded and ignorant in the extreme, are so addicted
to stealing, that they lay hands on every trifle that comes within their reach.
Those portions at Vancouver and in the valley of the Willamette, are
abject, servile, and filthy in their habits, and most of them go half naked
during the whole year. In both this and the adjoining region, they per-
form a great deal of work for the whites, and where labor is so scarce as
it is here, they are of no slight assistance to the settlements. Many of
them make very good hired hands, and they are found particularly useful
in rowing boats, paddling canoes, herding cattle, and in the menial opera-
tions which require a sort of refuse labor, if such a term can be used,
that would be dear at the outlay of a valuable settler's time. You can
hire a Chenook to work upon a farm a week for a shirt worth 83 cents.

These Indians construct the finest canoes in the world. They make
them out of the cedar which grows at the mouth of the Columbia, from
twenty to thirty feet long, and from three to four feet wide. Their bot-
toms are flat, like those of skiffs, and being light, this construction, to-
gether with the sharp form of the bows, makes them very swift. In fash-
ioning the canoe, they commence upon the middle and taper it gradually
to a sharp point at each end, not turning it up with a flourish like the bows
and stern of ordinary vessels of the kind. The only ornament they
put upon them, is a sort of figure head made of a separate piece of wood,
which is fitted on the bows, and is generally beautified with a rude mosaic
of sea-shells imbedded in various figures in the wood.

The conduct of the Hudson's Bay Company towards the Indians,
has been prompt and discriminating, both in the distribution of benefits,
and in the punishment of offences. They have not held a whole tribe
responsible for the unauthorized acts of individuals, but have in all cases
carefully sought out the real perpetrators and punished them without fail.
When the country was first visited by the whites, the natives were of a
ferocious and warlike character, and it required sixty men to pass up

Wilkes: History of Oregon 209

the Columbia in boats, to ensure the safety of the expedition; but now, a
single individual can pass without molestation to the Dalles, and a squad
of six or eight may travel in perfect security through any portion of the
territory. The Flatheads and Snakes, formerly the most incorrigible,
have long been peaceable, honest, and friendly. One of the gentlemen
belonging to the Hudson's Bay Company, told me that in the many trad-
ing expeditions they had had with these tribes, they had never lost the
first article, and many times they had purposely exposed their goods to
trifling depredations, for the purpose of testing their honesty.

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

The Indians of Oregon are exceedingly addicted to gambling, and
have been known to pursue this demoralizing passion to the fatal length of
even staking their liberty on a game, and playing themselves, by a run of
ill luck, into a state of perpetual slavery. When we estimate the love of
a savage for independence, we can arrive at some measurement of the
degree of passion which exacts its sacrifice. Upon the whole, these Indians
are of vast benefit to the whites of this region. In the present condition
of the settlements, we should lose much by their absence.

FISHERIES. — The fisheries of this country are very great, and fore-
most among all the varieties which they produce, is the unrivalled salmon.
It would be impossible to estimate the numbers of this excellent fish an-
nually taken in the Columbia and its tributaries; but they have been set
down at ten thousand barrels a year, which number I do not think by
any means too large. The salmon in this country are never caught with
a hook. They are sometimes taken by the Indians with a small scoop net,
but generally are caught with a sort of spear of a very peculiar description.
These are made by the natives after the following fashion. They take
a pole, made of ash, or of some hard wood, about ten feet long and
one inch thick, and gradually tapering to a point at one end. They then
cut a piece, about four inches long, from the sharp prong of a buck's

210 Reprint Department

horn, and hollow out the large end so that it fits the pole. About the
middle of the buck horn, they make a small hole through which they put
a cord, or leather string, that runs along the pole and fastens to it about
two feet from the lower end. When they spear a fish with this weapon,
the pole is withdrawn and the buck horn barb is left imbedded in the
animal's body, or having run through and through it, remains fastened
on the other side. Escape is thus rendered impossible, and the prey un-
able to elude the prong, is securely drawn in by the string. All the salmon
caught here are taken by the Indians, and sold to the whites at about
ten cents each, and frequently for less. One Indian will take about twenty
upon an average per day.

