February 21, 1806
Friday February 21st 1806.
Visited this morning by 3 Clatsop who remained with us all day; they
are great begers; I gave one of them a few nedles with which he
appeared much gratifyed. in the evening late they departed. Drewyer and
Collins went in pursuit of some Elk, the tracks of which Collins had
discovered yesterday; but it rained so hard that they could not pursue
them by their tracks and returned unsuccessfull. Drewyer saw a fisher
black fox but it escaped from him among the fallen timber. Sergt.
Ordway returned with the party from the salt camp which we have now
evacuated. they brought with them the salt and eutensils. our stock of
salt is now about 20 Gallons; 12 gallons of which we secured in 2 small
iron bound kegs and laid by for our voyage. gave Willard and bratton
each a doze of Scotts pills; on the former they operated and on the
latter they (lid not. Gibson still continues the barks three times a
day and is on the recovery fast.-
The tyger Cat is found on the borders of the plains and in the woody
country lying along the Pacific Ocean. this animal is about the size or
reather larger than the wild cat of our country and is much the same in
form, agility and ferosity. the colour of the back neck and sides is a
redish brown irregularly variegated with small spots of dark brown the
tail is about two inches long nearly white except the extremity which
is black; it terminates abruptly as if it had been cut off. the belly
is white with small black spots, beautifully variagated. the legs are
of the same colour with the sides and back marked with transverse
stripes of black the ears are black on the outer side covered with fine
short hair except at the upper point which furnished with a pensil of
fine, streight, black hair, = 3/4 of an inch in length. the fur of this
anamal is long and fine, much more so than the wild cat of the United
States but less so than that of Louservea of the N. West. the natives
in this quarter make great use of the skins of this Cat to form the
robes which they wear; four skins is the compliment usuly employed in
each robe. the Black fox, or as they most frequently called in the
neighbourhood of Detroit, Fisher is found in the woody country on this
coast. how this animal obtained the name of fisher I know not, but
certain it is, that the name is not appropriate, as it dose not prey on
fish or seek it as a prey. they are extreemly active strong and
prepared for climbing, which they do with great agility, and bound from
tree to tree in pursuit of the squirrel or Rackoon their natural and
most usual food. their colour is a jut black except a small spot of
white on the breast. the body is long, legs short and formed something
like the ternspit dog with a remarkable long tail. it dose not differ
here from those of the United States. The Silver fox this animal is
very rare even in the country where it exists; I have never seen more
than the Skins of this anamal and those were in the possession of the
natives of the woody Country below the great falls of the Columbia from
which I think that it is most probably the inhabtant of the woody
country exclusively. from the skin it appeared to be about the size of
the large red fox of the plains and much of it's form with a large
tail. the legs I think somewhat longer. it has a fine long deep fur
poll. the poil is of a dark lead colour and the long hairs intermixed
with it are either white or black at the lower part and white at the
top, the whole mixture forming a beatifull silver grey. I think this
the most beautifull of all the Foxes except species of which I saw one
only on the Missouri near the natural walls. the large red fox of the
plains and the Kit fox are the same which we met with on the Missouri
and are the inhabitants almost exclusively of the open plains, or of
the cops of brush within the pain country. The common red fox of the
United States is also found in the woody country on this coast nor dose
it appear to be altered in rispect to it's fur colour or any other
particular
Friday February 21st 1806
Visited this morning by three Clatsops, who remained with us all day;
they are great begers; Capt Lewis gave one of them a fiew nedles with
which he appeared much gratified, in the evening late they departed.
Drewyer and Collins went in pursute of Some Elk the tracks of which
Collins had discovered yesterday; but it rained So hard they Could not
pursue them by the tracks, and returned unsucksessfull. Drewyer Saw a
fisher but it escaped from him among the fallen timber. Sergt. Ordway
returned with the party from the Salt Camp which we have now avacuated.
they brought with them the Salt and utensels. our Stock of Salt is now
about 20 Gallons; 12 Gallons we had Secured in 2 Small iron bound Kegs
and laid by for our voyage. Gave Willard a dose of Scots pills; they
opperated very well. Gibson Still Continus the bark 3 times a day and
is on the recovery fast.
The large brown Wolf is like that of the atlantic States, and are found
only in the woody Country on the Pacific Ocean embraceing the mountains
which pass the Columbia between the Great Falls an Rapids of the same.
The large and Small Wolves of the inhabitents principally of the open
Country and the wood land on their borders, and resemble in their
habits those of the plains of Missouri presisely they are not abundant
in the Plains of Columbia because there is but little game on which for
them to subsist-
