Message from the President of the United States, in answer to a resolution of the Senate relative to the British establishments on the Columbia, and the state of the fur trade &c.

Page 16

[ 39 ] W ASHING'l'ON, December 21, 1828. S1n: We have had the honor to receive your letter of the 24th in stan!, and, in conformity with it, proceed to state ~ur views of the pre~ent condi­tion of the fur trade, and of the measures whiCh are necessary to 1ts safe and successful prosecution by citizens of the United States. . Alono- the whole inhnd frontier which is bordered by any of the lnd1an tribes, ~partial trade is carried on betwe~n the~ and our Citizens by small equipnunls, which are sent into the nc1ghbonng c?un~ry> and sold ~t the posts established by the \~l ar Dcpart~e.nt. ~ut t~1~ ltm1ted trade IS not important, either in a pecuniary or political potnt of ~new. Not many valu­able furs are found in this region, nor are any furs very abundant, as most of the animals which supply them recede or disappear before the ad_van~e of the white population. And the Indians themselves, who occupy th~s dts­trict, arc sufficiently acquainted with our strength to avoid the operatiOn of foreign influence, should any be exerted for unfriendly purposes, either im­mcliiate or remote. But the circumstances attendi ng the prosecution of the trade upon the ~lisso uri, the Gppcr lVli:;sissippi) the St. Peter's} and the upper lakes, are far different. There the f!;amc is valuable and abundant; the .Indians nu­merous and warlike, ignorant of our power, and easily accessible to foreign influence. They arc almost beyond our reach; and both policy and hu­n1anity dictate the propriety of adopting such n1easures as will counteract or exclude any unfriendly efforts which may be made or meditated. St. Louis and 1\tlichilimackinac arc the principal depots of the commerce 'vith our remote Indi ans: the former for t.he Mtssouri, and a part of the Mississippi and the St. Petcr'8; and t.he latter for the residue of the Missis­sippi and the St. Peter's, and for the upper lakes. The goods destined fo1' this trade arc conveyed to these depf)ts as early in the spring as practicable, to be ready for the arrival of the traders. These goods consist principally of blankets, coarse woollens, domestic cotton, arms, ammunition, traps, &c. S ir..cc the introduction of the e articles among the Indians, a corresponding change has taken place in their habits and modes of life; and many of the txibe:-; could not subsist, and all of them would suffer severely, were they deprived of their accustomed supplies. By the existing provisions of the laws, the traders are required to confine themselves to certain posts, previ~ ously established, and for which they are licensed. The most remote of those posts is near the entrance of the Yellow Stone, nineteen hundred miles from the mouth of the Missouri. Upon the Mississippi there is a licensed post at Luck lake, near three thousand miles from the mouth of that river; another at Lac du.DiabJe, on the west of the Red river of lake Winnepec, ann another on Ra1ny lake; and between all these and our settled frontier, there are intermediate posts, v:hcrever the situation of the Indians or the circumstances of. the trade have rendered the location necessary. _Af~e.r the ~ndwn trad:-r has. procured his proper supply at St. Louis or Mtch_Ihmackmac, and given h1s bond ancl received his li cense, he departs for Ins post. The goods are em barked in boats suited to the navio-ation be­fore him, and manned by a sufficient number of encrarrees acquai~ted with h I b . . .~b' t e trace, and, y constitutiOn and habit, fitted for its laborious duties. In some parts of the countrv, the boats are chancred on the way for lio·ht birch • w b n canoes, ~~ order. that th~ party may ascend the rapid precipitous streams along wh1ch the1r route hes. When these streams are interrupted by fall~~ v , 25 ( S9] the boats and their lading are transported by the men across the po~ta~es, and re-embarked upon the 5tream where the interruption to the nav1gat~on ceases. Some of these portages are a nu:nber of 1niles in extent, ascend1~g and descending steep hills, and oth~rs are over tremulous marshes, called, In th~ JanguagP of the trade, ventre de breuf, which a~e ~rossed upon small cedar poles. The men arc frequently disabled for hfe In the performance of these hazardous tasks. . After the trader reache~ his post, his first object is to supply the Ind1~ns with such articles as are indispensable, or to furnish them wtth an .eqt~zp­ment, as it is ealleu. It will be obse~ved that the !ndia~s arc at ~h1s tune poor, the proceeds of their labor UUrtng_the pre~edlllg Wlnte~ having b~en paid to the trader, and exchanged ~r pa1d by hun for previous supplies. Every family, therefore, must rec~1ve an advan_r~, to prepare t~tein for t~e winter's chase, and this must consist of ammunJtton and clothwg, and IS generally proportioned to the . number _of the fa~ily, ~nd the c?aracter of the men for skill and punctuahty. Wtthout this credtt the Indwns '"'ould, perish, and it varies in amount from fifty to two. hundred dollars to e~ch family. The los::J sustained by the trader fro~ this system may be_ eastly imagined, when it is recollected. that the~e _1s ~o means of enforcmg the collection of a debt from the lnd1ans, nor 1s It dishonorable by the customs of the remote tribes to refuse its payment; and after the first year their cre­dits are termed ciead debts, as no Indian ever considers it necessary to meet them. During the winter, the Inciians are scattered through the country, employed in taking the animals which furnish them with food and furs. In fortunate seasons, they are enabled to take enol]gh of the latter to pay the credits they have received; and they are generally willing to do this, unless rival traders interfere with each other, or the proximity of the British trading establishments induces the Indians to supply thems~lves at one P?st, and to exchange their furs at another. As early tn the spnng as the navt~a­tion is open, the traders depart for their place of supply to renew the duties and cares of the preceding year; and during their absence some of their men remain to take charge of the posts and the property left in them, and, in the wild rice regions, to g;ather a quantity of that useful grain. The engagees employed in this trade are generally Canadians and half breeds, and are hired by the year. Their pay is from 120 to .200 dollars a year, depending on the distance of the posts and the nature of the service. Five or six men are employed at each post; but in the interior, where dan­ger is alway~ to be app1ehended from the predatory habits of the Indians, their number is considerably increased. Their subsistence is a heavy ex­pense to the trader, and the privations they tnust endure can never be re­alised by any who have not passed through the country. Every winter many of the Indians perish from actual starvation; and when this is the case, the trader and his men must sufier severely, although not in an equal degree. At some of the intermediate posts, prov1sions are a regular article of trade. The improvidence of the Indians is well known. They seldom in a time of abundance provide fur a time of scarcity. Labor is disgraceful arrwng the men of those distant bands, and it is hopeless to argue with them upon the subject. They cannot work, but they can die. rhe enterprise of our citizens has e::'{plored new sources of trade in the regions between the ranges of the Rocky mountains, and west of them. The ascent of the Missouri, and the eventual employment of the men, give. a charact~r to this business different from the circumstances. attending the 4