On the third of July, accordingly, Captain Lewis, with nine of his men
and five Indians, proceeded down the valley lying between the Rocky
and the Bitter Root ranges of mountains, his general course being due
northwest of Clark’s fork of the Columbia River. Crossing several small
streams that make into this river, they finally reached and crossed the
Missoula River from west to east, below the confluence of the St. Mary’s
and Hell-gate rivers, or creeks; for these streams hardly deserve the
name of rivers. The party camped for the night within a few miles of the
site of the present city of Missoula, Montana. Here they were forced to
part from their good friends and allies, the Indians, who had crossed
the range with them. These men were afraid that they would be cut off by
their foes, the Pahkees, and they wanted to find and join some band
of the Indian nation with whom they were on terms of friendship. The
journal gives this account of the parting:--
“We now smoked a farewell pipe with our estimable companions, who
expressed every emotion of regret at parting with us; which they felt
the more, because they did not conceal their fears of our being cut off
by the Pahkees. We also gave them a shirt, a handkerchief, and a small
quantity of ammunition. The meat which they received from us was dried
and left at this place, as a store during the homeward journey. This
circumstance confirms our belief that there is no route along Clark’s
River to the Columbian plains so near or so good as that by which we
came; for, though these people mean to go for several days’ journey
down that river, to look for the Shalees (Ootlashoots), yet they intend
returning home by the same pass of the mountains through which they have
conducted us. This route is also used by all the nations whom we know
west of the mountains who are in the habit of visiting the plains of
the Missouri; while on the other side, all the war-paths of the
Pahkees which fall into this valley of Clark’s River concentre at
Traveller’s-rest, beyond which these people have never ventured to the
west.”
During the next day or two, Captain Lewis kept on the same general
course through a well-watered country, the ground gradually rising as he
approached the base of the mountains. Tracks of Indians, supposed to
be Pahkees, became more numerous and fresh. On the seventh of July, the
little company went through the famous pass of the Rocky Mountains, now
properly named for the leaders of the expedition. Here is the journal’s
account of their finding the Lewis and Clark Pass:--
“At the distance of twelve miles we left the river, or rather the
creek, and having for four miles crossed two ridges in a direction north
fifteen degrees east, again struck to the right, proceeding through
a narrow bottom covered with low willows and grass, and abundantly
supplied with both deer and beaver. After travelling seven miles we
reached the foot of a ridge, which we ascended in a direction north
forty-five degrees east, through a low gap of easy ascent from the
westward; and, on descending it, were delighted at discovering that this
was the dividing ridge between the waters of the Columbia and those of
the Missouri. From this gap Fort Mountain is about twenty miles in a
northeastern direction. We now wound through the hills and mountains,
passing several rivulets which ran to the right, and at the distance
of nine miles from the gap encamped, having made thirty-two miles. We
procured some beaver, and this morning saw tracks of buffalo, from which
it appears that those animals do sometimes penetrate a short distance
among the mountains.”
Next day the party found themselves in clover, so to speak. Game was
plenty, and, as their object now was to accumulate meat for the three
men who were to be left at the falls (and who were not hunters), they
resolved to strike the Medicine, or Sun, River and hunt down its banks.
On that river the journal, July 10, has this to say:--
“In the plains are great quantities of two species of prickly-pear now
in bloom. Gooseberries of the common red kind are in abundance and just
beginning to ripen, but there are no currants. The river has now widened
to one hundred yards; it is deep, crowded with islands, and in many
parts rapid. At the distance of seventeen miles, the timber disappears
totally from the river-bottoms. About this part of the river, the wind,
which had blown on our backs, and constantly put the elk on their guard,
shifted round; we then shot three of them and a brown bear. Captain
Lewis halted to skin them, while two of the men took the pack-horses
forward to seek for a camp. It was nine o’clock before he overtook them,
at the distance of seven miles, in the first grove of cottonwood. They
had been pursued as they came along by a very large bear, on which they
were afraid to fire, lest their horses, being unaccustomed to the gun,
might take fright and throw them. This circumstance reminds us of
the ferocity of these animals, when we were last near this place, and
admonishes us to be very cautious. We saw vast numbers of buffalo below
us, which kept up a dreadful bellowing during the night. With all our
exertions we were unable to advance more than twenty-four miles, owing
to the mire through which we are obliged to travel, in consequence of
the rain.”
