USA > Oregon > The Oregon native son, Vol. I > Part 58
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The provisional government was now fairly launched on its career. In so rap- id a sketch as this it is not desirable to pursue its career in minute detail further. We are now approaching the time when the American settlers in the territory comprised within the present state of Washington began to participate in the provisional government. A short state- ment on this part of the subject will be in place here.
To the four districts defined and nam- ed in the first organization, the districts of Clatsop and Polk, lying within the limits of the present state of Oregon, and that of Vancouver, within the lim- its of the present state of Washington. had been added. The Vancouver district was created in 1845. Hitherto there had been no county organization north of the columbia river. except as the coun- ties or districts of Tualatin and Clacka- mas were supposed to extend northward to the boundary line, which the Oregon legislature had declared to be at the par- allel of "fifty-four forty." The district of Vancouver embraced the whole American territory north of the Colum- bia river and west of the Cascade monn- tains. The legislature appointed these officers to-wit: James Douglas, M. T. Simmons and Charles Forrest,
John R. Jackson justices. and
sheriff. On the igth of December; 1845. the county of Lewis was created out of "all the territory lying north ci the Columbia river and west of the Cowlitz, no to 544 deg. 10 min. north latitude." No county officers were appointed, but the choice was left to the people at the next ensuing election,
which was to be held in June, 1846; when W. F. Tolinie was chosen to repre -. sent Lewis county, and Henry N. Peers Vancouver county, in the legislature. These were men of the Hudson's Bay Company. Between them and the Americans who composed the majority of the legislature co-operation and har- mony were hardly to be expected: In particular, the Americans were determin- od to have a rigorous prohibitory liquor law, while the Hudson's Bay Company, having a profitable traffic in liquors, stood strongly against the proposed leg- islation, which, however, was caried over its protest. Again, in 1847, Vancouver county sent Henry N. Peers to the legis- lature; Lewis county sent Simon Plan- ondon. The vote ot Lewis this year re- elected Abernethy governor, the majori- ty south of the Columbia being against him. A. L. Lovejoy was Abernethy's principal competitor, and the men of the Hudson's Bay Company in Lewis county and elsewhere, no doubt advised by Dr. McLoughlin. between whom and Gov- ernor. Abernethy harmonious relations existed, preferred Abernethy to Lovejoy. No counties other than Vancouver and Lewis were created north of the Colum- bia river during the existence of the pro- visional government. In 1849 the legis- lature of Oregon changed the name of Vancouver county to Clark county. Lewis, Vancouver and
Clatson were at one time associ- ated in the same legislative district. We find no record of any session oi court north of the Columbia. during the existence of the provisional government. During the latter part of September. 1849. a term of court was held in Steila- coom, by Judge Bryant. to try some Snoqualmie Indians who had killed two white men some months before, and this is the first court, north of the Columbia river, of which any record has been pre- served to history.
('n the 15th of June, 1846, a treats was concluded between the United States and Great Britain, which acknow1- edged the sovereignty of our country over that portion of Oregon lying south of the 49th parallel of north latitude. Thus, at last, was settled the Oregon
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THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT OF OREGON.
oundary question. It was not known 1 Oregon till several months later, but as mentioned by Governor Abernethy i his message of December 1, 1846.
The great episode of the provisional overnment was the Cayuse war. On monday, November 29, 1847, the Whit- ian massacre took place, and became nown at Oregon City nine days later. shall not attempt here an account of le Cayuse war. The expedition under- aken to recover the captives and to pun- sh the authors of the massacre was a rodigious effort for so small a popula- on as the country then contained. It as successful. 'It absorbed all atten- on for the greater part of the year. Its ost to the territory was estimated at 109.311.5c-a very large sum for so oor and small a community. In his message to the legislature dated Febru- ry 5, 1849, the governor announced that he obiects of the expedition had been ttained and the war brought to a suc- essful termination.
