The party in their passage still visited by the
Indians--Lepage’s river described--immense quantities of
salmon caught by the Indians--description of the river
Towahnahiooks--Indian mode of stacking fish, and preparing
them for market--description of the great falls--description
of an Indian canoe--alarm excited by an anticipated attack
from the Eheltoots--a very dangerous rapid passed in safety,
called by the Indians the Falls--account of the Indian houses
in the neighbourhood--another dreadful rapid passed without
injury--some account of the Chilluckittequaw Indians--captain
Clarke examines the great rapids--description of an Indian
burial-place--the rapids passed in safety.
Monday 21. The morning was cool, and the wind from the southwest.
At five and a half miles we passed a small island, and one mile and
a half mile further, another in the middle of the river, which has
some rapid water near its head, and opposite to its lower extremity
are eight cabins of Indians on the right side. We landed near them to
breakfast; but such is the scarcity of wood that last evening we had
not been able to collect any thing except dry willows, and of those not
more than barely sufficient to cook our supper, and this morning we
could not find enough even to prepare breakfast. The Indians received
us with great kindness, and examined every thing they saw with much
attention. In their appearance and employments, as well as in their
language, they do not differ from those higher up the river. The dress
too is nearly the same; that of the men consisting of nothing but a
short robe of deer or goat skin; while the women wear only a piece of
dressed skin, falling from the neck so as to cover the front of the
body as low as the waist; a bandage tied round the body and passing
between the legs; and over this a short robe of deer and antelope skin
is occasionally thrown. Here we saw two blankets of scarlet, and one
of blue cloth, and also a sailor’s round jacket; but we obtained only
a few pounded roots, and some fish, for which we of course paid them.
Among other things we observed some acorns, the fruit of the white oak.
These they use as food either raw or roasted, and on inquiry informed
us that they were procured from the Indians who live near the great
falls. This place they designate by a name very commonly applied to
it by the Indians, and highly expressive, the word _Timm_, which they
pronounce so as to make it perfectly represent the sound of a distant
cataract. After breakfast we resumed our journey, and in the course of
three miles passed a rapid where large rooks were strewed across the
river, and at the head of which on the right shore were two huts of
Indians. We stopped here for the purpose of examining it, as we always
do whenever any danger is to be apprehended, and send round by land all
those who cannot swim. Five miles further is another rapid, formed by
large rocks projecting from each side, above which were five huts of
Indians on the right side, occupied like those we had already seen, in
drying fish. One mile below this is the lower point of an island close
to the right side, opposite to which on that shore, are two Indian huts.
On the left side of the river at this place, are immense piles of
rocks, which seem to have slipped from the cliffs under which they
lie; they continue till spreading still farther into the river, at the
distance of a mile from the island, they occasion a very dangerous
rapid; a little below which on the right side are five huts. For many
miles the river is now narrow and obstructed with very large rocks
thrown into its channel; the hills continue high and covered, as is
very rarely the case, with a few low pine trees on their tops. Between
three and four miles below the last rapid occurs a second, which is
also difficult, and three miles below it is a small river, which seems
to rise in the open plains to the southeast, and falls in on the left.
It is forty yards wide at its mouth; but discharges only a small
quantity of water at present: we gave it the name of Lepage’s river
from Lepage one of our company. Near this little river and immediately
below it, we had to encounter a new rapid. The river is crowded in
every direction, with large rocks and small rocky islands; the passage
crooked and difficult, and for two miles we were obliged to wind with
great care along the narrow channels and between the huge rocks. At
the end of this rapid are four huts of Indians on the right, and two
miles below five more huts on the same side. Here we landed and passed
the night, after making thirty-three miles. The inhabitants of these
huts explained to us that they were the relations of those who live
at the great falls. They appear to be of the same nation with those
we have seen above, whom, indeed, they resemble in every thing except
that their language, although the same, has some words different. They
have all pierced noses, and the men when in full dress wear a long
tapering piece of shell or bead put through the nose. These people did
not, however, receive us with the same cordiality to which we have
been accustomed. They are poor; but we were able to purchase from them
some wood to make a fire for supper, of which they have but little,
and which they say they bring from the great falls. The hills in this
neighbourhood are high and rugged, and a few scattered trees, either
small pine or scrubby white oak, are occasionally seen on them. From
the last rapids we also observed the conical mountain towards the
southwest, which the Indians say is not far to the left of the great
falls. From its vicinity to that place we called it the Timm or Falls
mountain. The country through which we passed is furnished with several
fine springs, which rise either high up the sides of the hills or else
in the river meadows, and discharge themselves into the Columbia.
We could not help remarking that almost universally the fishing
establishments of the Indians, both on the Columbia and the waters of
Lewis’s river, are on the right bank. On inquiry we were led to believe
that the reason may be found in their fear of the Snake Indians;
between whom and themselves, considering the warlike temper of that
people, and the peaceful habits of the river tribes, it is very natural
that the latter should be anxious to interpose so good a barrier.
These Indians are described as residing on a great river to the south,
and always at war with the people of this neighbourhood. One of our
chiefs pointed out to-day a spot on the left where, not many years
ago, a great battle was fought, in which numbers of both nations were
killed. We were agreeably surprised this evening by a present of some
very good beer, made out of the remains of the bread, composed of the
Pashecoquamash, part of the stores we had laid in at the head of the
Kooskooskee, and which by frequent exposure become sour and moulded.
