[Lewis:]
Wednesday July 2nd. 1806.
We sent out the hunters early this morning, they returned not
so successfull as yesterday having killed 2 deer only. Sheilds
continued repairing the gunns which he compleated by evening.
all arrangements being now compleat we determined to set out
in the morning. in the course of the day we had much conversation
with the indians by signs, our only mode of communicating
our ideas. they informed us that they wished to go in
surch of the Ootslashshoots their friends and intended leaving
us tomorrow morning, I prevailed on them to go with me as far
as the East branch of Clark's River and put me on the road
to the Missouri. I gave the Cheif a medal of the small size;
he insisted on exchanging names with me according to their
custom which was accordingly done and I was called Yo-me-kol-lick
which interpreted is the white bearskin foalded. in the
evening the indians run their horses, and we had several foot
races betwen the natives and our party with various success.
these are a race of hardy strong athletic active men. nothin
worthy of notice transpired in the course of the day. Goodrich
and Mc. Neal are both very unwell with the pox which
they contracted last winter with the Chinnook women this
forms my inducement principally for taking them to the falls
of the Missouri where during an interval of rest they can use
the murcury freely. I found two speceis of native clover
here, the one with a very narrow small leaf and a pale red flower
the other nearly as luxouriant as our red clover with a white
flower the leaf and blume of the latter are proportionably
large. I found several other uncommon plants specemines of
which I preserved. The leaf of the cotton wood on this river
is like that common to the Columbia narrower than that
common to the lower part of the Missouri and Mississippi
and wider than that on the upper part of the Missouri. the
wild rose, servise berry, white berryed honeysuckle, seven bark,
elder, alder aspin, choke cherry and the broad and narrow
leafed willow are natives of this valley. the long leafed pine
forms the principal timber of the neighbourhood, and grows
as well in the river bottoms as on the hills. the firs and larch
are confined to the higher parts of the hills and mountains.
the tops of the high mountains on either side of this river are
covered with snow. the musquetoes have been excessively
troublesome to us since our arrival at this place.
