454 PUGET SOUND AND OKONAGAN. 



Johnson; but this ceremony was unavoidably broken in upon by the 

 necessity of getting the meridian observations. The chief, however, 

 advanced towards him with every mark of friendship, giving the 

 party a hearty welcome. In person he was tall, straight, and thin, a 

 little bald, with long black hair hanging down his back, carefully 

 tied with a worsted rag. He was grave, but dignified and graceful. 

 When they had been seated, and after smoking a couple of pipes in 

 silence, he intimated that he was ready for a talk, which then followed, 

 relative to the rivers and face of the country ; but little information 

 was obtained that could be depended upon. 



This tribe subsist chiefly upon salmon and the cammass-root : game 

 is very scarce, and the beaver have all disappeared. The cammass- 

 root is pounded and made into a sort of cake, which is not unpleasant, 

 having a sweetish taste, but it is very dry, although some of the party 

 took a fancy to it. 



Tidias had with him an old man almost blind, who claimed much 

 respect, and two young men, whose dress of buckskin, profusely orna- 

 mented with beads, was much admired by the party. During the 

 talk, the old chief expressed himself delighted to see the white 

 men, and spoke of his own importance, his immense territory, &c., 

 in a style of boasting, to which the Indians are very much addicted. 

 He said that he was desirous of affording all the accommodation he 

 could to the party. But although he had eight or ten fine horses 

 with iiim, he would not agree to part with them, as they were all his 

 favourites. He was presented with a variety of articles, in return for 

 which he gave the party a few dried salmon. 



Towards evening, old Tidias took leave of them, saying that it was 

 not proper for an Indian to encamp in the same place with a white 

 man, and with a promise that he would have horses by ten o'clock 

 the next day; but he had a game to play by procrastinating, in 

 which he thoroughly succeeded. 



In the morning they reached the Indian camp below, but no horses 

 had arrived. It was far, they said, to Tidias's house ; a man could 

 not go thither and return in the same day ; no horses or salmon could 

 be brought; no one could be permitted to go. Lieutenant Johnson 

 was then told that the road he had to follow was a "hungry" road. 

 At last the Indian was induced by high offers to exchange good 

 horses for a great number of bad ones, and finally consented to part 

 with two more. On quitting him they became thoroughly aware 

 that all the difficulties were owing, not to any indisposition to sell. 



