. . 
 
 ASIA 
 
 ■ 
 
(Cornell Untoersitij Ethrary 
 
 Stipua. New fork 
 
 CHARLES WILLIAM WASON 
 
 COLLECTION 
 
 CHINA AND THE CHINESE 
 
 THE GIFT OF 
 
 CHARLES WILLIAM WASON 
 
 CLASS OF 1676 
 
 1918 
 
Cornell University Library 
 F 880.H66 1881 
 
 Wild life in Oregon :being a stirring re 
 
 3 1924 023 507 332 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924023507332 
 
WILD LIFE IN OREGON: 
 
 BEING A STIRKING KECITAL 
 
 ACTUAL SCENES OF DARING AND PERIL 
 
 AMONG THE 
 
 ' GIGANTIC FORESTS 
 
 TERRIFIC RAPIDS OF THE COLUMBIA ; RIVER 
 
 (THE MISSISSIPPI OP THE PACIFIC SLOPE).' 
 
 AND GIVING LIVE-LIKE PICTURES OF 
 
 TERRIFIC ENCOUNTERS WITH SAVAGES AS FIERCE 
 
 AND 
 
 RELENTLESS AS ITS MIGHTY TIDES. 
 
 INCLUDING A FULL, FAIR AND RELIABLE 
 
 History of the State' of Oregon, 
 
 ITS «ROrS, MINERALS, TIMBER LANDS,, SOIL, FISHERIES; ITS 
 PRESENT GREATNESS, AND FUTURE VAST CAPABILI- 
 TIES, AND PARAMOUNT POSITION. 
 
 "By GUSTAVAS HINES, 
 
 KB FEAJRXESS EXTO9BER «F THE NORTHERN PAMFM eeASC 
 
 NEW YORK 
 HURST & CO., Publishers 
 
 122 Nassau Street 
 
fEEFACE. 
 
 I* thw vcfame does not commend itself to the hnnble consideration* 
 rf the reading public, it will not be owing to any deficiency of material 
 m the possession of the author, to enable him to furnish a most interesting 
 and instructive work Though his opportunities for the acquirement of 
 that kind of knowledge resulting from observation, and necessary to qualify 
 one to instruct and entertain mankind, during seven years of constant 
 joumeyings in various parts of the world, both by sea and land, have been 
 perhaps greater than osually falls, to the lot of even authors of books of 
 travel, yet, conscious of his want of the requisite qualifications to array 
 his work in that fascinating drapery necessary to charm the reader at one* 
 into an unqualified approval, the author casts himself upon the public 
 with all due deference. 
 
 The principal apology necessary to offer for the publication of this work, 
 is a desire to connect with entertainment the promotion of a more extensive 
 and particular knowledge of those interesting portions of the world where 
 it has been the privilege of the author to travel, and make his observations. 
 
 While the world is literally teeming with fictitious publications, here is 
 presented a volume of facts, for the most of which the author is alone 
 responsible ; and in the absence of the tinsel adorning of a glowing and 
 high-sounding style, the truthfulness of what is narrated is the principal 
 merit to which the work is entitled. 
 
 The " History of the Oregon Mission, " to which the first chapter of 
 the work is devoted, has been drawn from the most reliable sources, and, 
 principally from the short notes of the late Rev. Jason Lee, and the 
 Journal of the late Cyrus Shepherd, the first missionary teacher in 
 Oregon." 
 
 This part, the author flatters" himself, will supply the Christian publie 
 with a needful desideratum, with respect to the true character of that 
 important Mission, and of the t<ourageous and self-denying men who were 
 the first to carry the Gospel across the Rocky Mountains, and to proclaim 
 H along the shores of the Pacific Ocean. 
 
 The Journal, commencing with the departure of the Missionaries in 
 the Ship Lausanne in the fall of 1839, will introduce th* reader ■§ all 
 
thai is interesting relating to the largest expedition of the kind that eve* 
 ■ailed from an American port. It will acquaint him with "Life on the 
 Ocean Wave," and the different interesting phenomena of the great deep. 
 It will introduce to him the people of other countries, and give him 
 information with respect to many of their customs. It will present him 
 with a glimpse of oriental scenery, and occasionally unfold the beauties 
 and sublimities of the mountain landscape. It will conduct him through 
 perils by sea and perils by land, and perils among the most savage, de- 
 graded and treacherous of the human race. 
 
 The Atlantic, the Pacific, and the Indian Oceans; Brazil, Chili, the 
 Sandwich Islands, Oregon, China, the Spanish Islands, and even Africa 
 herself, have all been laid under contribution to enrich the Journal ; and 
 from these different fields of observation have been collected facts, circum- 
 stances, and incidents of history, which cannot fail to enlist the attention 
 and excite the interest of the reader, and to induce him to pursue the 
 narrative, until, with the author, he shall have circumnavigated the glebe. 
 
 The last few Chapters of the book are devoted exclusively to the 
 Geography and History of the Oregon Territory. From a residence of 
 several years in Oregon, connected with the fact that he made it a leading 
 object to become informed from personal observation, not only with the 
 geography of the country, with its productions ; the soil, climate, seasons, 
 mountains, valleys, prairies, forests, rivers, &c. ; but also with every 
 circumstance of importance which has ever transpired in connection with 
 either the civil, political or religions interests of the country, the author 
 Believes himself to be qualified to present the inquiring public with mora 
 correct information regarding that portion of the world, than has hitherto 
 been furnished from any source. For some of the facts connected with 
 the History of Oregon, the author would acknowledge his indebtedness to 
 the able and interesting Memoirs of Mr. Greenhow, the recent translator 
 and librarian of the department of State, at Washington. 
 
 With these remarks, conscious of the uprightness of his intentions, the 
 author would now place his offering upon the public altar; counting a* 
 aver favor in its behalf than that to which taw merit ef hie perfermanea hi 
 Unentitled. 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
 
 :II AP. I— Hi sory >f the Oregon mission, from iu commencement to the depart- 
 ure of the great reinforcement, in the fall of i839, in the ship Lausanne. 
 
 TtHAP. II.— Journal of a voyage from New York to Oregon — Time and circum- 
 stances of departure— First evening— Last look at the Highlands— Initiatory ritee 
 - Great distress — Sea sickness indescribable — Fourth day— Captain Spaulding 
 —First and second officers — Passengers in the cabin — Character of the expedi- 
 tion— First Sabbath at sea — Police regulations — A rich treat— Centenary meeting 
 — Results — Vessel ships a sea — Wind increases — Tremendous gale — North-east 
 irade — Description of the trades —Whale — Allowance of water — Porpoise — 
 Vessel — Amusing surprise — Astronomy— Northern constellations — Magellanic 
 clouds— Interesting Sabbath— Land ho !— Cape Frio— Lighthouse— Splendid sce- 
 nery—Arrival at Rio de Janeiro — Historical sketch— Don John— Brazil indepen- 
 dent—Don Pedro the first— Compelled to abdicate— State of the country —Foreign 
 residents— Religion— City— Buildings— Missionaries— Slavery— Reflections. . 
 
 CHAP. III.— Journal continued — Departure from Rio — Rev. Mr. Spaulding — 
 French fleet— Violent norm— Flying jib boom carried away— Dinner lost— Storm 
 abates— Christmas— Heat— Doubling Cape Horn — Gale nineteen days — Under 
 bare poles— Prosperity — Sight of land— Brig Andes— Arrival at Valparaiso- 
 Small pox— Danger— Description of the city— Its civil and political condition- 
 Religion— Superstition, illustrated by amusing incidents— Protestantism— Impor- 
 tancs of Valparaiso — Adventures round about the city — Great discrepancy- 
 Appropriate name. . 
 
 CHAP. IV.— Journal continued— Raising anchor— View of the Andes— Brig— Paci- 
 fic ocean rightly named— Capture of a sea monster— Difficulty among the sailors 
 —Spoken by a whaler— Captain Sawyer— Island of Maui— Hawaii — Oahu— -Ho- 
 nolulu— Remarks on the island— Oahu and its city— Sabbath— Introduction to the 
 royal family — Interview— Anniversary of the landing of missionaries— Visit to 
 the Para — Battle ground — Kamehameha I.— Waiakiki — Valley of Manoah — 
 Source of prosperity— Difficulty with the French— Arrogance o' Captain La 
 Place — Impression upon the Hawaiiana. 
 
 CHAP. V. — Journal continued — Departure from Honolulu — Slow progress- Fresh 
 breeze — Coast of Oregon — Old pilot— Captain delivers up the vessel — Crossing 
 the fearful bar— Deep anxiety— Cast anchor in Baker's Bay — Rev. Daniel Lee — 
 
 - Ghenook Indians— Clatsops ascend the river— Fort George — Ron aground— Diffi- 
 
 '«olty of ascending— Arrival at Vancouver— Meeting called— Missionaries receive 
 
 their appointments — Sent off to their stations — First encampment in Oregon — 
 
 Ascending the Wallamette in canoes — Turn Water — Portage — Champoeg — 
 
 ■enebaek rids— Arrival at the Mission Station. . ! . 
 
*I CONTENT* 
 
 CHAP. VI.— Exploring lour to the Dmpq'ua— Preliminaries-Departure— Deligm. 
 ful country — Encampment— Amusing incident -^-Fording river — Mountain La 
 Beache— Elk river— Umpqua fort— Indian fight— Frenchman in charge— Meeting 
 whh the Indians — Old chiefs confession— Hostile Indians — Danger of going 
 among them — Resolved to go— Voyage to the coast — Indians accompany us — 
 Interesting encampraerrt— Indians on the coast— Meeting with them— Speeches of 
 the chiefs— Rosuiis ofthe meeting— Talk to God— Solicitude of our Protectress- 
 Watching— Presents— Departure— Description of -he country— Return to the fort 
 —Story of the Frenchman's wife— Dangers we had escaped— Perilous adventured 
 ofthe mountaineers— Tour continued— mountainous country— Fording Elk river 
 
 — Giant tree— Aromatic tree— Umpqua Indians— Head chiefs— Shocking story— 
 Burst of heathen passions— Difficulty with guide— Settled— Fear of treachery— % 
 Confirmed— Request of We- We— Refused— Warning— An Indian can be honest— 
 
 . , Unhappy results of not trusting him— Night-^Loat in a forestr-^Sabbath— Indians 
 again- Homeward route— Fine country— Delightful scenery— Home. . x 
 
 2HAP. VII— ToUr to Vancouver— Reception at. the foji-^-Preaching in the »wll-^ 
 * Business completed — Expedient to keep warm— Cold weather — difficult naviga- 
 tion—The rapids— ForeBt encampment— Strange visitor — Affecting intelligence— 
 Death of Rev.. James Olley-r-MyMohioa*: guest— Return home— Meeting— Fruit- 
 less attempt uf recover a dead body. . , . I2U 
 
 CHAP. VIII.— Another Tour— Rock Island rapids— The Jesuit— Stormy encamp- 
 ment— Return— Hospitality—Story of pur host — Mr. Cornelius Rogers— Party 
 increase— rLa Butte — Lonely Sabbath — Arrival home — Mi - . Rogers and parry — 
 Meeting at the hospital — Indian messenger— Sad tidings—Great bereavement— 
 ,* Esq. Crocker— Call to civil duties— Thomas.McKay— Great rain— Estate of Mr. 
 Rogers— Return— Great freshed— Damages— Safe arrival home 130 
 
 CHAP. IX.'— Panic— Indian troubles— Tour to the interior— Causes— Precautions — 
 Excitement increases — Mr Brewer's letter— The sub-agent — Expedition resolved 
 upon — Opposed by, Dr. McLaughlin — Departure — A squall — Ascent ofthe 
 Columbia — Mount Hood — Romantic scenery — Sabbath encampment — Reflections 
 —Remarkable rocks— Cascades— How formed — Indian tradition confirmed— Li 
 
 ( Dajlas— Canasissa^Negotiation— De Shutes— John Day— Sabbath Reflections- 
 Arrival at Dr. Whitman's — Interview with the Kayuse chiefs — Excursion — 
 Adventure of Mr. Perkins— Party proceeds — Snake river — Red wolf— Laperai— 
 Accident — Grotesque; exhibition. — Temperance training — Rev. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Spaulding — Return to 'Dr. Whitman's — Interesting negotiation — Closing feast — 
 Homeward — Story «f the Walla- Walla chief— Peter Ogden — Arrival home. 14? 
 
 CHAP. X.— Homeward bound— Departure from Oregon — Lost in a fog — Vancou- 
 ver—Unexpected meeting — Night running — Labor lost— Dreary encampment — 
 Sabbath— Pillar Rock— Fort George — Clatsop plains — A whale — Entertainment 
 ■ - — Embarkation — Detention — Great cave — Weigh anchor — Remarkable escape 
 from shipwwreck — Driven back — Second trial successful — Voyage — Mani — 
 Night danger— Arrival at Oahu-^-Shipping — English.fleet — News from horn* 
 
 — Rev. Jason Lee — "HoaTita" — Affecting separation — Admiral Thomas — 
 Great alarm — Detention— How improved. . . i fi 
 
 OHAP. XL— View of tjie Sandwich Islands— How formed— Volcano — Coral reefs 
 
 — Names of Islands — When discovered — Singular Hadition — Cook's death — 
 Population — Previous condition— Long and bloody war— Results — Missionary 
 statisticB-'-EfFects of Missionary labor— Seamen's chaplaincy— Romanism — Ka- 
 m"hameha III.— Reformation — Singular custom — School for young chiefs — Influ- 
 ence of missionaries — the king's cabinet — Important history of two hundred and 
 seventy-six days — Increase of cabinet — Paper king — Protection— Commerce — 
 Whale fishery — Productions— Society — Temperance — Destination ofthe Islands. 3Cf 
 
 ;HAP. Xn.— Return to Oregon— Embarkation— Passengers — Horace Holden— 
 Thrilling story — The whaleman— Voyage— Arrival in the Columbia river — Dis- 
 agreeable navigation — Yearly meeting of the missionaries — Appointments — 
 Arrival of Kev. George Gang — Reasons for his appointment — Great changes- 
 Mr. Lee — George Abernethy — Powers of the new superintendent— Special meet 
 inf — Voyage — Laymen dismissed — Miscellaneous — Transoorting supplies 
 
©ONTI.NT8. TB 
 
 Aaother meeting — Oregon taeniae — Finances of the ma**jn t»ro&$*J to * close 
 — Number of missionaries returned — Number remaining ik ihs fialc. . 233 
 
 CHAP. XIII. — Final departure and voyage home— Notice of Captain Sylvester- 
 Arrangements to leave— Mode of departure — Vancouver again— Clatsop Plains— 
 On board the brig Chenamos — Difficult navigation— Danger — Get into the bay ' 
 — Fair breeze — Exit — Fellow Passengers — T. J. Hubbard— Wave and Deven- . 
 port— Mode of taking a porpoise— Scarcity of men — Scarcity of incident— Pilot ' 
 fish— Make land — Spoken by the English brig Frolic — Shipping — Arrival at 
 Oahu — Reception — Review of the mission . 24 
 
 CHAP. XIV,— Voyage to China— Change of calculations — Embark on board the 
 Lekind— Accident— Departure— Cabin associates — The captain — Rules to ijudge 
 ct character — The island of Origan — The Ladrones — Dangerous reefs— Gale— 
 Bashu islands — Spanish possessions iri the Pacific — Formosa — Chinese Sea — , 
 Ship Montreal — Ty phones— The contending pilots — Appearance of the coast of 
 China — Arrival atHflns Kong — Reception of 'Keying — Review of the British 
 troops— Sabbath disregarded— The Rev. Charles GutzlafT— 'Island of Hong Kong 
 —City of Victoria— Population— Schools— Morrison Education. -Society — Morri- 
 son Hill — Success of the school— Rjv. S. R. Brown — Churches — Missions — 
 Where established — Missionaries — Climate of Hong Kong — - Soldiers' Burying 
 Ground— Wesleyan Methodists — Short voyage — City of Macao r~ Grand prior— i 
 Bazaar — Temple— .'Camoen's cave — Voyage to Canton — Description, of the " Pro- , 
 vincial' City" — Adventures in ihe^city — Temple of Honau — Dr. Parker — Dr. 
 DevaHj— Proclamation ofKeying — Counter proclamation — Flower Garden — Dr. 
 Bridgeman — Great excitement — Dangerofan outbreak — Thrust out of the city — 
 Night excursion — On board the Leland — Things that strike the foreigner— Boat 
 population— Pirates. . 251 
 
 CHAP. XV. — Voyage from Hong Kong to New York — Chinese Sea — Islands — Strait 
 of Gasper— Java Sea — Sirait of Surida— Perilous condition of the Leland— Loss 
 of cable and anchor— Ship saved- 1 Sumatra and Java: — Pulo Bassa— Malays 
 — Indian Ocean— Cape of Good Hope — Cast anchor in Table' Bay — Cape Town- 
 Colony — Vineyards — Produce — Missionary labor — Tnfc responsibility of churches 
 —Difficulty on board — Captain fined — His character— ■ The supercargo — "Mrs. 
 Hooper — Adieu to Africa— Cleansing the ship — Man overboard — Splendid 
 eclipse of the sun — Reflection* — The gulf stream — Coast of New Jersey — New 
 York. ....... v . . 300 
 
 CHAP. XVI.— Oregon Territory— Its geography— Boundary and extent— Harbors 
 —Capes — Face of the country— Snow mountains — Rivers — Mouth of the Colum- 
 bia — Columbia Bar — Channel-— Kinds of fish — Timber-r Climate— Summer and 
 winter — Fertility of the soil — Clatsop plains — Bottom lands — Puget's sound — 
 The garden of Oregon — Middle region — Upper region — Capabilities of the 
 country. . ' . . . .317 
 
 CHAP. XVII.— Oregon territory — Its history— Spanish discoveries — Measures of 
 the English— Sir Francis Drake— Heceta— Isle of Grief— Bodega discovers Kille , 
 r mook head — Discoveries of Captain James Cook— Captain John Mearls— Cape , 
 "Disappointment — Robert Gray, of Bostbn — First visit to the coast— Second visit, 
 discovers the Columbia river— Captain Vancouver— Braughton. ,' 1 . : . 348 
 
 •'HAP. XVIII. — Oregon territory— History continued — European nations involved 
 in war— Pacific trade carried by the Great Republic— Ship Boston seized by, the 
 Indians — Land expeditions — Captain Jonathan Carver — Sir Alexander McKenzie 
 — Lewis and Clark — Project of John Jacob Astor— Captain Thorn and the Ton- 
 quin — McDougal and Concomley — Fate of the Tonquin — Wilson Price Hunt — 
 Depression at the fort — Encouragement — Ship Beaver arrives^ Declaration of 
 war — Thompson and the North- West Company — Ross Cox— Astoria in danger- 
 Visit of McTavish and Stuart --Alarming news— Effect on the American com- 
 pany—Sloop of war — Racoon and Captain Blade — Astona falls into the hands oi 
 
 > the British — Astor' s magnificent enterprise terminated. . . 364 
 
rui CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAP. XIX.— Oregon territory — History continued — Astoria restored tt> tin 
 Amencam— Description of the fort — North West Company remain in the coun- 
 try—Rival companies — Hudson's Bay Company — How formed — Extent of its 
 operations — War between the two companies— Both merged in one— The Honor- 
 able Hudson's Bay Company— Policy of the company — Number and situation of 
 ■-ading forts — Immense power of the company — Colonizing the country — Sir 
 George Simpson's Colony — Settlements — Fort Vancouver — Gentlemen of the 
 fort— Perils of the fur trade— A thrilling tragedy. ... 37fi 
 
 CHAP. XX.— Oregon territory — History continued — Mr. Ashley's expedition — , 
 Smith, Jackson, and Sublette— Rocky Mountain Fur Company— Interesting jour- 
 ney—Country explored— Independent parties— -Bonne ville— Red wolf — Captain 
 Wyeth — Opposed by H. B. C. — Results — Immigration for settlement— Charactei 
 of populatton — Sources whence it proceeds — Enterprise — Portions of spuntry 
 occupied. . ... . 407 
 
 CHAP, XXI— Oregon territory— Political history— Necessity of organising a body 
 ,, politic — First meeting of the people — Second meeting — Exigencies met— Orga- 
 ' nization dies— Exploring squadron — Great excitement — Commander Wilkes — 
 Opposed to organizing — Subject slumbers— Sub-agent— Mass meeting — Old sub- 
 ject revived— Indians troublesome— -Talk of #yar— Dr. McLaughlin— Third meet- 
 ing—Government organized— Fourth meeting— Officers qualified— Laws enacted 
 ■^-Effect produced— New legislative committee, — Laws revised— Alterations- 
 Election of a Governor and House of Representatives — Peaceable stale of com- 
 munity—Joel Tui-nham— Thrilling incident. . . it 
 
OREGON 
 
 HISTORY, CONDITION AND PROSPECTS 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 History of the Oregon mission, from its commencement to the departure ol tk* 
 " great reinforcement, in the fall of 1839, in the ship Lausanne. 
 
 In the year 1832, four Indians, belonging to the Pla 
 Head tribe, living west of the Rocky Mountains, per 
 formed a wearisome journey on foot to St. Louis, in 
 Missouri, for the purpose of inquiring for the Christian's 
 Book and the white man's God. Early in 1833, notice 
 of this wonderful event was given in the Christian 
 Advocate and Journal, published in New York, and a 
 general feeling of christian sympathy, was produced in 
 all the churches of the land for these interesting heathen, 
 and a proposition was made that the Missionary Board 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church prpceed forthwith to 
 establish a mission among the Flat Head Indians. This 
 measure was strongly advocated by Dr. Fisk, Dr. 
 Bangs, and many others, while none were opposed to 
 the accomplishment of so worthy an object. While the 
 subject was being agitated, Dr. Fisk corresponded with 
 the Rev. Jason Lee, of Stanstead, C. E., having for- 
 merly been his tutor in the Wilbraham Academy, to 
 ascertain whether he would undertake the superintend- 
 ence of an Indian mission beyond the Rocky Mountains. 
 Mr. Lee was then employed on an Indian mission, under 
 the direction of the Church in Canada ; but yielding to 
 the solicitations of Dr. Fisk, and from a conviction of 
 duty, he left Canada, and repairing to Boston in June. 
 
tfi HI8TOKY OF 
 
 1833, where the New England Conference was then in 
 session, he was received into that body as a member on 
 probation, ordained by 1 Bishop Hedding, and, on the 
 recommendation of the Board of Managers of the Mis- 
 sionary Society of the M. E. Church, was appointed to 
 the superintendence of the Oregon mission. 
 
 In the following August, Rev. Daniel Lee, a nephew 
 of Rev. Jason Lee, was appointed to labor in the same 
 field. When they received their appointment, they 
 knew of no way of getting to the field assigned mem, 
 unless they ventured alone across the continent, through 
 hostile tribes, or could find some vessel bound to the 
 North-West coast, around Cape Horn, that would take 
 them on board ; and . they continued in suspense in 
 regard to their mode of proceeding, until Novemher, 
 when notice appeared in the public journals that Captain . 
 N. J. Wyeth, of Cambridge^ Mass., had recently re- 
 turned from a tour west of the Rocky Mountains, and 
 that he contemplated returning to Oregon in the follow- 
 ing spring. On receiving this intelligence, J. Lee 
 .mmediately repaired to Boston, had an interview with 
 Capt. Wyeth, and readily obtained permission to accom- 
 pany him back to Oregon. Capt. W. had also made 
 arrangements to send a vessel, called the "May Dacre/ 
 round to the Columbia river, loaded with goods , and 
 while in Boston Mr. Lee procured the necessary outfit 
 for his mission, and shipped it on board of Capt. Wyeth's 
 vessel. Here, also, by the consent of the. Board, Mr. 
 Lee engaged Cyrus Shepard, a lay member of the 
 church, to accompany him. During the interval be- 
 I ween the time that they received their appointment, 
 and the period fixed upon for their departure, the Lees 
 held a number of missionary meetings in various parts 
 of the country, with very encouraging results. Early 
 in March, 1834, they left New England for the west, 
 and on arriving in Missouri, P. L. Edwards, also a lav 
 member, was connected with the mission party, whic!i 
 now numbered four. 
 
 This company, after holding a most interesting mis. 
 sionary meeting at St Louis, proceeded to Fori 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. 
 
 Independence, on the frontiers of Missouri, which is a 
 place of general rendezvous before starting for the 
 mountains, where they met Gap t. Wyeth and nis party, 
 on the 24th of April, 1834. 
 
 On the 25th, the expedition left Independence, and 
 commenced their wearisome t.nd. perilous journey across 
 the Rocky Mountains, and on the 20th of June they 
 arrived at the general rendezvous of .the American Fur 
 Traders on Kane's Fork, which is a branch of the Colo- 
 rado of the West. 
 
 Here they continued till the 2nd of July, to recruit 
 their jaded animals, and then proceeded on, and on the 
 15th, arrived at a place on the Snake river, west of the 
 mountains, where Wyeth and his men built a trading 
 station, which he called Fort Hall. Here the mission- 
 aries tarried until the 30th of July ; and* as Capt. Wyeth 
 was detained longer for the purpose of finishing his fort, 
 the mission party resolved to proceed, in company with 
 Mr. Thomas McKay and Capt. Stewart, and on the first 
 day of September they arrived, in. safety at Fjrt Walla 
 Walla, on the Columbia river. They ascertained, on 
 their journey down from Fort Hall, that the Flat Head 
 tribe of Indians was not only very small, but very 
 disadyantageously situated for the establishment and 
 support of missionary operations among them; and this 
 r brought them to the determination to proceed down to 
 the lower country, to find a more eligible site for the 
 location of their mission. 
 
 Leaving their horses at Walla- Walla, they proceeded 
 down the Columbia in one of the Hudson's Bay Com- 
 panyfs boats, and after a tedious voyage of eleven days, 
 against strong head winds, they arrived in safety at 
 Vancouver on the 15th of September, and the following 
 night slept under a roof, for the first time for one 
 hundred and fifty-two nights. Wo- n out with the ex- 
 cessive labor and. fatigue of their long journey, they 
 could well appreciate the kind hospitality with which 
 they were entertained by the gentlemen- of the Fort 
 but they gave themselves but two days to rest, and to 
 consult with their host! who were well acquainted with 
 
14 aiSTOBT «P 
 
 all the Indian tribes, concerning the object they had in 
 view ; and; on the 18th, J. and D. Lee were off on an 
 exploring tour through the country, to " make observa- 
 tions relative to the best location for the mission." 
 
 Examining the Wallamette valley and other portions 
 of the country, they returned to Vancouver on the 27th, 
 still undecided as to the proper place to make the 
 location. 
 
 The merits of the different portions of the country 
 were considered, the Flat Heads, the Nez Perces, the 
 Kayuses, and other tribes, were faithfully reviewed, but 
 to the exclusion of all others, the Wallamette valley; was 
 strongly recommended by Dr. John McLaughlin and the 
 rest of the gentlemen of Vancouver, as the most eligible 
 place for the establishment of the centre of their ope 
 rations. , 
 
 On Sunday, the 28th, Jason Lee preached twice at 
 Vancouver, to a congregation of English, Irish, French, 
 half-caste, dsc, which were the first sermons ever 
 preached in the place, and doubtless the first that many 
 of the people had ever heard. 
 
 It was finally decided, "after much prayer for direc- 
 tion as to the place," to locate the mission in the 
 Wallamette valley, and as the brig May Dacre had 
 safely arrived in the Columbia with the goods belonging 
 to the mission, measures were immediately taken to 
 receive them from Capt. Lambert, and convey them to 
 the place selected for the station. The brig lay at the 
 mouth of the Multnomah, or lower mouth of the Walla- 
 mette, and the site for the mission was seventy-five 
 miles up the river; but, after "much toil and hard 
 labor," Mr. Lee succeeded in getting up all the goods, 
 and they were landed on the mission premises on the 
 6th day of October. 
 
 The rainy season was commencing, and as they had 
 no house to shelter either themselves or their goods 
 from the inclemency of the weather, they went imme- 
 diately to work to prepare logs, <fcc, to build a house. 
 The rain fell in torrents long before their house waa 
 •rected, yet they labored constantly during the day, and 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. It 
 
 at night were obliged to lie down together in a small 
 tent, scarcely large enough, to contain them, and, 
 wrapped in their wet clothes; seek a few hours' repose 
 to prepare them for the toils and storms of the ensuing 
 day. Their house was 32 feet by 18, and on the 3d of 
 November they moved their goods into it, though they 
 had put on but ten feet of the roof. So soon as they 
 got their house thus partly covered, they began tr 
 receive Indian children into their family, with the desigi 
 of establishing a mission school, and also to labor for the 
 spiritual benefit of Ji the Indians, and the' few French 
 people who had settled in the country. Meetings were 
 established at the house of Mr. Joseph Gervais, and 
 held every Sabbath, the principal attendants being 
 French and half-caste. 
 
 On the 14th of December, Mr. Jason Lee visited 
 Vancouver, where he preached, and baptized four adults 
 and seventeen children, hi consideration of these ser- 
 vices he received, in donations, from the gentlemen of 
 the company, the sum of twenty dollars, for the benefit 
 of the mission. During the winter of 1835, the missiona- 
 ries were 'alternately-employed in improving their house, 
 procuring supplies, preaching the gospel, and teacnmg 
 the Indian and half-caste children to read and write. 
 
 Thrown entirely upon their own resources, in the 
 spring, to guard against future Want, they commenceo. 
 cultivating the ground. There was no alternative; they 
 must do so, or starve. While they saw some fruits of 
 their labors in other respects, this department of their 
 work, during the summer, was greatly prospered, for in 
 the fall, after they gathered in their crops, they found 
 themselves with a good supply of wheat, peas, oats, and 
 barley, .and two hundred and fifty bushels of potatoes 
 in their cellar. This, with six barrels of salmon which 
 J. Lee purchased fresh of the Indians at the Wallamette 
 Falls, and salted with his own hands, and took up the 
 river to the mission, furnished them with the means of 
 subsistence for the following year. 
 
 Soon after the missionaries first arrived, Mr. Cyrun 
 Shepard was employed at Vancouver, to teach the chU 
 
14 history or 
 
 dren belonging to the Fort, bat. losing his health,! he wai 
 obliged to leave his < school. On the Jst of March he 
 ascended the river in. company, with Mr. Lee, and from 
 that time remained! on the Wallamette station. 
 
 Late in August a circumstance happened which shows 
 to what dangers the missionaries were exposed. A boy 
 whose Indian name . was Ken-o-teesh, belonging to the 
 Si-le-lah tribe, was .received into the mission in April, 
 and died on the 19th iof. the following August. A few 
 days after his death,: his brother came to the mission, 
 determined to Seek; revenge for the death of Ken-o- 
 teesh, by ; taking • the Lfe of Daniel Lee, and Cyrus 
 Shepard." He remained over night, and was prevented 
 from accomplishing his design only by the interposition 
 of an Indian who accompanied him. Bent upon glut- 
 ting his vengeance on somebody, he crossed the river, 
 and fell upon a band of unarmed Indians, and savagely 
 murdered several of them. 
 
 In the month of September, nearly the whole mission 
 family were attacked with the intermittent fever, and 
 the mission house was converted into an hospital, with- 
 out an attending physician. A scene of f distress., now 
 presented itself, and our missionaries, not only suffered 
 personally, but were obliged , to . descend to the most 
 menial services, in waiting upon the Indian children, for 
 whose comfort they manifested the utmost care. - 
 
 Mr. Daniel Lee and Mr. P. L. Edwards left the 
 mission premises thalastof September, the former for 
 Vancouver to obtain medical aid, and the latter, to 
 embark on board the Brig May Dacre for the 1 United 
 States. Remaining awhile at Vancouver without bene- 
 fit to his health, Mh Lee, by the advice of Dr. Mc- 
 Laughlin, embarked on board one of the, .Hudson's Bay 
 Company's ships, bound for the Sandwich Islands, and 
 in consequence of this, Mr. Edwards relinquished the 
 idea of leaving the country at that time, and returned 
 to the mission, and late in October established a school 
 for the winter, at Campment du Sable, or Champoeg. 
 
 To provide for future contingencies, the missiona rios 
 ■owed that fall twenty-MYtB bushels of wheat 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. IS 
 
 On the 26th of November, the Rev. Mr. Parker a 
 Presbyterian Clergyman from the State of <New York, 
 arrived at the mission, where he was mds't cordially 
 received. He had been sent out by the A. B. C. F; M. 
 to explore the country, and ascertain the most eligible 
 site for a mission. He remained at the station two days 
 only, when he returned to Vancouver. Dr. Marcus* 
 Whitman accompanied him over the Rocky Mountains/ 
 but on arriving at the Snake river, the doctor returned 
 to the States ^br the purpose of inducing the Board to 
 appoint missionaries forthwith to Oregon. 
 
 The enlargement of the mission family by receiving 
 Indian children from time to time, rendered it necessary, 
 at the close of this year, for the missionaries to build an 
 addition to their house, 32 by 16 feet. This they did 
 principally with their own hands. In reviewing the year, 
 .he missionaries found cause for thankfulness in the 
 success which had attended their labors, though they 
 had been called to pass through some trying scenes, 
 and to meet with maiiy discouragements. They had 
 received fifteen children into the family, of whom four, 
 nad died, and one had been dismissed, leaving ten under 
 their instruction. These were making rapid progress 
 in manners, science, and useful labor; and by the bless- 
 ing of God the missionaries had a sufficiency of whole 
 some food for themselves and the -children. 
 
 In February, 1836, hearing it rumored abroad that 
 certain Americans, who had arrived in the country^ 
 were about to commence the manufacture of rum, and 
 fearing, from a knowledge of the material of which the 
 Oregon community was composed, that intemperance 
 would sweep over their field of labor, the missionaries 
 invited the settlers to the mission house, and formed the 
 Oregon Temperance Society, the first organized west 
 of the Rocky Mountains. Three only, besides the 
 members of the mission, signed the pledge at first, but 
 subsequently the number increased to eighteen. 
 
 About the first of [ March a vessel arrived in the Co 
 lumbia from the Sandwich Islands, bringing intelligence 
 that the health of Daniel Lee had much improved, but 
 
!• MI»TORT *V 
 
 for the general good of the cause he had concluded to 
 remain till another opportunity should present itself foi 
 returning to Oregon. The natives of Oahu had made 
 a contribution to Mr. Lee for the benefit of the Oregon 
 mission, amounting to two hundred and fifty dollars. 
 At the same Time' mat this intelligence reached the mis- 
 sion, a letter was received by Jason Lee from Dr 
 McLaughlin, inclosing a subscription for the benefit of 
 the mission, to the amount of pne hundred and thirty 
 dollars, all from the gentlemen at Vancouver. As the 
 letter shows in what light these . intelligent persons 
 viewed the mission at that time, I insert a copy. It is 
 as follows : 
 
 "Fort Vancouver, 1st March, 1836. 
 The Rev. Jason Lee : 
 
 Dear Sir, — I do myself the pleasure to hand you the 
 inclosed subscription, which the gentlemen who have 
 ■igned it request you will do them the favor to accept 
 for the use of the mission, and they pray our Heavenly 
 ■Father, without whose assistance we can do nothing, 
 that of his infinite mercy he may vouchsafe to bless and 
 prosper your pious endeavors — and believe me to be, 
 with esteem and regard, your sincere well wisher and 
 numble servant, 
 
 John McLaughlin. ' 
 
 — The business of the mission continued as usual, with- 
 »ut any thing especial taking place,, until the 30th of 
 April, when we find Mr. J. Lee at the death bed of G. 
 Sergent, a native of New England, whom he found in 
 extreme agony both of body and mind. As Mr. Lee 
 entered, the dying man told him that as he had lived a 
 life of wickedness, he was about to die an awful death. 
 The missionary pointed him to the Redeemer of the 
 world, and commended him to God in prayer. He ap- 
 peared deeply affected, and responding a hearty amen, 
 in a short time ceased to breathe. 
 
 Teaching the children, preaching to both the settlers 
 and natives, visiting tb sick, attending funeral*, and 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. IT 
 
 harvesting their crops, employed the time of the mis' 
 sionaries during the summer ; and in the fall, to make 
 their " bread sure, " they sowed thirty-four bushels of 
 wheat. . : 
 
 In the latter part of August there arrived a vessel in 
 the Columbia river from England, by the way of th! 
 Sandwich Islands, having on board the Rev. Daniel' Lee, 
 who had recovered his health, and Rev. Mr. Beaver 
 and lady. Mr. Beaver had been sent out as chaplain 
 to the Hudson's 'Bay Company at Vancouver. He was 
 a clergyman of the Church of England. Mr. Lee 
 arrived at the mission at a very seasonable time to 
 vender himself useful, not only in his appropriate mis- 
 sionary work, but a/so in assisting to take care of the 
 sick members of the mission family. At this time Mr. 
 J. Lee was suffering under a severe attack of the inter- 
 mittent fever: Partially recovering from this attack, he 
 started for Vancouver on the 6th of September, taking 
 with him a favorite Indian girl whom he called Lucy 
 Hedding, to obtain medical aid in her behalf. 
 
 On the 12th, he returned, bringing information of the 
 arrival at Walla- Walla of the Rev. Mr. Spaulding and 
 wife, Dr. Whitman and wife, and Mr. Grey, who had 
 Deen sent out as missionaries by the A. B. C. P. M. 
 As Mr. Lee had taken the lower country, they decided 
 upon locating their mission in the interior, among the 
 Kayuse and Nez Perce Indians. These were the first 
 American \ladies that ever crossed the Rocky Mquntains, 
 and their arrival in the country formed an epoch in the 
 history of Oregon. 
 
 During the month of September, nearly all the mission 
 family were sick at once, with the intermittent fever, 
 and another was taken to Vancouver, by Mr. Edwards, 
 for medical aid. Mr. Edwards returned on the 30th, 
 bringing with him Lucy Hedding, who had received no 
 benefit from medicine. She died on the 5th of October. 
 
 On the 22nd, L Lee had a third attack of the fever, 
 so severe as to deprive him of reason for a short time. 
 He continued to suffer, without medical advice, until the 
 21st of November, when, in a very reduced state, he 
 
18 HISTORY OF 
 
 set out for Vancouver, where he arrived two days 
 afterwards. 
 
 During his absence, died Joseph Pournaffe, a member 
 of the mission school, aged 17 years. This lad was 
 very attentive to religious instruction, and left off play 
 and work on the Sabbath, immediately on being told it 
 was wrong. He often expressed much thankfulness 
 that the , missionaries had come to the country, to learn 
 him to read, and tell him about God. He was a pro- 
 mising youth, and, if he had lived, would probably have ■ 
 been a blessing to the country. As it was, the missiona- 
 ries had much consolation in his death, for he gave them 
 satisfaction that their labors had not been in vain. 
 
 On the 28th of December, after an absence of five 
 weeks, J. Lee returned from Vancouver with his health 
 somewhat improved, though still quite feeble. 
 
 Eighteen children and adults had been admitted into 
 the mission family during this year ; two had died and 
 one had run away. The missionaries found on their 
 hands, the last day of December, twenty-five persons • 
 but having enlarged their farming operations, by ths 
 blessing of God they found themselves in the possession 
 of supplies amply sufficient to sustain them until anotner 
 harvest. 
 
 On the 2nd day of January, IBS'" the members of 
 tne mission found cause to rally their forces, to support 
 the cause of temperance. A meeting of the Temperance 
 Society) was called at the mission house ; one member 
 who had violated the pledge, was excluded, and three 
 more Were added to the Society. A* the reports con- . 
 cernqng the distillation of ardent spirits were about to be 
 verified by a couple of men, named Young and Carmi- ^ 
 chael, it was unanimously resolved by the meeting to send 
 them a written request, signed by all the members of the 
 Oregon Temperance Society, to desist from their unholy 
 enterprise. The following is a copy of the correspond- 
 ence which took place 'between the Society and Messrs, 
 Young & Carmichael, and is inserted to show what 
 stand the missionaries took in guarding the morals of 
 the community, and the extent of the influence thef 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. 19 
 
 exerted. But for these measures, intemperance would 
 have devastated the country. 
 
 .'Messrs. Yopno & Carmichael: 
 » " Gentlemen, — Whereas we, the members of the 
 Oregon Temperance Society, have learned with no 
 common interest, and with feelings of deep regret, that 
 you are now preparing a distillery for the purpose of 
 manufacturing ardent spirits, to, be sold in this vicinity; 
 and, whereas, A we are most fully convinced that the 
 vending of spiritous liquors will more. effectually, para- 
 lyze our efforts for thfe promotion of temperance, than 
 any other, or all other obstacles that can be thrown in 
 our way; and, as we dofeel a lively and intense interest 
 in the success of the temperance cause, believing as we 
 do, that the prosperity and interests of this infant and 
 rising settlement will be materially affected by it, both 
 as it respects its temporal and spiritual welfare, and that 
 the poor Indians, whose case is even now indescribably 
 wretched, will be made far more so by the use of ardent 
 spirits; and whereas,, gentlemen, you are not ignorant 
 that the laws of the United States prohibit American 
 citizens from selling ardent spirits to Indians under the 
 penalty of a heavy fine ; and as you do not pretend to 
 justify yourselves, but urge pecuniary interest as the 
 reason of your procedure ; and as we do not, cannot 
 think it will be of pecuniary interest to you to prosecute 
 this business ; and as we are not eaemies, but friends, 
 and do not wish, under existing circumstances, that you 
 should sacrifice one penny of the money you have 
 already expended; we, therefore, for the above, and 
 various other reasons which we could urge, 
 
 " 1st. Resolved, That we do most earnestly and feel- 
 ingly request you, gentlemen, forever to abandon your 
 enterprise. 
 
 " 2nd. Resolved, That we will and do hereby agree 
 to pay you the sum you have expended, if you will give 
 us the avails 8f your expenditures, or deduct from them 
 the bill of expenses. 
 
n ' BISTORT Or 
 
 ' '* 3d. Resolved, That a committee of one be appointed 
 to make known the views of this society, and present 
 ou request to Messrs. Young &. Carmichael. 
 
 "4th. Resolved, That the undersigned will pay the 
 awns severally affixed to our names, to Messrs. Young 
 <fc Carmichael, on or before the thirty-first day of 
 March next, the better to enable them to give up their 
 project." 
 
 Then followed the names of nine Americans, and 
 fifteen Frenchmen, which then embraced a majority of 
 the white men of the country, excluding tne Hudson's 
 Bay Company, with a subscription of sixty-three dollars, 
 and a note appended as follows: 
 
 '*We, ihe undersigned, jointly promise to pay the 
 balance, oe the same more or less. 
 
 "Jason Lee, 
 Daniel Lee, 
 Cyrus Shepard, 
 P. L. Edwards." 
 
 To the above request Messrs. Young & Carmichael 
 returned the following answer: 
 
 " Wallamette, 13th Jan., 1837. 
 * To the Oregon Temperance Society: 
 , " Gentlemen, — Having taken into consideration your 
 request to relinquish our enterprise in manufacturing 
 ardent spirits, we therefore do agree to stop our pro- 
 ceeding for the present. But, gentlemen, the reasons 
 for first beginning such an undertaking were the innu- 
 merable difficulties placed in our way by, and the 
 tyranising oppression of the Hudson's Bay Company;' 
 here under the absolute authority of Dr. McLaughlin, V 
 who has treated us with more disdain than any Ameri- \, 
 can citizen's feelings could support. But as there have 
 now some favorable circumstances occurred to enable 
 us to get along without making spiritous liquors, we 
 resolve to stop the manufacture of it for* the present • 
 but, gentlemen, it is not consistent with our feelings to 
 
THE OBEGON MISSION. 31 
 
 receive any ecompense wnatever for our expenditures, 
 but we are thankful to the Society for their offer. 
 
 " We remain, yours, &c, i 
 
 " Young & Carmichael." 
 
 The missionaries from the first had proved a great 
 blessing to the country, not only in a spiritual and moral 
 point of view, but in furnishing employment to many 
 individuals otherwise without the means of, livelihood; 
 and setting an example of industry and perseverance in 
 the temporal tlepartments of their work, they gave a 
 spur to all business operations, and the community 
 seemed at once to spring from that state of inactivity 
 into which it had been thrown by the i domineering 
 policy of the Hudson's Bay Company, into one of 
 great enterprise and prosperity. In the early part of 
 January a circumstance transpired which enabled the 
 members of the mission and others, to carry out a design 
 which they had previously formed, and in the execution 
 of which the temporal interests of the country would be 
 greatly promoted. This design was to send an expedi- 
 tion to California to purchase and drive to Oregon a 
 band of neat cattle for the supply of the settlers. The 
 circumstance referred to was the arrival in the country 
 of Wm. A. Slocum, Esq., of the United States Navy. 
 Up ,to this period there were no cattle in the country, 
 except what belonged to the Hudson's Bay Company, 
 and they would not sell, but compelled the settlers, if 
 they had cattle at all, to take cows merely for their 
 milk, and return them with their increase. This looked 
 too much like oppression to Mr. Jason Lee, and he 
 resolved, if possible, to break up the cattle monopoly, 
 believing that he would thereby confer a lasting benefit 
 to the country. On the arrival of Mr. Slocum, he pro- 
 posed to take to California, any number of persons that 
 might be needed, free of expense except board ; and 
 a meeting was immediately called at the mission house, 
 for the purpose of forming a California Cattle Company, 
 and making the necessary arrangements for the expedi- 
 tion. Each person belonging to the Company was to 
 
tS HISTORY OF 
 
 share in proportion to the amount of money he invested, 
 and the persons who went with the expedition were to 
 be paid a stipulated sum per month in cattle. P. L. 
 Edwards and Bwing Youngs were appointed to take 
 charge qf the Company, and Thursday the 19th of 
 January was fixed upon as the day for the vessel to saiL 
 Mr. Slocum, » while in Oregon, manifested a deep 
 interest in the welfare of the rising settlement, and 
 especially in„the prosperity of the* Oregon mission. He 
 highly approved of the method the missionaries . had 
 pursued to benefit the Indians, and said he was perfectly 
 astonished at the improvement those had made who 
 were under the care of the mission. In company with 
 Mr. Jason Lee, he visited the several farms in the 
 settlement, and on the 14th, took his leave of the Walla-, 
 mette, Mr. Lee accompanying him to Vancouver. A 
 letter signed by the missionaries, commendatory of the 
 course Mr. Slocum had pursued in the country, had 
 been put into his hands before leaving, and he returned 
 them the following answer, which contained a donation 
 of fifty dollars for the benefit of the mission. This 
 letter was put into the hands of Mr. Lee during his last 
 interview with Mr. Slocum. , 
 
 " American Brio Loriot, off the Wallamette, ) 
 Oregon river, 18iA January, 1837. ) 
 
 " My dear Sirs : — I have much pleasure in acknow- 
 ledging the receipt of your kind favor of the 16th, and 
 I beg leave to thank you for the expressions of regard 
 contained therein. It was indeed a source of regret 
 that I could continue no longer at your mission on the 
 banks of the Wallamette, for the visit was to me one 
 of exceeding interest On my return to the civilized 
 
 Earts of our country, I shall not hesitate to express my 
 umble opinion that you have already effected a great 
 public good, by practically showing that the Indians 
 west of the Rocky Mountains are capable of the union 
 of mental and physical discipline, a"s taught at your 
 establishment. For I have seen with my own eyes, 
 children, who, two years ago, were roaming their own 
 
THE OREGON MISSION- S3 
 
 native wilds in a state of savage barbarism, now being 
 brought within the knowledge of moral and religious 
 instruction, becoming useful , members ( of society, by 
 being taught the most useful of all arts, agriculture^ and 
 all this without the slightest compulsion. 
 
 " As an evidence of my good will towards the lauda- 
 oie efforts you are making in this remote quarter, 
 debarred of almost every comfort, deprived of the 
 associations of kindred, and of hame, I beg you to accept 
 herewith, the sum of fifty dollars ; only regretting that 
 my means at present will not allow me to add more, I 
 pray you to accept, my dear sirs, the assurances of the 
 unfeigned regard of, 
 
 " Your friend and ob'nt servant, 
 
 "Wm. A. Slocum, U. S. N." 
 
 Mr. Slocum's vessel left the Columbia river about the 
 first of February, and arrived safely in the Bay of San 
 Francisco, on the coast of California. The cattle com- 
 pany proceeded immediately to purchase a large bana 
 of cattle, and a number of horses, with which they 
 started for Oregon. In crossing a range of mountains 
 separating the two countries, they were attacked', by the 
 Rascal Indians, and a number of their cattle were killed, 
 but they at length succeeded in driving back their foe, 
 and saving the remainder. Contrary to the predictions 
 and wishes of the members of the Hudson's Bay Com- 
 pany, who indirectly opposed them at the outset, they 
 arrived in safety in the' Wallamette valley with six 
 hundred head of cattle, and distributed them among the 
 settlers, according to the provisions of the compact 
 This successful enterprise, which laid the foundation for 
 a rapid accumulation of wealth by the settlers, was 
 mainly accomplished through the energy and persever- 
 ance of Rev. Jason Lee. 
 
 Sometime in July, 1836, We-Iap-tu-lekt, an Indian of 
 the Kayuse tribe, came to the mission on the Walla- 
 mette, and brought two of his sons, whom he desired to 
 have remain to be educated. He had travelled with the 
 missionaries, while on their way from Fort Hall to 
 
94 BISTORT OP 
 
 Walla-Walla, and seemed very attentive to religion* 
 instruction, and desirous that missionaries should settle 
 in the Kayuse country ; but none having yet come, he 
 resolved to visit the mission in the lower country. He 
 was so well pleased that he determined to return to his 
 country, and bring his family down to the mission, as 
 soon as possible. This he accomplished by the 6th of 
 September, when he settled his family near the mis- 
 sion station. Some of his children attended the school, 
 and appeared to. be making rapid improvement, but in 
 February, 1837, his family began to suffer with disease. 
 Two of his children died in quick succession, and a third 
 was fast sinking with a burning fever. We-lap-tu-lekt 
 was frightened, and supposed that all his family would 
 die, if he did not leave the place. He accordingly fled 
 in a canoe, but just at 'the moment of his landing at 
 Vancouver, another of his family expired. These re- 
 peated deaths in one family, and the fact that most of' 
 the mission children were sick, and some had died but 
 recently, began to create a prejudice in the minds of the 
 Indians, against having their children remain with the 
 mission, and after this it was not so easy to procure and 
 retain them^ 
 
 In February, 1835, Mr. Lee addressed letters to the 
 Board in New York, earnestly soliciting them to send 
 out a reinforcement. In compliance with this request, 
 the Board appointed Dr. Elijah White and wife, Mr. 
 Alanson Beefs and wife, Miss Ann Maria Pitman, Miss 
 Susan Downing, Miss Elvina Johnson, and Mr. W. H. 
 Wilson, assistant missionaries. This company sailed 
 from Boston in July, 1836, and, after several months 
 detention at the Sandwich Islands, entered the mouth of 
 the Columbia river in May, 1837. Intelligence of their 
 arrival in the Columbia was received on the 18th of 
 May, and the following day J. Lee went down the fiver 
 in a canoe to meet them and conduct them to the 
 station. On the 27th he returned with five of them, the 
 others remaining awhile at Vancouver. Their arrival 
 in the country was hailed by the four lonely brethren, 
 who had hitherto composed the mission, with great 
 
T« OREGON MISSION. SI 
 
 gladness, and the more so because they were thenceforth 
 to be cheered by the presence and sympathy of intelli- 
 gent females, from their own native , land, especially as 
 they had found, long before this, that " it was not good 
 for man to be alone." 
 
 The next day after the arrival of the reinforcement at 
 the station, Sam-nikj a Calapooa) chief, was brought to 
 the mission house, dreadfully mangled, having been shot 
 by another Indian, while sleeping in his lodge. He 
 desired surgical aid. This was the second circumstance 
 of the kind that had transpired within a short time. 
 
 The last of May, the mission was visited by Captain 
 Hinckley and lady, of the vessel that brought out the 
 reinforcement, and the first of June, J. Lee accompanied 
 them back to Vancouver. On his return, the 13th of 
 that month, he found Cyrus Shepard dangerously sick 
 with inflammatory fever; but under the faithful care of 
 Dr. White, he soon recovered. 
 
 On the 4th of July, the annual meeting of the Oregon 
 Temperance Society was held at the mission house, 
 when short and appropriate addresses were delivered by 
 J. Lee, D. Lee, A. Beers, W. H. Wilson and Dr. White. 
 Twelve new members were added, and a most satisfac- 
 tory influence was gained for the cause of temperance. 
 
 On Sabbath, the 16th of July, a large assembly for 
 Oregon convened in the pleasant grOve of firs, in front 
 of the mission house, for the purpose of religious worship. 
 The services were conducted by Rev. Daniel Lee, and 
 commenced by his uniting in lawful matrimony, accord- 
 ing to the form laid down in the Methodist Discipline, 
 the Rev. Jason Lee with Miss Ann Maria Pitman, Cyrus 
 Shepard with Miss Susan Downing, and Charles Roe 
 with Miss Nancy, an Indian girl of the Calapooa tribe. 
 This was followed by an appropriate discourse, and the 
 sacrament of the Lord's Supper. It was a season of 
 thrilling interest to all present. Two persons who pro- 
 fessed to have recently experienced the comforts of reli- 
 gion, united with the church, and one of them, though 
 Drought up a Quaker, was baptized, and both partook of 
 the sacrament 
 
M UISTOKY OP 
 
 No particular change took place in the mission in 
 consequence of the arrival of the reinforcement, with 
 the exception of the enlargement of its financial opeia- 
 tions. Two log houses, for! the accommodation of the 
 families, and a blacksmith shop, were immediately, 
 erected. A short time after, a frame house was built, 
 located one mile from the station back from the river, 
 and was occupied by the family of Dr. White. This 
 was the only comfortable house as yet owned by the 
 mission. During the same season Mr. Lee bought out a 
 Frenchman wno had built a small house, and opened a 
 farm so near me mission premises as to be much in the 
 way. By this purchase the mission enlarged its farm- 
 ing improvements, and having now a large band of 
 cattle, resulting from the California expedition, Mr. 
 •Tosiah Whitcomb was employed by the mission to take 
 charge of the farming operations, as it was impossible 
 for the Lees to attend to them and look after the 
 spiritual wants of the people. 
 
 The number of children and adults in the mission 
 continued to increase, notwithstanding the numerous 
 deaths that had taken place, until the average number 
 attending the day and sabbath school was from thirty to 
 thirty-five. The school was under the judicious man- 
 agement of Cyrus Shepard, and at this period was in a 
 very flourishing condition. The scholars were taught 
 the English language, and made rapid proficiency in 
 reading, writing, spelling, geography, and arithmetic. 
 
 As the sickly season came on, some of the missionaries 
 performed two tours through the country, for the benefit 
 .of their health. On the 2d of August, Mr. and Mrs. 
 Lee and Mr. Shepard, accompanied by Mr. Desportes 
 as a guide, started up the Wallamette river on horse- 
 back, and journeying leisurely for several days, towards 
 the south, took a circuit eastward, and striking the head 
 waters of the Molala river, followed down that stream 
 to the north, towards where it forms a junction with 
 the Wallamette. Crossing the latter river at Champoeg, 
 they returned in safety to the mission, after an absence 
 of ten days. They saw and imparted instruction to a 
 
TU OREGON MISSION. ST 
 
 few bands of Indians on their route, and returned with 
 reanimated health. 
 
 On the 14th of Augus,, Mr. J. Lee and Mr. C. Shep 
 ard, with their wives, accompanied by Joseph Gervais 
 as guide, left the mission to' perform a land journey to 
 the Pacific coast They traveled one day and a half, 
 through a very beautiful and fertile country, crossing 
 the Wallamette and Yamhill rivers, and encamped the 
 second night at the foot of the mountains which separate 
 the Wallamette valley from the Pacific ocean. Next 
 day they commenced crossing the mountains, tut found 
 the trail exceedingly difficult, on account of the abrupt- 
 ness of the ascending and descending, „and the numerous 
 large trees that had fallen across it. This rendered 
 their progress very slow, and the third night they 
 encamped in a deep, dark valley, among the mountains, 
 twelve miles from the shore. During the night it was 
 very rainy, and also the following day ; but they moved 
 camp in the morning, and at 5 p. m. pitched their tent 
 in a, beautiful cypress grove, within a short distance of 
 the shore, so that their encampment commanded a fine 
 view of the broad expanse of the Pacific ocean; 
 
 Here they continued for one week, visiting the Kille- 
 mook Indians, who inhabit that portion of the country, 
 and preaching to them as they were able. They 
 enjoyed the clams and other shell-fish, which they pro- 
 cured from the delightful sandy beach, and invigorated 
 themselves by frequent bathing in the salt water. On 
 the 26th, they left their pleasant encampment, and after 
 four days' toil in crossing the mountains, jumping the 
 logs, fording the streams, and traveling over the prai- 
 ries, they arrived at the mission; after an absence of 
 sixteen days. They were better qualified, from the 
 improvement of their health, to pursue the business of 
 their calling. • 
 
 On the 4th of September following, Mr. Daniel Lee 
 and Mr. Shepard started for Vancouver on business, 
 and arrived there on the 6th. On. the following day, a 
 canoe arrived at Vancouver, direct from the mouth of 
 the river, bringing the Rev. Daniel Leslie and Rev. H. 
 
3B hstobt or 
 
 K. W. Perkins, who had recently entered the river in 
 the ship Sumatra. They, with Mrs. LesJie and three 
 children, and Miss Margaret Smith, constituted a second 
 reinforcement to the Oregon mission. They sailed from 
 Boston on the 20th of January, 1837, and reached the 
 place of their destination, on the Wallamette river, the 
 20th of September. Soon after the arrival of Mr. Per- 
 kins, a union betwixt himself and Miss Elvira Johnson, 
 who came out in the former reinforcement, which had 
 been long, in contemplation, was consummated. They 
 were married on the 21st of November, 1837, by Rev. 
 David Leslie. \ 
 
 On the 25th of. December, a general meeting was 
 called at the mission house, and an Oregon Missionary 
 Society was formed. A liberal subscription was raised 
 to be expended the ensuing year, for the benefit of the 
 Calapooa Indians. 
 
 At the cose of this year, the missionaries w«re al. 
 residing at or near the Wallamette station, and were 
 laboring in their respective departments, not without 
 effect, some in sustaining the interests of the mission 
 : school, some in preaching to the Calapooas, and the 
 white settlements, some in different mechanical branches, 
 and some in taking care of the farm and the rapidly 
 increasing stock of cattle and horses. Several members 
 of the mission school had died during the year, and 
 mortal diseases unceasingly prevailed among the Indians 
 throughout the country; yet, in view of all the circum 
 stances of the case, the 'missionaries were encouraged, , 
 and began to take measures for the enlargement of tneir 
 operations. 
 
 Attending' to the interests of the temperance cause. 
 Mr. J. Lee set out, soon after the 1st of January, on an 
 exploring tour to the Umpqua country, in company with 
 Mr. Birnie, one of the traders of the Hudson's Bay 
 Company. This country lies some two hundred miles 
 south of Vancouver, and it was reported to contain 
 several thousand Indians, and as offering a fine field for 
 missionary operations. The late rains had swollen the 
 riven and creeks to such a degree, that it was almost 
 
m oazeoN mission 
 
 impossible for Mr. Lee to proceed; yet, after severe, 
 days of toilsome and dangerous journeying, through the 
 mud and rain, and fording the rapid streams that crossed 
 his path, he succeeded in reaching the trading post of 
 the Hudson's Bay Company, situated on the Umpqua 
 river, forty miles above its mouth.- The information he 
 received here was of an encouraging nature, and such 
 was the difficulty of traveling, that he resolved to 
 extend his observations no farther. Accordingly he 
 returned to the Wallamette, where he arrived on the 
 11th of March, 1§38, under the impression that, so soon 
 as a competency of missionaries could be provided, a 
 station should be established somewhere in the Umpqua 
 valley. 
 
 About this time, a meeting of all the missionaries, 
 preachers, and laymen was called, to consult on the 
 subject of establishing a new station; and, after the 
 merits of several portions of the country were presented, 
 it was unanimously resolved, that a mission be com- 
 menced at the DaUs, on the Columbia river, about ninety 
 'miles above Vancouver. Daniel Lee and H. K. W. 
 Perkins were appointed by the superintendent to the 
 new mission. They left the Wallamette station, to 
 Tepair to their new field, on the 14th of March, Mr. 
 Perkins leaving his wife behind, until they could make 
 arrangements for the convenience of a family. 
 
 Before Daniel Lee and Mr. Perkins left the Walla- 
 mette, a general consultation was held on the subject of 
 a still greater enlargement of the missionary work, in 
 Oregon. In the estimation of the meeting, " the harvest 
 was plenteous and the laborers were few." The Umpqua, 
 Killamook, Klikitat, Clatsop, Chenook, Nezqualy, and 
 many other tribes, were destitute of missionaries ; and 
 in view of these different stations, and the general wants 
 of the country, they passed a unanimous resolution, ad- 
 vising the Rev. Jason Lee to make a visit to the United 
 States for the purpose of representing before the Board 
 of Managers of the Missionary Society of the M. E. 
 Church and the public generally, the true condition of 
 the country, and of the Indians, and soliciting the men 
 
SO HI8TOBY OF 
 
 and means which, in their judgment, were necessary, 
 for the successful prosecution of the missionary work. 
 
 Mr. Lee concurred in the opinions thus expressed by 
 the members of the mission, and accordingly took leave 
 of his wife and brethren on the Wallamette, on the 26th 
 day of March, 1838, and commenced the long and 
 hazardous journey back across the Rocky mountains. 
 He was accompanied by P. L. Edwards, of the mission, 
 a Mr. Ewing, of Missouri, and two Indian boys of the 
 Chenook tribe, called Wm. Brooks and Thos. Adams. 
 It was a trying scene when Mr. Lee took his departure 
 from his companions in labor and suffering in Oregon, 
 and the more so from the consideration that he was 
 leaving his beloved wife, to whom he had been married 
 less than a year ; but in his opinion, it was his duty to 
 return, and call for fellow-laborers ; and, though worldly 
 interests and enjoyments demanded his continuance in 
 Oregon, yet he practised on the principle, that all such 
 things should give place to considerations of duty. 
 
 It was the first of April before Mr. Lee found himself 
 prepared to take his departure from Vancouver, towards 
 the Rocky mountains ; but before we follow him in his 
 toilsome and perilous journey home, we will contem- 
 plate some of the circumstances which were transpiring 
 among those whom he had left in the valley of Oregon. 
 
 On the : 21st of April Rev. H. K. W. Perkins arrived 
 at the mission from the Dalls, and brought a favorable 
 report from the new station.' The Indians are known 
 by the name of the Wasco tribe, and they call the place 
 where they live, Wascopam. They were found to 
 number from twelve to fifteen hundred ; were much 
 pleased with the idea of the establishment of a mission 
 among them, and were willing to assist in preparing a 
 place for the accommodation of the missionaries. 
 
 On the 26th of April, Mr. and Mrs. Perkins left the 
 Wallamette in a canoe manned by Indians, to take up 
 their residence at Wascopam. The voyage from the 
 Wallamette station to the Dalls, was first down the 
 Wallamette river the distance of seventy miles to its 
 mouth, and then up the Columbia fiver the distance of 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. SI 
 
 ninety-five miles. Both rivers are dangerous, oi conse- 
 quence of the numerous rapids, but after several days 
 of exposure and fatigue, Mr. and Mrs. Perkins arrived 
 in safety at the Dalls, and by the assistance of Mr. D. 
 Lee and the Indians, soon established themselves in 
 comfortable quarters. Mr. D. Lee had already acquired 
 a knowledge of the Chenook language as spoken in the 
 vicinity of Vancouver, which the Wascoes generally 
 understood, and could preach immediately to the Indians 
 without the aid of an interpreter. As the Walla- Walla 
 tribe was contiguous, and their language understood by 
 many of the Dalls Indians, Mr. Perkins, in addition to 
 learning the Ghenook, applied himself to 'the acquire- 
 ment of the Walla- Walla, and it was not long before he 
 could preach to the Indians in both languages. The 
 plan adopted was to circulate among the Indians, and 
 preach to them wherever they could be found ; and 
 from the reception which the missionaries met, and the 
 apparent attention given to the gospel, seldom was there 
 ever an Indian mission established under more favorable 
 auspices. 
 
 Things moved on quite prosperously in all the depart 
 ments, under the direction of Rev. David Leslie, whorr 
 Mr. Jason Lee had appointed his substitute during his 
 absence, until the 26 th day of June, when an event 
 transpired among the little band on the Wallamette 
 which, from the circumstances attending it, threw 
 gloom over the hitherto cheering aspects of the mission 
 Ann Maria, wife of the Rev. Jason Lee, gave birth to a 
 son on the 6th of June, which she was doomed to see 
 expire a few days afterwards. At the time of its death 
 unfavorable symptoms appeared in Mrs. Lee, and on 
 Tuesdaj the 26th, at six o'clock A. M., she calmly closed 
 her eyes in death. The following day the afflicted band 
 of missionaries committed to the grave the remains of 
 this youthful mother, with her little son clasped in her 
 arms. When this took place Mr. Lee had been absent 
 three months, and was far on his way to the United 
 States; but through the kindness of Dr^ McLaughlin, 
 an express was sent off immediately to carry to Mr 
 
M ■MTOXY •» 
 
 Lee the sad tidings of the death of his companion- It 
 was about the first of September when Mr. Lee arrived 
 at the Methodist mission among the Shawnees, on the 
 frontiers of Missouri, then under the superintendence 
 of Rev. Mr. Johnson, and having Retired to his room, 
 late in the evening, he was offering up a tribute of 
 thanksgiving to Him who had been his preserver while 
 on his toilsome journey through the hostile tribes of the 
 mountains, when he heard a rap at his door. Rising, he 
 admitted the stranger, who placed a package of letters 
 in his hands, and immediately left the room. He broke 
 ihe black seal of one, and the first line conveyed to him 
 ne heart-rending intelligence that his Ann Maria, and 
 ner little son, were numbered with the dead. Leaving 
 the afflicted missionary to indulge his grief alone, we 
 return to review other scenes in the valley of the 
 Columbia. 
 
 On the 14th day of August, information was received 
 n the Wallamette, that Mrs. Perkins, at the Dalls, was 
 very sick, and stood in great need of medical aid, and 
 other assistance. Accordingly Rev. D. Leslie, Dr. I. 
 Bailey, and Mrs. Whiter with her little daughter then 
 eight months old, embarked for the Dalls in a canoe 
 manned by Indians, and six days afterward arrived 
 there in safety. In the mean time Dr. Whitman, from 
 the mission in the interior, had visited Mrs. P., and 
 when the company arrived from the Wallamette, her 
 health was nearly restored ; consequently, on the morn- 
 ing of the 22nd, Mr. Leslie and Mrs. White left the 
 Dalls to return home. They descended the Columbia 
 to the cascades the first day, and the next morning 
 made a portage qf some three miles, and again aU 
 were seated quietly in the canoe, and the Indians struck 
 out into the strong current. Below them were rapids 
 which, in consequence of the high water, were worse 
 than they anticipated. The river at this place is about 
 one mile and a half wide, *nd the canoe was about one- 
 third of a mile from the nearest shore. They saw the 
 dashing of the waters before them, but such was the 
 strength of the current that already bore them down 
 
«BB OB»<3«H MISSION. 33 
 
 that it was impossible to phun the dangerous point 
 Soon the canoe was carried among the rolling surges, 
 filled, capsized, and instantly all were plunged into the 
 frightful gulph. Mr. Leslie, on rising to the surface of 
 the river, thought of Mrs. White, and seeing her be- 
 neath his feet, immediately plunged after her, if possible 
 to bring her to the surface. He caught hold of her 
 clothes, and came up to the surface, stru rgled for a 
 rawment to keep her above the. water, but was obliged 
 ^o relinquish his hold. He now thought that by giving 
 her up he might possibly save his own life, but it then 
 occurred to him that she was entrusted to his care, snd 
 at once resolving to do his- best to save her if he died i 
 the attempt, plunged after her again, and seizing he : 
 clothes, brought her to the surface.. Discovering the 
 canoe drifting but a short distance from him, Dottom up, 
 he soon regained it, and got hold of the hand of an Indian, 
 who had risen on the other side of the canoe, and sue- , 
 ceeded in keeping the head of Mrs. ( White above the 
 water. By this time they had been carried by the 
 current partly across the river towards the farther 
 shore; and fortunately some Indians were on that side 
 with a canoe, who, on discovering their situation, imme- 
 diately put off to their relief. These friendly natives 
 took them into their canoe, and then taking the capsized 
 canoe in tow, succeeded in gaining the shore. All were 
 safe but the babe; that was missing, but on righting the . 
 canoe, it was found to have, drifted along with it to the 
 shore, but the vital spark had fled.^ They were forty 
 miles distant from a civilized habitation, but the Indians 
 kindly proffered to take them into their canoe, and 
 carry them down to Vancouver. Wrapped in their 
 wet blankets, with the corpse of the little infant lying 
 ♦in one part of their canoe, they descended to that place, 
 where they had all the assistance afforded them which 
 sympathy could devise, or their distressed circumstances 
 demand. On Friday, the 24th, they left Vancouver, and 
 on Saturday evening they arrived at the Wallamette, 
 and the following day deposited the body of the infant 
 in the mission burying' grounds, Mr. Leslie improving 
 S 
 
84 HISTORY OF 
 
 the occasion by an appropriate discourse founded on 
 Deut, viiL 6 : " 0, how wonderful in working is oui 
 God, and his ways past finding out " 
 
 Thus the missionaries were constantly exposed. If 
 they passed from one portion of> the country to another, 
 they were obliged to commit themselves in their frail 
 craft, to the treacherous element, or travel by land 
 through hostile tribes of savages. 
 
 Mr. Grey, of the mission in the interior, made about 
 this time a hair breadth escape. While on his way 
 from the Rocky mountains, to Missouri, with one or 
 two white men and a number of Indians, he was attacked 
 by a band of Sioux warriors ; his Indians were all 
 killed, and himself was twice wounded by musket balls. 
 While he and the white men with him were making" 
 their escape on horseback, across a river, the Indians 
 fired at them from the shore, and a ball passed through 
 the hat of Mr. Grey, cutting the hair from the top of 
 his head. The white men escaped with one horse 
 apiece, having been robbed of every thing besides. 
 
 About the first of September, Rev. Daniel Lee left 
 the Dalls with a party of Indians, to go to' the Walla- 
 mette station by land across the Cascade mountains, to 
 ascertain whether it would be practicable to drive back 
 a small band of cattle for the accommodation of the 
 mission farm. Supposing that a week would be the 
 longest time that it would require to perform the jour- 
 ney, he took provisions to last him only during that 
 time ; but in consequence of the extreme difficulty of 
 the traveling through the dense thickets, over the high 
 mountains, up and : down the precipices, and fording the, 
 rapid streams, it required twice as long as he antici- 
 pated. Consequently they consumed all their provisions, 
 and after going hungry for some length of time, thej» 
 were driven to the necessity of killing a poor, jaded 
 horse, on the flesh of which they supported themselves 
 till they arrived at the Clakarnas, where they procured 
 salmon, having eonsumed the last morsel of their horse 
 that very day. Not at all discouraged by these diffi- 
 culties, Mr. Lee resolved to drive the cattle through 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. Sft 
 
 and engaging two men from the settlement to accompany 
 him, he started with his band on the 26th of September. 
 After ten days of excessive labor and fatigue, he arrived 
 safely at Wascopam without loss, 'this measure for 
 stocking the little farm they had opened at the Dalls, 
 was adopted by the missionaries for the purpose of 
 securing, at less expense, the means of subsistence. 
 
 In the month , of December of this year the Rev. D. 
 Leslie had the misfortune of losing his house, and most 
 of his furniture, ^bedding, clothing, &c, by fire. This 
 loss was the more severely felt, as it was difficult in that 
 new country to replace the articles destroyed. 
 
 At the close of this year the mission school under the 
 care of Cyrus Shepard, had increased to nearly forty 
 scholars, notwithstanding the feaxful mortality that 
 reigned among the children. About one-third of al 1 
 that had been received up to this period, had died and 
 most of the remainder were in a sickly condition. A t 
 this time Mr. Shepard was obliged to give up the caie 
 af the school, in consequence of personal affliction. A 
 welKng appeared on one of his knees, Ayhich at .fust 
 created but little concern, but at length assumed a very 
 alarming aspect. Ail the medical and surgical skill of 
 the country were expended upon him to no purpose; 
 the limb was amputated, but it was too late to save life. 
 Death ensued a short time after the operation. In Mr. 
 Shepard the mission lost one of its most valuable mem- 
 bers, a fond wife was bereft of a kind' and faithful 
 companion, and two little girls were rendered fatherless. 
 
 Soon after this event, by an arrangement of the mis- 
 sion, Dr. Elijah White connected with his professional 
 duties, the. care o*" the mission sehooj ; and the business 
 of the various departments proceeded as usual through 
 the winter. 
 
 At the Dalls a great religious excitement prevailed 
 among the Indians through the labors of D. Lee and H. 
 K. W. Perkins. This excitement extended fifty or 
 seventy-five miles along the Columbia river, chiefly 
 among the Wasco and Chenook Indians, of whom more 
 than one thousand in the course of a few wea'-ts appn 
 
M HISTORY 6f 
 
 rently embraced the christian religion. Such were the 
 evidences of a genuine change in these Indians, that the 
 missionaries, after witnessing their praying habits for a 
 few weeks, baptized them, and received them formally 
 into the church. They were then formed into classes, 
 •and stated preaching was established in the different 
 villages where they resided ; and for the time being the 
 aearts of the missionaries were encouraged, from be- 
 holding the apparently happy success with which their 
 labors were crowned. 
 
 On the Wallamette also, under the labors of Rev. D. 
 Leslie, a revival of religion took place among the white 
 settlers, the Hawaiians, who were in the employment of 
 the mission, and the Indians connected with the mission 
 school. A number of each class were ,converted and 
 received into the church. 
 
 While these things were transpiring in Oregon, Rev. 
 J. Lee was zealously employed in accomplishing the 
 objects of his visit to the United States. He arrived in 
 ihe city of New York about the first of November, ano 
 on the 14th he was present at a meeting of the Mission 
 ary Board, and stated at length the object of his visit 
 He urged with much earnestness the importance of 
 extending the missionary work in Oregon ; and in view 
 of this he plead with great zeal the necessity of sending 
 to that country a large reinforcement. In his opinion it 
 was essential, for the prosperity of the mission, to sup- 
 ply it with the requisite means to furnish itself with 
 food, buildings, etc. ; and all the necessary implements 
 for husbandry, and mechanical purposes, should be sent 
 out by the Board. To meet all these demands would 
 require a very heavy outlay, and for this and some other 
 reasons, Mr. Lee met with warm opposition from some 
 of the members of the Board, who sincerely doubted 
 the expediency of the measure ; but the superintendent, 
 who had just come from the field of operation, perse- 
 veringly and powerfully urged the claims of the mission, 
 and, sustained by J)r. Fisk, Dr. Bangs and others, finally 
 succeeded in obtaining from the Board all, yea more 
 than he demanded ; for in his opinion but two minister* 
 
THE OREGON MISSION. S7 
 
 were required, but in the estimation of a majority of 
 the Board, if there were to be as many laymen sent out 
 as Mr. Lee called for, two ministers would not be suffi- 
 cient. Accordingly, on the 6th of December, 1838, the 
 Board passed a resolution to send to Oregon five addi- 
 tional missionaries, one physician, six mechanics, four 
 farmers, one missionary steward, and four female teach- 
 ers ; making in all thirty-six adult persons. These 
 were all selected and appointed within a few months, the 
 laymen by Dr. Bangs and Mr. Lee, and the missionaries 
 by the Bishop having charge of the* Foreign missions. 
 The appointments took place from various parts of the 
 United States, the New England, New York, Troy, Gene- 
 see, Illinois, and North Carolina Conferences contributing 
 more or less, to make the numbers of the reinforcement 
 complete. During the summer of 1839, Mr. Lee, at 
 tended by Wm. Brooks and Thomas Adams, the two 
 Indian boys whom he brought with him, trayeled quite 
 extensively through the New England and Middle 
 States, holding missionary meetings in all the importan 
 places, and collecting funds for the Oregon mission. 
 His success was unparalleled, and an interest was excited 
 throughout the land amounting to enthusiasm. Crowds 
 thronged to see and hear the pioneer missionary beyond 
 the Rocky mountains, and the converted Indians who 
 accompanied him. Liberal collections were taken up 
 for the Oregon mission in almost every place, and these,, 
 with the appropriations of the Board for the purchase of 
 goods, amounted, to forty thousand dollars. Furnished 
 with all kinds of tools for agricultural and mechanical 
 purposes, and with the necessary articles for the con- 
 struction of a saw-mill and grist-mill; the great rein- 
 forcement, with Mr. Lee at their head, at length found 
 themselves readv for sea. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 jrirrwu'of a voyage from New York to Oregon — Time and circumstances of departure 
 
 — first evening — Last -look at the Highlands — Initiatory rites — Great distress 
 
 — Sea-sickness indescribable — Fourth day — Captain Spaulding — First and 
 second officers — Passengers in the cabin — Character of the expedition — First 
 Sabbath at sea — Police regulations — A rich treat — Centenary meeting — Results 
 
 — Vessel ships a sea — Wind increases — Tremendous gale — North-East trade — 
 Description of the trades — Whale — Allowance of Water — Porpoise — Vessel — 
 Amusing surprise, — Astronomy — Northern constellations — Magellanic clouds — 
 Interesting Sabbath — Land, ho! — Cape Frio — Lighthouse— Splendid scenery 
 
 — Arrival at Rio de Janeiro — Historical sketch — Don Jotui — Brazil indepen- 
 dent—Don Pedro the first— Compelled to abdicate — State of the country — 
 Foreign residents — Religion — City — Buildings — Missionaries — Slavery — Re- 
 flections. 
 
 It was in the evening of the 9th day of October, 1839, 
 hat a company of fifty-two persons, sixteen of whom 
 rere children, were collected together on the quarter 
 eck of the ship Lausanne, which then lay quietly in the 
 ight, betwixt the east coast of New Jersey and Sandy 
 look. The preceding day had been one of most thrill- 
 yg interest to every person composing that excited, 
 bough confiding, group. They had bidden, as they all 
 hen supposed^ a, last adieu to the land of their nativity; 
 nd all the endearing ties that bound therr to home and 
 riends, had been torn asunder. In their nearts burned 
 ,n intense desire to become the instruments of intro- 
 mcing the blessings of religion and civilization, to the 
 lenighted heathen in a foreign land; and for this purpose 
 hey had resolved upon braving the dangers of the deep, 
 ind to endure the diificulties and deprivations incident to 
 l residence in a heathen land. 
 
 It fell to the lot of the writer to be associated with 
 his self-denying band, to mingle with them while they 
 ingered on their native shore, as if loth to make the 
 acrifice, to witness them as, at the given signal, the 
 
T»TA«E TO OBEOON. • 89 
 
 hastened to commit themselves to that frail bark, which 
 was destined to become their prison home for so many 
 tedious days and stormy nights, and, with them, to share 
 the perils of a voyage of more than twenty-two thousand 
 miles. 
 
 Before we take our departure from Sandy Hook, the 
 reader will expect to be entertained with some of the 
 principal events which took place the day preceding the 
 evening on which these voluntary exiles were for the 
 first time assembled on the deck of the Lausanne. 
 
 The morning rose beautiful and serene, with not a 
 cloud to obscure the rising sun, and not a breath of 
 wind to ruffle the surface of the waters. It was at nine 
 o'clock of this day, when, by a previous arrangement, 
 the mission family, attended by their beloved friends of 
 New York and vicinity, assembled at White Hall Dock, 
 at the foot of Broadway, where lay the steamboat Her- 
 cules, which had been engaged to take the passengers to 
 the Lausanne, which then lay in East River, and then 
 to tow the ship down through the Narrows, into the 
 vicinity of Sandy Hook. Two -hundred and fifty per- 
 sons, who had endeared themselves to our hearts by 
 their kindness and solicitude for our welfare, 1 accom- 
 panied us on the steamboat, when we embarked; ana 
 among them were the "Rev. N. Bangs, D. D., and the 
 Rev. Dr. Anderson, the former being the secretary of 
 the Missionary Society of the M. E. C, and the latter, 
 the secretary of the A. B. C. F. M. 
 
 It was precisely fifteen minutes past ten o'clock, when 
 the signal was given for the boat to leave the wharf, 
 iind, in a few moments, we were along side the Lausanne, 
 while the multitude' that lined the shore, were invoking 
 many blessings on our enterprise, and by words and 
 signs were bidding us a last farewell. 
 
 The ship was immediately fastened to the boat, and t 
 we were speedily gliding do.wn Jie beautiful harbor of 
 New York; first looking back upon the city, whose 
 hundred gilded steeples were flashing' in the sun light, 
 and then upon immense shipping, crowded for miles up 
 and down the East and North rivers; now looking for 
 
40 VOYAGE TO ©RHO«Vf. 
 
 a moment upon Castle Garden, Governor's Island, the 
 North Carolina seventy-four, Brooklyn, the Fort, and 
 then upon the Jersey shore, Long Island coast, Staten 
 Island, with all its delightful scenery;, and every thing 
 within the range of our vision was gazed upon with eo 
 much the more interest, as they belonged* to our own 
 native country, and, in all probability, we were to see 
 them no more. 
 
 The time that elapsed from our leaving the wharf^ till 
 the steamboat left us to return, was full of deep and 
 lively interest. The conversation was fraught with the 
 most intense feeling and anxiety, which were manifested 
 ever and anon, by floods of tears, and expressions of the 
 most ardent wishes for our welfare and success. The 
 ftymns that were sung were remarkably appropriate, and 
 tended to increase the flame already burning on the altar 
 of every heart. The religious services, conducted by 
 Dr. Bangs, Dr. Anderson, and ,the Rev. Mr. Davis, 
 were peculiarly solemn and affecting, and closed by the 
 baptism of the infant son of the Rev. J. P. Richmond, 
 who was christened " Oregon," the - name of the country 
 to which we were bound. While yet the impressions 
 which these services had made upon all present were 
 the most lively and tender, it was announced that the 
 two vessels must separate. At this time all the missiona- 
 ries, with their attendants, were on the steamboat. We 
 had passed the Narrows, and were rapidly 'approaching 
 Sandy Hook, when the parting scene commenced. Now 
 parents and children, brothers and sisters, and friends 
 and acquaintances, embraced each other for the last 
 time on earth, and amidst tears, prayers and farewells, 
 the missionaries passed from the boat to the deck of the 
 Lausanne. The grapplings were immediately cast off, 
 and the Hercules sailed gracefully around us, while from 
 each elieck the emblems of purity and affection, snow 
 white handkerchiefs, Were fluttering in the air, until by 
 a point of Long Island, at the Narrows, the vessels were 
 hidden from each other's sight. 
 
 Though there was no wind to favor us, an ebb tide 
 carried u» slowly down to the usual anchorage, inside of 
 
»OTAUB TO OKEQOIf. 4 J 
 
 Sandy Hook, where we were glad to have a little time 
 'to arrange our cabin and state room affairs, before going 
 to sea. 
 
 The evening' of the day of embarkation was serene 
 and peaceful, and after the stirring events of tho day had 
 been rehearsed by the passengers assembled on the deck 
 of our noble vessel, all repaired quietly to their berths, 
 and after a good night's rest, arose on the morning of 
 the 10m of October, in good health and spirits, for their 
 voyage. At half pasl, six o'clock in the morning, we 
 weighed anchor, and spreading our canvass to a gentle 
 western breeze, were carried majestically past the Hook, 
 and were soon tossed upon the waves of the broad 
 Atlantic. 
 
 The passengers were all immediately called upon to 
 perform the initiatory rites to which all have to submit, 
 who, for the first time, invade the dominions of Neptune. 
 This, however, did not prevent many from taking a last 
 look of the Highlands of Never Sink, which disappeared 
 in the smoky distance at three o'clock in the afternoon 
 of the first day. In passing through this terrible ordeal 
 of initiation, there are occasional intervals of relaxation 
 and on Sunday, the 13th, the "North-Easter," which hat* 
 been blowing from the first day out, lulled ; a calm suc- 
 ceeded, and operated like a charm upon the sick inmates 
 of the Lausanne; for all so far recovered as to be abte 
 to present themselves on the quarter deck. 
 
 As we are now on the fourth day out fairly under 
 way, having lost sight of land, and experienced one 
 severe storm, and, for the first time since leaving Sandy 
 Hook, collected on the deck of the vessel, the reader 
 will expect a more particular account of the company 
 to which, collectively, he has already been introduced. 
 Embracing the officers and crew, there were seventy- 
 five souls on board, fifty-four of whom were passengers. 
 The ship was commanded by Capt. Spaulding, who had 
 been employed by the owners, Farnham &. Fry, in 
 view of his qualifications, to take charge" of such an 
 expedition, for so long a voyage. Twenty years' expe- 
 rience as master of a vessel, had established the captain's 
 2* 
 
42 VOVAOE TO OREGOK. 
 
 reputation as a skillful navigator, which, in connexion 
 
 with his geneial kindness to the passengers, and his 
 efforts to make them as comfortable as their crowded 
 condition on the yessel would admit, proves that the 
 selection, if not the best that could have been made ? 
 was as good as could have been reasonably expected. 
 The first and second mates, though wanting in strict 
 morality, were excellent seamen, and well understood 
 the business of navigation. The second mate, Mr. 
 Coffin, had performed eight voyages around Gape Horn. 
 
 The crew were composed of English, Americans, 
 
 Irish, Germans, Danes, and Swedes. This variety was 
 
 , selected, as the captain said, because among such a 
 
 crew it is less difficult to preserve order, than it is with 
 
 a crew exclusively Americans. 
 
 Finding ourselves thus officered and manned, and 
 witnessing the management of our vessel through one 
 protracted storm, we concluded that, extraordinaries 
 excepted, we should be conducted in -safety to the Ian- 
 of our destination. 
 
 The passengers in the cabin, embracing children 
 numbered fifty-four. Of these eight were ministers of 
 the gospel ; seven of whom, namely, Jason Lee, J. H. 
 Frost, A. F. Waller, W. W, Kone, G. Hines, L. H. 
 Judson, J. L. Parrish and J. P. Richmond, were con- 
 nected with the missionary expedition to Oregon ; and 
 one, the Rev. Shelden Dibble, was a Presbyterian mis- 
 sionary, on his way to his field of labor, in the Sandwich 
 Islands. We had one physician, Dr. J. L. Babcock, 
 who had been appointed to take care of the health of 
 the members of the mission, and all the remainder had 
 been connected with the enterprise, by the appointment 
 -of the Missionary Board of the M. E. Church, as farm- 
 ers, mechanics, and teachers, to labor for the promotion 
 of religion and civilization, in the territory of Oregon. 
 With the secular department of the work, two of the 
 above named preachers, L. H. Judson, and J. L. Parrish, 
 were also connected. 
 
 The persons composing this, the largest expedition of 
 the kind that had ever sailed from our shores, presented 
 
70YAM tO ORCaON. 41 
 
 a great variety in consequence of the extensive range 
 of country from which they had been collected. Coming 
 together from Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, 
 Maryland, North Carolina, Illinois, and Missouri, and 
 bringing with them many of the differe/it peculiarities 
 of these several portions of our Union, it would not be 
 surprising, confined as they were for so long a. time, 
 under circumstances peculiarly calculated to " try men's 
 souls" if, from time to time, they came so far in collision 
 with each other's views and prejudices, as to produce a 
 momentary rupture. One striking trait, however, as 
 difficult to exhibit as it is excellent in its influence, ap- 
 peared in the conduct of the company huddled together 
 in the cabin of the Lausanne. It was this ; a disposition 
 .o sacrifice self, for the promotion of the common "weal. 
 This excellency of character was fully manifested on 
 the part of the ladies, of whom we had nineteen on 
 board. 
 
 Dismissing this general description of the company, 
 proceed to give a few of the incidents of our voyage 
 first, assuring the reader that long and tedious descrip 
 tions of the management and evolutions of the vessel, 
 the peculiar technicalities of navigation, the clewing, 
 handling, or reefing of sails, and the various phenomena 
 which belong exclusively to the avocation of those who 
 "go down to the sea in ships and do business on the 
 great waters," will be studiously avoided. The seaman's 
 vocabulary constitutes an unintelligible jargon to all 
 landsmen ; and as this Journal is designed for the benefit 
 of such as are not accustomed , to the seas, this vocabu- 
 lary will not be resorted to,, except where it may be 
 thought necessary to express the subject in a clearer 
 light, or to render a description more full and explicit. 
 Waiving all such explanations hereafter, and continuing 
 directly on our voyage, in the regular course of events, 
 I come now to give a description of our fifst Sabbath at 
 sea. 
 
 Though a storm had been raging for days, yet the 
 Sabbath brought with it almost a perfect calm. In con 
 lequence of the sickness of the passengers no arrange 
 
4 V07AS3 TC OREGON. 
 
 ments nad been made with regard to the servicer of th« 
 day ; but the weather being so fine, it was thought 
 practicable, notwithstanding all had not recovered from 
 their sickness, to have public worship. The Rev. Mr. 
 Dibble having performed a number of voyages, was 
 sufficiently inured to the motion of the vessel, to be able 
 to preach ; and being requested to officiate, the passen- 
 gers and some of the crew collected on the quarter 
 deck, and listened to a most interesting, appropriate, and 
 profitable discourse, from the words of the Apostle Paui. 
 " For scarcely for a righteous man, will one die, yet 
 peradventure for a good man, some would even dare to 
 die." 
 
 To many, it was a season " of refreshing from the 
 presence of the Lord ; " and we found our vessel to be 
 none other than the "house of God, and the gate of 
 Heaven. " In the evening, all that were able, came 
 together on deqk, for the purpose of holding a prayer 
 meeting, and while the meeting was in progress, a fine 
 breeze sprung up, and as the wind whistled through our 
 rigging, the voice of prayer was ascending to the throne 
 of God. The meeting closed, and all quietly retired to 
 their berths, committing themselves to the care of Him 
 who rides upon the wings of the wind, and who holds 
 the mighty ocean in the hollow of his hand. Thus closed 
 our first S v abbath at sea, leaving the delightful impression 
 that we were not to be deprived of the privileges of the 
 sanctuary, though far away amidst the solitude of the 
 ocean. 
 
 For the purpose of promoting harmony on board, in 
 the evening of the 16th, rules were adopted, by a vote 
 of the passengers, to regulate the police of the cabin 
 during the voyage. These rules fixed the time of 
 rising, the time for morning and evening prayers, Jie 
 order to be observed at the table, and the course of 
 conduct to be pursued with reference to the children. 
 We found it to be as necessary to have law in our little 
 floating world, as it is on land; and the laws thus volun- 
 tarily adopted, proved salutary in their influence 
 throughout the whole voyage. 
 
This arrangement was carried out, durii ; the seven 
 months of our confinement on the Lausanne, without 
 deviation, except when the motion of the vessel was so 
 violent as to render it altogether impracticable. Persons 
 were also appointed to make arrangements for holding 
 a centenary meeting, on board the vessel, and for pre- 
 paring a journal of our voyage, to be sent back to New 
 York, for publication in the C. A. Journal. 
 
 On the 18th, it was determined that our meeting 
 preparatory to the centenary, should be held on Mon- 
 day, the 21st instant, at 10 o'clock, a. m., at which 
 addresses should be delivered, and subscriptions solicited. 
 It was also resolved, that, in connection with our breth- 
 ren throughout the world, we would meet together on 
 ihe 25th inst., and celebrate the day in the following 
 nanner: 
 
 Prayer, meeting in the morning, preaching at 2 o'clock, 
 and love-feast in the evening. 
 
 On Monday, the 21st, a strong head wind prevailed, 
 jmd the violence of the motion of the ship was so great, 
 zhat the preparatory meeting was deferred unjtil the 23d. 
 Two addresses were delivered on the occasion, after 
 which a subscription was taken, which, by a previous 
 resolution, was to be appropriated for the moral eleva- 
 tion of the Indians, west of the Rocky mountains. And, 
 although we were floating upon the bos^m of the deep, 
 nearly a thousand miles from land, being in latitude 35 
 degrees, 44 minutes, north, and longitude 55 degrees, 
 15 minutes, west, yet it was a season of peculiar interest; 
 and the sense of obligation which all felt, in view of the 
 benefits conferred upon them and the world, through 
 the influence of Wesleyan Methodism, was exhibited by 
 placing on the altar, by the missionaries, a thank offer- 
 ing, amounting to six hundred and fifty dollars, twenty 
 of which were contributed by the Presbyterian mission- 
 ary, the Rev. S. Dibble. 
 
 On the 25th, the centenary of Methodism was cele 
 brated on the Lausanne, according to previous arrange 
 ment; and, having been selected for the purpose, thq 
 
40 OYAHi 'IO OkECOM. 
 
 i 
 
 writer endeavored to improve the occasion by a di« 
 course, from Zachariah, xiv. 6, 7, 8. 
 • While the interesting services' of this day and evening 
 were in progress, our gallant ship, by a strong breeze, 
 was wafted over the rolling deep at the rate of nine 
 knots an hour. 
 
 Thursday, 31st. AH the passengers begin to prefei 
 the deck to the cabin or state-rooms, and whether sick 
 or well, storm or calm, they will make their appearance 
 ' on deck several times a day, if they can possibly, get out 
 themselves, or get any one to assist them out; This 
 preference arises first, from the heat of the cabin, which 
 as we proceed south, is getting quite unendurable ; 
 second, from the nauseous scent, which, at any time, 
 would be disagreeable to the olfactories, and, to sea-sick 
 stomachs, is truly repulsive; third, from the crowded 
 * condition of the cabin, there being a large number of 
 chests, trunks, boxes, baskets and other things, scattered 
 along the gangway and under the tables, so, that it is 
 almost impossible to find a place to set one's foot. This 
 day an incident transpired, as disagreeable to some as it 
 was a fruitful source of laughter to others. The wind 
 had been blowing with increasing violence for a number 
 of hours, and the sea had become unusually rough. By 
 the mismanagement of the man at the wheel, the vessel 
 shipped a tremendous sea, which came rushing over on 
 the deck, and extended from the bow to the stern, and 
 rose so high as J;o wet the lower part of the top sails. 
 Mrs. Lee. Mrs. Hines and Mrs. Frost were on deck at 
 the time, the two former too sick' to hold up their heads, 
 and the latter waiting upon them to some gruel. Thev 
 were bolstered up in their chairs, which leaned back 
 against the scuttle, with their faces to the windward,- 
 and received the whole weight of the huge sea, as it 
 poured its overwhelming flood on the ship's deck. For 
 a moment they scarcely knew whether they were in the 
 ocean, or on the vessel, but when the flood passed over 
 they found cause for thamrfulness in the fact, that, with 
 their thorough drenching, they had received no seriom 
 <*jury. 
 
VOYAG* T3 OKEOOll. 41 
 
 November 1st The wind has gradually increased in 
 strength since yesterday, and consequently the sea runs 
 very high. Though I find myself so sick, in consequence 
 of the violent motion of the vessel, that I loathe almost 
 every thing my eyes behold* yet occasionally I draw 
 myself up to the windward by ropes, and, looking over 
 the bulwarks, contemplate the grandeur and sublimity 
 of the mighty ocean, as she proudly and majestically 
 ro/.ls onward her mountain waves. During the night, 
 we were called to encounter a severe gale. !For forty- 
 eight hours the. wind had been blowing with increasing 
 strength, attended occasionally with rain. But early in 
 the evening the sky became perfectly clear, and the 
 stars glistened with unusual brightness, which gave 
 indication that a still more violent blast awaited us. 
 About niidnight, at the loud and well understood call of 
 the second officer, all hands were immediately on deck 
 for in the midst of a storm, every sailor is converted 
 into a fearless hero. The listening sailors waited for a 
 moment the word of command, when " Clew your main 
 sheet; clew up your main top sail; handle your main top 
 gallant sail; clew your fore tack; close reef your fore 
 top sail;" were heard above the roar of the winds and 
 waves, and met with a prompt obedience. This being 
 done, the captain was called, for the time was considered 
 somewhat perilous. When the captain appeared on 
 deck, the officer said to him, " There is a gale coming, 
 sir, still more heavy than any thing we have had. Shall 
 I not handle the foretop gallant sail, and lay to the gale 1 ?" 
 The captain hesitated a moment, when the mate cried 
 out, "The fore tup gallant sail must be taken in, sir, or 
 lost in a minute." " Close reef your fore top gallant 
 sail," was heard above the roar of the angry elements, 
 and wf>s obeyed with amazing promptness by the faith- 
 ful sailors, who had been as quick as thought to every 
 word of command. After the sails had all been "taken 
 in, except enough -o keep the vessel steady, the man at 
 the wheel was charged to "mind his weather helm." 
 At this moment the whole fury of the blast was upon 
 us. The 4ea wan lashed to foam, and the wind, with 
 
tfP VOYAGi. 1"0 OREGON. 
 
 fitful gusts, swept angrily across our deck, and howleo 
 dismally through our rigging. At every blast of the 
 tempest, the ship creaked in every joint, and, careening 
 to the water's edge, swung her towering masts majesti- 
 cally in the heavens. The huge waves came rolling 
 over our weather bow, and occasionally washed uic 
 entire length of our vessel. But the time nad no^i 
 arrived to lay t6 the wind. '-'Sard up!" thundered the 
 watchful captain; " Hard up, sir !" replied the faithful 
 helmsman. The gallant ship turned her face to the 
 wind, and defied the fury of the storm. She lay upon 
 tfie waves, apparently as light as a feather, and increased 
 the confidence of all in her capacity, by the triumphant 
 v manner in which she rode out the gale. At 3 o'clock 
 in the morning the wind slackened, and changing sud- 
 denly into the west, brought us again on our course, 
 and at four we were gliding over the billows, at the rate 
 '4 nine knots an hour. 
 
 On the morning of the 8th, we began to be affected 
 ty the north-east trade wind. There are two of these 
 winds, one north and the other south of the equator, 
 extending quite around the globe, with the exception of 
 those intermediate spaces where they are broken ofF by 
 land breezes. The trade north of the equator, called 
 the north-east trade*, commences between the 28th and 
 30th degrees of north latitude, and continues to the 8th, , 
 the distance of twenty degrees. In sailing to the south, 
 you begin to feel the south-east trade between the 3d 
 and 4th degrees of north latitude. The intermediate 
 space, consisting of a strip about five degrees, or three 
 hundred miles wide, is the region celebrated on account 
 of its variable winds, sudden squals, and extended calms. 
 Here vessels are sometimes detained, by dead calms 
 beneath the vertical rays of a burning sun, for forty or 
 fifty days; and captains consider that a voyage across 
 this region is unusually prosperous, if it is performed in 
 one week. 
 
 The south-east trade continues from the 3d degree 
 north, to the 30th degree south of the equator; its cur- 
 rent varying from the east to south by east 
 
TOYASK TO OKMOK. 49 
 
 These winds are probably produced by two causes in 
 •onnection. First, the constant tendency of the air to 
 restore its equilibrium. The cold air of the poles rushes 
 in towards the equator, and sets the heated and rarified 
 air around the equator in mo'tion, and the heat of the 
 sun, upon the elastic air, has a tendency to increase the 
 motion, by expanding the air; and thus a contention is 
 produced betwixt the cold and heated air, the former 
 exerting . itself to supplant the latter, and vice versa. 
 Second, the diurnal revolution of the earth on its axis. 
 If it were not for these daily revolutions, these winds 
 would blow direct from the poles to the equator, whereas 
 their current now runs diagonally with that line. There 
 is also a current in the ocean, which runs with the trade 
 winds, and is evidently produced by the revolutions of 
 the earth. These two causes combine to produce that 
 regularity in these winds, without which it would be 
 difficult, if not impossible, to navigate the Atlantic and 
 Pacific oceans. These important currents are called 
 trade winds 4 because they are more favorable to com- 
 merce, or trade, than all other winds that blow. 
 
 In the afternoon of this day, the passengers were 
 thrown into an excitement by the announcement, by the 
 captain, of "a whale along side." No one had>ever 
 seen one of these monsters of the deep, and of course 
 there was a general rush to the bulwarks, to get a 
 glimpse of him before he should disappear. 
 
 Even those who were still confined to their berths, 
 by sea sickness, must be assisted on deck, to have a view 
 of" the whale. " There were two of them, and they 
 played around the vessel for an hour, and occasionally 
 showed the entire length of their huge forms, above the 
 surface of the water, thus giving all an opportunity to 
 satisfy their curiosity concerning the largest of the 
 inhabitants of the ocean. On the firing of a gun, they 
 instantly disappeared. 
 
 On the 19tn, we were in the latitude of Monrovia, on 
 the western coast of Africa, and within three hundred and 
 fifty miles of that place. This is our nearest approach to 
 
SO VOYAGE TO OKMOM. 
 
 the continent of Africa. In these latitudes vessels usuallj 
 experience heavy falls of rain, so as to be able to reple 
 nish all their empty water casks; however, we realized 
 but little, and most of our exhausted casks remained 
 dry. This subjected us to the inconvenience of being 
 thrown upon an allowance of water, which was a pre- 
 caution the captain said was necessary to enter into, in 
 order to make our water hold out, till we should reach 
 -the port of Rio de Janeiro.. We were here relieved 
 from the monotony of our voyage, which began to be 
 quite disagreeable, by a number of incidents always 
 interesting at sea, and always described in the journals 
 of voyagers. The first was the appearance of an im 
 mense school of porpoises. There must have been tens 
 of thousands of them, as they appeared to cover hundreds 
 of acres. They continued around the vessel for some 
 time, leaping and bounding high out of the water iu 
 every direction. They are a warm blooded fish, and 
 leap out of the water for the purpose of breathing. 
 They are from three to five feet long, and weigh from 
 one hundred and fifty to three hundred pounds* The 
 second was, the being spoken by two French sloops of 
 war. We had seen several vessels since leaving port, 
 but none had approached near us, until the 21st of 
 November, when, early in the morning, a French sloop 
 of war, of twenty-four guns, came dashing on our stern, 
 as if she intended to run us down. The stars and stripes 
 were immediately flying from our spanker yard,to show 
 Monsieur who we were. In response, the French colors 
 were soon seen, streaming in the wind. After manceu- 
 vering a little on our stern, she finally passed us to the 
 windward within a few rods, presenting a remarkably 
 fine appearance. The other vessel referred to was 8. 
 sloop of eighteen guns, and spoke us on the 23d. She 
 first appeared far to the windward, but bore down 
 towards us, and fell on our stern about three miles off. 
 After chasing us for several hours .she finally succeeded 
 in coming along side to the leeward,, and, after ws 
 examined each other for a half hour or more, and passed 
 
lOYAQK TO OKMON. 61 
 
 through with the usual salutations of showing the colon 
 of our respective nations, she bade us good bye, but 
 allowed us to keep in sight of her during the day. 
 
 On the morning of the 25th, before a strong south 
 east trade, at the rate of seven knots, we passed from 
 the northern to the southern hemisphere. "She following 
 evening was remarkably dark, though calm and serene, 
 and we were gliding almost imperceptibly along at the 
 rate of three knots, before a gentle- breeze, when, all at 
 once, there appeared within ten feet of the vessel, 
 floating on the water, a large fire, which flamed up 
 'several feet high, and appeared about three feet in 
 diameter. The Rev. W. W. Kone first discovered this 
 remarkable phenomenon, and with his exclamations of 
 wonder at what it might be, a great excitement was 
 produced among the passengers, while the captain 
 appeared to be more at a loss to know what this strange 
 fire could mean, than any other. All were gazing at it 
 with intense interest, and many began to philosophize 
 concerning it. Some said it was a remarkable collection 
 of phosphorus; some called it electricity, and some one 
 thing and some another. At length it began to be 
 whispered that there was some trick about it, and finally, 
 all the theories that had been advanced concerning it, 
 laughable from their absurdities, *ell to the ground, on 
 the discovery of the fact that it was nothing but a burn- 
 ing tar barrel,' which the sailors had got permission from 
 the captain to lower from the bow of the vessel, for the 
 purpose of exciting the inquisitive curiosity of the pas- 
 sengers. The incident, though trifling in its nature, for 
 the time being was a source of considerable merriment. 
 
 It was not a little interesting to us, as we proceeded 
 southward, to witness new and magnificent constellations 
 of stars rising to our view, and those near the north 
 pole, with which we had been familiar from our child- 
 nood, sinking from our sight, below the northern horizon. 
 
 The north polar star, which to us had ever been ele- 
 vated more than forty degrees in the heavens, was lost 
 behind the mountains of ice which rise in irajestic gran- 
 deur amid the Arctic ocean ; while the Great and Little 
 
M toyam to onwrnon. 
 
 Bear, the Great and Little Dog, Andromeda, Cassiopea, 
 Taurus and Orion, were fast receding northward, to rise 
 again to our view when we should approximate the lati- 
 tudes over which we had sailed. But while we were 
 leaving these old acquaintances of the hypoborean re- 
 gions, new and no less interesting ones presented them- 
 selves in the southern sky, to cheer us on our lonely 
 voyage around the stormy cape. 
 
 Among the celestial scenery of the south, there is 
 nothing more interesting than those two remarkable 
 spots in the heavens, which are known by the name of 
 the Magellan clouds. These phenomena do not present " 
 the appearance of clouds, as their name would indicate, 
 but they are, quite luminous, resembling in their aspect 
 the brightest spots in the Milky Way, and supposed, like 
 the latter, to consist of innumerable stars, not discernible 
 to the naked eye. They are situated near the south 
 pole of the heavens, and are about fifteen degrees apart, 
 the smaller being nearest the pole. In the diurnal revo- 
 lutions of the earth, they each describe a circle round 
 the pole, the diameter of the smaller circle being about 
 fifteen, and that of the latter about twenty-five degrees. 
 As there is no star at the south pole answering, to the 
 southern hemisphere, the purpose that the north star 
 serves to the northern, these clouds serve in navigating 
 the South Pacific ocean. It is said by some that there 
 is another cloud of a dark appearance not far distant 
 from these, but of this we could see nothing. It is quite 
 certain that no such dark cloud exists. These clouds 
 derived their name from the distinguished navigator, 
 who also gave his name to the straits leading from the 
 Atlantic to the Pacific ocean, and separating Terra del 
 Fuego from Patigonia. 
 
 December 1st was the last Sabbath we spent before 
 making the coast of Brazil, and as it was a fair sample 
 of the manner in which all our pleasant Sabbaths were 
 employed, the reader will perhaps be gratified with a 
 short description of it. The day was inexpressibly fine • 
 a bland and reviving breeze tempered the rays jf the 
 vertical sun, and bore us almost imperceptibly over the 
 
VOYAGE TO ORROOK. it 
 
 gentle undulation of the deep. At the usual hour of 
 worship in the temple of Jehovah on land, a bell was 
 rung so as to be heard from the after cabin to the fore- 
 castle, to call the people together ; and immediately 
 sixty->five persons were comfortably seated on the quar- 
 ter deck, beneath an awning, spread to intercept the too 
 intense rays of the tropical sun. The minister for the 
 occasion gave out the sublime hymn commencing 
 
 " Before Jehovah's awful throne, " 
 
 which was sung, "with the spirit and with the under- 
 standing also," to the immortal tune of "Old Hundred." 
 The voice of solemn prayer succeeded, and was followed 
 by an appropriate sermon from the words, "They all 
 with one consent began to make excuse. " At the close 
 of the exercises all appeared to feel that, from whatever 
 else they would be excused, they would not be excused 
 from receiving the forgiveness of sins, the consolations 
 of religion, hope in death, and everlasting life. In the 
 afternoon all assembled again, and listened to an interest- 
 ing discourse from the text, " And they remembered his 
 words. " The excellency and wisdom of the words of 
 Christ, were dilated upon in such a manner as to impress 
 all with the truth of the remark, that "He spake ePs 
 never man spake. " The closing scene of this day's 
 exercise was one of true sublimity. Surrounded with 
 the darkness and stillness of evening, all again bowed 
 down on the deck of the Lausanne, and offered* up their 
 fervent aspirations to the throne of God. The wind 
 began to whistle through our canvass as we retired to 
 our berths, feeling truly grateful for the privileges of 
 the holy Sabbath, though enjoyed amidst the boundless 
 wastes of the Atlantic. ' : j 
 
 On leaving New York our course was nearly south- 
 east until we approached the continent of Africa ; then 
 making an angle, we sailed nearly south-west until we 
 approached the coast of Brazil ; and it may be a matter 
 of surprise to many, that we should sail so much out of 
 our way, to get to the city of Rio Janeiro. The object 
 of making so much easting was, first, to semre thf 
 
M OYAGB TO OBKOOM. 
 
 benefits of the north-east and south-east trade winds, and 
 second, to avoid being driven by these winds and the 
 currents of the ocean, to the northward of Cape St • 
 Rogue, the easternmost point of land on the coast of 
 Brazil. All vessels bound to the south of Cape St. 
 Etoque pursue nearly the same track, and cross the 
 equator between the twentieth and twenty-third degrees 
 of west longitude. 
 
 Early in the morning of the 8th of December, he 
 cry of "Land, ho!" brought most of the passengers 
 immediately to the deck. The captain had remarked 
 the evening previous, that we should see land in the 
 morning to the north-east of us, if the wind continued 
 in the same direction, which proved to be the case ; and 
 the high bluffs of Cape Frio (cold cape) appeared in fall 
 view about twenty-five miles off. The sight of land 
 was hailed with the utmost joy, it having been fifty-nine 
 aays since the high lands of Never Sink, the last land 
 we saw, were hidden in the dim distance. As we pro- 
 ceeded down towards Rio, the coast presented a grand 
 and picturesque appearance, not vastly dissimilar to thaf 
 of the mountains, as seen from the deck of a steamboa 
 on the Hudson river. The day was calm, and the sky 
 •vercast with clouds, and many of the mountains reared 
 their lofty heads above the strata of the lower clouds, 
 so that these were seen lowering around the mountains, 
 and presenting the appearance of vast quantities of 
 amoke, rolling down their apparently smooth and conical 
 sides. Our eyes being once more privileged with be- 
 holding land, though at a distance, our attention was 
 again called to the solemnities of the holy Sabbath. 
 
