The vast tracts of the interior of North-western America are, in general, but little known, and the government of the United States may be justly reproached for not having done more to explore them. Some few scientific expeditions, among which the two under Major Long produced the most satisfactory results for natural history, though on a limited scale, were set on foot by the government; and it is only under its protection that a thorough investigation of those extensive wildernesses, especially in the Rocky Mountains, can be undertaken.[4] Even Major Long's expeditions are but poorly furnished with respect to natural history, for a faithful and vivid picture of those countries, and their original inhabitants, can never be placed before the eye without the aid of a fine portfolio of plates by the hand of a skilful artist.
In my description of the voyage up the Missouri, I have endeavoured to avail myself of the assistance of an able draughtsman, the want of which I so sensibly felt in my former travels in South America. On the present occasion I was accompanied by Mr. Bodmer, who has represented the Indian nations with great truth, and correct delineation of their characteristic features. His drawings will prove an important addition to our knowledge of this race of men, to whom so little attention has hitherto been paid.
After mature consideration, I have judged it desirable to throw the account of my voyage on the Missouri itself into the form of a journal, as the daily notices were numerous, but the variety very trifling; so that the patience of the reader will unfortunately be tried a little in this part of the narrative. In those uninhabited, desert countries the traveller has nothing but the description of the naked banks of the river, and the little diversity they afford, interrupted at times by the adventures of the chase, and occasional meetings with Indians; the reader will therefore excuse many observations and unimportant descriptions, which would have been omitted if the materials had been richer in variety. I need still more indulgence with respect to many observations on natural history, but for this the loss of the greater part of my collections will be a sufficient excuse. The cases containing them were delivered to the Company, to be put on board the steamer for St. Louis, but not insured; and, when the steamer caught fire, the people thought rather of saving the goods than my cases, the contents of which were, probably, not considered to be of much value, and so they were all burnt. This may be a warning to future travellers not to neglect to insure such collections.
Though the main object of my journey, namely, to pass some time in the chain of the Rocky Mountains, was defeated by unfavorable circumstances, I should have been able, but for the loss of my collections, to communicate many new observations, especially in the department of zoology, which are now more or less deficient. The accounts of the tribes of the aborigines, and vii especially of the Mandans and Manitaries, are more complete, because I spent a whole winter among them, and was able to have daily intercourse with them. Authentic and impartial accounts of the Indians of the Upper Missouri are now especially valuable, if the information that we have since received is well founded, namely, that to the many evils introduced by the Whites among those tribes, a most destructive epidemic—smallpox—has been added, and a great part of them exterminated: according to the newspapers, the Mandans, Manitaries, Assiniboins, and Blackfeet have been swept away except a small remnant. The observation of the manners of the aborigines is undoubtedly that which must chiefly interest the foreign traveller in those countries, especially as the Anglo-Americans look down on them with a certain feeling of hatred. Hence we have hitherto met with little useful information respecting the Indians, except in the recent writings of Edward James, Long, Say, Schoolcraft, McKinney, Cass, Duponceau, Irving,[5] and a few others; and as good portraits of this race have hitherto been extremely rare, the faithful delineation contained in the portfolio of plates accompanying this work will be interesting to the friends of anthropology and ethnography.
Several men, of great eminence in the learned world, have had the kindness to contribute to the publication. President Nees Von Esenbeck has undertaken the determination and description of the plants which I brought home;[6] Professor Goldfuss, of Bonn, that of some fossil shells; Professor Göppert, of Breslau, that of the impression of fossil plants from Mauch Chunk;[7] Professors Valenciennes at Paris, and Wiegmann at Boston, the comparison of some zoological specimens with those in their cities;[8] and Lieut.-Col. W. Thorn, the construction of the map; for which obliging assistance I beg leave to offer to these gentlemen my sincere thanks.
TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE
The author, in his Preface, gives so full an account of the objects and results of his travels in the interior of North America, that it would have been unnecessary for me to prefix any observations of my own, were it not for some circumstances, connected with the translation, which seem to require explanation.
The prospectus of the German original announced that the work would consist of two large quarto volumes, accompanied by a portfolio of above eighty beautifully coloured copper-plates, executed by eminent artists at Paris, from the original drawings. Some specimens of the plates having been brought to London, were so much admired by many competent judges, that Messrs. Ackermann were induced to agree with the Paris publisher for a limited number of copies of the plates; and as it might justly be presumed that the English purchasers would be desirous of having the narrative of the travels, it was resolved to publish a translation compressed into a single volume. By selecting, however, a page of a large size, the translator has been able to retain all the most interesting parts, omitting only minute details of the measurements of animals, &c. All the chapters illustrative of the manners, customs, traditions, and superstitions of the Indians are given without abridgment, and these, as the author justly observes, are by far the most attractive and valuable portions of the work. The papers in the Appendix, giving an account of the plants collected, are also inserted entire, and have been kindly revised by my friend Sir William Hooker.[9]
The principal omission is that of the very extensive vocabularies of the languages of the different Indian tribes.[10] They are written so as to represent the pronunciation in German, and have, in numerous instances, special directions, as thus: kontschue (on as in French, schue, short and quick, e½). It appeared to be a hopeless and unprofitable task to rewrite these vocabularies, and to represent the true pronunciation in English. Those who are curious in such matters will find many specimens in Mr. Catlin's interesting work.[11]