_Governor Douglas to the Right Hon. H. Labouchere, M.P._
Victoria, Vancouver's Island, April 6, 1858.
Sir,--1. Since I had last the honour of addressing you in my despatch,
Number 35, on the 29th of December last, in reference to the discovery
of gold in the Couteau, or Thompson River district, we have had much
communication with persons who have since visited that part of the
country.
2. The search for gold and "prospecting" of the country, had, up to the
last dates from the interior, been carried on almost exclusively by the
native Indian population, who have discovered the productive beds, and
put out almost all the gold, about eight hundred ounces, which has been
hitherto exported from the country, and who are, moreover, extremely
jealous of the whites, and strongly opposed to their digging the soil
for gold.
3. The few white men who passed the winter at the diggings--chiefly
retired servants of the Hudson's Bay Company--though well acquainted
with Indian character, were obstructed by the natives in their attempts
to search for gold. They were on all occasions narrowly watched, and in
every instance, when they did succeed in removing the surface and
excavating to the depth of the auriferous stratum, they were quietly
hustled and crowded by the natives, who having by that means obtained
possession of the spot, then proceeded to reap the fruits of their
labours.
4. Such conduct was unwarrantable and exceedingly trying to the temper
of spirited men, but the savages were far too numerous for resistance,
and they had to submit to their dictation. It is, however, worthy of
remark, and a circumstance highly honourable to the character of those
savages, that they have on all occasions scrupulously respected the
persons and property of their white visitors, at the same that they have
expressed a determination to reserve the gold for their own benefit.
5. Such being the purpose of the natives, affrays and collisions with
the whites will surely follow the accession of numbers, which the latter
are now receiving by the influx of adventurers from Vancouver's Island
and the United States territories in Oregon; and there is no doubt in my
mind that sooner or later the intervention of Her Majesty's Government
will be required to restore and maintain the peace. Up to the present
time, however, the country continues quiet, but simply, I believe,
because the whites have not attempted to resist the impositions of the
natives. I will, however, make it a part of my duty to keep you well
informed in respect to the state of the gold country.
6. The extent of the gold region is yet but imperfectly known, and I
have, therefore, not arrived at any decided opinion as to its ultimate
value as a gold-producing country. The boundaries of the gold district
have been, however, greatly extended since ay former report.
7. In addition to the diggings before known on Thompson River and its
tributary streams, a valuable deposit has been recently found by the
natives, on a bank of Fraser River, about fifty miles beyond its
confluence with the Thompson, and gold in small quantities has been
found in the possession of the natives as far as the great falls of
Fraser River, about eighty miles above the Forks. The small quantity of
gold hitherto produced--about eight hundred ounces--by the large native
population of the country is, however, unaccountable in a rich
gold-producing country, unless we assume that the want of skill,
industry, and proper mining tools on the part of the natives
sufficiently account for the fact.
8. On the contrary, the vein rocks and its other geological features,
as described by an experienced gold miner, encourage the belief that the
country is highly auriferous.
9. The miner in question clearly described the older slate formations
thrown up and pierced by beds of quartz, granite, porphyry, and other
igneous rocks; the vast accumulations of sand, gravel, and shingle
extending from the roots of the mountains to the banks of Fraser River
and its affluents, which are peculiar characteristics of the gold
districts of California and other countries. We therefore hope, and are
preparing for a rich harvest of trade, which will greatly redound to the
advantage of this colony.
10. I have further to communicate for your information that the
proclamation issued by me, asserting the rights of the Crown to all gold
in its natural place of deposit, and forbidding all persons to dig for
gold without a licence, has been published in the newspapers of Oregon
and Washington territories, and that, notwithstanding, some seventy or
eighty adventurers from the American side have gone by the way of Fraser
River to the Couteau mines without taking out licences.
11. I did not, as I might have done, attempt to enforce those rights by
means of a detachment of seamen and marines, from the "Satellite,"
without being assured that such a proceeding would meet with the
approval of Her Majesty's Government; but the moment your instructions
on the subject are received, I will take measures to carry them into
effect.