{456} On the 27th of April I visited the stores of the Fur Company, which contained goods to the amount of 80,000 dollars. In the afternoon some hunters arrived, with twenty horses, who had been absent about three weeks on a buffalo chase, but returned with only one horse-load of meat. From their appearance I should certainly have taken them for savages. In the afternoon I took a walk in the prairie, though my strength was not fully restored, and the sight of the verdant plain was most refreshing to my mind. No birds were to be seen except the starling (Sturnella ludoviciana), which enlivened me with its short whistling note. Below the ridge which bounds the low bank of the river, the wild plum was covered with its snowy blossoms, which appear at the same time with the leaves; the scent is exactly like that of the flowers of our blackthorn. A small pink flower of the class Tetra dynamia covered the prairie. The beautiful yellow blossom of the Hyerochloa fragrans was likewise open. The Indian horses, which graze here, had now abundance of food, and quickly recovered from the effects of their fast in the severe winter. I visited the tents of the Indians, of whom, at least, fifty had gone away this morning on account of the scarceness of provisions. I was much struck with the difference of the physiognomy of the Sioux, after living so long among other tribes. Their features are much less agreeable, the cheek-bones more prominent, and their stature is lower and less vigorous than that of the Mandans, Manitaries, Arikkaras, and Crows. On the other hand, the expression of their countenances is more frank and good-tempered than that of those tribes. By way of comparison, I subjoin a woodcut of the Little Soldier, our former travelling companion, who, at this time, was absent on an expedition.[65]
{457} Mr. Bodmer took several views of the country, and also made a sketch of the stage of a distinguished Sioux warrior, whose remains had been brought from a great distance with much pomp, and were covered with red cloth. Groups of Sioux were in the vicinity.[66] My people erected a new awning with large tent coverings for our voyage down the river; and I received, by the kind care of Mr. Laidlow, many fresh provisions of different kinds, which greatly contributed to the perfect re-establishment of my health. On the 29th Mr. Laidlow sent some men with pack-horses, under the direction of La Chapelle the interpreter, to Fort Clarke, in order to obtain a supply of maize from Mr. Kipp.
A heavy storm, accompanied with rain, retarded our departure for some hours, but towards evening the weather improved, and about six o'clock I was able to take leave of Mr. Laidlow and the inmates of the fort. The crew of my Mackinaw boat now consisted of ten persons, for I had obtained an able rower, named Dauphin, from Carondelet, near St. Louis, who was, at the same time, a better steersman than Fecteau. A man named Descoteaux,[67] who intended to sell his beaver skins, of which he possessed about 200, in the United States, requested me to give him a passage, in return for which he promised to work. I likewise took on board a sickly young man, who was too weak for the service of the Fur Company.
We glided rapidly down the Missouri, and soon passed the mouth of Teton River, which is about two miles and three quarters distant from Fort Pièrre in a south-easterly direction. At this place, Messrs. Soublette and Campbell, the opponents of the American Fur Company, had built a fort, at which I was not able to stop.[68] We lay-to, at night, about six miles from Fort Pièrre.
On the 30th of April we had a heavy rain throughout the day, so that the poor men at the oars were wet through. Descoteaux, who had remained behind, and had run along the banks through the whole night in order to overtake us, made his appearance at eight o'clock, thoroughly soaked. The weather was so very unfavourable on this day that we found it necessary to stop repeatedly and kindle a fire, that the people might dry and warm themselves. We therefore lay-to a good deal earlier than usual in the evening, near a very fine wild forest of old red cedars a foot and a half in diameter. In the evening the rain ceased, and the night was calm. On the morning of the 1st of May the weather was very cool: at about six o'clock we reached the Big Bend, where Dreidoppel and Dauphin landed to seek for game, while the boat made the great détour on the river.[69] They found a number of impressions of shells on the burnt hills, and saw a large village of prairie dogs, one of which they shot; in the dry bed of a stream they found several tents of the Sioux, the inmates of which met them on horseback, and had some amicable conversation with them. At noon the weather was warm, the thermometer being at 64°, and at three o'clock we arrived at Sioux Agency, the post of Major Bean.[70] Here we found Cephir, the interpreter, and three white men, who were suffering greatly from want of provisions. No buffalo herds {458} had been seen here during the winter, and the men had lived on salt pork and the flesh of the cabri. The Sioux constantly pursue this animal, and on our arrival sent one to the fort. They were impatiently expecting the Company's steam-boat, with which Major Bean was to return. Thirteen Sioux tents were at this time near the fort; others had been here waiting for the steamer, but the want of provisions had forced them to disperse. It was not long before we received a visit in our boat from Wahktageli, whose portrait Mr. Bodmer had before taken, and who now repeated the assurance of his great attachment to the white men. We took advantage of the fine evening to prosecute our voyage, and then lay-to on the north bank. Dreidoppel had shot a duck, and several good-sized catfish were caught. The croaking of the frogs and howling of the wolves were our vesper song.
