1786 Vancouver's Isl
3Copied for Parlt
March 1849
Hudson's Bay House
September 13. 1848
My Lord
In the letter which I had the honour to address to Your Lordship under the date of the
* Page        of this
paper
*9th Instant, I confined myself to answering your communication of the 4th. I now beg leave to draw your Lordship's attention to your letter of the
4 See page 16 of Parl: Paps: Vancouver's Isld
No 619 — 1848
31st July,
5Ansd 27 Septr/48
in which you state that you would direct the draft of a commission and instructions for the Governor of the proposed settlement in Vancouver's Island to be prepared without delay and communicated to me, intimating at the same time that you would be glad to receiveManuscript image from me an expression of my opinion as to the person who may most properly be recommended to Her Majesty for the office of Governor.
In accordance with your Lordship's wish, I take the liberty of recommending Mr James Douglas, the gentleman whose Report on Vancouver's Island appears among the papers relating to that Island laid before Parliament.
Mr Douglas is a man of property, a Chief Factor of the Hudson's Bay Company, and a member of the Board at Fort Vancouver for Managing the Company's affairs in the country westward of the Rocky Mountains.
I do not propose this as a permanent appointment, but merely as a temporary expedient until the colony can afford to pay a Governor unconnected with the Hudson's Bay Company.
Manuscript image
I also beg leave to submit for your Lordship's consideration the names of the following gentlemen whom I think well qualified to hold commissions of the Peace under the Act of 1st and 2d Geo. 4th c. 66.
The Rev. Robert John Staines
Peter Skene Odgen
James Douglas
John Work
Archibald McKinlay
William Fraser Tolmie
James Murray Yale
Alexander Caulfield Anderson
Richard Grant
John Tod
Donald Manson
George Traill Allan
John Kennedy
Dugald McTavish
I have the honour to be
My Lord
Your Lordship's Obedient
humble Servant
JH Pelly
1The Right Honourable
The Earl Grey
&c &c &c
Minutes by CO staff
Manuscript image
 2 15/9/48
Mr Hawes
The Governor's Commission is already in draft. Those of the Justices will require some consideration in consequence of the special direction of the Act.
HM. S. 15.
Sepr 16. I should be sorry to see a confidential agent of the Cy made the first Governor
I see no objectn to it as a temporary arrangement — though I doubt whether the Co are aware that issuing a temporary commissn will of necessity be attended with some expense —
G. 17
Other documents included in the file
Manuscript image
Draft, Hawes to Pelly, 27 September 1848, advising that Grey had no objection to the temporary appointment of Douglas as governor.
Footnotes
  1. This addressee information appears at the foot of the first page of the despatch.
  2. Though no signature appears, it is most certainly Blackwood's hand.
  3. Author unknown.
  4. Author unknown; refers to a note made toward the bottom right margin of this page. See image scan.
  5. Text runs perpendicular to body text.
People in this document

Allan, George Traill

Anderson, Alexander Caulfield

Blackwood, Arthur Johnstone

Douglas, James

Grant, Richard

Grey, George

Grey, Henry George

Hawes, Benjamin

Kennedy, John Frederick

Mactavish, Dugald

Manson, Donald

McKinlay, Archibald M.

Merivale, Herman

Ogden, Peter Skeene

Pelly, John Henry

Staines, Robert John

Tod, John

Tolmie, William Fraser

Work, John

Yale, James Murray

Organizations in this document

Hudson's Bay Company

Places in this document

Fort Vancouver

The Rocky Mountains

Vancouver Island