NAVIGABILITY OF THE MISSOURI. 237 



of for purposes of navigation. The Missouri, near the mouth of the Platte, varies in width from 

 five hundred to a thousand yards. From that point to the mouth of the Kansas its general course 

 is south-southeast, and length two hundred and thirty-six miles. 



The two ranges of hills which limit the valley of the Missouri continue, above the mouth of 

 the Kansas, to be from seven to fifteen miles distant from each other, the eastern range touching 

 the river at Parkville, Weston, St. Joseph and Elizabeth, after which it does not approach it 

 until at Sergeant s hill; the western ranges at Fort Leavenworth and Independence prairie, after 

 which it is within three-quarters of a mile of the river to a point five miles below the mouth of 

 the Platte. These hills are from seventy-five to two hundred and fifty feet in height. 



It has been remarked that at Fort Leavenworth, and for some miles above that point, both 

 banks of the river are well wooded. The timber on the banks diminishes in quantity from 

 that place to near the mouth of the Platte. Thence northward it may be said that, while 

 the hills are thinly wooded with scrub oak, elm, and ash, and the immediate river banks skirted 

 with a belt of cotton- wood and willow, varying in width from a few hundred yards to two miles, 

 the space between this belt and the foot of the hills consists for the most part of prairies that 

 are level and bare of timber. 



What has been said with reference to the occurrence of ponds, sloughs, &c., in the river 

 bottoms, applies to this section of the river, although, I think, not to the same extent as in the 

 former case. 



The carboniferous limestone and coal measures form the principal geological formation of this 

 portion of the river. 



There is a ferry at Platteville, below the mouth of the Platte, which connects with a road to 

 the west. 



It may be well to state here that above St. Joseph our steamboat ceased to travel at night, 

 on account of the increased difficulties of the navigation. This necessity will, I think, be obvi 

 ated when the dangerous obstructions are removed, and a more thorough knowledge of the river 

 gained. It was found necessary to clean the boilers of the boat every second night, for the reason 

 that, as she stopped every night, there was a great deal of sediment from the muddy water. Or 

 dinarily, steamboats run from St. Louis to St. Joseph without having to stop for that purpose. 



The next section of the river to be considered is that which is included between the mouth 

 of the Platte and Fort Pierre. 



The Missouri, from Fort Pierre to the mouth of the Big Sioux, pursues a southeasterly direc 

 tion; and from the last-mentioned point to the mouth of the Platte it pursues a south-southeast 

 erly direction. The length of this section is about six hundred and thirty-eight miles. The dis 

 tances I have used are adopted from Nicollet s report, and are different from those in my former 

 report to you, which were the distances as estimated by the captains and pilots on the Missouri. 



We reached Bellevue at about seven o clock on the evening of the 2d of June, and remained 

 there all night. 



Good coal has been found on both banks of the river near this place. 



Council Bluff city, situated on the left bank, not far above Bellevue, is the last town seen in 

 ascending the Missouri. It is the ordinary head of steamboat navigation. At present there are 

 but about two steamboats which make regular voyages to Council Bluff city, and about twenty 

 which trade between St. Louis and St. Joseph. 



The river is open all the year as high as Boonville; above and to Council Bluff city there is 

 sometimes about a month in winter when it is closed by ice. 



On the 3d of June we passed a place called the Mormon Winter Quarters, which is a great 

 rendezvous for the Mormons prior to their starting for the Great Salt lake. 



There is a ferry here, as also at Bellevue and St. Mary s, Iowa. The road with which 

 they connect leads up the Platte to the fork, and thence up the North fork, uniting with the main 

 Oregon and California route near the Sweetwater, and not crossing the Platte at all. 



