1. I'm reading "Astoria" by Peter Stark, about the Pacific fur trade in the 1810s. Part of the story involves a naval officer named Jonathan Thorn. I found the lessons of this episode interesting and possibly quite timely. amazon.com/Astoria-Jeffer…
2. Thorn fought in America's first naval war with the Barbary States of North Africa. He participated in Stephen Decatur's daring raids to destroy a captured US frigate and sail gunboats right into Tripoli's harbor.
3. Thorn emerged from the war as a naval hero, with a reputation as a bold and fearless combatant. This fame brought him to the attention of America's up-and-coming richest man, John Jacob Astor, whose initial wealth was founded on the lucrative transcontinental fur trade.
4. Astor had a plan to set up a trading post at the mouth of the Columbia River (in Oregon), in order to tap an entirely new fur-trapping region, trade with China, and secure the Pacific Coast for the US to boot.
5. Astor sent two expeditions to set up the post, one by land, the other by sea around South America. To lead the latter, he hired the renowned Captain Thorn.
6. From the very start of the voyage, Thorn's combative nature clashed with the company fur traders he had on board. They found him short-tempered and imperious.
7. But the incident that led to disaster happened soon after the expedition had successfully set up a trading post in Oregon, and Thorn set sail up the coast to trade for sea otter furs with the local inhabitants.
8. The first British and American ships to reach the Pacific Northwest had been astounded at the low prices they could buy furs from the local Native Americans, which they could turn around and sell in China for 100x their purchase price.
9. But as more ships showed up to get in on the deal, the locals noticed the rising demand and raised their prices. This had led to a number of clashes, and rising bitterness.
10. Astor, who had lengthy experience trading with Native American tribes, specifically cautioned Captain Thorn to exercise both patience and vigilance in dealing with them.
11. In reality, Thorn was deeply contemptuous and dismissive of the local inhabitants, which he viewed as savages.
12. To the contrary, the native inhabitants of the Pacific Northwest were, for their time, fairly wealthy and complex societies, ruled by powerful chiefs who commanded fleets of large sea-going war canoes.
13. When Thorn arrived, an older chief brought up his canoe and climbed aboard Thorn's ship with some furs to sell. He stated a price, Thorn stated a much lower one, and the chief began to vigorously haggle with him, as tradition dictated.
14. Thorn was not a haggler. He grew angry, shouted "Damn your eyes!", grabbed the fur the chief was holding, and rubbed it in his face. He then ordered the humiliated chief removed from his ship.
15. The traders accompanying Thorn were alarmed. They worried the insulted tribe might attack them. Thorn waved away their concerns. "You know nothing at all," he snorted, "They'll not be so saucy now."
16. The next day, the same chief, and others, returned. They appeared to timidly give in, and offered to trade their furs for the price Thorn had demanded. They were allowed on board and trading commenced.
17. While these trades were taking place, more and more natives arrived and climbed aboard Thorn's ship. Some of the Americans became alarmed, and warned Thorn it might be a trap.
18. Captain Thorn dismissed his companions' concerns, confident that he had taught the natives a lesson, and that with the guns and cannon he had, they wouldn't dare cause any trouble.
19. Suddenly, a war cry went up and the natives whipped out their weapons, giant war clubs. In just moments, they massacred Thorn and his crew, whose weapons had been left below.
20. A handful of crew members escaped, but were later captured and tortured to death. One last survivor blew up the ship's power magazine, destroying the ship and killing over a hundred Native Americans who had gathered onboard their prize.
21. But Astor's ship, which he had entrusted to Thorn, was lost, and its only survivor was a Native American translator who had taken refuge on shore during the attack, and lived to tell the tale.
22. At least two lessons I draw from this, which seem worth mentioning today.
23. First, the same brash, combative boldness which made Thorn a hero in one set of circumstances led to catastrophe in another. It was a huge asset, but could also be a huge liability.
24. Second, his contempt for his foes led him to arrogantly assume he had easily intimidated them, which made him let down his guard and walk into a trap where all the superior firepower he placed confidence in was no help.
25. Astor had made a costly misjudgment of character. He thought he was getting a bold hero who could command the situation. Instead, he got a brash fool who botched it and got everyone killed.
