[Lewis:]
Monday February 3rd. 1806.
About three o'clock Drewyer [and] La Page, returned;
Drewyer had killed seven Elk in the point below us, several
miles distant but can be approached with in 3/4 of a mile with
canoes by means of a small creek which discharges itself into
the bay on this side of the Clatsop village direct Sergt. pryor
to go in quest of the meat, the wind was so high that they
were unable to set out untill a little before sunset, when they
departed; at 10 P. M. they return excessively could and informed
us that they could not make land on this side of the
bay nor get into the creek in consequence of the tide being
out and much lower than usual. we are apprehensive that the
Clatsops who know where the meat is will rob us of a part if
not the whole of it. at half after 4. P. M. Sergt. Gass returned
with his party, they brought with them the flesh of four other
Elk which the hunters had found, being a part of the ten
which were killed up the Netul river the other day. he left
R. Fields, Shannon and Labuish to continue the hunt and
made an appointment to return to them on Friday. late in
the evening the four men who had been sent to assist the salt-makers
in transporting meat which they had killed to their
camp, also returned, and brought with them all the salt which
had been made, consisting of about one busshel only. with
the means we have of boiling the salt water we find it a very
tedious opperation, that of making salt, notwithstanding we
keep the kettles boiling day and night. we calculate on three
bushels lasting us from hence to our deposits of that article
on the Missouri.