[Illustration: Great Falls of COLUMBIA RIVER]
Tuesday 22. The morning was fair and calm. We left our camp at nine
o’clock, and after going on for six miles came to the head of an
island, and a very bad rapid, where the rocks are scattered nearly
across the river. Just above this and on the right side are six huts of
Indians. At the distance of two miles below, are five more huts; the
inhabitants of which are all engaged in drying fish, and some of them
in their canoes killing fish with gigs; opposite to this establishment
is a small island in a bend towards the right, on which there were
such quantities of fish that we counted twenty stacks of dried and
pounded salmon. This small island is at the upper point of one much
larger, the sides of which are high uneven rooks, jutting over the
water: here there is a bad rapid. The island continues for four miles,
and at the middle of it is a large river, which appears to come from
the southeast, and empties itself on the left. We landed just above
its mouth in order to examine it, and soon found the route intercepted
by a deep, narrow channel, running into the Columbia above the large
entrance, so as to form a dry and rich island about 400 yards wide and
eight hundred long. Here as along the grounds of the river, the natives
had been digging large quantities of roots, as the soil was turned up
in many places. We reached the river about a quarter of a mile above
its mouth, at a place where a large body of water is compressed within
a channel of about two hundred yards in width, where it foams over
rocks, many of which are above the surface of the water. These narrows
are the end of a rapid which extends two miles back, where the river
is closely confined between two high hills, below which it is divided
by numbers of large rocks and small islands, covered with a low growth
of timber. This river, which is called by the Indians Towahnahiooks,
is two hundred yards wide at its mouth, has a very rapid current, and
contributes about one fourth as much water as the Columbia possesses
before the junction. Immediately at the entrance are three sand
islands, and near it the head of an island which runs parallel to the
large rocky island. We now returned to our boats, and passing the mouth
of the Towahnahiooks went between the islands. At the distance of two
miles we reached the lower end of this rocky island, where were eight
huts of Indians. Here too, we saw some large logs of wood, which were
most probably rafted down the Towahnahiooks; and a mile below, on the
right bank, were sixteen lodges of Indians, with whom we stopped to
smoke. Then at the distance of about a mile passed six more huts on the
same side, nearly opposite the lower extremity of the island, which
has its upper end in the mouth of the Towahnahiooks. Two miles below
we came to seventeen huts on the right side of the river, situated at
the commencement of the pitch which includes the great falls. Here we
halted, and immediately on landing walked down, accompanied by an old
Indian from the huts, in order to examine the falls, and ascertain on
which side we could make a portage most easily. We soon discovered that
the nearest route was on the right side, and therefore dropped down to
the head of the rapid, unloaded the canoes and took all the baggage
over by land to the foot of the rapid. The distance is twelve hundred
yards. On setting out we crossed a solid rock, about one third of the
whole distance; then reached a space of two hundred yards wide, which
forms a hollow, where the loose sand from the low grounds has been
driven by the winds, and is steep and loose, and therefore disagreeable
to pass; the rest of the route is over firm and solid ground. The
labour of crossing would have been very inconvenient, if the Indians
had not assisted us in carrying some of the heavy articles on their
horses; but for this service they repaid themselves so adroitly, that
on reaching the foot of the rapids we formed a camp in a position which
might secure us from the pilfering of the natives, which we apprehend
much more than we do their hostilities. Near our camp are five large
huts of Indians engaged in drying fish and preparing it for the market.
The manner of doing this, is by first opening the fish and exposing
it to the sun on their scaffolds. When it is sufficiently dried it is
pounded fine between two stones till it is pulverized, and is then
placed in a basket about two feet long and one in diameter, neatly made
of grass and rushes, and lined with the skin of a salmon stretched and
dried for the purpose. Here they are pressed down as hard as possible,
and the top covered with skins of fish which are secured by cords
through the holes of the basket. These baskets are then placed in some
dry situation, the corded part upwards, seven being usually placed as
close as they can be put together, and five on the top of them. The
whole is then wrapped up in mats, and made fast by cords, over which
mats are again thrown. Twelve of these baskets, each of which contains
from ninety to a hundred pounds, form a stack, which is now left
exposed till it is sent to market; the fish thus preserved are kept
sound and sweet for several years, and great quantities of it, they
inform us, are sent to the Indians who live below the falls, whence
it finds its way to the whites who visit the mouth of the Columbia.
We observe both near the lodges and on the rocks in the river, great
numbers of stacks of those pounded fish.
Besides fish, these people supplied us with filberts and berries, and
we purchased a dog for supper; but it was with much difficulty that we
were able to buy wood enough to cook it. In the course of the day we
were visited by many Indians, from whom we learnt that the principal
chiefs of the bands, residing in this neighbourhood, are now hunting
in the mountains towards the southwest. On that side of the river
none of the Indians have any permanent habitations, and on inquiry we
were confirmed in our belief that it was for fear of attacks from the
Snake Indians with whom they are at war. This nation they represent
as very numerous and residing in a great number of villages on the
Towahnahiooks, where they live principally on salmon. That river they
add is not obstructed by rapids above its mouth, but there becomes
large and reaches to a considerable distance: the first villages of
the Snake Indians on that river being twelve days’ journey on a course
about southeast from this place.
Wednesday 23. Having ascertained from the Indians, and by actual
examination, the best mode of bringing down the canoes, it was found
necessary, as the river was divided into several narrow channels,
by rocks and islands, to follow the route adopted by the Indians
themselves. This operation captain Clarke began this morning, and
after crossing to the other side of the river, hauled the canoes over
a point of land, so as to avoid a perpendicular fall of twenty feet.
At the distance of four hundred and fifty-seven yards we reached the
water, and embarked at a place where a long rocky island compresses the
channel of the river within the space of a hundred and fifty yards,
so as to form nearly a semicircle. On leaving this rocky island the
channel is somewhat wider, but a second and much larger island of hard
black rock, still divides it from the main stream, while on the left
shore it is closely bordered by perpendicular rocks. Having descended
in this way for a mile, we reached a pitch of the river, which being
divided by two large rocks, descends with great rapidity down a fall
eight feet in height: as the boats could not be navigated down this
steep descent, we were obliged to land and let them down as slowly
as possible by strong ropes of elk skin, which we had prepared for
the purpose. They all passed in safety except one, which being loosed
by the breaking of the ropes, was driven down, but was recovered by
the Indians below. With this rapid ends the first pitch of the great
falls, which is not great in point of height, and remarkable only for
the singular manner in which the rocks have divided its channel. From
the marks every where perceivable at the falls, it is obvious that in
high floods, which must be in the spring, the water below the falls
rises nearly to a level with that above them. Of this rise, which is
occasioned by some obstructions which we do not as yet know, the salmon
must avail themselves to pass up the river in such multitudes, that
that fish is almost the only one caught in great abundance above the
falls; but below that place, we observe the salmon trout, and the heads
of a species of trout smaller than the salmon trout, which is in great
quantities, and which they are now burying to be used as their winter
food. A hole of any size being dug, the sides and bottom are lined with
straw, over which skins are laid: on these the fish, after being well
dried, is laid, covered with other skins, and the hole closed with a
layer of earth twelve or fifteen inches deep. About three o’clock we
reached the lower camp, but our joy at having accomplished this object
was somewhat diminished, by the persecution of a new acquaintance. On
reaching the upper point of the portage, we found that the Indians had
been encamped there not long since, and had left behind them multitudes
of fleas. These sagacious animals were so pleased to exchange the
straw and fish skins, in which they had been living, for some better
residence, that we were soon covered with them, and during the portage
the men were obliged to strip to the skin, in order to brush them from
their bodies. They were not, however, so easily dislodged from our
clothes, and accompanied us in great numbers to our camp.
