[Lewis:]
Sunday April 20th. 1806.
some frost this morning. The Enesher an[d] Skillutes are
much better clad than they were last fall, there men have
generally legings mockersons and large robes; many of them
wear shirts of the same form with those of the Shoshone
Chopunnish &c. highly ornamented with porcupine quills.
the dress of their women differs very little from those of the
great rapids and above. their children frequently wear robes
of the large grey squirrel skins, those of the men and women
are principally deer skins, some wolf, elk, big horn and
buffaloe; the latter they procure from the nations who sometimes
visit the Missouri. indeed a considerable p[r]oportion
of their wearing apparel is purchased from their neighbours to
the N.W. in exchange for pounded fish copper and beads. at
present the principal village of the Eneshur is below the falls
on. the N. side of the river. one other village is above the
falls on the S. side and another a few miles above on the
N. side, the first consists of 19, the 2ed. of 11, and the 3rd. of
5 lodges. their houses like those of the Skillutes have their
floors on the surface of the ground, but are formed of sticks
and covered with mats and straw. they are large and contain
usually several families each, for fuel they use straw, small
willows and the southern wood.
[2]
they use the silk grass in manufacturing
their fishing nets and bags, the bear grass and cedar
bark are employed in forming a variety of articles. they are
poor, dirty, proud, haughty, inhospitable, parsimonious and
faithless in every rispect. nothing but our numbers I beleive
prevents their attempting to murder us at this moment.
[3]
This morning I was informed that the natives had pilfered
six tommahawks and a knife from the party in the course
of the last night. I spoke to the cheif on this subject, he
appeared angry with his people and addressed them but the
property was not restored, one horse which I had purchased
and paid for yesterday and which could not be found when I
ordered the horses into close confinement yesterday I was now
informed had been gambled away by the rascal who had sold
it to me and had been taken away by a man of another nation.
I therefore took the goods back from this fellow. I purchased
a gun from the cheif for which I gave him 2 Elkskins. in the
course of the day I obtained two other indifferent horses for
which I gave an extravigant price. I found that I should get
no more horses and therefore resolved to proceed tomorrow
morning with those which I had and to convey the baggage in
two small canoes that the horses could not carry. for this
purpose I had a load made up for seven horses, the eighth
Bratton was compelled to ride as he was yet unable to walk.
1 bart[er]ed my Elkskins old irons and 2 canoes for beads.
one of the canoes for which they would give us but little I had
cut up for fuel. These people have yet a large quantity of
dryed fish on hand yet they will not let us have any but for an
exorbitant price, we purchased two dogs and some shappellel
from them. I had the horses graized untill evening and then
picquited and hubbled within the limits of our camp. I
ordered the indians from our camp this evening and informed
them that if I caught them attempting to perloin any article
from us I would beat them severely. they went off in reather
a bad humour and I directed the party to examine their arms
and be on their guard. they stole two spoons from us in the
course of the day. The Scad-dals, Squan-nan-os, Shan-wah-pums
and Shallattas reside to the N.W. of these people, depend
on hunting deer and Elk and trade with these people for
ther pounded fish.
[4]