This was the last session of the legis- ture of the provisional government. The discovery of gold in California had rawn many persons away from Oregon, cluding officers of the provisional gov- rnment and members of the legislature. pecial elections were called to fill va- ancies. February 5. 1849. the legisla- ire met. The following was its mem- ership: Benton county. J. C. Avery; hampoeg. W. J. Bailey, Samuel Parker, Villiam Portius: Clackamas, George L. Curry, Medorem Crawford, A. F. Hedg- s: Clatsop. John Hobson: Linn, H. J. Peterson, Anderson Cox: Polk. Jesse Applegate: Tuality, Ralph Wilcox. Dav- 1 Hill, S. R. Thurston; Yamhill, A. J. Iembree. L. A. Rice. W. J. Martin: Vancouver, A. L. Lewis. There was no epresentative from Lewis county, which till embraced the whole country north f the Columbia river and west of the Cowlitz. Levi A. Rice was chosen peaker. The governor in his message tated that the chief business requiring ttention was adjustment of the expenses f the Cayuse war, which it was expected he government of the United States would assume. This was attended to hrough an act authorizing the ascertain-
ment of amounts due and issue of scrip; and another act provided for the manner of exchange and payment of interest. Various minor matters of legislation re- ceived attention. Among them was "an act to provide for the weighing and as- saying of gold and melting and stamping the same." This was the source of the celebrated "beaver money," so-called from the figure of a beaver stamped upon the coins. These pieces, coins of $5 and Sio. of which 6oco of the former and 2850 of the latter were stamped, are ex- tremely scarce and almost beyond price. The final adjournment of the legislature was February 16. 1849. The work of the provisional government was done. Two weeks later General Joseph Lane, who had been appointed governor by the president of the United States. under act of. congress of August 14, 1848, entitled "an act to establish the territorial gov- ernment of Oregon," arrived and lost no time in setting the wheels of the new government in motion. A census was taken, an election was held, and on the 16th of July the first territorial legislative assembly met at Oregon City. The only representative in this legislature from the country north of the Columbia river was M. T. Simmons, of Lewis, and he was the joint representative for Lewis, Van- couver and Clatsop.
No delegate to congress was elected by the people, during the existence of the provisional government. After the set- tlement of the boundary dispute with Great Britain, it was hoped and expected that the Jurisdiction and laws of the United States would be ex- tended speedily over the Oregon territory. Yet congress, at the next ensuing session, took no action, and the people of Oregon were greatly disappointed. The cost of maintaining the provisional government and of up- holding the sovereignty of the United States over this vast territory was weigh- ing heavily on them. It was resolved to send a representative to Washington to lay the case before congress and to urge the erection by the United States of a territorial government. J. Quinn Thorn- ton, who nad come over the plains in 1846, and had been appointed supreme
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OREGON NATIVE SON.
judge early in 1847, was selected by Governor Abernethy for this mission. It was at first proposed to hold an elec- tion ,but this was decided to be impracti- cable, because there was no law to au- thorize such election, and the necessary arrangements could not be made in time -for it was the fall of the year (1847)- and the only vessel upon which a dele- gate could go that year was about to sail. Finally, there was no law of the United States under which a delegate could de- mand to be received; and it was deemed just as well, therefore, to send a repre- sentative, with a letter from the govern- or, explaining the nature and objects of his journey to Washington, and what was desired by the people of the Oregon country. Thornton was appointed in October, 1847, and took the bark Whit- on, then lying near thie site of the pres- ent ci y of Portland, for San Francisco, where he obtained passage in the United States sloop-of-war Portsmouth for Bos- ton. He arrived at Washington in May, 1848. Senator Douglas, with whom he had personal acquaintance, introduced him to President Polk, and he prepared
a memorial to congress, which was pre- sented by Senator Benton. Thornton's services were useful and important. They contributed very materially to the work that resulted in the enactment of the territorial organic law.
Within the limits of an article suited to such an occasion as the one for which this article has been written, only a bare outline of a great subject can be pre- sented. Of the discovery, geography and settlement of the country, of the character of the pioneers and of the con- ditions of life in the early settlements, I
have had no space to speak. My object has been to write as close a summary as possible of the history of the provisional government. The literature of the his- tory of the Oregon country is large, and there are few good and perhaps no com- plete collections of it. From Hubert Howe Bancroft's elaborate volumes a fairly good index to this literature may be collated and every effort should be made by our state universities and our state historical societies to gather this material and to guard it against loss or spoilation. H. W. SCOTT.
