The Coolidge examiner., 1936-01-24


McLoughlin remained and took a farm The
naturalization papers were issued by the Second
District court of Oregon Territory, September 5,
1851"
Back of that brief news item lies of the
most romantic and sgnificant-and at the same
time of the most tragic-stories in American
history For this Dr. John Mclaughlin was more
than just a factor of the British Hudson Bay
Fur cOmpany"-yes, even more than the Father
of Oregon" There was a time when he was
known far and wide the Emperor of the
West" a wilderness king whose word was absO-
lutte law over 100000 square miles, an empire
that extended all along the Pacific coast from
California to Alaska and as far east as the Great
Salt lake in Utah. There was time when he
held an influence over the Indians such as no
white man had since the days of Sir William
Johnson's dominance the Iroquois on the
other side of the continent.
There was a time when he, by speaking few
words could have embroiled the United States
and Great Britain in a third and if that had
happened it is doubtful if the Pacific Northwest
would now be under the American flag But he
refrained from speaking those words and by re-
framing saved the lives of hundreds of Ameri-
can settlers and probably thousands of American
and British soldiers and sailors.
Thus the romance and the historical signif.
.ance in the life story of DR.. John Mclaughlin.
As for the tragedy it was the tragedy of
..kinc' who lost his kingdom and of real man
without a country" a more pitiful figure than
the fictitious hero of Edward Everett Hale's ia
nous book
Such is the story in part, back of the discov-
ery. after more than threequarters of century,
of the document which made John Mclaughlin
an American citizen. But even though he was
no longer a imam without country, that docu-
ment could not save him from going to his grave
six wears later, a broken-hearted old man, the
victim of the selfshness and the basest ingrati-
tude on the part of those who had best reason to
he grateful to him-the American settlers ne had
''befriended."
The complete story is told in new biography
which by an interesting coincidence. appeared
short time after the discovery of the McLough-
lin naturalization papers in the vault IN oregon
7ity. This biography is THE White-Headed
Eagle. John McLoughlin. Builder of an Empire"
written by Richard G. Montgomery of Portland
Ore and published by the Macmillan company
of New York. Much has been written about Nc
Loughlin (the list of authorities occupies five
full pages at the end of this biography but Mr.
Montgomery's book is of the most author
tative and most interesting word portraits or
Mclaughlin that has yet appeared.
12O miles below Quebec on the st. Lawrence in
1884 His father was an Irishman, his mother,
a Fraser in whom French blood was mixed with
the Scotch. AS a boy he was serlous-mlnded
and very religious, with none of the daShng reck-
Iessness that characterized the men engaged in
the business in which he to become famous
the fur trade. Due to the influence of one OF
his uncles, DR.. Simon Fraser it appeared certain
that young John would become doctor and at
Fcivta ha hara ct1f vii mod
Although he practiced for while in Montreal
it soon became apparent that "a professional ca
reer in a well-setted community held no fascina
ton for him. The lads gray eyes were focused
on the West-there hanke ring for city
life in his nature" That was largely due to
another uncle-AleXander Fraser, who had be-
come prominent in the affairs of the North West
company, which had been organized in 1884, the
year young John born, to compete with the
Hudsons Bay company for the rich prize of the
fur trade throughout Canada Through Uncle
Alexander's influence the young doctor received
an appointment resident physician in the
North West company and in the winter of 10000
proceeded to Fort William, the company's chief
depot and factory on Lake Superior
This marked the beginning of that amazing
career which resulted in McLOughlin's becoming
the Emperor of the West" From being medi-
cal officer he soon progressed to the position of
y
between the HudsOn's Bay company and the
North Westers ended in truce, young McLough-
lin went to London a North West reDreSen-
tatve to drive the bargain which consolidated
the two companies He then became a HudsOn's
Bay man and continued as such through the
remainder of his active life.
For a time he served as chief factor at Fort
Francis on the Lake of the foods. Then Gov
George Simpson, head of the H. b. c. recogniz-
ng the great ability of the young DOCTOR made
him assistant to Chief Factor Alexander Ken
nedy on the Columbia river, with the idea of his
eventually superseding Kennedy there. This was
all part of the bold scheme which Simpson had
in mind
The American, John Jacob Astor had failed
n his attempt to found fur empire in the
Pacific Northwest and his post, Astoria, at the
mouth of the Columbia had fallen into the hands
Of the North West company first and then the
HudsOn'S Bay company. The Oregon country
was held Jointly by Great Britain and the United
States, but Simpson planned to win this vast
region with its wealth of furs for England but
more particularly to bring all the territory west
of the Rocky mountains within single Hudsons
Bay company jurisdiction"
Mclaughlin was selected as the instrument TO
bring this about and there could have been no
better one selected. From the moment he took