USA > Montana > Yellowstone County > An illustrated history of the Yellowstone Valley : embracing the counties of Park, Sweet Grass, Carbon, Yellowstone, Rosebud, Custer and Dawson, state of Montana > Part 3
USA > Montana > Park County > An illustrated history of the Yellowstone Valley : embracing the counties of Park, Sweet Grass, Carbon, Yellowstone, Rosebud, Custer and Dawson, state of Montana > Part 3
USA > Montana > Dawson County > An illustrated history of the Yellowstone Valley : embracing the counties of Park, Sweet Grass, Carbon, Yellowstone, Rosebud, Custer and Dawson, state of Montana > Part 3
USA > Montana > Rosebud County > An illustrated history of the Yellowstone Valley : embracing the counties of Park, Sweet Grass, Carbon, Yellowstone, Rosebud, Custer and Dawson, state of Montana > Part 3
USA > Montana > Custer County > An illustrated history of the Yellowstone Valley : embracing the counties of Park, Sweet Grass, Carbon, Yellowstone, Rosebud, Custer and Dawson, state of Montana > Part 3
USA > Montana > Sweet Grass County > An illustrated history of the Yellowstone Valley : embracing the counties of Park, Sweet Grass, Carbon, Yellowstone, Rosebud, Custer and Dawson, state of Montana > Part 3
USA > Montana > Carbon County > An illustrated history of the Yellowstone Valley : embracing the counties of Park, Sweet Grass, Carbon, Yellowstone, Rosebud, Custer and Dawson, state of Montana > Part 3
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Haskin, Orlando E. 495
Hatch, Charles E. 645
Bickerdyke. Hiram B
592
Bigelow, Deforest W
511
Crimmins, Jeremiah F 5,56
Hayden, Nathaniel 501
Haynes. William N 396
Birkeland. Ole
Cutler, Robert E. 519
Bishop, Jerome A 532
Henderson, C. W.
Bitle, Arthur 421
Damm, John 623
Hendrickson, Henry C. 572
Blair, Harry B. 510
Carlton, Paul H. 430
Goulding, Frederick J. 465
Arthun, Martin
531
Chance, Nathan
415
Grnel. Max 507
Cheney, William H. 454
Hall, John H. 466
Badgett, L. S. 619
Clark, Samuel E.
Frost, John H.
459
Cahoo, George H. 647
PAGE
Flanagan, Michael 610
Flynn, John 456
Foster, Fred H. 465
Fowler, John T 493
Bauman, Herman 602
Crawford. A. M.
Hollopeter, Beniamin S. 479
xx
INDEX
PAGE
PAGE
P.AGE
Howard, A. McC. 446
McCune, Mary S 581
Robison, William 5.26
Howard, Henry C.
180
McDonald, Hector
503
Rowland, Robert B. 535
Hudson, Claud E.
402
McDonald. Malcolm M.
573
Rowland. William 120
Hudson, Robert B.
486
McDonald. Richard L.
568
Russell, David H.
457
Humphreys. Nathaniel J
607
McGehee, Edward
613
Russell, Edwin C.
639
Hundley, Alexander
566
McGirl, Thomas
432
Sample, Henry 470
Huntington, William C.
623
McIntosh, Daniel
596
Sanford, Jacob T
392
Hurley, Michael
529
McKinney, Frank
604
Hutton, J. W.
560
Meadors, Annette
440
Scott, James N
529
Hym, James
591
Melum, B. M.
455
Selleck, Charles W. 516
Indreland, Samuel
561
Mendenhall, Cyrus B
413
Seupke, William 562
Itzin, William
564
Mentch. Alexander Merritt, Orson
585
Shafer, Louis H
537
Jellison, Francis J 399
Meyer. William F
624
Simpson, Charles MI 509
Johnson, Anton H.
435
Miller, John A.
595
Johnston. William B
649
Miller. Soren R.
608
Sirrine, Clarence
425
Jones, William C.
542
Milligan, Grant
634
Sirrine, Warren O 423
Kaiser, Edward
525
Morris, Robert O.
600
Sorenson, Marce
560
Kelsey S. Walter 490
Morse, Sidney F
409
Kemmis, Thompson A
397
Moss. Preston B
490
Stack, Thomas F
506
Kennedy, James
574
Myrebo. Betuel
605
Stafford. John M.
