224 Expedition to the 



shot. After accomplishing a distance of ten miles we pitch- 

 ed our camp on the river bank. Here the stream turns rather 

 abruptly to the east, after having preserved a southerly and 

 south of west direction for a considerable distance. A co- 

 pious stream of water, called Neslietongo, or Grand Sa- 

 line, flows into the river at this point, nearly opposite to our 

 camp. 



Supped on a few bread crumbs boiled in water. A black 

 wolf, the first seen since our departure from the Missouri, 

 made his appearance in the distance, 



22nd. Three of the horses having strayed, detained us 

 until eight o'clock, when a fall of rain commenced, which 

 continued during the morning, and wet us thoroughly to the 

 skin. A few hostile Indians, aware of our condition, might, 

 perhaps, have disappointed our hopes of a safe return to the 

 settlements, inasmuch as the rain had rendered our arms 

 and ammunition completely unfit for use, and left us de- 

 fenceless. 



A note, like that of the prairie dog, for a moment induced 

 the belief that a village of the marmot was near; but we were 

 soon undeceived by the appearance of the beautiful Tyran- 

 nus forjicutiis in full pursuit of a crow. Not at first view 

 recognizing the bird, the fine, elongated tail plumes, occa- 

 sionally diverging in a furcate manner and again closing 

 together to give direction to the aerial evolutions of the bird, 

 seemed like the extraneous processes of dried grass, or twigs 

 of a tree, adventitiously attached to the tail, and influenced 

 by currents of wind. The feathered warrior flew forward to 

 a tree, from whence at our too near approach he descended 

 to the earth at a little distance, continuing at intervals his 

 chirping note. This bird seems to be rather rare in this 

 region, and as the very powder within the barrels of our 

 guns was wet, we were obliged to content ourselves with 

 only a distant view of the bird. 



The river margin, on which we held our course, has 



