A History of Oregon, 1792-1849: Drawn From Personal Observation and Authentic InformationGray, W. H. (William Henry)
History
A History of Oregon, 1792-1849: Drawn From Personal Observation and Authentic Information
Gray, W. H. (William Henry)
Frontier and pioneer life -- Oregon; Oregon Territory -- History
If there was any law to punish a fraud attempted to be committed by a
foreign company upon a friendly nation, this would be a plain case; as
the Hudson's Bay Company, they claim $3,822,036.37; as the Puget Sound
Company, $1,168,000. The original stock of the Hudson's Bay Company was
£10,500, or $50,820. In 1690 the dividends upon this capital invested
were so enormous that the company voted to treble their stock, which was
declared to be £31,500, or $152,460. In 1720 the capital was again
declared trebled, and to be £94,500, or $457,380, while the only amount
paid was £10,500, or $50,820. It was then proposed to add three times
as much to its capital stock by subscription; each subscriber paying
£100 was to receive £300 of stock, so that the nominal stock should
amount to £378,000, or $1,820,520--the real additional sum subscribed
being £94,500, and the amount of real stock added or paid but £3,150. In
1821, the Hudson's Bay Company and Northwest Company, of Montreal, were
united. The Hudson's Bay Company called £100 on each share of its stock,
thus raising it nominally to £200,000, or $958,000. The Northwest
Company called theirs the same. The two companies combined held a
nominal joint stock of £400,000, or $1,916,000, while we have reason to
suppose that the original stock of the two companies, admitting that the
Northwest French Company had an equal amount of original capital
invested, would give £37,300, or $135,134, as the capital upon which
they have drawn from our country never less than ten per cent. per
annum, even when counted at £400,000, or $1,916,000; and what, we would
ask, has America received in return for this enormous drain of her
wealth and substance?
Have the Indians in any part of the vast country occupied by that
company been civilized or bettered in their condition? Have the
settlements under their fostering care been successful and prosperous?
Have they done any thing to improve any portion of the country they have
occupied, any further than such improvements were necessary to increase
the profits of their fur trade?
To every one of these questions we say, emphatically, No, not in a
single instance. On the contrary, they have used their privileges solely
to draw all the wealth they could from the country, and leave as little
as was possible in return.
The British author, from whose book we have drawn our figures of that
company's stock, says of them: "To say, then, that the trade of this
country (England) has been fostered and extended by the monopoly enjoyed
by the company, is exactly contrary to the truth."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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