Oregon and Eldorado; or, Romance of the Rivers

A COUNCIL

"After making eleven miles, we reached an old field, where the Mandans had cultivated grain last summer. We encamped for the night about half a mile below the first village of the Mandans. As soon as we arrived, a crowd of men, women, and children, came down to see us. Capt. Lewis returned with the principal chiefs to the village, while the others remained with us during the evening. The object which seemed to surprise them most was a corn-mill, fixed to the boat, which we had occasion to use; while they looked on, and were delighted at observing the ease with which it reduced the grain to powder.

"Among others who visited us was the son of the grand chief of the Mandans, who had both his little fingers cut off at the second joint. On inquiring into this injury, we found that the custom was to express grief for the death of relations by some corporeal suffering, and that the usual mode was to lose a joint of the little finger, or sometimes of other fingers.

"Oct. 29, 1804. – The morning was fine, and we prepared our presents and speech for the council. At ten o'clock, the chiefs were all assembled under an awning of our sails. That the impression might be the more forcible, the men were all paraded; and the council opened by a discharge from the swivel of the boat. Capt. Lewis then delivered a speech, which, like those we had already made, intermingled advice with assurances of friendship and trade. While he was speaking, the Ahnahaway chief grew very restless, and observed that he could not wait long, as his camp was exposed to the hostilities of the Shoshonees. He was instantly rebuked with great dignity, by one of the chiefs, for this violation of decorum at such a moment, and remained quiet during the rest of the council. This being over, we proceeded to distribute the presents with great ceremony. One chief of each town was acknowledged by the gift of a flag, a medal with the likeness of the President of the United States, a uniform coat, hat, and feather. To the second chiefs we gave a medal representing some domestic animals, and a loom for weaving; to the third chiefs, medals with the impression of a farmer sowing grain. A variety of other products were distributed; but none seemed to give more satisfaction than an iron corn-mill which we gave them.

"In the evening, our men danced among themselves to the music of the violin, to the great amusement of the Indians."

THEY ENCAMP FOR THE WINTER

"Friday, Nov. 7, 1804. – Capt. Clarke having examined the shores, and found a position where there was plenty of timber, we encamped, and began to fell trees to build our huts. The timber which we employ is cotton-wood (poplar) and elm, with some ash of inferior size. By the 8th, our huts were advanced very well; on the 13th, we unloaded the boat, and stowed away the contents in a storehouse which we had built.

"Nov. 20. – This day we moved into our huts, which are now completed. We call our place Fort Mandan. It is situated on a point of low ground on the north side of the Missouri, covered with tall and heavy cotton-wood. The works consist of two rows of huts or sheds, forming an angle where they join each other; each row containing four rooms of fourteen feet square and seven feet high, with plank ceiling, and the roof slanting so as to form a loft above the rooms, the highest part of which is eighteen feet from the ground. The backs of the huts formed a wall of that height; and, opposite the angle, the place of the wall was supplied by picketing. In the area were two rooms for stores and provisions. The latitude, by observation, is 47° 22´, long. 101°; and the computed distance from the mouth of the Missouri, sixteen hundred miles.

"Nov. 21. – We are now settled in our winter habitation, and shall wait with much impatience the first return of spring to continue our journey."

CHAPTER V.

INDIAN TRIBES

"The villages near which we are established are the residence of three distinct nations, – the Mandans, the Ahnahaways, and the Minnetarees. The Mandans say, that, many years ago, their tribe was settled in nine villages, the ruins of which we passed about eighty miles below. Finding themselves wasting away before the small-pox and the Sioux, they moved up the river, and planted themselves opposite the Ricaras. Their numbers are very much reduced, and they now constitute but two villages, – one on each side of the river, and at a distance of three miles from each other. Both villages together may raise about three hundred and fifty men."

AHNAHAWAYS

"Four miles from the lower Mandan village is one inhabited by the Ahnahaways. This nation formerly dwelt on the Missouri, about thirty miles below where they now live. The Assinaboins and Sioux forced them to a spot five miles higher, and thence, by a second emigration, to their present situation, in order to obtain an asylum near the Minnetarees. Their whole force is about fifty men."

