acquainted with the customs, language, and manners of the whites, than the Indian, these savages would become much more formidable than they otherwise would, and long bloody wars would be the fruits of the comingling of the races. It is the principle of self preservation that justifies the actions of the Oregon legislature. Death and legacy While returning to Oregon via Panama, Thurston died of the effects of a tropical fever off Acapulco, Mexico while aboard the steamer California. According to a contemporary obituary: He died on the 9th [of April 1851] ... eight days from Panama ... His arduous labors at Washington had prepared his system for an attack of the malignant fever incident to the Isthmus, from the effects of which he had not recovered before experiencing a severe attack of diarrhea, which, together with an affection of the liver, under which he had sometime labored, terminated his earthly existence. Thurston's body was originally interred in Acapulco, but his remains were brought to Oregon two years later by an act of the Oregon Legislature. His body was reburied in the Salem Pioneer Cemetery in Salem. The inscription reads: "Here rests Oregon's first delegate, a man of genius and learning. A lawyer and statesman. His devotions equaled his wide philanthropy, his public acts are his best eulogium." Thurston County, Washington, originally part of the Oregon Territory and now home of Olympia the capital of Washington, was named in his honor. References External links Clatsop-Nehalem Tribes history 1816 births 1851 deaths 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century American politicians Bowdoin College alumni Burials at Salem Pioneer Cemetery Dartmouth College alumni Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from Oregon Territory Lawyers from Hillsboro, Oregon Members of the Provisional Government of Oregon Oregon Democrats Oregon pioneers People from Monmouth, Maine People from Peru, Maine People who died at sea Politicians from Hillsboro, Oregon