about nine hundred miles long and about six hundred miles wide. The principal River is the Columbia which is about 1500 miles long. He went to describe with nicety the several regions of the Western Country, its mountains &c. The valley of the Wallamette [Willamette] is represented as the finest country in the world, a perpetual grazing country, fertile soil &c. but Indian Corn cannot ripen the nights are so cold.
Coun. said there is a gentleman of his acquaintance in , Massachusetts, whose wife is a member of the church and who is captain of a trading vessel which trades to and from . He has had considerable conversation with this Captain several times. His principle business is to kill beef cattle for the hides, Tallow &c which he carry to the East. His place of trade is Monterey. He represents the inhabitants as being a mixture of Indians and [p. [138]]