_The River Mississippi._
The Mississippi has its source in about forty-six degrees thirty minutes
of north latitude; and terminates in the Gulf of Mexico, at some
distance below the town of New Orleans. Its length, in a direct line,
exceeds one thousand seven hundred miles; and it falls into the sea, by
many mouths, most of which, like those of the Nile, are too shallow to
be navigable. For a considerable distance, its banks are low, marshy,
and covered with reeds; and are annually overflowed, from the melting
of the snows in the interior of the country. The inundation usually
commences in March, and continues about three months; and the slime
which it deposits on the adjacent lands, tends, in a very important
degree, to fertilize the soil. This river is navigable to a great
distance; but, at spring-tides, the navigation is difficult, on account
of the strength of the currents, and the innumerable islands, shoals,
and sand-banks, with which it is interspersed. Vessels of three hundred
tons burden can ascend it as high as Natchez, four hundred miles from
the sea; and those of lighter burden can pass upward, as far as the
Falls of St. Anthony, in latitude forty-four degrees fifty minutes.
_New Orleans_, the capital of the state of Louisiana, is situated on the
northern bank of the Mississippi, and is a place of great commercial
importance. It was founded in the year 1717, and now contains near
thirty thousand inhabitants. In 1787, it had eleven hundred houses; but,
nine hundred of these having been consumed by fire, it has since been
rebuilt on a regular plan, and a more enlarged scale. Most of the houses
are constructed with wooden frames, raised about eight feet from the
ground, and have galleries round them, and cellars under the floors:
almost every house has a garden.
Louisiana having, till lately, been a French colony, the French language
is still predominant at New Orleans. The appearance of the people too is
French; and even the negroes, by their antics and ludicrous gestures,
exhibit their previous connexion with that nation. Their general manners
and habits are very relaxed. Though New Orleans is now a city belonging
to the United States, the markets, shops, theatre, circus, and public
ball-rooms, are open on Sundays, in the same manner as they are in the
catholic countries of the old continent. Gambling-houses, too, are
numerous; and the coffee-houses and the Exchange are occupied, from
morning till night, by gamesters. The general stile of living is
luxurious. The houses are elegantly furnished; and the ladies dress in
an expensive manner.
Provisions are here of bad quality, and enormously dear. Hams and
cheese, from England; potatoes, butter, and beef from Ireland, are
common articles of import. The rents of houses, also, are very
extravagant.
The country around New Orleans is level, rich, and healthy, and has many
extensive sugar-plantations. And, for the space of five leagues below,
and ten above the town, the river has been embanked, to defend the
adjacent fields from those inundations of the Mississippi which take
place every spring. The land, adjacent to the town, yields abundant
crops of rice, Indian corn, and vegetables.
There is a regular communication, by means of steam-boats and other
vessels, between New Orleans and the towns on the banks of the
Mississippi, the Ohio, and other rivers, in the distant parts of North
America.
The scenery of the Mississippi, to the distance of one hundred and fifty
miles and upwards, from New Orleans, is very uninteresting. The country
is a dead flat; so that the banks of the river, and most of the adjacent
grounds, are annually overflowed. In the vicinity of Natchez it becomes
more varied and pleasing.
_Natchez_ is a town in the state of Mississippi, near the banks of the
river, and about four hundred miles from its mouth. It contains about
thirty dwellings, most of which are whiskey-shops, gambling, and other
houses, where an excess of profligacy prevails, which is not usual in
the United States.
Mr. Fearon visited Natchez in the year 1817; and in the port there were
twenty-five flats, seven keels, and one steam-vessel. The flats are
square covered vessels, of considerable capacity, used for carrying
freight from Pittsburgh, on the Ohio, and other places below that town,
down to New Orleans. Their construction is temporary and of slight
materials; for they are broken up at New Orleans, as not sufficiently
strong to be freighted up the river. The keel is a substantial,
well-built boat, of considerable length; and, in form, somewhat
resembles the floating-bath at Blackfriars' Bridge.
