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.
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