Several
Indians came down from the village of Tunnachemootoolt and passed the
night with us. Cut-nose and Twisted-hair seem now perfectly reconciled,
for they both slept in the house of the latter. The man who had imposed
himself upon us as a brother of Twisted-hair also came and renewed his
advances, but we now found that he was an impertinent, proud fellow, of
no respectability in the nation, and we therefore felt no inclination to
cultivate his intimacy. Our camp was in an open plain, and soon became
very uncomfortable, for the wind was high and cold, and the rain and
hail, which began about seven o'clock, changed in two hours to a heavy
fall of snow, which continued till after six o'clock (May 10th), the
next morning, when it ceased, after covering the ground eight inches
deep and leaving the air keen and cold. We soon collected our horses,
and after a scanty breakfast of roots set out on a course S. 35'0 E."
They were now following the general course of the Kooskooskee, or
Clearwater, as the stream is called, and their route lay in what is now
Nez Perce County, Idaho. They have passed the site of the present city
of Lewiston, named for Captain Lewis. They have arrived in a region
inhabited by the friendly Chopunnish, or Nez Perce, several villages
of which nation were scattered around the camp of the white men. The
narrative says:
"We soon collected the men of consideration, and after smoking,
explained how destitute we were of provisions. The chief spoke to the
people, who immediately brought two bushels of dried quamash-roots, some
cakes of the roots of cows, and a dried salmon-trout; we thanked them
for this supply, but observed that, not being accustomed to live on
roots alone, we feared that such diet might make our men sick, and
therefore proposed to exchange one of our good horses, which was rather
poor, for one that was fatter, and which we might kill.
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