character in its natural state, as compared to civilized humanity, yet
we ought not, in our zeal for the one or abhorrence of the other, to
suppress the truth; and the truth, therefore, compels us to admit that
there are many traits of virtue to be met with in the Indian character.
They are brave, generous, and often charitable; and to their {329}
credit be it said, that there is less crime in an Indian camp of five
hundred souls than there is in a civilized village of but half that
number. Let the lawyer or moralist point out the cause.
Custom here constitutes law, not only in reference to the great affairs
of the nation or tribe, but in trivial things also. A mother is not
allowed to prepare swaddling-clothes for an unborn infant; and, indeed,
but little preparation is required, for the whole paraphernalia consists
of but four articles—a rude piece of board, which serves for a cradle; a
bit of skin, which serves to wrap the new-born babe in; some moss to lie
on; and a string to lash the whole together. Thus secured, the bantling
is carried about on its mother’s back, or allowed to sprawl on the
ground, in all weathers and all seasons.
Tacitus found fault with the Roman ladies of his day for giving their
children to Grecian women to nurse, and thus depriving the infant of
maternal tenderness. What would the historian have thought had he seen
an infant of the savage race, as practised in these parts, tied naked on
a hard board, and allowed to tumble and roll about as it best could? and
yet this very race, or portion of the human family, is as perfect in
form, as healthy and vigorous, as any people on the face of the earth.
In traveling, the distance of places is always calculated according to
time. If on horseback, a day’s ride is estimated at about seventy of our
miles; if on foot, at half that distance. This mode of calculating
distances is, however, very erroneous, and not to be depended upon by
the whites, as the natives seldom {330} take into consideration either
the good or bad state of the roads. But interruptions which are grievous
obstacles to us are nothing in their way; for where a rabbit can pass,
an Indian horse will pass, and where a horse can pass, the savage, who
sticks on his back like a crab, passes over hill and dale, rock and
ravine, at full speed; so that good roads or bad roads, rugged or
smooth, all is alike to him.
Nor is the fair sex less dexterous in managing the horse; a woman with
one child on her back and another in her arms will course the fleetest
steed over the most rugged and perilous country. In conversation they
seem to possess but few ideas, and their answer is often a gesture
expressive of approbation or dislike; at other times, simply yes or no;
and yet, in their national harangues, they often display great energy of
mind, inspire confidence, and frequently give a strong impulse to public
opinion.
While on their journeys, and indeed at all times, the men willingly aid
in alleviating the hardships of the women, and are indulgent husbands.
On all occasions they evince a steady and temperate disposition, and
every action of their lives is more or less marked by intelligence and
moderation.
Having now performed, however imperfectly, the task we had undertaken,
and brought to a close our description of the Oakinacken nation, we
shall proceed to make a few remarks on the moral and spiritual condition
of these people, as a portion of the great family of mankind, as well as
on the system generally pursued by missionaries in converting Indians to
Christianity.
{331} The Oakinackens are a people that might soon, and with but very
little trouble, be induced to throw off their savage habits altogether,
as they are reforming fast, and exhibit on most occasions a strong
desire and capacity for receiving moral and religious instruction. The
last time I visited them was in 1825, and it was encouraging to witness
their continued improvement.[97]
When we contemplate the wide field open before us for missionary
labours, even between the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific, and the large
sums yearly spent in various parts of the world for the purposes of
instructing and converting the heathen, shall we not then hope and
expect that at some future day those blessings may be extended to the
Far West? Even a tithe of what is laid out in our country in England
would, if rightly applied, be an inestimable blessing to these people.
But the result would entirely depend on the manner in which the work of
conversion was undertaken; and, with this impression on our minds, it
seems to us expedient to make a few observations on the system generally
followed in instructing and evangelizing the heathen in other parts of
the world.
Where the rays of evangelical light beam forth, that light alone, if
practically improved, will not only discover the errors of the past, but
point out a remedy for the future. But the great evil is, hesitation
takes the place of determination, and no person wishes to begin the work
of reforming any great system which has been long in operation, and more
particularly so if it be considered by its promoters {332} as working
well; but in a case such as the present, in which the whole world is
more or less concerned, others as well as the actual promoters ought to
have a voice, and every voice inculcating improvement ought to be
respected: yet I am not vain enough to suppose that any opinion or
representation of mine, however correct, will either reform the old or
perfect the new system, because such things are not the work of a day
nor of an individual; but if the suggestions now presented draw the
attention of abler writers to the subject, I shall be satisfied.
The pious and charitable world contribute with a liberal hand; the
missionary is sent out to the wilderness to instruct and convert the
heathen: so far all is well. The missionary reaches his destination,
announces the gospel tidings, and commences his official duties; the
young and the old are catechised, baptism is administered, and the
sacrament of the Lord’s Supper follows—and all these different glimpses
of evangelical light succeed each other in such rapid succession as to
stamp the whole proceeding with the character of a miracle. The calm and
reflecting observer is confounded, and the pious Christian is struck
with astonishment at the hurried and precipitate manner in which the
wild and untutored savage is thus washed from all his sins, and received
into the bosom of the Christian church. In all this, however, there is
nothing real; on the contrary, it is utterly impossible for the
missionary, or any other man alive, to cultivate the soil, sow the seeds
of gospel vegetation, and bring forth the matured fruits of regeneration
in so short a time. {333} The missionary, in all this, no doubt follows
his instructions.
But this is not all: the missionary’s journal goes home, more labourers
are required for the vineyard, periodicals circulate the marvellous
success, and all the world, except those on the spot, believe the
report. Yet the picture is delusive: the savage is still a savage, and
gross idolatry and barbarism have not yielded inwardly a hair’s breadth
to the influence of civilization, far less is he made sensible of the
obligations imposed upon him by his new creed. It is but a treacherous
calm before a storm: the tree is known by its fruit.
These reports are no sooner laid before the public, than a pious
interest is again excited, and the liberal hand of charity is again
cheerfully held out to aid in civilizing mankind. Other missionaries are
sent forth, who, to prove their own zeal and success, heighten if
possible the colouring of the former picture, by the addition of still
more marvellous reports; and in this manner they go on, as it were, at
full gallop, according to the present system, without taking time to
dispel that thick and heavy cloud of ignorance and barbarism so
necessary to be removed from the savage mind before it is prepared to
receive spiritual instruction, or appreciate the benefits of
Christianity. The result is scarcely a form of godliness, the time
allowed being insufficient for perfecting the work, or doing it as it
ought to be done; and this very want of time is chiefly the rock on
which the missionary bark universally founders.
Before concluding this part of our subject, we {334} might advert to
another evil connected with the present system, and perhaps the worst of
all evils, inasmuch as no effectual remedy can well be applied to it—
that is, the interference of sects with one another; for no sooner does
a missionary plant the standard of the Gospel in any foreign land, but
others of different persuasions follow: and it is no uncommon thing to
see, in many parts of the heathen world, Papists and Protestants, with
all the different branches of the two great sects, like rivals in trade,
huddled together, working confusion; not only distracting and corrupting
their converts, but destroying in their obstinacy the fruits of each
other’s labour—forgetting that they are all God’s husbandmen, labouring
in the same vineyard, and for the same master.
