and Great Britain, by endeavouring to possess themselves of the whole of the Indian territories by fraudulent or by forcible means; and in consequence, by the annihilation of this intermediate power between them and the British possessions, occasioning the destruction of the whole of the commerce, and endangering the safety of His Majesty's provinces. To prove this intended alteration, the Act of Congress for the formation of the new States, and the names given them by the committee of which Mr. Jefferson was President, are sufficient evidences. That it was some fraudulent means used, appears upon the face of the purchases made from the Indians, and His Majesty's honoured name is brought into attaint by the Governors of the country, to give a sanction to their purposes. The fraud consists in the affirmation that the Indian territory had been given away as "the price of peace." This is the term which Governor St. Clair made use of, and which the Corn Planter, in February 8th, 1791, intimates in his speech to the President, Washington, to be the language of the people who purchased the lands from the Indians, and demands from him an explanation. * * Rt. Hon. Henry Dundas. J. G. SIMCOE. GOVERNOR SIMCOE TO LORD DORCHESTER. NAVY HALL, Aug. 18, 1794. MY LORD, I do myself the honour of enclosing to your lordship the communication which I received late last night from Lieut-Col. England and Col. McKie. I shall lose no time in proceeding to Detroit with all the force I can muster, leaving the garrison of Niagara with its usual complement of infantry, and ordering the artillery then at Kingston to supply in part those whom I shall think necessary to carry with me to Detroit. The whole detail of this arrangement will be transmitted to your lordship so soon as it shall be decided upon. I cannot flatter myself with much hopes of repelling Mr. Wayne, and feel that my own character as a military officer must suffer in the extreme; but an honourable devotion to the public service bears me up above all personal consideration, and it is possible that my character as Civil Lieut-Governor may enable me to promote His Majesty's interests. The people of the States, as predicted, have heavy artillery at Le Boeuf. The Six Nations, I believe, remain stedfast in their opposition to the establishment at Presque Isle. Should your lordship be reinforced, and at this crisis augment the force in this Province so as to enable me to meet Mr. Wayne on equal terms, and his Majesty's troops in such an event be successful, I cannot but foresee the perfect safety of the Canadas as the result of such a measure, as in all probability, if he be permitted to establish himself at the Detroit, it may eventually occasion their loss. SIR, Since the close of my despatch of the 10th instant, information of the most serious aspect has been received from the Indian country. General Chapin, the Agent for the United States to the Six Nations, has sent to meet those people immediately at Buffalo Creek; and his messenger intimates that Mr. Washington has complied with their demand so far as to give directions that Presque Isle shall not be occupied, and the Forts at le Bœuf shall be abandoned. Lieutenant-Colonel England informs me that Wayne is rapidly advancing (by report) with near four thousand troops. But what is alarming, the Hurons have peremptorily returned the hatchet which they had formerly received from Governor Hamilton, demanding him to sharpen it and instantly to join them, or they must cease to defend their country. The next step, in all pro I bability, would be to defend ours. The report in Wayne's army is, that he has positive orders to reduce our post at the Miamis, and in the ensuing spring to attack Detroit. have despatched Captain Bunburg, of the 8th Regiment, to occupy Turtle Island, at the entrance of the Miamis Bay, hoping by a continuation of our gun-boats and vessels at that place to prevent any access to the Miamis River or express from it. If Mr. Wayne pushes on to Detroit, you, sir, must, of course, be prepared to hear that it is in his possession. I have characterized it truly to Lord Dorchester, on his arrival, as a nominal fortress with a nominal garrison." I have the honour to be, with all respect, &c., &c., J. G. SIMCOE. INSTRUCTIONS OF CAPT. GEO. VANCOUVER, 1791. [Captain Vancouver undertook a voyage of discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, in 1791, principally with a view to ascertain the existence of any navigable communication between the North Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, having command of the Discovery, sloop of war, and the armed tender Chatham, His instructions were prepared] BY THE COMMISSIONERS FOR EXECUTING THE The King having judged it expedient that an expedition should be immediately undertaken for acquiring a more complete knowledge, than has yet been obtained, of the north-west coast of America; and, the sloop you command, together with the Chatham armed tender (the