Chapter I (5)

The description of Gasconade River is adequate. The "Yungar"
fork of Osage is now called Niangua (Osage word for bear).--ED.

[104] Au Vase (Muddy) has been corrupted to Auxvasse, and there
are now two streams in Callaway County bearing this name. The
larger, also called Big Muddy Creek, is the first important
stream above the Gasconade. Bear (or Loose) Creek, is seven
miles farther up, and the second Auxvasse, which answers the
description in the text, is just beyond. Other tributaries are
Deer Creek, from the south, just above Big Muddy River, and
Middle River, from the north, opposite Bear Creek. The stream
called Revoe's Creek a few lines below, is now Rivaux (Rivals)
Creek.

For Côte Sans Dessein, see Bradbury's _Travels_, comprising our
volume v, note 20.--ED.

[105] The grants of land in Louisiana under Spanish rule were
in a marked degree irregular and heterogeneous. Only those were
complete which had received endorsement by the governor-general
at New Orleans. Most of the settlers were too poor to undertake
the journey thither and pay the required fees; a tacit right
of occupation was therefore permitted by the local officials,
lands were unsurveyed, and much confusion resulted. During the
last decade of Spanish authority (1794-1804) large numbers of
Americans had been tempted to cross the Mississippi and stake
out claims in upper Louisiana. Some of these were bona fide
settlers, more mere speculators; and after the rumor of Spanish
cession to France was heard, fraudulent grants were made in
large numbers. Upon knowledge of this, the congress of the
United States in the act of March 26, 1804, revoked all grants
made since the treaty of San Ildefonso (1800) with a proviso
exempting the rights of actual settlers. This law created much
dissatisfaction, and petitions for redress were sent from both
upper Louisiana and Orleans Territory. See _American State
Papers_, "Miscellaneous," i, pp. 396-405. Thereupon Congress
passed acts for redress--that for upper Louisiana (March 2,
1805) creating a commission, which first met in St. Louis,
September 20, 1806; but its final report was not made until
1812. See _American State Papers_, "Public Lands," ii, pp.
388-603.

The lands set apart for the relief of sufferers by the New
Madrid earthquakes were known as "New Madrid grants." Auguste
Chouteau established the first distillery in St. Louis by the
aid of an extensive grant.--ED.

[106] The hero of this exploit was a Frenchman bearing the name
of Baptiste Louis Roi.--ED.

[107] Miegia macrosperma of Persoon.--JAMES.

[108] The Nishnebottona (Nishnabotna) enters the Missouri in
Atchison County, in the northwest corner of the state. See
_post_, note 166.--ED.

[109] From Bay Charles Hill, four miles below Hannibal,
Missouri, we received, through Dr. Sommerville, several organic
remains. Among them are the following:--

Carbonate of Lime.

One specimen contains exclusive quantities of segments of the
encrinite of small diameter, from one-fourth of an inch down
to minute.

Another specimen also, with numerous small encrinites, has a
very wide and short radiated productus.

Another specimen, a grayish chert, containing cavities formed
by the solution and disappearance of encrinites. The parts of
these which were originally hollow when in the state of
carbonate of lime, being subsequently filled with chert, now
show the nature of the fossil, being cylindrical cavities,
with a solid centre and transverse partitions, the largest
three-tenths of an inch wide.

From Rector's-hill, adjoining the village of Clarksville,
Missouri, from Dr. Sommerville's collection:--

A specimen of oolite--carbonate of lime.

It is composed of small spherical granules in contact with
each other, which, in their fracture, exhibit rather a
concentric tendency, with the appearance of a central nucleus;
but we could not perceive any decided evidences of former
organization in them. Imbedded in the mass are a few columnar
segments of encrinites, and a portion of a compressed bivalve,
which, in the form of its radiating lines, resembles a pecten.

From Charbonière:--

A specimen in argillaceous sandstone of a portion of a leaf
like the nelumbium. It is only the middle portion of the
impression of the leaf that remains, being of an oval form of
about five inches in greatest diameter, the rest being broken
away; the stalk has been broken off at the junction of the
leaf.

Productus spinosus. SAY.

A small species of terebratula, in width two-fifths, and in
length more than seven-tenths of an inch--an internal
cast--individuals very numerous, varying much in size, the
smallest being about one-fifth of an inch wide.

From the Mammelles near St. Charles:--

Productus: a portion of a valve, and smaller portion of the
opposite valve of a remarkably large species, of which the
proportions may have been not dissimilar to that of the Ency.
Meth. pl. 244. fig. 5. The striæ are similar to those of that
shell, except in being somewhat smaller; and the groove of one
valve, and consequent elevation of the other, not so profound,
less abrupt, and more angular in the middle, and far less
prominent on the edge of the shell. It may justly be named
_grandis_, as its hinge width was more than 3-1/2 inches.--JAMES.

[110] The town established here was Osage City. In 1823 it was
described as still "nearly in a state of nature." The present
population is about five hundred.--ED.

[111] Moreau's Creek (River à Morou, Marrow Creek, Murrow Creek)
flows from the south. Moreau signifies "extremely black."

Just above Cedar Island is Jefferson City (Missouriopolis on the
map,) the state capital.--ED.

[112] Mast Creek cannot be identified with certainty, as there
are several small creeks where Lewis and Clark locate it,
fourteen and a half miles above Cedar Island. The name was given
because of an accident to the mast of their vessel.--ED.

[113] Nashville was laid out in 1819, on land owned by a man
named Nash. The site was on the river, just below Providence,
Boone County, but the town was destroyed by a change of the
channel.

The site of Smithton was a half mile west of the court house
in the town of Columbia, but the difficulty in obtaining water
there led to removal in 1820 to the site of Columbia. The
original town was named Smithton in honor of Thomas A. Smith,
land office register at Franklin. See _post_, note 118.--ED.