The first saw mill erected by Ameri- cans in the Pacific Northwest, was built on the Chehalem, in Yamhill county. It was erected in 1838 by Ewing Young and Solomon H. Smith. It was a small affair and did not cut much lumber, and upon the death of the owner, Mr. Young, in 1841, it was abandoned.
A statement was made in the June number of the Native Son that D. H. Lownsdale was the pioneer tanner of Oregon. This is found to be incorrect. The first tannery in the state was con- structed and operated at Oregon City by Ninevah Ford. a pioneer of 1843. Mr. Lownsdale did not come to Oregon until 1845.
A family from Arkansas emigrated to Oregon in 1853 and settled in Clatsop county on the banks of the Netdle river. They were unused to the rise and fall
of the tides, and when the ebb and flow of the waters came they could not under- stand the cause. Going to a neighbor living close at hand, the head of the house said: "That's the quirist creek up thar I ever seed in all my life. It's riz and fell twice every day at least ten feet since we went thar, and it ain't rained nary drap, and we scasely know what to think on it." Being illiterate it took some time to explain the causes to him. but they were at last made to dawn upon his limited understanding.
The last session of the legislature of the provisional government of Oregon was held on the 5th of February, 184. It was a special session, the regular se -- sion of 1848 having adjourned to such date on account of not having a quorum to transact business. The gold excite- ment in California had stampeded its membership.
HON. SILAS B. SMITH, TITULAR CHIEF OF THE CLATSOPS.
TALES OF EARLY WRECKS ON THE OREGON COAST, AND HOW THE BEES WAX GOT THERE.
1
Mr. Smith, the descendant of Cob-a- way, the celebrated chief of the Clatsop Indians, delivered the first annual ad- dress before the Oregon Historical So- ciety on the 16th of December last, and the following is the full text of that por- tion of the address which relates to the shipping said to have been cast upon the Oregon coast before the advent of he white man to these shores:
"The first authenticated recorded ac- count of the exploration of the Pacific Northwest coast by white men-not con- sidering the myt' ical voyages of Loren- zo Ferer Maldonado, Juan de Fuca and Admiral Bartolome de Fonte, relating to their alleged discovery of the Straits of Anian-was that made by Lieutenant Juan Perez, of the Spanish navy, on the sloop of war Santiago, from San Blas, Mexico, in 1774, leaving that port on January 25, of that year on her northern cruise.
"Lieutenant Perez proceeded as far as the northernmost point of Queen Char- lotte's island and doubling the point to the inland side turned south and re- turned to Monterey, Cal., mostly follow- ing the coast on the return voyage.
"But tradition. among the Indian tribes at the mouth of the Columbia river and vicinity tell us that long prior to that time their shores had been visited by at least three other vessels; that is to say, the treasure ship at Echanie mountain, the bees-wax ship near the mouth of the Nehalem river and one other, just south of the mouth of the Columbia river. The two last becoming wrecks on the ocean beach at the places named, evidences of which facts of a more or less conclusive character can be adduced to establish the truthfulness of such statements.
The treasure ship did not become a wreck; she dropped anchor as she ap- proached land and sent a boat ashore
with several men and a large chest or box. The box was taken up on the southwest face of the mountain above the road and there buried. And some say that a man was then and there killed and buried with the chest. Then some characters were marked on a large stone which was placed on the spot of burial, and the men then returned to the vessel, when she again put to sea. The treasure character of the deposit is an inference of the whites and the alleged manner of entombment.
The natives have never pretended to know what was contained in the chest.
The above is the substance of the ac- count of the treasure ship at Ecahnie mountain as given by the older Indians in the early settlement of the country.
Much has been told and written about the bees-wax wreck. It has gone into song and story.
It has developed a sort of literature peculiarly its own, and the end is not yet.
The Indian account is something like this: That sometime ago, before the coming of the whites, a vessel was driven ashore in the vicinity of where the bees- wax is now found. just north of the mouth of the Nehalem river.
The vessel became a wreck, but all or most of her crew survive l. A large part of her cargo was this bees-wax. The crew, unable to get away, remained there with the natives several months, when, by concerted action the Indians masacred the entire number, on account, as they claimed, that the whites disre- garded their-the natives'-marital rela- tions. The Indians also state in connec- tion with the massacre, that the crew fought with slung-shots. It would ap- pear from this that the had lost their arms and ammunition.
