188 ANDREW FISH
token, for its dependency San Juan, if the British claim could be made good. He obtained a warrant against Webber for calling himself a custom-house officer, and proceeded to serve it. Webber resisted and threatened "to shoot the first man who interfered with him in the possession of his rightful liberty, saying, first, that he had committed no crime; and, secondly, that he was on American soil, and would not recognize their right to issue any process against him." 16 The incident closed without the arrest being effected. Webber kept the warrant as evidence and stayed on the island for a year when he was forced to leave by hostile Indians. It is illustrative of the attitude of the Indians that Webber found safety at the Hud- son's Bay house on several occasions.
"He (Mr. Webber) was succeeded in office by Oscar
Olney, who left from the same reason after a few months,
and he in turn by the present inspector, Paul K. Hubbs,
Jr., all of whom have, at different times, been compelled,
temporarily, to avail themselves of the protection of Mr.
Griffin, the Hudson's Bay Company's agent, and which, in
justice to him, I must say was always freely accorded." 17
The reason why the Americans had not settled on this island,
so desirable agriculturally, was that the natives from the north
were wont periodically to make raids.
Being part of Whatcom County, Washington Territory, San Juan was, of course, assessed for taxes in 1854. In conse- quence of non-payment by the Company, the sheriff, Ellis Barnes, seized some sheep (over thirty of them) and sold them to the highest bidder. This was a challenge Douglas could scarcely evade, even if he wished to, and he wrote on the 26th of April, 1855, as Governor of Vancouver Island to Governor Stevens of Washington Territory 18 complaining in somewhat legal phraseology that there had been demanded from
"Mr. Charles Griffin, a British subject," by "an armed party of American citizens ostensibly acting under the direction of a person named Barnes, who styles himself Sheriff of Whatcomb County . . . certain monies in payment of Taxes, on behalf and in the name of the United
16 Ex, Doc. No. 77, 36th Cong. 1st Sess. p. 2.
17 Ibid. p. 3.
18 See Douglas' letter and Stevens' reply in the Washington Historical Quar- terly. Vol. 2, ps. 352-3.
