Page:Centennial History of Oregon 1811-1912, Volume 1.djvu/472

 me to Oregon

to make it their home. They had confidence in their ability to overcome all difficulties. A majority of these were from the Southern states. Thej' started without full kaowledge of the trials and difficulties of the journey, many without sufficient equipment or supplies. They were not encouraged nor protected by the government of the United States. They came of their own initiative. The assistance Dr. McLoughlin extended to them was not charity. It was a matter of humanity.

Sir George Simpson, the Governor-in-chief of the Hudson's Bay company, severely criticized Dr. McLoughliu for his assistance to these immigrants. Fur- nishing goods and supplies on credit was against the rules of the company, and it was thought that by so doing he was encouraging a settlement of the country by citizens of the United States called Americans, as distinguished from Cana- dians and other British subjects. In 1845, Lieuts. Warre and Vavasour arrived at Port Vancouver ostensibly as visitors, but they came as officers of the British army to report on the condition of affairs and to plan for forts and posts in .case of war. In their reports they severely criticized Dr. McLoughlin. The result was that Dr. McLoughlin, in 1845, resigned from the company. Under its rules, liis resignation did not take effect until the expiration of one year.

Dr. McLoughlin 's assistance to these immigrants was not only humane, but' it was necessary. Had he not done so, it is not unlikely that Port Vancouver would have been captured by these immigrants and a war between the two coun- tries have resulted. This result Dr. McLoughlin with rare prescience fully ap- preciated and stated it in his reply to the criticisms referred to.

Before the arrival of the immigration of 1846, Dr. McLoughlin 's resignation had taken effect and he had established in addition to his flour mill, a sawmill and a store for himself at Oregon City. He extended similar aids to that and to succeeding immigrations as he had to the proceeding ones. By the time the immigrants of 1846 arrived at The Dalles the Barlow road had been made over the Cascade mountains so it was possible to bring wagons overland from The Dalles to Oregon City. But the Willamette valley was so new and so lai'gely un- settled, roads were to be built, houses constructed, and the countiy made habit- able that the latter immigrants were greatly in need of assistance. This Dr. IMe- Loughlin continued to render.

In this sketch I cannot go into the matter of Dr. McLoughlin "s part in the Oregon provisional government, which existed from May 2, 1843, until March 3, 1849, when the Oregon territorial government was established. Nor can I state many unfriendly actions against him and his land claim by Methodist mission- aries and their followers. These missionaries were the leaders of a local political party known as the mission party. Owing to the absence of many residents in Oregon in the newly-discovered California placer mines, this party succeeded in 1849 in electing Samuel R. Thurston, a new arrival, as the first delegate to Con- gress from the territory of Oregon. He was a ready speaker, ambitious and not over scrupulous. George Abernethy, one of the Lausanne party, a lay mission- ary who had been steward of the Methodist mission, had charge of their store and of their secular affairs, and who had been made governor under the provi- sional government, had become the owner of the Oregon Milling Company and he and his son claimed Abernethy Island. He and other conspirators against Dr. Mc- Loughlin, found in Thurston a willing instrument to carry out their nefarious