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Show 50 APPENDIX TO PART II. would have been obliged to have sacrificed some of onr hng-g-agr. I therefore sent them a certificate for· each horse, on the Indian ag-ent below, which I hope the g·eneral will or·der· him to discharg-e· I know the: general's g-oodness will excuse this scrawl, as he rs well acquainted with the situation it must he written in, and at the same time, believe me to be his sincere friend and Most obedient Humble scr·v;.mt, Gcneml J. TYilkinson . (Signed) Z. M. Px rm, Lt. [ No. I 5. J Arkansww, 24th Oct. 1806. Latitude S7° 44' 9" .J\1: DEAlt GENERAT., . 0 U R party arrived here on the I 5th in st. myself and Doctot· Rohmson on the i 9th, we having been o\lt to seek the trace of the Spanish troops missed the. par·ty, ana were not able to join them until the 4th day. The river being very reg-ular, Iieut. \Vilkinson had calculated to proceed on the clay following, on the most direct route for the Red 1 i ver, but shor·tly after· my joining-, a considerable rain fell and rai.sed the river·, and we have been ev<.:r· since preparing wooden and skm canoes, for that gentleman and party to descend in. The river is between three and four hundred yar·cls in width; generally Hat low banks, not more than two or three feet high, and th~ bed a sand bank from one side to the other~ The want or Water· '"ill present the greatest obstacle to the pro· P;;:, Tess of the }). arty who descctl c1 th e A ·k . I ansaw, as they have r1o cause to fear a scaJ·cJty of J)I'Ovision 1 • . 1.. • . . , mvmg some uushels of corn on hand, and at their optiOn to take ;;lS much dried meat as they think proper, hundreds of potmd·s of wh";c h ar·e Jy1'ng on sea ffio lei s at our camp; and they are Ukewise accompan1'ed b tl 1 · f h y 1e c 101ce o out• unters. Under those circumstances, and those stated in my Jetter from the Pawnees I can a· ·t ,· L I'd ' sser "'Jtn con 1 ence, there a1·e no obstacles I s hou ld lte~itate to encour1t e r·, a. 1t h oug 1 • 1 those mseparable from a voyage of se veral hundred Je· , h h . . . · agtr(:S t roug a wdclcrncss lllhaiJJted 'APPENDIX TO PART II. Sl only by savages, may appear of the greatest magnitude to minds unaccustomed to such enterprizes. Lieut. Wilkinson and partv appear in good spirits, and shew R disposition which must vanguish every difliculty. . \Ve were eight clays travelling fi'Om the Pawnee village to the Arknnsaw, (our g-eneral courseS. 10° \V.) several of which we Jay by nearly half, owing to various cir·cumstances; my course made it 150 miles, hut could now march it in 120. Lieut. \ Vilkinson has copied and carries with him a very cle~ant protracted sketch of the route, noting the stream<>, hills, &c. that we crossed; their courses, bearing- s, &c. and should I live to arrive, I will pl edg-e myc;elf to shew their connexions, and g-eneral direction with considerable accuracy, as I have myself spared no pains in reconnoitring or obtaining information from the savag-es in OUJ' route. From this point, we shall ascend the rivet· until we strike the monntains, or find the T c tau s ; and from th e nce be.1r more to the S. until we ilncl the head of the R ed 1·ivcr, where we shall be detainccl some tim e, after which nothing shall cause a halt until my arrival at Natchitoches. I speak in all those cases in the positive moocl, as, so far as lies in the compass of human exertions, we comm:md the power; but I pretend 110t to surmo11nL impossibilities, and I well know the general woulcl pa rdon nty anticipatin~ a little to him. The general will probably be surprized to find that the expences of the expedition will more than double the contemplated sum of our lirst calculatious; but I conceived, the Spaniards were making such g r·eat exertions to debauch the minds of our· savages, ceo .. nomy mi ~· ht be very impropel'ly applied. And I likewise have found the purchase of horses to be attended with much greater expence than was expected at St. Loui . Those reasons, and when I advert to the expences of my two voyages, ( which I humbly conceive might be compared with thP. one performed by capt<lins L e wis and Clark) and the appropriations made for theirs, I feel a consciousness, that it is impossible fot· the most rigid to censure my accounts. I cannot yet say if I shall sacrifice my horses at R ed river, but every ex<.:t'lion shall be macle to save them for the public ; some if in good condition would be fine ones, and averag-e between fifty and sixty dollars. Should the fortune or war at length have honored me with a company, 1 hope the general will recollect his promise to me, and h 1ve my command attached to it; and on my arrival I tihall take the libe1'ly of c;oliciting- his inl1ucnce, thnt they may ob· |
