Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 19.djvu/323

 FEDERAL RELATIONS OF OREGON 305 up with the growing importance of the Texas question, and that in turn brought up the matter of the extension of slavery into the territories existing and prospective. A hint of this phase has been brought out in the account of Adams' report of the action of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. The Oregon Question was rapidly coming close to the point when it would depart from the role of a diplomatic and legislative issue as such and become a pawn in the great politi- cal game which was already developing for the crisis of 1845-8. A corroboration of this point is shown by the action of the House in the matter of the report of Wilkes. In the early part of January, 1843, a resolution, from the Committee on Military Affairs, called for a report from Wilkes on the Oregon Ques- tion. A week later extracts from his report were produced, but on February first Pendleton introduced another resolution to rescind that one calling for the report. He explained, in answer to the expostulations from all over the House, that it would take a month to copy the report so that it could not possibly be produced before adjournment. The House was content with this explanation. That report, however, did not cover more than forty written sheets. It appears that the Whigs and Tyler were anxious to suppress the report which contained a strong plea for pressing the American claim clear to 54 40', and this they did most effectively. It was not until 1911 that it was printed as an official document. 34 34 See Globe, XII, 159, 231. Cong. Record XLVII, 3119 seq. Congressman Humphrey, who obtained the publication in 1911, said, 'These public men (the Congressmen of 1842-3) could not have been ignorant of the report made by Lieut. Wilkes, and as we now read that report we are forced to the conclusion that some of the statesmen of that day were not more frank than are some at present and that they did not always give the true reasons for their action."