Tuesday August 12th. 1806.
Being anxious to overtake Capt. Clark who from the appearance
of his camps could be at no great distance before me, we
set out early and proceeded with all possible expedition at 8
A. M. the bowsman informed me that there was a canoe and a
camp he beleived of whitemen on the N.E. shore. I directed
the perogue and canoes to come too at this place and found
it to be the camp of two hunters from the Illinois by name
Joseph Dickson and Forest Hancock.[41]
these men informed
me that Capt. C. had passed them about noon the day before.
they also informed me that they had left the Illinois in the
summer [of] 1804 since which time they had been ascended the
Missouri, hunting and traping beaver; that they had been
robed by the indians and the former wounded last winter by
the Tetons of the birnt woods; that they had hitherto been
unsuccessfull in their voyage having as yet caught but little
beaver, but were still determined to proceed. I gave them
a short discription of the Missouri, a list of distances to the
most conspicuous streams and remarkable places on the river
above and pointed out to them the places where the beaver
most abounded. I also gave them a file and a couple of
pounds of powder with some lead. these were articles which
they assured me they were in great want of. I remained with
these men an hour and a half when I took leave of them and
proceeded. while I halted with these men Colter and Collins
who seperated from us on the 3
rd i[n]st rejoined us. they were
well no accedent having happened. they informed me that after
proceeding the first day and not overtaking us that they had
concluded that we were behind and had delayed several days
in waiting for us and had thus been unable to join us untill
the present mome[n]t. my wounds felt very stiff and soar this
morning but gave me no considerable pain. there was much
less inflamation than I had reason to apprehend there would
be. I had last evening applyed a poltice of peruvian barks.
at 1 P. M. I overtook Capt. Clark and party and had the
pleasure of finding them all well. as wrighting in my present
situation is extreemly painfull to me I shall desist untill I recover
and leave to my fri[e]nd Capt. C. the continuation of
our journal. however I must notice a singular Cherry which
is found on the Missouri in the bottom lands about the beaver
bends and some little distance below the white earth river, this
production is not very abundant even in the small tract of
country to which it seems to be confined. the stem is compound
erect and subdivided or branching without any regular
order it rises to the hight of eight or ten feet seldom puting
up more than one stem from the same root not growing in
cops as the Choke Cherry dose. the bark is smooth and of
a dark brown colour. the leaf is peteolate, oval accutely
pointed at it's apex, from one and a 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches in length
and from 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch in width, finely or minutely serrate,
pale green and free from pubessence. the fruit is a globular
berry about the size of a buck-shot of a fine scarlet red; like
the cherries cultivated in the U' States each is supported by a
seperate celindric flexable branch peduncle which issue from
the extremities of the boughs the peduncle of this cherry swells
as it approaches the fruit being largest at the point of insertion.
the pulp of this fruit is of an agreeable ascid flavour and is now
ripe. the style and stigma are permanent. I have never seen
it in blume.
[42]
