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Show APPENDIX TO PART II.· or eit?,·hty yards wide, we marched a whole day before we reached the waters of the Kanses, and wert agreeably surprised to find omselves on the bank of a bold running stream. Between this and the village of the Pawnees, we crossed two strongly impregnated salines, which passed over a sandy country, almost destitute of herhap;e, and aftct· a painful march, under an oppressive sun, over an irregular and broken sm·face we arrived at the town of the Republican P·awnees on the 25th of September. We (the day before) were met by a numbet· of warriors, whom curiosity had led thns far to f'ee us, among whom was the third consequential charac· ter of the r epublican pa1·ty; for you must know that the village is composed of the followers of a diss .t ti ~ ficd warrior, who first ma~le this establishment, and the adherents of a regular chief of the Grand Pawnees, who migrated thither some few years since with }1is family, and usurped the power of the re-publican warrior To such a pitch docs this party spirit prevail that you easily perceive the hostility which exists between the adherents of the two chiefs. Early on the morning of the 25th we were joined by a few mol'O savages of distinction, headed by the brothc1· of Chm·acteri8h, or the Trhitr: TtVoif, chief of the nation, who was to act as master of the ceremonies to our fol'mal entry. }'rcparatory to our march, we had our men equipped as neatly as cil'cumstanccs would admit. About mid-day we !'Cached the summit of a lofty chain of ridges, whct·c we were requested to halt and wait the arrival of the chief, who was l1alf a mile from us, with three hundred hot'scmen, who were generally naked (except buffalo robes and bt·cech clotl1s) and painted with white, yellow, blue, and black clay. At the word of the chief the warriors divided, and pushing on at full speed, flanked us on the right and left, yelling in a most diabolical manne1·. The chief advanced in front, accompanied by Iskatajtjle or the Rich .ftlm:, the second ~reat personage of the village, and his two sons, who were clothed in scarlet cloth. They appl'Oached slowly, and when within a hundred yards, the three latter halted, and Characterish advanced in great state, and when within a few paces of us, stretched out his hand and cried "Bon j our." Thus endecl the first ceremony. 'Vc moved on about a mile farther, and having gained the summit of <I considerable hill, we discovered the village directly at its base. vV c here were again halted , and the few Osages who accompanied us vcrc ordered in front and seated in rank entit·e. The chief squatted on his hams in f1·ont of them and filled a calumet, which several (liffcrent Indians took from him, and handed the Osages to smoke. l'hjc.; "~" rallcfl th~ hm·se-smokc, as each person who took the pipe APPENDIX TO PART' II. from the chief intended presenting- the Osag-es a horse. l\1r. Pike and Dr·. Robinson aftenvarc1s accompanied the chi ·f to his lodge, and I moved on with the detachment and formed ou1· camp on the opposite bank of the r epublican fork of the Kanses ri\'cr, on a commanding hill, which had been selected as the most favorable sittmtion for making obset·v<aions, though very inconvenient on account of wood and wuter, which we had to transport nearly a quarter of a mile. At a council held some few day!' aftet· our arrival, lieutenant Pike explained to them the diffcr·ence of t heir present situation, and that of a few years past; thJt now they must look up to the IH'csident of the United States as their great father, and that he had been sent by him to asm·e them of his good \\'ishcs, &c. &c.; th<ll he perceived a Spanish flag fl ying at the council lodge door, and was anxi· ous to exchange one of th eir gTeat father's fo1· it, and that it was out' intention to pt·oceed on fmthcr to the westward, to examine this out• newly acqui!·ed country. To this a singulat· and extraordinary response was given-in fact, an objection, started in direct opposition to om p1·oceeding furth er to the west; however they g~\\'e up the Spanish flag, and we had the pleasure to sec the American standard hoisted in its stcud. At the same council Characterish observed that a large body of Spaniards had lately been at his village, ami that they promised to return and build a town adjeining his. The Spanish chief, he said·, mentioned that he was not empowered to council with him ; that he came merely to bt·eak the road fot· his master, who would visit him in the spring with a large army, and that he further told him the Americans were a little people, bnt were enterprisin~;, and one of those days would stretch themselves even to his town, and that they took the lands of Indians and would drive off their game ; and how very true, says Characterish, has the Spanish chieftain spoken! \Ve demanded to pmchase a few horses, which was prohibited us, and the friendly communication which had existed between the town and out· camp was stopped. The conduct of our ncighbour·s assumed a my.sterious change; our guards were sevcr<li times alarmed, and tinally appearances became s<:> menacing as to make it necessary for us to be on our guard clay and nig-ht. lt was obvious that the body of Spaniar·ds who preceded us but a few weeks in thcit· mission to this villa~c, \\ er·c the regular oavalry and infantry of the ptovince of Santa Fcc, as they h.1d formed their camps in regular ot·clcr, and we were informed they kept regular gHarcls, and that the bents of their drum were uniform morning-t 2 |