[114] Roche à Pierce is a corruption of a phrase meaning
"pierced rock," which has been restored in the present name of
the stream (Roche Percée). The mouth of the river is just above
Providence.

On some maps, Splice Creek is Spice Creek.--ED.

[115] The Little Saline (Petite Saline) flows from the south.
Big Manito Creek (now corrupted to Moniteau) debouches at
Rocheport, on the north side of the river. Another Moniteau
Creek enters the Missouri from the south, at the Thousand
Islands, near the boundary between Cole and Moniteau
counties.--ED.

[116] The disaster feared actually occurred in 1828. Franklin
was laid off in 1816, being named for the famous Philadelphian.
For a decade it was a town of considerable importance. It was
the county seat, contained the United States land office, and
was the point of departure for the Santa Fé country. Most of the
inhabitants hailed from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia, and
at one time numbered between fifteen hundred and two thousand.
When the encroachments of the river drove away the residents,
they founded New Franklin, two miles distant, and thereafter the
earlier site was known as Old Franklin.--ED.

[117] In compact limestone, which had been subjected to the
action of fire, we observed segments of encrinites becoming
easily detached. They were three-fifths of an inch in diameter,
varying to the size of fine sand. At Boonsville we found a small
ostrea and a terebratula, in carbonate of lime.--JAMES.

[118] Thomas A. Smith, a native of Virginia, attained
the rank of brigadier-general during the War of 1812-15.
Resigning his commission in 1818, he was appointed receiver of
the land office at Old Franklin, Missouri. In 1826 he removed
to a large tract of prairie land on Salt Fork, Saline County,
about eight miles from Marshall. This being one of the
earliest attempts to occupy prairie land, Smith called his
estate "Experiment." He was an intimate friend of Senator
Thomas A. Benton. See volume xvi of our series, note 91, for
his military record.--ED.

{87} CHAPTER V

Death of Dr. Baldwin--Charaton River, and Settlement--Pedestrian
Journey from Franklin to Fort Osage.

Dr. Baldwin's health had so much declined that, on our arrival at Franklin, he was induced to relinquish the intention of ascending farther with the party. He was removed on shore to the house of Dr. Lowry, intending to remain there until he should recover so much strength as might enable him to return to his family. But the hopes of his friends, even for his partial recovery, were not to be realized. He lingered a few weeks after our departure, and expired on the thirty-first of August. His diary, in which the latest date is the eighth of August, only a few days previous to his death, shows with what earnestness, even in the last stages of weakness and disease, his mind was devoted to the pursuit, in which he had so nobly spent the most important part of his life. He has left behind him a name which will long be honoured;--his early death will be regretted not only by those who knew his value as a friend, but by all the lovers of that fascinating science, to which his life was dedicated, and which his labours have so much contributed to advance and embellish. We regret that it is not in our power to add to this inadequate testimony of respect, such notices of the life and writings of Dr. Baldwin, as might be satisfactory to our readers. His manuscripts were numerous, but his works were left unfinished. The remarks on the Rotbollia, published in Silliman's Journal, are his only productions, as far as we are informed, hitherto before the public.[119] His Herbarium, it is well known, {88} has contributed to enrich the works of Pursh and Nuttall. He was the friend and correspondent of the venerable Muhlenbergh, and contributed materials for the copious catalogue of North American plants, published by that excellent botanist. In South America he met with Bonpland, the illustrious companion of Humboldt, and a friendly correspondence was established between them, which continued until his death.[120] He had travelled extensively, not only in South America, but in Georgia, Florida, and other parts of North America. His notes and collections are extensive and valuable. During the short period of his connection with the exploring party, the infirmities, resulting from a long established and incurable pulmonary disease, then rapidly approaching its fatal termination, could not overcome the activity of his mind, or divert his attention entirely from his favourite pursuit. Though unable to walk on shore, he caused plants to be collected and brought on board the boat; and not disheartened by the many vexations attending this method of examination, he persevered, and in the course of the voyage from Pittsburgh to Franklin, detected and described many new plants, and added many valuable observations relating to such as were before known. To show the scope and accuracy of his method of observation, and for the gratification of the botanical reader, we subjoin a part of the observations registered in Dr. Baldwin's diary, from July 15th, the time of our departure from Cote Sans Dessein, to its conclusion. From this the reader will be able to form a satisfactory idea of the vegetable physiognomy of the country on this portion of the banks of the Missouri.[121]

Messrs. Say, Jessup, Seymour, and Dougherty, accompanied by Major Biddle, left Franklin on the 19th of July, intending to traverse the country by land, to Fort Osage, where they proposed to await the arrival of the steamboat. A pack-horse was purchased {89} for the transportation of their baggage, and a tent, blankets, and provisions, furnished for their accommodation.

The party now remaining on board the steam-boat, consisted of Major Long, Major O'Fallon, Mr. Peale, and Lieutenants Graham and Swift. Having completed some repairs of machinery, and other necessary operations, which had occasioned a delay of six days at Franklin, we left that place on the same day, at four o'clock in the afternoon. The inhabitants of the village were assembled on the banks of the river to witness our departure, and signified their good wishes by repeated cheers and acclamations. The fuel we had taken on board, being of an indifferent quality, we were able to make small progress against the rapid current of the Missouri. We anchored, for the night, three miles above Franklin. Finding the valves, and other parts of the steam-engine, so much worn by the fine sand, suspended in the water of the river, as to become leaky, we were compelled to lie by, and were occupied for a day in making repairs. In the meantime the boat's crew were employed in taking on board a supply of dry mulberry wood, which is the best that the forests along the Missouri afford. The water in the river was now subsiding, and the rapidity of the current consequently diminishing; we did not, therefore, so much regret the necessary delays, as we might otherwise have done. Some of the party went out on the south-west side of the river, to search for game. Most of the deer, and larger animals, as well as the turkies, have fled from this part of the country, though it is but a few years since they were extremely abundant; they met, however, with a racoon, the Maryland arctomys, some small birds, and some interesting little animals. After leaving the river bottom, they passed some groves of small scattered oak trees, and bushes, and arrived at the margin of a wide grassy plain, which spread before them as unvaried, {90} and apparently as boundless as the ocean, and which is said to extend uninterrupted, near three hundred miles, to the Arkansa.

