Rocky Mountains, 241 



Swift further learned that the deserters during their short 

 stay at the village, had traded freely for provisions, with the 

 trinkets they found in our saddle bags, and although dres- 

 sed in our clothing, they appeared to imagine themselves 

 suspected to be not what they seemed. 



This idea was, in truth, well founded, for the Indians ob- 

 serving that they retained their guns constantly within their 

 grasp, even when partaking of the hospitality of the different 

 lodges, believed them to have committed some crime or out- 

 rage in consequence of which, they regarded themselves as 

 unsafe in any asylum. 



As the camp was about to move when Mr. Swift arrived 

 there, he now took his leave to return, but inadvertently de- 

 viating from the proper course, he struck the river several 

 miles above our camp. Clermont, meeting with his trail, per- 

 ceived at once that he had gone astray, and immediately de- 

 puted one of his sons to pilot him to our camp. 



In the acceptation of these Indians, white man and trader 

 appear to be synonymous, and many of those who visited us, 

 importuned us much to trade for leather, dried meat, pump- 

 kins, both dried and fresh, &c.; in exchange for which, they 

 desired our blankets, and even the clothing from our bo- 

 dies. ' 



The superiority of the hunting qualifications of the Indians 

 over those of our hunters, was obvious, in an instance which 

 occurred to-day. The corporal went to the forest for the 

 purpose of killing a deer, and it was not long before an In- 

 dian who accompanied him pointed out one ot those animals 

 in a favorable situation. The corporal fired, but thought he 

 had missed his object. The Osage, however, insisted that 

 the animal was mortally wounded, and advanced forward a 

 very considerable distance, where our hunter could see no- 

 thing of the usual sign of blood, or trodden grass, and found 

 the victim dead upon the ground. One of the party, on an 

 another occasion, saw an Osage shoot at a deer running, and 



VOL. II. 31 



