Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 15.djvu/132



122 T. G. ELLIOTT

August 9th, Friday. 93 A fine day, wi'nd, a gale South'd. Observed for Long., Time and Lat. (Observations omitted.) It was late before the horses could be collected and I left one they could not find. They said the Chief below knew how to talk but not how to act. They declared they did not wish for any return for the present of Horses, but that they knew the nature of a present. I gave each of them Notes for the Horses ; to be paid when the ca'noes arrive. At 5 P. M. set off and held up on the Brook, cutting off the great Pt. till \\y 2 P. M. when we camped. Co. N. 5 E. \y 2 m., Brook at 1 m. crossed, end of Co. went up the banks. Course N. 20 E. 14 m., last 1 m. along the Brook. The land very rocky and full of rocky hills cut Perpend, wherever the rocks show themselves, and exactly of the same kind of rocks as along the Columbia, with much fragments in splinters etc. Very bad for the horses and the soil a sandy fine impassable powder which suffocated us with dust and no water to drink to where we camped.

August 10th, Saturday. 94 A fine, cloudy, blowy day. At 7 l /4 A. M. set off and held on at N. 10 E. 5 m., then crossed a shoal Brook of 6 yds. wide from the East. Held on Course + 2y 2 m. and baited at 11J4 A. M. At 1 P. M. set off and held on say 2*4 m. A Brook came in from the N. E., held on up the left Brook and put up at 6 P. M., say Co. N. 8 m. The appearance of the country is much the same, though some- what less rude, and there is often a few Aspi'ns, Alders, with a very rare Fir along the Brook, much wild cherry and three sorts of currants, one sweet and red, the other yellow, acid; red light acid.

August llth, Sunday. 95 A very fine day mostly cloudy. At 7y A. M. set off Course up the Brook N. 10 E. 2 l / 2 m., where we crossed a Rill from the N. W'd. We kept on along

93 The established Indian trail of later years coincides exactly with Mr. Thompson's description. It followed the Palouse river for a mile, then crossed and ascended the steep ridge and cut across the bend of the river. The camp that night was near the mouth of Cow creek.

94 It is a little uncertain whether Mr. Thompson followed up Cow creek or Rock creek (in Whitman county. Washington), but his camp at evening was southeast of the town of Sprague, Lincoln county. In the summer of 1812 Ross Cox lost his way on this trail, for which consult his "Adventures."

95 Following closely what afterward became the wagon road from Walla Walla to Colville Mr. Thompson reaches the timber belt south of Cheney, Wash- ington, and camps some distance southwest of that city.