Catholic theory, he was astonished to find that so much could be said in its support. He then determined to investigate the question between Catholics and Protestants thoroughly and procured all the works on both sides within his reach and examined them alternately side by side. At the end of about eighteen months, after what he considered an impartial and calm investigation, he became convinced in his own mind of the truth of what he called the "Catholic theory" and in June, 1846, at Oregon City joined the Catholic church. He afterwards, in an apparently proselytizing spirit and possibly also with a view of enlightening a benighted world and especially that part of it that belonged to his own profession, wrote a book entitled "The Path which led a Protestant Lawyer to the Catholic Church."

On July 25, 1845, a new system of government for Oregon, known as the "Organic Articles of Compact," was adopted by the people; and on August 18, 1845, Burnett was elected, by the house of representatives under the new system, judge of the supreme court. On June 15, 1846, a treaty was concluded between the United States and Great Britain by which the latter acknowledged the sovereignty of the former over all that part of what was then Oregon lying south of the forty-ninth parallel of north latitude; and on August 14, 1848, the congress of the United States organized the country into the territory of Oregon and gave it a territorial government, with regular and unquestionably legal executive, legislative and judicial departments. short time previous to the passage of the territorial act, Burnett. had been elected to the house of representatives; and on the day of the passage of the act President Polk appointed him one of the justices of the supreme court of the territory. But by this time the news of the discovery of gold at Coloma had reached Oregon; and Burnett resolved to resign his office, abandon Oregon at least for the time and seek his fortune in the gold fields of California. He immediately went out into the streets of Oregon City and began talking up an expedition; and he met with such success that he soon organized a company of one hundred and fifty stout, robust, energetic and sober men, with fifty wagons

1 Burnett's Recollections, 188-191.

A

and ox-teams, an ample supply of mining implements, and provisions for six months.'

Up to that time no wagons had crossed overland between Oregon and California; and it was deemed uncertain whether they could get through. But the advantages of having teams and thereby carrying large supplies were so obvious that it was deemed more than worth the risk to try. Burnett was elected captain of the party. He left his family in Oregon. Though alone, he provided a very complete outfit and for the purpose of carrying it he took two wagons and teams besides. two saddle horses. The company set out in October, 1848, and, traveling by the way of Goose Lake and Pit river, after some difficulty in getting over the mountains, arrived safely in the Sacramento valley, where it broke up and separated. Burnett and a few others proceeded to Sutter's Hock Farm on Feather river; thence to Nye's Ranch and from there to the mines at Long's Bar on the Yuba river, where they arrived on November 5, 1848. After a short experience at mining, at which he made about twenty dollars per day, he in December, 1848, proceeded to Sutter's Fort and there became the attorney and agent of John A. Sutter Jr. to whom John a Sutter Sr. had conveyed his New Helvetia grant of eleven square leagues in trust to pay debts. Burnett's agreement was to attend to all the legal and real-estate business for a compensation of one-fourth the gross receipts; and it appears that by the middle of August, 1849, he had paid all Sutter's debts and made a very handsome profit for himself."

In the meanwhile the question of a provisional government for California, in view of and on account of the failure of congress to provide a territorial organization, was, as has already been stated, agitated in all parts of the country. On August 27, 1848, Thomas H. Benton, United States senator from Missouri, who for various reasons took great interest in California, had published a letter addressed to its people declaring that the temporary civil and military government established over them as a right of war was at an end, and in effect advising them to form a government for themselves. In accordance with this

1 Burnett's Recollections, 193, 194, 228, 239, 253-255.

2 Burnett's Recollections, 255-294.

4 VOL. IV.

advice, as has also been stated, a number of public meetings, designed to further the calling of a convention to frame a provisional government, were called in different places. The first was held at San José on December 11, 1848. This was followed by meetings, with the same objects in view, at San Francisco on December 21 and 23. And the next were held at Sacramento on January 6 and 8, 1849. These last two meetings were presided over by Burnett. They all advocated the immediate calling of a convention in accordance with what was known as the Benton doctrine as opposed to the so-called Buchanan doctrine represented by the administration, which maintained that a valid de-facto government, presided over by Governor Mason and upon his resignation by Governor Riley, existed. But, as has been further shown, all these differences between opposing views were finally reconciled by Riley's calling, at the advice of Mason an election for delegates to a constitutional convention and the general acquiescence of the different parties in this exceedingly judicious plan for preserving order and securing a government.