At evening a soldier came on board the boat, who had been sent express from Colonel Chambers' command. He brought intelligence that the detachment had arrived within fifteen miles of Fort Osage, and that their provisions were nearly exhausted.

Charaton, where we arrived on the 22d, is a small village, its settlement having been commenced in the year 1817. It is, however, in a flourishing condition, and from the advantages of its situation, promises to become one of the most important towns on the Missouri. It does not stand immediately on the bank of the Missouri, but of the Charaton river, about seven hundred yards above its mouth. Charaton will be the depot of merchandize, for a large extent of fertile country, which lies towards the north and east. At this time, the settlement contained about fifty houses, and near five hundred inhabitants, on a spot where two years previous, no permanent habitation had been established. Such is the rapidity, with which the forests of the Missouri are becoming filled with an enterprising and industrious population.[122]

Charaton river is seventy-five yards wide at its mouth, and navigable, at high water, one hundred and fifty miles. Half a mile from its confluence with the Missouri, it receives the Little Charaton, also a considerable stream, and navigable for many miles. The Charaton originates near the De Moyen[123] river of the Mississippi, and traverses a country which is of great importance, both on account of the fertility of its soil, and its inexhaustible mines of coal. The Western Engineer, being the first steam-boat that had ever ascended the Missouri, above Charaton, great numbers of the settlers were attracted to the banks of the river, on both sides, to witness our progress. So numerous were the obstacles to be encountered, that many were of opinion our progress {91} would soon be arrested. It sometimes happened, that mistaking the channel, we ran our boat aground in shoal places, and in some instances it was necessary to fall back, in order to extricate ourselves from these difficulties. In this way much time was consumed.

The expansions of the Missouri bottom above Franklin have, since their settlement, received distinctive names. We pass on the south the Chenai au Barre, Tabeau, Tite-saw, and Miami bottoms; on the north, those of Charaton, Sugar-tree, and Grand river. These are wild and fertile plains, usually covered with heavy forests of cotton-wood, sycamore, ash, and sugar-maple, and partly encircled by the bluffs, rising abruptly, about to the elevation of the highest trees, thence sloping gradually to the prairies, the region of the Gramina, and the Cyperacæa. Eighteen miles above Charaton, is the entrance of Grand river an important tributary to the Missouri from the north. This river is one hundred and fifty yards wide at its mouth, and is navigable for boats of small burthen, about two hundred miles. Its waters are transparent, except in times of high floods, and its current less rapid than that of the Missouri. There are no settlements on its banks, except at the mouth, where is a trading house, and the residence of a single family. The lands are, however, of a good quality, and the adequate supply of timber, and numerous springs of water, will ensure their speedy settlement. The Sauks, Foxes, and Ioways, hunt in the plains towards the sources of Grand river, where elk and deer are still numerous, and the latter dispose of their pelfries to the traders on the Missouri.[124]

The navigation of the Missouri, for a few miles above and below the mouth of Grand river, is supposed to be more difficult than at almost any other place, owing to the rapidity of the current, and the numerous sand-bars and snags. Two miles above the confluence is the channel called Grand river {92} Cut-Off, so thickly set with snags as to be almost impassable. The distance by the Cut-Off to the head of the island is three-fourths of a mile; by the course of the river to the same point it is six miles.[125] We followed the old channel, which is much obstructed by trunks of trees and sand-bars, and after a few hours succeeded in ascending this dangerous pass. Compact limestone, and argillaceous sandstone, occur frequently along the Missouri, above the mouth of Grand river, and indications of coal are often met with. In a country affording but an insufficient supply of timber for the consumption of a dense population, these extensive beds of fossil coal will be considered of great value, and the necessities of the inhabitants will lead to their early exploration. Whenever the dominion of man is sufficiently established in these vast plains to prevent the annual ravages of fires, trees will spring up; but we may expect that before forests originating in this manner can arrive at maturity, the population along the banks of the Missouri will become so dense, as to require the greater part of the soil for the purposes of culture.

The beds of coal in this district lie horizontally, varying much in thickness, and occurring often at an elevation of a few feet above the surface of the water in the Missouri.[126]

On the first of August we arrived at Fort Osage, one hundred and five miles above the mouth of Grand river. Here Mr. Say and his party had been some days encamped, having arrived on the 24th of July from their equestrian journey across the country from Franklin. After leaving that place on the 19th, they passed through a fine bottom on the left side of the river, closely covered with forests of oaks, elms, hackberry, walnut, the mulberry, the gleditschia, the guilandina, and the other trees common on the Missouri, for twelve miles, when they arrived at Arrow rock, where is a ferry by which they crossed {93} the Missouri. In this walk they passed a field of corn, containing seven hundred acres. The ferry boat used at Arrow rock is one peculiarly adapted to the navigation of a rapid stream. It consists of two canoes, on which rests a platform, with a slight railing to prevent cattle from falling off.