Observing a great many coloured people in these boats, Mr. Fearon
concluded that they were emigrants, who had proceeded thus far on their
route towards a settlement. The fact, however, proved to be, that
fourteen of the flats were freighted with human beings intended for
sale. They had been collected in the United States, by slave-dealers,
and shipped, up the Mississippi, to Kentucky for a market.
There are, at Natchez, numerous stores, and three-fourths of the goods
at every store are articles of British manufacture. Shopkeeping is here
profitable, and mechanics are highly paid. Lotteries are very prevalent
at Natchez. When Mr. Fearon was here, there was a lottery for _building
a Presbyterian church_; and the scheme was preceded by a long address,
on the advantages of religion, and the necessity of all citizens
supporting Christianity, by purchasing tickets in this lottery!
The streets of Natchez were literally crammed with bales of cotton for
the Liverpool market. These are carried to the water-side in carts, each
drawn by two mules, horses being here little used. During Mr. Fearon's
residence at this town, he twice visited the State legislature, which
was composed of men who appeared any thing but legislators. Their place
of meeting was in a superior kind of hay-loft; and the imitation of the
forms of the British parliament were perfectly ludicrous.
Between Natchez, and the mouth of the Ohio, there is not one spot which
could be recommended as a place for an Englishman to settle in.
Throughout the whole of this space, the white population are the victims
of demoralizing habits. The native Indians present, of course, nothing
but a picture of mere savage life; and the negro slaves suffer even more
misery than commonly falls to the lot of their oppressed and degraded
condition. What a foul stain is it upon the American republic,
professing, as they do, the principles of liberty and of equal rights,
that, out of twenty states, there should be eleven in which slavery is
an avowed part of the political constitution; and that, in those called
free, New England excepted, the condition of blacks who are indentured,
for terms of years, should practically amount to slavery!
Beyond the state of Louisiana, the Mississippi divides the Missouri
territory from the territory of Mississippi; and, north of that, from
the states of Tenessee and Kentucky. About the 37th degree of north
latitude, and on the western bank of the river, is a town called _New
Madrid_. This place, from the advantages of its situation, about
forty-five miles from the mouth of the Ohio, may at some future time
become of considerable importance. The _Ohio_, at the place of its
junction with the Mississippi, is about a mile in width, and is
navigable, for vessels of considerable burden, to a distance of more
than a thousand miles.
Beyond the Ohio commences the _Illinois territory_. Here the general
face of the country is flat; but, in some parts, the land is high and
craggy. It abounds in deer, wolves, bears, squirrels, racoons, and
foxes; in wild turkeys and quails; geese and ducks, partially; and
hawks, buzzards, and pigeons in tolerable abundance; and the rivers
contain several species of fish. In the prairies there are rattlesnakes.
The woods supply grapes, pecan nuts, (similar to our walnut,) and
hickory nuts. Hops, raspberries, and strawberries, here grow wild.
Limestone abounds; and salt, copper, and coal have all been found in
this district.
The seat of the territorial government is _Kaskaski_, a town which
stands on a plain, near the western bank of the Mississippi, and
contains about one hundred and fifty houses. This place has been
settled somewhat more than a century, and its inhabitants are chiefly
French. Some parts of the district of Illinois are occupied by Indians.
The other inhabitants are, first, what are here termed "squatters,"
persons half civilized and half savage; and who, both in character and
habits, are extremely wretched: second, a medley of land-jobbers,
lawyers, doctors, and farmers, a portion of those who traverse this
immense continent, founding settlements, and engaging in all kinds of
speculation: and third, some old French settlers, who are possessed of
considerable property, and who live in ease and comfort.