The salmon taken at different points, differ greatly in kind and
quality, and it is only at particular places that they can be taken. The
fattest and best are those taken at the mouth of the Columbia, and the
next best are those taken in the Columbia, a few miles below Vancouver,
at the Cascades, and at the Dalles. Those taken at the Willamette falls,
are smaller in size, and inferior in flavor, and are said to be of a different
kind. What is singular, this fish cannot be taken in any considerable
numbers with large seines, and this is only to be accounted for, by their
remarkable shyness, and their superior activity. I believe no white man
has yet succeeded in taking them with the gig. They make their appear-
ance in the vicinity of Vancouver, first in the Klackamus river, and the
best quality are taken in June.

There are several other kinds of fish in the bays, rivers, and creeks
of the territory, of which a species of cod and the sturgeon are the most
important. The later are a large fish, and afford great sport in a leisure
hour to take them with a hook and line. They are taken in the Willam-
ette, below the falls; in the Columbia, at all points, and in the Snake or
Saptin river, as high up as Fort Boise. Of shell-fish, we have the crab,
clams, muscles, and a small description of oyster.

Game. — The wild animals of this, the first section of Oregon, are
the black bear, black-tailed deer, raccoon, panther, polecat, rabbit, wolf,
Beaver, and a few others. Of these, the deer and the wolves are the
most numerous. We have no buffaloes, antelopes, or prairie chickens here,
but in the second section the latter species of feathered game are plenty.

Of fancy birds, we have blue jay, larger, and of a deeper blue than
those of the States; the nut-brown wren, a most beautiful and gentle little
atom, scarcely larger than the humming-bird; also a species of bird, which
resembles the robin in form, color, and size; and also a species of night-
ingale, that sings the livelong night; but though I have heard these evening
songsters, time and again, I have never yet managed to get sight of one.

Willies: History of Oregon 211

The bald eagle, so well described by Wilson, is found along all the rivers;
but here, he is obliged to compromise a portion of his lordly character to
his necessities, and to work for his own living, having no fish-hawks to
catch his game for him. He feeds principally upon the dead salmon he
gleans from the surface of the water, as they float downward in the stream,
and changes his diet, by an occasional swoop upon some unlucky duck,
which he catches either while on the wing, or while feeding in the river.
If the duck when pursued in the air, can reach the surface of the water,
he does so with the utmost speed of wing, and seeks a momentary refuge
by diving under it. The eagle, balancing himself over the spot of his
victim's disappearance, waits until he rises, and then strikes at him again
and again, until the latter's strength becomes wasted with the unusual ef-
fort, and giving out at length, the relentless conqueror bears him off as he
rises languidly and for the last time to the surface of the water. We
have also pheasants in abundance, likewise partridges, grouse, brant, pel-
icans, plovers, wild geese, thrush, gulls, cranes, swans, and ravens, crows
and vultures. For a sportsman, this region is a paradise, and a dog and
a gun will afford him a chapter of elysium every day of his life.

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

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

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

212 Reprint Department

The white cedar is very fine timber, and is nearly if not quite equal
to the red cedar of the States. In the vicinity of Linntan, it grows to the
size of three feet in diameter, and is tall enough to make six rail cuts to
the tree. I have cut two ware-house logs, thirty feet long, off one tree, and
three of the same logs off a red fir, which was only about fourteen inches
in diameter at the stump. The cedar splits remarkably well, makes fine
rails, shingles, or house-logs, and lasts a lifetime.

The white oak timber is better for wagon-making than any speci-
mens to be found east of the Rocky Mountains, and it is the best wood that
can be had for axe-handles, and for similar purposes. It grows about as
tall as in the States. The black oa k. which also grows profusely in our
forests, makes excellent fire-wood, and answers likewise for many other
purposes.

