Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 14.djvu/15



LIEUTENANT HOWISON REPORT ON OREGON, 1846

On the 26th, I dropped down to the mouth of the Wilham- mette, six miles below Vancouver, and made an effort to get the schooner over the bar at the mouth of the river, with the view of ascending it as far as navigable for sea-going vessels ; but having grounded on the bar, and the water having still five or six feet to fall, I was obliged to desist from the attempt ; and se'nding off in a boat the first lieutenant and some other officers to visit Oregon city, and the neighboring American settlers, I returned with the schooner to Vancouver.

At this time we had not heard of the settlement of the boun- dary question, and intense excitement prevailed among all classes of residents on this important subject. I enjoined it by letter on the officers under my command to refrain from engag- ing in arguments touching the ownership of the soil, as it was our duty rather to allay than increase excitement on a question which no power hereabouts could settle.

The officers were also directed to seek all the information respecting the country which their respective opportunities might afford. Besides the sloop of war Modeste, anchored in the river, the British government kept the frigate Fisguard in Puget's sound, and the strongly armed steamer Cormorant in the sound and about Vancouver's island. These unusual demonstrations produced anything but a tranquilizing effect upon the American portion of the population, and the presence of the British flag was a constant source of irritation.

The English officers used every gentlemanly caution to re- concile our countrymen to their presence, but no really good feelings existed. Indeed, there could never be congeniality be- twee'n persons so entirely dissimilar as an American frontier man and a British naval officer. But the officers never, to my knowledge, had to complain of rude treatment. The English residents calculated with great certainty upon the river being adopted as the future dividing line, and looked with jealousy upon the American advance into the northern portion of the territory, which had some influence in restraining emigration.