OCR Text |
Show S90 Lewis and Clarke's E~JJedition timber is scarce, there is still sufficient for the purposes of settlers. But beyond that river, aHhough the soil is still rich, yet the almost total absence of timber, and particularly the want of good water, of which there is but a small quantity in the creaks, and even that brackish. oppose pow. erful obstacles to it~ settlement. The difficulty becomes still greater between the Muscleshell river and the falls, where besides tl1e ga·eater scarcity of timhcr, the country itself is less fertile. 'rhe elevation of these higl1lands varies as tl1ey pas~ through this extensive tr·act of country. From 'Vood river they are about one hundred and fifty feet above the water, and continue at that lteight till they rise near the Osage, from which place to the ancient fortification they again diminish in size. Thence they continue 1tigher tiH the Mandan village, after which they are rather lowet· till the neighbourhood of Muscleshell river, where they are met b,v the Northern hills, which have advanced at a more uniform bcight, val'ying from one hundred and fiffy to two hundred or three hundred feet. From this place to the mountains the height of both is nt>ar]y the same, from three hundred to :five h undr·cd feet, and the low gL·ounds so narrow that the traveller seems passing tht·ou;;h a rauge of Jtigb country. l?rom :M.al'ia.'s r·iver to the faHs, the hills descend to the height of about two or three hulHlrcd feet. Monday i9. The morning- was cold, and the grass pcrf~ ctly whitened by the ft·ost. \Ve wet·e engaged in prc}Jarmg packs and saddles to lo~1d t)JC horses as soon as t1wy should arrive. A beaver was eaugltt in a trap, but we were disappointed in trying to (•atth trout in our uet; we therefore made a seine of willow bt·ush, and by hauling it lll'OCU· red a number of fine ta·out, aud n. species of mullet which 've had not seen before: it i~ about sixteen inclws long, the scales small; the nose long, obtusely poiuted, and exceeding the under jaw; the mouth opens with folds at the sides; it has no teeth, and the ton~ue and 11alate is smooth. 'fl1e . Up the .Missouri. S91 colour of its back and sides is a bluish brown, while the belly is white: it bas the faggot bones, whence we concluded it to be of the mullet speeies. It is by no means so well flavoured a fish as the trout, whi<>h are the same as tl10se we flrst saw at the falls, lar~er than the speckled trout of the mountains in the Atlantic states, and equally well flavoured. In the evening the hunters returned with two deer. Captain Clarke, in the meantime, proceeded through a wide level valley, in which the chief pointed out a spot where many of his tribe were killed in battle a year ago. The Indians accompanied him during the day, and as they had nothing to eat, he was obliged to feed them from his own stores, the bunters not being able to kill any thing. Just as he was entering the mountains, he met an Indian with two mules and a Spanish sadc.lle, who wa8 so polite as to offer one of them to him to ride over the hills. Being on foot, captain Clarke accepted his offer and gave him a waistcoat as a reward for his civility. lie encamped for the night on a small stream, and the next morning, rruesday, August 20, he set out at six o'clock. In passing through a continuation of the hiiJy broken country, he met severalt)arties of Indians. On coming near the camp, which bad been removed since we left them two mile~ higher up the river, Ca.mcahwait requested that the party !tllould halt. This was com],licd with: a number of .lndians came out from the camp, and with great ceremony several pipes were smoked. r.rhis bejng o,·er captain Clar·ke was conducted to a la1·ge leathern lodge IH'epared for his party in the middle ofthe encampment, the Indians having only shelters of willow bushes. A few dried bcr·ries, and one salmon, the only food the whole village could contribute, were then presented to him; after which he proceeded to rC}leat in council, what had been already told them, the purposes of his visit; urged them to take their hot·ses o''er and assist in transpor-ting our baggage, ami expressed a wish to obtain a guide to examine the river. 'l'his was explained and enfQrced to the |