CHAPTER VIII. 



rf inter Cantonment near Council Bluff- — Councils xvith the 

 Otoes, Missouries, loxvays, Paxvnees, &c. 



The position selected for the establishment of winter 

 quarters for the exploring party, was on the west bank of 

 the Missouri, about half a mile above Fort Lisa, five miles 

 below Council Bluff, and three miles above the mouth of 

 Boyer's river. At this place we anchored on the 19th Sep- 

 tember, and in a few days, had made great progress in cut- 

 ting timber, quarrying stone, and other preparations for the 

 construction of quarters. 



Cliffs of sparry limestone rise in the rear of the site we 

 had selected, to an elevation of near three hundred feet.* 

 At times of low water, strata of horizontal sandstone, are 

 disclosed in the bed of the Missouri. These pass under 

 and support the limestone. Both these strata probably ex- 

 tend in connexion, some distance to the west ; but as they 

 are deeply covered with soil, we could not accurately ascertain 

 their boundary in that direction. On the map accompany- 

 ing the second volume of this work, we have traced a line 

 running from the Canadian river of the Arkansa, to the 

 Elk Horn, between 96° and 98° west longitude, and mark- 

 ing what we supposed nearly the westernmost limit of the 

 horizontal limestones, and the argillaceous sandstones, dis- 

 closed in the beds of the larger rivers. 



Both these strata, embrace numerous relicks of marine 

 animals, many of which we collected.f 



* Height o f the bluff ascertained by Lieut. Graham; 



Trigonometrically, ... 271 feet. 



Barometrically, - - - . 277 



f We add some notices of a few of the most important. 



1. Terebratula. — A specimen considerably resembling the T. subunda- 



