who was cruising by order of the British government, to seek new discoveries.[1] Mr. Gray acquainted him with the one he had just made, and even gave him a copy of the chart he had drawn up. Vancouver, who had just driven off a colony of Spaniards established on the coast, under the command of Señor Quadra (England and Spain being then at war), despatched his first-lieutenant Broughton, who ascended the river in boats some one hundred and twenty or one hundred and fifty miles, took possession of the country in the name of his Britannic majesty, giving the {19} river the name of the Columbia, and to the bay where the American captain stopped, that of Gray's bay.[2] Since that period the country had been seldom visited (till 1811), and chiefly by American ships.
- ↑ Captain George Vancouver (born in 1758) entered the English navy at the age of thirteen. As midshipman he accompanied Cook in two voyages around the world. In 1780 Vancouver was promoted to a lieutenancy, and served with Rodney in the West Indies (1781-83). The "Discovery," Vancouver in command, was fitted out in 1790 for the purpose indicated by its name. The voyage in this vessel lasted until 1795, and had momentous consequences. Vancouver named the Northwest Coast of America "New Albion," and took possession of it for the British crown. Upon his return to England, he prepared the narrative of his voyage, which appeared in 1798, the year of the author's death.—Ed.
- ↑ It is incorrect to say that Vancouver drove off the Spaniards. Upon his departure from England (April 1, 1791), he had received instructions to take over the post at Nootka Sound in accordance with the diplomatic agreement between the governments of Great Britain and Spain. Señor Don Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra (Cuadra) had been sent on the part of the latter government to arrange the transfer. Owing to a dispute as to the meaning of treaty terms, the Spaniards were left in virtual possession of Nootka harbor until the final diplomatic adjustments in 1794. Lieutenant William Robert Broughton, after serving with Vancouver, and exploring the Columbia River as far as Point Vancouver (1792), returned to Europe with despatches via San Blas and Vera Cruz (1793). The following year he was made commander of the "Providence," and visited the same coasts only to find Vancouver departed. Broughton's vessel was lost on the coast of Formosa, but its crew was saved. In 1804 he published a history of this voyage. He served in the East Indies, 1810-12, retiring the latter year from the service, when he lived at Florence until his death in 1821.—Ed.