Arrow rock is so called from its having been formerly resorted to, by the neighbouring Indians, for the stone used to point their arrows. It is a beautiful situation, and rises to considerable elevation above the water.[127] From its summit is a pleasing view of the river, and near the base is a remarkable eddy, which, as they were crossing, whirled their ferry-boat entirely round. On the second day they left their encampment at an early hour, and travelled forward through plains where very few trees were to be seen. They turned off from the Osage trace, in which they had been travelling, and went eight miles to visit the salt-works, and some remarkable diggings, on the saline fork of the Le Mine. Here, at one establishment, one hundred bushels of salt are manufactured per week; eight men are employed, and one hundred and eighty gallons of water are evaporated to produce a bushel of salt.[128]

Two miles from the confluence of the Camp Fork with the Saline, are the salt-works, and the residence of Mr. Lockhart, who received the detachment with much hospitality.

His works were not then in operation, but were sufficiently extensive for the manufacture of five hundred bushels of salt per week. Near his house are the _diggings_ so often mentioned in this region as objects of curiosity. These are irregular, but very numerous excavations of little depth, but evidently the result of the united labours of many persons who were possessed of instruments of iron and steel, as no others could have penetrated, and removed the compact rocky soil, of which the points and brows of the hills are composed. These excavations occur frequently {94} in an extent of two or three miles; and from the amount of labour which appears to have been expended on them, it has been thought by some, that several hundred men must have been occupied two or three years in digging them; but this is, doubtless, much overrated. Whoever were the labourers; it is probable their search was for the precious metals, though at present no indications of any metallic ores, except of a little iron, are perceptible about the diggings. Mr. Lockhart had sunk a shaft to the depth of twenty-two feet, but the appearances continued the same as at the surface.[129]

After travelling forty miles from Arrow rock, for great part of the way through open plains, where the high grass and weeds rendered their progress difficult and laborious, they pitched their tent, on the evening of July 21st, on a branch of the Le Mine. Here they saw four Mississippi kites. The forks of the tail of this bird are so much elongated as to resemble some fortuitous appendage, for which, at first sight, they are often mistaken. Sandhill cranes, and flocks of prairie hens were also seen, but were so shy as not to be taken without much difficulty.

The country about the Le Mine is beautiful and fertile. The unaccustomed eye, in roving over those extensive undulating prairies, is beguiled by the alternation of forests and meadows, arranged with an appearance of order, as if by the labour of men, and seeks in vain to repose upon some cottage or mansion embosomed in the little copses of trees, or in the edge of the forest, which margins the small streams and ravines in the distance.

Their provisions being nearly exhausted, the detachment delayed a short time at their encampment on the Le Mine, to replenish their stock by hunting. This camp was near a place called the Grand Pass, a narrow neck of prairie between the timber of the Saline, and that of a small creek discharging directly {95} into the Missouri. Here the Osage trace passes, and a little beyond falls into a waggon-road leading to the Tabeau settlement.[130]

On the 22nd Major Biddle experienced a severe attack of cramp in the stomach, but soon found some relief from swallowing a quantity of ginger, the only medicine with which they were provided. On the following day they entered the forests of the Missouri bottom, and soon after crossed the Tabeau, where a town of the same name, at that time containing two houses, had been established. Tabeau is the name of a Canadian hunter, who formerly frequented this region.[131] The creek is navigable to the site of the projected town, about one mile from the Missouri, having for this distance about six feet of water. Four miles from this place they crossed the Little Tabeau, and at evening pitched their tent on a stream called the Little Chenal au Barre, about a mile and a half from the Missouri. Here is a good mill seat. The Great and Little Chenal au Barre, are two creeks entering the Missouri about a mile and a half from each other. Before the mouths of these two creeks is a large island, the slough or Chenal dividing this island from the shore, received the additional name of Au Barre from a hunter known by that appellation, who was lost here for some time, successively ascending the two creeks, which he mistook for the Missouri; hence the name of Chenal au Barre island, Great and Little Chenal au Barre Creek, &c.[132]

In the afternoon they halted to rest at the cabin of a hunter on Fire Prairie Creek, so called from the circumstance of three or four Indians having been burned to death by the sudden conflagration of the dry grass in the meadows at its source.[133] Here Mr. Say had an opportunity to examine a young black wolf, which was confined by a chain at the door of the hut. These animals are common in this part of the country. This individual was one of five that had been taken from the same den. It had become {96} familiar with the hunter and his family, but was shy towards strangers. When fed on meat the ferocity of his disposition manifested itself in attempts to bite the children. It was ordinarily fed on bread and milk.

This man had been settled here two years, but had not "made a crop," having subsisted himself and his family by hunting, wherein he had been very successful. In the preceding autumn he had killed seventy deer and fifty bears. He took great pleasure in relating his hunting adventures, particularly his engagements with bears. One bear which he had killed, he said, weighed seven hundred pounds; but in this instance he was probably mistaken. He had seen in the winter of 1818, a large herd of bisons near the Grand Pass; but they had been driven down by the severity of the weather, and were not ordinarily to be found within the limits of his hunting excursions. During the severe wintry weather, he affirmed that bears make for themselves a shelter of brushwood, into which they creep to secure themselves from the cold.

