Kon te UE a 28 The Fraser River Mines. FP a a ate ay AS Seeds On second thoughts, and comparing dates, I think that I shall be able to return to Langley if necessary by the 31st inst., and therefore shall for the present, at all events, leave things as they stand.—M. B. B. Fort YALE, 18th Jany, 1859. Dear GoverNor,—I have only time to write a few hurried lines to give you the smallest account of a great meeting held here by the Hill’s Bar men calling themselves “ citizens of Fort Yale”. But of the last there were about 6 and about 200 from the bar.2t A deputation of 3 asked Col. Moody and myself to attend: we had not any notion of it previously, but went down directly, accompanied by Whannell and ultimately by Captn. Grant, The proceedings commenced with three cheers for the Governor: then an address was read with a good many epithets, pitching heavily into Whannell. This Coll. Moody very properly stopped and requested that the reader of the address wod. omit epithets. This produced a very bald reading: and I took the liberty of suggesting a short adjournment in order to re-draw the resolutions with an eye to the adjectives. This done the address was read: I have not got a copy: the purport was an expression of confidence in the British Law, confidence in British administration, an offer of assistance if necessary to maintain that law, and an impeachment of sundry misdeeds of Captn. Whannell’s. The address was received in solemn silence by Coll. Moody as to anything contained in it: he merely gave answer that his ear and his heart were open. In answer, however, to a previous very excellent (but superla- tively humbugging) address from a red-shirted miner named Wilson,?® both Coll. Moody and myself had given a few words, not above 5 minutes apiece, expressive of the general intention of the Gov’t to carry out the laws without fear or favour: And in conversation with Wilson and a very fine young fellow, not more than 21 or 22, who has already the distinction of being Ned McGowan’s lieutenant, we had both impressed them with the fact that His Excellency could make no answer to the address: that the mere fact of our presence here, in such weather, our proceeding to action, and quite alone (in the first instance) shewed our resolution to examine into matters, and that, whatever might be the particular terms of the address, the line of action ultimately adopted wod be utterly irrespective of their views or sentiments and wod be guided solely by facts. There was also, I must tell you, for at last I (24) Hill’s Bar. (25) Possibly the same Wilson as he mentions in his letter of February 3, 1859, post, p. 38.