About seventy miles north of Kaskaski, and on the opposite side of the
river, is a town or large village, called _St. Louis_. It stands on a
rock or bank of considerable height, in a beautiful and healthy
situation, and is surrounded by a country of exuberant fertility. The
inhabitants of this place are chiefly employed in the fur-trade, and
seldom occupy themselves in agriculture.
_Narrative of a Voyage from St. Louis to the source of the
Mississippi. By_ ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE.
Major Pike, at that time a lieutenant in the American army, was employed
by the government of the United States, to make a survey of the
Mississippi, from the town of _St. Louis_, upwards, to its source. In
pursuance of his instructions, he embarked, in a keel-boat, at this
place, on the afternoon of Friday the 9th of August, 1805; and was
accompanied by a serjeant and seventeen private soldiers of the American
army.
As far as the mouth of the river Missouri, he says, the eastern shore of
the Mississippi consists of a sandy soil, and is covered with
timber-trees of various kinds. The western shore is, for a little
distance, composed of high land, bordered by prairie or natural
meadow-ground; after which bottom-land occurs, with timber similar to
that on the eastern shore. The current is rapid, and, at low water, the
navigation is obstructed by sand-banks.
Beyond the entrance of the Missouri, the stream is gentle, as far as the
mouth of the _Illinois_; but there, owing to extensive sand-bars, and
many islands, it becomes extremely rapid. From the Illinois to the
_Buffalo River_, the eastern shore exhibits a series of gentle
eminences; but, on the west, the land is a continued prairie. Timber is
found on both sides; generally hackberry, cotton-wood, and ash. The
Buffalo river enters from the west, and is about a hundred yards wide at
its mouth.
On the 14th of August the voyagers passed a camp of the _Sac Indians_,
consisting of three men, with their families. The men were employed in
spearing and landing a large fish. Mr. Pike gave them a small quantity
of whiskey and biscuit; and they, in return, presented him with some
fish. The Sacs are a tribe of Indians which hunt on the Mississippi, and
its confluent streams, from the Illinois to the river Jowa; and on the
plains west of them, which border upon the Missouri. They are much
dreaded by other Indians, for their propensity to deceit, and their
disposition to commit injury by stratagem.
On the ensuing day, the voyagers reached the mouth of _Salt river_, a
considerable stream, which, at high water, is navigable for at least two
hundred miles. From the Illinois to this river, the western shore is
either immediately bordered by beautiful cedar-cliffs, or the ridges of
these cliffs may be seen at a distance. On the east the land is low, and
the soil rich.
On the 16th of August they passed the house of a Frenchman, on the
western side of the river. The cattle belonging to this person appeared
to be in fine order, but his corn-land was in a bad state of
cultivation. Three days afterwards their boat was damaged by striking
against a vessel carrying timber and planks down the stream. While they
were engaged in repairing it, three canoes, with Indians, passed on the
opposite side of the river. The men in the canoes called out, in
English, "How do you do?" wishing for an invitation to come over; but
this was not given, and they proceeded on their voyage.
Beyond Salt river the western shore of the Mississippi is hilly, but the
eastern side consists of lowland, timbered with hickory, oak, ash,
maple, and other trees. The navigation here is easy, and the soil on
both sides tolerably good.
On the 20th of August the voyagers, with great difficulty, passed the
_Rapids des Moines_. These are eleven miles in extent; and, with
successive ledges and shoals, reach from shore to shore, across the bed
of the river. Mr. Pike had here an interview with four chiefs, and
fifteen men of the Sac nation, accompanied by a French interpreter, and
an agent who had been sent from the United States to teach them
agriculture. These men assisted him in his progress up the Rapids; and,
in recompense for the service, they were presented with some tobacco,
knives, and whiskey.
At some distance beyond the Rapids the voyagers had a beautiful
prospect, at least forty miles in extent, down the river. Their average
daily progress appears to have been betwixt twenty and thirty miles.
