St. Clair and Wayne 371 



fended for them by the officers and troops of the 

 regular army. 



Civil government was speedily organized. St. 

 Clair and the judges formed the first legislature; in 

 theory they were only permitted to adopt laws al 

 ready in existence in the old States, but as a matter 

 of fact they tried any legislative experiments they 

 saw fit. St. Clair was an autocrat both by military 

 training and by political principles. He was a man 

 of rigid honor, and he guarded the interests of the 

 territory with jealous integrity, but he exercised 

 such a rigorous supervision Over the acts of his 

 subordinate colleagues, the judges, that he became 

 involved in wrangles at the very beginning of his 

 administration. To prevent the incoming of unau 

 thorized intruders, he issued a proclamation sum 

 moning all newly arrived persons to report at once 

 to the local commandants, and, with a view of keep 

 ing the game for the use of the actual settlers, and 

 also to prevent as far as possible fresh irritation 

 being given the Indians, he forbade all hunting in 

 the territory for hides or flesh save by the inhabi 

 tants proper. 19 Only an imperfect obedience was 

 rendered either proclamation. 



Thus the settlement of the Northwest was fairly 

 begun, on a system hitherto untried. The fates and 

 the careers of all the mighty States which yet lay 

 formless in the forest were in great measure deter 

 mined by what was at this time done. The nation 



19 Draper MSS. Wm. Clark Papers. Proclamation, Vin- 

 cennes, June 28, 1790. 