We saw no game except a sea otter, which was shot in the narrow
channel as we came down, but we could not get it. Having therefore
scarcely any provisions, we purchased eight small fat dogs, a food to
which we are now compelled to have recourse, for the Indians are very
unwilling to sell us any of their good fish, which they reserve for
the market below. Fortunately, however, the habit of using this animal
has completely overcome the repugnance which we felt at first, and the
dog, if not a favourite dish, is always an acceptable one. The meridian
altitude of to-day gives 45° 42´ 57´´ 3-10 north, as the latitude of
our camp.
On the beach near the Indian huts, we observed two canoes of a
different shape and size from any which we had hitherto seen: one of
these we got in exchange for our smallest canoe, giving a hatchet and
a few trinkets to the owner, who said he had purchased it from a white
man below the falls, by giving him a horse. These canoes are very
beautifully made; they are wide in the middle and tapering towards each
end, with curious figures carved on the bow. They are thin, but being
strengthed by cross bars, about an inch in diameter, which are tied
with strong pieces of bark through holes in the sides, are able to bear
very heavy burdens, and seem calculated to live in the roughest water.
A great number of Indians both from above and below the falls visited
us to-day and towards evening we were informed by one of the chiefs
who had accompanied us, that he had overheard that the Indians
below intended to attack us as we went down the river: being at all
times ready for any attempt of that sort, we were not under greater
apprehensions than usual at this intelligence: we, therefore, only
reexamined our arms and increased the ammunition to one hundred rounds.
Our chiefs, who had not the same motives of confidence, were by no
means so much at their ease, and when at night they saw the Indians
leave us earlier than usual, their suspicions of an intended attack
were confirmed, and they were very much alarmed. The next morning,
Thursday 24, the Indians approached us with apparent caution and
behaved with more than usual reserve. Our two chiefs, by whom these
circumstances were not unobserved, now told us that they wished to
return home; that they could be no longer of any service to us, and
they could not understand the language of the people below the falls;
that those people formed a different nation from their own; that the
two people had been at war with each other, and as the Indians had
expressed a resolution to attack us, they would certainly kill them.
We endeavoured to quiet their fears, and requested them to stay two
nights longer in which time we would see the Indians below, and make
a peace between the two nations. They replied that they were anxious
to return and see their horses; we however insisted on their remaining
with us, not only in hopes of bringing about an accommodation between
them and their enemies, but because they might be able to detect any
hostile designs against us, and also assist us in passing the next
falls, which are not far off, and represented as very difficult: they
at length, agreed to stay with us two nights longer. About nine o’clock
we proceeded, and on leaving our camp near the lower fall, found the
river about four hundred yards wide, with a current more rapid than
usual, though with no perceptible descent. At the distance of two and a
half miles, the river widened into a large bend or basin on the right,
at the beginning of which are three huts of Indians. At the extremity
of this basin stands a high black rock, which, rising perpendicularly
from the right shore, seems to run wholly across the river; so totally
indeed does it appear to stop the passage, that we could not see where
the water escaped, except that the current appeared to be drawn with
more than usual velocity to the left of the rock, where was a great
roaring. We landed at the huts of the Indians, who went with us to
the top of this rock, from which we saw all the difficulties of the
channel. We were no longer at a loss to account for the rising of the
river at the falls, for this tremendous rock stretches across the
river, to meet the high hills of the left shore, leaving a channel
of only forty-five yards wide, through which the whole body of the
Columbia must press its way. The water thus forced into so narrow a
channel, is thrown into whirls, and swells and boils in every part with
the wildest agitation. But the alternative of carrying the boats over
this high rock was almost impossible in our present situation, and as
the chief danger seemed to be not from any rocks in the channel, but
from the great waves and whirlpools, we resolved to try the passage
in our boats, in hopes of being able by dexterous steering to escape.
This we attempted, and with great care were able to get through, to
the astonishment of all the Indians of the huts we had just passed,
who now collected to see us from the top of the rock. The channel
continues thus confined within a space of about half a mile, when the
rock ceased. We passed a single Indian hut at the foot of it, where
the river again enlarges itself to the width of two hundred yards, and
at the distance of a mile and a half stopped to view a very bad rapid;
this is formed by two rocky islands which divide the channel, the lower
and larger of which is in the middle of the river. The appearance of
this place was so unpromising, that we unloaded all the most valuable
articles, such as guns, ammunition, our papers, &c. and sent them by
land with all the men that could not swim to the extremity of the
rapids. We then descended with the canoes two at a time, and though
the canoes took in some water, we all went through safely; after which
we made two miles, and stopped in a deep bend of the river towards
the right, and encamped a little above a large village of twenty-one
houses. Here we landed and as it was late before all the canoes joined
us, we were obliged to remain here this evening, the difficulties of
the navigation having permitted us to make only six miles. This village
is situated at the extremity of a deep bend towards the right, and
immediately above a ledge of high rocks, twenty feet above the marks of
the highest flood, but broken in several places, so as to form channels
which are at present dry, extending nearly across the river; this forms
the second fall, or the place most probably which the Indians indicate
by the word Timm. While the canoes were coming on, captain Clarke
walked with two men down to examine these channels. On these rocks
the Indians are accustomed to dry fish, and as the season for that
purpose is now over, the poles which they use are tied up very securely
in bundles, and placed on the scaffolds. The stock of fish dried and
pounded were so abundant that he counted one hundred and seven of
them making more than ten thousand pounds of that provision. After
examining the narrows as well as the lateness of the hour would permit,
he returned to the village though a rocky open country, infested with
polecats. This village, the residence of a tribe called the Echeloots,
consists of twenty-one houses, scattered promiscuously over an elevated
situation, near a mound about thirty feet above the common level, which
has some remains of houses on it, and bears every appearance of being
artificial.
