270 Sketch of the Life of M?\ David Douglas. 



that quarter, should have at once broken out with such violence 

 without any apparent reason. The banks of the river were un- 

 changed, with the exception of about 100 acres of land, which had 

 been only gradually brought into cultivation at the farm of Fort 

 Vancouver. What possible eJBfect could this cultivation have had 

 on points thirty and fifty miles distant, where the complaint was 

 equally prevalent ? The disease has taken permanent root in that 

 district of country. All at the establishment were sufferers by the 

 unwelcome visitation, and Douglas was ill like others, but being 

 something of a leech, had an early recovery, and recruited per- 

 fectly by following up his wonted healthful perambulations. He 

 this season had added nearly one hundred new species of plants 

 to his former discoveries. 



I have a letter from him dated Fort Vancouver, August 4th, 

 part of which I shall transcribe, as it partakes much of his lively 

 style. 



" Ere sundown on the day I left you, we encamped on the 

 small gravelly island three-fourths of a mile below Day's River. 

 The latitude of that stream, that is its junction with the Colum- 

 bia, from two meridional observations of stars, and one observa- 

 tion of the polar star near the meridian, gave me 45^, 43', 12" N, 



" Tuesday evening took us to the Cascades, the land of my 

 little vain Indian Chumtalia. It was Hyass '^ Sunday with him. 

 The whole earth from the east and from the west, from the most 

 distant parts, had congregated to make mirth with him, and to 

 Patchatch j on the never-to-be-forgotten occasion of the perfora- 

 ting the septum of his young daughter's nose, and piercing her 

 ears. It would have been very ungallant to the young lady, as 

 well as ungracious towards the father, to have pressed him or any 

 of his band, to go with me to the mountain at such a time. I 

 therefore deprived myself of that pleasure and proceeded to Fort 

 Vancouver, where I arrived on Wednesday at kail time. Chum- 

 talia in six days more, comes for me in his large canoe. You may 

 look upon 121^ 07' 07" W., as a very close approximation to truth, 

 for the longitude of the upper throat of the dalles. Latitude 45° 

 37', 47", as ascending with you, verified to my entire satisfaction 

 on my return. The centre of the portage of the Cascades, lati- 

 tude 45'^, 39', 30", the mean of several observations. Longitude 

 121°, 58', 00' 



\'f 



Hyass, great, f Patchatch, supposed to mean feast. 



