Lewis: March 11, 1806

Tuesday March 11th 1806. Early this morning Sergt. Pryor arrived with a
small canoe loaded with fish which he had obtained from the Cathlahmah’s
for a very small part of the articles he had taken with him. the wind had
prevented his going to the fisery on the opposite side of the river above
the Wackiacums, and also as we had suspected, prevented his return as
early as he would otherwise have been back.The dogs at the
Cathlahmahs had bitten the trong assunder which confined his canoe and she
had gone a drift. he borrowed a canoe from the Indians in which he has
returned. he found his canoe on the way and secured her, untill we return
the Indians their canoe, when she can be brought back. Sent Sergt. Gass
and a party in surch of a canoe which was reported to have been sunk in a
small creek on the opposite side of the Netul a few miles below us, where
she had been left by Shields R. Fields and Frazier when they were lately
sent out to hunt over the Netul. They returned and reported that they
could not find the canoe she had broken the cord by which she was
attatched, and had been carried off by the tide. Drewyer Joseph Fields and
Frazier set out by light this morning to pass the bay in order to hunt as
they had been directed the last evening. we once more live in clover;
Anchovies fresh Sturgeon and Wappetoe. the latter Sergt. Pryor had also
procured and brought with him. The reptiles of this country are the
rattlesnake garter snake and the common brown Lizzard. The season was so
far advanced when we arrived on this side of the rocky mountains that but
few rattlesnakes were seen I did not remark one particularly myself, nor
do I know whether they are of either of the four speceis found in the
different parts of the United states, or of that species before mentioned
peculiar to the upper parts of the Missouri and it’s branches. The garter
snake so called in the United States is very common in this country; they
are found in great numbers on the open and sometimes marshey grounds in
this neighbourhood. they differ not at all from those of the U States. the
black or dark brown lizzard we saw at the rock fort Camp at the
commencement of the woody country below the great narrows and falls of the
Columbia; they are also the same with those of the United States. The
snail is numerous in the woody country on this coast; they are in shape
like those of the United States, but are at least five times their bulk.
There is a speceis of water lizzard of which I saw one only just above the
grand rapids of the Columbia. it is about 9 inches long the body is
reather flat and about the size of a mans finger covered with a soft skin
of a dark brown colour with an uneven surface covered with little pimples
the neck and head are short, the latter terminating in an accute angular
point and flat. the fore feet each four toes, the hinder ones five
unconnected with a web and destitute of tallons. it’s tail was reather
longer than the body and in form like that of the Musk-rat, first rising
in an arch higher than the back and decending lower than the body at the
extremity, and flated perpendicularly. the belley and under part of the
neck and head were of a brick red every other part of the colour of the
upper part of the body a dark brown. the mouth was smooth, without teeth.