From May until July the female of the common deer conceals her young whilst she goes to feed. It is at this time that the hunters take advantage of the maternal feelings of the animal to secure their prey. They conceal themselves and imitate the cry of the fawn. The solicitude of the parent animal for her young overcomes her usual care for her own safety; and believing she hears the cries of her offspring in distress, she hurries toward the spot where the hunter lies concealed, and falls an easy prey.[134]

Mr. Say and his companions were very politely received by Col. Chambers, then at Fort Osage. The rifle regiment was encamped here, waiting the arrival of the contractor's boats.[135]

Fort Osage was established in 1808, by Gov. Lewis. It stands on an elevated bluff, commanding a beautiful view of the river, both above and below. The {97} works are a stockade, of an irregular pentagonal form, with strong log pickets perforated with loop-holes; two block houses are placed at opposite angles; one of them, however, flanks one of its curtains too obliquely to be of much service in defending it. There is also a small bastion at a third angle. Within are two series of buildings for quarters, store-houses, &c. The position of the fort is not a secure one, on account of numerous ravines and declivities that would cover an enemy within a short distance; but is such, that boats ascending or descending the river must be exposed to its fire. The stream in the middle of the river, and on the opposite side, is so remarkably rapid, that it is in vain to contend against it with the oar or paddle; it is, therefore, usually necessary for ascending boats to enter the eddy, which brings them within musket-shot of the fort.[136]

At the time of our journey, Fort Osage, which, according to our estimate, is one hundred and forty-two miles, by the course of the river, above Charaton, was the extreme frontier of the settlements. For a great distance below, the establishments of the white settlers were confined to the immediate banks of the Missouri. The inhabitants of this frontier are mostly emigrants from Tennessee, and are hospitable to strangers. Many of them are possessed of considerable wealth. In the inhabitants of the new States and Territories there is a manifest propensity, particularly in the males, to remove westward, for which it is not easy to account. The women, having their attention directed almost exclusively to domestic pursuits, form local attachments, and establish habits, which are not interrupted without occasioning some disquietude. They are at first discontented in their new abode; in a few weeks they become reconciled, but less attached than to their former home; and, at length, by the habit of frequent migration, they {98} acquire the same fondness for an adventurous unsettled life, as characterises the men.

Daniel Boon, whose history is connected with that of all the new settlements from Kentucky westward, answered to an inquiry concerning the cause of his frequent change of residence, "I think it time to remove when I can no longer fall a tree for fuel, so that its top will lie within a few yards of the door of my cabin."[137] The charms of that mode of life, wherein the artificial wants and the uneasy restraints inseparable from a crowded population are not known, wherein we feel ourselves dependent immediately and solely on the bounty of nature, and the strength of our own arm, will not be appreciated by those to whom they are known only from description, though they never fail to make an impression upon such as have acquired a knowledge of them from experience. A settler on the Missouri observed to us, that the land he at present occupied was not better than that he had left in Tennessee; but he did not wish to spend all his life in one place, and he had learned from experience, that a man might live in greater ease and freedom where his neighbours were not very numerous.

A person upwards of sixty years old, who had recently arrived at one of the highest settlements of the Missouri, inquired of us very particularly of the river Platte, and of the quality of the lands about its source. We discovered that he had the most serious intention of removing with his family to that river. On the last day of July and the first of August, about two inches of rain fell: the prevailing winds were from the north-east; but the superior strata of the atmosphere carried clouds of different descriptions in different, and sometimes opposite directions. The moon soon after rising, passed behind a long dense body of cirrus clouds, that floated over the eastern horizon. Long and distinct radii were soon after seen converging to a point fifteen or twenty of {99} the moon's diameters to the eastward of its disk. Such is the refracting power of the aqueous vapors sometimes suspended in the atmosphere.

Horizontal strata of sandstone and compact lime stone, are disclosed in the cliffs on both sides the valley of the Missouri. These rocks contain numerous remains of caryophilla, productus, and terebratulæ.[138]

Some days passed after our arrival at Fort Osage, before the weather admitted our making the astronomical observations necessary to ascertain its position. The mean of the results of several observations of the meridian altitude of the sun's lower limb gave 39° 9′ 33-1/2″ north, for the latitude of the place.

FOOTNOTES:

[119] In a letter addressed to Mr. Frazer, an extract
from which was published in the tenth volume of the London
Journal of Literature and the Arts, Dr. Baldwin mentions
having discovered near Monte Video, in South America, the
_Solanum Tuberosum_ in its native locality. Mr. Lambert,
however, considered this plant as the _Solanum Commersoni_ of
Dunal; and though it produces tuberous roots, and in other
respects makes a near approach to S. tuberosum, he was not
satisfied of their identity, and remarks that it is yet to be
proved, that this is the stock from which the common potatoe
has been derived. It appears, however, that the original
locality of the solanum tuberosum has been ascertained by Ruiz
and Pavon, after having escaped the observation of Humboldt
and Bonpland.--JAMES.

[120] Frederick Pursh was born in Siberia, in 1774. Coming to
the United States at the age of twenty-five, he spent twelve
years in botanical studies, the results of which were published
in England under the title _Flora Americae Septentrionalis, or
a Systematic Arrangement and Description of the Plants of North
America_ (London, 2 vols., 1814). Pursh died at Montreal in
1820, while preparing a flora of Canada.

For sketch of Muhlenberg, see F. A. Michaux's _Travels_, in our
volume iii, note 9.

Aimé Bonpland (1773-1858) was a French scientist and traveller.
It has been said that the expedition of Humboldt and Bonpland
in tropical America (1799-1804) "laid the foundation of the
sciences of physical geography and meteorology in their larger
bearings." The fruit of their joint labors appeared at Paris
in 1807, under the title _Voyage aux régions équinoxiales du
nouveau continent_.--ED.

[121] Above Cote Sans Dessein, we saw frequently the Juglans
nigra, and J. pubescens, called white hickory; also a species of
Cratægus, which, though sometimes seen in Pennsylvania, appears
to be hitherto undescribed. Its fruit is large, yellow when
ripe, and of an agreeable flavour. On the evening of the 11th we
anchored opposite a steep bank, which I was assisted to climb;
but night came on, and put an end to our herbarizations before I
had the opportunity to collect any thing interesting. The soil
here is a dark vegetable mould, at least five feet in depth, and
little intermixed with sand. I ascended the same bank on the
following morning, but found nothing except a species of Carex
that I do not recollect to have seen before.