Next to the British empire, few countries on the globe have pursued the
present system with more success than the Americans have done; yet the
Americans themselves have found from long experience, as they now
declare, that the system is defective, that the results produced nowise
correspond to the means employed: and the same observation may be
applied to every other quarter of the earth.
Let us now consider the possibility of reforming this defective system.
Considering the moral degradation of the heathen world, it behoves those
who take an interest in changing the condition of the natural man, to
apply the means best adapted for that purpose, and to recognise and
avail themselves of every light that may in a practical way hold out a
prospect of success; and if they do so, they will neither slight nor
condemn, without an impartial and {335} patient investigation, any
suggestions that may be offered with the view of forwarding the great
and benevolent work of salvation.
In the first place, then, all men generally know, and history bears
testimony to the fact, that Indians, whether of the open plains or of
the deserts, universally rove about from place to place, like beasts of
prey, without any settled or permanent home. To counteract this habit
ought to be the first step taken in order to bring about a healthy state
of civilization, without which the missionary labours in vain: but this
is not the work of an hour, nor of a day, but of years—I should have
said generations; and time proportionate to the work must be allowed,
moral restraints must gradually be imposed, and the savage, in place of
his former precarious mode of living, must be taught not only to feel
the wants, but to appreciate the blessings resulting from settled habits
and practical industry; he must be taught to cultivate the ground, and
be convinced from experience that his living and comforts are more
certain from the soil than from the chace, before he can be brought a
step farther: but according to the present system, in place of locating
the Indians, as a preliminary step, and accustoming them to habits of
industry and social order, the zealous missionary at once commences his
course of religious instruction, without any step of the kind; and,
while the savages have anything to eat, all goes on well, but the moment
a new supply of food is required, that moment they disperse in all
directions, according to their usual habits, leaving the missionary
alone, and perhaps {336} months may elapse before they again reassemble
on praying ground, losing to-day what they had gained yesterday; and
this is generally the course pursued—a course productive of social evil
and moral deterioration.
What are the qualifications of the men generally sent out for the
purpose of converting the heathen? These men have seldom any other
recommendation than a knowledge of books; they are ignorant of the
language, habits, and feelings of the people they have gone to convert,
and have little experience in human nature: this alone is of itself
sufficient to protract and retard, if not to frustrate altogether, the
working of the system satisfactorily. In every quarter of the globe
there are not wanting, if sought after, pious and philanthropic men,
possessing the advantages of long and close personal intercourse with
the natives of almost all countries. These are the men to be selected
and sent out as pioneers among the heathen—men who might, from their
local experience, at once infuse the elements of much good by their
presence and example; and if such men cannot always be found, persons
possessing at least a general knowledge of mankind, as well as of books,
can. The work requires practical as well as pious men to set things
a-going during the first probationary time; for I wish it to be
distinctly understood that religious instruction should not be mixed up
with the primary part of the plan at all; but may be introduced at any
subsequent period, according to circumstances, as soon, but no sooner,
than the degrading influence of the savage character begins to yield to
the more genial and rational habits of civilized life. For one of the
greatest evils in the {337} present system is, that men generally begin
where they ought to end. They commence with religion before the heart is
prepared to receive it. A thing easily got is thought but little of:
religion must therefore be kept for some time, as it were, at a distance
from them; they must be taught to feel the want of it; they must ask for
it; and they must be prepared to receive it with all thanksgiving.
The preparatory part of the plan, as regards time, ought, as I have
already stated, to be regulated according to circumstances; but when a
new field is opened for missionary labours, I cannot convince myself
that a shorter period than ten years’ location of the tribe or nation,
under civilized guidance, would be sufficient to remove the deep-rooted
apathy of the savage, and prepare his mind for religious instruction; or
perhaps it would be still nearer the mark to adopt the more general
opinion on this point, and that is, that an age is not too long for
assembling, locating, training, and instructing the savage in the habits
of civilization, industry, and economy, before introducing even public
schools among them; another age under scholastic discipline might be
required to prepare them for the next and most important step; and in
the third generation only might religion, as practised in civilized
life, be thoroughly introduced with effect among them. This would be
laying the basis of a solid and permanent plan.
In reference to the missionary himself, whose pious work is the
conversion of souls, the apostle reminds us, “How beautiful are the feet
of them that preach the gospel of peace;” and while the {338} missionary
follows, in all its purity, the work of faith and labour of love, all
men are in charity bound to contribute to his assistance, and aid in
bringing about, by the application of appointed means, the great work of
salvation; but then, to encourage all men to do so, the missionary, like
the apostles of old, who in simplicity and godly sincerity told their
Lord and master “what they had done, and what they had taught,” ought to
tell his masters, with the same simplicity and uprightness, what he has
done, and what he has taught, without exaggeration or any false
colouring. This course would indeed inspire confidence, and give such a
direction and impetus to popular opinion as would lead all to co-operate
for the good of mankind.
But the missionary at home and the missionary abroad are two distinct
characters; the latter, from his position and the influence he acquires
over the general conduct, as well as consciences, of the simple and
ignorant people with whom he lives, and who on every occasion look up to
him for advice in temporal as well as for instruction in spiritual
matters, of course becomes a great man, not only in their estimation,
but in his own also, till at last the force of habit gains an ascendancy
over him, and often leads him astray from the path of evangelical duty.
He is no longer the humble and zealous disciple he was when he left
home, but considers himself the chief man in civil as well as in
religious matters.
But the paramount evil which frustrates all the labours of the
missionary is that arising from sects {339} of different persuasions
interfering with one another, an evil which tends rather to destroy than
promote religious feelings among savages, and which nothing less than
the potent arm of Government can prevent; for it is no uncommon thing in
the wilderness to see the pious and persevering evangelist, after
undergoing every hardship to open a new field for his labours among the
heathen, followed after by some weak zealot of another sect, who had not
energy or courage of himself to lead, but who no sooner reaches the
cultivated vineyard of his precursor than he begins the work of
demoralization and injustice, by denying the creed and labours of his
predecessor, clothes some disaffected chief, and infuses animosity and
discord among all parties, in order to get a footing and establish
himself; and where envy and strife are, according to the apostle’s
doctrine, there are “confusion and every evil work;” and every
additional zealot of a different creed in this field of strife increases
the disorder, for all Indians are peculiarly fond of novelty;
consequently, the last creed is with them the best. Now where there are
two, three, or more conflicting creeds at one station, as is often the
case, it may truly be said, there is neither religion nor religious
fellowship to be found in that community; but, on the contrary, every
moral and religious sentiment is destroyed, and the people are sunk
deeper and deeper in the gulf of moral degradation; and not only that,
but the missionaries, one and all, labour in vain. Yet, strange as it
may appear, such unhallowed and demoralizing scenes seldom reach either
the public eye or the public {340} ear; for the missionary or zealot of
each sect, in writing home to the parent society, so far from noticing
and reporting, with official uprightness, the true state of things,
cheats the public by exhibiting a picture of marvellous success. Solomon
hath declared that “he that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity.” Surely
there ought to be some law existing to protect and secure to the first
missionary the fruits of his enterprize and pious labour against all
such corrupt and impious interference.
