Early Western Travels
1748–1846
A Series of Annotated Reprints of some of the best and rarest
contemporary volumes of travel, descriptive of the Aborigines and Social
and Economic Conditions in the Middle and Far West, during the Period of
Early American Settlement
Edited with Notes, Introductions, Index, etc., by
Reuben Gold Thwaites, LL.D.
Editor of “The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents,” “Wisconsin
Historical Collections,” “Chronicles of Border Warfare,” “Hennepin’s New
Discovery,” etc.
Volume VII
Ross’s Adventures of the First Settlers on the Oregon or Columbia River,
1810–1813
[Illustration: [Logo]]
Cleveland, Ohio
The Arthur H. Clark Company
1904
COPYRIGHT 1904, BY
THE ARTHUR H. CLARK COMPANY
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The Lakeside Press
R. R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY
CHICAGO
CONTENTS OF VOLUME VII
PREFACE. _The Editor_ 9
ADVENTURES OF THE FIRST SETTLERS ON THE OREGON OR COLUMBIA RIVER:
being a Narrative of the Expedition fitted out by John Jacob
Astor, to establish the “Pacific Fur Company;” with an account of
the Indian Tribes on the Coast of the Pacific. _Alexander Ross_,
one of the Adventurers
Author’s Preface 21
Author’s Table of Contents 23
Text 33
Appendix
Chinook Vocabulary 321
A Table of the Weather at the Mouth of the Columbia River, from
March 22nd till July 22nd, 1811 330
ILLUSTRATIONS TO VOLUME VII
Map of the Columbia 18
Facsimile of original title-page 19
PREFACE TO VOLUME VII
The present volume is occupied by the reprint, from the original London
edition of 1849, of Alexander Ross’s _Adventures of the First Settlers
on the Oregon or Columbia River_ from 1810–13.
No less than three members of the Astorian expedition[1] published
personal narratives, each of them a work of much merit. As a source for
the study of this first attempt in behalf of the United States to
colonize the North-west Coast, the account of Ross supplements in many
particulars that of Gabriel Franchère, the French Canadian clerk whose
notable tale of adventure is published in volume vi of our series.
Ross’s narrative was not made public until twenty-nine years after the
appearance of the first (French) edition of Franchère’s book; but it was
based upon journals written at the time, and has the value of a
first-hand relation.
Ross was a Scotchman, who left his father’s home (1804) to seek a
fortune in the then “dissolute, extravagant, and butterfly” Province of
Canada. He confesses that only stern Scotch pride kept him from
returning to the parental roof, for which he secretly longed during
several years after his departure. In the new land his fortunes did not
flourish. Endowed with a good education, he at first eked out a scanty
livelihood by teaching school; but after five years purchased some land
in Upper Canada, and turned farmer. The reports of Astor’s enterprise
and of fortunes to be acquired in the fur trade, tempted him to abandon
the soil and embark in the promising project for a Columbia settlement,
and he was a member of the contingent that sailed from New York in the
“Tonquin,” in 1810. Arrived at Columbia River, Ross was soon assigned to
a post in the interior, where he whiled away the tedium of existence by
studying Indian languages and characteristics, by copious journalizing,
and much reflection. Nor was incident lacking to divert the isolated
fur-trader, as the various brigades of the rival North West Company
swept up and down the Columbia, and the fate of Astoria hung trembling
in the balance. Most of the “Nor’ Westers” were Scotchmen like himself,
and Ross’s sympathies appear to have been enlisted strongly in their
behalf. As the books of reminiscence written during his retirement grew,
they took on the form of apologies for McDougal and McKenzie, the Scotch
partners of the American house, and virtually became tirades against the
associates of Astor, and his business management as well.
Upon the consummation of the sale of Astoria (October, 1813), Ross was
easily induced to enter the service of the new British owners, and he
remained upon Columbian waters so long as the Nor’ Westers operated in
that district. With accustomed Scotch canniness he stipulated for an
agreement in writing that he should be promoted at the end of seven
years’ service; but just before the expiration of that term the North
West Company merged with its great rival, the Hudson’s Bay (1821), and
Ross’s hopes were again dashed. However, the governor of the Hudson’s
Bay Company placed him in command of a large brigade for hunting and
exploring the country of the Snake Indians—the vast region of the Rocky
Mountain divide, in the present states of Montana and Idaho. Here for
two years (1823–25) he led his motley crews of Canadians, half-breeds,
Iroquois, and Hawaiians, crossing and recrossing the path of Lewis and
Clark, and exploring the fastnesses of the Snake and Salmon rivers.
