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Show :J08 J~ewis aud Cla1'ke·s Expedition camped in t1Je centre of one on the south, having mado twenty-one miles. Here we found a small grove of thenarrow- leafed cottonwood, there being no longrr any of the broad-leafed kind since we rntercd the mountains. The water of these rivulets \lllich eomc down from the mountains is vet·y colc.J, {>Urc, and well tt1.stcd. Along their banl~.s as well as on the ~Missouri the aspen is very common, but of a small kiud. '!'he river is somewhat wider tlmn we found it yesterday; the l•iHs more distant ft·om the river and not so high: there arc some pines on the mountains, but they are pr·incipally confined to the UJlpcr r~gions of them: the low grounds are still nart·ower and have Httle or no timber. The soil ncar the river is good, ami Jlroduces a luxuriant gt·owtb of grass aud weeds: among these productions the sunflower holds a very distinguished place. For several days }last we haYc observed a species of flax in the low grounds, the leaf-stem and Jlel'icarp of which resemble those of the flax commonly cultivated in the United ~tatcs: the stem rises to the height of two and a half or three feet, and spring to the number of ciglat or ten ft·om the same root, 'vith a strong thick bark apparently well calculated fbt· use: the root seems to be perennial, and it is proiJaule t]aat tho cutting of the stems may not at all injure it, for aHl10ugh the seeds at•e not yet ripr, there at·e young suckers shooting up ft•om the root, whence we may infer that the stems ':bicb ar•e fully grown and in the proper stage of vegetatiOn to pt•oduce the best flax, are not essential to the preservation or support of the root, a cir·cumstance which would render it a most valuable plant. 'ro-day '''e }1ave met with a second species of flax smaller than the lirst, as it seldom obtains a g•·eater height than nine or twelve inches: the leaf and stem resemble those of the species just mentioned, except that the latter is rarely branched, and bears a single ~onopetalous bell-shaped blue flower, suspended with its bmb downwards. We saw several herds of the big-horn, but they were in the cliffs beyond our reach. We killed an elk , Up tlte JJlissouri. 809 this morning and found part of a deer which had been left for ns by captain Clarke. He pursued his route, Ft·iday, 19, ear•ly in the morning, and soon passed the remains of scver•al Indian camps formed of willow brush, which seemed to have been deserted this spring. At the same time he observed that the vine tt·ees hat\ been stripped of theit' hat•k ahout the same season, which our Inc.Jian woman say her countt·ymen do in Ol'dea· to obtain the sap and the soft parts of the wood and baa·k t'or food. About eleven o'clock he met a herd of elk and killed two of them, but such was the want of wood in th~ neighbourhood that be was unable to procure enough to make a fire, and he was therefore obliged to substitute the dung of the buffaloe, with which he eooked his breakfast. They then resumed their course along an old Indian road. In the afternoon they reached a handsome valley watered by a lai•ge creek, both of which extend a considerable distance into the mountain: tbis they crossed, and during the evening travelled over a mountainous country covered witl.a. sharp fragments of Hintrock: these bruised and cut their feet very much, but were scarcely less troublesome than the pricldy {lear of the open plains, which have now become so abundant that it is impossible to avoid them, and the thorns arc so strong that tbey pierce a double soal or dressed dcct• skin: the best resom ·ce against them is a soa1 of buffaloe hide in llarchmcnt. A.t night they reached the river much fatig-uNt, having passed two mountains in the course of the day and having travelled thirty miles. Ca11tain Clarke's first employment on lighting a fire was to extract from his feet the briars, which he found seventeen in number. In the meantime we }H'ocecdcd on very well, though the water appears to increase in rapidity as we advance: the current has indeed been strong during the day aml obstruct· ed by some rapids, which arc not however much broken by rocks, and aJ•e perfectly safe: the river is deep, and its general width is from. one hundred to one hundt·ed and fifty |