 Monday, the 9th, we were hovering around the en- 
 trance of the harbor of Rio de Janeiro. A slight breeze 
 from land prevented us from proceeding directly into 
 the harbor, and this gave us an opportunity to contem- 
 plate the scenery \ of the shore. The preceding night 
 had been one of unusual darkness, occasioned by the 
 dense fog by which we were enveloped ; but this ren- 
 dered the appearance of the revolving light, which came 
 peering through the midnight gloom from the distant 
 isle, sull more delightful. 
 
TOYAOE TO OREGON. M 
 
 As the sun approached the meridian, and dissipated 
 the mists of the morning, the land zephyr died away, 
 and a gentle breeze from the ocean filled our already 
 expanded sails, wafting us directly towards the harbor. 
 As we approached the shore, the scenery presented to 
 our view was beautifully igrand, beyond description. " 
 On our left, the " Sugar Loaf" mountain reared its lofty 
 summit, to the height of eight hundred feet, sloping on 
 the side towards the water, but perpendicular on the 
 opposite; also, the island of serpentine rock, elevated 
 several hundred feet, with the light-house resting on its 
 top, and " Redonda," perfectly conical in its formation, 
 being about fifty rods in diameter at its base, and rising 
 more than five hundred feet; while, about ten miles in 
 he distance, appeared a majestic mountain, whose cloud- 
 capped summit towered to the height of three thousand 
 feet above the ocean, and seeming to look down con 
 temptuously on every thing beneath. It is called the 
 " Parrot's Beak.'' The main shore is very broken, some 
 parts of it being elevated far above the rest, while the 
 huge "crags" on their rugged summits, appear to frown 
 down upon the agitated waters, which dash harmlessly 
 against their base. On our right, the mountainous coast 
 could be distinctly seen the distance of sixty miles, to 
 Cape Frio;, while on our left, to a distance, if possible, 
 still greater, pile after pile of huge, massy rocks were 
 thrown together in the wildest confusion, rising thou- 
 sands of feet above the level of the ocean, and* as they 
 receded from us, appearing less and less, until, in the 
 dim distance, they were lost from our sight. These, 
 together with a view of the imperial city of Rio de 
 Janeiro, lying quietly in ithe bosom of the bay of St. 
 Janarius, conspired to give variety to the splendid pano- 
 rama, by which,, on entering the harbor, we found our- 
 selves encircled. The grandeur and sublimity of the 
 scene were worthy of the pencil of the most skillful 
 artist, and truly enchanting to the lover of nature; and 
 it was with the most thrilling emotions of delight, that 
 we gazed upon the romantic and picturesque scenery 
 before us. As we drew near the shore, the mountains 
 
16 TOYAH TO OKMOK. 
 
 lining the entrance of the harbor, lost the sterile ap> 
 pearance which they had presented from a distance, be- 
 ing changed, by the beautiful verdure which covered 
 their summits, into a delightful green. The valley* 
 between the mountains were clothed with luxuriant 
 evergreens, and here and there a round elevation pre- 
 iiented, in beautiful variety, a few cocoa-nut trees, 
 which were scattered sparsely over them. Soon our 
 attention was invited to animate nature. At the mouth 
 of the channel, leading into the bay and harbor of Rio, 
 is a very strong fortification, and the heads of armed 
 men could be seen above the ramparts as we passed; 
 We were hailed from this fort, as also from an armed 
 vessel lying at a distance. From another fort, still 
 nearer the city, a man bawled out, through a speaking- 
 trumpet, requiring us to proceed <io farther, but to bear 
 off to the right and come to anchor, which we immedi- 
 ately obeyed, although it subjected us to the inconve- 
 nience of rowing one mile and a half, to gain the shore 
 
 It was two o'clock, p. m., of the 9th, when we came 
 to anchor, and the rest of the day was spent in receiving 
 those visits from government officers, which are required, 
 previous to their admitting any on shore. The gentlemen! 
 who visited us were intelligent and affable, and, coming, 
 from a Roman Catholic government, were quite asto- 
 nished to see so many priests on board, especially when 
 they were informed that they all had wives. 
 
 On the morning. of the 10th, the captain, with six of 
 the passengers, went ashore. We were, however, re- 
 quired by the government, to pass along side an armed 
 schooner, which was stationed in the harbor, for the 
 purpose of giving them an opportunity to examine our 
 baggage, to see that we had no contraband goods in our 
 possession, which very unceremonious process, we were 
 informed, we must submit to, as well when we returned 
 from the shore to the vessel, as in passing from the 
 vessel to the shore. As we were to lie here a number 
 of days, we looked upon this custom-house arrangement 
 as imposing upon us a useless and disagreeable task. 
 Immediately on landing, we proceeded to the mercantile 
 
TOYAOE TO OREGON. £7 
 
 establishment of Gardiner & Campbell, who are English 
 residents. Gardiner had formerly resided some time in 
 the city of New York. Here we were soon met by the 
 Rev. Justin Spaulding, who had resided in the place for 
 three years, as a missionary of the Methodist E. Church, 
 and from whom, in connection with his family, and the 
 family of his colleague, the Rev. D. P. Kidder, (who 
 himself was absent on an exploring tour to the north,) 
 we met with a most cordial reception. We found them 
 commodiously situated, in a large building, well furnished 
 for their accommodation, and located In a retired part of 
 the city of Rio de Janeiro, about one mile from the place 
 of landing. Mr. Spaulding assured us that, though he 
 could not furnish the whole company with beds, yet his 
 rooms were open, and he should expect us to occupy 
 them freely, by night and by day, while we remained in 
 the place. And, indeed, all that christian , love and 
 kindness could do, these missionaries cheerfully per- 
 formed, to render our stay with them happy and inte- 
 resting. 
 
 The splendid city of Rio de Janeiro, which is the 
 capital of the Empire of Brazil, presents to voyagers to 
 this portion of the world, an object of considerable 
 interest. A better location for a commercial city can 
 scarcely be imagined. It is surrounded by a country of 
 vast extent, of inexhaustible fertility, and equal in re- 
 sources to the most enlarged expectations. Its harbor is 
 one of the best in the world. The entrance to it is 
 narrow, though sufficiently deep to admit vessels of the 
 largest size to pass with perfect safety, and then ex- 
 tending out into a bay thirty miles long, and fifteen 
 broad, and being favored almost every day with both 
 land and sea breezes, which enable vessels readily to 
 pass in and out, being of. suitable depth for all sizes of 
 vessels, and surrounded by mighty mountain barriers, 
 which break off the winds on every side. It is unques- 
 tionably one of the safest and most commodious anchor- 
 iges on the whole face of the globe. With these natural 
 advantages to favor her, we might expect that Rio wouL 
 have experienced a rapid growth from the tune when 
 
68 TOYAGB TO OUWH. 
 
 Por ;ugal planted her first colony on the borders of that 
 lovely lay; but a mistaken policy, developed in many 
 periods of her history, has tended greatly to retard her 
 progress; and, consequently, she continued compara- 
 tively small until Don John, the Portuguese king, left 
 the mother country, and removed to his Brazilian terri- 
 tories, and built his palace within the precincts of this 
 '. ity. This circumstance transpired in 1803. 
 
 At the present time the city is one of considerable 
 extent. It contains one hundred and fifty thousand inha- 
 bitants, of various nations, and of every shade of com- 
 plexion. Here are some native Portuguese, more native 
 Brazilians, a few French, Africans, Jews, Americans, 
 and about one thousand English. 
 
 The city lies in the form of a parallelogram, and some 
 of the streets present a splendid appearance. The houses 
 are principally built with stone, and are covered with 
 tiles. Some of the buildings, and especially the royal 
 palace, and some of the churches and convents, are 
 splendid specimens of architecture ; but a great share of 
 the city, however, appears like a vast assemblage of 
 state prisons. Rio de Janeiro suffers much in point of 
 beauty and cleanliness, when compared with the cities 
 of many of our Eastern and Middle States. It presents 
 an antiquated and sombre aspect, without that appear- 
 •uice of life and animation, which characterize the cities 
 >f the Anglo-Americans. 
 
 The religious state of the city is truly deplorable. 
 r he Roman Catholic religion here exists in all its name- 
 ^ss mummeries and superstitions. " Strictly speaking," 
 *aid a Protestant missionary who has resided three years 
 n the city, " there is no religion here." This same 
 qaissionary informed me that of all the people with 
 whom he had become acquainted by three year's resi- 
 dence among them, there were but two that he had the 
 least reason to suppose were christians, in the proper 
 sense of the word. 
 
 But, if true religion consists in the erection of splendid 
 cathedrals, and in decorating them with golden images, 
 and the lambent flame of huge wax candles constantly 
 
TOTA«l TO OftMOM M 
 
 burning, and with hangings of the finest embroidery; or, 
 if it consists in convents, filled, with priests and nuns, 
 with all their attendant ceremonies and image worship, 
 then Rio de Janeiro contains more than any other city I 
 have ever visited. But, if it consists in a consecration 
 of soul and body to God, and a life corresponding with 
 the gospel of Christ, then, of the tens of thousands of 
 Rio, who bear the christian name, how few are pious! 
 how few will be saved J ! But signs of a better state of 
 things begin- to show themselves in this bigpted city. 
 The English residents have a minister among them, and 
 have recently built a church, in which they statedly 
 worship after the Protestant form. The Rev. J. Spaul- 
 ding and the Rev. D. P. Kidder, of whom mention has 
 been made, were laboring with energy and zeal, in the 
 ;ause of their Divine Master, both in preaching the 
 gospel and in the circulation of bibles and tracts. These 
 missionaries were frequently encouraged in their labors 
 of love, by those evidences which appeared from time 
 to time, that their efforts were not altogether in vain 
 An individual, through the influence of a tract, became 
 dissatisfied with Popery, and came to Mr. Spaulding and 
 earnestly enquired what he must do to be saved. Sub- 
 sequently he partook of the sacrament of the Lord's 
 supper with Protestants; but the Romish priests, having 
 ascertained this, determined, at all hazards, to put a stop 
 to his attending Protestant meetings. Accordingly, one 
 morning, when this gentleman arose, he discovered a 
 paper which had been pushed into his room under the 
 door, during the night. He took up the paper and read 
 :n substance as follows: " Unless you desist from attend- 
 ing these Protestant associations, you may expect to 'find 
 yourself stabbed." This circumstance drove him almost 
 to despair, but subsequently he indulged a hope in 
 Christ, and discarded the Church of Rome ; but, from 
 tear of falling a victim to the madness of bigotfcd and 
 persecuting priests, his intercourse with the Protestants 
 was carried on with the utmost secrecy. Thus the true 
 leaven was working in spite of all the effort* made by 
 
80 rorxmi to okmoh. 
 
 the Papists to suppress it, and it was hoped that it would 
 continue to work until the whole lump was leavened. 
 
 The slavery of Rio is one of the most prominent 
 characteristics which present -themselves to the traveler, 
 on arriving at this place. And, to those of us who had 
 never seen slavery in its practical effects, it was "enough 
 to make one's heart bleed," to witness these ill-fated sons 
 of Ham driven about by their cruel task-masters, and 
 compelled to perform their tasks in a state of almost 
 perfect nudity, exposed to the burning rays of a vertical 
 sun. As cruel, however, as Brazilian slavery appears to 
 be at first sight, there are some mitigating circumstances 
 connected with it, when compared with the slavery of 
 some other countries. Unlike the laws in the Southern 
 States of our Republic, which give the master the same 
 control over his slaves that he has over any kind of pro- 
 perty, those of Brazil guarantee to the slave a number 
 of important privileges. First, the slave is required to 
 labor for his master from morning until two o'clock, 
 which is the business portion of the day; and the re- 
 mainder of the day he has to himself. Second, the slave 
 is enticed, by law, to two days in each week to employ 
 as he sees fit. These two provisions give the slave 
 nearly one half of the time, and the property he accumu- 
 lates, when thus at liberty, belongs to himself. He is 
 compelled, however, to procure his own food, without 
 expense to his master. If, by industry or good fortune, 
 he succeeds in obtaining his freedom, which is not an 
 unfrequent occurrence, he is immediately entitled to all 
 the privileges of a freeman, and his offspring are not 
 liable to be enslaved. But, notwithstanding these exte- 
 nuating circumstances connected with Brazilian slavery, 
 it is a system of cruelty and oppression. The naked 
 appearance of the slaves, the ponderous burdens they are 
 compelled to bear, their frequent flagellations, and when 
 worn put with fatigue, their lying around the streets 
 and under the walls of buildings like cattle, and at other 
 times like horses dragging around their drays, unmerci- 
 fully loaded, all had a tendency deeply to excite our 
 
VOYAUH TO OSiiUON. 61 
 
 r ' 
 
 sympathies for suffering humanity, and to increase oui 
 abhorrence for this system of cruelty and blood. It was 
 cheering, while beholding some of the worst evils of the 
 system, to indulge the reflection that the time will come 
 when slavery must be abolished throughout the world. 
 Incompatible with civil and religious liberty, and opposed 
 to the doctrine of Christ, it must feel the paralyzing in- 
 fluence of those benevolent principles which are destined 
 to destroy the pride and tyranny of the human heart, 
 and to induce man to acknowledge in his fellow man, an 
 equal and a brother. Thus it appears, that, while there 
 are a few things in and about Rio which are calculated 
 to excite our admiration, there are many which are truly 
 deplorable. Enveloped in a midnight gloom, forgetfu" 
 of her God, and bound with chains of bigotry and super- 
 stition, Rio de Janeiro is indeed a valley of the shadow 
 of death. But the beauty and grandeur of the natural 
 scenery by which she is environed, the salubrity of the 
 climate, the spontaneous growth of the most delicious 
 fruits, with all the natural advantages by which she is 
 distinguished, in connexion with the pure religion of the 
 meek and lowly Jesus, would constitute her an earthly 
 oaradise. 
 
CHAPTER HI. 
 
 noma) eWiniied — Departure from Rio — Rev. Mr. Spuldbig — Frw.h Fleet - 
 Violent storm — Flying jib boom carried away — Dinner, lost — Storm abates — 
 Christmas — Heat — Doubling Cape Horn — Gale nineteen days — Bnder bare 
 poles — Prosperity — Sight of land — Brig Andes — Arrival at Valparaiso — 
 Small pox — Danger — Description of" the city — Its civil and political condi- 
 tion — Religion— Superstition, illustrated by amusing incidents — Protestantism 
 — Importance of Valparaiso — AdventureB round about the city — Great dis- 
 crepancy — Appropriate name. » 
 
 The time fixed upon for leaving Rio, to proceed on oiu 
 voyage, was Saturday morning, the 14th of December. 
 Accordingly, at that time, we were all prepared for 
 weighing anchor ; but a strong south wind commenced 
 blowing directly into the harbor, and detained us during 
 .he whole day. In the morning, the Rev. Mr. Spaulding 
 came on board, and continued with us for several hours, 
 during which he gave us a very interesting address. 
 He also gave a short account of the mission in Rio, in 
 which he related some striking anecdotes, illustrative 
 of the success with which his labors had been crowned. 
 Before leaving, he commended us to God and to the 
 word of. His grace, in fervent prayer, and then, bidding 
 us an affectionate farewell, lowered himself by a rope 
 into a small skiff, which lay under the lee of the Lau 
 sanne, and was conveyed back to the shore. The season ' 
 was one of deep interest, and kindred feelings palpitated 
 evdry heart. And, as this fellow missionary left us to 
 immure himself/ again in what is worse than heathenism 
 itself, we could but invoke the God of battles to prepare 
 his way, and sustain him with omnipotent gra^e, that he 
 might witness more abundant success attending his la- 
 bors, and finally see the man of sin fall to rise no more. 
 
 The south wind had abated the next morning, and a 
 land breeze wag favorable for our leaving the harbor 
 
TOTAGE TO OREGON. 01 
 
 Consequently, after the customary visits by government 
 officers, we raised the anchor, and spreading our sails 
 again to the wind, bid adieu to the dominions of Don 
 Pedro the second, and were soon tossed upon old ocean's 
 billows, with our vessel's prow directed towards the 
 cape of storms. 
 
 The same morning, a French fleet of war of eight 
 sail, weighed anchor, and passed majestically out of the 
 harbor before us. This fleet was destined" to join the 
 blockading squadron Defore Buenos Ayres, and to bom 
 >ard the city, proijided the United Provinces did not 
 •omply with the imperious demands of the French. 
 
 The first day out we had a violent storm ; the sea 
 was very rough, and nearly every one of the passengers 
 was called again to suffer with sea sickness. In the 
 course of the storm the vessel encountered a number of 
 mountain waves. At one time, through the carelessness 
 of the helmsman, she plunged her bows so far into the 
 water that her jib and flying jib went completely under 
 and when she rose; her flying jib beom was carried away, 
 and the sails were both rent into shreds from top to bot 
 torn. A table was set for dinner in the captain's cabin, 
 and all the dishes were thrown clear from the table into 
 the steward's locker, and dashed to pieces. The shock 
 given to the vessel was exceedingly violent, and caused 
 it to tremble in every joint. This was on Sunday. The 
 following day the wind abated, and, changing a few 
 points, became more favorable. For a number of sub- 
 sequent days, a fine breeze wafted , us rapidly onwards, 
 and on Christmas day, at 12 o? clock, m., we were in 
 latitude thirty-nine degrees, thirty minutes, south. 
 
 This was the warmest Christmas we had ever seen,, 
 the thermometer ranging at eighty in the shade. Rev. 
 Jason Lee delivered, on the occasion of Christmas, an 
 appropriate discourse, on the subject of the advent of 
 Christ 
 
 Wednesday, January 8th, 1840. For a number of 
 days past we have been favored with a prosperous wind, 
 and are now within four degrees of Cape Horn. Thus 
 far, our way has been remarkably prospered. The 
 
M TOTA6B TO OBBOON. 
 
 weather is now very calm, with a gentle breeze from 
 the north-west ; but we are approaching the region of 
 storms, and can scarcely hope to double the Cape with 
 the delightful weather we are now experiencing. 
 
 Friday, 10th. According to our expectations, the 
 slumbering winds were aioused, and we began to expe- 
 rience the difficulties of doubling Cape Horn. About 
 9 o'clock, a. m., a severe gale came down upon us with 
 the most threatening violence. Every stitch of canvass 
 was immediately taken in, and for more than forty-eight 
 hours we lay under the bare poles, the very sport of 
 both wind and water. The gale was said by the captain 
 to be one of the most violent he had ever experienced. 
 On the 15th, the wind had so far abated that we were 
 :ible again to carry sail, but found by an observation at 
 noon, that we had been driven several degrees out of 
 our course. 
 
 Monday, 27th. For many days past we have been 
 baffled with contrary winds, and indeed this is the nine- 
 teenth day since we have had any thing like a fair breeze. 
 Our course has been west, but we have been compelled 
 to run almost every point of compass, and the most of 
 the time to contend with violent gales. In consequence 
 of head winds we were carried nearly to the sixty-first' 
 degree of south latitude ; and Cape Horn being in the 
 fifty-sixth, we were nearly three hundred miles south of 
 the Cape. By an observation this day we found our 
 longitude to be sixty-eight degrees, twelve minutes, 
 which is a few miles west of the Diegoes. We have 
 therefore left the Atlantic ocean, and are now on the 
 waters of the Pacific. It is not common for vessels to 
 be driven so far to the south in doubling the Cape. 
 Perhaps the greater part pass round within sight of the 
 Cape or the Diegoes ; but the only land discernible from 
 our vessel, in the vicinity of the Cape, was Statea Land, 
 which presented its lofty summit to our view the day 
 ' -jfore we experienced the commencement of the Cape 
 iorn gales. Though it was midsummer, in the southern 
 hemisphere, while we were doubling the Cape, yet at 
 nxty-one degrees we found it excessively cold. Hail 
 
VOYAG8 TO OftBGOM. 61 
 
 frequently fell on deck, and though no icebeigs appeared 
 in sight, it was judged, from the coldness of the atmos- 
 phere, that they were at no great distance. At this 
 season of the year, in this 1 latitude, the sun rises a few 
 minutes after three and sets a few minutes before nine, 
 and daylight scarcely disappears during the whole night. 
 We have to proceed but seven degrees farther south, 
 and the day will be one month long, at the sun's farthest 
 declination south. ' 
 
 During our long detention here, by successive storms, 
 we were frequently entertained by the appearance of 
 the huge monsters of the deep, and a vast variety of the 
 leathered tribes of the ocean. Whales, lashing the briny 
 clement, and spouting the huge spray high into the air 
 porpoises, gamboling over the waves like flocks of ante 
 opes over the western plains ; the auk or penguin, which 
 is a link connecting the feathered with the finny tribe, 
 with the albatros, stormy petrel, cape pigeon and' many 
 others, appeared from time to time around us, in large 
 numbers, contributing much to amuse us, and diverting 
 our attention even from, the successive tempests, that 
 howled around us for nineteen days. . 
 
 On the 28th, Providence again favored us with a fair 
 wind, and enabled us to direct our course to the north, 
 and for several days we were carried forward at the 
 rate of seven and nine knots an hour. 
 
 On the 3d of February, we found ourselves off the 
 western entrance of the Straits of Magellan. 
 
 Our passage round the Cape was a stormy one for the 
 season of the year, but the winds and waves were under 
 the control of the Almighty, who seemed to smile' on 
 our enterprise, and interpose in our behalf while naviga- 
 ting the tempestuous waters of the southern ocean. 
 
 We now steered our course for Valparaiso, on the 
 coast of Chili, where we intended to take in water and 
 other supplies. Our passage up the coast was barren of 
 incident worthy of special notice, until the morning of 
 the 18th, when our eyes were once more delighted with 
 the sight o/ land, the coast of Chili, about forty miles 
 3* 
 
06 TOTAGE TO OREGON. 
 
 south of Valparaiso Head, presenting its dark outlinet 
 thirty miles distant over our starboard bow. 
 
 The wind died away as we approached the shore, and 
 we were consequently unable to proceed directly into 
 port. A number of vessels appeared near us, bound to 
 the same place, with one of which 'we had a friendly 
 interview. She proved to be the brig Andes, of Liver- 
 pool, forty-eight days from Sydney, New South Wales. 
 We had a shower of rain, with lightning, at ten o'clock, 
 and the rest of the day were becalmed within ten miles 
 of land. A dead swell bore us slowly towards the shore, 
 and in the evening we could distinctly hear the surf of 
 the ocean, breaking against the rocks. The captain 
 manifested great anxiety, lest we might be dashed to 
 pieces on the iron bound coast. At twelve o'clock at 
 night a light breeze sprung up, and enabled us to remove 
 to a safer distance from the shore. The following morn- 
 ing, after the rising sun had dissipated the fog that 
 enveloped the shore, the high bluffs, called Valparaiso 
 Head, appeared directly before us. A fresh ocean 
 breeze sprang up, and bore us directly towards the 
 harbor, and on our right appeared a beautiful bay, 
 which washed a broad and delightful sandy beach. 
 Variety was given to the prospect, by the appearance 
 of strange looking birds on the wing, passing from one 
 side of the bay to the other. At noon we rounded 
 Valparaiso Head, and the city, harbor, and shipping 
 were spread out in full view before us. We dropped 
 our anchor half a mile distant from the landing, and 
 were immediately boarded by government officers, who 
 examined us before permitting us to go on shore. A 
 number of American gentlemen also came on board, and 
 showed themselves remarkably oolite and friendly. They 
 informed us that the small pox had made terrible havoc 
 among the inhabitants of the place, especially the natives, 
 but that it had, in a measure, subsided. They said that 
 all the foreigners who had been vaccinated, had entirely 
 escaped, and that they did not apprehend there would 
 be any danger in our going ashore, and purchasing what 
 
VOYAGE TO OREGON. #1 
 
 ever necessaries we desired; that there would be as 
 much danger in taking the disease from those who came 
 on board from the snore, as from going on shore our- 
 selves. Accordingly we came to the conclusion to act 
 as though no .fatal epidemic prevailed in Valparaiso, 
 except that, on going ashore, we would avoid those 
 places where the disease continued to rage most, espe- 
 cially the hospital, presuming that, in our case also, 
 vaccination would prove a safeguard against contracting 
 the disease. Having attended to the preliminaries, a 
 number of the passengers accompanied the captain or 
 shore, and, upon landing, found the city of Valparaiso 
 much aSj it appears to be on entering the harbor, very 
 forbidding in its aspects. The streets are generally 
 narrow, and badly paved, and the houses are generally 
 k>w, being but one story. This is designed to preserve 
 ;hem from the destructive effects of the frequent earth 
 quakes, which take place I along the Chilian coast. 
 
 The city lies around a beautiful bay which constitutes 
 its harbor, and is about one mile and a half long, and 
 varying much in breadth in consequence of the moun- 
 tains behind the city, which, in some places, extend down 
 nearly to the shore of the bay. These mountains have 
 been dug away at their base, so as to afford room for 
 two or three tiers of building's back from the shore. 
 
 This space being filled, the inhabitants retired back on 
 the sides of the mountains, where there are a number of 
 contracted plains, which form eligible sites for building. 
 Here a number of gentlemen, mostly foreigners, have 
 erected their fine cottages, and live in princely style. „ 
 But in the hill part of the city, as well as near the shore, 
 there is but little regularity or beauty. The number of 
 inhabitants is variously estimated from eight to twelve 
 thousand, among which are fifty Americans, and some 
 English, Germans and French. The foreigners are by 
 far the most interesting part of the population, and do 
 nearly all the heavy business of the place. 
 
 The civil and political condition of the country was 
 any thing but prosperous. The people were frequently 
 breaking out in rebellion * the city was under martial 
 
88 TOTAOB TO OREGON. 
 
 law, and the whole country seemed to be verging to- 
 wards a state of anarchy. It was the time of theii 
 election, and such was the excitement that prevailed, 
 particularly among the peasantry, that it was extremely 
 dangerous for foreigners to go far back from the city, as 
 they were generally taken to be the enemies of the 
 Republic, and were looked upon, by the Chilians, as theii 
 lawful prey. Robberies and murders were frequent, 
 and from the weakness and inefficiency of ihe govern- 
 ment, were committed with l impunity. However, the 
 Chilians are quite partial to Americans, because they are 
 citizens of a sister Republic. 
 
 The religion of the country is Romanism, which' here 
 exhibits itself in all" its principles of intolerance and per- 
 secution, as well as in its superstitions and bigotry. A 
 circumstance or two, illustrative of the ignorance, and 
 superstition of the Chilian Papists, I will relate. At the 
 lime of the great earthquake, in 1822, which nearly 
 destroyed the city of Conception, and greatly injured 
 Valparaiso, when the shock was first felt in the latter,* 
 a large number of the inhabitants' fled for safety to the 
 Catholic cathedral, under the impression that Heaven 
 would interpose in behalf of the sacred edifice, and pre* 
 vent its destruction. To render themselves still more 
 secure against the danger which threatened them, they 
 took down the venerable images of St. Peter and St. 
 Paul, from the places they had occupied from time 
 immemorial, and placed* them as a guard at the door of 
 the cathedral. The principal seat of the earthquake^ 
 being in the sea, the water rushed from its bed into the 
 city ; the foundations of the city trembled : the earth 
 heaved with convulsions, and the cathedral, with one 
 tremendous crash, tumbled into a heap of ruins, and; 
 five hundred persons were either killed by the falling* 
 walls and timbers of the building, or drowned by the 
 flood of waters that deluged the place. The shock, sub- 
 sided ; the waters returned to their place ; and the next 
 day the images of Peter and Paul were found floatinl 
 in the harbor. The indignant survivors took the image 
 of Peter, he being the more guilty of the two, and 
 
YOYA4US TO OREGON. 9i 
 
 perforated a hole through his body, and pinned him upon 
 the beach, at low water mark, as a punishment for his 
 cowardice, and for deserting them in the hour of danger. 
 As he abandoned them to so awful a calamity, the} 
 abandoned him to the fury of the waves. * \ 
 
 Although the laws of Chili do not tolerate any religion 
 but Romanism, yet there is a minister of the English 
 church in the city, who is permitted to preach to the 
 .foreign residents without molestation. They will not 
 permit a Protestant to preach in the language of the 
 country; if one should attempt it, he would immediately 
 be driven from their coast, or forfeit his life. As a mat- 
 ter of course, there is but little chance for missionary 
 operations among the people, except so far as the English, 
 American and German residents are concerned. Among 
 these an intelligent, prudent, and devoted missionary, 
 might render himself abundantly useful. But the time 
 will come, notwithstanding the fierce opposition that 
 iiow rages against Protestantism, when the vain mumme- 
 ries of Popery must pass away, and the darkness that 
 now shrouds the people with a midnight gloom, shall be 
 succeeded by the light of the glorious Sun of righteous- 
 ness, which shall rise upon this benighted country wilii 
 healing in his wings. 
 
 The importance of Valparaiso lies in its eligible situa- 
 tion for commerce, it being, the entrepot for a great 
 portion of the Republic of Chili. The high hills or 
 mountains, which surround the city on three sides, and 
 extend many miles back, are actually as barren as their 
 appearance from the ocean indicates, affording but a 
 scanty allowance of vegetation for a few sheep, goats 
 and donkeys. All the supplies of fruit, meat, vegetables, 
 &c, for .the city and shipping, are brought on the backs 
 of mules and asses, from valleys which Tie from forty to 
 a hundred miles distant; and even the wood for fire, 
 brickbats, tiles, and other materials for building, are 
 brought in the same manner. 
 
 With this description of the place, 1 now proceed to 
 relate a few adventures. Immediately on landing, we 
 proceeded up through the city ; took a view of the 
 
TO TOTAK TO OBECOH. 
 
 custom house, which, by the way, is a fine building, 
 went into a number of stores, and finally came round to 
 
 he market, where we found an abundance of fruit, similar^ 
 to that of New York. We regaled Ourselves on peaches| 
 pears, plums, grapes, &c, but soon discovered a boy 
 
 ving near us on a couch, and partly covered with a rug. 
 We enquired what the matter was with him, and were 
 informed that he was just recovering from the small pox. 
 Looking around us, we saw a number in a similar condi- 
 tion, and concluded that we should give the virtue of 
 vaccination a faithful trial. Tying up some fruit in our 
 handkerchiefs for our families on board, we returned to 
 the vessel for the night. 
 
 1 Not being able to weigh anchor the next morning as 
 we expected, we entertained ourselves with another 
 excursion on shore. Purchasing a few articles to take 
 back to the ship when we returned, we bent our course 
 up the beach, south of the city, and taking a narrow 
 footpath, which wound up a steep declivity, soon found 
 ourselves on an artificial steppe of some -thirty or forty 
 feet square, and which commanded a beautiful view ot 
 the bay arid harbor of Valparaiso. From this we 
 ascended another declivity one hundred feet high, nearly 
 perpendicular, and from its top enjoyed a lovely prospect 
 of the city and surrounding country. Continuing our 
 course, we passed a number of deep ravines, climbed a 
 number of high bluffs, and came to the lighthouse, which 
 stands on the summit of Valparaiso Head. From this 
 place, we discovered, near the shore, a cross erected on 
 a rock, and approaching it, found that it was the sign of 
 a burying ground, or rather a depository for dead bodies. 
 In the language of scripture it might be called " Golgoh 
 tha, the place of a skull ; " for the ground was literally 
 covered with human bones. Here had been dug a deep 
 hole about twelve feet square, into which those who* had 
 died with the small pox in the city, had been indisprimlf 
 natey thrown. They were conveyed here from the 
 hospital, and other places, in «arts and wheelbarrows, 
 so soon as they were dead, and perhaps sometimes be- 
 fore ; and, uncofnneri and unshrouded, were cast inte 
 
YOTASB TO OREGON. 71, 
 
 one common rsservoir, where their bones will mingle, 
 undistinguished, till the resurrection morn. Turning 
 from this sickening sight, we proceeded over a high 
 
 Eoint of land, and came down to the shore #f a beautifuj 
 ay, which constituted a resort for a variety of sea fowl; 
 and having refreshed ourselves with bread, and bathed 
 in the ocean, we collected a few shells and other curiosi- 
 ties, and turned our course backward towards the landing. , 
 Rising over a high and barren hill, in tne rear of the 
 city, we entered a'deep ravine, very narrow at the bat- 
 ton, and forming a channel for a small rill of water. 
 Each bank was covered with a spontaneous growth of 
 the sage plant and other shrubbery, while, by the side 
 of the brook, groups of females from the city were 
 seen, who had resorted thither for the-purpose of wash- 
 ing their clothes. As we passed down the narrow path 
 which had been cut into the almost perpendicular sides 
 of the mountains, we met a large number of donkeys 
 driven by natives, with two casks slung across each one 
 of their backs for the purpose of conveying into the city. 
 For some distance up this ravine, there are dwellings 
 erected where there is sufficient room, and in many 
 -places small mud- walled cottages have been stuck into 
 the side of the mountain, where places have been exca- 
 vated for that purpose. This ravine led us directly into 
 the back part of the city ; and, after taking , a view of 
 the cathedral, which had been rebuilt on the same site 
 since its destruction by the earthquake, and collecting a 
 few necessaries for the comfort of our families on oui 
 continued voyage, we bid adieu to the Chilian coast, 
 very unfavorably impressed as regards the condition of 
 the country. 
 
 One thing which particularly struck us on examining 
 the city of Valparaiso and the country in its immediate 
 vicinity, was the wonderful discrepancy betwixt the 
 name and the place. Valparaiso signifies Vale of Eara- 
 dise ; and certainly no word has ever been more abused 
 than this, in its application to this place. Considering its 
 irregularity: the narrowness and filthiness of the streets ; 
 the squalid appearance of many of its inhabitants ; the 
 
TO TOTACK TO OftEOON. 
 
 obscenity which presents itself in almost every. direc 
 tion ; the loathsome diseases which prevail ; the gloom) 
 character 3f its religion, and the barrenness of the sur 
 rounding country, Valparaiso is well entitled to a re 
 baptism, and might appropriately be called, the " Vallej 
 of the Shadow of Dead?. " 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 tsainal continued — Raising anchor — View of tua Andes'— Brig — Pacific Oeaas 
 rightly named — Capture of a eea monster — Difficulty among the sailors — 
 Spoken by a whaler — Captain Sawyer — Island of Mowi — Hawaii — Oahu - 
 Honolulu — Remarks on the Island— Oahu and its city — Sabbath— Introductiw 
 to the royal family —Interview — Anniversary of the landing of missionaries — 
 Visit to the Para — Battle ground — Kamehameha I. — Waiakiki — Valley of 
 Manoah — Source of prosperity — Difficulty with the French — Arrogance of 
 Captain La Place — Impression upon the Hawaiians. 
 
 On the morning of the 22d of February, we were al" 
 ready to proceed on our voyage, and commenced raising 
 our anchor, but the anchor of a French barque getting 
 foul of ours, we were obliged to raise both at the same 
 time, and were consequently detained until four o'clock 
 in the afternoon. At this time a land breeze favored our 
 departure, and again unfurling our canvass to the wind, 
 we directed our course for the Sandwich Islands. After 
 we had proceeded a few miles from the shore, we 
 enjoyed, from the deck of our vessel, a clear and distinct 
 view of the towering Cordilleras. This astonishing range 
 of mountains, which extends from the Isthmus bfDarien 
 to the Straits of Magellan, is situated here, sixty 01 
 seventy miles from the shore, and there is something 
 peculiarly grand in their appearance at this vast distance, 
 and surely a near view must be sublime beyond descrip 
 tion. ,Some of them present a white appearance, as if 
 covered with snow, and others assume a sombre hue, 
 representing the moral darkness which surrounds the 
 whole country. Some of them lift their towering sum- 
 mits far above the clouds, and seem to look down with 
 contempt upon the storms which howl around their base. 
 While contemplating this most stupendous range of 
 mountains on the glnbc. a fine bieeze from the south 
 
t4 TOTACB TO OREGOl*. 
 
 filled our already expanded sails, and in forty-eight hours 
 we had run four hundred miles. 
 
 On Tuesday, the 25th, an American brig showed us 
 the stars and stripes; we returned the compliment, and 
 
 Eassed on. On the 28th, we passed into the torrid zone, 
 ut stil found the weather comfortably cool, the mercury 
 standing at sixty-seven degrees in the shade. The small 
 pox not appearing among us the tenth day out, we con- 
 cluded that all had escaped without catching the disease 
 For this indication of Providential care, we felt to offer 
 unfeigned thanksgiving. 
 
 The ocean which washes the western shore of the 
 continent of North America, is pacific, both in name and 
 nature. Nothing could exceed the pleasantness of oui 
 sailing for twenty-five days after leaving Valparaiso. 
 The wind was constant from the south-east, never 
 strong, and consequently the ocean was smooth; and, 
 with Tittle perceptible motion, we were borne along from 
 one to two hundred miles per day. 
 
 On the 19th of March we re-crossed the equinoctial 
 line at west longitude one hundred and sixteen degrees. 
 We found the weather, in the region of the equator, not 
 so warm as we anticipated, yet, at night, the heat in the 
 cabin was somewhat oppressive; but during the day we 
 were constantly fanned by the gentle and cooling breeze 
 which wafted us onward towards our destination. 
 
 On the 23d, the monotony of our voyage was broken 
 in upon by the capture of one of the monsters of the 
 deep. Two uncommonly large sharks appeared on our 
 stern, attended by pilot fish, and a number albicores. 
 The pilot fish is the jackall of the lion of the deep, and it 
 is said that the albicore usually follows in the train, for 
 the purpose of sharing in the prey taken by the shark. 
 We fastened a rope to a large shark hook, which we 
 baited with a piece of pork, and cast it into the sea. 
 The sharks were soon attracted by it, and one of them 
 seizing the bait, the sailors drew upon the rope, and the 
 hook fastened to his upper jaw, but it required several 
 men to draw him up along side the ship, and it was 
 necessary to rig a pulley betore he could be hoisted over 
 
▼OYASB TO OBNOM. 7ft 
 
 die bulwarks on to the deck. As this was the fit at view 
 we had had of a shark, no little curiosity was excited on 
 board by his appearance among us. This curiosity was 
 not satisfied until even the physiology of his sharkship 
 was thoroughly investigated by dissection. One claimed 
 his back bone, one his jaw bone, one his teeth, one his 
 fins, and another his tail ; the remainder was cast back 
 into the ocean, and soon devoured. In, addition to the 
 shark, there appeared, about the same, time, two large 
 sword fish, bounding out of the water, and showing their 
 silvery sides, but we were obliged to be satisfied to view 
 them at a distance, as they manifested no inclination to 
 be captured. 
 
 On the 24th, having passed through the region of 
 variables, we were favored with a strong north-east 
 trade, and, during one week, we sailed the distance of 
 thirteen hundred miles; but, on the morning of the 31st, 
 the weather became squally. This was supposed to be 
 occasioned by our contiguity -to a number of smal 
 islands, which lay to the windward of us. 
 
 It had been the practice of some of the ministers on 
 board, to preach occasionally to the sailors in the fore 
 castle, and, apparently, considerable good had been 
 accomplished in this manner. Many of them had be- 
 come very serious, and a few had professed to experi- 
 ence a change of heart ; but a circumstance transpired 
 on the 24th, which was as afflicting to all on board as it 
 was injurious to the sailors. Charley,; the sail maker, a 
 Dane by birth, being a pestilent fellow, though a favorite 
 among the seamen, refused to perform, immediately, the 
 pleasure of the mate, Mr. Farrington. The latter re- 
 quired Charley to carry a musket from the bow of the 
 ship back towards the stern, but not doing it so soon as 
 it was supposed he ought, Farrington drew his fist, and 
 smote Charley back of the ear, and knocked him on the 
 windlass, so that he received a severe wound in the 
 head. The blood ran freely; the sailors became much 
 excited, and ' resolved that there should be no more 
 preaching among them, but subsequently, recalled this 
 resolution, and allowed us to continue our instructions. 
 
W TOTA«B TO ou«m. 
 
 They were a heterogeneous class, being composed of 
 Danes, Prussians, Germans, English, Irish and Yankees. 
 
 On the 3d of April,, we discovered a sail on oui 
 larboard quarter, about six miles off. She appeared 
 desirous of speaking with us, and soon there appeared a 
 speck on the water between the two vessels, which after 
 a while could be distinguished as a whale boat approach- 
 ing us. We luffed up to the wind, and waited for her 
 to come along side. Soon she was under the lee of the 
 Lausanne. She contained six men, two Americans, one 
 of whom was the captain, one African, and three Sand- 
 wich Islanders. The captain came on board, and re- 
 ported his ship as the whaler Fama, of Boston, seventeen 
 months from home, and himself as Captain Sawyer. He 
 appeared highly gratified to receive "news from home," 
 though what we brought was nearly six months old. 
 The Kanakas, or Sandwich Islanders, were stout, noble- 
 looking fellows, and Mr. Dibble, the Presbyterian mis- 
 sionary, understanding the Hawaiian language, entered 
 into conversation with them. He learned from them 
 that both the king and queen of the Islands werf con 
 verted, and had become members of the Church. He 
 also learned that the king had removed his residence 
 from Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, to Lahina, on 
 Maui, in consequence of the temptation to drunkeness 
 which beset him in #ie former place, he having been 
 intemperate previous to his conversion. This is a fine 
 example for converted drunkards. Let them remove as 
 far as possible from* the cause of their ruin. Captain 
 Sawyer, after having obtained a few potatoes and other 
 vegetables, which are always a great rarity to whale- 
 men a long time out, left us to pursue our course, and 
 returned 'to his hazardous employment. 
 
 Tuesday, the 8th, at eleven o'clock, the island of 
 Maui presented its high bluffs to our view about forty 
 miles to the south-west of us, making it forty-five days 
 since we lost sight of the Chilian coast. We could also 
 indistinctly see the high mountains of Owyhee, or Ha- 
 waii, which, however, were about seventy miles off. 
 
 Between these two islands is a channel thirty milei 
 
TOTA6E TO OBEOOft. 71 
 
 wide. On Hawaii is a burning mountain, which ii 
 sonsidered a great curiosity. In "consequence of a suc- 
 cession of calms and squalls, we were detained off the 
 islands longer than we anticipated. 
 
 For several days the weather was dark and gloomy, 
 the sea ran high, the rain fell in torrents, add we though* 
 of the fate of the Lark, which was lost on the cora 
 reef, which surrounds the island of Hawaii. In th 
 evening of the 10th, however, we came in sight of 
 Morokai, another of the group; but not considering it 
 safe to run down 4 the channel in the night, we tacked 
 ship and lay to the wind. The following morning the 
 sland of Oahu could be distinctly seen in the misty 
 Jistance. This island presents an excellent waymark 
 for navigators, and is known by one of its high moun- 
 tains, which appears to rise out of the ocean in the form 
 of a sugar loaf. At twelve o'clock of the 11th, we 
 had Diamond Hill in full view before us, and there 
 appeared something across a large bay which Mr. Dibble 
 informed us was the city of Honolulu. Presently, we 
 were abreast of the city, though at the distance of, four 
 miles. The channel into the harbor being pointed out 
 by Mr. Dibble, our course was directed towards it, and 
 we were soon boarded by an old gentleman who acts as 
 pilot for the harbor. In a few moments our anchor was 
 dropped in the roads outside the coral reef which encir- 
 cles the island of Oahu. We immediately received a 
 visit from the U. S. consul, Mr. Brinsmade, and Captain 
 Stetson. The latter is the sOn-in-law of the Rev. John 
 Lindsey, of New York, and resided on the. island of 
 Kauai. He had been waiting for our arrival for five 
 weeks. These two gentlemen, after paying, their 
 respects, returned to the shore, and provided accommo- 
 dations for about twelve of the passengers for the 
 following night 
 
 The next day, the vessel was brought into the inner 
 harbor, and provision was made for a number of other 
 families, but some were under the necessity of continu 
 mg on board over the Sabbath. On Monday, however 
 our indefatigable friends, the consul and Captain Stetson, 
 
IB VOYAGE TO ORKBOW. 
 
 succeeded in procuring comfortable lodgings for all the 
 passengers during their stay on the island. The consul 
 is a member of the Presbyterian church, and Captain 
 Stetson is a member of the M. E. Church. Both, by 
 their unremitting attention to our wants, secured our 
 warmest affecflon. The members of the Presbyterian 
 mission, and many of the foreign residents, extended to 
 us that cordial hospitality which is seldom exhibited to 
 a company of strangers. It fell to my lot, with my 
 family, to be entertained by Mr. and Mrs. Johnstone, 
 the teachers of Oahu Charity School, whose dwelling 
 commands a fine view of the mountain scenery, the 
 rolling surf, and the city and harbor of Honolulu. 
 
 The Sandwich Islands are ten in number, Hawaii 
 being the principal in extent and the number of its 
 inhabitants, but Oahu first in point of commercial impor- 
 tance. They once contained several hundred thousand 
 inhabitants, but of late years, their population has 
 greatly decreased. This, doubtless, has been the result 
 of their connexion with foreigners; and strange as it 
 may appear, christian nations have introduced those 
 means into the Sandwich Islands, that are destined to 
 prove the destruction of the Hawaiian nation. Intem- 
 perance, with its concomitant evils, threatens the ruin 
 of these islands, but thanks to an overruling Providence, 
 with the seeds of death, a conservative influence has 
 been introduced. The cross of Christ has been erected 
 on these shores, and thousands have rallied around it. 
 There are forty families of missionaries scattered ovei 
 these islands, who are supported by the* American Board 
 of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, whose labors 
 have been crowned with wonderful success. Of the 
 one hundred thousand inhabitants which the islands now 
 contain, seventeen thousand are members of the church, 
 and Paganism has no existence in the group. 
 
 The island of Oahu is about sixty miles long and forty 
 broad, and contains a population of about twenty thou- 
 sand souls. The city of Honolulu is by far the most 
 noted place on the island, as it is the commercial empo- 
 rium for the whole gro;--. It is delightfully situated on 
 
▼OTA6B TO OUWH. 7 
 
 a beautiful plain, and surrounded with the most enchant 
 ing scenery, variegated with ocean, hills, cloud-capped- 
 mountains, and rich and fertile vales. 
 
 The climate is delightful, the mercury seldom rising 
 above eighty-five degrees in the shade, nor sinking below 
 forty. The number of the inhabitants at present is 
 about ten thousand, four hundred of whom are foreigners. 
 Here are English, French, Americans, Chinese, Africans, 
 &c. ; the most of the foreigners, however^ are Americans 
 Some of them have large mercantile establishments, and 
 are extensively Engaged in the sugar business. The 
 private dwellings of some of the citizens, both native 
 and foreign, are well builtj and richly furnished. The 
 coral rock, which here abounds, is becoming extensively 
 used for building, and makes an excellent material for 
 that purpose. The buildings of the missionaries are 
 principally of coral, well made, commodiously situated, 
 and suitably furnished. 
 
 The next Sabbath after landing, we attended the 
 native church in which the Rev. H. Bingham ofliciateSj 
 and, to our astonishment, found collected about two 
 thousand Hawaiians, to hear the word of the Lord. 
 These were, nearly all of them, decently clad; a few, 
 however, were almost entirely naked, but they all be- 
 haved with becoming propriety, and the most strict 
 attention was paid to the word dispensed. The preacher 
 addressed them in the native language. The meeting 
 house was built after the native style, being thatched 
 with grass from the bottbm to the top. The house, 
 however, is getting out of repair, and another is being 
 erected of coral, near this, which will seat, on the 
 ground floor, when completed, three thousand persons. 
 
 Besides this, there is another native church in the 
 city, of> which the Rev. Lowell Smith is pastor. This 
 has been built but two years, and the congregation num- 
 bers from twenty to twenty-five hundred. 
 
 There is also a Bethel chapel, commodiously situated, 
 which was erected by the Seaman's Friend Society, and 
 is under the pastoral care of the Rev. Mr. Diell, who 
 was absent from his charge on account of ill health. 
 
M TOT AM TO OBMOM. 
 
 This was occupied every Sabbath by the Methodki 
 
 missionaries during their continuance on the island. 
 
 Through the influence of Mr. Brinsmade, we were 
 all favored with an introduction to the royal family. 
 One hour previous to the time appointed for our inter- 
 view, we collected at the American Consulate, which is 
 situated about one half mile from the king's house, and, 
 at the time specified, marched down through the city 
 towards the fort, where we were met by a soldier, who 
 conducted us to the audience chamber. We were intro- 
 duced into a room of some twenty feet square, spread ' 
 with Chinese carpeting, and well furnished with tables, 
 chairs, sofas, &c, for the accommodation of visitors. 
 The king and his suite were not present when we 
 entered, but being informed of our arrival, the former 
 soon made his appearance, attended by the governor of 
 Oahu, and a very large and dignified woman who had 
 been the wife of two kings, and who then officiated as 
 his majesty's prime minister, and her little son, of some 
 eight years of age, who was heir apparent to the throne. 
 They received us with much grace and dignity, and 
 bidding us welcome to their shores, assured us of their 
 friendship. The object of our expedition being explained 
 by the consul, and interpreted to the king by the Rev. 
 Mr. Richards, both the king and his premier expressed 
 their astonishment and admiration, and said that they 
 ardently desired that we might be prospered in our 
 enterprise. They pronounced our cause "good," and 
 proffered their hospitalities while we were with them, 
 and their continued aid in the prosecution of our work. 
 
 Our superintendent, the Rev. Jason Lee, addressed 
 his majesty through the interpreter, relative to our mis« 
 sion in Oregon, and proposed an exchange of the produce 
 of that country, consisting of flour, fish, beef, &c, for the 
 products of the Sandwich Islands, consisting of sugar, 
 molasses, coffee, indigo, &c, to which the king seemed 
 heartily to concur, and said that he was very much 
 pleased with the idea. This conversation being closed, 
 the consul gave signs that it was time to retire, and 
 accordingly we all arose, and passing round the room, 
 
TQYAGE TO OREGON. 8 
 
 one after anjthei, shook hands with the king, his min- 
 ister and her son, and departed, highly gratified with 
 our interview with the royal family of the Hawaiian 
 nation. Here were displayed none of the pomp and 
 trappings of royaltyj none of the parade and ceremony 
 usually exhibited in the courts of kings. But every 
 thing, the apartments, furniture, and .apparel of the 
 royal family, partook of that neatness and simplicity 
 worthy the supreme head of an infant and dependent 
 uation. The king was dressed in blue broadcloth, made 
 ap in the English style, with epaulettes on his shoulders 
 and a miniature crown on the lapel of his coat. He is 
 distinguished by the title of Kamehameha the Third. 
 
 On Monday, the 19th, the twentieth anniversary of 
 the landing of the first missionaries on the island of 
 Oahu, was celebrated at the house of Rev. H. Bingham, 
 who was one of the pioneers in the business of evange- 
 lizing these islands of the ocean. The season was 
 rendered interesting by many hallowing associations. 
 1 short history of the Sandwich Island mission was 
 gfven by Mr. Bingham, and, in view of the astonishing 
 -esults of missionary labor, as seen in the elevation of 
 Che Hawaiian nation, from the deepest, degradation of 
 neathenism, to the enjoyment of the blessings of Chris- 
 tianity and' civilization, surely we had reason to exclaim, 
 in the language of Moses, " What hath God wrought 1 " 
 
 On Thursday, the 22d, we visited what is called, in 
 the language of" the country, the Para, about eight miles 
 east of Honolulu. We were accompanied by the consul, 
 Captain Carter, Captain Grimes, Dr. Judd and lady, and 
 Mrs. Hooper. At half past nine we had all mounted 
 our horses, which had been provided for our use, and, 
 ed by the consul, proceeded out of the city, like a troop 
 «f cavalry, on the round gallop ; and taking a winding 
 oath, we soon found ourselves on a contracted plain, 
 with huge mountains on our right and left, rising some 
 thousands of feet high, their lofty heads being orna- 
 mented with caps of fleecy clouds. 
 
 Presently we entered a dark thicket, and found the 
 path so narrow and difficult, that it was impossible to 
 
■i YOTAQE TO OKBtKHf. 
 
 oroceed but by single file, and at a very slow pace 
 rA.fter descending and ascending a number of almost 
 perpendicular banks, where some of the ladies found it 
 very difficult to keep to their saddles, and fording a 
 small rivulet which dashed through the thicket, we came 
 into a small opening, overgrown with grass, and within 
 a few rods of the Para. Here we dismounted, and 
 leaving our horses in the care of some Kanakas, who 
 had placed themselves here for that purpose, proceeded 
 on foot to view the object of our curiosity. Soon we 
 found ourselves on the brink of a frightful precipice 
 several hundred feet high, and almost perpendicular, 
 down which there are steps cut in the rock to enable 
 persons to ascend and descend in safety. This is the 
 only place where it is possible for persons to pass from 
 one side of the island to the other without making the 
 circuit of the shore, and this pass has been always con- 
 sidered remarkably difficult and dangerous. But in 1837. 
 Mr. Alanson Beers, a blacksmith, who accompanied one 
 of the former expeditions to Oregon, made an important 
 improvement in this pass, by fixing firm into the rock, 
 •ailing of iron for some distance down the steepest part 
 of the descent. This Para is six hundred feet above the 
 level of the ocean, descending to the north-east abruptly 
 until you arrive at a plain, which extends about three 
 miles to the shore, and which supports a population of 
 more than five thousand people. The appearance of this 
 plain from the top of the Para, dotted with the adobe- 
 walled cottages of the islanders, and near the centre of 
 which was pointed out the dwelling of the Rev. Mr. 
 Parker, and the church where listening hundreds are 
 taught the way to heaven, is truly delightful ; and, with 
 the grandeur of the mountain and ocean scenery, is a 
 full compensation for the labor and difficulty of visiting 
 the place. 
 
 This Para is noted not only for the sublime natural 
 scenery by which it is surrounded, but also for its inte- 
 resting historical associations. Here terminated one of 
 the bloodiest wars that ever desolated these islands. 
 
 Having satisfied our curiosity, we remounted rode 
 
<A«K TO OR BOON. S3 
 
 over the ba.tle ground, stopped to take a view of a 
 beautiful cataract, and returned to a house owned by 
 the consul, and situated about two miles out of the city, 
 where' we sat down to a sumptuous repast. Here we 
 spent a social hour, until the heat of the day had passed, 
 and then, taking to our horses, galloped back to the city, 
 well pleased with our excursion. ' 
 
 On Saturday, the 25th, rode up to Waiakiki, aboul 
 three miles, where there is a beautiful cocoanut grove; 
 from thence to the valley of Manoah, by way of the 
 Chinese tombs, passing the country residence of the 
 Rev. H. Bingham. This valley is exceedingly fertile, 
 and much frequented by visitors, on account of its de- 
 lightful mountain scenery. In this valley is situated the 
 old palace, the residence of some of the former kings. 
 *t is a small thatched cottage, surrounded by a dense 
 grove of fruit trees, resembling in appearance the apple 
 tree. ' The building is in a very dilapidated condition, 
 and constitutes the habitation of bats, mice, and other 
 vermin. On returning to the city, we were informed 
 that the vessel would leave the harbor of Honolulu foi 
 her destination on the morning of the 28th. This gave 
 us but little time to extend our observations ; but from 
 the few we were able to take, we were favorably im- 
 pressed with regard to the importance of the Sandwich 
 Islands. Doubtless the prosperity of these islands has 
 depended, and still depends, mainly upon the whale ships 
 that annually flock to their ports. ' 
 
 The people of the islands, both native apd foreign, had 
 not recovered from a feverish excitement, into which they 
 had recently been thrown by the belligerent attitude in 
 which a French man of war presented itself before 
 Honolulu. The principal offences against France, of 
 which the Frenchman complained, were, first, that the 
 Hawaiians had refused to admit French Roman Catholic 
 missionaries to land on the islands, when Protestanl 
 missionaries had always been allowed that privilege ; 
 and, second, that the Hawaiian government had passed 
 a law prohibiting the introduction of French brandy. 
 For these crimes. France resolved to call the wicked 
 
M VOTA» TO OKKOOW. 
 
 Hawaiians to an account ; and, consequently, so soon aa 
 the frigate arrived, which had been sent -to compel 
 the Hawaiians to submission, the French commander, 
 Captain La Place, in the most menacing form, sent the 
 king word that he had a certain number of hours to 
 select between two alternatives. First, Roman Catholic 
 missionaries must be admitted without restraint; the 
 'anding of French brandy in any quantities must be 
 allowed; and the Hawaiian government must pay to 
 the French an indemnity of twenty thousand dollars; 
 or, second, the favorite town of the islanders must suffer 
 all the horrors of a bombardment, with the prospect of 
 an entire subjugation to the French. For awhile the 
 king hesitated whether to be buried amidst the ruins of 
 nis country, or submit to the unjust and arrogant claims 
 of the French, but, through the influence of his counsel- 
 ors, finally preferred the latter alternative. 
 
 The name of the frigate was the Artimese, and she 
 was commanded by Captain La Place. This unhappy 
 interview betwixt the French and Hawaiians left the 
 impression on the minds of the citizens of Honolulu, both 
 native and foreign, that France will take the first rea- 
 sonable opportunity, to reduce the islands to subjection. 
 
OnAPTER V. 
 
 Monol continued — Departure from Honolulu — Slow progress - Freeh breeae 
 Cout of Oregon — Old pilot — Captain delivers up the vessel — Crossing Uu 
 fearful bar - Deep anxiety — Cast anchor in Baker's Bay — Rev. Daniel Lm - 
 Chenook Indians — Clateops — Ascend the river — Fort George — Run aground — 
 Difficulty of ascending — Arrival at Vancouver — Meeting called — Missionaries 
 receive their appointments — Sent off to their stations — First encampment in 
 Oregon ~ Ascending the Wallamette in canoes — Turn Water — Portage — Cham 
 poeg — Horseback ride — Arrival at the Mission Station. 
 
 According to arrangements, on Tuesday morning, 
 the 28th of April, at nine o'clock, we were all assembled 
 at the United States Consulate, with many of our newly 
 made friends of Oahu, who had endeared themselves to 
 us by their unwearied kindness and hospitality, awaiting 
 the preparation of boats to convey us to the ship. Soon 
 all was in readiness, and taking an affectionate leave ot 
 our attendants, we were quickly on board the Lausanne. 
 The winds were favorable, the sails were unfurled to the 
 breeze, and we moved slowly out of the harbor through 
 a winding channel, which the God of nature has formed 
 through the mighty reef of coral nearly encircling the 
 island. 
 
 For several days after leaving Oahu, we were obliged 
 to run close upon the wind, and, consequently, made but 
 slow progress. Our course was north-east from the 
 islands to the mouth of the Columbia river, and conse- 
 quently the north-east trade was a head wind. So soon, 
 however, as we reached the thirtieth degree ot north 
 latitude, a fresh breeze from the west wafted us on at 
 the rate of one hundred and fifty to two hundred miles 
 per day. 
 
 In addition to the usual subjects of interest at sea, 
 consisting of whales, sharks, porpoises, dolphins, alba 
 
8» V0TA«B TO OBJMOH. 
 
 troses, <fcc, the company were entertained, for a succei 
 •ion of evenings, by a course of lectures, delivered by 
 the Rev. Jason Lee, on the subject of the Oregon mis- 
 sion, embracing its first establishment, and the proper 
 course to be pursued to advance its future prosperity. 
 While thus employed, the winds of heaven were propi- 
 tious, and we were rapidly approaching the coast of 
 Oregon. At ten o'clock* on the morning of the 21st of 
 May, the western coast of North America, which is 
 washed by the great Pacific ocean, that kind towards 
 which we had been" directing our course for upwards of 
 seven months, presented itself before us. Cape Disap- 
 pointment appeared on our leeward quarter, and Point 
 Adams on our bow. Considering the direction of the 
 wind, the vessel could not have been placed more favor- 
 ably for entering the mouth of the Columbia river. 
 
 Wind and tide both favoring us, preparations were 
 Jmmediately made for crossing the dreaded bar of the 
 Columbia. Captain Spaulding found an old sailor at 
 Oahu, who had spent some time at the mouth of the 
 Columbia, a number of years before, and who said he 
 was well acquainted with the channel across the bar 
 This man the captain had taken the precaution to bring 
 with him, to act as pilot on entering the river ; and, 
 accordingly, on approaching land, the captain surren- 
 dered the vessel into the hands of the old pilot. The 
 latter went aloft, and issued his orders from the fore top 
 mast head. All was anxiety on ship board, as it was 
 cried by the man with the sounding line, "five fathoms 
 and a half," for we then knew that we were passing over 
 the fearful bar, and that very soon we should experience 
 -he fate of a number of vessels, which, years before, had 
 pursued the same track but to rush to inevitable destruc- 
 tion, or, be quietly-moored in the placid waters of the 
 bay, behind the projecting cape. Soon the water deep- 
 ened to seven and nine fathoms, and the captain observed, 
 " We have reason to congratulate ourselves on having 
 crossed the bar of the Columbia in safety, and are now 
 steering our course for Baker's Bay." And surely all 
 felt heartily to acquiesce in the sentiment, as we slowW 
 
YOTA« TO OUSOK, §7 
 
 passed around the point of Cape Disappointment, and 
 dropped our anchor on American ground. 
 
 The English barque Vancouver, lay at anchor in the 
 bay, waiting for a fair wind to put out to sea. So soon 
 as we anchored, Captain Duncan, from the barque, came 
 on board, and informed us that we had made at least 
 one " hair breadth escape," as we came within a cable's 
 length of running on to a sand bank, where the William 
 and Ann were wrecked a few years before. He also 
 informed us that he had just come down the river from 
 Port Vancouver; that Rev. Daniel Lee, and Mr. W. H. 
 Wilson, who were members of the Oregon mission, 
 were at the fort when he left, and that the people gene- 
 rally were anxiously awaiting our arrival. A few hours 
 after we came to anchor, an Indian canoe appeared, 
 comine down the river, with a number of persons in it, 
 and seemed to be directing its course towards us. While 
 several miles off we could see, through the telescope, 
 that there was one white man, with about a dozen In- 
 dians, in the canoe, and when they approached so near 
 as to determine who we were, they set up a loud shout 
 for joy at our arrival. Soon they came along side, and 
 to our great satisfaction, we were saluted by the Rev. 
 Daniel Lee, who had left his station at the Dalls, and 
 come down the river to visit the Chenooks, and preach 
 to them. Though thirty miles above the mouth of the 
 river, yet he discovered our sail, as we passed over the 
 bar, and, supposing us to be the reinforcement expected, 
 he resolved to hasten down and ascertain the fact. 
 
 Rev. Daniel Lee is a nephew of the Rev. Jason Lee. 
 They had performed a perilous journey together across 
 the Rocky mountains; had endured together the trials 
 of missionary life in Oregon ; and as they had been 
 separated for more than two years, one remaining in 
 Oregon, and the other reerossing the Rocky mountains, 
 and then doubling Cape Horn, the circumstances of their 
 meeting were of no ordinary interest. The sensations 
 realized cannot well be described. The uncle and 
 nephew embraced each other, and wept. Their team 
 were tears of joy, mingled with grief— joy, that after 
 
M TOYMB TO OBMOM 
 
 bo long a separation, and the endurance of so many 
 hardships, they enjoyed the privilege of seeing each 
 other's face — joy, that a kind and merciful Providence 
 had preserved us during our long and tedious voyage, 
 and had brought us in safety to this distant shore — joy, 
 that the Lord had poured out His spirit in Oregon, and 
 that many of the Indians had been converted : but grief, 
 that since their separation in Oregon, some of the pio 
 neers of the cross in this land of darkness, had been taken 
 from the scene of their labors and usefulness; a grief 
 mitigated' by the consideration, that they died as the 
 christian dies, happy and triumphant. 
 
 Towards evening a number of Indians of the Chenook 
 tribe came on board, among whom were some of the 
 nobility, one of the principal chiefs, whose name was 
 Chenamus, and his wife, whom they called the queen, 
 being of the number. Most of them were very small 
 in size, and very poorly clad, some of them not having 
 sufficient clothing to cover their nakedness. The chief 
 had nothing on but a blanket, which he wrapped around 
 him, but the queen had on a calico dress, a neckerchief, 
 and a red woolen shawl. Soon they were reinforced 
 by the arrival of a band of Indians from the south side 
 of the river, called the Clatsops, who were very savage 
 in their appearance, some of them being painted in the 
 most hideous manner. They collected together on the 
 fore part of the deck, and commenced singing and 
 dancing in the most fantastic style. Four persons en- 
 gaged in the dance, and as one got weary and retired, 
 another would step in and carry it on. They appeared 
 to enjoy it exceedingly, and doubtless supposed that they 
 were affording us the highest gratification in celebrating 
 our arrival among them. Many of them continued on 
 board during the night, and though it was very cold, 
 some slept in their open canoes which lay along side the 
 vessel, with nothing around them. Their appearance, 
 as they lay shivering in the cold, was truly deplorable. 
 These, we learned, were slaves, and were not allowed 
 by their masters o come on the deck. Surely, thought 
 we, if any humar beings in the world need the sympa 
 
▼OYAttE YO OKKftOH. Ml 
 
 iniea of their fellow men, we have found them on 
 entering the territory of Oregon. 
 
 The day after we crossed the bar, we were obliged 
 to continue at anchor in Baker's Bay, on account of a 
 severe storm from the south-east, which prevented our 
 sailing up the river; but on the morning of the 23d, the 
 wind became fair, and we prepared to ascend the 
 majestic Columbia. A gentleman by the name of Bir- 
 ney, residing at Fort George, and belonging to the 
 Hudson's Bay Company, came on board, and volunteered 
 his services as pilot from Baker's Bay, to the place of 
 his residence, the distance of thirteen miles. Weighing 
 anchor, we were conducted along a winding channel 
 quite across the mouth of the river, and passed within a 
 short distance of Point Adams, where the principal 
 village of the Clatsops is situated. Crossing the mouth 
 of a bay lying back of Point Adams, called Young's 
 Bay, we came to anchor for the night, within a stone's 
 cast of Port George, otherwise known, as the " far famed 
 Astoria, the New York of the Pacific ocean." 
 
 Fort George consists of three small block-houses, one 
 of which is occupied by Mr. Birney and family, and the 
 others for purposes of trading. Here we went ashore, 
 and after examining the site of old Astoria, built a fire 
 by the side of a cold spring, and cooked and enjoyed our 
 supper again on " terra Jirma" where our table would 
 stand still. Weighed anchor on the morning of the 
 25th, and before a fine breeze, proceeded about one mile 
 and a half, and run the ship aground. All hands spent 
 most of the day in endeavoring to work off the vessel, 
 but could not succeed. The next morning we were 
 favored with a high tide, and succeeded in clearing the 
 bar, but had not run but ' a short distance before we 
 struck another bar w^th considerable violence, and, at 
 first feared that if we ever got clear of it, it would be 
 with great difficulty; but the still swelling tide of the 
 next morning, again floated us, and sailing a short dis- 
 tance, again we ran aground, and were detained another 
 aay. We concluded that, either the navigation of the 
 Columbia for vessels as large as ours, was exceedingly 
 
M TOTACB TO OKMOH. 
 
 difficult, or our pilot was ignorant of the channel. How- 
 ever, we succeeded, after running aground several more 
 times, in reaching that point of land on which Fort 
 Vancouver is situated, to which we had been looking 
 forward as the termination of our voyage to Oregon, 
 and where, by the good providence of God, we were 
 permitted to cast anchor the first day of June, 1840. 
 
 Dr. John McLaughlin, the superintendent of the 
 affairs of the Hudson's Bay Company, though a Catholic 
 himself, received us with much cordiality, and extended , 
 to us the hospitalities of the place, so long as we should 
 find it convenient to remain. 
 
 Vancouver is the emporium of the Hudson & Bay 
 Company in Oregon. This is the general depot for all 
 the goods brought to the country^ and also for the furs 
 collected, until they are shipped for England. 
 
 Here we remained a number of days, receiving and 
 storing our goods ; but on the 13th of June, a meeting 
 of the members of the mission was called, by Rev. Jasor 
 Lee, to consult in relation to fixing the 'appointments of 
 J»e newly arrived missionaries. These took place as 
 follows : J. P. Richmond at Fort Nez Qualy, on Puget's 
 Sound ; J. H. Frost at Clatsop, on the mouth of the 
 Columbia, ; W. W. Kone and G. Hines on the Umpqua 
 river, and A. F. Waller was left without an appointment 
 for the purpose of assisting in the erection of mills on 
 the Wallamette river. The lay members of the reinforce- 
 ment were principally located in the Wallamette settle- 
 ment, that being the place where the main business 
 operations were carried on. There being a physician ir 
 the Wallamette settlement, Dr. J. L. Babcock was ap- 
 pointed at the Dalls, also H. B. Brewer as a farmer. 
 
 All the missionaries were immediately initiated into 
 ;he Oregon mode of traveling, in getting from Vancouvei 
 to their respective appointments. Canoes were provided 
 for us, and we all scattered away ; some up the Columbia, 
 some down ; some up the Cowilitz, and some up the 
 Wallamette. 
 
 It was in the evening of the 14th day oi June, that 
 ftev. A. F. Waller, Rev. W. W: Kone, myself, and our 
 
▼OTAU TO OBBOOH. 
 
 families, found ourselves floating on the surface of tha 
 great Columbia, in two small canoes, on our way up t* 
 the mission station in the Wallamette settlement, having 
 taken nothing with us but blankets, and provisions to 
 make us comfortable on our journey. If was in the 
 season of high water, and the bottom lands, along the 
 river, were all overflown. Conducted by our pilots,. we 
 crossed the main channel of the Columbia to the south 
 side ; and running our canoes in among the cottonwood 
 timber, we crossed a point of land which lies fifteen or 
 twenty feet above low water mark, but which was then 
 several feet under water, and coming to a kind of pro- 
 montory covered with a dense forest of fir, we ran 
 ashore and made our first encampment in Oregon. By 
 the aid of flint, steel, and powder, we soon had the forest 
 illuminated ; then «the women prepared supper of fried 
 meat and boiled potatoes, bread, butter and tea, and 
 spread it out upon the ground, where all partook of it 
 with great relish. Next our bedding was prepared, and 
 after recruiting our fire, we prepared to sleep. The 
 roar of the wind through the thick branches of the fir 
 trees, whose tall tops were waving gracefully over oui 
 heads, the hoot of the large owl, and the howling/of the 
 wolf, frequently broke in upon our slumbers, but the 
 morning found us unharmed. In preparing to leave 
 camp, the business of the morning afforded each of us 
 considerable amusement by our awkwardness, arising 
 from unacquaintance with this manner of living; but 
 we concluded that we should soon become initiated, and 
 make very good soldiers. 
 
 Taking to our canoes at six o'clock, on the 15th, we 
 proceeded a mile, and found ourselves in the Wallamette 
 river, having saved a few miles of rowing, by crossing 
 the point. Found the scenery along the river exceed- 
 ingly wild as we ascended, the shores rocky, and lined 
 with dense forests of fir, and but little land adapted to 
 cultivation. At one o'clock we arrived at the Wallamette 
 Falls, called by the Indians Turn Water. Here we found 
 about one hundred and fifty of the most filthy and de- 
 graded looking beings in human shape, that our eyea 
 ever beheld. Surely, thought we, it will require th 
 
■a TOTACB TO OEMOM. 
 
 laboi if many years to elevate these Indians from the 
 depth of their pollution into a civilized and christian 
 
 Eeople. The falls are about thirty feet perpendicular, 
 eautiful indeed, affording almost unlimited hydraulic 
 privileges, ye# the Indians held the place in unmolested 
 control. The Hudson's Bay Company, however, had 
 built a small block-house on the left bank, as we ascend 
 the river, for their accommodation, in passing up and 
 down. -Here we were obliged to make a portage of 
 half a mile, which occupied us till nearly night ; and we 
 found it exceedingly fatiguing to carry all our things 
 over the rocks, for half a mile^ on our backs. We had 
 accomplished it, however, at five oclock, and proceeding 
 up four miles farther, we made our second encampment 
 on Rock Island, having traveled but twenty-five miles 
 since morning. The weather being fine, we enjoyed 
 another comfortable night, and the following day, at one 
 r o'clock, p. m., arrived at Champoeg, which is the lower 
 part of the settlement on the Wallamette river. The 
 mission station was sixteen miles above, and, according 
 to arrangement, horses were sent down to meet us. 
 They arrived at three o'clock, and at four all were 
 mounted, several of us taking children on before us, and 
 the cavalcade started off upon a gallop over the plains. 
 As we were well mounted, Mrs. Hines and myself took 
 the lead, and passing over the most delightful country 
 that we ever beheld, two hours and a half brought us 
 into the midst of three little log houses which stood on 
 the banks of the river, and known as the principal station 
 of the Oregon mission. 
 
 Here we arrived in safety on the 16th day of June, 
 ] 840, and were cordially welcomed by the -Missionaries 
 on the ground, and made as comfortable as tneir circum- 
 stances would admit. 
 
 Remaining two days in the family of Rev. David 
 Leslie, I then took possession of a small room in a house 
 about one mile from the station, built for a mission 
 hospital, where we again commenced keeping house, 
 and where I designed my 'family to remain until I had 
 performed an exploring tour through the country of tho 
 Umoquas- 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Br- wring tour to the Umpqua — Preliminaries — Departure — Delightful country - 
 Encampment — Amusing incident — Fording river — Mountain La Beache — 
 Elk river — Umpqua fort — Indian fight — Frenchman in charge — Meeting with 
 the Indiana — Old chief 's confession — Hostile Indians — Danger of going among 
 them — Resolved to go — Voyage to the coast — Indians accompany us — Inte- 
 resting encampment — Indians on the coast — Meeting with them — Speeches 
 of the chiefs — Results of the meeting — Talk to God — Solicitude of our Pro. 
 tectress — Watching — Presents — Departure — Description of the country — 
 Return to the fort — Story of the Frenchman's wife — Dangers we had scaped 
 
 — Perilous adventures of the mountaineers — Tour continued — Mountainous 
 country — Fording Elk river — Giant tree — Aromatic tree — Umpqua Indians — 
 Head chiefs — Shocking story — Burst of heathen passions — Difficulty with 
 guide — Settled — Fear of treachery — Confirmed — Request of We- We — Re- 
 fused — Warning — An Indian can be honest — Unhappy results of not trusting 
 him — Night — Lost in a forest — Sabbath — Indians again — Homeward route 
 
 — Fine country — Delightfu' scenery — Home. 
 
 Some time in the winter of 1837, before Rev. Mr. 
 ^ee left Oregpn ' to return to the United States after a 
 reinforcement, he visited the Umpqua tribe of Indians 
 for the purpose of ascertaining their number and situa- 
 tion ; but it being in that season of the year when it is 
 next to impossible to explore the country, in consequence 
 of the abundance of water which every where presents 
 ttself in the way of the traveler, he could not extend 
 his own personal observations far, but was under ths 
 necessity of depending for information concerning the 
 objects of his visit, upon the few Indians with whom he 
 came in contact on his route, and a Frenchman who had 
 charge of a trading post belonging to the Hudson's Baj 
 Company, and situated on the Umpqua river. Such was 
 the information given and the confidence reposed therein, 
 that Mr. Lee, before going to the States, had come to 
 the determination that, if the mission was again rein- 
 f orced, he would establish a station somewhere in the 
 
M TOUR TO THE UMPQBA. 
 
 vicinity -of Umpqua fort Accordingly Mr. Kone and 
 myself were appointed to labor as missionaries among 
 the Umpqua Indians. As Mr. K. was a millwright bv 
 trade, it was intended by Mr. Lee to retain him for some 
 months on the Wallamette, to assist in the erection of 
 tlie mission mills ; and that I should proceed and explore 
 the country, select a location for the station, and prepare 
 for the removal of our families. 
 
 Hearing reports from that country of a discouraging 
 character, Mr. Lee resolved to accompany me on the 
 tour, and satisfy himself with regard to the propriety of 
 carrying out his original design. 
 
 It should be understood that the Umpqua country lies 
 to the south of the Columbia river, about two hundred 
 and twenty-five miles. The river which gives its nam" 
 to the country, rises in that ridge of mountains which • 
 divides the lower from the upper country, and after 
 "unning about two hundred miles, empties into the Pacific 
 ocean near the forty-third parallel of north latitude. I 
 waters quite an extensive country, as yet to white men 
 but little known. Having made arrangements for the 
 comfort and safety of our families in our absence, we 
 found ourselves prepared to start on our tour on the 18th 
 day of August, 1840. Our party consisted of Rev. Jason 
 Lee, Dn Elijah White, myself, and an Indian guide, 
 whom we designated by the name of " Captain." Dr. 
 White, however, designed to accompany us no farthei 
 than the Umpqua fort, and then return. ' Our mode of 
 traveling, of course, was on horseback; and, in addition 
 to our riding horses, we had three for carrying our bag- 
 gage, and four spare ones, that in case of the loss or 
 failure of any, we might not be left destitute. This is a 
 precaution indispensably necessary to be taken by all 
 who would secure their ultimate safety in traversing the 
 extended plains of this wild country. As this was the 
 first prairie expedition with which I had ever been con- 
 nected, it was necessary for me, at the outset, to learn 
 ihe peculiarities of the mode of traveling; and, as Mr. 
 Lee had performed two journeys across the Rocky 
 mountain!, he was well qualified to be my instructor,* 
 
TOOK TO THE UMPtiDA 95 
 
 Watching Mr. Lee closely while he was packing oui 
 bedding, provisions and cooking utensils, on the backs of 
 the horses, I soon observed that it required considerable 
 skill and practice to wind the lash rope around the pack 
 and the body of the horse, so as to secure the burden to the 
 back of the animal in case of fright, stumbling, or running 
 against any obstruction, all of which, in the process of 
 binding the packs, it is necessary to guard against with 
 the. utmost precaution. Mr. Lee having magnified his 
 office as our instructor, by packing the three horses 
 himself, we all mounted, and each man with his gun 
 athwart of the pommel of his saddle, our little cavalcade 
 put off, on a moderate gallop, across the beautiful and, 
 fertile plain, lying in the rear and south of the mission 
 premises. At noon we arrived at a place called by the 
 Indians, Chemekete, where the Oregon mission have 
 commenced erecting mills, and where it is in contempla- 
 tion to establish the Mission Manual Labor School. This 
 olace is ten miles up the' Wallamette river from the old 
 mission, station, and is one of the most delightful locations 
 m the wnole valley. The fertile plains surrounding it, 
 the enchanting nature of its scenery, and the fine water 
 privilege afforded by the beautiful rivulet that meanders 
 through it, render it a place of considerable future 
 importance. Having dined with the family of W. W. 
 Raymond, who is employed in forwarding the saw mill, 
 we proceeded on our course, being south, through a 
 country beautifully diversified with rising grounds, vary- 
 ing from the gentle undulation to the majestic hill, fertile 
 valleys, variegated with here and there a grove of a 
 species of red oak, and now and then a stately fir which 
 had braved the fury of a thousand storms. Occasionally 
 could be seen the fallow deer and prairie wolves, scam- 
 pering in almost every direction, as we passed along the 
 narrow Indian trail, which, in its serpentine course, led 
 us farther and farther from our habitation; At nightfall, 
 we encamped near one of the tributaries of the Walla 
 mette river, called " Santa Am's Fork." This is a fine 
 stream of water, being several rods wide, and coming 
 down Vsm the mountains of the east, it is said to form 9 
 
86 voir* to thk vurntiA, 
 
 number of beautiful cascades, while the fine timber 
 adorning its banks, and the extended plains of arable land 
 on each side, hold out strong inducements to the emi 
 grant to erect his cabin upon its fertile shores. How 
 ever, the bottom lands along this river, though appearing 
 exceedingly fine at this season of the year, when the 
 water is low, give evidence that, m tne winter, tney are 
 often overflown. Here we found a species of yellow 
 pine, similar to the Norway pine, it being the first I had 
 seen in the country, but we reposed for the night under 
 the branches of a majestic fir, and our trusty horses 
 cropped the wild grass of the prairie around us, while we 
 slept. Six o : clock the next morning found us prepared 
 to resume our journey, and at twelve we had traveled 
 twenty miles, when we stopped for dinner, on one of 
 the numerous streamlets which water the Wallamette 
 valley. 
 
 Re-packing our animals, after resting two hours, we 
 traveled, in the evening, about ten miles, and encamped 
 for the night by the side of a small pool of water, in the 
 centre of a large prairie. The country through which 
 we passed during the day, was exceedingly fiat. Some 
 parts of it were quite low, and subject to inundation 
 from the rapid rise of the Wallamette river. The prai- 
 ries had been all Overrun with nre a short time previous, 
 and it was with difficulty that we could find sufficient 
 feed for our horses. However, around the pool the 
 grass was so green that the fire had passed it by, and 
 this rendered it a suitable place to spend the night, 
 particularly for our animals. There was something 
 very peculiar about this pool. It embraced a superficial 
 area of some ten rods of ground, with no visible inlet or 
 outlet, and it was several miles from any other water, 
 though the water in the pool was nearly upon a level 
 with the surrounding land. It was also literally filled 
 with frogs, there being at least five to every square foot 
 
 We spread our bed where the grass was abundant,; 
 but soon after lying down we were disturbed by a some- 
 what novel circumstance. I began to feel a gentle stir 
 directly under my back, though for some time I made 
 
TOVfc TO TH« UMPQUA. 97 
 
 no mention of it, not yet deciding what it might be. 
 But as the effort beneath me continued as though some 
 living being was thrown into convulsions through suffo- 
 cation, I at length cried out that there was some living 
 creature under my blanket. The "Captain" understand- 
 ing me, exclaimed, " A snake ! a snake !" I sprang in- 
 stantly to my feet, seized my blankets, and scattered my 
 bed around the prairie, and, to the no small amusement 
 of our party, out jumped a large bullfrog, and made his 
 best leaps to get back into the pool. 
 
 August 20th. We arose in the morning invigorated by 
 epose, and traveling twenty-five miles, at one o'clock 
 we arrived at the place on the Wallamette river where 
 we designed to cross, our trail having been on the east 
 side of the. river. In approaching the stream, we found 
 the trail exceedingly difficult, especially for our pact 
 horses, as it led us through a dense forest of cottonwood 
 and swamp maple, but at length we emerged from it in 
 safety, and found ourselves on the river's brink. Exa- 
 mining the ford, we found the river too deep, and the 
 current too strong, to admit of our crossing our pack 
 horses in safety, and discovering an Indian below us, in 
 his canoe, we beckoned to him to come up to us, which 
 he accordingly did. He appeared very shy at first, as 
 he was entirely naked, not having so much clothing on 
 as an apron of fig leaves, but after a while we induced 
 him to take our things into his canoe, and carry them 
 across the river. Dr. White accompanied him, while 
 Mr. Lee, myself, and the "Captain," crossed over the 
 horses. The water was up to the animals' backs, and 
 the current so strong that we feared it would bear us 
 down; but, with the exception of getting thoroughly 
 wet, we gained the opposite shore without difficulty. 
 Here we took some refreshments, and then continued 
 our way over a delightful plain fifteen miles in extent, 
 and at night stopped on the California trail, at a place 
 which, by the numerous fifes which nad been built 
 around, we judged was often used as an encampment. 
 This is the great trail extending through, from XJppei 
 
M TOUK TO THB CMPQETA 
 
 California to the Columbia river, and passes througn 
 valley of the Wallamette, on the west side of the rive} 
 
 Friday, 21st. After traveling about twenty miles over 
 a rolling oountry, presenting almost every variety of 
 scenery, we halted for dinner on a small stream called 
 " Bridge river," on account of a log bridge having been 
 thrown across it, by some California party. This stream 
 runs in a deep cut, and, but for the bridge, would have 5 
 been difficult to cross. In the afternoon we passed over 
 the mountain " La Beache," (Elk mountain,) which con- 
 sists of a vast assemblage of hills thrown together in wild 
 confusion, and covered with a heavy forest of fir and 
 •iiedar tijees. The latter is the most stately and majestic 
 timber iff ;the kind I have ever seen. Some of the trees 
 are from from ten to fifteen feet in diameter, and tower- 
 ing to an incredible height. On beholding them, one is 
 reminded of the scripture account of the cedars of 
 Lebanon. It required three hours to cross this mountain, 
 and as we descended it to the south, we found the fire 
 making sad havoc with the ' fine timber with which its 
 sides were adorned. In some places it raged so hard; 
 along the trail, that it was quite difficult for us to pass 
 but, urging our way along, we arrived at sun down at 
 Elk river, and camped on a beautiful plain on its south 
 bank. 
 
 Saturday, 22d. Leaving the California trail we took a 
 path that bore farther to the west, which followed the 
 direction of the Elk river. During the day we passed 
 over an exceedingly mountainous country. Some. of 
 the hills were rocky and precipitous, and it was with 
 great difficulty that we were able to keep our balance 
 on the narrow path among the rocks, that, in its zigzag 
 course, marked our way up and down their almost per- 
 pendicular sides. Mr. Lee remarked that in crossing 
 the Rocky mountains, there was nothing that wouu| 
 bear any comparison with the difficulty and roughness 
 of our trail through the Umpqua mountains. But urging 
 our way along, now plunging into the deep ravine, now 
 •caling the high ledge of rocks, now climbing the preci 
 
YOtnt TO THE UMFQCA. 99 
 
 pitous mountains, now descending into the dark valley, 
 and fording Elk river over the slippery rocks not less 
 than five times, at two o'clock, p. sc., we found ourselves 
 on the banks of the Umpqua river, opposite of the fort. 
 We stripped our horses of their packs and saddles, and 
 turned them loose to roam at large on the north side of 
 the river/ until we performed a voyage to the coast; 
 and, crossing over in a canoe, we were kindly received at 
 the fort.by an old Frenchman, having charge Of it, by 
 the name of Goniea. We were made welcome to all the 
 comforts the place afforded. 
 
 This fort, or rather trading post, stands on the south 
 bank of the Umpqua river, on a little plain comprising 
 about two hundred acres of land, thirty of which are 
 under cultivation. It is forty miles from the Pacific 
 ocean, and advantageously situated for the purposes for 
 which it was established, namely, the collection of beaver 
 and other furs from the Indians along the coast and in 
 lhe interior. The fort itself consists of three or four 
 ittle log huts built on three sides of a square, and 
 covered with cedar bark. These huts are stockaded by 
 poles set in the ground, and rising twelve feet high; and 
 at two opposite corners Of the enclosure thus formed, 
 there are two bastions commanding all sides of the fort, 
 and containing means for the defense of the establish- 
 ment against the attacks of the Indians who are fre- 
 quently quite troublesome in this region. Not long 
 since the place was attacked by a band of savages, 
 outnumbering ten times the inmates of the fort, but after 
 a long fight, in which no one was killed, and but two or 
 three of the Indians were wounded, the latter were 
 compelled to. retreat. 
 
 The Frenchman in charge, it is said, belongs to a 
 wealthy and honorable family in Montreal, and though 
 frequent efforts have been made to reclaim him from his 
 wanderings, and induce him to return to his family and 
 friends, yet all have been unavailing. Such is the power 
 of habit with him that he now prefers a life but little in 
 advance of the wretched savages that surround him, to 
 all the elegance and refinements of the rrost civilized 
 
100 TOVB TO THK BMTQVJU 
 
 society. He lives with an Indian woman whom he cal 
 his wife,- and who belongs to a tribe that reside on th 
 coast, near the mouth of the Umpqua river. 
 
 Sunday, 23d. A good night's rest on a bed of Mack 
 naw blankets, and a liberal supply of boiled pork an 
 ^potatoes, furnished by our Indian hostess, wonderful! 
 reciuited us after the fatigues of our journey. W 
 found no Indians around the fort except a small band < 
 twenty-five Calapooahs from the Wallamette valley 
 These we collected in one of the huts within the stocl 
 ades, and Mr. Lee addressed them in the jargon of tli 
 country, concerning the things which belong to the 
 peace, and the chief interpreted it to his people. The 
 seemed to be much interested, and were ready to promis 
 lhat they, would all become good. The chief confesse 
 that his people had formerly been guilty of adultery, bi 
 said he had stopped all that a year ago; that he allowg 
 himself to have two wives still, but that he meant to pi 
 one of them away as soon as he returned. As w 
 expected to pass through his country on our return, vt 
 engaged to meet him and his people on a certain da] 
 and give them another "talk." 
 
 Monday, 24th. Dr. White and the " Captain " left i 
 and returned to the Wallamette, and Mr. Lee and mysel 
 started in a canoe, to visit the Indians at the mouth o 
 the Umpqua river. We had been informed by M: 
 Goniea that there would be great dagger in our goin 
 among them alone, and, indeed, he appeared to stand i 
 the utmost fear of them. Of their hostility to th 
 whites, and especially the Americans, we were ourselve 
 •iware, as they had in more than one instance attacke 
 them, and at one time in particular they cut off an entir 
 party of fourteen men who were coming through froi 
 California to Oregon, except three persons, who forti 
 nately escaped to tell the story of the massacre of thei 
 companions. But Providence seemed to favor our desig 
 of going among them. On Sunday afternoon, a brothe 
 of the Frenchman's wife, with a small party of Indian 
 from the coast, arrived at the fort, having come up th 
 river in a canoe. After having an interview with then 
 
TOVK TO THE USIPQUA. 10 
 
 we proposed to the Frenchman that his wife, who, we 
 learned, was a relative of the principal chiefs of the 
 tribe, should take us under her protection, and with her 
 brother and his party, conduct us to their people. To 
 this the Frenchman consented, saying, "now the danger 
 is small, before it was great." According to arrange- 
 ment, at ten o'clock, a. m., we put out with our light 
 canoe into the rapid current of the Umpqua. We ran a 
 number of narrow shoots where the current is at least 
 twelve knots an hour, and in some instances shot past 
 the rocks which projected into the stream within six 
 inches, with the velocity of an arrow. But our Indians 
 — seven in number — showed themselves to be on their 
 proper element by the astonishing dexterity with which 
 they ran the dangerous rapids with which the river 
 abounds. Fifteen miles below the fort, the river rushes 
 over a ledge of rocks in a number of narrow channels, 
 and falling about twenty-five feet in so many rods, forms 
 a fine salmon fishery. Here we found, crowded into 
 four small lodges, about one hundred Indians, exceedingly 
 squalid in their appearance", and subsisting entirely on 
 fish. 
 
 Our Indian protectress, who also officiateo. as inter- 
 preter, informed them who we were, and for what 
 purpose we had come among them, with which they 
 seemed to be highly pleased, saying it was good; and as 
 we passed on, nine of them, five men and four women, 
 jumped into a large canoe, for the purpose of accom- 
 panying us down the river. 
 
 Having thus increased our company more than half, 
 we proceeded on our voyage, contemplating the barba- 
 rous appearance of both animate and inanimate nature 
 around us, until the gathering shadows reminded us that 
 night approached ; and running our canoes in along the 
 right hand shore, we at length found a place sufficiently 
 broad, from the river to the base of the mountain, to 
 admit of our encamping, and here we pitched our tent 
 for the night Our Indians soon struck up two good 
 fires, one for themselves and one for us. Mr. Lee and 
 myself prepared our supper, our female friend providing 
 
J » *0» TO nm BMP«ffA. 
 
 us with a choice piece of salmon which she had broiled, 
 and which, with bread, butter, and tea, constituted our 
 humble repast. Never did we partake of a supper with 
 abetter relish. "While we were enjoying it, our neo- 
 phytes prepared supper for themselves, and it was not a 
 little interesting, to one who was not familiar with such 
 scenes, to see them prepare their food. Their supper 
 consisted of fresh salmon, and a species of hazel-nut, 
 which is found in the country in great abundance. 
 Having made a suitable fire, *hey commenced the ope- 
 "ation of cooking their salmon. This was performed in 
 lhe following manner : they all provided themselves 
 with sticks about three feet long, pointed at one end and 
 split at the other. They then apportioned the salmon, 
 each one taking a large piece, and filling it with splinters 
 to prevent its falling to pieces when cooking, and which 
 they fastened with great care, into the forked end of the 
 stick ; then placing themselves around the fire so as to 
 describe a circle, they stuck the pointed end of the stick 
 into the ground a short distance from the fire, inclining 
 the top towards the flames, so as to bring the salmon in 
 contact with the heat, thus forming a kind of pyramid 
 of salmon over the whole fire. One side being cooked, 
 the other was turned to the heat, and speedily the whole 
 was prepared for eating. Stones were then provided 
 for the purpose of cracking nuts, and all being seated on 
 the ground, the eating process commenced. The extreme 
 novelty of their appearance, the nut cracking, the gene- 
 ral merriment, the apparent jokes, ready repartees, and 
 bursts of laughter, were sufficient to have excited the 
 risibilities of even a Roman Catholic priest, hpwever 
 phlegmatic. And certainly a more jovial set of fellows 
 than these sons of nature, I have never seen. They are 
 as untamed as the elk they chase over their mountains ; 
 and feasted upon their fish and nuts with as much seem- 
 ing satisfaction to themselves, as the most fashionable 
 and refined party that ever graced the gay saloon en- 
 joyed while regaling themselves from the most costly 
 viands. 
 Supper being over, we called the attention of the 
 
rotra TO THK UMPQUA. 103 
 
 [ndians, wnile we engaged in our evening devotions. I 
 «ang a hymn, and then we both engaged in prayer, the 
 Indians all kneeling with us, and evidently manifesting a 
 peculiar interest in what was passing before them.' And, 
 thought I, why should they' not feel interested 1 Never 
 before had the death-like silence, which reigned along 
 this valley, been broken by the voice of prayer and 
 praise. The sombre shades of moral darkness, which 
 had ever cast a melancholy gloom upon the people, had 
 never been penetrated by the rays of gospel light. The 
 heralds of mercy who bring glad tidings of good things 
 to those who wander upon the dark mountains, had never 
 before set their feet on these hostile shores. And, while 
 the Indians surrounding us appeared to be sensible of the 
 nature and importance of *»ur visit among them, the 
 circumstances were such a* to create in us feelings of 
 the greatest solicitude. After our devotions were fin- 
 ished, Mr. Lee addressed the Indians through our inter- 
 preter in relation to the objects of our visit, and they 
 listened as to a story calculated to excite the utmost 
 wonder. We all retired in quietness, rested in peace, 
 arose in safety, and proceeding on our way along the 
 widening Umpqua towards the great Pacific ocean, ar- 
 rived at noon among the Indians .at the mouth of the 
 river. 
 
 We found but little land along the river which holds 
 out any inducements to emigrants, the country on both 
 sides as we approached the coast, becoming more and 
 more rocky and mountainous. Whatever the country 
 may be back from the river, it is certain that along the , 
 stream it can never sustain much of a populat ; on. Hills 
 upon hills, and rocks piled upon rocks, characterize al- 
 most the whole distance from the. Umpqua fort to the 
 Pacific ocean. 
 
 On arriving at the coast we found the Indians living 
 in three small villages, the larger being on the southland 
 the other two on the north side of the river. The whole 
 number, as near as we could ascertain, amounted to 
 about two hundred men, women, and children, about 
 on> -third of whom were absint in the mountains, for 
 
104 TOCK TO THK CMPQtTA. 
 
 the purpose of gathering berries. It was thought best 
 by our female guardian and adviser, to pitch our tent 
 some half a mile distant from the larger village on the 
 south side of the river, near which she told us the chiefs 
 and their people would meet us to hold a " talk." 
 
 Though the news of our arrival quickly flew to. all the 
 lodges, yet none of the Indians came near us, until we 
 sent them word that we had come, and desired 10 see 
 them at our tent; then three chiefs and fifty-five of their 
 people, mostly men, came out to see us. Seating +hem 
 selves in the sand in a semicircle in front of the tent, 
 they informed us, through our interpreter, that they 
 were " ready to hear what we had to say." Mr. Lee 
 then addressed them, describing the objects of our visit, 
 and telling them whence we came; how long it took us 
 to perform our voyage from our native land -to their 
 country; that we had many friends at home who desired 
 us not to leave them; that a sense of duty had brought 
 us to their country to tell them about Jesus Christ; that 
 in coming to them, we had been exposed to a thousand 
 dangers, but had been preserved in the midst of them al 
 by the "Great Chief above;" that we had heard much 
 about them, and that we were glad now to be permitted 
 to see them for ourselves, and become acquainted with 
 them. He then inquired whether they approved of our 
 visit, and whether they desired to be instructed. 
 
 After a few moment's consultation among themselves, 
 the chiefs, one after another, arose, and advancing to 
 within six feet of Mr. Lee, addressed him in substance 
 as follows, there being but little difference in their 
 speeches: " Great chief ! we are very much pleased 
 with our lands. We love this world. We wish to live 
 a great while. We very much desire to become old 
 men before we die. It is true, we have lolled many 
 people, but we have never killed any but bad people. 
 Many lies have been told about us. We have been 
 called a bad people, and we are glad that you have come 
 to see us for yourselves. We have seen some white 
 people before, but they came to get our beaver. None 
 ever came before to instruct us. We are glad to see 
 
TOT* TO THE UMPQCA. 10S 
 
 you; we want to learn; we wish to throw away our bad 
 things, and become good.' They spoke very loud, and 
 their gestures were remarkably violent. Sometimes 
 they would rise upon tiptoe, with both hands stretched 
 high above their heads, and then throw themselves 
 forward until their faces almost touched the ground. 
 Returning to their seats in the sand, they told us that 
 they were now prepared to hear us more particularly. 
 
 According to Mr. Lee's request, I stepped out intc 
 an open space and struck into Heber's missionary hymn; 
 and while singing the first verse, they all seated them- 
 selves on the sand, forming three-fourths of a circle 
 around us, and then with the most fixed attention, 
 listened to the remaining part of the hymn. We then 
 joined in prayer, all the Indians kneeling with us, and 
 invoked upon our enterprise the blessing of Almighty 
 God. Though our congregation was totally ignorant of 
 the nature of worship, yet the scene, to us, was deeply 
 affecting.. Never before had they thus bowed, never 
 before had they heard the voice of prayer. We then 
 preached to them the gospel as well as we could in the 
 jargon of the country, giving them an account of the 
 . creation of the world, the fall of man, the advent, suf- 
 ferings, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, to 
 save mankind from sin, from death, and from hell, all of 
 which was interpreted to her people by our female 
 friend. They appeared very solemn, and manifested an 
 ardent desire to understand what was said to them; but 
 we scarcely dared to hope that they understood much, 
 though they .appeared exceedingly interested. Yet we 
 cherished the fond belief that, for the first time in their 
 histqry, a few rays from the Sun of righteousness 
 pierced the gloom of the long and dismal night which 
 had hung around. The chiefs expressed their approba- 
 tion of what they had heard, saying it was all very good, 
 and that they had never heard such things before. They 
 all dispensed, and we prepared and took our supper. 
 
 After dusk they all returned for the purpose, as they 
 told us, of "hearing us talk to God" previous \o our 
 going tc bed. They built a large fire, and seated them 
 
108 TOffR TO THE UMPQBA. 
 
 selves around it I then sang another hymn; afte- 
 which we both engaged in prayer. As they still lingere*. 
 around, Mr. Lee gave them another lesson from the word 
 of the Lord, after which they reluctantly scattered away 
 to their wigwams, leaving us to repose ourselves on our 
 bed of biankets, spread upon the sand. Mr. Lee slept 
 soundly during the night, but the scenes of the preced- 
 ing day, the circumstances of the night, and the fact 
 that we were lying at the mercy of those who had 
 -proved themselves among the most treacherous of sava- 
 ges, produced such an effect upon my nerves, as to 
 destroy all inclination to close my eyes. I repeatedly 
 drew aside the tent cloth, and cast a look around, and 
 in every instance observed that our protectress and her 
 orother, and an Indian who had lived among the whites, 
 but had returned to his people, were keeping up a large j 
 fire in front of our tent, which threw its light back into 
 the dense forest which lay in our rear. Sometimes they 
 were in earnest conversation, then they would pile on 
 the dry sticks until the flame would ascend to the heigh 
 of ten feet, and enable them to distinguish every object 
 within a circle of twenty rods. This they continued 
 during the whole night, neither of them for a moment' 
 attempting to sleep. 
 
 Wednesday morning arrived, none of the Indians 
 naving, to our knowledge, shown any disposition to mo- 
 lest us during the night. After our breakfast was over, 
 knowing that we intended to leave so soon as the tide 
 had risen sufficiently to admit of our passing over the 
 sand bar above, they all collected again and seated 
 themselves on the sand, while we once more offered up 
 our fervent prayers to the " Desire of nations " in their 
 behalf. After praye*, they were again addressed* a few 
 words ; and we were preparing to leave them, when 
 one of the chiefs stood up on his knees, and began to 
 speak. He said he was very glad that we had come to 
 se«.- them ; that their hearts towards us were like our 
 hearts towards them , that he wanted us to continue 
 with them anothei day, and tell them about God ; that 
 they had heard about us, and had been told we were a 
 
TOUK TO THB tTMPQIU. IVl 
 
 oad people ; that they were glad to see us for them 
 selves, and were convinced that what they had heard 
 was a lie ; that they now believed us to be a good people, 
 and that they meant to be good also. We asked them 
 whether they would receive' a man, and use him well, 
 if one were sent to them alone ? They replied, " We 
 will let him come among us ; we will give him food, and 
 will not hurt him, but will do what he says. " When 
 they were informed that probably the next summer one 
 of us would come and visit them again, they were ex- 
 ceedingly well phased, and said, " It is very good." 
 
 Before leaving, we visited their lodges, and ^ne of 
 them presented us with a beaver skin, and the wife of 
 the principal chief gave us a woman's dress, which was 
 made of cedar bark. The bark was strung out fine 
 about eighteen inches long, and woven together at one 
 end, so as to admit of being tied around the person, thus 
 constituting a kind of fringe. Two of these fringes made 
 a complete dress ; one was fastened around the body 
 above the hips, and hung down to the knees ; the other 
 was tied around the neck, and formed a covering for the 
 breast and shoulders ; the arms and lower extremities 
 being left perfectly unencumbered. All the women 
 were dressed in this manner with the exception of our 
 friend, and one who had been the slave of a Frenchman 
 but had run away from her master, and returned to he 
 people. These were dressed somewhat in the style of a 
 Swiss peasant. 
 
 Having fully satisfied ourselves with regard to the 
 number, disposition, and accessibility of the Indians in 
 this solitary region, we prepared to take our leave, and 
 the people all assembled to witness our departure. Giv- 
 ng them a few presents, at nine o'clock, on Wednesday 
 morning, carried forward by the stroke of the Indian 
 oaddie, we were rounding a high bluff situated on the 
 south side of the mouth of the Umpqua river, and form- 
 ing one side of a small bay, in the bosom of which the 
 Indian village we had just left was situated, and which 
 was fast disappearing behind the point of the projecting 
 cliff. Crossing the mouth of the river, which is about 
 
TOUK TO THK UMFtlOA 
 
 one mile wide, we stopped a few moments on the 
 
 orth side to lay in a little provision, and gave oursftlvei 
 «n opportunity to take some observations of the sur- 
 rounding country. The land on both sides cf the mouth 
 of the river presents a most forbidding aspect On the 
 south the mountains extend quite to the waters of the 
 Pacific, and form a shore of the most bold and precipi- 
 tous character. On the north is a low sandy beach ex- 
 ending back from the mouth of the river about three 
 miles, in the form of a triangle, and appearing destitute 
 ff vegetation, except a small growth of cottonwood. 
 
 rom'our brief stay at the place, and our limited obser- 
 /ations, it was impossible for us to form a just estimate 
 of the whole country ; but it appeared to us, that little 
 importance can be attached to this portion of Oregon, 
 viewed with reference to either agricultural or commer- 
 cial pursuits. However, as there is a snug little harboT 
 in the mouth of the river, and a channel across the bar 
 which will admit of the ingress and egress of craft, 
 drawing not more than six or eight feet of water, this 
 will probably be the outlet for the extensive and fertile 
 valley above. < 
 
 Contemplating the probable period when the barbarism 
 of both animate and inanimate nature along this river 
 shall give place to civiliza..on and Christianity, we turned 
 our backs upon the great Pacific, and by the combined 
 assistance of the Indian paddle and the flood-tide, passed 
 rapidly up the river, and at night encamped at the sal- 
 mon fishery. Found the river to be affected by the tide 
 nearly twenty-five miles from its mouth. We ascertained 
 that the Indians at the falls are not of the tribe of those 
 on the coast, though they speak a similar language. 
 
 Spreading our blankets upon a shingle beach, we slept 
 without molestation though surrounded by treacherous 
 savages. Next day we started at an early hour, and 
 though having but fifteen miles to travel, yet on account 
 of the numerous strong rapids we had to ascend, and 
 the portages we had to make, we were till sunset in 
 reaching the fort. We, were again welcomed by the 
 Frenchman, and refreshed with a supper of bread, made 
 
IQ«B TO TAB CMPQCA. 100 
 
 of pounded wheat, and roasted elk beef. During the 
 evening Mr. Goniea came to us considerably excited, and 
 warmly congratulated us on the safe guardianship his 
 wife had exercised over us in our absence. He said 
 tiiat, in all probability, we should have been robbed of 
 all we had, if we had not lost our lives, had it not been 
 for the faithfulness of his wife and her brother. He 
 told us that one of the chiefs of the clan we had visited, 
 was at the fort on our first arrival, and saw us as we 
 came in Learning that we designed to visit his people 
 on the coast, and excited with the utmost fear, he hast- 
 ened aown the river, and reported many evil things 
 about us, intending thereby to instigate the Indians to 
 prevent our going among them. Mr. Lee had brought 
 a fowling piece with him, and had in his possession a 
 patent shot pouch. This was the thing that had alarmed" 
 the chief. One story he told was that we had brought 
 medicine in a bag that Mr. Lee wore on his neck, for the 
 purpose of killing them all off; and, that if we were 
 permitted to come among them, the fatal bag would be 
 opened, and they would all be destroyed. This exaspe- 
 rated many of them, and Goniea's wife told him that we 
 were in great danger the night we slept on the coast ; 
 that the Indians were lurking about us during the whole 
 night, seeking an opportunity, when it was dark around 
 our tent, to attack us ; but that she and her brother kept 
 a constant watch over us until morning. This explained 
 to me the circumstances of that night, already described. 
 But be this as it may, we were not, at the time, sensible 
 that we were particularly exposed ; and we felt our- 
 selves safe under the protection of our Heavenly Father. 
 Notwithstanding the seeming favor with which we 
 were received among them, the Indians along this river, 
 and especially those on the coast, have often proved to 
 be among the most treacherous of savages, and none 
 have ever been among them, but have learned that they 
 are capable of practising the most consummate dupli- 
 city. A story told by the gentlemen of the Hudson's 
 Bay Company, concerning what transpired on this river, 
 clearly illustrates the treachery and cruelty of these 
 
110 TOBK TO THE UMPQUA. 
 
 savages, as well as the perilous adventures of the Oregon 
 mountaineers. 
 
 A company of fur hunters, known by the name of the 
 Smith, Sublette & Jackson Company, was formed on 
 the frontiers of civilization, and the plan proposed to 
 accomplish their object was, to divide the company be- 
 twixt the three leaders,, and the three portions to sepa- 
 rate, each taking a given quantity of the Indian territory 
 to explore. In this division, Smith was to take the 
 country extending from the Platte river, by the way of 
 Santa Fe, to California ; thence turn north along the 
 Pacific ocean, as far as the Columbia river, and thence 
 back into the interior to join the other partners of the 
 company. 
 
 -, The country was in its wildest state, but few white 
 men having ever passed through it. But nothing daunted, 
 Smith and his company marched through to California, 
 and thence along the coast, north, as far as the Umpqua 
 river, collecting in their progress all the valuable furs 
 they could procure, until they had loaded several "pack 
 animals" with the precious burden. On arriving here 
 they encamped on the border of the river, near the 
 place where they intended to cross, but on examination, 
 found that it would be dangerous, if not impossible, to 
 effect the passage of the river at that place. Accord- 
 ingly, Smith took one of his men and proceeded up tne 
 river on foot, for the purpose of finding a better place 
 to cross. In his absence the Indians, instigated by one 
 of the savage looking chiefs whom we saw at the mouth 
 of the river, rushed upon the party with their muskets, 
 bows and arrows, tomahawks and scalping knives, and 
 commenced the work of death. From the apparent 
 kindness of the Indians previously, the party had been 
 thrown entirely off their guard, and consequently were 
 •mmediately overpowered by their ferocious enemies, 
 and but one out of the twelve in camp, escaped from 
 the cruel massacre. Scarcely knowing which way he 
 fled, this one fell in with Smith, who was on his return 
 to the camp, and who received from the survivor the 
 shocking account Of the murder of eleven of his com 
 
TOUR TO THE UMrQ.UA. , 111 
 
 rades. Smith, seeing that all was lost, resolved upon 
 attempting nothing further than to do his best to secure 
 his own personal safety, with that of his surviving com- 
 panions, the Indians having secured all the fur, horses, 
 mules, Ijaggage, and every thing the company had. The 
 three immediately crossed the river, and made the best 
 of their way through a savage and inhospitable country 
 towards Vancouver, where, after traveling between- two 
 and three hundred miles, and suffering the greatest de- 
 privations, they finally arrived in safety. 
 
 Rehearsing the story of their wonderful escape and 
 subsequent sufferings, to the members of the Hudson's 
 Bay Company, the utmost sympathy was excited in their 
 Dehalf, and a strong party was immediately fitted out to 
 go and rescue the property from the savage robbers, and 
 restore it to its surviving owners. The vigor and per- 
 severance of this party, were equal to the promptitude 
 with which it was fitted out. They proceeded to the 
 scene of blood, and after committing the mangled bodies 
 of Smith's murdered companions to the grave, compelled 
 the Indians to relinquish the property they had taken, 
 spread terror through the tribe, and returned in triumph 
 to Vancouver. All this labor and expense were bestowed 
 oy the company gratuitously, and Smith and his friends, 
 while at Vancouver, were fed and clothed without money 
 and without price. In addition to this, Governor Simp- 
 son, who, at that time, was at Vancouver, proposed to 
 take Smith and all his furs to England, where, he could 
 avail himself of the advantages of the London market, 
 and obtain a higher price ; but Smith replied that he 
 had already been laid under too many obligations by the 
 company, and could not consent to receive this last prof- 
 fered favor. Accordingly he sold his furs to the com- 
 pany and went into the interior, where he found Sublette 
 conflicting in his trade with the interests of the company, 
 and induced him to leave that quarter. He then went 
 into the country of the Colorado, and collected conside- 
 rable property in furs and peltries ; but in crossing that 
 river, he was again defeated by the Indians, and lost all. 
 Subsequently, he returned to St Louis, and fitted out an 
 
119 VOVK TO THB UMTQVA. 
 
 expedition to Sante Fe. But this was his last journey 
 among hostile tribes. Surrounded by the savage horde 
 that beset his path, he was again attacked by his relent- 
 less foe, and miserably perished. 
 
