presented by Pearce of Rhode Island, which was the immediate instigation of the act authorizing the exploring expedition in the South Sea. The delay in starting this expedition called forth a sharp resolution from the House which resulted in the placing before Congress a voluminous reply, setting forth all the reasons smallness of the appropriation, need of building new equipment, departmental bickerings, trouble over the enlistment of men, and the like which had prevented the departure of the Wilkes Exploring Expedition.[1] Still another fact calling the attention of Congress westward was the statement of the Secretary of the Navy, in his report to the President, that the fleet in the Pacific had had a considerable increase but not greater than "due regard to commerce in the Pacific" called for.[2] Still another finger pointing to Oregon was found in the memorial from Mr. Slacum for further compensation for expenses incurred while investigating the Oregon country;[3] his report accompanying the memorial told what he had seen in Oregon.
In reply to Linn's resolution the Senate received from President Van Buren in December, 1837, a message transmitting a letter from the Secretary of State containing the information that there had been no correspondence with any foreign power since that which resulted in the convention with Great Britain in 1827, renewing the third article of the Convention of 1818. In referring to the second portion of the inquiry Forsyth mentioned the sale of Astoria to the North- West Company, since absorbed in the Hudson's Bay Company, and the fact that the latter had several posts in the region. He added,
"It appears that these posts have not been considered as being in contravention of the third article of the convention of 1818, before referred to; and if not, there is no portion of the territory claimed by the United States west of the Stony Mountains known to be in the exclusive possession of a foreign power. It is known . . . that the English company have a steamboat on the Columbia, and have erected a sawmill and are cutting timber on territory
