University of Virginia Library

Saturday August 17th. 1805.—

THIS morning I arrose very early and dispatched Drewyer
and the Indian down the river. sent Shields to
hunt. I made M.cNeal cook the remainder of our
meat which afforded a slight breakfast for ourselves and the
Chief. Drewyer had been gone about 2 hours when an Indian
who had straggled some little distance down the river
returned and reported that the whitemen were coming, that
he had seen them just below. they all appeared transported
with joy, & the ch[i]ef repeated his fraturnal hug. I felt quite
as much gratifyed at this information as the Indians appeared
to be. Shortly after Capt. Clark arrived with the Interpreter
Charbono, and the Indian woman, who proved to be a sister
of the Chief Cameahwait. the meeting of those people was
really affecting, particularly between Sah-cah-gar-we-ah and
an Indian woman, who had been taken prisoner at the same
time with her and who, had afterwards escaped from the Minnetares
and rejoined her nation.[1] At noon the Canoes arrived,
and we had the satisfaction once more to find ourselves all
together, with a flattering prospect of being able to obtain as
many horses shortly as would enable us to prosicute our voyage
by land should that by water be deemed unadvisable.

We now formed our camp just below the junction of the
forks on the Lard. side in a level smooth bottom covered with
a fine terf of greenswoard. here we unloaded our canoes and

arranged our baggage on shore; formed a canopy of one of
our large sails and planted some willow brush in the ground
to form a shade for the Indians to set under while we spoke
to them, which we thought it best to do this evening. acordingly
about 4. P.M. we called them together and through the
medium of Labuish, Charbono and Sah-cah-gar-weah, we communicated
to them fully the objects which had brought us into
this distant part of the country, in which we took care to make
them a conspicuous object of our own good wishes and the care
of our government. we made them sensible of their dependance
on the will of our government for every species of merchandize
as well for their defence & comfort; and apprized them of
the strength of our government and it's friendly dispositions
towards them. we also gave them as a reason why we wished
to pe[ne]trate the country as far as the ocean to the west of
them was to examine and find out a more direct way to bring
merchandize to them. that as no trade could be carryed on
with them before our return to our homes that it was mutually
advantageous to them as well as to ourselves that they should
render us such aids as they had it in their power to furnish in
order to haisten our voyage and of course our return home.
that such were their horses to transport our baggage without
which we could not subsist, and that a pilot to conduct us
through the mountains was also necessary if we could not decend
the river by water. but that we did not ask either their
horses or their services without giving a satisfactory compensation
in return. that at present we wished them to collect
as many horses as were necessary to transport our baggage to
their village on the Columbia where we would then trade with
them at our leasure for such horses as they could spare us
They appeared well pleased with what had been said. the
chief thanked us for friendship towards himself and nation &
declared his wish to serve us in every rispect. that he was
sorry to find that it must yet be some time before they could
be furnished with firearms but said they could live as the
had done heretofore untill we brought them as we had promised.
he said they had not horses enough with them at present
to remove our baggage to their village over the mountain
but that he would return tomorrow and encourage his people
to come over with their horses and that he would bring his
own and assist us. this was complying with all we wished at
present. we next enquired who were chiefs among them.
Cameahwait pointed out two others whom he said were Chiefs.
we gave him a medal of the small size with the likeness of Mr.
Jefferson the President of the U' States in releif on one side
and clasp hands with a pipe and tomahawk on the other, to
the other Chiefs we gave each a small medal which were struck
in the Presidency of George Washing[ton] Esqr. we also gave
small medals of the last discription to two young men whom
the 1st. Chief informed us wer good young men and much rispected
among them. we gave the 1st. Chief an uniform coat
shirt a pair of scarlet legings a carrot of tobacco and some
small articles to each of the others we gave a shi[r]t leging[s]
handkerchief a knife some tobacco and a few small articles we
also distributed a good quantity paint mockerson awles knives
beads looking-glasses &c among the other Indians and gave
them a plentifull meal of lyed (hull taken off by being boiled in
lye) corn which was the first they had ever eaten in their lives.
they were much pleased with it. every article about us appeared
to excite astonishment in ther minds; the appearance
of the men, their arms, the canoes, our manner of working
them, the b[l]ack man york and the sagacity of my dog were
equally objects of admiration. I also shot my air-gun which
was so perfectly incomprehensible that they immediately denominated
it the great medicine. the idea which the indians
mean to convey by this appellation is something that eminates
from or acts immediately by the influence or power of the great
sperit; or that, in which, the power of god is manifest by it's
incomprehensible power of action. our hunters killed 4 deer
and an Antelope this evening of which we also gave the Indians
a good proportion. the cerimony of our council and
smoking the pipe was in conformity of the custom of this
nation perfo[r]med bearfoot. on those occasions points of
etiquet are quite as much attended to by the Indians as among
scivilized nations. To keep indians in a good humour you
must not fatiegue them with too much business at one time.
therefore after the council we gave them to eat and amused
them a while by shewing them such articles as we thought
would be entertaining to them, and then renewed our enquiries
with rispect to the country. the information we derived was
only a repetition of that they had given me before and in which
they appeared to be so candid that I could not avoid yeal[d]ing
confidence to what they had said. Capt. Clark and myself
now concerted measures for our future operations, and it was
mutually agreed that he should set out tomorrow morning
with eleven men furnished with axes and other necessary tools
for making canoes, their arms accoutrements and as much of
their baggage as they could carry. also to take the indians,
C[h]arbono and the indian woman with him; that on his
arrival at the Shoshone camp he was to leave Charbono and
the Indian woman to haisten the return of the Indians with
their horses to this place, and to proceede himself with the
eleven men down the Columbia in order to examine the river
and if he found it navigable and could obtain timber to set
about making canoes immediately. In the mean time I was
to bring on the party and baggage to the Shoshone Camp
calculating that by the time I should reach that place that he
would have sufficiently informed himself with rispect to the
state of the river &c. as to determine us whether to prosicute
our journey from thence by land or water. in the forme
case we should want all the horses which we could perchase
and in the latter only to hire the Indians to transport our
baggage to the place at which we made the canoes. in order
to inform me as early as possible of the state of the river he
was to send back one of the men with the necessary information
as soon as he should satisfy himself on this subject. this
plan being settled we gave orders accordingly and the me
prepared for an early march. the nights are very cold and the
sun excessively hot in the day. we have no fuel here but
few dry willow brush. and from the appearance of [the
country I am confident we shall not find game here to sulsist
us many days. these are additional reasons why I conceive
it necessary to get under way as soon as possible. the
morning Capt. Clark had delayed untill 7. A.M. before he set
out just about which time Drewyer arrived with the Indian;
he left the canoes to come on after him, and immediately set
out and joined me as has been before mentioned. The sperits
of the men were now much elated at the prospect of geting
horses.

Courses and distances traveled by Capt. Clark August 17th. 1805.

   

S. 30°. W.	4.	to a high Knob or hill in the forks of Jefferson's River, the same being 10 M. by water. the river making a considerable bend to the Stard. the forks of this river is the most distant point to which the waters of the Missouri are navigable. of course we laid up our canoes at this place and commenced our voyage by land.
Miles	4