Patrick Gass: October 9, 1806

hunters went out, and we proceeded on for abaut six
miles, when’ we | came to the old chief. 8 lodge, ae 2
as family. ise ncamped to gather roots. WE 3 are ae”
2 Sot into a part of the country where uberis plenty,
ue Mie: Nexo pine. he aa
“Jour WALL : ee iS ait
the’ preat ‘tlis” Oi the: Citambia’ and this.
* saw more horses, than [ever before saw
in the same space of country. They are not of the —
largest size of horses, but very good and active. at
“toon two of the Indians went fo look. for our horsey a
io) gad the | old chief with one of our men who. KNEW.
_ « where some powder and bail was buric d, went to bring —
our packsaddles. In the evening they all returned |
with 21 horses and about as many packsaddles. Our .
“horses are generally in good order. Our” hunters _
: also returned but had killed hothing. 4
– os “Saturday 10ch. At dark last night the weather be-
| came cloudy and it rained about, an hour when the
rain turned to snow, and it continued snowing a
night. In the morning the weather became clear. i
Where we are lying in the plains the snow is about
five inches deep ; and amidst snow and frost we have
nothing whatever to eat. Without. breakfast | ane
started to go to a village of the natives, who live on”
a braneh of the river, about a south | course from t is
place. We travelled through the snow about 12. ae
miles, and then went down a a long stecp descent ys ees se
the branch where the village i is situated: When we ae
—. were about half way down the hill there was not abe
ee particle of show nor the least appearance of: it. ae 3 a
was about 3 o’clock when we arrived at the village ey
co ia: ete Commanding Officers held. conversation
_ with the natives, who informed them that they had — as
‘ not more provisions and roots, than they wanted GF ee
_ themselves. | They, however, divided their stock
with. us; and: told us what they had. given was all
eee “they could spare ; but drove up. some horses, and told — ae
_ “us to shoot one, which we did. They then offer eae
* another, but that: was reserved for ancther time,
hae re dressed, the ‘one we had killed ; ‘ and n
. tion Sen af Er gone eating. – We.
212
Sundae 11th, T his wes a hs lean arompide : . and oy
we lay here ali day. The natives treat us Wery. well}: 28
the Ollicers practice as physicians imong their. sick, a
and they gave them avery handsome mare and colt. _
About 12 o’clock our hunter came in and brought
. two deer with him. We now find a great many
more men among the Indians than when we went.
down last fall; and several chiels, which had then
been out at war. In the evening tie natives kpponent :
in six more of our horses. |
ae Afinday 12h. We had another eee morning and
remained here also to day. The natives in the
.gourse of the day gave us four horses, one of which
-. => wekilled to eat. We also got bread made. of POOLS,
_ which the natives call Co-was. and sweet roots which
they call Com-mas… In the afternoon they brought
ta three more of our oid stock of horses.* a
i J : 2 of
” ; { 5 “pi LPS i —
f The information yet acuured: furnishing: but few cer-
“tain data, on which a correct general view of the country
~avest of the Rocky Mountains could be founded, especially —
on the south side of the Kooskooske,. Lewis’s river, and the q
Columbia after its confluence with that river, it would only
_be attempting impostureto pretend to be able to § give it. A
few observations, however, may be of some ‘use to such rea-
crs, as have paid but little attention to the Seeger of
eae our country, and prompt to further m@uiry..
| Between the Rocky Mountains, whieh: ranning a ‘north.
west. course, are said to enter the North Sea in latitude Coe bas
‘north, and longitude 135° west from London or 60° west
from Philadelphia (about 11° west of the mouth of the Col ~
: . ~Tumbia) and another range of high mountains, running nearly |
_ . iu the same direction along the coast of the Pacific, there
$s a large tract of open country extending along # here
ies vivers. and towards the north, in breadth fror
«350 or 400 miles; but wi oh by Mr M’Kenzie’s – a
Cae appears: to be contracted in the latitude of his’ rout near eke ta
A 3 Grd degree to the breadth of dbout 200° miles, wherethe
– country is rough and covered with timber. Mr:
– represents some part of these mountains | to. be of
Wa or thei soelat suinmits 108 n the
=.
te 2
‘
ait,
Be cb ton ck
JOURNAL. – Nei al
13! A We had a thie morning with white
; ing collected our horses we found we had
and a pretty! good except 4, which were studs
ae id had sore backs. At noon we proceeded down
ap the branch, which has ae good deal ‘of cotton wood,
“giblogtlte situation of bin paler < oittihey round a acne fire”? the first evening of the day, which they had begun to ascend » _ these- mountains on their return, and which was that. of the” > 26th of July; he observes ‘even at this place, | whieh is
only, as it were, the first step. towards gaining the summit of
the Tountaihs, the climate-was very sensibly changed. Thal Se
air that fanned the village which we left at noon, was mild
and cheering ; the grass was verdant, snd the wild fruits .
Pipe around it. But here. the snow was not yet dissolved,
the ground was still bound by the frost; the herbage had
= gearce begun to spring, and the crow berry bushes were jis
ss to blossom.”
e ts the T@coutche or Columbia viver from finding a direct.
: course to the ocean, and forces it in a direction somewhat
east of, south; to traverse by various windings that large: tract.
try, until it arrives near the 46th degree of latitud a,
~ when it) curns to the west, and at Ienpth hinds its Way PtO t ne
_ Ocean through the Columbis waney.
the nformation gained by the Fie espe dietih | by
oyage, the discoveries of ‘Captain Cooke and.
others, it- appears there are great quantities of timber, .
chiefly « of the pine or fir kind, between the shore of the Pa |
– cific and the chain of mountains which ran near it ; but be-.
tween these and the Rocky for untains, €8 pecially ‘Sputh ee
_ M’Kenzie’s s rout, a great part is open prairie or plains al-
most totally’ without timber. Mr M’Kenzie says of the in-
F Giamaation of the chief, who delineated for hima sketch of
_the river and country on a piece of bark, ‘As far as his know- —
ledge | of the river extended, the country_on either side was
devel, i in many places without wood, and abounding in red >
ie
leer, al id. some ofa small fallow kind.” e.
Ace ing to’the yerbal relation of Mr Gass, the land on
~ the Columbia i is generally of a better quality than on thee
– Missouri ; i and where a greater number of roots grow, stele
_ asthe natives subsit on. The Missoiiri in its general course —
ork, rooked and rapid than the Columbia ; but
BS Ses
; ‘ ter has
x 4
:
eae He hi) a ae
This range of loft y mountains pre-
ore. bi ae or “cataracts y and its water is .
ee
‘os, ey
o« bring in the meat; and we set about forming a
» Mee is
x
we
* encamp until the show shall have sufficiently melted
‘to admit of our crossing the mountains. At dark
the canoe came, but it being too late to cross we en~«
x
OMe Rt. JOUR NAL:
willow and cherry tree on its brane 3) pers isa Sadia:
vapid stream about 15 yards wide. V Veskept diva
the branch about four miles ;: and then came to the
river where it passes through a beautifill plain.
Here we halted to wait for a canoe, which we expect-
ed that some of the natives would bring up the
river, to assist us in crossing ; when we intend to
camped on the south side.