1670 was legally
unassailable, the earl was now ready for his subsequent line of action.
He had resolved to get a foothold in the company itself. To effect
this object he brought his own capital into play, and sought at the
same time the aid of his wife's relatives, the Wedderburn-Colviles, and
of other personal friends. Shares in the company had depreciated in
value, and the owners, in many {31} cases, were jubilant at the chance
of getting them off their hands. Selkirk and his friends did not stop
buying until they had acquired about one-third of the company's total
stock.

In the meantime the Nor'westers scented trouble ahead. As soon as Lord
Selkirk had completed his purchase of Hudson's Bay stock, he began to
make overtures to the company's shareholders to be allowed to plant a
colony in the territories assigned to them by their royal charter. To
the Nor'westers this proposition was anathema. They argued that if a
permanent settlement was established in the fur country, the
fur-bearing animals would be driven out, and their trade ruined. Their
alarm grew apace. In May 1811 a general court of the Hudson's Bay
Company, which had been adjourned, was on the point of reassembling.
The London agents of the North-West Company decided to act at once.
Forty-eight hours before the general court opened three of their number
bought up a quantity of Hudson's Bay stock. One of these purchasers
was the redoubtable explorer, Sir Alexander Mackenzie.

Straightway there ensued one of the liveliest sessions that ever
occurred in a general court of the Hudson's Bay Company. The {32}
Nor'westers, who now had a right to voice their opinions, fumed and
haggled. Other share holders flared into vigorous protest as the Earl
of Selkirk's plan was disclosed. In the midst of the clash of
interests, however, the earl's following stated his proposal
succinctly. They said that Selkirk wished to secure a tract of fertile
territory within the borders of Rupert's Land, for purposes of
colonization. Preferably, this should lie in the region of the Red
River, which ran northward towards Hudson Bay. At his own expense
Selkirk would people this tract within a given period, foster the early
efforts of its settlers, and appease the claims of the Indian tribes
that inhabited the territory. He promised, moreover, to help to supply
the Hudson's Bay Company with labourers for its work.

Had Lord Selkirk been present to view the animated th