In the range of mountains back of Linntann, we have plenty of the
hemlock, the bark of which is fine for tanning hides; and I have no doubt
that ere long, the skins that will be stripped from our large herds of stock,
will be extensively converted into leather by its agency. We have also the
dog-wood and cherry-maple, sprinkled among the firs and cedars. The
hazel of this country is four times larger than that of the States, and is
also much toughter in its texture; it is extensively used for hoops, and
for the manufacture of a coarse kind of scrub broom. The fruit of this
tree is of a lighter color than the hazel-nuts of the States, and they are
of the shape and size of a chinkapin acorn. Persons coming from the
States will find very little timber here like that to which they have been
accustomed, for all of it is on a grander scale. The black ash and dog-
wood are very similar to those of Tennessee and Kentucky, and the
white oak is perhaps but little different from any eastward of the moun-
tains. But we have no walnut, hickory, percimmon, pawpaw, locust, cof-
fee-nut, chestnut, sugar-tree, box-elder, poplar, sycamore, or elm.

Water Power. — The water power of this country is unequalled;
and is found distributed through every section. That at the falls of the
Willamette cannot be surpassed in the world. Any quantity of machinery
can be put in motion there; but the good water power is not confined to
the Willamette falls, for in many places on the Columbia, the Willamette,
and the other rivers, there are mill sites as good, though none of them are
quite so large. These advantages for converting the timber which sur-
rounds them, into a marketable commodity of great value in the neighbor-
ing ocean, will ere long be appreciated to a far greater extent by even
this region, than at present.

Mountains. — We have the most beautiful scenery of North Amer-
ica — we lie upon the largest ocean, we have the purest and most beautiful

Wilkes: History of Oregon 213

streams,* the loftiest and most majestic trees, and the most stupendous
mountains of the continent. The latter, as I have had occasion to men-
tion before, are divided into three great ranges, but as the description of
the features of the lower region is at present my especial object, I will
pass over the Rocky Mountains and the Blue, and confine myself to the
President's range which forms the eastern wall of our valley. The several
peaks of this range are grand and imposing objects. From Vancouver you
have a full and fair view of Mount Hood, to the south, which is called by
some the tallest peak of the Cascades, and rises more than sixteen thousand
feet above the level of the sea, and ten thousand above the mountains
immediately around it. This lofty pile rises by itself in a regular and
perfect cone, and is covered with perpetual snow. It is the only peak you
can see from Vancouver, as the view in other directions is obscured by
tall fir timber. At the mouth of the Willamette, as you enter the Colum-
bia, you have a full view of Mt. St. Helens or Mount Washington, and
also of Mount Hood. From Linntan you have a very fair view of the
former mountain, which is almost fifty miles distant from this point,
though it looks as if it were almost within reach. This peak is very smooth
and perfectly conical in its form. It is nearly as tall as Mount Hood,
and is the most beautiful of the range. It lies immediately on a line with
the mouth of the Columbia, and is a land-mark visible several miles at
sea and useful in directing vessels to its harbor. Like Mount Hood it
stands alone in its solitary grandeur far above all surrounding objects and
awing them into insignificance. This mountain, which until last year,
towevered serenely in the air covered with ten thousand perpendicular feet
of snow, suddenly burst into a burning volcano, in which state it now re-
mains. The crater is in its side about two-thirds of its distance from its
base, and by the account of the Indian inhabitants in its vicinity, it emitted
a flood of lava at the time of its eruption, which poured its stream of fire
through the whole depth of the virgin sheet that wrapped its sides. A
savage who had been hunting deer some distance up the mountain, finding
his return to his wigwam thus cut off, took a run and attempted to jump
across it, but not being able to clear its breadth, he fell with one foot
in the glowing torrent, and was so severely burnt, that he came very nearly
being lamed for life. He hastened to Vancouver, however, and by the
assistance of Dr. Barclay at the Fort, was gradually cured.