 Having listened to the story of the ill-fated Smith, we 
 prepared to continue our exploring tour farther into 
 the interior, and up the valley of the Umpqua river. , 
 Through the assistance of Mr. Goniea, we procured an 
 Indian guide of the Umpqua tribe, whom the French 
 had designated by the name of " We- We," and who well 
 understood the jargon of the country, and could officiate 
 as our interpreter. The forenoon of Friday was spent 
 n finding our horses, and preparing our pack. All being 
 ready, betwixt twelve and one o'clock we started, with 
 our guide in advance. Passing over a number of high 
 'hills, and fording the Umpqua three times, where the 
 bottom was very rocky and the water up to our horses' 
 backs, we camped at night on the bank of a small rivulet, 
 under the shelter of a grove of fir. We had traveled 
 about twenty miles. The country traversed that day, 
 though mountainous, is tolerably well adapted to grazing 
 purposes, the land on the hills, and in many of the valleys, 
 being covered with a spontaneous growth of the most 
 nutritious grass. The timber grows less and less abun- 
 dant as we proceed up the river; some of the fir trees, 
 however, are most magnificent. We measured one with, 
 our lasso as high up as we could reach, and found it to 
 be thirty-six feet in, circumference. We judged it to he 
 three hundred feet high. In the lowest valleys next the 
 streams, grows a kind of timber, the like of which I 
 have never seen in any other country. It appears to 
 be of the laurel family, and is so strongly scented, that 
 the air in the groves where it is found, is strongly im- 
 pregnated with its aromatic odors. The elk abound in 
 this country, and afford a fruitful source whence the 
 Indians derive a subsistence. No Indians appeared 
 during the first day. , 
 
 .Saturday, 29th. Continued our toilsome way ever 
 mountains, and through valleys similar to those alreao/ 
 described, and at noon arrived at the head quarters of 
 
TOUR TO THE UltfPQVA. US 
 
 i 
 
 that portion of the Indians of this valley, distinguished 
 by the name of the river. Here the head chief of the 
 Umpquas has fixed a temporary abode, and here one of 
 those circumstances recently transpired, which, though 
 of common occurrence in heathen countries, where 
 the vicious propensities of depraved human nature are 
 permitted to revel uncontrolled, are sufficient to freeze 
 the heart's blood, even to contemplate at a distance. It 
 is as follows: A report came to the ears of the chief of 
 the Umpquas, that his wife had been guilty of infidelity 
 towards her husband. This so enraged him, that, with- 
 out knowing whether the report was true or false, he 
 seized his musket, and went directly to the lodge where 
 his wife was sitting, and deliberately shot her through 
 the heart. 
 
 Soon after our arrival on the side of the river oppo- 
 site to the village, this chief, with the few men that were 
 with him, came over to see us. He delivered* a long 
 speech, which was interpreted to us by " We- We," in 
 making which, one of his first objects seemed to be to 
 justify the murder of his wife, and then to express his 
 gratitude that christian teachers had come among them. 
 While he was haranguing us, my attention was caught 
 away from his speech by a terrible bu?st of heathen 
 passions, which took place on the other side of the river, 
 among the lodges. In the absence of the men, the 
 women had a regular fight, scratching and biting one 
 another, and tearing each other's hair, and squalling 
 most frightfully. So tremendous was the explosionthat 
 even the chief paused in the midst of his address, and 
 significantly remarked, "our women axe hias masicha ;'' 
 (very bad.) Such were the indications here, that we 
 came to the conclusion that the sooner we were out of 
 the place the better it would be for us, and so soon as 
 we had taken a little refreshment from our scanty stores, 
 we told our guide that we were ready to proceed; but 
 he positively refused to go any farther that day, saying 
 that it would be using his people very ill, and that the 
 chief would be very angry with us, if we did not stop 
 and sleep with them one night The contention became 
 5* 
 
114 TOUR TO THE UMPQUA. 
 
 quite warm, and we began to consider ourselves in rathe* 
 critical circumstances. If abandoned by our guide, i 
 was extremely doubtful whether we could find our way 
 back to the fort, or forward to the great valley of the 
 Umpqua. The whole country was rough and mountain- 
 ous, and there was no visible trail but a small portion of 
 the way. 
 
 But with all these difficulties, we showed that we were 
 fixed in our resolutions to leave this suspicious horde of 
 savages before darkness should favor them in the execu- 
 tion of any treacherous designs which they might enter- 
 tain towards us. Discovering that we were ready to 
 mount our horses, We- We became more pliable, and 
 said that he would proceed with us, on condition that we 
 would pay him an extra shirt, we having at first given 
 him a shirt and a pair of pantaloons. Mr. Lee said he 
 would give him no more, but, to get rid of the difficulty, 
 I told We-We that if he would go, I would give him the 
 additional shirt so soon as we should reach the great 
 valley. Turning to his people, We-We addressed them 
 a few words in the Umpqua language, and then told us 
 he was ready to go. Accordingly, we left this group of 
 wretched beings about three o'clock, p. m. ; and galloped 
 swiftly over a little plain, towards a high mountain. 
 Three hours' hard labor in ascending and descending^ 
 brought us to the foot of the mountain on the opposite 
 side, and passing through a dense thicket, we found 
 ourselves again on the bank of the river. We-We 
 brought out a well known Indian "whoop," and was 
 answered by another Indian, just below us, on the river. 
 Immediately four Indians came in sight, with a canoe, 
 and We-We told us we had better unpack our horses, 
 and put all our things in a canoe to be taken up the river, 
 a few miles beyond a place where the pass was very 
 rocky, narrow, and dangerous. But the strange conauct 
 of the Indians we had left, had excited our suspicions; 
 and supposing that those in the canoe were some of the 
 same party whom We-We had, perhaps, caused to come 
 ap the river for no good purpose, we resolved to keep 
 what we had under our own eye as long as we could 
 
TOOK TO THE UMPQCA. lit 
 
 We told the guide that we should keep our things ou 
 our horses' backs. We- We hung his head, and told us 
 we would be sorry for it before we got through. We 
 proceeded, but found it as We-We had forewarned us. 
 Our trail lay along a frightful precipice which towered 
 far above us, and extended far below us, and in some 
 places was so narrow and broken that a miss-step would 
 have precipitated us headlong *>n the rocks below, or 
 into the rushing waters of the Umpqua. In one instance 
 my own horse fell fr ( om ten to fifteen feet down the rocks, 
 but at length succeeded in gaining the trail without 
 receiving much injury. 
 
 But we were not destined to make the pass, without 
 considerable difficulty. In passing the last dangerous 
 point, "old Pomp, " our pack horse, lost his footing, ana 
 rolling down a rocky steep of some thirty feet, went 
 backwards into the Umpqtia river. We had fastened 
 around his neck a long lasso, and the end of it remaining 
 on shore, we succeeded, by drawing it around a tree, in 
 raising and keeping his head above the water until We- 
 We had relieved him of his pack. While We-We was 
 at work among the rocks, where the water was up to 
 his neck, trying to relieve 4he horse of his burden, he 
 told us that we might have saved ourselves that difficulty 
 if we had trusted to the honesty of an Indian ; and we 
 ourselves began to suspect that our fears had been quite 
 groundless. It required our utmost efforts to keep the 
 horse from drowning ; but after we had relieved him of 
 his load, he managed himself a little better, and finding a 
 place which was not quite so steep as the one where he 
 entered the river, we succeeded, at that point, in getting 
 him on the. rocky shore. All our bedding, provisions, 
 &.c, were thoroughly soaked ; but gathering up what 
 was not spoiled, and putting some on the horses, and 
 carrying some on our own shoulders, we started on, 
 being informed by the guide, that it was not far to a fine 
 prairie. Night began to set in, and as we left thg scene 
 of our disaster, we entered a dense forest of fir, and the 
 gloom continued to thicken around us until we were en- 
 veloped in total darkness. We were leading our animal. 
 
IK TOUR TO THE CMFQVA. 
 
 by the bridle, and feeling our way among the trees, in 
 the midst of darkness, so dense that it was impossible to 
 see a white horse, though within a foot of one's nose, 
 when we became so entangled among the logs, ravines, 
 and brush, that we found it was impossible to go either 
 forwards or backwards, to the right or to the left, and 
 oolloquising a little through the darkness, we came to 
 ihe conclusion to tie ouii horses to the trees, and make 
 the best of the night we could. Having a few matches 
 in my pocket, and the leaves and limbs under my feet 
 Deing perfectly dry, I soon had the forest illuminated; 
 and then was disclosed to our view a most horrible places 
 We sought for a spot on which to sleep, but could find 
 none level and large enough to stretch ourselves upon. 
 We must either bend over the top of a knoll, or double 
 up in a ravine, or remain in a sitting or standing posture. 
 We preferred the second, so wrapping ourselves in our 
 wet blankets and rolling into a hollow, we tried to com- 
 pose ourselves to sleep ; but the cracking of limbs by 
 the tramp of our horses,, the howling of wolves, and the 
 screech of an owl, frequently disturbed our repose. The 
 morang sun, however, enabled us so to adjust our rather 
 disarranged affairs that we could, quite comfortably, 
 prosecute our journey. Next day was Sabbath, but we 
 could not remain where we were, and we proceeded 
 on a few miles, and came to a band of about thirty of 
 the Umpquas, with whom we tarried for several hours. 
 They behaved themselves quite orderly, and were anx- 
 ious to render us all the assistance in their power. We 
 preached the gospel to them as well as we were able, 
 and they said they wanted very much to have a mission- 
 ary come among them. Not desiring to sleep in the 
 v«inity of their lodge, we made signs of wishing to " 
 *ave, and the old men came around us, of whom mere/ 
 were several, and patting us on the shoulders, seemed 
 to express great attachment. But we concluded that 
 their love was not so ardent as to render it desirable, on 
 our part, to stop with them over night, and, as our pro- 
 vision was growing scarce, we decided to set our faces 
 towards the Wallamette valley. Gathering up he wreck 
 
TOUR TO THE UMPQUA. 119 
 
 i 
 
 »f our pack, we again mounted, and traveling about 
 twelve miles, encamped on the bank of a beautiful rivu- 
 let which is one of the tributaries of the Umpqua. We 
 traveled during the whole day the distance of* twenty- 
 five miles, over as fine a country as can be" found in any 
 part of the world. An agreeable variety of hills, plains, 
 and groves of pine, fir, and oak, constituted scenery of 
 the most picturesque beauty, and the eye was never 
 weary in gazing upon the ever varying ^picture. In ad- 
 dition to this, the foil is good, the grass abundant, and 
 the country well watered ; but as we proceeded up the 
 valley of the Umpqua, the timber became scarce^ A 
 few pine on the hills, with a few scattering oak^ are the 
 principal kinds. Though the country is now destitute 
 of inhabitants, except the wild beasts, and a few savages 
 as wild as they, yet the day is not far distant, when it 
 will be teeming with a civilized and ahristian people. 
 
 The Indians .inhabiting the Umpqua valley, from the 
 Pacific ocean one hundred miles into the interior, are 
 very few. All that we, could find, or get any satisfac- 
 tory evidence as now in existence, did not exceed three 
 hundred and seventy-five souls. These live in several 
 different clans, and speak two distinct languages. They 
 would be favorable towards the establishment of a mis- 
 sion in their country, but seem to think that the greatest 
 benefit it would confer on them, would be to enable them 
 to sell their beaver and deer-skins for a higher price. 
 Temporal good is the sole object they would have in 
 view. The most of them, residing as they do on the 
 coast, are almost inaccessible, and the establishment and 
 support of a mission among them, would be attended 
 with immense expense. The best information" we could 
 obtain, from the Indians and others, led us to the conclu- 
 sion that the time doubtless has been when the Indians 
 of this valley were vastly more numerous than at present 
 The Umpqua tribe, but a few years ago numbering seve- 
 ral hundred, by disease and their family wars has been 
 reduced to less than seventy-five souls. Under the im- 
 pression that the doom of extinction is suspended over 
 his wretched race, and 4 ,that the hand of Providence is 
 
118 VOOTt TO THB UMPQITA. 
 
 removing them to give place to a people more worthy 
 of this beautiful and fertile country, we arrived at the 
 place of our encampment, and found ourselves again on 
 the great California trail. 
 
 Having fulfilled his engagement in bringing us around 
 to this trail, our guide left us to return to his people. 
 
 Monday, September 1st. We quickened our pace 
 through a country well adapted to agricultural purposes^ 
 End abounding in every variety of scenery ; aad at nooh^ 
 having traveled twenty-five miles, we stopped for dinner 
 on Elk river, at the place where, on going out, we left 
 thr California trail. In the afternoon, we again passed 
 over the Elk mountain, and found that the fire was still 
 raging with increasing violence. A vast quantity of the 
 large fir and cedar timber, had been burned "down, and 
 in some places the trail was so blockaded with fallen 
 trees, that it was almost impossible to proceed; while 
 now and then we passed a giant cedar, or a mammoth 
 fir, through whose trunk the fire had made a passage, 
 and was still flaming like an oven. Every few moments 
 these majestic spars would come " cracking, crashing 
 and thundering" to the ground ; but while the fire was 
 thus robbing the mountain of its glory, we pushed on 
 over its desolated ridges, and at sun-down arrived on a 
 little prairie at its base, where we made our encampment 
 Several times during the night we were awakened by 
 the crash of the falling timber, on the. mountain, which 
 sometimes produced a noise similar to that of distant 
 thunder. 
 
 Tuesday, 2d. Homeward bound, at noon we arrived 
 in the Wallamette valley, where, according to engage- 
 ment, we met the Callapooah chief. He had collected 
 about sixty of his people, and said that he had about 
 forty more. We remained with them four hours, and 
 endeavored to preach to them " Jesus and the resurrec-J 
 tion. " Many of them were sick, and they appeared 
 wretched beyond description. Our bowels of compassion 
 yearned over them, but it was not in our power to help 
 them. Commending them to God, at four, p. m., we 
 pursued our way ; but finding no water we did not 
 
TOUR TO THE PMPQUA. 119 
 
 camp till eleven o'clock at night. We were then obliged 
 to strip our horses on the open prairie, and turn them 
 loose without water, and lay ourselves down upon our 
 blanlets with our lips parched with thirst. Next morn- 
 ing, however, we found ourselves, like Hagar in the 
 desert, within a short distance of good water. Here I 
 roasted a duck for our breakfast,' which the Callapooah 
 chief had given us, and which we ate with neither bread 
 nor sauce ; but a cup of coffee, that " sine qua non " for 
 prairie traveling, washed it down, and on the. strength 
 of it,» we traveled forty miles, during the day, over a 
 country of surpassing loveliness, on account of its en- 
 chanting scenery and amazing fertility; Surely, thought 
 I, infinite skill has here been employed, in fitting up a 
 country which requires nothing more than a population 
 under the influence of the religion of Christ, to rendei 
 it a perfect paradise. The last night we encamped within 
 fifteen miles of 'our families and friends, and the next 
 day, Thursday, the 4th, we arrived at home in safety, 
 but found our families all prostrate with the ague and 
 fever. Having been constantly in a healthy exercise in 
 our absence, we returned in the enjoyment of good 
 health, and were consequently able to render ourselvet 
 •ireful in taking care of the sick. 
 
CHAPTER VH. 
 
 Tou U VancouTer — Reception, at the fort — Preaching in the hail — B wrilMI 
 completed — Expedient to keep warm — Cold weather — Difficult navigation — 
 The rapids — Forest encampment — Strange visitor — Affecting intelligence — 
 Death of Rev. James Olley — My Mohican guest — Return home — Meeting — 
 Fruitless attempt to recover a dead body. 
 
 December 7th 1842. Left the Wallamette for Van- 
 couver, for the purpose of procuring supplies for the 
 Oregon Mission School, accompanied by five Indian 
 boys. 
 
 Proceeded on horse-back about twenty-five miles to a 
 place on the Wallamette river, called, by the French, 
 "La Butte," this being the most convenient place to 
 land our supplies. Here, after having slept beneath the 
 wide spreading branches of a large fir tree, we took the 
 canoe which is kept by the mission above the falls of the 
 Wallamette, for the purpose of transporting goods up 
 and down the river, and proceeded to "Turn Water, " 
 that is, the falls. We left our canoe above the portage, 
 and taking a boat provided for us by Mr. Abernethy, 
 the mission steward, we 6ontinued on about fifteen miles 
 below the falls, and encamped one hour after sundown, 
 having rowed our canoe and boat during the day the 
 distance of ^hirty-five miles. 
 
 The night was very cold, but collecting a large quan- 
 tity of fuel, we were able to keep up a good fire during 
 the night, and in this manner kept ourselves comfortably 
 warm. Started the next morning as soon as it was day, 
 and, though for six miles we had to contend with the, 
 strong current of the Columbia, we arrived at Vancouver 
 at two o'clock, p. m. I went directly to the fort, and 
 had an interview with James Douglass, Esq., one of the 
 
VOVft TO VANCOUVER. 14 
 
 commandants of the place, and ascertained that I should 
 be able to accomplish my business early on Monday 
 morning. I was received with^all that courtesy and 
 hospitality which usually characterize the gentlemen of 
 the Hudson's Bay Company. It was Saturday, and in 
 the evening I received a respectful invitation from Mr. 
 Douglass, to preach in the hall, the following day. Ac- 
 cordingly, after the usual church service was read, I 
 endeavored to explain and enforce the inquiry of the 
 jailer — " What must I do to be saved 1 " 
 
 On Monday morning, the 11th, having completed my 
 business, and prepared to return, we proceeded to our 
 boat, and found the Columbia river filled with ice. The 
 weather had been increasingly cold, and the ice came 
 down the river in large fields, and threatened to put a 
 stop, for the time being, to the navigation of the stream 
 "However, it had not yet become very hard, and though 
 there was some danger in the attempt, yet we launched 
 forth into the stream, and breaking our way through the 
 ice with our setting poles, we at length succeeded in 
 getting safely into the mouth of the Wallamette. 
 
 This river being clear from ice, we proceeded up 
 about seven miles, and encamped under a high bluff, 
 which sheltered us from the piercing winds from the 
 north-east. The ground being frozen, the weather ex- 
 ceedingly cold, and, withal, a scarcity of bedding, I took 
 the following precaution to ensure a comfortable night : 
 I built a large fire where I designed to make my bed, 
 and afte/ the earth became thoroughly warmed and 
 dried, I removed the fire a little distance, and plucking 
 some fir boughs, threw them upon the heated earth : 
 then spreading my buffalo skin upon the boughs, I lay 
 down upon it, and with a couple of blankets over me, 
 slept comfortably during the night. 
 
 Next day at noon, we arrived at the falls, and on 
 Wednesday, the 13th, made our portage. At two, p. 
 m., we proceeded up the rapids above the falls, which, 
 at that season of the year, are very difficult of ascent. 
 They are ascended by cordeling, and it is frequently 
 necessary to work for hours in the waW among the 
 
123 VOCE TO VANCOUTEK. . 
 
 rocks, in order to get up one boat load, an exercise any 
 thing but agreeable when the mercury is nearly down tc 
 zero. We succeeded, however, with much toiling, and 
 a severe wetting, in reaching the deep water above the 
 rapids, without any serious accident, and at night en- 
 camped seven miles above the falls, in a dense forest of 
 fir trees. I had preserved a few matches from getting 
 wet,, and succeeded, after awhile, in striking up a good 
 fire, though the wood where we were -encamped was 
 very wet. I cooked me a supper of fresh salmon, not 
 forgetting to make a good cup of tea; and after partak- 
 ing of my humble repast from my ground table, with 
 that peculiar relish which good health and hard labor 
 always give to wholesome food, and offering up a tribute 
 of thanksgiving to Providence for the blessings of the 
 past, and invoking a continuance of his favors, I spread 
 my skins and blankets upon the ground, and reclined 
 myself to rest. 
 
 As I lay stretched upon my bed of skins before the 
 fire, musing upon the good providence of God, which 
 had been manifested in our preservation amid the dan- 
 gers to which we had been exposed in ascending the 
 fearful rapids, I was startled by the voice of a man from 
 the river below us, inquiring, "What boat is that? I 
 replied, it belongs to the Oregon mission. " Then," said 
 he, " I will come ashore." It was ten o'clock at night, 
 and it was quite an uncommon thing for boats to remain 
 upon the river to so late an hour. Consequently, I felt 
 quite solicitous to know who the stranger might be. The 
 sound of his oars, as they fell upon the water, grew 
 louder and louder ^.s he approached the shore, and in a 
 few minutes he was along side of our boat, to which he 
 fastened his small skiff. Clambering up the precipitous 
 bank of the river through the thick underbrush, the light 
 of our fire relieved me of some anxiety, as it shone upon 
 the face of a " half-breed " Indian, direct from the place 
 where I resided, which was forty miles above. 
 
 This half-breed was an educated man, and a sketch of 
 his history may be found below. After giving me *he 
 gratifying intelligence that mv own family were well be 
 
TOini TO VANCOUVER. 138 
 
 inquired if I had heard the sad news, " What newsf 
 said I, "I have lieard nothing sad," " "Then," said he, 
 " I am the bearer of intelligence concerning the most 
 afflicting event that has ever transpired in our settle- 
 ment: the R&d.. James Olley is no more." Intelligence 
 more unexpected could scarcely have been communica- 
 ted; and when the circumstances of the removal of Mr. 
 Olley from this stage of action were related, the effect 
 upon my mind was quite overpowering. 
 
 Mr. Olley was a local preacher in the Oregon mission, 
 and sailed frbrn New York iri the fall of 1839, with the 
 large reinforcement in the ship Lausanne. He was a 
 carpenter by trade, and after his arrival in Oregon, con- 
 tinued to serve the mission in that capacity, as he was 
 able. He was making preparations to build himself a 
 \ house, and desiring some better lumber than any he could 
 obtain in the vicinity of the mission for the' purpose of 
 making window sash, he had employed a young man by 
 the name of Eiken to accompany him up the Wallamette 
 river about twenty miles, where there was pine timber, 
 with the design of procuring a couple of logs and run- 
 ning them down the river to the mission saw-mill, where 
 they could be cut into boards to suit his purpose. He 
 proceeded to the pinery, and cutting two small sized logs 
 rolled them into the water, but found that they were so 
 heavy they would not float. He had designed to take 
 them in tow, but finding that they would sink to the 
 bottom, he resolved upon this expedient, to raise them 
 to the surface, and lash a log to each side of his canoe. 
 All being prepared they entered the canoe thus encum- 
 bered and committed themselves to the rapid and 
 treacherous current of Wallamette river. The weather 
 was exceedingly cold^ as it had been for a number of 
 weeks previously, and the water in the river coming 
 down from the snowy mountains of the east, was as cold 
 as the ice itself. 
 
 As there had been but little rain during the fall, the 
 river was not high, but there are places in it at all stages 
 of the water, which are very rapid, and it requires great 
 skill and dexterity to run them in safety even with ac 
 
l24 TO0B TO VANCODVE*. 
 
 empty canoe. However, they proceeded down the 
 current about ten rmles, without accident, Mr. Eiken 
 being in the stern, and Mr. Olley in the bow of the 
 canoe, when they came to one of the fearful rapids with 
 which the river abounds. At this place is a ledge of 
 rocks extending across the bed of the stream, which 
 rises out of the water in one place, forming a small 
 island. The rapid commences a short distance above 
 this ledge, and where the water breaks over the rocks it 
 becomes exceedingly violent. Neither Mr. Olley nor 
 Eiken had ever passed up or .down this part of the river, 
 consequently they were entirely ignorant of the dangers 
 of the place; but there was no alternative, they were 
 already in the strength of the current, and to make the 
 shore on either side was impossible. Consequently they 
 were carried with great violence on the rocks about 
 fifteen yards from the little island, and about forty yards 
 from the opposite shore. The bow of the canoe and logs 
 first struck the rocks, and the stern swung so violently 
 down that Eiken was thrown clear from the canoe into 
 the strongest part of the current. But, being young, 
 vigorous and active, he succeeded in making the shore 
 about three hundred yards below, but he was so much 
 exhausted through exertion, and benumbed by the cold, 
 that when he reached the shore he was scarcely able to 
 move; and while struggling in the icy water just before 
 reaching the place where he could gain a foothold on the 
 bottom, he was on the point of yielding to the fury of 
 the current, and giving himself up for lost. But he 
 escaped to tell a more solemn tale concerning the fate of 
 his comrade. As soon as Eiken possibly could, he returned 
 to the place opposite where the canoe and logs struck. 
 and observed that Mr. Olley, having held fast to the raft, 
 and now being on one of the logs, was looking round as 
 if to contrive what course to pursue. 
 
 He called out to him and inquired, " what are you 
 going to do?" Mr. Olley made no reply. Probably 
 from the noise of the water rushing over the rocks, he 
 did not hear him. Eiken thought Re might have been 
 bewildered. He directly sat down on the og and pulled 
 
TOVS TO TAlfCOVTHR. 19S 
 
 off his shoes and stockings, and threw them into the 
 river, keeping on his pantaloons, coat and cap. He then 
 deliberately plunged himself into the stream, and was 
 carried violently down the dashing current Having 
 learned to swim in his youth, he kept his head above the 
 water for some time, and appeared to be nearing the 
 shore. Eiken pursued him down as fast as he could, 
 but could not keep up with him, such was the rapidity of 
 the current. As he was borne downward a large log 
 which extended into the stream, hid him from Bpcen's 
 view. Previously to this, his motion in the water be- 
 came more irregular, and he appeared to have turned 
 himself on lis back, and to have thrown up his hands 
 as in the attitude of prayer, or calling for help. He had 
 then doubtless given up all hopes of making the shore, 
 and was committing himself into the hands of his God. 
 Be this as it may, when Eiken succeeded in getting 
 round the log so that he could command a view of the 
 river below, our beloved associate, friend, and father, 
 nad passed forever from the view of mortals. 
 
 These facts coming to my ears under the circumstan- 
 ces already described, for awhile weighed down my 
 spirits, but a few hours of refreshing slumber after 
 midnight, quieted my nerves, and the next morning found 
 me prepared to resume my toils and exposures. 
 
 My visitor in camp, continued with me for a couple of 
 hours, and after refreshing himself from my almost ex- 
 hausted stores, observed that he was in a great hurry to 
 get down to the mouth of the Columbia river to secure 
 a piece of land which still remained unoccupied, and this 
 explained his running in the night. He had been in the 
 country about two years, and as there had been ma/iy 
 reports in circulation concerning him, I resolved to avail 
 myself of the opportunity thus afforded me to obtain 
 from himself some facts in relation to his history. 
 
 " I once, " said he, " saw a book which was entitled, 
 1 The la?t of the Mohicans ; ' but I could tell the author 
 a different story from that. " In answer to my inquiries 
 I learnec from him the following particulars. He was 
 oorn in New England, 'and his father being a whit© 
 
126 TOUR TO VANCOUVER. 
 
 man, he was therefore a proper yankee. His mother 
 was an Indian woman, a relic of the Mohican tribe, and 
 he was therefore a Mohican. He grew up to manhood 
 in company with a brother of his, received i tolerably 
 good English education, and was known by the name of 
 J. L. M. Cooper. He and his brother, sick of the pre- 
 judices existing against them in their own country, re- 
 solved upon going to sea. They accordingly shipped on 
 board a trading vessel bound to the Pacific, and after a 
 voykge of several months, found themselves collecting 
 Spanish hides, on the coast of California. Not liking the 
 business very well, and finding themselves in a country 
 where they would like to remain, they resolved, when 
 the vessel was about to leave, to desert her, and take up 
 -heir residence in California. They succeeded in their 
 designs, but had not been long in the country before J. 
 L. M. Cooper found himself involved in serious difficul- 
 ties with the Californians. He treated some of them 
 roughly, and they accused him also of using too great 
 liberties with their property, particularly their horses, 
 and finally became so enraged against him as to resolve 
 upon taking his life. There was a Spaniard in particular, 
 who, he believed, would take the first opportunity to 
 carry this threat into execution. He accordingly secre- 
 ted himself in a jungle, where his wants were supplied 
 by his friends, and where he designed to wait until a 
 company of trappers and hunters belonging to the Hud- 
 son's Bay Company, then in California, should start 
 across the country for the Columbia river. By joining 
 this company he hoped to escape the vengeance of the 
 Spaniards. Betrayed by one in whom he had placed? 
 confidence, he would have lost his life but for a double 
 betrayal. His place of concealment had been discovered 
 by his determined foe, and the night fixed upon in which 
 he was to die. In his turn Cooper's enemy was betrayed, 
 and Cooper was informed that on a certain night he must 
 prepare for a deadly encounter. 
 
 Thie night arrived ; Cooper built a large fire ; made 
 up the form of a man ; put his cap on his head, and laid 
 it down before the fire as if to sleep. He had loaded 
 
TOVB TO VANCOCTVB*. 127 
 
 his unerring rifle during .he day, and examining it a little 
 by the light of the fire to see that the percussion cap 
 was in perfect order, he retreated a few steps from the 
 fire, and hid himself in a place he had prepared for that 
 purpose, in a dense thicket. At length he heard the 
 stealthy footsteps of the vengeful Spaniard, as he cau- 
 tiously approached his victim, whom he supposed he saw 
 stretched in sleep before the fire. The Spaniard cast 
 his dark eye along his rifle several times, and then woulc 
 venture a little nearer, to make a surer aim. At length, 
 click, crack, bang! went the rifle, and the report seemed 
 to linger long amid the darkness of the night, and three 
 balls had pierced the slumbering image before the fire. 
 At this moment Cooper stepped out from his conceal- 
 ment ; brought his rifle deliberately to his face, and the 
 report rising upon the midnight air, the Spaniard was in 
 eternity. The ball had pierced his heart. 
 
 The company of hunters were already scores of miles 
 on their way to Oregon, and Cooper, securing one of 
 the best horses he could find, perhaps without rendering 
 an equivalent, soon placed himself beyond ,the reach of 
 his enemies, on the south side of the Snowy mountains. 
 This is Cooper's version of the story. Another is this : 
 that he deliberately murdered a Spaniard in a gambling 
 affray, and then escaped from California with the com- 
 pany above mentioned, upon a stolen horse. Be this as 
 it may, the hour of midnight had arrived when my Mo- 
 hican guest had flnished his story, and then rising from 
 the ground, he buckled his belt, from which dangled a 
 large butcher-knife, a little tighter around him, and 
 thanking me for his supper, said, " I must go. " Splash, 
 splash, splash, went the oars, as he glided away from 
 the shore, and was lost amidst the surrounding dark- 
 ness. 
 
 On Thursday; the 14th, arrived in safety at "La 
 Butte, " and landed our goods. I sent back the Indian 
 boys with the canoe to the falls, to get a load of salmon 
 and molasses, remaining myself with the goods over 
 night, and sleeping between two large roots of a fii 
 tree. 
 
188 TOUR TO VANCOUVBft. 
 
 On Friday, according to arrangement, a team was 
 «ent to meet me at the Butte to receive the goods, and 
 a horse to convey me home, where I arrived in safety 
 at nine o'clock in the evening, after an absence of eight 
 days. Found my family in good health, but the neigh- 
 borhood wore a gloomy aspect. One of its prominent 
 members, had, in a most afflicting manner, been called 
 away, and all appeared to mourn, but not without hope 
 
 Sunday, 17th. Preached to a number of the mission 
 aries and settlers, from the words of the Evangelist, 
 •'And beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save < 
 me. " 
 
 On Monday, the 18th, in company with. Rev. Jason 
 Lee, procured a canoe, and a number of persons to assist 
 in rowing it, and about sundown started up the river for 
 the purpose of examining the place where the sad catas- 
 trophe, before related, transpired, and of searching for 
 the body of our friend and brother Olley. We proceeded . 
 up the river about two miles and encamped for the night 
 Next morning continued slowly up the strong current, 
 examining every nook, corner, and place where we sup- 
 posed it to be possible for a body to lodge, and were 
 encouraged to believe that we should succeed from find- 
 ing one Mackinaw blanket, .two coats, one bear-skin, and 
 one paddle, all of which belonged to Mr. Eiken. At 
 one o'clock, p. m., we arrived at the place where the 
 fatal disaster occurred, arid found that the current con- 
 tinued exceedingly strong about three-quarters of a mile 
 below the place where the canoe struck the rocks. The 
 river then widens into a kind of basin, broad and deep, 
 and, judging from those places where it can be seen, 
 with a very rough bottom. We examined the place as 
 minutely as possible, but no vestige of the body could 
 be discovered. This was the tenth day after the acci 
 dent Fatigued with the constant exertions of the day, 
 • at dark we drew our canoe ashore ; cooked our supper 
 upon the shingle beach, and cast ourselves down upon 
 our blankets, to rest for the night. Repeating our ex- 
 amination the next morning, with as little success as the 
 day previous, we came to the conclusion, however deair- 
 
TOUR TO VANCOUVER. 29 
 
 oua we might be to rescue the body of our tnend fnm 
 a watery grave, it would no more be seen until that day 
 should arrive when the seas, and the rivers also, shall 
 give up their dead. As we descended the river towards 
 the place of our embarkation, ihis passage of holy wr/t 
 cheered our otherwise dro-pr.^ spirits: "If we believe 
 that Jesus died and lose again, ev&ii so also them whici, 
 sleep in Jesus, will God bring with him. " 
 
CHAPTER Vm 
 
 Another tow — Rock blend rapids — The Jesuit — Stormy encampment -Rear 
 — Hoepitality — Story of our host — Mr. Cornelius Rogers — Party increase - 
 La Butte — Lonely Sabbath — Arrival home — Mr. Rogers and party — Meet 
 ing at the hospital — Indian Messenger — Sad tidings — Great bereavement - 
 Esq. Crocker — Call to civil duties — Thomas McKay — Great rain — Estar» 
 of Mr. Rogers — Return *— Great freshet — Damages — Safe arrival home. 
 
 January 16th, 1843. Left home in company wilh L. 
 H. Judson, for the purpose of performing another trip to 
 Vancouver. We took a !cght canoe belonging to Mr 
 Lee, and shot out of a little cove which runs up within 
 a half mile of our house, into the strong current of the 
 Wallamette, and the water being high, we glided down 
 with great rapidity, and at seven o'clock, p. m., encamped 
 on a high bank on the lef* ha/»<i side of the river, having 
 run the distance of forty tnik 
 
 Tuesday, the 17th, being favored with a good moon, 
 we started, at five o'clock, and at daylight run the Rock 
 Island rapids in safety. This place is considered danger- 
 ous at the present stage of water. Some accidents, 
 though not of a very serious character, have recently 
 happened here. Not long since a Jesuit priest, by the 
 name of Blanchet, was passing up the river in a canoe 
 manned with Indians and half-breeds, and loaded with 
 mill-irons, as he was making arrangements to erect mills 
 in the French settlement above. Arriving at this place," 
 they attempted to ascend the rapids ; but in doubling a 
 point of rocks, around which the water rushed with 
 great violence, they were borne down with fearful force 
 to where they were in danger of being drawn under an 
 immense raft, lying in the river. They struggled in vain 
 to govern their canoe, and being greatly alarmed, in their 
 eagerness to secure it, it was capsized, emptying them 
 
voire TO VANCOVVU. 131 
 
 selves, miil-ifons, and all into the river. Some of their 
 struggled long in the water, but finally succeeded, some 
 one way, and some another, in getting safe to land, 
 happy in the consideration that the loss they had sus- 
 tained could possibly be repaired. Though the followers 
 of the "Padre" were sanguine in the belief that he 
 possessed the power of working miracles, yet he has 
 never been able to raise his mill-irons from the bottom 
 of Rock Island channel. 
 
 Proceeded on our journey, and at sunrise arrived at 
 the falls, and took breakfast with our good friend, George 
 Abernethy, Esq. At eleven o'clock, continued our voy- 
 age, though with the prospect of bad weather. At 
 twelve it became quite cold, and began to rain and haiL 
 It continued storming without intermission, during the 
 afternoon. This rendered it extremely disagreeable 
 traveling, but there was no alternative ; so we continued 
 to ply the paddle, though iced with the falling sleet, until 
 t began to grow dusk. Arriving at a small promontory 
 covered with fir timber, twenty miles below the falls, 
 we landed, and commenced making preparations for a 
 stormy night. We were thoroughly drenched with rain, 
 though, as good luck would have it, we had preserved 
 our fire-works from getting wet. The storm beat upon 
 us with violence, but we were twenty miles distant from 
 human habitation, and had no choice ; we must prepare 
 to make ourselves as comfortable as possible during the 
 night, though our prospects were exceedingly gloomy. 
 The first thing to be done was to kindle a fire, no desir 
 able task when every thing is as wet as rain can make it. 
 However, selecting a place at the leeward of two large 
 firs, that we might be the more sheltered from the wind 
 and storm, after about half an hour, and when patience 
 had performed • " her perfect work," we succeeded in 
 kindling a small blaze, which by-extreme care we soon 
 increased to a comfortable fire. 
 
 Having prepared our evening's repast, we partook of 
 it with a keen relish, while the large drops from the 
 spieading branches of the fir-trees, as they were shaken 
 wiih vue wind, fell in showers upon us. 
 
JKl TOUR TO VANCOVVBk. 
 
 Supper being over, we managed partiaJyi to dry oui 
 Blankets and skins, and spreading them upon the wet 
 ground, we lay ourselves to rest. 1 spread an umbrella 
 over my head to shelter it from the large drops from the 
 trees and the rain and sleet from the clouds, and, de- 
 spite the storm, slept soundly until six o'clock in the 
 morning. 
 
 Next day proceeded on to Fort Vancouver, and the 
 following day accomplished our business and prepared 
 to return. ' 
 
 Thursday, 19th. Left Vancouver in , le morning, and 
 after a day of hard toiling in a continued storm of snow 
 and rain, arrived, late in the evening, at the house of 
 Richard McCary, about five miles below the Wallamette 
 falls. The night was excessively cold and stormy, and 
 we were pleased to be sheltered beneath a friendly roof. 
 Our host had spent the prime of his life in ranging the 
 Rocky mountains, as a hunter and trapper, and enter- 
 tained us with anecdotes of his hair-breadth escapes 
 from the the hostile Sioux and Blackfeet. At' one time, 
 he, with seven other Americans, ventured far from the 
 general rendezvous of the hunters, in the country of 
 the Blackfeet, for the purpose c{ trapping beaver. The 
 country was entirely destitute of timber, except here 
 and there a small bunch of bushes, which grew in the 
 swails. They pitched their tent on the banks of a small 
 rivulet, on the open prairie, within a little distance of 
 one of these thickets ; designing, if they were attacked 
 by the Blackfeet, to retreat to the thicket, and there de- 
 fend themselves and protect their property. 
 
 One morning, as they went down to the stream to 
 examine their traps, McCary being in advance of the 
 rest of the party, a troop of Blackfeet warriors came 
 -lashing over a rise of ground, but a short distance in 
 front of them, numbering, as they supposed, two or three 
 hundred. As the Americans wheeled and ran towards 
 their tent, the Blackfeet poured a volley of musket balls 
 after them. McCary fell upon his face to the ground ; 
 a ball had entered the back side of his neck, and coma 
 «ut at one of his cheeks. No bone being broken, ho 
 
TOPR TO VANCOUVER. 133 
 
 ioon recovered his senses, but as he could not instant]} 
 move, he expected to feel the scalping knife passing over 
 his skull bone ; but the Indians were kept at bay by his 
 seven comrades, who, by this time, had secured their 
 rifles and ammunition. Firing a round or two, and see- 
 ing some of the Indians fall> to their astonishment they 
 saw McCary, whom, they supposed; to have been shot 
 dead, rushing towards them to join them in their retreat 
 to the thicket 
 
 Here they continued the fight, the Indians with great 
 bravery venturing up very near the thicket ; but their 
 musket balls and poisoned arrows took effect only upon 
 the bushes and logs which formed the fort of the Ameri- 
 cans; while the latter scarcely discharged a rifle but 
 that an Indian was seen to lick the dust. The Blackfeet 
 finding 'that they could not destroy the Americans with- 
 out losing too many of their men, gave up the contest ; 
 and after securing their dead and wounded^ and taking 
 the property of the Americans, consisting of their tent, 
 blankets, furs, traps and horses, they gave the shrill war 
 whoop, and disappeared. After dressing McCary's 
 wound as well as circumstances would admit, the trap- 
 pers turned their faces back towards the rendezvous, 
 where, after many days of suffering, they all arrived in 
 safety. McCary, not relishing such adventures, and 
 fearing that the next bullet might not be so merciful as 
 to shun the vital organs, resolved to leave his dangerous 
 business ; and marrying a Nez Perse, he abandoned the 
 Rocky mountains forever. 
 
 Our entertainment with this story far exceeded the 
 refreshment we received the remaining part of the night, 
 by sleeping on the bare floor. 
 
 Next morning proceeded to the falls, where we con- 
 tinued during the day. 
 
 Saturday, 21st. Left the falls at twelve, m., in com- 
 pany with two other canoes, and arrived at " La Butte " 
 one hour after dark, cold, hungry, and worn out with 
 fatigue. Mr. Cornelius Rogers was in one of the canoes, 
 on his way up to the settlement to get his wife and her 
 sister, a little girl two years of age. Mr. Rogers had 
 
1M TOOK TO VANCOUTKX. 
 
 entered into business at the falls, and having been mar 
 ried but a few months, had not yet commenced keeping 
 house. Moving up and down the river is, for the want 
 of other means, done in canoes, always a dangerous 
 mode of traveling. The three canoes contained about 
 twenty persons, and all slept at the " Butte;" and though 
 the night was cold, many lay upon the ground without 
 novering. 
 
 On Sunday morning, the 22nd, Mr. Judson and Mr. 
 Rogers, being entirely out of provisions, left, camp on 
 foot, and proceeded to the mission, where they arrived 
 in the evening, hungry and nearly exhausted. Having 
 a few remnants of food left, I resolved to remain in camp 
 during the Sabbath; and, to make myself as comfortable 
 as possible, I collected a quantity of wood and bark, and 
 wilding a large fire under the lee of the lofty furs that 
 "ine the banks of the river, and being left entirely alone, 
 spent the day in reading and meditation. Sunday night 
 there was quite a fall of rain and sleet, and though T 
 slept alone in the forest, and in the morning found tha 
 ice had collected in my hair, yet, by the blessing of 
 Providence, I received no injury. At five o'clock on 
 Monday morning, I left the "Butte" for my place of 
 residence, where I arrived at noon, having traveled the 
 distance of twenty-five miles. 
 
 On Thursday, the 2nd day of February, Mr. Cornelius 
 Rogers left the settlement with his family, consisting 
 of his wife and her little sister, to remove to the falls, 
 where he expected to settle. Wm. W. Raymond, a 
 member of the Oregon mission, residing at the mouth of 
 the Columbia river, had come up with the large mission 
 canoe that would carry about three tons, for the purpose 
 of taking back supplies for the station; and not having 
 enough to load the canoe himself, he propossd to take 
 Mr. Rogers and his effects down to the falls. Mr. 
 Rogers gladly accepted of the offer; and as Dr. Elijah 
 White, sub-agent of Indian Affairs in Oregon, and Esq. 
 Crocker, late of Lansingville, Tompkins Co., N Y., were 
 desirous of visiting Clatsop, they had obtained the privir 
 Jege of accompanying Mr. Raymond down the Columbia 
 
TOUR TO VAHCOCTB*. 1S5 
 
 river. These all repaired to the river's side, apparently 
 n high spirits; embarked on the ill-fated craft; the 
 Indians plied their paddles dexterously, and they glided 
 away from the sight of their friends on the shore, upon 
 tha smooth surface of the treacherous element 
 
 Sunday, Feb. 5th. I preached at the Hospital to a few 
 of the missionaries, some of whom had been the subjects 
 of severe affliction for a great share of the time since 
 they had been in the country. I endeavored to encour- 
 age them from the words of St. Peter, " Think it not 
 strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, 
 as though some strange thing happened unto you, 
 but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's 
 sufferings." The sufferings incident to our residence in 
 a heathen land, and the disposition with which we should 
 bear them, were the subjects of the discourse. 
 
 The services had just been brought to a close, and I 
 was about taking my leave to return to my family, ten 
 miles up the river, when an Indian, almost exhausted 
 with running, came into Dr. Babcock's, where I had 
 stopped a few moments, bearing a small package of let- 
 ters. The running of the Indian, the number of letters, 
 the season of the year, and the storminess of the day, 
 all conspired to excite our fears, and create a present) 
 ment within us, that some unusual occurrence had taken 
 place. I broke the seal of my letter from George 
 Abernethy at the falls, and, most shocking to relate, the 
 first words that met my eye were as follows -. 
 
 "Dear Brother : — 
 
 I have barely time to say that the mission canoe 
 went over the falls yesterday evening with Mr. and 
 Mrs. Rogers, Aurelia, and 'Squire Crocker and two 
 Indians. We started immediately out with the mission 
 boat, and reached within thirty yards of Mr. Rogers 
 before he sank to rise no more." 
 
 It appears that they proceeded from the place of em- 
 barkation in safety, until they arrived at the head of the 
 rapids, above the cataract. Here they all got out of the 
 canoe, which they let down the rapids by a rope^and 
 proceeded on foot down to a bluff rock which projects 
 
1M TOOK TO VANOOVm. 
 
 out into the stream, and is but a few steps from the place 
 of landing. Here they all got into the canoe again 
 except Mr. Raymond and three Indians, who remained 
 on snore, for the purpose of holding on to the rope which 
 was fastened to the canoe to enable them to drop below 
 the point of rocks in safety. They passed the point, and 
 brought the canoe along side of a large log which the 
 high water had carried id along the shore, and which 
 was used as a kind of wharf. The instant the canoe 
 struck the log, Dr. White stepped *bne foot on it, and 
 leaning towards the shore, held on to the canoe with the 
 other foot, but before another one could step on the log 
 the current took the bow of the canoe, which was up the 
 stream, and in an instant they were drawn into the 
 strongest part of the current. Mr. Raymond and the 
 Indians exerted themselves in vain to hold on to the rope; 
 they were drawn into the river, and forced to let go, to 
 save themselves. All efforts were vain, all hope was 
 lost At this perilous moment two Indians sprang from 
 the canoe, and darted like lightning through the rushing 
 flood, and gained the shore. As the canoe approached 
 the awful verge, Mr. Rogers threw' himself upon his 
 knees before his wife, who remained in her seat, holding 
 her little sister in her lap. For a moment all was still 
 except the rushing waters, then a wail was heard above 
 the roar of the angry flood — they had made the fatal 
 plunge. Some of their bodies were seen a short time, 
 floating below the falls, but before they could possibly 
 be approached with a boat, they had all sunk into their 
 watery graves. Thus terminated the mortal career of 
 Esq. Crocker, Cornelius Rogers, his wife and her little 
 sister, and two Indians. The remains of the first two 
 were subsequently recovered, and committed to the 
 earth; the others have never been found. If by some 
 awful convulsion in nature the whole city of New York 
 were to be submerged beneath the waves of the Atlantic 
 ocean, the shock to the State could not be greater than 
 was felt in the colony of Oregon, when the mission 
 canoe, with her precious cargo, went over the falls. 
 Tbis awful dispensation of Providence wrapped the 
 
TO0B T« VAlfCOVTH. Si 
 
 whole country in gloom, and indeed there were many 
 circumstances which combined to render it truly afflicting 
 
 Mr. Rogers had formerly been a member of the 
 Presbyterian mission in the upper country, and was re- 
 garded as a very efficient missionary; but becoming 
 discouraged with the prospect there, he had asked and 
 obtained a discharge from the mission, and for some time , 
 had made it his home in the Wallamette settlement. He 
 had adopted Oregon as a place of permanent abode, and 
 consequently asked and obtained the hand of Satira Les- 
 lie, eldest daughter of Rev. David Leslie, though she 
 was but fifteen years of age. When Mr. Leslie took 
 his departure from the country to the Sandwich Islands, 
 and perhaps to the United States, the September pre- 
 vious, Mr. Rogers accompanied him down to the mouth 
 of the Columbia river, in the brig Chenamus, Mr. Leslie 
 having with him his entire family. It consisted of five 
 interesting girls, he having buried his wife but a shor* 
 time before. When the vessel was about ready to sail, 
 and bear Mr. Leslie and two of his daughters away, the 
 marriage of Mr. Rogers with Satira was duly solemnized 
 on board the ship, as she lay at anchor in Baker's Bay. 
 Dr. J. P. Richmond officiated on the occasion. It was 
 arranged that Mr. Rogers and his wife would take back 
 to the Wallamette the two younges} daughters of Mr. 
 Leslie, and take care of them until Mr. Leslie could 
 provide for them in some other way, while the remaining 
 two were to accompany their father to the Islands, and 
 perhaps to the States. Accordingly, they thus separated 
 in Baker's Bay, about the 1st of September, 1842, fondly 
 indulging the expectation that, after a separation of a 
 few months, or years at most, they would again meet, 
 and spend many happy years in each others' society. 
 But an inscrutable Providence ordered it otherwise. 
 
 From the time that Mr. Rogers returned with his 
 important charge from the mouth of the Columbia river, 
 to the period of the fatal voyage down the Wallamette, 
 he had been variously, though usefully employed ; and 
 desiging to spend his days in Oregon, his feelings and 
 interests were bound up in the country. He was justly 
 *<> 
 
138 TOUR TO VANCOUVBB. 
 
 regarded as one of the most useful men it contained, and 
 consequently his sudden removal was considered as a 
 great loss to the rising settlement His young and 
 blooming companion was not only every way worthy of 
 her husband, but the darling of a fond and doting parent, 
 and beloved by all that knew her. She was at my house 
 but a short time previous to her leaving the settlement 
 to attend her husband to the falls, and informed us that 
 she designed to take her youngest sister, Aurelia, a child 
 two years old, with her, and leave the other, Helen, 
 four years old, with Mrs. Gray. But for this arrange- 
 ment, all three would have gone together ; but Helen 
 lived to bear to her afflicted parent the melancholy 
 tidings of the awful death of his eldest and youngest 
 daughters. 
 
 Esquire Crocker had been in the country but a short 
 time. He performed the journey across the mountains 
 for the benefit of his health. Liking the country better 
 than he anticipated, he had come to the conclusion to 
 send for his family and establish himself in Oregon ; buf 
 by one stroke of Providence his designs were forevet 
 frustrated. 
 
 Having been appointed by the authorities of the coun- 
 try to secure and appraise the property of the late Mr 
 Cornelius Rogers, the principal part of which was at the 
 falls, I started for that place on the 9th of February, in 
 company with Mr» W. H. Gray. Traveled ten miles, 
 and stopped at Dr. Babcock's, who was the Judge of 
 Probate, to get our instructions, and continued with him 
 during the night. Next morning at daylight, proceeded 
 on horseback towards Champoeg, but as there had been 
 a fall of snow the aay previous, and the rain was then 
 falling in torrents, it was almost impossible to make 
 headway. 
 
 As we urged our way along, we found the streams 
 and ravines so swollen, that the few bridges that had 
 been made, were either carried away of afloat How- 
 ever, by fording some of the streams where the water 
 covered the saddles, and swimming others which were 
 not fordable, we succeeded in getting to Champoeg, th« 
 
TOR TO VAMCODVKK. 1S9 
 
 distance of sixteen miles, at one o'clock, p. m., thoroughly 
 drenched. As it continued to rain violently during the 
 afternoon, we concluded to stop until morning. 
 
 Spent the night in a house or hut occupied by Charles 
 Roe, an American, who was absent with his family from 
 home. The wife of this man is the daughter of Thomas 
 McKay, who was the son of the unfortunate man of the 
 same name, who perished on the Tonquin, when she was 
 blown up on the north-west coast. Her mother is a 
 woman of the Nez ^Perce tribe. She is the sister of the 
 three McKay boys who accompanied the Rev. Jason 
 Lee from Oregon to the United States, ^in 1838. Her 
 father has recently discarded the old Nez Perce woman, 
 her mother, to whom he was never formally married, 
 except after the Indian custom, and taken to himself a 
 young half-breed, who becomes his lawful wife under 
 the sanction of a Roman Catholic priest. 
 
 Rested as well as we could during the night on a 
 naked plank, rose early in the morning, the rain pouring 
 down with increasing violence. But our commission 
 was one of urgency, so, turning horses loose upon the 
 prairie, and borrowing a canoe, we struck out into the 
 dashing current of the Wallamette. Already the banks 
 of the river were full, and the rapidly increasing flood 
 was rolling 5 onward with fearful fury towards the Pacific, 
 bearing upon its bosom immense quantities of floodwood 
 ever and anon undermining a large tree upon the shore, 
 which would fall with a tremendous crash into the roar- 
 ing flood; but keeping our cockle-shell craft in the centre 
 of the stream, and carefully avoiding coming in contact 
 with the numerous logs floating upon its surface, we 
 proceeded down the distance of ten miles in about one 
 hour. Fearing to attempt to run the dangerous rapids 
 of Rock Island, we rowed our canoe into a little* eddy 
 some distance above, and fastened it to some trees. We 
 then took our baggage on our backs, and proceeded on 
 foot towards the falls, distant eight miles. A number 
 of streams crossed our path, but passing some on logs, 
 and wading through others, we arrived there at three 
 o'clock, P. M. 
 
140 »OC» TO VANCOUVER. 
 
 Sunday, 13th. I preached to about twenty Americans 
 of different ages, from the invitation of Christ to those 
 who labor and are heavy laden, and rejoiced in the con- 
 sideration that there is rest in Christ. 
 
 Monday, 14th. Attended to the duties imposed upon 
 me in relation to Mr. Rogers' estate, in connexion with 
 W. H. Gray and Robert Shortess. Found the estate to 
 be worth fifteen hundred dollars, and the liabilities to 
 amount to seven hundred. Ascertained that the heirs 
 of Mr. Rogers reside in Utica,. State of New York. 
 
 Tuesday, 15th. Having accomplished our business, 
 we left the falls at two, p. m., and returned to our canoe, 
 where we encamped for the night. The river had con- 
 tinued to rise until it was higher than it had been known 
 for thirty years, and we knew it would be almost impos- 
 sible to ascend with our canoe, yet there was no alter- 
 native. The banks were overflown, and we were obliged 
 to pull ourselves up the river by the bushes 'and trees on 
 the shore, as, the moment our canoe was outside the 
 the bushes, in spite of the combined strength of six men 
 with their paddles, she would run astern. Toiling for 
 seven hours, without cessation, except to take two rac- 
 coons out o<* a hollow tree, where they had been driven 
 by the flood, we found that we had ascended three miles 
 only, and being above the mouth of Pudding river, we 
 concluded to "cache" our canoe in the bushes, and try 
 the rest of the way on foot. 
 
 We found ourselves in a dense forest, but striking a 
 bee line towards the south-east, after traveling some 
 miles we struck the trail leading from the settlement to 
 the falls, and at dark arrived at the house of a French- 
 man near the Butte, and about three miles below Cham- 
 poeg. 
 
 Hayjng no provision, I procured of the Frenchman a 
 supper of fried venison, and a cup of tea, for which, 
 with the privilege of furnishing a supper for ten thousand 
 fleas, he charged me one dollar. It was the first bill of 
 the kind I paid in Oregon, the people generally being 
 quite hospitable. 
 
 Next morning procceeded to Champoeg and found our 
 
toe* *o VANOomrn. 141 
 
 trusty horses not far from where we turned ifaem loose. 
 The water had risen to an amazing height ; farms were 
 swept of their fences, and farmers suffered heavy losses 
 in grain, the water rising several feet deep in some of 
 their barns. Thomas McKay had recently built a large 
 grist mill, and an old gentlemen by the name of Canning 
 was tending the mill. In the morning when he awoke 
 as he slept in the mill, in the second story, the mill wa 
 standing in the centre of a large lake. Some persons ai 
 a distance, supposing that Canning must be in a perilous 
 condition, procured a Ganoe, and sailing high over fields, 
 fences, logs, &c, soon arrived at the mill, and running 
 their canoe into the window of the second story, found 
 Canning perched upon a high box, in one corner of the 
 mill, awaiting some one to rescue him from his danger. 
 No essential damage was done the mill, but several' hun- 
 dred bushels of wheat were lost. The flood coming so 
 suddenly upon the valley, the herds on the bottom lands 
 had not time to make their escape. Horses, cattle, hogs, 
 &c, were swept away and drowned. 
 
 This was a high flood, but from the appearance of the 
 country, I am persuaded that it is subject to still greater 
 inundations. 
 
 Recovering our horses, we left Champoeg in the after- 
 noon, and arrived at our homes the. following evening, 
 relieving our families from the painful anxiety into which 
 they had been thrown for our safety in consequence of 
 our exposure to the flood. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 J »i!C - Indian troubles — Tour to the Interior — Causes — Precaution! — Excitement 
 increases — Mr. Brewer's letter — The Sub- Agent — Expedition resolved upon — 
 Opposed by Dr. McLaughlin — Departure — A squall — Ascent of the Columbia 
 ■ —Mount Hood — Romantic s>-,enery — Sabbath encampment — Reflections*— 
 Remarkable rocks' — Cascades — - How formed — Indian tradition confirmed — 
 La Dallas — Canasissa — Negotiation — De Shutes — John Day — Sabbath Re 
 flections — Arrival at Dr. Whitman's — Interview with the Kayuse chiefs — 
 Excursion — Adventure of Mr. Perkins — Party proceeds — Snake river — Red 
 wolf — Laperai — Accident — Grotesque exhibition — Temperance training — 
 ' Rev. Mr. and Mrs, Spaulding — Return to Dr. Whitman's — Interesting negotia- 
 tion — Closing feast — Homeward — Story of the Walla- Walla chief — Peter 
 Ogden — Arrival home. 
 
 April 14. This settlement has been thrown into a panic 
 by intelligence which has just been received from the 
 upper country, concerning the hostile intentions of the 
 Kayuse, Nez Perce, and Walla- Walla Indians. It appears 
 that they have again threatened the destruction of the 
 whites. Some time in October last, Indian report said 
 that these tribes were coming down to kill off the Boston 
 people, meaning thoser from the United States. This 
 intelligence produced considerable excitement at the 
 time, and induced the sub-agent of Indian Affairs to go 
 directly to the upper country and ascertain the truth of 
 the report, and if possible settle all matters of difficult} 
 On arriving among the Indians, he ascertained that the 
 report was not without foundation ; but entered into such 
 arrangements with them as appeared to give satisfaction. 
 Thomas McKay contributed much to allay the excite 
 ment among them, and in connexion with the sub-agent, 
 induced the Nez Perces to adopt a code of laws and 
 appoint a head chief and inferior chiefs, sufficient to 
 carry the laws into execution. It had been the policy of 
 the Hudson's Bay Company to destroy the chieftainship, 
 
TOVB TO THE INTEBIO*. 141 
 
 cut the different tribes into smaller clans, and divide 
 their interests as far as posssible so as to weaken them, 
 and render them incapable of injuring the whites, by pre- 
 venting them from acting in concert. But the sub-agent 
 adopted a different policy. The individual appointed to 
 the high chieftainship over the Nez Perces, was one 
 Ellis, as he was called by the English, who, having spent 
 several years in the settlement on the Red river, east 
 of the mountains, had, with a smattering of the English 
 language, acquired a high sense of his own, importance ; 
 and consequently,* after he was appointed chief, pursued 
 a very haughty and overbearing course. The fulfillment 
 of the laws which the agent recommended for their 
 adoption, was required by Ellis with the utmost rigor 
 Individuals were severely punished for crimes which, 
 from time immemorial, had been committed by the 
 people with impunity. This occasioned suspicions in 
 the minds of the Indians generally, that the whites de- 
 signed the ultimate subjugation of their tribes. They 
 saw in the laws they had adopted, a deep-laid scheme of 
 the whites to destroy them, and take possession of their 
 country. The arrival of a large party of emigrants 
 about this time, and the sudden departure of Dr. Whit- 
 man to the United States, with the avowed intention 
 of bringing back with him as many as he could enlist for 
 Oregon, served to hasten them to the above conclusion. 
 That a great excitement existed among the Indians in 
 the interior, and that they designed to make war upon 
 the settlement, was, only known to the whites through 
 the medium of vague report, until a letter was received 
 from H. K. W. Perkins, at the Dalls, in which he informed 
 us that the Wascopam and Walla-Walla Indians had 
 communicated to him in substance the fallowing inform- 
 ation : that the Indians are very much exasperated 
 against the whites in consequence of so many of the 
 latter coming into the country, to destroy their game, 
 and take away their lands ; that the Nez Perces dis- 
 patched one of their chiefs last winter on snow shoes, to 
 visit the Indians in the buffalo country east of Fort Hall, 
 for the purpose of exciting them to cut off the party 
 
144 TODB TO THE INTERIOR. 
 
 that it is expected Dr. Whitman will bring back with 
 him to settle the Nez Perce country ; that the Indiana 
 are endeavoring to form a general coalition for the pur- 
 pose of destroying all the Boston people : that it is not 
 good to kill a part of them, and leave the rest^ but that 
 every one of them must ba destroyed. This information 
 prod aced a great excitement throughout the community, 
 and almost every man had a plan of his own by which 
 to avert the impending storm. In the estimation of some, 
 the Indians were to be upon us immediately, and it was 
 unsafe to retire at night, for fear the settlement would 
 be attacked before morning. The plan of the agent was 
 to induce men to pledge themselves, under the forfeiture 
 of one hundred dollars in case of delinquency, to keep 
 constantly on hand, and ready for use, either a good 
 musket or a rifle, and one hundred charges of ammuni- 
 tion, and to hold themselves in readiness to go at the call 
 of the agent to any part of the country, not to exceed 
 two days travel, for the purpose of defending the settle- 
 ment, and repelling any savage invaders. This plan 
 pleased some of the people, and they put down their 
 names ; but many were' much dissatisfied with it, and 
 as we had no authority, no law, no order, for the time 
 being, in the country, it was impossible to tell what 
 would be the result, if ghe Indians should attempt to 
 carry their threats into execution. 
 
 April 14th. Information was brought to the settle- 
 ment from the Klackamas tribe of Indians, who live three 
 miles below the falls of the Wallamette, which served to 
 increase the excitement occasioned by the reports from 
 the interior. It appears that an Indian of the Molala 
 tribe, connected^with the Klackamas Indians by marriage, 
 stole a horse from a man by the name of Anderson, and 
 when asked by the. latter if he had stolen his horse and 
 rode him off, answered, " Yes, I stole your horse, and 
 when I want another one I shall steal him also." To 
 this Anderson replied, " If you stole my horse you must 
 pay me for him." " Yes," said the Indian, " I will pay 
 you for him, take that horse," pointing to a very poor 
 horse which stood near by, with one eye out, and a very 
 
ton TO THE 1NTERIOB 14ft 
 
 sore back. Anderson replied, " That is a very poor hone 
 and mine was a very good one; I shall not take him, and 
 if you don't bring him back I will report you to Dr. 
 White." "I am not afraid of Dr. White," said the 
 Indian, " let him come if he wants to, and bring the 
 Boston people with him; he will find me prepared for 
 him." 
 
 Anderson not being able to effect a settlement with 
 the Indian, immediately reported him to the agent, 
 whereupon the latter wrote to a man at the falls by the 
 name of Campbell, to take a sufficient number of men 
 armed with muskets, and go very early in the morning 
 to the Indian camp, and take the horse-thief a prisoner, 
 and bring him up to the fails. Accordingly, Campbell 
 procured five men, and went to the camp as commanded, 
 • but found thirty or forty Indians painted in the most 
 hideous manner, and armed with muskets, bows and 
 arrows, tomahawks, and scalping knives, and determined 
 at all events to protect? the horse-thief, and drive back 
 those that should come to take him. Campbell rushed 
 on to take the rogue, but met with such resistance from 
 superiority of numbers, and finding that the enterprise, 
 if urged fprward, would terminate in bloodshed, if not 
 in the loss of all their lives, sounded a retreat, and extri- 
 cating himself from the Indians, returned to the falls. 
 He communicated the results of his attempt to Dr. 
 White, and the Doctor started off immediately in com- 
 pany with G. W. Le Breton, resolved to capture the thief 
 and bring the tribe to terms. 
 
 April 17th. The excitement still continued, former 
 reports having been confirmed, and all were engaged in 
 repairing guns, and securing ammunition. A report was 
 in circulation that Dr. McLaughlin refused to grant sup- 
 plies for any consideration to all those persons who sub- 
 scribed the memorial praying the Congress of the United 
 States to extend jurisdiction over Oregon. If this be so, 
 the American population, as nearly all signed the memo- 
 rial, will not be able to obtain ammunition, however 
 necessary it may be, as there is none in the country 
 
 frront what mav he fniihri within thf> stnrkaflfis of Van- 
 
146 TOUR TO THE INTERIOR. 
 
 couver. I think, however, that the report is false 
 Report says, furthermore, that the Klikitat Indians are 
 collecting together back of the Tuality plains', bit for 
 what purpose is not known. The people on the plains, 
 consisting of about thirty families, 4 are quitei alarmed. 
 There is also a move 'among the Calapooahs. Shoefon, 
 one of the principal men of the tribe, left this place a 
 few days ago, and crossed the Wallamette river, declar- 
 ing that he would never return until he came with a 
 band of men to drive off the Boston people. He was 
 very much offended because some of his people were 
 seized and flogged, through the influence of Dr. White, 
 for having stolen horses from some of the missionaries, 
 and flour from the mission mill. His influence is not 
 very extensive among the Indians or we might have 
 nuch to fear. The colony is indeed in a most defence- 
 less condition; two hundred Indians, divided into fow 
 Dands, might destroy the entire settlement in one night 
 In the evening of the 17th, Dr. White arrived at my 
 louse bringing intelligence from the falls* He and Mr. 
 Le Breton attempted to go to the falls on horseback, but 
 in trying to ford Haunchauke river, they found the water 
 so deep that they were obliged to swim, and the Doctor 
 turned his horse's head, and came out. the side he went 
 in; but Le Breton, being the better mounted of the two, 
 succeeded in gaining the opposite shore; and having the 
 Doctor's letters in his possession, continued on to the 
 falls. The Doctor returned to the settlement. Le Breton 
 returned the following day, and brought information 
 from the five men who attempted to take the Indian who 
 had stolen Anderson's horse, that soon after their retreat 
 the Indians became alarmed and broke up in great haste; 
 but before they left, they informed Anderson that the 
 Horse they had stolen from him was worn out and good 
 for nothing, and tying a good horse to a tree near An- 
 derson's house, they told him that he must take that and 
 .be satisfied. They then hurried away, saying that they 
 should not be seen in that region again. It was ascer- 
 tained that the Klackamas Indians had nothing to do with 
 the stolen horse; that it was a band of the Molalas, the 
 
VOVB TO THE INTEROB. 147 
 
 very same rascals that stole a horse from me two yean 
 before, and aftei having him in their possession several 
 weeks, brought him down within a few miles of my 
 house, where they encamped, and where I went with 
 one man and took him from the midst of more than fifty 
 grim looking savages. 
 
 On the 20th of April, a letter was received in the 
 settlement, written by H. B. Brewer, at the Dalls, which 
 brings the latest intelligence from the infected region. 
 This letter states that the Indians in the interior talk 
 much of war, and Mr. Brewer urges Dr. White to come 
 up without delay, and endeavor to allay the excitement. 
 He does not inform us that the Indians design any evil 
 .oward the whites, but says that the war is to be between 
 themselves, but that the Boston people have much to 
 ear. As the Doctor, in his visit to the interior ast Oc- 
 tober, left an appointment to meet the Walla-Walla 
 Indians and the Kayuses, in their own country, on th* 
 tenth of May, and believing that a great share of th 
 excitement originated in a misunderstanding of the In 
 iians, he came to the conclusion at all hazards to gc 
 among them. At the solicitation of the agent, I deter- 
 mined to accompany him on the expedition. 
 
 The great complaint of the Indians was thai the Bos- 
 ton people designed to take away their lands, and reduce 
 them to slavery. This they had inferred from what Dr. 
 White had told them in his previous visit; and this mis- 
 understanding of the Indians had not only produced a 
 great excitement among them, but had occasioned con- 
 siderable trouble betwixt them and the missionaries and 
 •other whites in the upper country, as well as influencing 
 them to threaten the destruction of all the American 
 people. Individuals had come down from fort Walla- 
 Walla to Vancouver, bringing information of the excited 
 state of things among the Indians, and giving out that it 
 would be extremely dangerous for Dr. White to go up 
 to meet his engagements. Their opinion was, that in all 
 probability he-and the party which he might think proper 
 to take with him, would be cut ofE But it was the 
 opinion of many judicious persons in' the settlement, that 
 
148 TOUR TO THE INTERIOR. 
 
 the welfare of the Indians, and the peace and security 
 of the whites, demanded that some persons qualified to 
 negotiate with the Indians, should proceed immediately 
 to the scene of disaffection, and if possible remove the 
 cause of the excitement by correcting the error under 
 which the Indians labored. Accordingly, Dr. White 
 engaged twelve men besides myself, mostly French Can- 
 adians who had had much experience with Indians, to go 
 with him; but a few days before the time fixed upon to 
 start had arrived, they all sent him word that they had 
 decided not to go. They were doubtless induced to 
 pursue this course through the influence of Dr. Mc. 
 Laughlin, and the Catholic priests. 
 
 When the day arrived for starting, we found ourselves 
 abandoned by every person who had engaged to go, 
 except Mr. G. W. Le Breton; an American, one Indian 
 boy, and one Kanaka. With the two latter the Doc- 
 tor and myself left the Wallamette settlement on the 
 twenty-fifth of April, 1843, and proceeded on horseback 
 to the Butte, where we found Le Breton in waiting for 
 us. He had provided a canoe and a few pieces of pork 
 and beef for our use on the vogage. 
 
 Here we met a letter from Dr. John Mc Laughlin, at 
 Vancouver, discouraging us from our undertaking in 
 view of- the difficulties and dangers attending such an 
 expedition; but we had counted the cost, and were not 
 to be diverted from our purpose, though dangers stared 
 us in the face. We supposed that if the Indians enter- 
 tained any hostile intentions against the whites in gen- 
 eral, there could be no better way to defeat their 
 purposes than to go among them; convince them that 
 they had no grounds of fear; and that the whites, instead 
 of designing to bring them into subjection, were desirous 
 of doing them good. Prevented by one thing and 
 another from setting sail, on the night of the twenty- 
 seventh we slept on a bank of sand at the Butte, and 
 next day proceeded in our little canoe down to the Wal- 
 lametie falls, where we continued until the twenty-ninth. 
 Here we received another package from Dr. Mc Laugh- 
 lin, giving us information that Rev. Mr. De Meree, a C«- 
 
TOUR TO THE INTERIOR. 149 
 
 tholic priest, had just come down from the upper country, 
 bringing intelligence that the Indians are only incensed 
 against the Boston people; thai they have nothing against 
 the French and King George people; they are not mad 
 at them, but are determined that the Boston people shall 
 not have their lands, and take away their liberties. On 
 receiving this intelligence from Mr. De Merce, Dr. 
 Mc Laughlin advised the Frenchman who fittd engaged 
 to go with Dr. White, to have nothing to do with the 
 quarrel, to remain quiet at home, and let the Americans 
 take care of themselves. ' He alse expressed, in his let- 
 ter, the opinion that all the people should remain quiet, 
 and in all probability the excitement among the Indians 
 would soon subside. 
 
 Not seeing sufficient reason to change our course, on 
 the morning of the 28th, we left our hospitable friends 
 at the Falls, and continued our course down the Walla- 
 mette towards Vancouver. At noon we had sailed 
 twenty miles, and stopped for dinner within five miles of 
 the mouth of the Wallamette, on a low piece of ground, t 
 overgrown with luxuriant grass, but which is always 
 overflown at the rise of the Columbia, which is about 
 the first of June. " Weighed anchor " after, dinner, and 
 at four o'clock, p- m., arrived at Vancouver. Called on 
 Dr. Mc Laughlin for goods, provisions, powder, balls, 
 &c, for our accommodation on our voyage up the Co- 
 lumbia, and, though he was greatly surprised that, under 
 the circumstances", we should think of going among those 
 excited Indians, yet he ordered his clerks to let us have 
 whatever we wanted- However, we found it rather 
 squally at the fort, not so much on account of our going 
 among the Indians of the interior, as in consequence of 
 a certain memorial having been sent to the United States' 
 Congress, implicating the conduct of Dr. Mc Laughlin 
 and the Hudson's Bay Company, and bearing the sign a 
 tures of seventy Americans. I inquired of the Doctor 
 if he had refused to grant supplies to those Americans 
 who had signed that document; he replied that he had 
 not, but that the authors of .the memorial need expect no 
 more favors from him. Not being one of the authors, 
 
ISO TOUR TO THE QfTEKIOB. 
 
 out merely a signer of the petition, I did not come undei 
 the ban of the company; consequently I obtained my 
 outfit for the expedition, though at first there were 
 strong indications that I would be refused. 
 
 We remained at the fort over night and a part of the 
 next day, and after a close conversation with the gentle- 
 man in command, were treated with great courtesy. 
 
 At two o'clock, p. m., of Saturday 29th, left, and con- 
 tinued our voyage up the Columbia. As we proceeded 
 from the fort, mount Hood appeared directly before us. 
 Though this mountain is twenty-five miles from the 
 river, and more than forty from Vancouver, yet it ap- 
 peared to be not more than five or six miles distant. 
 There are few things, perhaps,) in the world, that com- 
 bine more grandeur and sublimity in their appearance 
 than this stupendous glacier viewed from /the surface of 
 the Columbia river. The Alleghany and Katskill moun- 
 tains are but mounds when compared with this astonishing 
 pile of Basalt, whose head is lifted to the amazing high* 
 of sixteen thousand feet, and whitened with perpetua 
 snow. We feasted our eyes upon this sublime spectacle 
 until the sun had bidden us good night, and the shades of 
 evening had "thrown a dark mantle around the enchanting 
 scenery; then mooriug our canoe in a little eddy, we 
 made our encampment for the Sabbath on a small island 
 about ten miles above Vancouver, which is evidently 
 laid under contribution by the Columbia every succeeding 
 June, but which, at this time, was fifteen feet higher than 
 .he waters of the river. A canoe containing seven 
 Indians, left the fort with us, and as we were short of 
 help, one of the Indians engaged, for the consideration 
 of a blanket and one shirt, to take the stern of our canoe, 
 and assist us up to the Dalls. These Indians belonged to 
 the Wascopam tribe, and most of them profess to have 
 been converted to Christianity through the labors of Rev. 
 Daniel Lee, and Rev. H. K. W. Perkins. We all en- 
 camped in the same place, and when the time for evening 
 prayers arrived, the Indians all joined us with apparent 
 sincerity and devotion, after- which we committed our 
 selves to sleep on our blanket beds upon the ground 
 
TOVB TO THE INTERIOR. W 
 
 Alter a comfortable night's rest, we arose and enjoyed 
 our humble repast, consisting of ham, bread, butter ana 
 tea. We prepared to spend the sacred day as profitably 
 as we could, though in the lonely solitudes of" a dense 
 forest of Cottonwood, on the banks of the Columbia. 
 We engaged in a season of reading the scriptures, sing- 
 ing, and prayer, after which I endeavored to give ou. 
 Neophytes a lesson concerning the things which belong 
 to their peace. This done, I strolled along the banks of 
 the river about one-fourth of a mile, for the purpose of 
 being alone, and coming to a wild appletree which leaned 
 its trunk over the smooth surface of the waters, I seated 
 myself upon it, and a train of reflections, varying in 
 their influence upon my feelings as they differed in cha- 
 racter, passed through my mind. 
 
 T thought of beloved parents from whom I had no 
 heard for years; of the tears they shed when last I saw 
 them, and received the parting benediction, and of the 
 anxiety they must still feel, if alive, for their wandering 
 son. I thought of all my former associates, of brothers 
 and sisters, and early school mates, arid christian friends, 
 with whom I had taken sweet counsel, and walked to 
 the house of God, and who, if they had not forgotten 
 me, would ask, " Where is he 1 and what is his employ- 
 ment 1" I thought of everything of interest in my 
 native land; of bustling cities, with wheels rattling and 
 hoofs clattering over their pavements; of smiling villages 
 and towns, with their splendid turnpikes and McAdam- 
 ized roads; of railroad cars and steamboats ; of temples 
 erected to the God of heaven; the toll of chiming bells as 
 thay informed the waiting thousands that the time of wor- 
 ship had arrived; of crowded assemblies listening to the 
 messengers of Jesus; and of saints rejoicing, and altars 
 thronged with mourning penitents. , Continuing these 
 reflections until my mind experienced a kind of abstrac- 
 tion from the objects surrounding me, I fancied myself 
 really amidst the scenes, the contemplation of which had 
 produced this pleasing illusion, and starting up I found 
 myself surrounded with the stillness of death, save the 
 murmuring of the turbid waters of the Columbia that 
 
168 ¥Otm TO TBB IXTUIOB. 
 
 rolled beneath where I sat Contrasting the land which 
 had passed before my mental vision with that in which I 
 felt myself a voluntary exile, I exclaimed, how changed 
 the scene ! This, thought I, is truly a land of darkness. 
 Amidst the solitudes of these forests and plains the gos- 
 pel is never heard except perchance the missionary of 
 the cross may be passing through tin land, and then to 
 but here and there a small group of wretched Indians, 
 who are alternately shivering with ague, and burning 
 with fever, upon the brink of death. I was led to 
 inquire, when shall this state of things give way to civil- 
 ization and Christianity 1 when shall " the sound of the 
 church-going bell" be heard among these mountains and 
 over these plains 1 When shall the banks of this noble 
 river be studded with cities and villages, with the tem- 
 ples of Jehovah, whose steeples blazing in the sunlight, 
 shall tell the traveler that God is worshiped here 1 And 
 I fancied this response came back to my inquiries: not 
 until the present race shall have gone to the graves of 
 their fathers, and others shall rise to take their place. 
 
 Returning to the camp we sat down upon the ground 
 to a dinner which the Doctor's Kanaka, John, and my 
 Indian boy, Sampson, had prepared for us. Towards 
 evening the Doctor and myself walked leisurly into the 
 thickest of. the forest, towards the centre of the Island, 
 and seating ourselves upon a log, talked of by-gone days 
 raised a song of praise to the Redeemer, and upon our 
 knees offered up a tribute of thanksgiving for the past, 
 and invoked the Divine blessing pn our future course. 
 
 Monday, May 1st. At sunrise proceeded on our voy- 
 age, and were much delighted with the magnificent 
 scenery on the shores of the great Columbia. At eight 
 
 o'clock passed the Prairie Du , which lies oh the 
 
 north side of the river. This is a low, wet prairie, with 
 but little land which will admit of cultivation, but well 
 adapted to grazing purposes. As we proceeded, the 
 land next to the river became more uneven, the shores 
 more rocky and abrupt, and at length we found ourselve. 
 crawling along at the base of a frowning precipice of 
 rocks, rising more than three hundred feet perpendiculai 
 
TOUR TO Tli£ INTERIOR. 1M 
 
 over our heads. A little farther on and huge masses 
 of Basalt appeared thrown together in the wildest con 
 fusion, and these would be succeeded by another frightful 
 precipice, causing' one involuntarily to cringe while look- 
 ing upward towards its dizzy height. From the top, as 
 if to add beauty to terror, came leaping down a limpid 
 brook, which lost itself in spray, long before it reached 
 the bottom; and then again large fir-trees, stuck upon 
 the top of the rock three or four hundred feet directly 
 over our heads,- and leaning their waving tops far over 
 the rolling waters, would seem to look down upon us 
 with the most threatening aspect Conical formations 
 of rocks from thirty to one hundred feet high appeared, 
 peering up out of the water, resembling in form the 
 huge hay-stacks of a Connecticut farmer. As we passed 
 along at the 'base of these grand abutments of nature, 
 swarms of swallows far above our heads, were delight- 
 fully playing around the holes and crevices of the preci- 
 pice, in which the}' had built their nests. 
 
 At twelve o'clock, we passed a low point of land 
 which has received the name of Cape Horn, in conse- 
 quence of the difficulty of the navigation of this part of 
 the river arising from the strength of wind which gene- 
 rally prevails here. Often, when it is safe running on 
 all other parts of the river, canoes, on arriving here, 
 are obliged to lie by, sometimes for days, before they 
 can possibly pass this point. Indeed, the Cape Horn of 
 the Columbia is more difficult to double with the pigmy 
 craft which is used on this river, than the stormy cape 
 bearing the same name at the southern extremity of 
 Terra del Fuego. 
 
 A few miles above Cape Horn, we came to a huge 
 rock, which is justly considered a great curiosity. The 
 mountains at this place retire about one half mile from 
 the river, and this rock is situated midway between the 
 river and the mountain. In form it is nearly round ; is 
 about twenty-five rods in diameter at its base, and rises 
 perpendicularly on all, sides to the height of at least one 
 hundred and fifty feet." It then assumes a conical form, 
 aR<i gradually diminishes in size till it rises iome two 
 1 
 
154 T»CR TO THE INTUIOB. 
 
 hundred feet more, and then presents to the heavens a 
 broken surface of several rods in diameter, beautifully 
 ornamented with a luxuriant growth of variegated. ever- 
 greens. Passing this stupendous monument reared by 
 nature's hands in mockery of the works of art, we 
 arrived at the cascades at sundown, and camped for the 
 night, after having run a hair-breadth risk of losing oui 
 canoe and all our baggage, at one of the violent rapids 
 below the cascades. Our men, consisting of two Indians 
 and one Kanaka, were cordelling our canoe up the rapid; 
 and coming round a point of rocks, it took a sheer out 
 into the strongest part of the current, and began directly 
 to fill with water. My Indian boy, Sampson, was the 
 only one that had hold of the rope, and such was the 
 strength of, the current against the- canoe, that he could 
 not hold on to the rope with his hands ; and being about 
 to be pulled from the rocks into the river, he grasped 
 the rope between his teeth, and falling down upon the 
 rocks, held fast to them with his hands, and in that man- 
 ner succeeded in bringing the canoe back to the shore, 
 with no other damage being done, than the wetting of 
 our provisions and bedding. 
 
 When we retired to rest, wrapped in our wet blankets, 
 we were reminded of a little incident in the experience 
 of Mr. Townsend, a naturalist, who traveled down this 
 river several years before. It had rained severely all 
 day, and every article he had, bedding, wardrobe, pro- 
 visions and all, were thoroughly drenched.. He rolled 
 himself in his wet blankets and lay down to sleep, think- 
 ing of the last words of his dying grandmother, " Be 
 careful and never sleep in damp sheets." 
 
 Tuesday, 2d. From the effects of the wind upon the 
 the water and the sand, filling the air with the latter as 
 snow in a February storm in Western New York, and 
 raising the former into high waves, we were obliged to 
 lie quiet in our camp. Occasionally, however, we ven- 
 tured out to the shore of the Columbia, contemplating 
 her majesty, as she pours her exhaustless flood down 
 the ledge of rocks which forms the beautiful cascades. 
 The river here falls in continued rapids for three miles 
 
VOVB TO TM INTUUOB. IBS 
 
 not less than fifty & feet. That portion of the rapids 
 properly called the cascades, presents an appearance of 
 grandeur and' sublimity not inferior to that of the rapids 
 of the Niagara river, above the great cataract. At this 
 place the Columbia rushes through the cascade range of 
 mountains, and the channel through which it pours its 
 mighty torrent, appears not more than thirty rods wide, 
 while each shore presents indubitable evidence that, by 
 a vast accumulation of water above, these mountain* 
 barriers were torn assunder, and thus this mighty river* 
 found its way to the Pacific ocean. The Indians here 
 have a tradition that, a long time ago, the mountain was 
 joined together over the river, and that the river per- 
 formed a subterraneous passage for some distance, with 
 a slow current, and that their people used to pass up 
 and down with their canoes without difficulty ; but all 
 at once the foundations of this mighty arch crumbled 
 jeneath their ponderous weight, and the whole mass 
 came tumbling into the river, filling up the channel and 
 quite damming up the stream, and thus were formed the 
 beautiful cascades. The probability is that this tradition 
 is true only in part. Doubtless the time was 1 when there 
 were no cascades here, and they were probably formed 
 by the mountain's sliding into the river in tremendous 
 avalanches, and thus filling up the channel. The land 
 on each side of the river at this place is rough and 
 sterile, and the scenery wild beyond description. ' The 
 cascades are fifty miles above Vancouver; and one hun- 
 dred and forty-five from the mouth of the Columbia. 
 
 At three, p. m.-, the wind lulling, we proceeded up ten 
 miles and camped for the night, which was exceedingly 
 windy, with some rain. Found the river wide above 
 the cascades, with little currentj and, from appearances, 
 were convinced that the Indian tradition concerning the 
 falling in of the mountain, is not without foundation. 
 The original channel appears to have been very narrow, 
 compared with the present width of the river. Forests 
 which were situated on its former banks, have been 
 overflown, and a vast number of stumps and trees which 
 have not yet wasted away, stand in the present bed of 
 the stream. 
 
158 TOPS TO THE INTEEIOB. 
 
 Wednesday, 3d. Continued our voyage, but at nooe 
 were obliged to lay by in consequence of the rise of the 
 wind. 
 
 Anxious to make headway, we continued out after 
 the wind had increased to a strong" gale We passed 
 a number of dangerous points, where the shore was pre- 
 cipitous and " iron bound ;" but the wind being directly 
 astern, and having a blanket rigged for a sail, we darted 
 past them like an arrow, though the waves ran so high 
 "that they threatened every moment to engulph us. In 
 passing the last point before we came to shore, we run 
 a very great hazard of losing our canoe and baggage, 
 if not our lives. A canoe much larger than ours, with 
 five IndianSj had just passed the point, and barely es- 
 caped. Running their canoe into a little bay just above, 
 they hurried back along the shore, and arrived at the 
 point just as we did, expecting to see our little canoe 
 driven against the shelving rocks^ by the violence of the 
 winds and waves, and dashed to pieces. But with ama- 
 zing swiftness, and in fearful proximity, we shot by the 
 dangerous point, realizing no other damage than a wet- 
 ting, and a fright. As for myself, when we were tossed 
 in our. feather-like craft over these Atlantic waves, and 
 driven with such violence so near the frowning rocks 
 that I could touch them with my hand as we were 
 shooting by, and my heart beating so violently that it 
 sounded like the grunting of a black grouse in the top 
 of a fir-tree, I thought I had much rather be on terra 
 firma; so, mooring our canoe in a little cove, we waited 
 for the wind to fall. Resuming our voyage toward* 
 evening, we ran a few miles, and camped for the night 
 
 Thursday, 4th. Arrived at the Dalls, and found oiu 
 friends Well and prospering. Here reside Rev. Danie! 
 Lee, one of the pioneer missionaries to Oregon, Rev. 
 H. K. W. Perkins, and Mr. H. B. Brewer. They are 
 laboring to establish a permanent mission at this place 
 for the benefit of the Indians, but with doubtful success. 
 ' The country around is much better than I expected 
 to find. In the vicinity of the mission the land is ex- 
 leedingly fertile, and the scenery is most delightful. 
 
 Soon after we arrived, about twenty Indians came to 
 
VOVR TO THE INTE1IOB. 117 
 
 the house of Mr. Brewer, where we stopped, to have a 
 talk with Dr. White. When he was up the winter be- 
 fore, he prevailed on these Indians to organize themselves 
 into a kind of government. One high chief, and three 
 subordinates were elected ; laws were enacted, and the 
 penalties annexed were whippings more or less severe, 
 according to the nature of the crime. The chiefs had 
 found much difficulty in enforcing the lawsl In punishing 
 delinquents some of the Indians resisting, even to the 
 point of the knife. ' 
 
 The chiefs, who were appointed through the influence 
 of Dr. White, were desirous that these regulations should 
 continue, evidently because they placed the people under 
 their absolute control, and gave them the power to regur 
 late all their intercourse with the whites, and with the 
 other Indian tribes. But the other influential men who 
 were not in office, desired to know of Dr. White, of 
 what benefit this whipping system was going to be to 
 them. They said they were willing it should continue, 
 provided they were to receive blankets, shirts and pants, 
 as a reward for being whipped. They had been whipped 
 a good many times, and had got nothing for it, and it 
 had done them no good. If this state of things was 
 to continue, it was all (cultus) good for nothing, and 
 they would throw it all away. In reply they were told 
 by the Doctor that we could not be detained to settle 
 any of their difficulties now ; that we were going far- 
 ther into the interior, and were in a very great hurry , 
 and that when we returned he would endeavor to make 
 all straight. But he wished them to understand that 
 they need not expect pay for being flogged, when they 
 deserved it. They laughed heartily at the idea, and 
 dispersed, giving us an opportunity to make arrangements 
 for the continuance of our journey. 
 
 We left our canoe at the Dalls in the care of an In- 
 dian, and engaged eight horses of an old Indian, by the 
 aame of Canasissa, who was to bring them to us the 
 following morning. 
 
 Friday, 5th. Canasissa arrived early in the morning, 
 and coming to us with a very long face, , .r.quired what 
 
158 TOUR TO THE INTEKIOB. 
 
 we were going to give him to accompany us, aa he 
 wished to see that the horses -were well used. The 
 Doctor replied, " You are a very old man ; the journ«y 
 is long, and the Indians are very sile®, (angry); you may 
 get into difficulty ; you had bettej stay at home." Still 
 Canasissa insisted on going, but was told that if he went 
 he must go for nothing. He then said that he had 
 brought but seven horses, and thought that we did not 
 give only enough to pay for the seven, but he should 
 have brought the eighth if he could have found it He 
 was told that we must have the eighth. "Yes, said 
 Canasissa, "You may have the eighth, if you will give 
 me one blanket more in addition to what you were to 
 give me." But we peremptorily refused to take any 
 without the whole, according to agreement ; and went 
 about negotiating with another Indian to supply us with 
 horses. When Canasissa saw that we were about to 
 succeed with the other one, he altered his tone, and 
 came up to us saying that it was very good for us not 
 to pay another blanket ; that he would bring the other 
 horse, and would go with us himself. Taking him at 
 nis offer, we made arrangements also with Rev. H. K. 
 W. Perkins to accompany us. 
 
 Horses ready, saddles all- on, and bridles, consisting 
 of hide-rope, tied to the horse's lower jaw, with our 
 .baggage, provisions, &c, packed on the backs of two 
 of the horses, we mounted, and left the mission at eleven 
 o'clock. Pour miles brought us to the great Dalls, and 
 here Canasissa brought us the eighth horse, and acknow- 
 ledged that the object he had in view in not bringing 
 it to us in the first place, was to extort from us an 
 additional blanket, a trick quite characteristic of these 
 Indians, who seem instinctively to embrace every oppor- 
 tunity that presents itself, to overreach those who, in 
 any measure, are dependent upon them. I was pecu- 
 liarly struck, while we were negotiating with them, with 
 their astonishing tact in cheating. As a matter of 
 course, lying has much to do in their system of trade, 
 and he is the best fellow who can tell the biggest lie, 
 
TOVB TO THE INTERIOR. 159 
 
 a few years ago a great religious excitement prevailed 
 among these Indians, and nearly the whole tribe, con 
 sisting of upwards of a thousand, professed to be con- 
 verted, were baptized, and received into the christian 
 church ; but they have nearly all relapsed into thei*- 
 former state, with the exception that many of them stiu 
 keep up the outward forms of religion. Their religion 
 appears to be more of the head than of the heart, and 
 though they are exceedingly vicious, yet doubtless they 
 would be much worse than they are but for the restrain- 
 ing influences exerted upon them by the missionaries. 
 
 They are known by the name of the Wasco Indians, 
 and they call their country round the Dalls, Wascopam. 
 They claim the country extending from the cascades up 
 to the falls of the Columbia, the distance of about fifty 
 miles. " La Dallas," or the narrows, as the word signi- 
 fies in English, are somewhat remarkable. Here the 
 Columbia suddenly contracts into a very narrow channel, 
 and then rushes through a mighty gorge or chasm in the 
 ocks, with fearful violence, in its passage tumbling and 
 toiling and roaring, and ever and anon forming the most 
 tremendous whirlpools. Yet the Hudson's Bay Com- 
 pany's boats are frequently made to run these frightful 
 narrows, and it is not Uncommon for them to pay for 
 their rashness with the loss of a boat, and a sacrifice of 
 a number of their men. 
 
 Just below the Dalls, where the current continues to 
 be strong, is a little island, used by the Indians as a place 
 of deposit for the dead. There is something peculiar in 
 their manner of sepulture. The dead are taken to a small 
 house, built on this island for the purpose, and laid in a 
 pile around the inside of the house, the head next to the 
 wall, and the feet towards the center of the building. 
 Here hundreds have been deposited, forming a pile 
 several feet high. 
 
 The country around the Dalls is valuable, in conse- 
 quence of its adaptation to grazing and farming purposes, 
 and the extensive salmon fishery which might here bo 
 established. These Indians, with most of the tribes of 
 Oregon, are destined to utter extinction, and the time is 
 
160 tOCS TO THE INTERIOM. 
 
 not far distant when their country will be occupied by 
 
 the descendants of the Pilgrims. 
 
 At two o'clock, we left the Dalls, and seven milei 
 brought us to the shoots, or falls of the Columbia, which 
 it this stage of the water, are about ten feet perpendic- 
 ular, but in June, when the river is high, the water sets 
 nack from the Dalls so that there are no falls to be seen. 
 
 Arrived at the river " De Shoots " at five, p. m., ten 
 Tiiles above the Dalls, and three above the falls of the 
 Columbia. This river rises among the mountains which 
 iivide the Wallamette and the Walla- Walla countries, 
 called the Cascade Range, and taking a north-easterly 
 course and watering a fertile \ valley, it forms a number 
 )f beautiful cataracts and cascades. It falls into the 
 Columbia one hundred and ninety miles from its mouth. 
 Probably it derives its name from the fact that it pos- 
 sesses numerous falls, and finally rushes down a ledge of 
 -ocks into the Columbia with great violence. We found 
 t very difficult to cross ; but with the help of a few 
 Walla- Walla Indians whom we found here, and a couple 
 )f scoop-shovel canoes, we succeeded in crossing without 
 lecident, though, to the inexperienced, it would have 
 jeen considered an enterprise of great peril. But the 
 crossing was not so difficult as it was to satisfy the Indians 
 who assisted us. They wanted all we had, even the . 
 clothes on our backs: but we paid them what we pleased, 
 md repacking our animals, continued on five miles farther, 
 ;amping for the night beside a small rivulet and under 
 ;he lee of a sanddrift thirty feet high. Sometimes, in 
 ;he valley of the Columbia, the wind is so strong that 
 lie sand is driven about like snow, the air is full of it, 
 md woe be to the eyes that are compelled to meet the 
 )eating storm. 
 
 May 6th. Journeyed on, and at eleven, a. m., came 
 ;o a stream of water which has received the name of 
 fohn Day's river. It is about twenty rods wide at iti 
 nouth, too deep to ford, but easily crossed by swiming, > 
 n consequence of its having but little current It derived 
 ts cognomen from a remarkable circumstance in the 
 listorv of the gentleman whose name it bears. 
 
VOVS TO THK JNTBBJOK. 16 
 
 John Day was a native of Kentucky, rod though a 
 man of some fortune, and considerable talents, and might 
 have lived in affluence and ease in his native country, 
 * yet, from choice, he# abandoned all the endearments of 
 civilized life, and became a rambler in the savage wilds 
 of the Rocky mountains and Oregon. When Wilson 
 Price Hunt performed his astonishing journey from Mis- 
 souri to the mouth of the Columbia river, John Day was 
 one of his most faithful and persevering companions, and 
 suffered with him the most surprising hardships. Excel- 
 ling in the qualifications of a hunter, and faithful to the 
 trusts committed to him, responsibilities were thrown 
 upon him during that perilous journey which proved more 
 than he was able to bear. At Astoria he was appointed 
 to accompany Robert Stewart back to Missouri, on busi- 
 ness of importance, but had not proceeded far up the 
 Columbia before he became restless and uneasy, and 
 finally gave evident signs of insanity. On the evening 
 of the second of July, 1813, he attempted to destroy 
 /dmself, but being disarmed, he sank into quiet and pro- 
 fessed remorse. He pretended to sleep, but just before 
 daylight he sprang up, siezed a pair of loaded pistols, 
 and endeavored to blow out his own brains, but he held 
 the pistols too high, and the balls/passed over his head. 
 He was then secured so that he could n§t harm him- 
 self, and sent back to Astoria. This event happened 
 in the vicinity o,f this river. He was taken back from 
 this point in hopes that he might recover, but his consti 
 tution was entirely broken; he lingered for a- number of 
 months, and died, evidently from the effects of the hard- 
 ships he had endured. 
 
 Dined on the bank of this river, and conversed on the 
 perilous adventures of the mountaineers; then resumed 
 our wearisome journey, but found little to interest us, or 
 to break the monotony of the scenery along the Colum- 
 bia. In the afternoon, however, we were entertained 
 with the appearance of a flock of sandhill cranes, num- 
 bering, at least, two thousand, which passed directly 
 over our heads, on their passage to the mouth. Two 
 arse rattlesnakes placed themselves in our path ; we 
 7* 
 
l62 TOUR TO THE IKTEEIOE. 
 
 examined them for a moment, and then " bruised then 
 heads." A few small trees also, the like of which I hav» 
 never seen in any country, were objects of curiosity 
 We passed a few score of Indian^ during the day, bu 
 they manifested no signs of hostility, and at night en 
 camped for the Sabbath about midway between the Dalit 
 and fort Walla- Walla. 
 
 Sabbath, May 7th, was an exceedingly windy day, and 
 we founi it much more pleasant to continue in camp, 
 than it would have- been to travel. Indeed, I have sel 
 dom looked for the day of rest more anxiously than I 
 did the last part of the week past. Though we made 
 only about one hundred and fifty miles during the week, 
 yet, from the constant labor resulting from our mode of 
 traveling, we had become exceedingly fatigued, and the 
 day in which we are to perform no servile work, was 
 most thankfully welcomed. Though we were doomed 
 to spend it far from the abodes of civilized man, yet it 
 brought with it the most delightful associations. It 
 reminded me not only of the completion of the work of 
 creation, when the morning stars sang together, and all 
 the sons of God shouted for joy, but my mind was car- 
 ried back to him, who, " though he was rich, yet for our 
 sakes became poor, that we through liis poverty might 
 be made rich." I saw him in my contemplations amidst 
 all the. scenes of labor and suffering through which he 
 was called to pass. The garden of Gethsemene, the 
 judgment hall, the bloody summit of Calvary, and the 
 crimsoned cross, passed in review before me. I heard 
 the Saviour of men, while his blood was pouring forth as 
 <rom a high and lofty altar to satisfy the demands of 
 offended justice, when he looked around upon his mur- 
 derers and cried out, " It is finished." It was not fancy; 
 faith brought the Saviour near, ana looked upon him when, 
 he bowed his head upon his breast and gave up the ghost 
 From the summit of the blood-stained mountains, I fol- 
 lowed him to the sepulchre, and here I saw my Saviour 
 under the dominion of the grave, a captive to the king 
 of terrors. But the third morning drew near, and the 
 •un that sat in blood, arose in glory. The crucified Re- 
 
TOUR TO THE INTEBIOS l69 
 
 deemer, triumphant over death, and leading capt'vity 
 captive, received gifts for men. 
 
 " He rises who mankind has bought, 
 With sweat and blood extreme, 
 'Twas great ti speak a world from nought. 
 'Twas greater to redeem." 
 
 Monday, 8th. Arose invigorated in body and mind, 
 and invoking the Divine blessing upon us in our future 
 trials, packed our animals and wound our way along up 
 the numerous turns of the Columbia. The trail runs in 
 the deep valley of the river along the shore; this makes 
 the route quite uninteresting. The prospect is entirelj 
 broken off by the tremendous walls of Basaltj which 
 ower from four to seven hundred feet on both sides of 
 the river. When this wall approached the river so as 
 not to admit of the trail passing between it and the 
 water, we were obliged to climb this stupendous ledge 
 traveling for awhile upon its top, then clambering down 
 among the rocks till we regained, the lower valley. 
 While doing this we sometimes take alarm from the 
 fearful crash of a detached mass of Basalt as it came 
 leaping down from the summit of the .precipice. This 
 climbing, however, gave us an opportunity of seeing 
 what the country is a little distance from the river. 
 Nothing can exceed the barrenness of the land. Though 
 the face of the country for a considerable distance from 
 the river on each side, is agreeably diversified with hills 
 and valleys, yet, as far as the eye can reach to the right 
 and left, it is one continued desert of sand, gravel, and 
 rocks. It is said that farther away from the river than 
 we could see, the land is more fertile, and the grass 
 abundant. 
 
 Having traveled thirty-six miles over this desert 
 region, we stopped for the night on the banks of a beau- 
 tiful stream called the Utilla. Here we found fifteen or 
 twenty of the Walla- Walla Indians, exceedingly squallid 
 in their appearance, and living on the fish they caught 
 in the stream. These fish are a species of the salmon, 
 and we succeeded in getting enough for our supper and 
 
164 VOVft VO THE INTKBIO* 
 
 breakfast The land on this river is more fertile, anfl 
 grows better as you go up the stream. 
 
 Next morning, at the rising of the sun, we left oui 
 attendants with the pack animals, and proceeded on 
 ahead, determined, if possible, to reach the mission sta- 
 tion at Waialetpu, on the Walla-Walla river, the same 
 day. Passed Fort Walla- Walla at twelve, and arrived 
 at Dr. Whitman's at five, having traveled fifty miles 
 since we mounted in the morning. We were received 
 with great cordiality by Mrs. Whitman and Mr. Giger: 
 Dr. Whitman being absent on a tour to the United 
 States. They had heard we were coming, and were 
 looking for us with great anxiety. We soon learned 
 that the reports in the lower country about war, thai 
 had produced such an excitement, were not without 
 foundation : the Kayuse Indians, among whom this 
 mission is established, had freely communicated to Mr. 
 Giger, whom they esteemed as their friend, all they 
 knew concerning it. 
 
 When the Indians' were first told that the Americans 
 were designing to subjugate them, and take away their 
 lands, the young chiefs of the Kayuse tribe were in 
 favor of proceeding immediately to hostilities. They 
 .were for raising a large war party, and; rushing directly 
 down to the Wallamette settlement, cut off the inhabit- 
 ants at a blow. The old chiefs were of a different 
 opinion ; they suggested more cautious measures. Ta- 
 king into consideration the difficulty, at that season of 
 the year, of marching a large party the distance of 
 three or four hundred miles through a wide range of 
 mountains, covered with snow, they advised all the 
 Indians to wait until they should obtain more information 
 concerning the designs of the Americans. They also 
 thought that it would not be wisdom in them, in any 
 case, to commence an offensive war, but to prepare 
 themselves for a vigorous defence against any attack. 
 They frequently remarked to Mr. Giger, that they did 
 not wish to go to war, but if the Americans came to 
 take away their lands, and bring them into a state of 
 vassalage, they would fight so long as they had a drop 
 
WOn TO THE INTERIOR 185 
 
 of blood to shed They said they had received theii 
 information concerning the designs of the Americans 
 from Baptiste Dorio. This individual, who is a half- 
 i breed, son of Madame Dorio, the heroine of Washington 
 Irving's Astoria, understands the Nes Perce langauge 
 well, and had given the Kayuses the information that hao 
 alarmed them. Mr. Giger endeavored to induce them 
 to prepare, ■early in the spring, to cultivate the ground 
 as they did the year before, but they refused to do any- 
 thing, saying that Baptiste Dorio had told them that it 
 would be of no consequence ; that the whites would 
 come in the summer, and kill them all off, and destroy 
 their plantations. 
 
 After Dorio had told them this story, they sent r> 
 Walla-Walla chief, called Yellow Serpent, to Vancouver, 
 to learn from Doctor McLaughlin the facts in the case 
 Yellow Serpent returned and told the Kayuses that Dr. 
 McLaughlin said he had nothing to do in a war with the 
 Indians ; that he did not believe the Americans designed 
 to attack them, and that, if the Americans did go to 
 war with the Indians, tbe Hudson's Bay Company would 
 not assist them. After they got this information from 
 the Mas (great) Doctor, the Indians became more calm 
 many of them went to cultivating the ground as for ; 
 merly, and a large number of Jittle patches had been 
 planted and sown, before we arriyed at the station. 
 
 The Kayuses were principaljjk encamped along the 
 base of the Blue mountains, a few miles east of Dr. 
 Whitman's house ; and after we had obtained all the 
 information we could from Mrs. Whitman and Mr. Gi- 
 ger, concerning the state of things among them, we 
 sent them word that we had come, and desired to see 
 them. We also sent the chiefs word that we desired 
 them to make arrangements to have all their people 
 meet us at the mission on the following Friday^ to have 
 a talk. 
 
 The chiefs came to see us at Dr. Whitman's, and told 
 the story of their grievances, and said that they desired 
 to have the difficulty settled. They said it would not 
 be convenient for the people to rome together bo soon 
 
186 VOCE TO THE INTERIOR. 
 
 as we desired, as many of them were off among the 
 mountains, hunting elk. As they must be informed of 
 the meeting, it would be r several days before the people 
 could get together. We ascertained, however, that this 
 was a mere pretence. They had been informed that 
 Ellis, the Nez Perce chief, was coming down to meet us 
 on their ground, and this had determined them not to 
 ;ave any meeting until Ellis should arrive. But as we 
 had learned that Ellis was comings with his warriors, 
 consisting of several hundred — for what purpose we 
 could not ascertain, some saying to make war upon the 
 Kayuses — we came to the conckision that the meeting 
 of ine two tribes should, if possible, be prevented. 
 
 While considering this subject, we were solicited by 
 the chiefs to take a ride among the Indian plantations. 
 Accordingly, a party was made out which would have 
 made all the sacerdotal order laugh to contemplate., 
 The raptain of the party was a Kayuse chief, by the 
 name of Feathercap : and of all the Indians I have seen 
 he has a countenance the most savage. But, with this 
 ther,e is a dignity and decision manifested in his move 
 ments, which might put many a white man to the blush 
 He is about five feet ten inches high ; has a voice of the 
 stentorian order, and possesses all the native character- 
 istics of an orator. 
 
 His dress was quite fantastical, being composed of 
 skin breeches, a stripf d shirt, which he wore over his 
 breeches, and a scarlet coat, gilted off very much in the 
 fashion of the regimentals of a British general. His 
 head-dress was composed, first of a cotton handkerchief 
 thrown loosely over his head, then a cap made of otter 
 Bkin over the handkerchief, and on the top of the cap 
 fastened with savage taste, the long hair of a white 
 norse's tail, which hung in ringlets down the backside 
 of his neck. Thus rigged, he was prepared to guide us 
 on our tour of pleasure. An Indian woman and her 
 daughter joined our' party, of whom mention has been 
 made in another part of this narrative. The old woman 
 lived many years with Thomas McKay, but he finally 
 oast ner off, and she is now the wife of an old half-breed 
 
; ; TOXJE TO THE HTTEBIOB. 167 
 
 "* TOquois, by the name of Jo-Gray. Her daughter is the 
 tvife of Charles Eoe. ■ They both flive in the lower 
 country, but were up on a visit to their relatives among 
 the Indians. Their dresses were an imitation of the 
 
 . Boston fashions, but were much defiled by the smoke, 
 dirt, and grease of wigwams. They were both astride 
 their horses, the younger carrying her little son before 
 her. 
 
 There were also three other Indians, without note- 
 worthy peculiaritiest Mr. Giger, who is a small man, 
 mounted a donkey which was about the size of a New 
 foundland dog, and exceedingly antic, just naving re- 
 cruited from a journey across the Rocky mountains. In 
 addition to these, Mrs. Whitman, Dr. White and myself 
 made up the party. Feathercap led us about one mile, 
 across a low piece of fertile ground, when we arrived at 
 the nearest plantations. We ascertained that about 
 sixty of the Kayuses had commenced cultivating the 
 ground. They each have fenced around a small piece 
 of ground, from one-fourth of an acre, to three acres, 
 and each one is entitled only to what he raises himself ' 
 They had in the ground wheat, corn, peas and potatoes 
 Many of the places were well fenced and well cultivated 
 and the crops looked flourishing. The Indians appearer 
 highly pleased that we went out to see their farms, an* 
 told us they were very glad that they had been learnei 
 to till the ground. They have already learned that thei' 
 livelihood, which previously was very precarious, by 
 their little farms, is fully secured to them. This, theV 
 say, makes their hearts glad. 
 
 Our motley party proceeded in high glee, alternately 
 conversing in the -English, Chenook, and Walla-WaUi 
 languages, and remarking upon whatever presented itselt 
 before us. The little man on the hias tenas (very little 
 mule, was the , subject of much amusement wit! th- 
 Indians ; and in the novelty and excitement of our litD» 
 excursion, ths subject of war and blood was entire It 
 forgotten. Wo passed pleasantly along, now crossing 
 a. beautiful plain, blooming with flowers, which sen- 
 forth their rich odors upon the breeze ; now penetrating 
 
168 VOUB TO THK INTEKIOB. 
 
 the small thickets of servill, chokecheiry, thorn and 
 rose bushes ; and, now fording, little brooks of pure, 
 limpid water, which came leaping down from .the blue 
 mountains, until we had traveled the distance of eight ; 
 miles in a circuitous route. We then found ourselves 
 very unexpectedly back to the point whence we started, 
 all prepared for a consultation concerning the Indian 
 war. 
 
