SATURDAY, AUGUST rs, 1sll.
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occurred between individual traders of
the lakes and those of the Hudson's Bay
Company, as well as to systemize the fur
trade, and to balance the power of the
last-namcd corporation. Its members
were comprised of the principal merchants
OF Montreal, who had before been engaged
IN the fur trade round the lakes. This
company did not secure u charter, but
constituted themselves into a commercial
partnership. 1t consisted of shares une-
quaIly divided among individual stock
holders, some of whom were engaged in
the importation of goods necessary to car
ry on the trade, in the supply of capital,
and in the expectation of the proceeds
and others who were employed in actual
trade at the interior posts and among the
Indians. The shares of this company
were gradually increased as new appli-
cants for the stock appeared. The agents
of the company went annually to Detroit,
Mackinaw, st Mary, and the grand por-
tage, where they received their furs, and
forwarded them to Montreal. The arti-
cles for the trade consisted of woollen and
cotton goods, hardware, cutlery, and all
those ornaments which were required by
the Indians, as well as in the market of
Montreal. These goods were annually
shipped from London about the first of
May, made up into the proper kinds OF
clothing, and in the winter they were
bartered for furs and peltry, which during
the next fall were shipped to London.
The food which they used was of coarse
kind. The partners Of the company, the
Interpreters, clerks, guides, and all in Of
flee, were allowed more palatable pro-
vision but the canoe-men, or voyagers,
had nothing better than fat, and ground
Indian corn boiled, which they called
Nominee"


The two companies thus embarked as
rivals in the fur trade, were actuated by
the motives of rivals. The Hudson's Bay
Company, which had exercised SUI
preme dominion over the frozen wilder
ness Of the north, and had enthroncd it.
self in solitary despotism at Rockfort, soon
found a new company advancing upon
their domain, and the rivalry of the two
companies soon gave rise to violent out
breaks, though they confined themselves
within different chartered limits. The
Northwest Company stretched its arms
over the northwestern lakes, aided by
Canadians, hali-brcedS, voyaScrs, and In
dians, as well as by Scotch agents, occu-
pying the posts which had formerly be-
Ionged to the French along the line OF
the Great Lakes and the Mississippi; and
in two years after its first establishment,
it had advanced its posts as far as Atha-
basca Lake, eight hundred miles beyond
Lake Superior.


by the treaty of Ghent, made between
Great Britain and this country, it was
provided that all posts taken during the
war should be restored, and in accordance
with this clause, the Americans, in lSl4
demanded the restitution Of Astoria as one
of these posts, which was denied. On
the 4th October, 1917, the sloop of wal
| Ontario, under the command OF Captain
BiddIe, sailed from New York for the Pa
cifc, in order to take possession of the
post, which was finally yielded up with
out bloodshed to the commissioner, MI