Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 24.djvu/294

 272 Charles Henry Carey Monday, 3. Dark, rainy weather. Spirits prone to droop ; but winter will not last forever. Tuesday, 4. Beautiful day; sun shines with many charms. I have had some difficulty in my own mind settling the account at Fort VanCouver. I made an ar- rangement in July in the sale of the lots at Williamette Falls to Doct. McLaughlin to have this indebtedness met by him ; but as it amounts to much more than was expect- ed either by himself or myself, I have, after weighing the question as far as I am able, made a deduction on the Doct. purchase of ten per cent. i. e. six hundred dollars from the six thousand, and he gives us the credit on the Hudson Bay Company books at Fort VanCouver, five thousand four hundred dollars. This indebtedness ex- ceeds my calculations; First, I supposed the Sandwich Islanders who were returned to Hudson Bay Company in June and July, 1844, were nearly paid, whereas for their labor and their return to the Islands, the mission has had to pay more than fifteen hundred dollars ; this payment has been made by the Hudson Bay Company and charged to the mission as cash. They have taken Doct. Babcock and Bro. Perkins and their families to the Islands, which will probably be six hundred dollars. The Doct. expected we should have lessened our debt by delivering some wheat to the company, but as yet we have not done it. So in view of everything, I have made the arrangement as above. I had designed to save some of the Doct's. purchase, as money at interest in this land ; his note was to run ten years annual interest at six per cent. Our in- debtedness at this time to the Fort is nearly four thousand and seven hundred dollars; about half of this has lain over on interest for more than a year. Probably the pass- ages above mentioned will nearly make up the credit we now have, viz : $5400. The arrangement I made with the milling company Dec. 21, 1844, will secure some money to this mission in this land. So our drafts hereafter need be small.