[Lewis:]
Tuesday March 4th. 1806.
Not any occurrence today worthy of notice. we live sumptuously
on our wappetoe and Sturgeon. the Anchovey is so
delicate that they soon become tainted unless pickled or smoked.
the natives run a small stick through their gills and hang them
in the smoke of their lodges, or kindle a small fire under them
for the purpose of drying them. they need no previous preperation
of guting &c and will cure in 24 hours. the natives
do not appear to be very scrupelous about eating them when
a little feated [fetid]. the fresh sturgeon they keep for many
days by immersing it in water. they coock their sturgeon by
means of vapor or steam. the process is as follows. a brisk
fire is kindled on which a parcel of stones are la[i]d. when
the fire birns down and the stones are sufficiently heated, the
stones are so arranged as to form a tolerable level surface, the
sturgeon which had been previously cut into large fletches is
now laid on the hot stones; a parsel of small boughs of bushes
is next laid on and a second course of the sturgeon thus reP[e]ating
alternate layers of sturgeon and boughs untill the
whole is put on which they design to cook. it is next covered
closely with matts and water is poared in such manner as to
run in among the hot stones and the vapor arrising being confined
by the mats, cooks the fish. the whole process is performed
in an hour, and the sturgeon thus cooked is much
better than either boiled or roasted.
The turtle dove and robbin are the same of our country and
are found as well in the plain as open country. the Columbian
robbin heretofore discribed seems to be the inhabitant of the
woody country exclusively. the Magpie is most commonly
found in the open country and are the same with those formerly
discribed on the Missouri.[68]
The large woodpecker or log
cock,[69]
the lark woodpecker and the small white woodpecker with
a read head are the same with those of the Atlantic states and
are found exclusively in the timbered country. The blue
crested Corvus[70]
and the small white breasted d°. have been
previously discribed and are the natives of a piney country invariably,
being found as well on the rocky mountains as on this
coast. the lark is found in the plains only and are the same
with those before mentioned on the Missouri, and not very
unlike what is called in Virginia the old field lark.[71]
The large
blueish brown or sandhill Crain are found in the valley of the
Rocky mountains in Summer and Autumn where they raise
their young, and in the winter and begining of spring on this
river below tide water and on this coast. they are the
same as those common to the Southern and Western States
where they are most generally known by the name of the
Sandhill crain. The vulture has also been discribed. there
are two species of the flycatch, a small redish brown species
with a short tail, round body, short neck and short pointed
beak. they have some fine black specks intermixed with the
uniform redish brown. this the same with that which remains
all winter in Virginia where it is sometimes called the wren.
the second species has lately returned and dose not remain
here all winter. it's colours are a yellowish brown on the
back head neck wings and tail the breast and belley of a yellowish
white; the tail is in proportion as the wren but it is a size
smaller than that bird. it's beak is streight pointed convex
reather la[r]ge at the base and the chaps of equal length. the
first species is the smallest, in short it is the smalest bird that
I have ever seen in America except the humming bird. both
these species are found in the woody country only, or at least
I have never seen them elsewhere.
