aring for little more than the enjoyment of the present hour; a
motley population, half-civilized, half-barbarous, thrown, on his
canvas, into one general, confused (I allow highly _picturesque_) mass,
without respect of persons: but it is fair to say, with due homage to
the talent of the sketcher, who has verged slightly on caricature in the
use of that humor-loving pencil admired by all the world, that St. Louis
even then contained its noble, industrious, and I may say, princely
merchants; it could boast its _Chouteaus_, _Soulands_, _Cere_,
_Cheniers_, _Vallees_, and _La Croix_, with other kindred spirits, whose
descendants prove the worth of their sires by their own, and are now
among the leading business men, as their fathers were the pioneers, of
the flourishing St. Louis.

With these remarks, which I make simply as an act of justice in
connection with the general subject of the founding of "Astoria," but in
which I mean to convey no imputation on the intentional fairness of the
accomplished author to whom I have alluded, I take a respectful leave of
my readers.

APPENDIX.[AM]

In Chapter XVII. I promised the reader to give him an account of the
fate of some of the persons who left Astoria before, and after its sale
or transfer to the British. I will now redeem that pledge.

[Footnote AM: We have thought it best to give this Appendix, excepting
some abbreviations rendered necessary to avoid repetition of what has
been stated before, in Mr. Franchere's own words, particularly as a
specimen of his own English style may be justly interesting to the
reader.]

Messrs. Ramsay Crooks, R. M'Lelland, and Robert Stuart, after enduring
all sorts of fatigue, dangers and hair-breadth escapes with their
lives--all which have been so graphically described by Washington Irving
in his "Astoria," finally reached St. Louis and New York.

Mr. Clapp went to the Marquesas Islands, where he entered into the
service of his country in the capacity of Midshipman under Commodore
Porter--made his escape from there in company with Lieutenant Gamble of
the Marine corps, by directions of the Commodore, was captured by the
British, landed at Buenos Ayres, and finally reached New York.

D. M'Dougall, as a reward for betraying the trust reposed in him by Mr.
Astor, was made a Partner of the Northwest Company, crossed the
mountains, and died a miserable death at _Bas de la Riviere_, Winipeg.
Donald M'Kenzie, his coadjutor, went bac