This mountain is second in height to but one in the world, (Coto-
paxi in South America), and like other volcanoes it burns at intervals.
On one side of it near its top, is discovered a large dark object amid the

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

214 Reprint Department

surrounding snow, which is supposed to be the mouth of a huge cavern,
and doubtless is the ancient crater of some expired issue. On the 16th
February 1844, the mountain burned most magnificently. Dense masses
of smoke rose up in immense columns and wreathed the whole crest of the
peak in sombre and massive clouds; and in the evening its fire lit up the
flaky mountain-side with a flood of soft yet brilliant radiance. The range,
of which this is the most distinguishing feature, runs throughout the whole
length of the territory and is remarkable for its seperate and independant
cones.

Commercial, Agricultural and Manufacturing Advantages. — The
commercial advantages of this country are very great. The trade with the
Sandwich Islands is daily increasing, and surrounded as we are with a
half civilized race of men, our manufacturing power will soon have a home
market for itself; besides, South America, California and the Sandwich
Islands must' depend upon us for their lumber. Already large quantities
of shingles and plank are sent to the latter market, and we shall also have
a full demand for all our other surplus productions at the same port, for
most vessels visiting the north Pacific, touch at these islands for the purpose
of obtaining supplies of fresh provisions. The Russian settlements are
already dependent upon us, and even the markets of China are within
our reach. For the supply of the regions of the Pacific, and the more
northern settlements of the coast, there can be no competition with us in
the way of provisions, as we have no neighbors in the producing line.

I consider Oregon, in many respects, superior to California, as in the
latter country, the climate is so warm that pork and beef cannot be put
up, and consequently the grazer loses half his profits; besides, its enervating
temperature like that of all warm countries, has a degenerating effect
upon the enterprise of the inhabitants. For a commercial and manufac-
turing people, the climate of Oregon is warm enough. We can here pre-
serve our pork and beef without danger of its tainting before the comple-
tion of the packing; and we have finer timber, better water power, and are
not subject to the ruinous droughts of California.

Since our arrival, the prospetcs of /the country have very much
improved. Business of all kinds is active and times are flourishing. We
live in a state of primitive simplicity and independence; we are the victims
of no vices; there is no drinking or gambling among us, and Labor meets
with such ample inducements and ready rewards, that lazy men are made
industrious by the mere force of the influences around them.

Farming is considered the best business of this country. The busi-
ness of making and putting up butter, which is never worth less than twenty
cents per pound, is very profitable. A good fresh article is, I am told,

Wilkes : History of Oregon 2 1 5

never worth less than fifty cents and often brings one dollar per pound in
the Pacific islands. There are now in operation, or will be this summer,
mills enough to supply the whole population with flour. There is no scarc-
ity of provisions at the prices I have previously stated, and I find that the
emigrants who came out last year, live, very comfortably, are perfectly
content with their change, and are much improved in their appearance
since the time of their arrival.

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

When an individual has any idle time, he can employ himself in making
fir and cedar shingles, for the first of which he can get four dollars a
thousand, and for the second, five; any quantity of them can be disposed
of at these rates. Carpenters and other mechanics obtain three dollars
per day and found. There is employment in abundance for every one de-
siring it, and it is only necessary for a man to be industrious to accom-
plish sure success and surround himself with all the comforts of an earthly
paradise.

CHAPTER XII.

Concluding Remarks — Directions to Emigrants — Line of Route and Table
of Distances, Etc.

Having now completed an account of all the material points of our
expedition into Oregon, and furnished the inquirer a general idea of its
character and capabilities, the only thing that remains for me to do in the
limits of this sketch, is to add a few more directions for the emigrant,
for whose particular benefit, as I said, before, these imperfect notes are
furnished. I have shown, indeed the result of our general expedition
proved, that the route from the Rendezvous in Missouri, to this point, is
practicable for any description of conveyance, and the success of our cat-
tle in coming through, adds an assurance that it is remarkable as well, for

2 1 6 Reprint Department

its extraordinary emigrating facilities. If this needs any corroboration, a
world of evidence can be furnished to sustain it, as well as every fact I
have advanced ; but in support of the peculiar feasibility of the route across
the Indian territories of the States and along the line of the Platte, I will
merely refer the reader to the fact, that Mr. Ashley, in an expedition in
1836, drew a field piece, (a six pounder) from Missouri, across the prai-
ries, through the southern pass, to a fort on Utah lake (to the south of our
southern boundary line,) the whole journey being a distance of 1200
miles; and to the additional fact that in 1828, a large number of heavily
laden wagons performed the same journey with ease and without an acci-
dent, as will be seen by a reference to Congressional documents on file.