The houses, which are the first wooden buildings we have seen since
leaving the Illinois country, are nearly equal in size, and exhibit a
very singular appearance. A large hole, twenty feet wide and thirty in
length, is dug to the depth of six feet. The sides are then lined with
split pieces of timber, rising just above the surface of the ground,
which are smoothed to the same width by burning, or shaved with small
iron axes. These timbers are secured in their erect position by a pole,
stretched along the side of the building near the caves, and supported
on a strong post fixed at each corner. The timbers at the gable ends
rise gradually higher, the middle pieces being the broadest. At the top
of these is a sort of semicircle, made to receive a ridge-pole, the
whole length of the house, propped by an additional post in the middle,
and forming the top of the roof. From this ridge-pole to the eaves of
the house, are placed a number of small poles or rafters, secured at
each end by fibres of the cedar. On these poles, which are connected by
small transverse bars of wood, is laid a covering of the white cedar,
or arbor vitæ, kept on by the strands of the cedar fibres: but a small
distance along the whole length of the ridge-pole is left uncovered for
the purpose of light, and permitting the smoke to pass through. The
roof thus formed has a descent about equal to that common amongst us,
and near the eaves is perforated with a number of small holes, made
most probably to discharge their arrows in case of an attack. The only
entrance is by a small door at the gable end, cut out of the middle
piece of timber, twenty-nine and a half inches high, and fourteen
inches broad, and reaching only eighteen inches above the earth. Before
this hole is hung a mat, and on pushing it aside and crawling through,
the descent is by a small wooden ladder, made in the form of those
used amongst us. One half of the inside is used as a place of deposit
for their dried fish, of which there are large quantities stored away,
and with a few baskets of berries form the only family provisions; the
other half adjoining the door, remains for the accommodation of the
family. On each side are arranged near the walls, small beds of mats
placed on little scaffolds or bedsteads, raised from eighteen inches to
three feet from the ground, and in the middle of the vacant space is
the fire, or sometimes two or three fires, when, as is indeed usually
the case, the house contains three families.
The inhabitants received us with great kindness--invited us to their
houses, and in the evening, after our camp had been formed, came in
great numbers to see us: accompanying them was a principal chief, and
several of the warriors of the nation below the great narrows. We
made use of this opportunity to attempt a reconciliation between them
and our two chiefs, and to put an end to the war which had disturbed
the two nations. By representing to the chiefs the evils which the war
inflicted on them, and the wants and privations to which it subjects
them, they soon became disposed to conciliate with each other, and
we had some reason to be satisfied with the sincerity of the mutual
professions that the war should no longer continue, and that in
future they would live in peace with each other. On concluding this
negotiation we proceeded to invest the chief with the insignia of
command, a medal and some small articles of clothing; after which the
violin was produced, and our men danced to the great delight of the
Indians, who remained with us till a late hour.
Friday, 25. We walked down with several of the Indians to view the
part of the narrows which they represented as most dangerous: we found
it very difficult, but, as with our large canoes the portage was
impracticable, we concluded on carrying our most valuable articles by
land, and then hazarding the passage. We therefore returned to the
village, and after sending some of the party with our best stores to
make a portage, and fixed others on the rock to assist with ropes the
canoes that might meet with any difficulty, we began the descent, in
the presence of great numbers of Indians who had collected to witness
this exploit. The channel for three miles is worn through a hard
rough black rock from fifty to one hundred yards wide, in which the
water swells and boils in a tremendous manner. The three first canoes
escaped very well; the fourth, however, had nearly filled with water;
the fifth passed through with only a small quantity of water over her.
At half a mile we had got through the worst part, and having reloaded
our canoes went on very well for two and a half miles, except that one
of the boats was nearly lost by running against a rock. At the end
of this channel of three miles, in which the Indians inform us they
catch as many salmon as they wish, we reached a deep basin or bend
of the river towards the right, near the entrance of which are two
rocks. We crossed the basin, which has a quiet and gentle current, and
at the distance of a mile from its commencement, and a little below
where the river resumes its channel, reached a rock which divides it.
At this place we met our old chiefs, who, when we began the portage,
had walked down to a village below to smoke a pipe of friendship on
the renewal of peace. Just after our meeting we saw a chief of the
village above, with a party who had been out hunting, and were then
crossing the river with their horses on their way home. We landed to
smoke with this chief, whom we found a bold looking man of a pleasing
appearance, about fifty years of age, and dressed in a war jacket, a
cap, leggings and moccasins: we presented him with a medal and other
small articles, and he gave us some meat, of which he had been able to
procure but little; for on his route he had met with a war party of
Indians from the Towahnahiooks, between whom there was a battle. We
here smoked a parting pipe with our two faithful friends, the chiefs,
who had accompanied us from the heads of the river, and who now had
each bought a horse, intending to go home by land. On leaving this
rock the river is gentle, but strewed with a great number of rocks for
a few miles, when it becomes a beautiful still stream about half a
mile wide. At five miles from the large bend we came to the mouth of a
creek twenty yards wide, heading in the range of mountains which run
S.S.W. and S.W. for a long distance, and discharging a considerable
quantity of water: it is called by the Indians Quenett. We halted below
it under a high point of rocks on the left; and as it was necessary
to make some celestial observations, we formed a camp on the top of
these rocks. This situation is perfectly well calculated for defence
in case the Indians should incline to attack us, for the rocks form a
sort of natural fortification with the aid of the river and creek, and
is convenient to hunt along the foot of the mountains to the west and
southwest, where there are several species of timber which form fine
coverts for game. From this rock, the pinnacle of the round mountain
covered with snow, which we had seen a short distance below the forks
of the Columbia, and which we had called the Falls or Timm mountain,
is south 43° west, and about thirty-seven miles distant. The face of
the country on both sides of the river above and below the falls is
steep, rugged, and rocky, with a very small proportion of herbage, and
no timber, except a few bushes: the hills, however, to the west, have
some scattered pine, white oak and other kinds of trees. All the timber
used by the people at the upper falls is rafted down the Towahnahiooks;
and those who live at the head of the narrows we have just passed,
bring their wood in the same way from this creek to the lower part of
the narrows, from which it is carried three miles by land to their
habitations.