After getting under weigh, we passed high calcareous bluffs on
the left side of the river, covered with timber, and reminding
us of the deep umbrageous forests within the tropics.

Franklin, July 15th. Portulacca sativa, Solanum nigrum,
Urticapumila, Datura strammonium, and Phytolacca decandra,
occur by the road side. Blackberries were now ripe, but not
well-flavoured. Campanula Americana, the large Vernonia
mentioned at Cote Sans Dessein, now flowering.

Some plants were brought in, among which we distinguished the
Monarda fistulosa, Achillea millefolia, Cacalia atriplicifolia,
called "horse-mint," Queria canadensis, Menispermum lyoni,
Verbena urticifolia. The Annona triloba is frequent about
Franklin; also the Laurus benzoin, and the Symphoria now
in flower, the Rhus glabrum, Cercis canadensis, Ampelousis
quinquefolia, Eupatorium purpureum, in flower. Cucubalus
stellatus, still flowering. The Prickly-fruited Æsculus has
nearly ripened its nut, Zanthoxylon clava herculis, in fruit, a
"wild gourd" not in flower.

July 26th. The Gleditschia is a small tree here; Geum album,
Myosotis virginiana, Amaranthus hybridus, Erigeron canadense,
Solanum carolinianum, very luxuriant and still flowering. The
leaf of the Tilia glabra I found to measure thirteen inches in
length, and eleven in breadth. Bignonia radicans, Dioscorea
villosa, a Helianthus with a leaf margined with spines, the
narrow-leaved Brachystemum, the Lyatris pycnostachia, Rudbeckia
purpurea, and various others in flower. Juglans porcina and
cinerea, Ostrya virginica, Rhus copallinum.--August 4th. Dr.
Lowry informed me he has seen Pyrus coronaria, forty feet in
height, in the forests about Franklin. He showed me a Rudbeckia
about three feet high with a cone of dark purple flowers,
probably a new species.

5th. Eupatorium hieracifolium beginning to flower, Menispermum
canadense, here called "sarsaparilla," its slender yellow roots
being substituted for that article.

6th. A Mimulus is found here resembling M. ringens, but the
leaves are not sessile; peduncle very short, flowers large,
pink-coloured, stem acutely quadrangular; Campanula Americana,
three and a half feet high.--JAMES.

[122] The name of this river has undergone many changes,
appearing as Charleton, Charlatan, Chératon, Charliton,
Chareton, and Charlotte; the form Chariton has now become fixed.
The origin is unknown.

The town here mentioned, two miles north of Glasgow, was laid
out by Duff Green, a famous Jacksonian politician, and other
associates. The growth was for a few years so rapid that one
settler exchanged St. Louis lots for an equal number in
Chariton; but the location proved unhealthful, and was
abandoned in 1829. Monticello, on higher ground, a mile away,
and Thorntonsburg, at the mouth of the Chariton, were founded
in succession, but likewise disappeared. Glasgow, laid out in
1836, was the first permanent town in the vicinity.--ED.

[123] The Des Moines River. The Illinois Indians called their
habitat Moingona. The French contracted this to les Moins, and
called this stream la Rivière des Moins. Later the name became
associated with the Trappist monks (moines), and by a play on
words was changed to la Rivière des Moines.--ED.

[124] On the Sauk and Foxes, see Bradbury's _Travels_, in our
volume v, note 21. For the Iowa, see Brackenridge's _Journal_,
in our volume vi, note 13.--ED.

[125] Changes in the river have obliterated the channel here
called the Cut-Off.--ED.

[126] The coal-fields of Missouri have an area of about
twenty-six thousand square miles; a line drawn southwest
from the mouth of the Des Moines River to Vernon County
roughly bounds the district. Northwest of this line every
county contains coal, and there are outlying patches on the
southeast.--ED.

[127] Arrow Rock (the Pièrre à flèche of early French explorers)
stands on the west side of the river, in Saline County. The
first settlements in the county were made in the neighboring
bottoms, and the earliest ferry west of Franklin crossed the
river at this point. The rock gave its name to a town founded
in 1829, which for a time was the county seat and an important
shipping point.--ED.

[128] Le Mine (Lamine, or La Mine) River empties into
the Missouri seven miles above Booneville, Cooper County.
Renaudière named the stream Rivière à la Mine, in 1723. It is
about a hundred and thirty miles long. Salt Fork, here called
"saline fork," the principal tributary, crosses Saline county
roughly parallel with the Missouri.--ED.

[129] In 1720 Philip Renault, director-general of mines of the
French colonies in America, sent prospecting parties from Fort
Chartres, into Missouri and Arkansas, to seek gold and silver.
These curious "diggings" are by some supposed to have been made
by his men. Charles Lockhart, mentioned in the text, employed a
number of men in 1819 in digging over some of these old pits,
but without making any important discoveries.--ED.

[130] Grand Pass received its name from the fact that the Osage
trace, connecting farther west with the Santa Fé trail, here
followed the narrow divide between Salt Fork and the Missouri
bottom. This "pass" is about a mile and a half long, and in one
place so narrow that a stone can be thrown across. A hotel was
built here in 1835, and a small village now occupies the spot.
For a short time during a flood in 1875, part of the water of
Salt Fork flowed across the divide.--ED.

[131] The entire courses of both the Tabeau and Little Tabeau
are within Lafayette County. The mouth of the larger is near the
boundary between Ray and Carroll counties. The name is sometimes
erroneously spelled Tabo and Tebo.--ED.

[132] For derivation of this name, see Brackenridge's _Journal_,
in our volume vi, note 14.--ED.

