240 
NAVIGABILITY OF THE MISSOURI. 
it was noticed that some of the streams were impregnated with alum. The Indians, I was 
informed, powder and use the crystals of selenite for whitening their bead work. In an analogous 
manner they avail themselves, for ornamental or useful purposes, of other minerals, and even of 
plants. They use the roots of some plants for medicines; and of others, as for instance the 
“pomme de prairie,” they gather the pod, fruit or berry, to quench their thirst when unable to 
procure water. 
Above I have departed somewhat from the main subject, the description of the Missouri below 
Fort Pierre, for the purpose of stating some characteristics which are common to this and the 
next section of the river. On the 10th we found the general appearance of the Missouri and its 
banks not very different from what it was on the 9th. I was informed that past experience 
shows the navigation is much easier above than below the mouth of the Vermilion. 
We passed on the 10th the rivers Vermilion, Little Bow, and James. The first appeared to 
be about forty-five yards wide at its mouth; the James appeared only twenty yards wide, but 
is much more above the entrance; it is navigable for canoes, but it is not likely that it can be 
turned to a useful account as a navigable stream. It is important on account of its extent. 
On the 11th, 12th, and 13th, the Missouri continued of nearly the same character as here¬ 
tofore. The soil of the bottom was still rich, but was becoming less so as we ascended. 
On the 13th we passed Bazil creek, the river L’eau qui Court, and Poucah creek. The first 
is about seventy-five yards wide at its mouth; the second, two hundred and fifty yards; and the 
third, forty yards. The L’eau qui Court takes its rise at a lake about thirty miles from Fort 
Laramie; it is, when high, navigable for canoes. 
The preceding portion of this report was finished before I left Olympia. 
In coming from that place to Washington, I lost, as you are aware, most of my notes of the 
survey of the Missouri. 
What follows of the report is founded on such notes as I still have, consisting of the journal 
of Sergeant Collins, one of the members of the party ; a copy, taken in Olympia, of the meteoro¬ 
logical observations, and the original records of astronomical observations, and of collections made 
in the departments of natural history, geology, and botany. From these I think I can state all 
that is essential for the report. But I shall be unable to furnish you a map made as I have 
indicated ; and I cannot state the depths of the channel of the river as found by the soundings we 
took above the mouth of the Big Sioux. 
It has been remarked that, during a great part of our voyage, the river appeared tending to 
approach the western range of bluffs, leaving the greater part of the valley to the east of it. 
This remark will not apply above the mouth of the Vermilion ; above which point also the bluffs 
began to become closer to each other. On the 13th we first observed cedar trees growing in 
small numbers on the banks of the river. As there was moonlight on the night of the 13th, we 
travelled until about 11 o’clock. On the 14th we halted at about half-after 5 o’clock in the 
afternoon at Cedar island for the purpose of procuring wood ; we remained there all night. 
The island is about two miles long, and is covered with a thick growth of cedar, intermingled with 
cotton-wood; the soil is tolerably fertile; we found ripe strawberries in abundance. At about 
8 o’clock all the party but Sergeant Collins crossed the river to the right bank, for the purpose 
of taking observations and making collections. We found the bluffs very high, and rising from 
the river somewhat in the form of steps. In going about a mile and a half from the river, we 
ascended a succession of hills, each higher than the last; and when we began to return, the 
bluffs to the west of us still continued to rise. The highest point we reached was about six 
hundred and seventy-six feet above the river. We returned to the boat at 2 o’clock on 
the 15th; we were much delayed until about 9 a. m. by sand-bars. Having passed White 
river on the 16th, and on the 17th the American, we came to the “Great Bend,” a remarkable 
deflection, in which the river suddenly changes its course from east to northwest, then east, and 
then southwest. The boat halting at the foot of the “ Great Bend,” I sent a party across the 