To exemplify this part of our subject still further: I was once
travelling along the frontiers of Canada, when I came to a neat little
Indian village, on the bank of the St. Lawrence, containing about three
hundred souls. They had a missionary, a little white chapel, and a
thriving school, and I thought them at the time, as they also considered
themselves, perfectly comfortable and happy. Three years afterwards, a
friend of mine happened to pass through the same village; but in place
of finding them happy as they had been, everything in and about the
place was changed. The inhabitants were less numerous: instead of one
missionary and one church, they had, during the short interval, got
three missionaries, all of different persuasions, and three churches;
but so high did the tide of religious animosity among all parties then
run, that one of the churches had been recently burnt to the ground, by
some of the fanatics themselves; another was despoiled of all its
ornaments, and deserted; and the third remained, a sad memento of the
times, with but few hearers: and in place of one thriving school, there
had been no less {341} three, but with scarcely a scholar in any of
them. Such are the fruits that generally result from the unhallowed
practice of one sect interfering with another.
APPENDIX
CHINOOK VOCABULARY
One Ight
Two Muxt
Three Thlune
Four Lakat
Five Quinum
Six Tuchum
Seven Sinamuxt
Eight Istought-tekin
Nine Quie-est
Ten Eattathlelum
Eleven Eattathlelum equin ight
Twelve Eattathlelum equin muxt
Thirteen Eattathlelum equin thlune
Fourteen Eattathlelum equin lakat
Fifteen Eattathlelum equin quinum
Sixteen Eattathlelum equin tuchum
Seventeen Eattathlelum equin sinamuxt
Eighteen Eattathlelum equin istought-tekin
Nineteen Eattathlelum equin quie-est
Twenty Muxt-thlalth
Twenty-one Muxt-thlalth equin ight
Twenty-two Muxt-thlalth equin muxt
{343} Twenty-three Muxt-thlalth equin thlune
Twenty-four Muxt-thlalth equin lakat
Twenty-five Muxt-thlalth equin quinum
Twenty-six Muxt-thlalth equin tuchum
Twenty-seven Muxt-thlalth equin sinamuxt
Twenty-eight Muxt-thlalth equin istought-tekin
Twenty-nine Muxt-thlalth equin quie-est
Thirty Thlune-thlalth
Thirty-one Thlune-thlalth equin ight
Thirty-two Thlune-thlalth equin muxt
Thirty-three Thlune-thlalth equin thlune
Forty Lakat-thlalth
Fifty Quinum-thlalth
Sixty Tuchum-thlalth
Seventy Sinamuxt-thlalth
Eighty Istought-tekin-thlalth
Ninety Quie-est-thlalth
One hundred E-tha-ca-munack
Two hundred Muxt e-tha-ca-munack
Three hundred Thlune e-tha-ca-munack
Four hundred Lakat e-tha-ca-munack
Five hundred Quinum e-tha-ca-munack
One thousand Hi-oh
Two thousand Hi-oh hi-oh Three thousand Hi-oh hi-oh
hi-oh
Four thousand Hi-oh hi-oh hi-oh hi-oh
Five thousand Hi-oh hi-oh hi-oh hi-oh hi-oh
Head Thlam-eck-took
Hair Chlick-ax
Eyes Etsuck-out
Eyebrows Te-killikits-alepa
Chin Come-ach-ouetts
Nose Emeeats
Mouth Emets-kill
Ears Oak-cutsa
Beard Te-vë-vex
Cheeks Capala-ketanux
{344} Teeth Ots-ats-ach
Neck Oak-quam-ux
Face Sheaaugh-ouest
Arms Etispol-etick
Fingers Te-kux-ach
Ribs Telleman
Shoulders Ok-chak-chalea-quilea-matic
Breasts Emets-aughtick
Back Emeck-kuts-ach
Belly Eats-awanë
Legs Eatsou
Feet Tekick-acock
Grandfather Eock-acka
Grandmother Eye-kecka
Father Mamah
Mother Naha
Uncle Eyat-tessa
Aunt Elkitch-outcha
Brother A-u
Sister Ats
Son Etsicha
Daughter Oquè-cha
Nephew Ack
Husband Tlick-chall
Wife Oquack-ekull
Brother-in-law Ek-keck
Sister-in-law Oquetam
Son-in-law Exs-ech Daughter-in-law Okuste
Relations Cap-whoo
Lad Equal-èsso
Maiden Ulick
Boy Ekass-cass
Girl Ok-thla-pelchech
Fear Quass
Enemies Il-keck-o-why-matick
I _or_ me Nica
{345} Mine Nissika
You _or_ thou Mika
Yours Miss-ika
He Oeach
She Awaugh
It Ek-ek
That E-kech
These Ock-ock
Here Ek-kech
Who Tluxta
They _or_ them Yaugh-ka
And Equin
If Sminich
By-and-by Alkè _or_ quanà
Where Kach-e-walchoo
That Cat-ta
When Tshech
Nothing Onetan
How many? Queen-tshech
Yes Aa
No Next _or_ keyà
That is it Yough-ca
Long ago Ankatè
Be quick I-ake
Just now Alkè
None Canext
More Wought
Little Eanux
Good E-toukety
Bad Mass-atsy
Chief Tye-yea _or_ Ecock-a-mana
Slave Slave, elitè _or_ missche-miss
Indians Tilloch-cum
Man Col-el-acuhm
Woman Tlack-allè
House Tolth
Horse Keutan
{346} Dog Camux
Cat Piss-piss
Hog Polobax
It is true Na-wetca
Sit down Meth-lite
Rise up Echa-latsa
Come here Essa
Go away Alchoya
Large Eya-quantle
Too small Minich
For what Cat-the-ass
Affection Te-keigh
Barter Killemuck
Idle talk Kaltash wa-wa
Perhaps Thlun-ass
Give it me Thlum-èluta
Falsehood Ettlè-mena chute
Sleep Optètè
Go off Ach-ne-coyea
Go to bed Mahockste
To-day Chau
Yesterday Tanilkey
To-morrow Wo-chè
Elk Moluck
Elk-skin Clemel
Small deer Wow-wich
Canoe Kineve
Ship Ma-ma-tle
White people Pa-she-shi-ooks
River Ick-hol
Land E-lè-hë
Salmon Equanna
Sturgeon Ulchy
Gun Suck-wall-allè
Blanket Pa-chichè-till-cup
Blue cloth Othlal-ough
Red cloth Pill-pill
{347} White Till-cup
Black or blue Othlal-ough
Axe Kits-tan
Knife Opitch-ach
Needle Ke-pa-watt
Beads Cum-us-ack
Kettle Useun
Wood Ecskaun
Chest Ecskaun
Bad weather Ecusach
Rain Is-tau-elch
Sun U-laugh
Moon Ul-chey
Night Polackly
Far off Sciah
Doctor Keel-alley
Good spirit Econè
Bad spirit Ecutoch
Heart Eats-im-oughts
Sick Etsitsa
It’s done Hi-low
Full Pattle
Swan Ou-wucha
Goose Cal-a-cal-ama
Duck Oqueeh-quech
Prophet Etaminua
Priest Etaminua
Sea-otter Elackiè
Land-otter Enanamux
Beaver Enna
Musk-rat Eminticoo
Bear H-whoot
Eat Mack-amack
Hungry Oh-low
I am hungry Nica oh-low
Bread Chap-all-ell
Water Ill-chu
{348} Take it Eskam
Fire Uliptskè
Hat Ohe-a-pool
Powder Te-whoot
To look Nananitch
What’s your name? Cat-the-achal?