The Sun, or Medicine, River empties into the Missouri just above the
great falls of that stream; and near here, opposite White Bear Islands,
the expedition had deposited some of their property in a cache dug
near the river bank, when they passed that way, a year before. On the
thirteenth of the month, having reached their old camping-ground here,
the party set to work making boat-gear and preparing to leave their
comrades in camp well fixed for their stay. The journal adds:--
“On opening the cache, we found the bearskins entirely destroyed by the
water, which in a flood of the river had penetrated to them. All the
specimens of plants, too, were unfortunately lost: the chart of the
Missouri, however, still remained unhurt, and several articles contained
in trunks and boxes had suffered but little injury; but a vial of
laudanum had lost its stopper, and the liquid had run into a drawer
of medicines, which it spoiled beyond recovery. The mosquitoes were
so troublesome that it was impossible even to write without a mosquito
bier. The buffalo were leaving us fast, on their way to the southeast.”
One of the party met with an amusing adventure here, which is thus
described:--
“At night M’Neal, who had been sent in the morning to examine the cache
at the lower end of the portage, returned; but had been prevented from
reaching that place by a singular adventure. Just as he arrived near
Willow run, he approached a thicket of brush in which was a white bear,
which he did not discover till he was within ten feet of him. His horse
started, and wheeling suddenly round, threw M’Neal almost immediately
under the bear, which started up instantly. Finding the bear raising
himself on his hind feet to attack him, he struck him on the head with
the butt end of his musket; the blow was so violent that it broke the
breech of the musket and knocked the bear to the ground. Before he
recovered M’Neal, seeing a willow-tree close by, sprang up, and there
remained while the bear closely guarded the foot of the tree until late
in the afternoon. He then went off; M’Neal being released came down,
and having found his horse, which had strayed off to the distance of
two miles, returned to camp. These animals are, indeed, of a most
extraordinary ferocity, and it is matter of wonder that in all our
encounters we have had the good fortune to escape. We are now
troubled with another enemy, not quite so dangerous, though even more
disagreeable-these are the mosquitoes, who now infest us in such myriads
that we frequently get them into our throats when breathing, and the dog
even howls with the torture they occasion.”
The intention of Captain Lewis was to reach the river sometimes known as
Maria’s, and sometimes as Marais, or swamp. This stream rises near the
boundary between Montana and the British possessions, and flows into the
Missouri, where the modern town of Ophir is built. The men left at the
great falls were to dig up the canoes and baggage that had been cached
there the previous year, and be ready to carry around the portage of
the falls the stuff that would be brought from the two forks of the
Jefferson, later on, by Sergeant Ordway and his party. It will be
recollected that this stuff had also been cached at the forks of the
Jefferson, the year before. The two parties, thus united, were to go
down to the entrance of Maria’s River into the Missouri, and Captain
Lewis expected to join them there by the fifth of August; if he failed
to meet them by that time, they were to go on down the river and meet
Captain Clark at the mouth of the Yellowstone. This explanation is
needed to the proper understanding of the narrative that follows; for we
now have to keep track of three parties of the explorers.
Captain Lewis and his men, having travelled northwest about twenty miles
from the great falls of the Missouri, struck the trail of a wounded
buffalo. They were dismayed by the sight, for that assured them that
there were Indians in the vicinity; and the most natural thing to expect
was that these were Blackfeet, or Minnetarees; both of these tribes are
vicious and rascally people, and they would not hesitate to attack a
small party and rob them of their guns, if they thought themselves able
to get away with them.