But the wilderness had now lost its charm, and Ross returned to at least
the borders of civilization, there to live in quiet and rear his
half-breed children. In recognition of his services, the Hudson’s Bay
Company granted him a hundred acres of land in the Red River Valley,
where he became one of the earliest and most prominent citizens of the
present city of Winnipeg. His estate was known as “Colony Gardens,” and
upon the profits of his trade among the settlers and of his relations
with the aborigines he grew wealthy and influential. Being chosen the
first sheriff of Assiniboine (the present province of Winnipeg), he was
later (1835) appointed a member of its first Government Council. Some
account of his life as a settler, and a few of his letters, are
published in the Historical and Scientific Society of Manitoba
_Transactions_ No. 63 (Winnipeg, 1903).
At last blessed with leisure, Ross now turned author, and published
three works detailing the differing phases of his life. The first—
_Adventures of the First Settlers on the Oregon or Columbia River_—
relates his experiences as a fur-trader in American employ, and was
issued from a London press in 1849; this book we here republish. The
narrative of his life upon Western waters under the direction of British
companies, appeared in 1855, as _The Fur Hunters of the Far West_. His
final essay was a history of _The Red River Settlement, its Rise,
Progress, and Present State_, which appeared in 1856, the year of the
author’s death. All of these books are written in a simple, clear,
unpretentious style, being mainly narrations of daily events.
Referring specifically to the _Adventures_, which we have chosen for
reprinting, it is evident that the author’s interest in topography was
but slight. It is surprising to find a man who has had many years of
intimate acquaintance with the interesting regions penetrated
transiently by Lewis and Clark along narrow trails, contributing so
slightly as does Ross to the world’s knowledge of the country; whereas
Lewis and Clark brought back from their hurried journey a wealth of
detailed information. With ethnology, Ross exhibits greater concern. His
alliance with an Okanagan woman, and his constant contact with the
natives of the coast, gave him a command of tribal habits, traditions,
and beliefs which makes his work a valuable source for the study of
Western Indian life. The last four chapters present a good sociological
treatment of the natives of the Shahaptian family—their religion,
government, family life, and characteristics—in the primitive state,
before contact with the whites had brought modification and degeneracy.
Ross’s account of the Indians of the coast, the Clatsop and Chinookan
tribes, gives evidences of truth and accurate observation.
But it is chiefly as a narration of the fortunes of the Astorian
expedition, that we value Ross’s book. Unlike Franchère, he exhibits no
reserve, and unhesitatingly expresses his opinion of the conduct of
Captain Jonathan Thorn and Astor’s partners, during the now famous
voyage. His accounts of the adventures of the “Tonquin” and its
passengers are consequently the more vivid and personal of the two. The
dramatic situation evidently appealed strongly to our author’s
temperament; the incidents at the Falkland and Hawaiian islands, the
irascibility and unreasonableness of Thorn’s conduct, the useless
sacrifice of life to the strictness of naval discipline, are related
with no assuaging touch. Neither does the writer spare the reader an
account of the hardships and trials of the adventurers, the poor and
scanty food, the toil in felling trees and erecting buildings, the feuds
and ill feeling between the workers, and the caprices of the commanding
partners. Later, in describing the transfer of Astoria and its property
to British hands, our author unhesitatingly appears as an apologist for
the transaction, and an advocate of the pro-British party. His criticism
of Astor’s management, while partly justifiable from Ross’s standpoint,
seems to possess an element of personal pique; and for the clerks who,
like Franchère, chose to remain loyal to the American owners, Ross has
but few words of commendation. For a just estimate of the transaction,
the reader must balance probabilities between the conclusions of Irving,
Franchère, and Ross, and likewise take into consideration the
emergencies arising from the Anglo-American war.
