OCR Text |
Show [ 39 J prosecution of the trade upon the Mississippi and the lakes. The powerfuf 6UlTent of the Missouri presents formidable obstacles to the ascending navigator; and unless the goods destined for the Indians can leave St. Louis. early in the spring, they cannot reach the Yell ow Stone the same season~ and of course the capital is left unemployed, while the expenses of the trader are untermitted. The expeditions to the Rocky mountains generally leave the l\1issouri at or near the Council Bluffs, and fr01n thence the goods are transported upon horses to the places of de8tination. They here supply the hunters and trappers who are found in that country. These regions abound with the beaver and otter, and the furs of these animals are almost the on1 y articles which the traders receive. Great sacrifices have been made in the prosecution of this trade. The first attempt was ir: 1808, when a company was formed with a view to extend its operations to the heads of the Missouri, and to supply all the wants of the intermediate tribes. These Indians on the Upper Missouri had previously depended upon foreign traders, sent from the posts upon the Red river, the Assiniboin and the Saskatche win. After a few years, this company was compelled to abandon the enterprise, with the sacrifice of nearly all their capital, and with the loss of not less than two hundred men, killed by the Indians. The causes which led t.o this loss are to be found in the lawless practices of foreiun traders . 0 ' ":h? were then ~pr~ad over those. regwns, and who, influenced by the cu- ~Hhty of trade, mstJ~at~d the Indians to a~tack and plunder our trading parti~ s. .A~othe~ assoc13twn, called the Pacific Company, was formed in 1819, w1th srmdar VIe\~s, .and they proceeded .ta establish several trading posts upon the Columbia nver; hut they also yielded to circumstances and retired from the effort with a heavy pecuniary loss. ' It. is a moderat.e computation, that we have lost., in these abortive attempts)) and 111 several mmor ones, five hundred men, and at least five hundred thousand doll~rs. In the c.ontests for supPriority in those remote regionsr between .foreign ir~dcrs and. our own, the Indians are excited to take part; a?d to this day. ~n Influence .Is exe~ted, and. measures pursued, not less injurwus to our Citlzens than Inconsistent with our rights. vVithin a year twenty men have been killed hy the same means which have heretofor~ been su?cessfully employed ... It is not pro~able that an efficient remedy can be applied, until we take m1htary possesswn of the country, and establish such. posts as may be found necessary-a measure equally demanded by .our mterest and safety. F~om the review which has been taken of the course of this trade and of the Inter.change of commodities b~tween the Indians and the traders: it will not be dt.fficult to account for the Influence acquired and exerted by the Iatt~ r ~ver the fo~mer. The traders are generally married into influential famihes .m the Indian country, and many of their men have fndian wives. The lndt~ns look to them for ~uppl.ies which are essential to their comfort and sub~tstence. The. trader .Identifies himself with the band in whose country he ~s l~cated, and m al.l dtspu~es he espouses their cause, partakes of their preJUdices, and feels h1s own Interest involved in their" 'rhere 1 ·s f t · · "· a source o pro ectwn o~ ?ne stde, ~nd of dependence on the other. The conse-quence of all th1s Is, that no Important measure is adopted w'th t th k _ ledge of the trad~r; a.ncl if his advice is not formalJy reques~ed 0~t stfu i~1~:ences the d~term1natwn adopted at the public council fire. 'And when a l~ng established t;a~er, who has treated the Indians justly and kindly, c oases to exert his Influence for evil or for good, it may well be imagined 27 [ 39) \;hat such exertion will not be in vain. Previously to the war of 1812, the Indian trade within our limits was not confined to citizens of .the lJ nited States, ancl probably three-fou~ths. of it were in the hand.s of foreign traders. They possessed a preponderatmg mfluence over the ~ndians;. and thP. ~onsequences of its exertion are well kn~wn. Our frontH'r was mvolved m Indian hostilities. and the other operatiOns of the war were embarrassed and impeded by the effort~ nccess~ry to rep~l this interi?r enemy. It is difficult to estimate w1th prectston the capital at present employe? in the Inuian trade, because much of it consists in buildings, boats, pr?vtsions, and another things which do not appear in ~he annual re.turns reqmr~d to be made. The actual cost of the goods sent mto the lncltan cou~try In 1827, was $290,052 39. To this must be added the .value of ~he Investments we have state~, the wages of the men, and varwus contmgent expenses, inseparable from such a business. One hundred ancl fifty-four posts are occupied by our traders, and probably not less than two .thousand men employed in the trade; and it has required many yea~s to t:am them to t~e business, and to fit them for its duties, its ri~ks, and ~ts fatigues. . But t~11s subject is more important as a measure of policy affectmg our relat.wns With the Indians than as a branch of na6onal industry and enterpnsc. We have stated ~he mode in which the trade is carried on, and we have s~ccinctlv shown the time which has been consumed, and .tl!e loss of cap~tal and of lives which have been incurred, in securing tht pos1t10ns ~nd fonmn.g_ the establishments now held by our traders. lVIost ?~ our Indians ar~ mturatory tribes, roaming through the forests and prmnes, and oc?upy~ng a border country, divided partly by a natural and. p~rtly by an I~agmary boundarv between the United States and Great Br~t~m. Along this ~oundary, and. in many cases upon ou~ sicle of it, the British traders ~r~ statw~ed, with ample supplies for the Indtans: these trad ~rs are enterpnsmg, -active, and well acquainted with the habits of the lnchans, and the co?rse o~ the trade· and they are in the employment of a great company, wan~mg netther powe~, nor wealth, nor disposition to push any adva~1tages whtch may be offered to them. Should any circumstances occur ~o 1nd~ce our tra~ers to withdraw from the business, the Indians would be un mediately s~pphed by the Hudson's Bay Company; and whether t~is w~re don~ by sending traders i nto our territories, or by inviting the lnd1ans mto theirs, the effect would be the same. Our own establishments would be broken up, and we s.hould lose the fruits of twenty years' exertions; an influence would be agarn acquired over the Indians, to be again exerted when most useful to one party and most injurious to the other. . f h · It is certainly not uncharitable to suppose that ~~e preservatwn ° t. IS influence is important to the British Cana~ian. aut~ont1es. No o~her. motive can be rationally ass:gned for the large distributiOn of goods ~hJ?h IS tn~ually made at Amherstburgh and Drummond's island, t? the. n 1ans n-~ng within our jurisdiction. We have not the means of estlmatJn~ the nurl} er of Indians who visit these places, nor the value of the goods ~hich are !}1v~n to them; but we believe that a large proportion of the Indi~ns east 0 the Mississi i annually resort there for presents; and about sixteen mont 8 since o~~ of us actually counted 160 canoes at one time crossing t?e we~\ern extre'mity of lake Huron to Drummond's island. Each man recetves a anket, shirt, leggings, and breech cloth, and each ~oman a blanket, .s~roud, and leggings. To the children similar articles are gtven, and. ammurutLO.n, ~u~s, .kettles, and other things, are freely distributed. The tnbes who pnnCipal Y |