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Agreement Between Mr. Astor and the Russian Fur Company
Agreement Between Mr. Astor and the Russian Fur
Company—War Between the United States and Great
Britain.—Instructions to Captain Sowle of the Beaver—Fitting Out of
the Lark.— News of the Arrival of Mr. Stuart.
IT is now necessary, in linking together the parts
of this excursive narrative, that we notice the proceedings of Mr.
Astor in support of his great undertaking. His project with respect
to the Russian establishments along the northwest coast had been
diligently prosecuted. The agent sent by him to St. Petersburg, to
negotiate in his name as president of the American Fur Company, had,
under sanction of the Russian government, made a provisional
agreement with the Russian company.
By this agreement, which was ratified by Mr. Astor in 1813, the two
companies bound themselves not to interfere with each other's
trading and hunting grounds, nor to furnish arms and ammunition to
the Indians. They were to act in concert, also, against all
interlopers, and to succor each other in case of danger. The
American company was to have the exclusive right of supplying the
Russian posts with goods and necessaries, receiving peltries in
payment at stated prices. They were also, if so requested by the
Russian governor, to convey the furs of the Russian company to
Canton, sell them on commission, and bring back the proceeds, at
such freight as might be agreed on at the time. This agreement was
to continue in operation four years, and to be renewable for a
similar term, unless some unforeseen contingency should render a
It was calculated to be of great service to the infant establishment
at Astoria; dispelling the fears of hostile rivalry on the part of
the foreign companies in its neighborhood, and giving a formidable
blow to the irregular trade along the coast. It was also the
intention of Mr. Astor to have coasting vessels of his own, at
Astoria, of small tonnage and draft of water, fitted for coasting
service. These, having a place of shelter and deposit, could ply
about the coast in short voyages, in favorable weather, and would
have vast advantage over chance ships, which must make long voyages,
maintain numerous crews, and could only approach the coast at
certain seasons of the year. He hoped, therefore, gradually to make
Astoria the great emporium of the American fur trade in the Pacific,
and the nucleus of a powerful American state. Unfortunately for
these sanguine anticipations, before Mr. Astor had ratified the
agreement, as above stated, war broke out between the United States
and Great Britain. He perceived at once the peril of the case. The
harbor of New York would doubtless be blockaded, and the departure
of the annual supply ship in the autumn prevented; or, if she should
succeed in getting out to sea, she might be captured on her voyage.
In this emergency, he wrote to Captain Sowle, commander of the
Beaver. The letter, which was addressed to him at Canton, directed
him to proceed to the factory at the mouth of the Columbia, with
such articles as the establishment might need; and to remain there,
subject to the orders of Mr. Hunt, should that gentleman be in
The war continued. No tidings had yet been received from Astoria;
the despatches having been delayed by the misadventure of Mr. Reed
at the falls of the Columbia, and the unhorsing of Mr. Stuart by the
Crows among the mountains. A painful uncertainty, also, prevailed
about Mr. Hunt and his party. Nothing had been heard of them since
their departure from the Arickara village; Lisa, who parted from
them there, had predicted their destruction; and some of the traders
of the Northwest Company had actually spread a rumor of their having
been cut off by the Indians.
It was a hard trial of the courage and means of an individual to
have to fit out another costly expedition, where so much had already
been expended, so much uncertainty prevailed, and where the risk of
loss was so greatly enhanced, that no insurance could be effected.
In spite of all these discouragements, Mr. Astor determined to send
another ship to the relief of the settlement. He selected for this
purpose a vessel called the Lark, remarkable for her fast sailing.
The disordered state of the times, however, caused such a delay,
that February arrived, while the vessel was yet lingering in port.
At this juncture, Mr. Astor learnt that the Northwest Company were
preparing to send out an armed ship of twenty guns, called the Isaac
Todd, to form an establishment at the mouth of the Columbia. These
tidings gave him great uneasiness. A considerable proportion of the
persons in his employ were Scotchmen and Canadians, and several of
them had been in the service of the Northwest Company. Should Mr.
Hunt have failed to arrive at Astoria, the whole establishment would
be under the control of Mr. M'Dougal, of whose fidelity he had
received very disparaging accounts from Captain Thorn. The British
government, also, might deem it worth while to send a force against
the establishment, having been urged to do so some time previously
by the Northwest Company.
Under all these circumstances, Mr. Astor wrote to Mr. Monroe, then
secretary of state, requesting protection from the government of the
United States. He represented the importance of his settlement, in a
commercial point of view, and the shelter it might afford to the
American vessels in those seas. All he asked was that the American
government would throw forty or fifty men into the fort at his
establishment, which would be sufficient for its defense until he
could send reinforcements over land.
He waited in vain for a reply to this letter, the government, no
doubt, being engrossed at the time by an overwhelming crowd of
affairs. The month of March arrived, and the Lark was ordered by Mr.
Astor to put to sea. The officer who was to command her shrunk from
his engagement, and in the exigency of the moment, she was given in
charge to Mr. Northrup, the mate. Mr. Nicholas G. Ogden, a gentleman
on whose talents and integrity the highest reliance could be placed,
sailed as supercargo. The Lark put to sea in the beginning of March,
By this opportunity, Mr. Astor wrote to Mr. Hunt, as head of the
establishment at the mouth of the Columbia, for he would not allow
himself to doubt of his welfare. "I always think you are well," said
he, "and that I shall see you again, which Heaven, I hope, will
He warned him to be on his guard against any attempts to surprise
the post; suggesting the probability of armed hostility on the part
of the Northwest Company, and expressing his indignation at the
ungrateful returns made by that association for his frank and open
conduct, and advantageous overtures. "Were I on the spot," said he,
"and had the management of affairs, I would defy them all; but, as
it is, everything depends upon you and your friends about you. Our
enterprise is grand, and deserves success, and I hope in God it will
meet it. If my object was merely gain of money, I should say, think
whether it is best to save what we can, and abandon the place; but
the very idea is like a dagger to my heart." This extract is
sufficient to show the spirit and the views which actuated Mr. Astor
in this great undertaking.
Week after week and month after month elapsed, without anything to
dispel the painful incertitude that hung over every part of this
enterprise. Though a man of resolute spirit, and not easily cast
down, the dangers impending over this darling scheme of his
ambition, had a gradual effect upon the spirits of Mr. Astor. He was
sitting one gloomy evening by his window, revolving over the loss of
the Tonquin and the fate of her unfortunate crew, and fearing that
some equally tragical calamity might have befallen the adventurers
across the mountains, when the evening newspaper was brought to him.
The first paragraph that caught his eye, announced the arrival of
Mr. Stuart and his party at St. Louis, with intelligence that Mr.
Hunt and his companions had effected their perilous expedition to
the mouth of the Columbia. This was a gleam of sunshine that for a
time dispelled every cloud, and he now looked forward with sanguine
hope to the accomplishment of all his plans.
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Astoria; Or Anecdotes Of An Enterprise Beyond The