Above the _river Jowa_, which is one hundred and fifty yards wide at its
mouth, the shore of the Mississippi consists of high prairie, with
yellow clay-banks, and, in some places, banks of red sand: the western
shore also is prairie, but bounded by wood. About ten miles up the Jowa
is a village of _Jowa Indians_. This people subsist chiefly by hunting,
but they cultivate some corn-land. Their chief residence is on the small
streams in the rear of the Mississippi. From the Jowa to _Rock river_,
there are, on the west, beautiful prairies, and, in some places, rich
land, with black walnut and hickory timber.
On the 28th of August the vessel was much injured in passing up a series
of rapids nearly eighteen miles in extent, and, in some places,
reaching from shore to shore. Four days after this they arrived in the
vicinity of some extensive lead-mines, which belonged to a Frenchman
named Dubuque. The only animals they had hitherto seen were a few wild
turkeys and some deer.
From the lead-mines to _Turkey river_, the Mississippi continues nearly
of the same width, and the banks, soil, and productions appear precisely
similar. On the bank of the Turkey river is a village of _Reynard
Indians_, who raise there a considerable quantity of corn. The Reynards
reside in three villages on the Mississippi, two of which Mr. Pike had
already past. They grow corn, beans, and melons; and they annually sell
many hundred bushels of corn to the inhabitants of the United States.
On the 2d of September, Mr. Pike and some of his men landed for the
purpose of shooting pigeons; but the guns were no sooner fired, than a
party of Indians, who were on shore at a little distance, ran to the
water, and escaped in their pirogues or canoes, with great
precipitation. After this the voyagers passed the mouth of the
_Ouisconsin river_, which enters the Mississippi in latitude 43 degrees
44 minutes, and is nearly half a mile wide. This river is an important
source of communication with the great American lakes, and is the route
by which all the traders of Michillimackinac convey their goods to the
Mississippi.
On the 6th of September, a council was held with a party of _Puant_ or
_Winebagoe Indians_, and one of the _Sioux_ chiefs. The former occupy
seven villages, and are supposed to be a nation who originally emigrated
from Mexico, to avoid the oppression of the Spaniards. They are reputed
to be brave; but their bravery resembles the ferocity of tigers, rather
than the deliberate resolution of men. They are so treacherous that, it
is said, a white man should never lie down to sleep in their villages,
without adopting the utmost caution to preserve himself from injury. The
_Sioux_ are a powerful nation, the dread of whom is extended over all
the adjacent country. They are divided into numerous bands, headed by
celebrated chiefs. Few of them cultivate land; but they chiefly live on
the production of the chase, and on a kind of bread which they make from
wild oats. This species of grain is here produced in such abundance,
that a sufficiency for their subsistence is easily collected in the
autumn, without any trouble whatever in cultivating the land.
Not long after their interview with these Indians, the voyagers reached
the _Prairie des Chiens_. The houses of this village, about eighteen in
number, are arranged in two streets, along the front of a marsh. They
are chiefly built of wood; are daubed on the outside with clay, and
white-washed within. The furniture in most of them is decent, and, in
those of the most wealthy inhabitants, displays a considerable degree of
taste. The Prairie des Chiens was first settled under the protection of
the English government, in the year 1783; and derives its name from a
family of Reynards, who formerly lived there, and were distinguished by
the appellation of Dog Indians. It is a place of resort for Indian
traders and others, who reside in the interior. Mr. Pike here engaged
two interpreters to accompany him; one of whom was to perform the whole
voyage, and the other to sail with him as high as the falls of St.
Anthony.
On the 9th of September he had an interview with a party of _Sioux
Indians_. When he went towards the shore to meet them, they saluted him
by firing three rounds from their muskets, loaded with ball. On landing,
Mr. Pike was met by the chief, and invited to his lodge. This invitation
he complied with, having first stationed some of his men as guards, to
protect him in case of danger. In the lodge he found a clean mat and a
pillow arranged for him to sit upon; and the complimentary pipe of peace
was placed before him, on a pair of small crutches. The chief sate at his
right hand, and the interpreter at his left. After they had satisfied
each other of their mutual good wishes, and Mr. Pike had accepted the
pipe, dinner was prepared. This consisted of wild rye and venison.
