nection with these two great rivers. These events chronologically are as follows:
First. The discovery by Captain Robert Gray, May 11, 1792, of the Columbia River.
Second. The discovery by Sir Alexander Mackenzie, June 17, 1793, of the Tacoutche Tesse, which is now known as the Fraser River.
Third. The Lewis and Clark Expedition, in 1804-1806, to the mouth of the Columbia River.
Fourth. The exploration by Simon Fraser, in the summer of 1808, of the Fraser River to its mouth.
It is the discovery and exploration of the Fraser River of which I shall speak particularly in this address.
As the mouth of the Columbia River was theoretically discovered by Captain Bruno Heceta, of the Spanish Navy, August 15, 1775, who named it Rio de San Roque, so the mouth of the Fraser River was theoretically discovered by Lieutenant Don Francisco Eliza, of the Spanish Navy, in 1791, who named it Boca de Florida Blanca, in honor of the Prime Minister of Spain. Neither of these discoverers entered either of these rivers. But the mouth of each of these rivers was shown on Spanish maps afterwards published.
Failure of Vancouver to Find the Columbia and Fraser Rivers.
It is surprising that Captain George Vancouver did not find the Fraser river. He was an experienced explorer and had been a midshipman in Captain Cook's last voyage, in the years 1776 to 1780, inclusive. But it is no more surprising than Vancouver's failure to find the Columbia River. He was put on his inquiry, if he did not have actual notice, in regard to the existence of each of these rivers. Had he found them, or either of them, his fame would be far greater than it is, although it is still great.
It is not important now to speculate on what might have
