Joseph Schafer

“ Mexico becomes the Spanish base in North America. It was natural that the colony planted in Mexico should become the center of new explorations. Cortez, ever on the lookout for opportunities of further conquest, sent his military expeditions toward the west and soon learned of a great ocean, which he rightly judged to be the same as Balboa's South Sea. ”

“ Finding the season too far advanced for the projected search for a passage to the Atlantic, Cook turned back to winter in the Sandwich Islands, where he lost his life in February, 1779.
Their historical significance. Cook was not the discoverer of the Northwest coast. But, while he came after the Spanish navigators in time and while he left much for others to do, he yet made the first extended scientific surveys in that region and in effect gave to the world its first definite information concerning the contour of western North America from the latitude of California to Cape Prince of Wales. ”

“ The line of communication from the Rocky Mountains by way of Lake Winnipeg and Nelson River to Hudson Bay was so much shorter than the line which ran to Montreal that Hudson Bay at the mouth of Nelson River should be regarded as the proper place for the trade emporium on the Atlantic side. "But," says Mackenzie, "whatever course may be taken from the Atlantic, the Columbia is the line of communication from the Pacific Ocean, pointed out by nature, as it is the only navigable river in the whole extent of Vancouver's minute survey of that coast ”

“ Spaniards forced to become expansionists and explorers. Their plan was, first: to plant colonies and build forts at San Diego and Monterey harbours, as Vizcaino had recommended in 1603. Second, the entire region of Upper California was to be brought under Spanish rule. Third, they were to undertake explorations by sea, to the vicinity of the Russian settlements in order to fix the Spanish claim more firmly upon the northwest coast of America. ”

“ The American interest In the Northwest Coast trade possibly sprang also from the reports of Cook's voyage. John Ledyard of Hartford, Connecticut, was a corporal on Cook's flagship. In 1783 Ledyard returned to the United States and promptly published a small volume giving an account of Cook's voyage. He had been so deeply impressed with the chance for gain in a fur trade between the Northwest Coast and Canton that he laboured inces 1 Such a map was executed by Peter Pond, agent of the Northwest Company, or as it then was the Frobisher Brothers of Montreal, and sent to the government in 1785. ”

“ The government should seek that passage, and having found it should establish naval stations in the North Pacific, say near California, and in the South Pacific, say at the Isle of Easter. From these stations as centres, explorations should be made throughout the great ocean, north and south. He believed there were thousands of islands, perhaps continents, still to be found there and these were doubtless peopled with tribes waiting to be supplied with British goods. ”

“ Vancouver explores the Columbia. Vancouver learned from Gray about the new discovery, and in October he sent Lieutenant Broughton into the river with the ship Chatham. Broughton ascended to the first rapids, about one hundred miles from the bar, whereas Gray had sailed up only some thirty miles.
iThe traders found that the largest profits came from the trade with Indians who had never before seen white men. The Americans in one case secured furs vallied at several hundred dollars for an old chisel! Hence profitable trade was dependent on new explorations. ”

“ Harsh treatment of British traders and the forcible seizure by Don Martinez, the Spanish commander, of several British owned vessels at Nootka precipitated the quarrel which at one time seemed to foreshadow war. Finally, the two nations reached an agreement called the Nootka Convention which records a complete triumph for Britain. ”

“ Its influence upon Spain. Nevertheless, by showing them how insecure were their western coasts and how unprotected their rich trade between the Philippine Islands and Mexico Drake's voyage incited the Spaniards to undertake explorations having a defensive object. The plan was to explore minutely the coast of Upper California, and establish forts at two good harbours which were to be refitting stations for the ships from Manila when they arrived after the terrible buffetings of the long voyage across the Pacific. ”

“ In 1741 Bering and Tchirikoff discovered Alaska and a number of the islands of Bering Sea. Thereafter the Russians began the trade in furs which soon carried them from Kamchatka to the Alaska coast and thence southward toward California and Mexico. ”

“ Mackenzie's plan for consolidating the British North American fur trade. Mackenzie proposed that the Hudson Bay Company and Northwest Company should unite in a single organization to control the fur trade of North America from the parallel of 45° to the pole. ”

“ He coasted along the shore for some distance, gathered gold and pearls from the natives, and returned to Darien to meet death at the hands of political enemies. About six years later two other Spaniards explored northwestward from Panama as far as the Gulf of Fonseca, discovering Lake Nicaragua. ”