University of Virginia Library

[Lewis:]

Thursday August 22ed. 1805.

This morning early I sent a couple of men to complete the
covering of the cash which could not be done well last night
in the dark, they soon accomplished their work and returned.
late last night Drewyer returned with a fawn he had killed and
a considerable quantity of Indian plunder. the anecdote with
rispect to the latter is perhaps worthy of relation. he informed
me that while hunting in the Cove yesterday about 12 OCk. he
came suddonly upon an Indian Camp, at which there were a
young man an Old man and a boy and three women, that
they seemed but little supprised at seeing him and he rode up
to them and dismounted turning [his] horse out to graize.
these people had just finished their repast on some roots, he
entered into conversation with them by signs, and after about
20 minutes one of the women spoke to the others of the
party and they all went immediately and collected their horses
brought them to camp and saddled them at this moment he
thought he would also set out and continue his hunt, and accorgingly
walked to catch his horse at some little distance and
neglected to take up his gun which he left at camp, the Indians
perceiving him at the distance of fifty paces immediately
mounted their horses, the young man took the gun, and the
whole of them left their baggage and laid whip to their horses
directing their course to the pass of the mountains. finding
himself deprived of his gun he immediately mounted his horse
and pursued; after runing them about 10 miles the horses of

two of the women nearly gave out and the young fellow with
the gun from their frequent crys slackened his pace and being
on a very fleet horse road around the women at a little distance
at length Drewer overtook the women and by signs
convinced them that he did not wish to hirt them they
then halted and the young fellow approached still nearer, he
asked him for his gun but the only part of the answer which
he could understand was pahkee which he knew to be the
name by which they called their enimies. watching his opportunity
when the fellow was off his guard he suddonly rode
along side of him seized his gun and wrest[ed] her out of his
hands. the fellow finding Drewyer too strong for him and
discovering that he must yeald the gun had p[r]esents of mind
to open the pan and cast the priming before he let the gun
escape from his hands; now finding himself devested of the
gun he turned his horse about and laid whip leaving the
women to follow him as well as they could. Drewyer now
returned to the place they had left their baggage and brought
it with him to my camp. it consisted of several dressed and
undressed skins; a couple of bags wove with the fingers of
the bark of the silk-grass containing each about a bushel of
dryed service burries some ch[ok]echerry cakes and about a
bushel of roots of three different kinds dryed and prepared
for uce which were foalded in as many parchment hides of
buffaloe. some flint and the instrument of bone for manufactureing
the flint into arrow points. some of this flint was as
transparent as the common black glass and much of the same
colour, easily broken, and flaked of[f] much like glass leaving
a very sharp edge.[3] one speceis of the roots were fusiform
abo[u]t six inches long and about the size of a man's finger
at the larger end tapering to a small point. the radicles larger
than in most fusiform roots. the rind was white and thin.
the body or consistence of the root was white mealy and easily
reduced by pounding to a substance resembleing flour which
thickens with boiling water something like flour and is agreeably
flavored. this rout is frequently eaten by the Indians
either green or in it's dryed state without the preparation of
boiling. another speceis was much mutilated but appeared to
be fibrous; the parts were brittle, hard, of the size of a small
quill, cilindric and as white as snow throughout, except some
small parts of the hard black rind which they had not seperated
in the preperation. this the Indians with me informed were
always boiled for use. I made the exp[e]riment, found that
they became perfectly soft by boiling, but had a very bitter
taste, which was naucious to my pallate, and I transfered them
to the Indians who had eat them heartily. a third speceis
were about the size of a nutmeg, and of an irregularly rounded
form, something like the smallest of the Jarusalem artichoke,
which they also resemble in every other appearance. they had
become very hard by being dryed, these I also boiled agreeably
to the instruction of the Indians and found them very
agreeable. they resemble the Jerusalem Artichoke very much
in their flavor and I thought them preferable, however there
is some allowance to be made for the length of time I have
now been without vegitable food to which I was always much
attatched. these are certainly the best root[s] I have yet seen
in uce among the Indians. I asked the Indians to shew me
the plant of which these roots formed a part but they informed
