LXXXVI. LXXXVI
NICHOLAS BIDDLE TO WILLIAM TILGHMAN[1]
LXXXVI. [Qriginal MS. in possession of American Philosophical Society. We follow a transcript furnished
by Secretary Hays.]
Dear Sir: I have the pleasure of depositing with the Historical
Committee the papers & books which accompany this letter, in compliance
with the request of Governor Clark in his letter to me of the
10th of October 1816 transmitted by Mr. Jefferson.
It may perhaps be useful to add such notices of other objects
connected with them, as may enable the Committee to extend its
researches.
It was in the Spring of 1810 that I received from Governor Clark in
Virginia, & brought to Philadelphia the papers & documents deemed
necessary for the publication of the Travels. They consisted of,
1.
A large map of the country between the Mississipi & the Pacific
illustrating the course of the journey
2.
A map for Mr Hassler who was in the state of New York and
engaged in some astronomical calculations for the work.
3.
Some documents for Dr Barton
4.
The manuscript journal of Serjeant Ordway, one of the party
5.
The pocket Journals of the expedition
Of these,
1.
The map after the draft was made from it for the engraver was
delivered by the draftsman, Mr Lewis, to Governor Clark when last in
Phila. about the year 1813.
2.
The other map was forwarded by Mr Vaughan to Mr Hassler, who
in his letter dated Augt. 12. 1810 at Schenectady mentions the receipt
of it
VOCABULARY
Fire |
a man |
monax |
tooth |
water |
a woman |
beaver |
tongue |
earth |
belly |
raccoon |
ear |
air |
back |
opossum |
neck |
wind |
side |
to-day |
arm |
sky |
bubby |
to-morrow |
wrist |
sun |
nipple |
a day |
hand |
moon |
thigh |
a month |
finger |
star |
leg |
a year |
moose |
light |
foot |
spring |
bear |
darkness |
toe |
summer |
wolf |
day |
skin |
autumn |
panther |
night |
nails |
winter |
wild-cat |
heat |
bone |
a man |
pole-cat |
cold |
blood |
a woman |
fox |
smoak |
life |
a boy |
monax |
cloud |
death |
a girl |
beaver |
fog |
food |
a child |
raccoon |
rain |
meat |
father |
opossum |
snow |
fat |
mother |
hare |
hail |
lean |
brother |
squirrel |
ice |
bread |
sister |
flying-squirrel |
frost |
Indian-corn |
husband |
ground-squirrel |
dew |
milk |
wife |
mole |
rain-bow |
egg |
son |
a bird |
thunder |
a house |
daughter |
an eagle |
lightning |
the mammoth |
the body |
hawk |
yesterday |
buffalo |
the head |
owl |
to-day |
elk |
the hair |
turkey |
to-morrow |
deer |
the beard |
swan |
a day |
moose |
the face |
wild-goose |
a month |
bear |
an eye |
duck |
a year |
wolf |
the nose |
turkey-buzzard |
spring |
panther |
the cheek |
raven |
summer |
wild-cat |
chin |
crow |
autumn |
pole-cat |
lip |
black-bird |
winter |
fox |
mouth |
crane |
pigeon |
ninety |
to jump |
three |
dove |
a hundred |
to fall |
four |
pheasant |
two hundred |
to break |
nine hundred |
partridge |
three hundred |
to bend |
a thousand |
mocking-bird |
four hundred |
yes |
white |
red-bird |
five hundred |
no |
black |
snake |
six hundred |
gold |
green |
lizzard |
seven hundred |
silver |
blue |
butterfly |
eight hundred |
copper |
yellow |
fly |
ugly |
a stone |
red |
fish |
sick |
wood |
good |
frog |
brave |
gum |
bad |
mulberry |
cowardly |
a mountain |
large |
a vine |
wise |
hill |
small |
tobacco |
foolish |
valley |
high |
joy |
I |
sea |
low |
sorrow |
you |
lake |
broad |
one |
he |
pond |
narrow |
two |
she |
river |
old |
three |
they |
creek |
young |
four |
this |
a spring |
new |
five |
that |
grass |
hard |
six |
to eat |
a tree |
soft |
seven |
to drink |
pine |
sweet |
eight |
to sleep |
cedar |
sour |
nine |
to laugh |
sycamore |
bitter |
ten |
to cry |
poplar |
hot |
eleven |
to sing |
ash |
cold |
twelve |
to whistle |
elm |
dry |
thirteen |
to smell |
beech |
wet |
fourteen |
to hear |
birch |
strong |
fifteen |
to see |
maple |
weak |
sixteen |
to speak |
oak |
pretty |
seventeen |
to walk |
chesnut |
ugly |
eighteen |
to run |
hiccory |
sick |
nineteen |
to stand |
walnut |
brave |
twenty |
to sit |
locust |
cowardly |
twenty-one |
to lie down |
mulberry |
wise |
thirty |
to smoke a pipe |
a vine |
foolish |
forty |
to love |
tobacco |
I |
fifty |
to hate |
joy |
you |
sixty |
to strike |
sorrow |
he |
seventy |
to kill |
one |
|
eighty |
to dance |
two |
|
3.
The documents for Dr Barton, were delivered to him immediately
after my arrival in Phila. Not having received any list of them from
Govr Clark I of course took none from Dr Barton, and as I was merely
the bearer of them, my recollection is not as accurate as it would have
been had they fallen more immediately under my examination. My
impression however is that the packet for Dr Barton consisted of small
manuscript books & some papers. The books were chiefly extracts
relative to objects of natural history taken from the original Journal now
deposited with the Committee. The papers were Indian vocabularies,
collected during the journey. They formed, I think a bundle of loose
sheets each sheet containing a printed vocabulary in English with the
corresponding Indian name in manuscript. There was also another
collection of Indian vocabularies, which, if I am not mistaken, was in
the handwriting of Mr Jefferson.[2]
I have turned to my letter to Governor Clark dated July 7. 1810,
the first to him after my arrival at Phila, in hopes of finding some
further particulars, but the letter merely states in general terms "I need
not say that I arrived safe at this place / that the map was immediately
forwarded to Mr Hassler, and that Dr Barton received all his
papers "In the preface to the printed travels which, being published
in Phila whilst Dr Barton was there, must be presumed to have been
correct it is stated that "those parts of the work which relate to the
various objects of natural history observed or collected during the
journey, as well as the alphabets of the Indian languages are in the hands
of Professor Barton, and will it is understood, shortly appear." This
was in 1814.
I have mentioned these particulars so minutely because the description
may perhaps enable some of the Committe to recognize the vocabularies,
which I incline to think were the only things delivered by me to
Dr Barton not included in the volumes now deposited.
4.
The journal of Serjeant Ordway was I believe a private purchase
from that person. Governor Clark in his letter to me of the 24
Jany. 1818 desires me to send it to him.
5.
The Journals of Mefsrs' Lewis & Clark from the beginning to the
end of the journey are contained in the 14 volumes, all of which are
now deposited. There is besides one volume of astronomical observations
& other matter by Captain Lewis, a small copy book containing
some notes by Captain Lewis / the rough draft of his letter to the
President from St Louis announcing his return / and two statistical
tables of the various tribes of Indians west of the Mississipi made by
Governor Clark.
These are all the observations which occur to me as promising to be
useful to the Committee,
Very respectfully yrs
Nicholas Biddle
Honble William Tilghman Chairman of the Historical Committee of the
Philosl Society.
[Endoresed:] received & read to the Historical Commee April 8, 1818 See Minutes.