Shame Nachamats
Balls Caleitan
Strawberries O’lèlè
Raspberries Amute
Potatoes Wapatoe
Sweet onions Ulalach
A present Patlatch
To make Makouke
Iron Chick-amen
Brass-wire Thack-alle
Medicine Eptl-ach
Buttons Cill-cill
Steal Capshewalla
Understand Each-e-chimley
To speak Kep-all-oulaw
Great many Hi-oh
Capot Capawillaughtè
The same Quack-ick-qua
Game Chal-e-chall
Handsome Etoughtey
Herrings Owl-chaus
Tobacco Cay-nult
How many whites? Queentshech pasheshiooks?
Besides the foregoing language, there is another lingo, or rather mixed
dialect, spoken by the Chinook and other neighbouring tribes; which is
generally used in their intercourse with the whites. It is much more
easily learned, and the pronunciation {349} more agreeable to the ear
than the other, as will appear from the annexed specimen.
Great chief Hias tye-yea
Slave Miss-che-miss
Woman Tlutchè-men
Child Tunass
Good Tlòsh
Bad Pishack
No Wake
Trade Mackouk
Canoe Chippots
Very little Ta-an-ass
Balls Poll-alley
Sea-otter Quatluck
It’s true Na-wetkaha
How are you? Thla choea
To speak Wa-wa
What Ick-etta
Might Polackley
Come here Chicko
Go away Thlat-away
By-and-bye Winnippiè
Understand Come-a-tax
Big _or_ large Hi-ass
Rain Snass
Ship Shippo
Good spirit Is-co-com
Come in Meth-lite
I love you Tekeigh
Game Omintick
What are you going to trade? Ick-etta mika mackouk?
By-and-bye I’ll come again Winnippiè nica chicko
{350} A TABLE OF THE WEATHER AT THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER, FROM
MARCH 22ND TILL JULY 22ND, 1811.
───────────────┬───────┬────────────────────────┬─────────┬─────────
Month and Year │ Winds │ State of the Weather │Wet Days │Dry Days
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
1811. │ │ │ │
March 22│ S.W. │Snow and hail │ 1 │
23│ W. │Snow and rain │ 1 │
24│ S.W. │Rain │ 1 │
25│ S.W. │Moderate │ │ 1
26│ S.W. │Fog and rain │ 1 │
27│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
28│ S.W. │Rain │ 1 │
29│ E. │Rain │ 1 │
30│ W. │Some snow │ 1 │
31│ S.W. │Clear weather │ │ 1
April 1│ W. │Rain │ 1 │
2│ W. │Rain │ 1 │
3│ S.W. │Clear and dry │ │ 1
4│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
5│ E. │Clear │ │ 1
6│ S.W. │Rain │ 1 │
7│ N. │Rain │ 1 │
8│ S.W. │Foggy │ 1 │
9│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
10│ S.W. │Rain │ 1 │
11│ W. │Rain │ 1 │
12│ N. │Rain │ 1 │
13│ N. │Heavy fog │ 1 │
14│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
15│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
16│ S.W. │Rain │ 1 │
17│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
18│ W. │Foggy │ 1 │
19│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
20│ S.W. │Some rain │ 1 │
21│ E. │Mist and rain │ 1 │
22│ E. │Clear │ │ 1
23│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
24│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
25│ S.W. │Rain │ 1 │
26│ E. │Rain │ 1 │
{351} 27│ N. │Mist and rain │ 1 │
28│ N. │Clear │ │ 1
29│ E. │Clear │ │ 1
30│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
May 1│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
2│ S.E. │Cloudy │ 1 │
3│ S.E. │Rain │ 1 │
4│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
5│ W. │Heavy Fog │ 1 │
6│ N. │Mist and rain │ 1 │
7│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
8│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
9│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
10│ E. │Foggy and rain │ 1 │
11│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
12│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
13│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
14│ N. │Rain │ 1 │
15│ N.W. │Clear and warm │ │ 1
16│ S.W. │Clear and dry │ │ 1
17│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
18│ S.W. │Fog and rain │ 1 │
19│ W. │Heavy mist │ 1 │
20│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
21│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
22│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
23│ N.E. │Rain │ 1 │
24│ N.E. │Clear │ │ 1
25│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
26│ S.W. │Rain │ 1 │
27│ S.W. │Foggy and clear │ │ 1
28│ E. │Rain │ 1 │
29│ N. │Rain │ 1 │
30│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
31│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
June 1│ W. │Clear and dry │ │ 1
2│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
3│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
4│ S.W. │Clear, S. wind │ │ 1
5│ E. │Clear │ │ 1
6│ N. │Rain │ 1 │
7│ S.W. │Foggy │ 1 │
8│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
9│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
10│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
11│ S.W. │Mist │ 1 │
{352} 12│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
13│ N.W. │Foggy │ 1 │
14│ N. │Rain │ 1 │
15│ E. │Rainy │ 1 │
16│ N.W. │Clear │ │ 1
17│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
18│ W. │Very sultry │ 1 │
19│ S.W. │Strong heat │ │ 1
20│ S.W. │Sultry │ │ 1
21│ S.W. │Sultry │ │ 1
22│ S.W. │Dull weather │ │ 1
23│ W. │Rain │ 1 │
24│ N.W. │Rain │ 1 │
25│ W. │Cloudy │ │ 1
26│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
27│ S.W. │Clear │ │ 1
28│ W. │Clear │ │ 1
29│ N.E. │Very sultry │ │ 1
30│ E. │Cloudy │ │ 1
July 1│ S.W. │Clear and dry │ │ 1
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
2│ S.W. │Thermometer stood 93° │ │ 3
3│ „ │ „ │ │ „
4│ „ │ „ │ │ „
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
5│ W. │Windy and rain │ 1 │
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
6│ S.W. │Clear and warm │ │ 4
7│ „ │ „ │ │ „
8│ „ │ „ │ │ „
9│ „ │ „ │ │ „
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
10│ W. │Sultry, thermometer 92° │ │ 2
11│ „ │ „ │ │ „
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
12│ S.W. │Sultry and calm │ │ 3
13│ „ │ „ │ │ „
14│ „ │ „ │ │ „
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
15│ W. │Cloudy and rain │ 1 │
16│ N. │Cloudy, some rain │ 1 │
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
17│ W. │Clear and dry │ │ 4
18│ „ │ „ │ │ „
19│ „ │ „ │ │ „
20│ „ │ „ │ │ „
───────────────┼───────┼────────────────────────┼─────────┼─────────
21│ S.W. │Thermometer ab. Zero 95 │ │ 2
22│ „ │ „ │ │ „
───────────────┴───────┴────────────────────────┴─────────┴─────────
-----
Footnote 1:
Gabriel Franchère, _Voyage_ (French original, published at Montreal in
1820; English translation published in New York, 1854); Ross Cox,
_Adventures on the Columbia River_ (London, 1831); and Alexander Ross,
_Adventures_ (London, 1849). We reprint the first and third of these.
