1861.] BOTANY OF THE RED RIVER. 215 



Society. From want of the necessary material, they were rather 

 imperfectly prepared, but may perhaps serve to give a general 

 idea of the botany of the immediate vicinity of the Fort. On 

 referring to the list it will be observed that here, as in other 

 prairie land, the richest family is the Composite, many species 

 of which are found. At the Fort we have not only the ordinary 

 prairie Composites, but a great abundance of such plants as 

 Artemisia Absinthium, especially on the drier and higher parts. 

 Next in frequency come the CrucifercB, which generally follow 

 man ; these are abundant in the immediate vicinity of the Fort. 

 There are many species of Rosacees and LeguminosiE, truly indi- 

 genous ; UmbelliferiB are not unfrequent, and we have interesting 

 representatives of Ranunculacete, XanthoxylacecB, Violaceee, Balsa- 

 minacea, Caprifoliacea, Rubiacece, etc. The timber trees near 

 the Fort are small groves of Aspen and Balsam Poplar, and on 

 the banks of the rivers, Oak, Ash, Elm, Maple, Aspen^ and 

 Balsam Poplar." 



The author graphically describes his journey, which abounded 

 in adventures, dangers, and other excitements, observing the 

 zoology as well as the botany of the trail, as it is called, between 

 the settlement and Canada. At Detroit Lake he met with a 

 party of Ojibway Indians, with whom our traveller and his com- 

 pany exchanged tea, tobacco, etc., for fish, which the Red-meu 

 caught in great abundance. 



" After leaving the lake," he proceeds, " the trail passes through 

 many miles of dense woods, consisting chiefly of Oak and other 

 hard woods. In these woods, and southward, is found the Gin- 

 seng [Aralia quinquefoliu) [? Panax quinquefolium, L.] . Crossing 

 Otter-tail River, Rush Lake, and some small streams, we finally 

 arrived at civilization again, in the shape of a collection of a 

 dozen of houses, named in Minnesota maps Otter-tail City, and 

 inhabited by travellers who purchase the furs of the Chippe- 

 ways. After taking dinner here at a two-roomed hotel, for which 

 we paid two dollars, we left tbe city and crossed Leaf Mountain, 

 the heights of land or apex of the two great watersheds of the 

 Red and Mississippi valleys. Here, as on the rest of the route, 

 the prevailing timber was Pine and Spruce, with occasional 

 Tamarac swamps. The trail here followed down the course of 

 Leaf River till it empties into the Crow-wing River. Here the 

 trail ended, and, crossing this river in a scow, we had now a 