At the election for delegates to the constitutional convention under the proclamation of Governor Riley, held on August 1, 1849, there was also an election for various temporary officers to carry on the civil government until a state organization could be effected. At this election Burnett was a candidate for the office of judge of the superior tribunal of justice from the district of Sonoma, Sacramento and San Joaquin, and he was chosen; but as a matter of fact no action of any importance was ever taken by the superior tribunal as then constituted; and in the following October Burnett resigned, having already announced himself a candidate for the office of governor of the state. In his candidacy he claimed and represented himself to be a Democrat, an out-and-out Democrat, a Democrat in the strictest sense of the word; and in 1849 and for a number of years afterwards the Democratic was the popular side. Though there were many Whigs in California most of the immigrants were or claimed to be Democrats. They were at least decidedly in favor of the Mexican war and of enjoying all its fruits; and, as that war, though not made a distinct issue between the two great political parties then dividing the country, was regarded more as a Demo

cratic than as a Whig measure, the great majority of them called themselves Democrats and voted the Democratic ticket. An incident, illustrating the general sentiment of the miners on this subject, occurred at a landing near Merritt's slough on the Sacramento river in April, 1849. Theodore T. Johnson, who had just arrived by sea from the east, was going up the river when he met a number of miners returning from the Yuba to San Francisco. Like Californians in general they were ready to enter into conversation and furnish all the information in their power in exchange for the latest news from the states. When informed of the election of General Taylor to the presidency, they evinced a strange mixture of satisfaction and chagrin— satisfaction at having a Mexican war hero and old Indian fighter at the head of the government, and chagrin that he had not been elected by the Democratic party. But they finally concluded that "it was mighty likely he would turn out a 'raal' Democrat at last;" in reply to which Johnson could not refrain from hinting his belief that Taylor would "turn out a good many 'raal' Democrats."

The first Democratic mass-meeting in California took place, as already mentioned, in San Francisco on Thursday evening, October 25, 1849. It was called to meet at Dennison's Exchange; but, as that place proved too small, the crowd moved over across Kearny street to Portsmouth Square. John W. Geary presided. William Van Voorhies, after a few remarks on the condition of affairs in California and the advantage of effecting an organization of the Democratic party in view of the approaching elections, presented an address to the people and a preamble and resolutions, which were unanimously adopted and twenty thousand copies ordered to be printed for circulation. The preamble and resolutions, which embodied the scope and spirit of the meeting, set forth that the Democratic citizens of San Francisco felt a natural and deep interest in the general welfare of the country; that there were certain great cardinal principles, handed down by the framers of the charter of American liberties, which ought always to be observed; that a "union of Californians for the sake of California" was well, but a "union of Californians for 'Johnson's California and Oregon, 116.

the sake of California and the Union" was better; that in the selection of senators and representatives to the congress of the United States vigilant care should be taken to guard against misrepresenting the views and opinions of the people in reference to measures affecting the Union; that all attempts to place California in a mere local, sectional or false position before or in respect to the Union should be met at the threshold and defeated; that partyism for the mere sake of party should be totally repudiated and rejected; that principles having for their object the preservation of the constitution inviolate, resistance to and defeat of powerful and chartered monopolies, opposition to enactments intended to benefit the few at the expense of the many, and zealous advocacy of a policy which would preserve the honor of the country when menaċed, punish the offender when its rights were invaded and ever look forward to an honorable extension of the area of freedom, should be ardently supported; that no man ought to be elevated to a position of trust or confidence who voted that the Mexican war was unholy, iniquitous, unnecessary or unjust in its inception, or who by his political connections or otherwise directly or indirectly denounced it as wicked or murderous in its prosecution; that no man ought to be advanced to public station who refused or would have refused to vote supplies "for our gallant little army who gloriously engaged in grappling with the enemies of its country upon the ensanguined fields of Mexico," and that the meeting was "for our country first, our country last, and our country all the time; not a section, not a circumscribed locality, not a limited interest; but the whole country."

Speeches were made by Charles T. Botts, Edmund Randolph and others; and at the end of the meeting, on motion the chair appointed a nominating committee of eleven persons to present the names of candidates for state offices to be voted for at the approaching election. Among those appointed on this nominating committee were Stephen R. Harris, Charles L. Scott, Edmund Randolph and Frederick P. Tracy; and they were to report at an adjourned meeting to be held at the same place on Saturday evening, October 27, 1849. At the adjourned meeting Harris presented the report of the committee in the