MINNETAREES

"About half a mile from this village, and in the same open plain with it, is a village of Minnetarees, who are about one hundred and fifty men in number. One and a half miles above this village is a second of the same tribe, who may be considered the proper Minnetaree nation. It is situated in a beautiful plain, and contains four hundred and fifty warriors. The Mandans say that this people came out of the water to the east, and settled near them. The Minnetarees, however, assert that they grew where they now live, and will never emigrate from the spot; the Great Spirit having declared, that, if they move, they will all perish.

"The inhabitants of these villages, all of which are within the compass of six miles, live in harmony with each other. Their languages differ to some extent; but their long residence together has enabled them to understand one another's speech as to objects of daily occurrence, and obvious to the senses.

"All these tribes are at deadly feud with the Sioux, who are much more powerful, and are consequently objects of continual apprehension. The presence of our force kept the peace for the present.

"Almost the whole of that vast tract of country comprised between the Mississippi, the Red River of Lake Winnipeg, the Saskatchawan, and the Missouri, is loosely occupied by a great nation whose primitive name is Dahcotas, but who are called Sioux by the French, Sues by the English. They are divided into numerous tribes, named Yanktons, Tetons, Assinaboins, &c. These tribes are sometimes at war with one another, but still acknowledge relationship, and are recognized by similarity of language and by tradition."

RELIGION

"The religion of the Mandans consists in the belief of one Great Spirit presiding over their destinies. This Being must be in the nature of a good genius, since it is associated with the healing art; and the Great Spirit is synonymous with Great Medicine, – a name also applied to every thing they do not comprehend. They also believe in a multiplicity of inferior spirits. Each individual selects for himself the particular object of his devotion, which is termed his Medicine, and is either an invisible being, or more commonly some animal, which thenceforward becomes his protector, or his intercessor with the Great Spirit. To propitiate the Medicine, every attention is lavished, and every personal consideration is sacrificed. 'I was lately owner of seventeen horses,' said a Mandan; 'but I have offered them all up to my Medicine, and am now poor.' He had in reality taken them into the plain, and, turning them loose, committed them to the care of his Medicine, and abandoned them.

"Their belief in a future state is connected with a tradition of their origin. The whole nation, they say, once dwelt in one large village underground. A grape-vine extended its roots down to their habitation; and the earth, being broken round its stem, gave them a view of the light. Some of the more adventurous climbed up the vine, and were delighted with the sight of the earth, which they found covered with buffaloes, and rich with every kind of fruit. Returning with the grapes they had gathered, their countrymen were so pleased with the taste, that the whole nation resolved to leave their dull residence for the upper region. Men, women, and children ascended by means of the vine; but, when about half the nation had reached the surface, a corpulent woman, who was clambering up the vine, broke it with her weight, and, falling, closed up the cavity. Those who had reached the surface, thus excluded from their original seats, cherish the hopes of returning there when they die."

INDIAN MANNERS

The following extract imparts some traits of Indian manners: —

"Nov. 22. – This morning, the sentinel informed us that an Indian was about to kill his wife near the fort. We went to the house of our interpreter, where we found the parties, and, after forbidding any violence, inquired into the cause of his intending to commit such an atrocity. It appeared that, some days ago, a quarrel had taken place between him and his wife, in consequence of which she had taken refuge in the house where the wives of our interpreter lived. By running away, she forfeited her life, which might be lawfully taken by the husband. He was now come for the purpose of completing his revenge. We gave him a few presents, and tried to persuade him to take his wife home. The grand chief, too, happened to arrive at the same moment, and reproached him with his violence; till at length husband and wife went off together, but by no means in a state of much apparent connubial felicity."

THE WEATHER

"Dec. 12, 1804. – The thermometer at sunrise was thirty-eight degrees below zero; on the 16th, twenty-two below; on the 17th, forty-five below. On the 19th, it moderated a little. Notwithstanding the cold, we observed the Indians at the village engaged, out in the open air, at a game which resembles billiards. The platform, which answered for a table, was formed with timber, smoothed and joined so as to be as level as the floor of one of our houses. Instead of balls, they had circular disks made of clay-stone, and flat like checkers."

