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Show CIJAl''rElt V HL DJffi~:-uJty Of pl oC\11 Jil l; nl CI\ 115 o!" sub si~ ICJI C'(' £m· t.I1C' pat t.r-thcy <lclCI'll\ille (u rc~um c tlwir journc · to the- mountains - they lt'liH' in the h:mlls of the In din us n "•·itt ('ll mcmnrn•Hhlln, in•porliug their h :l\ iu~; p euctt·:tle\1 to the p11• cifi<·, through th • rout•· of th~· )\li!lsouri ami Columhin, null tlu·ough the Hocky mountains-the v nrl) omnH' nc·c tl•t•ir return •·outc-dcxtcrity of the Cntlt lamnh lndiu11s iu ,•:u·viug-dcscri ption of the Cowcliskcc river-they C\ · {lCJ•icnCC lll\ll'h hospitality fl'( Ill the llllliV C~ -!111 imt:lt\CC Of the C.\li'CIIlC YO n t•ity of the \Ulturc-lhc }11\rty :~rc vi~itc d hy mnny s tr~mgc l mlia11e, all of \I hom :\!' k ind 1111\1 ho!!pit.ahlc-SC!\l'C'ity of gn nu•, nud t'lllh~IITI\SSillCillS of th Jl:trty on that nccouut-<·nptnill l'larl c discOHTH :1 t.riLc unt Sl't'll in tlic dt'· Sc<' nt clown the Culumhia-singul :n· acl vf'uturc to obtain p•·ovisions from them - pat·ticular d c::~c• •·ip t iou or the l\Jultomuh village and rivcr-d ·sct·iption n( mount .J c O'crso n-~olliC' :t((:ouut IJy (' :tpl:~iu CIHke of the ccrt hokio trii.J..: , .md of lhl·ir architccturc-thcit· suflit rin g11 by the small-pox . l\{ANY t•cas-ons had dct.ct·mined us to remain at fort (.;lat s()p till the fiJ·st of A}wil. Jlcsides 111C want or fuel in Oar Columbian plains, aml the hnpr~tetieability of passing the mount a ins before tlac beginning ol' June, we wct·o anxious to sec some of the fol'eign traders, fl'o'm whom, hy means or our ample letters of Cl'mlit, we might have t·ccruited Olll' exhausted stor·es of merchandise. AlH>ut Ow middle or J\larch however, we bceome seriously alcumcd fot· the want or footl: the elk, our chief dependence, ha<l at lcugth descrtCfl thcil' usual haunts in out· ucighbuurhood, and rctrcatell to the mountains. \Vc wct·c too poo•· to pm·chasc other food f1·om ihe Indians, so that we wer·e sometimes reduced, notwith· standing all tho cxct·tions of our hunters, to a. single tlay's 1n·ovisiou itr'advancc. The men too, whom t h.c (lOnstnnt rains aml confinement h~ul l'CtHlr i·ccl unhcaltby. might we hoped be bcnciittcd hy leaving the eoast, an(lt·csmuing the exercise of travelling. 'Ve thcrofot·e determined to leave fort Cli)t sop, a.sccu<l the riycr slo,vlv, consume the month of • J~cwLs and Cllt1·1-oc's EJ.~lJRtliliou, f-Yr. ~0;~ 1\lar(·h in the woody conntl'y, whe1·c we hope to fiml suhsist < ·ucc, and in thi~ way J'Cach f he plains ahout C he fir·st of April, bcfot·e which time it will he impossihlc to attcmllt (•t•os,sing tlarm: fol' Clti ~ pm·posc we hr;;:1n om· prcpat·a.tions. Dm·ing the wintc1· we hall hc<'n V<.'l'J industt·ious in <h·cs~ in~ skins, so that we now had a sunit•ient tpaantify Hl' elnfhiug, l>csidcs ()ctWeCil thn~e and f'Olll' hlllldl't'tlp:lit• of lllOC(':tsins. But the whole stock or gooc.ls on wlai ·h we :LI'e to dt.'IJt'Hd, ('ithCl' fOl' the {)Ul'(~ hase ol' hOI'Se!i Ol' uf fooll, tlm·ing 1 he long tom• or UCal·ly fOUL' flwusand milt•s, i · SO mut•h tliminislacd, tlaat it might all be tit•d in two lmHtlkc•·chicfs. 'Ve have in fact nothing but six blm~ t·ohcs, one of ~cadet, a coat aml hat or th" U nited State~ a.t·tillrr·y unifcH·m, Jive I'Obcs mallo of out· hu·gc Hag, and a few old clofhr!.! trimmed with ribuml. \ Vc thc•·c1ot•c ft·<·l that om· chief' depcrulencc Jllll ·t he on our guns, which fol'tunatdy foa· us n1·c aH in goo(l order, as we had taken the pr·ccautiou or bt•in,t;iu~ a numfJcJ' of cxh·a. Jocks, and one of om· men proved to be an exccllcut ar· . t ist in that way. '!'he powdeJ' 11ad hccn sr.cm·etl in leaden canislct·s, anll though on many o.ccasion~ they had been undot• watca·, it rc~naincd l'ed 'c<·tly th·y, ami we uow found our" lClvcs in possc.'sion of one Jaundl'Cll and forty }lOumls of powder, aJHl twice that fJua.ntify of katl, a stock <JHitc suffi cient for the route homewards. Al'tc1· mueh tt·a:ffil!ldug, we at last sHcccctled in }llll'Chasiug a <mnoe l'oa· a unif'o&·m coat aJHI l1alf a carrot or tobacco, aml took a canoe ft·om the (;Jatsnps, a.s a. rrpl'isnl for l:>Omc elk which souae of f hem ha.tl stolen f1·om us in the wintcl'. 'Vc werc now rr~uly to leave f<u·t Clatsop, hut the l'aitl pl'Cvcntcd us l'or sevct·al days f't·om eaulldng the Cl:lllOCH, antl we WCI'C l'oreell to wait fo1· calm weather, before \V{: f'o ultl attempt fo pass point \ViJJhun. In tho nwantimc we were visited by many or uur nt·ighhom·~, fo1· f he Jllll'pose of ~aldng leave of us. 'L1Iw Clatsop ~ommowool has hccn the most kiml and hoSJlitahle or all the Indian II in this quarteJ•: we t.IH.'rd'twP ~nv•· ltim a <-rt·tifirntt" ()r flw l' intlnr"c; anll at |