I think it not too hazardous to identi- fy this wreck as the Spanish ship San
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OREGON NATIVE SON.
Jose, which had left La Paz, Lower Cali- fornia June 16, 1769, loaded with mis- sion supplies for the Catholic mission at San Diego. Upper California, and of which nothing was ever heard after she left port. Every circumstance connected with the vessel and her journey favors this solution. . Her course on her voy- age was towards the north. Her mission supplies would include bees-wax or some other kind of wax as an article that would be needed for images, tapers, candles, etc. We find that some of the blocks of bees-wax from this wreck are inscribed with the Latin abbreviations "I. H. S.," "Jesus Hominum Salvator," which abbreviation is, I believe, largely ot commonly used in the Roman Catho- lic church.
And we also find cadles and tapers with the wicks in some, still remaining. And I believe a piece of this wax has now been found with the body of a bee imbedded in the wax.
This vessel falling in, in all probabil- ity, with a storm at sea while on her northward course, was driven away from her point of destination and found her fate on the sands at the mouth of the Nehalem river. The matter of the find- ing of the wax some 200 yards from the sea is accounted for by the fact that the crew, perhaps, endeavored to save the cargo, and carried a part of it there, which afterwads became buried by the drifting sands.
.e third vessel of which tradition speaks, and whose advent. I think, has priority of date to the others, came ashore about two miles south of. the mouth of the Columbia river.
Two of the crew survived, one of whom was named Konanee, The or- thogray's of this name is given here phonetically, as pronounced by the In- dians. The vessel was cast far enough up on ::: beach as to be accessible at low tid .. After being looted she was burned 1: the natives for her iron.
Kona " and his companion were tak- en primerers and held as slaves. The former son showed himself as a work- er in iren. and could fashion knives and hatchets for his captors. The natives :soon considered him too great a person
to be held as a slave. and gave him and his friend their liberty. After their re- lcase they went up the river about a mile above the Indian village to a place now known as New Astoria, and there located their dwelling. After that the Indians called the place Konapee, and it was known by that name long after the. country was being settled by the white These men always declared that their home was towards the rising sun. And after a year or two they started east u; the Columbia river, but, after reaching the Cascades, they went no further and there intermarried with the natives.
This wreck I believe to be a Spanish galleon. Gabriel Franchere tells in his "Narrative" that, on their first voyage up the Columbia river, in 1811, at an Indian dwelling not far below the Cas- cades, they found a blind old man-pre- sumably blind from old age-who, their guide said, was a white man, and that his name was Soto. And Franchere goes on to say: "We learn from the mouth of the old man himself that he was the son of a Spaniard who had been wrecked at the mouth of the river: that a part of the crew on this occasion got safely ashore, but were all masacred by the Clatsops, with the exception of four, who were spared, and who mar- ried native women ; that these four Span- iards ,of whom his father was one, dis- gusted with the savage life and attempt ed to reach a settlement of their own naion toward the south, but had never been heard of since: and that when h :. father, with his companions. left the country. he himself was quite young. And then the editor of the second edi- tion of the "Narrative" in a note says "These facts, if they were authenticated. would prove that the Spaniards were the first who discovered the mouth of the Columbia. It is certain that long be- fore the voyages of Captains Gray an! Vancouver they knew at least a part .. the course of that river, which was des. ignated in their maps under the name of "Oregon."
My mother, Mrs. Helen Smith. ust! to tell that at Fort Vancouver, in the later 20s she met a Cascades woman wl :. was reputed to be a descendant of Kon-
1
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EARLY WRECKS ON THE OREGON COAST.
e; that she was already past middle , and was much fairer in complexion in the other natives.
This, I would say, was Soto's daught-
These two men, Konapee and liis mpanion, I believe were the first white n ever seen by the Indians on the Pa- c Northwest coast, and they were. I ther believe, the first of the white e who ever saw the majestic "River the West," floated on its bosom, or vigated its crystal waters. This wreck s first discovered by a woman. The vivors who had built a fire among the ftwood above the tide, and who also ist have been heavily bearded men, re roasting popcorn, and made signs her for water to drink. The woman, she neared th village on the way for cor, began to wail, and her cry was: have found people who are men, and : are also bears," thus indicating that se were the first heavily bearded peo- that she had seen.
