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After the death of Dr. McLoughlin there was found among
his private papers a document in his own handwriting. This was probably
written shortly prior to his death. It gives many interesting facts, some of
which I shall presently set forth. This document was given to Col. J. W.
Nesmith by a descendant of Dr. McLoughlin. It was presented to the Oregon
Pioneer Association by Col. Nesmith in 1880. It was printed at length in the
Transactions of that Association for that year, pages 46-55. I shall
hereinafter refer to this document as "the McLoughlin Document." In the
McLoughlin Document he says: "In 1825, from what I had seen of the country,
I formed the conclusion, from the mildness and salubrity of the climate,
that this was the finest portion of North America that I had seen for the
residence of civilized man." The farm at Fort Vancouver showed that the
wheat was of exceptionally fine quality. Dr. McLoughlin knew that where
wheat grew well and there was a large enough area, that it would become a
civilized country, especially where there was easy access to the ocean. Thus
early he saw that what is now called Western Oregon was bound to be a
populous country. It was merely a question of time. It was evidently with
this view that he located his land claim at Oregon City in
1829. If settlers came he could endeavor to have them locate in the
Willamette Valley, and thus preserve, to a great extent, the fur animals in
other parts of the Oregon Country, and especially north of the Columbia
River.
The Hudson's Bay Company was bound, under heavy
penalties, not to discharge any of its servants in the Indian country, and
was bound to return them to the places where they were originally hired. As
early as 1828 several French Canadian servants, or employees, whose times of
service were about ended, did not desire to return to Canada, but to settle
in Oregon. They disliked to settle in the Willamette Valley, notwithstanding
its fertility and advantages, because they thought that ultimately it would
be American territory, but Dr. McLoughlin told them that he knew "that the
American Government and people knew only two classes of persons, rogues and
honest men. That they punished the first and protected the last, and it
depended only upon themselves to what class they would belong." Dr.
McLoughlin later found out, to his own sorrow and loss, that he was in error
in this statement. These French Canadians followed his advice. To allow
these French Canadians to become settlers, he kept them nominally on the
books of the -Hudson's Bay Company as its servants. He made it a rule to
allow none of these servants to become settlers unless he possessed fifty
pounds sterling to start with. He loaned each of them seed and wheat to
plant, to be returned from the produce of his farm, and sold him implements
and supplies at fifty per cent, advance on prime London cost. The regular
selling price at Fort Vancouver was eighty per cent, advance on prime London
cost. Dr. McLoughlin also loaned each of these settlers two cows, the
increase to belong to the Hudson's Bay Company, as it then had only a small
herd, and he wished to increase the herd. If any of the cows died, he did
not make the settler pay for the animal. If he had sold the cattle the
Company could not supply other settlers, and the price would be prohibitive,
if owned by settlers who could afford to buy, as some settlers offered him
as high as two hundred dollars for a cow. Therefore, to protect the poor
settlers against the rich, and to make a herd of cattle for the benefit of
the whole country, he refused to sell to any one.
In 1825 Dr. McLoughlin had at Fort Vancouver only
twenty-seven head of cattle, large and small. He determined that no cattle
should be killed, except one bull-calf every year for rennet to make cheese,
until he had an ample stock to meet all demands of his Company, and to
assist settlers, a resolution to which he strictly adhered. The first animal
killed for beef was in 1838. Until that time the Company's officers and
employees had lived on fresh and salt venison and salmon and wild fowl.
In August 1839, the expedition of Sir Edward Belcher was
at Fort Vancouver. Dr. McLoughlin was not then at Fort Vancouver. He
probably had not returned from his trip to England in 1838-9. James Douglas
was in charge. Although the latter supplied Sir Edward Belcher and
his officers with fresh beef, Douglas declined to furnish a supply of fresh
beef for the crew, because he did not deem it prudent to kill so many
cattle. Sir Edward Belcher complained of this to the British government. Dr.
McLoughlin gave the American settlers, prior to 1842, the same terms as he
gave to the French Canadian settlers. But some of these early American
settlers were much incensed at the refusal of Dr. McLoughlin to sell the
cattle, although they accepted the loan of the cows. It has been asserted
that Dr. McLoughlin intended to maintain a monopoly in cattle. But if that
was his intention, as he refused to sell, where was to be the profit? The
Hudson's Bay Company was a fur-trading Company. It was not a cattle-dealing
Company. If Dr. McLoughlin intended to create a monopoly, he himself
assisted to break it. That such was not his intention is shown by his
helping the settlers to procure cattle from California in 1836.
In 1836 a company was formed
to go to California to buy cattle and drive them to Oregon overland. About
twenty-five hundred dollars was raised for this purpose, of which amount Dr.
McLoughlin, for the Hudson's Bay Company, subscribed about half. The number
of cattle which were thus brought to Oregon was six hundred and thirty, at a
cost of about eight dollars a head. In the McLoughlin Document he says: "In
the Willamette the settlers kept the tame and broken-in oxen they had,
belonging to the Hudson's Bay Company, and gave their California wild cattle
in the place, so that they found themselves stocked with tame cattle which
cost them only eight dollars a head, and the Hudson's Bay Company, to favor
the settlers, took calves in place of grown up cattle, because the Hudson's
Bay Company wanted them for beef. These calves would grow up before they
were required." |
