The party, beneath the guns of his fort, were at his
mercy; should an enemy appear in the offing, he could pack up the most
valuable part of the property and retire to some place of concealment,
or make off for the interior.
These considerations, however, had no weight with Mr. M'Dougal, or were
overruled by other motives. The terms of sale were lowered by him to the
standard fixed by Mr. Stuart, and an agreement executed on the 16th of
October, by which the furs and merchandise of all kinds in the country,
belonging to Mr. Astor, passed into the possession of the Northwest
Company at about a third of their value. * A safe passage through the
Northwest posts was guaranteed to such as did not choose to enter into
the service of that Company, and the amount of wages due to them was to
be deducted from the price paid for Astoria.
The conduct and motives of Mr. M'Dougal, throughout the whole of this
proceeding, have been strongly questioned by the other partners. He
has been accused of availing himself of a wrong construction of powers
vested in him at his own request, and of sacrificing the interests
of Mr. Astor to the Northwest Company, under the promise or hope of
advantage to himself.
He always insisted, however, that he made the best bargain for Mr.
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