Mr. Pike was afterwards conducted by the chief to a dance, the
performance of which was accompanied by many curious gestures. Men and
women danced indiscriminately. They were all dressed in the gayest
manner imaginable. Each had, in his hand, a small skin of some kind of
animal. They frequently ran up, pointed their skin, and gave a puff with
their breath; on which the person blown at fell, and either appeared
lifeless, or in great agony; but afterwards slowly recovered, rose, and
joined in the dance. This was understood to be of a religious
description; and the Indians believed that they actually puffed, into
each others bodies, something which occasioned them to fall. For persons
to be permitted to take a part in these dances, it was requisite that
they should make valuable presents to the society, give a feast, and be
admitted with great ceremony. When Mr. Pike returned to his boat, he
sent for the chief, and presented him with a quantity of tobacco, four
knives, half a pound of vermilion, a quart of salt, and several gallons
of spirits.
At some distance beyond this place, Mr. Pike was shewn several holes,
which had been dug in the ground by the Sioux Indians. These were, in
general, of circular shape, and about ten feet in diameter; but some of
them were in the form of half moons. When this people apprehend an
attack from their enemies, or discover an enemy near them, they dig into
the ground, with their knives, tomahawks, and wooden ladles; and, in an
incredibly short space of time, sink holes that are sufficiently
capacious to protect both themselves and their families from the balls
or arrows of their foe.
Though the part of the river which the voyagers were now traversing was
nearly two thousand miles distant from the sea, the width of the stream
was supposed to be at least two miles.
The wet season had commenced, and rain fell, in considerable quantity
almost every day. In this part of his voyage, Mr. Pike was accompanied
by a Mr. Frazer and two other persons, with three birch canoes. On the
16th of September, they passed the mouth of the _Sauteaux_ or _Chippeway
river_, a deep and majestic stream, which has a communication, by a
short passage, with the Montreal river, and, by this river, with Lake
Superior. The shores of the Mississippi were here, in many places, bold
and precipitous, forming a succession of high perpendicular cliffs and
low valleys; and they exhibited some of the most romantic and
picturesque views imaginable. But this irregular scenery was sometimes
interrupted by wide and extensive plains, which brought to the minds of
the voyagers the verdant lawns of civilized countries, and almost
induced them to imagine themselves in the midst of a highly-cultivated
plantation. The timber of this part of the country was generally birch,
elm, and cotton-wood; and all the cliffs were bordered with cedars. The
prevailing species of game were deer and bears.
On the 21st of September, the voyagers breakfasted at a Sioux village,
on the eastern side of the river. It consisted of eleven lodges, and was
situated at the head of an island, just below a ledge of rocks; but the
inhabitants had all left it. About two miles beyond this village, they
saw three bears, swimming over the river, but beyond the reach of
gun-shot.
In a camp of Sioux, which they afterwards passed, Mr. Pike was
astonished by the garrulity of the women. At the other camps the women
had not opened their lips; but here they flocked around the strangers,
and talked without cessation. The cause of this freedom is supposed to
have been the absence of their husbands. In a spot at which the voyagers
arrived this day, the Mississippi was so narrow that Mr. Pike crossed
it, in a boat, with forty strokes of his oars.
From the _Canoe river_ to the _St. Croix_, it becomes still narrower,
and the navigation is less obstructed by islands, than below. From the
_Cannon river_ it is bounded on the east, by high ridges; but the left
shore consists of low ground. The timber is generally ash and maple;
except the cedars of the cliffs, the sugar-tree, and ash. Mr. Pike this
day observed, on the shore, a white flag, and, on landing, he discovered
it to be of silk. It was suspended over a scaffold, on which were laid
four dead bodies; two enclosed between boards, and two between pieces of
bark. They were wrapped in blankets, which appeared quite new; and were
the bodies of two Sioux women, a child, and a relative. This is the
manner in which the Sioux Indians bury such of their people as die a
natural death: such as are killed, they suffer to lie unburied.
