94 
bank grew arbres de judee, whose blossoms resemble those of the 
peach-tree, and near them blossoming white-thorns. 
The water in the Ohio had risen very much for some days, and 
poured with force into the Mississippi; this circumstance assisted 
our progress, since above the junction we had a weaker stream 
to contend with. At ten o’clock at night we reached a little town 
on the right bank, Cape Girardeau, where Mr. Vallais had some 
goods to land. This place is situated on a high bank, and ap¬ 
pears to be thriving and well built, in a fruitful and tolerably 
populous district. On account of the numerous snags under wa¬ 
ter and the sawyers, the navigation during the night would have 
been dangerous, we therefore spent the night at Cape Girardeau. 
There are here several examples of unlucky steam-boats. The 
place is one hundred and thirty-two miles from St. Louis. 
On the 5th of April we were set in motion before daybreak, 
and stopped towards morning at a group of five wooden houses, 
called the town of Bainbridge, one hundred and twenty-two miles 
from St. Louis, on the right bank. Again goods were landed, 
and wood taken in. In the outset of our day’s trip, the shores 
became higher. Upon the right side we saw sandstone rock, 
probably forty feet high; they were partly worn with water, and 
had singular forms. One of these rocks, which stands alone, is 
called the Devil’s tea-table. Farther the river is compressed in 
its course between two ledges of rock, of which one is called the 
Devil’s bake-oven, where several steam-boats have gone down. 
The current is here very strong. On the right bank rises a soli¬ 
tary rock named the Tower, resembling very much an old for¬ 
tress. It must be about one hundred feet in circumference, and 
one hundred and fifty feet high. The river became by degrees 
narrower. The vegetation continued still more backward. To¬ 
wards evening, we encountered a very heavy storm, that lasted, 
with severe thunder, rain and hail, for a couple of hours. On 
this account we could advance no farther without danger, and 
remained during the night on the right bank near the Saline 
River’s mouth, sixty-nine miles and a half distant from St. Louis. 
On this river considerable and profitable salt works are established. 
On the sixth of April, we moved again before daybreak. The 
storm of yesterday had cooled the air very perceptibly. After 
we had advanced five miles farther, we stopt on the left bank. 
An establishment was placed there, Simonton’sWarehouse, where 
the goods intended for Kaskaskia were landed, which is a town 
in the state of Illinois, lying on the river Ouwa or Kaskaskia, two 
miles from the warehouse: we soon got under way again. The 
country on the right bank was very well cultivated. On a small 
eminence we beheld the little town of St. Genevieve. This place 