THE ARGALI

"Dec. 22. – A number of squaws brought corn to trade for small articles with the men. Among other things, we procured two horns of the animal called by the hunters the Rocky-Mountain sheep, and by naturalists the argali. The animal is about the size of a small elk or large deer; the horns winding like those of a ram, which they resemble also in texture, though larger and thicker.

"Dec. 23. – The weather was fine and warm. We were visited by crowds of Indians of all description, who came either to trade, or from mere curiosity. Among the rest, Kagohami, the Little Raven, brought his wife and son, loaded with corn; and she entertained us with a favorite Mandan dish, – a mixture of pumpkins, beans, corn, and choke-cherries, all boiled together in a kettle, and forming a composition by no means unpalatable.

"Dec. 25. – Christmas Day. We were awakened before day by a discharge of fire-arms from the party. We had told the Indians not to visit us, as it was one of our great Medicine-days; so that the men remained at home, and amused themselves in various ways, particularly with dancing, in which they take great pleasure. The American flag was hoisted for the first time in the fort; the best provisions we had were brought out; and this, with a little brandy, enabled them to pass the day in great festivity."

THE BLACKSMITH

"Dec. 27. – We were fortunate enough to have among our men a good blacksmith, whom we set to work to make a variety of articles. His operations seemed to surprise the Indians who came to see us; but nothing could equal their astonishment at the bellows, which they considered a very great Medicine."

THE DYING CHIEF

"Kagohami came to see us early. His village was afflicted by the death of one of their aged chiefs, who, from his account, must have been more than a hundred years old. Just as he was dying, he requested his grand-children to dress him in his best robe, and carry him up to a hill, and seat him on a stone, with his face down the river, towards their old village, that he might go straight to his brother, who had passed before him to the ancient village underground."

THE MEDICINE-STONE

"Oheenaw and Shahaka came down to see us, and mentioned that several of their countrymen had gone to consult their Medicine-stone as to the prospects of the following year. This Medicine-stone is the great oracle of the Mandans, and whatever it announces is believed with implicit confidence. Every spring, and on some occasions during the summer, a deputation visits the sacred spot, where there is a thick, porous stone twenty feet in circumference, with a smooth surface. Having reached the place, the ceremony of smoking to it is performed by the deputies, who alternately take a whiff themselves, and then present the pipe to the stone. After this, they retire to an adjoining wood for the night, during which it may be safely presumed all the embassy do not sleep; and, in the morning, they read the destinies of the nation in the white marks on the stone, which those who made them are at no loss to decipher. The Minnetarees have a stone of a similar kind, which has the same qualities, and the same influence over the nation."

THE INDIANS' ENDURANCE OF COLD

"Jan. 10, 1805. – The weather now exhibited the intensity of cold. This morning, at sunrise, the mercury stood at forty degrees below zero. One of the men, separated from the rest in hunting, was out all night. In the morning he returned, and told us that he had made a fire, and kept himself tolerably warm. A young Indian, about thirteen years of age, came in soon after. He had been overtaken by the night, and had slept in the snow, with no covering but a pair of deer-skin moccasons and leggings, and a buffalo-robe. His feet were frozen; but we restored them by putting them in cold water, rendering him every attention in our power. Another Indian, who had been missing, returned about the same time. Although his dress was very thin, and he had slept in the snow, without a fire, he had not suffered any inconvenience. These Indians support the rigors of the season in a way which we had hitherto thought impossible."

SUPPLIES OF FOOD

"Our supplies are chiefly procured by hunting; but occasional additions are made by the Indians, sometimes in the way of gifts, and sometimes in exchange for the services of the blacksmith, who is a most important member of the party.

"Feb. 18. – Our stock of meat is exhausted, so that we must confine ourselves to vegetable diet till the return of our hunters. For this, however, we are at no loss, since yesterday and to-day our blacksmith got large quantities of corn from the Indians who came to the fort.

"Sunday, March 3. – The men are all employed in preparing the boats. We are visited by a party of Indians with corn. A flock of ducks passed up the river to-day.

