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Show • [ 23] 8 \ · d' · · h d the Indian was obliged to give up his in- ftelnotwi~Odn ,o na nu dn nIomwm tihs ree'. ,/ away. the stick that he had at first resolved take home and show to his people. to Our Indian friends intended leaving here yesterday, but as t.hey get well fed, and have nothing to pay, they are not over anx10us to go away. h. · d t k a bath In the evening I was carried down to t e nver, an oo in the refreshing waters of the Arkansas. Between the fo.rt and the river there is a low piece qf grou~d t~at was. o~ce cultivated, the traces of the " Acequia," by wh1c~ It was ungated, are yet visible, but the Indian destroyed everythmg before the ~wners could reap the fruits of their labor; ~ence, althou~h the s01l gave great promi· se of being productive ' It has e. verb .smce been neglected. 11 . f 1 This bottom land was now chequered w1th n 1ant mas~es o. co or, produced by the groups of plants which were growmg In ~reat luxuriance. The golden rod,(~. altissima,) the purp: Eupatonu~, (E. purpurea,) the sunflower, silver margecl euph?rb1a,. (E. _marglnata,) and the pink cleome, mingled together, clad m thea ~nght~st hues; and the sandy plai~ that s~irted the botton;t was va:1ed With the golden gourd, cucum1s peremus, and a beautiful species of solanre. I measured to · day the skin of a panther, felis coucolor, that w.as 61 feet in length from the end of the nose to the root of the tail. Ii had been killed on the Canadian by the Kioways. I also examined some skins of the grey and white wolves_; and, from all I can learn these animals are one and the same kmd, as the grey wolf beco~es whiter as it advances in age. Some of the skins were white, some grey, and others in a transition state. Septembe'r I.-I obtained several singular plants, and am.ongst them a beautiful species of the lobelia; and I had scarce fimshed, my drawings of them, when "N ah- moust" and "Ah-mah-nah·-c?" knocked at the door of my rqom. I showed them my port-foho, and got them to give the names of the plants, insects, and animals that they, knew. After making a complete inspection of my portfolio, I induced "Ah-mah-nah-co" to sit for me; he willingly com· plied, and, choosing his attitud e, sat perfectly motionless until I had both drawn and painted my sketch. I then showed it to him, whereupon he seemed much pleased, and after regarding it for some time, he desired me to write his name underneath; I commenced and he gave me two names, first, "Nah-moust," and then "Ahmah- nah-co," which means the bear above. The surname had been bes~owed in accordance with an Indian custom, similar to that of the knights of ancient chivab;y, who always received a surname after they had done some valiant deed. - Our IQdian friends have become completely doiniciled here, where ~hey are fed and have every thing they need furnished to them; for 1f th~ir wishes were not gratified, they would not bring their furs to t.h1s place to trade. As food is scarce, the people of the fort are obhged to give them something to eat, and the Indians never fail to be present at meal times. . An old man called " lsse-wo-ne-mox-ist," supplied his family With fish that he caught in a species of dam or trap that he had 9 [ 23] formed in the river;- but some whites passing by had destroyed his trap, and to-day he has been complaining bitterly about their conduct. He is the same man whose portrait I took last year, and is conspicuous on account of his we~ring his hair twisted in the form of a large horn, that projects from the centre of his forehead. Yesterday I met with Captain Walker again; in my conversation he mentioned that the box-elder, "acer negundo," furnishes a sap which is highly saccharine, and when the hunters are in want of sugar, they collect some of the sap of this tree, and by boiling it form a very good molasses, which answers as an excellent substitute. · September 2.-I had been for some time past endeavoring to obtain specimens of the materials that the Indians use to produce those brilliant hues they give to the porcupine quills, with which they garnish their ornamental trappings. This morning" Old Bark" brought me what I wished, the sumach berries, with which that bright red is produced, and the moss from the pine tree, that yields a yellow tint. The green dye is made from copperas. What looks like black porcupine quills, are either portions of the quills of birds, or the radicles of the "typhis latifolia," which they flatten by pressing between weights. Old Bark had a piece of pitch in his hands; I asked him what he intended to do with it; he answered me that some of his horses had tender hoofs, and that he intended to press the pitch into the sole of the foot, when, after passing a hot stone over the pitch, it would remain and protect the hoof. During the day, one of the Indians brought me a specimen of the "astragalus" and told me that it was so poisonous as to kill any animal that might eat of it. Thinking it would be a good opportunity to learn the uses of the pl_ants I had collected, ~nd medical pr-operties with. which the experience of the Indians mv.ested them, ·I therefore produced my specimens, and with the assistance of Mr. Smi~h, whp trades for the fort, and who speaks the Cheynne language better, perhaps, than any other white person in the ~ountry, I made notes of every thing that my red friends commumcated. "Nah-moust," of whom I ,have already spoken, possesses a secret antidote for the poison of the "she-she-note" or rattlesnake, and my friends here all state that he frequently brings • one of -these snakes into the fort in his arms. Whilst he is handl! ng it, h.e is incessantly chewing the root of soine plant, and spittJ? g the JUice about in all directions, and the snake appears to cower With .fear. He is also said to cure any one who may be bitten, by chewm~ the root and spitting the juice upon ' the wound. Some of :he w.hite~ who were present seemed to think that he inadvertently et shp his secret, on seeing one of my plants; this plant proves to he a coreopsis. At Bent's fort, the usual remedy is achohol. hTh~y say that if they can make a person drunk, soon after the bite, e IS safe. This evening I again had my 'sitter of yesterday "Ah-ma-nah-co," s~ated upon the billiard table. I made a profile sketch, which 8 owe~ off all his ornaments to the greatest advantage. When I had finished he seemed more delighted than ever; and he pointed • |