The following morning (2nd of May) was very cool, and a thick fog hung over the river. We soon passed the mouth of White River, but the wind becoming too high compelled us to lay-to on the south bank, where the waves drove the boat with such violence against the rocky bank, that it sprung a leak, and let in much water. We found it necessary to cut down a couple of trees, and fasten the boat to them, in order to make it more steady. Meantime we made an excursion to the ravines and hills. Cactus and yucca grew here in abundance, and some plants of the prairie were already in flower; and on the banks of the stream the young foliage was partly eaten away, which was said to have been done by the porcupines. We found prints of the footsteps of some game, and, in the dry bed of a brook, traces of the musk-rat, one of which Mr. Bodmer had killed. We likewise saw some black-tailed deer, and small hares (Lepus Americanus), the beautiful yellow-headed oriole, the sparrow-hawk, the turkey-buzzard, and several other kinds of birds. We left this place about noon on the 3rd of May, but made little progress on account of the storm and rain, and lay-to in the evening on the north bank, not quite a mile beyond Bijoux Hills.[71] The storm became very violent during the night; most of the people slept on land, as they were afraid that a tree which was standing very obliquely might give way to the storm and fall on our boat: nothing but the state of weakness, caused by my illness, could have made me so indifferent to this danger that I did not attempt to avoid it. The tree, however, did not fall. The wind abated towards the morning, and was succeeded by such torrents of rain, that on the following day (the 4th) we saw the water pour down from the left bank like cascades, the greater part of the neighbouring prairie being overflowed. Opposite to Bijoux Hills we were for a long time aground on a sand bank. Here we saw the first swallows returning to the north for the summer. In the afternoon we reached Cedar Island, and, proceeding a little further, lay-to for the night on the north bank.[72] Vegetation was pretty forward; but no birds had yet come; only the woodpecker and titmouse, which brave the winter, were to be seen. On the 5th, the wind being favourable, a sail was hoisted, but at eight o'clock the wind increased so much that we were obliged to stop at a large and beautiful island (Punca Island), where, having secured the boat, {459} we dispersed in search of game. When I returned to the boat I learned that Dauphin had killed an elk calf, and most of my people had gone with him to the place where the animal lay, in order to secure the prize. We waited an hour and a half by the fire till they returned, when I wished immediately to proceed on our voyage; but Melone, one of my rowers, stepped forward, and positively declared that he would not go on board till he had had his fill of the venison, though he had taken a sufficient portion of meat in the morning. A violent altercation ensued; the obstinate fellow was compelled to go on board; but I was now aware of the character of this troublesome American, who was so much addicted to drinking that it was necessary to keep a watchful eye over him. We proceeded through the channel near the island, but at the further end the wind suddenly caught the vessel, so that it was quite unmanageable, and the sail was rent. We crossed over to the south bank, and lay-to near an extensive thicket of willow. It was so full of climbing plants and trees, that we could scarcely penetrate into it, and tracks of wild animals were everywhere to be seen. All the birds had sought refuge from the storm in the thickest recesses of the wood, and scarcely a living creature was visible. We here found, as on our first visit, the beautiful Sylvia coronata (Latham), and shot a turkey-buzzard, the crop of which Fecteau took out, affirming that it was an effectual remedy for the bite of venomous serpents. Towards five o'clock, as the storm abated, we proceeded on our voyage, passed the mouth of Punca River, and soon after sunset came to three tents of the Punca Indians on the south bank, where the trader, Dixon, with several engagés from Fort Pièrre, was at that time residing. Primeau, the Punca interpreter, who, in the preceding year, when on board the steam-boat, had communicated to me some words of the Punca language, was also with these people.[73]
We were informed that the Fur Company's steamer was near at hand, on its way up the river, intelligence which was very agreeable to me. The Punca Indians whom we saw here had a miserable, dirty appearance, and they, too, had suffered from want of provisions. They had their hair cut short in the nape of the neck and across the forehead. Their leather tents, some of which were painted, stood on a narrow green plain at the foot of steep hills, where the wood had been felled and burnt. I here procured the skin of a skunk, which differed from all the animals of this kind that I had hitherto seen. It was all over of a blackish-brown colour, with only a small white stripe on the upper part of the neck. From this place I crossed the river, and we kindled our fire in the willow thicket before the steep rocky hills. This place was directly opposite the mouth of L'Eau qui Court. At daybreak on the following morning (the 6th of May) we heard the note of the wild turkey, but did not stop. A large flock of pelicans flew up the Missouri, and numbers of blackbirds were