Created by the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities
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a Cloudy morning most of the Indians left us, The nation on the opposit Side is Small & Called Clap-sott, [1] Their great chief name Stil-la-sha —The nation liveing to the North is Called Chieltz. [2] The chief is name Malaugh not large nation and wore 〈their〉 his beards as informed by the Inds. In my absence the hunters Kild. 7 Deer, 4 brants & a Crane.
Great numbers of the dark brant passing Southerley, the white yet Stationary, no gees & Swan to be Seen. The wind blew hard from the S. E. which with the addition of the flood tide raised emence Swells & waves which almost entered our Encampment morng. dark & Disagreeable, a Supriseing Climent. We have not had One cold day Since we passed below the last falls or great Shute & Some time before the Climent is temperate, and the only change we have experienced is from fair weather to rainey windey weather— I made a chief & gave a medel this man is name Tow-wâll and appears to have Some influence with the nation and tells me he lives at the great Shute— [3] we gave the Squar a Coate of Blue Cloth for the belt of Blue Beeds we gave for the Sea otter Skins purchased of an Indian. at 12 oClock it began to rain, and continued moderately all day, Some wind from the S. E., waves too high for us to proceed on our homeward bound journey. Latitude of this place is 46° 19' 11 1/10" North Several Indians and Squars came this evening I beleave for the purpose of gratifying the passions of our men, Those people appear to View 〈horedom〉 Sensuality as a necessary evile, and do not appear to abhore this as Crime in the unmarried females. The young women Sport openly with our men, and appear to receive the approbation of their friends & relations for So doing maney of the women are handsom. They are all low both men and women, I saw the name of J. Bowmon marked or picked on a young Squars left arm. The women of this nation Pick their legs in different figures as an orniment. the[y] were their hair loose, Some trinkets in their ears, none in the nose as those above, their Dress is as follows, i,e the men, were a roabe of either the skins of [blank] a Small fured animal, & which is most common, or the Skins of the Sea orter, Loon, Swan, Beaver, [4] Deer, Elk, or blanketes either red, blu, or white, which roabes cover the sholders arms & body, all other parts are nakd.
The women were a Short peticoat of the iner bark of the white Ceder or Arber Vita, which hang down loose in Strings nearly as low as the knee, with a Short Robe which fall half way down the Thigh. no other part is Covered. The orniments are beeds, Blue principally, large Brass wire around their rists Som rings, and maney men have Salors Clothes, many have good fusees & Ball & Powder— The women ware a String of Something curious tied tight above the anckle, all have large Swelled legs & thighs The men Small legs & thighs and Generally badly made— [5] They live on Elk Deer fowls, but principally fish and roots of 3 Kinds, Lickorish, Wapto &c. The women have more privaleges than is Common amongst Indians— Pocks & Venerial [X: venereous] is Common amongst them [6] I Saw one man & one woman who appeared to be all in Scabs, & Several men with the venereal, their other Disorders and the remides for them I could not lern we divided Some ribin between the men of our party to bestow on their favourite Lasses, this plan to Save the knives & more valuable articles.
Those people gave me Sturgion Salmon & wapto roots, & we bought roots, 〈high bush Cranberies,〉 Some mats &c. &c. for which we were obliged to give emence prices— we also purchased a kind of Cranberry [7] which the Indians Say the geather in the low lands, off of Small either vines or bushes just abov the ground— we also purchased hats made of Grass &c. [8] of those Indians, Some very handsom mats made of flags— [9] Some fiew curious baskets made of a Strong weed & willow or [blank] Splits— [10], also a Sweet Soft black root, [11] about th Sise & Shape of a Carrot, this root they Value verry highly— The Wapto root is Scerce, and highly valued by those people, this root they roste in hot ashes like a potato and the outer Skin peals off, tho this is a trouble they Seldom perform.
a cloudy morning most of the Chinnooks leave our Camp and return home, great numbers of the dark brant passing to the South, the white Brant have not yet commenced their flight. The wind blew hard from the S. E. which with the addition of the flood tide raised verry high waves which broke with great violence against the Shore throwing water into our Camp— the fore part of this day Cloudy at 12 oClock it began to rain and Continued all day moderately, Several Indians Visit us to day of different nations or Bands Some of the Chiltz Nation who reside on the Sea Coast near Point Lewis, Several of the Clotsops who reside on the opposit Side of the Columbia imediately opposit to us, and a Chief from the Grand rapid to whome we gave a Medal.