"Wednesday, 13. – We had a fine day, and a south-west wind. Many Indians came to see us, who are so anxious for battle-axes, that our smiths have not a moment's leisure, and procure us an abundance of corn."

HUNTING BUFFALOES ON THE ICE

"March 25, 1805. – A fine day, the wind south-west. The river rose nine inches, and the ice began breaking away. Our canoes are now nearly ready, and we expect to set out as soon as the river is sufficiently clear of ice to permit us to pass.

"March 29. – The ice came down this morning in great quantities. We have had few Indians at the fort for the last three or four days, as they are now busy in catching the floating buffaloes. Every spring, as the river is breaking up, the surrounding plains are set on fire, and the buffaloes tempted to cross the river in search of the fresh grass which immediately succeeds to the burning. On their way, they are often insulated on a large cake or mass of ice which floats down the river. The Indians now select the most favorable points for attack, and, as the buffalo approaches, run with astonishing agility across the trembling ice, sometimes pressing lightly a cake of not more than two feet square. The animal is, of course, unsteady, and his footsteps insecure, on this new element, so that he can make but little resistance; and the hunter who has given him his death-wound paddles his icy boat to the shore, and secures his prey."

CHAPTER VI.

THE MARCH RESUMED

From the 1st of November, 1804, to the 1st of April, 1805, the expedition remained stationary at their fort. Some of their number had been sent back to the States with despatches to the Government, and with specimens of the natural productions of the country. On resuming their march on the 4th of April, the party consisted of thirty-two persons. Besides the commanders, there were three sergeants, – Ordway, Prior, and Gass; twenty-three privates, besides Capt. Clark's black servant York; two interpreters, – George Drewyer and Toussaint Chaboneau. The wife of Chaboneau, an Indian woman, with her young child, accompanied her husband. All this party, with the luggage, was stored in six small canoes and two pirogues. They left the fort with fair weather, and, after making four miles, encamped on the north side of the river, nearly opposite the first Mandan village. We continue their journal.

THE RIVER-SHORE

"April 8. – The river-banks exhibit indications of volcanic agency. The bluffs which we passed to-day are upwards of one hundred feet high, composed of yellow clay and sand, with horizontal strata of carbonated wood resembling pit-coal, from one to five feet in thickness, scattered through the bluff at different elevations. Great quantities of pumice-stone and lava are seen in many parts of the hills, where they are broken and washed into gullies by the rain. We passed a bluff which is on fire, and throws out quantities of smoke, which has a strong, sulphurous smell. On the sides of the hills is a white substance, which appears in considerable quantities on the surface, and tastes like a mixture of common salt with Glauber salts. Many of the springs which come from the foot of the hills are so impregnated with this substance, that the water has an unpleasant taste, and a purgative effect."

THE PRAIRIE-MICE

"April, 1805. – We saw, but could not procure, an animal that burrows in the ground, similar to the burrowing-squirrel, except that it is only one-third of its size. This may be the animal whose works we have often seen in the plains and prairies. They consist of a little hillock of ten or twelve pounds of loose earth, which would seem to have been reversed from a flower-pot; and no aperture is seen in the ground from which it could have been brought. On removing gently the earth, you discover that the soil has been broken in a circle of about an inch and a half in diameter, where the ground is looser, though still no opening is perceptible. When we stopped for dinner, the Indian woman went out, and, penetrating with a sharp stick the holes of the mice, brought a quantity of wild artichokes, which the mice collect, and hoard in large quantities. The root is white, of an ovate form, from one to three inches long, and generally of the size of a man's finger; and two, four, and sometimes six roots are attached to a single stalk. Its flavor, as well as the stalk that issues from it, resemble those of the Jerusalem artichoke, except that the latter is much larger."

THE YELLOW-STONE RIVER

"Certain signs, known to the hunters, induced them to believe that we were at no great distance from the Yellow-stone River. In order to prevent delay, Capt. Lewis determined to go on by land in search of that river, and make the necessary observations, so as to enable us to proceed immediately after the boats should join him.