Lieutenant commanding which has been directed to follow your orders) having been equipped for that service, you are, in pursuance of his Majesty's pleasure, signified to us by Lord Grenville, one of his principal Secretaries of State, hereby required and directed to proceed, without loss of time, with the said sloop and tender, to the Sandwich Islands, in the North Pacific Ocean, where you are to remain during the next winter; employing yourself very diligently in the examination and survey of the said islands; and, as soon as the weather shall be favourable (which may be expected to be in February, or at latest in March, 1792), you are to repair to the north-west coast of America, for the purpose of acquiring a more complete knowledge of it, as above mentioned. It having been agreed, by the late convention between his Majesty and the Catholic King (a printed copy of which you will receive herewith), that the buildings and tracts of land situated on the north-west coast above mentioned, or on islands adjacent thereto, of which the subjects of his Britannic Majesty were dispossessed about the month of April, 1789, by a Spanish officer, shall be restored to the said British subjects, the Court of Spain has agreed to send orders for that purpose to its officers in that part of the world; but as the particular specification of the parts to be restored may still require some further time, it is intended that the King's orders, for this purpose, shall be sent out to the Sandwich Islands, by a vessel to be employed to carry thither a further store of provisions for the sloop and armed tender above mentioned, which it is meant shall sail from this country in time to reach those islands in the course of next winter. If, therefore, in consequence of the arrangement to be made with the Court of Spain, it should hereafter be determined that you should proceed, in the first instance, to Nootka, or elsewhere, in order to receive from the Spanish officers, such lands or buildings as are to be restored to the British subjects, orders to that effect will be sent out by the vessel above mentioned. But if no such orders should be received by you previous to the end of January, 1792, you are not to wait for them at the Sandwich Islands, but to proceed in such course as you may judge most expedient for the examination of the coast above mentioned, comprized between latitude 60 deg. north, and 30 deg. north. are, In which examination the principal objects which you are to keep in view, 1st, The acquiring accurate information with respect to the nature and extent of any water communication which may tend, in any considerable degree, to facilitate an intercourse for the purpose of commerce, between the north-west coast and the countries upon the opposite side of the continent, which are inhabited or occupied by His Majesty's subjects. 2dly, The ascertaining, with as much precision as possible, the number, extent and situation of any settlements which have been made within the limits above mentioned by any European nation, and the time when such settlement was first made. With respect to the first object, it would be of great importance if it should be found that, by means of any considerable inlets of the sea, or even of large rivers communicating with the lakes in the interior of the continent, such an intercourse, as hath been already mentioned, could be established; it will, therefore, be necessary, for the purpose of ascertaining this point that the survey should be so conducted as not only to ascertain the general line of the sea coast, but also the direction and extent of all such considerable inlets, whether made by arms of the sea, or by mouths of large rivers, as may be likely to lead to, or facilitate, such communication as is above described. This being the principal object of the examination, so far as relates to that part of the subject, it necessarily follows that a considerable degree of discretion must be left, and is therefore left to you, as to the means of executing the service which his Majesty has in view; but, as far as any general instructions can here be given on the subject, it seems desirable that, in order to avoid any unnecessary loss of time, you should not, and are therefore hereby required and directed not to pursue any inlet or river further than it shall appear to be navigable by vessels of such burden as might safely navigate the Pacific Ocean : but, as the navigation of such inlets and rivers, to the extent here stated, may possibly require that you should proceed up them further than it might be safe for the sloop you command to go, you are, in such case, to take the command of the armed tender in person, at all such times, and in such situations as you shall judge it necessary and expedient. The particular course of the survey must depend on the different circumstances which may arise in the execution of a service of this nature; it is, however, proper that you should, and you are, therefore, hereby