548
Kent, Thomas
442
Kimes, John
638
Nelson, Nels A
Standen, Fred
527
King, James
618
Nelson, Olof
523
Steele, James
609
Kirscher, Peter
541
Nelson. Peter W
475
Steele, Robert 609
Knapp. Louis R.
472
Newman, Mark T.
625
Stole, Jonas P.
102
Knowles, William E.
543
Nichol, John 591
Strickland, Benjamin 570
Krise. John W
105
Kujath, Herman
615
LaMott, Allen B
471
Lande, Jacob T.
581
Nutting, William B. 632
Swan, Lawrence T 563
Laney, John W.
462
O'Brien. John
407
Teesdale, R. B. 552
Lantis, Charles D.
576
O'Connell. Samuel
589
Terrett, William W 488
LaRoche, Fernando
499
O'Donnell. Ed. 418
Thompson, Henry C. 540
Larsen, John
531
O'Leary, Albert P. 495
Thompson, Iver 5.36
Lathom, George D.
575
Olson, Gus 612
Toliver, Solomon C. 5.56
Lavelle. William
484
Osborne, Frank B
498
Toston, George 517
Lay, Joseph
436
O'Shea, Daniel G.
634
Lehfeldt, Ludwig C.
544
Leimbach, Ferdinand
567
Padden. Willard B 605
430
Palmer, William W 608
Leslie. Edward
431
Peden, David
406
Lindsay, William
458
Phelps, George H.
598
Logan, John T.
618
Piper, Lewis C ..
587
Lovering, Owen
422
Powers, George W.
433
Walters, I. W. 562
Lowe, William
461
Prewett. Silas C.
175
Weast, Jacob P. 534
Weaver, Chauncey R. 636
Weaver, J. R. 650
Mace, George
523
Ramsey, Charles A 002
MaGee Elias F
626
Randall, James N. 504
Mahr. Charles
598 Rea. James E.
537
Marsh, Jesse 416 Reed, George W
550
West, James .627
Maryott, John L.
643
Renlund, Sanfrid
637
Westbrook, Walter R. 640
Mason, Joseph E.
513 Reno, Ludlow B
427
Whitbeck. James K. 632
Mattson, Olaf W. 568 Rich. Albert A
415
White, W. D .. 628
McCarty, Francis M. 418 Rife, S. L.
610 1 Whitney, Frank S. 617
Kellett. Frank 150
Morrison, A. J. . .
571
Spang, Alban D.
426
Kennedy, Edward B.
150
Myers, Benjamin F
575
Staffek, John C.
403
Kennedy, James F
103
Newman, Edwin M. 630
Stewart. John S. 637
Knapp. William J
167
Newnes, Sam
526
Stone, William B
389
Koch, Charles
640
Nielsen, Ole C.
519
Strider, Frank 636
Nilson, Olaus
552
Strong, William 579
Nix, William J 539
Sumer. Rudolph 509
Northway, Joseph Z. 410
Succetti, John 530
Town, Annie E. 500
Lehfeldt, Hermann
545
Ostrum, Gunder 648
Tripp. Daniel W 478
Troger, Albert 534
Lennon, Martin
Tuttle, Samuel J. 570
Tyler Riley 641
Logan, Arthur C.
444 Pierce. George W
546
Van Houten, John W
512
Volin, Charles E 438
Lovely, John A.
566
Potter, Charles J. 401
Wakefield, George W 393
Lowe, Milton C.
488 Powers, Maurice
579
Wastpeter, John 553
Lukinbeal. William E. 588
Prnett, Levi 003
Lutzenhiser, J. H.
530
Rademaker. M. B. 606
Welcome, George W. 601
Wentworth. Maurice S. 646
Wesch. Philip 404
Huxtable, John P.
497
Meadors, John P
431
Scott, William J. 424
Mendenhall, Conway B
583
Selway, J L. 417
437
Sickler, Arthur R. 393
Johnson, Albert
548
Miles, Arthur W
614
Simington, George R 022
Simpkins, Joseph T 558
Morgan, John A
564
Solberg. Jacob 613
493
McIntosh, A. W.
509
Hunter, Guy D.
Schaudel, Julius 551
Schmalsle, William F 434
Sproule, George 595
Neilson, Peter 582
550
Stanbach, Henry J. 494
Tunnell. Sam. P 508
INDEX
XXI
PAGE
PAGE
PAGE
Wilder, Elmer
'466
Wright, Eugene P
545
Young, George T
590
Wolff, William W
641
Young, William W
421
Wood, G. W.
