NARRATIVE OF 1853. 149 
trip to Colville, and that he would himself bring the survey of the main party, all through in 
good order to our point of meeting. There seemed to be nothing to prevent carrying out the 
programme which I had determined upon at Colville. Lieutenant Donelson arrived on the 
28th, and soon we all sat down to a fine supper prepared for the occasion, All the members 
of the exploration were in fine spirits; our table was spread under canopy, and upon it a great 
variety of dishes appeared—roasted beef, bouilli, steaks, and abundance of hot bread, coffee, 
sugar, and our friend McDonald’s good cheer. But the best dish was a beef’s head, cooked by 
friend Minter in Texas fashion. It was placed in a hole in the ground, on a layer of hot 
stones, with moss and leaves around it to protect it from the dirt, and then covered up. There 
it remained for some five or six hours, when removing it from the place where it was deposited 
the skin came off without difficulty, and it presented a very tempting dish, and was enjoyed by 
every member of the party. 
The question now was, were our animals ready for the journey? Those of Lieutenant 
Donelson were carefully inspected by myself, and were generally thin and leg-weary; and 
believing that it might be practicable to run from the Sound to the Sno-qual-moo Pass, and 
thus make the connexion, I was unwilling, after so much labor and fatigue had been gone 
through with, to assign the gentlemen to duty, when they did not have confidence in their 
means, unless it was a case of imperative necessity. I requested the gentlemen whom I 
proposed to put in charge of these operations—Captain McClellan and Lieutenant Donelson— 
to inspect the animals and give me their judgment as to whether they would be willing to go 
on with the duty which I had in mind, with such means as I could furnish them. Whilst both 
were ready cheerfully to conform to any direction, they did not desire to go upon the duty; 
and accordingly, somewhat reluctantly, I determined to send the whole party to the Walla- 
Walla, thence to the Dalles and Vancouver, and thence to Olympia, making carefully a survey 
of the country on the route. I will here observe that all the gentlemen were too much 
influenced in their judgment by the belief that snows would fall early and deep in the Sno- 
qual-moo Pass, and on the route from the Coeur а Aléne, under the base of the Bitter Root, to 
the Walla-Walla. The little fall of snow which I have mentioned—although in snow countries 
it is simply an incident of the fall, having nothing to do with betokening the approach of 
winter, but rather indicating, if anything, a late winter—had not been appreciated, and was 
thought to indicate that winter was already upon us. The necessary instructions were issued 
accordingly. І sent word by an Indian expressman to Lieutenant Arnold, at Colville, informing 
him of the arrangements, and also letters to Lieutenant Mullan and Mr. Tinkham, at Fort 
Owen; for I was now satisfied, from what I had gathered up on the route, that Mr. Tinkham 
would find great difficulty in moving over the southern Nez Percés trail to Fort Walla-Walla 
in December. The fall of snow varies exceedingly at short distances apart on the Bitter Root 
mountains, as I had then reason to believe, and as was afterwards demonstrated. I still 
desired that Lieutenant Donelson should go up the Cœur d'Aléne, although all the other 
parties went on the direct route, but he did not desire to do this. And I will again observe, 
that had I possessed at Camp Washington information which I gained in six days afterwards 
at Walla-Walla, I should have pushed the party over the Cascades in the present condition й 
the animals ; but Captain McClellan was entitled to weight in his judgment of the route, it 
being upon the special field of his examination. 
Having secured the services of Garry and his brother to accompany us, at 4 o’clock p. m. 
we left Camp Washington, and proceeding a little south of east, ascended a succession of un- 