Both above and below, as well as in the narrows, we saw a great number
of sea-otter or seals, and this evening one deer was killed, and great
signs of that animal seen near the camp. In the creek we shot a goose,
and saw much appearance of beaver, and one of the party also saw a
fish, which he took to be a drum fish. Among the willows we found
several snares, set by the natives for the purpose of catching wolves.
Saturday, 26. The morning was fine: we sent six men to hunt and to
collect rosin to pitch the canoes, which, by being frequently hauled
over rocks, have become very leaky. The canoes were also brought out
to dry, and on examination it was found that many of the articles had
become spoiled by being repeatedly wet. We were occupied with the
observations necessary to determine our longitude, and with conferences
among the Indians, many of whom came on horseback to the opposite shore
in the forepart of the day, and showed some anxiety to cross over to
us: we did not however think it proper to send for them, but towards
evening two chiefs with fifteen men came over in a small canoe: they
proved to be the two principal chiefs of the tribes at and above the
falls, who had been absent on a hunting excursion as we passed their
residence: each of them on their arrival made us a present of deer’s
flesh, and small white cakes made of roots. Being anxious to ingratiate
ourselves in their favour so as to insure a friendly reception on
our return, we treated them with all the kindness we could show: we
acknowledged the chiefs, gave a medal of the small size, a red silk
handkerchief, an armband, a knife, and a piece of paint to each chief,
and small presents to several of the party, and half a deer: these
attentions were not lost on the Indians, who appeared very well pleased
with them. At night a fire was made in the middle of our camp, and as
the Indians sat round it our men danced to the music of the violin,
which so delighted them that several resolved to remain with us all
night: the rest crossed the river. All the tribes in this neighborhood
are at war with the Snake Indians, whom they all describe as living
on the Towahnahiooks, and whose nearest town is said to be four days’
march from this place, and in a direction nearly southwest: there has
lately been a battle between these tribes, but we could not ascertain
the loss on either side. The water rose to-day eight inches, a rise
which we could only ascribe to the circumstance of the wind’s having
been up the river for the last twenty-four hours, since the influence
of the tide cannot be sensible here on account of the falls below.
The hunters returned in the evening; they had seen the tracks of elk
and bear in the mountains, and killed five deer, four very large gray
squirrels, and a grouse: they inform us that the country off the river
is broken, stony, and thinly timbered with pine and white oak; besides
these delicacies one of the men killed with a gig a salmon trout,
which, being fried in some bear’s oil, which had been given to us by
the chief whom we had met this morning below the narrows, furnished a
dish of a very delightful flavour. A number of white cranes were also
seen flying in different directions, but at such a height that we could
not procure any of them.
The fleas, with whom we had contracted an intimacy at the falls, are so
unwilling to leave us, that the men are obliged to throw off all their
clothes, in order to relieve themselves from their persecution.
Sunday 27. The wind was high from the westward during last night and
this morning, but the weather being fair we continued our celestial
observations. The two chiefs who remained with us, were joined by
seven Indians, who came in a canoe from below. To these men we were
very particular in our attentions; we smoked and eat with them; but
some of them who were tempted by the sight of our goods exposed to
dry, wished to take liberties with them; to which we were under the
necessity of putting an immediate check: this restraint displeased them
so much, that they returned down the river in a very ill humour. The
two chiefs however remained with us till the evening, when they crossed
the river to their party. Before they went we procured from them a
vocabulary of the Echeloot, their native language, and on comparison
were surprised at its difference from that of the Eneeshur tongue. In
fact although the Echeloots, who live at the great narrows, are not
more than six miles from the Eneeshurs or residents at and above the
great falls, the two people are separated by a broad distinction of
language. The Eneeshurs are understood by all the tribes residing on
the Columbia, above the falls; but at that place they meet with the
unintelligible language of the Echeloots, which then descends the river
to a considerable distance. Yet the variation may possibly be rather
a deep shade of dialect than a radical difference, since among both
many words are the same, and the identity cannot be accounted for by
supposing that their neighbourhood has interwoven them into their daily
conversations, because the same words are equally familiar among all
the Flathead bands which we have passed. To all these tribes too the
strange clucking or guttural noise which first struck us is common.
They also flatten the heads of the children in nearly the same manner,
but we now begin to observe that the heads of the males, as well as
of the other sex, are subjected to this operation, whereas among the
mountains the custom has confined it almost to the females. The hunters
brought home four deer, one grouse, and a squirrel.
Monday 28. The morning was again cool and windy. Having dried our
goods, we were about setting out, when three canoes came from above
to visit us, and at the same time two others from below arrived for
the same purpose. Among these last was an Indian who wore his hair in
a queue, and had on a round hat and a sailor’s jacket, which he said
he had obtained from the people below the great rapids, who bought
them from the whites. This interview detained us till nine o’clock,
when we proceeded down the river, which is now bordered with cliffs
of loose dark coloured rocks about ninety feet high, with a thin
covering of pine and other small trees. At the distance of four miles
we reached a small village of eight houses under some high rocks on
the right, with a small creek on the opposite side of the river. We
landed and found the houses similar to those we had seen at the great
narrows: on entering one of them we saw a British musket, a cutlass,
and several brass tea-kettles, of which they seemed to be very fond.
There were figures of men, birds, and different animals, which were
cut and painted on the boards which form the sides of the room, and
though the workmanship of these uncouth figures was very rough, they
were as highly esteemed by the Indians as the finest frescoes of more
civilized people. This tribe is called the Chilluckittequaw, and their
language although somewhat different from that of the Echeloots,
has many of the same words, and is sufficiently intelligible to the
neighbouring Indians. We procured from them a vocabulary, and then
after buying five small dogs, some dried berries, and a white bread
or cake made of roots, we left them. The wind however rose so high,
that we were obliged after going one mile to land on the left side
opposite to a rocky island, and pass the day there. We formed our
camp in a niche above a point of high rocks, and as it was the only
safe harbour we could find, submitted to the inconvenience of lying
on the sand, exposed to the wind and rain during all the evening. The
high wind, which obliged us to consult the safety of our boats by not
venturing further, did not at all prevent the Indians from navigating
the river. We had not been long on shore, before a canoe with a man,
his wife and two children, came from below through the high waves with
a few roots to sell; and soon after we were visited by many Indians
from the village above, with whom we smoked and conversed. The canoes
used by these people are like those already described, built of white
cedar or pine, very light, wide in the middle, and tapering towards the
ends, the bow being raised and ornamented with carvings of the heads
of animals. As the canoe is the vehicle of transportation, the Indians
have acquired great dexterity in the management of it, and guide it
safely over the highest waves. They have among their utensils bowls and
baskets very neatly made of small bark and grass, in which they boil
their provisions. The only game seen to-day were two deer, of which
only one was killed, the other was wounded but escaped.
