Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 20.pdf/293

 FEDERAL RELATIONS OF OREGON Government.

ional

It stated that there

277

had been thought of

electing a Delegate to represent the territory in Congress, but this had not been done because there was no law authorizing

such action, and there had been no time to elect a Delegate and get him away on the only vessel which could reach the Atlantic Coast in time to have him of any use; furthermore, it was not expedient to elect a Delegate with the expectation After this introthat a seat would be accorded by courtesy. duction the memorial proceeded to enumerate the desires of should be a regular territorial for should recognize this organization, all and legislative judicial acts already exprivate contracts, transfer for the suits to the new courts of and provide isting,

Oregon



in the first place there

and

the

law



to the land should be extinguished grants made be on the basis of a five years' residence, of land should

then the Indian

title



and other grants for those who might, during a limited time, come into Oregon, as well as grants for educational provision the revenue laws should be extended and finally there should



be appropriations to pay the public debt, for a library, to improve the mouth of the Columbia, employ pilots, erect lights and buoys and buy; a steam tug. A good wagon road from Missouri to the Willamette valley with a cordon of military was much needed, and the colony would benefit by an appropriation for seeds and for agricultural implements. After

posts

most modest

this

with a

of pressing needs the memorial concluded a good territorial act but a bad one would

list

final plea for

be better than none. 23

On man

the twenty-ninth of May, Caleb Smith of Indiana, chairof the House Committee on Territories, asked general con-

sent to allow establish the

him

to

Oregon

offer a resolution territorial

making the bill to 24 government a special order

of the day immediately following the passage of the approexcept for Fridays and Saturdays. McClernand Smith to modify his resolution so that the asked (Illinois) House might at once go into Committee of the Whole on the

priation

bills,

23 Sen. Misc. Doc. No. 143, 3oth Cong., ist &es. 24 Glob*, XVIII, 788 seq.