On the 23d, the voyagers arrived at the _Falls of St. Anthony_. These
are about seventeen feet in height, and the approach to them is through
rapids, which vessels have great difficulty in passing. At the foot of
the falls, the voyagers unloaded their boats, which they carried up the
hill, and placed and reloaded in the river above. While this process was
going on, a small party of Indians, painted black, and prepared for war,
appeared on the heights. They were armed with guns, bows and arrows,
clubs, and spears; and some of them had cases of pistols. Mr. Pike was
desirous of purchasing from them a set of bows and arrows, and one of
their war-clubs, made of elk-horn, and decorated with inlaid work; but
they took offence at something which occurred, and suddenly went away.
The weather was now so rainy, and the men had been so much fatigued with
conveying the vessels and their lading, to the upper part of the falls,
that seven of the twenty-two, who accompanied Mr. Pike, were taken ill.
It is impossible for vessels of any description, or in any state of the
river, to pass up these falls. The width of the river, immediately below
them, is two hundred and nine yards, and above them, six hundred and
twenty-seven yards. At high-water, the appearance is extremely sublime;
as then, the quantity of water falling throws up a spray, which, in
clear weather, reflects, from some positions, the colours of the
rainbow; and, when the sky is overcast, this spray covers the falls in
gloom and chaotic majesty.
On Tuesday, the 1st of October, Mr. Pike and his men again embarked, to
proceed on their voyage above the falls. At first the river was
sufficiently deep for the easy passage of the boats; but, at the
distance of about four miles, the shoals commenced, and there was much
difficulty in proceeding. Nearly from the Falls of St. Anthony to the
_Rum river_, the Mississippi is a continued chain of rapids, with
eddies, formed by winding channels. The land, on both sides, consists of
Prairie, with scarcely any timber, except small groves of scrubby oaks.
Not far from this spot is _Red Cedar lake_, the grounds in the vicinity
of which are considered, by the Indians, extremely valuable for hunting.
In some parts of the river it was requisite for the men to wade for many
successive hours, in order to force the boats over the shoals, and draw
them through the rapids. The weather was now cold and rainy. On the 10th
of October, in the course of four miles, the voyagers passed a cluster
of more than twenty islands, which Mr. Pike called _Beaver islands_,
from numerous dams and paths which had been made by these animals upon
them. The passage up the river was still much impeded by rocks and
shoals.
About the beginning of October, the voyagers began to look out for a
station in which they could pass the winter. Mr. Pike was determined, if
possible, to reach the _Corbeau_ or _Raven river_, the highest point
that had ever been reached by traders, in bark canoes. But he was not
able to accomplish his intention; for, on the seventeenth, many of his
men were so benumbed with cold, that their limbs became useless, and
others were laid up with illness. He consequently fixed on a station
near _Pine Creek_, where the borders of the Mississippi consisted of
prairie, with groves of pine at the edge of the banks; and, in some
places, with oak, ash, maple, and lime-trees. The banks of _Lake Clear_,
a small and beautiful lake, about three miles distant, are the resort of
immense herds of elks and buffaloes; and _Clear river_, which unites
this lake with the Mississippi, is a delightful little stream, about
eighty yards wide.
On the seventeenth, snow fell during the whole day: Mr. Pike killed four
bears, and his hunter three deer. Several ensuing days were occupied in
cutting down trees, for the formation of winter-huts; and in
constructing the huts, and forming a fence round them. When the latter
was completed, the two boats were hauled out of the water, and turned
over, on each side of the gateways, so as to form a defence against any
Indians who might be inclined to attack the encampment.
