Lewis: May 5, 1805

Sunday, May 5th, 1805. A fine morning. I walked on shore until 8 A.M., when we halted for breakfast, and during my walk I killed a deer which I carried about a mile and a half to the river. It was in good condition. Soon after setting out, the rudder irons of the white pirogue were broken when she ran afoul of a sawyer; however, she was refitted in a few minutes with some strips of rawhide and nails. As usual, we saw a great quantity of game today: buffalo, elk, and goats or antelopes feeding in every direction. We kill whatever we wish. The buffalo furnish us with fine veal and fat beef; we also have venison and beaver tails when we want them. The flesh of the elk and goat is less esteemed, and is certainly inferior. We have not been able to catch any fish for some time past. The country is, as yesterday, beautiful in the extreme.

I saw the carcasses of many buffalo lying dead along the shore, partially devoured by the wolves and bears. I saw a great number of white brant, also the common brown brant, geese of the common kind, and a small species of geese which differ considerably from the common Canadian goose. Their neck, head, and beak are considerably thicker, shorter, and larger than the other in proportion to its size; they are also more than a third smaller, and their note is more like that of the brant or of a young goose that has not perfectly acquired its notes. In all other respects they are the same in color, habits, and the number of feathers in the tail. They frequently associate with the large geese when in flocks, but I have never seen them paired off with the large or common goose. The white brant associate in very large flocks; they do not appear to be mated or paired off as if they intended to raise their young in this quarter, so I doubt whether they reside here during the summer for that purpose.

This bird is about the size of the common brown brant, or two-thirds of the common goose. It is not as long by six inches from point to point of the wings when extended as the other; the beak, head, and neck are also larger and stronger. Their beak, legs, and feet are of a reddish or flesh-colored white. The eye is of moderate size, the pupil a deep sea green encircled with a ring of yellowish brown. It has sixteen feathers of equal length in the tail. Their note differs but little from the common brant; their flesh is much the same, and in my opinion preferable to the goose; the flesh is dark. They are entirely of a beautiful pure white except for the large feathers of the first and second joints of the wings, which are jet black. Their form and habits are the same as the other brant; they sometimes associate and form one common flock. Capt Clark (Capt. Clark) found a den of young wolves in the course of his walk today, and also saw a great number of those animals. They are very abundant in this quarter, and are of two species. The small wolf, or burrowing dog of the prairies, is almost invariably an inhabitant of the open plains. They usually associate in bands of ten or twelve, sometimes more, and burrow near some pass or place much frequented by game. Not being able alone to take a deer or goat, they are rarely found alone but hunt in bands. They frequently watch and seize their prey near their burrows; in these burrows they raise their young, and to them they also resort when pursued. When a person approaches them they frequently bark, their note being precisely that of the small dog. They are of an intermediate size between that of the fox and the dog, very active, fleet, and delicately formed. The ears are large, erect, and pointed; the head long and pointed, more like that of the fox; the tail long. The hair and fur also resemble the fox, though it is much coarser and inferior. They are of a pale reddish brown color. The eye is of a deep sea green color, small and piercing. Their talons are rather longer than those of the ordinary wolf, or that common to the Atlantic states, none of which are to be found in this quarter, nor, I believe, above the river Plat (Platte).

The large wolf found here is not as large as those of the Atlantic states. They are lower and thicker, with shorter legs. Their color, which is not affected by the seasons, is a gray or blackish brown and every intermediate shade from that to a cream-colored white. These wolves resort to the woodlands and are also found in the plains, but never take refuge in the ground or burrow, so far as I have been able to learn. We scarcely see a herd of buffalo without observing a number of those faithful shepherds on their skirts, in readiness to take care of the maimed and wounded. The large wolf never barks, but howls as those of the Atlantic states do. Capt. Clark and Drewyer (Drouillard) killed the largest brown bear this evening that we have yet seen. It was a most tremendous-looking animal, and extremely hard to kill. Notwithstanding that he had five balls through his lungs and five others in various parts, he swam more than half the distance across the river to a sandbar, and it was at least twenty minutes before he died. He did not attempt to attack, but fled, and made the most tremendous roaring from the moment he was shot. We had no means of weighing this monster. Capt. Clark thought he would weigh 500 lbs.; for my own part, I think the estimate is too small by 100 lbs. He measured 8 feet 7½ inches from the nose to the extremity of the hind feet, 5 feet ½ inch around the breast, 1 foot 11 inches around the middle of the arm, and 3 feet 11 inches around the neck. His talons, which were five in number on each foot, were 4⅛ inches in length. He was in good condition, so we divided him among the party and had them boil the oil and put it in a cask for future use. The oil is as hard as hog's lard when cool, much more so than that of the black bear. This bear differs from the common black bear in several respects: its talons are much longer and more blunt; its tail shorter; its hair, which is of a reddish or bay brown, is longer, thicker, and finer than that of the black bear. His liver, lungs, and heart are much larger, even in proportion to his size; the heart, in particular, was as large as that of a large ox. His maw was also ten times the size of a black bear's, and was filled with flesh and fish. His testicles were pendant from the belly and placed four inches asunder in separate bags or pouches. This animal also feeds on roots and almost every species of wild fruit.

The party killed two elk and a buffalo today, and my dog caught a goat, which he overtook by superior fleetness. The goat, it must be understood, was with young and extremely poor. A great number of these goats are devoured by the wolves and bears at this season, when they are poor and passing the river from S.W. to N.E. They are very inactive and easily taken in the water; a man can out-swim them with great ease. The Indians take them in great numbers in the river at this season, and in autumn when they repass to the S.W.