The west shore., January 01, 1889, Page 24, Image 25

THE WEST SHORE.
interval east of the Allegheny mountains. As has
been shown, the great emigration of 1813 was the re
sult of causes that had been at work for several years,
and not the hasty and illy-considered act of people
suddenly aroused by the voice of one man. It was at
Fort Hall, where, as formerly, it was proposed to
abandon the wagons, that Whitman impressed him
self the most strongly upon the immigrants. He
begged and pleaded with them not to leave their
wagons behind, and guaranteed to pilot them safely
through to bis mission. His persuasions prevailed,
and he fulfilled his promise, thus demonstrating that
tho settlement of Oregon by means of emigrant trains
from the Mississippi valley was practicable; and that
this had a great effect upon the final settlement of
tho disputed title between Great Britain and the
United States is undeniable.
As the presidential campaign of 1844 drew near,
tho question of the annexation of Texas was the lead
ing one. This was championed by the democrats and
opposed by tho whigs, as it involved a war with Mex
ico. It was deemed necessary to acquire new territo
ry in the north at the same time, to preserve the bal
ance between slave and free states and territories, and
with a reckless disregard of consequences, the demo
cratic party platform also declared that our title to
the whole of Oregon, up to fifty-four degrees and for
ty minutes north latitude, was "clear and indisputa
ble." Upon this platform of Texas and Oregon, one
involving war with Mexico and the other inviting hos
tilities with Great Britain, Mr. Polk made his cam
paign, the air being filled with the belligerent cry of
" Fifty-four-forty, or fight" Mr. Polk was success
ful. Texas was annexed and a war with Mexico fol
lowed. That equally serious consequences did not
ensuo in the other case waa largely due to the fact
that Great Britain considered " Fifty-four-forty, or
fight H very much as it did the retaliation message of
President Cleveland in tho last campaign, simply so
much froth and campaign buncomb. And so it
proved, for when the question of giving Great Britain
the required year's notice of the termination of the
treaty of joint occupation came up in congress the
very ones who had started the war cry opposed it on
tho ground that it would bring on a war with England
which, in view of the threatened hostilities with Mex'
100, must bo avoided at all hazards. The most bellig
erent action they could be induced to take was the
passage of a joint resolution, in the spring of 1816
authorizing tho president, in his discretion," to rive
ho required notice, and the president had entirely
too much discretion to do it Two years before, just
prior to the opening of the campaign, the democratic
secretary of state, John 0. Calhoun, had negotiated
with the British minister for the fort -ninth JS?
but the agreement was not completed, because it
would have deprived his party of the advantage of
yelling " Fifty-four-forty, or fight" during the cam
paign. Negotiations were now promptly resumed on
this basis, and the government elected by the "fifty,
four-forties " ignobly abandoned its position and made
the offer of a line on parallel forty-nine, which Great
Britain at once accepted, with the modification that
all of Vancouver island should be left in British
territory, and a treaty on this basis was concluded
and ratified. That England accepted this line was
not due to any threats of war made during an election
campaign, which were looked upon by her as mere
political fireworks, but because the hardy pioneers of
the west had toiled and fought their way out to Ore.
gon, had formed a government, and were in actual
possession of the country. Things wore a different
aspect from that presented in 1827, and England re
cognized the change of conditions those brave and
liberty-loving men and women had wrought The
immigration of 1844 and 1845 had added fully three
thousand to the American population of Oregon, and
all hope of counterbalancing this on the part of En
gland was gone. Whitman settled this question when
he found a route for wagons in 1843. This much the
logic of circumstances compelled Great Britain to
concede, but she would undoubtedly have gone to war
before conceding more. In his " Twenty Years of
Congress," Mr. Blaine says: "But a striking and use
ful lesson would be lost if it should be forgotten that
the country was brought to the verge of war by the
proclamation of a policy which could not be enforced.
It was originated as a cry to catch votes; and except
with the ignorant, and the few whose judgment was
carried away by enthusiasm, it was from the first
thoroughly insincere."
Four hundred and seventy wagons, over one thou
sand cattle and fully two thousand people constituted
the immigration of 1846, nearly one-half of whom
turned off at Fort Hall and went to California, where
they aided those who had preceded them in the work
of wresting that fair province from Mexico. With
them came news of the settlement of the Oregon
boundary on the forty-ninth parallel, carrying joy and
gladness to the hearts of those who had been so long
beyond the protecting arm of the government they
loved. In 1847 fully three thousand were added to
the population, about as many more coming out the
following year. But the trials of the founders of
Oregon were not ended. Congress was too busy set
tling the Texas matter to pay any more attention to
Oregon, now that the question had been taken out of
Politics, The most strenuous efforts of Senator Bea
ton, almost the sole champion of Oregon now thathii
illustrious colleague was dead, were unavailing to