Footnote 2:
For a brief account of the discoveries of the North-west Coast, see
Thwaites, _Rocky Mountain Exploration_ (New York, 1904), chap. i. For
notes on Vancouver and Drake, see Franchère’s _Narrative_, volume vi
of our series, notes 2, 66. Further references to this _Narrative_, in
the following notes, will be to that reprint.—ED.
Footnote 3:
For brief sketch of John Jacob Astor, see Franchère’s _Narrative_,
volume vi. of our series, note 8.—ED.
Footnote 4:
For the history of the great fur-trade companies, see Turner,
“Character and Influence of the Fur Trade in Wisconsin,” Wisconsin
Historical Society _Proceedings_, 1889; Chittenden, _History of
American Fur Trade in Far West_ (New York, 1902); J. Long’s _Voyages_,
volume ii of our series, preface. The Mackinac Company, composed of
British subjects, was formed before the surrender of the Upper Lakes
posts to the Americans (1796). It operated chiefly in the West and
South-west; and in 1807, Americans on Lake Ontario fired upon its
brigade. See Michigan _Pioneer and Historical Collections_, xxv, pp.
250–257. This company was a source of dispute between Canada and the
United States until Astor purchased its stock. At the time of sale,
the North West Company’s partners held a controlling interest.—ED.
Footnote 5:
The word “Oregon” was not an appellation of the Spaniards, but appears
to have first been employed in 1778 by the English traveller, Captain
Jonathan Carver (concerning whom see J. Long’s _Voyages_, volume ii of
our series, note 5). On the meaning thereof, see Oregon Historical
Society _Quarterly_, June, 1900; also H. H. Bancroft, _History of
Oregon_ (San Francisco, 1886), i, pp. 17–25.—ED.
Footnote 6:
For brief biography of these partners of the Pacific Fur Company, see
Bradbury’s _Travels_, volume v of our series, note 4; Franchère’s
_Narrative_, notes 9, 10.—ED.
Footnote 7:
Concerning Mackenzie’s discoveries, see Franchère, note 4. McKay
accompanied Mackenzie upon his second voyage to the Pacific, not upon
his first expedition to the Arctic.—ED.
Footnote 8:
Relative to Hunt, Crooks, McClellan, and Miller, see Bradbury’s
_Travels_, volume v of our series, notes 2, 3, 72; for Clarke, see
Franchère, note 81.—ED.
Footnote 9:
For what is known of these clerks, see Franchère, notes 76, 84. For
Robert Stuart, see Bradbury’s _Travels_, in our volume v, note 117.—
ED.
Footnote 10:
Compare the following description of the voyage of the “Tonquin” with
that of Franchère; on the “Constitution,” Captain Thorn, and the
Hawaiian Islands, see _ibid._, notes 18, 19, 21.—ED.
Footnote 11:
Compare Ross’s account of the Hawaiian Islands with that of Franchère,
especially notes 22–34.—ED.
Footnote 12:
Compare the following account with that of Franchère, particularly
notes 36, 37, 40, 41.—ED.
Footnote 13:
Compare Ross’s description of the building of Astoria with that of
Franchère, particularly notes 42, 44, 61.—ED.
Footnote 14:
The tribes of the Pacific coast were numerous, and their
classification varies. For the Chinook, Clatsop, Wakiacum, Cathlapotle
(Cattleputles), Tillamook (Killamux), Multnomah, and Chehalis
(Chickelis), see Franchère, notes 39, 40, 45, 52, 53, 65, 67. The
other tribes cannot positively be identified, except the Katlamat
(Cathlamux), who were a branch of the Upper Chinook, giving name to
the town of Cathlamet, Washington. On the subject of the native races
of this section, see Thwaites, _Original Journals of Lewis and Clark
Expedition_ (New York, 1904), under Scientific Data: Ethnology.—ED.
Footnote 15:
For information concerning the wood-rat, sea-otter, and chepool, see
Franchère, notes 128–130.—ED.
Footnote 16:
For the characteristic fish of this coast, see Franchère, notes 88,
124–126. The _ulichan_ is the candlefish, so named because it is fat
enough to burn for illuminating purposes.—ED.
Footnote 17:
For the wappato root see Franchère, note 87.—ED.
Footnote 18:
Captain John Meares, born about 1756, served in the British navy,
where he attained the rank of lieutenant. After the Peace of Paris
(1783) he entered the merchant service, and founded a commercial house
in Macao, China, to trade with the North-west Coast of North America.
In 1786 he made his first voyage thither. Two years later, he formed
an establishment at Nootka Sound, and explored the coast to the south—
failing, however, to recognize the outlet of the Columbia as the mouth
of a great river. In 1789, Meares’s establishment at Nootka was
demolished by the Spaniards, which led to the diplomatic incident
known as the Nootka Sound episode. His book appeared during this
controversy—_Voyages made in the years 1788 and 1789 to the N. W.
Coast of America_ (London, 1791). Meares finally returned to the navy,
became commander in 1795, and died in 1809.—ED.
Footnote 19:
For brief account of Vancouver, see Franchère, note 2. Port Discovery,
on the northern coast of Washington, was named for Vancouver’s ship.
Desolation Sound was farther north in the Gulf of Georgia.—ED.
Footnote 20:
For the appearance of these flattened heads, see Clark’s drawings of
the Chinook, in _Original Journals of Lewis and Clark Expedition_.—ED.
Footnote 21:
For the promontory known as Tongue Point, see Franchère, note 44.
Gray’s Bay was named for Captain Robert Gray, _op. cit._, note 1.
“Oathlamuck” Point is that now known as Cathlamet Point, in Clatsop
County, Oregon. This does not bound Gray’s Bay, except as it is the
point below which the river widens into great inlets.—ED.
Footnote 22:
Puget’s Island, in the Columbia opposite Cathlamet, Washington, was
named when Broughton explored the Columbia (1792), for Peter Puget,
lieutenant of Vancouver’s vessel, the “Discovery.” For Oak Point, see
Franchère, note 74. Ross is the only contemporary writer who mentions
this Indian village by name.—ED.
Footnote 23:
Ross confuses the names of two landmarks; the first should be Mount
Coffin (see Franchère, note 48), the second Coffin Rock. The first is
an isolated cliff on the Washington bank of the river, the second a
rocky islet toward the Oregon side—both used as places of Indian
sepulture. For Deer Island, see Franchère, note 75.—ED.
Footnote 24:
For this chief, see Franchère, note 51.—ED.
Footnote 25:
The “Namowit” Indians were one tribe of those designated by Lewis and
Clark as the “Wappato” Indians; see _Original Journals of Lewis and
Clark Expedition_, under Scientific Data: Estimate of Western Indians.
For Bellevue Point, see Franchère, note 55. Johnson’s Island was named
by Broughton (1792) for the lieutenant of his vessel, the “Chatham;”
Lewis and Clark called it Diamond Island; it is now known as
Government Island, in Multnomah County, Oregon. Wasougal
(Wasough-ally) is a small stream entering the Columbia from the north,
in Clark County, Washington. Quicksand River, so named by Lewis and
Clark, is the present Sandy, a considerable stream draining the
western slope of Mount Hood, and flowing into the Columbia through
Multnomah County, Oregon.—ED.
