[Clark:]
Sunday 25h. May 1806
rained moderately the greater part of last night and this
morning untill 6 A.M. The child is not so well to day as
yesterday. I repeeted the creem of tarter and the onion poltice.
I caused a swet to be prepared for the Indn. in the same hole
which bratten had been swetted in two days past Drewyer
Labiech and Peter crusatt set out hunting towards the quarmash
grounds if they can cross the Creek which is between
this and that place, which has been the bearrier as yet to our
hunters. Jos. & R Fields crossed the river to hunt on the
opposit side. Goodrich went to the 2d. village to purchase
roots a fiew of which he precured. he informed us that only
8 persons remained in the village, the men were either hunting
on Lewis's river fishing, & the women out digging roots. he
saw several fresh Salmon which the nativs informed him came
from Lewis's river and were fat and fine. One of our men
purchased a Bear skin of the nativs which was nearly of a
cream coloured white. this skin which was the skin of an
animal of the middle size of bears together with the different
sizes colours &c. of those which have been killed by our hunters
give me a stronger evidence of the various coloured bear of
this country being one species only, than any I have heretofore
had. the poil of these bear were infinately longer finer
& thicker than the black bear their tallons also longer &
more blunt as worn by digging roots, the white redish brown
and bey coloured bear I saw together on the Missouri; the
bey & Grizly have been seen and killed together here. for
these were the colours of those which Collins killed on the
14
th. inst. in short it is not common to find two bear here of
this species precisely of the same colour, and if we were to
attempt to distinguish them by their colours and to denomonate
each colour a distinct species we should soon find at least
twenty. the most striking difference between this species of
bear and the common black bear are that the former are large
and have longer tallens, hair, and tushes, prey more on other
animals, do not lie so long or so closely in winter quarters, and
will not climb a tree, tho' ever so hardly pursued. the varigated
bear I believe to be the same here with those of the
Missouri but these are not so ferocious as those on the Missouri
perhaps from the circumstance of their being compeled
from the scercity of game in this quarter to live more on roots
and of course not so much in the habit of seizing and devowering
liveing animals. the bear here is far from being as passive
as the common black bear, they have atacked and fought our
hunters already but not so fiercely as those of the Missouri.
There are also some of the common black bear in this neighbourhood
tho no[t] so common as the other species. we attempted
to swet the sick indian but could not suckceed. he
was not able either to set up or be supported in the place prepared
for him. I therefore deturmined to inform the nativs
that nothing but sefere [severe] swetts would restore this disabled
man, and even that doubtfull in his present situation.
in the evening Shields & gibson returned haveing killed a
sandhill crane only. they saw a female bear, & 2 cubs &
several deer. they shot the bear and a deer both of which made
their escape. Gibson told me that the cubs were of different
colours one jut black and the other of a whiteish colour. 4
indians continue with us, one return to their village to day.