629
Yegen, Christian
476
Youngstrom, Swan
635
Woosley, James
522
Yegen, Peter
476
Youst, Claudius D.
468
INDEX
PORTRAITS
PAGE
PAGE
PAG
Arch, Entrance to Yellowstone
Harrington. Abraham
528
McGirl. Thomas 432
National Park
161
Hawkins. James B
448
Miller, Soren R.
608
Babcock, Albert L.
652
Herman, Frank N
512
Meyer, William F. 624
Bickerdyke, Hiram B.
592
Hirsch, George
480
Montana Haying Scene 191
Bison, a herd of
319
Howard, Henry C.
480
O'Donnell, Ed.
448
Brewster, George W
400
Hutton, J. W.
Brown, Joseph T.
387
Kellett, Frank
Burke, J. O. L.
464
Kennedy, Edward B
448
Powers. Maurice 576
Calhoun, James H
480
Koch, Charles
6.40
Powers, Mrs. Maurice 576
Crawford, A. M.
416
Lantis, Charles D
576
Selway, J. L .. 416
233
DeSmet, Father
-48
Lantis, Miss L. E.
576
Steele, James
608
Dickson, William E
512
Lehfeldt, Hermann
544
Steele, Robert
608
Draper, Frank W
496
Lehfeldt. Ludwig C
544
Van Houten, John W
512
Eichhorn, Joseph
576
Marsh, Jesse
416
Westbrook, Walter R.
640
Emigrant Peak
Maryott, John L ..
640
Wolff, William W
640
Flanagan, Michael
608
Mason, Joseph E.
512
Wright, Eugene P.
544
Guiler, John L.
480
McCarty, Francis M.
416 Wright, Mrs. Eugene P 544
560
Palmer, William W 608
448
Palmer, Mrs. William W 608
Custer Battlefield
319
Lantis, Mrs. Charles D
576
Sheep, Band of.
PART I HISTORY OF MONTANA
CHAPTER I
DAWN OF DISCOVERY.
To the Spaniards is due the credit of being the first white men to explore the territory now within the confines of the State of Montana, and to Cabezo de Vaca should the distinction of being the very first be given. He, in 1535, with two soldiers and a treacherous Moor, Stephen the Moor, left Mexico with the purpose of exploring the north, of which they had so often heard the Indians speak. They returned in 1536, and, while it is not known what terri- tory they traversed, from their description and physical geography, their travels must have led them to what is now known as the South Saskatchewan and Sun rivers, beyond the Mis- souri and Yellowstone.
The first missionary father who visited this northern territory was a Franciscan Friar, John of Padilla. In the year 1537 he was sent by Coronado, then governor of New Gallia, to explore the country to the north. The treach- erous Moor, Stephen, was again chosen as guide. The Moor with a few followers pre- ceded the main company and because of many attempted depredations was finally killed by the native Indians. The party who had accompan- ied the Moor in the lead now turned back and met the priest and his followers, but the priest was not to be influenced by this and pushed on
to the northward, but on sight of the Seven Cities he stopped.
The Cavalier of Salamanca, Francisco Vas- quez de Coronado, arrived in Mexico about 1539, and in 1540 set out in charge of an army corps, composed of 800 natives and 300 Span- ish nobles, and according to the statement of Coronado they took possession of the entire territory of the Missouri, south and north of the 40th parallel of latitude, beyond the domain of the Emperor Tartarax in May, 1541.
On May tenth, 1543, is recorded the first discovery of Oregon, of which western Mon- tana was once a part. Juan Roderiquez Ca- brillo, in command of a Spanish squadron, came up the coast of California and anchored in a bay as far north as 40 degrees of latitude.
Nothing more was accomplished in the way of explorations in the northwest for two hun- dred years after the Spaniards made their at- tempt to find out the nature of the territory under their possession. The next explorations were made by the French in 1737-38 when Jean Frederick Philippearin, known as Count de Maurepas, was secretary of state in France. He sent explorations to the equator, north and south pole, and to then imperfectly known coasts and countries. In 1738 M. de la Ver-
I
2
HISTORY OF MONTANA.
