Journal of a Tour into the Interior of Missouri and Arkansaw | Page 3

thinly covered with oaks, when we
suddenly descended into the valley of the Osage Fork of the Merrimack,
a stream equal in size to the Fourche ˆ Courtois, and having extensive
prairies all along its banks. On this stream we passed through a small
village of Delaware Indians, who are now all out hunting, except the
old men, women, and children. Four miles below the spot where we
crossed this stream, is situated a large village of the Shawanees, and
three miles above is another settlement of Delawares.
On leaving the valley of Osage Fork, we immediately entered on a hilly
barren tract, covered with high grass, and here and there clumps of
oak-trees. Soil poor, and covered with fragments of jaspery flint,
horn-stone, quartz, and detached masses of carbonate of lime. Such,
indeed, has been the character of the small stones under foot from
Potosi, but the ledges breaking out on hill sides have uniformly been
limestone, stratum upon stratum.
We encamped after dark in a small valley near a spring. Distance
eleven miles.
Monday, Nov. 9th
The sleep of the hunter is not sound, neither is his vigilance to be
eluded; and the anxiety he is kept in, from the fear of the Indian on the
one hand, and the approach of wild animals on the other, produces
constant wakefulness during the night. His horse and baggage also
demand occasional notice during the darkness of night, and he lies
down with his rifle in his arms, to be prepared for emergencies. An
instance of this vigilance occurred last night, and prevented a loss
which would, in our situation, have been irreparable. Our packhorse,
who, as usual, was turned loose to graze, accompanied by that of the
hunter, strayed off from our camp, but was not long gone, when missed

by Roberts, (the hunter) who awoke me, and we pur- sued, and
overtook them about three miles off, and brought them back to camp
before day-light. All this serves to increase our caution; and the farther
we proceed, the more serious would be any loss we might sustain,
either in our horse, guns, locks, ammunition, or any other article
necessary to our safety or subsistence. During the night we had several
times been disturbed by the approach of elk and deer, and as soon as
the day dawned, Roberts went out a short distance and killed a fine fat
doe, which he brought in on his shoulders, and we made a breakfast, for
the first time, on roasted deer's meat, with appetites sharpened by
exercise, which, while it invigorates the body, as we experience,
increases its alimentary capacities. Our route this day has been over
barrens and prairies, with occasional forests of oak, the soil poor, and
covered with grass, with very little under-brush. As evening
approached we entered the valley of Merrimack, which we followed up
for several miles, and encamped in a prairie near its source. Some good
bottom lands are found on its banks, but the adjoining hills are stony
and barren, covered with little timber and high grass. Within a mile of
its banks, on the Indian trace, we passed over large beds of iron ore,
accompanied by the black oxyd of manganese, specimens of which I
take along. The Merrimack is the only considerable stream which
enters the Mississippi on the west from the mouth of the Missouri to
the mouth of St. Francis, a distance of nearly 500 miles. It is 200 miles
in length, and joins the Mississippi, eighteen miles below St. Louis,
where it is 200 yards in width. Its depth is not great, being only
navigable fifty miles with common-sized boats, except in the spring
and fall, when its principal tributaries may be ascended. It waters the
country of the lead-mines, and affords some facilities for the
transportation of lead to the Mississippi, which do not appear to be
generally known or appreciated, and have not been improved.Ê
The weather this day has been mild and pleasant, with a light breeze
from the south-west, and a smoky atmosphere.Ê Course of travelling
south-west, until we struck the Merrimack; then due-south, to the place
of our encampment. Distance eighteen miles.
Tuesday, Nov 10th

We packed our horse this morning at day-light, notwithstanding the
rain which commenced last evening, and continued at intervals during
the night. On travelling about ten miles, we left the Osage trace, which
began to diverge too far north, and struck through the woods in a south
course, with a view of reaching a large saltpetre cave known to exist in
that quarter. Shortly after we quit the Indian trace, Roberts, who was in
advance on our left about half-a-mile, fired at, and killed a deer, and
immediately reloaded his rifle, pursued, and fired again, telling us to
continue, as he