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Show [ 17-! J 78 bl d.l 1·t·1011 to our stock of provisions. At this place I had determined stoo nma akce aa nuo ther attempt to des?end the p 1·a tte "u y wa,te, l., an d accor dm' gly s )ent two days iu the constructiOn of a bull boat. ~len we.rc sent out o.n II · a o[ ottr arriv·1l the uccessary number o{ bulls lnllcd, aud thea t 10 cveu111b ' L ' , f 1, , . 1 s kI. llS 1H Ol1 :a::> ]1t to tile. ra<1 11 11 • ~ onr of the best o t .be m I weif c strono y s.e wed toO'cther with btdfalo si11ew, and strdchec.l over a as wl ramo of willow. Tlb .• 111~ W<'rt' then covercu with ashes and tallow, and the boat lt•ft cx- 1 c ::;C<l , ' · • l } · l 1: · oscd to the un for tile greater part ol one <. ay, w 11c 1. was suluc1cnt to ~ry and co'n tract the skin, and make the whole work soltd am1 strong . . It had a rou11dcd bow, was eight feet long aud fiv~ broad, and drew Wlth four nwn about four inches water. Ou the mornltlg ?f tile 15th we embarked in onr hide boat, l\Tr. Preuss atH.l myself, wttl! two lllCil. We draocred her over the sauds for three or four nulcs, an~ then ~crt. her on a bar~~ud au;wdollcu etltlrcly t1ll fu rt her attempts to navtgatc tl.us nvcr. The names 6ivcn by the [ndiaus arc always rcma.rkably appropn~tc; anu ce~taiuty 1wnc was cv ·more so than tl.tat. ;~lucl~ tl~ey have. gtvcn .to t~llS stream-'' the N~bta ka, or Shallow nvcL \V~tlklllg stead ily the ~emam. der of the day, a. little befo re ?ark we ovcrt?ok ~ur pc?ple at thctr cv?ninO' camp, ahont twenty-one mtles below tlw Jl1TlCLLOn. l he. next monung • w~ crossed the Pl,tttc, aud contin ued onr way down the nvcr bottom on the left lwul< where we found au excellent plailtl y l>ca tell road. On the uHL we rcnclted Grand island, wlticb is 1lfly-two mile~ long, with an average breadth of one mile and tllrcc-qnurtcrs. ~~ha s 011 it some !:'mall eminencc.s and is suflkieutly elev ated to be ~ec urc from the anmutl floods of the riv~r. A~ has becu already remarked, it is wrll timbereu, with an excellent soil, aud recommends itself to uoticc as tlle !Jest point for a mili-tary position on the Lower Platte. . on· lhe 22d we a.rrived at tlte village of the Graud Pawnees, on the nght bank of the river: abont thirty miles above the moutl1 of the Loup fork. They wet-.~ gatherill 'r in their com, aud we obtained from them a. very wcl- . " come supply of vcgctabl<·s. The rnoruing of tlln ~H tl l we renchcd the Loup fork of the Platte .. At the place where we fo rued it, this ~· tream wa~ four ltlltHlred aud tlurty yards broaJ, with a swift enrreut of clear wa ter; in this respect, diffe.ring from the Platte, which Jws a yellow muddy color, derived from the limestone ~llcltll . trl forrrntion, of which we have previott ~ ly spoken. The ford was di!li cnlt, a tlte water was so deep that it c·une iuto the body of the carts, a11cl we roc. chct1thc opposite bauk after repeated attempts, ascc11ding and dcscelllli11g the bell of the river in order to avail ourselves of the bars. We e1wautpcu un tlte left bank of the fork, in the point of laud at itsj tU~C· tion with t111..: Platte. During the two days that we reutai11ed here lor astronomical observations, the bad weathrr permitted us to obtain but ~nc good observation for the latitude-a meridian altitude of the suu, wbtch gave for the latitnue of the month of the Loup fork, 11° 22' 11". Five or six dn.ys previously, I had sent forward C. Lambert, with two men, to lklkvuc, with Jircction~ to ask from Mr. P. Sarpy the gcutlelllan in charge ofth? American Company's estublishmcrtt tlt tlwt pl:.tcc, tile aid of hi carpen· ters m constructing a bout, in which I proposeu