At this place, and in its vicinity, the voyagers continued several
weeks, during which they suffered great hardships. Much of their time
was occupied in hunting. They occasionally saw large herds of elks, some
of them of immense size; the horns of the bucks measuring four feet and
upwards in width. Many droves of buffaloes were also seen, and deer of
various kinds: bears, wolves, racoons, and otters, were occasionally
shot.
On the 7th of November the Mississippi was nearly filled with snow; and,
on the land, the snow was knee deep. Before the end of the month, the
river was frozen over.
During his residence at this place, Mr. Pike did not see many Indians.
On one occasion he visited the tent or hut of an Indian chief, whom he
found sitting amidst his children, and grand-children, ten in number.
The hut was constructed of rushes, platted into mats.
In the month of December, Mr. Pike and some of his men proceeded, in
sledges, up the Mississippi. On the twenty-fourth, they reached _Corbeau
river_; which, at its mouth, was nearly as wide as the Mississippi. For
a considerable distance, the Mississippi was interrupted by a continued
succession of rapids, shoals, and falls. One of the latter, called the
_Falls of the Painted Rock_, formed the third important obstacle to the
navigation of the river, which Mr. Pike had encountered. Most of the
timber, now observed near the banks, consisted of pine-trees.
On the thirty-first, Mr. Pike passed _Pine river_. For many miles, the
Mississippi had been much narrower, and more free from islands, than in
the lower parts of the stream. The shores, in general, presented a
dreary prospect of high barren knobs, covered with dead and fallen
pine-timber; and most of the adjacent country was interspersed with
small lakes. Deer of various kinds, were plentiful; but no buffaloes,
nor elks, had been seen.
Near the mouth of the Pine river, an encampment of _Chippeway Indians_
was observed. This had been occupied in the summer, but it was now
vacant. By certain marks which had been left, the voyagers understood
that these Indians had marched a party of fifty warriors against the
Sioux, and had killed four men and four women, who were here represented
by figures carved in wood. The figures of the men were painted, and put
into the ground, to the middle; and, by their sides, were four painted
poles, sharpened at the end, to represent the women. Near this spot were
poles with deer-skins, plumes, silk-handkerchiefs, &c. and a circular
hoop of cedar, with something attached to it which resembled a scalp.
Beyond this place, Mr. Pike observed, on the bank of the river, six
elegant bark-canoes, which had been laid up by the Chippeways, and a
camp, which appeared to have been evacuated about ten days before. After
having endured considerable hardship and much fatigue for some weeks
longer, he accomplished the object of his expedition, by arriving, on
the 1st of February, at _Leech Lake_, from which issues the main source
of the Mississippi. He crossed this lake, (about twelve miles in width,)
to an English fort, an establishment belonging to the North West
Company, and was there received, with great hospitality, by a Mr. Hugh
Mac Gillis. His men reached the fort on the sixth; but, in traversing
the lake, some of them had their ears, some their noses, and others
their chins frozen.
Near this place, Mr. Pike effected some arrangements with the Indians,
which were considered advantageous to the American government; and, not
long afterwards, having examined the adjacent country, as well as the
severity of the weather would permit, he set out on his return,
accompanied by a deputation of Indian chiefs. The river still continued
frozen, and the party travelled chiefly in sledges, drawn by dogs. On
the 5th of March, they again reached the encampment near _Pine Creek_.
About a fortnight after this, Mr. Pike visited a plantation of sugar
maple-trees, at a little distance from the creek, one of the finest he
had ever seen. He was conducted to the lodge of the chief, who received
him in a truly patriarchal style. This person assisted him in taking off
his clothes, conducted him to the best part of his lodge, and offered
him dry clothes. He then presented him with syrup of the maple-tree, to
drink, and asked whether he preferred eating beaver, swan, elk, or deer?
