hardships through the exclusiveness of the British fur company, which, while pretending to occupy the country jointly with the Americans, maintained a policy which practically reduced to servitude all persons in the country. It did not hesitate to put in force the most cruel and arbitrary measures to drive away such as would not submit.[1] Thereupon John Forsyth, secretary of state, by direction of the president, addressed a letter to William A. Slacum, a gentleman connected with the United States naval service, instructing him to proceed to the Northwest Coast of America and to the River Oregon, by such means as he should find best, and there ascertain the truth of Kelley's story. He was to visit the different settlements on the "coast of the United States" and on the banks of the Oregon River, and learn the relative numbers of white men and Indians, the nativity of the latter, the jurisdiction they acknowledged, the sentiments entertained by all in respect to the United States and the powers of Great Britain and Russia and to collect all information, political, physical, and geographical, which could prove useful or interesting to the government.
Slacum soon entered upon his duties, proceeding to Baja California, where, being unable to procure passage to the Columbia River, he took a vessel to the Sandwich Islands, and there chartered the American brig Loriot, Captain Bancroft, in which he sailed for his destination. He crossed the bar of the Columbia December 22, 1836, taking shelter from a high wind in Baker Bay, but advancing as far as Fort George the following day. Here he was politely received by James Birnie, the gentleman in charge, who at once despatched an express to Fort Vancouver, with infor-
- ↑ 25th Cong., 3d Sess., H. Rept. 101, 60. McLoughlin says: 'He published a narrative of his voyage, in which instead of being grateful for the kindness shown to him, he abused me, and falsely stated that I had been so alarmed with the dread that he would destroy the Hudson's Bay Company's trade that I had kept a constant watch over him, and which was published in the report of the United States congress.' Private Papers, MS., 2d and 4th series.