They were now in the midst of vast herds of buffalo, so numerous that
the whole number seemed one immense herd. Hanging on the flanks were
many wolves; hares and antelope were also abundant. On the fourth day
out, Captain Lewis struck the north fork of Maria’s River, now known as
Cut-bank River, in the northwest corner of Montana. He was desirous
of following up the stream, to ascertain, if possible, whether its
fountain-head was below, or above, the boundary between the United
States and the British possessions. Bad weather and an accident to
his chronometer prevented his accomplishing his purpose, and, on the
twenty-sixth of July, he turned reluctantly back, giving the name of
Cape Disappointment to his last camping-place. Later in that day,
as they were travelling down the main stream (Maria’s River), they
encountered the Indians whom they had hoped to avoid. Let us read the
story as it is told in the journal of the party:--
“At the distance of three miles we ascended the hills close to the
river-side, while Drewyer pursued the valley of the river on the
opposite side. But scarcely had Captain Lewis reached the high plain
when he saw, about a mile on his left, a collection of about thirty
horses. He immediately halted, and by the aid of his spy-glass
discovered that one-half of the horses were saddled, and that on the
eminence above the horses several Indians were looking down toward
the river, probably at Drewyer. This was a most unwelcome sight. Their
probable numbers rendered any contest with them of doubtful issue; to
attempt to escape would only invite pursuit, and our horses were so bad
that we must certainly be overtaken; besides which, Drewyer could not
yet be aware that the Indians were near, and if we ran he would most
probably be sacrificed. We therefore determined to make the most of our
situation, and advance toward them in a friendly manner. The flag which
we had brought in case of any such accident was therefore displayed, and
we continued slowly our march toward them. Their whole attention was so
engaged by Drewyer that they did not immediately discover us. As soon
as they did see us, they appeared to be much alarmed and ran about in
confusion; some of them came down the hill and drove their horses within
gunshot of the eminence, to which they then returned, as if to await
our arrival. When we came within a quarter of a mile, one of the Indians
mounted and rode at full speed to receive us; but when within a hundred
paces of us, he halted. Captain Lewis, who had alighted to receive him,
held out his hand and beckoned to him to approach; he only looked at
us for some time, and then, without saying a word, returned to his
companions with as much haste as he had advanced. The whole party now
descended the hill and rode toward us. As yet we saw only eight, but
presumed that there must be more behind us, as there were several horses
saddled. We however advanced, and Captain Lewis now told his two men
that he believed these were the Minnetarees of Fort de Prairie, who,
from their infamous character, would in all probability attempt to
rob us; but being determined to die rather than lose his papers and
instruments, he intended to resist to the last extremity, and advised
them to do the same, and to be on the alert should there be any
disposition to attack us. When the two parties came within a hundred
yards of each other, all the Indians, except one, halted. Captain Lewis
therefore ordered his two men to halt while he advanced, and after
shaking hands with the Indian, went on and did the same with the others
in the rear, while the Indian himself shook hands with the two men. They
all now came up; and after alighting, the Indians asked to smoke with
us. Captain Lewis, who was very anxious for Drewyer’s safety, told them
that the man who had gone down the river had the pipe, and requested
that as they had seen him, one of them would accompany R. Fields, to
bring him back. To this they assented, and Fields went with a young man
in search of Drewyer.”
Captain Lewis now asked them by signs if they were Minnetarees of the
north, and he was sorry to be told in reply that they were; he knew
them to be a bad lot. When asked if they had any chief among them, they
pointed out three. The captain did not believe them, but, in order to
keep on good terms with them, he gave to one a flag, to another a medal,
and to the third a handkerchief. At Captain Lewis’ suggestion, the
Indians and the white men camped together, and in the course of the
evening the red men told the captain that they were part of a big
band of their tribe, or nation. The rest of the tribe, they said, were
hunting further up the river, and were then in camp near the foot of the
Rocky Mountains. The captain, in return, told them that his party had
come from the great lake where the sun sets, and that he was in hopes
that he could induce the Minnetarees to live in peace with their
neighbors and come and trade at the posts that would be established in
their country by and by. He offered them ten horses and some tobacco if
they would accompany his party down the river below the great falls. To
this they made no reply. Being still suspicious of these sullen guests,
Captain Lewis made his dispositions for the night, with orders for the
sentry on duty to rouse all hands if the Indians should attempt to steal
anything in the night. Next morning trouble began. Says the journal:--
“At sunrise, the Indians got up and crowded around the fire near which