required and directed to pay a particular attention to the examination of the supposed straits of Juan de Fuca, said to be situated between 48 deg. and 49 deg. north latitude, and to lead to an opening through which the sloop Washington is reported to have passed in 1789, and to have come out again to the northward of Nootka. The discovery of a near communication between any such sea or strait, and any river running into or from the Lake of the Woods, would be particularly useful. If you should fail of discovering any such inlet as is above mentioned, to the southward of Cook's River, there is the greatest probability that it will be found that the said rivr rises in some of the lakes already known to the Canadian traders, and to the servants of th Hudson's Bay Company; which point it would, in that case, be material to ascertain; and you are, therefore, to endeavour to ascertain accordingly, with as much precision as the circumstances existing at the time may allow but the discovery of any similar communication more to the southward (should any such exist), would be much more advantageous for the purposes of commerce, and should, therefore, be preferably attended to, and you are, there. fore, to give it a preferable attention accordingly. of March, 1791. Given under our hands the 8th CHATHAM, J. T. TOWNsend. To George Vancouver Esq., By command of their Lordships, PH. STEPHENS. STATEMENT OF LANDS PATENTED BY THE PROVINCE OF CANADA BEFORE CONFEDERATION, ON NORTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR. WEST OF LONGITUDE 88° 50′. XVI. Official Correspondence and Documents.—1869–1874. CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN DOMINION MINISTERS AND THE COLONIAL OFFICE, RESPECTING THE SURRENDER OF THE HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY'S TERRITORIAL CLAIMS, 1869. SIR GEORGE E. CARTIER AND HON. WM. MCDOUGALL TO SIR F. ROGERS. WESTMINSTER PALACE HOTEL, SIR, We have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 30th ult., (with its enclosures), stating that you were directed by Earl Granville to transmit to us a copy of a letter which his Lordship had received from the Deputy-Chairman of the Hudson's Bay Company, relating to some steps which have been taken under the authority of the Canadian Government, and from which the Company apprehend some invasion of their territorial rights. You inform us that his Lordship will be glad to receive from us any explanation which we may be able to furnish him, of the steps taken by the Canadian Government. We have read the letter of the Deputy-Chairman, and extracts from the letters of Governor McTavish, and have much pleasure in being able to furnish his Lordship with what we hope will prove satisfactory information on the subject of the Hudson's Bay Company's complaint. 1. In the month of September last, very precise information reached the Canadian Government that, in consequence of the complete destruction of their crops by locusts, the people of the Red River settlement, numbering probably from 12,000 to 15,000 souls, were in imminent danger of starvation during the winter about to set in. 2. Numerous and earnest appeals for aid had already been made to the Canadian public by writers in the newspapers, and by clergymen and others acquainted with the country. The Right Reverend Robert Machray, Lord Bishop of Rupert's Land, a member of the Council of Assiniboia, and so far a representative of the Company, visited Ottawa, and urged upon members of the Canadian Government the duty of prompt assistance to avert the threatened calamity. 3. No steps had been taken (so far as the Government could learn) by the Hudson's Bay Company, to provide supplies, and, aware that a few days' delay at that season might render it impossible to get provisions to Red River in time to afford relief, the Canadian Government appropriated the sum of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) towards the construction of a road from Lake of the Woods to Fort Garry. The Minister of Public Works (one of the undersigned) was directed to expend the principal part of this sum in the purchase of provisions, which were to be forwarded with all possible despatch to the Red River settlement, and offered to the settlers, not as alms, but in exchange for their labour on a public work in their own vicinity, and of the highest utility to their settlement. 4. A confidential and experienced agent proceeded at once to St. Paul's, Minnesota, and succeeded in forwarding a considerable supply of provisions before the close of navi gation. A further quantity had reached Fort Abercrombie, an American post in Dakota territory, from which point it can be sent to the settlement early in the spring. 5. Information has reached the undersigned since their arrival in England, that the Government Agent had, in accordance with his instructions,. conferred with the local authorities on his arrival at Fort Garry; that he had received their approval and promise of |