Tuesday 29. The morning was still cloudy, and the wind from the west,
but as it had abated its violence, we set out at daylight. At the
distance of four miles we passed a creek on the right, one mile below
which is a village of seven houses on the same side. This is the
residence of the principal chief of the Chilluckittequaw nation, whom
we now found to be the same between whom and our two chiefs we had made
a peace at the Echeloot village. He received us very kindly, and set
before us pounded fish, filberts, nuts, the berries of the Sacacommis,
and white bread made of root. We gave in return a bracelet of riband
to each of the women of the house, with which they were very much
pleased. The chief had several articles, such as scarlet and blue
cloth, a sword, a jacket and hat, which must have been procured from
the whites, and on one side of the room were two wide split boards
placed together, so as to make space for a rude figure of a man cut and
painted on them. On pointing to this and asking them what it meant, he
said something, of which all we understood was “good,” and then stepped
to the image and brought out his bow and quiver, which, with some other
warlike instruments, were kept behind it. The chief then directed his
wife to hand him his medicine-bag, from which he brought out fourteen
fore-fingers, which he told us had once belonged to the same number of
his enemies, whom he had killed in fighting with the nations to the
southeast, to which place he pointed, alluding no doubt to the Snake
Indians, the common enemy of the nations on the Columbia. This bag is
about two feet in length, containing roots, pounded dirt, &c. which
the Indians only know how to appreciate. It is suspended in the middle
of the lodge, and it is supposed to be a species of sacrilege to be
touched by any but the owner. It is an object of religious fear, and
it is from its sanctity the safest place to deposit their medals and
their more valuable articles. The Indians have likewise small bags
which they preserve in their great medicine-bag, from whence they are
taken and worn around their waists and necks as amulets against any
real or imaginary evils. This was the first time we had ever known the
Indians to carry from the field any other trophy except the scalp.
They were shown with great exultation, and after an harangue which we
were left to presume was in praise of his exploits, the fingers were
carefully replaced among the valuable contents of the red medicine-bag.
This village being part of the same nation with the village we passed
above, the language of the two is the same, and their houses of similar
form and materials, and calculated to contain about thirty souls. The
inhabitants were unusually hospitable and good-humoured, so that we
gave to the place the name of the Friendly village. We breakfasted
here, and after purchasing twelve dogs, four sacks of fish, and a few
dried berries, proceeded on our journey. The hills as we passed are
high with steep and rocky sides, and some pine and white oak, and
an undergrowth of shrubs scattered over them. Four miles below this
village is a small river on the right side; immediately below is a
village of Chilluckittequaws, consisting of eleven houses. Here we
landed and smoked a pipe with the inhabitants, who were very cheerful
and friendly. They as well as the people of the last village inform
us, that this river comes a considerable distance from the N.N.E. that
it has a great number of falls, which prevent the salmon from passing
up, and that there are ten nations residing on it who subsist on
berries, or such game as they can procure with their bows and arrows.
At its mouth the river is sixty yards wide, and has a deep and very
rapid channel. From the number of falls of which the Indians spoke,
we gave it the name of Cataract river. We purchased four dogs, and
then proceeded. The country as we advance is more rocky and broken,
and the pine and low whiteoak on the hills increase in great quantity.
Three miles below Cataract river we passed three large rocks in the
river; that in the middle is large and longer than the rest, and from
the circumstance of its having several square vaults on it, obtained
the name of Sepulchre island. A short distance below are two huts of
Indians on the right: the river now widens, and in three miles we came
to two more houses on the right; one mile beyond which is a rocky
island in a bend of the river towards the left. Within the next six
miles we passed fourteen huts of Indians, scattered on the right bank,
and then reached the entrance of a river on the left, which we called
Labieshe’s river, after Labieshe one of our party. Just above this
river is a low ground more thickly timbered than usual, and in front
are four huts of Indians on the bank, which are the first we have seen
on that side of the Columbia. The exception may be occasioned by this
spot’s being more than usually protected from the approach of their
enemies, by the creek, and the thick wood behind.
We again embarked, and at the distance of a mile passed the mouth of
a rapid creek on the right eighteen yards wide: in this creek the
Indians whom we left take their fish, and from the number of canoes
which were in it, we called it Canoe creek. Opposite to this creek is
a large sandbar, which continues for four miles along the left side of
the river. Just below this a beautiful cascade falls in on the left
over a precipice of rock one hundred feet in height. One mile further
are four Indian huts in the low ground on the left: and two miles
beyond this a point of land on the right, where the mountains become
high on both sides, and possess more timber and greater varieties of
it than hitherto, and those on the left are covered with snow. One
mile from this point we halted for the night at three Indian huts on
the right, having made thirty-two miles. On our first arrival they
seemed surprised, but not alarmed at our appearance, and we soon became
intimate by means of smoking and our favourite entertainment for the
Indians, the violin. They gave us fruit, some roots, and root-bread,
and we purchased from them three dogs. The houses of these people are
similar to those of the Indians above, and their language the same:
their dress also, consisting of robes or skins of wolves, deer, elk,
and wild-cat, is made nearly after the same model: their hair is worn
in plaits down each shoulder, and round their neck is put a strip of
some skin with the tail of the animal hanging down over the breast:
like the Indians above they are fond of otter skins, and give a great
price for them. We here saw the skin of a mountain sheep, which they
say live among the rocks in the mountains: the skin was covered with
white hair, the wool long, thick, and coarse, with long coarse hair on
the top of the neck, and the back resembling somewhat the bristles of
a goat. Immediately behind the village is a pond, in which were great
numbers of small swan.