me that neither of them grew near this place.[4] I had set most
of the men at work today to dress the deerskin belonging to
those who had gone on command with Capt. Clark. at II.A.M.
Charbono, the Indian Woman, Cameahwait and about 50 men
with a number of women and children arrived. they encamped
near us. after they had turned out their horses and
arranged their camp I called the Cheifs and warriors together
and addressed them a second time; gave them some further
presents, particularly the second and third Cheifs who it appeared
had agreeably to their promise exerted themselves in
my favour, having no fresh meat and these poor devils half
starved I had previously prepared a good meal for them all
of boiled corn and beans which I gave them as soon as the
council was over and I had distributed the presents. this was
thankfully received by them. the Cheif wished that his nation
could live in a country where they could provide such food.
I told him that it would not be many years before the white-men
would put it in the power of his nation to live in the
country below the mountains where they might cultivate corn
beans and squashes. he appeared much pleased with the information.
I gave him a few dryed squashes which we had
brought from the Mandans he had them boiled and declared
them to be the best thing he had ever tasted except sugar, a
small lump of which it seems his sister Sah-cah-gar Wea had
given him. late in the evening I made the men form a bush
drag, and with it in about 2 hours they caught 528 very good
fish, most of them large trout. among them I now for the
first time saw ten or a douzen of a white speceis of trout.
they are of a silvery colour except on the back and head, where
they are of a bluish cast. the scales are much larger than the
speckled trout, but in their form position of their fins teeth
mouth &c they are precisely like them. they are not generally
quite as large but equally well flavored.[5] I distributed
much the greater portion of the fish among the Indians. I
purchased five good horses of them very reasonably, or at
least for about the value of six dollars a peice in merchandize.
the Indians are very orderly and do not croud about our camp
nor attempt to disterb any article they see lying about. they
borrow knives kettles &c from the men and always carefully
return them. Capt Clark says, "we set out early and passed
a small creek at one mile, also the points of four mountains
which were high steep and rocky. the mountains are so steep
that it is almost incredible to mention that horses had passed
them. our road in many places lay over the sharp fragments
of rocks which had fallen from the mountains and lay in
confused heaps for miles together; yet notwithstanding our
horsed[s] traveled barefoot [i.e., unshod] over them as fast as
we could and did not detain us. passed two bold runing
streams, and arrived at the entrance of a small river where
some Indian families resided. they had some scaffoalds of
fish and burries exposed to dry. they were not acquainted
with the circumstance of any whitemen being in their country
and were therefore much allarmed on our approach several
of the women and children fled in the woods for shelter. the
guide was behind and the wood thick in which their lodges
were situated we came on them before they had the least
notice of us. those who remained offered us every thing they
had, which was but little; they offered us collars of elks tusks
which their children woar, Salmon beries &c we eat some
of their fish and buries but returned them the other articles
they had offered with a present of some small articles which
seemed to add much to their pacification. The guide who had
by this time arrived explained to them who we were and our
object in visiting them; but still there were some of the women
and Children inconsoleable, they continued to cry during our
stay, which was about an hour. a road passes up this river
which my guide informed me led over the mountains to the
Missouri. from this place I continued my rout along the
steep side of a mountain for about 3 miles and arrived at
the river near a small Island on the lower point of which we
encamped. in the evening we attempted to gig fish but were
unsuccessfull only obtaining one small salmon. in the course
of the day we had passed several women and children geathering
burries who were very liberal in bestoing us a part of their
collections. the river is very rapid and shoaly; many rocks
lie in various derections scattered throughout it's bed. There
are some few small pine scattered through the bottoms, of
which I only saw one which appeared as if it would answer for
a canoe and that was but small. the tops of the mountains
on the Lard. side are covered with pine and some also scattered
on the sides of all the mountains. I saw today a speceis of
woodpecker, which fed on the seeds of the pine. it's beak
and tail were white, it's wings were black, and every other part
of a dark brown. it was about the size of a robin.[6] ["]