Preference being given to the first, a large kettle was filled with
beavers' flesh, for the purpose of its being made into soup. This was
afterwards served up; and when the repast was ended, Mr. Pike visited
other lodges, at each of which he was presented with something to eat.
He continued here all night; and, on the ensuing day, having purchased
two baskets filled with sugar, he departed, and returned to his camp.
Some Indians, whom Mr. Pike and his men visited not long after this,
were extremely well-formed and elegant people. They were about the
middle size; and their complexions, for savages, were, in general, fair:
their teeth were good: their eyes were large and somewhat languishing;
and they had a mild but independent expression of countenance.
In the evening, these Indians entertained their visitors with the
calumet and dog-dance; and with another dance, in which some of the men
struck a post, and related their war exploits. After the dance, was a
feast of the dead. At this, every two or three persons had a pan or
vessel full of meat set before him; a prayer was then said, and the
eating commenced. Each was expected to devour his whole portion, and not
to drop even a bone; for all the bones were carefully collected and put
into a dish. When the eating was finished, the chief gave an
exhortation, which concluded the ceremony.
About the end of March, Mr. Pike ordered the boats to be prepared for
the voyage, in return, down the river. The ice had not, indeed, yet
broken up; but he was every day in anxious expectation of seeing it
begin to move. On the 6th of April, the river was found sufficiently
clear of ice, to permit the party to re-embark. They accordingly loaded
the boats, and, on the ensuing morning, experienced inexpressible joy,
in leaving the savage wilderness, in which they had been so long
imprisoned. On the 10th, they again reached the _Falls of St. Anthony_.
The appearance of this cataract was much more tremendous than it had
been when they ascended; and the great increase of the water occasioned
the spray to rise much higher than it had done before. The river was
still nearly covered with floating-ice; and much snow continued to fall.
After his arrival at the _Prairie des Chiens_, Mr. Pike held a council,
with the Puant chiefs, respecting some murders which had been committed
by the men of their nation; and, in the afternoon, he was entertained
with a game of "the cross," between the Sioux on one side, and the
Puants and the Reynards on the other. The ball used in this game is made
of a hard substance, and covered with leather. When the parties are
ready, and the bets have been agreed upon, (and these are sometimes to
the amount of several thousand dollars,) the goals are erected on the
prairie, about half a mile asunder. The ball is then thrown up, in the
middle, and each party, with a kind of racket, strives to beat it to the
opposite goal. After the first rubber is gained, which is done by the
ball being driven round one of the posts, it is again taken to the
centre, the ground is changed, and the contest is renewed; and this is
continued until one of the parties has been four times victorious, on
which the bets are decided.
It is an interesting sight, says Mr. Pike, to behold two or three
hundred naked savages contending, on the plain, who shall bear off the
palm of victory; for the man who drives the ball round the goal,
receives the shouts of his companions, in congratulation of his success.
It sometimes happens, that one of them catches the ball in his racket,
and, depending on his speed, endeavours to carry it to the goal; but if
he finds himself too closely pursued, he hurls it, with great force and
dexterity, to an amazing distance, where there are always flankers, of
both parties, ready to receive it. The ball seldom touches the ground;
but it is sometimes kept in the air, for hours, before either party can
gain the victory.
About ten miles above _Salt river_, the voyagers, on the 28th of April,
stopped at some islands where there were numerous roosts of passenger
pigeons; and, in about fifteen minutes, they knocked on the head, and
brought on board the boat, about three hundred. Mr. Pike, though he had
frequently heard of the fecundity of these birds, had never given credit
to it; but, he says, that the most fervid imagination cannot conceive
their numbers. The noise, which they made in the woods, was like the
continued roaring of the wind. The young ones were still in their
nests: these consisted only of small bunches of sticks; and their number
was such, that all the small trees were covered with them.
On the 30th of April, after an absence of eight months and twenty-two
days, Mr. Pike once more reached St. Louis in safety.
Fifteenth Day's Instruction.