Pike went to Santa Fé to explain why he was found trespassing on Spanish territory, but was held as a prisoner with his men, whose appearance, as he describes it, is the best proof of the hardships they had undergone while lost in the mountains. He says,—
"When we presented ourselves at Santa Fé, I was dressed in a pair of blue trousers, moccasins, blanket-coat, and a cap made of scarlet cloth lined with fox-skins, and my poor fellows in leggings, breech-cloths, and leather coats. There was not a hat in the whole party. Our appearance was extremely mortifying to us all, especially as soldiers; and although some of the officers would frequently say to me, that 'Worth made the man,' yet the first impression made on the ignorant is hard to eradicate; and greater proof cannot be given of the ignorance of the common people here than their asking if we lived in houses, or camps like the Indians, or if we wore hats in our country."
After a brief detention, the explorers were sent back to the United States, under armed escort, by way of El Paso, San Antonio and Natchitoches. Pike's papers were taken from him, so depriving the world of the interesting details which at that time were eagerly sought for, but now had to be supplied largely from memory.
At the same time that Pike was engaged in these explorations, parties were sent up the Red and Washita Rivers, with the view of enlarging the scope of his undertaking.[4]
FOOTNOTES
[1] Zebulon Montgomery Pike, born New Jersey, 1779. He was killed while leading an attack on York (Toronto), Upper Canada, in 1813, having then reached the grade of brigadier-general. His expedition to the upper Mississippi in 1805-6 was to take formal possession of the country, and to notify the British intruders of the North-West Company to leave it. Its objects were chiefly political and military. At this time Pike bought of the Indians the ground on which Fort Snelling stands, the post being named for Colonel Josiah Snelling, a distinguished officer of the United States army.
[2] Auguste and Pierre (Peter) Chouteau. (See [note 2, "Acquisition of Louisiana."]) Founders of St. Louis with Laclede. Auguste was in charge of the party that commenced operations here. In time the brothers became the greatest fur-traders of the West. The post among the Osages was in charge of Peter, who was subsequently made United States agent to that nation.
[3] A Design to seize the Province. The Spanish authorities had been warned to be on their guard against the filibustering expedition of Aaron Burr. They thought Pike's appearance on their frontier part of Burr's scheme, and professed to believe the exploration a cloak for hostile intentions. Burr's conspiracy, broadly speaking, though it forms an interesting episode, has no place in the plan of this volume. Its history, however, should be read by every student.
[4] Red and Washita were explored by Dunbar, Hunter and Sibley.