Footnote 26:
For the location of Point Vancouver, see Franchère, note 55.—ED.
Footnote 27:
The rock that Ross and the Scotch Canadians of his party named
“Inshoach Castle,” was probably the well-known landmark now called
Beacon Rock, which marks the extent of tidal influence, and may be
seen for twenty miles down the river.—ED.
Footnote 28:
For Strawberry Island and the portage of the Cascades, see Franchère,
note 112.—ED.
Footnote 29:
Lewis and Clark called these natives at the Cascades, Clahclellahs,
and included them among the generic name of Shahalas, a branch of the
Upper Chinook. The tribesmen were a thieving, troublesome lot, as
Ross’s subsequent narrative will show.—ED.
Footnote 30:
Wind River, in Skamania County, Washington.—ED.
Footnote 31:
Michel Boulard had since 1800 been a voyageur with Thompson. In
1806–07 he wintered at Rocky Mountain House, and the following spring
crossed the range to Kootenay. The next four winters were spent in the
mountains, and he was one of the seven canoe men who brought Thompson
to Astoria in July, 1811. For his later connection with the Astorians,
see _post_.—ED.
Footnote 32:
Ross’s designations of Indian tribes differ from those of other
travellers in this region. Lewis and Clark called the permanent
dwellers at the narrows, Echelutes. Wyampam must be another name for
the same tribe—a branch of the Upper Chinooks.—ED.
Footnote 33:
The river which Ross calls “Lowhum,” had several designations among
early travellers. Lewis and Clark call it “Towarnahiooks.” All
evidently endeavored to give it the Indian name, which was an
imitation of the sound made by the falls at its mouth. It is at
present known as Des Chutes River.—ED.
Footnote 34:
Ross later relates the adventures of the pioneer John Day, from whom
this river takes its name.—ED.
Footnote 35:
The identification of “Suppa” River is uncertain. The largest affluent
of the Columbia between John Day and Umatilla River is that Oregon
stream now known as Willow Creek.—ED.
Footnote 36:
For the Umatilla River, see Franchère, note 141. A large isolated
cliff, just below the mouth of the Umatilla, is still called Castle
Rock.—ED.
Footnote 37:
The rapid here described, is now known as the Umatilla Rapid; Lewis
and Clark designated it as “The Musselshell,” from the heaps of those
shells spread out upon the banks. The brigade had just passed the
present boundary of Oregon, 46° of north latitude.—ED.
Footnote 38:
The Wallawalla Indians are of the Shahaptian stock—one of the great
families of the inland Columbians, to which the Nez Percés and
Umatilla belong. Usually they were hospitable and well-affected
towards the whites. Lewis and Clark especially mention their friendly
disposition. Many years later, they became disaffected and joined the
Cayuse in acts of hostility. A treaty was made with the Wallawallas in
1855, whereby they surrendered their lands, and retired to the
Umatilla reservation, where at the last report (1902) five hundred and
sixty-nine were still residing. The “Shaw Haptens” were a kindred race
speaking the Shahaptian language.
This appears to be the first mention of the Cayuse tribe, later so
prominent in Oregon history. Their language was unlike that of the
Wallawalla, so that they are classified as Waülatpuans. Their habitat
was the Wallawalla Valley, and south and east of the great bend of the
Columbia. Their herds of horses were so numerous that “cayuse” has
become a generic term for Indian ponies. These Indians constituted the
largest and most powerful tribe of Eastern Oregon. Among them the
American Board founded a mission, and it was this tribe that
perpetrated the Whitman massacre of 1847. Broken in spirit and numbers
by the settlers’ avenging warfare, five chiefs were in 1850
surrendered for trial and executed. Five years later, the Cayuse
formally ceded their lands and retired to the Umatilla reservation,
where three hundred and ninety-one are now (1902) reported. They have
abandoned their language for that of the Wallawalla.—ED.
Footnote 39:
Thompson records (July 9, 1811) “½ a mile to the Junction of the
Shawpatin [Snake] River with this the Columbia, here I erected a small
Pole, with a half Sheet of Paper well tied about it, with these words
on it—Know hereby that this country is claimed by Great Britain as
part of its Territories, & that the N W Company of Merchants from
Canada, finding the Factory for this People inconvenient for them, do
intend to erect a Factory in this Place for the Commerce of the
Country around. D. Thompson.”—_Henry-Thompson Journals_, p. 748.—ED.
Footnote 40:
Ross is here inaccurate. The Snake River was called the Lewis; but to
the Columbia above the fork, the explorers never applied the name of
Clark—that was given to the large northern branch still called Clark’s
Fork of the Columbia, upon whose upper waters the explorers rested
when crossing the mountains.—ED.
Footnote 41:
The Yakima (Eyakema) River enters the Columbia from the east, about
ten miles above the Snake. It is a large tributary, draining the
eastern slope of the Cascade Range. Lewis and Clark called it the
Tapteet. The Northern Pacific Railway follows the valley of the Yakima
for some distance.—ED.
Footnote 42:
It was on the return journey (May 1, 1806) that three Wallawalla
overtook Lewis and Clark, with a steel trap which they had travelled a
day’s journey to restore.—ED.
Footnote 43:
This is the Gualquil Rapid, one hundred and ten miles above the mouth
of Snake River. The Kewaughtohenemachs are mentioned only by Ross;
they were probably a Pisquow tribe. For a description of the Columbia
above the entrance of the Snake, see Symons, _Upper Columbia River_
(Washington, 1882.)—ED.
Footnote 44:
Column Bluffs is the usual designation of this point on the river,
about ten miles above Gualquil Rapid. According to an Indian legend,
two wicked women who lived here were accustomed to kill those who
passed. The Indians begged the Great Spirit to destroy them, and he,
answering their prayer, sent an immense bird which picked out their
brains and turned them into stone.—ED.
Footnote 45:
Lewis and Clark called this river Wahnaacha, after the tribe of
Pisquow Indians of that name who dwelt along its banks. Wenatchee and
Pischous are both used to designate the stream at the present time. It
takes its rise in the Wenatchee Mountains and flows south-eastward,
emptying into the Columbia one hundred and forty-eight miles from the
mouth of the Snake. The Great Northern Railway follows its course.—ED.
Footnote 46:
Oak Point, mentioned so frequently in accounts of Columbian
exploration, was near Astoria—Franchère, note 74. The one here
referred to must be near the mouth of the Entiatqua (Entiyatecoom)
River, known to the Canadian voyageurs as Point de Bois. The
Entiatqua, which Ross calls Intyclook, is a small stream about a
hundred feet wide, flowing into the Columbia from the west, fifteen
miles above the Pischous.—ED.
Footnote 47:
Between Oak Point and White Hill Rapid the west bank is a continuous
volcanic bluff about two thousand feet high and striped with
different-colored strata—white, gray, black, and dark brown. The rapid
was doubtless named from the white hills on the eastern side.—ED.
Footnote 48:
Concerning these animals, see Franchère, note 172.—ED.
Footnote 49:
This is the Chelan River, which empties into the Columbia from the
north-west, about one hundred and eighty-five miles above the Snake.