 As there was a large party of the Kayuses and Walla- 
 Walla Indians encamped on the head waters of the 
 Utilla, .about fifty miles from Dr. Whitman's, embracing 
 some of the principal chiefs, Mr. Perkins was desired to 
 go out, and invite them to come in so as to be a * .3 
 meeting, subsequently to be held at the mission staa.on. 
 Not knowing the way, he procured an Indian guide, and 
 started off with no other person to accompany him. 
 Traveling through a beautiful country, well adapted f > 
 pastoral pursuits, towards evening he arrived ai .ie 
 Utilla, where he expected to find the Indians, but they 
 had removed to another place about twenty miles farther 
 off. Inasmuch as he had no provision, and no means of 
 kindling a fire, and there being no signs of Jndian habit- 
 ations in the vicinity, he resolved to proceed to cam]: 
 though in doing so, he was obliged to cross the stream 
 He asked the guide where the crossing place was, ana 
 was told that it was just before him. He tried to get 
 the Indian to go in first and see how deep the water 
 was, but the Indian refused, saying he was afraid. Mr. 
 Perkins then rode his horse in, but soon found the water 
 so deep that the horse was obliged to swim. But now 
 it was as easy to go ahead as to turn about, and urging 
 his horse a little, he was borne through the rapid stream 
 in safety, to the opposite shore.* 
 
 , His guide, frightened at the idea of passing the stream 
 in the same manner, could not be induced to follow, and 
 making an excuse that he did not -know the way, deserted 
 him, and went back. Luckily, however, Mr. Perkins 
 discovered an Indian not far distant, driving some horses, 
 and of him he learned where he should find the trail that 
 led to the Tndian camp. He pushed on at full speed, ano 
 
VOTB TO TUB UITKRIOft. Itt 
 
 arrived there just after dark, having rode since ten o'clock 
 in the morning, the distance of seventy miles. Here he 
 found three chiefs by the name of Tauitau, Yellow Ser- 
 pent, and Five Crows. The last has recently professed 
 conversion to the protestant religion, and the first has 
 become a Catholic. Yellow Serpent is favorable to the 
 Protestant missions, but does not give as good evidence 
 of conversion as Five Crows. Yellow" Serpent is the 
 principal chief of the Walla- Walla tribe, the other two 
 are brothers, and chiefs of the Kayuse. 
 
 The son of Yellow Serpent was also with him. He 
 nas spent a number of years in the Methodist mission 
 school, 0*1 the Wallamette river, where he received the 
 name of Elijah Hedding, and where he acquired some 
 knowledge of the English language, and professed con- 
 version to Christianity. Mr. Perkins put up for the night 
 at Yellow Serpent's lodge. Supper was served of dried 
 salmon, after which prayer was proposed by Elijah. 
 They sang a hymn, and Mr. Perkins led in prayer, ana 
 was followed by Elijah, who, after he had concluded, 
 requested his father to pray. This ended, they sung 
 another hymn, and prepared to sleep. Mr. Perkins 
 having wet his blankets in swimming the river, had nonj 
 to sleep in, but Yellow Serpent, taking his own blanket 
 from his shoulders, gave it to him, saying that he had no 
 blankets, but would make him as comfortable as he could. 
 Wrapped in the Indian's blanket, he composed himself to 
 sleep. 
 
 The next monning, quite early, he called at Tauitau's 
 lodge, and was informed, on entering, that they had not 
 yet had their morning prayers. The chief caused a bell 
 to be rung, at the sound of which all his band came 
 bgether for devotion. Tauitau then said to Mr. Perkins, 
 " We are Catholics, and our worship is different from 
 yours." He then fell upon his knees, all the rest kneeling 
 and facing him. The chief had a -long string of beads 
 on his neck, to which was attached a brass cross. After 
 all were knelt, they devoutly crossed themselves, and 
 commenced their prayers as follows: " We are poor, we 
 are poor," repeating it ten times, and then dosing with. 
 
170 ten to tbb mrauoB. 
 
 ♦Good Father, good Son, good Spirit," and then tha 
 chief would slip a bead on the string. This was coniln- 
 ued until all the beads were removed from one part of 
 the string to the other. When their devotions closed, 
 Tauitau said, " This js the way in which the priest taught 
 us to worship God," but Elijah said that " Tauitau and 
 his band prayed from the head, but we pray from the 
 heart. Bidding them good morning, Mr. Perkins moun- 
 ted his horse, and at evening arrived in safety at the 
 mission. 
 
 Friday, 12th. As the Indians refused to come together 
 unless Ellis and his men came down to meet them, we 
 informed them that we should go up and see Ellis in his 
 own country, but being suspicious that we intended to 
 prevent his coming down, they were much opposed to 
 our going. Explaining to the chiefs the object of our 
 visit, they seemed to be satisfied, and we went about 
 preparing for the continuance of our journey. 
 
 At five, p. m., all were ready, and we started off on 
 a round gallop in a northeasterly direction, and the sun 
 went down beneath the waters of the Pacific. The 
 light of the moon enabled us to keep along the winding 
 trail as it led us over a beautifully undulating country 
 till eleven o'clock at night, when we camped on a smal 
 rivulet called the Toosha, forty-five miles from where 
 we started. Next morning at sunrise proceeded. A 
 noon encamped on another little stream, having traveleu 
 thirty-five miles. Rested for an hour, and continued our 
 course through an exceedingly roman|ic country. At 
 five, p. m., arrived at the Snake or Lewis river, where a 
 portion of the Nez. Perse tribe reside, headed by one 
 whom they call " Red Wt]£." 
 
 The village is situated on a small inclined plain, quite 
 fertile, but the country round about is very rocky and 
 mountainous. The valleys, however, afford abundant 
 grass to supply the numerous horses owned by the 
 Indians. Red Wolf, in more than one instance, has 
 proved himself a friend to the Americans. When Capt 
 Bonneville was in tins country, many years ago, in his 
 trade with the Indians, he met with violent opposition 
 
TOtra ro the interios. 171 
 
 !rom the Hudson's Bay Company, and was compelled 
 to leave that portion under the control of the company. 
 But, in his attempt to do, he. lost his way, and wandered 
 about until he and his men were reduced to a starving 
 state. Fortunately, he struck a trail that led him to the 
 lodge of Red Wolf, and he immediately told the chief 
 of his great distress. Red Wolf was moved by the 
 story and ordered a horse to be butchered without 
 delay. Bonneville and his men feasted themselves to' 
 their entire satisfaction; and when they were ready to 
 leave, they were supplied with a guide, arid provision 
 for their journey. 
 
 From Dr. Whitman's to Red Wolf's place it is one 
 hundred miles; and having traveled it in one day, our 
 aorses were' leg weary. Consequently, we turned them 
 .•bose among the hills to remain till we returned, and 
 obtained fresh ones of 'led Wolf, for the prosecution 
 of our journey. It was twenty-five miles from Red 
 Wolf's to the mission station among the Nez Perces, 
 under the care of Rev. Mr. Spaulding and the sun was 
 two hours high; the trail was difficult in some places 
 but the horses were as light-footed as antelopes. Red 
 Wolf had volunteered to accompany us, and crossing 
 the river, swimming our horses in the rear of our canoe, 
 we eac u one mounted the animal designated by the chief, 
 and himself taking the lead, we measured off the ground 
 with wonderful rapidity. We passed a number of small 
 villages, and found the vallies which were fertile, aston- 
 ishingly filled with horses. From one eminence could 
 be seen not less than one thousand. But Red Wolf led 
 us on with such astonishing swiftness that we had 
 scarcely time to casta glance at the Indians, horses, 
 rivers, mountains, &c, by which the scenery of our 
 route was diversified, and which we left one after another 
 in quick succession far in the rear. Just as the sun was 
 setting we brought up on Clear Water River, on the side 
 opposite the house of Rev. Mr. Spaulding. We had 
 traveled twenty-five miles in two hours, and sixty miles 
 since we dined at twelve o'clock. Hailing across the 
 river, Mr. Spaulding came over in a small canoe, and 
 
it* ¥00* TO THB INTESIOB. 
 
 took us and our baggage over, and, with his wife, ant) 
 Mr. and Mrs. Littlejohn, gave us a most cordial ana 
 hearty welcome to their isolated home. 
 
 Sunday, 14th. Some two hundred Indians, of all ages, 
 met in the rear of Mr. Spaulding's house for religious 
 worship. They behaved with great propriety, and some 
 of them gave good evidence of genuiue conversion. Mr. 
 Spaulding had received three of them into church fellow- 
 ship, two of. them chiefs, by the name of Joseph and 
 Timothy; and thirty others stood propounded for mem- 
 bership. According to arrangement, these were to be 
 received on the Sabbath after our arrival. Being exam 
 ined according to the order of the Presbyterian church, 
 and giving satisfaction as to their religious experience, 
 they and their children received baptism, and they be 
 came members of Christ's visible church. v 
 
 In the evening it fell to my lot to preach to the few 
 Americans who providentially had been thus thrown 
 together. This is evidently the most promising Indian 
 mission in Oregon. 
 
 Monday, 15th. Climbed to the top of a mountain, 
 twenty-two hundred feet high, which overlooks the valley 
 of Sapwai, and enables one to trace the windings of 
 Clear Water, for several miles. We started a number 
 of large rocks down the precipitous sides of the moun- 
 tain towards the river, but on descending found that ou. 
 sport was not g.atuitous. Some Indians had just come 
 up the trail on horseback, and a fragment of one of the 
 rocks had struck a horse's leg and broken it But the horse 
 being not very valuable, the matter was easily adjusted. 
 
 When we arrived, Ellis, with some hundreds of his 
 people, was fifty or sixty miles off, and a letter was sen 
 to him to come down and meet us. 
 
 Tuesday, 16th. Joseph, who is second to Ellis in the 
 chieftainship, made a martial display of his band, in a 
 little plain in the rear of the house, where he entertained 
 us with a sham fight. We estimated the number under 
 Joseph at seven hundred. Arrayed in their war dress, 
 they made a very savage, not to say imposing, appear- 
 ance. 
 
WOVB tO THE INTBKIOK. 179 
 
 Wednesday, 17th. Joseph called out ka band and 
 awaited the arrival of Ellis. We were requested to 
 take our places in the front ranke of Joseph's band, in 
 the centre, and soon appeared, coming over the moun- 
 tain, behind which had been waiting, a cloud of Indians, 
 that spread itself over its sides. The mountain seemed 
 alive, as hundreds of Indians came moving towards the 
 valley. They were all mounted on their best horses 
 and these were ornamented with scarlet belts and hea«. 
 dresses, while tassels dangled from their ears. They ar- 
 rived on the borders of the plain, and the two bands were 
 separated from each other about fifty rods, and now the 
 scene that presented itself beggars description. A thou- 
 sand savages rushed into all the mancevers of a deadly 
 fight, while the roar of musketry, the shrill sound of the 
 war whistle, the horrible yelling, and the dashing too and 
 fro upon their fiery steeds, which continued . for half an 
 hour, and approached us nearer and nearer until the 
 froth from their horse's nostrils would fly into our faces 
 as they passed — these, with the savage pomposity with 
 which they were caparisoned, and the frightful manner 
 in which they were daubed with paint, their fiery visa- 
 ges being striped with red, black, white, and yellow, 
 were all calculated not only to inspire terror, but a dread 
 of savage fury in the mind of every beholder. At the 
 very height of the excitement, when it appeared that the 
 next whirl of the savage cavalry would trample us all 
 beneath their feet, Ellis stretched himself up to his 
 utmost height upon the back of his splendid charger, and 
 waving his hand over the dark mass, instantly all was 
 quiet, and the terrifying yell of the savage was succeeded 
 by profound silence. AH dismounted, and the chiefs and 
 principal men^ shook hands with us, in token of friend- 
 ship. All again mounted, ourselves joining the troop on 
 horses provided by the Indians for our use, and they 
 marched us back over the hill to a little plain beyond, 
 for the purpose of entertaining us with a still farther 
 exhibition of their customs. 
 
 Connected with Ellis's band were some braves whom 
 the whole nation delight to honor. The Blackfeot 
 
174 TOPE TO THE INTERIOB. 
 
 Indians have always been the deadly enemies of tie 
 Nez Perces, and of all the braves, none are honored so 
 much as those who have killed Blackfeet. One of them 
 then present, has killed twelve with his own hands,, 
 taken their scalps and muskets, and brought them as 
 trophies to his lodge. This he had dote to revenge the 
 death of an only brother, who, according to his story, 
 was treacherously murdered by the Blackfeet. A large 
 circle was formed around this brave, he occupying the 
 centre of the circle,, bearing on one arm the muskets he 
 had captured from the enemy, and hanging on the other 
 the scalps he had taken. He displayed these trophies 
 before the multitude, and at the same time, gave a history 
 of the manner in which each one was taken. Ellis said 
 he was the greatest brave in the nation, and they always 
 konor him in this way. A terrible battle had been re 
 cently fought by a party of the Nez Perces with a party 
 of Blackfeet, in which the former were victorious. This 
 battle was acted to the life, with the exception that no 
 blood was shed. The scene then closed with a war 
 dance, conducted by a chief whom the whites designate 
 by the name of " Lawyer," and in whom is combined 
 the cunning and shrewdness of the Indian, with thte 
 ability and penetration of the statesman. 
 
 Though this savage "training" was more exciting than 
 any martial display I had ever witnessed, yet it closed 
 up quietly and peacefully, and as it had been conducted 
 upon strictly temperance principles, all retired from the 
 scene perfectly sober. At dark, of the thousand Indians 
 present during the day, scarcely one was to be seen 
 outside of his lodge. 
 
 Ascertaining from Ellis that he designed to go down 
 to meet the Kayuses when we returned, with some of his 
 men, for the purpose of inducing them to accept of the 
 laws which the Nez Perces had received, and with which 
 they were well pleased, we waived our objections against 
 his going, and on Thursday, the 18th, prepared to take 
 our departure. 
 
 Here I would take occasion to observe, that the Rev. 
 Mr. Spaulding and his worthy compaa/'on are laboring 
 
■"•"% "»0 ?»«£ 'NTBBIOE. 175 
 
 faithfully L Njth the spiritual and temporal good of this 
 people, and »a no place have 1 seen more visible fruits 
 of labor thus bestowed) There are few missionaries in 
 any part of the world more worthy of the confidence 
 of the church that employs them, than these self-sacri- 
 ficing servants of Jesus Christ. Far away from all 
 civilized society, and depending for their safety from the 
 fury of excited savages, alone in the protection of 
 Heaven, they are entitled to the sympathies and prayers 
 of the whole christian church. Bidding them farewell, 
 we re-crossed the Clear- Water, where our horses were 
 Ta waiting, rode back to Red Wolf's place, and slept. 
 
 Next morning sent an Indian out among the hills to 
 hunt for our horses, and as we were finishing our break- 
 fast, which our boys had prepared for us, Red Wolf 
 came out of his lodge and rung a large hand-bell, to call 
 the Indians from the other lodges to their mornin* 
 prayers. All assembled to the number of one hundred , 
 an exhortation or harangue was given them by one oi 
 the chiefs, and then singing a hymn in the Indian tongue 
 two engaged in prayer. I was greatly surprised, in 
 traveling through the Indian country, to find that these 
 outward forms of Christianity are observed in almost 
 every lodge. The Indians. generally are nominally chris- 
 tian, and about equally divided betwixt the Protestant 
 and Catholic religion. 
 
 At eight o'clock, a hallooing upon the side , of the 
 mountain indicated that our horses were found, and 
 would soon be at our camp. Packing, saddling, and 
 bridling were done in short order, and, Mr. Spaulding 
 joining our party, we soon left the valley of the Snake 
 River behind us. Examining the country more critically 
 on our return than when we went out, we found it .to 
 be indescribably beautiful and picturesque, sometimes 
 rising into the romantic and sublime, and generally well 
 adapted to all pastoral purposes. No timber of any 
 consequence appeared, except on the banks of the 
 streams. Crossing the Tookanan, and Toosha, we stop- 
 ped for supper on a beautiful brook, called Imaispa. We 
 found we had barely provisions enough for thia meal, 
 
178 TOtm TO THE INTEKIOk. 
 
 and two of us resolved to proceed, rather than go hun- 
 gry all the next day. Letting our horses crop the gigs, 
 for an- hour, we traveled on ; Mr. Perkins and Mr 
 Spaulding preferring to remain where they were till 
 morning. At daybreak we arrived at Dr. Whitman's 
 having set upon our horses all night. 
 
 During our absence the Kayuses had all collected 
 within a few miles of Dr. Whitman's, and were prepar- 
 ing for the great meeting with the Nez Perces, on our 
 return. 
 
 On Saturday, 20th, Ellis, with three hundred of his 
 people, arrived, and camped within a -short distance of 
 the mission. Wearied out by excessive labor, we put 
 off the meeting of the two tribes until the ensuing 
 week. > 
 
 Sunday morning about one hundred Indians assembled 
 at the mission for religious worship, and were addressed 
 oy all the missionaries present. In the afternoon I 
 walked out on the plain a short distance, and soon found 
 myself on a little rise of ground, where were two 
 graves, one of which was inclosed in a picket. Inquir- 
 ing who was buried there, my attendant replied, "The 
 grave inside the picket is that of the only child, a little 
 daughter, of Mr. and Mrs. Whitman, who was drowned 
 in that creek which passes near the house. That on the 
 outside incloses the remains of Joseph; the Hawaiian, 
 who lived with Dr. Whitman a number of years, and 
 served him faithfully while he lived." This Hawaiian 
 was a converted man, and possessing considerable talent, 
 he was very useful to the mission. Though he was a 
 great lover of the Indians, and would do all he could for 
 their welfare, yet, when he died, not one of them could 
 be prevailed upon to assist in carrying him to the grave; 
 but Dr. Whitman, and Mr. Pombrun, of Port Walla- 
 Walla, bore him upon their shoulders to the house 
 appointed for all the living. * 
 
 I returned from this excursion reflecting upon the 
 severe trials of missionaries, many of whom are com- 
 pelled to bury their offspring with their own hands. 
 
 Preached in the afternoon to seven Americans, two 
 
TOWR TO THE INTERIOR. IH 
 
 of whom came in from their camp, three miles distant, 
 where they were preparing to cross the mountains tc 
 the United States. One of these, Wm. C. Sutton, is 
 truly " a brand plucked from the burning." For three 
 years he has been a living witness of the power of the 
 gospel to save even the chief of sinners. He lived for 
 many years in the Rocky mountains, and contracted all 
 the vices common to the mountaineers ; but abandoning 
 the trapper's life, and coming down among the mission- 
 aries in the lower country, he was powerfully awakened 
 to see the folly of his former course, and after struggling 
 for days on the brink of despair, was brought "from 
 darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to the 
 living God." 
 
 Monday, 22d. We were visited by a Himber of 
 Indians in the mornin%, among whom was one by the 
 name of Jacob, whose history is a clear exhibition of 
 the cunning and wonderful credulity of the Indians. By 
 some means he obtained a large picture from the whites,, 
 which he was told represented the devil, and Indian 
 shrewdness at once suggested to him that he could use 
 the picture greatly to his advantage among his people, 
 who had always believed that an evil spirit existed, and 
 had much to do in inflicting misery upon the Indians. 
 Taking good care to keep his picture concealed, and 
 preparing the way for the people to receive him in his 
 supernatural character, by spending much of his tim 
 alone, apparently in solemn thought, and in performing 
 his conjurations, he at length gave out that he had IHa- 
 bolus under his control, and could bring him up at any 
 time, in the sight of the people. To prove his assertion, 
 he left the camp, charging the people to watch him, and 
 as he went behind a little breastwork, several rods ofF, 
 which he had prepared for the occasion, to keep their 
 eyes fixed upon the top of the breastwork. Performing 
 his incantations awhile, at length Diabolus appeared tc 
 the terrified Indians, rising slowly above the breastwork 
 Jacob had accomplished his object, proved himself mas- 
 ter of the Devil, and by this manceuver secured to him 
 •elf unbounded influence among his people. 
 8 
 
lTt TOOK T€ THE INTERIOR. 
 
 During the day, Nez Perce Indians contitied tc 
 arrive, until six hundred people, and a thousand norses, 
 appeared on the plains. The Kayuse and Walla- Walla 
 bands united, forming a troop of three hundred men, all 
 mounted. These met the Nez Perces on the plain i$ 
 front of Dr. Whitman's house, and then a scene similar 
 to that at Lapwai, presented itself. The Indians worked 
 themselves up into a high state of 1 excitement, and Ellis 
 said afterwards that he thought the Kayuses were de- 
 termined to fight in good earnest. Tauitau, the Catholic 
 chief, as he approached us, appeared quite angry, and 
 disposed to quarrel. Seeing the excitement increase, 
 and fearing that it might end seriously, unless the atten- 
 tion of the Indians could be drawn to some other subject, 
 Mr. Spaulding gave notice that all would repair to Dr. 
 W.'s house, for the purpose 01 tallafoosa, (worship). 
 But Tauitau came forward in a very boisterous manner, 
 and inquired what we had made all this disturbance for. 
 Ne repaired to the house, followed by several hundred 
 . ndians, and after engaging in a season of prayer, found 
 that the excitement had died away, and the Indians were 
 scattering to their lodges for the night. 
 
 Tuesday, 23d. The chiefs and principal men of both 
 tribes came together at Dr. Whitman's to hear what we 
 had to say. They were called to order by Tauitau, 
 who by this time had got over his excitement, and then 
 was placed before them the object of our visit Among 
 other things they were told that much had been said 
 about war, and we had come to assure them that they 
 had nothing to fear from that quarter ; that the Presi- 
 dent of the United States had not sent the Doctor to 
 their country, to make war upon them, but to enter into 
 arrangements with them to regulate tneir intercourse 
 with the white people. We were not there to catch 
 them in a trap as a man would catch a beaver, but to do 
 them good ; and if they would lay aside their former 
 practices and prejudices, stop their quarrels, cultivate 
 their lands, and receive good laws, they might become a 
 great and a happy people ; that in order to do this, they 
 must all be united, for they were but few in comparison 
 
TOUR TO THE INTERIOR. 17t 
 
 10 the whites ; and if they were not all of one heart, 
 they would be able to accomplish nothing ; that the 
 chiefs should set the example and love each other, and 
 not get proud and haughty, but consider the people as 
 their brothers and their children, and labor to do them 
 good ; that the people should be obedient, and in their 
 morning and evening prayers they should remember 
 their chiefs. 
 
 Liberty was then given for the chiefs c speak, and 
 Ellis remarked that it would not be proper for the Nez 
 Perce chiefs to speak until the Kayuse people should 
 receive the laws. The Kayuse chiefs replied, " If you 
 want us to receive the laws, bring them forward and let 
 us see them, as we cannot take them unless we know 
 what they" are." 
 
 A speech was then delivered to the young men to 
 impress them favorably with regard to the laws. They 
 were told that they would soon take the places of the 
 old men, and they should be willing to act for the good 
 of the people ; that they should hot go here and there 
 and spread false reports about war ; and that this had 
 teen the cause of all the difficulty and excitement which 
 dad prevailed among them during the past winter. 
 
 The laws were then read, first in English, and then in 
 the Nez Perce. 
 
 Yellow Serpent then rose and said : " 1 have' a mes- 
 sage to you. Where are these laws from? Are they 
 from God or from the earth? I would that you might 
 say, they were from God. But I think they are from 
 the earth, because, from what I know of white men 
 they do not honor these laws. 
 
 In answer to this, the people were informed that the 
 laws were recognized by God, and imposed on men in 
 all civilized countries. Yellow Serpent was pleased 
 with the explanation, and said that it was according to 
 the instructions he had received from others, and he was 
 very glad to learn that it was so, because many^)f his 
 people had been angry with him when he had whipped 
 them for crime, and had told him that God would send 
 him to hell for it, and he was glad to know that it was 
 pleasing to God." 
 
ISO ffOVS TO THR UfTBRlOB. 
 
 Telaukaikt, a Kayuse chief, rose and said : " What dc 
 you read the laws for before we take them? We do 
 not take the laws because Tauitau says so. He is a 
 Catholic, and as a people we do not follow his worship." 
 Dr. White replied that this did not make any difference 
 about law; that the people in the States had different 
 modes of worship, yet all had one law. 
 
 Then a -chief, called the Prince, arose and said : " 1 
 understand you gave us liberty to examine every law — 
 all the words and lines — and 1 as questions are asked 
 about it, we should get a better understanding of it. 
 The people of this country have but one mind about it. 
 [ have something to say, but perhaps the people will 
 dispute me. As a body, we have not had an opportunity 
 to consult, therefore you come to us as in a •wind, and 
 speak to us as to the air, as we have no point, and we 
 rannot speak because we have no point before us. The 
 yusiness before us is whole, like a body we have not 
 dissected it. And perhaps you will say that it is out of 
 place for me to speak, because I am not a great chief. 
 Once I had influence, but now I have but little." 
 
 Here he was about to sit down, but was told to go on. 
 He then said, — " When the whites first came among us, 
 we had no cattle, they have given us none ; what we 
 have now got we have obtained by an exchange of 
 property. A long time ago Lewis and Clark came to 
 this country, and l want to know what they said about 
 us. Did they say that they found friends or enemies 
 lierel" Being told that they spoke well of the Indians, 
 the prince said, " that is a reason why the whites should 
 unite with us, and all become one people. Those who 
 have been here before you, have left us no memorial of 
 .heir kindness, by giving us presents. We speak by 
 way of favor. If you have any benefit to bestow, we 
 will then speak more freely. One thing that we can 
 speak about is cattle, and the reason why we cannot 
 suoak out now is because we have not the thing before 
 us. My people are poor and blind, and we must have 
 something tangible. Other chiefs have bewildered ma 
 since they came ; yet . am from an honorable stock. 
 
VOVB TO THK INTEBIOK, 181 
 
 Promises which have been made to me and my fathers, 
 have not been fulfilled, and I am made miserable ; but it 
 will not answer for me to speak out, for my people do 
 not consider me as their chief. . One thing more ; you 
 have reminded me of what was promised me sometime 
 ago, and I am inclined to follow on and see ; though I 
 have been giving my beaver to the whites, and have 
 received many promises, and have always been disap 
 pointed. I want to know what you are going to do." 
 
 Illutin, or Big Belly, then arose and said, that the 
 old men were weaned with the wickedness of the young 
 men. That if he was alone, he could say yes at once 
 to the laws, and that the reason why the young men did 
 not feel as he felt was because they had stolen property 
 in their hands, and the laws condemned stealing. Bu 
 he assured them that the laws were calculated to dj 
 them good, and not evil. 
 
 But this did not satisfy the prince. He desired that 
 the good which it was proposed to do them by adopting 
 the laws, might be put in a tangible form before them, 
 He said that it had been a long time since the countrj 
 had been discovered by whites, and mat ever since tha 
 time, people had been coming along, and promising to 
 do them good ; but they had all. passed by and left no 
 blessing behind them. That the Hudson's Bav Company 
 had persuaded them to continue with tneni, and not go 
 after the Americans ; that if the Americans designed to 
 do them good why did they not bring goods with them 
 to leave with the Indians 1 that they were fo^s to listen 
 to what the Yankees had to say"; that they would only 
 talk, but the company would both talk and give them 
 presents. 
 
 In reply to this the Doctor told them that he did ntt 
 come to them as a missionary, nor as a trader. 
 
 It was now nearly night, but just before the maeting 
 closed a gun was fired in one of the lodges, and directly 
 John, the Hawaiian, came running to the house with 
 his hand up to his head, and the blood running down 
 bis face, and as he came into tne assembly he cried out 
 
189 TOVB TO THE INTKBIOB. 
 
 with great agitation, " Indian, he kiile me ! Indian, be 
 killemel" 
 
 John had been to the lodge for the purpose of tiaamg 
 with the young Indians, and the Indians became angry 
 at John and threatened to shoot him. John told them 
 that they dare not do it, and one c' them instantly seized 
 a musket and lodged the contents of it in the side of 
 John's head. Fortunately there was no ball in the gun, 
 consequently the results were not serious, though a hole 
 was cut to the bone, an inch in diameter. 
 
 In the evening Ellis and Lawyer came in to have a 
 talk. They said they expected pay for being chiefs, and 
 wished to know how much salary Dr. White was going 
 ^o give them. Ellis said he had counted the months he 
 had been in office, and thought that enough was due him 
 to make him rich. They left at a late hour witnou 
 receiving any satisfaction. 
 
 Wednesday, 24th. Some hundreds again assembled 
 to resume the' business relative to laws ; but the first 
 thing investigated Was the shooting of John. The Indian, 
 immediately after committing the deed, had fled, but the 
 jhiefs took summary measures to bring him back. He 
 was brought, before the assembly and found guilty of 
 the crime, but the sentence was postponed until they 
 received the laws. 
 
 The Indians then continued to speak in reference to the 
 laws, and their speeches were grave, energetic, mighty 
 and eloquent, and generally in favor of receiving the laws. 
 After all. had spoken it was signified that they were 
 ready for llie vote whether they would take the laws or 
 not, and the vote was unanimous in the affirmative. 
 Having adopted the laws, it was now necessary to elect 
 their chiefs, according to the provisions of the law ; and 
 Tauitau was nominated to the high chieftainship. Some 
 were opposed ; a majority were in favor, and while the 
 question was pending Tauitau rose and said: "My 
 friends, my friends, I rise to speak to you, and I want 
 you all to listen." He then adverted to their past histo- 
 *ies, and told them how much thev had suffered in 
 
ton to *mr intbkios. 183 
 
 consequence of their divisions and quarrels, and then 
 inquired if they woula lay aside all their past difficulties, 
 and come up and support him. if he would accept of the 
 chieftainship. 
 
 It was now time to close for that day, and the vote 
 ; being put, Tauitau was declared duly elected to the high 
 chieftainship of the Kayuse tribe. Before the meeting 
 >'" adjourned, Dr. White presented the Indians with a fat 
 ox which he bought of the mission, and Mrs. Whitman 
 gave them a fat hog. These they butchered directly, 
 and feasted upcn them till ten o'clock at night, when a' 1 
 was consumed. 
 
 Thursday, 25th. A number of the chiefs came early in 
 morning at 'our request, to settle a difficulty concerning 
 some horses which they gave to Rev. 'Jason Lee, when 
 he first came to Oregon, Mr. Lee having requested us to 
 come to an arrangement with them, if possible. After 
 a long talk, we succeeded in settling with them by propo- 
 sing to give them a cow for each horse that they hat 
 given Mr. Lee. We found that the Indians always ex- 
 pect to be well paid for a present. 
 
 After this the Indians again assembled, and Tauitau 
 came forward and certified that he had made up his 
 mind that he could not accept of the chieftainship in 
 consequence of the difference of his religion from that 
 of the most of his people. He was accordingly excused 
 from serving, and Five Crows, his brother, was immedV 
 ately nominated. When the virtues and firmness of 
 Five Crows were spoken of, the people exclaimed, " our 
 hearts go towards him with a rush." His election was 
 nearly unanimous, and highly pleasing to the whites, of 
 whom he is a great friend, particularly of the Americans. 
 He was so affected when his appointment was announced,' 
 that he wept. It required but a short time to elect the 
 subordinate chiefs, after which Mr. Perkins and myself 
 addressed the meeting on the subject of the discovery 
 of the country by Americans, their settling in it, and the 
 necessity of living together on friendly terms; and then 
 the meeting, which had been continued for four days, and 
 at some stages of which the utmost excitement had pre- 
 
TODS TO TBI IHTUIOBi 
 
 vailed, came to a peaceful conclusion, and all wen* aboui 
 preparing for the closing feast. 
 
 A second ox was butchered, cut into small pieces and 
 boiled. It was then spread out upon the grass, and cut 
 into mouthfuls, put on to plates, pans, pai! covers, and 
 
 Irieces „of boards, and placed along in the centre of a 
 arge temporary lodge, made of skins, and about seventy- 
 five feet long. The people were then all called together, 
 and took their seats on the ground, ourselves being con 
 ducted by the chiefs to some seats of skins prepared on 
 the windward side of the lodge, so that we would be 
 secure from the smoke, all, when seated, forming a 
 lengthened ring around the food, three and four persons 
 deep. Five Crows called the table to order, when a 
 blessing was asked; then several Indians passed around 
 the meat to all present, the number, as near as we could 
 judge, being six hundred, embracing men, women and 
 •■hildren. Fingers were used instead of forks, and the 
 clattering of teeth and smacking of lips served as music 
 while the process of mastication was going on. All 
 seemed intent upon the business before them; laws, 
 speeches, and war, were lost sight of, and the eating of 
 the ox absorbed every other consideration. It was only 
 necessary for each person to eat one pound, and a? 
 would be consumed. In twenty minutes the ox which, 
 three hours before, was peacefully feeding on the prairie, 
 was lodged in the stomachs of six hundred Indians. 
 After the feast Ellis arose and said that it was fashionable 
 among the Indians for all the chiefs to unite with the 
 whites at such a time as this, in smoking the pipe, in 
 token of their alliance and friendship. Accordingly, the 
 pipe of peace was brought forward. Its stem was one 
 inch in diameter, and three feet long, and the bowl four 
 inches long and two in diameter, and made out of a spe- 
 cies of dark free-stone. Ellis passed it around, to the 
 chiefs first, and then to the whites, after which speeches 
 were delivered by Five Crows, Ellis, Lawyer, Brothers, 
 Tauitau, and Yellow Serpent; a, season of prayer fol- 
 lowed and the scene was closed. Next morning the 
 Indiana all came to give us the friendly hand before we 
 
TOUK TO THE INTKK'O*. 18S 
 
 parted; and the chiefs informed us that they had sen- 
 tenced the Indian who shot John to a punishment of forty 
 lashes on his hare back Thus closed our negotiations, 
 and the immense crowd of Indians, taking their .leave, 
 returned to their homes in the utmost order. In the 
 evening all was still, and, walking out, to the camping 
 ground where the fires were still blazing, I found but one . 
 solitary old Indian, who was boiling ,up the feet of the 
 ox for his next day's supplies, 
 
 Saturday, 27th. The forenoon was employed in pre 
 paring to return home; and at one, p. m., took our depar 
 ture from Waialetpu. Mrs. Whitman accompanied us 
 back to the lower country. Traveled fourteen miles, 
 and encamped for the Sabbath on a branch of the Walla- 
 Walla River, called the Toosha, near its mouth. The 
 land along the Walla- Walla and its tributaries is gener- 
 ally very fertile, except in those places where it is 
 strongly impregnated with sal soda. The face of the 
 country is truly beautiful. 
 
 Monday, 29th. Moved camp, and proceeding a few 
 miles, met the Rev. Mr. Eells from Tshimkain, a mission 
 station among the Spokan Indians. He was on his way 
 to Waialetpu and Lapwai, and thence home. He gave 
 us an account of his mission, rather discouraging upon 
 the whole, from the opposition arrayed against him from 
 the Catholics. Leaving him to pursue his journey alone, 
 we continued on to fort Walla- Walla, and dined with 
 Mr. McKinley, who has charge of it. Here Mrs. Whit- 
 man decided to stop for the arrival of the Hudson's Bay 
 Company's brigade of boats from the upper forts, which 
 was expected in a day or two, preferring that mode of 
 conveyance to riding on horse-back. After dinner we 
 crossed the Walla- Walla river, and desiring to make 
 some observations in the vicinity, encamped for the night. 
 Towards evening I walked out alone to take a view of 
 the burying ground of the Walla- Walla tribe. It was 
 whitened with the bones of horses that had been slain 
 over the graves of their owners, while here and there 
 could be seen a human skull lying by the side of a 
 hone's head. One of the most lingular cases of volun 
 8* 
 
186 TOUB TO THE INTEBIOE. 
 
 tary interment recorded in the annals of heathen supei 
 stition, took place in this burying ground some twenty- 
 five years ago. There resided in this vicinity a man 
 /belonging to the Walla-Walla tribe, who, rising by his 
 own merits, became the most successful warrior, and re- 
 nowned chieftain of which the Walla- Wallas could ever 
 ^oast. During his life, his people were the terror of all 
 the surrounding tribes; and wherever he led them out 
 against the enemy, he was sure to bring them back in 
 triumph, bearing the numerous trophies of his victories 
 in the form of scalps, muskets, shields, &c. These he 
 hung as so many ornaments, to the sides of his lodge. 
 Years of uninterrupted prosperity passed, and the old 
 man saw his five sons grow up by his side. As they 
 arrived to manhood, they strikingly resembled himself, 
 not only in their tall, athletic and commanding forms, 
 but also in their astonishing bravery and indomitable will. 
 His word was the law of his tribe, and he had learned 
 even his own people to tremble at his nod. His voice 
 of command was never disobeyed, whether raised amids* 
 the tumult of battle, the quiet of his village, or at the 
 fire side of his own wigwam. He was justly proud of 
 his sons, and saw, in the changeless affection they bore 
 £o their father, their love to One another, and their unri- 
 valed talents, not only his own comfort and support in 
 old age, when he would become useless, but also the 
 continued prosperity of his beloved tribe. 
 
 But a cloud was rising to darken the prospects of the 
 aged chief. His eldest son, the glory of the tribe, the 
 heir to the chieftainship, was slain in battle, and the old 
 man's grief was inconsolable. But he had other sons, 
 and around them clustered his hopes. His eldest living 
 one was now the heir, and every way qualified to suc- 
 ceed him, but he had not ceased wailing for the eldest 
 before the second was cut down; and then the third, and 
 the fourth, some in battle, and some by disease. Now 
 his youngest, Benjamin, alone was left; and the cup 
 of the old man's grief was nearly full. Bitterly did he 
 complain of that oruel fate that had bereft him of his 
 »on«, and he found consolation only in the refieo'itr that 
 
TOUK TO THE INTEBIOK. 187 
 
 .hey had been great warriors, and eve ry way worthy of 
 their father. But now they were dead, and alf his affec- 
 tions centered in his youngest boy. Surely, thought he, 
 my only remaining son of five, as noble as ever father 
 couM boast, will live to be my support in my declining 
 vears; ne wiu De my staff when my palsied limbs can 
 scarcely bear me in and out of my wigwam; he will close 
 my eyes when I lie down to die; he will mourn over my 
 
 frave when I am buried; he will heir my property 'when 
 am no more, and'* as chief of the Walla- Walla nation 
 he will follow in the footsteps of his father. 
 
 But disease was already preying upon the vitals of that 
 oel wed son, and the father felt his last prop crumble 
 Deneath him, as his son expired before his eyes. Like a 
 person under the influence of some desperate resolution, 
 he left the wigwam where lay tha wreck of his hopes, 
 and went to fort Walla- Walla, which was commanded 
 by Englishmen, and told them of the death of his las* 
 son, and requested them to make arrangements to have 
 him buried according to the English custom. Comply- 
 ing with his request, the dead body was put into a coffin, 
 the funeral service read, and the dark procession moved 
 to the grave, the people showing the sincerity of their 
 sorrow by bitter wailing and tears; but the old man's 
 grief was too deep thus to find relief. The coffin was 
 lowered into the deep dug grave, and the bearers were 
 about to fill it with earth, when the old man stepped upon 
 the grave's mouth and examined the dark abode of his 
 son, then commanded them to desist Until he hadi deliv- 
 ered a message to the people. -With a countenance 
 indicating a settled purpose of soul, he looked around 
 upon his beloved people, whose waitings had already 
 given place to a death-like silence, and commanded them 
 to listen to the trembling voice of their old chief, while 
 he delivered 10 them his last speech. He then rehearsed 
 oefore them the history of his life, painting, in glowing 
 cobrs, the successes which had invariably attended him in 
 the numerous wars in which he had been involved, with 
 the surrounding tribes; the splendid trophies taken from 
 the enemy with which his lodge was adorned, and tho 
 
188 «OVB TO THB INTBKICII. 
 
 elevated position to which he had raised the Walla- 
 Wallas, by the prowess of his arm ; and then with a 
 heart throbbing with emotion he traced the history of 
 his doting sons. He had sustained them in infancy; he 
 had taught them to love and to obey him; he had trained 
 them to be warriors; he had seen them rush bravely 
 into the deadly fight, and bear off the palm of victory; 
 and he had fondly hoped that they would have long 
 survived him. But a cruel fate had robbed him of his 
 boys; his last hope had perished, the sun of his pros- 
 perity had set, and left him surrounded with the darkness 
 of despair; and he was now like a tree whose branches 
 had been broken off, and whose trunk had been shattered 
 to pieces by the successive strokes of the thunder-bolt. 
 And then assuring them that no entreaty should prevent 
 him from accomplishing his design, he announced to them 
 the startling fact, that he had resolved not to survive the 
 burial of his youngest son; and rushing into the grave 
 he stretched himself upon the coffin of his son, and com- 
 manded the people to bitry him with his beloved boy. 
 A general burst of lamentation from the multitude sur- 
 rounding the grave rose upon the breeze as the last com- 
 mand of the mighty chief was as promptly obeyed as 
 any he had ever issued in the day of battle. Thus 
 perished the glory of the Walla- Walla nation. 
 
 Fort Walla- Walla, is situated on the left bank of the 
 Columbia, just above the mouth of the Walla- Walla 
 River. It may more properly be called a trading post, 
 as it looks but little like a fort except that two or three 
 small buildings are enclosed in an adobey wall, about 
 twelve feet high. The company and some private indi- 
 viduals met with considerable loss, not long ago, from 
 the burning of this fort, which was supposed to have 
 been fired by the Indians. The land around is very 
 barren, though the face of the country is good. The 
 company cultivate a farm about three miles from the 
 fort, on the banks of the Walla-Walla. 
 
 Tuesday, 30th. Rode sixty-five miles, but on the 31st, 
 both man and beast were so fatigued that we were una- 
 ble to travel more than twenty-five miles. During this 
 
*OVB TO THB INTERIOR. 180 
 
 day I proceeded on in advance of the party about one 
 mile, and stopping my horse, dismounted, and took my 
 blanket from my saddle, threw it upon the ground, lay 
 down upon it, and instantly dropt into a sound sleep. 
 There I should doubtless have remained for hours, if one 
 of the party, who had fallen in the rear, had not awak- 
 ened me, the others having passed within a few feet 
 without my knowing it. 
 
 Thursday, June 1st. Arrived at the mission station 
 below the Dalls, where we met with news from the 
 lower country, ships having arrived in the Columbia 
 River, bringing letters, goods and passengers for Oregon. 
 As Dr. White expected to, be detained some time at the 
 Dalls, 1 resolved to proceed homeward the first oppor- 
 tariity. Fortunately the brigade of boats for which 
 Mrs. Whitman awaited at Walla- Walla, arrived at the 
 Dalls a few hours after we did ; and applying to Mr. 
 Ogden, who had command of the brigade, I obtained a 
 passage in his boat down the Columbia River to Fort 
 Vancouver. The boats were nine in number, each ca- 
 pable of carrying five or six tons ; all loaded with furs 
 which had been collected in the vast interior, and now 
 on their way to the general depot at Vancouver, where 
 they were to be examined, dried, packed and shipped 
 for London. Associated with Mr. Ogden were Mr. 
 McDonald, and Mr. Ermatinger, the two former being 
 chief factors in the company, and the latter a chief tra- 
 der, both honorable and lucrative offices. Sixty men 
 were required to man the boats, and these were all 
 French Canadians, and half-caste Iroquois. 
 
 We all remained at the Dalls over night, and on Fr 
 day, the 2d of June, moved down the river a few miles, 
 and were met with a head wind, which soon blew to a 
 gale, compelling us to put to shore, which we succeeded 
 in gaining with some difficulty, breaking one of our 
 boats against the rocks, in the attempt. Here we were 
 detained for some hours, during which Mr. Ogden rela- 
 ted some of his wonderful adventures among the Indians 
 with whom he had resided for more than thirty years. 
 
 He was an eye witness to a remarkable circumstance 
 
190 TOCB TO THE 1NTERIOB. , 
 
 that trjjisfired'at the Balls, during one of his voyagss 
 up the Columbia. He arrived at the Dalls on the Sab- 
 bath day, and seeing a congregation of some three hun- 
 dred Indians assembled not far from the river, he drew 
 near to ascertain the cause, and found the Rev. H. K. 
 W. Perkins dispensing to them the word of reconcilia- 
 tion, thro u i a crucified Redeemer. There was sitting 
 in the outskirts of the congregation an Indian woman 
 who had been, for many years, a doctress in the tribe, 
 and who had just expended all her skill upon a patient, 
 the only son of a man whose wigwam was not far dis- 
 tant, and for the recoveiy of whose son she had become 
 responsible, by consenting to become his physician. All 
 her efforts to remove the disease were unavailing, the 
 father was doomed to see his son expire. Believing that 
 the doctress had the power of preserving life or inflicting 
 death according to her will, and that instead of curing 
 she had killed nis boy, he resolved upon the most sum- 
 mary revenge. Leaving his dead son in the lodge, he 
 broke into the congregation with a large butchej-knife 
 n his hand, and rushing upon the now terrified doctress, 
 seized her by the hair, and with one blow across her 
 throat, laid her dead at his feet 
 
 The wind continued to blow until nearly midnight, 
 when a loud call from the pilot warned us that we must 
 \eave camp. Though it was very dark, the voyageurs 
 were well acquainted with the river, and continued to 
 ply the oars until three o'clock in the morning, when 
 they brought up a few miles above the cascades, to wait 
 for daylight. In the morning proceeded to the cascades, 
 where we were detained for several hours, while the 
 voyageurs carried then boats and furs across a portage 
 of half a mile. 
 
 The portage was made, and the boats again loaded, 
 but still there were fearful rapids below, which they de- 
 signed to run. Mr. Ogden preferring to walk across a 
 poin* of land down to the foot of the first rapid, J vol- 
 unteered to accompany him, and coming to an eddy 
 below the point, we awaited the arrival ofthe boats. 
 
 Soon the first came, booming around the point, and 
 
TOV* TO THE INTEBIO*. 191 
 
 thrown violently up and down by the rolling current , 
 {hen the second, and the third, and so on, till the whole 
 nine appeared in sight. Only two of them gained the 
 eddy, in one of which was Mrs. Whitman; all the others 
 were borne down the tumbling torrent with fearful fury, 
 and it appeared to us on shore, that they must inevitably 
 be lost. One only was capsized, and its crew of eight 
 men struggled hard in the mighty current, until they 
 were all picked up by the other boats, some of them 
 being quite exhausted, and one so far gone that it was 
 with considerable difficulty that he was restored. The 
 boat also, with all its cargo, was saved. After this we 
 were highly favored with respect to wind and current, 
 and on Sunday, at two o'clock, p. m., we arrived in 
 safety at Fort Vancouver. 
 
 Monday, the 5th. Procured a passage in one of the 
 company's barges to the Wallamette Falls ; and the fol- 
 lowing day a ride on horseback of fifty miles brought 
 me back to my own dwelling, having, since I left home 
 performed a iourney of one thousand miles 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 B MB* ward bound — Departure from Oregon — Lost in a fog — Vancouver — Cosx- 
 pected meeting — Night running — Labor lost — Dreary encampment — Sabbath 
 
 — Pillar Rook — Fort George — Clatsop Plains — A whale — Entertainment - 
 Embarkation — Detention — Great cave — Weigh anchor — Remarkable escape 
 from shipwreck — Driven back— Second trial successful — Voyage — Maui — 
 Night danger — Arrival at Oahu — Shipping — English fleet — News from home 
 
 — Rev. Jason Lee — "Hoa Tita" — Affecting separation — Admiral Thomas — 
 Great alarm — Detention — How improved. 
 
 Late in the fall of 1843, information was received on 
 the Wallamatte that the English barque Columbia was 
 about to sail from Vancouver to the Sandwich Islands, 
 and would take a certain number of passengers. Ac- 
 cordingly, Rev. Jason Lee, John Ricord, Esq., of New 
 York, and myself and family, engaged passage ; Mr. 
 Ricord at three dollars per day, and the rest of us at 
 two and a half each, the half dollar being deducted in 
 consequence of our being missionaries. Mr. Lee and 
 myself designed, after arriving at the Sandwich Islands; 
 to take the first opportunity to proceed to the United 
 States, but Mr. Ricord designed to remain at the 
 Islands. 
 
 Having made the necessary arrangements, and put all 
 our baggage into one of the company's batteaux to take 
 to the vessel, we took a small boat in tow, in which we 
 intended to proceed from Vancouver down the Columbia. 
 At dark we took leave of oar friends, who stood on the 
 banks of the river to witness our departure. There 
 being a good moon, we did not apprehend mucn difficulty 
 in running in the night, as we were well acquainted with 
 the river, and we were "willing to venture a little to get 
 our baggage on board, before the vessel dropped down 
 the Columbia. Proceeding on till a late hour at night 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. JOS 
 
 we lost ourselves in a dense fog, and supposing that by 
 some unaccountable twist we had got turned about, and 
 were going the wrong way, we resolved as soon as 
 posisble to make the shore. Finding a place where we 
 could fasten our boats we remained quiet until morning. 
 At nine o'clock the fog had disappeared, and thereby 
 disclosing the shores to our view, enabled us to ascertain 
 our position. Moving forward, we labored hard witb 
 our oars during the day, and at dark came a.3ng side of 
 the vessel which lay* in the Columbia a short distance 
 above the mouth of the Wallamette. Leaving all our 
 baggage, except such as we should need on our trip down 
 the Columbia, we passed on, and at nine in the evening 
 arrived at Vancouver ; but as the gates of the fort were 
 closed, we were obliged to encamp on the beach for the 
 night. 
 
 Having accomplished our business, on the 6th we took 
 our leave of our hospitable friends at Vancouver, but" 
 the tide being against us, we made slow headway. At 
 seven o'clock, v. in., however, we came up with the ship, 
 and being invited by Captain Humphries, we spent a 
 comfortable night on board. Next morning proceeded 
 on in our small boat, and as there was no wind to favor 
 the ship, we soon left her behind. At two o'clock,,?, m., 
 passed the mouth of the Multnomah, and landed a short 
 time at the point where, in 1 835, Capt. Wyeth attempted 
 to establish a trading post, but failed, as every other 
 such attempt has done, from coming in contact with, ana 
 meeting the opposition of, the Hudson's Bay Company. 
 A little below this point we stopped to dine, on a fine 
 gravelly beach, and while preparing our dinner, several,, 
 canoes appeared below us, moving up thD stream. Dis- 
 covering our smoke, they made for the point, and on 
 coming to* the shore, we found, in one of the canoes, 
 Mr. W. W. Raymond and his family, who were on their 
 way from Clatsop, at the mouth of the river, up to the 
 Wallamette. Mr. Raymond was employed as a farmer 
 at a mission station established on the Clatsop plains. 
 With them we spent a pleasant hour, during which we 
 regaled ourselves upon an unusual variety for such a 
 
IM lomwui scnra. 
 
 time, our dinner consisting of beef, p«rk, potatoes, bread 
 butter, pie, cake, and raspberry preserves ; but w< 
 feasted with the expectation of suffering hunger befon 
 we arrived at Clatsop, if the winds and weather did no 
 favor our progress. Taking leave of our friends, wi 
 departed from our delightful encampment, and with tto 
 tide in our favor, proceeded on our voyage. Nigh 
 same on, and a dense fog rendered it difficult to run 
 nevertheless we concluded there could be little dange 
 of our going wrong so long as we felt the force of tta 
 tide bearing us downward ; but we soon found that wi 
 were missing our way, and running in behind an island 
 at the lower end of which a sand-bar had formed acros 
 the channel, on which the water was so shallow that wi 
 could not pass with our boat. Backing, around, w 
 rowed hard for an hour, when we found ourselves agaii 
 at the head of the island, and by this time the darknes 
 was somewhat dispelled by the rising moon, and w 
 ventured to run on until midnight. 
 
 Mooring our boat in a little bay among the rocks, w 
 clambered up on the side of a mountain, covered with 
 dense forest, where we spent the remainder of the nighi 
 Our place of encampment presented a striking contras 
 to the one we had just left, being among the rugged an 
 precipitous cliffs which overhung the river on the left 
 hand shore, and as everything around had been the 
 roughly soaked with rain we found it exceedingly diff 
 cult to light a fire. 
 
 But after burning my fingers to a blister, scorchin 
 my face, and singing off my eye-brows, by flashin 
 , powder, I at length accomplished my object, and ou 
 dreary encampment assumed a more cheering aspect 
 
 On Saturday, the 8th, proceeded down as far as Oa 
 Point, which is about thirty miles above Astoria, an 
 encamped for the Sabbath under a precipice of rocks o 
 the opposite side from the point. This precipice, whic 
 rises several hundred feet, is composed of differer 
 layers or strata of irregular, massive amigdaloid an 
 basalt, and, contrasted with the low flat shore on th 
 opposite side, presents a very imposing appearand 
 
■emwABD Mm. ft! 
 
 Here, amidst the solitude of rocks, forest, and water, 
 we experienced the truth that devotidh is not confined 
 to the damask desks and cushioned seats of refined civil- 
 ization, but cheers with her presence the lonely and 
 wandering exile. 
 
 Monday, 9th. Ran down to Pillar Rock, fourteen 
 miles above Astoria, where, being met by the flood-tide, 
 we were obliged to camp. This rock is a great natural 
 curiosity. It is a mighty column of basalt standing 
 alone in the midst of the river, and though not more 
 than fifteen or twenty feet in diameter at its base, it 
 rises perpendicular, on all sides to the height of more 
 than one hundred feet. Remaining here over night, the 
 next morning we crossed the river diagonally from Pillar 
 Rock to Tongue Point, the distance of eleven miles, 
 without serious accident, though the wind was high, and 
 the-boat took in considerable water. At twelve arrived 
 at Astoria, where we met with a very cordial reception 
 from Mr. Birney and his family whose hospitalities we 
 shared until the following day. This , gentleman is an 
 officer in the Hudson's Bay Company, and one of its 
 pioneers. In common with all the English and Scotch 
 magnates of the forest, he possesses the disposition to 
 entertain strangers, both with the comforts his house 
 affords, and by narrating his different campaigns, trials, 
 sufferings, contests with the Indians, and hair-breadth 
 escapes. 
 
 This place is now called Fort George by the English, 
 but doubtless will resume the name of Astoria when it 
 is settled that the country belongs to the United States. 
 
 In the afternoon of the 10th, Rev. J. L. Parrish, who 
 is employed as a missionary among the Indians on the 
 Clatsop Plains, came from Point Adams across the mouth 
 of Young's Bay in a canoe, and met us at the fort, de- 
 signing to proceed up the river to visit some Indian clans 
 in the vicinity of the Katlamette Islands ; but falling in 
 with us, he resolved to return, and the next morning 
 took us all ir. his large canoe safely to Point Adams, 
 though the bay was quite rough from the effects of a 
 itrong east wind. From Point Adams south to a high 
 
190 HOMEWARD BOBin>. 
 
 promon.ory called Kilemook's Head, the distance o 
 twenty-five miles, ^s a broad sand beach, which at lo\i 
 tide constitutes a splendid -oad. 
 
 On our landing on the point, an Indian was dispatcbe 
 with a note to inform Mrs. Parrish of our arrival, an 
 to procure a horse and cart to carry us and our baggag 
 down the beach, the distance of seven miles, to thei 
 residence. At sunset our transportation was accon 
 plished, and we found ourselves comfortably situate 
 with our kind friends, Mr. and Mrs. Parrish, on what 
 called the Clatsop Plains. 
 
 It is only necessary for one to walk up from tide wate 
 about one hundred feet to the top of the first ridge, t 
 become convinced* that these undullating plains hav 
 seen formed by the constant accumulation of sands, di 
 posited by the ceaseless action of the waves o«" th 
 Pacific ocean. They are about twenty miles long, an 
 from one to two and a half miles broad, and contai 
 about forty square miles.' There is a tract of timbere 
 land lying between the prairie and Young's Bay, coi 
 taininjf twice the amount of land there is in the plain 
 The timber is of a very good quality, and comprises ft 
 spruce, pine, cedar, hemlock, and alder. There is litti 
 doubt but that all this tract of land, which now lies oni 
 a few feet above the level of the ocean, was once entin 
 ly submerged; that from Cape Disappointment to Kill 
 mook Head, the distance of thirty miles, and from til 
 present mouth of the Columbia to Tongue Point, th 
 distance of fifteen miles, it was once a large bay, an 
 that the level tract of country back of Point Adam 
 comDrising Clatsop Plains, and the tract of woodlan 
 above mentioned, have been formed by the sand ain 
 various vegetable substances that, from time immemoria 
 have washed down the Columbia River, and have bee 
 deposited here by the continued action of < the tide. Tfc 
 evidences of this are, first, the fact that the soil is of tli 
 same alluvial character that is found on the shores of tl: 
 river above; and, second, there are several ridges, c 
 undulations, which extend the entire length of the plain 
 ana carve r. -ecisely with the shore, and which all appei 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. MT 
 
 to have successively formed the boundary of the Pacific 
 ocean. Some of these ridges appear in the woods, and 
 large trees have grown on the top of them, which proves 
 that this tract has been forming fof hundreds of years. 
 The soil, if we may judge from the immense growth of 
 grass and weeds on the plains, is of a superior quality 
 The location is delightful, the scenery of ocean and 
 mountain on a grand scale, and evidently this will be one 
 of the most valuable portions of Oregon. At present, 
 there are six American citizens settled on the plains, and 
 as many more have taken claims. 
 
 On Thursday, the 21st, we received a note from Cap- 
 tain Humphries, informing us that the ship had arrived 
 at Fort George; and taking leave of our friends on the 
 Clatsop Plains, we proceeded up the beach towards 1 the 
 mouth of the Columbia. 
 
 On our way we fell in with a fin, back whale that had 
 been driven ashore by the fury of the south-west gales. 
 Though this is a common occurrence, more or less being 
 driven up every year,, yet it is considered by the settlers 
 and Indians on the plains, as a very lucky event. It is a 
 rule among both classes, that when a whale is driven 
 ashore, each one is entitled to all he can get. When we 
 discovered the object, Mr. Lee, Mr. Ricord and myself, 
 were in advance of the rest of the party,' and in our 
 rear were a number of Indians, who were going up to 
 row us across Young's Bay to Fort George, and Mr. 
 Solomon Smith, an American who resides on the plains, 
 and who had kindly taken Mrs. H. and the children into 
 his cart to carry them up to point Adams. When Smith 
 first discovered the object, he exclaimed, "Who knows 
 but that Providence has sent me up out of the ocean 
 fifty dollars? Yonder is something that looks like a 
 whale." We were all speedily up with the object, Smith 
 and the Indians manifesting as much joy at their good 
 luck as a man would feel who had unexpectedly received 
 an immense fortune; and they all seemed instantly to 
 forget that they were going to assist us up to fort George., 
 Smith having no other instrument than a jack knife, and 
 fearing that the Indians who were just behind, would 
 
1M IOHWAID BOONS. 
 
 get more than ht, left his horse and cart standing in tl 
 centre of the wide beach, sprang nimbly on to Jne ca 
 case of the huge monster, and with his knife traced thi 
 
 fortion of the animal to which he intended to lay claiii 
 t was somewhat pleasing to observe that the Indians, i 
 their selections, paid the utmost respect to the pre-emptic 
 right of Mr. Smith. Here wag no jumping of claim 
 but as one after another arrived, all were satisfied 1 
 select from that part of the vast surface of the whal 
 around which lines had not been run. We witnesse 
 the' dividing of the spoil a short time, and not being abl 
 to get either Smith or the Indians to proceed any farthe 
 till they had secured all the blubber, I took the cart i 
 charge. At sundown we encamped on Point Adam 
 contenting ourselves with the idea that when the soutl 
 easter, which by this time began to rage, had abated, an 
 the whale had all bejen removed from the beach by i 
 despoilers, we should be able to cross Young's Bay 1 
 fort George, where the barque Columbia lay at ancho; 
 The storm continued until the 23d, when Mr. Parris 
 came up with a number of Indians and took us acros 
 the bay. We were entertained over the Sabbath in th 
 house of Mr. Birney. where I preached the gospel t 
 some twenty-five persons, embracing the crew of th 
 barque, the passengers, and the residents of Fort Georg< 
 On the 25th, we were required, by the Captain, to en: 
 bark, but as the wind was contrary, we were obliged t 
 remain until the 26th, when' we weighed anchor and ra 
 down to Baker's Bay. This bay is the common anchoi 
 age for ships after coming into the river and before goin 
 out. 
 
 On leaving Fort George we were in hopes immediate 
 ly to pass over the bar of the Columbia, but on arrivin 
 at Baker's Bay the wind became adverse, and, with th 
 prospect of a violent and tedious storm from the sout 
 and west, we came to ancho'r snug under Cape Disaj 
 pointment, that we might be sheltered from the fury o 
 winds and waves. 
 
 Though at present it is a most dreary and barbarou 
 looking region around Baker's Bay, yet, as Cape Disaj 
 
■OKKWAKB ••ClfD. 100 
 
 pointment must always be the guide of the mariner into 
 the mouth of the river, and as the bay is the only safe 
 anchorage, and vessels are always more or less detained 
 in passing in and out, this must eventually become a 
 place of considerable maritime importance. This is the 
 on-/ entrepot of the country, and consequently al' 
 supplies must pass either way through this channel. This 
 river is the thoroughfare on which must be conveyed 
 everything that goes to and from the interior, and, judg- 
 ing from the rapidity with which the country is filling 
 up, the time is not far distant when steamboats will be 
 flying up and down this river, as they are now seen on 
 the Hudson and Mississippi. Three places offer facili- 
 ties for the establishment of the grand depot for the 
 country, which must be located somewhrre near the 
 mouth of the river. These are the shore of Baker's 
 Bay, back of Cape Disappointment, the east side of Point 
 Adams, and old Astoria. One of these places may 
 doubtless be contemplated as the location Of some future 
 splendid commercial city, say the New York of the 
 west 
 
 While in Baker's Bay we experienced a very disa 
 greeable detention of forty days, during which the storm 
 from the south and west, continued to rage, with unceas- 
 ing violence. Day after day Captain Humphries and 
 myself would climb to the top of Cape Disappointment, 
 and look off on the broad expanse of the Pacific, and 
 contemplate the majesty of the ocean as she rolled her 
 mountain billows, and dashed them Successively against 
 the base of the mighty rock on which we stood. The 
 huge swell, rolling in from the south-west, would break 
 with fearful grandeur the entire width of the channel 
 across the bar of the Columbia, and the thick haze dark- 
 ening the horizon corroborated the indications of the 
 barometer, that the storm had not yet abated. 
 
 Occasionally, however, we were able to extend our 
 walks along the shore north of the Cape, and view what- 
 ever of interest presented itself. Here is a cave extend- 
 ing into the rock one hundred and fifty feet, and 
 containing the bones of animals, runks of trees, and 
 
200 HOMEWARD SOUHB. 
 
 other substances, which the tide has there deposited. 
 The country around presents an aspect wild beyond 
 description. 
 
 On the morning of the 31st of January, the wind blew 
 fair from the north-west, and having been detained 
 already beyond all endurance, the Captain resolved to 
 make an effort to get to sea, though from the top of the 
 Cape the mountain swell could be seen breaking across 
 the channel. Accordingly, we weighed anchor, and 
 soon passed Cape Disappointment, and steered for the 
 channel across the dreaded bar. The Captain took his 
 position on the foretop, and had not proceeded more than 
 one mile and a half before he was convinced that he was 
 premature in leaving the bay, as the bar was still too 
 rough to attempt to cross. The anchor was immediately 
 let go, and the Captain determined to remain where he 
 was for an hour, in hopes that the ebb tide would iuii 
 down the high sea on the bar, so as to admit of our 
 crossing in safety. Again the anchor was raised, and 
 the Captain resumed his position on the foretop, but as 
 we approached what are called the north breakers, he 
 came running down with great perturbation, and informed 
 us that the huge sea was still breaking entirely across 
 the channel, and that there was no prospect, if we at 
 tempted to cross, of saving either the vessel or our lives 
 
 To cast anchor where we were would be imminentlj 
 dangerous, but there was no alternative, as it was impos- 
 sible for us to get back ' into the bay. Accordingly, we 
 hauled to, and dropt our anchor within a few cable's 
 length of the north sands. The wind was blowing a 
 
 eale, and a tremendous swell came rolling over the sand 
 ar, and threatened instantly to overwhelm us, while the 
 vessel was tossed about with the greatest violence. As 
 if to add terror to the gloomy prospect before us, night 
 came on, and enveloped us in total darkness. Loud 
 nowled the wind, and the mighty breakers, rolling in 
 majestic grandeur over the sand bar at the north of the 
 channel, angrily shook their white locks around us during 
 the whole night. If the vessel had dragged her anchor, 
 or parted her cable, she must inevitably have been de 
 
MOMBWARR BOOTH). 901 
 
 ■UOfed, and all on board have perished, as no small boat 
 could have lived in that sea for a single moment. 
 
 In addition to the miseries of seasickness, during that 
 dismal night, the horrors of shipwreck were vividly por- 
 trayed before us as we thought of the ship Isabelle, 
 which was cast away upon a sand-bar but a short dis- 
 tance from our stern, of the William and Ann which was 
 wrecked on the same bar in 1838, with twenty-six per- 
 sons on board, not one of whom was left to describe the 
 circumstances of the lamentable catastrophe; and of the 
 United States' ship Peacock, which was lost on the north 
 sand-bar, but a little distance from where we lay. But 
 an ever watchful Providence interposed in our behalf ; 
 the wind lulled about daylight, and hauled around a few 
 points; the sea became measurably pacified, and at sun- 
 rise we stood back for Baker's Bay, where we again let 
 go our anchor, to await, a more propitious time to 
 make our exit. 
 
 We had not to wait long, for on the 3d day of Febru- 
 ary, the mouth of the river being exceedingly smooth, 
 and the wind from the north-east, Captain Humphries 
 and myself went once more to the top of Cape Disap- 
 pointment to take a view of the fearful bar, and pro- 
 nouncing it passable, at one o'clock, we weighed anchor, 
 and spreading our sails to the breeze, passed beautifully 
 and majestically over the spot where two days before 
 our gallant barque would have been driven to the bottom 
 by one break of the rolling surge. 
 
 A voyage of twenty-four days, during which we 
 experienced a succession of violent gales unusual on this 
 part of the ocean, brought us in sight of the island of 
 Mauie, which we first saw forty miles distant at two, p. 
 M., o" the 26th of February. At five we made the 
 island of Oahu, and though during the day we had been 
 sailing before a reefed topsail breeze, when we came up 
 with the north end of the island, the wind suddenly fell, 
 and we found ourselves plunging and rolling over an 
 exceedingly heavy swell occasioned by a strong south 
 wind, which for some time had prevailed in the vicinity 
 of th* ialpnda. Durinff the nieht we were drifted some 
 
903 lOMEWARD BOITlfB. 
 
 distance towards the island of Oahu and began to fear 
 lest we might be driven ashore, and the absence of wind 
 prove more destructive than the gales we had expe- 
 rienced. In the morning, however, the regular trade set 
 in, and as it was a fair wind, we were carried quickly 
 past Diamond Hill, when the city of Honolulu presented 
 itself to our view. A white flag was raised to the top 
 of the mast to announce that no epidemic prevailed 
 among us, and soon after, were boarded by an old 
 pilot, who, taking the ship rge, conducted us along 
 
 the narrow zig-zag chan ding through the Coral 
 
 Reef which, with this exe. 4 n, surrounds the island of 
 Oahu, and bringing the vessel up within a few rods of 
 land, gave orders to " let go the anchor." 
 
 We found a variety of shipping in the harbor, Ameri- 
 can, English, French, Spanish and some others. 
 
 The Dublin line of battle ship lay 'in the roads the 
 night previous to our arrival, but so violent was the 
 motion of the vessel in consequence of the tremendous 
 sweU that rolled in from the south, that she parted both 
 her cables, and it was with the utmost difficulty that she 
 was prevented from driving on the coral reef. A timely 
 breeze enabled her to remove from her dangerous prox- 
 imity to land, and after laying off and on until the swell 
 subsided, she finally came again to anchor in her former 
 
 f)osition. The Dublin was the flag ship of a small Eng- 
 ish fleet under the command of Rear Admiral Thomas, 
 the hero of the Chinese war, who had been sent from 
 China by the British government to settle the difficulties 
 occasioned by the outrageous conduct of Lord George 
 Paulet in capturing the Sandwich Islands, and to restore 
 them back to his Hawaiian majesty. 
 
 Soon after we came to anchor, Dr. J. L. Babcock, of 
 the Oregon mission, who had been on the island for some 
 months with his family, for the benefit of their health, 
 came on board, and invited us ashore. They were stop- 
 ping at the house of John Colcord, where, for the time 
 being, we also took up our abode. 
 
 Immediately after landing, we learned from Dr. Bab- 
 cock that news had arrived from the islands that Rev 
 
HOMEWARD BOOKS. tO* 
 
 George Gary had been appointed . to supersede Rev. 
 Jason Lee in the superatendency of the Oregon Mis- 
 sion, and was expected at the islands on his way to 
 Oregon, in a few weeks. This information caused us to 
 hesitate whether to proceed, if we had an opportunity, 
 or remain until Mr. Gary's arrival. Inquiring whether 
 there would be any opportunity soon to Jake passage to 
 the States, we ascertained that, in all probability, no 
 vessel would leave the islands for that destination under 
 several months ; but that a small schooner belonging to 
 the Hawaiian Government, called tne "Hoa Tita," 
 would sail the next day for Mazatlan, on the coast of 
 Mexico. Mr. Lee and myself proceeded directly to 
 he consul to ascertain whether it would be possible to 
 orocure a passage to the coast, but found that one only 
 could be accommodated on the small craft, and that it 
 would not be practicable to take a family across the 
 continent. Thus baffled in our purposes to proceed 
 together to the United States, we held a council in 
 which Dr. Babcock participated, and came to the con 
 elusion that, under the circumstances it was our duty to 
 separate; Mr. Lee to take the "Hoa Tita" to Mazatlan 
 thence take the route through Mexico to Vera Cruz, 
 and thence to New York, and myself and family to take 
 the brig Chenamus, which would be ready to sail in a 
 few weeks, and return to Oregon. 
 
 With reference to Mr. Lee, no time was to be lost in 
 preparing for his embarkation, but with the assistance 
 of the acting consul, Wm. Hooper, Esq., and Mr. Ladd, 
 everything was soon made ready. Now came one of 
 the severe trials of missionary life. Mr. Lee had buried 
 his second wife in Oregon, and was left with a tender 
 infant, a little girl of three weeks old. Mrs. Hines 
 received the child from the bed of death to take care of 
 it so long as Mr. Lee should desire, and after the burial 
 of its mother he also came to reside in our family. Mr. 
 Lee looked upon this his only child, as his earthly all, 
 and no personal consideration would have induced him 
 to leave her in the care of others, on an island in the 
 Pacific ocean, and perform a hazardous journey to the 
 
204 loinwAiD moxnn*. 
 
 i 
 other side of the globe, with but little prospect of ever 
 again beholding his beloved daughter 
 
 But with a neart as affectionate as ever beat in the 
 breast of a man, Mr. Lee never allowed his personal 
 feelings to control his conduct, when they opposed 
 themselves to the calls of duty. In his opinion it was 
 the voice of duty that called him to tear himself away 
 from all he held dear upon the earth and return to his 
 native land. Accordingly, at three o'clock, p. m., of the 
 28th of February, after tenderly committing his mother- 
 less child to the care of the writer and his companion, 
 he was conducted to the " Hoa Tita," which lay at the 
 wharf, and which, with a fair wind, was soon wafted 
 from the shores of Oahu towards the Mexican coast. 
 
 On the 2d day of March, Rear Admiral Thomas, 
 having accomplished' his mission to the Hawaiians to the 
 entire satisfaction of both natives and foreigners, took 
 his leave of Oahu, and amidst the roar of cannon which 
 saluted him from the fort and from the ships of war in 
 the harbor, he steered his course for the Society Islands. 
 The following day his majesty Kamahamaha III, arrived 
 at Honolulu from Maui, where he has resided for some 
 time. ! 
 
 Though it was the Sabbath, yet he was saluted with 
 many guns as his crown flag was seen flying at the 
 entrance of the harbor. He is now to take up his resi- 
 dence in the city of Honolulu. 
 
 In the evening of the 7th of March, the bells of the 
 churches and of the ships in the harbor, rung an alarm, 
 and the whole city seemed at once in an uproar. The 
 cry of fire was heard in every direction, and as no fire 
 could be seen from where we were, I concluded that it 
 must be in some ship in the harbor. I accordingly ran 
 down to the wharf, and found that the brig Chenamus 
 was indeed on fire in her hold, and no one could tell to 
 what extent^ A report was at once circulated that she 
 had on board a vast quantity of powder, some said three 
 hundred barrels. This alarmed many exceedingly, and 
 but few wou.d go down to the wharf for fear the vessel 
 would blow up immediately. The utmos* confusion and 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. SOB 
 
 disorder prevailed until Captain Conch, wb«s was absen 
 from the ship when the fire was first discoveied, arrived. 
 He immediately corrected the mistake in reference to 
 tied amount of powder, and also informed the people 
 concerning the probable position of the fire, which he 
 supposed to be 'in the lower hold forward of the main- 
 mast, and as the powder was in the after run, the 
 danger was not so imminent as had been supposed. 
 The fire, however, had so far progressed that it was 
 considered exceedingly dangerous to take off* the hatches 
 for fear it would break forth, and destroy not only the 
 ship itself, but also the other ships lying near. The 
 hatches had become hot, and the quarter-deck, as far 
 back as the companion-way, was too warm to stand 
 upon, when the captain gave orders to scuttle her. 
 Three holes were accordingly made in her hull, and 
 when the captain left her deck there were already 
 several feet of water in her hold. She continued filling 
 and sinking until morning, when her upper deck was 
 level with the water. Soon after daylight divers were 
 procured to go down and stop up the scuttle holes, and 
 cork up the cabin windows, to prepare for pumping hef 
 out. Thirty-six hours' labor of fifty men, sufficed to 
 get the water all out, and as soon as possible the cargo 
 was on the wharf, when it was ascertained that the 
 ship had received but little or no damage from the fire, 
 and but a small portion of the cargo had been injured 
 except by the water. The fire had been principally 
 confined to some fanning-mills, which were stored unde 
 the main hatchways On the Monday following, the 
 damaged goods were sold at auction for the benefit of 
 the underwriters, and the captain went about repairing 
 his vessel in order to proceed on his voyage to the 
 Columbia River. The Chenamus is a fine brig, built 
 expressly for the Pacific trade, and owned by Captain 
 Cushing, the father of the Hon. Caleb Cushing, the pre- 
 sent minister from the United States to China. He has 
 established a commercial house in Oregon, and carries 
 on an extensive trade with the settlers in that new and 
 ning country. 
 
301 HOMEWARD BODNB. 
 
 In consequence of the unfortunate accident to the 
 Chenamus, we were detained for five weeks, during; 
 which we had a a opportunity of extending our observa- 
 tions on the missions government, commerce, dtc, ot 
 the Sandwich Iiiwdr. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 V «w of the Sanawioi juands — How formed — Volcano — Coral Bun — Nam* et 
 Islands — When discoTered — Singular tradition — Cock's death — Population — 
 PraTiona condition — Long and bloody war — Results — Missionary statistics — 
 Effects of Missionary labor — Seaman's Chaplaincy — Romanism — Kamabanv 
 ha m — Reformation — Singular custom — School for young chiefs — Influence 
 of Missionaries — The King's Cabinet — Important history of two hundred and 
 seventy-six days — Increase of Cabinet — Paper King — Protection — Commerce — 
 Whale Fishery — Productions — Society — Temperance — Destination of the 
 
 The Sandwich Islands, in common with a vast number 
 of others in the Pacific Ocean, have doubtless been formed 
 Dy volcanic action, in connexion with the operations of 
 the coral worm. Doubts may reasonably be indulged 
 in relation to the causes which have produced the present 
 form of many other portions of the globe, but there can- 
 be none concerning the manner in which the Sandwich 
 Islands first emerged from the bosom of the deep. That 
 they have been thrown up by volcanic eruptions is 
 evident, from the numerous old craters which appear on 
 all parts of the islands; from the vast quantities of con- 
 gealed lava everywhere observable; from the nature of 
 the soil, it being nothing more nor less than decomposed 
 lava, and from the present existence of an active vol- 
 cano on the principal island of the group. This burning 
 mountain, known by the name of the volcano of Kilawea, 
 is situated on the island of Hawaii, or Owyhee, as it was 
 formerly called; and from its continued action in casting 
 up immense quantities of lava, stones, and dirt, which in 
 some instances have been known to roll down the sides 
 of the mountain in such vast quantities, as, in their pro- 
 gress, to fill up the deep ravines washed in the sides of 
 the mountain, and sometimes to bury up the cottages of 
 the natives with their occupants, and extending quite U 
 
SOS SANBWIGB MLANM. 
 
 the ocean, enlarging even the island itself, must be 
 viewed as disclosing the principal cause of the formation 
 of this interesting collection of the Pacific Isles. Though' 
 the crater of this mountain is the only flue now open 
 through which the subteranean fires discharge them- 
 selves, yet doubtless all the old craters have, in tbeir 
 turn, served the same purpose; and from their appear- 
 ance one is led to suppose that many of them may have 
 been in action at the same time. 
 
 There are different opinions entertained concerning 
 the formation and continued enlargement of the coral 
 reefs by which all the islands are surrounded. The 
 prevailing opinion is that they owe their origin to the 
 constant action of what is called " the coral worm." 
 Though it appears evident that the above mentioned two 
 causes have produced the Sandwich Islands, yet, after 
 all, perhaps these are mere speculations, and they may 
 have existed nearly in their present form since the period 
 when the waters of the deluge were gathered to their 
 original bed, and the ark rested on Mount Ararat. 
 
 Be this as it may, there are ten of these isolated spots 
 of earth embraced in the group known by the name of 
 the Sandwich Islands. They are distinguished by the 
 names of Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Kawai, Molokai, Lanai, 
 Niihau and Kahoolame. The two I have not mentioned 
 are of no note, being small and barren, and containing 
 no permanent inhabitants. 
 
 The existence of these islands first became known to 
 the civilized world in 1778. Captain James Cook, the 
 celebrated English navigator, is entitled to the credit of 
 the first discovery of this interesting group, to which he 
 gave their present name, in honor of Lord Sandwich, 
 his principal friend and patron in the British government. 
 He was on one of his voyages to the north-west coast of 
 the American continent, for the purpose of searching for 
 a north-west passage from the Pacific to the Atlantic 
 ocean, when he feff in with these islands. On a subse- 
 quent visit to them, it is generally known that he fell a 
 victim to the barbarity of the savages, the existence of 
 whom he had revealed to Ue world. When Captain 
 
•ANBWICH IKLANM. SO* 
 
 Cook first arrived at the islands, he was received by the 
 natives with great veneration as a supreme being. This, 
 in part, arose from the following singular tradition. The 
 Hawaiians have, from time immemorial, entertained a 
 belief in a deity, or goddess, which they called Pele. 
 She, they believed, had the control of the volcano of 
 Kilawea. 
 
 Lono, one of the chiefs, was the friend of Pele, but 
 when once he happened to insult her, she was angry and 
 began to pursue him.,. He fled in great terror, and pass- 
 ing his home in his flight, he cried, " Aloha, Aloha," to 
 his wife and children, but could not stop, for Pele was 
 near in pursuit. Shortly he came to the shore where 
 he found -a man just landing in a fishing canoe, and, to 
 escape the vengeance of Pele, he immediately siezetl the 
 canoe and pushed out to sea. When Captain Cook first 
 arrived he forthwith received the name of Lono, the 
 people supposing him to be the same personage who had 
 left in a canoe, now returned in a much larger vessel. 
 But the reverence which they manifested W CoOk did 
 not long continue. From an unrestrained intercourse 
 with them, they found him to be a man like themselves; 
 and conceiving a strong dislike for him on account of 
 some supposed injuries which he and his men had inflic- 
 ted upon them, they resolved upon his distruction, and 
 accordingly he. fell beneath the weight of a Hawaiian 
 club, near the village of Kadmaloa, on the shore of 
 Kaalakekua Bay, and on the island of Hawaii. A stick 
 of cocoa set up in the fissure of the rocks a few feet 
 from the water's edge, marks the place where the gallant 
 navigator met his untimely fate. 
 
 The population of the Islands, when first discovered, 
 as estimated by Captain Cook, was four hundred thousand. 
 If this was a correct estimate, during the forty-five 
 years following Cook's discovery, we find a decrease in 
 the population of two hundred and fifty-seven thousand 
 nine hundred and fifty; for in 1823 we find a population 
 of only one hundred and forty-two thousand and fifty. 
 A census was taken in 1832, and it was found that the 
 decrease for the nine previous years amounted to eleven 
 9* 
 
•19 a.*jr»wica wlamm. 
 
 thousand seven hundred and thirty-seven, leaving a pop- 
 illation at that time of one hundred and thirty thousand 
 three hundred and thirteen. Another census was taken 
 in 1836, which revealed the astonishing decrease of 
 twenty-one thousand seven hundred and thirty in four 
 years. One of the missionaries, the Rev. W. P. Alex j 
 ander, in 1838, calculated that there were annually, in 
 all the islands, six thousand eight hundred and thirty- 
 eight deaths, and only three thousand three hundred and 
 thirty-five births. I have frequently conversed with 
 missionaries who have been for many years upon the 
 islands, and they all agree in stating that the yearlv 
 deaths at the present time bear about the proportion to 
 the yearly births of seven to three; and that only about 
 one-half of the marriages lead to offspring. Allowing 
 that there has been twenty thousand decrease from 1836 
 to 1846, and it will not fall short of this, there is now a 
 population of eighty-eight thousand five hundred and 
 seventy-nine. This brings us to the lamentable result, 
 that since the discovery of the island in 1778 there has 
 been an average annual decrease' of four thousand five 
 hundred and eighty. The astonishing rapidity of the 
 decrease of Hawaiian population, is, perhaps, without a 
 parallel in the history of nations, not excepting the iM 
 fated Indians of North America. 
 
 In beholding the downward career of the Hawaiians 
 in respect to population, one is led to inquire for the 
 causes which have produced these astonishing results. 
 These are numerous, and among the principal are the 
 sweeping pestilence which raged with singular fatality 
 during the years 1803 and 1804, the destructive wars of 
 Kamehameha the first, and the almost universal preva 
 lence, and uncontrolled progress of a disease said to have 
 been introduced by the vicious crew belonging to the 
 vessel of Captain Cook, and as fatal in its ravages, as it 
 is loathsome to contemplate. The laxity of native mor- 
 als, which has always existed among the Hawaiians, is a 
 sufficient cause why this disease should prevail among 
 them to an unusual extent; and this very cause adds to 
 .he effect of the disease in preventing offspring. Hitherto 
 
■ANBW1CI ISLAND*. 311 
 
 all the efforts of the missionaries and the medical 
 men in the islands to stop the ravages of the disease, 
 have been ineffectual, and it is extremely doubtful 
 whether any means can be devised sufficient to roll back 
 the tide of death which threatens the destruction of the 
 Hawaiian nation. 
 
 Great changes had taken place in the political and 
 religious history of the Hawaiian nation previous to the 
 arrival of the first missionaries. Many of these resul- 
 ted from the free intercourse of the people of other 
 nations with the islanders, so soon as their existence be- 
 came known to the civilized world. When they were 
 first discovered, the islands were governed by a number 
 of independent chiefs, and all the people were held under 
 the iron control of a system of idolatry, called the Tabu 
 system. After a few years' intercourse with foreigners, 
 beholding their vast superiority over themselves, arising, 
 as they supposed* from the difference of their religion, 
 there arose a party among the natives who rejected their 
 ancient Tabu, and embraced in theory so far as they 
 understood it, the religion of the foreigners. At first 
 this party was small, but continuing to increase, it at 
 length embraced nearly one half of the nation. Kame- 
 hameha was the first chief to declare himself openly 
 against the Tabu system. . At that time he was a petty 
 chief, controlling but a small portion of the island of 
 Hawaii. But being more enlightened than his country 
 men, and withal ambitious and enterprising in his habits, 
 he resolved to attempt the accomplishment of a revolu 
 tion in both the government and religion of his country, 
 But the cruel system of idolatry against which Kame- 
 hameha had arrayed himself, strengthened as it was by 
 ages of uninterrupted growth, was not to be destroyed 
 without a powerful struggle, its friends and supporters 
 still being more numerous than its enemies. The most 
 violent enmity had grown up betwixt the two parties, 
 and at length Kamehameha found himself involved in 
 the most bloody war. All the principal chiefs were upon 
 the side of the Tabu, and it became necessary for Katie- 
 
213 SANDWICH ISLAND*. 
 
 hameha to fight them successively. He first turned his 
 attention to the subjugation of his own native island of 
 Hawaii, and meeting the chiefs with their forces in battle, 
 his own superior skill and prowess prevailed, and he soon 
 found the island of Hawaii, containing then more than 
 one hundred thousand inhabitants; prostrate at his feet. 
 Here establishing his authority by the wise use of every 
 necessary precaution, he prepared for the invasion of 
 the other islands. He met the adherents of the Tabu 
 on the islands of Maui, Kauai, Lanai, and Morokai, in 
 battle, and in every instance triumphed over them. 
 Those of his enemies who escaped took refuge on the 
 island of Oahu. Here an army of men as large as that 
 which Kamehameha had drawn to his standard, had col- 
 lected, and resolved to make one more desperate stand, 
 to support their favorite Tabu. At length the conquer- 
 ing chief effected a landing on the island of Oahu, and 
 the opposing forces met in the rear of the city of Hono- . 
 lulu, and fought the last and bloodiest battle of the whole 
 war. The victory of Kamehameha was complete, his 
 snemies were annihilated, and he was forthwith pro- 
 claimed king of the Hawaiian nation. 
 
 Prodding for the government of Oahu, Kamehameha 
 returnea to Kailue on his native island, and in a pro- 
 clamation to the nation announced that the old Tabu 
 system was at an end. Thus fell idolatry on the Sand- 
 wich Islands, and thus all the group were connected 
 together under one government. At the head stood the 
 victorious chieftain who had effected the revolution, 
 under the title of King Kamehameha the First. 
 
 It was in this condition that the first missionaries found 
 tbe islands on their arrival. Providence had prepared 
 the way for them in the destruction of the bloody sys- 
 tem of idolatry which had reigned over the islands for 
 ages, and accordingly the first news that saluted them 
 on approaching Hawaii, was, "Kamehameha is king, 
 and the Tabu is destroyed." 
 
 It was on the 4th day of April, 1820, that the brig 
 Thaddeus, from Boston, with seven male and seven 
 
SANDWICH ISLANDS. 313 
 
 female missionaries came to anchor in the bay of Kailua, 
 and on the 8th the king and chiefs consented to their 
 landing and residing on the island. 
 
 Three years afterwards a reinforcement arrived, 
 consisting of seven males, and six "females. A second 
 reinforcement of six males and ten females, arrived in 
 the spring of 1828 ; a third, of four males and four 
 females, in the spring of 1831 ; a fourth, of ten males 
 and nine females, in the spring of 1832 ; a fifth, of two 
 males and two females, in the spring of 1833 ; a sixth, 
 of three males and five females, in the spring of 1835 ; 
 a seventh, fifteen males and seventeen females, in the 
 spring of 1837; an eighth, of four males and four 
 females, in. the spring of 1841. In January, 1842, one 
 male and one female joined the mission at the islands 
 from the Oregon Mission. A ninth reinforcement, of 
 two males and two females, from the United States, 
 arrived in September, 1842. This makes an aggregate 
 of sixty-one males and sixty-seven females who have 
 been employed on the mission since its first establish-, 
 ment twenty-six years ago. Of these a number have 
 died, some have returned to the United States, some 
 have become disconnected with the mission and remain 
 at the islands, and others continue their labors as mis- 
 sionaries in behalf of the Hawaiian race. 
 
 The greatest number of laborers in the field at one 
 time, has not exceeded about eighty adults, or forty 
 families, and this has been near the average number for 
 the last ten years. Of course, to sustain so large an 
 establishment, the ' expenditures must have been very 
 great. These have been incurred in supporting the 
 missionaries, and providing them with dwellings,; in the 
 printing, and binding of books for the seminary and 
 other public schools ; in the erection of churches and 
 schoolnouses, and in the circulation of books. The 
 entire amount expended, from the first establishment of 
 the mission up to 1844, according to the report of the 
 financial agent, amounted to six hundred and eight thou 
 sand, eight hundred and sixty-five dollars. Fifty thou- 
 sand dollars of this was furnished by the American Biblo 
 
814 SANDWICH ISLAND*. 
 
 Society ; nineteen thousand seven hundred and seventy 
 four dollars by the American Tract Society, and five 
 hundred and thirty-nine thousand and ninety dollars by 
 the A. B. C. F. M. 
 
 Eighteen mission stations have been established, and 
 continue to be occupied ; six on Hawaii, four on Maui, 
 four on Oahu, three on Kauai, and one on Morokai. In 
 addition to two printing offices and a bindery, a commo- 
 modious seminary, school-houses, and churches, forty 
 permanent dwelling-houses have been erected for the 
 accommodation of the missionaries, that in appearance 
 would not disgrace any of the \ Uages of Western New 
 York. 
 
 The results of all this immense labor and expense are 
 sufficient to establish in every reflecting mind, the utility 
 of christian missions. The great object held in view in 
 the missionary enterprise, is the conversion of the hea- 
 then to the Lord Jesus Christ, and their final salvation 
 in the kingdom of heaven. As it regards the first, by 
 missionary effort, Christianity has been introduced into 
 the Sandwich Islands, and adopted as the religious sys- 
 tem of the nation. Twenty-three christian churches 
 have been gathered, and embraced, on the first of April, 
 1843, twenty-three thousand eight hundred and four 
 members in regular standing. In addition to this, the 
 Hawaiian language has been systematized and reduced 
 to writing ; fifty thousand copies of the New Testament 
 and twenty thousand of the Old Testament have issued 
 from the Hawaiian press ; seventy different works, 
 scientifical, historical, and religious, have been translated 
 and published ; one-half of the adult population have 
 been taught to read, and nearly all of the children of 
 the islands, are now gathered into the schools. A mis- 
 sioi: seminary where the higher branches are taught, 
 has been in operation for years, and usually numbers 
 about one hundred and thirty students. A female semi- 
 nary of a similar character numbers about eighty pupils. 
 These are on the island of Maui. A boarding school 
 for boys numbering sixty scholars, and one for girls of 
 about twenty-five, are in operation on Hawaii. A 
 
•ANDWieB M&ANM. Sit 
 
 ooarding school for the young chiefs, and a number of 
 select schools at the various stations throughout the 
 islands, and under the care of gentlemen and ladies be- 
 longing to the mission. Reading, writing, geography, 
 arithmetic, astronomy, geometry, trigonometry, mensu- 
 ration, surveying, navigation, algebra, history, phyloso- 
 phy, &c, are taught in these schools, some of which 
 are already beginning to rank with the academies of 
 New England. 
 
 These are some of the direct benefits resulting from 
 missionary efforts, as they exhibit themselves on the 
 Sandwich Islands ; and in viewing them we can form 
 some conception of the value of those efforts which 
 have accomplished this work, considered with respect to' 
 time. But who can estimate the value of a soul, the 
 redemption of which cost the infinite price of a Re- 
 deemer's blood? When I take a view of the small 
 amount of money and labor expended, the little suffering 
 endured, and the few lives sacrificed in the missionary 
 cause, and connect them as instrumentalities with til 
 eternal salvation of souls as the object, I am led U 
 exclaim, my .God! how trifling are the means used in 
 comparison to the great end accomplished! And yet 
 thousands from the Sandwich Islands will share in the 
 blessedness of the first resurrection, because these in- 
 strumentalities have been used in their behalf, and the 
 Divine blessing has accompanied the efforts which have 
 been made. 
 
 In addition to the results of these efforts, as already 
 stated, it may be proper to remark that the government 
 has assumed a much more stable and consistent charac- 
 ter than it formerly possessed. Written laws have been 
 enacted by which the people are better secured from 
 oppressive exactions on the part of their rulers, and 
 encouraged to cultivate industrious and virtuous habits. 
 The security, stability, and value of property have been 
 greatly enhanced. Diplomatic intercourse has been 
 opened with other and greater nations, among which 
 are England, the United States, and France, all of which 
 have acknowledged the independence of the islands, and 
 
216 SANDWICH ISLAND*. 
 
 express an interest in their prosperity. Indeed, a grea 
 change for the better has taken place, and, though it is 
 true that, still Hawaiian society is in a very crude state, 
 and is susceptible of vast improvement, it is not the less 
 true that the wonderful change through which it has 
 passed since the cross was first planted upon the islands, 
 is without parallel in the history of ancient or modern 
 times. 
 
 There are few subjects presenting themselves to the 
 visitor at the islands, more interesting than the Seaman's 
 Chaplaincy, at Honolulu. The fact that the American 
 Seaman's Friend Society, in addition to many other 
 places in the world, have directed their pious benevo- 
 lence to the greatest seaport of the Sandwich Islands, 
 should be regarded as evidence of the importance of' 
 the place as well as of the discrimination of the mana- 
 gers of that society. They have here erected a chapel 
 on a most eligible site, which is conveniently fitted up 
 to accommodate two or three hundred hearers. In the 
 basement there is a depository for Bibles and Tracts, 
 which may here be found in English, German, French, 
 Danish, and most other European languages, and are 
 carefully and liberally distributed. The Bethel Flag 
 floats from a staff elevated from the top of the steeple, 
 inviting the mariner to the house of prayer. Public 
 worship is performed every Sunday morning and even- 
 ing ; there is a meeting every Thursday evening for 
 prayer and religious conference, and a monthly seamen's 
 concert for prayer ; both held in the vestry, and well 
 attended. The chaplain also invites all seamen to his 
 private residence, where he instructs, advises, reproves, 
 and exhorts, as occasion may require, and distributes 
 Bibles, Tracts, &c, to those who attend, with great 
 assiduity, as they are received with many thanks by the 
 sailors, and open sources of unspeakable consolation to 
 many of them, while prosecuting their hazardous em- 
 ployment 
 
 The society has been peculiarly fortunate in their 
 choice of chaplains for this important post. The present 
 jicumbent is the Rev. Samuel C. Damon who has 
 
•ANDWICH ISLANDS, S17 
 
 officiated since the death of his predecessor, the Rev. 
 John Diell. Mr. Damon is well qualified tor the place 
 ne is called to fill, and his performances in the pulpit 
 are alike creditable to himself as a clergyman and man 
 of letters, and well adapted to the varied circumstances 
 of his hearers. His audience is frequently composed of 
 English lords and knights, consuls and consul generals, 
 admirals and rear admirals, the king of the islands and 
 his suite, the ardent votaries of wealth in the character 
 of merchants and sea captains, naval officers of different 
 nations, common seamen and Kanakas. His subjects 
 are well chosen to arrest the attention of all these, nor 
 does he shun to declare unto them all the counsel of God. 
 In addition to his ordinary labors as chaplain, which 
 alone are very arduous, he is the editor of a very inte- 
 resting and useful paper called " The Friend of Tempe- 
 rance and Seamen." About four hundred seamen 
 annually visit him at his study, to receive religious 
 instruction, and advice. From a consideration of these 
 facts, I am led fully to the conclusion that the seaman's 
 chaplaincy at Honolulu is every way worthy to be 
 sustained. 
 
 Since the French compelled the Hawaiians to receive 
 with their brandy, Roman Catholic missionaries, Catholic- 
 ism has been making rapid advances among the natives, 
 and thereby presenting a great obstacle in the way of 
 the final success of the Protestant missionaries. Ac- 
 cording to the best information I could obtain, there 
 were nine Catholic priests on the islands, and the bap- 
 tized members of the church amounted in all to about 
 twelve thousand five hundred, besides those who were 
 under preparatory training. 
 
 They have one hundred schools established, containing 
 upwards of three thousand scholars. These are under 
 the direction of priests, sisters of charity,' and native 
 teachers. The catholic cathedral is by far the most 
 sightly looking church in Honolulu, and is under the 
 charge of the Rev. the Abbe Maigret, of the Society of 
 PicpuB, in Paris. In connection with the cathedral 
 there ia a *chool «f thiee hundred scholar*, of both 
 
SI 8 SANDWICH ISLANDS. 
 
 sexes, under the superintendence of the Albe himself, 
 whose service^ are without charge to those who belong 
 to his communion. Some time in 1842 a vessel sailed 
 from France, containing a bishop for the islands, seven 
 
 Criests, and twelve sisters of charity ; but she has nevei 
 een heard of since she left the coast of Brazil, and is 
 supposed to have been lost in the vicinity of Cape 
 Horn. 
 
 King Kamehameha III. and his small court have foi 
 several years resided chiefly at Lahaira, in the island of 
 Maui, but in June, 1844, they removed their residences 
 to the city of Honolulu, on the Island Oahu. At this 
 place a palace has been recently erected in a conspicuous 
 part of the city, and when the public grounds surround- 
 ing it are properly improved and ornamented, will pre- 
 sent an imposing appearance, and constitute a suitable 
 residence for the royal family. 
 
 Until recently, it has been extremely doubtful whether 
 the Hawaiian government would continue in existence 
 for any length of time, but now his majesty Kameham- 
 eha III, is recognized as belonging to the family of 
 independent sovereigns, and efforts are being made by 
 his ministers to place his court, and organize his tribunals 1 
 on a footing corresponding with his present situation 
 As the ministers of the 4 king are principally Americans, 
 and of course unaccustomed to the forms of ceremony 
 observed in royal palaces, it may be expected that the 
 code of court etiquette which they have adopted, may 
 be somewhat defective. If by some strange metamor- 
 phosis, a republican is transformed into an aristocrat, he 
 generally surrounds himself with an excess of cere- 
 mony, and on this ground fault has been found with the 
 code of etiquette which the ministers of Kamehameha 
 III. have thrown around the court. Formerly the king 
 was approachable on all occasions, and by every body ; 
 now a routine of ceremony must be observed before 
 even a sea captain can gain an audience. This is pecu- 
 liarly trying to those English and American residents 
 who have formerly had "free access to the royal presence. 
 Though this privilege is now denied the people generally 
 
•ANDWICH ISLANDS. 218 
 
 yet, on proper application being previously made, the 
 representatives of foreign powers, are, at all times, 
 admitted to a personal interview with the king, for the 
 purpose of submitting to his majesty any case of well 
 founded grievance which any of their countrymen may 
 nave against the authorities of the land. 
 
 The character of the king since he came to the throne, 
 nas undergone a very great change. Formerly he was 
 adicted to low and degrading vices, among which intem- 
 perance was one of the most prominent, but some ten or 
 twelve years ago, a thorough reformation took place in his 
 majesty, and he is now not only a consistent temperance 
 man, but also a member of the church of Christ. Though 
 there are a few individuals at Honolulu who are disposed 
 to censure, and find fault with everything and everybody 
 in the islands, yet none seem inclined to complain of his 
 majesty Kamehameha III. The general testimony is 
 favorable to the goodness of his disposition, the upright- 
 ness of his intentions, and his clemency and kindness tfc 
 his subjects. None accuse him of cruelty or tyranny, 
 and many, qualified to judge, concur in ascribing to him 
 considerable native talent, and much acquired informa- 
 tion. His majesty is an example of sobriety to his sub- 
 jects, regular in his attendance at church, and zealous in 
 the discouragement of all Pagan rites, and the establish- 
 ment of the Christian religion in the nation. 
 
 He is now thirty-three years of age, and was married 
 in 1837 to Kalama, by whom he has no offspring. In 
 the probable event of his having no lineal successor, the 
 crown will devolve on Alexander Liholiho, whom the 
 king has adopted for that purpose. He is an active and 
 promising lad, now in the twefth year of his age. 
 
 A 'very singular custom prevails in the Hawaiian 
 monarchy of appointing a female prime minister of the 
 kingdom. It is said this custom originated in the will of 
 Kamehameha I, which declared his son Liholiho his 
 successor in the throne, but that Kaahumattu, his favorite 
 jueen, should be his minister. The present premier is 
 Kekauluohi, who is about fifty years of age, very digni 
 fed in her appearance, and much respected by all classes 
 
990 SANDWICH ISLAND* 
 
 Her prerogatives are nearly equal to those of tne King 
 and whatever she does in the realm, is to be considered 
 as executed by his authority; but the king has a veto on 
 her acts, while, on the other hand, his own are not bind 
 ing unless approved of by her. She has an interesting son, 
 William Charles Lunalilo, about twelve years of age, 
 but his sex disqualifies him from being her successor; 
 consequently, Victoria Kamamalu, who is eight years of 
 age, is the reputed heir to the premiership. 
 
 Alexander and Victoria are both the children of 
 Kekuanaoa, the present governor of Oahu, by Kaahu 
 mana the former premier of the kingdom. These chil- 
 dren, with all the other young chiefs of the realm, are 
 under the care of Mr. and Mrs. Cooke, who are mem- 
 bers of the mission, and who spare no pains to fit them, 
 through a proper education and training, for the high 
 functions which they are destined to fill. To the mis- 
 sionaries belongs the merit of having excited the king 
 and chiefs of the islands to desire a school for the sys- 
 tematic education of those children into whose hands 
 would fall the future destiny of the government By 
 the request and concurrence of the king and chiefs, in 
 1839, Mr. and Mrs. Cooke were selected by the mission 
 as suitable persons to undertake the education of the 
 young chiefs. The building occupied by this school of 
 the chiefs, is situated in a retired part of the city of 
 Honolulu, and, though it cost but two thousand dollars, 
 being constructed of sun-dried adobes, v is commodiously 
 arranged to secure the purposes of its construction. It 
 contains seventeen rooms in all, of various dimensions, 
 opening into a court in the centre thirty-six feet square, 
 the outside of the building being seventy-six feet square. 
 The school room is very conveniently arranged^ and 
 books, maps, stationery, and globes terrestrial and celes- 
 .tial, are at all times accessible to the scholars, and there 
 is also an excellent apparatus to illustrate the movements 
 of the planets which compose our solar system. The 
 scholars are fifteen in number, seven males and eight 
 females, and each of them has from two to six native 
 attendants in the character of grooms, tailors, washers. 
 
SANDWICH ISLANDS. 381 
 
 &c, according to the rank, age, and sex of each. Thete 
 attendants are all under the direction of John Li and his 
 wife, who are both very respectable natives, and who 
 co-operate with Mr. and Mrs. Cooke in excluding these 
 attendants from any intimacy wjth the young chiefs 
 which might prove prejudicial to their welfare. Readings 
 writing, spelling, arithmetic, geography, history, draw- 
 ing, music, vocal and instrumental, are the principal 
 branches of education which these future rulers of the 
 •slands are receiving at the hands of Mr. and Mrs. Cooke. 
 These interesting youth, in every department of educa- 
 tion, show a tractability quite equal to any other children 
 of the same ages, and under similar circumstances; and 
 it is quite evident that, under tKe excellent government 
 and tuition of Mr. and Mrs. Cooke, these young chiefs 
 will be prepared to go forth into the world and fill their' 
 iispective stations, with a fund of knowledge vastly 
 superior to that of their predecessors; and it is equally 
 obvious, that the administration of these future rulers, 
 must be immeasurably more enlightened than any that 
 oas ever before existed in the islands. Yet the tongue 
 of calumny has represented the appointment of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Cooke to their responsible station, as a measure 
 naving no higher- object, than the selfish policy of priest- 
 craft. 
 
 As might be expected, the missionaries, from the posi- 
 :.'on they have occupied, have exerted a controlling-, 
 influence in the councils of the Hawaiian government, 
 for many years, but the first appointment from among 
 them to any office in the government was that of the 
 Rev. William Richards in 1838 to the office of teacher 
 or counsellor of the chiefs. This appointment was made 
 in accordance with a request of the king and chiefs, and 
 accepted by Mr. Richards at first, but for one year. 
 Subsequently he received a higher appointment, and 
 filling the different offices of privy counsellor, secretary 
 of state, and embassador to a foreign court, he has been 
 one of the principal actors in the government since his 
 first appointment. 
 
 Another appointment to a responsible office in the 
 
SANDWICH ISLANDS. 
 
 government took place from among the missionaries in 
 1842, which became a matter of much serious contro- 
 versy in the islands, and perhaps of some willful misre- 
 presentation. This was that of Dr. Gerritt P. Judd. This 
 gentleman was solicited by the king to accept of the 
 office of interpreter, and giving up his connexion with 
 the mission, he identified himself with the Hawaiian 
 government. Some of the foreign residents, and partic- 
 ularly the English, took occasion from this, to charge 
 upon the missionaries a disposition to domineer over the 
 king and people for the benefit of themselves and of 
 the American residents. If it was necessary, to appoint 
 a foreigner to this office, doubtless Dr. Judd, from his 
 thorough knowledge of the native language and charac- 
 ter, was as well qualified as any man; and from his hav- 
 ing voluntarily officiated, and possessing a high reputa- 
 tion among the natives, it was natural that the choice of 
 the king should fall on him. In his new functions, the 
 Doctor appears to have given great satisfaction, at least 
 to the king, for during the troubles of the government 
 with the English, he was appointed by the king to rep- 
 resent his person, and after the restoration of the islands 
 from British rule; he was elevated to the high and respon- 
 sible office of secretary of state for foreign affairs. 
 
 A third appointment from among the missionaries took 
 place in 1845. This was that of the Rev. Mr. Andrew? 
 to the office of supreme judge. As these three appoint 
 ments were made from among themselves through the 
 influence of the missionaries, it has been charged upon 
 them by the enemies of the mission, that, forgetting theii 
 appropriate calling, they had used the extensive influ 
 ence they had acquired in the nation to arrogate to them ■ 
 selves all the important offices of state, and the emolu- 
 ments arising from such offices. But, as it is the business 
 of the journalist to state facts, and neither to condemn 
 nor attempt a justification of the important transactions 
 narrated, it will not be expected that I shall appear on 
 either side of the unhappy controversy which has proved 
 the source of so much disquietude to the foreign resident! 
 on the Sandwich Islands. 
 
■AHDWICH ISLANDS. 223 
 
 In accepting the reins of government, when proffered 
 10 them, doubtless the missionaries acted under the influ- 
 ence of ajustifiable fear for the safety of the Protestant 
 faith, which they had been instrumental .n establishing 
 in the islands; and it was natural for them to prefer a 
 Christian Protestant to either an immoral or a Catholic 
 domination. 
 
 The history of the Sandwich Island government during 
 the short space of two hundred and seventy-six days, in 
 1843, presents three of the most remarkable and impor- 
 tant events that ever transpired in a nation, in the same 
 length of time. 
 
 The first was the cession of the islands, by his majesty 
 Kamahamaha and the Premier, on the 25th day of Feb- 
 ruary, 1843, to the Right Hon. Lord George Paulet, 
 on the part of her Britanic Majesty, Victoria, Queen 
 of Great Britain and Ireland; the second was the restor- 
 ation of the islands to their native sovereign, on the 31st 
 of July, 1843, by Rear Admiral Thomas; and 1 the third 
 was the united declaration of Great Britain and France, 
 dated on the 28th Nov., 1843, acknowledging the islands 
 as an independent State, and mutually engaging never 
 to take possession, neither directly nor under the title of 
 protectorate, or under any other form, of any part of 
 the territory of which they are composed. Kamehameha 
 HI. was driven to cede his sovereignty to Great Britain 
 provisionally, in consequence of charges being preferred 
 against him by British subjects which he was utterly 
 unable to meet, and which in fact were founded in great 
 injustice. Under the influence of wise counsel the king 
 preferred to lay aside his crown rather than act a dis- 
 graceful part by complying with the exorbitant demands 
 of the British Lord, and await for the final decision of 
 Great Britain to announce that the Hawaiian government 
 had passed away, or that the crown was still on the 
 brow of Kamehameha III. While the question of the 
 life or death of the Hawaiian government was pending, 
 the British ensign was waving over the islands, and the 
 reins of government were siezed by Lord George Paule< 
 tn the name of her majesty, Queen Victoria. His Lord 
 
SM SANDWICH -»l,AND». 
 
 ship had the nonor of standing at the head of the goverr 
 ment of the islands during one hundred and fifty-six 
 days; but on the arrival of Rear Admiral Thomas, in 
 the Collingwood line of battle ships, and the investigation 
 of the grounds of the difficulty by the Admiral, the 
 course pursued by Lord George was unceremoniously 
 condemned, and the decision of the British government 
 was anticipated by Rear Admiral Thomas. The king 
 was restored to his just rights on the 31st of July, in a 
 way calculated to preserve the respect due to royalty 
 and restore confidence and good feeling among all the 
 foreign residents. On the issuing of his proclamation, 
 declaring that Kamehameha III. still reigned, Rear Ad- 
 miral Thomas was hailed as the deliverer of the nation, 
 and the people were as loud in his praises as they were 
 vociferous in their reproaches of Lord George; and the 
 31st of July was registered as a day to be observed as a 
 national festival, to commemorate the restoration of 
 Kamehameha to the throne of the Sandwich Islands, 
 from which he had been unjustly driven. 
 
 Since the settlement of these troubles and the acknow- 
 ledgement *»f the independence of the islands by three 
 great nations under an unusual engagement, the king- 
 appears to submit the government principally into the 
 hands of his foreign ministers. The cabinet, with the 
 exception of the premier, is composed of foreigners, 
 three of whom were formerly members of the American 
 mission, and two arrived at the islands as mere private 
 gentlemen. One of them, John Ricord, Esq., was a 
 young adventurer from New Yorkj who crossed tne 
 continent by the way of St. Louis and the Rocky Moun- 
 tains, and came down to Oregon in the fall of 1843, 
 professing that his sole errand to the Pacific was to seek 
 a fortune. Not finding it readily along the coast of the 
 Pacific, he resolved to commit himself to its winds and 
 waves. Confined in Baker's Bay by a succession of 
 storms which lasted forty days and forty nights, he at 
 length began to suspect that " Old Neptune " was suspi- 
 cious that his motives for invading his dominions, were 
 not of the purest kind; but finally his doubts of the 
 
•ANOWICH ISLANDS. 225 
 
 Javor of Neptune subsided, as the angry elements were 
 hushed to silence, and the gentle breeze wafted him 
 through the gateway across the bar of the Columbia. 
 Twenty-four days brought him along side of Oahu, the 
 sight of which he hailed with transport, as he felt thai 
 confidence which is the harbinger of success. Remain 
 ing in a voluntary quarantine for, a day or two, in conse- 
 quence of the dilapidated state of his wardrobe, which 
 he found it necessary to repair before appearing in pub- 
 lic, he at length received an introduction to some of the 
 members of the cabinet as a qualified member of the 
 bar, from the Empire State. Possessing the advantages 
 arising from a gentlemanly appearance, ready wit, and 
 considerable suavity of manners, he succeeded immedi- 
 ately in ingratiating himself into the good will of the 
 members of the government, and on the ninth day after 
 his arrival he took the oath of allegiance to Kamehameha 
 II, and received the insignia of his appointment to the 
 Aonorable and responsible office of Attorney General ol 
 the Sandwich Islands, with a salary of two thousand 
 dollars per annum. 
 
