RECONSIDERATION. 485

by the fur company's trappers, leading from the Mal- heur or Powder River across the mountains, by Mount Jefferson. Had no revelations been made subsequent to the legislative indorsement of what was supposed to be a sincere endeavor to benefit the colony, the cham- pionship of the Spectator would not be out of place.

But among the letters White carried was one by Lovejoy to the secretary of war anticipating White's success, and speaking of the discovery of a pass which was to save two or three hundred miles in distance of the worst portion of the emigrant road, besides avoid- ing" the dangers of the Snake and Columbia rivers, as a fact already accomplished, though the letter was written four days before the expedition started, and probably in the expectation that White would avail himself of the pass he meant to discover to shorten his own road to Washington. Instead of this, how- ever, Iiq was obliged to return and take the Columbia River route ; but he did not feel himself bound to sur- render the recommendations to the United States- government founded on his anticipated services to the coming immigration, and all subsequent ones. It began to be whispered that the expedition had been a fraudulent pretence, intended only to create a claim on the government, 23 and the report was rife that all the testimonials secured, either from the legislature or other persons in high positions, would be used to for- ward his designs upon the first office in the colony.

During the month occupied in the tour of the Willamette Valley, the memorial and organic law, as first prepared and signed, had been in the possession of White, the name of Speaker McCarver not having yet been attached to the latter, because he was opposed to the adoption of the amended organic law, which supplanted the laws of the legislature of 1844, of which he was a prominent member as well as speaker. On White's return, Applegate, wishing

29 White received from congress $48G.52.\ for his expenses on this explor- ing tour. Concise Vino, 05.