It is but two and a half miles long, is the outlet of a considerable
lake of the same name, and has a fall of two hundred and fifty feet.
Just above its mouth was the principal village of the Chelan tribe, a
branch of the Salish. A military post was established on this lake
(1880), but not long after was removed to Spokane.—ED.
Footnote 50:
Ross also calls this the Meathow River, and Methow is at present the
usual appellation. The rapids just below the mouth have been named
Ross Rapids, probably in honor of our author.—ED.
Footnote 51:
The distance is really about one hundred and twenty-five miles. For a
brief history of Okanagan post, see Franchère, note 71.—ED.
Footnote 52:
This river was discovered by the explorer Thompson (for whom see
Franchère, note 61). It has two large branches, a northern and an
eastern, which unite at Lake Kamloops, one hundred and fifty miles
directly north of the Okanagan post; the united stream then flows
south-west for about ninety miles and unites with the Fraser.
Thompson, thinking that he was upon the Columbia, descended its
northern branch to the forks.—ED.
Footnote 53:
The Shushwaps (She Whaps) are a branch of the Salishan family and
closely allied in language and habits to the tribes about Okanagan
post. They were also called Atnahs (strangers), a name given them by
the Carrier Indians, farther to the north-west. They formerly occupied
the country along the Thompson and its branches, but by 1900 they were
reduced to fifty-four persons.—ED.
Footnote 54:
For an account of this Indian, see Franchère, note 46.—ED.
Footnote 55:
Compare Franchère’s account of the destruction of the “Tonquin” with
this of Ross. The village was Newity or New Whitty. Nootka Sound is on
the west coast of Vancouver Island, in latitude 49° 50′ north.—ED.
Footnote 56:
For notes on the following persons and places mentioned in this
chapter, see Bradbury’s _Travels_, volume v of our series: Hunt, note
2; McKenzie, note 4; Crooks, note 3; Missouri Fur Company, note 149;
Miller, note 72; Nadowa, note 5; McClellan, note 72.—ED.
Footnote 57:
This route, travelled by Marquette and Jolliet in 1673 was from a
well-established Indian and French waterway between the Great Lakes
and the Mississippi. The Fox River (of Wisconsin) was ascended from
Green Bay to the present site of Portage, Wisconsin; a portage path of
a mile and a half in length was followed (in floods, the intervening
swamp was overflowed, and Wisconsin River waters emptied into the
Fox), and the Wisconsin was descended to its junction with the
Mississippi, at Prairie du Chien.—ED.
Footnote 58:
The Three Tetons are the most noted historic peaks in the Rocky
Mountains. The topography of the country is such that the highest
peak, Grand Teton (13,691 feet) can be seen from a great distance and
has long served as a landmark to trappers and pioneers. Unlike the
mountains of that region, the Tetons are not hemmed in by foothills,
but rise in bold relief from the surrounding plateau—the Grand Teton
towering seven thousand feet above Jackson Lake, at its base. The
range is but sixty miles long and lies some twenty-five miles
south-west of Yellowstone Lake. It is crossed by Teton Pass, about
twenty miles south of Grand Teton.—ED.
Footnote 59:
For a sketch of Stuart, see Bradbury’s _Travels_, volume v of our
series, note 119.
Russell Farnham of Massachusetts came to Astoria on the “Tonquin.” He
left with Captain Hunt on the brig “Pedlar,” was landed at Kamchatka,
journeyed overland to Hamburg, and sailed thence to New York. When the
American Fur Company resumed operations after the War of 1812–15, he
was foremost in endeavoring to establish posts on the Missouri River.
In 1831 he had charge of the trade in the country of the Sauk and Fox
Indians, and died at St. Louis, October 30, 1832.—ED.
Footnote 60:
For a brief description of the Snake Indians, see Bradbury’s
_Travels_, note 123.—ED.
Footnote 61:
Lewis and Clark state that the Indians designated the great falls of
the Columbia by the words “Timm,” so pronounced as to represent the
fall of a distant cataract.—ED.
Footnote 62:
Simon Fraser, on his first expedition west of the Rocky Mountains
(1805), gave the name “New Caledonia” to the region of Stuart and
upper Fraser rivers, whose numerous lakes, lying among the bold and
craggy mountains, reminded him of the Scotch highlands. The following
year, accompanied by John Stuart, he farther explored the country and
established St. James post, on Stuart River. For some time the
boundaries of New Caledonia were indefinite, but its southern limit
was always over two hundred miles north of Okanagan post. After it was
erected into a district of the Hudson’s Bay Company, it extended from
51° 30′ to 56° north latitude and from 124° 10′ west longitude to the
Rocky Mountains. Fort Alexandria (established 1821), on Fraser River,
one hundred and seventy miles north of Fort Okanagan, became the
principal trading post of the district.—ED.
Footnote 63:
Concerning John Clarke, see Franchère, note 81.—ED.
Footnote 64:
For further information regarding the St. Louis party, see Bradbury’s
_Travels_, note 119.—ED.
Footnote 65:
This is Fort Kamloops, also known as Fort Thompson. It was built by
David Thompson (1810) at the junction of the northern and the eastern
branches of Thompson River, a few miles from Lake Kamloops and one
hundred and fifty miles north of Okanagan post. It became the centre
of the Thompson River district of the Hudson’s Bay Company. In 1841
the agent, Black, was murdered in the fort by some Indians, and his
successor had the stockade removed across the river to the south side.
It is now a town on the Canadian Pacific Railroad, and in 1890 had a
population of fifteen hundred.—ED.
Footnote 66:
An account of Spokane Fort is given in Franchère, note 85.—ED.
Footnote 67:
For a brief biography of Larocque, see Franchère, note 90.—ED.
Footnote 68:
Similkameen is the present name of this river. It rises in the Cascade
Mountains not far from the boundary line, and flows south-east into
the Okanagan.—ED.
Footnote 69:
The Palouse River—Drewyer’s River of Lewis and Clark. Palouse is
probably an Indian word, although it has been connected with the
French word “pelouse,” in that it flows through a rolling, bunch-grass
country, the most fertile in eastern Washington. It empties into the
Snake eighty-five miles from the Columbia, and is its only important
tributary on the northern side.—ED.
Footnote 70:
Concerning the Nez Percés, see Franchère, note 145.—ED.
Footnote 71:
For an account of Cox, see Franchère, note 84.—ED.
Footnote 72:
The original Kootenay post was established by Thompson in July, 1807,
on the Columbia River (called by him Kootenay) just below lower
Columbia Lake. He wintered here in 1808–09 and 1809–10.
In 1808, Finan McDonald, a member of Thompson’s party, built a post at
the southern end of the loop in the Kootenay River, in the north-west
corner of the present state of Montana, five miles south of the
boundary line. This became an important North West fort. McDonald
remained until late in 1811, when Montour was placed in charge.
Nicholas Montour was in 1804 a clerk in the employ of the North West
Company at Fort de Prairie. From 1811 to 1816 he was active on the
Columbia, moving about between Fort Kootenay, Spokane, and Okanagan,
with headquarters at Spokane after 1814. See Coues, _Henry-Thompson
Journals_, ii, pp. 606, 672–675, 757.—ED.