 The other was a Scotchman by the name of Robert 
 Crichton Wyllie, who came to the islands in the company 
 of General Miller, her Britanic Majesty's Consul General 
 for the islands of the Pacific. Probably Mr. Wyllie 
 owes his promotion to his present distinguished office to 
 the interesting "Notes" on the population, religion, 
 agriculture and commerce of the islands, which he pub- 
 lished soon after his arrival. In these notes the mission- 
 aries are very highly commended, and some very wise 
 suggestions are made concerning the future policy of the 
 Sandwich Islands' government 
 
 The cabinet of Kamehameha III, at present stands as 
 follows: Dr. G. P. Judd, Minister for the Interior, Rev. 
 Mr. Richards, Privy Counsellor, Rev. Mr. Andrews, 
 Supreme Judge, Hon. John Ricord, Attorney General, 
 and Robert Crichton Wyllie, Secretary of State for 
 Foreign Affairs. These five functionaries constitute the 
 government of the Sandwich Islands, for every thing 
 goes according to their direction In all the great tranc- 
 10 
 
330 SANDWICH ISLANDS. 
 
 actions of the nation in its intercourse with other nations, 
 and also in most of its internal affairs, the king in reality 
 has no more power than one of his inferior chiefs. lie 
 says himself, that he is a mere " paper king," that hia 
 foreign ministers do the business, and bring him the 
 papers to sign, and all he has to do is to obey them. In 
 consequence of this apparent assumption of power on 
 the part cf the foreigners connected with the government, 
 it has been charged upon them by some, that they are 
 actuated by motives of selfish ambition; that they art- 
 r ully dupe the king and his native suite, by filling them 
 with a sense of their own importance, when in reality 
 ihey are mere cyphers, and in this way succeed in pro- 
 moting their own aggrandizement. But the truth is 
 that, with all the improvement the islanders have made, 
 they still remain grossly ignorant, especially on the great 
 principles of government; and, so extensive is their inter- 
 course with other nations, and so complicated the business 
 to be transacted, that the king finds it indispensibly ne- 
 cessary to put the helm of government into the hands of 
 enlightened foreigners; and thus far he has been pecu 
 liarly fortunate in the selections he has made, judging 
 from the course which has been pursued. For while his 
 ministers' have been carefulto guard their own reputa- 
 tion, they have acted as though they believed, that their 
 success in this depended on their faithfulness in guarding 
 the honor and interests of the king. 
 
 As a matter of course, since the recognition of the 
 Sandwich Islands as belonging to the great family of 
 kingdoms, the ministers, and all the public functionaries 
 are putting on much of the dignity and importance of 
 royalty, but on some of them who have been altogether 
 unaccustomed to such high honors as result from their 
 offices, the garments of court etiquette hang bu^ loosely; 
 nevertheless they maybe considered as skillful politicians 
 if they steer the government ship so as to escape the 
 Sylla on the one hand, and Charybdis on the other, to 
 which she is continually exposed. Now that the three 
 greatest naval powers on earth have entered into a 
 mutual understanding never to take possession of the 
 
■AMBWICH ISLAM OS. 22? 
 
 islands under any pretence whatevei, the gaiety and 
 perpetuity of the government depend upon the course 
 which shall be pursued with other nations. So long as 
 no just grounds of hostility are afforded, the engagement 
 betwixt the three great powers would lead them to 
 remonstrate effectively against any aggression which 
 might endanger the existence of the government. If 
 '.he astonishing mortality which has prevailed so long 
 among ,the natives, can by any means be checked, and 
 the fountains of life be purified, so that children shall 
 again be multiplied in the islands, and the decrease of 
 numbers be effectually staid, then may we expect to see, 
 in the future history of the Sandwich Islands, a satisfac- 
 tory proof of the ability of the copper-colored race to 
 govern themselves, and to become truly civilized. But 
 if the tide of death shall continue to sweep on for fifty / 
 years to come, the Hawaiian nation will be numbered . 
 among the things that have been. 
 
 In connection with this view of the government, it 
 may be proper to consider their means of protection. 
 
 Commanding the anchorage is a fort mounting seventy 
 guns, varying in calibre from the long brass thirty-two 
 pounder down to the four pounder. The fort is nearly 
 a quadrangle, with the guns pointing on all sides, and 
 consequently few in proportion, pointing to seaward. 
 A small naval force would be sufficient to silence the 
 guns of the fort, in a short period. As the fort affords 
 no adequate means of protection from an attack by sea, 
 the money laid out for its erection and the purchase of 
 the guns mounted upon it, one of which cost the Hawai- 
 ians the sum of ten thousand dollars, was very foolishly 
 expended. So far as their being able to defend them- 
 selves by this fort is concerned, they may as well melt 
 down their big guns and cast them into pokpots as to 
 oontinue the fort as it now is. It will probably goon be 
 demolished, and another one will be erected on the reef, 
 seaward of the present one, which, under the direction 
 of a skillful engineer, will serve a much better purpose. 
 
 There is a remarkable hill in the rear of Honolulu 
 which overlooks the city and harbor, called by the 
 
228 samdwiob iiunm. 
 
 natives Puawana, and by foreigners Punch Bowl Hilt 
 The top of this hill is concave, the center of it being 
 from forty to fifty feet lower than the outer edge. It is 
 one of those extinct volcanoes, whose former active 
 operation is satisfactorily established, by the different 
 strata of vitrified lava descending from the top of the 
 hill on all sides, at the depth of from four to six 1 feet 
 from tbe surface of the soil. On the almost circular 
 edge of this hill, on the side next the city, are planted 
 eleven large guns, pointing different ways ; but lying on 
 the ground, and being at too great a distance from the 
 harbor, they are entirely useless as a means of defence.' 
 Of this the government are. fully aware ; but they 
 continue the guns in their present elevated position for 
 the purpose of firing salutes on the king's birth-day, ana 
 on other great occasions. These being all the visible 
 means of protection which the Hawaiians have,, it is 
 obvious that they will owe their safety, not so much to 
 any martial array they can muster, whether on land 01 
 water, as to an impartial administration of justice to all 
 nations with whom they have intercourse. 
 
 The prosperity of the islands is entirely dependent on 
 their commerce, and the annual visits of whalers and 
 ships of war. The commerce of the port of Honolulu, 
 in 1843, was as follows, viz : twenty-five American ves- 
 sels, nine British, fdur French, one Spanish, and one 
 German. During the same year the port was visited 
 by one hundred and nine whalers, and ten ships of war. 
 The merchant ships left goods to the amount of upwards 
 of one hundred and fifty-six thousand dollars, and the 
 whale ships to twenty-one thousand eight hundred dol- 
 lars. It is estimated that the visit of every whaler is 
 worth to the islands from eight to fifteen hundred dollars, 
 and every ship of war considerably more. Besides the 
 amount of vegetables, &c, sold to the various ships 
 touching at the port, there was exported, in 1843, in the 
 produce of the islands, consisting of sugar, molasses, 
 Kukui oil, bullock-hides, goat-skins, arrow-root, and 
 mustard-seed, the amount of ninety-one thousand two 
 hundred and forty-five dollars. 
 
■AHDWICM WLAUBS, 220 
 
 ■ The net revenue of the kingdom in the same year, 
 ■mbracing duties, harbor dues, &c, amounted to fifty 
 thousand dollars. But, as the islands depend mainly 
 upon the whale ships that annually flock to their ports, 
 for their prosperity, it is obvious that, were the whale 
 fishery to fall off, or were the vessels engaged in it tc 
 abandon the islands for some port on the main land, the 
 Sandwich Islands would relapse into their primitive 
 insignificance. 
 
 The diversion of whalers to some other port has been 
 a subject of alarm to the Hawaiian government, espe- 
 cially since it has been bbvious that Upper California, 
 with its splendid bay of San Francisco, would soon be- 
 come the property of the United States. So long as 
 this noblest harbor of the Pacific coast is blockaded 
 against whalers by the enormous port charges enforcedi 
 by the mistaken policy of Mexico, the Sandwich Islands 
 have nothing to fear ; but, when Mexico shall relinquish 
 her hold on California, and a large commercial city shall 
 adorn the shore of San Francisco, whose quiet harbor, 
 free of charges, shall invite the weather beaten whale- 
 man, then a fatal check will be given to the prosperity 
 of the islands, and much of their present importance 
 will disappear. 
 
 The great value of this fishery to those places where 
 the ships are under the necessity of putting in to procure 
 supplies, will appear if we consider its amazing- extent 
 Take for instance one single year. Of six hundred 
 American whalers that were in active operation on the 
 different oceans* three hundred and sixty-seven visited 
 the two ports of the Sandwich Islands, Lahaira and 
 Honolulu in 1843, some of them twice in the same year. 
 Surely no nation ever sent out such an immense fleet of 
 whalers as now sail from the ports of the United States. 
 Bold and adventur.us, the Americans carry this enter- 
 prise into every portion of the world frequented by the 
 object of their perilous search. There is no sea that 
 is not whitened with their canvass, and no climate that 
 does not witness their toils. While we look for them 
 among the icebergs of the arctic regions, they are sew 
 
2X0 ftUTDWICH ISLANDS. 
 
 crossing the antarctic circle, and hovering around tha 
 south pole. They explore the vast extent of the At- 
 lantic, Pacific ' and Indian Oceans, while the Carzette 
 Islands, New Holland, and New Zealand are witness to 
 their hardy and persevering industry. And as the im 
 mense fleet of whalemen sailing from the United States 
 around Cape Horn have been dependent upon the Sand- 
 wich Islands for their supplies, so they have given to the , 
 islands much of the importance which they now possess ; 
 and if the inhabitants of the islands wish to preserve 
 the valuable trade arising from this fishery, they wil. 
 find it necessary to remove all the disadvantages of port 
 charges under which whalemen now labor, in- visiting 
 their harbors. 
 
 Few portions of the world afford a greater variety of 
 productions than the Sandwich Islands. As the temper- 
 ature in the different parts varies from forty to ninetj 
 degrees in the shade, so nearly all the productions of 
 the temperate and torrid zones, here come to maturity 
 In the Hawaiian markets of their own production, may 
 be found arrow-root, sugar-cane, Kukui oil, castor oil, 
 mustard seed, coffee, indigo, cotton, cabbages, pine- 
 apples, pumpkins, melons, oranges, bananas, figs, grapes, 
 sweet potatoes, Irish potatoes, onions, taro, Indian corn, 
 wheat, rice, tobacco, beef, pork, goats, turkeys, fowls 
 cocoanuts, mangoes, and bread-fruit. Though the pro- 
 ductions are thus various, the staff of life amongst the 
 natives is the taro-root. This root is cultivated ^n 
 patches of ground wholly covered with water, sc Jnat 
 the plant is wholly immersed, excepting the large green 
 leaves. It grows to the size of a large potato ; is boiled 
 by the natives; prepared in the form of paste, and eaten 
 either alone or with dried fish. It is considered a 
 wholesome food, and exceedingly nutritious. When 
 thus prepared it is called poi, and being almost indispen- 
 sable to the subsistence of the natives, it forms one of 
 the principal articles of traffic among them. 
 
 Society in Honolulu becomes a subject of interest to 
 all, whether transient visitors, or residents. Though 
 there are some jealousies existing betwixt the subjects 
 
0AMVWiaU HLAJTM. 231 
 
 of different nations concerning the degree of favor 
 which they respectively enjoy under the government 
 the. British complaining that the Americans have more 
 than themselves, and the Americans, that the privileges 
 enjoyed by the British, are much greater than theirs, 
 and the French, that thdy are much worse off than 
 either the British or Americans ; yet all visitors agree 
 in attributing to the foreign residents at Honolulu a 
 degree of hospitality and good feeling not often enjoyed 
 in any other part of the world. This virtue is not con- 
 fined to the missionary families, but is a general charac- 
 teristic of the foreign society. Strangers who come 
 well recommended, are immediately introduced into 
 society of a highly intellectual and polished character, 
 consisting of consuls and other resident officers, naval 
 captains and merchants, and American and English 
 ladies, many of whom are highly accomplished, and 
 
 fiossess greater personal charms than usually falls to the 
 ot of even the fair sex. Embracing the missionary 
 ladies, there are about thirty in Honolulu, whose pre- 
 sence would add polish to the very best society our 
 country affords. 
 
 One characteristic of Hawaiian society is peculiarly 
 striking. It is the almost universal regard paid to the 
 Sabbath. Whether this arises from a deep religious 
 feeling or from custom, I cannot say ; but certainly 
 there are few places of the same extent ^here more 
 decency and order are observed on this day than are 
 apparent in Honolulu. With the exception of a few of 
 the oldest residents, who have always habituated them 
 selves to the license and misrule of heathenism, all the 
 foreign residents are regular in their attendance at the 
 house of God. Indeed, it is very seldom that the quiet 
 of the Sabbath is broken, either by strangers or the 
 natives themselves. 
 
 Though there is a class in Honolulu that " look into 
 the cup when it is red, that continue till night, till wine 
 inflame them," yet I should not be doing justice to the 
 society of the place, if I did not bear witness to the 
 ge«rral prevalence of temperance. .During the three 
 
23S SAWDWICH IS1.AWDS. 
 
 months which I have spent on the islands, I have seldoa 
 seen a drunken man, either native or foreigner. There 
 are no beggars parading the streets, few petty thefts 
 committed, no robberies, seldom an assault or act of 
 violence, unless provoked by a white man. Yet, not- 
 withstanding all this, and all 'that has been done for their 
 benefit, the state of the native Hawaiians is still truly 
 deplorable. To call them a christianized, civilized, 
 happy, and prosperous people, would be to mislead the 
 public mind in relation to their true condition. All 
 these terms when applied to' the Hawaiians, should be 
 greatly qualified. Their state appears to be that spoken 
 of by the prophet Zechariah as a day which should be 
 neither light nor dark, with this difference, perhaps, that 
 in the case of the Hawaiians, there is still more of night 
 than of day, more of darkness than of light. To an 
 inquiry which I made of the Rev. Lowel Smith one of 
 the missionaries in Honolulu, concerning the prosperity 
 of the natives, I received this reply : " The evident 
 tendency of things is downward." Downward it is 
 rapidly, in point of numbers, and if the ratio of decrease 
 shall continue the same for only a few years, it does not 
 require the eye of a prophet to see what will be the 
 result 
 
 The epitaph of the nation will be written, and Anglo 
 Saxons will convert the islands into another West 
 Indies. 
 
CHAPTER XIL 
 
 So Oregon — Embarkation — Passengers — Horace Holden — Thrilling etory — 
 The whaleman — Voyage — Arrival in the Colombia River — Disagreeable navi. 
 gation — Yearly meeting of the Missionaries — Appointments — Arrival of Rev. 
 George Gang — Reasons for his appointment — Great changes — Mr. Lee — 
 George Abernethy — Powers of the new Superintendent — Special meeting — 
 Voyage — Laymen dismissed — Miscellaneous — Transporting supplies — Another 
 meeting — Oregon Institute — Finances qf the Mission brought to a close — Num- 
 ber of Missionaries returned — Number remaining in the field. 
 
 On the morning of the 3rd day of April, it was 
 announced by Captain Couch that the Chenamus was 
 again ready for sea, and that the passengers were expec- 
 ted to be on board at nine o'clock. According to the 
 arrangement before Mr. Lee's departure, we had secured 
 our passage, and were ready to obey the summons to 
 embark, and the following evening we had lost sight of 
 the beautiful "Isles of the South," and were dancing 
 northward over the waves of the great Pacific. Among 
 our fellow passengers were Dr. J. L. Babcock and family, 
 who were returning to Oregon, to resume their places 
 in the mission, and Mr. Horace Holden and family, who 
 had resided some time on the island of Kauai, where they 
 had been employed in the manufacture of sugar. He 
 had formerly been employed in the whaling business, 
 and on one of his voyages his vessel was wrecked, and 
 he was cast away, with a few of his companions, on one 
 of the Pelew Islands. 
 
 Nearly all his fellow sufferers were cruelly mur- 
 dered by the savages before his eyes, and he saved him- 
 self from the same fate only by submitting without 
 resistance, to al. the indignities and cruelties that savage 
 ingenuity could invent to torment a man without killing 
 nim. They stripped him of his clothing, and then, witfi 
 10* 
 
284 (RSKN TO OREGON. 
 
 a kind ef pinchers, pulled every hair from his body; they 
 bound him down to the ground, and then in a most crue 
 manner, tattooed upon his breast and arms, the most 
 hideous and indelible figures, and then pronounced him 
 worthy to live and be their slave. Remaining with them 
 for more than a year,' at length, to his inexpressible joy, 
 a vessel visited the island, and he was released from his 
 intolerable wretchedness. Returning to Boston, he 
 published a brief narrative of his shipwreck and captiv- 
 ity, and soon after married, and with his wife sailed foi 
 the Sandwich Islands. With an interesting family he 
 now goes to Oregon with the intention of spending the 
 remainder of his Efe. 
 
 The third day from Oahu we were boarded by Captain 
 Sawyer, a whaleman, whose vessel had sprung a leak so 
 that it required the constant exertions of his men at 
 pumping, to keep her afloat. The Captain told us that 
 if the leak increased it was doubtful whether he suc- 
 ceeded in getting her into port, but said he should do his 
 utmost to accomplish it. He said he had pumped out of 
 her "all of the Pacific Ocean," and when he left he 
 requested us to report him the first opportunity, that if 
 he failed in getting her in, it would be known what had 
 become of him. 
 
 After this nothing especial transpired on our voyage 
 demanding notice; the wind and weather were favorable 
 so that we made fine progress every day, and on the 
 twentieth, after leaving port, we made the high lands 
 north of the mouth of the Columbia River. 
 
 Crossing the bar in safety, in a few hours we came to 
 anchor in the river off Fort George, where we found it 
 exceedingly pleasant again to set our feet on terra Jlrma 
 Weighing anchor the following day, we ascended the 
 Columbia, but owing to the intricacy of the navigation, 
 we did not gain the mouth of the Wallamette River, 
 until three days after. So slow was our progress in the 
 brig that Dr. Babcock, Mr. Holden and myself, requested 
 and obtained the use of the barge, to ascend the river 
 to the Wallamette Falls. Taking our families with us. 
 we labored with the oar until towards evening, when we 
 
MTUBN TO OREGON. 885 
 
 arrived at the foot of the strong rapids, one mile below 
 the falls. Unable to ascend the rapids with the use of 
 our oars, we were obliged to get into the river where 
 the -water was up to our waists, and almost as cold as 
 ice, and draw up the boat by main strength. In doing 
 this we were obliged to remain in the water for more 
 than an hour, and, until we became so benumbed that 
 "ie could scarcely stand upon our feet. However, we 
 gained the head of the rapids in safety, and in a half an 
 hour after, were comfortably seated by the fireside of 
 our good friends, Mr. and Mrs. George Abernethy, of 
 the Oregon mission. 
 
 The mission had been left by Mr. Lee, under the 
 superintendency of Rev. David Leslie; and as the yearly 
 meeting of the missionaries took place soon after our 
 arrival, it was arranged for me to supply Oregon City 
 and Tuality Plains with preaching, while Mr. Leslie 
 supplied the Wallamette settlement, and Mr. Waller was 
 to preach to the Indians along the Wallamette River 
 Mr. Parrish to supply the station on Clatsop Plains, and 
 Mr. Perkins still to remain at the Dalls. 
 
 Four missionaries had returned to the United States, \ 
 the station at Puget's Sound had been abandoned, and 
 the four appointments mentioned above connected with 
 the mission school and the various secular departments, 
 constituted the Oregon mission, when the Rev. George 
 Gary, the newly appointed superintendent, arrived at 
 Wallamette Falls on the 1st day of June, 1844. 
 
 Mr. Gary had been appointed to supercede Mr. Lee in 
 ihe superintendency of the mission in consequence of the 
 dissatisfaction of the Board in New York with the latter, 
 arising from the supposition founded in the statements 
 of missionaries, oral and written, that they " had been 
 misled as to the necessity of so great a number of mis- 
 sionaries in Oregon," and from the to them, " unaccount- 
 able fact that they had not been able to obtain any 
 satisfactory report of the manner in which the large 
 appropriations to the late reinforcement had been dis- 
 bursed." These objections, hqwever valid in the esti- 
 mation of the Board, should not be considered as any 
 
BBTDKN TO OKESOIT. 
 
 disparagement to the character of Mr. Lee. Change? 
 inconceivably great with respect to the Indians of Ore ■ 
 gon took place betwixt the time the great reinforcement 
 was called for, and the time of their arrival in the 
 Columbia River. The natives were wasting away 
 during the time, like the dews of the marking, so that 
 Mr. Lee himself, on his return to Oregon with the rein' 
 forcement, was not among the least disappointed. 
 
 Other persons have fallen into the same mistake with 
 respect to the Indians. The Rev. Mr. Parker, in his 
 exploring tour, which took place only the year previous 
 to Mr. Lee's first return, according to his representa- 
 tions, found the Indians very numerous, and everywhere 
 desiring missionaries to come among them. For in- 
 stance, the Callapooah tribe in the valley of the Walla- 
 mette, where i Mr. Lee established his mission, Mr. 
 Parker represents as numbering, in 1836, over eight 
 thousand souls; and in 1840, six hundred were all that 
 could be .found in that valley. Similar changes had 
 taken place in other tribes, changes that no human wis- 
 dom could possib*/ have foreseen. Besides this, at the 
 time the call was made for the great reinforcement, 
 there were but very few whites in Oregon, and the 
 missionaries had been obliged to devote much of ther 
 time to manual labor for the purpose of procuring a 
 subsistence, and as no one could have imagined that the 
 country would have been so soon supplied with an indus- 
 trious population of Americans, it was judged essential 
 and important by Mr. Lee and his coadjutors in the 
 work, that the mission should be supplied with a variety 
 of secular men, embracing farmers, mechanics, account- 
 ants, &c, whose labors would relieve the missionaries 
 from temporal pursuits, and enable them to devote their 
 time to the spiritual interests of the people. It is by no 
 means certain that the Missionary Board, with all its 
 foresight, placed in the same position that Mr. Lee and 
 his brethren occupied in Oregon at that time, would not 
 have come to the- same conclusion. 
 
 With regard to the objection against Mr. Lee, arising 
 from his not furnishing the Board with the desirabla 
 
RETURN TO OREGON. 5J7 
 
 report concerning the disbursements of the large appro 
 priation, it should be observed that no suciri charge of 
 delinquency appears against him up to the time of the 
 appointment of the great reinforcement. Every thing 
 with respect to the use of money appears to have been 
 done to the entire satisfaction of the Board, and resolu- 
 tions were passed, and articles published in the Christian 
 Advocate and Journal, and other papers, commendatory 
 of the character and course pursued by our " excellent 
 superintendent;" hut when the business of the mission 
 became more complicated, in consequence of the ap- 
 pointment of a large number of men of a variety of 
 pursuits, it was found necessary to appoint a financial 
 agent, or mission steward, whose business it should be 
 !o keep an exact account of the manner in which the 
 iinds of the mission were expended, and to prepare the 
 annual reports of the disbursements. Mr. George Aber- 
 nethy, of New York, than whom but few men could be 
 found better qualified to bear its responsibilities, was 
 appointed to this important post. I am aware that Mr. 
 Lee, as the superintendent of the .mission, was the re- 
 sponsible man, but after the accounts of the mission 
 were committed to the keeping of Mr. Abernethy, it 
 was impossible for Mr. Lee, or any other man, to make 
 out the reports, except Mr. Abernethy himself. To him 
 every thing was clear, and the manner in which every 
 dollar of the mission's money was expended could be 
 accounted for, by a reference to his well kept books. 
 If the Board was disappointed in not receiving a satis- •■ 
 factory report, it is doubtless chargeable upon the unset- 
 tled state of the mission for the first two years after the 
 arrival of the large reinforcement, and the multiplicity 
 of business upon the hands of the superintendent, and 
 the missionary steward. Be this as it may, the Mission- 
 ary Board, at a regular meetiiig held July 19th, 1R43, 
 recommended to the bishop having charge of foreign 
 missions, either the appointment of a special agent to 
 proceed to Oregon and investigate the financial concerns 
 of the mission, or supercede Mr. Lee by a new superin- 
 tendent The latter course was decided upon by the 
 
BBTURN TO OBEOOK. 
 
 bishop, and in. the September following it was announced 
 that the Rev. George Gary of the Black River Confer- 
 ence was appointed to the superintendency of the Oregon 
 mission. 
 
 The instructions to the new superintendent were few, 
 but he was clothed with discretionary power, and had 
 the destiny of missionaries, laymen, property and all, 
 put into his hands. With this unlimited authority Mr. 
 Gary on arriving in Oregon, entered at once upon the 
 delicate and responsible duties which devolved upon 
 nim. 
 
 On the 5th of June, Mr. Gary, myself, and our fami- 
 lies left the falls and proceeded up the Wallamette 
 River in a canoe, for the purpose of attending a meeting 
 of the missionaries, called by the superintendent at the 
 house of Rev. David Leslie, in the upper settlement. 
 The distance to travel was about fifty miles, twenty by 
 water, and thirty by land. We had made arrangements 
 for persons to meet us at the Butte with means of land 
 traveling, and expected to get through in a day, and 
 therefore had not prepared for camping out; but opposed 
 by the strength of the current, and our horses failing to 
 arrive in time, we preferred to make ourselves as com- 
 fortable as possible under the wide spread branches of 
 a majestic fir, to traveling during the night. This was 
 Mr. and Mrs. Gary's first encampment in Oregon. 
 Though we had no bedding to keep our bodies warm dur- 
 ing the night, yet, t fortunately for our hungry stomachs, 
 we had left of what we' had provided for the day a 
 a quarter of a large fresh salmon. This I filled with 
 splinters to prevent its falling to pieces while cooking, 
 and then fastening in the forks of a stick, roasted it 
 before the fire. This, with tea and bread, constituted 
 our supper. As the night was not cold we enjoyed a 
 comfortable rest, though our bed was mother earth, and 
 our covering the canopy of heaven. 
 
 On the 6th, arrived at the house of Mr. Leslie, and 
 the following day the missionaries were all collected, 
 with the exception of Mr. Perkins and Mr. Brewer, ai 
 the Dalls. The meeting was called for the purpose of 
 
KETUKN TO OREGON. 239 
 
 consultation concerning the various departments of the 
 mission, and though commenced, at an early hour of the 
 day, sach was the interest involved Jhat the investiga- 
 tion continued until daylight the next morning. Some 
 important changes in the mission were agitated, and it 
 was decided to sell the mission property at Clatsop, near 
 the mouth of the Columbia River,' consisting of a farm, 
 buildings, and stock. Mr. Gary informed the laymen 
 connected with the mission, that he intended to dismiss 
 them, and proposed to defray their expenses home, if 
 they wished to return, or pay them an equivalent in 
 3uch property as the mission possessed, in Oregon. 
 With the exception of one, they preferred to remain in 
 the country, and accordingly mission property was dis- 
 bursed among the different families to the amount of 
 from eight hundred to a thousand dqllars each. The 
 course adopted by Mr. Gary in disposing of the laymen 
 belonging to the mission, was as satisfactory to the 
 latter, as it was just and honorable in the superintendent 
 All the secular members of the mission were thus hon- 
 orably discharged, except Mr. Brewer, the farmer at 
 the Dalls. It was thought the interests of that station 
 required his continuance. The appointments of the 
 missionaries which took place at the yearly meeting 
 before Mr. Gary's arrival, were confirmed. 
 
 On Sunday, 9th, preached at the mission school-house 
 to upwards of thirty persons, a good congregation for 
 Oregon ; also at the house near the saw-mill/ These 
 houses have been erected since the arrival of the large 
 reinforcement. They occupy a beautiful location, and 
 the school-house is by far the most sightly building in 
 Oregon. It is seventy-five by forty-eight feet on the 
 ground, three stories* high, and cost eight thousand 
 dollars. 
 
 On Wednesday, the 12th, left the mission school to 
 return to the falls, leaving my family behind for the time 
 being, intending to return and get them after a few days. 
 As it had been settled that I should remain at the falls 
 for at least one year, I purchased a couple of cows with 
 their calves for the purpose of furnishing my family 
 
240 H-rnur to ottmmon. 
 
 with the luxury of milk and butter. The distance fra* 
 the mission school to the falls by land, is fifty miles, and 
 about one-third of the way is forest Towards evening ! 
 of the first day, while urging my animals along the nar- 
 row zig-zag Indian trail leading through the dark forest 
 which skirts the Molala River, the piteous and well 
 known cry of a panther but a few rods from the path, 
 brought man aiid -St at once to a stand. Remaining for 
 a moment, and vering that the beast of prey was 
 
 disposed to let us pass, I pushed on as fast as possible, 
 desiring to get as far as I could from the haunts of my 
 troublesome neighbor, before dark, for fear my animals 
 might be attacked during the night Arriving at nine 
 o'clock on a little prairie -between the Molala and Har- 
 chauke Rivers, I tied my calves to a small oak tree with 
 a lasso, built a fire in a small hut which one of the set- 
 tlers had built some time before, and abandoned, and 
 rolling myself in my bjanket, lay down to sleep. In the 
 morning I found all safe, the panther had kept his dis 
 tance. Loosing my animals I proceeded on, and ar 
 night arrived in safety at the falls. 
 
 Friday, 14th. Returned to the upper settlement, and 
 preached the following Sabbath again at the mission 
 school. 
 
 Wednesday, 19th. Having procured a quantity of 
 supplies, consisting of wheat, beef, potatoes, &c, I hirea 
 it conveyed to the Bute, and thence took it in a canoe 
 down to the falls. This is the manner of transpdrting 
 provisions in the country — a very laborious and danger 
 ous method. 
 
 Spent a few days in forwarding my house, which 1 
 had purchased in Oregon City soon after we returned 
 from the islands, being quite solicitous to occupy it as 
 soon as possible. Mr. Gary and his wife have decided 
 to reside with us in preference to keeping house. They 
 are still in the upper settlement, where Mr. Gary is 
 arranging business with the lay members preparatory to 
 their dismission. 
 
 Sabbath, 23d. Preached to a congregation of about 
 forty persons in the Methodist Church at the falls, and 
 
arantif to oBzeon. S41 
 
 proved the truth of the Saviour's promise, " Lo, 1 am 
 with you." 
 
 Tuesday, 25th. Returned to the settlement above, to 
 attend a meeting of the Methodist Society at the mission 
 school, the following day. The meeting was called by 
 Mr. Gary, and related to the Oregon Institute. 
 
 Ever since soon after the arrival of the large rein- 
 forcement in 1840, the people of Oregon had been 
 endeavoring to establish a literary institution bearing 
 the name of the "Oregon Institute." They had so fai 
 succeeded as to secure a very eligible location about 
 three miles from the Oregon Mission school, and build a 
 house which was nearly completed, at an expense of 
 about three thousand dollars. It was now proposed by 
 Mr. Gary to sell the Oregon Mission school house and 
 premises, and disband the school ; and though he had an 
 opportunity to sell it to the Roman Catholics for a high 
 price, he preferred to sell it to the trustees of the Oregon 
 Institute for much less. It was exceedingly desirable on 
 the part of the trustees, to secure this property, as, from 
 the lopation of the farm, embracing a mile square, it 
 was very valuable, and the house itself cost the mission 
 not less than eight thousand dollars. Having an oppor- 
 tunity to sell the first mentioned premises without much 
 sacrifice, they were disposed of, and the Oregon Mission 
 school-house and farm were purchased at an expense of 
 four thousand dollars, and are hereafter to be known as\ 
 the Oregon Institute. For the promotion of the interests 
 of the church, and for the welfare of this rising country, 
 a more judicious appropriation of the property of the 
 former mission school could not have been made. By 
 selling it to the Catholics, Mr. Gary could have taken 
 more money for it, but it would have been converted 
 into a nunnery. Every Protestant will say, " Rather 
 give it all away, than desecrate it to so impious a pur- 
 pose." 
 
 The institution stands upon an elevated portion of a 
 beautiful plain, surrounded with the most delightful 
 ■cenery, and at a point which, at some future day, is 
 destined to be one of considerable importance. 
 
243 B«TC»N TO OEEBON. 
 
 The building is beautifully proportioned, being seventy 
 Ave feet long and forty-eight wide, including the wings, 
 and three stories high. When finished it will not only 
 present a fine appearance without, but will be commo- 
 dious, and well adapted to the purposes intended to be 
 accomplished within. It is already so far advanced that 
 a school is now in successful operation, under the tuition 
 of one well qualified to sustain its interests. Already it 
 numbers more students than did either the Cazenovia 
 Seminary or the Willbraham Acadamy, at their com- 
 mencement, and who can tell but that it may equal, if 
 not exceed both those institutions in importance, as well 
 as usefulness. Though I cannot say that it\is the only 
 hope of Oregon, for whether it lives or dies, Oregon will 
 yet be redeemed from the remains of Paganism and the 
 gloom of Papal darkness by which she is enshrouded; 
 but the sentiment forces itself on the mind that the sub- 
 ject of the Oregon Institute is vital to the interests of 
 the Methodist Episcopal church in this country. If it 
 lives, it will be a luminary in the moral heavens of 
 Oregon, shedding abroad the light of knowledge after its 
 founders shall have ceased to live. But if it dies, out 
 sun is set, and it is impossible to tell what will succeed. 
 Perhaps a long and cheerless night of Papal darkness, 
 but more probably, others, more worthy of the honor 
 than ourselves, will come forth to mould the moral mass 
 according to their own liking, and give direction to the 
 literature of Oregon. 
 
 After the transfer of the premises of the Oregon 
 Mission School to the trustees of the Oregon Institute, 
 all the remaining financial departments connected with 
 the mission were disposed, of principally to those lay- 
 men who had been dismissed from the mission, and the 
 property thus sold, amounted to upwards of twenty-six 
 thousand dollars. The finances of the Oregon Mission 
 were thus summarily brought to a close, and the mission 
 was not only relieved of a ponderous load, but assumed 
 a decidedly spiritual character. 
 
 Previous to the arrival of Mr. Gary, four of the 
 preachers, besides Mr. Jason Lee, namely: W. W, Kone, 
 
KKTUBlf TO •BESOM MS. 
 
 J H. Frost, J. P. Richmond, and Daniel Lee, had re 
 turned to the United States ;> consequently, after the 
 dismission of the laymen, there remained connected 
 with the mission five preachers, namely: George Gary, 
 the superintendent, David Leslie, A. P. Waller, H. K 
 W. Perkins and G. Hines. H. K. W. Perkins in he 
 latter part of the summer of 1844 also returned to .he 
 United States, leaving but few regular preachers in the 
 country- 
 
 These, disencumbered from all financial embarrass- 
 menls, addressed themselves to their work in the various 
 portions of the country assigned them, A. F. Waller 
 filling the place made 'vacant by the departure of Mr. 
 Perkins at the Dalls, David Leslie in the upper part of 
 the Wallamette settlement, and G. Gary and G. Hines 
 at the Wallamette Falls and Tuality Plains. The Dalls 
 .vas the only Indian Mission now sustained, and both 
 nere and among the white settlements, it was necessary 
 for the missionary constantly to expose himself to fatigue 
 and dangers in hunting up the people to give them the 
 word of life. Fording, and swimming rivers, sleeping 
 on the ground and in the rain, and going without food, 
 were no uncommon incidents in the life of the Oregon 
 missionary. 
 
CHAPTER XIE 
 
 ftul departure and voyage home — Notice of Captaih Aylveater — Arranl.menu u 
 lure — Mode of departure — Vancouver again — Clatsop Plains — On board the 
 brig Chenamus — Difficult navigation — Danger — Get into the Bay*— Fail 
 breeze — Exit — Fellow passengers — T. J. Hubbard — Wave and Devenport — 
 Mode of taking a porpoise — Scarcity of men — Scarcity of incident — Pilot fish — 
 Make land — Spoken by the English brig Frolic — Shipping — Arrival at Oahn - 
 Reception — Review of the Mission. 
 
 On the 10th of August, 1845, notice was given by 
 Captain Sylvester, that the Brig Chenamus would sail 
 from the Wallamette River for Boston by the way of 
 the Sandwich Islands about the 1st of September, and 
 that a few passengers might be comfortably accommo- 
 dated on board. Mr. Gary began already to consider 
 that his work in Oregon was accomplished, and he felt 
 quite solicitous to avail himself of the opportunity of- 
 fered, to return home; but kindly proposed to leave it 
 altogether with the writer, to say which, whether the 
 latter, or himself, should be the favored one, at the same 
 time assuring me, that if he left, and I should remain in 
 the country, he should leave the superintendency of the 
 mission with me. This, after a night of the utmost 
 solicitude, brought me to the conclusion to close up my 
 missionary labors, and leave the scene of toil and dan- 
 ger, and set my face towards my native land. Rev. Mr. 
 Gary, as the superintendent of the mission, made ar- 
 rangements with the Captain for my passage, and that 
 of my family, consisting of Mrs. Hines, her sister, Miss 
 Julia Bryant, her sister, and Lucy Anna Maria Lee, the 
 daughter of Rev. Jason Lee, who had already returned 
 to the United States. 
 
 The amount required was one hundred and fifty dol- 
 lars from Oregon to the Sandwich Islands, and fir* 
 
■ OMEWARD VOTAOE. 34t 
 
 nundred and twenty from the Islands to Boston, by the 
 >ay of Cape Horn. 
 
 Through th§ kind assistance of Mr. and Mrs. Gary, 
 and Mr. and Mrs. Abernethy, we found ourselves pre- 
 pared to leave Oregon City at the Wallamette Falls, on 
 the 29th of August, 1845. The brig had already dropped 
 down the river, and it was necessary for us to descend 
 to the mouth of the Columbia in an open boat. Pro- 
 curing a skiff which belonged to the mission, I loaded 
 my baggage into it, leaving a place in the centre for the 
 accommodation of my family. After dining with our 
 kind friends, Mr. and Mrs. Abernethy, we repaired to 
 the boat to take our departure. 'Adjusting the family in 
 their place, I gave one oar into the hands of Kana,"my 
 Hawaiian servant, and the other to James Hemingway, 
 in Indian boy who had resided with us for some time, 
 and myself took the stern oar. We waved a farewell 
 to our friends who stood on the top of the bluff above 
 us, and silently, but not without the deepest emotion, 
 glided off into the strong current of the river. Quickly 
 the beautiful cataract and its flourishing village were 
 hidden from our view by the dark point of fir timber 
 which we had left behind us. 
 
 Rowing twenty-eight miles, we arrived, late in the 
 evening, within two miles of Vancouver, but not wishing 
 to disturb the gentlemen of the fort at so late an hour, 
 we encamped for the night. Next morning went up to 
 the fort to complete our preparations for sea; were very 
 kindly received by James Douglass v Esq., who by his 
 friendly attentions, and acts of benevolence, paved the 
 way to render our voyage to the islands much more 
 agreeable than it otherwise would have been. ' 
 
 Saturday, at two, p. m., left Fort Vancouver, and 
 descending the C°l um bia ten miles, encamped in a grove 
 Df willows near the margin of the river, where we re- 
 mained quietly, during the Holy Sabbath. 
 
 Monday, the 2nd, we continued our voyage, and after 
 three days of excessive labor and fatigue, accompanied 
 with imminent dangers and exposures, during which we 
 knew not the luxury of eating or sleeping under the 
 
M6 BOMEWAEO TOTA«L 
 
 cover of a roof, we arrived in safety at the house of 
 Rev. J. L. Parrish, on Clatsop Plains, about seven mile* 
 in the rear of Point Adams at the mouth of the Colum- 
 bia. Here we remained until Saturday the sixth, when 
 we were informed by Captain Sylvester that the brig 
 lay in Young's Bay, and was ready to receive us on 
 board. Taking an affecting leave of our old friends Mr. 
 and Mrs. Parrish, with whom we had lived on terms of 
 intimacy in our native land, and with whom we had 
 suffered the perils of a voyage of more than twenty- 
 two thousand miles, as well as the dangers and depriva- 
 . tions of a residence among the most savage of men, we 
 were conducted through a forest of fir to a landing on 
 the i Scapanowan Creek, the mouth of which forms a 
 good harbor for small craft. Here a boat was sent tc 
 take us off, and at four o'clock, p. m., we found ourselves 
 comfortably situated on board the brig Chenamus, witt 
 our things nicely packed away in our state rooms, wait 
 ing for a favorable wind and tide to take us to sea. 
 
 Sunday, 7th. In the morning the Calapooah, a small 
 sail-boat, came along side from shore, bringing vegetables 
 and beef for the Chenamus. With her I expected Kana, 
 my Hawaiian, but he had absconded during the night, 
 choosing rather to remain in Oregon than to go back tc 
 his native island. 
 
 Monday, '8th. Weighed anchor in the morning before 
 sunrise, with the wind in the north-east, and a strong 
 ebb tide. Soon the wind died away, and we found we 
 were drifting fast on to Sand Island, and were obliged 
 to come to anchor about one mile and a half from Point 
 Adams. While we lay here the Cadboro, a small schoo- 
 ner from Vancouver, bound to Vancouver's Island with 
 furs, passed us, but finding herself approaching too neai 
 the point of Sand Island, she also came to anchor. The 
 wind breezing up a little more fresh, the Chenamus made 
 another attempt to get across to Baker's Bay, but failing, 
 again came to anchor, and found herself worse situated * 
 than before. The wind was fair, but the tide bore us 
 out of the channel. After dinner made a third attempt 
 to get to the usual anchorage, in Baker's Bay ; but being 
 
■nxwi.4 TOTA«a. 847 
 
 raffled by the tide, we were again obliged to anchor in 
 a very exposed position, where we lay during the night 
 
 The evening of the 10th was exceedingly pleasant, 
 the wind in the north-west, and the prospects quite fair 
 for getting out the next day. 
 
 - Tuesday, 9th/ The tables were all turned, the wind 
 was in the south-east, with the prospect of a gale, the 
 vessel in no desirable position, but the captain determined 
 if possible to get into the bay. Accordingly, we weighed 
 anchor, but made another ineffectual effort to gain our 
 moorings, as we wefe obliged to anchor about one mile 
 and a half from the proper ground. After waiting a 
 few hours for the tide to favor us, we raised anchor 
 again, and after tacking about two or three times be- 
 tween Sand Island and Chenook Spit, we came to anchoi 
 only one half mile nearer the desired haven. 
 
 Wednesday, 10th. In the afternoon we succeeded in 
 getting down into the bay, and anchbring in a suitable 
 place to take the breeze from the north, which is the 
 only, wind that will serve us in crossing the bar of the 
 Columbia, and for which we made up our minds to wai 
 patiently, remembering that, in this very place three 
 years before, we were detained by adverse gales that 
 lasted as long as the storm of the deluge. 
 
 On the 11th and 12th the wind was south and west, 
 which forbade our leaving the bay, consequently we had 
 another opportunity of climbing to the top of Cape Dis- 
 appointment, and surveying the surrounding scenery. 
 During our detention, at the solicitation of Mrs. H., we 
 enjoyed a pic-nic of muscles, Which we found here in 
 abundance, with bread, butter, and tea. 
 
 Saturday, 13th. In the morning a fresh breeze sprung 
 up from the north, and it was evident that we should 
 bid the dark mountains of Oregon "Good bye," before 
 night. On shipboard, all was bustle and anxiety, and 
 about noon the command of the captain was to " Heave 
 short." Accordingly, the windlass was manned, the 
 passengers assisting, and quickly the chain cable was 
 shortened, so that the brig was directly over the anchor 
 We waited a few minutes longer for the proper state of 
 
346 MOMBWAR0 VOYAOB. 
 
 the tide, which is half-ebb, and then, at about one o'clock, 
 the bows of the brig, yielding to the already freshened 
 breeze, turned towards the dreaded bar, and the rolling 
 deep. The schooner Cadboro' took the lead, and though 
 the bar was exceedingly rough, and., the mountain swells 
 broke nsar us as we passed through the contracted 
 channel, yet the wind was fresh and fair, and we soon 
 found ourselves entirely free from all the sand-bars of 
 the Columbia, and before a seven knot breeze, passing 
 beautifully on our course over the deep dark waves of 
 the Pacific Ocean. 
 
 Tuesday, 16th. This is the third day since we crossed 
 the Columbia bar, and as we have been constantly fa- 
 vored with a fair wind, we have made fine progress on 
 our voyage. Five gentlemen are our fellow passengers 
 whose names are, Wave, Devenport, Teck, a Prussian 
 naturalist, Stewart, and T. J. Hubbard. The last came 
 to Oregon with Captain Wyeth and Rev. Jason Lee in 
 1835, and having resided in Oregon since that time, is 
 well acquainted with the history of the country. He 
 was himself connected with a tragical occurrence, the 
 like of which is quite too common in an Indian country 
 The cause of the difficulty was an Indian woman, whom 
 Hubbard had taken, and was living with as his wife 
 Previously, she had looked with favor upon anothe 
 man by the name of Thornburgh, and the latter resolved 
 to take her away from Hubbard, even at the expense 
 of his life. For this purpose he entered Hubbard's 
 cabin in the dead of the night, with a loaded rifle, but 
 Hubbard, having knowledge of his design, had armed 
 himself with loaded pistols, and discharging one at 
 Thornburgh as he entered the door, the ball took effect 
 in the breast of the latter, and he fell, and expired. A 
 self-constituted jury of inquest, after a thorough exam- 
 ination of the case, brought in a verdict of "Justifiable 
 homicide." 
 
 The manner in which Hubbard and the rest of our 
 fellow passengers spend ther time on the voyage indi- 
 cates that they have neitheir become wise nor virtuous 
 from the history of the past. They seem incapable of 
 
■OMBWAKS V«TA6K. 349 
 
 ^interesting themselves, save at backgammon or uie card 
 table, nearly all the, time not consumed in eating or 
 sleeping being employed at one or the other of the two 
 games. 
 
 Wednesday, 17th. Ware and Devenport were suffer 
 ing exceedingly from seasickness, and proposed to give 
 the captain one hundred and fifty dollars to set them off 
 on the shore of California ; but as a matter of course, 
 this was inadmissible, and the two gentlemen were 
 doomed to enjoy the„pleasures of one sea voyage. But 
 one of them declared that he had rather pack a mule 
 across the Rocky Mountains, than to go to sea ; an' 
 that, if he ever sets his foot on terra firma again, he wil 
 never be caught on another vessel. 
 
 In the evening backgammon and seasickness were 
 both forgotten a short time in the excitement of taking 
 a large porpoise. This is generally considered a great 
 treat by seamen, especially those on merchant vessels. 
 The manner of taking them is as follows : a rope is 
 passed through a block or pulley, Which is fastened to 
 some part of the rigging near the bow of the vessel, 
 one end of which is tied to a harpoon prepared with a 
 handle six or eight feet long, so as to render it con- 
 venient to throw. A sailor then fixes himself on the 
 martingal under the bowsprit, while a few others at 
 the other end of the rope, stand by to haul in. The 
 reason for their taking their position at the forward end 
 of the .vessel is this ; the porpoise always plays around 
 the bow more than any other part, and the rigging under 
 the bowsprit will admit of a sailor's fixing himself 
 directly over the porpoise in his frequent approaches to 
 this point. When thus prepared, and the porpoises 
 hover around the bow, the harpoon is cast with great 
 force and precision into the selected victim, and instantly 
 the water is crimsoned with his -blood. When the 
 "throw" has been a sure one, the word "haul" is 
 given, and the fish, or animal, is immediately raised 
 above the water, and brought upon deck. The taking 
 of a porpoise u one of those exciting erentt which 
 
 11 
 
25© 
 
 ■OHBWABB TOYA0K. 
 
 occasionally break in upon the monotony of life at sea 
 It was judged that the one we took would weigh tW 
 hundred and fifty pounds. It afforded sev<ral gallons 
 of oil, and meat enough to last the sailors fcr a number 
 of days. 
 
 Thursday, 25th. Thus far on our voyage we have 
 had the most beautiful weather, there having been no 
 head wind to speak of, and but about four hour* calm 
 Wc have generally been favored with a gentle breeze 
 from the north-west, which has wafted us on our direct 
 course to Oahu at the rate of five and six knotb an hour. 
 This has been exceedingly favorable to us on account of 
 the weakness of our crew, six of the men having run 
 away from the brig in Oregon, and could not be recov- 
 ered, leaving but three efficient men on board of her, 
 beside her three officers. But tRe Lord knowcth how 
 " to temper (or regulate) the winds to the shorn lamb." 
 
 We are cheered with the prospect of a speedy pas- 
 sage to the islands, as we, seem to have secured the 
 north-east trades ; but of this there is no certainty, aa 
 the trades are not very regular, and at sea above al 
 other places, " we know not what a day may bring 
 forth." 
 
 Monday, 29th. We were interested in the discovery 
 of a sail on our starboard bow, which appeared to be 
 steering the same course with us. She was a barque, 
 probably a whaler from the northern, ocean, bound to 
 the Sandwich Islands, and thence home. Incidents of 
 interest on this voyage thus far have been exceedingly 
 scarce, a very great uniformity having characterized the 
 days we have been at sea. However, the monsters of 
 the deep, whales, sharks, &c, have from time to time 
 attracted our notice, while the dark albatros, mothei 
 Carey's chickens, a small sea gull, and the boatswain's, 
 mate marlinspike, or man of war bird, as he is indiffer- 
 ently called, are all of the feathered tribe we have seen. 
 The last mentioned is a. very interesting bird, snow 
 white, and appears very beautiful as it flits around th* 
 resse! on its wings of light, as if desiring to find a plac 
 
HOMEWARD TOYACS. SSI 
 
 » rest among the moving spars. It » principally found 
 between the tropics, and must therefore be considered a 
 lover of warm weather. 
 
 On the 30th crossed the Tropic of Cancer, and as the 
 wind was very light, we found the heat quite oppressive. 
 By a very good observation on the 1st of October, we 
 found our latitude to be twenty-two degrees forty-four 
 minutes, longitude one hundred" and fifty-three degrees, 
 fifty minutes ; twenty four hour's sail from Oahu before 
 a seven knot breeze. The captain'' walks the deck 
 whistling for a breefe, and in the eVening, behold it 
 comes, and the sailing is delightful. .Those who have 
 been sick are getting well, and all unite in pronouncing 
 the voyage thus far, as it regards wind and weather, an 
 unusually pleasant one. 
 
 Thursday, 14th of October. The trades have fresh- 
 ened up to a strong breeze, and all were delighted with 
 the prospect of seeing land before night. Borne on ware 
 prosperously, according to expectation, at four o'clock, 
 the tops of the mountains of the island of Maui, tower- 
 ing above the clouds, burst upon our view. At sundown 
 Morotoi,, could also be seen, but both soon disappeared 
 amidst the darkness of night. We continued our course 
 until four o'clock in the morning, when we could dis- 
 tinctly see the land but a few miles distant, and not 
 knowing whether we were exactly right in our calcula- 
 tions, We lay to for the light of day to discover unto us 
 precisely our condition. At six o'clock, a. m., we found 
 ourselves about six miles from Morotoi, with Oahu on 
 our starboard bow, about thirty miles distant. Soon 
 after sunrise a sail appeared on our stern, and evidently 
 neared us very fast, while two other sail appeared on 
 our bow, and seemed to be steering directly. towards the 
 harbor. While we were passing around Diamond Head, 
 and the harbor and shipping, with the town of Honolulu, 
 were breaking upon our view, the vessel which had 
 been coming up on our stern, passed us so near that our 
 yard arms were but a few feet from hers. She proved 
 to be her Britanic Majesty's Brig Frolic of sixteen guns. 
 Her commanding officer nailed us as she passed, and 
 
StS IOUWAI1 T«YA«L. 
 
 .squired if we had seen the British Frigate America on 
 our way down. We answered no. He replied that 
 she left England with the design of visiticg Oregon. 
 The brig was a beautiful craft, but probably would not 
 consider it much of a "Frolic" to take a turn-a-bout 
 with an American " Wasp;" 
 
 The patriotic American very naturally calls to mind 
 under such circumstances the triumph of the " Wasp" 
 over the " Frolic " in the last war, and is led to wonder 
 why a " Wasp " has not been continued in the American 
 Navy. 
 
 As we drew ne'ar the shipping in the outer harbor we 
 discovered a number of men of war, one of which was 
 the British line of battle ship the Collingwood, Lord Sey- 
 mour, Admiral, with which the Frolic passed a number 
 of signals, and approaching her, gave her salute ot H 
 sixteen guns, which was returned by the Aduiral. 
 
 It was an exciting time on board of our little brig as 
 we so suddenly emerged from the solitudes of the ocean 
 into such interesting and noisy scenes. 
 
 As a number of vessels were before us, it was neces- 
 sary for us to come to anchor in the roads, soon after 
 which we were boarded by the pilot, with whom the 
 Captain went directly to the shore, promising to send off 
 a boat to take the passengers ashore before night. This 
 he accordingly did, and at sundown we landed on the 
 wharf near the American Consulate, where we found 
 servants waiting with a small hand wagon to convey 
 Mrs. H. and the children to the house of Mr. Rogers, 
 one of the Presbyterian missionaries, where we wero 
 kindly invited to take up our lodgings for a day or two. 
 or until we could make other provisions. 
 
 This is the third time I have visited the Sandwich 
 Islands during the last six years, and having mingled 
 several months with both foreigners and natives, I have 
 had an opportunity of making observations of no very 
 superficial character; and as the result, I am compelled 
 to entertain the opinion .that the public generally, and 
 particularly the christian world, enterta'n very erroneous 
 views in relation to the true condition of the aborigines of 
 
■OMBW4K9 niMi. 853 
 
 theie islands. Great changes have indeed been effected, 
 and vast improvements made among the Hawaiiana 
 through the instrumentality of missionary labor, yet, 
 after all, the amount of real good accomplished, I fear, 
 s not so great as the christian world has been led to 
 believe. Religion, in every department of Hawaiian 
 society, however genuine the system which is taught them 
 may be, is of a very superficial character. Of this the 
 missionary residing among them, is more sensible than 
 any other man can be, and one . of them, in answer to 
 the inquiry, " how many of your people give daily evi- 
 dence of being christians 1" replied " none, if you look 
 for the same evidence which you expect will be exhibited 
 by christians at home." Indeed, it is a source of the 
 greatest affliction with the missionaries, that all their 
 efforts are ineffectual in eradicating that looseness of 
 morals, which attaches itself so adhesively to the Ha- 
 waiian character, and which is every where exhibiting 
 itself in the gambling, thievish, and adulterous habits of 
 the people of all classes, from the hut of the most de- 
 graded menial, to the royal palace. 
 
 One fact will show the astonishing extent to which 
 promiscuous intercourse prevails. Relationship is always 
 traced from the mother, and not from the father, as in 
 all civilized countries, and indeed it is not an easy matter 
 for a Hawaiian to tell who his father is. 
 
 The practice of promiscuous assemblages of males 
 and females in the streets of Honolulu, is as common as 
 it is odious and demoralizing. Crowds of this descrip- 
 tion may be seen at all times of day and night, where 
 conduct may be witnessed, and conversation heard, of 
 the most reprehensible character. 
 
 In attending the native churches one is struck with the 
 listlesness and inattention which prevail in the congrega- 
 tion. No matter how important the truths, or how 
 impressive the manner of the speaker, he seems scarcely 
 to gain the hearing of the ear; and seldom do the wor- 
 shippers give any satisfactory evidence that they feei 
 any of the soul hallowing influences resulting from an 
 evangelical waiting before God. The Islanders are fai 
 
2M HOHBWAEO TOYA0H. 
 
 behind the Indians of Oregon m paying attention to the 
 preaching of the gospel. If s once you can get an Indian 
 to consent to hear you, you are sure of his attention til. 
 your speech is closed. But as to the effect produced, 
 there is little to boast of in either case. 
 
 There are the same cold and callous nature, the same 
 unaccountable stupidity and brutal insensibility to contend 
 with, in both, and these array themselves against all the 
 efforts made to overborne them, with disheartening effect. 
 Notwithstanding these things, which the faithful chron- 
 icler of facts cannot pass, over without mentioning, there 
 are, on the other hand, evidences sufficient to establish 
 the vast importance and utility of the missionary cause. 
 For a particular account of the islands and of the mis- 
 •inn* the reader is referred to the notes of a former visit 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 foytge lo China — Change of calculations — Embark on board the Leland - Acci- 
 dent — Departure — Cabin associates — The Captain — Rules to judge of oharac- 
 ter — The Island of Grigan — The Ladrones — Dangerous reefs — Galo — Bashu 
 Islands — Spanish Possessions in the Pacific — Formosa — Chinese Sea — Ship 
 Montreal — Ty phongs — The contending Pilots — Appearance of the coast o! 
 China — Arrival at Hong Kong — Reception of Keying — Review of the British 
 troops — Sabbath disregarded — The Revl Charles Gutslaff — Island of Hung 
 Kong — City of Victoria — Population — Schools — Morrison Education Society — 
 Morrison Hill — Success of the School — Rev. S. R. Brown — Churches — Mis- 
 sions — Where established — Missionaries — Climate of Hong Kong — Soldiers' 
 Burying Ground — Wesleyan Methodists — Short voyage — City of Macao — 
 Grand Prior — Bazaar — Temple — Caraoen's Cave — Voyage to Canton — De~ 
 •cription of the " Provincial City " — Adventures in the city — Temple of 
 Honan — Dr. Parker — Dr. Devan — Proclamation of Keying — Counter Pro- 
 clamation — Flower Garden — Dr. Bridgeman — Great excitement — Danger of 
 an outbreak — Thrust out of the city — Night excursion — On board the Lelanri - 
 Things that strike the foreigner — Boat population — Pirates. 
 
 Friday, October 10th. I was informed by Captain 
 Sylvester that the Chenamus, in which we expected to 
 take passage to the United States, would not be ready 
 to sail under two or three months, and there being 
 several vessels ready to sail for the States by the way 
 of China, 1 resolved, if possible, to obtain a passage in 
 one of them. Applying to Mr. Finlay, the supercargo 
 of the ship Leland, which had just arrived at Honolulu 
 from Callao, and was designing in a day or two to con- 
 tinue her voyage to China, and thence direct to New 
 York, I was at first informed that all the staterooms but 
 one were occupied, and there being four of us he could 
 not make us comfortable in that. At first we relinquished 
 the idea of sailing in that ship, but ascertaining that a 
 young gentleman had taken the room adjoining the spare 
 one who expected to leave the vessel at /Hong Kong, I 
 concluded that, if Mr. Finley would allow me the pnvi 
 
256 voVaqe to CHINA. 
 
 lege of sleeping on the sofa or floor of the cabin, Mm 
 H. and the two girls could, for the short space of thirty 
 days, get along with the one room, and after that, the 
 disembarkation of the young gentleman would give us 
 the privilege of the occupancy of both. This I suggested 
 to Mr. Finlay, and readily otained » proposal from iiim 
 to take us to New York by the way of Canto:, for eight 
 hundred dollars. As it would have cost me one hundred 
 dollars per month to have remained at the islands, and 
 five hundred and twenty for passage on the Chenamus, I 
 concluded that the expense of the latter course would be 
 nearly,, if not quite, equal to the passage by the way of 
 China. This, connected with other reasons which in- 
 volve the character of the Chenamus, both as it regards 
 ner accommodations, and the morals which prevailed on 
 board, had the influence to bring me to the conclusion 
 to accept of the proposal of Mr. Finlay, and return to 
 my native land by the way of the Celestial Empire. 
 
 Accordingly, on Wednesday, the 15th of October, at 
 two o'clock, p. m., we embarked on board the Leland, 
 and as the wind was fair, had a prospect of going to sea 
 before night. 
 
 Twenty-two vessels had been waiting for the southern 
 gales to subside, and the northern breeze to come to 
 enable them to put to sea, and by good luck ours was 
 the fourth on the pilot's list. A little accident came well 
 nigh detaining us in the harbor over night. As our anchor 
 was raised our vessel was driven by the strong trade wind 
 directly down to another ship, stern first, doing but 
 little damage however, but rendering it necessary for us 
 to warp up against the wind for some distance, before 
 we could get clear of the ships that lay in our track. 
 Extricating ourselves from this difficulty, just as the 
 sable curtains of the evening began to render it difficult 
 for us to discern the outlines of the interesting island of 
 Oahu, our pilot, Captain Penhollow, who had conducted 
 us out of the inner harbor throrgh the narrow winding 
 channel that opens a passage through the coral reef with 
 which the island is environed, wishing us a happy and 
 prosperous voyage, returned towards the glimmering 
 
VOYAOS f CHIKA. 2V 
 
 ights of the city of HonoJijIu, while to the command, 
 " square away the yards," our ship's prow was pointed 
 to the westward, and before the silent hour of twelve, 
 the fast receding island had disappeared amidst the gloom 
 of surrounding darkness. On leaving this delightful 
 Oasis of the ocean, where we had spent so many hours 
 of unmingled enjoyment, we could but feel those sensa- 
 tions which moved the heart of the poet to sing as he 
 left his island home, 
 
 " Shades of evening close not o'er us. 
 
 Leave our lonely bark awhile ! 
 Morn, alas ! will not restore us 
 
 Yonder dim and distant isle ; 
 Still my fancy can discover 
 
 Sunny spots where friends may dwell; 
 Darker shadows round us hover. 
 
 Isle of beauty, Fare thee well I" 
 
 A gale had long been blowing from the south, and 
 consequently the sea was very high, and for two or 
 ;hree of the first days the passengers were nearly all 
 confined to their births with sea sickness, but the 20th 
 found us on a comparatively smooth sea, gliding along 
 before a gentle breeze from the north-east, in the enjoy- 
 ment of health, and consequently qualified to take obser- 
 vations in regard to the ship, officers, crew and passen- 
 gers, with whom we were to be so intimately connected, 
 and with the interests of whom our own were to be so 
 closely blended, during a voyage encompassing three- 
 quarters of the globe. 
 
 Our fellow passengers consisted of Rev. A. B. Smith, 
 wife, and three orphan children, the daughters of the 
 late Mr. Lock, of Oahu, Mrs. Hooper, the wife of Wm. 
 Hooper, Esq., acting Consul at Oahu, two children, and 
 Mr. Sheliber, the young gentleman mentioned above. 
 Besides these, Mr. Fimay, the supercargo, occupied a 
 state room in the cabin, and this constituted our cabin 
 society, as the Captain stopped principally in the round 
 house, on deck. Our first impressions regarding our 
 associates in the cabin, were quite favorable, but the 
 Captain we found to be a surly jack tar, well acquainted 
 
258 TOYAGK TO CHINA. 
 
 with Biliingsgate vocabulary, and ready to iraw upon lti 
 resources on all occasions. Indeed, it appeared from 
 the amazing facility with which he could call to his aid 
 the most vulgar kind of swearing, that he must have 
 taken his regular gradations in the high school of his 
 Satanic majesty himself. Mr. Finlay, who had control 
 of the business of the vessel, showed at the outset, a 
 desire to render his passengers comfortable, in the abun- 
 dant provisions, consisting of vegetables, pigs, poultry, 
 &c, with which he caused the ship to be supplied. 
 
 As the Leland was built in packet style, we found the 
 cabin fine, and the state-rooms quite commodious ; and 
 .after a few days' experience we were obliged to admit 
 that the. table of the Leland was better furnished than 
 that of any other vessel in which we had sailed. 
 
 We were favored with gentle breezes from the north- 
 east and east which carried us along from, five to seven 
 knots an hour, without anything in particular to break 
 the monotony of the voyage until the 6th of November, 
 when at three, p. m., we made Grigan, the northernmost 
 of the Ladrone Islands. The appearance of this island, 
 as we passed along by it about six miles off, was exceed- 
 ingly interesting, perhaps more so to us in consequence 
 of our not having been for many days entertained with 
 the sight of any object but the sky over our heads, the 
 boundless expanse of waters, around us, and the little 
 world in 'which we were floating. This island is very 
 high, nearly round, and rising gradually from its mar- 
 gin, it hides its summit above the clouds. It appeared, 
 remarkably green as if covered with timber, or with 
 other vegetation of a luxuriant growth. 
 
 The island was visited two years ago by Mr. Dwight 
 from the United States, and some twenty or thirty per- 
 sons, some of whom were white men, and some natives 
 were found upon it. The white men appeared to be of 
 the sailor class, but could not give a very good account 
 of themselves. 
 
 The Ladrone Islands are numerous, and the entire 
 group belongs to the once famous, but now crumbling 
 kingdom of Spain. The two southernmost are now 
 
▼OTAQK TO CHINA. 259 
 
 principaay occupied by Spaniards, and are used bj 
 Spain as a kind of Botany Bay, or place of banishment 
 for state prisoners. Though their climate is delightfut 
 and some of them are fine fertile islands, yet they are 
 o r but little consequence to the world; and this is 
 uoubtless owing to the weakness and indolence of their 
 possessors. Since they were first discovered by Magel- 
 lanni, 1521, they have been inhabited by a set of thieves 
 and pirates, and hence they are called "Ladrone (pirate) 
 Islands." 
 
 West of the Ladrones are a number of dangerous 
 reefs, which have been seen by several navigators ; and 
 it was our fortune to get directly among them. How- 
 ever, Providence smiled upon us, and we passed them 
 all in safety, though while exposed to them, we were 
 visited by a tremendous gale from the south, which not 
 only prostrated us with seasickness, but threatened to 
 drive us into the cavtrns of the deep. The waves 
 rolled in mountains, and dashing around us in frightful 
 pyramids, and commingling their deafening roar with 
 the howling of the fitful blasts, struck terror into the 
 brave hearts of the sons of the ocean, and admonished 
 all to fear and tremble before Him who rideth upon the 
 wings of the wind. After four days of incessant gales 
 from every point of compass, the wind subsided, a calm 
 succeeded, a breeze followed from the north and brought 
 with it the blessings of health to the sick, and prosperity 
 on our voyage. 
 
 On the 14th of November the appearance of strange 
 birds, and now and then an object floating upon the sur- 
 face of the water, gave signs that we were approaching 
 land. On the evening of the 15th, we passed through 
 between the north Bashee' Islands, and the Tobal, 
 Tobago, and Hima. The Bashee Islands all belong to 
 Spain. Many of them are thickly settled, and are said 
 to be very fertile All the Spanish islands in this pari 
 of the Pacific Ocean are governed by a captain general, 
 whose residence is at Manilla, on the island of Luconia. 
 His government is exceedingly despotic, and he is only 
 responsible to the ministry in Spain. 
 
260 VAYAGB TO CHINA. 
 
 Lueonia, or Luzon, as it is laid down on some maps, 
 is said to be a splendid island, vieing in natural resource! 
 with the far famed island of Java; but from the despotic 
 nature of its government, and the indolence and jealousy 
 of the Spaniards, it is of but little consequence to the 
 crown of Spain. 
 
 On Sunday morning, the 16th, -lie island of Formosa 
 was descried from the quarter deck. This island, with 
 the Bashees and Lueonia, form a chain which separates 
 the Chinese Sea from the Pacific Ocean. Formosa was 
 the first land we saw over which the Emperor of China 
 sways his sceptre. It is a large island, with many fer- 
 tile valleys, but the highlands from our vessel appeared: 
 exceedingly barren. It contains a number of large 
 cities, and the population is exceedingly numerous. 
 Tl^e"^ is no direct business carried on betwixt them and 
 fore.gners, as this is a part of the Celestial Empire 
 which barbarians are not allowed*to visit 
 
 On the day before we entered upon the Chinest Sea, 
 it was exceedingly dark and gloomy, but we had no 
 sooner passed the islands above mentioned, than the 
 clouds disappeared, the sun arose in indescribable splen- 
 dor, a fresh and invigorating breeze sprang up from the 
 north, and we were wafted most delightfully over the 
 sea of China, at the rate of nine miles an hour, towards 
 our destination. Early in the morning we discovered 
 a vessel fifteen miles astern of us, and at evening she 
 passed us about three miles to the leeward, and proved 
 to be the American ship Montreal, which left the harbor 
 of Honolulu four hours before us. She formerly be- 
 longed to a line of London packets, is reputed a fast 
 sailor, and should Have beaten us at least six days to 
 China. 
 
 On the morning of the 17th, the water changed from 
 a. deep blue to a light wreen, which indicated that we 
 were already on soundings, though two hundred and 
 sixty miles from port. 
 
 The Chinese Sea is regarded as the most dangerous 
 waters to navigate in this part of the world, owing to 
 the numerous shoals and currents, and to the wind* 
 
VOYAGE TO CHINA SB! 
 
 called " ty phongs," which prevail in this region. The 
 name rendered into English is literally great-winds, ty, 
 ■typifying great} and phong, wind. They often come 
 without giving any warning of their approach, and woe 
 to the luckless vessel on which their fury is poured. 
 Sails, spars, and rigging fly ''a fragments before the 
 blast, and happy is that ship whose dismasted hull stilJ 
 floats upon the surface of the agitated deep after the 
 storm has expended its violence. Many vessels, with 
 their entire crews, have foundered in these storms, and 
 not a vestige of them have ever been seen afterwards. 
 
 On the morning of the 18th, we passed the rock called 
 "Pedro Branco," and at sunrise Chinese fishing boats 
 appeared on every side, and the rough outlines of the 
 coast of China presented themselves before us. Pre- 
 sently two boats bearing the pilot's flag, approached us, 
 and an amusing strife took place betwixt them to see 
 which should get on board of us first. They both came 
 along side at once, and the two pilots sprung on to tb* 
 side of our ship at the same time ; but one "of them in 
 his effort to jump, stumbled, and fell into the sea. We 
 were passing through the water with great rapidity, and 
 the unlucky pilot, struggling in the water for life, and 
 frightened so that his eyes stood out of his head like 
 those of a craw fish, shot astern of us with the velocity 
 of an arrow. But, accustomed to such adventures, his 
 comrades in the boat immediately cast off a couple of 
 long Bambo sticks, which the unfortunate man seized, 
 and with the assistance of them kept himself above the 
 water. A few hours afterwards he was picked up by a 
 small boat which was sent out for his relief. 
 
 On approaching the coast, fishing and other be its are 
 seen in every direction, even far out of sight of land, 
 and one is impressed with the idea of the vast popula- 
 tion of the Chinese Empire, long before* he mingles with 
 the countless throngs on " terra firma." As Ihe land, 
 with the light of morning, burst upon our view, there 
 was disclosed a succession of barren mountains, exceed- 
 ingly irregular in their outlines, and with the numerous 
 iilandi of rocks ; and the bays and, gulfs which abound 
 
262 TOTAOB TO (MIMA. 
 
 along the shore, present the most formidable barriers to 
 the vast interior. The striking dissimilarity of this coast 
 to all others, as well as the treacherous and piratical 
 character of the inhabitants, may explain in part the 
 reason, why maritime nations have been so tardy in 
 gaining access among the Chinese. But this coast is 
 getting now to be well understood. Since the war with 
 England, two vessels have been constantly employed in 
 surveying its numerous islands, intricate channels,, and 
 deep indentations. 
 
 At ten o'clock, a. m., of the 18th of November, we 
 rounded the west point of the island of Hong Kong, 
 and came to anchor in the beautiful bay, which reflects, 
 as from a liquid mirror, the flourishing city of Victoria. 
 We were immediately invited on shore by the Rev. S. 
 R. Brown, who is in the employment of the Morrison 
 Education Society, as conductor of a school for the 
 benefit of Chinese boys, and to whom we had letters of 
 introduction, and with whom we spent an agreeable 
 week. On the following Sabbath evening I was invited 
 to preach in a chapel recently built, and known as the 
 "Union Chapel," though it is principally under the control 
 of the missionaries of the London Missionary Society."' 
 The congregation consisted of English residents, soldiers, 
 Americans, and native Chinese, and numbered about one 
 hundred persons. 
 
 We arrived at Hong Kong just in time to witness the 
 arrival and subsequent public entertainments of the cel- 
 ebrated Chinese statesman, Keying, who is the governor 
 general of the province of Canton, and imperial com 
 missioner to transact the business of the government 
 relating to the intercourse of China with other nations. 
 His visit had been long expected, and from the great 
 popularity of the statesman, both in China and among 
 the British, it was contemplated with a great degree of 
 interest. Splendid preparations lad been made for his 
 reception, and to render his visit not only interesting to 
 himself, but conducive to the extension of British influ- 
 f nee in China. "■ 
 
 He was conducted from Whampo to Hong Kong in « 
 
V«YA«S T« OHM. 303 
 
 British steamboat, and recollecting the immense destruc- 
 tion of Chinese occasioned by a similar vessel in the late 
 war, he closely examined every part of her on his pas- 
 sage down ; and while passing around among the men, 
 he scattered his gold and silver with the most princely 
 liberality. The boat arrived before the town of Victo- 
 ria on Thursday evening, and his excellency received a 
 salute from the guns of the batteries and from the ships 
 of war in the harbor, which was returned after the 
 Chinese custom. His excellency landed amidst the 
 roaring of cannon and the strains of martial music, and 
 was conveyed in a splendid palanquin to the house 
 which had been fitted up with great care, for his recep- 
 tion ; and where, during the remainder of the evening, 
 all the public functionaries and grandees of Hong Kong 
 paid their respects to their illustrious visitor. 
 
 On Friday evening Keying and his suite, Lord Coch- 
 ran, Lord Seymour, with all the grandees of the place, 
 dined at the house of Sir John Francis Davies, the 
 governor of Hong Kong, and from the representations 
 of an eye witness, the evening wound up with a bac- 
 chanalian revel. Towards the close of the following 
 day, a review of the British troops on the island, was to 
 take place, and Keying was to appear in public, and 
 give an opportunity for those to see him who were not 
 allowed to mingle in the gay saloons of lords, knights, 
 and barons. 
 
 They, were not disappointed in their expectations ; for 
 as the high mountains of Hong Kong began to cast a 
 cooling shade upon the city of Victoria, Keying and his 
 suite were carried in sedan chairs to the house of Sir 
 Jnhn Francis Davies, and soon after both their excellen- 
 cies, with their attendants, accompanied by the Rev. 
 Charles Gutslaff, as Chinese interpreter, repaired to a 
 nigh bank beside the road, and located themselves upon 
 t for the purpose of reviewing the troops as they were 
 marched before them. We had the good fortune to 
 
 Elace ourselves within a few feet of the bank, where we 
 ad a fine view of this titled group, as also of the sol 
 aiers. The latter consisted of two regiments, one of 
 
£04 r*TAOB TO MWA, 
 
 Irish, and one of Sepoys, from India, numbering about 
 two thousand in all. They were marched after tw« 
 splendid bands of music, and from the strict discipline 
 manifest in their manoeuvres, as well as from the won 
 derful display of gunnery with which the review ter 
 minated, doubtless "Keying was impressed with a sense 
 of the superiority of -the tactics of British soldiers ovei 
 those of his imperial master. 
 
 At seven o'clock in the evening their excellencies, 
 with their suites, the officers of the army, and others 
 entitled to the distinguished privilege, repaired on board 
 the line of battle ship Agincourt, to dine with the admi- 
 ral, Lord Seymour. Dinner, as usual among the Eng 
 lish on such occasions, was followed with music and 
 dancing, but it was said that an English lady refused to 
 dance with Keying, which so chagrined his excellency 
 that it was thought proper to break up the party at an 
 early hour. 
 
 On the Sabbath, Gov. Davies, Keying, and their suite, 
 accompanied by the Rev. Charles GutslafT, performed 
 on a small English steamboat, a voyage of pleasure 
 around the island of Hong Kong. Perhaps Gov. Davies 
 was influenced thus to desecrate the Holy Sabbath by 
 the examples set him by some of the lords and dukes of 
 England, who have been in the habit of using the Lord's 
 day for their public dinners; but, be this as it may, such 
 a course of conduct by the authorities of a coloty pro- 
 fessedly Christian, in such a country as China, is not only 
 a public outrage upon Christianity itself, but is directly 
 calculated to destroy the good effects of years of mis- 
 sionary labor. While the servants of God in China are 
 •sndeavoring to impress the people with a sense of the 
 sacredness of the Holy Sabbath, the public authorities, 
 sanctioned by the presence of Rev. Charles GutslafT, by 
 thus openly desecrating the day, do much to nullify all 
 that missionaries can possibly do. If the above were 
 a solitary instance of a violation of the day in this public 
 manner, the evil influence resulting from it, would per- 
 haps soon die away. But the Sabbath is scarcely known 
 In Hong Kong, judging from external appearances. All 
 
.\vr\<^». y;;-i 
 
 VOYA0K TO CHIKA. 8P-S 
 
 fttaks, from the governor downwards, habitually profane 
 the holy day; while the public works, such as tne erec- 
 tion of government buildings and fortifications, are pros- 
 ecuted on the Sabbath the same as on other days. This 
 is a source of great grief to the missionaries in this part 
 of China, and may be regarded as one of the greatest 
 obstacles in the way of success, with which every mis- 
 sionary to this country must come in contact. True, 
 English service, in a most sickly manner, is performed 
 twice on the Sabbath, but there are but few who attend 
 regularly, while the vast majority of English and other 
 foreigners at Hong Kong, use the Lord's day as a day 
 of business or recreation. 
 
 December 10th. Dined at eight o'clock in the evening 
 with the Rev. Charles Gutslafl; who is now a resident 
 of Hong Kong, having recently received an appointment 
 from the Colonial Government as Chinese Secretary. 
 Perhaps there are few men in the world who have 
 excited more interest in a missionary point of view, than 
 this reverend gentleman. He is a Prussian by birth, is 
 about fifty-five years of age, and has been in China thirty 
 7»&rs, most of which have been employed in missionary 
 laoors in various parts of the empire. Though he has 
 lost much of his influence as a Christian minister, both 
 among the natives and foreigners, yet he is laboring to 
 sustain himself as a missionary in the country, as well 
 as a civilian. 
 
 He informed me that twenty-five native preachers 
 who belonged to a society which he had organized for 
 the propogation of the gospel in China, came to him for 
 couns3? and direction in their work; and that they were 
 circulating through every part of the Chinese Empire, 
 and were preaching from ten to fifteen sermons each per 
 day. After the , death of John Morrison, Jr., who filled 
 the office of Chinese Secretary for a few years, Gutslaff, 
 from his thorough knowledge of the different dialects of 
 the Chinese language, was appointed to this lucrative 
 station. His salary is £1500 sterling per annum, con- 
 siderably more than that of the Vice President of the 
 TTnited States, while the salary of the Governor cf th« 
 
*68 TOYAOE TO CHINA. 
 
 jttle petty colony of Hong Kong, amounts to three 
 times as much as that of the President of our Union. 
 GutslafT appears to have made it one object of his resi- 
 dence in China, to accumulate wealth, and it is said that 
 his efforts in this respect, have been successful. Report 
 affirms that he has £15,000 deposited in the bank of 
 Australia which he has accumulated while employed as 
 a missionary, and probably some of the prejudice exis 
 ting against him, arises from this circumstance, but it 
 would be doing him great injustice not to admit that his 
 unwearied labors for the benefit of China have been 
 productive of good. In addition to his other labors he 
 has recently published a Chinese Dictionary, which, with 
 those previously published, will afford missionaries great 
 facilities for the acquisition of the language. To form a 
 correct estimate of this original character doubtless 
 requires a most intimate acquaintance, while a short 
 interview with him cannot fail to leave the impression 
 upon the mind of the stranger, that the most singular 
 compound of the gentleman and the clown, the divine 
 and the civilian, the scholar and the novice, the sage and 
 the humorist, the christian and the worldling, enters into, 
 and forms the character of the Rev. Charles GutslafT. 
 
 The island of Hong Kong, as the fruits of an unjus* 
 war, was ceded by China to Great Britain at the close 
 of the late unhappy contest, and now constitutes a part 
 of that empire upon which it has become the boast of 
 her statesmen that the sun never sets. It is very irre- 
 gular in its outlines, both as it regards its coast and 
 its surface. It is not far from eight miles long, and 
 varying in its width from one to four miles. On ap- 
 proaching it in a vessel, it presents a very forbidding 
 aspect. It rises abruptly from the water, and its most 
 elevated points are about three thousand feet above the 
 level of the sea. Originally it was one huge mountain 
 of granite, but for many ages this primitive rock has 
 been decomposing,' and the present soil of the island 
 consists of decayed granite, with a small portion of 
 decomposed vegetable matter. There are several val- 
 ues in the island through which meander small brooks 
 
VOYAGE TO CHINA. 267 
 
 and being green and fertile, give the name to the island 
 Hong Kong signifying an island of green and fertile 
 rallies. 
 
 The city of Victoria, embracing both the Chinese and 
 English portions, stretches along the eastern side of the 
 island nearly three miles. Its greatest depth is not more 
 than one-fourth of a mile, and the abruptness of the 
 mountains behind the city, will not admit of extending 
 the buildings far in that direction. Though it is but 
 about five years since the city was commenced, yet it has 
 grown up so rapidly, and contains so many magnificent 
 buildings, that one of the learned Chinese Mandarins 
 who accompanied Keying, on leaving the place, com- 
 posed a poem in honor of the city, in which he entitled 
 it '.' the city of splendid palaces." The city, however, 
 is in a very unfinished state, and the sound of the ham- 
 mer and trowel is heard in every part of it during seven 
 days in a week, and it is therefore rapidly improving; 
 and doubtless, from its favorable location, and by the 
 assistance of British wealth and influence, it is destined 
 to become a place of great commercial importance. 
 
 The population of Hong Kong amounts to about thirty 
 thousand persons, most of whom are Chinese. There 
 are about four hundred English residents on the island, 
 besides the soldiers, and not more than ten Americans 
 These, with the regiment of Irish soldiers already re- 
 ferred to, constitute all the white people embraced in 
 this colony. The Chinese population, numbering more 
 ihan twenty-five thousand, are exceedingly industrious 
 in their habits, and accomplish a great share of the re- 
 tailing business of the city. In consequence of the 
 unhealthiness of the climate the English residents have 
 fixed themselves here but temporarily, and design, after 
 having amassed a fortune, to return to old England to 
 enjoy the fruits of their labors. Many of them, how 
 ever, fall victims to the malignant fevers which here 
 prevail, and their dreams of worldly aggrandizement 
 vanish with their lives. 
 
 The schools of Hong Kong require to be noticed. 
 Here are no public schools for the benefit of white 
 
368 VOYAGE Tt CHINA. 
 
 ehildien, consequently they are growing up, a» in othei 
 new colonies, in comparative ignorance. The school 
 which is supported by the Morrison Education Society 
 is one of great importance to the interests of China, as 
 the influence it exerts at present, and the objects it con- 
 templates, sufficiently prove. The circumstances which 
 led to the formation of the Morrison EducaV.on Society, 
 was the death of the Rev. Robert Morrison, D. D., who, 
 in connection with his unwearied labors as a missionary, 
 officiated many years as translator in the service of 
 the Hon. East India Company in China. The friends of 
 this great and good man in China, having been deeply ' ( 
 interested in the success of his labors while living, and 
 wishing to cherish a grateful remembrance of him when 
 dead, resolved to erect a monument worthy to perpetu- 
 ate his memory, and calculated to assist in carrying 
 forward that work, in the promotion of which he had 
 fallen a sacrifice. Dr. Morrison died on the 2d of Au- 
 gust, 1834, and on the 9th of November, 1836, the soci- 
 ety which took his name, was organized at Canton 
 having a fund of six thousand dollars. 
 
 The objects of the society, as expressed in its const: 
 tution, are, " to improve and promote education in China, 
 by schools and other means." Chinese youth were to 
 be taught to read and write " the English language, in 
 connection with their own; and by these means the~ 
 society designed "to bring within their reach all the 
 instruction requisite for their becoming wise, indlistrious, 
 sober and virtuous .members of society, fitted in their 
 respective stations in life, to discharge Well the duties 
 which they owe to themselves, their kindred, and their 
 God." The trustees of the society designed to employ 
 two teachers, one from England, and one from the Uni- 
 ted , States, and made application accordingly. From 
 England Jhey received no reply, but a favorable one 
 from the States, and on the 23d of February, 1 839, Rev. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Brow% from Massachusetts, arrived in 
 China, but the war immediately breaking out, rendered 
 it necessary for them to take up their residence a; 
 Macao. Here , by the advice of the trustees, Mr. Brows 
 
▼•YAG* TO CMUM. *6S 
 
 i ommenced operations, but the Chinese weft* so slow in 
 appreciating the effort, that in September, 1841, the 
 school numbered but thirteen scholars. 
 
 Catholic influence, and Chinese exclusiveness, rendered 
 Macao almost as undesirable a location for the school, as 
 Canton; and as Hong Kong had fallen into the hands of 
 the British, application was made to Sir Henry Pottinger, 
 her British Majesty's plenipotentiary, for the privilege 
 of locating the school on that island. 
 
 This application resulted in the appropriation of a hill 
 which overlooks the city of Victoria, as the location for 
 the buildings, and which from that time has been known 
 as " Morrison Hill." Extensive buildings were immedi- 
 ately erected, the number of the pupils increased, an 
 assistant teacher employed, and from that time the 
 school has been progressing in every way correspondent 
 to the expectations of its warmest friends. At present 
 the school numbers thirty students, all boys, and many 
 of them have made great improvement. A circum- 
 stance which was related to me by Mr. Brown, shows 
 in what light the Chinese first viewed the school, and 
 the influence it is beginning to exert. An aged Chinese, 
 who had finally consented to send three of his boys to 
 the school, observed one day to Mr. Brown, " we could 
 not at first understand why a foreigner should wish to 
 feed and instruct our children for nothing. We thought 
 there must be some sinister motive at the bottom of it. 
 Perhaps it was to entice them away from their parents 
 and country, and transport them to some foreign land. 
 At all events, it was a mystery. But I understand it 
 now. I have had my three sons in your school steadily 
 since they entered it, and no harm has happened to them. 
 The oldest has been qualified for the public service as 
 nterpreter. The other two have learned nothing bad. 
 The religion you have taught them, and of which I was 
 so mucn afraid, has made them better. I myself believe 
 its truth, though the customs of my country forbid my 
 embracing it I have no longer any fears — you labor for 
 other's good, ni»t your own." 
 
 Preparations have recently been made for the eg* 
 
370 TOYAGK TO CHIMA. 
 
 largement of the school ; as many more had applied foi 
 admission during the last year, than could possibly be 
 accommodated. A fortunate appropriation of fourteen 
 thousand dollars to the institution, with a recent sub- 
 scription of several thousand dollars more, will enable 
 the trustees suitably to enlarge it, and to place it upon a 
 firm basis. 
 
 The above appropriation was made by the persons 
 who had the settlement of the estate of the lamented J 
 R. Morrison, son of the late Dr. Robert Morrison. 
 
 That gentleman, while living, was deeply interested 
 tn the welfare of the school, and it was thought proper, 
 by those upon whom it devolved to dispose of his pro 
 perty, to associate his name with that of his father, by 
 bestowing fourteen thousand dollars of his estate upon 
 the institution as a permanent fund, and thus to laise a 
 aoble monument to perpetuate the memory of both of 
 these benefactors of the Chinese nation. 
 
 The conductor of this school, the Rev. S. R. Brown, 
 is every way entitled to the confidence of the community 
 which employs him, and of the Chinese, for whose ben- 
 efit he is devoting his life. His interests are blended- 
 with those of this institution, and his whole soul is en- 
 ksted to promote its advancement. And, in the rapid 
 improvement of the students in the arts and sciences, in 
 the correctness of their moral deportment, and in the 
 satisfactory evidence which some of them give of genu- 
 ine conversion and a' qualification for future usefulness, 
 he already witnesses the happy results of his labors. 
 As this institution was established upon a broad basis, and 
 is conducted according to the most enlarged views of 
 benevolence, its supporters and directors are among the 
 benefactors of mankind. 
 
 There are two churches in Hong Kong, which have 
 been erected for the accommodation of foreigners ; one 
 of which is the "Union Chapel," and the other is an 
 Episcopalian church. In the former, the missionaries 
 officiate alternately, and the latter is suppled by th« 
 chaplains from the army and navy. Some of theso 
 latter divines, after spending Saturday evening in card 
 
VOYAOK TO CMHf A. Ill 
 
 Slaying and wine drinking, will enter the sacred desk on 
 tunday, and preach, not as messengers of Gcd. hut t a 
 "one that playeth skillfully on an instrument • -~and 
 their hearers, as destitute of religion as themselves, will 
 flatter their vanity by informing them that they have. 
 
 E reached an admirable sermon. A few of these chaplains, 
 owever, are evangelical men, and when they preach, 
 they hesitate not "to decalre the whole counsel of God." 
 It fell t3 the lot of one of these to preach on a Sabbath 
 when a number of the great men of the island were 
 present; and knowing the viciousness of their charac- 
 ters, like a man of God he enforced upon them the 
 important truth, that, "without holiness, no man shall 
 see the Lord." At the close of his sermon he was 
 informed by the general of the army that his " preach 
 ing was not acceptable ; that they came to church to be 
 comforted, not to be condemned to hell." 
 
 After the island of Hong Kong had been wrested 
 from the Chinese by the English, the missionaries in 
 this part of China, generally collected at this place. 
 Formerly, Macao was the only place where foreigners 
 with their families could reside. But as Macao was 
 under papal influence, and Canton was yet inaccessible, 
 Hong Kong was judged to be the most proper place for 
 the establishment of the missions. Accordingly, mis- 
 sionaries of the London Missionary Society, and also of 
 the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign 
 Missions, and the Baptist Foreign Board, fixed theii 
 residences in this place. They built - their dwelling 
 houses, churches, and school-houses for the Chinese, 
 ■m U the design of constituting this place the center of 
 their operations. 
 
 Some of these buildings were quite expensive, espe- 
 cially the mission house of the American Board. 
 
 At the conclusion of the war, Hong Kong becoming 
 English ground, and Canton accessible to missionaries 
 and their families, all the American missionaries resolved 
 at once to abandon the former, and establish, themselves 
 u the latter place. This subjected them to a great pe 
 
273 roYAM *• cwju. 
 
 cuniary loss in the buildings and other property, which 
 they were obliged to sacrifice at Hong Kong. But they 
 considered it to be their duty to enter the opening which 
 British cannon haa made into China, believing that the 
 advantages, in a missionary point of view, of a location 
 in Canton, would more than counterbalance all the pecu 
 i niary losses to which such a course would subject them 
 
 Consequently, Dr. Bridgeman, Dr. Parker, and Dr 
 Ball, of the A. B. C. F. M., and Dr. Devan, of tha 
 Baptist Board, have retired from Hong Kong, and have 
 taken up their residence in the Provincial city. Whethei 
 they have acted wisely, remains- to be decided ; but be 
 this as it may, the three or four Chinese houses 01" wor- 
 ship which they erected at Hong Kong, are nearly 
 deserted, and the fruits of their labors are rapidly 
 disappearing. 
 
 Dr. Legg and Mr. Gallaspie, of the London Mission- 
 ary Society, are establishing themselves permanently in 
 Hong Kong. Dr. Legg, however, is now on a visit to 
 England, but designs to return and resume his labors in 
 this place. They have recently erected a large and 
 splendid mission house, which appears from a distance 
 more like the palace of a prince, than the house of the 
 humble missionary. They have here collected a school 
 of boys, whom they are endeavoring to instruct, and, 
 though the fruits of their labors are tardy in exhibiting 
 themselves, yet, by various means, such as the printing 
 of books in Chinese, and preaching by their Chinese 
 assistants, they are casting their bread upon the waters, 
 and are expecting to be able to gather it after many 
 days. 
 
 It is difficult to tell what amount of good has been 
 accomplished by missionary labor in Hong Kong, doubt- 
 less much more than the enemies of missions are willing 
 to admit But it is evident the work at this point, as wefl 
 as in some other portions of the mission field, has been 
 greatly injured by the publication of reports furnished 
 by missionaries of too naming a character. Missionary 
 report! always return to the places they are designed to 
 
▼OYAOB TO CHINA. 874 
 
 represent, and if they are not strictly true, they always 
 create prejudice against the cause they are designed te 
 promote. 
 
 The climate of Hong Kong ie very unsalubrious, 
 particularly during the prevalence of the south-west 
 monsoons. 
 
 The monsoons are winds which blow one-half of the 
 year from the south-west, and the other half from the 
 north-east. The north-east monsoon prevails during our 
 fall and winter months, and while it continues, the 
 island is considered a comparatively healthy location ; 
 but after the winds set in from the south-west, the 
 atmosphere becomes exceedingly oppressive. The heat 
 of the sun becomes almost unendurable, and both natives 
 and foreigners enter into every possible precaution to 
 guard against the deleterious effects of the sun's burning 
 'ays. 
 
 Notwithstanding the extreme care exercised by fo- 
 eigners to preserve health, this climate proves fatal to 
 many of them. It is peculiarly debilitating to the female 
 constitution, and a number of the wives of missionaries, 
 nave here fallen as martyrs in their work. The Hong 
 Kong fever has become notorious wherever the name 
 of the place is known ; and while all who come to this 
 country are more or less exposed to this most malignant 
 of all fevers, perhaps the soldiers quartered here are the 
 greatest sufferers. Such is the astonishing mortality 
 mat reigns among them, that it is necessary to reinforce 
 them annually with a fresh regiment from home, in 
 order to keep ready for effective service one thousand 
 men. Indeed, in view of the unhealthiness of its climate, 
 Hong Kong is no desirable place of residence for 
 foreigners, apd there are but two motives sufficiently 
 powerful to induce either Europeans or Americans to 
 continue here a great length of time : These are the 
 love of money and the love of souls. 
 
 Having heard much concerning the soldiers' burying 
 
 ground, on the 14th of December, curiosity led us to, 
 
 take a walk over this depository of the dead. About 
 
 one mile and a half from the town, the old barracki 
 
 13 
 
374 VOYAGH TO CHIMA. 
 
 were situated, where the soldiers were quartered imme. 
 diately after the conelusiqn of the China wax, and 
 during the unhealthy part of the season. 
 
 But a few score of them had fallen before the prowess 
 of their Chinese enemies, but while quietly lying in theii' 
 oarracks, and recounting the victories they, had won, 
 they were attacked by an enemy before whom kings turn 
 pale, and the valor of the bravest soldier falters. 
 
 The Hong Kong fever brought death nto the war- 
 riors' camp, and during the short period of six weeks, 
 more than five hundred men were laid in the dust by 
 this fearful scourge. 
 
 Walking in company with our friend Rev. Rowland 7 
 Reese, we came to the ground where these half a thou- 
 sand, together with several hundred, who had died 
 previously, were buried, and the first thing that attracted : 
 our attention was the coffin of a small child, which lay,, 
 partly embedded in the ground, its lid broken off, and 
 disclosing some of the bones of the infant which the 
 hungry dogs of the Chinese, in robbing the coffin, had 
 allowed to remain. In viewing this, we recollected that 
 British soldiers were sometimes allowed to take their 
 wives and children with them, and they are consequently 
 liable to share the fate of the soldier. Going a little 
 farther, we found ourselves surrounded with coffins on 
 every side, some of them partly covered, others entirely 
 above ground, and many of them robbed of their con- 
 tents by hungry dogs and swine, while ghastly skulls 
 and other bones lay bleaching far and near. Our hearts 
 sickened while we looked around upon this modern Gol- 
 gotha, and we fancied we heard from the numerous 
 skeletons which whitened the ground around us, the 
 bitterest imprecations uttered against that cruel war 
 Bystem, which was relentless in its claims upon them 
 while living, and in death cast them beyond the common 
 sympathies of humanity. 
 
 We left this scene of desolation, indulging the redec- 
 tion that those great ones of the earth, who, from 
 motives of ambition and cupidity, entail so much misery 
 upon their fellow men as results fiom the practise of 
 
rOYASB *• CBOIA. *7t 
 
 war, will have a fearful account to render at the bar of 
 God. Surely, thought we,»this is the glory which mul- 
 titudes who enter the field of strife, secure to themselves- 
 they die like the brute, and are denied the rights ot 
 sepulture, but an eternal weight of glory awaits every 
 christian warrior. 
 
 During our stay at Hong Kong we became acquainted 
 with seyeral Wesleyan Methodists from England. Some 
 of them are soldiers in the army, and when there has 
 been a sufficient number of them, they have formed 
 themselves into classes, and as far as their circumstances 
 would permit, they have in other respects enjoyed the 
 institutions of Methodism. The Rev. Rowland Reese, 
 who resides at Hong Kong, and has been for several 
 years in the employ of the government, as a civil engi- 
 neer, is a local preacher from England, and takes a very 
 decided stand in the place where he lives in favor of 
 hat form of Christianity called Methodism, which he ' 
 considers to be not only the purest in the world, but 
 the most efficient in its "modus operandi" 
 
 Under this conviction, he has frequently addressed the 
 British Conference on the subject of sending missionaries 
 to China, proposing to give towards the support of one, 
 one hundred dollars per year, though his income is quite 
 limited. He has at length gained an assurance from 
 the president of the conference, that measures have 
 been taken to grant his request, and he is now looking 
 for the arrival of the <* missionaries. He appears to be 
 an excellent brothei, and is certainly entitled to the 
 blessing of those who entertain strangers. 
 
 Our continuance at Hong Kong was four weeks, three 
 of which we spent at the house of Mr. Reese. Though 
 the expense of living at Hong Kong is great, yet this 
 truly benevolent man furnished us with all the comforts 
 his house afforded, without money and without price. 
 
 On the 15th of December we took leave of our newly 
 formed acquaintance at Hong Kong, and taking what 
 the Chinese call a "fast boat," proceeded through a 
 perfect labyrinth of islands, across the mouth of Pearl 
 river to the city of Macao, the distance of thirty mile* 
 
376 TOYAU T* ClUi. 
 
 It was late in a very dark evening when we arrived in 
 the inner harbor, and as our baggage must all pass 
 through the Custom House on landing, we must neces- 
 sarily leave it in the care of the Chinese on the boat, 
 during the night, as there were no conveniences for our 
 continuing on board. This arranged, we committed 
 ourselves to the guidance of the captain of the boat, 
 having given him the name of the individual whom wc 
 wished to find, and by the way of a narrow avenue, on 
 each side of which the towering walls of the buildings 
 were rendered scarcely visible by the glimmerings of a 
 Chinese lantern, we entered the densely populated city 
 of Macao. Winding along the crooked lanes, and tra 
 veling as fast as we could for thirty minutes or more, 
 we at length entered a gloomy mansion, situated near 
 the centre of the city, where our guide told us our fiiend 
 lived. 
 
 < Here we , were cordially welcomed by the Rev Dr. 
 Happer, a missionary of the Presbyterian Board, who 
 had kindly' invited us to make his house our home while 
 we desired to remain in the city. 
 
 Dr. Happer has been in China but little more than one 
 year, and consequently has not made a great impression. 
 He has established a school of twenty-five Chinese boys, 
 and is teaching them the English language, while a 
 person employed for that purpose is instructing him in 
 the Chinese. He feels encouraged to prosecute his 
 work, though the prospect of accomplishing much, is 
 dark before him. 
 
 Macao is a Portuguese town, containing forty thou- 
 sand inhabitants, thirty-five thousand of whom are Chi- 
 nese, and five thousand Portuguese. Of the latter there 
 are but a few hundred native Portuguese, they being 
 mostly of the half-caste population. The Portuguese 
 pay an annual tribute to China for the privilege of 
 remaining here, and indeed Macao is under the control 
 of the Chinese, though for purposes of mutual advantage, 
 the Portuguese have been allowed to continue in posses- 
 sion. 
 
 The Portuguese first established themselves here men 
 
YOYAOB WO CHINA. XTl 
 
 than three hundred years ago, and during the first hun- 
 dred years, Popish missionaries from this point, had 
 penetrated into every part of the Chinese Empire, even 
 into the very palace of the Emperor himself. But, inter- 
 meddling with the affairs of government, the priests were 
 banished from Pekin. This checked the prosperity of 
 the Papists, and though unwearied efforts have been 
 made ever since that time to establish Popery perma- 
 nently in the Empire, yet they have resulted in giving it 
 but a doubtful footing. 
 
 Macao, however,* being under the domination of 
 Portugal, is papistical in its character, and contains 
 several splendid cathedrals and convents; and the priests, 
 from the snowy-headed " padre " down to the boy of 
 ten years, may be seen perambulating the streets in 
 every part of the city, almost without number. Here 
 Catholicism exists in its grandeur and magnificence, as 
 well as in its disgusting forms and nameless mummeries. 
 But it may be remarked, in favor of the Catholics of 
 Macao, that they are more tolerant in their principles 
 and practice than any other Catholics in the world. 
 During the eelebration of high mass on Christmas eve. 
 we took the opportunity of visiting three of the most 
 splendid churches in the city, and in neither of them 
 were we obliged to kneel, even at the elevation of the 
 Sacred Host. 
 
 During the short but sanguinary contest betwixt the 
 English and Chinese, Macao, as a matter of course, 
 remained neutral; and as a consequence of the war, and 
 during the short period of six years, she made more 
 rapid improvements than ever before : but when the 
 articles of peace were signed under her walls, the death 
 blow was given to her prosperity. 
 
 English capital and English influence have already 
 placed her rival, Hong Kong, or Victoria,, far above 
 her in point of wealth and commercial importance, 
 though it is but five years since the latter sprang into 
 being ; whereas Macao boasts of an antiquity of more 
 than three hundred years. The houses of some parts 
 of Macao are built after the European style, though the 
 
278 voyage to china. 
 
 streets are very narrow and dirty, while in some placet, 
 as you pass along, the buildings present the appearance 
 of dismal prisons. Other parts of the city are peculiarly 
 Chinese, and these are by far the most extensive, and 
 give, one a very correct idea of the large cities of the 
 Chinese Empire. 
 
 There are a number of places of interest in and about 
 the city of Macao, which, from the satisfaction a visit to 
 them is calculated to afford, are well worthy the atten- 
 tion of travelers. The first in order is that of the Grand 
 Prior. 
 
 The portion of the city around the Grand Prior, on 
 landing from the outer harbor, is the most interesting 
 part of the Portuguese division of the town. It is built 
 round the borders of the beautiful bay which constitutes 
 the harbor in the form of a semi-circle, and the Prior 
 forms an elegant promenade, not only for all the fashion 
 and elite of the town, but for all such as desire to enjov 
 the invigorating breeze which comes in from the bosom 
 of -the Chinese Sea. Here may be seen almost every 
 day, Portuguese, Englishmen, Frenchmen, Spaniards, 
 Americans, Germans, Chinese, Indians, Parsees, Hawai- 
 ians, &c, mingling in one common troop along this 
 beautiful Prior, and all apparently delighted with the 
 surrounding scenery. 
 
 Passing from the Prior to the north, partly through 
 the town, you come tb a second place of interest, which 
 is the Bazaar, or market, of the city. This is situated 
 in the Chinese portion of the town, and contains al< 
 kinds of fruits, vegetables, and provisions peculiar to th? 
 country. Among the fruits, oranges and bannanas are 
 the most prominent kinds; the former being more abun, 
 dant than apples in New York, and four large fresh 
 oranges can be procured for one cent. One is astonished 
 in passing through the Bazaar to see the immense varietv 
 of meats, fish and fowl, with which it abounds. *n 
 addition to the common kinds, such as beef, pigs, mutton, 
 capons, geese and ducks, may be found an astonishing 
 variety, among which dogs, cats, rats and frogs, are 
 the moat prominent These may be had either alive, 
 
▼•f A«« T» CWMA. 279 
 
 dressed, or cooked, so that the most fastidious can easily 
 be accommodated. 
 
 The Chinese Heathen Temple, situated within the 
 precincts, and at the east end of the city, is another object 
 of curiosity to all strangers who visit this part of China. 
 This temple was principally hewn out of the solid rock, 
 and its appearance reminds one of the Bible accounts 
 of the idolatrous practices of the nations of antiquity; 
 several majestic banyan trees extending over it their huge 
 oranches, cast a sombre shade upon its different depart 
 ments, while its walls of blackened granite, and the 
 hideous images which appear on every hand, as the 
 gloomy nature of the worship there paid to heathen 
 gods, are calculated to make impressions upon the mind 
 of the beholder at once solemn and affecting. Here we 
 witnessed, for the first time, the priests of Budha in hum 
 ble prostration before their idols, and while witnessing 
 their devotions, our fervent ejaculations were ascending 
 to heaven that the long night of death which has reigned 
 over them, unbroken, may soon pass away, and the de- 
 votees of this cruel system of idolatry, become the 
 true worshipers of the living God. 
 
 There are several beautiful gardens within the walls 
 of the city, among which the Casser Garden, at the 
 western end of the city, is the most popular as a place 
 of resort. 
 
 This is celebrated on account of the beauty of its 
 shaded walks, the variety of the plants and shrubbery 
 by which it is adorned, the enchanting nature of its 
 scenery, but principally from its containing within its 
 enclosure the celebrated grotto known by the name of 
 Camoen's Cave. 
 
 This cave procured its cognomen from the following 
 circumstance : Camoen was appointed by the crown of 
 Portugal to an important office in the colony of Macao, 
 and while residing in this place, he spent a great share 
 of his time in the solitude of this cave. It was here 
 that this most celebrated of all Portuguese poets com- 
 posed his "Lusiad," a poem which has rendered his 
 name immortal The cave is interesting as a natural 
 
curiosity, Dut it has been materially injured by an at. 
 tempt to adorn and beautify it by artificial works. It 
 contains a bust of the celebrated man who has given it 
 a name that it will probably bear to the end of time. In 
 connection with this it might be proper to observe that 
 after he Jeft Macao, Camoen and his manuscript poems 
 were both singularly and providentially preserved from 
 unmerited oblivion. The vessel in which he sailed from 
 Macao, was wrecked in the Chinese Sea ; fortunately, 
 however, not a great distance from the shore. When it 
 appeared evident that the vessel was lost, and there 
 being no other means of saving himself, forgetting every t 
 thing else as comparatively worthless, he seized his man- ' 
 uscript in one hand, and cast himself into the sea. 
 Presently, the few Who had gained the shore before '; 
 him, discovered Camoen struggling in the briny element, 
 and bearing in one hand above the surface of the agi- ■'? 
 tated waters, the poem that was destined to give him an 
 earthly immortality. At length a fortunate wave came 
 to his assistance, and he was borne in triumph to the 
 shore, happy that, with the loss of his wealth, he had 
 saved what he esteemed of infinitely more value, the 
 instrument which was destined to attach to his memory 
 an enviable and enduring fame. 
 
 There are also a number of eminences in and abou 
 the place, which overlook the entire town and harbor 
 and which are very strongly fortified. Some of the 
 guns by which the battlements are mounted, are of 
 astonishing calibre, and bear date as ancient as 1625. 
 
 From the hill on which the " Central Fort " is built, 
 the view of the city, harbor, roads, and the adjacent 
 islands, is sufficiently interesting to pay one for the labor 
 of climbing to its summit. From this spot was pointed ; 
 out to us the precise place where the English and Chi- 
 nese embassadors signed the preliminaries of peace at 
 the conclusion of the late war. On the ramparts of the 
 "Central Fort" I counted fifty of the engines of death 
 »"eady to pour ruin upon invading foes. 
 
 Having visited every thing of interest in and arouna 
 the city of Macao, we prepared to take our leave; de 
 
fOTAOB T« CRIlfA. 98 J 
 
 wring to spend as many days in Canton befoie embark 
 ing Tor the United States, as we possibly could. Wa 
 had received a pressing invitation from Dr. Devan, a 
 missionary of the Baptist Board, resident in Canton, to 
 make his house our home so long as we desired to re- 
 main in the place. Accordingly, on "Wednesday, the 
 7th of January, accompanied by Mrs. Hooper, one of 
 our fellow passengers on the Leland, we embarked on a 
 " fast boat, and with a fresh breeze proceeded up the 
 Canton river. 
 
 These " fast boats " are always manned by Chinese, 
 and, though differing from any other water craft which 
 I have seen in any other part of the world, are quite 
 comfortable for the conveyance of passengers; and as 
 they are propelled by oars when the wind does not serve, 
 they usually perform their passages with considerable 
 dispatch,' passengers always furnishing themselves with 
 bed and board. 
 
 "'" It was near sundown when we left the Grand Prio: 
 and before we had proceeded far, darkness had shu: 
 from our view all surrounding objects, and reposing on 
 the beds we had spread for our temporary use, we fell 
 asleep, and the next morning found ourselves above the 
 Bogue, or Bocca Tigris, and gliding along past the vil- 
 lages, paddy fields, and Pagodas, by which the banks of 
 the river are adorned. Before passing Whampoa, we 
 stopped a few moments along N side the Leland, which 
 had already commenced receiving her cargo, and leaving 
 some of our baggage on board, we proceeded on through 
 the multitude of boats which thronged the river, and 
 which seemed to multiply in a ten-fold proportion as we 
 approximated the "Provincial City." It was nearly 
 dark when we arrived off the place of landing, and we 
 found the wharf so thronged with boats that it was im- 
 possible for us to approach it nearer than fifty yards. 
 We began to fear that we should be under the' necessity 
 of spending the night on the boat ; no very comfortable 
 prospect in view of the piratical propensities of the 
 thousands by which we were surrounded. And as for 
 confusion, Babel itself could not have presented a worse 
 18* 
 
S89 TOTAOM TO CHINA.. 
 
 state. However, I hastened to dispatch a short note tt 
 Dr. Devan, by one of the officers of the boat, and for- 
 tunately the note found him. At eight o'clock he and 
 his most" amiable wife gave us a hearty welcome at their 
 house, which is situated in one of the densest portions 
 of the suburbs of the great city of Canton, and on one 
 of the principal avenues leading to one of the gates of 
 (he city proper. 
 
 Here we are then, brought by a succession of favora-,); 
 ble providences, and placed in the midst of the great 
 and wonderful city of Canton. Every thing surrounding 
 us is new and striking. The people, the costume, the 
 buildings, the streets, and every thing the eye beholdsjf 
 present an aspect totally different from any thing exist- 
 ing in any other portion of the world; and to give a 
 minute and intelligible description of the almost infinite 
 variety which this one city presents to the view of the 
 stranger, if it were possible to accomplish it, would re- 
 quire volumes, and cannot therefore be expected in this 
 journal. It will be impossible even to carry out the 
 design of the traveler to Rome,, who observed that he ; 
 should "give a description of the Rome which he saw;' 1 
 Dut it must suffice the reader to be introduced to a few '. 
 subjects important to be understood, and interesting to 
 contemplate relating to the celebrated city of Canton. 
 
 The Chinese write the name of their city, Kwang- 
 tung Sang Ching, " chief city of the province of Kwang- 
 tung," but in conversation they usually call it "Sang 
 Ching," the " Provincial City." Doubtless Canton is a 
 corruption of Kwangtung. This city is situated on the 
 north side of the Choo Keang, or Pearl river, and , 
 about sixty miles from the great sea. It is in the twenty- 
 third degree of north latitude, and one hundred and 
 thirteenth east longitude from Greenwich. 
 
