408 Expedition to the 



perceptible at a distance of one hundred yards. It probably 

 derives its mineral impregnation from some decomposition 

 in the alluvial substances, through which it rises to the sur- 

 face. 



Eight or ten miles west of St. Louis, forests of oak and 

 hickory begin to occur, and become more frequent towards 

 Alexandria and Bon Homme. At evening we descended 

 into the deep cotton-wood forests of the Missouri bottom, 

 and a little before sunset arrived on the bank of that majes- 

 tic river. Here we were politely received, and entertained in 

 the house of a gentleman formerly of New York. A large 

 and splendid collection of books, several articles of costly 

 furniture, and above all, manners and conversation, like those 

 of the better classes in our cities, formed here a striking con- 

 trast to the rude and solitary cabin, and the wild features of 

 nature, in a spot where the labours of men had as yet pro- 

 duced scarce a perceptible change. 



On the ensuing morning, May 5th, we crossed the Mis- 

 souri above Bon Homme. The forests on the north side of 

 the Missouri were here narrow, and confined principally to 

 the vallies. 



Pond fort where we halted to dine, was at this time the 

 residence of a single family. In the late war, the inhabitants 

 of the surrounding country had collected their families, and 

 their cattle, at this place, building their temporary residences 

 in the form of a hollow square, within which their cattle and 

 horses were enclosed at night. 



In the pond, which lies along the north side of the fort, 

 the nelumbium was growing in great perfection. Its broad 

 orbicular leaves are somewhat raised from the water, almost 

 concealing its surface. Its showy yellow flower, when fully 

 expanded, is larger, as remarked by Nuttall, than that of 

 any other plant indigenous to the United States, except the 

 Magnolia macrophylla. The nuts, of which there are several 

 immersed in the receptacle of each flower, have, when ripe, 



