Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 24.djvu/377

 More About Astorians 349 was defeated, so Reed, McClellan and the others in the party returned to Astoria. McClellan, however, was persistent in his determina- tion to go back to St. Louis and when Robert Stuart was sent by Mr. Hunt with another set of dispatches McClellan joined the party. As Mr. Stuart had gone to Astoria by ship it was necessary to send with him well tried men as hunters and guides. Benjamin Jones, John Day, Andre Vallee and Francois LeClerc were chosen for this pur- pose, all of these men having been in Mr. Hunt's overland party. The party left Astoria, as before stated, on June 29, 1812, on their perilous overland journey to St. Louis. On one occasion when danger from the Blackfeet was threatened, the party for greater safety, wanted to make a detour through rugged and difficult country. Mr. McClellan, greatly fatigued, and therefore somewhat more stubborn and irascible than usual, swore he would rather face all the Blackfeet in the country than encounter the difficulties of the mountains. He refused to stay with the others and left in a huff. All alone he trudged along through the wilderness. Such a desperate course must have required considerable courage. Ten days later, the rest of the party found him encamped, without fire or food, and reduced through hunger and fatigue to a mere skeleton. He could not help showing his joy at see- ing his friends again, and cheerfully rejoined them. Being too feeble to walk, the party encamped for several days in order that he might recover a little. When they started off he was not able to carry anything, his pistols and rifle being carried by his comrades, most of whom were not much better off. They wandered about for five days and nights without a mouthful to eat, and were reduced to the last extremity. Now and then some deer were seen but they had not sufficient strength to use their rifles. It was at this period that one of the party sug- gested "it were better that one should die than that all