 The scenery around the city, though beautiful, and to 
 Borne extent diversified, presents nothing bold or roman' 
 tic. On the north and north-east sides, distant a few 
 miles, may be seen a range of hills or mountains,? but 
 in every other direction the prospect is unobscure*J| 
 The rivers, channels and canals, are very numerous, 
 
TOTAW TO CIOU. Mt 
 
 and are covered with a vast variety of boats, which are 
 continually passing to and from the neighboring towns 
 and villages. Southward the water covers nearly one- 
 fourth of the whole surface. Paddy fields and gardens 
 occupy the low lands, and occasionally may be seen little 
 .Hills and groves of trees rising here and there, to diver- 
 jify the scene. 
 
 Canton is one of the most ancient cities in the 'world, 
 it least among those that have survived the revolutions 
 of time. We have pretty satisfactory evidence that it 
 existed several hundred years before the Christian era, 
 and, according to Chinese classics, one of the ancient 
 emperors, four thousand years ago, commanded one of 
 riis ministers to repair to the southern country, and 
 govern the city, which was then called the Splendid 
 Capital, and the country surrounding it. If this be true, 
 a ^arge city occupied the site of the present city of 
 Canton more than one hundred and fifty years before 
 he time of Abraham. 
 
 The city oi Canton may be considered as divided into 
 two parts; the city proper, or that portion within the 
 walls, and the portion without the walls, or the suburbs, 
 which differs in its buildings, streets and extent of popu- 
 lation, very little from that within the walls. That part 
 af the city enclosed by a wall is built nearly in the form 
 of a square, and is divided into two parts by a wall 
 funning from east to west. 
 
 The northern, which is the largest part^ is called the 
 old city, and the southern, the new city. The entire 
 circuit of the wall, including both divisions of the city 
 within, is variously estimated at from six to eight Eng- 
 lish miles. The walls rise nearly perpendicularly, and 
 vary in height from twenty-five to forty feet. They are 
 about twenty feet thick, and are composed of stone and 
 brick. A line of battlements is raised on the top of 
 the walls at intervals of a few fe^t around the whole 
 city. Leading through the outsit . wall are twelve gates 
 bearing different names, some of a hich are very signifi- 
 cant : Wooseen Mun is "the aute o the five genii." 
 Yungtaing Mun h ' the v<»te of eU nal purity." Thi* 
 
*S4 VOYA«K TO oaiNA. 
 
 is the gate that leads to the place where criminals are 
 publicly decapitated. Yungan Mun is "the gate of 
 eternal rest." At each of the' gates a few soldiers are 
 stationed to watch them by day, and close and guard 
 them by night. 
 
 The principal part of the suburbs are situated on the 
 south and west sides of the city. They are much less 
 extensive on the east than on the west; and on the north 
 there are very few buildings, owing probably to the fact 
 that the city proper in that direction extends on to the 
 sides of a range of hills. This fact is poetically ex- 
 pressed by a Chinese writer, who observes that, on the 
 north " the city rests on the brow of a hill." 
 
 It is said by good authority that there are from six 
 hundred to a thousand streets in the city of Canton. 
 Some of them are long, but most of them are short and 
 crooked. The broadest street in Canton is sixteen feet 
 wide, and there are hundreds not more than two feet. 
 These are all flagged with stones, mostly large granite 
 slabs. 
 
 It will be impossible to give any idea of the immense 
 motley crowd that daily throngs these narrow lanes 
 The stout, half-naked, vociferating coolies, bearing ever'' 
 description of merchandise on their backs, the noisy 
 sedan-bearers, together with the numerous travelers, 
 retailers, pedlars, barbers, tinkers, beggars, &c, presents 
 a scene before the spectator which puts all his powers 
 of description at defiance. 
 
 In the suburbs, near the south-west corner of the city, 
 are situated the foreign factories, of which there are 
 thirteen. They occupy a plot of ground extending 
 sixty rods from east to west, and forty from north to 
 south. The factories present a very firm and substantial 
 appearance, being" but two stories high, and with the 
 exception of two narrow streets, forming one solid 
 block, each factory extending in length, the whole 
 breadth of the block. They are owned by the Chinese 
 Hong merchants, and are occupied by the Dutch, Eng- 
 lish, Swedes, Americans, French and Danes. The 
 different factories may be distinguished by the flags of 
 
v*ta«i *• mum a. 
 
 their respectivo nations, which constantly wave over 
 them. 
 
 In the afternoon of Friday, the 9th, Dr. Devan pro- 
 posed to conduct Mrs. H. and myself to those parts of 
 the city where it was safe for ladies to go, with which 
 we readily acquiesced, as we desired to learn as much 
 as we possibly could concerning one of the great cities 
 of the Celestial Empire. It is but a short time since 
 foreign females have been allowed to approach nearer 
 to the city of Canton than Macao. The ladies are 
 indebted to the bloody gallantry of British soldiers, for 
 'he privilege of walking the crowded streets of this 
 wonderful city. But even now, though the recent trea- 
 ties with other nations provide for such a privilege, yet 
 a very large portion of the wealthy Chinese population 
 are violently opposed to foreigners penetrating far into 
 the city, especially to pass through the gates. Notwith- 
 standing this, according to arrangement, we set off on 
 our tour, first taking the hongs and the factories, where 
 the foreign merchants, and the missionaries of the A, B. 
 C. F. M. reside. After calling on some of the latter. 
 we continued on some half mile or more direct towards 
 one of the gates opening into that part of the city, yet 
 too sacred to be polluted by the feet of barbarians. As 
 we penetrated farther and farther into the city, beyond 
 the common walks of foreigners, it was astonishing to 
 us to observe the great curiosity that was excited among 
 the countless multitudes of Chinese through which we 
 passed, by the appearance of a foreign lady walking by 
 tne side of a gentleman, in the thronged avenue, where 
 never a Chinese lady is allowed to go except as carried 
 by her servants, inclosed in her palanquin. We could 
 not stop for a single moment for fear of being so 
 thronged as not to be able to extricate ourselves, but 
 found it necessary to urge ourselves onward as fast as 
 we possibly could walk, while the excited mass poured 
 after us in wild confusion, and every now and then a 
 stalwart form rushing through the crowd, would thrust 
 himself before us for the purpose of getting one fail 
 
886 TOT AGE TO CHINA. 
 
 peep into the face of a foreign lady before she had 
 passed beyond their reach. 
 
 At length we came to what Dr. Devan told us was 
 me gate of the city proper, but we did not dare to enter 
 it, nor even to stop near it, such was the excitement 
 that prevailed wherever we appeared ; but casting a 
 passing look within the walls, we continued walking for 
 an hour, until we had explored a number of the princi- 
 pal streets, and at almost every step we were saluted 
 by the name of " Fan-qui," (barbarian), and some times 
 Dr. Devan told us they would call us " evil spirits." 
 
 Before closing our perambulations, we visited the 
 Ningpoo Exchange, which 13 a famous building, so far 
 up in the city that strangers seldom visit it. It contains 
 almost countless apartments, and at every turn and 
 corner is placed a brazen idol before which the smoke of 
 burning incense' is continually rising. In this Exchange 
 a vast amount of business is performed by commercial 
 Tien from all parts of China. Impressed with the 
 novelty of every thing we had witnessed, we returned 
 to Dr. r Devan's in safety, and on Saturday, the 10th, 
 found ourselves prepared to visit the celebrated Temple 
 of Honan. 
 
 This most popular heathen temple in the Province of 
 Kwangtung, is" situated on tne opposite side of the 
 Choo-keang river from Canton. Accompanied by our 
 friends, Dr. and Mrs. Devan, and a Chinese interpreter, 
 we engaged a boatman to row us across the river to this 
 splendid " Jos-house " of the Chinese. On entering the 
 temple and casting an eye around upon the objecti 
 within, here, said I, idolatry must appear in its most 
 magnificent aspects. As we entered the gateway lead- 
 ing to the inner court, there were two colossal figured- 
 images of deified warriors, stationed, one on the right 
 and the other on the left, to guard the entrance to the 
 sacred palaces. Further on we came to the palace of 
 the "four great celestial kings," images of ancient 
 heroes. Still further on we were conducted along t 
 broad pathway to " the great powerful palace." Enter 
 
VOYAGE TO CHINA, 287 
 
 mg thu we found ourselves in the presence of "the 
 'three precious Budhas," three stately and magnificent 
 images representing the past, the present, and the future 
 Budha. The hall or palace where these images are 
 placed, is one hundred feet square, and contains nume- 
 rous other images of deified heroes, real or imaginary, 
 before which altars are erected and incense is kept 
 constantly burning. The temple is vast, and the build- 
 ings embraced within the sacred inclosures are numerous, 
 and contain large numbers of Chinese gods. Some of 
 the idols are truly splendid specimens of the works of 
 art, and as they are arranged in perfect order around 
 the walls of their respective and spacious halls, all of 
 bronze work, and measuring from eight to twenty feet 
 in height, they present a very imposing appearance. In 
 addition to these shining images, there were several 
 rough stones pointed out to us as being numbered with 
 Chinese gods. 
 
 We were led by our conductor to the apartments 
 Bontaining the sacred hogs and geese, and were assured 
 that it was an uncommon privilege for strangers to be 
 allowed to behold these squalling and grunting divinities. 
 
 In " the great and powerful palace, " which contains 
 " the three precious Budhas," is hung a very large brass 
 bell, which is used by the priests at the hour of worship 
 to wake up the slumbering deities and to call their atten- 
 tion to the oblations of their devotees. One of the party, 
 taking hold of the huge tongue of the bell, drew it up 
 at one side and let it fall back against the other with 
 such force as to cause the whole temple to ring with its 
 vibrations. Some of the priests started back as with 
 faar, but so soon as the sound had died away they came 
 forward and reproached us for such a gross violation ol 
 the sanctity of the place. In addition to this we were 
 guilty of another sacrilegious act in taking some of the 
 incense which was smoking before the idols, and bring- 
 ing it away with us ; much, however, to the diversion 
 of our Chinese attendants. As it was not the hour of 
 worship we did not witness the devotions of the priests 
 but ascertained that at five o'clock, p. m., every day 
 
*8S t«ya« *• cmmjt. 
 
 they celebrate their vespers in the palace of the precioni 
 Budhas. 
 
 Parallel with each other on the right and left, are long 
 Knes of apartments, one of which is a printing office, 
 and others are used a- 1 "(?lls for priests, stalls for pigs 
 and fowls, a retreat fo 'the king of hades," the chief .' 
 priest's room, a dining i all, a kitchen, &c.,»and beyond 
 these is a spacious ga. *en, at the extremity of which | 
 there is a mausoleum wherein the ashes of' burnt priests 
 once a year are deposited. Here also was pointed out 
 to us a furnace wherein the bodies of dead priests are 
 burned, and a little cell where the jars containing their 
 ashes are kept until the time for depositing them in the 
 mausoleum arrives. 
 
 We ascertained that there were connected with this 
 one heathen temple nearly two hundred priests ; and 
 iudging from the immense expense of sustaining this 
 estar.jshment. ~*re coma dui come to the conclusion that 
 it costs China more to support idolatry than all Christen- 
 dom pays to propagate the Gospel of the Son of God. • 
 
 In connection with this it may be proper to subjoin »> 
 brief history of the temple of Honan as given by the 
 Chinese, and which has been furnished in English by Dr, 
 Bridgeman of Canton : " It was originally a private 
 garden ; but afterwards, several hundred years ago, a 
 priest named Cheyue, built up an establishment which hr 
 called ' the temple of ten thousand autumns,' and dedi 
 cated it to Budha. It remained an obscure place, how 
 ever, until about a. d. 1600, when a priest of eminen 
 devotion, with his pupil Ahtsze, together with a concur 
 rence of extraordinary circumstances, raised it to its 
 
 1 tresent magnificence. In the reign of Kanghe, and as 
 ate as a. d. 1700, the province of Canton was not fully 
 subjugated ; and a son-in-law of the emperor was sent 
 hither to bring the whole country' under his father's 
 sway. This he accomplished, received the title of 
 'Pingnan-wang, king of the subjugated South,' and 
 took up his head quarters in the temple of Honan. There 
 were then thirteen villages ct the island, which he had 
 orders to exterminate for their opposition to the imperial 
 
▼•TAOS 1* CHINA. Mt 
 
 forces. Just before carrying into effect this order, the 
 king, Pingnan, a blood-thirsty man, cast his eyes on 
 Ahtsze, a fat happy priest, and remarked that if he lived 
 on vegetable diet he could not be so fat ; he must be a 
 hypocrite, and should be punished with death. He 
 drew his sword to execute with his own hand the sen- 
 tence ; but his arm suddenly stiffened, and he was 
 stopped from his purpose. That night a divine person 
 appeared to him in a dream, and assured him that Ahtsze 
 was a holy man, adding, 'you must not unjustly kill 
 him.' Next morning the king presented himself before 
 Ahtsze, confessed his crime, and his arm was immediately 
 -estored. He then did obeisance to the priest, and took 
 aim for his tutor and guide ; and morning and evening 
 the king waited on the priest as his servam. 
 
 " The inhabitants of the thirteen villages now heard 
 ef this miracle, and solicited the priest to intercede 
 jn their behalf, that they might be rescued from the 
 sentence of extermination. The priest interceded, and 
 the king listened, answering thus : 'I have received 
 an imperial order to exterminate these rebels, but since 
 you, my master, say they now submit, be it so ; I must, 
 however, send the troops round to the several village*?, 
 before I can report to the emperor ; I will do this, and 
 then beg that they may be spared.' The king„ fulfilled 
 his promise, and the villages were saved. Their grati- 
 tude to the priest was unbounded ;, and estates, and 
 incense, and money, were poured in upon him. The 
 king, also, persuaded his officers to make donations to 
 the temple, and it became affluent from that day. 
 
 " The temple had then no hall for celestial kings, ana 
 at the oute? gate there was a pool belonging to a rich 
 man who refused to sell it, although Ahtsze offered him 
 a large compensation. The king, conversing with the 
 p'riest one day, said, ' this temple is deficient, for it has 
 no hall for the celestial kings.' The priest replied, 'a 
 terrestrial king, please your highness, is the proper per- 
 son to rear a pavilion to the celestial kings.' The king 
 took the hint, ana seized on the pool of the rich man, 
 who wu now very glad to present it without compen- 
 
TOT AGE TO CHINA. 
 
 sation ; and he gave ccmmand, moreover, that a pavilion 
 should be completed in fifteen days ; but at the priest's 
 intercession, tne workmen were allowed one month to 
 finish it ; and by laboring diligently night and' day, they 
 accomplished it in that time." 
 
 Such is the history of the temple of Honan, which ii 
 said to be the largest and best endowed establishment of 
 Jie Mad in this part of China. 
 
 The reader can form some idea of the extent of this 
 temple when he is informed that its buildings and gar 
 dens occupy from eight to ten English acres of ground. ' 
 We left this gloomy scene not without indulging the 
 , hope that the time would come when a church of the 
 living God v^puld supplant this temple of Budha, and the 
 great bell be used to call devout worshipers to the house 
 of prayer 
 
 Sunday, 11th. Attended worship at the house of 
 Rev. Dr. Parker, in the morning, and heard a good ser- 
 mon by the Rev. Mr. Wood, of the Episcopal church.^ 
 This gentleman recently came from the United States as 
 a missionary to the Chinese, but, for reasons doubtless 
 satisfactory to himself, he returns home after a residence 
 of two months. 
 
 Dr. Parker, in addition to his missionary work, super- 
 intends the English service, which is conducted at his 
 own house every Sabbath day. 
 
 At two o'clock,.. p. m., attended Chinese service at 
 Dr. Parker's hospital, and heard a celebrated Chinese 
 preacher deliver a discourse in the native language. 
 
 This man has officiated as a kind of evangelist among 
 the Chinese for several years, and from his ardent zeal, 
 and continued sufferings in his work, has given evidence 
 of great sincerity. He has been violently persecuted by 
 his countrymen at different times, and once was under 
 the necessity of flying his country to save his life. 
 However, at the present time, he travels wherever he 
 pleases, and preaches without molestation. 
 
 At three o'clock, attended Chinese service with Dr. 
 Devan, in one of the densest portions of the city. The 
 place where the Doctor preaches he calls the " Dispensar 
 
V9TA0B TO 9MIMA. 291 
 
 lory." It is about twelve feet square ; opens at one side tt 
 the street, which is constantly thronged with passers by 
 Occasionally one is attracted by the voice of the preacher, 
 and either stops in the street, or walks into the dispen- 
 satory, and listens a short time. Very few, however, 
 give their attention to a whole discourse. The jitmost 
 confusion prevailed in front of the dispensatory, or 
 preaching-place, while, but from six to ten occupied the 
 benches during service, and these were mostly in the 
 pay of the missionary, as assistant preachers, teachers, 
 or servants. Though an ardent friend of the missionary 
 cause, I could but think that, if the labors bestowed here 
 were productive of much good, it would certainly be 
 against all human probability. Dr. Devan, and all other 
 missionaries here, are in the habit of distributing testa- 
 ments and other religious books, at the conclusion of 
 divine service. ' 
 
 The missionaries themselves, from the difficulty of 
 acquiring the language, preach but little, but are, in the 
 habit of employing Chinese assistants. Doubtless some 
 credit is to be given for the genuineness of the conver- 
 sion, and the sincerity of some of these Chinese assistants; 
 but from the best information I have been able to obtain 
 I am led to the conclusion that, in China, as well as in 
 some other heathen countries, in nine cases out of' ten, 
 the converts, in identifying themselves with the mission- 
 aries, are governed mainly by motives of self interest. 
 And, indeed, nearly all of them receive pay from the 
 different churches to which they belong. They are gene- 
 rally hired as preachers, teache'rs, tract distributors, or 
 servants, and generally relapse into their former habits on 
 being dismissed from their employment. In view of 
 these things, it is not strange that visitors, and the mer- 
 chants that reside at Canton, generally, express it as their 
 opinion that the missionary mbor performed among the 
 Chinese, is entirely useless. But persons forming such 
 an opinion, are generally ignorant of that principle which 
 stimulates the servant of God to sow his seed in the 
 mnrninir nnH in the evening no* to withhold his hand 
 
391 TOYAW TO CHINA. 
 
 Monday, 12th. We resumed our exploration of the 
 city of Canton. Strangers have not the freedom of the 
 eity, though there is much more liberty now than 
 formerly. However, up to the present time, foreigners 
 venturing too far up into the city, are frequently robbed, 
 and ratanned through the streets. The recent treaties 
 which "other nations have made with China since the 
 late war, provided that the city gates should be thrown 
 open to foreigners, but as yet the people of Canton are 
 violently opposed to such a desecration of their ancient 
 customs. Keying, the imperial commissioner and go- 
 vernor general of the province of Kwangtung, caused a 
 proclamation to be posted up in the city, on the night of 
 •Jie 12th, informing the people that the time had come 
 when the conditions of the tieaty in reference to the 
 freedom of the city, must be fulfilled, and cautioning 
 the people against molesting any foreigners that were 
 disposed <to enter within the walls*. But the populace, 
 supported by a large majority of the wealthy inhabitants 
 of the city, on discovering the proclamation on the 
 morning of the 13th, tore it down with great violence, 
 ient it in pieces, and stamped it in the mud. Another 
 proclamation purporting to be from the wealthy and 
 virtuous citizens of Canton, was put up in its place, 
 which threatened death to any foreigner who should dare 
 to enter within the gates. Notwithstanding the excite- 
 ment which these opposing proclamations produced, we 
 resolved to improve the short time we had to stay, in 
 seeing whatever was interesting, within the undisputed 
 range of the barbarians* 
 
 Tuesday, 13th. Visited the "Patee," or flower-gar- 
 den, on the opposite side of the river, and above the 
 temple of Honan. This is a most magnificent garden, 
 and the plants are all grown in earthern pots. Here 
 are almost an infinite variety of flowers, and several 
 kinds of oranges, which are also grown in pots, and 
 which line the different alleys, and tempt the visitor to 
 violate the rules of the garden, by disburdening the 
 loaded plants of some of their golden fruit The 
 Chinese, better than any other nation, perhaps, under 
 
▼•ta«b to cam a. a9£ 
 
 stand the art of dwarfing trees and plants, and causing 
 them to grow in any shape they choose. ' Here may be 
 seen orange trees from one foot 1p three feet high 
 standing m large earthern pots, and so filled with fruit 
 that every expedient possible is entered into to prevent 
 them from breaking down. Here, also, is a shrub, in 
 appearance similar to the hawthorn, which the Chinese 
 cause to grow in the exact shape of a pagoda, a junk, an 
 elephant, a bird, or any thing else, according as their 
 fancv leads them. Nothing can exceed the regularity 
 and beauty of the Fatee, or flower-garden ; and it was 
 some hours after we entered, before we were able to 
 break away from the charm which the multiflorous 
 productions of this delightful garden cast around us. 
 Leaving this garden, which the Ingenuity of the Chine* 
 has rendered so interesting, we re-crossed the Chookeang 
 and visited the palace of Houqua, situated ahout two 
 miles above the city of Canton. The house is splendid, 
 purely Chinese, the furniture >magnificent, and the walls 
 of the rooms adorned with fine Chinese paintings. It 
 was in this house where all the recent treaties with 
 other nations were signed. 
 
 Wednesday, 14th. Called on Drs. Bridgeman and 
 Parker, who are missionaries of the American Board. 
 The latter has accepted an appointment under the United 
 States' government, as Chinese interpreter, with a salary 
 of three thousand dollars per annum. He has been in 
 China twelve years; has established a hospital for the ben- 
 efit of the Chinese, and from almost innumerable and suc- 
 cessful surgical operations, has earned an enviable repu- 
 tation in his adopted country. With the former I had 
 considerable conversation concerning the success of 
 missionary operations in China, and found him to be any 
 thing but sanguine in his expectations, but hoping to see 
 the results of his labors after many days. He is not one 
 of those fiery spirits, who, from the excitement of the 
 moment, are in the habit of blazing forth their high 
 wrought accounts of the work of God in heathen lands, 
 which frequently recoil back upon their authors, and the 
 
tM T«TA«B »• CMWA. 
 
 • 
 
 of both, but he appears to take a sober, candid view of 
 the great work in which he is engaged, and realizes the 
 fearful responsibility that rests upon him. He has 
 obtained considerable celebrity by publishing several 
 important Chinese works. In the evening called on Dr. 
 Ball, who is likewise a missionary of the American 
 Board, and appears to be much devoted to his work. 
 
 Thursday, 15th. Explored various parts of the city 
 and found the Chinese very much excited on account 
 of the proclamation of Keying, in which he ordered 
 that the gates of Canton, which had been closed for 
 ages, should, for the first time, be opened to the barba- 
 rians of Europe and America. 
 
 There seemed to be a great commotion among the 
 populace, and it was anticipated by the foreigners that 
 the night would not pass away without some outrage. 
 Those who are opposed to the order of the governor 
 call themselves " patriots," and declare that the barba- 
 rians shall not enter their city gates, but the man that 
 dares to attempt to pass the sacred inclosure, shall lose 
 his head. At midnight a portion of the old city way 
 illuminated by the burning of the house of the mayor 
 A mob of more than two thousand gathered around the 
 house of this functionary with the design of consuming 
 him and his property together. Leaving the house 
 through a private passage, he escaped their fury, and in 
 a short time all that remained of his princely mansion 
 was a heap of smouldering ruins. 
 
 Friday, 16th. The excitement continued to rise, and 
 early in the morning the foreign factories, particularly 
 those occupied by the English, were invested by vast 
 throngs of the angry Chinese, and the English were 
 hourly expecting an attack. What contributed to in- 
 crease the excitement was, the* expected arrival of an 
 English steamboat from Hong Kong, to receive the last 
 payment of the indemnity. The whole amount of the 
 indemnity was twenty millions of dollars, and this last 
 payment was two millions. The patriots declare that it 
 shall not be paid, and that if the authorities attempt to 
 convev it out of the city, they will seize upon the money 
 
m cmm a. SM 
 
 and bora down the English factories. I was in the 
 factories a number of times during the day, and found 
 the people preparing for a vigorous defence, expecting 
 that they would be attacked the following night, and 
 more so in consequence of the approach of the Chinese 
 new-year, when the people are exceedingly desirous to 
 obtain money, and always become greatly excited. 
 About noon we received a letter from the gentlemen to 
 whom the Leiand was consigned, (Wetmore & Co.), 
 advising us, as our vessel would be ready for sea Satur- 
 day evening, to join* her without delay, for fear an 
 immediate outbreak would greatly endanger, if not 
 entirely close the communication between Canton and 
 W»ampoa, where our vessel lay. With much effort, in 
 the midst of great excitement, we succeeded in getting 
 ready to leave at sundown, and consequently we had 
 the pleasure of a night-excursion on the Chookeang 
 from Canton to Whampoa, the distance of twelve miles. 
 
 Though there is considerable danger in navigating 
 these waters in the night time from thieves and pirates, 
 which here abound in vast numbers, yet, at ten o'clock 
 we arrived along side the Leiand without accident, and, 
 though we were literally thrust out of the city, yet 
 we were glad to find ourselves once more on board the 
 vessel destined to convey us to our native land. 
 
 Sunday, 18th. Had an engagement to preach on 
 board the Rainbow that had just arrived from New 
 York ; but was prevented from going on account of the 
 rain. When vessels are ready for sea, the captains never 
 wait for Monday ; consequently in the afternoon our 
 ship weighed anchor, and dropped down the river a few 
 miles ; but at dark, again came to anchor to await the 
 arrival of Mr. Finlay from Canton. About midnight 
 Mr. Finlay arrived, and reported that the excitement 
 still continued at Canton, and that the foreigners were 
 hourly expecting a furious outbreak ; but we congratu- 
 lated ourselves, that before it took place we should be 
 " far away on the billows." 
 
 Monday, 19 th. Before a fine breeze we sailed down 
 
S88 VOYAO* TO cymA. 
 
 the Canton river, passing the United States frigate 
 Vincennes, and the hne-of-battle ship Columbus. These 
 vessels have reeently arrived in China, and the com- 
 manding officer, Commodore Biddle, is authorized, on 
 the part of the United States, to act as minister to the 
 Chinese government. These vessels are both moving 
 up the river for the purpose of being ready to act in 
 defence of any American interests which may be in- 
 volved in the insurrectional movements at Canton. It is 
 also said that Gov. Davies, in case of any outbreak, will 
 send the soldiers who are quartered at Hong Hong, up 
 the river, to assist the Chinese authorities against the 
 insurgents. , 
 
 Captain Skillington, of the Leland, having discharged 
 his steward and cook, we found it necessary to return 
 to Hong Kong, for the purpose of supplying their places. 
 Accordingly, at six o'clock, p. m., we cast anchor again 
 in the bay of Hong Kong, about four miles from shore. 
 It was impossible for the captain to accomplish his 
 objects here without spending the whole of Tuesday 
 and this gave us an opportunity to take a more forma, 
 leave of our newly made friends in this place. 
 
 Before taking our final departure from the coast of 
 the Celestial Empire, it will be proper to make some 
 observations concerning a few things which have not 
 yet been exhibited, but which cannot fail to strike the 
 foreigner with considerable interest. 
 
 The first I shall mention is the antiquated appearance 
 of every thing that presents itself. While the nations 
 of Europe and America are moving onward from one 
 improvement to another, with unexampled celerity, and 
 attracting universal admiration as well as conferring 
 incalculable good upon the' world, the Chinese seldom 
 advance a step beyond the customs, habits and fashions 
 which characterized their remotest ancestors ; and they 
 have been equally slow in adopting any of the usage? 
 and improvements of "distant foreigners." Architect 
 ure, agriculture, costume, and all the arts and sciences 
 remain in China, as the lawyers say, " in statu quo ' 
 
▼•▼*•■ *• OUNA. 
 
 and thia inertia of every thine ia not only a prominent 
 characteristic of the Chinese, but constitutes a subject in 
 which they glory. 
 
 Another thing which strikes the foreigner is the 
 astonishing contrariety to what he has been taught as 
 proper, which appears in- the habits and occupations of 
 the Chinese. We have considered the right, as the 
 
 1)lace of honor, but the Chinese give precedence to the 
 eft. Black is considered by the nations of the west as 
 the appropriate badge of mourning, but in the estimation 
 of the Chinese, there is nothing so proper as white. v 
 
 The Chinese do not number the cardinal points, in oui 
 order, but always mention the south before the north, 
 and the west before the east ; thus,— south, north, west 
 and east. And instead of saying north-west, south-west, 
 as we do, they say west-north, west-south, &c. The 
 compass of the Chinese, instead of pointing to the north, 
 is so constructed as to point to the south. This contra 
 riety appears in many other particulars, and the fact of 
 its existence brings one to the conclusion that we are 
 not to estimate the Chinese by the criterion, of European 
 taste and usage. 
 
 A third subject of interest to foreigners on entering 
 ae cities of China, is the numerous manufactories and 
 trades in operation, wherever he goes. Properly speak 
 ing, there is no machinery in the country ; consequently 
 no such extensive manufacturing establishments as in 
 Europe and America. In consequence of the absence 
 of all kinds of machinery calculated to lessen the amount 
 of manual labor, the number of hands employed in 
 carrying forward the different trades is truly immense 
 A great proportion of the manufacturing business re- 
 quired to supply the commercial houses of Canton, is 
 performed at Fuhshan, a large town situated a few miles 
 westward. Still, the amount accomplished in Canton, is 
 by no means inconsiderable. There are from fifteen to 
 twenty thousand persons engaged in Canton in weaving 
 silk ; fifty thousand in manufacturing cloth of different 
 kinds ; five thousand shoemakers ; from seven thousand 
 
298 y»TAO« to emUb 
 
 to ten thousand barbers, besides an unnumbered multi- 
 tude who work in wood, brass, iron, stone, and varioiu 
 other materials, too numerous to mention. 
 
 Those who engage in each of these respective occu 
 pations, form a separate community, — each community 
 having its own laws and regulations to control their 
 business. 
 
 On ascending the Chookeang river from Macao to 
 Canton, nothing interests the foreigner so much as the 
 vast number and almost endless variety of boats by 
 which he is constantly surrounded ; every boat forming 
 a habitation for one family, or more, according to its 
 dimensions and the wealth of the occupants. There 
 are officers appointed by the government to regulate 
 and control this portion of the inhabitants ; consequently 
 all the boats), of the various sizes and descriptions which 
 are seen here, are registered. The number adjacent 
 and belonging to the city of Canton is eighty-four thou- 
 sand. A large proportion of these are what the Chinese 
 call Tankea (egg-house) boats. These are very small, 
 varying from ten to fifteen feet long, and from four to 
 six feet broad. In large coops lashed to the outside of 
 these boats, are reared large broods of ducks and chick- 
 ens, designed for the city markets, while within them 
 whole families live and < die. These, together with the 
 passage boats, ferry boats, canal boats, pleasure boats, 
 cruisers, &c, complete the list of these floating habita- 
 tions, and constitute a permanent dwelling place for a 
 population of three hundred thousand souls 1 
 
 Another subject of interest to the stranger visiting 
 China, is found in the piratical character of many of the 
 Chinese inhabiting the numerous islands, which consti- 
 tute an extensive archipelago along the coast of the 
 Chinese sea. Among these islands, piracies and rob- 
 beries are of frequent occurrence. During our stay at 
 Canton, an English vessel was attacked, almost within 
 hailing distance of Macao. The pirates boarded her, 
 after having cleared the decks of her crew, by killing 
 one and causing the others to take refuge in the hold 
 
TOTACB *• omu. Mi 
 
 and rifling her of all that would be valuable to tfcsm, 
 made their escape. These pirates often combine in 
 .arge numbers, and attack large commercial houses; 
 nor are they discriminating, but fall alike upon those 
 belonging both to Chinese and foreigners. The school 
 house' belonging to the Morrison Education Society, 
 situated on Morrison Hill, and occupied by Rev. S. R. 
 Brown and family, was, a short time ago, captured by a 
 band of them in flie night, the family escaping from one 
 side, while the robbers were entering on the other. 
 They were in possession of the house for several hours, 
 and finally escaped with their booty to their island 
 fastnesses. Soon after this occurrence they made an 
 attempt upon an English house situated at the west end 
 of the city ot Victoria. Prepared With their scaling 
 ladders, as their habit was, they mounted the building 
 in large numbers, and while in the act of removing the 
 tiling so that they could descend into the building, a 
 charge of grape from a six- pounder mounted on a 
 neighboring eminence, was poured into them, and two 
 , of their number rolled like logs from the roof to the 
 ground, and the remainder took to flight 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 teyage from Hong Kong to Naw York — Chinese Sea — blende — Strait of Oaspei 
 
 — JeT» Bee — Strait of Sonde — Perilous condition of the Lelend — Loee of 
 cable end anchor — Ship saved — Sumatra and Java — Fulo Basse — Malayi 
 
 — Indian Ocean — Cape of Good Hope — Cast anchor in Table Bay — Cape 
 Town — Colony — Vineyards — Produce — Missionary labor — The responsibility 
 of churches — Difficulty on board — Captain fined — Bis character — The 
 supercargo — Mrs. Hooper — Adieu to Africa — Cleansing the ship — Man 
 overboard — Splendid eclipse of the son — Reflections — The Gulf stream — 
 Coast of Now Jersey — New York. 
 
 On Wednesday morning, the 21st of January, at four 
 o'clock, our sails were again spread to the breeze, and 
 bidding adieu to the granite mountains of the Celestial 
 Empire, we shaped our course towards the Cape of 
 Good Hope. We had a remarkably pleasant time in 
 sailing down the Chinese Sea, though this is reported eu 
 the most dangerous navigation in the world. Multitudes 
 of vessels, through the effects of the ty-phongs, have 
 either been foundered in this sea. or dashed to pieces on 
 some of the numerous shoals with whicn these waters 
 abound. But happily for us, this is not the season of ty 
 phongs, but the north-east monsoon blows steadily, in a 
 seven knot breeze, and renders the sailing most de 
 lightful. 
 
 We made several islands on our passage down the 
 sea, some of which are inhabited by Malays. The 
 islands appeared beautiful, being mostly covered with 
 /erdure ; and surrounded by the watery waste, resem- 
 bled the oasis of the Arabian desert. 
 
 Arriving at the entrance of the Strait of Gasper is 
 the evening, we were obliged to come to anchor, an*, 
 wait for the light of morning to conduct us through it 
 This strait connects the Chinese with the Java Sea, and 
 
TO NBW YOU. tOl 
 
 full of rocks and shoals, which render tktf navigation 
 dangerous, especially in the night 
 
 It was on a rock in this strait, where the Alcesta, an 
 English frigate, was wrecked, with Lord Amherst on 
 board. The vessel was a total loss, but the people took 
 to the boats, and all succeeded in crossing the Java Sea 
 to Batavia, on the island of Java, the distance of three 
 hundred miles. In passing through the strait we were 
 not conscious of a very great proximity to danger, but 
 lelighted ourselves With the beautiful prospect presented 
 by the numerous islands, rocks, and birds upon the wing 
 by which the scenery was diversified. 
 
 A fine breeze wafted us quickly across the Java Sea 
 and on Sunday, the first of February, we entered the 
 strait of Sunda. Having a fair wind, we attempted to 
 run directly through, though the captain was aware 
 that we would have to contend with counter currents. 
 Suddenly the wind left us, and we found ourselves 
 drifting broad side on to an island which was but a 
 little distance from us. Before the men could get the 
 anchor ready for letting go, such was the rapidity of 
 the current, that we had approached within a few rods 
 of the shore, and some of us expected every moment 
 that the vessel would strike, as she was carried towards 
 the point of the island at the rate of five knots. Our 
 only hope was in the anchor, which fortunately was let 
 go just in time to prevent the vessel from running 
 aground. Chain was " paid out y ' freely, to prevent the 
 anchor from dragging, and when we found that the 
 anchor held, and had time to view the place, the captain 
 observed that we might think ourselves well off if we 
 
 fot away from that spot by losing our anchor and cable, 
 'he current dashed past us with astonishing force, and 
 would have carried us to inevitable destruction, if our 
 anchor had not held us fast 
 
 Though the weather was calm and, pleasant, we 
 passed here an uncomfortable night, in consequence or 
 our dangerous position. We were within a stone's cast 
 of the shore, and as our vessel swung to the current it 
 was but a short distance from our stern to where the 
 
SOS T»TA«B FIOH HOMO KOJT« 
 
 water rewftwi furiously on to rocks which were imbed- 
 ded oeiow #«e rarface, and formed eddies and whirlpools 
 truly frights to contemplated But our cable was strong, 
 and our suochor held firm, so that on the following 
 morning we had changed our position but a few rods, 
 the current having caused the anchor to drag but a 
 short distance towards the land. Happily for us, a 
 Ijreeze sprung up on Monday, quartering from the shore, 
 and against the current ; but, though thus favored, we 
 did not dare to raise the anchor ; consequently, a spring 
 was fixed upon it, and it was determined to, make all 
 sail, slip the cable, and leave the anchor where it lay. 
 This appeared to be the only alternative, and, at all 
 events, it succeeded. The vessel, after trembling a few 
 moments against the current, began gradually to move 
 before the freshening breeze, and as we turned partly 
 across the current to get away from the land, the spring 
 cable snapped asunder, and we were quickly borne by 
 the timely breeze to a safe distance from our dangerous 
 moorings. 
 
 Again in the centre of the strait of Sunda, steering 
 our course towards the island of Pulo Bassa, which lay 
 in sight, we felt called upon to offer up a tribute of 
 thanksgiving to that merciful Providence who had de- 
 livered us from the imminent danger by which we had 
 been surrounded. < 
 
 Navigators, in passing through the strait of Sunda, 
 have to guard against shoals, rocks and currents ; and 
 often head winds detain vessels here for many days 
 before they can get through. At the entrance of the 
 strait, we overtook two English vessels, which ap- 
 peared to be feeling their way along, with the utmost 
 care. One of them came to anchor near the islands 
 called the Twin Sisters, and while we lay in our dan- 
 gerous position, she weighed anchor, and showed us her 
 English colors as she passed. 
 
 This strait divides the islands of Sumatra and Java. 
 The former is inhabited by Malays, and is the scene 
 where the missionaries, Lyman and Monson, met theii 
 trasf cal death. The coast is low and flat in some nlarea. 
 
*• mrw toil aos 
 
 in others, hilly. The island presents the appearance of 
 great fertility. 
 
 Java presents a more uneven surface, and, as seen from 
 the strait, does not appear so fertile. The Dutch are its 
 possessors. Batavia and Algier are places of conside- 
 rable importance. This island is well situated for 
 commerce, and, but for its deathly climate, it would 
 doubtless prosper more rapidly. 
 
 Beside these, are several small islands about the strait, 
 which altogether present a very agreeable prospect. 
 
 As the wind did not favor us for clearing Java Head, 
 on the second, we put in towards Sumatra, and came to 
 anchor under the lee of Pulo Bassa, which is a high 
 circular island, and, with two or three other islands of 
 the same character, and the highlands on the island of 
 Sumatra, forms a good shelter from the north T wost 
 winds. On coming to anchor, the wina, which had 
 been hardly sufficient to enable us to gain our harbor, 
 entirely died away ; and, as the sea was smooth, we 
 were here permitted to spend a quiet night, which is a 
 great luxury at sea. 
 
 The islands around us were inhabited by Malays, a 
 number of whom came off with shells, turtles, banannas, 
 &c., to trade with us. We purchased all they brought, 
 and found that money was the object of their principal 
 desire, and that they well understood its value. Those 
 that came to us were very brown, dwarfish and filthy 
 objects, and their. teeth were as black as ebony, occa- 
 sioned, probably, by their use of beetle-huts, as an article 
 
 of food. 
 
 On the morning of. the 3rd of February, we weighed 
 inchor, and were soon out of sight of land, amidst the 
 solitudes of the Indian ocean. 
 
 For a few of the first days, after leaving the islands, 
 we made but slow progress, on account of baffling 
 winds. On the fourth day, however, we secured the 
 south-east trade, which continued, with little variation, 
 until we approached the Cape of -Good Hope. 
 
 On our leaving China, it was the intention of Mr. 
 Finlay the supercargo, to stop at St. Helena, to procura 
 
SM tr»TA«> rmou m<mm *•*• 
 
 water and fresh provisions ; but, through the recom- 
 mendation of the captain, it was finally determined to stop 
 at Cape Town. Consequently, on approaching the lati- 
 tude of the Cape, we hauled up towards land, and the 
 eastern coast of Africa, with its high mountains and 
 barren sands, appeared on our right, about one hundred 
 miles north of the southern extremity of the continent. 
 The most southern point of land is not the Cape of 
 Good Hope, as is generally supposed, but a low point 
 about thirty miles south-east of the Cape of Good 
 Hope, called Cape Lagullus. Hence the soundings, 
 which here extend far into the ocean, are called "La- 
 gullus Banks." 
 
 We reached these banks the day before we made 
 iand, and the appearance of the grampus, cape geese, 
 and other aquatic animals, which there abound, presented 
 an agreeable diversion from the tedious monotony of a 
 voyage of five thousand miles across the Indian ocean. 
 
 During thirty-fiva days there was scarcely an object 
 appeared to attract attention, though we were sailing 
 over that part of the great deep where some of the 
 principal scenes of the " Flying Dutchman " were laid. 
 However, we were gravely told by our captain, that* 
 even to this day, there occasionally appears a full-rigged 
 ship, hull and all, above water, in the vicinity of the Cape 
 of Good Hope, answering to the description of the Flying 
 Dutchman ; and he averred,' that he had often seen it 
 himself, notwithstanding the assurance of Captain Marry- 
 att, that the " Phantom Ship is no more." 
 
 The day we doubled the Cape of Good Hope was a 
 remarkably pleasant one, and we sailed along in full 
 view of the coast during the whole day. When we 
 arrived off the Cape, we were within three miles of 
 land, and every object on shore could be distinctly seen 
 from the ship's deck. We had a splendid breeze in 
 passing around, and we left in our reau, in quick succes- 
 sion. Cape Point, Gurner's Coin, and English Point, and 
 rounding to, to enter the harbor of Cape Town, we 
 fell under the lee of the high lands of the coast, where 
 we lost our wind, and within sight of the towa, harbor 
 
*• mnr tmk. MM 
 
 •MpF 11 ?) light-house, and the American Consulate, where 
 the start and stripes were fluttering in the breeze, we 
 lay in a dead calm till the following morning. A gentle 
 breeze arose with the sun, and bore us into the quiet 
 bosom of Table Bay, on the shore of which is situated 
 the beautiful and picturesque city known by the name of 
 Cape Town. 
 
 Our stay here was only a day and a half, but we im- 
 proved the time in examining every thing- interesting in 
 and about the place. The town is quite beautiful, and 
 seems to be more active and animated than any other 
 English town I have' ever seen. 
 
 It is built on an inclined plain, which extends from the 
 base of Table Mountain to the waters of the bay, the 
 distance of one mile and a half. 
 
 The streets are broad and regular, crossing each other 
 at right angles, but without side- walks ; a singular defi- 
 ciency in a town where walking seems to be fashionable 
 with all classes. Coaches appear to be numerous, and 
 t is here that a stranger can judge of the quality of an 
 -jidividuai, and the amount of his income, from the 
 splendor of his riding equipage. Here may be seen the 
 rough cart, drawn by a mule, the common buggy,' 
 coach and one, coach and two, coach and four, coach 
 and six. I saw some of the latter class, with the coach 
 and harness mounted with gold ; but as I heard the 
 sound of weeping issue from one of ^the coaches, 1 was 
 reminded that misery is closely allied to opulence and 
 grandeur. 
 
 To make up for tne deficiency of suitable walks in the 
 city, the Anglo Africans, a little distance out of town, 
 have a number of the most beautifully shaded prome- 
 nades, which, for all the elite of the place, are very 
 fashionable as well as very pleasant resorts. Doubtless 
 the present occupants of Cape Town are indebted to the 
 Dutch for a great many of the comforts and luxuries 
 which they now enjoy ; particularly the delightful gar- 
 dens and shaded walks, which render Cape Town a 
 very pleasant place. 
 
 There are a number of elegant buildings in th* city ; 
 13* 
 
MM TOTAM F«*M ION* com 
 
 but there appeared to be but few now being erected, 
 which shows that the place is at a stand. Churches 
 abound, and the principal are the Episcopal, Lutheran 
 and Wesieyan. There are three or four of the latter, 
 but, from the shortness of our stay, I could not particu- 
 larly inform myself in regard to the state of religion in 
 the colony. 
 
 The numher of inhabitants in Cape Colony, embracing 
 all ranks and colors, is about fifty thousand; thirty 
 thousand of whom reside in Cape Town. 
 
 As in all foreign countries that have been colonized by 
 Europeans, where the native inhabitants are colored, 
 the people of Cape Town present all possible shades of 
 complexion. Those, however, who share in the blood 
 of the Hottentot, it is presumed, are not admitted into 
 the higher classes of society, but many of them, espe- 
 cially among the brunettes, possess remarkably fine 
 forms and features, and, in the streets of Cape Town, 
 and on the different promenades, present a very respect- 
 able, appearance. 
 
 It is well known that the Dutch were the first Eu- 
 ropeans that gained a footing in south Africa ; and Cape 
 Town, as well as the surrounding country, presents 
 many evidences of the taste and enterprise of their first 
 civilized inhabitants. The beautiful groves already 
 spoken of, some of which are a mile in extent, are all 
 artificial, and composed of a species of black oak. The 
 trees have been collected with great labor, and planted 
 in regular rows, and so near together that their boughs 
 intermingle over head, so as to form a dense shade at all 
 times of day. Doubtless the naturally destitute condi- 
 tion of the couiitry, as it regards timber, and the desire 
 to screen themselves from the burning heat of the sun 
 prompted the fers? settlers to form these artificial forests 
 
 Be this as it may, they are used by the present popu 
 lation as a great luxury. We had an opportunity to 
 judge of "their utility from personal experience. As we 
 rambled through the town, we found the heat of the 
 sun exceedingly oppressive ; but coming to a gate which 
 opened into one of these retreats, we walked in. and 
 
«o mw TOKK. J07 
 
 % 
 found ourselves in an atmosphere truly refreshing. In 
 the centre of the grove which we explored, and which 
 is about one mile long, is the residence of the governoi 
 of the Colony, and, as we passed, we observed that the 
 gateway leading to. the palace was guarded by two huge 
 lions. Nothing can appear more rural than the govern- 
 or's seat, though within one-half mile of the tumult of 
 the busy town. 
 
 Within the preempts of the town, as welj as rourni 
 about, vineyards abound. The raising of grapes appears 
 to be one of the principal pursuits of the people, the 
 Dutch portion of the population in particular. The 
 grapes are of various kinds, and exceedingly fine, some 
 of them comparing in size with the green' gage-pium. 
 They are used, as in other countries Where they abound, 
 for the manufacture of wines and raisins. These arti- 
 cles of commerce are sent to Europe and America, 
 annually, in great abundance, and are known as Cape 
 wines and Cape raisins. We were in one of the estab- 
 ishments where they are manufactured, and from the 
 specimens of wines which were there shown, it is not 
 difficult to believe that nine-tenths of the stuff sold and 
 drank, in the name ; of wine, in civilized countries, are 
 entirely spurious. The raisins, though of a good quality, 
 will not compare with the Malaga,, and some other kinds. 
 We were conducted to a room where the negroes were 
 packing raisins, and observed that they would first fill 
 the boxes, and then spread a piece of cloth over the 
 raisins and trample them in with their feet. Apples, 
 also, and pears, abound in the city, and are of a good 
 quality. They grow mostly in the interior, but are 
 always to be found in the market, as also potatoes, 
 onions and other vegetables, for the accommodation of 
 ships. 
 
 As it regards the civil state of the country, all was 
 quiet and prospering around the Cape, but in conse- 
 quence of the threatening aspect of things among the 
 Bushmen, the soldiers that were 'quartered at Cape Town 
 hav } all been sent off to the frontiers, and it k expected 
 
SO* TOTAM ntOM HOW* !•*• 
 
 that their presence in that region will keep every thing 
 quiet 
 
 The American Consul, who appears to be truly a reli- 
 gious man, gave us the following information,- with 
 respect to the results of missionary labor in Cape 
 Colony : Large numbers of the native inhabitants, in 
 various places, had professed to be converted, but very 
 few had continued, for any length of time, to give evi- 
 dence of a genuine change of hearj. Indeed, it appears 
 to be the case in Africa, as well as in other heathen 
 countries, that it is much easier to get the people con- 
 verted than it is to keep them so. Though the good 
 accomplished for the natives may be limited, yet mis- 
 sionary labor, in such a place as Cape Colony, is vastly 
 important, in securing the well-being of foreign residents 
 and in giving a correct tone to the moral state of society, i 
 
 However elevated human nature may become through 
 tne influence of science, truth and correct example, it 
 has a natural tendency downwards,, which will always 
 exhibit itself in proportion as the restraints of religion 
 cease to be f elt. Governments seldom supply their 
 colonies with that kind and amount of religious influence 
 necessary to preserve a wholesome moral atmosphere in 
 society. This mu*t be done by the church of Christ ; 
 and it is only necessary for Christians to understand the 
 true condition of those countries which are being re- 
 deemed from barbarism by the settlement of colonies 
 from civilized and Christian nations, to induce them to 
 use their best endeavors to supply them with all the 
 necessary means for religious instruction. 
 
 , Foreigners, Europeans anrt. Americans, are found in all 
 heathen countries, where they Have settled for the pur- 
 pose of accumulating money ; ind, generally, the mis- 
 sionary will succeed with the heathen in proportion to the 
 degree of influence he is able to throw around the con- 
 duct of foreign residents. Vicious foreigners, residing 
 among the heathen, may, by a few we«ks or even days 
 of wickedness, destroy 'he religious efforts of w*ny 
 years ; and these are the characters w't>» w*ion» the 
 
I* MW Y«M. 10t 
 
 minionary must come in contact in a.'l put s of the 
 world ; and this may be regarded as one of the greatest 
 hindrances to his success. 
 
 The ship having procured its supplies of fresh pro 
 visions and water, and ourselves having purchased a 
 suitable quantity of apples, pears and fresh grapes, for 
 our own private use, on Friday evening, the 14th of 
 March, we weighed anchor, to resume our homeward 
 voyage ; but, for the want of a breeze, we did not suc- 
 ceed in getting out of Table Bay, unt'il the following 
 morning. Before leaving, a circumstance happened 
 illustrative of the character of the captain, under whose 
 rule we lived for nearly one hundred and fifty days. 
 He had shipped a sailor at Hong Rong, but in conse- 
 quence of a disagreement about the price, the sailor, who 
 was a smart, active Italian, had not signed any bonds, 
 and consequently considered that he had a right to leave 
 the vessel at the Cape, if he was so disposed. He ac- 
 cordingly informed the' captain that he wished to settle 
 with him, as he designed to leave. The captain, having 
 had a grudge against him ever since the, first difficulty, 
 became now exceedingly enraged, at what he called the 
 
 " scoundrel's insolence," and, seizing a belaying- 
 
 pin, struck the sailor in the forehead, and, but for the 
 rigging, the latter would have fallen to the deck. He 
 garnered himself, however, and, rising upon his feet, 
 with his face covered with blood, very properly up- 
 braided the infuriated captain, for the cruelty of his 
 conduct 
 
 The captain had had a similar difficulty with a seaman 
 at Hong Kong, whom he chased all over the deck of the 
 vessel, unmercifully pounding him with a belaying-pin, 
 subsequently causing nim to be put in irons, and flogged. 
 The seaman, .after being discharged, entered a complaint 
 against the captain, before the Consul, and, (as the cap- 
 tain told Mrs. Hooper,) recovered damages 01 him to the 
 amount of one hundred dollars, which, the captain said, he 
 " walked up and paid like a man." For fear of meeting 
 wita a similar retribution at Cape Town, for his cruel 
 treatment of the defenceless Italian, he detained a boa 
 
■10 t«ta«b rm»u uonm koiw 
 
 along side, and kept the sailor on board of the vessel till 
 we were well under way ; and when he supposed that 
 we were so far aWay that there was no danger of being 
 pursued, he sent the sailor into the boat, to be taken 
 ashore. As the. Italian was leaving the deck, his com- 
 rades saluted him by saying, " there goes the best sailor 
 we had among us." 
 
 Notwithstanding these objectionable traits in his cha- 
 racter, our captain is an excellent navigator ; he appears 
 perfectly at home on the vessel, and is more laborious 
 than any other captain I have ever seen. While I have 
 no occasion to find fault with his course in reference to 
 myself and family, I can speak in high commendation of 
 his conduct towards Mrs. Hooper and her children. He 
 was particularly attentive to their wants, while he- was 
 liberal with all the passengers on board ; and but for 
 strong drink, that great spoiler of humanity, he would 
 be one of the safest captains that sail upon the " grea' 
 deep." 
 
 From our experience on this vessel, I am fully pel 
 suaded that, where passengers and ships' crews suffer, as 
 is often the case, for the want of suitable provisions, it is 
 owing, in nine cases out of ten, to the penuriousness or 
 carelessness of owners and captains. No word of 
 complaint, however, can be preferred against the Leland, 
 for the quality of the fare which she afforded. Every 
 thing was in good time, and in good order ; and the 
 variety of meats, vegetables and sauce, with which the 
 table was furnished, was truly surprising to us, who, on 
 other vessels, had been accustomed to such different 
 fare. Besides his attention to the wants of the passen- 
 gers, Mr. Finlay proved himself to be a very agreeable 
 cabin companion. He is very much of a gentleman, 
 and having followed the seas for more than twenty 
 years, as supercargo, he has collected a vast fund of 
 general information. 
 
 It is often necessary to be subjected to a close con- 
 nection with others, for some length of time, in order to 
 be able to form correct opinions concerning them. Mrs. 
 Hooper wr found to be, not only a very benevolent 
 
*o raw TABS. Sll 
 
 person, but an agreeable associate in the cabin. We 
 shall often call to mind the many hours at sea wtiich 
 have been rendered more endurable by her intelligent 
 conversation and cheerful deportment. 
 
 Saturday, the 15th of March, the mountainous coast 
 of southern Africa disappeared in the dim distance. 
 
 For the first few days after leaving Table Bay, we 
 made but little progress, in consequence of adverse 
 winds, but the fourth day, we took the south-east trades, 
 and began to indulge the pleasing reflection, that the 
 next land we saw would be the shores of our own native 
 country, though there were checks thrown upon our 
 happiness by the consideration, that there were still 
 many dangers to pass, and storms to buffet, before we 
 should reach the desired haven. 
 
 The south-east trade-winds are not very strong, and 
 the ocean, in the region where they prevail, is generallj 
 smooth, and the weather pleasant ; consequently, it is ip 
 passing over these latitudes that vessels; homeward 
 bound, prepare for entering port. ' The vessel is to be 
 scrubbed, inside and out ; the decks are to be scraped, 
 holy-stoned, and varnished ; the spars are to be cleansed 
 and painted, and the bulwarks, masts, round-Jiouse 
 chains, guns, casks, buckets, and binacle,. are all to ba 
 scoured and painted. The rigging is to be overhauled 
 and tarred down ; empty boxes, barrels, and all unne- 
 cessary lumber, are to be cast overboard ; rent sails are 
 all to be mended, and put in perfect order, and every 
 thing, even to the anchor, is to put on, at least a 
 clean outside, so that the ship will make as good an ap- 
 pearance when she enters port as when she left. As 
 the Leland had been out nearly eighteen months, and in 
 that time having performed a voyage round the world, 
 she required much cleansing, and the seamen were 
 busily employed in accomplishing this object, for several 
 weeks. 
 
 While this work was going on, an accident happened 
 which produced a great excitement on board. We were 
 sailing before the wind at the rate of five knots an hour, 
 and a sailor boy, who was on the outside of the bul 
 
tit y»ta« no* mmnm «•*• 
 
 warks, scraping the fore chains, and was held to hit 
 place by a rope tied around his waist, and fastened to a 
 belaying-pin, from carelessness, lost his hold, and, as the 
 rope slipped upon the pin, he fell into the ocean. As he 
 was falling, he hallooed as loud as he could roar, for his 
 comrades to haul in the slack of the rope. As they did 
 not understand him, a cry was raised, that resounded 
 from the after cabin to the forecastle, that " a man was 
 overboard." The ladies in the cabin heard the cry, and 
 Mis. Hooper thought it was her little daughter, as she 
 heard the word " child," and Mrs. Hines thought I was 
 the unfortunate one, as she heard my name mentioned 
 in connection with " overboard." 
 
 Which of the two were most frightened, it is difficult 
 to tell. Mrs. Hooper was actually thrown into a fit, 
 and Mrs. Hines fainted, and neither of them, two weeks 
 afterwards, had entirely recovered from the shock. 
 
 As soon as the cry was raised, the mate seized a hen- 
 coop containing nine chickens, and cast it overboard,, 
 for the drowning man to hold upon until other relief 
 could be sent. But this was not necessary, as the rope 
 did not slip far on the pin before it held ; and as it re- 
 tained its hold on his body, the frightened tar, by the 
 assistance of his comrades, was soon again brought on 
 deck. 
 
 We were twenty-six days from the Cape of Good 
 Hope, to the equinoctial line, and had the good fortune 
 to pass from the south-east to the north-east trade, with 
 very little detention. In the region of the equator we 
 experienced numerous showers of rain, but as they 
 were accompanied by favorable breezes, we were soon 
 out of the rainy latitudes, and, by the assistance of a 
 strong north-east trade r were passing up into the regions 
 of the north, at the rate of. two hundred miles per day. 
 
 We crossed the equator in longitude thirty-six degrees, 
 and consequently were not far from the coast of Brazil. 
 In north latitude, twenty degrees, we approached so neai 
 the Island of Trinidad, as to discern its whereabouts, 
 and witness the immense columns of clouds which hung 
 around its lofty and volcanic summit From this ou 
 
TO NSW TOM SIS 
 
 course lay along, about two hundred miles to the wind 
 ward of the West India Islands. While passing these 
 we experienced a succession of squalls and calms which 
 continued until we entered the twenty-fifth degree of 
 north latitude. While in latitude twenty-four degrees 
 forty-one minutes, and longitude sixty-one degrees forty 
 minutes, on the 25thof April, we had a splendid view 
 of a solar eclipse. It was a remarkably clear day, and 
 the eclipse was so nearly total that it became quite dark. 
 At the greatest obscuration the south side of the sun 
 presented the appearance of the moon at thirty-six hours 
 old, and the light proceeding from it was not, in appear- 
 ance, unlike to the light of the moon on a clear winter'* 
 night. However common the phenomenon of an eclipse- 
 of the sun may be to us, far away upon the sea, it was 
 a source of real entertainment ; and we cheered our- 
 selves with the idea that many of our friends on lana 
 were perhaps gazing at the same object. . 
 
 A number of severe squalls while we were passing 
 the Bermudas, brought to mind the quaint lines of the 
 sailor • 
 
 "If Bermuda let you pan, 
 Look ye out for Hatteras ; 
 > If Hatteras yon pass by. 
 
 Look ye out for Cape Henry." 
 
 Bermuda, however, "let us pass" on the 25th of April, 
 and we began to flatter ourselves that our voyage would 
 soon be over. 
 
 When a person first leaves his native land and goes 
 to sea, the wonders of the deep are contemplated by 
 him with a great degree of interest. The monsters 
 that inhabit it — the whale r the shark, the porpoise — and 
 the various kinds of fish that explore its boundless ex- 
 tent ; together with the albatros, petrel, and other birds 
 which live almost perpetually on the wing, and are seen 
 alike in calms and storms in all latitudes, become, suc- 
 cessively, the objects of his curious observation. The 
 maimer in which the ship is managed, the peculiai 
 phrases which salute his ear, the tacking ■hip, tht 
 
314 VOYAttM FROM UOtiO CON* 
 
 making sail, the shortening sail, and a thoustmu uu«=i 
 things, conspire to interest and divert him. And, indeed, 
 to the curious, the sea does not present that dull mono- 
 tony of which so many voyagers have complained. 
 
 However, subjects contemplated. with great interest 
 on an outward voyage, do not claim the same attention 
 when one is bound for home, after an absence of seven 
 or eight years. The absorbing topic with us on ap- 
 proaching our native coast, was the distance we were 
 -sailing from day to day, and the probable time we should 
 reach our much desired haven. We had been absent 
 nearly seven years ; and while approximating our native 
 shores, a thousand thoughts revolved in our minds in 
 reference to the circumstances in which we might find 
 those persons and things that were interesting to us 
 before subjecting ourselves to our voluntary exile. We 
 had left a large circle of friends, and from many of them 
 we had heard nothing for seven long years. As we had 
 been situated in the most isolated country on the globe, 
 the information we had received concerning the state 
 of our own religious denomination, had been very limit; 
 ed, and usually more than one year old when obtained. 
 
 The numerous changes which must have taken place 
 in the different localities and social, circles in which it 
 had been our privilege to move, had been kept from our 
 knowledge. Indeed, a pall of darkness had long since 
 fallen upon most of those things which were particularly 
 interesting to us as private individuals ; and from the 
 uncertainty of every thing before us, we scarcely knew 
 whether to be elated or dejected — to indulge in feelings 
 uf joy or those ol sorrow^-when we reflected that in a 
 low more days the hills and valleys of our own New 
 York would appear before us, and we should be permit- 
 ted again to visit those planes rendered dear to us by 
 many hallowing associations Whether we were to be 
 greeted by our friends on our arrival, or 'whether we 
 were to learn that they were dead, was altogether pro- 
 blematical, and we began to indulge the melancholy 
 reflection that we might find ourselves strangers even 
 in 1 our own native village. 
 
tO NEW YOKE. 41* 
 
 While the different changes which might have taken 
 piace in the various departments of church and state, 
 and in the families with which we had been acquainted, 
 were passing before our minds, our gallant vessel was 
 ■gearing us rapidly onward towards our native shores, 1 
 and on the 30th of April we entered the Gulf Stream in 
 atitude thirty-six degrees north, and found this terror 
 of the American coast in a remarkably quiet state, as it 
 usually is when westerly winds prevail. We were 
 sixteen hours in crossing the stream, and on the 1st day 
 of May found ourselves on soundings, off the Capes of 
 Virginia. 
 
 It is a singular fact often eliciting remarks from voy- 
 agers, though it is none the less remarkable on that 
 account, that the water in the Gulf Stream is fifteen 
 degrees warmer than it is on either side. , Before 
 reaching it from the south, the water for a great dis- 
 tance was full of an aquatic plant called the gulf-weed. 
 As every object at sea commands the notice of the 
 voyager, the sea-weed was observed with no smaV 
 interest 
 
 On getting past the stream, in the evening we were 
 permitted to see a grand display of Nature's fire-works. 
 The clouds that hung over the stream in dense masses, 
 were lighted up by the continued flashes of electricity, 
 with the most magnificent illumination. Sometimes it 
 would appear as if the whole ocean in our rear was in 
 one general conflagration. 
 
 After leaving the stream we were favored with 
 remarkably pleasant weather ana fair winds, and on the 
 morning of the 2d day of May, at three o'clock, we 
 made the lighthouse of Barnegat, on the coast of New 
 Jersey. Soon after daylight we received a New Yont 
 pilot, at which time our voyage was considered as ter- 
 minated ; making one hundred and two days from Hong 
 Kong. After receivine the pilot, a dense fog enveloped 
 us, through which we had to feel our way, and in the 
 midst of which we were hovering around the entrance 
 to New York Bay. At length the fog was removed by 
 a friendly wind, and at dusk the Leland dropped hei 
 
SIC MOWB EONW TO lf»W Ttt*E. 
 
 anchor inside of Sandy Hook, and within a stouo ■ 
 
 of the spot where lay the Lausanne the night previous 
 
 to taking her departure in 1839. 
 
 We were detained at the Hook by dense fogs until 
 the 4th of May, when we proceeded up the Bay to 
 New York city, where we landed in safety on the 
 evening of that d»y. 
 
CHAPTER XV3L 
 
 Ongca Territory — lu geography — Boundary and extent — Harbors — Capes - 
 Faee of the country — gnaw Mountains — Riven — Mouth of the Columbia - 
 Columbia Bar — Channel — Kinds of fish — Timber — Climate — Summer and 
 Winter — Fertility of the soil — Clatsop Plains — Bottom lands — Puget's 
 Sound — The garden of Oregon — Middle region — Upper region — Capabilities 
 of the country. 
 
 That portion of the vast extent of country lying 
 west of the Rocky Mountains, which has acquired, by 
 univ&nsa. consent, the name of Oregon, lies within the 
 following boundaries : Commencing at the north-wesf 
 earner, in the centre of the Strait of Juan De Fuca, at 
 its mouth, consider the north line as extending along 
 said strait, at an equal distance from the main land on 
 i the south, and Vancouver's Island on the north, east 
 ward, the distance of one hundred and twenty miles, 
 thence northward till it strikes the forty-ninth parallel 
 of north latitude, thence due east along said parallel the 
 distance of five hundred and fifty miles, to, the Rocky 
 Mountains ; on the east by the Rocky Mountains, ex- 
 tending from the forty^ninth parallel of north latitude, 
 to the forty-first, the distance of four hundred and 
 eighty miles ; on the south by the Snowy Mountains, 
 which extend, in a continuous range, from the Rocky 
 Mountains to Cape Mendocino, on the Pacific, the dis- 
 tance of seven hundred miles ; and on the west by ( the 
 Pacific ocean, from Cape Mendocino, five hundred and 
 twenty miles due north, to the mouth of the Strait of 
 Juan De Fuca, near Cape Flattery, the place of begin- 
 ning. Since the dividing line between the two govern- 
 ments which have an interest and have exercised a 
 controlling influence in the country, has bow beaa de 
 
818 0*aOOW TBBBITOBT. 
 
 fined, and the forty-ninth parallel is hereafter, forever, w 
 separate the two nations, it remains no longer a subject 
 of discussion ; but any one, in casting his eye over a 
 correct map of the country west of the Rocky Moun- 
 tains, will discover at one glance, that a more natural 
 division than the one which has been established, would 
 have been a line extending from Puget's Sound north-east 
 wardly along the summit of the highlands, which separate 
 the waters of the Columbia from those of Frazer's river, 
 to the Rocky Mountains, so as to embrace in Oregon all 
 the territory drained by the Columbia river. This would 
 have given a natural boundary to the country on all 
 sides, while the forty-ninth parallel is a very unnatural 
 one, because, in cr6ssing the great valley of the Colum- 
 bia, it puts asunder that which the God of nature ha» 
 joined together. 
 
 The boundary as defined, gives Oregon about six 
 hundred and forty miles of coast on the Pacific ocean 
 and Strait of Fuca. The shores of the strait are com- 
 posed of beaches of sand or stones, overhung by sandy 
 and rocky cliffs, and from these the land ascends gradu- 
 ally to the foot of the mountains, which rise abruptly to 
 a great height within a few miles of the ocean. The 
 coast along the Pacific is nearly straight from north to 
 south, in some places iron-bound, and in others composed 
 of low beaches of sand. ' 
 
 The harbors, or places of refuge for vessels along the 
 Oregon coast, are very few, and, if we except Puget's 
 Sound, with its numerous arms stretching far inland, 
 there are none* of the first quality. At the mouth of 
 the Umpqua river there is a tolerable harbor for small 
 craft, and the channel across the bar will admit of the 
 entrance of vessels, drawing eight feet. Bulfinch's 
 harbor, discovered by Captain Robert Gray, of Boston, 
 in 1792, is situated forty miles north of the mouth of 
 the Columbia, and by artificial means may be constituted-; 
 a safe anchorage. Port Discovery, situated near the 
 south-east angle of the Strait of Fuea, is pronounced 
 perfectly safe, and convenient for ships of any size. If 
 
OKMON TUKITOBT. Sit 
 
 is defended from the violence of the waves by Protection 
 Island. 
 
 The most important harbor on the coast is that formed 
 by the mouth of the Columbia river, as it constitutes a 
 port of entry to the most important portions of Oregon. 
 This harbor, though difficult of access in the winter 
 seasonj when the prevailing winds on the coast are from 
 the south and east, may, at other times, be safely entered 
 by vessels drawing not more than sixteen feet, particu- 
 larly if the navigator is acquainted with the intricacies 
 of the channel. But this river, with its mouth, Will be 
 more particularly described hereafter. 
 
 There are but few Capes along this coast, and hone 
 that project far into the ocean ; the shores being gene- 
 rally straight, bold and unbroken. The principal are 
 Cape Blanco, which is a high point of land extending 
 into the ocean between the Clameth and UmpqUa 
 rivers, and nearly under the forty-third parallel of lati- 
 tude ; Cape Disappointment, on the north side of the 
 mouth of the Columbia river, and Cape Flattery, on the 
 south side of the mouth of the Strait of Fuca. Cape 
 Disappointment, however, does not properly class with 
 die important Capes along the Pacific coast, as it does 
 aot extend into the ocean, but is, at least, three miles 
 inside the bar of the Columbia. But it holds a promi- 
 nent place on all our maps and charts, as, from its pe- 
 culiar location and the appearance of the majestic fir- 
 trees upon its top, it forms an unerring guide to the 
 storm-beaten sailor, who is desirous of seeking shelter 
 in the quiet and peaceful waters of Baker's Bay. 
 
 There are no islands of importance between Capes 
 Mendocino and Flattery. One is found, however, lying 
 about forty miles south of Cape Flattery, and named, by 
 the Spaniards, the " Isle of Grief," in commemoration of 
 the loss of some of their men, who were destroyed by 
 the natives on -the adjacent coast 
 
 The face of this country is wonderfully diversified, 
 and presents every variety of scenery, from the most 
 awfully grand and sublime, to the most beautiful and 
 picturesque in nature. 
 
M> OftKOON TBBEITOKT. 
 
 The country, in the vicinity of Pugefs Sound, to a 
 considerable extent, is level and beautiful, with the ex- 
 ception of which, all along the coast, it is broken and 
 mountainous. On approaching the coast, at the mouth 
 of the Columbia river, ridges of high lands appear on 
 either hand, as far as the eye can reach, while the more 
 elevated points serve as land-marks, to guide the mari- 
 ner across the dreaded bar. The most remarkable of 
 these elevations is one, called by the Indians, "The 
 Swallalahoost," and celebrated by them as the place 
 where one of their mighty chiefs, who, after death, as- 
 sumed the form of a monstrous eagle, and taking wing, 
 flew to the top of this mountain, and subsequently be- 
 came the creator of the lightning and the thunder. 
 Prom this tradition, as well as from the appearance of 
 the mountain, it is supposed by some, that it might pos- 
 sibly have once been an active volcano. Captain Wilkes, 
 rn his exploring visit to the country, gave it the name 
 ot " Saddle Mountaiif," froin the resemblance of its top 
 to the shape of a saddle. With but little variation, the 
 country south of the Columbia, from thirty to fifty 
 miles back from the ocean, and extending the whole 
 extent of the Oregon coast, presents the same rough, 
 wild<and mountainous aspect. Doubtless, this region is 
 destined to be occupied by civilized man,.but not until 
 there is no room left in the numerous valleys of this 
 wide-spread country. 
 
 Having passed over this range of high lands along the 
 coast, you descend, on the north side of the Columbia, 
 iuto the valley of the Cowilitz, and on the south, into 
 that of the Wallamette river, and still farther soutU 
 you come down on the plains which lie on the Umpaua 
 and Clameth rivers. The valley of the Cowilitz is 
 about forty miles in length, and varying from ten r.o 
 twenty in breadth, and extends east to the foot of mat 
 range of mountains of which " St. Helen's " tW e Mount 
 Adams of Americans, is the highest peak. The Walla 
 mette valley is more extensive, being from fifty to eighty 
 miles broad, and more than two hunH«-ad miles long.. 
 The plains on the Umpqua, which commence abouA 
 
otcoow vntrroiY SI 
 
 forty-five miles back from the ocean, are quite extensive, 
 and, with those on the Clameth, and the Wallamette 
 valley, extend east to that range of mountains, which, 
 crossing the Columbia river, form the Cascades, and 
 are therefore called the " Cascade Mountains." 
 
 Throughout these valleys are scattered numberless 
 hillocks and rising grounds, from the top of some of 
 which, scenery, as enchanting as was ever presented to 
 the eye, delights and charms the lover of nature, who 
 takes time to visit their conical summits. 
 
 The whole extent of country from the Cascade moun- 
 tains to the Pacific ocean, varying in breadth from 
 seventy-five to one hundred and twenty miles, is called 
 the Lower Country. 
 
 The Cascade mountains extend in one continuous 
 range, parallel with the coast, quite to California, and 
 have therefore some times been called " The California 
 Mountains." 
 
 Those whose highest observations have been limited 
 to the Catskill and Alleghany mountains, can form no 
 just conception of the grandeur and magnificence of 
 this stupendous range. Some of its loftiest summits are 
 more than fifteen thousand feet above the level of the 
 ocean, and Mount Olympus, near Cape Flattery, and St. 
 Helen's, near the head of the Cowilitz river, and fifty 
 miles from the coast, can both be seen for some distance 
 at sea. , 
 
 These highest points are covered with eternal snow, 
 and, presenting their rounded tops to the heavens; ap- 
 pear like so many magnificent domes, to adorn the 
 temple of nature. 'From one elevation near the Walla- 
 mette river, and at the distance of from sixty to one 
 hundred arid fifty miles, the writer has counted eight of 
 these snow-topped mountains, without moving from his 
 tracks. Surety, no scenery can be more enchanting. 
 One of these mountains, St. Helen's, requires a more 
 particular account, from a phenomenon which it pre- 
 sented a few years ago. In the month of October 
 184;«, it was discovered, all at once, to be covered with 
 a dense cloud of smoke, which continued to enlarge, and 
 14 
 
322 •BZeON TKRRITOltr. 
 
 move off, in dense masses, to the eastward, and filling 
 the heavens in that direction, presented an appearance 
 like that occasioned by a tremendous conflagration, 
 viewed at a vast distance. When the first volumes of 
 smoke had passed away, it could be distinctly seen, from 
 various parts of the country, that an eruption had taken 
 place on the north side of St. Helen's, a little below the 
 summit, and from the smoke that continued to issue 
 from the chasm or crater, it was pronounced to be a 
 volcano in active operation. When the explosion took 
 place, the wind was north-west, and on the same day,] 
 and extending from thirty to fifty miles to the south- 
 east, ,there fell showers of ashes, or dust, which covered 
 the ground in some places, so as to admit of its being 
 collected in quantities. This last phenomenon has been 
 of frequent occurrence, and has led many to suppose 
 that volcanic eruptions are not uncommon in this coun- 
 try. 
 
 St. Helen's is the most regular in its form and the most 
 beautiful in its appearance of all the snow-capped moun- 
 tains of Oregon ; and though on the north side of the 
 Columbia, it belongs to the Cascade range. Mount 
 Hood, or Mount Washington^ as it is sometimes called by 
 Americans, is on the south side of the Columbia, and 
 being larger, and more elevated than St. Helen's, presertit 
 a magnificent object, on which the eye can gaze without 
 weariness, from innumerable points more than one hun 
 dred miles from its base. But any description of these 
 gigantic piles of basalt and snow, must fall far below the 
 reality ; and indeed, the person desiring to realize all the 
 delightful sensations produced by the scenery of these 
 mountains, must fix himself on some eminence in the 
 Wallamette valley, where all of them at once come in 
 contact with his vision, and he will want no farther 
 proof that the works of art sink into insignificance, when 
 compared with the stupendous works of nature. 
 
 Descending these mountains to the east, you come 
 into the valleys, successively, through which the rivet 
 " De Shoots," John Day's river, the Unatila, wid the 
 Walla- Walla flow, before emptying into the Columbia ; 
 
OIBS6N TEBKIT9BT 1SS 
 
 and on the nortn side of the latter river, you come down 
 into the valley of the north branch of the same river. 
 On the north, this middle region is comparatively level, 
 until you approach the northern ridges of the Blue 
 mountains ; but on the south side there are innumerable 
 hills between the small rivers already mentioned, as also 
 many plains of greater or less extent. As you approach 
 the Blue mountains on the south, particularly on the 
 Unatilla and Walla- Walla rivers, the hills disappear, and 
 you find yourself passing over a beautiful and level 
 country, about twenty-five or thirty miles- broad, on the 
 farther borders of which rise with indescribable beauty 
 and grandeur, that range which, from its azure-like ap- 
 pearance, has been called the " Blue Mountains." This 
 valley, extending from the Cascade to the Blue moun- 
 tains, is about one hundred and seventy-five miles broad, 
 and the traveler in passing through it, meets with a con- 
 tinued succession of" rocks, hills and plains of all dimen- 
 sions, but generally he is well pleased with the face of 
 he country. 
 
 The Blue mountains are steep and rockyi and many of 
 them also volcanic. Some are covered with perpetual 
 snow. 
 
 , They run nearly parallel with the Cascade mountains, 
 though at the south branches of them intersect the latter 
 range. They are about midway between the Pacific 
 ocean and the Rocky mountains. 
 
 The face of the country east of the Blue mountains 
 is, if possible, more varied thaD it is west The southern 
 part of this third region, or upper country, so far as its 
 surface is concerned, is distinguished by its steep and 
 rugged mountains deep and dismal valleys, called holes, 
 by mountaineers, and wide granite plains. It wears a 
 forbidding aspect. But the north part is 1 less objectiona- 
 ble in its features. The plains are more extensive, the 
 mountains less precipitous, and the valleys not so gloomy. 
 Many portions of this upper region are volcanic, and 
 some of the volcanoes are in constant action. 
 
 On the eastern limits of this region, rise the towering 
 summits of the Rocky mountains, wnicn form at ones 
 
Hi «BX«0K TKMUtOlY. 
 
 the eastern boundary of Oregon, and are every mj 
 wo/thy to separate the waters of the Atlantic ocean 
 from those of the Pacific. In fine, so far as the external 
 appearance of this country is concerned, in contem- 
 plating its distinguished features, one is brought to the 
 conclusion that there is nothing in all the descriptions of 
 European or Oriental scenery, that surpasses that of this 
 interesting country. 
 
 The rivers of Oregon form the next distinguishing; 
 trait Of the country to be described. These are princi- 
 pally embraced in the Columbia and its tributaries. 
 
 This majestic river, which drains nearly the whole of 
 Oregon, like most of the large rivers of North America, 
 is^supphed from the inexhaustible reservoirs of the Rocky 
 mountains. Some of the more important oonfluents of 
 this river require to be particularly noticed. ; 
 
 The most northerly branch of- the Columbia is Canoe s 
 fiver, which rises near the fifty-fourth degree of latitude, j 
 »nd after running about one hundred miles in a southerly 
 direction, unites with two others, one of which rises in a 
 tremendous gorge of the Rocky mountains, under the 
 fifty-third parallel, and the other flows from the soutb 
 about two hundred, miles along the base of the moun- 
 tains. A traveler, in describing this gorge, says : "The 
 country around our encampment presented the wildest 
 and most terrific appearance of desolation. The sun, 
 shining on a range of stupendous glaciers, threw a, chill- 
 ing brightness over the chaotic mass- of rocks, ice and 
 snow, by which we were environed: Close to our en- 
 campment one gigantic mountain of conical form towered 
 majestically into the clouds far above the others, while 
 at intervals the interest of the scene was heightened by 
 the rumbling nojse of a descending avalanche. 
 
 The mountain here referred to, is supposed to be the 
 highest point of land in North America. The south 
 river, being the largest of the three, is entitled to be 
 called the Columbia, to its rise, which takes place in a 
 small lake situated in the mountains, nearly under the 
 fiftieth parallel of north latitude. After the junction of 
 
•KES9N T«KIT«IT. Stt 
 
 touth for two hundred miles, receiving a number of 
 small rivers in its passage, and then unites its waten 
 with those of the Mc Gillivry and the Clark rivers, 
 both of which come rushing down from the Rocky 
 mountains, to swell its increasing tide. The Clark takes 
 its rise near the sources of the Missouri, and, in its pas- 
 sage to the Columbia, receives a number of smaller 
 streams. This river rushes into the Columbia down a 
 ledge of rocks, and the latter, in its passage through 
 the Blue mountains, immediately after the junction, 
 forms the Kittle Falls. From this point the river takes 
 nearly a western course, one hundred miles, where it 
 takes in the Okanagan from the north, having previously 
 received the Spokan from the south and east.. At this 
 point the river makes another bend, and taking a due 
 south course about one hundred and fifty miles, to the 
 forty-sixth degree of north latitude, unites with its great 
 southern branch, called the " Snake, or Lewis River.' 
 
 This stream takes its rise in the -Rocky and Snowj 
 mountains, near the sources of the Colorado, the Piatt* 
 the Yellow Stone, and the Missouri rivers. It first takes 
 a western course about two hundred miles, thence north- 
 west about two hundred and fifty, to its junction with its 
 kindred branch from the north. It passes through the 
 Blue mountains, forming the Salmon Falls, and receives, 
 in its course, the Henry, Melade, Wapicacoos, the Koos- 
 kooske, or Salmon river, and a number of other streams. 
 
 Below the junction of these two great branches, the 
 Columbia receives, on the south, the Walla Walla, Una- 
 tilla, John Day's $|§<$'i and the De Shoots, or Falls 
 river ; and, after shooting itself through the Dalls, or 
 Narrows, where it becomes compressed to about one 
 hundred and fifty feet wide, and in passing through the 
 narrow chasm, forms, at some stages^ the most frightftf 
 whirlpools, it glides gently and smoothly onward about 
 forty miles, and then throws itself through a terrific 
 ehasm, which ; ts accumulated waters have torn in the 
 mountains, and rushing down a ledge of rocks, forms the 
 beautiful cascades. 
 
 Above the Dalls, the river, in many places, is very 
 
ft* ©»■•©* T«»miT»tT. 
 
 rapid, ana in one place, a short distance from the lV 
 Shoots, in low water, there is a peipendicular fall of 
 several feet But, when the river is high, the water sets 
 back from the narrows below, so as to admit of th< 
 
 Eassage of boats up and down. The Cascades cannot, 
 owever, be run with boats either in high water or Iom . 
 
 Many a poor voyager in the service of the Hudson's 
 Bay Company, both at the Cascades and the Dalls, has 
 lost his life in attempting to navigate these treacherous 
 waters. A boat filled with American emigrants, in at- 
 tempting to run the Dalls last fall, was drawn down 
 in one of the tremendous whirlpools, and, though the 
 shore was lined with people, two or three persons sunk 
 and perished before their eyes. 
 
 Below the Cascades the river continues rapid a few 
 miles, but soon becomes effected by the tide. The dis- 
 tance from the Cascades to the Pacific, is about one 
 hundred and forty miles, and the river is navigable for " 
 vessels drawing fourteen feet, nearly the whole distance.!:; 
 The rivers which fall into the Columbia below the Cas^ 
 cades are, the Quicksand and the Wallamette, on the 
 south, and the Cowilitz on the north; The Wallamette 
 takes its rise in the Cascade mountains, and in that range 
 of high lands which border the Pacific ocean. In pass- 
 ing up the Wallamette from its mouth, the first brapch 
 of importance you discover, is the Clakamas, on the east 
 or left-hand side, as you go up the stream, and twenty- 
 foui miles from the upper mouth of the Wallamette. 
 This river rises in, Mount Hood, and passes through a 
 rough country ; though there is occasionally a fine plain 
 on its banks. One mile above the mouth of Clakamas 
 is the Wallamette falls. 
 
 Here the river rushes over a precipice of rocks thirty 
 feet perpendicular in low water, 
 i But the river below the falls often rises so high that 
 there are but from six to ten feet perpendicular falls. 
 This is a most beautiful cataract, and the hydraulic pri- 
 vileges which it affords, and which are beginning to be 
 extensively used, are almost boundless. ■ 
 
 Two miles above the falls you come to the mouth «f 
 
OMOON TERKITOKT. 137 
 
 the Tuality, which comes into the Wallamette from the 
 west, or on the right-hand as you ascend the river. 
 This river rises in the high lands towards the coast, in a 
 Dumber of little streams which water the beautiful and 
 somewhat extensive plains, which, are called " The Tu- 
 ality Plains." 
 
 This river, though small, will ultimately be of con- 
 siderable importance to the country, as it. can easily 
 be made navigable for boats far into the plains, and some 
 of the smaller branches, thirty and forty miles from the 
 Willamette, may be *advantageously used for the pur- 
 pose of driving different kinds of machinery. Ten miles 
 above the Tuality you arrive at the mouth of the Molala 
 and Hanchauke rivers. These two unite but a short 
 distance before they empty into the Wallamette. The 
 Molala rises in the Cascade mountains, but the source 
 of the Hanchauke is in a lake situated midway between 
 the Wallamette river and the base of that range. They 
 both water extensive and beautiful plains, in their ser- 
 pentine course to the Wallamette. 
 
 Fifteen miles above thes& rivers, you come to the 
 mouth of the Yamhill, which rises in the Kilemook hills 
 towards the ocean and, after meandering for thirty or 
 forty miles through one of the most beautiful portions 
 of the Wallamette valley, and, with its tributaries 
 watering the extended plains through which it flows, it 
 rushes down a ledge of rocks a few feet, forming a 
 beautiful cascade, and hastens to mingle its waters with 
 those of the Wallamette. Proceeding up the stream, 
 and passing a number of small ones on each side, after 
 going twenty-two miles, you arrive at what is called 
 Mill Creek, which comes into the Wallamette from the 
 south-east. It is a small stream, but from its flowing 
 through a beautiful, excellent and central portion of the 
 valley, and affording some very fine water-privileges, ft 
 is regarded as being a very important branch of the 
 Wallamette. 
 
 Six miles above this comes in the Rickreal, from the 
 west, which can also boast of its priviliges for milling 
 operations and of watering a splendid portion of ih« 
 country. 
 
•*E«OK TKUITOKT. 
 
 Eight or ten miles above the Rickreal, comes dancing 
 down into the Wallamette, from the east, the "Santa 
 Am's Fork," being fed by the numerous rivulets which 
 rise in the Cascade range. This is a very considerable 
 stream, and from the facilities which it offers for water 
 power, and from the nature of the country through, ■ 
 which it flows, may be regarded as second in importance '„ 
 to none of the tributaries of the Wallamette. 
 
 Above this, as far as you are disposed to advance, the 
 tributaries of the Wallamette are numerous on each 
 side, but resembling those already described in their 
 sources, dimensions and importance, as well as in the 
 nature of the country through which they flow, do not 
 require to be separately considered. 
 
 The principal branch of the Wallamette rises in a 
 snow-clad mountain, called, by British fur traders*'' 
 "Mount McLaughlin," but by Mr. Kelly, an American 
 citizen, " Mount Madison." Its general course is north 
 and after running about two hundred and fifty miles, it 
 divides, and forming a long narrow Island, called Wap- 
 pato Island, the upper channel empties into the Colum- 
 bia si* miles below Fort Vancouver, and ninety miles 
 from the Pacific ocean, and the lower channel, eighteen 
 miles below the upper mouth. It has been generally - 
 supposed that the Wallamette river runs through a flat, 
 sunken country, and is therefore a sluggish ■ and muddy 
 stream, than which nothing can be more erroneous. 
 True, from its union with the Columbia, for fifteen miles 
 up, it bears that character, but above this, the general 
 velocity of the current is from three to six miles an 
 hour, and its bed is either gravel, rock, or sand ; while 
 nothing can exceed the cleanliness and beauty of its 
 shore? It is navigable for vessels drawing twelve feet, 
 fifteen miles above its upper mouth, and for steamboats, 
 quite up to the Falls. A great portion of the year it is 
 navigable for light steamboats, for fifty or sixty miles 
 above the Falls. In fine, the Wallamette, with its nu- 
 merous tributaries, arising from its susceptibilities o f 
 navigation, its boundless water privileges, the extent, 
 beauty, and amar'ng resources of the countrv which "1 
 
OK*«PT» TKKKITOIT. S9» 
 
 Waters, may be considered as the most interesting and 
 important tributary of the Columbia. 
 
 This great artery of Oregon, twelve miles below the 
 lower mouth -f the Wallamette, receives the Cowilitz 
 from the north, the last river of any magnitude, which 
 contributes to swell its mighty flood, till it reaches the 
 Pacific ocean. The Cowilitz rises in Mount St. Helen's, 
 and in its passage to the Columbia, flows, in a rapid cur- 
 rent, through a valley of considerable farming impor- 
 tance. 
 
 The Columbia below the Cascades, and after having 
 swallowed up all its important tributaries, is from one 
 mile to a mile and a half in width, until you reach to 
 within twenty-five miles of the ocean. Here it opens to 
 the width of four or five miles, forming, on the south 
 shore, Swan Bay. In this bay, or rather broad space of 
 the river, are a number of low sandy islands already 
 , formed, while others appear to be forming in various 
 places. At the foot of this bay, is Tongue Point, which 
 is a high rocky promontory extending into the river from 
 the south shore. From this point to the high bluff ok 
 the north shore, the river is six miles wide. Here the 
 ship channel runs nearly straight across the river, and it 
 generally requires, from the shallowness and intricacy 
 of the channel, two or three days to pass thrpughat. 
 Betow Tongue point, the river again widens' to eight or 
 ten miles, and a deep indentation on the north shore; and 
 above Chenook point, is called " Gray's Bay," and nearly 
 opposite and between ' Tongue point and George's point, 
 and ten milels from the mouth, is the harbor of Astoria. 
 
 Between the latter point and Point Adams, is Young's 
 Bay, which extends some ways back inland, and receives 
 a river called Lewis' and Clark's river. This is a beautiful 
 bay, about five miles broad, and the ship channel passes 
 directly across its mouth. After swelling out and form- 
 ing the two bays above described, the river becomes 
 again contracted, so that from Point Adams to Chenook 
 point, it is only five miles wide. On the north side, 
 between Chenook point and Cape Disappointment, is 
 Baker's Bay, which, being sheltered from the winds by 
 14* 
 
S10 •■mow mimiT. 
 
 the high lands and timber which surround it, is a saft 
 and comfortable harbor. The distance from Point Adami 
 to Cape Disappointment is six miles. 
 
 From the former is a channel which runs straight into 
 the ocean in nearly a south-west direction, and no where 
 less than thirty feet deep and one third of a mile wide. 
 But the channel generally used, both for ingress and 
 egress, turns north-west from. Young's Bay, and passing 
 round on the north-east side of Sand Island, which lies 
 in the mouth of the river between the two Capes, takes 
 a sweep around, close under Cape Disappointment, and 
 thence in a southerly direction about three mile's, where 
 it unites with the south channel, and thus becoming 
 one, their course across the last and most formidable bar 
 of the Columbia, is south-west by west. Between the 
 two channels there is an extensive bar, or island of sand, 
 which is bare at low water, but the two channels to 
 gether encompass this on all sides. 
 
 From Point Adams and from the shore around, and a 
 little to the west of Cape Disappointment, and converg- 
 ing towards each other, proceed those two large sand- 
 bars, which, meeting at the distance of four miles from 
 each point, form that fearful obstacle to the navigation 
 of these waters — the Bar of the Columba. The chan- 
 nel across this bar is five fathoms deep and a half of a 
 mile wide. When the wind .is high from the south and 
 west, the waves of the Pacific and the torrents of the 
 Columbia meet upon this bar with the most terrific 
 violence, producing a line of breakers, often extending 
 from one point fb the other, and calculated from their 
 frightful appearance to appal even the heart of a storm- 
 beaten sailor. "Vessels bound to the Columbia have 
 often been obliged to lie off and on at this point, for 
 weeks in succession, before an opportunity offered for 
 them to cross the bar. And on desiring to leave, they 
 have sometimes been under the necessity of lying snug 
 under the lee of Cape Disappointment for fifty or sixty 
 days, the passage out meanwhile being continually block 
 ed up by these formidable breakers. This, however, ' 
 not the case, except in the winter or spring. 
 
•■■••If TEKKIT*BT. SB1 
 
 Doubtless there are rivers in the world which afford a 
 greater variety of fish, than this, but perhaps there are 
 none that supply greater quantities. Sturgeon are 
 caught in abundance, but salmon is the principal fish. 
 Of these there are various kinds, but in this country they 
 are generally distinguished by the names spring-salmon 
 and fall-salmon. They literally fill the rivers of Oregon, 
 in their season. And at all the falls and cascades in the 
 various rivers of the country, the quantities taken and that 
 might be taken, are beyond all calculation. As they pene- 
 trate far into the interior, jhey afford almost inexhaustible 
 supplies to the Indian tribes of the country, as well as the 
 whites, many of whom depend almost entirely upon such 
 supplies, for the first year, after settling in the country. 
 The Umpqua and Clameth rivers both rise in the Cascade 
 range, and both empty into the Pacific ocean. They both 
 pass through beautiful and extensive valleys, but towar 
 the coast, are hemmed in by mountains of rock. '' 
 
 They afford also abundant supplies of salmon, which 
 are caught at the Falls and Cascades. At the mouth of 
 the Umpqua is a harbor into which small vessels may 
 enter in safety, wind and tide favoring. This river i» 
 navigable for small steamboats twenty-five miles from 
 its mouth. 
 
 The timber of Oregon is not of a great variety. The 
 only forests are those composed of fir. This kind of 
 timber abounds on the Columbia, for one hundred and 
 fifty miles from its mouth, among the mountains that 
 border the Pacific, or the lower parts of the Umpqua 
 and Clameth rivers, in various parts of the Wallamette 
 valley, and along the base, on both sides of the Cascade 
 mountains. This timber, in various parts of the country, 
 grows to an almost incredible size. It is no uncommon 
 thing to find trees from twenty-four to thirty-six feet in 
 circumference, and three hundred feet high. One was 
 measured near Astoria or Fort George, and was forty- 
 six feet in circumference, ten feet from the - ground. 
 This tree has been cut' down, but the writer has ex- 
 amined the stump and is certain that the tree has not 
 
tti OMMM TEKKITORT. 
 
 been misrepresented. If possible, on tht Umpqua river, 
 the fir grows longer than on the Columbia. Here, ai 
 also in some parts of the Wallamette valley, the forests 
 are truly magnificent 
 
 This is the principal timber used in the country, both 
 for framing, joinery and fencing purposes. Cargoes of 
 it are shipped annually to the Sandwich Islands, where 
 it finds a ready market at a high price. Besides this, 
 there is a species of the yellow pine, which, however, is 
 not of a very excellent quality, nor does it grow in great 
 abundance. The oak is quite plenty in the Wallamette 
 and the Umpqua valleys, and is considered, next to the 
 fir, the most valuable timber in the country. 
 
 In the upper parts of the Wallamette and Umpqua 
 valleys, timber is very scarce, and if ithese portions are 
 ever settled, as doubtless will be the case, building and 
 fencing materials will be brought from the surrounding 
 mountains, a few miles distant. Along the rivers of this 
 lower country may also be found, in considerable quan- 
 tities, the cotton-wood, alder, ash, willow, dog-wood, 
 and white maple. The laurel is also indigenous to the 
 country, and cedar of an inferior quality, abounds in 
 some places. 
 
 Beside these, there is a variety of shrubbery, among 
 which are the service-berry, crab-apple, hazle-nut, and 
 swamp maple. In the middle region, or between the 
 Cascade and Blue mountains, timber is very scarce ; the 
 trees are generally small, and of soft, useless woods, such 
 as cotton- wood, sumach and willow, and found only in 
 the neighborhood of the streams. In the Blue mountains 
 are found quantities of pine, which, in the event of the 
 settlement of the beautiful valleys of the middle country, 
 may be rafted down the rivers, which pass through the 
 mountains, to almost any point below, which, indeed is 
 already done on the dear Water and Walla Walla 
 rivers. But many parts of the country, and particularly 
 of the middle region, must forever remain destitute of 
 timber, and if ever occupied by any people except sava- 
 jre*. substitutes for building and fencing purposes must 
 
••■•ON TCKMTOKY. ttl 
 
 take the place of the fine fir, oak, pine mi ash of the 
 lower country. This scarcity of timber is quite a draw- 
 back on many portions of the country. 
 
 The climate of Oregon varies materially as you pro- 
 ceed from the coast into the interior. To a proper 
 understanding of the nature of the climate of this coun- 
 try, it is necessary to consider the winter and the sum 
 mer separately and somewhat particularly. The winds 
 which prevail here, as in every other p3rt of Oregon in 
 the winter, are from the south and east, sometimes 
 veering to the south-west. There is no definite period 
 in the fall when these winds commence blowing, but the 
 different seasons vary much in this respect. Sometimes 
 we have a touch of them, about the twentieth of Sep- 
 tember, but this is regarded only as a timely monition of 
 what we are subsequently 'to realize. Some seasons these 
 winds set in for gdod about the tenth or fifteenth of Octo- 
 ber, but others, they do not come till late in November. 
 It is impossible to calculate precisely when they will 
 begin to blow, or, in other words, when an Oregon win- 
 ter will decidedly set in. The commencement may be 
 considered as ranging from the first of October to the 
 first of January ; and the medium is about the middle of, 
 November. Sometimes they come on gradually, but 
 some seasons they burst upon the country at once, and 
 with the violence of a thunder storm. These winds 
 ilways bring with them continued falls of rain ; and 
 therefore the period of their continuance is property 
 called the rainy season. 
 
 Along the Pacific coast these storms are more violent 
 »nd the rains more abundant than they are in the Walla 
 mer <? valley. When fully set in, these rains generally 
 continue, with occasionally a very short interval, for two 
 or three months, and sometimes four, after which there 
 is usually a month of warm, pleasant weather. This 
 comes sometimes in February, sometimes in March, but 
 is generally followed by three or four weeks of cold, 
 chilly rains, from the south and west. 'During the latter 
 part of winter, there are generally light falls of snow 
 throughout the country, though in the valleys and particu 
 
SS4 OKMON TERKITOKT. 
 
 larly in the Wallamette valley it seldom falls to mora 
 than two or three inches deep. 
 
 Though the winters are disagreeable on account of 
 the chilliness of the south-east winds, and the extreme 
 humidity of the atmosphere, yet the cold is very mode- 
 rate, the mercury seldom falling as low as freezing point. 
 As a matter of course, the ground is seldom frozen, and 
 therefore ploughing may be done a great portion of the 
 winter. Occasionally, however, there is an exception to 
 this. At one time the mercury fell m this valley to five 
 degrees below zero, and at the Dalls, on the west side 
 of the Cascade mountains, fifteen degrees. As this 
 weather lasted for several days, the lakes were all frozen, 
 so that cattle and horses could pass over them on the ice, 
 and the Columbia river was bridged with it as far down 
 as the mouth of the Wallamette, for twelve or fifteen 
 days. But this was principally in consequence of the 
 extreme cold above the Cascades, and the accumulation 
 of ice in that region. A similar circumstance occurred 
 m 1834. 
 
 Considerable snow falls every year in the region of the 
 Cascade mountains and around the Dalls on the Colum- 
 Dia. In the middle region, or from the Cascade to the 
 Blue mountains, the raids begin later in the year, are less 
 constant and heavy, and do not continue so late in the 
 spring as in the lower country. In the latter they begin 
 to taper off, generally, in the month of March, but con- 
 tinue more or less through the month of April. 
 
 It will be inferred from what has been said, that 
 there is quite a difference in the winters of Oregon. 
 Some are vastly more • rainy than others. The winters 
 of 1844 and 1845 commenced with a storm on the 
 twelfth day of October, and continued with a storm of 
 great and uniform violence through the months of No- 
 vember, December, January and February ; then taking 
 a respite for three weeks in the month of March, it 
 closed with a storm, which continued through the month 
 of April. But one-half of the winters in Oregon are not 
 characterized by as much falling weather as is frequently 
 experienced in the State of New York, and are, m cod 
 
OBSOON TUUUTOBT. ttl 
 
 I 
 
 «equence of their warmness, decidedly ptauant. It wil. 
 oe understood that none of the winters of this country 
 are so stormy or so cold, but that cattle and horses, with 
 all other animals in the country, subsist on no other feed 
 than is found on the open prairies. In the upper country, 
 or in that portion which lies immediately west of the 
 Rocky mountains, it seldom rains, except in the spring, 
 and then it is not protracted. But vast quantities of 
 snow fall in the winter, particularly on the mountains. 
 This part of Oregon is extremely dry, which, with the 
 vast difference in temperature between the day and the 
 night, forms its most remarkable trait, at least so far as 
 61imate is concerned. Between sunrise and noon there 
 is a difference of from forty to sixty degrees of Fahren- 
 heit. 
 
 If the winters of Oregon are rather stormy and un- 
 pleasant, the summers are sufficiently delightful to coun- 
 terbalance all this. In the months of March and April, 
 the weather usually becomes sufficiently warm to start 
 vegetation, so that thus early the prairies become beauti- 
 fully green, and many of Flora's choicest gifts appear to 
 herald the approach of summer. But the summer winds 
 do not generally prevail until the first of May. These 
 are from the west and north, and there is seldom any 
 pleasant weather except when they prevail. And after 
 a long and rainy winter, the people of this country look 
 for the cool and healthy breeze from the bosom of the 
 Pacific ocean with great solicitude. At length the wished 
 v for qhange takes place ; the howl of the storm and the 
 roar of the southern wind'-, are hushed to silence j the 
 hills and valleys are gently fanned by the western zephyr ; 
 and the sun, pouring his floods of light from a cloudless 
 sky, causes nature, as by enchantment, to enrobe her- 
 self in all the glories of summer. The delightful weather 
 thus ushered in, continues with but little variation,\through 
 ^he entire summer. 
 
 There are, however, some showers, but they are 
 much " like angels' visit's, few and far between." Gene- 
 rally in the months of July, August and September, the 
 ground becomes exceedingly dry. But the few rains 
 
830 obmon vkmbitoky. 
 
 that fall in May and June, with the moisture which if 
 deposited in the heavy dews of the valleys, serve to 
 bring the grains and vegetables to maturity. > The 
 temperature of the summer ranges from sixty-five to 
 eighty degrees at noon, in the shade, but the evenings 
 are much cooler. There are few nights through the 
 summer, in which a person would be too warm, covered 
 with two quilts and a flannel blanket The cool evenings, 
 however, are very pleasant, and doubtless go far to neu- 
 tralize the effects of the malaria that is exhaled through 
 the influence of the sun, from the swamp and marshy 
 places, which are found in various parts of the country. 
 From a personal experience of more than five years, 
 and from an extensive observation in reference to this 
 particular, the writer is prepared to express the opinion 
 that the climate of Oregon, not excepting the Walla- 
 mette valley, is decidedly favorable to health. And 
 why should it not be? The temperature, particularly 
 in this lower country, is remarkably uniform. This 
 country is not subject to the evils resulting from sudden 
 changes from extreme heat to extreme cold, as in some 
 parts of the States. The exhilarating ocean breeze, 
 which sets in almost every day during the summer, con- 
 tributes greatly to purify the atmosphere. These cir- 
 cumstances, connected with the fact that there is but 
 little decaying vegetable matter in the country, and but 
 few dead swamps and marshes to send forth their poi- 
 sonous miasma to infect the surrounding regions, are 
 sufficient to show that this country must be the abode of 
 health, and that human life is as likely to be protracted, 
 and men as likely to die with old age in this country as 
 in almost any other in the world. True, the Indians are 
 generally diseased, and are fast dying off, but their dis- 
 eases have not been generated in this country ; they are 
 the result of their connection with diseased and dissi- 
 pated foreigners. Formerly it was not so. Besides this, 
 the ague and fever, which attacks many of the whites 
 who come to settle in the Wallamette valley, is easily 
 controlled, and finally leaves the person with a vigorous 
 unimpaired constitution, and seldom recurs to them the 
 
0*E«OM TBKftXYOft). 337 
 
 second season. The persons in this country who appea 
 to oe the most healthy, are those who have been here 
 the greatest length of time. 
 
 The members of the Hudson's Bay Company gene- 
 rally present, in the fullness and flushness of their fea- 
 tures, the corpulency of their persons, and their sinewy 
 and robust limbs, the most satisfactory evidence that the 
 climate of Oregon must be friendly to the promotion of 
 health. Indeed, but very few white persons have sick- 
 ened and died in thjs country since its first occupancy 
 by such, more than thirty years ago. Though these are 
 the facts in reference to the health of the lower country, 
 even yet there are persons in the States who are ready 
 to publish far and near, that the climate of Oregon, and 
 particularly of the Wallamette valley, is "decidedly 
 unhealthy,-' that " the most malignant and fatal fevers 
 rage in the country ;" than which, no representation 
 could be more erroneous. 
 
 It will be readily perceived from these remarks, that 
 this climate is well calculated for wheat, barley, oats, 
 neas, apples, potatoes, turnips, and all other vegetables 
 which are cultivated in the Middle States. Indian corn, 
 however, does not succeed very well, though some years 
 considerable is raised. The country is exceedingly favo- 
 rable for the raising of horses, cattle and hogs, all of 
 which thrive and multiply beyond all conception. 
 
 If there is any difference in regard to health between 
 the different portions of Oregon, probably the middle 
 region, and immediately along the coast, are the most 
 healthy parts. 
 
 The climate. of the Wallamette valley is more favora- 
 ble to agriculture than any other portion of the country ; 
 but that of the middle region is every way . adapted to 
 
 [mrposes of grazing and to all the pursuits of a pastora. 
 ife. 
 
 But with a uniform healthy and delightful climate, 
 that is as well adapted to agricultural purposes as any 
 within the same degrees of latitude in any part of the 
 earth, Oregon loses much of its interest, if the fertility 01 
 the soil is not in keeping with the nature of the climate 
 
338 OKESON TEBHITOHT 
 
 The so'" of Oregon has been variously represented t»y 
 
 Eersons who have traveled through the country. Some 
 ave spoken of it in altogether too favorable a light, while 
 others have greatly underrated it. Some have placed it 
 among the first in the world in point of fertility, and 
 others have considered Oregon as a boundless desert, fit 
 only to be the habitation of wild beasts and savage tribes. 
 Some have viewed it as a second Eden, and others, one- 
 writer in particular, denounces it as a "God-forsaken 
 country that never was designed to be the habitation of 
 a Christian or civilized man.'' These conflicting repre- , 
 sentations arise doubtless from a superficial acquaintance 
 with the country. They have either not continued in 
 the country a sufficient length of time to become ac- 
 quainted with its real productiveness, or they have de- , 
 pended upon that information which has been artfully,; 
 designed to prevent the true nature of the country from 
 being known. 
 
 To a proper understanding of the nature and produc- 
 tiveness of the soil, it will be necessary to consider it as 
 it. appears in different portions of the country. As the 
 Clatsop Plains are exciting considerable interest at the 
 present time in the country, a description of them, with 
 a view to the examination of the soil, is desirable. These; ,, 
 plains lie on the south side of the mouth of the Columbia 
 river, back of that point of land which is known by the" 
 name of Point Adams. They are a portion of that low 
 tract of country which lies in the form of a triangle, one 
 of whose sides is washed by the waves of the /Pacific, 
 and the other by those of Young's Bay ; while its base 
 rests against the range of mountains extending back from 
 Kellimook Head, and its point or apex is washed by 
 the south channel of the Columbia. The height of this 
 triangle, or the distance from Point Adams back to the 
 mountains, is about twenty-five miles, while the meai 
 width is probably not more than four miles. The plains 
 themselves are about twenty miles long and from one to 
 two and a half broad. They contain about forty square 
 miles They lie directly on the shore of the Pacific, and 
 command a fine view of all the ships that pan over the 
 
OM«ON TBUITOBY. 
 
 bar of the Columbia. There is a beautiful sand-beach 
 extending' their entire length, which, at low water, forms 
 a firm and commodious road. Between the plains and 
 Young's Bay, there is a tract of timber land, comprising 
 about twice as much as the plains, but similar in every 
 other respect, except the dense forest of fir, spruce, 
 bine, cedar, hemlock and alder, by which it is shaded. 
 It is quite probable that the entire tract of land above 
 described, has been formed by the vast quantities of 
 sands and vegetable substances which have been con- 
 veyed from time immemorial, by the Columbia river to 
 the ocean, and deposited by the ceaseless action of tide. 
 The evidences of this are, first, the fact that the soil is 
 of the same alluvial character that appears on the banks 
 of the river above ; secondly, from the several Tidges, 
 or undulations, which curve precisely with the shore Of 
 he ocean, and all of which appear to have successively 
 brmed the boundary of the deep ; and, thirdly, from 
 /he fact, that shells and other marine substances are 
 ound deeply embedded in the sands thus deposited, in a 
 perfect state of petrifaction. But it is only necessary 
 for a man to walk up from tide-water to the ridge near- 
 est the ocean, and cast his eye over the gentle' undula- 
 tions of this tract, for him to become convinced that it 
 has been redeemed from the waters of the Pacific. 
 These remarks have been deemed important, in order 
 to show the true nature of the soil of this important 
 point of Oregon. 
 
 it will be perceived that the foundation of the soil is 
 sand. In some places this sand is bare, but even here, 
 where the winds admit of vegetation taking root, its 
 growth shows clearly thai this sand is far from being 
 destitute of vegetative propi rties. On the Dlains, how- 
 ever, this sand is covered witn a black mould, which is 
 from six to ten inches deep, and which doubtless has been 
 formed by the constant decay of the various kinds of 
 vegetation, which here grow in abundance. This black 
 mould, with a portion of the sand beneath, forms a rich 
 and productive soil, which, from its proximity to the 
 ocean, and perhaps from the nature of the soil itself, is 
 
140 MtSCOM TEBBITOBY. 
 
 not so well adapted to wheat, but produce* potatoes, 
 turnips, and indeed all kinds of vegetables in abundance. 
 It is also tolerably well adapted to the raising of peas 
 and oats. Cattle, horses and hogs thrive on this soil as 
 well as in any part of Oregon. 
 
 The bottom-lands of the Columbia, from the Cascades 
 to the ocean, are subject to an annual inundation from 
 the great rise of the river, occasioned by the melting of 
 the vast quantities of snow, which fall on its uppei 
 branches among the mountains. This flood continues 
 through the month of June and into July, so that whatever 
 may be the fertility of the land thus overflown, but small 
 portions of it, without immense labor and expense, will 
 ever be brought to contribute greatly to the support of 
 man. However, those portions of it which lie above' 
 high water, are remarkably fertile, and produce in abun- 
 dance, all the grains and vegetables common to the best 
 portions of the country. Fort Vancouver is situated on 
 the most choice portion of this tract, and here a farm of 
 two or three thousand acres is cultivated, and produces 
 annually several thousand bushels of grain. Here also 
 apples, pears and peaches are cultivated successfully ; 
 with care the grape also is brought to a degree of per- 
 fection. 
 
