12th.. November Monday 1804—
a verry Cold
night early this morning the Big White princapal
Chief of the lower Village of the Mandans came Down,
he packd about 100lb. of fine meet on his squar for
us, we
made Some Small presents to the Squar, & child gave a Small
ax [with] which She was much pleased 3 men Sick with the
[blank in MS.], Several, Wind Changeable verry cold
evening,
freesing all day some ice on the
edges of the river.
Swans passing to the South, the Hunters we Sent down
the river to hunt has not returned
"The interpeter says that the
Mandan nation as they (old
men) Say came out of a Small lake (subterraneous Village & a
lake) where they had
Gardins, maney years ago they lived in
Several Villages on the Missourie
low down,[17]
the Small pox
destroyed the greater part of the nation and reduced them to
one large village and Some Small ones, all the nations before
this
maladey was affrd. (afraid) of them,
after they were reduced
the Seaux and other
Indians waged war, and killed a
great maney, and they moved up the
Missourie, those Indians
Still continued to wage war, and they moved Still
higher, until
got in the Countrey of the Panias, whith this Ntn. they lived in
friendship maney years, inhabiting the
Same neighbourhood
untill that people waged war, they moved up near the
Watersoons
& Winataras where they now live in
peace with those
nations, the Mandans Speake a language peculial to themselves
verry much [blank in MS.] they can
rase about 350
men the Winataries about 80 (the
Wittassoons or Maharha 80)
and the Big bellies (or
Minitarees) about 600 or 650 men. the
Mandans and Seaux have the Same
word for water. The Big
bellies or Winetaries & ravin (Wattassoon as also
the Crow or
Raven) Indians Speake nearly the Same language and the
presumption
is they were origionally the Same nation The Ravin
Indians "have 400 Lodges & about 1200 men, & follow the
Buffalow, or hunt for their Subsistance in the plains & on the
Court Noi & Rock Mountains, & are at war with the Siaux
[and] Snake Indians
The Big bellies & Watersoons are at war
with the Snake
Indians & Seauex and were at war with the Ricares untill we
made peace a fiew days passd. The Mandans are at war with
all who make war [on them, at present with the Seauex] only,
and wish to
be at peace with all nations, Seldom the ogressors
