HEADWATERS OF THE MISSISSIPPI.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
An interval of literary work. — Conception of another expedition. — Reflections upon the Old Explorers. — Indian rumors. — Determined to find the true source of the Great River. — Starting on the eventful journey. — Joined by his brother George and Barrett Channing Paine. — Collecting materials for the expedition. — Brainerd the first point of departure. — Through the Chippewa Country. — Seventy miles of government road. — Curiosity its own reward. — Arrival at Leech Lake.
An interval of three years, from 1878 to 1881, now elapsed in the career of Captain Glazier; years of retirement from public attention, but by no means of inactivity on his part. During this period he was engaged mainly in literary work, and in preparation for a forthcoming expedition which his ever restless brain had evolved, and which, if successful, would furnish a valuable contribution to the geography of North America.
The design of the expedition was no less than the discovery of the true source of the "Father of Waters," the mighty Mississippi; and a voyage thence, in a canoe, to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico. It was a novel and daring project.