316 Expedition to the 



The soil and climate of Red River are said to be peculiarly 

 adapted to the culture of cotton. The crop sometimes yields 

 twenty-five hundred pounds of seed cotton per acre, and this 

 of a quality inferior to none except the Sea island. 



Of the Vaseau or Boggy bayou, and the Blue River, two 

 considerable streams tributary to Red river next above the 

 Kiamesha, we have little information. They appear to enter 

 like what are called the north and south forks of the Cana- 

 dian, near the foot of the western slope of the Ozark moun- 

 tains. Above these, the principal tributary is the Faux Oua- 

 chitta, or False Washita, from the north, which has been 

 described to us by Mr. Findley, (an enterprising hunter, 

 whose pursuits often led him to visit its banks,) as bearing 

 a very near resemblance to the Canadian river of the Ar- 

 kansa. 



We are as yet ignorant of the true position of the sources 

 of Red river, but are well assured the long received opinion 

 that its principal branch rises " about thirty or forty miles 

 east of Santa Fe" is erroneous. 



Several persons have recently arrived at St. Louis in Mis- 

 souri, from Santa Fe, and among them, the brother of 

 Capt. Shreeves, who gives information of a large, frequented 

 road, which runs nearly due east from that place, and strikes 

 one of the branches of the Canadian, and that at a considera- 

 ble distance to the south of this point in the high plain, is the 

 principal source of Red river. His account confirms an 

 opinion which we had previously formed, namely, that the 

 branch of the Canadian explored by Major Long's party in 

 August, 1820, has its sources near those of some stream, 

 which descends towards the west, into the Rio del Norte, 

 and consequently that some other region must contain the 

 head of Red river. From a careful comparison of all the in- 

 formation we have been able to collect, we are satisfied that 

 the stream, on which we encamped on the 28th July, is 

 the Rio Raijo of Humboldt, long mistaken for the source 



