Bloomington herald. [volume] (Bloomington, I. T. [Iowa]) 1840-1849, 1845-11-29
OREGON.

OREGON.
late number Q: the Washington Union
contains an able article upon this subject, to
the sentiment Of which, every Americas heart
must respond. The Union strongly maintains
the justice Of our claims TO the country as far
as 81 deg. 40 min. north latitude, and declares
tina. the President, abiding BY the opinion sx-
pressed in his Inaugural, is prepared to recon-
mend all such measures as may be deemed
necessary 10 protect our righ,ful property on
the shores Of the Pacific. We give tho con.
clusicn Of the article with the remark that, il
the facts therein esatsd prove anything. they
shew that Great Britain has herself, by her
conduct, violated the treaty Of joint occu-
pancy.
"Such being practically the present poli.i.
gon, under the treaty stipulation Of 1918, how
the same region! The answer may be given
subjects in the service Of the Hudson Bay
in tie courts Of Canada, or By Judicial officers Of
Territory of Oregon, save tie few square miles
actually under Elkage by the americans. Nor
is this all. These servants of the company
have entirely monopo!ized, for some twenty
years past, the whole Of the most lucrative oc-
equations in Oregon-fnr-hunting and far-tra-
ding. They have driven every american cit;-
zen out Of the business. Let an American
trap2er or hunter appear anywhere in the Ter
ritory, and Instantly two or three agents Of the
company establish themselves by his side, fur
nished amply with specie and merchandise,
to ouibid him for furs, to call in Indian or
white competition. and so break up his busi-
ness. The individual cannot stand against
the organized and powerful company. His
business Is broken up. and he goes to farming
in the valley Of the Willamette. This is now
the regular course Of things. This ia practi.
cally the common use and enjoyment Of Oregon
stipulated by the treaty-this. viz the entire
monopoly Of the great fur trade there BY one
Of the parties, added to the exclusive govern.
ment by the same party of the whole Of the
soil Of that vast Territory, save only the farms
whieh some fonr thousand Americans are till
ing with their own hands. As early as 1928
the Hudson Bay Company had found their
trade under these circumstances quite thriving.
The proceeds Of the trade for that year were,
in round numbers, 100000. Their shares
then stood 40 per cent. above par.
Our readers will remember that when the
bill to extend territorial government over
Oregon was before Congress last session, it's
opponents protested against it, because. as
they alleged, it violated the stipulation Of 1918.
How comes it, then, that the other party to
that Observation-Disclosures il to be as Great
Britain has, time after time, admitted, and
now admits herself 10 be-, the party out Of pos.
session, pending the negoiiation-how comes
il, then, inc. this other disse;zed party. at this
moment, has extended liz laws 10 full force
over the whole unoccupisd Territory The
mechaulsm ~ which this trick Of political
legerdemain has been played of. is at once
very ingenious and thoroughly English. The
British cabinet has praciised the maneuvre in
Asia, till now il has become wonderfully
adroit. II is simply the Great East Indian
Juggle tried over again ia the West. The
apparatus-machinery and fxtures--are just
alike in the TWO cases. A great trading cor
poration, welding millions Of capital-with
power TO pass laws to maintain civil estab-
lishm snt; to maintain military establish.
mens /; to collect revenue TO hoist flag Of its
own-no. the Queens hag--build forts; 10
keep six OF eight armed vessels on the coast
to possess territory-all in the way Of trade,
of course and 10 do all this under the eye Of
the British Parliament, acting for itself when
Parliament chooses to dissvow the responsi.
bili,y o. its acts acting for Parliament just
when Parliament chooses to accept that re.
sponsibility-in one word, a great Empire
Corporation in fact, with power to change it.
self, at the waving Of the Minister'S wand
''pres to-" as the jugglers have it-into
most demure, simple, harmless partnership Of
pa,nstaking individuals, trying TO turn an hon
est penny in the way of the fur-srade. This
is the mechanism by which the miracle 10 ca
silly wrought. In tho time Of the ''merrie
monarch"-easy King Charlss--English pol
icy amused Itself with building two of these
magnificent playthings-one for the East,
which it called the East India Company +; one
for the West, which it called the Company of
the Hudson's Bay. How the one has work.
ed in the East, the world knows pretty we'll.
The other, in the West, has not long since
been put in fine order, by uniting itself with
its rival, the Northwest Company. Does
this country-does Congress-wish to know
how it will work in the West, in Oregon, If
we only cit quietly BY as spectators. and let it
alone! The problem is easily solved. We
have only to turn to the lives of Robert Give
and Of Warren Hastings, and read the pages
which tell Of their doings 10 Madras and Bom-
bay:'
PACIFIC RAILROAD.
ST. Louis 10 about midway between the ex-
treme Atlantic border and the Pacific, at the
m onah NJ tho Cnlumhia In 1aas than twenty