 The uplands, or timbered lands, differ in some respects 
 from the prairies. Though but few attempts have been 
 made to cultivate them, yet sufficient has been done to 
 prove that the soil is rather of a superior quality. And, 
 indeed, this is attested by the immense growth of timber 
 itself. No inferior soil could send forth those enormous 
 trunks, which, in their upward progress, spread their 
 , jnagnificent branches to the skies, and oftenjplace their 
 heads three hundred feet from the ground. Though the 
 cost of clearing. these lands is great, yet time will doubt- 
 less cause the richness and fertility of this soil to contri- 
 bute to the support of its future cultivators. 
 
 The soil of the country around Puget's Sound is of a 
 very different character. The country to appearance 
 m beautiful. The prairies are extensive ; the harbor it 
 Sne, and the scenery delightful ; but, strictly speaking 
 
•BMON TUmOBY. 34 
 
 there is no soil to the country. The prairies are al 
 composed of shingle land, or small stone, or grav( 1, with- 
 out scarcely any mixture of soil. Indeed, there are but 
 few places; and these are very small spots, where any 
 thing can be raised. Attempts have been made to redeem 
 it from its native barrenness, but as yet all have failed. 
 
 The Hudson's Bay Company transported some of their 
 surplus population at Red river, on the east side of the 
 Rocky mountains, to this region ; but, in consequence of 
 the amazing sterility of the country, they soon became 
 discouraged, and, contrary to the wishes of the Company, 
 they have abandoned the place and have settled else- 
 where. This is sufficient to show the nature of the soil 
 in this portion of the country. And in view of these facts, 
 how has it come to pass that some persons after having 
 visited this region, publish it as being distinguished alike 
 for the salubrity of its climate and the fertility of its 
 soil? The climate indeed is delightful, but the soil is 
 exceedingly forbidding, and cannot, perhaps, be re- 
 covered from its extreme barrenness. 
 
 Of all the different parts of Oregon, it is unquestionable 
 that the Wallamette valley is entitled to be called the 
 garden of the country, so far as the fertility of its soil is 
 concerned. The close observer, in traveling through 
 this valley, will discover several kinds of soil. On the 
 lower, or first bottoms, in some places, a sandy soil 
 appears, in others, a kind of black marl or loam. There 
 is but little difference in the productiveness of the two 
 kinds. They both appear to be the alluvial deposits of 
 the Wallamette river. On the second bottoms, or high 
 prairies, as they are called in the country, the soil is a 
 dark loamy clay, and is equally as strong and fertile as 
 that on the lower grounds. Higher up the river, in the 
 region of the Santa Am'» fork, and embracing tracts of 
 considerable extent, you come to a gravelly soil, which 
 is less productive than any other in the valley. How- 
 ever, this last embraces but a small proportion of the 
 valley. As the most of the country is embraced in the 
 high prairies, there is much more of the clayey land than 
 of any other kind. But the goodness of the soil is better 
 
348 OKF.GON TERRITORY 
 
 ascertained by examining the crops which are annua..} 
 taken from the land. 
 
 The writer of this has formerly resided, for year* 
 together, in the great wheat growing country of the State 
 of New York, and has been an attentive observer of the 
 amount of labor necessary to be performed to put into 
 the granary the wheat raised from an acre of ground. 
 He has also, for several succeeding years, observed the 
 same in the Wallamette valley ; and the result of these 
 observations has brought him to the conclusion, that it 
 requires less labor in this country to raise one bushel or 
 a thousand bushels of wheat, than it does on any part 
 of the Genesee flats. The prairies of this country, in 
 many important respects, are unlike those of any other 
 country. They are naturally very mellow, and appear, 
 as one is passing over them, as though it had been but a 
 year or two since they were cultivated. They are not 
 swarded over with a thick strong turf, as in the Western 
 States. They can be easily ploughed with one good 
 span of horses the first time, and when thus ploughed, 
 they are ready to receive the seed, and seldom fail, even 
 the first crop, of yielding from fifteen to twenty-five 
 bushels per English acre. The first crops are never so 
 good as the succeeding ones. Farmers have, in a num 
 ber of instances, without using any extraordinary means, 
 taken from fifty to sixty-five bushels of wheat from an 
 acre, and this has been an average of fields containing 
 from ten to fifteen acres. But this is, by no means, the 
 common yield after the first crop, though, doubtless, it 
 farmers in this country would cultivate less ground and 
 bestow on it the same quantity of labor, they would 
 realize much more from the acre than they now do. 
 Under the present system of cultivation in this country, 
 the average amount taken from the acre is in the vicinity 
 of twenty-five bushels. 
 
 Unlike any other portions of the worldV a good crop 
 of wheat, provided the seed is put into the ground in its 
 season and in a proper manner, is as sure to reward the 
 labor of the husbandman, as that day and night will con 
 tinue until harvest time. This, perhaps, ia not owing m 
 
•■■•on VMMmOBY MS 
 
 much to the quality of the soil, as to the natur » of the 
 climate. And it is difficult to conceive of any circum- 
 stance that can prevent this result, so long as the present 
 laws of nature, which regulate the seasons of Oregon, 
 are allowed to operate. But this is not the case with 
 regard to all other crops. 
 
 Potatoes frequently fail from a want of rain the latter 
 part of the season ; or, if they do not entirely fail, the 
 crops are often very light. 
 
 This is the case with all spring crops, particularly if 
 the seed is put in late. They are liable to suffer from 
 drought before they ripen in the fall. However, during 
 the last five years, "there has not been a failure in any 
 of the crops. Some years have not been as productive 
 as others, in the spring crops, but a majority of the 
 years, these have all succeeded to admiration, with the 
 exception of Indian corn. This valuable species of pro- 
 duce will never be raised, to any considerable extent, in 
 /his country, though some seasons it succeeds tolerably 
 well. The cool nights and dry summers are obstacles 
 that it cannot overcome. The soil of this valley as well 
 as the climate, is well adapted to the raising of melons 
 squashes, cucumbers, beets, cabbages, and all kinds of 
 garden vegetables. Apples, peaches, and other kinds 
 , of fruit, flourish, so far as they have been cultivated ; 
 and from present appearances, it is quite likely that the 
 time is not far distant, when the country will be well 
 supplied with the various kinds of fruit which grow in 
 the Middle States. 
 
 The soil of the middle region of Oregon differs mate- 
 rially from that of the low country. It bears onf 
 general character, and consists of a yellow sandy clay. 
 Ft produces naturally a kind of bunch grass, which is 
 very nutritious, and grows in abundance on the vast 
 plains of the country ; and here are also a vatiety of 
 small shrubs, and the prickly pear. Persons in passing 
 through the country along the banks of the Columbia 
 river, are liable to entertain erroneous views, in refer- 
 ence to the fertility of this region. The land along the 
 river, is a collection of sand and rocks, than which 
 
S44 OKKCOW TERRITORY. 
 
 nothing can present a more sterile appearance. But 
 back a few miles, the country wears a different aspect 
 And judging from the grass and herbage, which cover 
 the ground, as well as from the appearance of the soil, 
 the land may be pronounced at least as tolerably good. 
 It is on the extended plains of this region that the 
 Kayuses and Nez Perces raise their immense droves of 
 horses. It is no uncommon thing for one Indian to own 
 fifteen hundred of these animals. The writer, once had 
 the privilege of seeing at least two thousand from one 
 eminence. And yet this portion of Oregon has been 
 called "a barren waste;" an error which a correct 
 knowledge of the country will certainly rectify. 
 
 It may be therefore concluded, as it has been already^ 
 expressed, that, from the fertility of the soil of this '■_ 
 region, as well as the salubrity of the climate, as a 
 whole, it is most admirably adapted to purposes of 
 grazing, while on many of the streams agricultural pur- 
 suits might successfully be prosecuted. 
 
 On the Walla Walla and Clear Water rivers, attempt! 
 at farming have been made, and have been crowned 
 with success. 
 
 The upper region of Oregon, or that part which lies 
 east of the Blue mountains, is less fertile than the 
 middle. Though the soil of some portions of it is toler- 
 ably good, yet much the greater proportion of the plains 
 are either covered with a course sand or gravel, or are 
 so strongly impregnated with salts of various kinds, that 
 it would be perfectly useless to make any attempts 
 at cultivation, though the climate might be ever so 
 favorable. 
 
 What has often been said of Oregon as a whole, may 
 be said in truth, of this portion of the country, namely, 
 that it is an extensive barren waste, not capable of sup- 
 
 Eorting more than a very small number of inhabitants ; 
 ut this remark only applies to the third, or upper region, 
 of this vast territory. To apply it to that half of Oregon 
 which extends from the Blue mountains to the Pacific 
 ocean, would be doing the country great injustice. For. 
 instead of this being the fact, it is the opinion of those 
 
OKKCOIT TEKSITOKT. Jit 
 
 who have been longest in the country, and consequently 
 know best what its resources are, Jhat this portion is 
 capable of sustaining as large a population, as all of the 
 New England States. In fact, the resources of this 
 country are great ; and it is only necessary for them to 
 be known, to be duly appreciated by the people of the 
 United Stated. A single consideration only is necessary 
 to be presented to show what the country would be capa- 
 ble of doing, provided it was filled with an industrious 
 population. It will be borne in mind that in the fall of 
 
 1843, an emigration arrived in this country numbering 
 from eight to ten hundred persons, most of whom came 
 so late that it was impossible for them to get locations 
 where they could raise wheat the first year, and were 
 consequently thrown upon the resources of the country 
 In the fall of- 1844, another emigration arrived, numbering 
 from seven to eight hundred persons. These all, with 
 the entire population, depended upon the products o f 
 
 1844, for a subsistence until the harvest of 1845. Pro- 
 bably not more than one quarter of the whole population 
 had cultivated the land in 1844, yet they were all sup- 
 ported from the granaries of the country ; fifteen thou- 
 sand bushels of wheat Were shipped to the Russian 
 settlements ; one thousand barrels of flour were ex- 
 ported to the Sandwich Islands, and thousands of bushels 
 yet remained in the country .unconsumed. With these 
 facts before us, it does not require half an eye to 
 see that Oregon can and will compete with any other 
 portion of the World, in supplying the islands of the 
 Pacific, the Russian settlements, and every other flour 
 market contiguous, with their bread stuffs, which usually 
 bear, in these portions of the world, a handsome 
 price. 
 
 In connection with this it may be remarked that beef 
 and pork can be raised in this country with greater ease 
 and facility than wheat. And the climate of the country 
 being favorable for salting and barreling, the time is not 
 far distant when these articles also win be exported in 
 abundance. The United States Navy and shipping' in 
 general in the Pacific, can be supplied with these article! 
 15 
 
846 OEEOON TMBITOKV. 
 
 of consumption from this country more reasonably, per 
 hapfe, than from any other. Already there are many 
 settlers in this valley who have from two to five hundred 
 head of cattle, and it is nothing strange for a man t d be 
 the owner of* a hundred hogs. At present, however, 
 from the great influx of population, these kinds of pro- 
 
 Eerjy bear a high price in the country, but the time may 
 e anticipated, when the home market will not be so 
 extensive, and then the vast supplies from this quarter 
 •nust find an outlet. 
 
 The facilities for lumbering in the country have 
 already been presented ; and, in addition, it should be 
 observed that, with the vast amount of salmon which - 
 may be barreled annually, and the products of dairies, ^ 
 for conducting which the country offers the greatest 
 facilities, the exports of Oregon, in proportion to the 
 number of its inhabitants, may equal those of any portions' 
 of the United States. 
 
 In this exhibition" of the wealth and resources of Ore 
 gon, there is one more subject that ought not to be over- 
 looked, viz : the facility with which a man comparatively 
 poor.j can place himself entirely above want. Individuals 
 have, in some instances, arrived in this country in the 
 month of September ; have settled immediately on some 
 of the fine prairies, and with but little, except good health 
 and sound limbs, have harvested, the following season, 
 of their own sowing, from fifty to one hundred and fifty 
 acres of wheat. 
 
 And, indeed, there are few countries, perhaps none, in 
 which a poor man, when once he has surmounted the 
 difficulties of getting here, in which he can get a better 
 living, and get it easier, than in this. Such is the testi- 
 mony of every person who tries it for one or two years. 
 But every country has its defects, and this is not entirely 
 free from them. It is neither the garden of Eden, nor 
 is it a barren desert. It does not " flow with honey," 
 like the land of Canaan ; but in some places i*. literally 
 flows with milk. And, though it is no*, a " land of wine, 
 vet, in the more necessary articles of " corn and oil," il 
 greatlj abounds. 
 
OMCOON THRITOKY. S47 
 
 That it is a land of mountains and valleys, 01 rivers 
 and streams, of mighty forests and extended prairies, of a 
 salubrious and heaithy climate, and a rich and productive 
 soil, the foregoing remarks will clearly show. In fine, 
 it is everv way entitled to be called a good country. 
 
♦CHAPTER XVH 
 
 Oregon territory — Its history — Spanish discoveries — Measures of the English— Ik 
 Francis Drake — Heceta — Isle of Grief— Bodega discovers Eillemook Head — 
 Discoveries of Captain James Cook — Captain John Mearls — Cape Disappoint 
 merit — Robert Gray, of Boston — First risit to the coast — Second visit, discover* 
 the Columbia river — Captain Vancouver — Braughton. 
 
 When America was first discovered, it was supposed 
 to constitute the eastern limits of the continent of Asia ; 
 but, as discovery succeeded discovery in quick succes- 
 sion during the first twenty years after the arrival of 
 Columbus in 1492, the astounding fact that the Genoese 
 navigator had given to the nations of Europe a vast con- 
 tinent, was speedily and satisfactorily established. If 
 there remained any doubts as to the separation of 
 America from the eastern continent on the minds of any, 
 they were all removed after Fernando Magellan had 
 passed from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean through the 
 strait which separates Patagonia from Terra Del Fuego, . \ 
 and Vacco Nunez de Balboa had discovered the placid ! 
 waters of the great ocean from the top of the Andes, at 
 the Isthmus of Darien. Within a few years after Magel 1 
 Ian" sailed into the Pacific ocean, the Spaniards, under 
 Hernan Cortez, discovered and made a conquest of the 
 rich and populous empire of Mexico, and soon after fol 
 -lowed the subjugation of Chili and Peru to the authority 
 of Spain. The immense amount of silver which the 
 Spaniards obtained by these conquests, excited the ava- 
 rice of others, and crowds of adventurers of different 
 nations and under daring leaders, came over and tra- 
 versed the new world in every direction, eager to acquire 
 distinction by plundering the rich countries which they 
 mifht discover. Defeated w their object*, they, how 
 
OBIOON TKM1TORT. 34* 
 
 ever, collected much information respecting those regions 
 which otherwise might not have been explored, perhaps, 
 for centuries. 
 
 In 1532, forty years after the discovery of Columbus, 
 the coast of the American continent had been explored 
 from the Gulf of Mexico on the Atlantic side, to the 
 Strait of Magellan, and on the Pacific side from the same 
 Strait to a place called Culiacan, situate near the eastern 
 ride of the entrance to the Gulf of California. North- 
 ward of these points, both of which are near the twenty- 
 third degree of" north latitude^ nothing as yet was known 
 of that vast region which was destined to teem with so 
 many millions of human beings. Up to 1578, the Span- 
 iards were the principal actors in prosecuting discoveries 
 along the Pacific coast. Expeditions were fitted out by 
 Cortez and by his successor in the viceroyalty of Mexico, 
 Don Antonio de Mendoza, which sailed northward from 
 time to time, touching at various points along the coast, 
 but making no important discoveries until 1539, when 
 Francisco de Ulloa, under the direction of Mendoza, 
 sailed from Acapulco, north, for the purpose of ascertain- 
 ing the situation and extent of that country which by 
 this tfrne began to be called California. 
 
 Ulloa discovered that California was a continuity of 
 the American continent ; for up to this time it was noj. 
 known whether it was connected with Asia or America, 
 or whether it was not a country by itself. There is 
 satisfactory evidence that some of these early explorers 
 saw the coast up as high as the thirty-fourth degree of 
 north latitude, and in 1543, a navigator by the name of 
 Ferrelo,ls said to have extended his discoveries as far 
 up as the forty-third parallel, and about ..the same time a 
 land expedition was fitted out under Hernando de Soto, 
 and performed a memorable march through the then un- 
 known regions north of the Gulf of Mexico^ till they 
 reached the fortieth parallel of latitude, and then turning 
 east, they fell in with the Mississippi river near the 
 moutn of the Ohio, and descended it in boats back to the 
 Gulf of Mexico, which they succeeded in crossing in 
 open iwats ; and the few that survived the fatigues and 
 
350 0RE80N TERRITORY. 
 
 perils of the enterprise, finally reached Pameco in safety. 
 This expedition had a two-fold object in view, which 
 was, first, to discover wealthy nations to subjugate like 
 those of Mexico and Peru, and, second, to ascertain 
 whether there were no navigable passages between the 
 Atlantic and Pacific oceans, somewhere north of the 
 Mexican Gulf. Being defeated in both these objects, the 
 Spaniards desisted from any farther efforts to explore the 
 north-west coast of the American continent, and did not 
 renew their efforts for nearly half a century afterwards. 
 , , Though for the present they ceased to explore the 
 north-west division of the New World, yet the commerce 
 of the Spaniards in the Pacific ocean was continually 
 increasing, and their " Government was adopting those 
 measures of restriction and exclusion whieh were main- 
 tained with so little relaxation during the whole period 
 Df its supremacy in the American continent." * * * 
 'The great object of its policy was to secure to the 
 people of Spain the perpetual enjoyment of all the advan- 
 tages which could be derived from the territories claimed 
 by them, and, with that view, it was considered absolutely 
 necessary, not only to prevent the establishment of for- 
 eigners in any part of those territories; but also to dis- 
 courage the rapid advancement of the Spanish provinces 
 themselves, in population, wealth or other resources. 
 Agreeably to these ideas, the settlement and even the 
 exploring of new countries in America, were restrained ; 
 colonies were rarely allowed to be planted near the 
 coast, unless they might serve for purposes of defence, 
 and when voyages or journeys of discovery were made, 
 the results w«re generally concealed by the government 
 The subjects of ajl foreign nations were prohibited, under 
 pain of death, from touching the section of the New 
 World supposed to belong to Spain, or from navigating 
 the seas in its vicinity." 
 About this time, 1570, the principles of civil and reli- 
 
 fious liberty were beginning to ' operate in England, 
 'hey no longer acknowledged the Pope of Rome as theii 
 spiritual head, nor did they stand in fear of his fulmina- 
 Uons. And, though the successor of St Pster had 
 
OREGON TERRITORY. SSI 
 
 granted to Spain a great part of the American continent, 
 and, as far as possible, had confirmed her in her posses- 
 sions, yet the English murmured bitterly against these 
 excluding regulations of the Spanish government, and 
 required " an acknowledgment of their right to occupy 
 vacant portions of America, and to trade with such as 
 were already settled." 
 
 These reasonable demands were refused by the Span- 
 ish government, and the Queen of England encouraged 
 her subjects, openly ,and secretly, to violate laws which 
 she declared to be unjustifiable and inhuman. Accord- 
 ingly, on the Atlantic side of the continent, we see 
 these restrictive laws immediately violated by bands 
 of daring English, and, in the name of free-traders and 
 free-booters, who set the Spaniards at defiance, plunder- 
 ing their ships and some of their towns along the coast. 
 From the reports concerning the importance of the com- 
 merce of the Pacific, the English had long desired to 
 share in its advantages, and at length all their dread 
 of the difficulties and dangers of the passage through the 
 strait of Magellan were overcome, and there appeared 
 on the waters of the Pacific the most renowned naval 
 .captain of the age. This captain was Francis Drake ; 
 .and, as an opinion has prevailed that he effected im- 
 portant discoveries on the coast of Oregon, it will be 
 proper to notice his movements while he remained on 
 this coast. .« 
 
 Mr. Greenhow in his able memoirs, has collected all 
 the evidences of Drake's discoveries on this coast, and 
 from an account of his voyage by his chaplain, and from 
 nearly all the biographical sketches of the hero for a 
 century after his voyage had been accomplished, and 
 from the contradictions of those writers who attempt to 
 establish the opposite he arrives at the conclusion that 
 "the English under Drake, in all probability saw no 
 part of the west coast of America north of the forty- 
 third degree of north latitude." 
 
 Drake's visit to this coast took place in 1579, and 
 proceeding as high up as the forty-third degree, and 
 finding the weather cold and boisterotu. and knowing 
 
153 •REOO:* TBEWTOtT. 
 
 that his ship needed repairing before he could return to 
 England, he turned about, and retracing his steps as far 
 back as the thirty-eighth degree, entered the bay now 
 called " San Francisco," where he spent the remainder 
 of the winter. The flowing spring he put again to 
 sea, and, by the way of China ana tne Cape 01 Good 
 Hope, returned to England, where, immediately after 
 his arrival, for his wonderful voyage and marvelous 
 exploits, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth, on the 
 deck of his own ship. Doubtless the character of 
 Drake as a hero and a great navigator, is well founded ; 
 but the assertion that he explored the whole extent of 
 this coast, and discovered the Columbia river, is a fabri- 
 cation, and is entitled to no more credit than the fabled 
 voyage of Maldorado from the north-west coast, acros. 
 the continent, into the Atlantic ocean. 
 
 That Francis Drake is not entitled to the credit oi 
 being the first discoverer of the coast as far up as tht 
 forty-third degree, appears from an account of a voyage 
 /performed by Cabrillo and Ferrelo, two Spaniards, in 
 1543, thirty-six years before the voyage of Drake. In 
 the month of March they sailed ,to the forty-fourth 
 degree, and in consequence of the suffering of their 
 crews from cold, fatigue, and want of proper nourish- 
 ment, they resolved to proceed no farther northward, and 
 accordingly directed their' course towards the south. * 
 These were probabjy the first white men that ever saw 
 any of the land embraced in the territory of Oregon, 
 and they saw only about two degrees of the coast, at 
 the south-west corner. 
 
 The next disco veiies of importance made on the coast 
 of Oregon, were by e Spanish navigator, by the name 
 of Heceta, in 1774. He was sent by the viceroy of 
 Mexico from San Bias, to explore the coast north of 
 the forty-third parallel, and succeeded in reaching a 
 high up as the fifty-fourth degree, where he made land 
 probably the north-west part of Queen Charlotte's Island 
 From this point he turned southward, entered a fine ba' 
 
 ' 8m Orauhow'a Haraain 
 
otKttON vns^Tosr. s&S 
 
 in latitude forty-nine and one-half, and proceeding down 
 aloag the coast, saw land occasionally, but does not 
 appear to have minutely examined the shore, and arrived 
 at Monterey on the 27th of August. 
 
 The following year another expedition was fitted out, 
 and Heceta was intrusted with the command. He pro- 
 ceeded northward, touched at port Trinidad in latitude 
 forty-one, where he communicated with the natives, 
 and, on leaving, erected a cross with an inscription set- 
 ting forth the rights of the Spanish government to the 
 country discovered. From this point he continued north 
 as high as the forty-eighth, or forty-ninth degree, then 
 turned east, and soon saw land, which was probably the 
 isouth-west side of Vancouver's Island, at the entrance 
 of the Strait of Fuca. 
 
 Not being able to examine this part of the coast, they 
 were driven southward to within eighty miles of the 
 Columbia river, where they came to anchor/ inside of a 
 small island, near the main land. Here they met with 
 a cruel misfortune. They sent some of their men on 
 shore to search for water, and while in the discharge of 
 their duty, they were surrounded by savages and imme- 
 diately murdered. As they were numerous, the Indians 
 immediately put off in their canoes to the ships, evidently 
 with the intention of taking them and destroying the 
 crews. But the Spaniards finally succeeded in prevent- 
 ing them from boarding; and on their departure, in 
 commemoration of the event, the island was called the 
 Isle of Grief. At the same place, and in the same man- 
 ner, twelve years afterwards, some of the crew of an 
 English ship were destroyed, and by them the island 
 was called Destruction Island. After this disaster, 
 Heceta continued southward along the coast, and disco- 
 vered the promontory which now bears the name of 
 Cape Disappointment, but which the Spaniards called 
 Cape San Roque. Directly south of this, and under the 
 parallel of forty-six degrees sixteen minutes, he saw an 
 opening in the land, which appeared to be a harbor, or 
 the mouth of some river. As Heceta did not enter this 
 harbor, the existence of the river subsequently wu 
 15* 
 
S&4 OKMON TBSKITOEY. 
 
 more a matter of conjecture than of certainty, though 
 it was put down on the Spanish maps by the name of 
 Rio de San Roque. Prom these circumstances, it is at 
 least inferable that Heceta and his companions were 
 the first civilized men that ever saw the Columbia river. . 
 
 During the same year, 1775, another Spanish naviga- 
 tor, by the name of Bodega, made the Oregon coast 
 about thirty miles south of the mouth of the Columbia. 
 The land first seen by them was the high promontory 
 now known by the name of Kilemook Head ; but which 
 the Spaniards called Cape Mizari. Bodega examined*; 
 the coast, from this point to Cape Mendocino, in search 
 of a large river, said to have been seen by Aguilar, in 
 1603. But not succeeding in his attempts, he took his 
 departure from this part of the coast and returned to 
 Monterey. 
 
 The next discoveries on the Oregon coast were made 
 by tht celebrated Captain James Cook, an English navi- 
 gator, in 1778. This enterprising man left England^ 
 early in the summer of 1777, and arrived on the Ameri- ' 
 can coast in March, 1778. The primary objoCt of his- 
 voyage was the discovery of a north-west passage from 
 the Pacific ocean to the Atlantic, an object which long 
 engaged the attention of England and Spain. To accom- 
 plish this object, he was to explore the whole extent 
 of coast, frOm the, forty-fifth degree as far north as the 
 weather and ice would allow him to proceed. He first 
 made land near the forty-second degree of latitude ; but 
 by the violence of storms, was driven still farther to the 
 south. However, the wind becoming more favorable, 
 he proceeded on his course to the northward, and on the 
 22d of March, he found himself in sight of the coast a 
 little beyond the forty-eighth degree. The land here 
 discovered by Cook was the projecting point of the con- 
 tinent at the entrance of the strait of Juan De Fuca, tc 
 which he gave the name of Cape Flattery, and which is 
 the north-west corner of Oregon territory. Cook ex- 
 amined the coast a few miles south of this point , out not 
 succeeding in his object here, he soon continued north, 
 and in latitude forty-nine and a half, cast anchor in • 
 
ORCBON TBRRITOKY. 851 
 
 spacious and secure harbor, to which he subsequently 
 gave the name of Nootka Sound. Here he continued 
 several weeks, during which he held constant intercourse 
 with the Indians, who appeared to be no strangers to 
 white men ; and after making the necessary repairs, and 
 taking in wood, water and refreshments, he again steered 
 to the northward to buffet the ice and storms of the 
 Arctic Ocean, in a vain attempt to discover a north-west 
 passage. Thus terminated his discoveries on the Oregon 
 coast. He was subsequently basely murdered by the 
 natives of Hawaii. ' 
 
 It is worthy of remark, that this usually fortunate navi 
 gator and discoverer was driven past the mouth of the 
 Columbia river, by a storm, during the nigh't. 
 ,; There seems to have been but little notice taken of the 
 Oregon coast during the ten years which followed the 
 discoveries of Cook, though at this time the coast farther 
 north was very well known. As Nootka Sound was 
 known to be a good harbor, after Cook's account of his 
 troyage was made public, vessels, in visiting this region, 
 5enerally steered their course for that place. But in 
 1788, Captain John Meares, an Englishman, fitted otf. 
 an -(expedition at Macao for the purpose of discovering 
 the harbor, or river, or rather opening, which was first 
 seen by Heceta, in 1775, and subsequently noticed on 
 the Spanish maps, by the name of .the Rio De San Roque. 
 The principal object that Meares had in view, on this 
 part of the coast, was to ascertain whether there was 
 such a river in existence ; and the account which he has 
 given of his discoveries, at this point, will show the un- 
 Ipaionableness of the claims of the English, to be the 
 first to ascertain the fact'of the existence of the Columbia 
 river. In latitude forty-six degrees and forty-seven 
 minutes, he discovered a head-land which he called Qape 
 Shoal Water, and proceeding south along the coast, he 
 says — "An high bluff promontory bore us off south-east, 
 at the distance of only four leagues, for which we steered 
 to double, with the hope that between it and Cape Shoal 
 Water, we should find some sort of harbor. We now 
 discovered distant land beyond this promontory, and w« 
 
M§ OREGON TERRITORY. 
 
 pleased ourselves with the expectation of its being Capa 
 Saint Roc of the Spaniards, near which they are said to 
 have found a good port. By half-past eleven we doubled 
 this Cape at the distance of three miles, having a clear 
 and perfect view of the shore in every part, on which 
 we did not discern a living creature, or the least trace 
 of habitable life. A prodigious easterly swell rolled on 
 the shore, and the soundings gradually decreased from 
 forty to sixteen fathoms, over a hard sandy bottom. 
 After we had rounded the promontory, a large bay, as 
 we had imagined, opened to our view, that bore a very 
 promising appearance, and into which we steered with 
 every encouraging expectation. 
 
 " The high land that formed the boundaries of the bay 
 was at a great distance, and a flat level country occupied 
 the intervening space ; the bay itself took rather a west- 
 erly direction. As we steered in, the water shoaled tc 
 nine, eight, and seven fathoms, when breakers were seen 
 from the deck' right ahead, and from the mast-head they 
 were observed to extend across the bay ; we, therefore, 
 hauled out and directed our course to the opposite shore, 
 to see if there was any channel, or if we could discover 
 any port. 
 
 " The name of Cape Disappointment was given to the 
 promontory, and the bay obtained the title of Deception 
 Bay. By an indifferent meridian observation, it lies in 
 the latitude of forty-six degrees and ten minutes north, 
 and in the computed longitude of 235 degrees and 34 
 minutes east. We can now with safety assert, that there 
 is no such river as that of Saint Roc exists, as laid down 
 in the Spanish charts." 4 
 
 It follows, from this account of Captain Meares, first, 
 that he became fully convinced, from personal observa- 
 tion, that no great river entered the Pacific ocean from 
 ihe American continent at this point. And, second, that 
 no such river had previously been discovered by English 
 navigators, and that the assertion, that " the Columbia 
 was discovered by Captain, afterwards Sir Francis 
 Drake," must be totally unfounded. For, if the latter 
 captain had made this discovery, the fact must have beeu 
 
•mmmoH tmritokt. nt 
 
 Known by Captain Meares, and he would not have been 
 so ready to decide that " no such river exists." The 
 truth appears to be this — up to the year 1788, it was not 
 known by any civilized nation, that the great Colum- 
 bia had an existence on the face of the globe. 
 
 The citizens of the United States appear to have taken 
 no part in the discoveries on the north-west coast, and in 
 the trade opened by such discoveries previously to the 
 year, 1788. At that time a company of merchants from 
 Boston, sent two ships around Cape Horn, commanded 
 respectively by Captain Robert Gray and Captain John 
 Kendrick. 
 
 The names of these vessels were, the Columbia and 
 Washington. These were the first American ships that 
 visited the north-west coast, ^fter weathering a violent 
 storm in which the Columbia, which Kendrick com- 
 manded, received some injury, they' proceeded to 
 Nootka Sound where both vessels spent the" winter. 
 The object of this expedition was to collect the fine and 
 aluable furs with which the country abounds, and ship 
 nem to Canton. 
 
 While these two American ships were in this part a. 
 the ocean, there was considerable difficulty between the 
 Spaniards and the English, in reference to which had the 
 best right to the country in the vicinity of Nootka Sound, 
 "n the settlement of this difficulty, the American captains 
 ook an active and efficient part, and from an under- 
 standing of the. whole affair, were of the opinion that, 
 from a previous discovery and ocdupancy, the Spanish 
 claims were well founded, and that the possession of the 
 country was an unjustifiable, arrogancy upon the part 
 of the British. But it is no part of the object of this 
 sketch to investigate the subject of these conflicting 
 claims. The Columbia and Washington continued on 
 the coast until the month of August, 1789, when it was 
 determined between them, that Captain Gray should 
 take the command of the Columbia and proceed to China 
 and the United States, with all the furs which had bean 
 collected, and Kendrick should remain on the coast n 
 th# Washington. 
 
tM MMON TEKMUTOBT. 
 
 Gray accomplished this voyage in safety, and on th 
 27th day of September, 1790, again left Boston in the 
 same snip for the north-west coast, and sometime in 
 May of 1791, made land a little to the north of. Cap* 
 Mendocino, or near the forty-first degree of north lati 
 iuae. While proceeding northward towards Nootka, Cap. 
 tain Gray discovered an opening m the shore of consider 
 able width in latitude forty-six degrees sixteen minutes 
 from which issued a strong current which prevented hia 
 entrance. He continued off against this opening for nine 
 days, with an intention, if possible, to enter it, but the 
 strength of the current and probably from the appearance 
 of the breakers which previously had frightened Meares 
 he was unable at this time to accomplish his object 
 Though convinced that he had discovered the mouth 
 of a great .river, without waiting longer for an oppor 
 tunity to enter it, he proceeded to the north, and in 
 June arrived at Nootka Sound. From this point Gray 
 continued his course north, and after making some im- 
 
 fiortant discoveries in the vicinity of Queen Charlotte's 
 sland, returned to Clyoquot, near Nootka, where he 
 continued during the winter. Captain Kendrick in the 
 meantime had stayed on the coast, and about the time 
 that Gray went into winter quarters, he set sail for the 
 Sandwich Islands, where he first opened a traffic with 
 the natives, in the article of sandal-wood. Though 
 Kendrick first opened this trade, he did not long live to 
 enjoy the benefit of his discovery, but m 1793, was mur 
 dered by the Islanders. 
 
 In the spring of 1792, the discoveries on the coast o 
 Oregon were prosecuted both by the English ana 
 Americans. In the middle of April, Captain Vancouver 
 arrived on the coast with two ships under his command, 
 and commencing at Cape Mendocino, explored the whole 
 extent of coast, as he proceeded to the north, and passed 
 the opening which Gray attempted to enter in latitude 
 forty-six degrees sixteen minutes, without considering i* 
 as being worthy of his particular attention, on account 
 of the forbidding appearance which it presented. In 
 hia progress northward he says, that, " the coast wai so 
 
•■mo* m*u*o*T. 359 
 
 minutely examined that the surf was constantly seen to 
 break on its shores from the mast-head. And yet, that 
 he saw no appearance of an opening in its shores, which 
 presented any certain prospect of affording shelter.' 
 On his way up the coast he fell in with the ship Colum- 
 bia, Captain Gray, who had just left his wintering place 
 at Clyoquot In their interview, Gray informed Van- 
 couver that the previous summer he had been off the 
 mouth of a river in latitude forty-six degrees ten minutes, 
 where the outset was so strong as to prevent his entering 
 for nine days. In referring to this, Vancouver says, that 
 "this was probably the opening passed by us on the 
 forenoon of the 27th, and was apparently inaccessible, 
 not from the current, but from the breakers that extend 
 across it" He also observes that he was thoroughly 
 convinced, as were most persons on board, that he could 
 not nave passed any harbor or place of security for 
 shipping, from Cape Mendocino to Cape Flattery. 
 
 From this it appears that Captain Vancouver did not 
 yet believe that such a river as was represented by 
 Gray, had any existence. And under this impression he 
 proceeded on to the north, while Gray, to assure him 
 self of the reality of his discovery of a great river, 
 resolved, if possible, to enter it with his snip. While 
 proceeding southward he entered a harbor, which ne 
 called Bulfinch's Harbor ; but passing on, arrived, on 
 the 11th of May, 1792, opposite the' bay which Meares 
 called the Bay of Deception, immediately south of Cape 
 Disappointment, and in latitude forty-six degrees *en 
 minutes north. , Though the breakers presented a formi- 
 dable obstacle before them, and they did not know out 
 that they were rushing to inevitable destruction, yet 
 Captain Gray and his gallant comrades dashed bravely 
 on, and discovering a narrow passage through the break- 
 ers, passed them in safety, and as Gray had anticipated, 
 found themselves in a large river of fresh water, up 
 which they proceeded the distance of twenty miles 
 The point .at which they arrived, was probably the nar 
 row and shallow channel known by the name of Tongue 
 Point Channel, and which is difficult to pass, though tbn 
 
MO oixaoN nurroBY. 
 
 river is well known. The natives flocked around the 
 Btrangers and manifested the utmost surprise, at what 
 they saw and heard. A traffic was opened with them 
 m which furs were received from the Indians, in ex- 
 change for coarse goods ; and after having continued in 
 the river eight days, making repairs, trading with the 
 natives, exploring the river, and taking observations of 
 the surrounding country, Captain Gray again passed the 
 breakers at the entrance, through the intricate channel, 
 prepared to announce to the world the most important 
 discovery that was^ever made on the north-west coast 
 
 Before taking his departure, Captain Gray bestowed 
 the name of his vessel upon the majestic river which he 
 had discovered, calling it the Columbia, a name which, 
 in honor of the generous captain who bestowed it, and 
 of the gallant ship that first anchored in its waters, if 
 should "forever retain. The high promontory on the 
 north side of the entrance, which was called Cape 
 Disappointment, by Meares, in token of his unsuccessful 
 search, by Captain Gray was called Cape Hancock, and 
 the low point on the south side Cape Adams. 
 
 It has been asserted by one writer, that the existence 
 of this river was long known before Gray or Vancouver 
 vjsited it * Doubtless, it was known by the Indian 
 tribes that lived upon its banks, but if any white man 
 ever saw it he was not permitted to survive to tell of 
 his discovery. From a survey of the whole ground, it 
 appears clearly, that Captain Robert Gray is entitled to 
 the credit of being the original discoverer of this great 
 river of Oregon ; a river which, when viewed as the 
 only convenient or practicable channel to and from one 
 of the most extensive and fertile valleys in North 
 America, will bear comparison with almost any river in 
 Ibe world. 
 
 From the mouth of this river, Gray returned to the 
 north, and in the vicinity of Queen Charlotte's Island, 
 while his vessel was under full sail, she struck a rock 
 and received so great an injury that she was near 
 
 ■Aatarfc. 
 
•r*«on touttmy. SRI 
 
 foundering, but ne finally succeeded in getting her into 
 Nootka Sound, when his damage was Boon repaired. 
 Grav lound at this place a Spaniard who had the com- 
 mand of the establishment, and to him he immediately 
 communicated the results of his examinations, and par- 
 ticularly his discovery of the Columbia river, which 
 proved a very fortunate circumstance, for he thereby 
 obtained an unimpeachable witness in his favor. He 
 continued in this region a few months actively employed 
 in his trade with the natives, and other business, and in 
 the ensuing fall took his final departure from the north- 
 west coast. 
 
 In a discussion of the conflicting claims of the two 
 governments, it had been arranged between the Spanish 
 and English, that the former should surrender to the 
 latter the country lying around the Nootka Sound, ana 
 Captain Vancouver was the commissioner from England 
 to receive the surrender. The negotiations between 
 Vancouver and the Spanish commissioner took place 
 while Gray and other American captains were on the 
 coast The contest which was carried on between the 
 two parties, however interesting, would be too tedious 
 to introduce here. Suffice it to sayj the place was not 
 surrendered nor does it appear that the Spanish flag was 
 ever struck to the British at Nootka Sound. Be this as 
 it may, in the month of October, Vancouver left Nootka 
 with his three vessels, the Discovery, Chatham, and 
 Doedalus, having procured from Quadra, the Spanish 
 commissioner, copies of the charts and descriptions of 
 Gray, and proceeded southward to satisfy himself of the 
 correctness of Gray's representations. Whidby in the 
 Doedalus was sent to explore Bulfinch's Harbor, while 
 Vancouver proceeded with the other vessels to the 
 mouth of the Columbia. Vancouver's own ship, the 
 Discovery, was not able to enter the river and he there- 
 fore proceeded on to the Bay of San Francisco. But 
 the Chatham, under Lieutenant Braughton, succeeded, 
 with great difficulty, in crossing the bar. He found lying 
 at anchor in the bay the brig Jenny, from Bristdl, which 
 had left Nwtka a few days previous The Chatham 
 
•SK0OH THMUTOBT. 
 
 ran aground soon after entering, and Braughton, from 
 the intricacy of the channel, resolved to leave her abou 
 four miles within the bar and proceed up the river in i 
 boat. Accordingly he set out, and thoroughly examin- 
 ing every part of the river, he penetrated to the distance 
 of about ninety-six miles from the mouth, where the 
 river takes a bend and where the strength of the current 
 was such as to induce them to return. This bend or 
 point in the river, they called Point Vancouver. Return- 
 ing to their ship they gave a bay on the north side of the 
 river, the name of Gray's Bay, but the bay back of Cape 
 Disappointment, they called Baker's Bay, after the cap- 
 tain of the brig Jenny. / 
 
 Having remained in the river twenty days, on the 
 10th of November they again crossed the bar, and pro- 
 ceeded south to join Vancouver in the bay of San Fran- 
 cisco. With the usual avariciousness of English aristo- 
 crats, Braughton, before his departure, formally took 
 possession of the river and of the country in the vicinity, 
 jn the name of his Britanic Majesty, "Having every 
 reason to believe that the subjects of no other civilized 
 nation or state had ever entered this river before ;" an act 
 of justice the like of which the subjects of Great Britain 
 are ever ready to perform towards American citizens. 
 
 At the bay of San Francisco, Braughton and Whidby 
 reported the result of their observations to Vancouver, 
 and the former was dispatched to England, while, the 
 latter proceeded to the Sandwich Islands. 
 
 Vancouver never again returned to the coast of Ore 
 gon, tho'ugh he subsequently explored minutely the region 
 round about Cook's Inlet. However, he sailed south as 
 far as Nootka, from which place he took his departure 
 for England, where he arrived in August, 1795, having 
 been absent more than four years. 
 
 Braughton having been elevated to the rank of Cap- 
 tain, was again sent by the British government to the 
 Pacific, and arrived on the coast of Nootka in the spring 
 of 1796, empowered to receive the surrender of the place 
 from the Spanish, but found it entirely abandoned by 
 the whites, and in the possession of savages, under the 
 
OBMOW «B 363 
 
 treacnerous. cruel and notorious Maquinna. It ■honld 
 De observed that Nootka Sound is on the west side of 
 Vancouver's Island, consequently it does not properly 
 belon to the coast of Oregon. 
 
CHAPTER XYHL 
 
 Oregon territory— History eontinaed— European uum tamlred la mt—T*ci r ; ansa 
 carried by the Great Republic— Slip Boston slexed by the Indians— Lend Expedi- 
 tions— Captain Jonathan Cairer— Sir Alexander McKiniie— Lewis and dark- 
 Project ol John Jacob Astor— Captain Thorn and the Tonqiun — — McDougal aa1 
 Concomley— Fate of the Tonqnin— Wilson Price Hunt — Depression at the fort- 
 Encouragement— Ship Bearer arrires— Declaration of war— Thompson and the 
 north-west company — Ross Cox— Astoria in danger— Visit of McTavish and Stuart 
 Alarming news — Effect on the American company — Sloop of war — Racoon am? 
 Captain Black— Astoria falls into the hands of the British— Astor 'a magmncen- 
 enterprise terminated. 
 
 For twenty years following 1796, the nations of Eu 
 rope were involved in the most bloody and destructive 
 wars, and consequently but little if any interest was 
 taken by either Spain or England, in the north-wes. 
 coast of America, either as it regards its occupancy or 
 its trade ; and seldom during that entire period, did the 
 vessels of any other nations than those of the United 
 States, appear in the North Pacific. The trade, there- 
 fore, between this coast and other parts of the world, 
 was exclusively carried on under the flag of the great 
 Republic. ' 
 
 Though they made no establishment on the coast for 
 the first sixteen years, the Americans sent their vessels 
 annually to this region, laden with such articles as the 
 natives of the country desired, which they exchanged for 
 furs. These were carried, to Canton and exchanged for 
 silks, porcelain, teas, and other articles suited to the vari- 
 ous markets then open to American vessels. * This trade 
 engaged the attention of many persons from various parts 
 of the Union, and in its earlier stages, fortunes were 
 . amassed, but it will be understood that, from the length of 
 the voyages performed, the nature of the coast, the diffi 
 
••■•ON TMMMTM1. Mf 
 
 eulty of the trade, and, above all, the treachery of the 
 savages with whom the traffic was carried on, the per- 
 sons employed therein were constantly exposed to the 
 greatest perils. But the dangers to which they volun- 
 tarily subjected themselves, are no reason why they 
 might pursue a fraudulent or abusive course with the In 
 dians. Yet, doubtless, many of them did not render an 
 equivalent for the furs received, and the natives were 
 sometimes deceived by trinkets that were of no value. 
 Spirits w *re ako introduced among them, which had a 
 direct tendency to inflame their savage passions. Diffi- 
 culties and quarrels arose frequently between the Ame- 
 ricans and Indians, and it required the most extraordinary 
 skill and courage on the part of the former, to accom- 
 Dlish their business^ with the ignorant and treacherous 
 savages with whom they were surrounded. But very 
 few vessels visited these* shores during this period that 
 did not suffer the loss of one or more of its crew, by 
 the ruthless hand of the blood-thirsty Indian. 
 
 Those who have read the narrative of John R. Jewit* 
 will recollect the circumstances of the bloody massacre 
 of the crew of the ship Boston, in 1803, by Maquinna and 
 his followers, while she was lying at Nootka. Under the 
 appearance of friendship -and without exciting suspicion, 
 this treacherous chief laid his plans to destroy the crew, 
 and seize the vessel as his own, which he cruelly put , 
 into execution, murdering all the' crew but two, who,' 
 after continuing in slavery three years, finally effected 
 their escape. 
 
 Previous to this period (1803) the subject of land ex- 
 pedition* across the continent to the Pacific ocean, was 
 agitated among the people of the United States, princi- 
 pally through the representations of Captain Jonathan 
 Carver, who', in 1766, explored the sources of the Mis- 
 sissippi, and said he had discovered a river which flowed 
 west, which he called the Oregon river, and which he 
 had no doubt emptied into the Western Ocean. 
 
 It is in Carver's account that we first detect the name 
 Oregon, a name which, it is conjectured, first originated 
 wi Ji Carver himself. However it might have come int« 
 
MB «■■•«* TCMIVOBT. 
 
 existence, it will probably be continued in connection 
 with the country to the end of time. 
 
 In 1774, Captain Carver and Richard Whitworth pro 
 jected what, in those days, was considered a bold and 
 daring enterprise, which was to cross the continent from 
 Missouri to the Pacific ocean, for the purpose of explor- ! 
 ing the country and tracing out the sources of the Ore- 
 gon river, which Carver said he had previously seen; 
 of passing down that river to its supposed exit, there 
 building a vessel and carrying on their discoveries by 
 sea. But this project, which, if it had been carried out, 
 might have been attended with important results, was 
 defeated by the breaking out of the American Revolution^ 
 
 A more successful attempt of this kind was made in 
 1793, by Sir Alexander McKenzie. This gentleman was 
 employed by the "North West Company" to explore 
 those regions of the west and north, which even to fur- 
 hiinters yet remained unknown. In 1789, he explored 
 the Hyperborean regions to the Arctic ocean ; but, in 
 1793, he took a more westerly route, and ascending 
 Peace river to its sources, he passed the dividing ridge, 
 and entering upon a river that flowed towards the Pacific,' 
 ne pursued it, and finally arrived on the coast of the 
 Pacific ocean, in latitude fifty^two degrees and twenty 
 minutes nor,th. He supposed the river he had discovered 
 was the Oregon river of Carver, but subsequent discove- 
 ries have proved it to be the stream which now bears 
 the name of Frazier's river. It empties into the ocean 
 three degrees north of the Columbia river. 
 
 This was the first journey performed by a white man 
 across the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. This, 
 however, took place north of the limits of the territory 
 of Oregon. 
 
 In 1804, '5 and '6, the memorable expedition under 
 Captains Merriweather Lewis and William Clark, was 
 accomplished. This exploring journey was projected by 
 the United States Government, through the recommenda- 
 tion of Thomas Jefferson, who was then President. 
 Captain Lewis was made the commander of the expedi- 
 tion, and after much difficulty in preparing, on the 14tb 
 
day of May, 1804, they began the ascent of the Miuouri 
 
 in boats. 
 
 After toiling the entire season, sometime near the last 
 of October, they found themselves sixteen hundred miles 
 from the mouth of the Missouri, and among savage 
 tribes, prepared to spend the first winter of their can> 
 paign. In the spring of 1805, these indefatigable men 
 continued their course up the Missouri to its sources in 
 the Rocky Mountains ; passed the stupendous gates of 
 that mighty chain, and on the other side came to a river 
 which flowed to the*westward. They followed it down 
 until it became a broad and noble river, and on 'the 7th 
 of October, embarked in canoes, and in a few days found 
 themselves at the confluence of two splendid rivers, 
 which proved to be the two great branches of the Colum- 
 bia. The branch they, descended, which was the south 
 branch, they called the Lewis, and the north they dis- 
 tinguished by the name of Clark. 
 
 Continuing their downward course they successively 
 
 Eassed the Falls of the Columbia, theDalls, the Cascades, 
 elow which they began to be affected by the rise ana 
 fall of the tide, and knowing by this that they must be 
 drawing near the ocean they passed on, and on the 15th 
 day of November, 1805, landed at Cape Disappointment, 
 on the north side of the mouth of the Columbia. 
 
 As the rainy season was setting in they examined the 
 country on both sides of the river, with a view to find a 
 suitable place to make their encampment for the winter 
 They accordingly built a fort on the south side, not fai 
 froin_an Indian village, and called it Fort Clatsop, after 
 the name of the Indian tribe. 
 
 Here they spent an agreeable winter, and as the weather 
 would admit, explored the surrounding country. The 
 savages were peaceable, and assisted in procuring them 
 food, such as the river and sea afforded, of which there 
 was no lack. Here they continued until the 13th day 
 of March, at which time, having made the necessary 
 preparations, they commenced their long and toilsome 
 journey back to the United States. l They ascended the 
 river in canoes as far as they could, on account »f the 
 
MM MMON TKKKITMV 
 
 rapids, and then resolved to proceed ny land. They 
 divided themselves into two parties, with the design of 
 re-crossing the Rocky Mountains by two different routes. 
 That under Lewis took nearly a due east course to the 
 Falls of the Missouri, while that under Clark took a more 
 southern route to the head waters of the Yellow Stone, 
 and the two parties were to unite at the junction of these 
 rivers. In the month of August, the parties again united, 
 according to agreement, and passing down the Missouri, 
 arrived at St. Louis on the 23d of September, 1806, after 
 an absence of two years and six months. 
 
 The journey of Lewis and Clark was one of discovery, 
 and the first performed by white men across the territory 
 of Oregon. The information which the account of these 
 gentlemen gave to the people of the States, was received 
 with great interest, and contributed to hasten the settle- 
 ment of the north-west boundary question between the 
 territories of Great Britain and those of the United States, 
 as far west as the Rocky Mountains ; and also to induce 
 private individuals to extend their trade with the Indians 
 beyond that chain. 
 
 In 1806, the British fur-traders of the north made their 
 first establishment on the west side of the mountains. 
 Mr. Simon Prazer, of the North-West Company, estab- 
 lished himself on Frazer's Lake, near the fifty-fourth 
 degree of north latitude, in a country since called by the 
 English, New Caledonia. But the first establishment of 
 the kind which was made on the waters of the Columbia, 
 and within the limits of Oregon, was that of Manuel 
 Lisa, a Spaniard, who was a member of the Missouri 
 Fur Company, which was formed at St. Louis, in 1808, 
 This was made on the head waters of Lewis' river, and 
 was placed under the immediate direction of Mr. Henry, 
 but, in consequence of the difficulty of obtaining supplies^ 
 and the continued hostility of the savages around, it was 
 given up in 1810. 
 
 At this time was formed the magnificent project of 
 John Jacob Astor, of New York, in reference to a trading 
 establishment at the mouth of the Columbia river. 
 The Company of which this distinguished merchant wu 
 
OREGON TERRITORY. 369 
 
 the chief support, as well as the principal director, wu 
 formed in 1810, and called the Pacific Fur Company. 
 Among the individuals that Mr. Astor admitted to a 
 partnership in the company, were a number who had 
 formerly belonged to the British f ur companies, and 
 being acquainted with the trade, Mr. Astor considered 
 them a valuable acquisition. A gentleman, however, 
 from New Jersey, by the name of Wilson Price Hunt, 
 was to be the principal agent in the establishment. , 
 
 Other posts were to be established "also, as circum- 
 stances would admit. It was designed to send ships 
 around Cape Hqrn to, the Columbia, laden with articles 
 of Indian trade, which were to be exchanged for furs, 
 and these were to be sent to China and exchanged for 
 
 foods that would suit the markets of the .United States, 
 'he plan was well laid, and but for opposing circum- 
 stances which no sagacity, however penetrating, could 
 Ereviously discover, and over which the originator could 
 ave no control, it doubtless would have succeeded to 
 admiration. The first ship which was sent out was the 
 Tonquin, which was commanded by Jonathan Thorn. 
 
 McDougal, McKay, and one or two others, who were 
 Bartners and clerks, went in her. 
 
 They left New York in September, 1810, and on the 
 22d day of March arrived at the mouth of the Columbia 
 river. As they approached the rnopth, they discovered 
 that the water broke in dreadful surges across the bar, 
 and there appeared to be no possibility of effecting an 
 entrance. And now began the heart-rending sufferings 
 of that ill-fated crew. 
 
 Captain Thorn sent off a boat to explore the entrance 
 under one of his officers by the name of Fox. Fox at 
 first declined, but the Captain insisted, and finally Fox 
 consented by saying, "Yes, I will go and lay my bones 
 by the side of those of my father, who was lost, at this 
 piece but a few years ago." The party started off, and 
 the boat passing over the mountain waves, slowly sepa- 
 rated from the ship. Night came on,' but the boat did 
 not return. Another, but no boat ; the ship in the mean- 
 time standing off and on. The utmost anxiety prevailed 
 16 
 
f># MM0* 
 
 on board. What should be done? Another boat wai 
 sent off to look for the former, and also to find the en- 
 trance. Two persons belonging to the latter boat only, 
 survived to tell the story that all their companions were 
 lost. They perished amid the, breakers at the entrance 
 Of the river ; and thus was given the remainder of the 
 crew, a most solemn warning of the more tragic fate 
 which awaited them. 
 
 • Soon after this disaster the weather became more 
 favorable, and the Tonquin passed the bar and. came to 
 anchor in Baker's Bay. After McDougal and others 
 had examined the country round about, the site ihey 
 pitched upon for the establishment of their post was 
 about ten miles up the river, and on the south side. 
 They built a trading house, and inclosed it with pickets 
 and gave it the name of " Astoria," after the name of 
 the projector of the enterprise. Soon after they arrived, 
 the partners crossed the river to visit Comcomly, the 
 chief of the Chenooks. 
 
 When they got ready to leave to return to the fort, 
 Jie wind was high, and the water in the bay was rough 
 Comcomly endeavored to dissuade them from crossing, 
 but they resolved to make the attempt. The wary chief, 
 however, sprang into his canoe with several of his men, 
 and kept close along by the boat as she came into the 
 high swells, believing that she would not endure the sea. 
 His fears were well grounded, for scarcely had they 
 started when the boat capsized, and the partners and 
 their men were struggling in the water for life. Com- 
 isomly, however, was immediately among them in his 
 canoe, and rescued them from a watery grave. 
 
 They were now willing to stay with the chief till ihe 
 storm abated, which took place soon afterward, and they 
 returned to the fort. 
 
 McDougal was to be the head of the concern until 
 the arrival of Mr. Hunt After considerable difficulty 
 between Captain Thorn and the gentlemen of the estab- 
 lishment, the goods designed for Astoria were landed, 
 and the ship proceeded northward for the purpose of 
 jrafficking with the Indians along the coast McKay 
 
•MfKSlT TERRITORT. . fH 
 
 went in her as supercargo, and Mr. Lewis as clerk, 
 The whole number of persons on board was twentv- 
 three, besides an Indian, who accompanied them as 
 interpreter. The ship proceeded to Vancouver's Island, 
 and came to anchor in the harbor of Nittinat. Some 
 of the natives came on board, but as it was too late in 
 the day to traffick, McKay went on shore to' see the 
 chief, whose name was Wicananish, and six of the 
 Indians remained on board as hostages. McKay was 
 received with great professions of friendship by the 
 thief, and a number of sea otter-skins were spread for 
 his bed. In the morning great numbers of the Indians 
 
 . came off to the ship, apparently to trade, headed by 
 two sons of the chief, and bringing with them great 
 
 r quantities of fur. The fur was spread upon the deck, 
 and the goods were also displayed before the Indians by 
 the unsuspecting crew. The bantering, which is peculiar 
 -o Indian traffick, commenced, and all for a few moments 
 seemed to go on well ; but at a concerted signal given, 
 by the chiefs, the knives, war-clubs, and tomahawks, 
 which the savages had contrived to secrete about their 
 persons, were at once displayed, the crew were imme- 
 diately overpowered, and nearly all of them butchered 
 upon the deck. Mr. Lewis, the clerk, and some others 
 had succeeded in getting into the hold of the vessel, near 
 the powder magazine, and Lewis had told the interpreter 
 that he' intended to blow up the ship, and in this way to 
 avenge his own death, and that of his companions. 
 
 The ship was now in the fufl possession of the savages, 
 who thronged her deek and were clambering up her 
 sides, all intent upon securing their prize, and unconscious 
 of the terrible fate which awaited them and which they 
 so well deserved. At length the magazine was fired, 
 and a scene which beggars description was then pre- 
 sented. The ship was torn to atoms, and the decks in 
 broken fragments, mingled with shivered boxes, barrels, 
 guns, and the dissevered limbs, heads, and trunks oJ 
 savages, were blown high ,into the air, and falling upon 
 the dark and agitated waters, presented the most gloomy 
 picture of desolation. At the time of the explosion, the 
 
373 OREGON TERRITOllT. 
 
 interpreter was in the main chains, and was thrown un- 
 hurt into the waters, where he succeeded in getting into 
 one of the canoes which were floating tenantless in the 
 bay, and in this he went ashore and finally got back to 
 Astoria in safety, and from him the story of the fate of 
 the Tonquin is known. 
 
 In January, 1811, Mr. Wilson Price Hunt, who had 
 been appointed general agent of the concern on the 
 Columbia, set out from St. Louis to cross the Rocky 
 Mountains, and after he and his companions endured the 
 most incredible sufferings from cold, fatigue, and want 
 of food, they arrived at Astoria in the spring of 1812. 
 Soon after they arrived, the shocking intelligence of the 
 destruction of the Tonquin and her unfortunate crew, 
 reached Astoria, and threw the whole establishment into 
 the most gloomy forebodings. The disaster was calcu- 
 'ated to depress the spirits and destroy the hopes of the 
 persons engaged in the enterprise. But the arrival of 
 the ship Beaver, from New York, which brought out 
 supplies and reinforcements, encouraged the Astorians 
 and they resolved to prosecute vigorously their enter 
 prise. It was determined that Mr. Hunt should leave 
 the river in the Beaver, and go to the northward, for the 
 purpose of advancing the interests of the company in that 
 region. Astoria was left under the direction of Mr. 
 Duncan McDougal, who had long been in the service of 
 the North West Company. 
 
 In January, 1813, the news of the declaration of war 
 by the United States against Great Britain, reached 
 Astoria by persons who had beert sent by Mr. Astor 
 from New York for that purpose, and served to darken 
 the prospects of the company. 
 
 On the 15th of July, Mr. David Thompson arrived, at 
 Astoria. This gentleman was a partner in the North 
 West Company, and it appears that he designed to antici- 
 pate Mr. Astor in the occupancy of the mouth of the 
 Columbia, but, to his disappointment, found the American 
 Company already in full possession. Whatever was his 
 object, he was doubtless the first person that descended 
 from near its source, the nor *b branch ef the Columbia 
 
OREGON TERRITORT. S7S 
 
 About this time the Astorians received information that 
 a British naval force was on its way to take possession 
 of the mouth of the river, which appeared to be a source 
 of satisfaction to McDougal and other British subjects 
 who were connected with him, some of whom imme- 
 diately left the service of the Pacific Company and went 
 over to the rival association. One of the persons that 
 quitted the service of Mr. Astor was Ross Cox, who 
 subsequently published a narrative of six years' residence 
 on the Columbia. 
 
 At this time, which was in the month of January, 
 1813, nearly all the persons in the establishment at As- 
 toria agreed to abandpn the enterprise, unless they should 
 speedily receive more supplies and assistance from New 
 York. Months passed away, but no assistance from New 
 York arrived. Mr. Astor had dispatched the ship Lark, 
 for Astoria, with abundant supplies of men and property ; , 
 but she was unfortunately wrecked on a coral reef, near 
 the coast of one of the Sandwich Islands, and thus added 
 another to the uncontrollable circumstances which served 
 to hasten the dissolution of the company. 
 
 From the representations of Mr. Astor, the govern 
 ment of the United States had resolved to send a frigate 
 to the North Pacific, to succor and protect the infant 
 settlement at the mouth of the river ; but as the naval 
 operations on Lake Erie and Lake Ontario began to assume 
 a decidedly important character, it was t necessary to 
 dispatch the men designed for the Pacific enterprise to 
 that quarter ; and the fact that the American ports were 
 blockaded by British fleets, rendered it impossible , to 
 convey any farther succors to Astoria. Accordingly, 
 the partners of the Pacific Company, at Astoria, resolved 
 to abandon the enterprise and provide for their safety, 
 as they began to fear that they might be attacked by the 
 British, who were already establishing themselves on the 
 upper waters of the Columbia. 
 
 A short time after the partners came to this conclusion, 
 Mr. Hunt, the chief agent, returned to Astoria. During 
 his absence he had visited the Russian settlements at Sitka, 
 Onalaahka and Kodiak, had collected a cargo of valuable 
 
874 OREGON THKTTOltY. 
 
 furs and sent them to Canton ; but, on arm ing at ths 
 Sandwich Islands, he learned that England and the United 
 States were at war, and that Commodore Hillyer was 
 on his way to the Pacific ocean with a squadron, to take 
 possession of the mouth of the Columbia. He, conse- 
 quently, chartered a vessel immediately and sailed for As- 
 toria to convey the news of war, and prepare to meet 
 any hostilities that might threaten them at their head- 
 quarters. He arrived at Astoria in the brig Pedlar, on 
 the 28th of February, 1814, and was astonished to learn 
 that the concerns of the establishment had been wound 
 up some time previous. 
 
 Some time before Hunt arrived, a company of British, 
 belonging to the North West Company established far in 
 the interior, and under the direction of McTavish and 
 Stuart, came down the river to Astoria, and brought the 
 alarming intelligence that a naval force was on its way 
 to the Columbia, with the object of taking and destroying 
 every thing American in that quarter. Notwithstanding 
 the probability that the whole establishment would fall 
 into the hands of the British, without their paying for it, 
 yet McTavish and Stuart proposed to purchase the whole 
 establishment, furs and other property, at a proper valu 
 ation ; and also to receive into " The service of the 
 North West Company any of the persons belonging to 
 the Pacific Company, at the same wages they were 
 then receiving, and to send back to the United States all 
 that did not choose to be thus employed." The partners 
 of the American Company resolved to comply with this 
 proposition, and accordingly the entire establishment was 
 sold to the North West Company for the sum of about 
 40,000 dollars. 
 
 While this negotiation was going on, the British sloop 
 of war Racoon, Captain Black, arrived at Astoria with 
 the expectation of sharing largely in the plunder of that 
 place, and, though he found the stars and stripes still 
 floating over the factory, yet all the valuable property, 
 consisting of furs, peltries, &c, naa passea into the hands 
 of British subjects, and Gapt. Black could do no more than 
 to lower the atari and stripes, and hoist the colon of 
 
OKKOON TBRKITOKT. 874 
 
 Britain over the walls of the factory. This he did with 
 the accompanying ceremony of breaking a bottle of port 
 on the flag-staff, and changing the name from Astoria, to 
 that of Port George. 
 
 On arriving at Astoria, in the " Pedlar," Hunt found 
 that he could do nothing farther in that part of the world, 
 but to close up the concerns of the company to the best 
 
 v advantage, and return to the United States. Accord- 
 ingly he re-embarked in the Pedlar, with three of his 
 companions in trade, and returned home by the way of 
 Canton. Of the other persons who had been his associ- 
 ates in this astonishing enterprise, some entered the ser- 
 vice of the North West Company ; some exposed them- 
 selves to the perils of re-crossing the Rocky Mountains, 
 and others, of whom there are a few living to this day, 
 
 s took to themselves Indian wives, and fixed their habita- 
 tions among the savages of Oregon. 
 
 Thus the magnificent enterprise, conceived and prose- 
 cuted by John Jacob Astor, against so many opposing 
 circumstances, was brought to an unfortunate termina 
 tion. ' 
 
 Doubtless, but for the unhappy war of that period, it 
 would have succeeded to admiration. That it dick not 
 succeed, is to be sincerely regretted by every American ; 
 or, in that case, the country would never have been 
 Aivided ; long before this time, the whole of Oregon 
 would have been in the peaceable possession of the citi- 
 zens of the United States. But the circumstances which 
 militated against the success of this mighty project, were 
 •rarely providential, and such as no prudence or foresight 
 ,n its originator could have possibly guarded against. 
 Though defeated in its ulterior objects, it opened the 
 way to Oregon to American citizens, and supplied the 
 means, in the interesting journals of those who were 
 connected with the enterprise,. for Washington Irving to 
 awaken an interest in the American public, in relation to 
 Oregon, that has gone on increasing until the preser* 
 time 
 
CHAPTER XDL 
 
 territory —History command — Astoria restored to the Americans — iM 
 ssripuon ot the Port — North West Company remain in the country — Hits, 
 companies — Hudson's Bay Company — How formed — Extent of its operation! 
 — War between the two companies — Both merged in one — The Honorable 
 Hudson's Bay Company — Policy of the company — Number and situation of 
 trading forts — Immense power of the company — Colonizing the country — 
 Sir George Simpson's Colony — Settlements — Fort Vancourer — Gentlemen of 
 the Port — Perils of the fur-trade — A thrilling tragedy. 
 
 i 
 
 According to the first article of the treaty of Ghent, 
 which provided "that all territory, places and posses- 
 sions whatsoever, taken by either party from the other 
 during, or after the war, should be restored withotf. 
 delay, " measures were taken by the United States 
 Government to re-occupy the post at the mouth of the 
 Columbia river. In 1817, Captain J. Biddle and J. B. 
 Prevost were commissioned to proceed to the Columbia, 
 and there to assert the claim of the United States to the 
 sovereignty of the country. These gentlemen sailed 
 from New York in the sloop- of-war Ontario, on the 4th 
 of October, 1817. The British Government, hearing of 
 the departure of the Ontario for the Columbia, dispatched 
 an order to the agents of the North West Company 
 directing them to give every facility in their power tc 
 the agqnts of the United States Government, for the 
 ie-occupation of Fort George, as a place that had been 
 captured during the war, and to be restored according, 
 to the above article in the treaty of Ghent Captain 
 Biddle entered the mouth of the Columbia in August, 
 1818, and on the 19th of the same month, the flag of 
 the United States was again floating over the stockades 
 of old Astoria. But a more formal surrendering of the 
 place by Great Britain and Occupation of it by the United 
 
OREGON TERRITORY, 877 
 
 States, took place the following October. On the firsl 
 day of this month, the British frigate Blossom, Captain 
 Hikey,~arrived in fhe Columbia, bringing Mr. Prevost, 
 ^who had left the Ontario in Chili, to attend to some 
 business there, and who was empowered to receive the 
 surrender of the place from the constituted British 
 authorities. Captain Hikey and James Keith, the lattei 
 c* whom was the superintendent of the North West 
 Company at that time, were the persons appointed to 
 deliver up the settlement in due form. The following 
 is the instrument by which the country captured by the 
 British, at the mouth of the Columbia, reverted to the 
 United States : 
 
 " In obedience to the commands of his Royal High 
 ness the Prince Regent, signified in a dispatch from the 
 right honorable the Earl Bathurst, addressed to the 
 partners or agents of the North West Company, bearing 
 date .the 27th of January, 1818, and in obedience to a 
 subsequent order, dated the 26th of July, from W. H. 
 Shireff, Esq., captain of his majesty's ship Andromache, 
 we, the undersigned, do, in conformity to the first article 
 of the treaty of Ghent, restore to the' government of 
 the United States, through its agent, J. B. Prevost, Esq., 
 the settlement of Fort George, on the Columbia river. 
 Given under our 'hands in triplicate, at Fort George, 
 ^Columbia River), this 6th day of October, 1818. 
 
 " F. Hikey, Capt of his Majesty's ship Blossom. 
 " J. Keith, of the North West Company," 
 
 Mr. Prevost accepted this delivery in the following 
 language : 
 
 " I do hereby acknowledge to have this day received, 
 in behalf of the government of the United States, the 
 possession of the settlement designated above, in con- 
 formity to the first article of the treaty of Ghent. 
 Given under my hand in triplicate, at Fort George, 
 (Columbia River), this 6th of October, 1818. 
 
 " J. B. Prevost, agent for the United States." 
 
 This transaction took place in 1818, and as Fori 
 George had then been in the possession of the North 
 Watt Company for mora than tour yotn, th« trade of 
 16* 
 
ITS OftSeON TERRITORY 
 
 that company on the Columbia had become firmly estab- 
 Jished. The fort at that time consisted of a stockade, 
 inclosing a parallelogram of one hundred and fifty feet 
 by "wo hundred and fifty feet, extending in its greatest 
 length from north-west to south-east. Within this inclo- 
 sure were all the buildings attached to the establishment, 
 such as dwelling-houses, stores, mechanic' shops, &c. 
 On the fort were mounted two eighteen-pounders, four 
 four-pounders, two six-pound cohorns, and seven swivels. 
 The number of persons belonging to the factory, besides 
 a few women and children, were sixty-five, of, whom 
 twenty-three were whites, twenty-six Sandwich Island- 
 ers, and the remainder persons of mixed blood from 
 Canada. In the restitution of Fort George by Mr. 
 Keith, to the Americans, it was understood that the 
 North West Company would continue their occupancy^ 
 of the country, and traffick therein according to the pro- 
 visions of the article of agreement entered into between 
 the United States and Great Britain, in October, 1818 
 1 which was, " That any country that may be claimed bj 
 either party on, the north-west coast of America, west 
 ward of the Stony Mountains, shall, together with its 
 harbors, bays, and creeks, and the navigation of all rivers 
 within the samo, be free and open for the term of ten 
 years, to the vessels, citizens, and subjects of the two 
 powers." 
 
 The h'story of Oregon from 1814 to 1834, is embraced 
 si the history of those rival companies of fur-traders, 
 which have extended their operations, from time to time, 
 r rom the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Vancouver's Island, 
 and from New Spain to the country of the Esquimaux. 
 To give a particular account of these companies would 
 require volumes ; a brief survey, therefore, must suffice. 
 
 While the French merchants of Quebec and Montreal 
 were, by their agents, exploring the immense forests on 
 both sides of the great lakes, and ransacking the extended 
 prairies of the West and the valley of the Mississippi, in 
 quest of the rich and valuable furs with which the wilds 
 of North America abounded, and were furnishing France 
 and other European countries with the precious luxury, 
 
nnmtr. m 
 
 tfie avails of which constituted their immense wealth, a 
 rival power ushered into being a corporation which is 
 now grasping the supreme dominion of the forest north 
 of the United States, from the coast of Labrador to the 
 Pacific Ocean, and exercising an iron despotism, not 
 only over the numerous persons who are in its employ, 
 but also over many of the Indian tribes residing within 
 the limits of its jurisdiction. For a number of centuries 
 .ha government of Great Britain made the most extraor- 
 dinary efforts to discover a north-west passage from the 
 Atlantic to the Pacific, during which Baffin and Hudson 
 explored the two bays, which now bear their names. 
 From*the accounts given, the opinion was entertained 
 that the communication could be effected by Hudson's 
 Bay, and, as an encouragement to private enterprise, and 
 to increase the facilities to explore the regions of the ' 
 north, for the purpose of accomplishing this long desired 
 object, Charles II, in 1669, granted a charter to a society 
 of London merchants,- under the designation of " The 
 Hudson's Bay Company." Then commenced the opera 
 tions of a monopoly, second only in power to the far 
 famed East India Company, which has opened the way 
 for the extension of British rule over a vast portion of 
 the continent of Asia. For many years the Hudson's 
 Bay Company confined its operations within the Hyper- 
 borean regions, where it had enthroned itself in solitary 
 despotism, and where it opposed Jtself in successful 
 rivalry against a French company of a similar character ; 
 but, finally, has' extended itself throughout the entire 
 western territories claimed by Great Britain and the 
 United States, and has even laid under contribution a 
 portion of the Russian American possessions. During its 
 onward career it has experienced few reverses, though 
 it has frequently been called upon to contend with power- 
 ful opposition.. 
 
 During the year 1787, an association was organized 
 among the principal fur-merchants of Montreal, for the 
 purpose of carrying the trade between the posts of that 
 country and such of, the British territories of the interior 
 as were not supposed to be included in the grant to the 
 
M0 mmon mmmr. 
 
 Hudson's Bay Company ; and so rapidly did it extend its 
 operations, that within two years its establishments were 
 advanced as far as Athabaska Lake, »near the fifty-ninth 
 parallel of latitude, about eight hundred miles north-west 
 from Lake Superior. This company, in its increasingly 
 extended operations, proved the most powerful competi- 
 tor with which the Hudson's Bay Company had to con- 
 tend, but finally merged itself in the latter company. 
 
 The Hudson's Bay Company, exercising supreme 
 control over Its frozen domains, at length found a new 
 company advancing upon them with a menacing aspect^* 
 and both companies became immediately actuated by the 
 spirit and motives of rivals. They became the most 
 bitter enemies to one another, and as the different par- 
 ties of the two companies would come in contact while 
 exploring the north-western wilds, the most serious 
 quarrels would take place, and result in the commission 
 of injuries by each party against the other. At length 
 in 1814, a regular war broke out, and for some time 
 was openly carried on between them. The scene of 
 this fraternal war was the territory on the Red river, 
 contiguous to the frontiers of the United States. A 
 company of Scotch Highlanders had been established 
 here by Lord Selkirk, in 1812, in virtue of a grant of 
 the country by the Hudson's Bay Company. The 
 North West Company, to which the Scotch settlement 
 had proved injurious by wresting from them those sup- 
 plies of provisions for their trading posts, which had 
 been obtained almost wholly from the "Red river lands, 
 denied the validity of this grant, and hence arose many 
 disputes and various acts of violence, until finally, the 
 Scotchmen were driven away, and their houses de- 
 stroyed by their opponents. The Hudson's Bay Com- 
 pany re-established the colony the following year, and 
 consequently hostilities were renewed. 
 
 Posts were taken and burnt by each party, andlpn 
 the 19th of June, 1816, a general battle was fought,3ln 
 which the North Westers were victorious. The Scotqh- 
 men were routed, and their governor, Mr. Semple, ard 
 seventeen of his followers, were killed. 
 
•mem* Tumrroar. M. 
 
 1 hen affairs were represented by each party before 
 the British Government, and in 1821 a compromise was 
 effected between the rival companies, and they were 
 united by an act of Parliament, under the title of " The 
 Honorable Hudson's Bay Company." At the same time 
 an act was passed, granting to this company the exclu- 
 sive right to trade in, the Indian territories in Northern 
 America, owned or claimed by Great Britain, for the 
 period of twenty-one years. Under the protection of 
 this act, after the coalition of the two companies took 
 place, the arms of the giant monopoly were thrown 
 around the entire territory west of the Rocky Moun- 
 tains, extending from the Russian settlements to the 
 Gulf of California. Oregon, from fifty-four degrees 
 forty minutes, south as far as they pleased to go, and 
 from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific, was dotted 
 with forts and trading posts, and every valley and moun- 
 tain was made to contribute to swell the coffers of the 
 30-partners of this extensive concern. 
 
 The grand operations of the Hudson's Bay Company 
 are managed by a governor, deputy-governor, and a 
 committee of directors, established in London, to whom 
 all the reports of the company's affairs are annually 
 transmitted. The trade of this company is under the 
 immediate control of a governor, residing within the 
 field of its operations, who is responsible only to the 
 committee in London. Under him are inferior officers, 
 consisting of superintendents, factors, traders and clerks. 
 The higher officers have a direct interest or share in 
 the profits of the business, but the lower are engaged at 
 small salaries, with the promise of a pension for life, 
 ♦ after a given period of faithful service. But the most 
 numerous class of agents in the business of th» compauy 
 are the hunters, voyagers, and trappers, consisting of 
 Hawaiians, French Canadians, half-breeds and Indians, 
 who are paid a mere pittance for their services, and are 
 kept in a state of entire subjection to the will of the 
 company, by promises of future advancement, according 
 as they shall render themselves of value to the trade. 
 The strictest discipline and subordination are even- 
 
882 OBMON TKMITOBT. 
 
 where enforced by the officers, and generally observe* 
 by the servants, though occasionally there are violent 
 outbreaks. 
 
 The furs and skins which constitute nearly the sole 
 returns of the trade, are principally procured from the 
 Indians in exchange for coarse manufactured goods, guns, 
 and a variety of worthless^ trinkets, calculated to please 
 the fancy of the savage, without proving of any benefit. 
 Some, however, are procured by the company's trappers 
 and hunters. The goods employed in this business are 
 all brought from England, free of duty, and, for the de- 
 partment west of the Rocky Mountains, are deposited 
 at Fort Vancouver. At this point, the goods that are 
 wanted for the interior, are packed in bundles of such a 
 size as to be easily carried by one man, as the transporta- 
 tion is performed alternately in boats and by portage, 
 and sent to all the posts throughout the country. Re 
 cently, however, an additional depot has been established 
 on Vancouver's Island, north of the forty-ninth parallel, 
 called Victoria, which, probably, will become the princi- 
 pal one, as Vancouver is in the territory belonging to 
 the United States. The furs collected are all sent to 
 .hese two places, from which they are shipped directly to 
 London, in vessels which arrive annually on the coast, 
 with the goods and other supplies necessary to carry on 
 the t^ade. Five or six ships of about three hundred tons 
 burthen, are constantly employed for this purpose, in 
 addition to several smaller craft which operate in the 
 rivers and along the coast Among the latter, is one 
 steamboat, which is principally employed between Fort 
 Nezqualy, on Puget's Sound, and Stikine, a post north of 
 the fifty-sixth parallel. 
 
 The number of forts and trading-posts occupied by 'tie 
 company west of the Rocky Mountains, is twenty-two : — 
 Fort Vancouver, on the north side of the Columbia River, 
 ninety-five miles from the ocean, in north latitude forty- 
 five degrees and about forty minutes, and west longitude 
 122 degrees and 30 minutes ; this fort was established 
 in 1824, by Governor Simpson, and named after the dis- 
 tinguished navigator who was the second to enter the 
 
omson nuiton. S8S 
 
 month of the Columbia, but the first to explore the river 
 as high up as the point of land on which Vancouver 
 stands : Fort George, formerly Astoria, situated on the 
 south side of the Columbia, ten miles from its mouth ; 
 Nezqualy, on Puget's Sound, latitude forty-seven degrees ; 
 Fort Langly, on Frazer's River, latitude forty-nine de 
 grees and twenty-five minutes ; Fort McLaughlin, en Mill 
 Bank Sound, latitude fifty-tWo degrees ; Fort Simpson, 
 on Dundas Island, latitude fifty-four, degrees and thirty 
 minutes ; Fort Stikine, on. a river of the same name, lati- 
 tude fifty-six degrees* and thirty minutes : this fort is 
 in the territory belonging to Russia, and, regardless pf 
 the rights of the Russians, the Hudson's Bay Company 
 attempted, in 1834, to intrench themselves on the banks 
 of the Stikme, which had been recently discovered, and 
 abounded in the most valuable furs. Baron Wrangle, 
 who was then the Governor of the Russian American 
 possessions; having got wind of the project entertained 
 by the English to wrest from them this important point, 
 proceeded to the moUth of the river and, fortified it by 
 erecting a block-house and stationing there a sloop of 
 war. The Russians had not been long in waiting before 
 a vessel was discovered approaching the shore and bear- 
 ing the men and materials for the contemplated establish ■ 
 ment ; but, to their surprise, the British found a sloop 
 of war ready to dispute their passage into the river. 
 They were informed that to save themselves, their pro- 
 perty and their vessel, they must tack ship and return to 
 their own possessions. All appeals to treaties, and all 
 the fair promises of the English, were ineffectual ; the 
 Russians were inexorable, and the Hudson's Bay Com- 
 pany for once were foiled in their attempt, after having 
 spent in preparations the sum of twenty thousand pounds. 
 Subsequently they entered into a negotiation with the 
 Russians and proposed to purchase the right of trading 
 on the Stikine River, for a certain number of years. To 
 this the Russians listened favorably, and at length a bar- 
 gain was completed, in which the English bound them- 
 selves to pay to the Russians annually, for a term of 
 fears, a certain sum, to be paid in the produce ?f the 
 
384 OREGON TERftlTOHT. 
 
 extensive farm which the English cultivated on the Co- 
 lumbia River, connected with what they could procure 
 from the settlers in the country. On the conclusion of 
 this contract the post was immediately occupied, a strong 
 fort erected, and munitions of war provided to defend 
 the establishment against the hostile Indians by which it 
 is surrounded. 
 
 With the exception of Victoria on Vancouver's Island, 
 the forts and posts of. the company are situated inland, 
 as follows : Frazer's Lake, McLeod's Lake, Fort George, 
 Alexandria, Chilcotins, Babine, and Bear's Lake, in that 
 portion of the country called by the English, New Cale- 
 donia ; the posts of Walla- Walla, Okanagan, and Colville, 
 high up on the Columbia River ; the Flathead and Kopta- 
 nia post, between the two main branches of the Columbia ; 
 Fort Hall, near the Rocky Mountains and on the south 
 branch of the Columbia, and Umpqua post, situated in 
 latitude forty-three degrees and thirty minutes, on a river 
 of he same name, and about fifty miles from the ocean. 
 The company also have two migratory trapping and 
 trading expeditions of between fifty and seventy-five men 
 each ; to the one is appropriated the country from the Co- 
 lumbia south to the Bay of San Francisco along the coast ; 
 the other explores the interior lietween the Columbia 
 and the head-waters of the Colorado and Sacramento. 
 
 The average annual value of the furs and peltries 
 derived from these territories, has been in the vicinity of 
 one hundred and forty thousand dollars, for which have 
 been given about twenty thousand dollars worth of goods, 
 prime cost, the services of about five hundred men, 
 employed in various parts of the business, shipping to 
 bring supplies and take back returns, with various other 
 incidental expenses. The net profits, however, arising 
 from the Oblumbia trade, according to the representa- 
 tions of Dr. John McLaughlin, who is the superintendent 
 of the affairs of the Hudson's Bay Company, west of the 
 Rocky Mountains, have not usually amounted to more 
 than ten thousand dollars, the principal profits of the 
 trade being derived from countries not embraced is th* 
 western department 
 
OftleoN *BMItw*Y. 386 
 
 It haw always been the policy of the Hudson's Bay 
 Company to monopolize the trade of those immense 
 regions in North America, occupied by civilized man, 
 and it has appeared destined to swallow up all other 
 commercial enterprises coming within its reach. With 
 this view, its posts have been pushed onward from time 
 to time, until every important point has been occupied 
 from Hudson's Bay to Puget's Sound, and its brigades 
 of boats have appeared on every navigable river of that 
 vast region, bearing,British manufactures into the deepest 
 recesses of savage life, or, on their backward route, 
 loaded with furs for the great depository on the sea- 
 board. On every Indian trail have been seen the sure- 
 footed mule and the Indian mustang, reeling under bur- 
 dens of three hundred pounds, sometimes in troops of 
 scores, driven by a squadron of weather-beaten moun 
 taineers, with their rifles before them, and their long 
 knives hanging at their belts ; now ascending the mighty 
 mountain chain ; now plunging to the bottom of the deep, 
 dark ravine ; now diving into the solitudes of the prime- 
 val forest, untrodden but by the feet of wild beasts, and 
 savages as wild as they, and now emerging upon the 
 extended prairies, calling, wherever the rising smoke 
 indicates, the presence of an Indian, and bartering the 
 wampum, the gaudy ribbon, the scarlet cloth, and the 
 Indian blankets, for the precious beaver, otter, and mar- 
 ten, until their supply of goods is exhausted, and their 
 animals loaded with the fruits of their toils. They 
 may be seen winding along the serpentine trail which 
 leads back to the grand depot, happy if their numbers 
 have not been diminished by the numerous casualties 
 incident to the business in which they are engaged. The 
 wonderful efforts of those who have controlled the desti- 
 nies of this company, and the indefatigable exertions of 
 the numerous agents employed to promote its interests, 
 nave succeeded, equai to the most sanguine expectations. 
 Possessed with inexhaustible resources, and sustained 
 with the most vigorous policy, they have been i advancing 
 in a sure march of commercial conquest They have 
 toft n« posts behind them unsubdued, but wherever they 
 
SM •KB«*M TBBBITOBT. 
 
 have made an attack, they remain master* of the field 
 Their concentration of capital and interest gives them a 
 decided advantage over the scattered capital of individual 
 merchants, and to this we may attribute a great share 4 
 of their success. A number of yeaf s ago they succeeded 
 in ridding themselves of all American competition on the 
 north-west coast, of which, until very recently, they have 
 enjoyed -the undivided monopoly. And whether on the 
 coast or in the interior, wherever the Hudson's Bay 
 Company has placed its giant foot, there American trade 
 has been sure to decline. 
 
 Another feature of the policy of the company, is the 
 course which they have pursued in relation to colonizing 
 the country. They have always been opposed to its set- 
 tlement by any people except such as, by a strict subjec- 
 tion to the company, would become subservient to their 
 wishes. This has, doubtless, arisen from two circum- 
 stances : First, the fur-trade of Oregon has been rapidly 
 declining for a number of years past, and the Hudson's 
 Bay Company are fully aware that this trade alone will 
 not be sufficient to sustain them in the country for many 
 years to come, and to abandon the country would involve 
 themselves in an immense loss. These liabilities they 
 wish to guard against by opening sources of wealth in 
 other branches of business, to be under their control. 
 Secondly, they have had in their employment, every 
 year, many hundreds of persons, consisting of Canadian 
 French, Hawaiians, half-breed Iroquois, and others, who 
 are under their absolute control, so long as tney remain 
 in the Indian country. Many of these, from year to 
 year, either by having large families, by the decline of 
 the fur-trade, or by superannuation, become unprofitable 
 servants, and by the company are settled in various parts 
 of the country, where they support themselves, and be- 
 come, indirectly, a source of profit to the company. 
 They wished to preserve Orejon as an asylum for their 
 servants, on both sides of the Rocky Mountains, where 
 they could use them to advantage, in agricultural, pas- 
 toral, and manufacturing pursuits, when -they could be 
 bo longer serviceable to them in the business of the fur 
 
MMOM TEMITMY. Mf 
 
 trade. That the company have comtemplated a rapid 
 decline, and probable termination of, the fur-trade west 
 of the Rocky Mountains, appears from the fact of their 
 having been formed into a new company, under\he name 
 of " Puget's Sound Agricultural Company," with a capital 
 of two million pounds. This company has pretended to 
 hold large tracts of land in the vicinity of Puget's Sound, 
 under grants of letters patent from the English Govern- 
 ment ; and here they have attempted to establish a 
 colony, but without success. 
 
 This attempt was made in 1842. The half-breed 
 descendants of the gentlemen and servants of the Hud- 
 son's Bay Company, .had been collecting together in a 
 colony, on a small tract of fertile land lying on Red 
 river, east of the Rocky Mountains, for more than thirty 
 years, and so rapid was the increase of the colony, and 
 so limited the arable country on the Red river, that the 
 company resolved to send off a colony of the numerous 
 Scotch and English half-breed ssettled on that river, to 
 the shores of the Pacific ocean. Accordingly, in 1842, 
 Sir George Simpson, who for many years has been the 
 resident Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company, by 
 holding out the most flattering inducements, succeeded 
 in forming a colony of some thirty families, of which he 
 took the charge in person. They left the Red river 
 settlement late in the spring, with their scanty supplies 
 packed upon the backs of mules and Indian ponies, and 
 
 Sassing through the stupendous gates of the Rocky 
 fountains, they arrived on the borders of Pugera 
 Sound some time in the month of October. If the 
 fertility of the soil where they were planted by Sir 
 George, had corresponded with the picturesque beauty 
 of the face of the country, doubtless the colony would 
 have succeeded ; but in consequence of a total failure 
 of the crops the first year, the colonists abandoned the 
 place, contrary to the wishes of the company, and set- 
 tled in a more fertile portion of the country. 
 
 Two other settlements intended for the reception and 
 support of retiring servants of the company, have been 
 ertablished in Oregon ; one in the valley of the Cowilitz, 
 
ftt «KB««N tnilVOlT. 
 
 north of the lower Columbia, the other oh the delightftt 
 plains watersd by the Wallamette river, south of the 
 Columbia. As interested motive* first induced the 
 company {o establish these settlements, so it has always, 
 been their policy to keep them in a state of absolute 
 dependence. The colonists have not only been respon 
 sible to the company for the course of conduct they 
 have pursued, but from it alone, until very recently, 
 ihey have been obliged to receive all theii supplies of 
 foreign necessaries, consisting of clothing, groceries, 
 &c, for which they have been obliged to pay in the 
 produce of the soil, at prices to suit the avaricious pro- 
 pensities which have developed themselves in the whole 
 policy of the Hudson's Bay Company. 
 
 The oppressive measures adopted by the company, in 
 reference to these settlements, were such as to cause 
 them to languish for years, and to induce some of the 
 most active and enterprising among the settlers, to take 
 refuge in the United States. 
 
 Fort Vancouver, after it became the grand depot of 
 the company west of the mountains, was the most 
 important point occupied by them, and the settlement 
 there established, differed from those already described, 
 in the important particular, that every person connected 
 with it, 'was in the immediate service of the company. 
 The fort, in 1845, consisted in a stockade, inclosing a 
 space of ground of about eight hundred feet long, and 
 five hundred broad, with a bastion at one corner, with 
 three gates in front, for ingress and egress, and one in 
 the rear. In addition to the artillery mounted in the 
 bastion, there were two eighteen-pounders and two 
 swivels planted in front of the residence of the chief 
 factors, and commanding the principal entrance to the 
 fort. 
 
 Within this inclosure were situated some thirty build- 
 ings, serving as dwelling-houses, stores, magazines, and 
 work-shops. Near the fort are the buildings occupied, 
 by the servants, as also a hospital, barns, and a large 
 boat-house. In the rear of the fort the company have 
 a splendid garden in the highest state of cultivation. 
 
OKKSOIf TBBRri-OXY S8t 
 
 which produce! all kinds of fruit for which the climate 
 is adapted, such as apples, peaches, pears and grapes. 
 Here is also cultivated a large farm of some three thou- 
 sand acres, producing wheat, barley, oats, peas, potatoes, 
 &c, in great abundance ; and herds of many thousands 
 of cattle are supported on the adjacent plains. 
 
 Connected with the fort, and about four miles distant, 
 up the Columbia, are a flouring-mill and saw-mill, which 
 have been in operation for several years. 
 
 At the head of this establishment stands Dr. John 
 MeLaughlin, and second to him is James Douglass, Esq., 
 the former being a native of Canada, and the latter of 
 Scotland. These gentlemen, as far as social habits are 
 concerned, have acquired for themselves, and for the 
 company of which they are chief factors, an enviable 
 reputation for hospitality and kindness. Few persons, 
 whether coming, by land or by sea, have ever visited 
 Vancouver without being received with a hospitality 
 which knew no bounds, until every want of the traveler 
 was supplied. Innumerable have been the favors con 
 ferred by them upon the American missionaries, and 
 their assistance has been rendered at times when great 
 inconvenience, and even suffering, would have resulted 
 from neglect. For all these acts of kindness these gen- 
 tlemen, with many others at the -various posts in the 
 country, equally as well disposed, are deserving of much 
 praise. But to particularize here would extend this 
 account beyond the limits originally marked out ; and I 
 shall therefore close this sketch of the history of the 
 Hudson's Bay Company, by presenting a few circum- 
 stances and incidents illustrative of the perils of the 
 fur-trade, and of the character of those under-agenta 
 employed to prosecute it 
 
 The trading-post situated at the confluence of the 
 Thompson's and Frazer's river, had been long undei 
 the superintendence of an English gentleman by the 
 name of Black, who, in view of many amiable qualities, 
 was in good repute among the gentlemen of the com- 
 
 £any, and had already risen to the office of chief trader, 
 ty some means he had excited the jealousy of an Indian 
 
•M MMOU nillfMT. 
 
 chief belonging to a tribe residing in the vicinity of th« 
 fort, upon whom he had lavished many favors, but who 
 resolved to imbrue his hands in the blood of his bene- 
 factor. 
 
 One day, in 1842, the Indian came to the fort with 
 his musket in his hand, which probably Black had sold 
 him. The unsuspicious trader received him into the 
 fort, and even into his dwelling, without disarming him. 
 As the Indian appeared unusually friendly, Black became 
 uncommonly confiding. At length, to fulfil some request 
 which the Indian artfully made, he turned his back upon 
 him, and while retiring, his secret foe deliberately 
 brought his musket to his face, and taking a deadly aim, 
 fired, the bullet passing directly through his heart. He 
 fell ; and as the Indian saw him stretched upon his own 
 floor, weltering in his gore, he walked deliberately out 
 of the house, passed through the gate of the stockade, 
 and disappeared ; and three years subsequently the In 
 dian was still at large, and the crime unrevenged. 
 
 Different was the closing scene of another tragedy 
 acted the following year, on the Columbia river. A 
 half-breed Iroquois, by the name of McKay, was em- 
 ployed for the company, on. the lower waters of the 
 Columbia, and resided in a small house on the north 
 shore of the river, where he kept the Indian goods with 
 which he carried on his trade. A few Indians of the 
 Chenook tribe, knowing him to be alone, proceeded to 
 his house, murdered him, and took possession of his 
 goods. A friendly Indian carried the news immediately 
 up to Vancouver, and an expedition was fitted out to 
 pursue and take the murderers. Armed with muskets, 
 they proceeded down the river, and at length came in 
 sight of a canoe filled with Indians, and were informed 
 that the murderers were in that canoe. They imme- 
 diately gave chase, and the suspicions of the Indians 
 being aroused, they also plied the paddle with all their " 
 might, to keep at a safe distance from their pursuers, 
 Finding that the white men gained upon them, the 
 Indians run their canoe ashore ; but, as they were land * 
 ing, they received a volley of musket balls, which 
 
•SMoar TSksiTottY. M} 
 
 unfortunately killed one Indian woman, and wounded 
 gome others, while the murderers, for the time being, 
 made their escape. Dr. McLaughlin, of whom all the 
 Indians in the country stand in the greatest fear, sent 
 word to the Chenooks that they, must deliver up the 
 principal instigator of the crime, or he would adopt 
 some other way to avenge the murder of McKay. 
 Fearing that the wrath of the company might burst 
 upon the whole tribe, every man became' intent upon 
 delivering up the murderer. At last he was found far* 
 north of the moutS of the Columbia, where he had se- 
 creted himself, and brought in triumph to Fort George, 
 and delivered up to the authorities of the Hudson's Bay 
 
 Dr. McLaughlin was present, and some thirty or forty 
 others, besides the Indians who had collected to see what 
 would be done. A trial was instituted, the Indian was 
 pronounced guilty of wilful murder, and sentenced to be 
 hung forthwith. A gallows was prepared, and one ena 
 of a long rope thrown, over the- top of the gallows, and 
 tied around the Indian's neck. All the white men 
 present, with the exception of Rev. J. H. Frost, who 
 witnessed the scene, took hold of the other end of the 
 rope, the Indian standing like a statue under the gallows, . 
 and, at a given signal, all pulled upon the rope, drawing 
 the Indian up so that his feet were some distance from 
 the ground. As his neck did not break, he merely 
 strangled ; but the mode of his death filled the tribes 
 around with horror, and impressed every Indian with 
 a sense of the fearful character of the white man's 
 vengeance. This summary execution proved a salutary 
 lesson, especially to the Indians in the vicinity where it 
 took place. 
 
 In the prosecution of the fur-trade, it has frequently 
 been necessary for the members of the company to adopt 
 the most sanguinary measures against the Indians, in 
 order to secure their own -safety andjiltimate success. 
 Hundreds of their trappers and Voyagers have fallen by 
 the ruthless hand of the savage, while pursuing theiT 
 game along the valleys, o^ scouring the mountain- chain* 
 
t9% •Broom tekhit«bt. 
 
 'e west, and none have er secuted this peiili^ 
 «..- o/prise, who have not had . ^ ^ted oc s t' 
 venge the death of a comrade, perhaps a biuuier, or _. 
 intimate friend. Out of the pale of the law, tLa fur- 
 traders became a law unto themselves, or rathei adopted 
 such laws, from time to time, as the exigences of the 
 case required. 'At one of the forts, situated in the inte , 
 rior, a servant of the company was murdered by an 
 Indian chief, who subsequently boasted that he had com- 
 mitted the deed. This chief belonged to a powerful 
 migratory tribe that, at the time of the murder, was 
 encamped in the vicinity of the fort, and, as he possessed 
 considerable influence in the tribe, and could rally around' 
 him a large number of warriors, he concluded that the ' 
 few white men at the fort would not dare to «iolest him. 
 The commandant of the fort knowing that if this daring 
 crime remained unrevenged, there would be no safety 
 for the remainder of the whites, offered a heavy rewards 
 to any Indian or white man that would take the life of 
 the murderer. Some time elapsed, and, as no one dared 
 to make the attempt, the murderer was still at large. 
 One day it came to the ears of the commandant that the 
 murderer was in camp, and might be found h\a certain 
 lodge at the farther extremity of the encampment The 
 commandant, who had long waited with the deepest 
 anxiety for such an opportunity, seized his unerring rifle 
 and, secreting it under the folds of his cloak which he 
 had thrown aroundLhim cassed outside the stockade, 
 and taking a narrow ^rai/ which wound along among 
 the lodges, marched directly to the one where sat tha 
 doomed, but unsuspecting, chief, surrounded by his com- 
 panions, and rehearsing his deeds "of marvelous prowess 
 in his numerous fights with the men of King George. 
 Pulling aside the door of Buffalo skin, he stepped inside 
 the lodge and presented himself in full view of the a« 
 tonished Indians. He fixed his eye upon the well known 
 c orm of the murderer, and, without uttering a word, let 
 tall the folds of his cloak, and poising his rifle, aimed 
 directly at the murderer's heart The Indian perceiving 
 that his hour had com*, threw his anna abcv« hi* head 
 
m martesT. Mt 
 
 fsv* a horrid yell, fell backward and expired ; the 
 ball »ad pierced his heart The commandant retraced 
 his steps unmolested back to the fort, leaving the Indians 
 thunderstruck with his astonishing bravery. He has 
 since been elevated to the important and honorable office 
 of chief factor, to which, by long and faithful service, as 
 well as by every qualification of the gentleman, he is 
 justly-entitled. 
 
 The incidents above related are not isolated, but have 
 been selected from many of a similar character, which 
 appear in the history of the Hudson's Bay Company. 
 Indeed, it has been necessary, in order to succeed in 
 their ente^rise, for this corporation to carry forward 
 their operations jti the wilds of Oregon by the terror of 
 arms. Their private trapping parties have .frequently 
 been waylaid by the Indians and destroyed ; their trading 
 expeditions have often been obliged to fight their way 
 through hostile tribes, from one portion of the country 
 to another, or perish with starvation. Sometimes they 
 have left behind them a trail of butchered Indians, who 
 fell before their unerring rifles, and then have halted to 
 commit to a hasty grave the remains of a comrade, who 
 had fallen by a poisoned arrow, from the quiver of a 
 vengeful foe. Sometimes whole parties have been cut 
 off, and not a solitary person left to bear <o civilized man 
 die story of their tragic fate. 
 
 On one occasion, a party in the northern wilds, at the 
 head of which was the son of Sir George Simpson, was 
 attacked by the Indians, and after killing a number of 
 their assailants, every soul perished. Young Simpson 
 owned a large grey-hound, which he had with him, ana 
 which defended his master to the last extremity. In the 
 battle the hound received a musket ball in his leg, and 
 finding he could render his master no farther assistance, 
 effected his escape. Subsequently the remains of these 
 unfortunate men were found through the sagacity of the 
 faithful dog, which led persons to the spot where perished 
 his master and his comrades. Frequently the forts of 
 the company have been attacked by numerous bands of 
 savages, and it has required all the skill of the 
 
SM mnmmoH mutmr. 
 
 mandant, and the hard fighting of the men, to prevent 
 diem from falling into the hands of their foes. These 
 means have sometimes failed to repulse them, and forts 
 have been taken, pillaged and burned. Commandants 
 have been insulted, trampled upon, and murdered. And 
 : t is not surprising that the company, in view of the im- 
 mense loss of life and property they have from time to 
 time sustained by their warlike and perfidious enemy, 
 should frequently take severe measures to awe them 
 mto submission. This they have done by sending out 
 war parties to attack indiscriminately the offending tribe ; 
 and frequently in these excursions, women and children 
 have been the greatest sufferers. Individual cases have 
 doubtless transpired, where Indians have been wantonly 
 outchered,and their property seized by the servants of 
 the company, but the company cannot be held responsi- 
 ble for the outrages committed by individuals, unless i* 
 can be shown that the individuals are authorized by the 
 company to commit them. Whoever has been intimately 
 acquainted with the Hudson's Bay Company, and has 
 observed its operations for any length of time, must be 
 aware that the policy pursued by them with reference 
 to the Indians, is one of the greatest forbearance an» 
 conciliation, and that they never resort to severe mea 
 sures except when robberies are committed, their servants 
 murdered, or the safety of the company is at stake. 
 
 Perhaps no calling under the sun, whale-fishing not 
 excepted, is more perilous than the fur-trade, or in which 
 a greater proportion of those who engage in it lose their 
 lives. The following incident is illustrative of the cha- 
 racter of many of the under servants employed by the 
 company, at the various forts in the country of the 
 Columbia : — 
 
 In the summer of 1842, Sir George Simpson, who is 
 at the head of the affairs of the Hudson's Bay Company, 
 in America, and who resides at Red river, east of the 
 Rocky Mountains, in one of his exploring tours, arrived 
 at Vancouver, and thence in a ship, proceeded up the 
 north-west coast to a fort of the company, situated at 
 Stikien, for the purpose of investigating the case of the 
 
OBMON TKUUT0EY. fti 
 
 murder cf John McLaughlin, Jr., which took place in the 
 previous April. The murder of this gentleman had pro- 
 duced great excitement in the country, particularly 
 among the servants of the company, on account of the 
 deceased being the son of Dr. John McLaughlin, chief 
 factor, and superintendent of the affairs of the company 
 west of the Rocky Mountains, and of his having been 
 killed by the servanis of the company, and not by Indians, 
 who are the usual actors in such bloody scenes. It had 
 been reported, and after he had investigated the matter, 
 it was believed by*Sir George Simpsort, that the mur- 
 derers had been ii-fluenced to commit the deed by the 
 cruel and overbearing w'.luet of the deceased towards 
 them, he being at the he,? ( )f the company's business in 
 that place ; that they had previously stolen from the 
 fort several bottles of ardent spirits, of which they made 
 a free use on the night of the murder, io render^ them- 
 selves as desperate as possible, and te-nerve themselves 
 %r the accomplishment of their sanguinary purposes. I 
 appears from the testimony given, that every individua. 
 belonging to the establishment -nder the direction of 
 Mr. McLaughlin, had mutually nound themselves to 
 accomplish his destruction. And, as no evidence could 
 v be procured, except from interested persons, whose object 
 would be to secure themselves, it might be expected that, 
 in the first investigation by Sir George Simpson, the 
 interested party would attempt to make it appear that 
 the killing of Mr. McLaughlin was no more than a justi- 
 fiable homicide. Accordingly, when Sir George returned 
 to Vancouver, he expressed this view of the subject, as 
 Dr. McLaughlin informs the writer, and stated that the 
 deceased was a quarrelsome, drunken fellow, and had 
 unmercifully beaten his men from time to time, and by 
 his cruelty and wickedness had procured his own death. 
 A subsequent investigation seems to throw more light 
 upon this affair ; and as second-hand report is not always 
 to be credited, I solicited permission to examine the 
 original depositions, which were readily put into my 
 hands by the afflicted and venerable father of the unfor- 
 tunate man, whe is the subject of this short sketch. 
 
>»*»tf MMON TUBITOftY. 
 
 Pierre Kanaquassee, one of the men employed in the 
 establishment at the time of the murder, and in whose 
 testimony the gentlemen of the company place the 
 utmost reliance, gives the following narrative, in answer 
 to questions proposed by James Douglass, Esq., the 
 magistrate that examined him : — 
 
 Q. Where were you on the night of the murder of 
 the late Mr. John McLaughlin 1 
 
 A. I was in my room, m the lower part of the main 
 house, where I lived with George Heron, in an apart- 
 ment in the lower story, immediately under the kitchen. 
 My door opened into the passage which led to the 
 apartment of Mr. John McLaughlin in the second story. 
 
 Q. What occurred on the night of the murder t 
 
 A. 1 will tell you the whole story to the best of my 
 recollection. 
 
 A few days preceding the murder, five Indians from 
 Tako, with letters from Dr. Kennedy, arrived at the 
 fort about midnight. The watchmen hearing the knock- 
 ing, called Mr. John; When he got up, he mustered a 
 few hands to defend the gates in case of any treacherous 
 attack from the Indians, whom they did not, as yet, 
 know. They were then admitted into the fort, delivered 
 up their arms according to custom, and were lodged in 
 a small room in the lower story of the main house A 
 day or two after this, he beat, and put one of these 
 Indians, a native of Nop, in irons, as Peter was told, for 
 having committed some theft in Tako. About eight 
 o'clock of the evening of the 20th of April, Mr. John gave 
 liquor to the Indians, and made them drunk ; after which 
 he called the white men, viz: Laperti, Pripe, Lulaire, He- 
 roux, Bellinger, Simon, Fleury, McPherson, Smith, and 
 Antoine Kawanope. During this time, Peter was in his 
 own, which was the adjoining room, lying awake in bed, 
 and overheard all that passed. He heard Mr. John say 
 to McPherson, " Peter is not among us-^-where is he 1 
 McPherson replied, that he was in bed, and he was seat 
 for him, by Mr. John. Peter in consequence went in* 
 the room and saw all the men seated in a ring, on tho 
 floor, around a number of bottles standing within the 
 
•KMON TBMITOBT. 891 
 
 ring, and the Indians lying dead drunk on mother part 
 of the floor. Mr. John himself was standing outside of 
 the ring, and McPherson placed himself on the opposite 
 ride of the ring ; neither of them appeared to be par- 
 taking of the festivities of the evening, but were looking 
 on, and forcing the people to drink. Antoine Kawanopee 
 was seated on his bed, apart from the other men, per- 
 fectly sober, as he told Peter afterward. Mr. John had 
 ordered him not to drink, observing, " You are not to 
 drink at this time, as I am going to die to-night, and you 
 will help me in what I am going to do." On entering 
 the room, Mr. John told Peter to sit down with the other 
 people, and ordered his servant Pleury to give him a good 
 dram, which he did in a tin-pan. Peter could not drink 
 the whole, and was threatened by Mr. John with vio- 
 lence if he did not finish it He succeeded in emptying 
 the pan, by allowing the liquor to run into the bosom of 
 his shirt Mr. John,, in doing this, did not appear to be 
 angry, but in a half playful mood. Peter remained there 
 about a quarter of an hour, during which time he was 
 careful not to drink too much, as a few hours previously 
 Antoine had called at his room and said, " My Uncle, 
 take care of yourself to-night ; the master is going to die." 
 Peter said, " Who is going to kill him V and Antoine 
 said, " The Bluemen," meaning the Kanakas, "are going 
 to kill him." This, Peter thought, was likely to be the 
 case, as the men, some time before Christmas preceding, 
 had agreed among themselves to murder him, and had 
 signed a paper, which McPherson drew up to that effect 
 Every one of the men of the place agreed to the commis- 
 sion of this deed, Smith and Heron, as well others. 
 Peter's name was signed by McPherson and he attested 
 "it by his cross. This paper was signed in Urbaine's 
 house, where the men severally repaired by stealth for 
 the purpose, as Mr. John kept so vigilant a watch upon 
 them, that they were afraid he might suspect their inten- 
 tions, if they were there in a body. The same impres- 
 sion made him also remark, in a low tone of voice, to 
 Laperti, on his first entering the room, when he observed 
 Sir. John forcing the people to drink, " I really believe. 
 
•98 OKEGON TERRITORY. 
 
 eur master feels Ids end near, as he never used to act m 
 this manner." , 
 
 As above mentioned, after Peter had been about fifteei 
 minutes in the room where the men were drinking, Mr, 
 John retired, followed by Antoine. Mr. John had not 
 on that occasion drank any thing with the men, neithei 
 did he (Peter) ever see him at any time preceding, drink 
 in their company. He, however, supposed that he must 
 have taken something in his own room, as he appeared 
 flushed and excited, but not sufficiently so as to render^ 
 his gait in the least unsteady. McPherson also did not 
 taste any thing in the room. As soon as Mr. John was 
 gone, Peter also left the room, and went to bed in his 
 own room. 
 
