Lewis: March 4, 1806

Tuesday March 4th 1806. Not any occurrence today worthy of notice. we live
sumptuously on our wappetoe and Sturgeon. the Anchovey is so delicate that
they soon become tainted unless pickled or smoked. the natives run a small
stick through their gills and hang them in the smoke of their lodges, or
kindle a small fire under them for the purpose of drying them. they need
no previous preperation of guting &c and will cure in 24 hours. the
natives do not appear to be very scrupelous about eating them when a
little feated.the fresh sturgeon they keep for many days by
immersing it in water. they coock their sturgeon by means of vapor or
steam. the process is as follows. a brisk fire is kindled on which a
parcel of stones are lad. when the fire birns down and the stones are
sufficiently heated, the stones are so arranged as to form a tolerable
level surface, the sturgeon which had been previously cut into large
fletches is now laid on the hot stones; a parsel of small boughs of bushes
is next laid on and a second course of the sturgeon thus repating
alternate layers of sturgeon and boughs untill the whole is put on which
they design to cook. it is next covered closely with matts and water is
poared in such manner as to run in among the hot stones and the vapor
arrising being confined by the mats, cooks the fish. the whole process is
performed in an hour, and the sturgeon thus cooked is much better than
either boiled or roasted.

The turtle dove and robbin are the same of our country and are found as
well in the plain as open country. the Columbian robbin heretofore
discribed seems to be the inhabitant of the woody country exclusively. the
Magpy is most commonly found in the open country and are the same with
those formerly discribed on the Missouri. the large woodpecker or log
cock, the lark woodpeckers and the small white woodpecker with a read head
are the same with those of the Atlantic states and are found exclusively
in the timbered country. The blue crested Corvus and the small white
breasted do have been previously discribed and are the natives of a piney
country invariably, being found as well on the rocky mountains as on this
coast.the lark is found in the plains only and are the same with
those before mentioned on the Missouri, and not very unlike what is called
in Virginia the old field lark.The large bluefish brown or sandhill
Crain are found in the valley of the Rocky mountains in Summer and Autumn
where they raise their young, and in the winter and begining of spring on
this river below tidewater and on this coast. they are the same as those
common to the Southern and Western States where they are most generally
known by the name of the Sandhill crain. The vulture has also been
discribed. there are two species of the flycatch, a small redish brown
species with a short tail, round body, short neck and short pointed beak.
they have some fine black specks intermixed with the uniform redish brown.
this the same with that which remains all winter in Virginia where it is
sometimes called the wren. the second species has lately returned and dose
not remain here all winter. it’s colours are a yellowish brown on the back
head neck wings and tail the breast and belley of a yellowish white; the
tail is in proportion as the wren but it is a size smaller than that bird.
it’s beak is streight pointed convex reather lage at the base and the
chaps of equal length. the first species is the smallest, in short it is
the smalest bird that I have ever seen in America except the humming bird.
both these species are found in the woody country only or at least I have
never seen them elsewhere.