| OCR Text |
Show JOUHNAL OF A VOYAGE 1.5tb August, Friday.-We embarked at five o'clock, and at eight o'clock 1nct the Indians and the gentlemen who accmnpanicd thcn1. Found all well. They had been joined by their friends and relatives fron1 the village, with horses to transport their baggage. Lieutenant Wilkinson i nformcd 1ne that their meeting was very tender and aflec. tionate-" Wives throwing then1sclves into the arms of their husbands, parents embracing their children, and chi!. drcn their parents, brothers and sisters meeting, one from captivity, the others f1·om the towns-they, at the same tin1e, returning thanks to the Good God for having brought then1 once 1norc together;" in short, the toute cnsembh was such as to make polished society blush, when com. pared with those savages, in whon1 the passions of the mind, either joy, grief, fear, anger, or revenge, have their full scope: why can we not correct the baneful passions, without weakening the good ? Sans Oreillc nude them a speech, in which he remarked, " Osage, you now sec your wives, your brothers, your daughter~, your sons, redeemed from captivity. Who diJ this? was it the Spaniards? No. The French ? No. I lad either of those people been go· vernors of the country, your relatives might have rottea in captivity, and you never would have S''en them; but the Americans stretched forth their hands, and they are rc· turned to you ! ! What can you do in return for all tlu) goodness ? Nothing: all your lives would not suffice to repay their goodness." This 1nan had children jn capti· vity, not one of whom were we able to obtain for him. The chief then requested that lieutenant Wilkinson and Dr. Robinson might be permitted to accompany them by land, which I consented to. W rotc a letter to the Che· vcux Blanche, by lieutenant Wilkinson. When we parted (after delivering the Indians their baggage) Sans Oreille put an Indian on board, to hunt, or obey any other com· TO THE SOURCES OF THE ARKANSA vV, &c. 1 ~5 mands I might have for him. We stopped at eleven o'clock to dry our baggage. Found our biscuit and crackers almost all ruined. Put off at half past four o'clock, and encamped at three quarters past five o'clock. Distance 15 1-2 miles. 1,6th August, Saturday.-W e embarked at five o'clock and came on extremely well in the barge to' a l•rcnch hunting camp (evacuated), twelve miles to breakfast, the battcaux coming up late : we exchanged hands. About twelve o'clock passed the grand fork, which is equal in size to the one on which we pursued our route. Waited to dine at the rocks called the Swallow's Nest, on the west shore above the forks. The batteaux having gained nearly half an hour, the crews are convinced that it is not the boat, but n1en who 1nake the difference : each take their own boat, after which we proceeded very well, the water being good and 1nen in spirits. Saw an elk on the shore, also met an old man alone hunting, from whom we obtained no information of consequence. Encamped on the west shore at Mine river. Passed the place where the chief, called the Belle Oi~cau, and others were kill ed.~ Distance 37 miles. l7tb August, Sunday.-We en1barked at five o'clock and came twelve nules to breakfast. At four o'clock arrived at ten French houses on the east shore, where was then residing a Sac, who was married to an Osage femme <md spoke 11 rench only. \V c afterwards passed the posi- • The Belle Oiscau was killed hy the Sacs in the year 1804, in a hoat ol Mau~el de Liza, wht:n on his way down to St. Louis, in order to join the fint deputatiOn of his nation, who were forwarded to the seat of govcrumcnt by governor Lewig. A partic1.1lar relation of the event, Jl(,> doubt, ha~ been given by that gentleman. This chief had a son who accompanied me to the Pawnee nation. who, for his honorable deportment, attachment to our government amiablent:ss o[ dis~ositi~n, and the respect and esteem in which he was held b 1 y his compeer~ , ~ntttlc hm1 to the attention of our agents to his nation. |