[133] This stream debouches at the boundary between Jackson and
Lafayette counties, south of the Missouri. Its name is usually
shortened to Fire Creek. Lewis and Clark applied the name Fire
Prairie Creek to a stream which entered from the north. No
stream nearer than Clear Creek, or Fishing Creek, five miles
above Fire Creek, answers their description.--ED.

[134] A variety of this species, the Cervus Virginianus, three
specimens of which occurred at Engineer cantonment, had all
the feet white near the hoofs, and extending to them on the
hind part from a little above the spurious hoofs. This white
extremity was divided upon the sides of the foot by the general
colour of the leg, which extended down near to the hoof, leaving
a white triangle in front, of which the point was elevated
rather higher than the spurious hoofs. The black mark upon the
lower lip, rather behind the middle of the sides, was strongly
noted--

ft. in.
Total length, exclusive of hair, at tip of tail 5 4-3/4
Ear, from the upper part of the head 0 6-1/2
Tail, from lateral base, exclusive of the hair 0 9-1/2
Hind foot, from tip of os calcus to tip of toe 1 6-1/4
Fore arm 1 11-7/8
Weight, in February, 115lbs.

This species, common as it is, was never figured, nor indeed
very well described, until the year 1819, when it appeared in
the valuable work of Messrs. Geoffroy and F. Cuvier (Hist.
Nat. des Mammiferes, 2d liv.) Its highest northern range is
Canada, in North America; and it is found as far south as the
river Orinoco, in South America.

This species is leanest in February and March, and in best
condition in October and November. The rutting season
commences in November, and continues about one month, ceasing
generally about the middle of December. During this season the
neck of the male becomes much dilated.

The fawn, towards autumn, loses its spots; and the hair
becomes grayish, and lengthens in the winter. In this state
the deer is said by the hunters to be _in the gray_. This coat
is shed in the latter part of May and beginning of June, and
is then substituted by the reddish coat. In this state the
animal is said to be _in the red_. Towards the last of August
the old bucks begin to change to the dark bluish colour; the
doe commences this change a week or two later. In this state
they are said to be _in the blue_. This coat gradually
lengthens until it comes again to the _gray_. The skin is said
to be toughest in the _red_, thickest in the _blue_, and
thinnest in the _gray_. The blue skin is most valuable.

The horns are cast in January. They lose the velvet the last of
September and beginning of October. About the middle of March,
Mr. Peale shot a large doe, in the matrix of which were three
perfectly formed young, of the size of a rabbit.--JAMES.

[135] This rifle regiment, under Colonel Talbot Chambers, was a
contingent of the troops assigned to the Yellowstone expedition.
See preface.--ED.

[136] Fort Osage was surrounded by a tract six miles square. It
was the only government trading factory west of the Mississippi.
The post was occupied at intervals until 1827, when it was
superseded by Fort Leavenworth and permanently abandoned. The
site was near that of the present town of Sibley, Jackson
County, which was named in honor of George C. Sibley (see volume
v of our series, note 36), who was (1818-25) government agent at
Fort Osage. The distance above Chariton River, by the government
survey of the Missouri, is a hundred and twenty miles. See our
volume v, note 31.--ED.

[137] A sketch of Boone as a Missouri pioneer will be found in
Bradbury's _Travels_, in our volume v, note 16.--ED.

[138] From Fort Osage.

_Productus spinosus_, SAY.--Longitudinally and transversely
subequally striated, the transverse striæ somewhat larger than
the others; a few remote short spines, or acute tubercles, on
the surface, arising from the longitudinal striæ.

Breadth an inch and a half; the striæ are somewhat indistinct--
as in No. 5.

_Productus incurvus_, SAY.--Shell much compressed; hinge margin
nearly rectilinear; surface of the valves longitudinally
striated; convex valve longitudinally indented in the middle;
the beak prominent and incurved at tip; opposite valve with a
longitudinal prominence in the middle; the beak incurved into
the hinge beneath the other beak, and distant from it.

Width more than 2-2/5 inches. A few univalves also occurred, but
they were so extremely imperfect that their genera could not be
made out.

A dark-coloured carbonate of lime, containing small Terebratulæ
like the T. ovata of Sowerby, but less than half as long.

No. 1. a mass of carbonate of lime, containing segments of
encrinites in small ossicula.

6. A Caryophylla of a single star, about four inches long, of an
irregularly transversely undulated surface, imperfect at each
end, but seems to have been attached at base. Near the base it
is bent at an angle of about 45 degrees.

Some small and young specimens of the Terebratula, like T.
subundata of Sowerby.

Miliolites centralis. SAY.

12. Astrea. A species of very minute alveoles. From the state
of the petrifaction no radii are perceptible, so that the
genus is not determinable.

Saltworks near Arrow Rock. Columnar segments of the Encrinus.

Inferior portion of the head of A. Pentramea. SAY.

Segments of the column of an oval encrinus, much narrower in
the middle than the oval vertebra of an encrinite represented
by Parkinson, Vol. 2. pl. 13. f. 40.--resembling those of the
genus _Platycrinites_ of Miller.--JAMES.

{100} CHAPTER VI

Mouth of the Konzas--Arrival at Wolf River--Journey by land
from Fort Osage to the village of the Konzas.

Wishing to extend our examinations between Fort Osage and the Konzas river, also between that river and the Platte, a party was detached from the steam-boat, with instructions to cross the Konzas at the Konza village, thence to traverse the country by the nearest route to the Platte, and to descend that river to the Missouri. The party consisted of Mr. Say, to whom the command was entrusted, Messrs. Jessup, Peale, and Seymour, Cadet Swift, Mr. J. Dougherty, and five soldiers. They were furnished with three pack-horses, and a supply of provisions for ten days. Thus organized and equipped, they commenced their march on the afternoon of August 6th, accompanied by Major Biddle and his servant.

