an adjourned session of the convention on the first Thursday in October. In the mean time they were advised to confer with the commander of the United States exploring expedition, then in the Columbia River, and with John McLoughlin of Fort Vancouver. Resolutions were then passed rescinding the nominations made at the previous meeting, and instructing the committee on constitution and laws to "take into consideration the number and kind of offices it will be necessary to create in accordance with their constitution and code." The report of the nominating committee was to be referred to the legislative committee. An adjournment was then taken to the October meeting at the Methodist Mission.
The withdrawal of Blanchet from the chairmanship of the legislative committee was taken, as was probably intended, to signify that the Canadians would take no part in the organization of a government; hence the rescinding of the nominations embracing a number of their names. This revived the discussion as to the necessity of a governor, and in fact threw many difficulties in the way of the scheme for an organization. Moreover, some of the most influential persons in the country and some of the members of the legislative committee were opposed to the idea of a government so long as peace and harmony existed without it.[1]
Besides this formidable opposition, Wilkes, on being consulted, condemned the scheme, on the grounds that only a small minority of the inhabitants desired to establish a government, that laws were not necessary, that they would be a poor substitute for the moral code they all followed, that there would be great difficulty in enforcing them within any definite limits,
- ↑ William Johnson, who was the only one of the settler class not French on the committee, said that there was as yet 'no necessity for laws, lawyers, or magistrates.' Blanchet 'was of opinion that the number of settlers in the Willamette Valley would not warrant the establishment of a constitution, and as far as his people were concerned, there was no necessity for one, nor had he any knowledge of crime having been yet committed.' Wilkes' Nar., iv. 373–4.