andrye was despatched to America and was to make an overland journey to the Pacific ocean. To this able explorer we have to look for the first authentic history of the state of Montana. The traveler, having reached Can- ada, started with his party from Montreal, passed through Lake Superior, and, going as far to the westward as possible, passed along the foot of Lake Winnipeg, ascended the As- siniboine river and directed his course toward the Rocky mountains. For many days they traveled over large tracts of land free from timber but covered with very tall grass. In several places where it was known that no European had ever traveled, were found great pillars of stone leaning upon each other. The pillars consisted of one single stone each, and sometimes such stones were found laid one upon each other, resembling a wall. At one place on the prairie several hundred miles west of Montreal, the party discovered a large stone, like a pillar, and in it a smaller stone about a foot long and four or five inches broad, covered on both sides with characters unknown. This curiosity was separated from the pillar and transmitted to the secretary of state at Paris, where missionaries conversant with Eastern languages affirmed that the inscription was in Tartaric characters. Without reaching the main range Verandrye was compelled to aban- don the expedition, his party having got mixed up in a war which the Indians of these parts were waging against each other. The editor of the New York Documents, concludes from his analysis of many letters and official docu- ments bearing on the expedition, that the coun- try then explored was west and north of Min- nesota. Three hundred miles west of Lake Winnipeg on the Assiniboine. he states, they erected Fort La Reine, three others being erected further west, the most distant of which stood on the bank of the Paskoyac, a fork of the Shekatchiak. Against this opinion are many references to the waters of the upper Missouri, which leave no doubt that the Ver-
andrye party reached many of the valleys of Montana. Kalm, the Swedish scholar, who met the Verandrye party in Canada in 1749. agrees with Garneau that the party did not cross the main range; but both are willing to concede to its members the honor of entering the valleys between the Great Belt and the main range. Granville Stuart and his fellow members of the Montana Historical Society agree in the belief that the explorers left Fort La Reine, on the Assiniboine river, went up the Mouse river in a southerly direction, and then crossed over to the Missouri to a point a little below where is now Fort Berthold. Then they ascended the Missouri as far as the Gates of the Mountains where the river breaks through the Belt range (near Helena), and ascended those mountains on the first of Janu- ary, 1743. Thence they passed up Deep or Smith's river, and over to the head of the Mus- selshell; thence south to the Yellowstone cross- ing, through which they went up Pryor's Fork and through Pryor's gap, to Stinking river, which they crossed, and continuing south came among the Snake Indians on Wind river, who told them that on the south of Wind river mountains was Karoskiu, now Green river. The Snakes also told them not to go further south or they would be killed by the Sans Arcs, a branch of the Sioux, who were watching at Wind river pass for any parties that might be passing that way that they might kill and rob them. On the 19th of May, 1744, they re- turned to the upper Missouri, and in the Petite Cerise (choke cherry) country, they planted on an eminence a leaden plate bearing the arms f France, and erected a monument of stones, which they called Beauharnois. After erecting the monument, they doubtless descended the Missouri, to where they first struck it on their outward journey. Then they returned by way of the Mouse river and the Assiniboine to the Lake of the Woods, where they arrived July 2, 1744, after an absence of about a year.
It has been asserted, and on good authority,
3
HISTORY OF MONTANA.
that the visit of Verandrye to the country which is now known as Montana was brought about because of the shining appearance of the Rocky Mountains. The Indians of this coun- try told the natives farther east, and these in turn to their eastern neighbors, the rumors of the wonderful country finally reaching the French in Canada. According to the rumors, the shining appearance of the country was sup- posed to indicate the presence of gold, dia- monds and other precious stones. It was on the first of January, 1743, when Verandrye reached the shining mountains. The point at which the ascent was made was near the pres- ent city of Helena. Here the exploring party discovered the Prickly Pear river and learned of the Bitter Root from the Indians. The Bear Tooth mountain near Helena was de- scribed, and in other ways the party left evi- dence of the visit.
The Jesuit, Pere Coquard or Coquillard, was one of the party of 1738, and to him is given the honor of being the first Christian minister to visit the region now called Mon- tana. To him must be given the credit for nearly all the records of the expedition. While he was neither laudatious nor severe in his crit- icisms, he gave a just and plain statement of facts. He was Verandrye's oldest friend and an associate in the expedition and had much better opportunities of observation than the chief. For this reason if no other, his state- ments must be accepted as correct and the fol- lowing dates and events taken in history- Fort La Reine on the Assiniboine erected Oc- tober 3. 1738; the Mandan country explored by Verandrye, Jr., and the Chevalier Veran- drye, sons of the Sieur de la Verandrye; Belt mountains reached January 1, 1743: Monu- ment erected bearing French coat-of-arms in upper Missouri country on May 12, 1744; re- turn to the Lake of the Woods July 2, 1744: Sieur de la Verandrye died in Canada Decem- ber 6, 1749; Chevalier Verandrye lost in the
wreck of the Auguste on the ocean in Novem- ber, 1761 ; the Sieur Jules Verandrye and Pere Coquard returned to France. From their story and the writings of Carver and others many stories of their discovery were told.
