History of the expedition under the command of Captains Lewis and Clark, to the sources of the Missouri, thence across the Rocky mountains and down the River Columbia to the Pacific Ocean : performed during the years 1804-5-6 by order of the government of the United States; Volume 2

Page 142

ing bMween H1c bills and the norHH'rn shore of the rivel·, J.a•l a difficult and fatiguing march over a road altcl'nately ~andy and rocky. At tbe distanee of four miles, we came (C) {our huts of the Metcowwce tl'ibc, two miles furthet• the same numb~t· or buts, nnd ~tftcr makiug twchc miles ft'om om· last night's camp, halted llt a larger village ol' five buts of Metcowwet~s. As we came along many of tlJC na1 ivcs p:tsscd aml re­passed without maliing any a(l\ranccs to converse, thougll they bchavccl with distant respect. \Ve obsrrve(l in our route no animah except the killdrer, the brown lizard. and a moonax, which the people had domesticated as a favom·­itf'. :Most of the m~n complain of a soren<'SS in their feet and lc~s. occasioned hy ,,·alk.ing OR t·ou~h storH's and deep snntls, ~tfter being accustonwd fen· sonw months past to a soft soil. ,,. c t hct·cf'ot•c ddct·mirw•l lu t•cmain hcl'c tltis evcuing. and J'ot· this JHII'IJOSC bourht t hl'cC dogs and some chapc.•lel1, which we cooked with c1ry t.:;rass and willow bonJ;h!S. The want of wood is a Kc.~ l'ious itwonvcnicnce, on ac·count of the coolness or the~ n if;hts, particuJ:uly wJ.aen the wind set~;; fl'om mount llood. ot· in auy wcst{'l'O direction: those winds heing much colder than the winds f1·om the Rocky mountains. rrhet·c aa·c no dews in the I•lains, and fs·om the ~a.ppmuance, we pa·esu m<'. that no t•ain has l'allott for several w{·~ks. Dy nine o'dock the following mot·ning, F1·iclay 25, we colll'cted out• hot·ses and lH'OCet•ded eleven miles to a ltu·gc village of fil'ty-one mat houses, wlu.wc we }lUl'ch~secl some wood ami a few dogs, on which we made out· dinnca·. Tho village contained about seven hundt·cd j>t'J'sons of a tribe called llisbquitJJilb, whose l'CSidenCt) on the river is only dut·ing the fllH'ing and summer, the autumn and win­ter being passed in hunting through the Jtlains, and along the IJot'clet·s of the mountains. The g•'catct· part of them were at a distance f•·om the •·ivel' as we descended, aml no­v~ r having seen white meo before, they Hocked a·ound us in gr·eat ~umbers; but al\oough t)Jey were exceedingly curiou~ IJp lite .MiSSOU1'i. they ta·eatctJ us with f.;I'Cat r·t•spt•<·t. ~nul we•·c vory urgent that we should s1umd tlef" night with tlwm. Two principal chid's wt:·re pointed out by ou•· Chopunnish companion, ami admowlcdgc.·d by tht:• tribe, and we therefore.· invested each of tlwm with a small medal. 'Ve wcr·e also very desirous of pul'dmsing more hors••s; but as out· principal stock of mer-. ~h:wdise t·onsists or a c.li1·k. a swoa·d. and a few old clotheil. the Indians could not be induced to ta·allio with us. 'J'hc Pishquitpabs a•·c gone rally of a good stature and pl'opot•tion, and as the heads of m.·ithtw malrs no•· females ar·c !SO muct.. tlaUened as those lower clown the rivet•. th..dr f,·ahu·cs at•t.: rathet'}>leasant. 'l'hc hait· is braidt.~d in tho- mannct· pt•ac­tiscd by tht•it· western neighbours; but the gtmct•ality of th~ Jnt.'n a&·c d•·estwd io a large rolJc, umlet· which is a shirt reaching to the knees, wht.wc it is met by long leggings, aud the t't~ct em•ercd with moccasins: others. howovt·r, w~a•· only the tt·uss and robe. As they unite the occupations of bunt· ing and fishing life, both sexes ride vea•y dexterously, theit• oalHu·ison being a saddle ot .. pad of dressed skin, stullcd with goats' hait·, a.nd f1•om which wooden stil'I'U()S are sus .. pended; ami a bait• rope tied at bo~h ends to the undct• jaw of the animal. 'rhc horses, however·, though good, sutfcr much, as clo in fact alllndian hoa·ses, from sor·c baeks. I~'inding them not flisposed to bat·tct· with us, we Jel'l the Pisht]uit.pahs at foul' o'clock, accomJmnird by eighteen ot· twenty of their )' Oun~ men on ho•·sclmek. At tlae di!)htuce of four mile~:~, we J>aSS· Pd, without haltiug, five houses belonging to the \VoJJawol­l ahs; aud five miles ful'thcr, ollsei'Viug as many willows a8 would &UlSW(>I' the l)UI'}WSC of making fis·es, availed ourMeJve ol' the cia·eu41tstunce, by enca.mpiug neal' t!Jem. 'l'he coun- 1 ry lhrough which we pass~d boa·c th~ same appeat•ance as t.hat of yes.tua·day. The hills on both sides of the river are about two hundl'ed &Uld fifty feet high, gene1·ally abrupt and CI'«Lggy, ami io many ()lac•~s IH'Csenl iug u p~•·pcndiculu.•· face Gf ol~ck, fuu·d, aud iOlid l'Ot.:k. lft'OUl the W" of tlaes~ hilJi,