"On leaving the party, he pursued his route along the foot of the hills; ascending which, the wide plains watered by the Missouri and the Yellow-stone spread themselves before his eye, occasionally varied with the wood of the banks, enlivened by the windings of the two rivers, and animated by vast herds of buffaloes, deer, elk, and antelope."

NATURAL HISTORY

"May, 1805. – We reached the mouth of a river flowing from the north, which, from the unusual number of porcupines near it, we called Porcupine River. These animals are so careless and clumsy, that we can approach very near without disturbing them as they are feeding on the young willows. The porcupine is common in all parts of the territory, and for its quills is held in high estimation by the Indians. It is interesting to see with how much ingenuity, and in how many various forms, the Indians manufacture these quills into ornamental work, such as moccasons, belts, and various other articles."

WOLVES

"The wolves are very numerous, and of two species. First, the small wolf, or burrowing dog of the prairies, which is found in almost all the open plains. It is of an intermediate size, between the fox and dog, very delicately formed, fleet and active. The ears are large, erect, and pointed; the head long and pointed, like that of a fox; the tail long and bushy; the hair and fur of a pale reddish-brown, and much coarser than that of the fox. These animals usually associate in bands of ten or twelve, and are rarely, if ever, seen alone; not being able singly to attack a deer or antelope. They live, and rear their young, in burrows, which they fix near some pass much frequented by game, and sally out in a body against any animal which they think they can overpower, but, on the slightest alarm, retreat to their burrows, making a noise exactly like that of a small dog.

"The second species is lower, shorter in the legs, and thicker, than the Atlantic wolf. They do not burrow, nor do they bark, but howl; and they frequent the woods and plains, and skulk along the herds of buffaloes, in order to attack the weary or wounded."

ELK

"Among the animals of the deer kind, the elk is the largest and most majestic. It combines beauty with magnitude and strength; and its large, towering horns give it an imposing appearance. Its senses are so keen in apprehension, that it is difficult to be approached; and its speed in flight is so great, that it mocks the chase. Its flesh resembles beef, but is less highly flavored, and is much sought for by the Indians and hunters. Its skin is esteemed, and much used in articles of clothing and for moccasons."

BEAVERS

"We saw many beavers to-day. The beaver seems to contribute very much to the widening of the river and the formation of islands. They begin by damming up the channels of about twenty yards width between the islands. This obliges the river to seek another outlet; and, as soon as this is effected, the channel stopped by the beaver becomes filled with mud and sand. The industrious animal is thus driven to another channel, which soon shares the same fate; till the river spreads on all sides, and cuts the projecting points of land into islands.

"The beaver dams differ in shape, according to the nature of the place in which they are built. If the water in the river or creek have but little motion, the dam is almost straight; but, when the current is more rapid, it is always made with a considerable curve, convex toward the stream. The materials made use of are drift-wood, green willows, birch, and poplars, if they can be got; also mud and stones, intermixed in such a manner as must evidently contribute to the strength of the dam. In places which have been long frequented by beavers undisturbed, their dams, by frequent repairing, become a solid bank, capable of resisting a great force both of water and ice; and as the willow, poplar, and birch generally take root, and shoot up, they, by degrees, form a kind of regular planted hedge, in some places so tall that birds build their nests among the branches. The beaver-houses are constructed of the same materials as their dams, and are always proportioned in size to the number of inhabitants, which seldom exceeds four old and six or eight young ones. The houses are of a much ruder construction than their dams: for, notwithstanding the sagacity of these animals, it has never been observed that they aim at any other convenience in their house than to have a dry place to lie on; and there they usually eat their victuals, such as they take out of the water. Their food consists of roots of plants, like the pond-lily, which grows at the bottom of the lakes and rivers. They also eat the bark of trees, particularly those of the poplar, birch, and willow.

"The instinct of the beavers leading them to live in associations, they are in an unnatural position, when, in any locality, their numbers are so much reduced as to prevent their following this instinct. The beaver near the settlement is sad and solitary: his works have been swept away, his association broken up, and he is reduced to the necessity of burrowing in the river-bank, instead of building a house for himself. Such beavers are called 'terriers.' One traveller says that these solitaries are also called 'old bachelors.'"