on the banks. We passed Rivière à Manuel,[74] and towards eleven o'clock saw the Assiniboin steamer, which lay still on the north bank for want of water. We were hindered by the sand banks and the high wind from getting up to the Assiniboin, {460} and therefore lay-to on the south bank, directly opposite. At this place there was a dense thicket of willows, and behind it an extensive forest. The woodcutters of the steam-boat happened to be engaged in felling wood, under the direction of a clerk, about a mile higher up, and, having observed our fire, came to us towards noon. A boat was afterwards sent to fetch them, which brought me a note from Captain Bennet, commander of the Assiniboin, in which he invited me to make haste to come on board, as they were impatient to see me again, after so long an absence. Captain Bennet also sent a number of men to row my boat across the stormy river, and with their aid we reached the Assiniboin at noon. We were received with much joy by our former travelling companions, Messrs. Sanford, Bean, Bennet, &c., and our accounts and news from the upper Missouri filled up a good part of the day. We also found on board our Indian friend, Schudegacheh, the Punca chief, who was extremely glad to see me again. There was likewise another chief, and several Indians. Schudegacheh's dress was remarkably handsome. His shirt was of beautiful otter skin, with a red cloth collar: he wore a cap of otter skin, and a tobacco pouch of the same material. This dress was extremely becoming to this fine man. The other chief wore a robe painted with red figures. They had a long conference with their agent, Major Bean, after which they took off all their clothes, and laid them on the ground before him, as a present, so that they sat quite naked, except the breechcloth. Major Bean at first declined accepting these things, but Schudegacheh would not take back his otter garment. The village of these Indians, consisting of nearly 100 tents, was about four days' journey up L'Eau qui Court.[75]
After spending the afternoon and evening on board the steamer, we took leave of our friends, and returned to our boat, intending to proceed early on the following morning; but, to my no small vexation, I found my people in a very excited state, and partly drunk; Dauphin alone seemed to know what he was about.
On the following morning (the 7th of May), Fecteau, Descoteaux, and Melone were still intoxicated, so that our departure was delayed, and I had to bear the noise and disorderly conduct of these men. We got over a dangerous place, where there were many snags; passed, at eleven o'clock, the mouth of the Rivière à Jacques, and then, the wind being very high, lay-to on the right bank.[76] My hunters went to a lake, about a mile off, in the hope of shooting some water-fowl, but did not succeed. I made my way, through the willow thicket, to the extensive verdant prairie, where a red fox sprang up before me. I saw many birds of various kinds—swallows, woodpeckers, finches, sylvias, and a couple of falcons (Falco cyaneus, Cuiv.); likewise butterflies, among which, Papilio plexippus, and many Libellalœ, in very warm places, sheltered from the wind. When I returned to the fire, I found my people asleep on the grass, in consequence of their excesses on the preceding day: Melone, however, was busy in bringing his trunk and other things from the boat to the land; after which he stepped forward and declared that "he {461} would not go any further with us, and that his comrades, the other rowers, had agreed with him to leave us;" so that we Europeans would have been left alone in this wilderness. The news of this plot, arranged by the men in their drunken fit, during my absence yesterday, surprised me not a little. I called the other people, and asked them if this was really their intention; but they had now thought better of it, and protested that they would not leave us. Melone, enraged at their want of resolution, broke out into violent abuse; so I told him that, conformably to his wish, he might remain here by himself. On this he suddenly changed his tone, spoke civilly, and at length begged for a passage to his native place, Liberty; but I kept him to his word: we went on board, and left him alone in this wilderness. This evil-disposed man, who had formerly been a soldier in the service of the United States, and was much addicted to drinking, had exchanged his rifle, on board the Assiniboin, for a considerable quantity of provisions, a hatchet, brandy, &c., and thus sufficiently proved his intention of leaving me in this shameful manner. As he was skilful in the use of the hatchet, and had a sufficient stock of provisions, it would be easy for him to make a boat of large poplar stems, and reach the neighbouring post of Le Roi.
On this day we proceeded twelve or fifteen miles. The country was flat, and the banks, in some parts, clothed with fine forests. At sunset we lay-to at a convenient place on the right bank, where a narrow strip of lofty, verdant wood filled the space between the river and the steep white hills: there was an undergrowth of the red willow (Cornus sericea), which was just coming into flower. The Fringilla Pennsylvanica was numerous, and fresh tracks of wild animals appeared in all directions. At twilight a great many of the whip-poor-wills flew round the fire within three paces of it, and quite stunned our ears by their cries. A couple of them were shot, the first of these birds that I had seen.