East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1905-05-15

Hon. John Minto. postmaster of
Portland and an Oregon pioneer, was
speaker Of the day at the celebration
of the founding or the provisional
government OF Oregon at Champoeg,
Marion county. on May 2, and spoke
in part as follows, his theme being,
Hearing the Call of the Wild:
Doubtless there are hundreds of
thousands of mature citizens of these
United States who cannot enter into
the mental attractions, wild scenes
and the killing of wolves and bears
have for the president of the United
States. To many born of many1 gem
erations of ancestors who have strug-
gled with men for the controlling
places OF life, whether for place or
pelf, man leaving a home of ease,
influence and highest earthly duty
+ to S0,000,00 of people and seek ex-
posure to the storms which whirl
among the peaks OF the Rocky noun
tains to engage in personal efforts
to kill wolves and bears seems, is, so
incomprehensible as TO border upon
insanity. Many whose lives are spent
in daily struggles to keep on top of
the markets of the world, the call of
the wild is no longer heard and the
act of the president in seeking con-
tact with it cannot be understood. Yet
among the male children of this lat
ter class, many II not most will read
with eager delight of President Roose-
Ivelts wolf and bear killing.
This seems a far-fetched introduc-
ton to the birthday of American gov
! ernment on the Pacific coast, but It
| is only seeming to those citizens of
the United States who for genera
tions have trained their strongest
thought to money getting. and have
lost taste for the wild life where dan
ger itself is lure enough for action.
The native sons of Oregon ought not
vet to be so far removed from the
wild, as to forget the fact that the
anniversary OF the founding of the
provisional government of oregon
May 2, 1S43. originated at a meeting
called for an organization to destroy
the wolves, bears and panthers which
were the natural and very distinctive
enemies OF settled life in oregon in
1S43.
Sixty-two years will not eliminate
the love of the wild from the descend
ants of men who founded government
at Champoeg in 1S43, and a slight
glance at that and immediate preced'
ing history, will show that 1t was the
hunter class-not the missionary oil
) traders-who led on that day of day,
in oregon history.
II was the missionaries as a clas,
that first perceived the necessity o.
civil government, and made inef
fectual attempts to form one, start
ing with DIR. Babcock. one OF theil
own number, as supreme Judge
George LeBreton, clerk and recorde
J of court, and three constables Tha
was as far as missionaries, as a class
reached in the formation of govern
ment. It was the wolf meeting tina
brought out the more practical hunte
and trapper class. and the result wa
I that Joseph L. Meek who retired from
} the Rocky mountains in 1S41 witt
the nome de plume Of "Joe, the Bea
! Killer" called out the majority 70
l government on this monumental spo
90 years ago. Search and look q
} the names and previous personal his
tory Of those most influential who re
sponded to the trumpet tones of 10
Meek that day. and you will fin
them grown up boys from the west
ern frontiers OF the states and terri
I tories where governments were
! formative conditions.
Z And fellow citizens. without prejr
8 dice to the good work done in sell