After their departure, the steam-boat was delayed a few days at Fort Osage. On the ninth, a part of the troops destined for the Missouri service arrived in keel-boats. Colonel Chambers, with the principal part of his regiment, were still at Fort Osage, awaiting the arrival of supplies of provisions now daily expected.

On the following day we resumed our journey, and were accompanied about ten miles by Mr. Sibley, agent of Indian affairs, and his lady, to whom the gentlemen of the party were indebted for numerous hospitable attentions during their stay at Fort Osage; also by Captain Bissel, and Lieutenant Pentland,[139] of the rifle regiment, who returned in a skiff. Our progress was much impeded by shoals and rapids in the {101} river, but we succeeded in passing these without warping, and anchored at sunset, having ascended eighteen miles.

Between Fort Osage and the mouth of the Konzas river, a distance of about fifty-two miles, are many rapid places in the Missouri. We were able to ascend all these, except one, without towing. It was with some difficulty we supplied our furnace with wood of a suitable quality. The forests of the Missouri, though limited in extent, are deep and shady, and though the atmosphere is perceptibly less humid than in the forests of the Mississippi, fallen trees, whose wood is soft and porous like that of the linden and cotton tree, absorb much moisture from the ground. It was only when we were so fortunate as to find a dry mulberry, ash, or cotton-wood still standing, that we could procure fuel well adapted to our purpose. Much time was of necessity expended in cutting and bringing on board our supplies of this article, and the additional delay occasioned by the numerous obstacles to the easy navigation of the river, made our ascent somewhat tedious.

The mouth of the Konzas river was so filled with mud, deposited by the late flood in the Missouri, as scarcely to admit the passage of our boat, though with some difficulty we ascended that river about a mile, and then returning dropped anchor opposite its mouth. The spring freshets subside in the Konzas, the Osage, and all those tributaries that do not derive their sources from the Rocky Mountains, before the Missouri reaches its greatest fulness; consequently the waters of the latter river, charged with mud, flow into the mouths of its tributaries, and there becoming nearly stagnant, deposit an extensive accumulation of mud and slime. The Konzas river has a considerable resemblance to the Missouri; but its current is more moderate, and the water less turbid, except at times of high floods. Its valley, like that of the Missouri, has a deep and fertile soil, bearing similar {102} forests of cotton-wood, sycamore, &c., interspersed with meadows; but, in ascending, trees become more and more scattered, and at length disappear almost entirely, the country, at its sources, being one immense prairie.[140]

We sailed from the mouth of the Konzas on the 13th of August. Numerous sand-bars occur in the Missouri above that point, and these occasioned us some delay. The water having fallen several feet, we had less velocity of current to contend against, but found it more necessary to keep in the channel, and could not so often take advantage of the eddy currents below the points and along the shore.

A party of white hunters were encamped on the Missouri, not far above the Konzas. In the rudeness of their deportment and dress, they appeared to us to surpass the savages themselves. They are usually the most abandoned and worthless among the whites who adopt the life of wandering hunters: frequently they are men whose crimes have excluded them from society.

Eighteen miles above the Konzas river, and five above the Little Platte, is a large island, which, from its rhombic form, has received the name of Diamond island. The principal channel is on the north side. It is difficult to pass, being much obstructed by sand-bars. Four miles above this is a small group, called the Three Islands; and two miles further another cluster, known as the Four Islands, and by the French as the Isles des Parcs, or Field Islands. At each of these places, as in the neighbourhood of islands generally, the navigation is difficult.[141]

The site of an old village of the Konzas, and the remains of a fortification erected by the French, were pointed out a few miles below Isle au Vache. This island, which lies about one hundred miles above Fort Osage, was the wintering post of Capt. Martin's detachment, destined to proceed in advance of the troops ordered to the Missouri. Captain Martin, {103} with three companies of the rifle regiment, left Bellefontain in September 1818, and arrived at Isle au Vache in October, with the expectation of resuming his march as early in the following spring as the weather would permit. But not having received the necessary supplies of provisions as anticipated, they had been compelled to remain till the time of our arrival, subsisting themselves principally by hunting. Fortunately this part of the country afforded so much game, that a competent supply was easily obtained. Between two and three thousand deer, beside great numbers of bears, turkies, &c., had been taken. The arrival of the boats, laden with provisions, now furnished them the means of continuing their ascent, and they had the prospect of departing within a few days.[142]

Previous to our departure from Fort Osage, Major O'Fallon, the Indian agent who accompanied us, had sent a messenger across the country by land to the Konzas nation of Indians, residing on the Konzas river, summoning their chiefs to a council, to be held at Isle au Vache, on the arrival of the Western Engineer.[143] Agreeably to the message sent by an interpreter, the Indians had been expected on the 18th, but did not arrive until the 23d of August, having been absent, when the messenger reached their village, on a hunting excursion. As soon as they received the invitation, they repaired with all convenient speed to the appointed place, having sent runners before, to apprise us of their approach.

The interpreter, who returned with them, brought intelligence of the safe arrival of Mr. Say and his party, and of their kind reception at the Konza village. We were sorry to learn that Mr. Say had been in ill health, and had not entirely recovered.

On the 24th, the chiefs and principal men of the Konzas, to the number of one hundred and fifty, assembled under an arbour prepared for their reception. The Indian agent addressed them in a speech {104} adapted to the occasion, setting forth the causes of complaint which they had given by their repeated insults and depredations upon the whites, giving them notice of the approach of a military force, of sufficient strength to chastise their insolence, and advising them to seize the present opportunity of averting the vengeance they deserved by proper concessions, and by their future good behaviour to conciliate those, whose friendship they would have so much occasion to desire.