Lewis: April 10, 1806

Thursday April 10th 1806. We set out early and droped down the channel to
the lower end of brant Island from whence we drew them up the rapid by a
cord about a quarter of a mile which we soon performed; Collins and Gibson
not having yet come over we directed Sergt. Pryor to remain with the cord
on the Island untill Gibson arrived and assist him with his crew in geting
his canoe up the rapid, when they were to join us on the oposite side at a
small village of six houses of the Clah-clah’lahs where we halted for
breakfast. in passing the river which is here about 400 yds. wide the
rapidity of the currant was such that it boar us down a considerable
distance notwithstanding we employed five oars. on entering one of these
lodges, the natives offered us a sheepskin for sail, than which nothing
could have been more acceptable except the animal itself. the skin of the
head of the sheep with the horns remaining was cased in such manner as to
fit the head of a man by whom it was woarn and highly prized as an
ornament. we obtained this cap in exchange for a knife, and were compelled
to give two Elkskins in exchange for the skin. this appeared to be the
skin of a sheep not fully grown; the horns were about four inches long,
celindric, smooth, black, erect and pointed; they rise from the middle of
the forehead a little above the eyes. they offered us a second skin of a
full grown sheep which was quite as large as that of a common deer. they
discovered our anxity to purchase and in order to extort a great plrice
declared that they prized it too much to dispose of it. in expectation of
finding some others of a similar kind for sale among the natives of this
neighbourhood I would not offer him a greater price than had been given
for the other which he refused. these people informed us that these sheep
were found in great abundance on the hights and among the clifts of the
adjacent mountains. and that they had lately killed these two from a herd
of 36, at no great distance from their village. we could obtain no
provision from those people except four white salmon trout. at ten oclock
Sergt. Pryor and Gibson joined us with Collins who had killed 3 deer.
these were all of the blacktailed fallow kind. we set out and continued
our rout up the N. side of the river with great difficulty in consequence
of the rapidity of the current and the large rocks which form this shore;
the South side of the river is impassable. as we had but one sufficient
toerope and were obliged to employ the cord in geting on our canoes the
greater part of the way we could only take them one at a time which
retarded our progress very much. by evening we arrived at the portage on
the North side where we landed and conveyed our bagage to the top of the
hill about 200 paces distant where we formed a camp. we had the canoes
drawn on shore and secured. the small canoe got loose from the hunters and
went a drift with a tin vessel and tommahawk in her; the Indians caught
her at the last village and brought her up to us this evening for which
service we gave them a couple of knives; the canoe overset and lost the
articles which were in her.Saw the white pine at this place.