University of Virginia Library

[Lewis:]

Sunday August 25th. 1805.

This morning loaded our horses and set out a little after
sunrise; a few only of the Indians unengaged in assisting us
went on as I had yesterday proposed to the cheif. the others
flanked us on each side and started some Antelope which they
pursued for several hours but killed none of them. we proceeded
within 2 Ms. of the narrow pass or seven miles from
our camp of last evening and halted for dinner. Our hunters
joined us at noon with three deer the greater part of which I
gave the indians. sometime after we had halted, Charbono
mentioned to me with apparent unconcern that he expected to
meet all the Indians from the camp on the Columbia tomorrow
on their way to the Missouri. allarmed at this information I
asked why he expected to meet them. he then informed me
that the 1st. Cheif had dispatched some of his young men this
morning to this camp requesting the Indians to meet them
tomorrow and that himself and those with him would go on
with them down the Missouri, and consequently leave me and
my baggage on the mountain or thereabouts. I was out of
patience with the folly of Charbono who had not sufficient
sagacity to see the consequencies which would inevitably flow
from such a movement of the indians, and altho' he had been
in possession of this information since early in the morning
when it had been communicated to him by his Indian woman
yet he never mentioned it untill the after noon. I could not
forbear speaking to him with some degree of asperity on this
occasion. I saw that there was no time to be lost in having
those orders countermanded, or that we should not in all probability
obtain any more horses or even get my baggage to the

waters of the Columbia. I therefore Called the three Cheifs
together and having smoked a pipe with them, I asked them
if they were men of their words, and whether I could depent
on the promises they had made me; they readily answered in
the affermative; I then asked them if they had not promised
to assist me with my baggage to their camp on the other side
of the mountains, or to the place at which Capt. Clark might
build the canoes, should I wish it. they acknowledged that
they had. I then asked them why they had requested their
people on the other side of the mountain to meet them
tomorrow on the mountain where there would be no possibility
of our remaining together for the purpose of trading for
their horses as they had also promised. that if they had not
promised to have given me their assistance in transporting
my baggage to the waters on the other side of the mountain
that I should not have attempted to pass the mountains but
would have returned down the river and that in that case they
would never have seen anymore white men in their country.
that if they wished the white men to be their friends and to
assist them against their enemies by furnishing them with arms
and keeping their enemies from attacking them that they must
never promis us anything which they did not mean to perform.
that when I had first seen them they had doubted
what I told them about the arrival of the party of whitemen
in canoes, that they had been convinced that what I told them
on that occasion was true, why then would they doubt what
I said on any other point. I told them that they had witnessed
my liberality in dividing the meat which my hunters
killed with them; and that I should continue to give such of
them as assisted me a part of whatever we had ourselves to
eat. and finally concluded by telling them if they intended to
keep the promises they had made me to dispatch one of their
young men immediately with orders to their people to remain
where they were untill our arrival. the two inferior cheifs said
that they wished to assist me and be as good as their word,
and that they had not sent for their people, that it was the
first Chief who had done so, and they did not approve of the
measure. Cameahwait remained silent for some time, at length
he told me that he knew he had done wrong but that he had
been induced to that measure from seeing all his people
hungry, but as he had promised to give me his assistance he
would not in future be worse than his word. I then desired
him to send immediately and countermand his orders; accordingly
a young man was sent for this purpose and I gave him a
handkerchief to engage him in my interest. this matter being
arranged to my satisfaction I called all the women and men
together who had been assisting me in the transportation of
the baggage and gave them a billet for each horse which they
had imployed in that service and informed them when we
arrived at the plaice where we should finally halt on the river
I would take the billet back and give them merchandize for it.
every one appeared now satisfyed and when I ordered the
horses loaded for our departure the Indians were more than
usually allert. we continued our march untill late in the
evening and encamped at the upper part of the cove where the
creek enters the mountains; here our hunters joined us with
another deer which they had killed, this I gave to the women
and Children, and for my own part remained supperless. I
observed considerable quantities of wild onions in the bottom
lands of this cove. I also saw several large hares and many of
the cock of the plains.

Capt. Clark set out early this morning and continued his
rout to the indian camp at the entrance of fish Creek; here he
halted about an hour; the indians gave himself and party
some boiled salmon and berries (tho' not half Sufficient &c).
these people appeared extreemly hospitable tho' poor and dirty
in the extreem. he still pursued the track up the river by
which he had decended and in the evening arrived at the bluff
on the river where he had encamped on the 21st. Inst. it was
late in the evening before he reached this place. they formed
their camp, and Capt. C. sent them in different directions to
hunt and fish. some little time after they halted a party of
Indians passed by on their way down the river, consisting
of a man a woman and several boys; from these people the
guide obtained 2 salmon which together with some small fish
they caught and a beaver which Shannon killed furnished them

with a plentifull supper. the pine grows pretty abundantly
high up on the sides of the mountains on the opposite side of
the river. one of the hunters saw a large herd of Elk on the
opposite side of the river in the edge of the timbered land.
Winsor was taken very sick today and detained Capt. C. very
much on his march. three hunters whom he had sent on
before him this morning joined him in the evening having
killed nothing; they saw only one deer.

The courses and distances, of Capt. Clark's rout down this branch of
the Columbia below this bluff, commencing opposite to an Island, are
as follow.

               

N. 30°. W.	2 To the top of a mountain the river 1 m. on the left.
N. 45°. W.	10. With the general cou[r]se of the river; passing over the spurs of four mountains, almost inaccessible, and two small runs from the wright, to some Indian lodges at the entrance of fish creek which discharges itself on the N. Side. a large Indian road passes up this creek. on this course Capt. C. also passed several Islands, and some small bottoms between the river and the mountains.
West	3. along the river to the ascent of a mountain, passing one spur of the same. also 2 Islands and a bottom in which there was an abundance of berries.
S. 45°. W.	5. to a very bad rapid, opposite which, a small run discharges itself on N. side. passing perpendicular clifts where the [y] were compelled to pass through the water; passed over loose fragments of rocks on the side of a steep mountain also passed one Island and a number of small rapids.
N. 45°. W.	3. high clifts on either side of the river, no road.
West	2. no road. passed several bad rapids which it would be scarcely possible either to ascend or decend with empty canoes.
N. 45°. W.	6. to a large Creek on the N. side; passing several bad rappids and a number of riffles. the mountains high steep and very rocky. no bottom except a little above the entrance of this Creek.
South	1. to the entrance of a small run on N. side opposite to a small island and a bad rapid.

     

N. 45. W.	6. up the run along an indian road through a piney country; steep and lofty hills on each side.
S 45°. W.	1. to the river at a small bottom, passing a gap in the mountain from the top of which can be seen the break of the river through the mountains for 20 miles to a very high mountain on the South, at which place the guide informed Capt. C. that the
Miles	39    impassable part of the river commenced, and was in[fi]nitely worse than any part he had yet seen.

This morning while passing through the Shoshone cove
Frazier fired his musquet at some ducks in a little pond at the
distance of about 60 yards from me; the ball rebounded from
the water and pased within a very few feet of me. near the
upper part of this cove the Shoshonees suffered a very severe
defeat by the Minnetares about six years since. this part of
the cove on the N. E. side of the Creek has lately been birned
by the Indians as a signal on some occasion.