136 



COLUMBIA RIVER. 



These planks were placed upright, and nothing could be learned of 

 their origin. The colours were exceedingly bright, of a kind of red 

 pigment. 



CARVED PLANKS. 



In descending the Chickeeles the next morning, they soon per- 

 ceived by its shores that there was an ebb and flow of the waters. 

 Mr. Eld tried its current, and found it setting flood about one fathom 

 per hour. As they proceeded, the shores lost some of their luxuriance 

 of foliage, the banks had become high, and so muddy that they had 

 some little difficulty in finding a suitable place to encamp. Some 

 talcon slate was seen to compose the bluffs on the south side of the 

 river, but it was so soft and fragile that it could not be brought away. 

 The only natives seen this day were two miserable-looking beings of 

 the Chickeeles tribe, but they could not understand the interpreter 

 Joe, either in the Nisqually or Chinook dialect. The party en- 

 camped in a hemlock grove, so thick as to render it impossible for 

 the usual nightly observations to be taken. The surf was distinctly 

 audible from the camp during the night. 



On the 31st, after passing two elbows in the river, the cape on the 

 south of the entrance to Gray's Harbour was seen. The flood-tide 

 was very strong against them, so that they made but slow progress, 

 and as they opened out the harbour and entered it, they found a strong 

 southwest wind blowing, which caused a short and disagreeable sea, 

 that very nearly swamped their small canoe, and obliged them to run 

 for the lee shore. Here all the things were taken out and placed to 

 dry, on one of the huge trees that had been brought down by the 

 freshets. From this awkward situation they were relieved by the old 

 squaw chief, who had preceded them from Nisqually. She came 

 over in her large canoe, with ten Indians, and offered to carry the 