In a letter from Mr. Upham, of the Minne- sota Historical Society, to the Montana His- torical Society, in regard to the Verandrye ex- pedition, he says in part : "I believe Veran- drye's camp of January the eighth, 1743, was in the south edge of Montana or on the north edge of Wyoming, not far northeast of the Big Horn mountains, and near the southeast corner of the present Crow Indian reservation. The part of Montana which this expedition crossed was only its southeast corner, south of the Yel- lowstone river." The location of the lead plate and cairn, mentioned above, he says "was close to the fort of the Choke Cherry Indians on the Missouri, somewhere in the region of the line between South Dakota and Nebraska."
For many years after the Verandrye ex- ploration this country was absolutely aban- doned by the military and as a consequence the French traders worked themselves into the good graces of the Indians. In 1752 and 1753, two expeditions were sent out by Governor Jonquierre-Lamarque de Martin in charge of the Missouri division and Jacques Logardeurde St. Pierre and Boucher de Niverville in com- mand of the Saskatchewan division. These expeditions met with little success, but the re- sults were beneficial in that many men of each expedition remained in the country. They established Fort Jonquierre, Fort Bourbon and a number of temporary forts on the Missouri river.
Jonathan Carver, a soldier, is also sometimes credited with having crossed the continent, cer- tain authorities stating that he left Boston June 6, 1766, crossed the continent to the Pacific and returned in October, 1768. This view is not held by any of the historians of the present day, however.
CHAPTER II
MISSISSIPPI TO THE COAST.
Louisana had become a part of the terri- tory of the United States, by treaty of Paris, April 30, 1803. In the meantime the Lewis and Clark expedition had been organized.
That portion of Lewis and Clark's expedi- tion with which this history concerns itself must relate chiefly to the achievements of these intrepid captains after they had entered the ter- ritory known as Montana.
Aside from Captains Clark and Lewis, the party of the expedition consisted of nine young men from Kentucky, fourteen United States soldiers, who had volunteered their services, two French watermen (an interpreter and hunter), and a black servant employed by Cap- tain Clark. Before the close of 1803 prepara- tions for the voyage were all completed, and the party wintered at the mouth of Wood river, on the east bank of the Mississippi.
The following is President Jefferson's opin- ion of Captain Lewis :
Of courage undaunted : possessing a firmness and perseverance of purpose which nothing but impossi- bilities could divert from its direction ; careful as a fa- ther of those committed to his charge, yet steady in the maintenance of order and discipline; intimate with In- dian character, customs and principles; habituated to the hunting life. guarded by exact observation of the vegetables and animals in his own country, against losing time in the description of objects already pos- sessed; honest, disinterested, liberal, of sound under- standing, and a fidelity to trust so scrupulous that whatever he should report would be as certain as if seen by ourselves; with all these qualifications, as if selected and implanted by nature in one body for this express purpose, I could have no hesitation in confiding this enterprise to him.
July 5, 1803, Captain Lewis left Washing- ton, D. C., and was joined at Louisville, Ken- tucky, by Captain Clark, and proceeded on to St. Louis, where they arrived in December.
The Spanish officers were still in possession of the forts at St. Louis, not having been offi- cially notified of the transfer to France and back to the United States. The expedition camped at the mouth of the Wood river on the east bank of the Mississippi river out of the jurisdiction of the Spanish. The winter was spent here in preparation for setting out early in the spring. They broke up their winter quarters on May 14, 1804, and began the as- cent of the Missouri river. This was practi- cally an unexplored country. On October 27, 1804, they arrived at the Mandan village, re- maining here during the winter. Here they were apprised of the French traders from the British possessions, who had made overland trips to this territory. But further west than these villages the country was practically un- known to the white race. The vast country of the Platte, the Little Missouri, the Yellowstone and the head waters of the Missouri had never been penetrated by civilized man.
