A History of Oregon, 1792-1849. Gray William Henry

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СКАЧАТЬ the mission party while at rendezvous, and as often as any of these mountain men met him at the mission camp, he would leave without ceremony. There appeared a mutual dislike, a sort of hatred between them. This chief trader of the Hudson’s Bay Company, in the conversations had with him, informed the mission party that it was not the wish of the company to encourage any of these mountain hunters and trappers to go to the Columbia River to settle, or to have any thing to do with them, assigning as a reason that they would cause trouble and difficulties with the Indians. He also gave them to understand that should they need manual labor, or men to assist them in putting up their houses and making their improvements, the company would prefer to furnish it, to encouraging these men in going into the country. This intimation was distinctly conveyed to the party, with the advice and intimations received from Captain Wyeth, who had seen and understood all the policy of the Hudson’s Bay Company, and had been compelled to sell his improvements at Fort Hall to this same McLeod, and his goods designed for the trade to Dr. McLaughlin, soon after their arrival in the country. These facts and statements, with the decided manner of Mr. McLeod, compelled the mission party to defer any effort for these mountain men, but subsequently they advised the sending of a man to travel with their camps.

      CHAPTER XVI

      Missionaries travel in company with Hudson’s Bay Company’s party. – The Lawyer’s kindness. – Arrival at Fort Hall. – Description of the country. – The Salmon Indians. – The Hudson’s Bay Company’s tariff.

      Letters all written to friends, and everybody supposed to have any particular interest in the person or individual who wrote them; the letters placed in the hands of Captain Wyeth; mission camp overhauled and assorted; all goods supposed unnecessary, or that could be replaced, such as irons for plows, blacksmith’s tools, useless kettles, etc., etc., disposed of. (All articles left, the party were careful to learn, could be had at Vancouver of the Hudson’s Bay Company, or Methodist Mission, at reasonable prices.) Tents struck; good-byes said; over the party goes to Horse Creek, not far from the Nez Percé camp, where we found that of McLeod and McKay. Soon after we reached camp, along comes Dr. Whitman with his wagon, notwithstanding all parties and persons, except the Indians, advised him to leave it. He was literally alone in his determination to get his old wagon through on to the waters of the Columbia, and to the mission station that might be established no one knew where. The man that says Dr. Whitman is fickle-minded, knows nothing of his character and less of his moral worth.

      Next day, all camps, including those of the Flathead and Nez Percé Indians, were “raised,” as the expression is, and on we went; the Hudson’s Bay Company and mission camp, or caravan, together, Dr. Whitman in charge of his wagon, with some Indians to help him. They seemed rather to get the Doctor’s ideas of this chick-chick-shauile-kai-kash (iron rolling carriage), and hunted a road around the bad places, and helped him along when he required their assistance. Our route was nearly the same as the great overland route to Bear River and Soda Springs.

      Two days before we reached Soda Springs one of the mission party became quite unwell, and unable to sit upon his horse. He was left, at his own request, on a little stream, while the caravan passed on some six miles further to camp. After remaining alone and resting some two hours, The Lawyer and an Indian companion of his came along, picked up the sick man, put him upon a strong horse, got on behind him, and held him on till they reached camp. Dr. Whitman gave him a prescription, which relieved him, so that next day he was able to continue the journey with the camp. This transaction has always been a mystery to the writer. The place where the sick man was left was a beautiful stream, and a good place for a camp for the whole caravan. The sick man was wholly unable to proceed; did not ask the caravan to stop and bury him, but simply informed them he could proceed no further; his strength was gone; they could leave him to die alone if they chose. A word from McLeod would have stopped the caravan. Should the mission party remain with him? He said: “No; go on with the caravan and leave me; you will be compelled to seek your own safety in continuing with the caravan; I am but an individual; leave me to my fate.” He requested a cup that he might get some water from the stream, close to the side of which he wished them to place him. Dr. Whitman remained with him as long as was deemed safe for him, and passed on to overtake the caravan. The Lawyer and his companion came along two or three hours afterward, picked up the dying or dead man (for aught the caravan knew), and brought him into camp. My impression of this transaction has always been that McLeod wished to get rid of this young American, who was then in the service of the mission party.

      “That d – d Indian, Lawyer,” as the Hudson’s Bay Company’s men called him, by his kindness of heart and determination not to let an American die if he could help it, defeated the implied wish of these Hudson’s Bay Company’s men in this case. The Lawyer says the sick man vomited all the way into camp, and called for water, which his young man got for him.

      From the Soda Springs the Indian camps went north into the mountains for buffalo.

      The Hudson’s Bay Company and mission party continued their journey through the spurs of the mountains over on to the waters of the Portneuf to Fort Hall. It is due to Dr. Whitman to say that notwithstanding this was the most difficult route we had to travel, yet he persevered with his old wagon, without any particular assistance; from Soda Springs to Fort Hall his labor was immense, yet he overcame every difficulty and brought it safe through. I have thrice since traveled the same route, and confess I can not see how he did it, notwithstanding I was with him, and know he brought the wagon through.

      Fort Hall, in 1836, was a stockade, made of cotton-wood logs, about twelve feet long, set some two feet in the ground, with a piece of timber pinned near the top, running entirely around the stockade, which was about sixty feet square. The stores and quarters for the men were built inside with poles, brush, grass, and dirt for covering, stamped down so as to partially shed rain, and permit the guards to be upon the tops of the quarters and see over the top of the stockade. It is situated on an extensive level plain or flat, with spurs of the Rocky Mountains on the east, at the distance of thirty miles, high ranges of barren sage hills on the south, some eight miles distant. As you leave the flat level bottom formed by the Snake and Portneuf rivers, all along its banks it is skirted with a fine growth of cotton-wood, relieving the landscape and forming a beautiful contrast to the high barren plains beyond. To the west is the valley of the Snake River, from thirty to sixty miles wide, a high, sandy, and barren sage plain. This valley is bounded on the south by a low range of hills, running from northwest to southeast. On the north side of Fort Hall is an extensive high plain; this plain is, from Fort Hall, across it, full forty miles. The only objects that meet the eye on this extensive plain are three high basaltic buttes or mountains thrown up near its center. At the foot of the one a little to the south and west of the two rounder and equally prominent ones, is a fine spring of water. In 1837, the writer, in his explorations of the country, was anxious to learn more than was then known of the character of this great basin in the mountains, having the year previous entered it by way of Soda Springs and Portneuf. This time he came into it from the north by Codie’s Defile, and concluded he would take a straight course and pass between the two northeastern buttes, and reach Snake River near Fort Hall. His Indian guide objected; still, as we had good horses, and were traveling light, we took the precaution to water our animals before entering this plain. We were twenty-six hours on horseback, having stopped but six hours to rest; we tied our horses to the sage brush, to prevent them from leaving us to hunt for water. Not a drop did we find on our route till we reached Snake River, thirty-two hours from the time we left running water on the north and west sides of this plain. In our course we found nothing but barren, basaltic rock, sand, and sage. It is possible, had we turned to the right or left, we might have found water, but I saw nothing that gave indications that water was near; on the contrary, I noticed that the fine stream at which we watered our animals sank into the rocks, leaving no marks of a channel to any great distance. In fact, my impression was, after twelve hours’ ride, that it was useless to spend our time and strength to hunt for water, and kept our course. Jaded and fatigued as our animals were, as we approached Snake River every nerve seemed strung to the utmost; our animals became frantic and unmanageable; they rushed forward at full speed and plunged into СКАЧАТЬ