J. Fields, who was then on watch, had carelessly left his rifle, near
the head of his brother, who was still asleep. One of the Indians
slipped behind him, and, unperceived, took his brother’s and his own
rifle, while at the same time two others seized those of Drewyer and
Captain Lewis. As soon as Fields turned, he saw the Indian running off
with the rifles; instantly calling his brother, they pursued him for
fifty or sixty yards; just as they overtook him, in the scuffle for
the rifles R. Fields stabbed him through the heart with his knife. The
Indian ran about fifteen steps and fell dead. They now ran back with
their rifles to the camp. The moment the fellow touched his gun,
Drewyer, who was awake, jumped up and wrested it from him. The noise
awoke Captain Lewis, who instantly started from the ground and reached
for his gun; but finding it gone, drew a pistol from his belt, and
turning saw the Indian running off with it. He followed him and ordered
him to lay it down, which he did just as the two Fields came up, and
were taking aim to shoot him; when Captain Lewis ordered them not to
fire, as the Indian did not appear to intend any mischief. He dropped
the gun and was going slowly off when Drewyer came out and asked
permission to kill him; but this Captain Lewis forbade, as he had
not yet attempted to shoot us. But finding that the Indians were now
endeavoring to drive off all the horses, he ordered all three of us to
follow the main party, who were chasing the horses up the river, and
fire instantly upon the thieves; while he, without taking time to
run for his shot-pouch, pursued the fellow who had stolen his gun and
another Indian, who were driving away the horses on the left of the
camp. He pressed them so closely that they left twelve of their horses,
but continued to drive off one of our own.
“At the distance of three hundred paces they entered a steep niche in
the river-bluffs, when Captain Lewis, being too much out of breath
to pursue them any further, called out, as he had done several times
before, that unless they gave up the horse he would shoot them. As he
raised his gun one of the Indians jumped behind a rock and spoke to the
other, who stopped at the distance of thirty paces. Captain Lewis shot
him in the belly. He fell on his knees and right elbow; but, raising
himself a little, fired, and then crawled behind a rock. The shot had
nearly proved fatal; for Captain Lewis, who was bareheaded, felt the
wind of the ball very distinctly. Not having his shot-pouch, he could
not reload his rifle; and, having only a single charge also for his
pistol, he thought it most prudent not to attack them farther, and
retired slowly to the camp. He was met by Drewyer, who, hearing the
report of the guns, had come to his assistance, leaving the Fields to
follow the other Indians. Captain Lewis ordered him to call out to them
to desist from the pursuit, as we could take the horses of the Indians
in place of our own; but they were at too great a distance to hear him.
He therefore returned to the camp, and while he was saddling the horses
the Fields returned with four of our own, having followed the Indians
until two of them swam the river and two others ascended the hills, so
that the horses became dispersed.”
The white men were gainers by this sad affair, for they had now in their
possession four of the Indians’ horses, and had lost one of their own.
Besides these, they found in the camp of the Indians four shields, two
bows and their quivers, and one of their two guns. The captain took
some buffalo meat which he found in the camp, and then the rest of their
baggage was burned on the spot. The flag given to one of the so-called
chiefs was retaken; but the medal given to the dead man was left
around his neck. The consequences of this unfortunate quarrel were
far-reaching. The tribe whose member was killed by the white men never
forgave the injury, and for years after there was no safety for white
men in their vicinity except when the wayfarers were in great numbers or
strongly guarded.
A forced march was now necessary for the explorers, and they set out as
speedily as possible, well knowing that the Indians would be on their
trail. By three o’clock in the afternoon of that day they had reached
Tansy River, now known as the Teton, having travelled sixty-three miles.
They rested for an hour and a half to refresh their horses, and then
pushed on for seventeen miles further before camping again. Having
killed a buffalo, they had supper and stopped two hours. Then,
travelling through vast herds of buffalo until two o’clock in the
morning, they halted again, almost dead with fatigue; they rested until
daylight. On awaking, they found themselves so stiff and sore with much
riding that they could scarcely stand. But the lives of their friends
now at or near the mouth of Maria’s River were at stake, as well as
their own. Indeed, it was not certain but that the Indians had, by hard
riding and a circuitous route, already attacked the river party left at
the falls. So Captain Lewis told his men that they must go on, and,
if attacked, they must tie their horses together by the head and stand
together, selling their lives as dearly as possible, or routing their
enemies. The journal now says:--
“To this they all assented, and we therefore continued our route to
the eastward, till at the distance of twelve miles we came near the
Missouri, when we heard a noise which seemed like the report of a gun.