Wednesday, 30. A moderate rain fell during all last night, but the
morning was cool, and after taking a scanty breakfast of deer, we
proceeded. The river is now about three quarters of a mile wide, with a
current so gentle, that it does not exceed one mile and a half an hour;
but its course is obstructed by the projection of large rocks, which
seemed to have fallen promiscuously from the mountains into the bed
of the river. On the left side four different streams of water empty
themselves in cascades from the hills: what is, however, most singular
is, that there are stumps of pine trees scattered to some distance in
the river, which has the appearance of being dammed below and forced
to encroach on the shore: these obstructions continue till at the
distance of twelve miles, when we came to the mouth of a river on the
right, where we landed: we found it sixty yards wide, and its banks
possess two kinds of timber which we had not hitherto seen: one is a
very large species of ash; the other resembling in its bark the beech;
but the tree itself, as also the leaves, are smaller. We called this
stream Crusatte’s river, after Crusatte, one of our men: opposite to
its mouth the Columbia widens to the distance of a mile, with a large
sandbar, and large stones and rocks scattered through the channel. We
here saw several of the large buzzards, which are of the size of the
largest eagle, with the under part of their wings white: we also shot
a deer and three ducks; on part of which we dined, and then continued
down the Columbia. Above Crusatte’s river the low grounds are about
three quarters of a mile wide, rising gradually to the hills, and with
a rich soil covered with grass, fern, and other small undergrowth; but
below, the country rises with a steep ascent, and soon the mountains
approach to the river with steep rugged sides, covered with a very
thick growth of pine, cedar, cottonwood, and oak. The river is still
strewed with large rocks. Two and a half miles below Crusatte’s river
is a large creek on the right, with a small island in the mouth. Just
below this creek we passed along the right side of three small islands
on the right bank of the river, with a larger island on the opposite
side, and landed on an island very near the right shore at the head
of the great shoot, and opposite two smaller islands at the fall or
shoot itself. Just above the island on which we were encamped is a
small village of eight large houses in a bend on the right, where the
country, from having been very mountainous, becomes low for a short
distance. We had made fifteen miles to-day, during all which time we
were kept constantly wet with the rain; but as we were able to get on
this island some of the ash which we saw for the first time to-day, and
which makes a tolerable fire, we were as comfortable as the moistness
of the evening would permit. As soon as we landed, captain Lewis went
with five men to the village, which is situated near the river, with
ponds in the low grounds behind: the greater part of the inhabitants
were absent collecting roots down the river: the few, however, who
were at home, treated him very kindly, and gave him berries, nuts,
and fish; and in the house were a gun and several articles which must
have been procured from the whites; but not being able to procure any
information, he returned to the island. Captain Clarke had in the
meantime gone down to examine the shoot, and to discover the best route
for a portage. He followed an Indian path, which, at the distance of a
mile, led to a village on an elevated situation, the houses of which
had been large, but built in a different form from any we had yet seen,
but which had been lately abandoned, the greater part of the boards
being put into a pond near the village: this was most probably for the
purpose of drowning the fleas, which were in immense quantities near
the houses. After going about three miles the night obliged him to
return to the camp: he resumed his search in the morning.
[Illustration: The Great Shoot or Rapid]
Thursday, 31st, through the rain. At the extremity of the basin, in
which is situated the island where we are encamped, several rocks and
rocky islands are interspersed through the bed of the river. The rocks
on each side have fallen down from the mountains; that on the left
being high, and on the right the hill itself, which is lower, slipping
into the river; so that the current is here compressed within a space
of one hundred and fifty yards. Within this narrow limit it runs for
the distance of four hundred yards with great rapidity, swelling over
the rocks with a fall of about twenty feet: it then widens to two
hundred paces, and the current for a short distance becomes gentle;
but at the distance of a mile and a half, and opposite to the old
village mentioned yesterday, it is obstructed by a very bad rapid,
where the waves are unusually high, the river being confined between
large rocks, many of which are at the surface of the water. Captain
Clarke proceeded along the same path he had taken before, which led him
through a thick wood and along a hill side, till two and a half miles
below the shoots, he struck the river at the place whence the Indians
make their portage to the head of the shoot: he here sent Crusatte, the
principal waterman, up the stream, to examine if it were practicable
to bring the canoes down the water. In the meantime, he, with Joseph
Fields, continued his route down the river, along which the rapids
seem to stretch as far as he could see. At half a mile below the end
of the portage, he came to a house, the only remnant of a town, which,
from its appearance, must have been of great antiquity. The house was
uninhabited, and being old and decayed, he felt no disposition to
encounter the fleas, which abound in every situation of that kind,
and therefore did not enter. About half a mile below this house, in a
very thick part of the woods, is an ancient burial place: it consists
of eight vaults made of pine or cedar boards closely connected, about
eight feet square and six in height; the top secured, covered with wide
boards sloping a little, so as to convey off the rain: the direction
of all of them is east and west, the door being on the eastern side,
and partially stopped with wide boards decorated with rude pictures of
men and other animals. On entering we found in some of them four dead
bodies, carefully wrapped in skins, tied with cords of grass and bark,
lying on a mat in a direction east and west: the other vaults contained
only bones, which were in some of them piled to the height of four
feet: on the tops of the vaults, and on poles attached to them, hung
brass kettles and frying-pans with holes in their bottoms, baskets,
bowls, sea-shells, skins, pieces of cloth, hair, bags of trinkets and
small bones, the offerings of friendship or affection, which have been
saved by a pious veneration from the ferocity of war, or the more
dangerous temptations of individual gain: the whole of the walls as
well as the door were decorated with strange figures cut and painted
on them; and besides these were several wooden images of men, some of
them so old and decayed as to have almost lost their shape, which were
all placed against the sides of the vaults. These images, as well as
those in the houses we have lately seen, do not appear to be at all the
objects of adoration: in this place they were most probably intended as
resemblances of those whose decease they indicate; and when we observe
them in houses, they occupy the most conspicuous part; but are treated
more like ornaments than objects of worship. Near the vaults which are
standing, are the remains of others on the ground completely rotted and
covered with moss; and as they are formed of the most durable pine and
cedar timber, there is every appearance, that for a very long series
of years this retired spot has been the depository for the Indians
near this place. After examining this place captain Clarke went on,
and found the river as before strewed with large rocks, against which
the water ran with great rapidity. Just below the vaults the mountain,
which is but low on the right side, leaves the river, and is succeeded
by an open stony level, which extends down the river, while on the
left the mountain is still high and rugged. At two miles distance he
came to a village of four houses, which were now vacant and the doors
barred up: on looking in he saw the usual quantity of utensils still
remaining, from which he concluded that the inhabitants were at no
great distance collecting roots or hunting, in order to lay in their
supply of food for the winter; he left them and went on three miles
to a difficult rocky rapid, which was the last in view. Here, on the
right, are the remains of a large and ancient village, which could be
plainly traced by the holes for the houses and the deposits for fish:
after he had examined these rapids and the neighbouring country he
returned to camp by the same route: the only game he had obtained was
a sandhill crane. In the meantime we had been occupied in preparations
for making the portage, and in conference with the Indians, who came
down from the village to visit us. Towards evening two canoes arrived
from the village at the mouth of Cataract river, loaded with fish
and bears’ grease for the market below; as soon as they landed they
unloaded the canoes, turned them upside down on the beach, and encamped
under a shelving rock near our camp. We had an opportunity of seeing
to-day the hardihood of the Indians of the neighbouring village: one
of the men shot a goose, which fell into the river, and was floating
rapidly towards the great shoot, when an Indian observing it plunged in
after it: the whole mass of the waters of the Columbia, just preparing
to descend its narrow channel, carried the animal down with great
rapidity: the Indian followed it fearlessly to within one hundred and
fifty feet of the rocks, where he would inevitably have been dashed
to pieces; but seizing his prey he turned round and swam ashore with
great composure. We very willingly relinquished our right to the bird
in favour of the Indian who had thus saved it at the imminent hazard
of his life: he immediately set to work, and picked off about half
the feathers, and then without opening it ran a stick through it and
carried it off to roast.