An old woman & wife to a Cheif of the Chinnooks [12] came and made a Camp near ours She brought with her 6 young Squars [NB: her daughters & nieces] I believe for the purpose of gratifying the passions of the men of our party and receving for those indulgiences Such Small as She (the old woman) thought proper to accept of, Those people appear to view Sensuality as a Necessary evel, and do not appear to abhor it as a Crime in the unmarried State— The young females are fond of the attention of our men and appear to meet the sincere approbation of their friends and connections, for thus obtaining their favours; the womin of the Chinnook Nation have handsom faces low and badly made with large legs & thighs which are generally Swelled from a Stopage of the circulation in the feet (which are Small) by maney Strands of Beeds or curious Strings which are drawn tight around the leg above the anckle, their leges are also picked with different figures, I Saw on the left arm of a Squar the following letters J. Bowmon, all those are Considered by the natives of this quarter as handsom deckerations, and a woman without those deckorations is Considered as among the lower Class they ware their hair lose hanging over their back and Sholders maney have blue beeds 〈in〉 threaded & hung from different parts of their ears and about their neck and around their wrists, their dress other wise is prosisely like that of the Nation of Wa ci a cum as already discribed. a Short roab, and tissue or kind of peticoat of the bark of Cedar which fall down in Strings as low as the knee behind and not So low before maney of the men have blankets of red blue or Spotted Cloth or the common three & 2½ point blankets, [13] and Salors old clothes which they appear to prise highly, they also have robes of Sea Otter, Beaver, Elk, Deer, fox and Cat [14] common to this countrey, which I have never Seen in the U States. They also precure a roabe from the nativs above, which is made of the Skins of a Small animal [15] about the Size of a Cat, which is light and dureable and highly prized by those people— the greater numbers of the men of the Chinnoks have Guns and powder and Ball— The Men are low homely and badly made, Small Crooked legs 〈and Small thighs〉 large feet, and all of both Sects have flattened heads— The food of this nation is principally fish & roots the fish they precure from the river by the means of nets and gigs, and the Salmon which run up the Small branches together with what they collect drifted up on the Shores of the Sea coast near to where they live—
The roots which they use are Several different kinds, the Wappato which they precure from the nativs above, a black root which they call Shaw-na tâh que [16] & the wild licquorish is the most Common, they also kill a fiew Elk Deer & fowl— maney of the Chinnooks appear to have venerious and pustelus disorders. one woman whome I saw at the beech appeared all over in Scabs and ulsers &c.
we gave to the men each a pece of ribin We purchased Cramberies Mats verry netely made of flags and rushes, Some roots, Salmon and I purchased a hat made of Splits & Strong grass, which is made in the fashion which was common in the U States two years ago also Small baskets to hold Water made of Split and Straw, for those articles we gave high prices—. [17]
Thursday 21st Nov. 1805. a cloudy and a little rain The Latitude of Hailys bay or at our Incampment at the point above is 46° 19' 11 7/10" Min North. the Natives value their Sea otter Skins verry high. our officers being anxious to purchase a robe made of two of those animels, they offered great prices in cloaths trinkets &C. but they would not take any thing except blue beeds. at length they purchasd the Robe for a beeded belt which our Intrepters Squaw had these animels are Scarse & hard to kill.
Thursday 21st. A cloudy morning. About 8 o'clock, all the natives left us. The wind blew so violent to day, and the waves ran so high, that we could not set out on our return, which it is our intention to do as soon as the weather and water will permit. The season being so far advanced, we wish to establish our winter quarters as soon as possible. One of the natives here had a robe of sea-otter skins, of the finest fur I ever saw; which the Commanding Officers wanted very much, and offered two blankets for it, which the owner refused, and said he would not take five. He wanted beads of a blue colour, of which we had none, but some that were on a belt belonging to our interpreter's squaw; so they gave him the belt for the skins. In the evening more of the natives came to our camp, and the night was very wet and disagreeable.
Thursday Novemr 23d [18] A Cloudy morning, and a light sprinkling of rain fell. The Indians all left our Camp. Two of our hunters left the Camp to go out ahunting. The Swell in the River ran so high that it detain'd us, at our Camp from going up the River again, to look out for Winter Quarters, which our officers intended as soon as the Weather would permit, and the Season of the Year advancing made it absolutely necessary that it should be the case.— The Season of the Year, is generally cold at this place, but at the present time it was very pleasant. We are now convinced that the wide part of the River, or bay we entered into a few days past; is a bay only, and is called Haleys bay the Latitude is as follows of the point above the said Bay, & Bay; both these lying in the same Latitude which is 46° 19' 7S North. The Indians here, set a high value on the Sea Otter skins. Our officers were very anxious to purchase 〈an〉 a Robe made out of the Skins of two of these animals. They offered the Indians a great price in Cloths & trinkets for it; but they refused their offer, & would take nothing but beads for them. They at last offered to let them have it for 5 New blankets, which our Officers would not give them. They at last purchas'd it from them for a Belt which had a number of beads on it, which our officers procured from the Indian woman our Interpreter, which we got at the Mandan Nation, as Interpreter to the Snake nation; who is still with us. I mention this in Order to show the high value that they set on these Skins, which were very beautiful.—
I also mention this circumstance, in order, to show the very high value, they also set on Beads. The Sea Otter is plenty, between this and the great falls of the Columbia River; but are very difficult to be got. They are rarely to be caught in traps, & when shot they sink immediately, which makes the procuring of them so difficult. The evening was rainey & a number of Indians both Male & female came to our Camp this evening.—
Created by the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities
in partnership with the University of Nebraska Press
and funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities.