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would be made to get up an emigration for Oregon. He also says about the same time a similar effort was made in the north part of the state. Gov. P. H. Burnett, in his Recollections of An Old Pioneer (and I had nothing to do with getting up that book) says that he kept a concise journal of the trip as far as Walla Walla and I have it now before me. According to him a meeting of the emigrants was held at the rendezvous, twelve miles west of Independence, Missouri, on May 18, which adjourned to meet at Big Springs. At the first meeting a committee was appointed to see Dr. Whitman and at the second lie met Dr. Whitman. (Messrs. Nesmith, Dougherty, and Gilmore agree with this statement). It was not till the 24th of July that he crossed the north fork of the Platte (pp. 101, 114). Consequently I assert that in some degree Dr. Whitman did stimulate the immigration of 1843; that he had an opportunity for meeting parties who could be influenced to come to Oregon; that all the emigrants did not have to arrange for the journey the preceding fall; and that Dr. Whitman's connection with that immigration did not begin with the crossing of the north fork of the Platte.
If I am not greatly mistaken I have seen nearly all the books from which I have quoted in Governor Evans' library, for he has been very successful in collecting works on the early history of this Northwest Coast—consequently he has had an opportunity of learning most of the facts which I have stated. From the number of mistakes which he has thus made the public must judge of the value of his article. But if he has made even half as many mistakes, been half as unsuccessful in his researches and unluky in his quotations with reference to Eastern matters on the subject where he does not live, as he has about these Western matters where he does live, has he not at least been extremely unfortunate? Both Mrs. Victor and Governor Evans have charged Mr. Spalding and Mr. Gray with strange blunders and mistakes, and yet after all of their investigation during nearly twenty years, it seems that they have made as many mistakes and as strange ones as either of these gentlemen, as I have showed in this article, and the one of The Oregonian of January 11—hence, is it too much to ask that in regard to some other of their statements about the affairs at Washington connected with this subject, they be required to give book and page from which they quote, so that others can verify the truth or mistake of their statements.