It will be remarked that I have slurred over portions of the route and
neglected the regular incidents of much of our daily travel, but when it is
remembered that the journey lasted six months, and that the events of
many successive days scarcely varied from each other, the reader will
come to the conclusion that it would have been hardly wise in me to have
taxed his patience with each day's dull routine. The great object, I con-
sidered to be, the furnishing the course of the route, a view of its general
aspect and difficulties, the distances between points of travel, (the main
object of the present chapter) and to impart an accurate notion of the re-
gion which the settler must make his future home. I have therefore
avoided everything that did not contribute to this design, with the excep-
tion of a few trifling incidents of humor inseparable from such an expedi-
tion, which I introduced to enliven the monotony of the narrative, and
which, moreover, I considered useful as affording an idea of camp life,
and the amusements of a journey over the prairies.

Emigrants should start as early as possible in ordinary seasons. The
first of May should be set down if possible as the outside limit, and even
as early as the first of April, would do. For those coming from the
Platte country, it is thought to be most advisable to cross the Missouri at
McPherson's ferry in Holt county, and to take up the ridge between the
Platte and Kanzas rivers.

Companies of forty or fifty wagons are large enough, and I would
advise bodies of travellers for this region to keep within that measure.
Large bodies prove unwieldly to arrange and to control; the numerous
stock attached to them become troublesome, and moreover large bodies of
Americans are prone to differ in opinion. Small collections offer but few
inducements to a disordered ambition, but large ones are conducive of
selfish strife and discord. This has been seen to have been the case with
our expedition; which divided after crossing the Kanzas; and which was
further subdivided afterwards, on the other side of the mountains. I did

Wilkes: History of Oregon 217

not particularize this latter circumstance because I considered it of minor
importance at the time, and it is now sufficient for my purpose to mention
it here, as a caution against the error which induced it, in the future.

In driving stock to this country, about one in ten is lost; not more.
Having started, the best way to proceed to save your teams, is to drive
a reasonable distance every day, and to stop and go into camp about
an hour before sundown. This gives time for all the necessary arrangements
of the encampment and affords the teams an opportunity to rest and eat be-
fore the night sets in. About eight hours drive in the long days — resting
an hour at noon — is, I think enough for one day's travel, and you should
make it a rule never to drive irregularly if you can help it. Along the
whole line of the Platte, on the Bear and Boise rivers, and in many other
places, you can encamp at any point you please; but at some points of
the route you will be compelled to drive hard to get water and range for
your cattle.

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

If a prudent course is taken, the trip can be made in ordinary sea-
sons, in four months. It is true it took us longer, but we lost a great
deal of time upon the road, and besides, we had the way to break. I have
reason to believe, that other and better routes than the one travelled
by us can be found. Captain Gant, our pilot, was decidedly of the
opinion, that to keep up the south fork of the Platte, and to cross it just
above the stream called the Kooshlapood, and thence up the latter stream,
passing between the Black Hills on your right, and the Rocky Mountains
on your left, and striking by this course at last the ordinary route by
Green river, would be a better and nearer way into Oregon, and more
plentifully supplied with game than the one we took. He had travelled
both, and only brought us through the road he did, to avoid the large

218 Reprint Department

bands of Sioux and Black feet Indians, whom he had been informed were
hunting upon the southern route.

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

A Table of Distances From Independence, Missouri, to the Intermediate

Points Between That Town and Astoria at the Mouth

of the Columbia River

Miles.

