I[22]
returned last
Night from a hunting party much fatigued,
haveing walked 30 miles on the
ice and through Points of
wood land in which the Snow was nearly Knee
Deep
The 1st. day [Feb 4] I left the fort proceeded
on the ice to
new Mandan Island, 22 miles &
camped, killed nothing, &
nothing to eat,
The 2d. day—the morning verry Cold & Windey. I broke
thro the ice and got my feet and legs wet, Sent out 4 hunters
thro'
a point to kill a Deer & cook it by the time the party
should get up,
those hunters killed a Deer & 2 Buffalow
Bulls the Buffalow too Meagur
to eat, we eate the Deer &
proceeded on to an old Indian Lodge, Sent
out the hunters
& they brought in three lean Deer, which we made use
of for
food, walking on uneaven ice has blistered
the bottoms of my
feat, and walking is painfull to me.
3rd. day—cold morning
the after part of the Day worm,
Camped on a Sand point near the mouth of a
Creek on the
SW. Side We Call hunting Creek, I turned out with the
hunters I killed 2 Deer the hunters killed an Elk, Buffalow
Bull,
& 5 Deer. all Meager
4th. Day—hunted the
two bottoms near the Camp Killed
9 Elk, 18 Deer, brought to camp all the
meat fit to eate, &
had the bones taken out. every man ingaged either
in hunting
or Collecting & packing the meat to Camp
5th. Day—Despatched one of the party our interpeter &
2
french men with the 3 horses loaded with the best of the meat
to
the fort 44 miles Distant, the remaining meat I had packed
on the 2 Slays
& drawn down to the next point about 3 miles
below, at this place I
had all the meat collected which was
killed yesterday & had escaped
the Wolves, Ravin & Magpie;
(which are verry noumerous about this
place) and put into a
close pen made of logs to secure it from the wolves
& birds &
proceeded on to a large bottom nearly opposit the
Chisscheter
(heart) River, in this bottom we found but little game, Great
No. of Wolves, on the hills Saw Several parsels of Buffalow.
Camped.
I killed a Buck
6th. Day—The Buffalow Seen
last night provd to be Bulls.
lean & unfit for to make use of as food,
the Distance from
Camp being nearly 60 miles and the packing of meat that
distance
attended with much dificuelty
Deturmined me to return
and hunt the points above, we Set out on our
return and
halted at an old Indian lodge 40 miles below Fort Mandan
Killed 3 Elk, & 2 Deer.
7th. Day—a
cold Day wind blew hard from the N.W. J
Fields got one of his ears frosed
deturmined to lay by and
hunt to day Killed an Elk & 6 deer, all that
was fit for us
[of] this meat I had Boned and put into a Close pen made
of
logs.
8th. Day—the
air keen halted at the old Camp we staye
in on the 2d
night after we left the Fort, expecting to meat the
horses at this Place, killed 3 Deer, Several men being
nearly
out of Mockersons, & the horses not returning
deturmined me
to return to the Fort on tomorrow.
9th. day.—Set
out early, Saw great numbers of Grouse feeding
on the young Willows, on the Sand bars, one
man I sent
in persute of a gangue of Elk Killed three near the old Ricara
Village, and joined at the fort, Sent him back to secure the
meat,
one man with him. The ice on the Parts of the river
which was verry rough,
as I went down, was Smoothe on my
return, This is owing to the rise and
fall of the water, which
takes place every day or two, and Caused by
partial thaws, and
obstructions in the passage of the water thro the Ice,
which
frequently attaches itself to the bottom, the water when riseing
forses its way thro the cracks & air
holes above the old ice,
& in one night becomes a Smothe Surface of
ice 4 to 6 Inchs
thick, the River falls & the ice Sink in places with
the water
and attaches itself to the bottom, and when it again rises to
its
former hite, frequently leavs a Valley of Several feet to Supply
with water to bring it on a leavel Surfice. The water of the
Missouri at this time is Clear with little tingue.
I saw Several
old Villages near the Chisscheter River on
enquirey found they were Mandan
Villages destroyed by the
Sous & Small Pox, they [were] noumerous and
lived in 6 (9)
Villages near that place.