Footnote 73:
For a description of the Salishan Indians, see Franchère, note 145.—
ED.
Footnote 74:
The Kootenai or Flatbows wandered between the northern forks of the
Columbia and the Rocky Mountains. Possibly they were the Tushepaws of
Lewis and Clark. They were unrelated to any of the surrounding
peoples, and resembled more the Indians east of the Rocky Mountains.—
ED.
Footnote 75:
The Blackfeet Indians are treated in Bradbury’s _Travels_, note 120.—
ED.
Footnote 76:
Lake Cœur d’Alêne (Pointed Heart) is at the head of Spokane River,
about twenty-five miles south-east of Spokane Falls. It is a small
lake fed by the Cœur d’Alêne and St. Joseph rivers, flowing from the
Bitter Root Mountains. There are two theories regarding the origin of
the name—one, that the Indians living there were so sharp at
bargaining that the fur traders named them Cœur d’Alênes,
“Awl-Hearts,” or “Pointed Hearts;” the other, that among the first
traders was a Canadian of so close and niggardly a disposition that
the Indians applied an epithet to him which the interpreter translated
“Cœur d’Alêne,” and the name became fixed upon the Indians.—ED.
Footnote 77:
On his map, Ross located McKenzie’s post on the Snake at the mouth of
Reed’s River, the present Boisé River. Fort Boisé, a Hudson’s Bay
post, was afterwards established there.—ED.
Footnote 78:
A biography of M‘Tavish will be found in Franchère, note 90.—ED.
Footnote 79:
Concerning Seton, see Franchère, note 81.—ED.
Footnote 80:
For notes on the following persons and places mentioned in this
chapter, see Bradbury’s _Travels_, volume v of our series: Hoback,
Rezner, and Robinson, note 65; Crow Indians, note 121; Arapaho
Indians, note 120; Oto Indians, note 42.—ED.
Footnote 81:
The Kalapuya, an isolated family, were once a numerous people dwelling
at the falls of the Willamette. In 1841 they numbered less than five
hundred, and by the middle of the century were practically extinct. In
civilization they occupied a middle position between the wandering
tribes of the interior and the debased Indians of the coast. It is
impossible to reconcile the names of the Kalapuya tribes given by Ross
with other lists of lower Willamette Indians. He alone extends the
Kalapuya to its mouth, while Lewis and Clark, Morse (_Report to the
Secretary of War_, Washington, 1822), and Hale (_United States
Exploring Expedition_, Philadelphia, 1846, vol. vi) confine them to
the falls, and place Chinook tribes below that point.—ED.
Footnote 82:
For an account of this chief, see Franchère, note 51.—ED.
Footnote 83:
This is the Umpqua, the largest river between the Sacramento and the
Columbia. It rises in the Cascade Range and empties into the Pacific
Ocean about two hundred and twenty-five miles south of the Columbia.
The fur-trading post Fort Umpqua, was on the southern bank about forty
miles from the ocean.—ED.
Footnote 84:
Joseph Gervais, a French Canadian, came to Astoria with Captain Hunt
in 1811. After the abandonment of that post, he became a “free
trapper,” and married the daughter of a Clatsop chief. Desiring a more
settled life, in 1828 he selected a place on the Willamette, a short
distance below the present Salem, and raised wheat. A few years later
other French Canadians, retired Hudson’s Bay clerks, became farmers
along the Willamette and the district became known as French Prairie.
Gervais took an active part in establishing the provisional government
of Oregon in 1843. He became prosperous, and lived on French Prairie
until his death (1861) at the age of eighty-four years.—ED.
Footnote 85:
For further information regarding Baranoff and the Russian
settlements, see Franchère, note 93.—ED.
Footnote 86:
A brief account of Sitka will be found in Franchère, note 68. Sitka
and New Archangel were identical. Sitka was destroyed by the Indians
in 1802 and in 1804 a post called New Archangel, was built at the same
place. It is situated on Sitka Sound, Baranoff Island, in latitude 57°
north. St. Paul is on the north-east shore of Kadiak Island, off the
coast of Alaska, in latitude 58°.—ED.
Footnote 87:
Astor felt that he had been cheated in the transfer of Astoria, and
charged McDougal with betraying his interests. See his letter to John
Quincy Adams, January, 1823, in Lyman, _History of Oregon_, ii, pp.
298–301; also Irving, _Astoria_, chap. 29. Astor stated that McDougal
sold the entire property for about $58,000, less the wages due the
men; that beaver was sold for two dollars and otter for fifty cents a
skin, both of which were at the time worth five or six dollars each in
Canton, China. Altogether he considered the property worth nearly
$200,000 above the sum received. Bancroft defends McDougal at length—
_History of North-west Coast_, ii, pp. 221–230. Admitting that the
property was sold at a loss, he contends McDougal was justified in
thinking Astoria could not be maintained, and that it was better to
get what he could for Astor, before fort and furs were captured by a
British ship of war.—ED.
Footnote 88:
For a brief discussion of Franchère’s attitude toward the North West
Company, see the preface to volume vi of our series.—ED.
Footnote 89:
Michel Laframboise came to Oregon on the “Tonquin.” When Astoria was
transferred to the British, he entered the service of the North West
Company, and throughout the remainder of his life was with them and
the Hudson’s Bay Company. He obtained a small piece of property on
French Prairie, but his restless disposition was unsuited to farming.
In his later years he conducted exploring parties through the country
between the Columbia and California, serving as Captain Wilkes’s guide
in 1841.—ED.
Footnote 90:
A brief sketch of John McDonald is given in Franchère, note 104.—ED.
Footnote 91:
For an account of David Porter, see Franchère, note 105.—ED.
Footnote 92:
This is the island of Maui, north-west of Hawaii. There are two high
volcanic islands, east Maui and west Maui, connected by a low
isthmus.—ED.
Footnote 93:
Concerning James Keith and Alexander Stuart, see Franchère, notes 108,
102.—ED.
Footnote 94:
For a sketch of Pierre Dorion, see Bradbury’s _Travels_, note 7.—ED.
Footnote 95:
Ross is here enumerating all the Salishan tribes living on the
Columbia between the Yakima and Spokane rivers, and on the lower
Okanagan. For the first seven, see notes 42, 44, 45, 48, _ante_. The
Inspellum were east of Okanagan. The Sinpohellechach were the San
Poils at the mouth of San Poil River, forty-five miles west of Spokane
River. They were closely related to the Spokane Indians. Samilkamigh
is, of course, Similkameen, a tribe on the river of the same name.—ED.
Footnote 96:
The Conconully River is an affluent of the Okanagan, entering a short
distance above its mouth.—ED.
Footnote 97:
From his residence among the Okanagan and his marriage to the daughter
of a chief of this tribe, Ross had ample opportunity to learn their
customs; he seems to speak wholly from observation. Ross Cox, who in
1816 was stationed at Okanagan, also gives a description of these
Indians, which in the main agrees with Ross’s account, although
differing in some important details.—ED.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES
● Typos fixed; non-standard spelling and dialect retained.
● Used numbers for footnotes, placing them all at the end of the last
chapter.
● Enclosed italics font in _underscores_.