From Independence to the Rendezvous, 20

Rendezvous to Elm Grove 15

From Elm Grove to Walpalusia, 22

Walpalusia to Kanzas river, 31

Kanzas River to Big Sandy creek, 31

Big Sandy to Hurricane Branch, 12

Hurricane Branch to East fork of Blue River 20

East fork to West fork of Blue River 15

West fork to where we came in sight of the Republican fork of the

Blue River 41

Up Republican fork of the Blue River to where we left it to cross

over to the Big Platte River 66

Up the Platte to where we saw the first herd of buffalo 56

Up the same to the crossing on the South fork of same 117

South fork to crossing on North Fork of same, 31

Crossing of North Fork to Cedar Grove, 13

Cedar Grove to Solitary Tower 18

Solitary Tower to Chimney Rock 18

Chimney Tower to Scott's Bluffs 20

Scott's Bluffs to Fort Larimie 38

Fort Larimie to Big Spring at foot of Black Hills 8

Big Spring to Keryan on North fork of Platte 30

Keryan to crossing of North Fork, 84

Crossing of North Fork to Sweetwater River, 55

Up Sweetwater River to where we first saw the eternal snows of

the Rocky Mountains, 60

From the above point to main dividing ridge of Rocky Mountains, . . 40

From dividing ridge to Little Sandy River, 16

Little Sandy to Big Sandy 14

Wilkes: History of Oregon 219

Big Sandy to Green River 25

Down same 12

To Black's fork of Green River, 22

From Black's fork to Fort Bridger 30

Fort Bridger to Big Muddy River 20

Big Muddy to Bear River 37

Down Bear River to range of hills mentioned as running up to its

bank, 57

Down Bear River to Great Soda Spring 38

From Soda Spring to the Portneuf River, the first water of the Co-
lumbia 25

To Fort Hall in the Snake or Saptin River 58

From Fort Hall to the Portneuf again, 11

Portneuf to Rock Creek, 87

Rock Creek to Salmon Falls on the Saptin, 42

Salmon Falls to crossing on the Saptin, 27

From crossing of Saptin to Boiling Spring, 19

Boiling Spring to Boise River, 48

Down same to Fort Boise on Saptin, 40

Fort Boise to Burnt River, 41

Up Burnt River for, 26

From last point to Powder River at "the Lone Pine," 18

From "the Lone Pine" to Grand Round 15

Grand Round to the Umatilla River on the west of the Blue Moun-
tains 43

Umatilla to Dr. Whitman's Mission, 29

Mission to Fort Wallawalla, 25

Wallawalla to the Dalles Mission 1 20

Dalles to Vancouver, 100

Vancouver to Astoria 80

Astoria to the ocean, 10

Making in all from Independence to the Pacific ocean 2036

From Independence to Vancouver by the above computation is 1946
miles by the route we traveled. I am well satisfied that the distance does
not exceed 2000 miles for the reason that our ox teams could not have
accomplished a greater distance within the time of their actual employ-
ment.

The trip to Oregon is neither a costly nor an expensive one, and an
individual can travel here at as small an expense, as he can move from
Tennessee or Kentucky, to Missouri. AH the property he starts with he

220 Reprint Department

can bring through, and it is worth, upon his arrival, more than when
he set out.

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

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

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

•Recent accounts from the west Inform us that there are now gathered
near Independence, Missouri, about 7,000 emigrants, all destined for Oregon
and California. They are to set out In convenient detachments about the
1st of June.

Wilkes: History of Oregon 221

CONCLUDING NOTE.

FALCONER'S RECENT WORK ON THE OREGON QUES-
TION.

The author cannot say his last word without allusion to a British re-
publication which appeared when the foregoing pages were in press. It
is entitled. "THE OREGON QUESTION; OR A STATEMENT OF THE

British Claims, in opposition to the Pretensions of the
United States, by Thomas Falconer, Barrister at Law, of
Lincoln's Inn."