 Peter was informed by Antoine that Mr. John, on 
 leaving the room where the men were drinking, went 
 up stairs to his own apartment, and he heard him say to 
 his wife, " I am going to die to-night." And he and his 
 wife both began to cry. Mr. John soon rallied, and 
 observed, " very well, if I die, I must fall like a man." 
 He then told Antoine to load his rifles and pistols, and 
 ordered him also to arm himself with his own gun. He 
 and Antoine then went out, and Peter thinks he heard 
 the report of more than fifteen shots. Antoine after- 
 wards told Peter that Mr. John fired at Laperti, but 
 missed him, and afterwards ordered Antoine to fire a 
 Laperti. Antoine refused to do so, until his own life 
 was threatened by Mr. John, when he fired in the direc- : 
 tion, without aiming at Laperti. • He also told the Kana- 
 kas to kill the Canadians, and it was in part them who 
 fired the shots that he (Peter) had heard. Peter then 
 
 fot up and placed himself behind his door, and saw Mr. 
 ohn come in and go up stairs with Antoine, when he 
 took the opportunity of going out armed with his gu- 
 and a stout bludgeon, and found tne men standing he 
 and there on the gallery watching an opportunity to 
 shoot Mr. John. Laperti's position on the gallery was 
 fronting the door of the main house, towards which he 
 had his gun pointed ; when Peter saw him, he was on 
 bJs knees, the small end of the gun resting on the top 
 
MKOON THSITOEY. SM 
 
 rail of the gallery, in readiness to fire. Laperti ex 
 claimed, on seeing Peter, " I muit kill him now, as he 
 haa fired two shots at me." Peter objected to this, and 
 proposed to take and tie him. Nobody answered him. 
 At that moment, Smith came up to Laperti and told him 
 to hide himself or he would certainly be killed. Laperti 
 said, "Where can I hide myself?" And Smith said, 
 " Come with me and I will show you a place in the bastion 
 where you can hide yourself," and they went off together 
 in the direction of 4he bastion at the corner of Urbaine's 
 house. Peter, after a few minutes' stay on the gallery, 
 returned to his house, as he had previously agreed upon 
 with George Hebram, who was lying sick in bed, and 
 who had entreated him not to leave him alone. At the 
 door of the mam house, he met Mr. John coming out, 
 followed by Antoine, whj was carrying a lamp. Mr. 
 John said to Peter, " Have you seen Laperti 1 " Peter 
 answered, " No, I have not seen him." And then Mr. 
 John said, " Have you seen Urbaine 1 " And Peter 
 again answered that he had not. The minute before 
 this, as he (Peter) was returning from the gallery, he 
 had seen Urbaine standing at the corner of the main 
 house, next to Urbaine's own dwelling, in company with 
 Simon. Urbaine said, " I don't know what to do ; I 
 have no gun, and do not know where, to hide myself." 
 Simon said, " I have a gun, if he comes I will shoot him, 
 and will be safe." Mr. John, after Peter passed him, 
 said to Antoine, "Make haste, and come with the lamp," 
 and proceeded with a 'firm step to Urbaine's house, as 
 Peter, who continued watching at the door, saw. After 
 he saw them go to Urbaine's house, he proceeded towards 
 his own room, and he and Antoine called out, "Fire I 
 fire ! " The report of several shots, probably five, im- 
 mediately followed, and he heard Antoine exclaiming, 
 ^Stop! stop! stop I He is dead now." Antoine after- 
 wards related to Peter, that on reaching Urbaine's house, 
 Mr. John ordered him to go round by one corner, while 
 he went round by the other, directing Antoine to shoot 
 any of the Canadians he might meet. Mr. John then 
 proceeded in a stooping position, looking very intently 
 
400 MMON TKSBITOKT 
 
 before torn, when a shot was fired from the corner of the 
 house towards which he was going, which caused his 
 death, the ball having entered at the upper part of the 
 breast-bone, a little below the gullet, and came out a 
 little below the shoulder, having broken „the spine in its 
 passage. Peter was also told by one of the Kanakas, 
 that as soon as Mr. John fell, Urbaine sprung forward 
 from the corner of the house within a few paces of the 
 body, and put his foot savagely on his neck, as if to 
 complete the act, should the ball have failed in causing 
 death. The Kanakas immediately asked Urbaine, who had 
 killed the master f Urbaine replied, " It is none of your 
 business who has killed him ! Peter, who during this 
 time had removed to his house, seeing Herron go out 
 without his gun, went out round the body and said, 
 " My friend, we have now done what we long intended 
 to do ; let us now carry the body back to the house.". 
 Urbaine, Laperti, Bellinger, and other white men who 
 were present, replied, "When we kill a dog, we let him 
 he where we kill him." And Antoine told him they had 
 previously given him the same reply to a similar propo- 
 sition from him. Peter then approached the body and, 
 with one hand under the neck, raised the head and trunk, 
 when a deep expiration followed, which was the last 
 sign of animation. He had previously perceived no signs 
 of life, nor did he hear any one say that any appeared^ 
 after the deceased fell. The white men being unwilling ' 
 to assist him, he carried the body, with the aid of the 
 Kanakas, into the main house, where he had it stripped, 
 washed clean, decently dressed, and laid out In doing 
 so he received no help from any but the Kanakas. The 
 wounds made by the balls were very large, both open- 
 ings being circular, and severally three inches in diame- ' 
 ter. The body bled profusely, there being a deep pool 
 of blood found around it, which was washed away after- 
 wards by the Kanakas. Peter never heard that he spoke 
 or moved after he fell. There was a perpendicular cut 
 on the forehead, skin-deep, in a line with the nose, which 
 Peter thinks was caused by his falling on the barrel of 
 ail rifle, though Urbaine said that he had received it 
 
OKKOOlf THUITORY. 401 
 
 Vom an Indian with his dog. It was as Peter supposes 
 about eleven o'clock, p. iw., when he had done washing 
 and laying out the body ; the watches had not then been 
 changed, therefore he thinks it could not be midnight 
 The people continued coming and going during the night, 
 to see the body, and Peter proposed praying over the 
 body, as is customary in Canada; but they objected, 
 saying, they did not wish to pray for him. He did sit 
 up with the body all night, having soon after gone, first 
 to Urbaine's ana then to Lulaire's house, who each gave 
 him a dram, which he took, saying, " There is no need of 
 drinking now ; they might drink their fill now." He soon 
 afterwards went to bed. 
 
 He inquired of Martineau, who also lived in the same 
 room, if he had fired at the deceased. He replied, that 
 he had fired twice. He then asked. him if it was he 
 that had killed him, and he said, I do not know if it was 
 me or not. He (Peter) put the same question to several 
 of the other men whom he saw afterwards ' f they all 
 ■aid that they had not shot *him, and Martineau after- 
 wards said that he had not directed his gun at him, but 
 had fired in the air. 
 
 The following morning he asked Antoine Kawanope 
 if he knew who had killed the deceased. He replied, 
 " I know who killed him, hut I ana not going to tell you, 
 or any one else. When the governor comes, I will tell 
 him. He asked Antoine why he would not tell ; he 
 said he was afraid it might cause more quarrels, and 
 ead to other murders. He then advised Antoine not 
 to conceal it from him, as he would tell no one. An" 
 toine then said, he thought it was Urbaine who had done 
 the deed. Peter observed that Urbaine had no gun. 
 Antoine replied, " I think it was Urbaine, because as soon 
 as the deceased fell, Urbaine rushed out from his lurking 
 
 Elace at the corner of the house, where, I was informed 
 y the people, he always kept his gun secreted, with the 
 intention of shooting the deceased. Peter says Laperti, 
 Urbaine and Simon were all concealed in the corner 
 whence the shot came, and he thinks it to be one of the 
 three who fired it. Urbaine always denied having com- 
 17* 
 
40S muwmom naanwaT. 
 
 mitted the murder, and said, "lam going to the Russian 
 Fort for trial, and will be either banished or hung. % 
 will let the thing go to the end, and will then infortify 
 upon the murderers." 
 
 Simon always said that he was never in the corner 
 •rom whence the shot was fired, and knew nothing about 
 the matter ; but Peter thinks that he must have been 
 there, as he saw him, as before related, at the corner of 
 the main house," when he promised to protect Urbaine, 
 and from the situation of the fort, he must have passed 
 that spot with Urbaine, as there was no other passage 
 from the place where they had been standing. Laperti 
 also said he never fired at all. When Peter, as before 
 related, went upon the gallery after the first firing had 
 ceased, while Mr. John and Antoine had gone into the 
 house, he saw all the men on the gallery, except Pripe, 
 Lulairt, and McPherson, and he asked each of them, 
 respectively, if they were going to shoot the master that 
 night, and they all answered, (as well as himself,) they 
 would do so at the first chance, except Pehou, a Kanaka, 
 who would not consent to the murder. Smith was then 
 without a gun. 
 
 Before the Christmas preceding' Peter put the ques- 
 tion to Smith, how he should like to see him kill Mr. 
 John 1 He replied, " I should like it very well ; I would 
 have no objection, because his conduct is so very bad 
 that he can never expect to be protected by the Com- 
 pany." Peter Manifree says, that Mr. John appeared 
 to be aware of the plot formed by the men against his 
 life, as he supposes, through the information of Fleury, 
 his servant, who was aware of every thing that passed 
 among them. Mr. John had often said to the men, 
 " Kill me, if you can. If you kill me, you will not kill 
 a woman — you will kill a man." And ne kept Antoine 
 as a sentinel to watch his room. One evening George 
 Herron proposed taking his life, and said if he could find 
 a man to go with him, he would be the first to shoot 
 him. Peter refused to go, and Herron watched a great 
 part of the night in the passage leading to Mr. John's 
 room, holding his gun pointed towards its door, with the 
 
OKCtON TEKKITOKY. 403 
 
 object of shooting Mr. John if he appeared, as he usually 
 did at night when going to visit the watchmen ; but he 
 did not go out that night, or Peter thinks that he would 
 have been shot by Herron. The following morning 
 Peter asked Antoine if he would defend Mr. John, were 
 he attacked by the people. Antoine said he would not, 
 and would be the first man to seize or shoot him, should 
 any attempt be made against his life or liberty. He put 
 the same question to McPherson ; but McPherson said, 
 " No! Do not kill him till the Governor comes, by and 
 by, and then we shall have redress." 
 
 Peter also says that all the unmarried men were in 
 the habit of secretly going out of the fort at night, con- 
 trary to order, to visit the Indian camp, and that one 
 evening when he wished to go out, he met George 
 Herron on the gallery, who showed him where a rope 
 was slung to the picket, by which he might let himself 
 down to the ground outside of the fort, saying, " This is 
 the way I and others get out, and you may do the same 
 without fear of detection." On the morning after the 
 murder he went into Urbaine's and Lulaire's house and 
 got a dram in each of them, out of two bottles of rum 
 which he saw there. He said, now Mr. John is dead, 
 shall go out of the fort and spend the day with my wife. 
 Urbaine replied, " No I No one shall go out of the fort. 
 We keep the keys, and we shall keep the gates shut.' 
 Peter was angry at this and said to Antoine, "When 
 Mr. John was alive, he kept us prisoners, and would not 
 allow us to run afte# women ; and now that we have 
 killed him, the Canadians wish to keep us as close as he 
 did. I see we must raise the devil again with these 
 Canadians, before we can get our liberty." 
 
 Peter also says that one principal cause of their dislike 
 to John, and their plots against his life, was the strictness 
 with which he prevented their sallying from the fort in 
 quest of women ; that he flogged Martineau for having 
 given his blanket to a woman with whom he maintained 
 illicit commerce, and he also flogged Lamb and Kakepe 
 for giving away their clothes in the same manner. This, 
 Peter says, exasperated the men. 
 
4M ••■•OH TBUITOMT. 
 
 The day after the murder many of the men went op 
 to Mr. John's room to see the body, and McPherson 
 remarked to them, that when the master was living they 
 were not in the habit of coming up there ; but they did 
 so now; that he was dead. On hearing this, Peter and 
 Urbaine went away and never returned. On their way 
 to their own house, they met Pripe and Bellinger. 
 
 Urbaine told them What McPherson had said, and in 
 a threatening manner said, " McPherson is getting proud 
 as the other, and will be telling tales about us. We will 
 not murder him, but we will give him a sound thrashing." 
 And Peter says that he soon after went to Smith and 
 told him to put McPherson on his guard, as the Cana- 
 dians intended to attack him. Smith asked Peter what 
 he would do, now the master was dead, and Peter said he 
 would obey McPherson's orders. Smith replied, "That 
 is good, Peter. If we do not do so, we shall lose all our 
 wages." All the Canadians, and, he thinks, Simon, con- 
 tinued drinking the whole of the day following the mur- 
 der ; the other men of the fort, did not drink. He thinks 
 it was the remains of the liquor they had been drinking 
 the preceding night. Peter also says that, for a month 
 previous to the murder, Urbaine, Laperti and Simon 
 were in the habit of getting drunk every night on rum 
 purchased from the Indians. Peter told them to take 
 care of themselves, because Mr. John would be angry if 
 he knew it. Mr. John took no notice of their conduct, 
 because, as Peter thinks, he knew of the plot against his 
 life, and fe t intimidated. He also says that Laperti was 
 excited against Mr. John on account of a suspected in- 
 trigue which he carried on with his wife. The night 
 following the murder, they all went to bed quietly. The 
 next day all was also quiet, and all work suspended, 
 except watching the Indians, which they did very closely, 
 as they were afraid they might be induced to attack the 
 fort, on learning that the master was no more. They 
 continued watching turn-a-bout The second day a coffin 
 was made, and the' corpse removed from the main house 
 to the bath, when McPherson gave the men a dram. 
 Th« third day the corpse was buriad and the mm had 
 
eSBOON TERRITORY. 4||§ 
 
 ■Bother drain. He does not know whether the men 
 asked for the dram, or whether McPherson gave it of hii 
 own accord. The corpse was carried to the grave by 
 Laperti, Pripe, Luclaire and some Kanakas, but Urbaine 
 did not touch it; does not think it was through fear. 
 Peter often heard Laperti say, I wish the Governor was 
 here, to see what he would do. He also says there was 
 no quarrel in the room where they were drinking, on the 
 night of the murder ; but he thinks there might have 
 been a quarrel after thev left, as Pripe was put in irons 
 after that time Hi. also says that the Canadians must 
 have fixed on that night to murder him, and that Fleury 
 told him so, which accounts for his apparent dejection of 
 mind, and of his having shed tears in presence of his wife 
 and Antoine, when he said, " 1 know that I am going to 
 die this night." He also thinks this might have led to 
 the outbreak, but of this he is not sure. It is a mere 
 matter of opinion. Mr. John was a little in liquor, but 
 knew perfectly well what he was about. He never saw 
 him so far gone with liquor as not to be able to walk 
 actively about, except on one occasion, the precediug 
 Christmas Eve, when he appeared to walk unsteady, but 
 nevertheless could mount the gallery. They only knew 
 he had tasted liquor from the excitement and changed 
 appearance of his countenance. He does not know who 
 first suggested the idea of murdering Mr. John. 
 
 Since the above disclosures were made, a few othei 
 facts have come to light, which, however, do not mate- 
 rially effect the character of these atrocities. Mr. John 
 McLaughlin, Jr., was doubtless intemperate, reckless, and 
 tyrannical, and often unnecessarily cruel in the punish- 
 ments inflicted upon his men ; but he was surrounded by 
 a set of desperadoes, who, for months before the arrival 
 of the night, during the darkness of which, the fatal shot 
 ushered him into the presence of his Judge, had been 
 seeking an opportunity to rob him of life. Some time 
 before this event, he flogged Peter for the crime of 
 stealing fish. Peter was exceedingly angry, and resolved 
 upon the destruction of his master. At a time to suit his 
 porpoM, a* went to the bastion, where wore fire-anna 
 
4M o»««om TiHivesr. 
 
 loaded to his hands, and rung the bell of alarm, with tho 
 intention of shooting Mr. McLaughlin' when he should 
 make his appearance. A man by the name of Perse, 
 came out to see what was the matter, instead of the 
 intended victim, when Peter fired, but missed him, the, 
 ball hitting a post near his head. For this offence, Peter? 
 was again seized, put in irons, and subsequently severely! 
 flogged and liberated. Nearly all the men had been flog- 
 ged from time to time, for various offences, and all con- 
 spired against the life of their master. As might have 
 been expected, when the case was examined by Sir 
 George Simpson, the murderers attempted to cast all the 
 odium upon Mr. McLaughlin, doubtless for the purpose 
 of exculpating themselves, in which attempt they but too 
 well succeeded, in the estimation of Sir George. Whether 
 the persons who procured his death, would be pronounced . 
 by an intelligent jury, guilty of wilful murder, or whether, ; 
 from the mitigating circumstances connected with these 
 transactions, the verdict should assume a more modified 
 orm, is not for me to determine. But it cannot be denied 
 y any one, that the circumstances must be indeed extra- 
 ordinary, that will justify any man, or set of men, to cut 
 short the probation of an immortal being, and usher him, 
 with all his unrepented sins, into the presence of his God 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 eUBf ott territory— History continued — Mr. Ashley's exp«dltl«— Smith Jaeksu>,ana 
 ■■blette — Rocky Mountain For Company — Interacting journey — Country explored ' 
 — Independent parties — BoneriUe — Red Wolf — Captain Wyeth — Opposed by H. 
 B.C. — Result* — Immigration for settlement — Character of population — Sources 
 whence it proceeds — Enterprise — Portions < country occupied. 
 
 For eight years after the surrender of Astoria to the 
 British, and the destruction of the Pacific Fur Company, 
 in 1814, a British corporation held undisputed sway 
 over the wilds of Oregon. Hordes of English trappers 
 scoured its mountain chains upon their fleet horses, and 
 ransacked its deepest alleys, while the * Americans, 
 worsted in the affair of Astoria, confined their operations 
 on the east side of the Rocky Mountains. The North 
 American Company, of which Mr. Astor was also the 
 head, explored the country of the great Lakes, the head- 
 waters of the Mississippi, the Missouri, and had estab- 
 lished posts high up on the Yellow Stone, when another . 
 company was organized, in 1822, under the name of the 
 Columbia Fur Company, with the design of extending its 
 operations into those western. regions hitherto under the 
 monopoly of the Hudson's Bay Company. Accordingly, 
 in the spring of 1823, Mr. W. H. Ashley, of St. Louis, 
 fitted out an expedition for the Oregon country, crossed 
 the Rocky Mountain chain, between the sources of the 
 Platte and Colorado, near the forty-second parallel, ob- 
 tained a large amount of furs, and, in the fall, transported 
 them in safety to St. Louis. In the following year he 
 returned across the mountains with about one hundred 
 men, whom he left in the country to hunt and trap .; 
 ind, although they were opposed, bv the Hudson's Bay 
 
40t OBBCON TEEBITOKY. 
 
 Company in every way, yet the fun collected by them 
 in three years, amounted to the sum of one hundred and 
 eighty thousand dollars. In these first expeditions of 
 Ashley from St Louis, the goods were all transported 
 on the, backs of horses ; but in 1827, he sent sixty men 
 across the mountains with a piece of cannon drawn by 
 mules, which was planted in the vicinity of the great 
 Salt Lake, or Lake Yauta, which lies south of the forty- 
 second parallel ; and, after collecting the furs, and dis- 
 tributing supplies among the hunters, they returned to 
 Missouri, having been absent just seven months. 
 
 In 1826, a company was formed in St Louis by 
 Messrs. Smith, Jackson and Sublette, and, haying sub- 
 sequently purchased Mr. Ashley's establishments and 
 interests, they carried on a successful trade with the 
 countries of the Columbia, under the name of the Rocky 
 Mountain Fur Company. The first expedition with 
 wagons to the Rocky Mountains was made by this 
 company in 1829, and as an account of it will serve to 
 show both the mode and the route usually pursued by the 
 emigrants ai the present day, I subjoin the following, 
 which appeared in connection with President Jackson s 
 Message in 1831 ; 
 
 "On the 10th of April last, (1829,) we set out from 
 St Louis with eighty-one men,' all mounted on mules, 
 ten wagons, each drawn by five mules, and two dear- 
 borns, (light carriages or carts,) each drawn by one 
 mule. Our route was nearly due west to the western 
 limits of the State of Missouri, and thence along the 
 Santa Fe trail, about forty miles from which the course 
 was some degrees north of west, across the waters of 
 the Kansas, and up the great Platte River to the Rocky 
 Mountains, and to the head of Wind River where it 
 issues from the mountains. ' This took us until the 16th 
 of July, and was as far as we wished to go with the 
 wagons, as the furs to be brought in were to be collected 
 at this place, which is, or was this year, the great ren- 
 dezvous of the persons engaged in that business. Here 
 the wagons could easily have crossed the mountains, it 
 being what is called the Southern Pan had it beaa 
 
OIReON TKRRITOKY. 409 
 
 desirable for them to do so, which it was not for the 
 reasons stated. For our support at leaving the Missouri 
 settlements, until we should get into the buffalo country, 
 we drove twelve head of cattle besides a milch cow. 
 Eight of these only being required for use before we got 
 to the buffaloes, the others went on to the head of Wind 
 River. We began to fall in with buffaloes on the Platte, 
 about three hundred and fifty miles from the white set- 
 tlements, and from that time lived on buffaloes, the 
 quantity being infinitely beyond what we needed. On 
 the 4th of August, the wagons being in the mean time 
 loaded with the furs which had been previously taken, 
 we set out on our return to St. Louis. All the high 
 points of the mountains then in view were white with~ 
 snow ; but the passes and valleys, and all the level 
 country, were green with grass. Our route back was 
 over the same ground nearly as in going out, and we 
 arrived at St. Louis on the 10th of October, bringing 
 back the ten wagons, four of the oxen, and the milch 
 cow, as we did not need them for provisions. Our men 
 were all healthy during the whole time ; we suffered 
 nothing from the Indians, and had no accident, but the 
 death of one man, being buried under a bank of earth 
 that fell in upon him, and another crippled at the same 
 time. Of the mules we lost but one by fatigue, and two 
 horses stolen by the Kansas Indians ; the grass being 
 along the whole route, going and coming, sufficient for 
 the support of the horses and mules. The usual weight 
 in the wagons was about one thousand eight hundred 
 pounds. The usual progress of the wagons was from 
 fifteen to twenty-five miles per day. The country being 
 almost all open, level and prairie, the chief obstructions 
 were ravines and creeks, the banks of which required 
 cutting down, and for this purpose a few pioneers were 
 generally kept in advance of the caravan. This is the 
 first time that wagons ever went to the Rocky Moun- 
 tains, and the ease and safety with which it was done, 
 prove the facility of communicating overland with the 
 Pacific Ocean. The route from the Southern Pass, 
 where the wagons stepped, to the Great Fall* of the 
 
410 ©«■•« TMUUTOBY. 
 
 Colombia, being easier and better than on this side of 
 the mountains, with grass enough for the horses and 
 mules ; tut a scarcity of game for the support of 
 men." 
 
 This company continued its operations fcr a numbei 
 of years, and its agents explored the whole country 
 from St. Louis, by the way of Taos and Santa Pe, to 
 the Bay of San Francisco ; thence along the coast of 
 the Pacific north to the TTth of the Columbia ; and all 
 the vast interior from J 01 1 Vancouver to the country, 
 of the Blackfeet and Sioux was faithfully examined; 
 but, in consequence of- the deadly hostility of the Indian 
 tribes, and the direct and unbending opposition of the 
 great English monopoly, the company withdrew from 
 the territories west, and for years has confined its "de- 
 rations oh the east side of the Rocky Mountains. 
 
 The above named are the prhv. ral American compa- 
 nies which have extended their operations west of the 
 Rocky Mountains, since the famous expedition of Astoria, 
 under the direction of Wilson Price Hunt. Several 
 independent parties of adventurers, however, have, fron. 
 time to time, turned their backs upon civilization, and, 
 some actuated by curiosity, and others by the love of 
 gain, have traced the waters of the rivers which flow 
 westward, to the Pacific ocean ; and after spending 
 years among the Indians b-ve returned to the world 
 information concerning tl r - , gions hitherto but little 
 known, which they had expiored. 
 
 In 1832, Captain Bonneville, of the United States 
 Army, led a band across the Rocky Mountains, of more 
 than one hundred men, and remained in the country 
 drained by the Snake river and its branches for two 
 years, employed in the collection of furs. The adven- 
 tures of this intrepid officer have been made known by 
 Washington Irving, and need not be repeated here. 
 Suffice it to say that when the writer visited the coun 
 try of the Snake river, in 1842, an incident of Bonne- 
 ville's experience in that country, was related to him by 
 Red Wolf, an -Indian chief of the Nez Perce tribe. 
 Bonneville had met with the most violent opposition 
 
OH0ON TKKK1TOST. 41} 
 
 from the Hudson's Bay Company, in his trade, and in 
 attempting to leave a portion of the country where 
 every thing, even to the game, appeared to be under 
 their control, he and his party, which, by desertion and 
 other causes, had been greatly reduced, lost their way, 
 and wandered without food for three days and nights! 
 At length, in a state of starvation, they fell in with Red 
 Wolf and his party on the Snake or Lewis river, and 
 the chief received them kindly, and treated them with 
 the best which his means afforded, which was the flesh 
 of a fat horse, which he killed for that purpose. After 
 giving them this timely relief, he prevailed upon them to 
 tarry with him a few days, and recruit their exhausted 
 strength. They accepted of his kind offer, and were 
 astonished at their departure, on being supplied by their 
 Indian benefactor with provisions to take with them, and 
 a guide to conduct them on to their proper route. 
 
 About the same time that Bonneville was making his 
 -transit across the Rocky Mountains, Mr. Nathaniel 
 Wyeth, of "Massachusetts, was endeavoring to establish 
 a direct trad^ '"'ween the United States and the Co 
 lumbia river, in addition, to the fur-trade, Wyeth had 
 in view the establishment of a salmon-fishery in Oregon; 
 from which he hoped to receive considerable profits. 
 With these views he dispatched a vessel around Cape 
 Horn, to the Columbia, and led two expeditions across 
 the continent, the first in 1832, and the second in 1834. 
 To facilitate his operations, Captain Wyeth formed two 
 trading stations, one in the south-east corner of Oregon, 
 near the junction of the river Partneuf with the Snake , 
 or Lewis river, called Fort Hall, and the other on Wap- 
 pato Island, near the entrance of the Wallamette into 
 the Columbia, and about seventy miles from the Pacific 
 ocean, called Fort William. These forts were advan- 
 tageously situated for -trade, but in consequence of the 
 numerous disasters which happened to the company, but 
 principally on account of the unrelenting hostility of the 
 Hudson's Bay Company to all American enterprise in 
 Oregon, Wyeth was obliged to relinquish his expedition, 
 and Fort Hall and Fort William fell into the hands of 
 
419 0IES9N TBKKITOKT. 
 
 that monopoly. Scores of lives were lost in Wyeth' 
 expedition ;" several men were drowned, but more killed 
 by the Indians. Wyeth continued his effort to establish 
 the trade for three years, and it is saidthat, at the close 
 of that time, of two hundred men whom he had led into 
 Oregon, but forty were known to be alive, all the rest 
 having fallen victims to the dangers incident to the fur- 
 trade. 
 
 This enterprise, though failing in its primary objects, 
 was of great service, not only to the United States in 
 furnishing important information respecting the territo- 
 ries of the Columbia, but also to Oregon itself in intro- 
 ducing the first American settlers, in assisting the first 
 American missionaries across the Rocky Mountains, and 
 in opening the way for future emigrations to the fertile 
 plains of that distant country. 
 
 Though a number of persons, Americans and Canadian 
 French, who accompanied the first exploring and com- 
 mercial expeditions across the mountains, had previously 
 taken up their residence in Oregon, yet the first emigra-" 
 tions for the purpose of settlement, were made in 1832. 
 To a proper understanding of the character of the present 
 population of Oregon, it will be necessary to consider the 
 sources whence it has sprung. 
 
 Probably a more heterogeneous mass of human kind 
 cannot be found in any land, than have sought an asylum 
 in the wilds of Oregon. Here are found the Indian, who 
 is the legitimate proprietor of the soil, Englishmen, 
 Scotchmen, Irishmen, Americans, Germans, Prussians, 
 Italians, Spanish, Frenchmen, Danes, Canadians, Ha- 
 waiians, Otehietans, and Africans. From continual inter- 
 marriages with one another, and particularly with the 
 natives of the country ever since white men first visited 
 these shores, an amalgamated population has bee/i pro- 
 duced, presenting every variety of" color, disposition, and 
 character of which the human species is capable. The 
 English, Scotch, "French, and some others, have princi- 
 pally been introduced into the country through the in- 
 strumentality of the Hudson's Bay Company. Many of 
 these still belong to the company, ana occupy various 
 
•■■•ON TUKITOftT. 41 H 
 
 ftaticna, frmn Jwse of servants and clerks up through 
 die various grades of office to the chief factors and su- 
 perintendents. Others, who were formerly the servants 
 of the company, becoming in some cases superannuated, 
 in others unprofitable, have been dismissed ; and the 
 company chose rather to settle them in the country and 
 continue to exercise a controling influence over them 
 than to return them to the lands whence they came 
 The numbers which have sprung from this source, ana 
 are now residents of the wilderness, amount to nearly 
 two thousand souls. 
 
 "Many persons have found their way to Oregon from 
 the numerous vessels which have touched at various 
 points along its extended coast. Scarcely a ship has 
 visited the Columbia for years, from which two or more 
 have not made their escape, and, secreting themselves 
 until the vessel has left, they have come forth to mingle 
 with the inhabitants as citizens of Oregon. Some have 
 deserted their ships on the coast of California, and have 
 fought their way to the valley of the Multnomah, through 
 the hostile tribes that roam among the Clameth and Ump- 
 qua mountains. Some of trfese adventurous seamen are 
 among the most industrious, temperate, and wholesome 
 settlers of Oregon. 
 
 The Islands of the Pacific open another source for the 
 supply of inhabitants to Oregon. Hundreds of Hawaiians 
 have been taken from the Sandwich Islands by the Hud- 
 son's Bay Company, and by private individuals, to act 
 as house servants and day-laborers, for which they have 
 been found much better adapted than the natives of the 
 country. Though the persons employing them are 
 obliged to enter into stipulations with the Hawaiian 
 government to return them at the expiration of their 
 term of service ; yet, from the numerous casualties iaci- 
 dent to their new relations, and, those who survive, be- 
 coming warmly attached to the country of their adoption, 
 in connection with the superior facilities which Oregon 
 presents to the Hawaiian, when compared with those of 
 his native land, but few of them «ver return to their 
 •»4-girt home. 
 
414 OEEBON TBBBITOBT. 
 
 Another somewhat fruitful source for the supply of 
 inhabitants to the fertile valleys of Oregon, has been 
 found, singular as it may appear, in that vast range, 
 called " The Rocky Mountains." I do not now refer to 
 emigrants direct from the United States, who are obliged 
 to pass through the gates of that stupendous range on 
 their way to that "better comr'tv" which they seek, 
 but to those white men, who, in connection with the 
 American companies established for purposes of traffick 
 with the Blackfeet, Sioux, and other Indians, have been 
 collecting for the last forty years among the snow-clad 
 mountains which send their waters both to the AtlanuV 
 and Pacific Oceans. There are men still living in the 
 Wallamette valley, who accompanied Lewis and Clark 
 in their exploring expedition in 1805 and 1806 ; and I 
 have often seen persons who were the companions and 
 fellow-travelers of Wilson Price Hunt, one of the part- 
 ners of John Jacob Astor, in his trading establishment at 
 ihe mouth of the Columbia, and who shared with that 
 intrepid traveler in all the perils pf one of the most re- 
 markable expeditions of the kind ever carried to a suc- 
 cessful issue, and has been inimitably described in Wash- 
 ington Irvine's popular " Astoria." Madame Dorio, the 
 heroine of that interesting narrative, and her son, who 
 was born under peculiar circumstances during one of 
 their encampments on their journey across the mountains, 
 are both still alive, and inhabitants of the Wallamette 
 valley. 
 
 There are many others, most of whom are Americans 
 who, after having spent many yeaf s «, < ^nging the Rocky 
 Mountains, experiencing the most surprising adventures 
 among the Indians, and enduring every variety of hard- 
 ships which human nature is capable of suffering, have 
 at last found a peaceful and quiet retreat, where they 
 are secure from the savage violence of the Blackfoot,' 
 and from the treachery of the Sioux, and where most 
 of them will close their earthly career. With the most 
 thrilling interest I have heard them relate their mountain 
 adventures and "hair breadth-escapes." The history 
 of some of them will doubtless form the subject of many 
 
OBXOON TERRITORY. 41 ( 
 
 a future legend T~>««te with interest It is very re- 
 markable with respen to this class of inhabitants, that, 
 while they doomed themselves to a precarious subsist- 
 ence among the hostile clans of the mountains, they con- 
 tracted the most roving, barbarous and depraved habits ; 
 yet, on settling down amidst the increasingly interesting 
 society of Oregon, most of them become steady, peace- 
 ful and industrious citizens. While ranging the moun- 
 tains they usually connected with their's, the fortunes 
 of an Indian woman, and many of them, in process of 
 time, became surrounded with large families of" half-caste 
 children. They had a natural love for their offspring, 
 and they could but form an attachment for the mothers 
 of their so.is and aucjhters ; consequently, on leaving 
 the scene of iteir savage life, they took with them their 
 wives and children, anxious that both might be benefited 
 oy mingling with civilized society. At the present time 
 some of these reclaimed mountaineers are among the 
 principal persons to whom the public interests of the 
 colony are intrusted. This shows with what facility 
 they can throw off their mountaineer habits, and assume 
 those of civilized life. 
 
 At present the most fruitful source of supply for settlers 
 in Oregon, is the United States of America.^ Emigrations 
 have arrived in the country, direct from Missouri, every 
 fall, since 1839. In 1840 and 1841, the parties were 
 comparatively small, but in 1842 the emigration 1 num- 
 bered one hundred and eleven persons in all. In 1843, it 
 increased to eight hundred persons, who emigrated princi- 
 pally in ox-wagons, and drove before them fifteen hundred 
 head of neat cattle. In 1844, the number was about the 
 same as the preceding year. In 1845, it increased to 
 nearly three thousand souls, with some two or three 
 thousand head of cattle. 
 
 These emigrations, for the most part, are composed 
 of persons from the Western States, but in them might be 
 found persons from almost every State in the Union, 
 even the most Eastern. Maine herself, has supplied 
 
 KTCTflL 
 
 Many of theso adventurers are of that clan of persons 
 
416 0*B«tON TBRRItOHT. 
 
 who hare always novered on the frontiers of civilization, 
 and have been pushing on in search of a " better country, 
 not an heavenly," until they have passed the- utmost 
 borders of civilized society. Penetrating entirely through 
 the deep recesses of savage life, they have finally emerged 
 from the deep defiles of the Cascade Mountains, into the 
 lovely valleys of Oregon, where |hey have fotKii. at feast 
 in embryo, the blessings of Christianity and civilization ; 
 and here most of them, some from choice, and others 
 from the impossibility of getting away, come to the con- 
 clusion to erect their tabernacles for life. The entei prise 
 of these parties has far out-stripped the most sanguine 
 expectations of the English writer in a London paper, 
 who, a few years ago, remarked, that, " Even the perse- 
 vering Yankees would not think of emigrating to Oregon 
 in their ox- wagons." If this writer had possessed the eye 
 of omniscience, he would, have seen, at the very'time He 
 was penning it, a score of Yankee wagons, drawn by 
 sixty yoke of oxen, winding their way through the deep 
 passes of the Rocky Mountains, bound for the Oregon. 
 
 The population of Oregon in 1846, embracing the 
 members of the Hudson's Bay Company, would not vary 
 far from twelve thousand. These are settled principally 
 in the Wallamette valley on the south, and the Cowilitz 
 valley on the north side of the Columbia, on the Clatsop 
 plains, and at the varieas posts of the Hudson's Bay 
 Company. 
 
CHAPTER XXI 
 
 &««•«. territory — Political history— Necessity ef erguiaug a tody peUUo — Fir* 
 .nesting of ths people — Second mMtinf — Exigencies mil — Orguuiatioa diss - 
 W -pioring arjiadron — Great excitement — Commander Wilkes — Opposed u> or- 
 f tiling — Subject slumbers — Sub-agent — Maw meeting — Old subject retired 
 - 'adjane troublesome — Talk »f war — Dr. McLaughlin — Third meeting — 
 %'snment organized— Fourth nmliig — Qacore qualified— Laws eruuted — 
 EfW r,t produced — Hew legislative committee — Laws iwvtao — Alterations — Mlec- 
 tloB of a 8 jrernor and House of Representatives — Peaceable state of iiwmlij 
 — J- el Turnham — Thrilling incident. 
 
 Tha subject of this Chapter is not the political relation 
 of Oiegon to any other country; whether from the 
 Spanis-n purchase, the right of first discovery, or conti- 
 guity of situation, it properly belongs to the United 
 States ; or whether, from long and uninterrupted posses- 
 sion by British subjects, as the servants of a British 
 monopoly, or from the conveniency of a continued pos- 
 session of the majestic Columbia as a port of entry to 
 North Western British America, it more properly belongs 
 to England ; but, simply, the internal politics of Oregon. 
 
 Strange as it may appear, the people of Oregon have 
 their politics, altogether aside from their relation with 
 tither countries, and these have sprung up among them, 
 more from the necessity of the case, than from any other 
 cause. Up to 1840, the number of people in the colony 
 was so small, the business transactions so limited, and the 
 difficulties so few, that the necessity of organizing the 
 community into a body politic, did not appear to be very 
 great, though for two years persons had been chosen to 
 officiate as judges and magistrates. But a circumstance 
 transpired in the winter of 1841, different in its character 
 and bearings upon community from any thing that had 
 previously nappened, namely, the death of one of th« 
 r 18 
 
41 S OSMON TRRKITOBY. 
 
 principal men in the colony, by the name of Ewing 
 Young, who left a large and very unsettled estate, with 
 out having made the least provision for its administration. 
 On the very day of the burial of this man, who had not 
 a single relative to follow him to the tomb, measures 
 were taken to call a publie meeting for the purpose of 
 appointing officers for the government of the community, 
 and particularly to* provide for the proper disposition of 
 the estate of Ewing Young. A committee of arrange- 
 ments, chosen at his funeral, called a mass meeting of 
 the inhabitants of Oregon, south of the Columbia river 
 on the 17th and 18th of February, 1841, to be held al 
 the Methodist Mission premises in the Wallamette val- 
 ley. Pursuant to the call, the people collected and held; 
 what was properly called, " The Primary Meeting of 
 the people of Oregon." 
 
 The meeting on the I8th was full — nearly every male 
 inhabitant south of the Columbia, of full age, being 
 present. 
 
 Rev. Jason Lee was excused from officiating as ("hair 
 man, and Rev. David Leslie was elected to fill his place. 
 G. Hines and Sidney Smith were chosen Secretaries. 
 
 The doings of the meeting the previous day were 
 presented to the assembly, and adopted, in part, as 
 follows : — 
 
 Resolved, That a committee be chosen to form a con 
 stitution, apd draft a code of laws, and that the following 
 persons compose that committee : 
 
 Rev. F. N. Blanchat. Rev. Jason Lee, David Don 
 Pierre, Rev. Gustavus Hines, M. Chanlevo, Robert 
 More, J. L. Parrish, Etienne Lucia, and Win. Johnson. 
 
 As it was not deemed necessary to elect a Governor, 
 that office was set aside. 
 
 Dr. J. L. Babcock was elected to till the office of 
 Supreme Judge, with Probate powers., 
 
 George W. Le Breton was elected to fill the office of 
 Clerk of the Courts and Public Recorder. 
 
 Wm. Johnson was elected High Sheriff. Zavier 
 Ladaroot, Pierre Billique and Wm. McCarty were 
 cAoseu Constables. 
 
•t«SOW TERftTTOtY. 419 
 
 It was then resolved, that, until a code of laws be 
 drafted by the Legislative Committee, and adopted by 
 the people, Ira L. Babcock, the Supreme Judge, be 
 instructed to act ^according to the laws of the State of 
 New York. 
 
 It was then resolved to adjourn to meet the first 
 Thursday in June, at the new building near the Roman 
 Catholic church. 
 
 THcasnAY, June 11, 1841. 
 
 The inhabitants of the Wallamette valley met accord- 
 ing to adjournment, and the meeting was called to order 
 hy the Chairman, Rev. D. Leslie. 
 
 On motion, the doings of the former meeting were 
 read, on which the report of the committee for drafting 
 a constitution and code of laws was called for, ana 
 information was communicated to the meeting by the 
 chairman of the committee, that, in consequence of his 
 not having called the committee together, no report had 
 neon prepared. 
 
 F. N. Blanchat was excused from serving on that 
 committee at his own request. 
 
 On motion, it was then resolved, that a person be 
 chosen to fill the place thus vacated in the committee 
 for drafting a constitution and code of laws, and Wm. 
 J. Baily was chosen that eommittee man. 
 
 On motion, it was resolved, that this committee be 
 instructed to meet for the transaction of their business 
 on the first Monday of August next. 
 
 On motion, resolved, that the committee be instructed 
 to report to an adjourned meeting, to be held the first 
 Thursday in October next. 
 
 On motion, resolved, that the committee be advised to 
 confer with the commander of the American Exploring 
 Squadron now in the Columbia river, concerning the 
 propriety of forming a provisional government in Oregon. 
 
 tiesolvcd, That the motion to adopt the report of the 
 nominating committee presented at a previous meeting, 
 be rescinded. 
 
 Resolved, That the committee to draft a constitution 
 be instructed to take into consideration the number and 
 
4ffS 3HB90W TWIETTOSY. 
 
 kind of offices it will be necessary to create, in accord 
 ance with their constitution and code of laws, and to 
 reporfTRe same at the next meeting. .---, 
 
 It was also resolved, that the report of the nominating 
 committee be referred to the legislative committee. : ' Ji 
 
 It was . then moved and carried, that this meeting 
 adjourn to meet at the Methodist Mission at eleven 
 o'clock, a. m., of the first Thursday in October next. 
 (Signed,) DAVID LESLIE, Chairman. 
 
 tiusTAVOT Hikes, > Secretaries , 
 
 Sidney Smith, ) 
 
 I have previously stated that the origin of these 
 attempts to form a kind of provisional government, was 
 the removal by death of the late Ewing Young, leaving/ 
 as he did, a large and unsettled estate, with no one to 
 administer it, and no laws to control its administration^ 
 The exigencies of this case having been met by the 
 appointment of a Judge with probate powers, who en- 
 tered immediately upon his duties, and disposed of the 
 estate of Ewing Young, to the entire satisfaction of the 
 community ; and the fact that some of the most influ- 
 ential citizens of the country, and especially some of the 
 members of the legislative committee, were adverse to 
 the idea of establishing a permanent organization so 
 long as the peace and harmony of the community could 
 possibly be preserved without it, the subject was permits 
 ted to die away, and the committee for drafting a con- 
 stitution, and code of laws did not meet according to 
 their instructions, nor did the meeting at which they 
 were expected to report, ever take place. 
 
 What contributed more, however, to defeat this first 
 -ffort to establish a regular government in Oregon than 
 any thing else, was the arrival, during the summer in 
 which the organization was pending, of the United 
 States Exploring Squadron, under the command of 
 Captain Wilkes. The results of the observations of the 
 officers and scientific corps connected with the squadron, 
 in the Oregon Territory, as well as a description of the 
 different casualties which happened to' them in the low 
 of the Peacock on the bar of the Columbia, and in tbeii 
 
OIHCON TKKHITCBY. • 48, 
 
 different conflict* with the natives of the interior; are 
 already before the pub.ic in the voluminous work's of 
 Captain Wilkes, and therefore it is not necessary to 
 Introduce them here. The arrival on the coast of Ore- 
 gon of so extensive an armament, consisting of four 01 
 five vessels of war, for the express purpose of exploring, 
 not only the coast and rivers, but also the country itself, 
 produced a very great excitement in the community, 
 and but little was lieard of but the Exploring Squadron 
 during its somewhat protracted stay in the Columbia 
 river. In addition to this, the officers of the squadron 
 were consulted on the subject of organizing the country 
 into a civil compact, and were found to be decidedly 
 opposed to the scheme, and recommended that the sub- 
 ject be allowed to rest. They encouraged the people in 
 the belief that the United States Government would 
 probably soon extend jurisdiction over the country. 
 
 This put a quietus on the subject for the time being, 
 and, as the number of settlers in the country was yet 
 small, and the difficulties to be settled of such a nature 
 as easily to be adjusted by arbitration, nothing took 
 place to call up the subject of organizing until several 
 months after the departure of the squadron fi om the 
 Columbia river. , 
 
 The subject of organizing a government was again 
 revived in September, 1842; but Dr. White, who was 
 now in' the country as Subragent of Indian Affairs, con- 
 tended that his office was equivalent to that of Governor 
 of the Colony. Some of the citizens contended that the 
 Doctor's business was to regulate the intercourse be- 
 tween the Indians and the whites, and not to control the 
 whites in their intercourse among themselves. Without 
 arriving at any thing definite on this point, after hearing 
 the documents brought to the country from Washington 
 by Dr. White, the people scattered away to their home? 
 upon the plains, pleased with what they considered to be 
 a preliminary step of the United States towards extending 
 jurisdiction over the Territory of Oregon. 
 
 About this time the Indians became quite troublesome, 
 'la varioan parts of the country. At Wakletpee, on the 
 
4tt »t««OH TXUITOET. 
 
 Walla-Walla river, where a mission station had been 
 established by Dr. Marcus Whitman, they took advantage 
 of the Doctor's absence and broke into the house, in the 
 dead of the night, and even into the bed-chamber of Mrs. 
 Whitman, who, with much difficulty, escaped out of their 
 hands. At Caperai, on Clear Water river, where the 
 Rev. Mr. Spaulding was conducting a mission station, 
 they committed some outrages ; also, at the Falls of the 
 Wallamette river. A number of individuals of Dr. 
 White's party, who had separated themselves from die 
 main company, were robbed of their effects while passing 
 down the Columbia river. 
 
 The Nez-Perces and Kayuses, two of the most power 
 ful tribes in the country, had talked much of making 
 war upon the American settlement on the Wallamette 
 river. These things, with' many others of more or less 
 importance, produced a high degree of excitement, and 
 served to arouse the people again to the subject of enter 
 ing into some measures by which their mutual protectior 
 might be secured. The Canadian French, who had set 
 tied in the country, and who, up to the beginning of 
 1 843, were more numerous than the Americans, were 
 at first, agreed with them as to the necessity of organ 
 izing : but, at this time, as it was supposed through the 
 influence of Dr. John McLaughlin, who, himself was 
 opposed to such a measure, they broke off, almost to a 
 man, on the pretence, that, as they were the subjects of 
 Queen Victoria, and did not wish to forswear their 
 country, they could not, consistently, enter into any 
 measures that might prove prejudicial to her Majesty s 
 government. This served to harmonize the views of the 
 Americans, so far as to bring them unanimously to the 
 determination immediately* to organize; but they still 
 differed as to the nature of the government that should 
 be established. Some were favorable to an independent 
 form, some to a form similar to a territorial government, 
 while others were in favor of a few simple rules and 
 regulations, which might operate satisfactorily for the 
 time being, until the United States government should do 
 something more effectual in their behalf. With met* 
 
UUMKM VUUtltOIY. 433 
 
 coml <og views a meeting of about fifty of the settlers, 
 chiefl; Americans, took place at the Wallamette Falls 
 in the unnth of March,. 1843, and the subject of organ 
 izing the community into a body politic, became the 
 order of the evening. After a spirited and interesting 
 discussion, the meeting resulted in the appointment of a 
 tammittee to notify a public meeting to be held at 
 '~!hampoeg, the 2d day of May, 1843. In the mean 
 time, there being no law in Oregon, every man was left 
 tu do what was pleasing in his own eyes. At length the 
 2d day of Ma) arrived, and the people assembled ac- 
 cording to notice, the French as well as the Americans, 
 the former, doubtless, for the purpose of thwarting tho 
 designs of the latter, and these with the determination of 
 carrying their purposes into execution. The following is 
 an account of the meeting as taken from the public records. 
 
 A public meeting of the inhabitants of the Wallamette 
 settlement was held at Champoeg, on the 2d day of 
 May, 1843, in accordance with the call of a committee,, 
 -chosen at a previous meeting, for the purpose of taking 
 steps to organize themselves into a civic community, and 
 provide themselves with the protection secured by the 
 enforcement of law and order. 
 
 Dr. J. L. Babcock was chosen Chairman, and W. H. 
 Gray,. G. W. Le Breton and W. H. Wilson were chosen 
 Secretaries. 
 
 The committee appointed for the purpose of bringing 
 forward the business of the meeting, presented their 
 report, and a motion was made to accept it, which was 
 lost Considerable confusion existed in consequence ; 
 but it was moved by G- W. Le Breton, and seconded by 
 W. H. Gray, that the meeting divide themselves prepara- 
 tory to oeing counted ; those in favor of the objects of the 
 meeting taking the right, and those of the contrary mind, 
 the left. The motion prevailed, and a large majority 
 being found in favor of organizing, the greater part of the 
 dissenting withdrew. 
 
 The report of the committee was again presented and 
 accepted. It was then taken up, item by item, and di» 
 posed of as follows : — 
 
4£4 0U0ON TEBKITORT 
 
 First item, that a Judge, with Prooate powers, t* 
 chosen to officiate in this community. Adopted. 
 
 It was also resolved, that the second, third, fourth anc 
 fifth items, providing for the election of a Clerk, Sheriff 
 three Magistrates, and three Constables, be adopted. 
 
 The sixth item, recommending the election of a com 
 mittee of nine persons for the purpose of drafting a 
 code of laws for the government of the community, and 
 to report to a public meeting to be hereafter called by 
 said committee, and to be held at Champoeg, on the 5tn 
 day of July, 1843, was also adopted. 
 
 The seventh and eighth were adopted, which recom- 
 mended the election of a Treasurer, a Major and three 
 Captains. 
 
 It was then resolved, that the meeting proceed to 
 choose persons to fill the various offices by ballot. 
 
 A. E. Wilson was chosen to act as Judge, with Probate 
 powers. 
 
 6. W. Le Breton was chosen Clerk of the Court, and 
 Recorder. 
 
 Joseph L. Meek was chosen to fill the office of 
 Sheriff; 
 
 W. H. Wilson was chosen Treasurer. 
 
 Messrs. Hill, Shortess, Newel, Beers, Hubbard, Gray, 
 O'Neal, More and Dougherty were chosen -to act as 
 the Legislative Committee. 
 
 Messrs. Burns, Judson and A. T. Smith were chosen 
 to act as Magistrates. 
 
 Messrs. Ebberts, Bridges and Lewis were chosen to 
 act as Constables. ' - ~ 
 
 John Howard was chosen Major. 
 
 Messrs. McCarty, McKay and S. Smith were consti- 
 tuted Captains. 
 
 It was then resolved, that the Legislative Committee 
 be required to make their report on the 5th day of Ju'v, 
 1843, at Champoeg. 
 
 On motion, it was resolved, that the services of the 
 Committee be paid for at the rate of one dollar and 
 twenty-five cents per day, and that the money be raised 
 by subscription. 
 
om«op«i tbrritosy. 435 
 
 A motion was made and carried, that the Major and 
 Captains be instructed to enlist men, to form companies 
 of mounted riflemen. 
 
 A fourth Magistrate and a fourth Constable were also 
 elected, and it was then resolved, that the Legislative 
 Committee should not be allowed to sit over six days. 
 
 In addition to the above business, this important pri- 
 mary meeting recognized the officers who had been 
 elected immediately after the death of Ewing Young, 
 and passed a vote that they should have power to exer- 
 cise the functions *of their office until the day of the 
 public meeting should arrive, when the newly elected 
 officers should be duly initiated. 
 
 During the interim between the above described 
 meeting and the 5th of July, little transpired worthy of 
 note^ with the exception of the celebration of the Fourth. 
 This day, glorious in the recollection of every American, 
 wherever he may be found, as the birth-day of liberty, 
 was appropriately celebrated at Champoeg, where nearly 
 all the Americans in the country, and many of the French 
 and English assembled to listen to an oration^ and a 
 temperance address, and to enjoy the/ socialities of a 
 public dinner. The festivities of the day were enjoyed 
 in the true spirit of liberty, there being no other spirit 
 to exert an influence on the occasion. As there were 
 no houses to entertain the people during the night, they 
 nearly all camped upon the ground, and the morning of 
 the 5th found them prepared to enter upon the important 
 business that was to come before them, and which re- 
 sulted in giving to the Oregonians a tangible form of 
 government. 
 
 The minutes of the meeting are as follows : — 
 
 Champoeg, July 5th, 1843. 
 
 The inhabitants of Oregon met at Champoeg, pursuant 
 to adjournment, to hear the report of the Legislative 
 Committee, and to perform such other business as might 
 come before them. 
 
 Rev. Gustavus Hines was elected Chairman, and W. 
 H. Gray, W. H. WLson and H. Campbell were chow* 
 Secretaries. ,„* 
 
436 OBKGON TEKBIT»tY. 
 
 Robert More, Esq., Chairman of the Legislative Com 
 mittee, then presented his report, which was read by 
 the Clerk of the Court, and adopted, as follows : — 
 
 Section 1st. — We, the people of Oregon Territory, for 
 purposes of mutual protection, and to secure peace and 
 
 I>rosperity among ourselves, agree to adopt the following 
 aws and regulations until such time as the United States 
 ©f America extend their jurisdiction over us. 
 
 Be it therefore enacted by the citizens of Oregon H 
 Territory, that the said Territory, for the purposes of 
 temporary government, be divided into not less than 
 three, nor more than five Districts, subject to be extended 
 to a greater number when the increase of population 
 shall require. 
 
 For the purpose of fixing the principles of civil and,, 
 religious liberty as the basis of all laws and constitutions 
 of government that may hereafter be adopted^ Be it 
 enacted, that the following articles be considered, ar- 
 ticles of compact among the free citizens of this Ter- 
 ritory : 
 
 Article 1st. No person demeaning himself in an orderly- 
 and peaceful manner, shall ever be molested on account 
 of his mode of worship, or religious sentiments. 
 
 Article 2d The inhabitants of said Territory shall 
 always be entitled to the benefit of the writ of habeas 
 corpus, and trial bv jury, of a proportionate representa- 
 tion of the people in the legislature and judicial proceed- 
 ings, according to the course of common law , all per- 
 sons shall be bailable, unless for capital offences, where 
 the proof shall be evident, or the presumption great. 
 All fines shall be moderate, and no cruel or unusual pun- 
 ishments inflicted. No man shall be deprived of his liberty 
 but by the judgment of his peers, or the laws of the land ; 
 and should the. public exigencies make it necessary for 
 the common preservation to take any person's property, 
 or to demand his particular services, full compensation 
 shall 1>e made for the. same. And, in the just preservation 
 of rights and property, it is understood and declared, that 
 no law ought to be made or have force in said Territory 
 that shall, in any manner whatever, interfere with, or 
 
ORKOON TKRRTT*ltY. 487 
 
 effect, private contracts pr engagements, bona fide and 
 without fraud, privately framed. 
 
 Article 3d. Religion, morality, and knowledge, being 
 necessary to g<5od government and the happiness of man- 
 kind, schools and the means of education shall forever 
 be encouraged. 
 
 The utmost good faith shall always be preserved to- 
 wards the Indians ; their land and property shall never 
 be taken from them without their consent ; and in their 
 property, rights and liberty, they shall never be invaded 
 or disturbed, unless in just and lawful wars authorized 
 by the representatives of the people. But laws founded 
 in justice and humanity, shall from time to time be made 
 for preventing injustice being done to them, and for pre- 
 serving peace and friendship with them. 
 
 Article 4th. There shall be neither slavery nor involun- 
 tary servitude in said Territory, otherwise than for the 
 punishment of crime, whereof the party shall have been 
 duly convicted. 
 
 Section 2d. — Organic Law. 
 
 Article 1st. Be it enacted hy the authorities aforesaid, 
 ihat the officers elected upon the 2d day of May, 1843, 
 shall continue in office until the second Tuesday in May, 
 1844, and until others are elected and qualified. 
 
 Article 2d. Be it further enacted, that an election of 
 civil and military officers shall be held annually upon the 
 second Tuesday in May, in the several districts, in such 
 places as shall be designated by law. 
 
 Article 3d. Each officer heretofore elected, or that shall 
 hereafter be elected, shall, before entering upon the duties 
 of his office, take an oath, or affirmation, to support the 
 laws of the Territory, and faithfully to discharge the 
 duties of his office. 
 
 Article 4th. Every free male descendant of a white 
 man, inhabitant of this Territory, of the age of twenty- 
 one vears and upwards, who shall have been an inhabi- 
 tant of this Territory at the time of its organization,, shall 
 be entitled to vote at the election of officers, civil and 
 military, and be elisibl* to any office in the Territory. 
 
(38 oueoK TBUIT*BT. 
 
 Provided, that all persons of the description entitled t« 
 .vote by the provisions of this section, who shall emigrate 
 to this Territory after organization, shall be entitled to 
 the rights of citizens, after having resided six months in 
 the Territory. 
 
 Article 5th. The executive power shall be vested in a 
 committee of three persons elected by the qualified voters 
 at the annual election, who shall have power to grant 
 pardons and reprieves for offences against the laws of 
 the Territory ; to call out the military force of the Ter- 
 ritory, to repel invasions or suppress insurrection ; to take 
 care that the laws be faithfully executed, and to recom- 
 mend such laws, as they may consider necessary, to the 
 representatives of the people for their action. Two mem- 
 bers of the committee shall constitute a quorum for the 
 transaction of business. 
 
 Article 6th. The legislative power shall be vested in a 
 committee of nine person?, to be chosen by the qualified 
 voters at the annual elections, giving to each district a 
 representation in the ratio of its population,- excluding 
 Indians, and the said members of the committee shall 
 reside in the district for which they shall be chosen. 
 
 Article 7th. The judicial power shall be vested in a 
 Supreme Court, consisting of the Supreme Judge and two 
 Justices of the Peace, a Probate Court, and in Justices 
 of the Peace. The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court 
 shall be both appellate and original. That of the Probate 
 Court and Justices of the Peace, as limited by law ; pro- 
 vided, that individual Justices of the Peace shall not have 
 jurisdiction of any matter of controversy when the title 
 or boundaries of land may be in dispute, or when the sum 
 claimed shall exceed fifty dollars. 
 
 Article 8th. There shall be a Recorder elected by the 
 qualified electors at the annual election, who shall keep 
 a faithful record of the proceedings in the Legislative 
 Committee, Supreme and Probate Courts ; also, record- 
 all boundaries of land presented for that purpose, and- all 
 marks and brands used for marking live stock ; procure 
 and keep the standard weights and measures required 
 by law ; seal weights and measures, and keep a record of 
 
the same ; and also record wills, deeds and other instru- 
 ments of writing, required by law to be recorded. The 
 Recorder shall receive the following fees, viz : for re- 
 cording wills, deeds, and other instruments of writing, 
 twelve cents for every hundred words, and the same 
 price for / copies of the same ; for every weight and 
 measure sealed, twenty-five cents ; for services as Clerk 
 of the Legislature, and for all other services required of 
 him by this act, the same fees as are allowed for similar 
 lervices by the laws of Iowa. 
 
 Article 9th. There shall be a Treasurer elected by the 
 qualified electors of the Territory, who shall, before en- 
 tering upon the duties of his office, give bonds to the 
 Executive Committee in the sum of fifteen hundred dol- 
 ars, with two or more sufficient securities, to be approved 
 uy the Executive Committee of the Territory, conditioned 
 for the faithful discharge of the duties of his office. The 
 Treasurer shall receive all moneys belonging to the Ter- 
 ritory that may be raised by contribution or otherwise, 
 ind shall procure suitable books in which he shall enter 
 in account of his receipts and disbursements. 
 
 Article 10th. The Treasurer shall in no case pay 
 aoney out of the Treasury, but according to law ; and 
 . nail annually report to the Legislative Committee a 
 true account of his receipts ana disbursements, with 
 necessary vouchers for the same, and shall deliver to his 
 successor in office all books, moneys, accounts, or other 
 property belonging to the Territory, as soon as his suc- 
 cessor shall become qualified. 
 
 Article 11th. The Treasurer shall receive for his ser- 
 vices the sum of five per cent, upon all moneys received 
 and paid out, according to law, and three per cent upon 
 all money in the Treasury when he goes out of office, 
 and two per cent upon the disbursements of money in' 
 the Treasury when he comes into office. 
 
 Article 12th. The laws of Iowa shall be the laws of 
 this country, in civil, military and criminal cases, when 
 not oihet wise provided far; and where no statute of Iowa 
 Territory applies, the principles of common law and 
 equity *wul govern. 
 
OKKOON TBKKITOKT. 
 
 Article 13<A. The law of Iowa, regulating weight! 
 and measures, shall be the law of this Territory ; Pro- 
 vided, that the Supreme Court shall perform the duties 
 required of the County Commissioners, and the Recorder 
 shall perfom the duties of the Clerk of the County Com- 
 missioners, as provided in said laws of Iowa. And, 
 provided, that sixty pounds avoirdupois weight, shall be 
 the standard weight of a bushel of wheat, whether the 
 same be more or less than two thousand one hundred 
 and fifty and two-fifths cubic inches. 
 
 Article 14th. The laws of Iowa respecting wills and 
 administrations, shall be the laws of this Territory, in aL 
 eases not otherwise provided for. 
 
 Article 15th. The laws of Iowa respecting vagrants, 
 are hereby adopted as far as adapted to the circumstan- 
 ces of the citizens of Oregon. - 
 
 Article 16th, The Supreme Court shall hold two ses- 
 sions annually, upon the third Tuesday in April and 
 September, the first session to be held at Champoeg, on 
 the third Tuesday in September, 1843, and the second 
 session at Tuality Plains, on the third Tuesday in April. 
 At the sessions of the Supreme Court, the Supreme 
 Judge shall preside, assisted by the Justices ; Provided, 
 that no Justice of the Peace shall assist in trying any - 
 case that has been brought before the Court by appeal 
 from his judgment The Supreme Court shall nave 
 original jurisdiction in t cases of treason, felony, and 
 breach of the peace, and in civil cases when the sum 
 claimed exceeds fifty dollars. 
 
 Article 17th. • All male persons of the age of sixteen 
 years and upwards, and all females of the age of four-* 
 teen and upwards, shall have the right of engaging in 
 marriage , Provided, that, when either of the parties'-; 
 shall be under twenty-one years of age, the consent of 
 the parents or guardians of such minors shall be neces- 
 sary to the validity of such matrimonial engagement. 
 Every ordained minister of the gospel of any religious 
 denomination, the Supreme Judge, and all the Justices 
 of the Peace, are hereby authorized to solemnize mar- 
 riage according to law, to have the same recorded, and 
 
OREGON TERRITORY. 481 
 
 pay the Recorder's fees. All marriages shall be re* 
 corded by the Territorial Recorder within one month 
 from the time of such marriage taking place, and being 
 made known to him officially. The legal fee for mar- 
 riage shall be one dollar, and for recording fifty cents. 
 
 Article i8th. All offices subsequently made shall be 
 fiiea by election and ballot in the several districts, in 
 the most central and convenient place in such district, 
 upon the day appointed by law, and under such regula- 
 tions as the laws of Iowa provide. 
 
 Article 1 9th. Resolved, that a ^Committee of three be 
 ippointed to draw up a digest of the doings of the people 
 sf this Territory, with regard to an organization, and 
 transmit it to the United States Government for their 
 .nformation. 
 
 In every other particular connected with the Judiciary 
 and Military regulations of the country, the laws of 
 Iowa were considered applicable, and were consequently 
 formally adopted by the people assembled en masse at 
 Champoeg, on the 5th of July, 1843. 
 
 As the country remained quiet as it regarded the 
 Indians, ancL no particular danger menaced her from 
 without, the military kws slumbered a dead letter, and 
 the military officers remained without a militia. The 
 organization, however, continued, and all the rest of the 
 laws were uniformly put in force. The expenses of the 
 government for two years after the organization, were 
 met by voluntary contributions ; some of the officers, 
 however, serving without fee or reward. 
 
 In the spring of 1844, a new Legislative Committee 
 was elected, which embraced two or three lawyers, who 
 arrived in the country the previous fall. This Committee 
 passed a vote, recommending several important altera- 
 tions, in the Organic Laws, which were found to be, in 
 their practical operations, somewhat defective. As the 
 people had not yet surrendered their law-making power 
 into the hands of the Legislative Committee, it was 
 necessary to call an election, to ascertain the will of the 
 people ia reference to the proposed alterations and 
 amendment*. This election took place, and resulted in 
 
4M OREGON TRKHITOST. 
 
 the adoption of the Organic Laws, with the proposed 
 alterations and admendments, by an overwhelming ma 
 jority. The principal alterations thui effected relate to 
 the three powers of Government, the Legislative, Exec- 
 utive, and Judicial. Instead of a Committee oi nine, 
 whose acts were to be confirmed or rejected by a subse 
 qaent vote of the people, the Legislative power was 
 vested in a House of Representatives, to consist of not 
 less than thirteen, nor more than sixty-one members, 1, 
 possessing all the powers usual to such bodies. 
 
 Instead of a Committee of three, the Executive power 
 was vested in one person, to be elected by the qualified 
 voters at the annual election, and possessing the powers 
 common to the Governors off the different States. 
 
 The Judicial power was vested in a Supreme Court 
 and such Inferior Courts of law, equity and arbitration, 
 as should, by law, -from time to time, be established. 
 It was also provided, that the Supreme Judge should 
 be elected by the House of Representatives, and not by 
 the people, according to the provisions of the former 
 Code. 
 
 All the officers, civil and military, were required to 
 take an oath as follows, to wit : — 
 
 I do solemnly swear, that I will support the Organic 
 Laws of the Provisional Government of Oregon, so far 
 as said Organic Laws are consistent with my duties as 
 a citizen of the United States, or a subject of Great 
 Britain, and faithfully demean myself in office ,* so help 
 me God. 
 
 Important changes were also effected in the Organic 
 Laws, respecting land claims. By the previous arrange- 
 ment, the different missions in the country were con 
 Irmed in their occupancy of the tracts of land of which 
 they had taken possession, for the benefit of the Indian 
 tribes, but in the amended Code, no such mission claims 
 were allowed. 
 
 As the Land Law is quite important, particularly to 
 persons interested to know how such matters are regu 
 lated in Oregon, perhaps it will not be improper to copv 
 it xvhmiim : — 
 
OKKSON TERRITORY. 4X1 
 
 "Any person now holding, or hereafter wishing to 
 establish a claim to land in this Territory, shall designate 
 the extent of his claim by natural boundaries, or by 
 marks at the corners and upon the lines of Buch claim, 
 and have the extent and boundaries of said claim re- 
 corded in the office of the Territorial Recorder, in a 
 book to be kept by him for that purpose, within twenty 
 days from the time of making such claim ; Provided, 
 that those who shall be already in possession of land, 
 shall be allowed twelve months, from the passage of this 
 act, to file a description of his claim in the Recorder'* 
 office ; and provided, further, that the said claimant 
 shall state in his record, the size, shape and locality of 
 such claim, and give the names of the adjoining claim- 
 ants ; and the Recorder may require the applicant for 
 such record to be made, to answer on his oath touching 
 the facts. 
 
 " All claimants shall, within six months from the time 
 of recording their claim, make permanent improvements 
 upon the same, by bui'ding or inclosing, and also become 
 an occupant upon said claim, within one year from the 
 date of such record, or, in case not occupied, flie person 
 holding said claim shall pay into the Treasury the sum 
 of five dollars annually ; and, in case of failure to occu- 
 py, or failure of payment of the sum above stated, the 
 claim shall be considered as abandoned ; Provided, that 
 no non-resident of this Territory shall have the benefit 
 of the Law ; and provided, further, that any resident of 
 this Territory, absent on his private business for two 
 years, may hold his claim by paying five dollars, an- 
 nually, to the Treasury. 
 
 " No individual shall be allowed to a claim of more 
 ' than one square mile, or six hundred and forty acres, in 
 a square or oblong form, according to the natural situa- 
 tion of the'premises ; nor shall any individual be allowed 
 to hold more than one claim at the same time. Any 
 person, complying with the provisions of these ordi- 
 nances, shall be entitled to the same recourse against 
 trespass, as in other cases by law provided. 
 
 "Partnerships of two or more persona, shall be allowea 
 
4M OEMON TEKKITOKY 
 
 to take up a tract of land, not exceeding six hundred aa« 
 forty acres to each person in said partnership, subject te 
 all the provisions of this law, and whenever such partner- 
 ship is dissolved, the members shall record the particular' 
 parts of said tract which may be allotted to them re- 
 spectively ; provided, that no member of said partnership 
 shall hold a separate claim at the time of the existence 
 of said partnership." 
 
 It was also determined at the special election, by a. 
 vote of the people, that the amended Organic Law 
 should become the law of the land, after the first Tues- 
 day in June, 1845, when the election of a Governor and 
 Members of the House of Representatives was to take 
 place. 
 
 In the mean time the people of Oregon, though differ- 
 ing as much in their education, their degrees of civiliza- 
 tion and refinement, and their constitutional habits, as 
 they do in the color of their skin, continued in their inter- 
 course with one another^ to form a remarkably peaceable 
 and quiet community. But, it will not be understood by 
 this, that the Oregonians exhibited no irregularities, no 
 wickedness in their conduct ; but simply' that in civil 
 regulations, and daily intercourse in matters of business, 
 and in efforts to promote the welfare of the country, the 
 community was one of order, gentleness and unanimity. 
 As a proof of this, when steps have been taken to adopt 
 laws from time to time, as the exigencies of the case 
 have seemed to require, though numbers have usually 
 been opposed to the measures, yet, after having been 
 adopted by the majority, they have been universally 
 acknowledged. Those most opposed at first, like true- 
 hearted republicans, would fall in with the majority, and 
 sustain the laws with their entire influence. 
 
 Another thing that speaks well for the civil order that 
 prevailed in the community before the present organize % 
 tion was established, is the fact, that crimes were very 
 few. True, there were some petty quarrels between 
 white men, but in a very few instances did they amount 
 to blows. 
 
 Se few were the cues of serious litigation, that whea 
 
OKSSOK TUKITOBY. iXfi 
 
 the first Circuit Courts were held in the four different 
 counties, there appeared but one case of assault in the 
 whole country, and in that the circumstances were s« 
 extenuating that the defendant was fined only twenty- 
 five dollars. The highest charge that came before either 
 Justices or Judges, in Oregon, up to 1845, was against a 
 man for challenging another to fight a duel, who, for a 
 foolish violation of a law which had just been passed, was 
 fined in the sum of five hundred dollars, and disfranchised 
 for life. It being the first case of the kind in the country, 
 the last part of the sentence was remitted by a special act 
 of the Legislature. 
 
 There are vagabonds and scape-gallowses in almost 
 every country, and it would be singular if none had found 
 their way to Oregon. That this may have been the case, 
 appears from a most desperate affray which greatly 
 disturbed the quiet of the community, and which took 
 place in the upper part of the settlement on the Walla- 
 mette river. 
 
 A man by the name of Joel Turnham, who possessed 
 a most reckless and desperate disposition, committed 
 several outrages upon a peaceful and inoffensive man by 
 the name of Webley Hauxhurst. One day, Turnham 
 took occasion to tie his horse in Hauxhurst's oat field, as 
 he had frequently done before, without asking liberty, 
 and then going to Hauxhurst's house, the latter expostu- 
 lated with him for taking such undue liberties with his 
 property. This so enraged Turnham that he seized 
 Hauxhurst bv the throat, with the intention of flogging 
 him ; but, while in the act of throwing him to the floor, 
 the wife of Hauxhurst, who was an Indian woman of the 
 Caflapooah tribe, seized a board that lay near, and with 
 one blow- upon the head of Turnham, for an instant, 
 Tiaialized every muscle in his frame, and brought him 
 itaggering to the floor. Soon, however, Turnham ga- 
 thered himself up and immediately left the house, swear- 
 ing vengeance upon the woman, saying, "There is no 
 !iw against killing Indians." 
 
 Hauxhurst, fearing as well for his own safety, as that 
 Turnham would carry hi» threat into execution again* 
 
4M *KK«K>N TKBBITOBT. 
 
 the life o) his wife, resolved upon taking immediate 
 measures to secure the arrest of Turnham. 
 
 Turnham himself, at the previous election, had been 
 chosen constable, and consequently, L. H. Judson, Esq., 
 on application being made by Hauxhurst for a precept 
 against Turnham, deputized a man by the name of John 
 Edmonds to take him into custody. Edmonds immedi- 
 ately took the precept, and walking into a shop where 
 Turnham was with a number of other persons, told him 
 that he was h^s prisoner, and commenced reading the 
 warrant Not being able to read it readily, on account 
 of an impediment in his speech, Turnham said, " Here, 
 let me read it ;" and snatching it out of the hands of 
 Edmonds, tore it in pieces, and stamped it beneath his 
 feet ; and then, seizing a knife in one hand, and a ham- 
 mer in the other, swore he would butcher the first man 
 that attempted to take him. Edmonds called for help, 
 but none dared to come near. Turnham, therefore, 
 walked out of the shop, mounted his horse and rode ofl 
 towards the house of Hauxhurst Another warrant was 
 issued, and Edmonds was advised to enter into all neces- 
 sary precautions to take Turnham at any rate. Accord- 
 ingly, he proceeded to the Oregon Institute and got Mr. 
 Hamilton Campbell and some others, to go and assist 
 him. Supposing that Turnham would fight, and from 
 his desperate and sanguinary character would doubtless 
 attempt to kill him, Edmonds armed himself with a re- 
 volving six-barreled pistol that was sure fire, and pro- 
 ceeded on to Hauxhurst's house. Turnham had been 
 there and ground his large knife, which he usually carried 
 in his belt under his coat, but had left a short time before 
 Edmonds arrived. 
 
 ' Looking back from the prairie over which he was 
 passing, he saw a company of men as they were dis- 
 mounting from their horses, and immediately wheeled 
 his horse around, and rode back upon the fulf gallop to- 
 wards Hauxhurst's house. As Turnham approached, 
 Edmonds placed himself inside of a small gate which 
 led into the door-yard, with his right hand placed on the 
 breech of his pistol, which he carried in hw pantaloon's 
 
OKK«ON TBKSITORY. 4*7 
 
 nke *:' Turnham, paying no attention to him, came up 
 
 ipediately to the gate, and while passing through into 
 Pteryard, Edmonds put his left hand upon Turnham's 
 shoulder, and said, "You are my prisoner." Turnham 
 immediately drew his long knife and brandished it in 
 Edmonds' face, and Edmonds as quickly presented his 
 six-shooter at Turnham's breast. They eyed each 
 other for an instant, but Turnham, mad to desperation, 
 
 exclaimed, "Shoot and be d d;" and commenced 
 
 throwing himself backwards and forwards, from one 
 side of the yard to the other, for the twofold purpose 
 of evading the bullets, and of placing himself in a posi- 
 tion to enable him to make a successful drive upon his 
 antagonist. Those who witnessed the affray, have no 
 doubt but that he was bent upon the death of Edmonds. 
 Some one within the house was heard to cry out to 
 Edmonds, " Why don't you shoot ? " At^this Edmonds 
 commenced his fire. The first two bullets missed Turn- 
 ham altogether. The third wounded him in his knee, 
 the fourth uThis heck, the fifth in his face, and during 
 all this time he was rushing forward upon Edmonds with 
 the utmost vengeance. 
 
 When the fifth ball hit him, he clapped one hand to 
 the wound, and cried out, " Oh ! " and hesitated a mo 
 ment asjf he would yield ; but gathering himself up for 
 one more struggle, while making his last and most des- 
 perate effort to plunge his knife into the heart of Ed- 
 monds, the sixth ball pierced his temple, he fell and 
 instantly expired. 
 
 This case was of such a nature, as in the estimation 
 of the Supreme Judge, to demand an investigation by 
 the Grand Jury. Accordingly, Edmonds gave bonds 
 for his appearance at Court, and, though ms enemies 
 labored hard to convict him of murder, yet, when 
 the matter was thoroughly investigated by the Jury, 
 it was pronounced to be a clear case of justifiable 
 homicide 
 
 THE bnd 
 
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 ■n.^SEE&BJS'* INTO THE NATURE AND CAUSES OF THE "WEALTH 
 
 ADAM SMITH'S ESSAYS. 
 
 t . 5 SSA J S > PHILOSOPHICAL AND LITERARY; including the "Theor* 
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 "Ancient Physics," "Ancient Losrieand Metaphysics," "The Imitative Arts— Musfe 
 Dancing, Poetry," "The External Senses," "'English and Italian Verses." &c By 
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 IN OSes and Quotations, and an Account of the Author's Life, translated, into English 
 »y Chablxs Colton, Esq. 
 
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'THE u^ls^Ein.IO-A.^T 
 
 POPULAR DICTIONARY 
 
 CONTAININQ 
 
 EVERY USEFUL WORD 
 
 To be found fn the English Language, with Its 
 TSTJB MEANING, DEBIVATIOK, SPELLING AND PBOSUNOIAlIOti 
 
 ALSO, A YAST AMOUNT OP 
 
 ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY IB3 FORMATION 
 
 UPON 
 
 Sctmct, Mythology, Biography, American History, Constitution*, Laws, Land TUtts, 
 
 Cities, Colleges, Avmd and Navy, Rate -of Mortality, Growth of Cities, 
 
 Insolvent and Assignment Laws, Debts, Bates of Interest, 
 
 - and other Useful Knowledge, being a 
 
 PERFECT LIBRARY OF REFERENCE IN O WE HANDY VOLUME. 
 
 Thepubllahewofttfe AMERICAN POPULAR DICTIONARY cl*imforttfl!*i«^ 
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 It contains EVERT WORD OEJMIE ENGLISH LANGUAGE that enters into speech or writing. 
 
 THE SPELLING of eaoh wordTS precisely that given by the best authorities. 
 
 THE 'DEFINITIONS are compiled from a majority of the best writers of th < English language. 
 
 THE PRONUNCIATIONS every word is that settled upon by the ablest masters of this most la* 
 fortant branch of Grammar. 
 
 In addition to the perfeotionrwjf this work as a Dictionary, it contains a vast amonnt»finIbnnattoa 
 wpon BANT KINDS OF USEFUL KNOWLEDGE not to he found in any similar work; but alt 
 ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY to every one who wishes to be acquainted with the leading subjects ofeosw 
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 By reference to the annexed TABLE OF CONTENTS It will be found that the bookjls really a «■* 
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 glean an amount of real knowledge Impossible to "find elsewhere collected In one book, 
 
 THE AMERICAN POPULAR DICTIONARY is printed from new type, with extra slea? and IsgiMs 
 flue. It'iB.bound very strongly and neatly. 
 
 TABtK ©1? 
 
 1. A Complete Dlctlonaryof the Bug, Language. 
 
 9. A Complete Litt of Scripture Proper Names, 
 including Apocrypha, and their pronuncia- 
 tion. 
 
 8. American Geographical Names, with their der- 
 ivation, signification, and their pronuncia- 
 tion. 
 
 4. Nicknames of the States and Cities of the V. S. 
 
 5. The Discovery and Discoverers of America. 
 
 6. The Aborigines of North America, showing 
 
 their tribes, location and number. 
 *. Early Settlers and Settlements of the United 
 
 States — nationality, location, date, 
 A. Troops of the American Revolution, wnowliia; 
 
 the number each State furnished. 
 ©. Battles and Losses of the Revolution. 
 10., The Declaration of Independence. 
 11. The Signers of the Declaration of Independ- 
 ence, 
 IS. The Presidents of the Continental Congress, 
 18. Constitution of the United States. 
 
 14. History of the American Floe. 
 
 15. Area and Population of the United States. 
 
 16. Population of all Cities and Towns in the U. 
 
 6. bavins; a population of over 10,000. 
 
 17. Growth of American Cities having a popula- 
 
 tion of 50,000. and upward. 
 
 18. Public Debt of the United Slates,1791 to 1879. 
 
 19. The Amount of Paper Money In tho United 
 
 States, of each denomination. 
 90. Analysis of the Public Debt of the United 
 
 States. 
 91* United States Public Lands— where they lie. 
 SI. The United States Public Land System. 
 St* Free Homesteads on the Public Lands, or how 
 
 ' to secure a homestead. 
 14. Homestead and Exemption Laws of the U. S. 
 ■S. The Canals of the United States— their length, 
 
 connecting points, number of locks, eott t &c 
 
 V ■tsssBiflr *»■* fe •W h » tilt baok. 
 
 co^tdnts. 
 
 . The Municipal Debts of the United State*, 
 . Theological Seminaries in the United States, 
 
 denominations, professors, students, in each* 
 
 28. Occupations of the People of the U. S. 
 
 29. Army of the United States, with rates of pay. 
 
 80. Navy of the United States, with rates of pay* , 
 
 81. Navy-yards of the United States. ! 
 
 82. Number of Hen raised by each State for that ' 
 
 suppression of the Rebellion. 
 89. Churches In the United States, with statistics. 
 
 84. Price of commodities for the past fifty years. 
 
 85. Statutes of Limitations of the various States. 
 
 86. Interest Laws In the United States. 
 
 87. Insolvent and Assignment Laws of th* i 
 
 ent States. 
 
 88. Newspapers and Periodicals In the U.8. 
 
 89. Heads of the principal nations of the woi 
 
 40. The Carlisle Tables, showing how many per* 
 
 sons out of 10,000 will die annually. 
 
 41. The Railroads of the World— length, cost, are. 
 
 42. Commerce, Debts, Ac, of the principal nations 
 48. National Debts of the various countries. 
 
 44. Tbe Merchant Shipping of the world. 
 
 45. The Dominion of Canada, revenue, trade, are. 
 40. The Armies of the world.wlthfull particulars 
 
 47. Tbe Navies of the world— numbers, cost, Jt*» 
 
 48. Foreign Gold and Sliver Coins— value, Sn. 
 
 49. Weights and Measures of the United States. 
 
 50. General Councils of the Roman Catholic 
 
 Church. 
 
 51. Chronological History of the United State*. J 
 
 52. List of Mythological and Classical Names. ;. 
 58. Interest Tables, at 4, 5, G, 7, 8 and 10 p 
 
 54. Examples of the Common Errors In Speaking 
 
 and Writing, with Corrections. 
 
 55. A Guide to the Pronunciation of Hard Words, 
 
 In the English and other languages, 
 56. A List of Objectionable Words and P 
 and Initecnrate Expressions. 
 
 Senfto any address en resstptsfnessss , 
 
 Price 50 Cents. 
 Address KUKST & CO. 1«2 Nassau St. If.* 
 
MAGNET HANDBOOKS. 
 
 Price 35 cents each. 
 
 •r modem etiquette for ladies and gentlemen. A 
 'tFS?* 1 of iixis D0 °k wiW enable every one to Tub 
 off the rough huska of ill-breeding and neglected 
 education, and substitute for them gentlemanly 
 ease and graceful ladylike deportment (as the case 
 may be), so that their presence will be sought for, 
 and they will learn the art of being not only thor- 
 ongnlyat home in all societies, but will have the 
 rarer gift of making everybody' around them feel 
 easy, contented, and happy. This work is fully 
 op to the requirements of the times : it describes 
 the etiquette of our very beet society. 
 
 LTPI BOOK OF KNOWLEDCE, 
 
 tailed, and the choicest recipes and formulas are 
 
 Even for the making of different kinds of liquors, 
 eluding the new method of making cider with- 
 ent apples. It is arranged for the use of liquor- 
 dealers, druggists, manufacturers, farmers, med- 
 ical men, the household, confectioners, hunters, 
 ' trappers, perfumers, artists, Ac. Many of the re- 
 cipes have been advertised and sold at sums rang- 
 , fng from 25 cents to $500; and there are many 
 new and highly valuable recipes never before pub- 
 lished. 
 
 (U.YHOND, uii U4HK1L., vuiyui. jug, icgciUBUitliiu. turn 
 
 prestidigitation. It is a complete expose o't the 
 TRTizard'B Art. No trick or illusion of importance 
 * IB left unnoticed ; and the instructions and expla- 
 nations are bo simple and exhaustive that a child 
 «onld perform the tricEs. A study of this inter- 
 esting work would make any one thoroughly ex- 
 t jiert in amusing either a public or private audience. 
 THE HORSE-OWNER'S CUipE: 
 
 Rat work on tKe norse ever published. It'should 
 fce in the hands of every one who owns, works, or 
 " cares for a horse. It is a book that is needed, — 
 simple, concise, comprehensive, reliable, and prac- 
 tical, — giving the fullest and best information on 
 all matters that relate to this useful animal. 
 
 THE TAXIDERMIST'S GUIDE.- v 
 
 complete instructor m the art of collecting, pre- 
 
 gring, mounting, and preserving all kinds of an- 
 ials, birds, fishes, reptiles, and insects. Adapted 
 for the use of amateurs, travelers, and ^practical 
 workers. A number of the best recipes are given, 
 as used by the best taxidermists, for articles used 
 In the preservation and the setting up of animals. 
 Illustrated. 
 
 "■n^H^MMM 
 
 _ complete gui< 
 mercial and mercantile transactions, including a 
 dictionary of all the terms and technicalities used 
 In commerce and In business houses. Correct 
 legalTforms are given of bills, deeds, notes, drafts, 
 cheques, agreements, receipts, contracts, and other 
 instruments of writing constantly necessary to all. 
 , GILBERT'S BOOK OP PANTO - 
 mimes. Acting Charades, Parlor 
 Theatricals- and ! Tableau*. K also 
 
 Contains firtyTaBleaux v ivants, or Animated Pic- 
 fUrao. Persons who have never seen any of these* 
 things acted can easily arrange and perform-them, 
 Tor church fairs, school exhibitions, and parlor 
 •tttertemments, they are Just the thing, Tjeing 
 , easily produced and giving excellent opportunities 
 fir betfa yoUBg and old to participate. 
 
 ~~ iry humanfeeling and^ sentiment, such as Love, 
 
 jndBhip, Eespect, 'Admiration, Good Wishes," 
 &c.f4ncluding a gTeat number of acrostics foj 
 proper names, all entirely original. Here all may 
 find something to write at once eloquent and ap* 
 propriate, to suit every phase of feeling, sentiment, 
 or humor. 
 
 HOW TO WRITE A LETTER.-A 
 
 complete letter-writer for ladies and gentlemen. 
 It tells how to write a letter upon any subject out; 
 of the writer's "own head." It alBO contains the 
 "Art of Bapid "Writing "by the abbreviation of 
 longhand, and a "Dictionary of Abbreviations. " 
 This book contains all the points and features that 
 are in other letter-writers, with very much that is 
 new, original, and very important, and which cart 
 not be found in any other book. 
 
 HOW TO WRITE SHORT* 
 
 week what it would take an adult a year to leant 
 by any other method. 
 
 COMMON COMPLAINTS, /ND 
 HOW TO CURETHEWL-ByM7 Gfay- 
 etth Byrn, M.D. As a book of Teady remedies 
 for the ordinary ills of life, this book should be In 
 the hands of every person who is liable to an acci- 
 dent or subject to a disease. It tellB what to do 
 and how to do it in the plainest nossible manneK. 
 
 THE PRACTICAL. MAGICIANS 
 
 and„ ventriloquist's Guide. Eva Ba- 
 nes of systematic lessons the learner is conducted 
 through the whole field of magic, conjuring, and 
 legerdemain. There are also given complete in- 
 structions for acquiring the art of ventriloquiem. 
 The instructions are so very simple and practical 
 that no one can fail to acquire this amusing art, 
 and become a proficient ventriloquist aad polyph- 
 onist. Illustrated. 
 
 cepti 
 
 vented, including the latest tricks of the raoBt cel- 
 ebrated conjurers, magicians, and prestidigitators, 
 popularly explained, simplified, and adapted for 
 home amusements and social entertainments. To 
 lovers of the marveloue and ingenious this book 
 will be a perpetual source of delight. Handsomely! 
 illustrated. I 
 
 ND TRAPPER'S 
 
 A practical inan> 
 _ hunting, trapping, 
 and fishing. She instructions will enable any one 
 to become thoroughly expert in the sports ana 
 pastimes of the river, field, or forest Illustrated. 
 
 SFFENBACH'S DANCING WITH- 
 TA MASTER.-fntbf popular aauceq 
 are given, and the whole illustrated by numerous! 
 cuts and diagrams, making the art so simple thai* 
 the most ignorant can become expert in it , 
 
 Art o7 Attorning Bodily Vigor, Physical Develop- 
 ment, Beauty of Feature, and Symmetry of Form. 
 "With the Science of Dressing with Taste, Ele- 
 gance, and Economy. Illustrated. 
 
 oal ofinstructions in the arts of painting, varnish- 
 ing, and gilding, with plain rules for the practiw 
 of every department of house and sign painting. 
 
 PKICE TWETTTT-FIVE CENTS EACH. 
 
 A-ddr— HURST A CO., 122 Nassau Street, New Tork. 
 
M AG NET~HAND BOOKS. 
 
 PRICE TWENTY-FIVE CENTS EACH. 
 
 BOOK OF USEFUL RECEIPTS, 
 
 and Manufacturers' Guide.-*? Pro- 
 
 feasor Johnson.— For conciseness, reliability, and 
 cheapness, this work is superior to any published. 
 Hot only does it contain a vast number of reliable 
 And practical recipes and processes relating to the 
 fine arts, trades, and general manufactures, but it 
 gives full and explicit instructions for acquiring 
 and successfully practising numerous arts and pro- 
 fessions, sucb as JElectroty ping and 'Electroplating, 
 making and working an Electric Telegraph, Mono* 
 chromatic and Crayon Painting, Vitremaine, and 
 many others of equal value and importance. 
 
 A SCIENTIFIC TREATISE ON 
 
 Its Cure-.— We have here tilis dmicul^lubject 
 treateusoTntelligently and plainly that any person 
 Interested can read and learn the causes of the 
 -peculiar and distressing impedimenta in his 
 - speech. It thoroughly explains the different 
 causes that produce stammering, and then pro- 
 ceeds to make plain the meanB of care, so that any 
 Erson with a determination to succeed, by follow- 
 g the iastructionB given, can curs himself of this 
 most unhappy affliction, and at no expense but 
 fiie cost of the hook. 
 
 REAL SECRET ART AND 
 
 A»7 
 
 -THE 
 
 Phil 
 and 
 
 become — .......... 
 
 husbands, in a brief space of time and by easy 
 methods. Also containing complete directions for 
 declaring intentions, accepting vows, and retain- 
 ing affections, both before and after marriage. 
 
 CHOICE VERSES FOR, VALEN- 
 tlnes, Albums, and y/eddlng Cele- 
 brations.— Containing original and^ selected 
 Verses applicable to wooden, tin; silver, golden, 
 and diamond wedding anniversaries j bouquet and 
 birthday presentations, autograph-album verses 
 and acrostics, and a variety of verses and poems 
 adapted to social anniversaries and rejoicings. 
 
 ,-J-A manual of facts, containing a chron- 
 
 REFERENCE. 
 
 duuiv>~~' 1 uiDuuni ui iuha containing a chron- 
 ological history of the United States; the public 
 lands; everything about the constitution, debts, 
 revenues, productions, wealth, population, rail- 
 roads, exemption, interest, insolvent and assign- 
 ment statutes of the United States, &c 
 
 erary labor. As an aid and Instructor to those who 
 oesire to follow literary pursuits permanently for 
 
 rofit, or to those who write for recreation and 
 
 /ensure, this book Is indispensable. 
 OYMNASTrCS v WITHOUT a 
 TEACHER.— This book plainly explains to 
 
 you how to go about learning all the popular 
 •ranches of gymnastics, Every man and boy 
 ought to learn the different exercises described in 
 this book, if he wishes to live a healthy life, and 
 preserve a sound and vigorous body, a sharp eye, 
 and snaple limbs. 
 - FORTUNE-TELLING MADE EASY 
 or, the Dreamer's Sure Guide.— This 
 
 book will tell yon about your destiny, your pros- 
 pective marriage, your business prospects, your 
 F OTe-affairs. The book is a perfect oracle of fate, 
 
 FRENCH IN A FORTNIGHT.wlth- 
 
 Qut a, master^— Aroyalroadtoaknowledge 
 of toe Parisian tongue, In fifteen easy lessons on 
 
 tongue, 
 accent, grammar, and pronunciation. 
 
 lc, and bumorouB events, which actually occurred 
 during the late civil war. 
 
 OUR KNOWLEDGE-BOX B <". old 
 
 wants and new discoveries. 
 
 NTS OF AMERICAN 
 
 -A collection of tragic, pathet? 
 
 COOK-BOOK.— This very valuable mannd 
 teaches plainly n«w to buy, dress, cook, serve, and ■ 
 
 carve every kind of fish, fowl, meat, game, and 
 vegetable. Also, how to preserve fruits and vege- 
 tables, and how to make pastry. 
 
 THE FAMILY 1 
 
 complete and practical < 
 
 -classes. This valuable and comprehensive work ii 
 needed in every house. 
 
 THE ART OF f EljF-DEFE^.E: f or, 
 
 large illustrations, showing aU the different p< 
 
 1 domestic manual ror all 
 
 tions, blows, stops, and 
 Professor of Boxing to 
 
 lards. By Ned Dokbxlv, 
 
 e London Athletic Club. 
 
 HAWTHORNE'S.. COMIC AMD 
 fRACIC DjALO0UE8.-lnclud ng uiauy 
 if the most affecting, amusing, and spirited dia> 
 
 of the most affecting, amusing, and spiri'_ _ _ 
 logues ever written,^- affording opportunities foi 
 the display of every different quality of action* 
 voice, and delivery,— suitable for schools, acadej 
 mies, anniversaries, and parlor presentation!. 
 
 expressly and carefully for the use of young chil- 
 dren. Containing a large number of pieces, some 
 simple enough to please infants, while all are aura 
 to delight and improve children of every age. 
 
 HAWTHORNE'S, TRAGIC RE- 
 CITER.— Containing the very best pieces ever 
 written expressive of Love, Hate, Pear, Bags, Ee- 
 venge, Jealousy, and the other most melting, stir- 
 ring, and startling passions of the human heart 
 
 FiEed with the hveflest, Joflfest, laughter-provoE 
 ing stories, lectures, and other humorous pieces, 
 
 Hawthorne's Book of Jlead \y- 
 
 made. Speeches on all injects that can , 
 occur, whetCer on serious, sentimental, or humor- 
 ous occasions. Including speeches and replica 
 at dinners, receptions, festivals, political meetings, 
 military reviews, firemen's gatherings, and indeed 
 wherever and whenever any party, large or snuuL 
 is gathered to dine, to mourn, to congratulate, or 
 . to rejoice. Appended to which are TormB of al| 
 
 kinds of reaolutioi 
 sentiments and toi 
 
 , <fec, with a great number of 
 
 for tne Parlor. J^ainly teaching how to dress. 
 make np, study, and perform at private theatrical 
 parties. To which are added how to arrange and 
 display tableaux vivants, shadow pantomimes; 
 drawing-room *magi£, acting charades, conuiu ...,. 
 drums, enigmas, &c, with explanatory engravings. 
 Snip, Snap, Snorum, and nearli 
 —3 hundred, other parlor games, such a 
 
 as J oven! 
 
 /a - 
 
 1 pen and pencil. Including many nei 
 
 and all the old favorite amusements calculated ta 
 make home happy and set the youngsters scream- 
 ing wild with innocent delight. 
 
 smoking the various kmdr'of Meat, Kan, and I 
 Game. Also, how to preserve and keep, fresh and 
 full of flavor, fruits, berries, and vegetables. Ta 
 which is added complete directions for ™a"lrt"g 
 candies and choice confections. 
 . Fishing 
 
 book givea^ 
 
 all the different kinds of fish found in America*: 
 waters ; the proper season for fishing for them, ' 
 and the bait, tackle, &c, to be used. 
 
 ,— A collection (ft 
 
 card-games, games of forfeits, games of action, 
 games with pen and pencil. Including many new 
 
 ngwlth Hook and Une-r™! 
 
 sTilain and full directions for catching 
 
 authentic Jokes and squibs u Ateahopa. 
 
INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC MADE EASY. 
 
 INSTRUMENTAL MU8IC 
 
 SELF-INSTRUCTORS. 
 
 Music Without a TeaeheT. 
 
 Each of the following Books for teaching 
 Instrumental Music is perfect in every way, and 
 from them anyone with a taste for ' Concord of 
 Sweet Sounds" can- become an accomplish** 
 Musician in a short time, on any of the Instru- 
 ments enumerated. 
 
 Piano Without a Teacher. 
 
 ^taJX instruction is given not only as to the keys, but everything is explained as I* 
 the fingering, position, use of pedals, etc. Price 25 cents. 
 
 CABINET ORGAN WITHOUT A TEACHER. 
 
 The playing of this Household Instrument is made quite easy, A little dally ap- 
 plication with this hook will enable anyone to play with correctness and «as«. 
 race 25 cents. 
 
 Violin Without a Teacher. 
 
 Every rule that could be learned from an Ole Bull, or Paganini can he gained f-o»> 
 these pages. - The management of the lingers to produce every note, slide and e^salss 
 la clearly explained. Price 25 cents. 
 
 German Accordeon Without a Teacher. 
 
 All the Bweet melodies of this Instrument can be easily rendered by an app tt sg 
 Mon of the plain rules so well laid down in this book. Price 25 cents, 
 
 Banjo Without a Teacher. 
 
 " 1MB lively Instrument can be learnt just as well from the plain rules of this bo»k, 
 4. from the lips of a master. Every point and little trick of the famous players aw 
 «plained. Price 25 cents. 
 
 Cornet Without a Teacher. 
 
 By close attention to these rules one can become as great a proficient as an Atr 
 %uckle »r a Levy. All about the "keys and the valves, tongueing and double tonga*. 
 tag, .to., are clearly explained. Price 25 cents. 
 
 So plain, practical and perfect are the lessons given, that tht 
 
 acquiring of the art of playing any of the above 
 
 Instruments is quite simple and easy. 
 
 Heart Songs and Home Tunes 
 
 Contains COMPLETE MUSIC OF NEAM-Y lOO PIECES, by such com- 
 
 nosers as Ant. Clover, Sloan, Gatty and Balfe. Including a vast range of 
 Eot^i! BonEdl, Duett, and Choruses, arranged for the Piano and Organ, rtic. 
 
 15 cents. : 
 
 Copie* of the alsTe boot., seat by mall post-paid to any 
 sjjnrnii. «m veoeipt of price. 
 
 Address HUBST Si CO. 1SS Nassau St* W. Y. 
 
BIJOU HANDBOOKS. 
 
 These valuable little manuals contain the very cream of the subjects discussed 
 All superfluous verbosity Is discarded, but the Information Is given In plain, cleas 
 and pointed language. Special care has been taken to make them as concise at 
 possible without marring the sense. Price 10 cents each. 
 
 TRUE POLITE NESS, -A handbook 
 
 ofetiquette for ladies. By an American lady. 
 
 TRUE PO LIT EN ES-S.-A handbook 
 of etiquette for gentlemen. By an American 
 gentleman. 
 
 LADIES' WORKBOX COMPANION, 
 
 A handbook of Knitting, netting, tattnig, and 
 Berlin work. Containing entirely new directions. 
 
 THE FIRESIDE COMPANION. 
 
 A handbook ofgames for evening amusement 
 
 CHESSPLAYERS' HANDBOOK. 
 
 Containing a full account of the game ot chess, 
 and the best mode of playing it 
 
 HANDBOOK OF CONVERSATION 
 
 AND TABLE-TALK. 
 
 LADIES' CROCHET MANUAL 
 
 A handbook, of crochet, useful and, ornamental. 
 Containing new directions for making collars, 
 edgings, caps, polkas, purses, do'yleys, napkins, &c. 
 
 THE MARRIAGE LOOKING-GLASS 
 
 A Handbook for newly married couples. 
 
 No person should enter upon the duties and 
 
 Ioys of matrimony without taking a good look 
 nto this telltale mirror. 
 
 HANDBOOK OF THE TOILET 
 
 Containing Ample Directions for adding to and Pre 
 'serving the Beauty of the Person. 
 
 The materials of this little work have been 
 carefully collected, and are the result of long prac- 
 tical experience, and can not fail to add greatly to 
 the beauty of the person. 
 HANDBOOK OF WHIST.-Contamlng 
 
 the Laws of the Game as laid down by the best 
 
 authorities, and Concise Rules for playing- at 
 
 e*ery stage of the Giune. 
 
 In these pages the author has given, in a clear 
 and concise form, all the instructions that are 
 necessary to make a good wbiBt-player. 
 
 THE LOVERS' COMPANION. 
 
 A Handbook of Courtship and marriage. 
 
 THE BALLROOM COMPANION. 
 
 A Handbook for the Ballroom and evening parties. 
 
 HOW TO SPEAK AND WRITE 
 
 "WITH ELEGANCE AND EASE.* 
 A valuable little manual for the use of readers. 
 writers, and taflters. . It shows the most prevalent 
 srrora that inexperienced persons fall into. The 
 examples are made extremely plain and clear. In 
 •very case the correct forms are giten. 
 HOWTO PRONOUNCE DIFFICULT 
 
 - There are few persons that have not at times 
 been in doubt respecting th« true pronunciation 
 of a ward they desire to use. This uncertainty 
 can now he avoided. By the aid of this book the 
 Hardest words or most cbiEcult terms in the Eng- 
 lish language can he pronounced with ease and 
 absolute accuracy. 
 
 SLANG AND VULGAR PHRASES 
 AND FORMS. 
 
 A collection of objectionable words, inaccurate 
 terms, barbarisms, colloquialisms, provincialisms, 
 quaint expressions, cant phrases, perversions ana 
 misapplication* of terms, as uedd in the various 
 States of the Union. 
 
 THE FORTUNE-TEUER AND 
 DREAM-BOOK. 
 
 OR, THE FUTUBE TOFtVLDED. 
 
 Containing plain, correct, and certain rales for 
 foretelling what is going to happen. By the cele- 
 brated Gabriel, the great astrologer of the nine- 
 
 teenth century. A complete oracle of destiny. 
 HOWTO LIVE A HUNDRED YEARS 
 
 A practical and reliable guide to health ana. 
 
 longevity. With plain and specific instrucfim 
 for improving the memory, making it jaffii 
 tive, capacious, and reliable. The rules given are 
 
 the result of years of attention and study of the 
 subject, and can not fail to make a bad memory 
 good, and a good memory still better. 
 TERENCE TIERNEY, ADMIRAL. 
 -ffbis work, by the celebrated Banul, has re- 
 ceived the indorsement of both press and people 
 as the best delineation of Irish character, in its 
 brighter phases, ever published, 
 THE CABIN-BOY: A Tale of the 
 Wide Ocean. ByCaptL. ckdibbtov. 
 
 Since the advent of " Bobinson Crusoe," we will 
 venture to say that no more startling narrative 
 has been .issued from the press, than this tale of 
 the wide ocian, by a well-known and popular au- 
 thor. It is charming, fresh, and vigorous, and if 
 - written an oidy an old salt could write. 
 
 THE PEEP-O'-DAY BOYS; or,WII4 
 
 Life on the Mountains. ByM. Band* 
 
 CAPTAIN DOE, THE MOUNTAIN 
 
 CHIEF. By John Banim. 
 Tina is a novel which, for entrancing interest, 
 has never been surpassed. The marvelous adven- 
 tures of Captain Doe, at once the terror and pride 
 vf the mountains, are detailed in Banim'b most 
 charming language. By ell means get this book. 
 
 CLERK BARTON'S CRIME; or.the 
 Adventures of a Night, a Tale of 
 
 NewYork Life,High & Low: By Steele Perk. 
 
 THE SHOWMAN'S GUIDE. 
 
 This book contains most of the marvelous 
 things in ancient and modern magic, and 
 
 is the textbook for all showmen. 
 
 HOW TO SEE NEW YORK CITY, 
 
 including Coney Island andRocfcawayBeacli, 
 with Street Blreotory and list of •hurchea, 
 
 Hotels, Theaters* ana other objects of interest 
 Indispensable to any one visiting the Empire City 
 
 GUIDE MAP OF NEWYORK CPTf* 
 
 fip&venlmitljr folded for the pocket. i 
 
MARRYAT'S HOVELS. 
 
 M Vols, in Three. 8vo, Cloth. Illustrated. 
 
 MEWTON FOSTER. Gives a dearer idea of a seaman's existence than a voyage 
 
 around the Horn. Neither terrible nor merry adventures are omitted. Indeed 
 
 one passes from the cabin to the fo'castle as in real life. , 
 MIDSHIPMAN EAST. This writer never wrote a dull book. Marryat was every 
 
 inch a sailor— knew a sailor's every foible, every whim, and has painted them 
 
 to the life. 
 PETER SIMPLE. About the, best sea story in the language. Thousands have 
 
 laughed till the tears came, at the locker full' of fun that the Captain opens for 
 
 all — powder-monkey or middy alike. 
 PACHA OF MANY TALES. - The many tales will be found equal to one another, 
 
 and all excellent, and never tedious in length. Yet are they never, " like the 
 
 cur's continuation," cut off too close to the ears. 
 THE PIRATE AND THE THREE CUTTERS. All kinds of visions arise before the 
 
 reader's eyes — frowning men, clambering aboard contested craft; shots ex- 
 . , : changed; cutlasses clashing — in short, a fierce encounter with- the crew of the 
 ' ship assailed. - 
 
 THE KING'S OWN. Here we have unalloyed enjoyment— the sea breeze, the ex- 
 citing episodes, the novel, interesting sights, scenes and persons, without the 
 
 discomforts attending them. Most admirably has the author blended lights 
 
 and shades in this great romance. 
 JAPHET IN SEARCH OF A FATHER. No writer has risen worthy to wield Mar- 
 
 ryat's unrivalled pen. No reader ever regrets having started out with Japhet 
 
 in his long, long, laborious search. 
 SNARLEYOW, THE DOG FIEND. "Snarleyow" will have been found guilty of 
 
 making Daniel Lamberts of the human race. The person who has not yet 
 
 perused this book has " a high old time " in store for him. 
 JACOB FAITHFUL. . Marryat knew every strand in a sailor's life, and there has 
 
 never been one so able in portraying. Blow high or alow low, the Captain 
 
 is " always on deck." 
 CRANK MILDMATv Perhaps in no other work does Marryat better evince his 
 
 wonderful power than he' does in " Frank Mildmay." "Whether " running 
 1 under bare poles " or " carrying every stitch of canvas," none can beat the 
 
 "Cap." 
 PERCIVAL EEENE. This writer knew every craft that ever floated, with a no less 
 
 thorough knowledge of every wish, hope, fear that ever pulsated in a true heart. 
 
 This has made Marryat the best nautical novelist that ever lived. 
 PHANTOM SHIP. If anybody knows more about "Wizard Skiffs," and "Plying 
 
 Dutchmen" than Marryat "runs off" in this book, he can take our tarpaulin 
 
 and' the last '-' chaw " of LoK^llard we have in the locker. 
 RATLIN, THE REEFER. Ihe happiest days of our existence were when we were 
 
 " laying off" in the foretop of old " Ironsides," reading this charming book to 
 
 our all-delighted messmates. / 
 
 THE POACHER. ■ In this book Marryat proves that he could write equally as 
 
 well of " shore " life .- of a" life on the ocean wave." The adventures of 
 
 Joseph Rushbrook are affecting. 
 
 POOR JACK. The life his -y of this little sea-side waif is one of the most truth. 
 
 ful narratives of the troubles and trials of a sadlor-boy's*ruise that' has ever 
 
 been entered in the log-book of life. 
 BASTEKMAN READY; Ob, The Wreck of the Paotmo. A book of wrecks, and 
 
 coral isles, and orange grov.es, of dusky maids in the ocean billows, and of half- 
 wild runaway sailor boys. 
 VALERIE. Evidently written by Marryat to show that he was equally at home 
 
 on the land as on .'.he sea. Powerful and tender scenes dramatically portrayed 
 
 and contrasted. 
 
 Complete in Three Large 8vo. Volumes, finely illustrated and bound In DM* 
 English cloth. PRICE, $S.OO. 
 
 Address, HURST ft CO., Publishim. 122 Mtummm St, X. T. 
 
WORKS OF 1 
 
 SIR EDWARD LYTTON BULWER 
 
 (Lord Lytton.) 
 
 It la almost superfluous to say a word in praise of the prince of novelists. H* 
 holds an undivided sceptre oyer the mind of every intelligent reader. For skillful 
 plots, fine discrimination of character, and powerf uldelineation of passion, he has 
 no equal. Time flies, and in his course sweeps down the budding as well as the 
 matured fruits of other authors— but his keen scythe leaves the productions of 
 Bulwer as fresh and lovely as when he first gladdened the eyes of his readers with 
 their manifold excellences. 
 
 KIEiNZI. This glorious Republican treads amid the broken pillars of the antique 
 forum, and rouses his fallen countrymen. In this great book Bulwer admir- 
 ably blends the old heroic souls of the ancient Soman with the picturesque, 
 and perhaps more loveable, personages of early Italy. 
 
 PELHAM: or, THE ADVENTURES of a GENTLEMAN. Bulwer gives us an insight 
 into the fashionable phase of London Society, and makes us acquainted with 
 the real "higher classes." 
 
 PAUL CLIFFORD. It takes nothing from the interest of this great story to know 
 that many of its incidents are true to life. It shows that vice in its most capti- 
 vating form but leads to destruction. 
 
 EUGENE ARAM. Stripped of all embellishment, this is the most woful tale that 
 ever was truly told; but, told as Bulwer has narrated it, it would bring tears 
 from any eyes, "how'ver unused to the melting mood." 
 
 SHE DISOWNED. No story was ever more full of striking incidents, or of more 
 deeply cut characters. Truly a great novel; a novel, indeed, that has no supe- 
 rior among books of its class. 
 
 FALKLAND. Full of the tenderness of Petrarch and theardor of Abelard. Unlike 
 any other work by him, it is still full of genius. It is out of the fulness of the 
 heart that the mouth pours forth its eloquence. 
 In same volume: 
 
 PILGRIMS OF THE RHINE. Every reviewer has eulogized this charming volume. 
 Those who intend travelling on the blue stream that mirrors Bingm on its 
 bosom should read this book. 
 
 LAST DATS OF POMPEII. It required the highest genius to fitly describe the 
 terrible overwhelming of this city. The blind girl, Nidia, has furnished themes 
 for playwrights, painters and sculptors. 
 
 'ABBE STUDENT. The thoughtful devotee of science is most poetically depicted. 
 " '■"■ The interesting scholar, with his face "sicklied o'er with the pale cast of 
 r 4 thought," is a noble character. 
 
 DEVEREUX. Even Bulwer cannot hope to surpass this story. It seems perfec- 
 tion in every particular. We can recall the name of no modern book that has 
 
 taken suoh a firm hold on popularity. 
 
 Tea Vols, bound in One Large 8vo. Cloth, gilt. PRICE, 91.BO. 
 Sent by mall to any address, post-paid. 
 Addrsts, HURST & CO., Publisher., 122 Nassau St, H. Ti