November 7th. Thursday 1805
A cloudy foggey morning Some rain. we Set out early
proceeded under the Stard. Side under a high rugid hills with
Steep assent the Shore boalt and rockey, the fog so thick we
could not See across the river, two cano[e]s of Indians met
and returned with us to their village which is Situated on the
Stard. Side behind a cluster of Marshey Islands, on a narrow
chan.1 of the river through which we passed to the village of 4
Houses, they gave us to eate Some fish, and Sold us, fish,
Wap pa to roots three dogs and 2 otter skins for which we gave
fish hooks principally of which they were verry fond.
Those people call themselves War-ci-â-cum (War-ki-a-cum)[22]
and Speake a language different from the nativs above with
whome they trade for the Wapato roots of which they make
great use of as food. their houses differently built, raised
entirely above ground eaves about 5 feet from the ground
Supported and covered in the same way of those above, dores
about the Same size but in the Side of the house in one corner,
one fire place and that near the opposit end, around which they
have their beads raised about 4 feet from the flore which is of
earth, under their beads they Store away baskets of dried fish
Berries & Wappato, over the fire they hang the fiesh as they
take them and [of] which they do not make immediate use.
Their Canoes are of the Same form of those above. The
Dress of the men differ verry little from those above, The
womin altogether different, their robes are Smaller only covering
their Sholders & falling down to near the hip. and
Sometims when it is cold a piec of fur curiously plated[23]
and
connected so as to meet around the body from the arms to the
hips. "The garment which occupies the Waist and thence as
low as the knee before and mid leg behind, cannot properly be
called a petticoat, in the common accep[ta]tion of the word; it
is a Tissue formed of white cedar bark bruised or broken into
Small Strans, which are interwoven in their center by means
of Several cords of the same Materials which Serves as well for
a girdle as to hold in place the Strans of bark which forms the
tissue, and which Strans, confined in the middle, hang with
their ends pendulous from the waist, the whole being of Suff[i]
cent thickness when the female Stands erect to conceal those
parts useally covered from familiar view, but when she stoops
or places herself in any other attitude this battery of Venus is
not altogether impervious to the penetrating eye of the amorite.
This tissue is Sometims formed of little Strings of the Silk
grass twisted and knoted at their ends" &c. [
Those Indians
are how and ill Shaped all flat heads]
after delaying at this village one hour and a half we Set out
piloted by an Indian dressed in a Salors dress, to the Main
Chanel of the river, the tide being in we should have found
much dificuelty in passing into the main Chanel from behind
those islands, without a pilot, a large marshey Island near the
middle of the river[24]
near which several Canoes came allong
Side with Skins, roots fish &c. to Sell, and had a temporey
residence on this Island, here we see great numbers of water
fowls about those Marshey Islands; here the high mountanious
Countrey approaches the river on the Lard Side, a high
Mountn. to the S. W. about 20 miles, the high mountans.
countrey continue on the Stard. Side, about 14 miles below
the last village and 18 miles of this day we landed at a village
of the same nation. This village is at the foot of the high
hills on the Stard. Side back of 2 small Islands it contains 7
indifferent houses built in the same form of those above, here
we purchased a Dog some fish, wap pa to, roots and I purchased
2 beaver Skins for the purpose of makeing me a roab, as the
robe I have is rotten and good for nothing, opposit to this
village the high mountaneous countrey leave[s] the river on
the Lard. Side below which the river widens into a kind of Bay
& is crouded with low Islands Subject to be covered by the
tides. We proceeded on about 12 miles below the Village
under a high mountaneous Countrey on the Stard. Side, Shore
boald and rockey and Encamped under a high hill on the
Star
d. Side opposit to a rock
[25]
Situated half a mile from the
shore, about 50 feet high and 20 feet Deamieter; we with
dificuelty found a place clear of the tide and Sufficiently large
to lie on and the only place we could get was on round stones
on which we lay our mats rain continu
d. moderately all day &
Two Indians accompanied us from the last village, they we
detected in Stealing a knife and returned, our Small Canoe
which got Seperated in the fog this morning joined us this
evening from a large Island situated nearest the Lard Side
below the high hills on that Side, the river being too wide to
See either the form Shape or Size of the Islands on the Lard
Side.
Great joy in camp we are m view of the Ocian,[26]
(in the
morning when fog cleared off just below last village (first on leaving
this, village) of Warkiacum) this great Pacific Octean which we
been so long anxious to See. and the roreing or noise made by
the waves brakeing on the rockey Shores (as I suppose) may
be heard disti[n]ctly
We made 34 miles to day as computed.