It is unnecessary to our purpose to travel after the wrtier through all
his tortuous sophistries, as they are fully answered by the plain state-
ments of the previous portions of this work; but, as Mr. Falconer is a
special advocate of international law, and advances some rather novel and
interesting positions, it may not be amiss to glance at the main points of
his performance. The learned barrister somewhat ingeniously commences
by adjudging us the French Title as the foundation of our claims, and
having given it this position as his least formidable obstacle, pelts away at
it with evident satisfaction. He is welcome to his pains, for if he suc-
ceeds in destroying it altogether, it will not affect our claims a jot. He
next insists upon the discoveries of Drake with the utmost pertinacity,
though he succeeds but poorly, and can manage to defend the varacity of
the freebooting Preacher, on whose romantic statements they depend,
no better than by asking — what motive he could have to lie? This ap-
peal, in the face of the fact, that navigators had for nearly a hundred
years previous been struggling for the renown of the furtherest northern
advance, is the very superlative of absurdity, and is undeserving of a grave
reply. Mr. Falconer lays great stress upon the concessions of Spain by
the Nootka treaty, (a rather strange mode by the way of fortifying the
antagonistic claims of Drake and Cook,) and insists that, ''this conven-
tion was an admission of the right of the English Government to make
settlements." Well, suppose it was, what then? She did not consummate
that privilege by any settlement, as we have before shown, previous to the
succeeding war I 796 which swept the right away with the other condi-
tional agreements and reciprocal privileges dependant upon a state of
amity! Had she, in the mean time, made an actual settlement and re-
tained it through the war, her proposition that "the right to make settle-
ments was a cession of territory," would, in its application to this case,
wear a graver aspect. But throwing aside the Nootka treaty, and
granting Britain the prilivege of settlement in unoccupied wastes as a nat-

222 Reprint Department

ural right, and still she gains nothing by it, for, by her own rule: "dis-
covery alone and an alleged intention to occupy do not give a perfect
title, unless an actual occupation takes place." This is an unfortunate
quotation of the learned barrister's, for we have seen that Britain's very
first settlement in any part of Oregon, was at Astoria, after the purchase
of the Pacific Fur Company's effects in 1813; while on the other hand,
the United States reaps the harvest of the principle by a number of
explorations and settlements extending from 1 792 to the above period.
But these formidable circumstances must be overcome, and the gentleman
of Lincoln's Inn seeks to accomplish his purpose by a farther burrowing
into international law. By the outlay of a little industrious research, he
finds that this grand system accords to the subjects of monarchial govern-
ments privileges by discovery and settlement, which it denies to the Citizens
of a Republic; that while the former may be empowered by their sovereign
to discover countries, to take possession and establish laws, the later cannot
receive similar powers from the President of the United States, "and
without such authority," continues he, "they are mere outcasts and vaga-
bonds upon the face of the desert, and no political inferences can be drawn
from their acts. Hence," concludes the learned barrister, "the British
settlement on the Columbia in 1813, was the first of a national and legal
character, recognizable as such, by foreign nations." This is all very
well as an ingenious obliquity of argument, but n>e understand the political
distinction between Americans and Britons in a different sense. By our
institutions every Citizen of the United States is in himself a sovereign,
and possesses, as a matter of course, every natural right and its conse-
quences, that monarchs grant by special act of grace to their obedient sub-
jects. While Europeans range in varying subordinate degrees, the Citizens
of our glorious Republic have a right to rank with kings.

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

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

Wilkes: History of Oregon 223

APPENDIX.

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

(No. 1.)

Convention between the United Slates and Russia, signed at St. Petersburg,
on the I 7th of April, 1 824.

ARTICLE I. It is agreed that, in any part of the great ocean,
commonly called the Pacific Ocean, or South sea, the respective citizens
or subjects of the high contracting powers shall be neither disturbed nor
restrained, either in navigation or in fishing, or in the power of restoring to
the coasts, upon points which may not already have been occupied, for the
purpose of trading with the natives ; saving always the restrictions and con-
ditions determined by the following articles.

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

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

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

Art. 5. All spirituous liquors, fire-arms, other arms, powder, and

224 Reprint Department

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

(To be continued.)