Aside from its historical value, Ross’s _Adventures_ possesses abundant
interest for all who are stirred by clearly-delineated accounts of life
in the great silent places of earth. Our author has a graphic touch:
dangers from Indian treachery, perils of the forests and the waterways,
thrilling escapes of every sort, lose nothing under his pen; wilderness
life is vividly portrayed—the sharp contrasts between civilization and
savagery, the obstacles which beset man’s progress through the vast
solitudes of the North-west, the forbidding aspects as well as the
beauties of primeval nature; all these are presented with force and not
seldom with charm.
Assistance in annotating this volume has been received from Louise
Phelps Kellogg, Ph. D., and Edith Kathryn Lyle, Ph. D.
R. G. T.
MADISON, WIS., August, 1904.
ALEXANDER ROSS’S ADVENTURES OF THE FIRST SETTLERS ON THE OREGON OR
COLUMBIA RIVER
Reprint of the original edition (London, 1849)
[Illustration: MAP OF THE COLUMBIA.]
ADVENTURES
OF THE FIRST SETTLERS ON THE
OREGON OR COLUMBIA RIVER:
BEING
A NARRATIVE OF THE EXPEDITION FITTED OUT BY
JOHN JACOB ASTOR,
TO ESTABLISH THE
“PACIFIC FUR COMPANY;”
WITH AN ACCOUNT OF SOME
INDIAN TRIBES ON THE COAST OF THE PACIFIC.
BY ALEXANDER ROSS,
ONE OF THE ADVENTURERS.
LONDON:
SMITH, ELDER AND CO., 65, CORNHILL.
1849.
PREFACE
Having been one of the first commercial adventurers to the Columbia
River, and having spent fifteen years of my life travelling among the
savage tribes west of the Rocky Mountains, I was induced, from time to
time, to note down such incidents and opinions, illustrative of savage
life and manners, as appeared to me either new or interesting.
To the characteristic details of Indian life, I have added that of
personal adventure, the trials and misfortunes which the first
adventurers had to undergo among the Indians in that quarter; connecting
therewith an account of the trade and commerce of the country during the
early days of that bold spirit which animated the first explorers of the
Columbia.
These different subjects have been arranged and {iv} linked together in
their natural order, so as to form one complete narrative, embodying the
history of “the Pacific Fur Company.”
It is not an arm-chair narrative, derived from hearsay tales, but the
result of practical experience on the spot. From beginning to end, I had
personally to act my part in the scenes described; they passed under my
own eyes; and the account altogether may derive more value from being
authentic than from any adventitious embellishment bestowed on it.
While on this part of our subject, it may be observed that there is an
error which most travellers, especially those pioneers who first
penetrate into dark and remote regions, fall into: they generally run
into the extreme, and spoil a simple story by colouring. Not content to
leave nature in its simple garb, they must brighten or darken, magnify
or diminish, everything they describe, until at last the real likeness
of the thing is entirely effaced, and truth itself, by over-refinement,
is thrown into the shade.
What belongs to oneself is generally viewed with a partial eye; and
perhaps that partiality influences {v} my own opinion as to the interest
of the subject before us. In reference to this subject, however, others
have written on it as well as myself. Let our readers, therefore, judge
for themselves.
In presenting the present work to the public, I have no very sanguine
expectations. All I aim at is to lay before my readers a faithful and
impartial statement of what took place, during my own times, in a
quarter hitherto but little known.
Freedom from imperfection is not to be expected; yet, on the whole, I
hope that this volume will prove to the calm inquirer, in all matters
connected with the subject generally, a sure and satisfactory guide:
allowance being made for any changes that may have taken place since
this account was written—thirty years ago.
_Red River Settlement, Rupert’s Land.
Aug. 1, 1846._
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
Introductory remarks—John Jacob Astor—Grasping views—Early traders
of Canada—The Hudson’s Bay Company—American fur companies—Astor’s
policy—Russian settlements—Coasting vessels—The Pacific Fur
Company—Flattering results—Oregon territory—New association—Mr.
Hunt—Golden prospects—Proposals accepted—List of adventurers—Land
party—Sea party—The ship _Tonquin_—Remarks—Opinion against
opinion—Observations—Land expedition departs—Sea party set off
for New York—Bark canoe—Spectators—Canadian voyageurs 33