We therefore quickened our pace for eight miles farther, and, being
about five miles from Grog Spring, now heard distinctly the noise of
several rifles from the river. We hurried to the bank, and saw with
exquisite satisfaction our friends descending the river. They landed
to greet us, and after turning our horses loose, we embarked with our
baggage, and went down to the spot where we had made a deposite. This,
after reconnoitring the adjacent country, we opened; but, unfortunately,
the cache had caved in, and most of the articles were injured. We took
whatever was still worth preserving, and immediately proceeded to the
point, where we found our deposits in good order. By a singular good
fortune, we were here joined by Sergeant Gass and Willard from the
Falls, who had been ordered to come with the horses here to assist in
procuring meat for the voyage, as it had been calculated that the canoes
would reach this place much sooner than Captain Lewis’s party. After a
very heavy shower of rain and hail, attended with violent thunder and
lightning, we started from the point, and giving a final discharge to
our horses, went over to the island where we had left our red pirogue,
which, however, we found much decayed, and we had no means of repairing
her. We therefore took all the iron work out of her, and, proceeding
down the river fifteen miles, encamped near some cottonwood trees, one
of which was of the narrow-leafed species, and the first of that kind we
had remarked in ascending the river.
“Sergeant Ordway’s party, which had left the mouth of Madison River on
the thirteenth, had descended in safety to White Bear Island, where he
arrived on the nineteenth, and, after collecting the baggage, had left
the falls on the twenty-seventh in the white pirogue and five canoes,
while Sergeant Gass and Willard set out at the same time by land with
the horses, and thus fortunately met together.”
Sergeant Ordway’s party, it will be recollected, had left Captain Clark
at the three forks of the Missouri, to which they had come down the
Jefferson, and thence had passed down the Missouri to White Bear
Islands, and, making the portage, had joined the rest of the party just
in time to reinforce them. Game was now abundant the buffalo being in
enormous herds; and the bighorn were also numerous; the flesh of these
animals was in fine condition, resembling the best of mutton in flavor.
The reunited party now descended the river, the intention being to reach
the mouth of the Yellowstone as soon as possible, and there wait for
Captain Clark, who, it will be recalled, was to explore that stream and
meet them at the point of its junction with the Missouri. The voyage of
Captain Lewis and his men was without startling incident, except that
Cruzatte accidentally shot the captain, one day, while they were out
hunting. The wound was through the fleshy part of the left thigh, and
for a time was very painful. As Cruzatte was not in sight when the
captain was hit, the latter naturally thought he had been shot by
Indians hiding in the thicket. He reached camp as best he could, and,
telling his men to arm themselves, he explained that he had been shot by
Indians. But when Cruzatte came into camp, mutual explanations satisfied
all hands that a misunderstanding had arisen and that Cruzatte’s unlucky
shot was accidental. As an example of the experience of the party about
this time, while they were on their way down the Missouri, we take this
extract from their journal:--
“We again saw great numbers of buffalo, elk, antelope, deer, and wolves;
also eagles and other birds, among which were geese and a solitary
pelican, neither of which can fly at present, as they are now shedding
the feathers of their wings. We also saw several bears, one of them the
largest, except one, we had ever seen; for he measured nine feet from
the nose to the extremity of the tail. During the night a violent
storm came on from the northeast with such torrents of rain that we had
scarcely time to unload the canoes before they filled with water. Having
no shelter we ourselves were completely wet to the skin, and the wind
and cold air made our situation very unpleasant.”
On the twelfth of August, the Lewis party met with two traders from
Illinois. These men were camped on the northeast side of the river;
they had left Illinois the previous summer, and had been coming up the
Missouri hunting and trapping. Captain Lewis learned from them that
Captain Clark was below; and later in that day the entire expedition was
again united, Captain Clark’s party being found at a point near where
Little Knife Creek enters the Missouri River. We must now take up the
narrative of Captain Clark and his adventures on the Yellowstone.