to descend the l\1issoun. On the afternoon of the 27th we met one of the meu, who ltad been despatched by ~r. arpy with a. welcome supply of pro vi. ions and a very kind not.e. whtch gave us the very gratifying iutelli()'encc that onr boat was in raptd progress. On tho evening of the 30th w~ encamped in an almost impeue· 79 [ 174 J trablc undergrowth on the left bauk of the Platte, in the point of laud at its confittetlce with the Mi. ouri-tbree hundred aucl fifte e11 miles, ::tccor<.lillg to our recko11 iug, frurn the junction of the forks, and ft ve hundred anJ twenty from Fort L nram ie. From the jtmction we lwd found the bed of the P latte occupit•(1 with n umcron · islauds, many of them very large, aud all wl'!l tillll>eJecl; po!:'.st'~'- 1.110' as well as the bottor:t htmls of the riv r, a very t':\('elleut soil. \Vtth bl the exc(~ption of ::-on10 ~cattered groves on till: lnuk.s, tile hott<Hl1~ are gen-erally witllont tiruber. A portiOn of these COIISist ur low grD lllldS, Cl>Vt'l'l:d with a profusio11 of fine g ru ~ ·es, and arc probtthly i11 111tdated itt tlte Sl1fi1q;; the reuwiuing part 1s high r tver prn.iri t·, e11tirely hL'YOild tl e inllttt' ll ·e of the flood·. The breauth of the river i · llsnally tllrl't' qtt itl'f( ·" ol' a lllill~, except wllere it is t' nl;u·ged by islauds. That pt.>r liott of lis cottr.se wltic•lt is oceupied by 0-ra.nd island hn.s an avemg1' brcadt11, fn>m sltnre ll) ...;lwrt', of two Ulld a half milt'S. The brt autlt of the va.llt•y, with the V.trl()ll"\ :\('cidents of gronuu-spriugs timber, and wltatcvcr I lm c thought illlel'L' ·t ing to traveller and s<>ttlcrs-yun will fiuJ iutliciltl'tl on the 1<\lgcr 11:ap which nccompa11ies this rep ort. October l.-1 rose tllis mortling long before dil yl1g ht , ,\.llll llr·:ntl wil!t. feeling of pleasure the tiu ldiug of cow bu lls at. tilL• s 'tll<'lllt'lll.' nn lltP nppo~ ite 8ide of tile lVlissouri. E arly i11 the cl :1y we n•achr:ul\1J. S Mpy':-~ residence; and, in the security and comfort nf l1i :-:; ltnspili' bl1~ lll ~lt.'IOJt , l'l' lt the pl asnre of beiug ao·ain withiu the pitle of civili r.; llion. \ \'1• fot lltd out boat 011 tile stl)ck-;; a few days sufllced to cnlliJ>I etl' Ill' I'; a ~,tl. i11 fltt• a(ternoou of the -lllt, we erubarked 011 the Misso nt i. All Olll' <'•l'lipngohor~ es, carts, a nd the materiel of the cantp-had hc·c·n :-:olcl :ll pttl, lit· :.\liC· tion at llJ ilev ue. The strength of my party cnilhkd tilt' ttl J•tall ti11• l1unl with ten oars, relieved every hour; and we descctHkd rapidly. E.tt I]• ott the momiug of the I Oth, Wt' halt •d to nmke scHttt! .\··l tt> ;IOlnic l oh-;t•t vations at the month of the Kansas, exactly fo11r lli•mths ~i11Cl' we lw.J left the trading post of l\1r. Cypria.n Clwutenu, 011 tit ,~ !:ialne 1 iv('r, It'll nti ks above. 011 our dcscettt to this plac ·,we l1ad etll pl.>) t·d uur elvt' . .' Hl ! ttrvcying and sl etching the Mi sou ri, ma ki11g a~t rol\o~ J nical oL" 1 v:tlio,,s rt•gularly at ui ~ ht and at midday, whenever the wt'a tl {:r pt·ruullt·ll. Tlt<'"t' operatinus un tl e ri ver were continued wtt il onr al'l i' al .11 tl11' city 11f St. Louis, Mi ~s() uri, on the 17th ; and will he ltHl tJ d, illll • .,Ji,·d \1 it'1 olll.~t tt'sults, on the map and iu the appendicP-s which :H l'•llltp.t 11)' il1i ... l'l'JHH I. At St. Louis, the sale of our reuuinill O' <> fl; ·cts 'V<t · Jll~t l< ·; .1 11d, lc11 vi ng tlt.tt city by steumboat 011 the 18tlt, I lmd tlw hollrH t11 r, 1 01 i In you nt til(' r tty of Washington on the 29th of October. Very respectfully, sir, your obedient servant, J. C. FHJ·~ '\ION' [\ 2d Lieu,/. Corps of 'i tJ;IO) J'tljlld( ol n 'lgilll'('I'S |