n6 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



from the Mississippi Valley. The latter was entered through the 

 Cantaguma or Sandy Lake River. From this point the source of 

 the Mississippi was sought up rapids and falls and through lakes 

 and savannahs, in which the channel winds. We passed the inlet 

 of Leech Lake, which was fixed upon by Lieutenant Pike as its 

 probable source, and traced it through Little Lake Winnipeg to 

 the inlet of Turtle Lake in upper Red Cedar or Cass Lake in lati- 

 tude 47°. On reaching this point the waters were found unfavor- 

 able to proceeding higher. The river was then descended to the 

 falls of St. Anthony, St. Peter's, and Prairie du Chien. From the 

 latter point we ascended the Wisconsin to the portage into Fox 

 River, and descended the latter to Green Bay." At this point the 

 expedition was divided. The party to which Mr. Schoolcraft was 

 attached proceeded to Chicago, thence traced the eastern coast of 

 Michigan, and rejoined the other party, which had gone north 

 to trace the shores to Michilimackinack. About four thou- 

 sand miles were traversed. Reports were made to the Govern- 

 ment by Mr. Schoolcraft on the mineralogy and geology of the 

 region ; on the copper deposits of Lake Superior ; on the botany, 

 fresh-water conchology, zoology, and ichthyology; soil, produc- 

 tions, and climate received attention ; and the Indian tribes were 

 subjects of observation by General Cass. " In short, no explora- 

 tion had before been made which so completely revealed the feat- 

 ures and physical geography of so large a portion of the public 

 domain." A new interest in mineralogy and geology was awak- 

 ened by this expedition, and Mr. Schoolcraft's narrative of it was 

 hurried into press under the pressure of the public clamor for its 

 results. The book was published in May, 1821. 



Mr. Schoolcraft shortly afterward embarked, with General Cass, 

 on another expedition. The route lay. from the present site of 

 Toledo, up the Miami of the lakes, down the Wabash and Ohio to 

 Shawneetown, overland across the " knobs " and prairies, taking 

 a famous locality of fluor-spar on the way, to St. Louis ; thence 

 up the Illinois to the rapids and on horseback to Chicago, stopping 

 to find the fossil tree in the bed of the Des Plaines. In Chicago, 

 a treaty was made with the Pottawattamies for the surrender of 

 about five million acres of land, to which Mr. Schoolcraft should 

 have given his signature among the others, but he was too ill — 

 { did not, indeed, ever expect to make another entry in a human 

 journal." The incidents and observations of the journey have 

 been published as Travels in the Central Portions of the Missis- 

 sippi Valley. In the next year (1822) Mr. Schoolcraft was ap- 

 pointed Indian agent at Sault Ste. Marie, of which he says, giving 

 his reasons for accepting it : "I had now attained a fixed posi- 

 tion ; not such as I desired in the outset and had striven for, but 

 one that offered an interesting class of duties, in the performance 