From the manner of the coming of se castaways the Clatsops and Chi- oks named all white people, without pect to nationality, "Tlon-hon-nipts"; it is, "of those who drifted ashore." A name of first impression, suggested the condition under which they first t that race of people, and which name er afterwards, even unto this day, in nversations among themselves, is gely used to signify white people.
Soto is a Spanish name. I think that onapee is a corruption of some other me. Just for an illustration, we will y Juan de Pay. The natives not be [ able to pronounce it according to Spanish method, followed the sound nearly as they could and called Juan Con;" de, "a;" Pay, "pee." This is uply a suggestion that I make.
Indian corn was unknown to the In- ins of the Northwest at that time. is vessel having corn would indicate, ssibly that she had gone from Mexico, d that her supplies included corn, and at she had some on hand vet. She al- had Chinese coin or money of that nd or denomination having a small, uare hole in the center of the piece. len atives preserved these and used them
as ornaments on their wampums and in other ways, and had them even in my day, and would always call them Kona- pee's money. I have some of these coins here which my mother had obtained from the Indians some 40 or 50 years ago.
Having this coin on board would in- dicate, probably, that the vessel had been to the Philippines, or to some port on the China coast. That on her return voyage she was driven away from her course and lost, as above described.
Soto was probably, at the time of meeting Franchere, in 1811, about 80 years of age, and then allowing five years for the wanderings of his parent after the wreck and before settling down to domestic life, would place the event of the loss of the ship at about 1725. It will be recalled that commerce of a per- manent character had been established between the Philippines and Acapulco and other of the western ports of Mexi- co a century and a half prior to the last named date.
I have been thus circumstantial about this tradition in order to show that it re- lated to an actual occurrence and also to approximately, at least, fix the date of the event. The facts given are from sources independent of each other, and yet they support each other.
Franchere is surely a disinterested wit- ness. He meets Soto nearly 200 miles from the mouth of the river, who tells him of the wreck of his father's ship and of his marriage to the natives. This fits in with the story of the natives at the mouth of the river relative to Konapee's voyage and sojourn at the cascades, and not given to Franchere but to other per- sons not in any way connected with him. And then comes the name given to the whites expressive of the manner of the advent of these persons to these shores, which fact should be taken as evidence that these people were the first of the white race seen by these natives. All these facts are of such character, I be- lieve, as to warrant me in claiming that Konapee and his companion were the first white people who had ever seen the Columbia river.
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OREGON NATIVE SON.
It will be noticed that there is a dis- crepancy between the tradition of the Clatsops and Soto's account of the number of survivors. The Clatsops al- ways gave the number as two. Fran- chere may have misunderstood the num- ber given by Soto, or Soto may have erred as to the number given by his
father; but this is not very material; the main fact that there was a wreck and that these white people were here, still remains as an actual event.
As to whether any of these people ever reached civilization again, I, at present, have no means of determining.
FIRST PICTURE TAKING IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST.
What a wonderful difference inven- tive genius has brought about in the price not only of a likeness of one, but also in the cost of cameras for taking them, since the discovery of daguerro- typing. One of the advertisers in the Native Son recently offered a No. 2, Eastman kodak for $1.80, and artists are heard appealing to passers by to come into their place of business and secure minature photographs at the rate of six- teen for a quarter.
The first picture taking in the Pacific Northwest began in 1853, and was known as daguerrotyping. This was said to have been a finely polished cop- per plate so prepared with chemicals, that on exposure to the light through a camera, a likeness of the object in front would be taken, which, after other prep- aration, would remain more or less per- manently fixed upon the plate.
About 1859 an improvement in the art, known as ambrotyping, was intro- duced, and this class of work superceed- ed the taking of daguerrotypes. The method of their taking was in some re- spects very similar to thte means neces- sary to produce one of their predeces- sors, but instead of copper plates being used, glass was substituted, and when finished were about what is now known as photographic negatives, only not so
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