Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 23.djvu/395



METHODIST REPORTS WILLAMETTE MISSION 345

The first dispatches from this mission after the ar- rival of the great reinforcement were brought in the ship Lausanne, and received by the Board in April, 1841. Dr. Elijah White, who had returned to this country on the same vessel, presented himself before the Board at its regular meeting, held on the 21st of the same month, and made a verbal communication. From his remarks, as also from the dispatches from the Superintendent, it appeared that after a most unpleasant and excited con- troversy between himself and Mr. J. Lee, he had been induced to resign his office as physician to the mission. After hearing Dr. White in his defense, the Board dis- approved of his leaving the Mission without their con- sent, but directed the Treasurer to settle his accounts.

Letters were subsequently received from Messrs. Kone and Richmond, and also one signed by several lay members of the mission, all of which expressed dissatis- faction with their circumstances and more or less with the Superintendent. From this period, up to the time of the appointment of the present Superintendent, all the written communications from Oregon and all the verbal statements of returning missionaries, only served to satisfy the Board more and more, that they had either been misled as to the necessity for so large a number of missionaries on that field, 'or that, in some instances at least, they had been unfortunate in the selection of the persons to occupy it. Added to this was the unaccount- able fact that the Board had not been able to obtain any satisfactory report of the manner in which the large appropriation to the late reinforcement had been dis- bursed. Every possible effort had been made to secure such a report, and all our successive dispatches warranted the expectation that it would soon be forthcoming. But in this the Board were doomed to disappointment, no such report was received.

In this state of apprehension and suspense, they first recommended to the Bishop having charge of Foreign