THE MISSOURI RIVER JOURNALS 499 



Snakes are a perfect cure for the headache ; also, that 

 they never die till after sunset, etc. We have dis- 

 covered the female of Harris's Finch, which, as well as in 

 the White-crowned Finch, resembles the male almost 

 entirely; it is only a very little paler in its markings. I 

 am truly proud to name it Fringilla Harrisii, In honor 

 of one of the best friends I have in this world. 



May 18, Thursday. Our good captain called us all up 

 at a quarter before four this fair morning, to tell us that 

 four barges had arrived from Fort Pierre, and that we 

 might write a few letters, which Mr. Laidlaw,^ one of the 

 partners, would take to St. Louis for us. I was intro- 

 duced to that gentleman and also to Major Dripps,^ the 

 Indian agent. I wrote four short letters, which I put in 

 an envelope addressed to the Messieurs Chouteau & Co., 

 of St. Louis, who will post them, and we have hopes that 

 some may reach their destination. The names of these 

 four boats are "War Eagle," "White Cloud," "Crow 

 feather," and "Red-fish." We went on board one of 

 them, and found it comfortable enough. They had ten 

 thousand Buffalo robes on the four boats; the men live 

 entirely on Buffalo meat and pemmican. They told us that 

 about a hundred miles above us the Buffalo were by thou- 

 sands, that the prairies were covered with dead calves, 

 and the shores lined with dead of all sorts; that Antelopes 

 were there also, and a great number of Wolves, etc. ; 

 therefore we shall see them after a while. Mr. Laidlaw 



^ Wm. Laidlaw was a member of the Columbia Fur Company at the 

 time of its absorption by the Western Department of the American Fur 

 Company, his service with the latter being mainly at Fort Pierre. With 

 the exception, perhaps, of Kenneth McKenzie, also of the Columbia Fur 

 Company, Laidlaw was the ablest of the Upper Missouri traders. 



2 This is Andrew Dripps, one of the early traders, long associated with 

 Lucien Fontenelle, under the firm name of Fontenelle and Dripps, in the 

 Rocky Mountain Fur Trade. In later years he was appointed Indian 

 Agent, and was serving in that capacity during the " Omega " voyage of 

 1843. — E.G. 