Friday, November 1, 1805. The morning was cool and the wind high from
the northeast. The Indians who arrived last night, took their empty
canoes on their shoulders and carried them below the great shoot, where
they put them in the water and brought them down the rapid, till at
the distance of two and a half miles they stopped to take in their
loading, which they had been afraid to trust in the last rapid, and had
therefore carried by land from the head of the shoot.
After their example we carried our small canoe, and all the baggage
across the slippery rocks, to the foot of the shoot. The four large
canoes were next brought down, by slipping them along poles, placed
from one rock to another, and in some places by using partially streams
which escaped along side of the river. We were not, however, able to
bring them across without three of them receiving injuries, which
obliged us to stop at the end of the shoot to repair them. At this
shoot we saw great numbers of sea-otters; but they are so shy that
it is difficult to reach them with the musket: one of them that was
wounded to-day sunk and was lost. Having by this portage avoided the
rapid and shoot of four hundred yards in length, we re-embarked, passed
at a mile and a half the bad rapid opposite to the old village on the
right, and making our way through the rocks, saw the house just below
the end of the portage; the eight vaults near it; and at the distance
of four miles from the head of the shoot, reached a high rock, which
forms the upper part of an island near the left shore. Between this
island and the right shore we proceeded, leaving at the distance of a
mile and a half, the village of four houses on our right, and a mile
and a half lower came to the head of a rapid near the village on the
right. Here we halted for the night, having made only seven miles from
the head of the shoot. During the whole of the passage the river is
very much obstructed by rocks. The island, which is about three miles
long, reaches to the rapid which its lower extremity contributes to
form. The meridian altitude of to-day gave us the latitude of 45° 44´
3´´ north. As we passed the village of four houses, we found that the
inhabitants had returned, and stopped to visit them. The houses are
similar to those already described, but larger, from thirty-five to
fifty feet long, and thirty feet wide, being sunk in the ground about
six feet, and raised the same height above. Their beds are raised
about four feet and a half above the floor, and the ascent is by a new
painted ladder, with which every family is provided, and under them
are stored their dried fish, while the space between the part of the
bed on which they lie and the wall of the house is occupied by the
nuts, roots, berries, and other provisions, which are spread on mats.
The fireplace is about eight feet long, and six feet wide, sunk a foot
below the floor, secured by a frame, with mats placed around for the
family to sit on. In all of the houses are images of men of different
shapes, and placed as ornaments in the parts of the house where they
are most seen. They gave us nuts, berries, and some dried fish to
eat, and we purchased, among other articles, a hat made after their
own taste, such as they wear, without a brim. They ask high prices
for all that they sell, observing that the whites below, pay dearly
for all which they carry there. We cannot learn precisely the nature
of the trade carried on by the Indians with the inhabitants below.
But as their knowledge of the whites seems to be very imperfect, and
the only articles which they carry to market, such as pounded fish,
bear-grass and roots, cannot be an object of much foreign traffic,
their intercourse appears to be an intermediate trade with the natives
near the mouth of the Columbia: from them these people obtain in
exchange for their fish, roots and bear-grass, blue and white beads,
copper tea-kettles, brass armbands, some scarlet and blue robes, and
a few articles of old European clothing. But their great object is to
obtain beads, an article which holds the first place in their ideas
of relative value, and to procure which they will sacrifice their
last article of clothing or the last mouthful of food. Independently
of their fondness for them as an ornament, these beads are the medium
of trade, by which they obtain from the Indians still higher up the
river, robes, skins, chappelel bread, bear-grass, &c. Those Indians in
turn, employ them to procure from the Indians in the Rocky mountains,
bear-grass, pachico, roots, robes, &c.
These Indians are rather below the common size, with high check-bones,
their noses pierced, and in full dress, ornamented with a tapering
piece of white shell or wampum about two inches long. Their eyes are
exceedingly sore and weak, many of them have only a single eye, and
some perfectly blind. Their teeth prematurely decayed, and in frequent
instances, altogether worn away. Their general health, however, seems
to be good, the only disorder we have remarked, being, tumours in
different parts of the body. The women are small and homely in their
appearance, their legs and thighs much swelled, and their knees
remarkably large; deformities, which are no doubt owing to the manner
in which they set on their hams. They go nearly naked, having only a
piece of leather tied round the breast, falling thence, nearly as low
as the waist; a small robe about three feet square, and a piece of
leather, which ill supplies the place of a cover, tied between their
legs. Their hair is suffered to hang loose in every direction; and in
their persons, as well as in their cookery, they are filthy to a most
disgusting degree. We here observe that the women universally have
their heads flattened, and in many of the villages, we have lately seen
the female children undergo the operation.