It was here in the winter of 1804 that a Frenchman named Charbineau joined the party with his wife, Sacajawea, or "Bird Woman," Sacajawea was a woman of the Snake Indian tribe who had been captured in war by the Minnetarees, of whom she was purchased by Charbineau. Brackenridge's Journal says: "We had on board a Frenchman named Char- bineau, with his wife, an Indian woman of the Snake nation, both of whom accompanied Lewis and Clark to the Pacific, and were of great service. The woman, a good creature, of a mild and gentle disposition, much attached to the whites, whose manners and dress she tries to imitate : but she had become sickly and longed to visit her native country ; her husband also, who had spent many years among the In-
5
HISTORY OF MONTANA.
dians, had become weary of civilized life." Clark said of Charbineau : "A man of no pecu- liar merit. Was useful as an interpreter only, in which capacity he discharged his duties with good faith from the moment of our departure from the Mandans on the 7th of April, 1805. until our return to that place in August last. *
* He would have been a minus function in comparison with his wife, Sacajawea, the wonderful 'Bird Woman,' who contributed a full man's share to the success of the expedi- tion, besides taking care of her baby."
Orin D. Wheeler in his "Trail of Lewis and Clark," says that Sacajawea was called the "Bird Woman" of the Minnetarees, who uncomplainingly bore her burdens with as much fortitude as the male members of the party and withstood the same hardships, be- sides taking care of her child. Many times in their travels and meetings with other tribes, she was able to act as interpreter when her husband failed, and many times her advice was asked for by the captains and was always given true weight. Sacajawea was never remuner- ated for her trip with the expedition and it should be the purpose of the government to perpetuate the memory of this noble woman with a statue in some conspicuous place. The United States Geological Survey recently fit- tingly named a peak in the Bridger range of mountains, Sacajawea Peak, on the sight of the place where she was captured as a child by the Minnetarees, and where she pointed out the pass over the mountains to Captains Lewis and Clark.
Sacajawea was of the royal blood of the Shoshoni, her brother, Cameahwait, being a noted chief of that tribe. While her husband, Charbineau, has not been very well spoken of by historians, we must give him credit for do- ing an honorable act in marrying her after he had purchased her from the Minnetarees.
Dr. J. K. Hosmer, the well known histor- ical writer, in speaking of .Sacajawea, says : "Her doings were of such a character as to
make it quite right to claim for her a place among heroines; in the whole line of Indian heroines, indeed, from Pocahontas to Romona, not one can be mentioned whose title to hon- ored remembrance is any better than hers."
Not much can be learned of the infant who traveled so many miles with his parents on this expedition. In regard to this Ferris, in speaking of a trapping party, says: "The party was enroute from the falls of the Snake- Shoshone falls to the Miladi river in southern Idaho, and after nearly perishing from thirst on the desert, finally found the river. We spent the night carrying water to our enfeebled companions who lingered behind, and to horses left on the way. All were found except Char- bineau and his animals who was supposed to have wandered from the trail and got lost." He was afterward found among a party of the Hudson's Bay company, where he had strayed. In a footnote Ferris says: This was the infant, who together with his mother, was saved from a sudden ficod near the walls of the Missouri by Captain Lewis-vide Lewis in Lewis and Clark Journals."-(It was Clark, however, and not Lewis who saved their lives. )
It is impossible to determine the time, place or manner of the death of Charbineau and wife, but it is supposed that they were the victims of a small-pox epidemic that killed so many In- dians in the years 1838 and 1839.
On the opening of spring the party contin- ued up the Missouri, reaching the confluence of the Yellowstone and Missouri, April 26, 1805. This was a great hunting ground, abounding in buffalo, deer, elk, antelope, and other small game. Timber was abundant, and grew to a greater size than in most places on the Missouri. The timber consisted principally of cottonwood, box-alder, elm and ash.
In describing the two rivers at the mouth of the Yellowstone, the journals give the width of the Yellowstone, including a sandbar, as 858 yards, with 297 yards of water; the Missouri
6
HISTORY OF MONTANA.
with a bed 520 yards and the water occupying 330 yards with a deep channel. Continuing up the Missouri, the country was found to be uneven and broken; the timber was not as heavy; the woods were green; two small streams flowed from the north; game was abundant.
Early the next morning, the wind being favorable, they proceeded up the river, cover- ing twenty-five miles during the day, and in the evening camped at the mouth of Martha's river, now known as the Big Muddy. Lewis, who was on shore with a hunter, met two white bears. We must not confound these bears with the polar bear, as they have never been found in this latitude. The probability is that they were of a light shade, and belonged to the same species as the bear commonly known in these parts. The Indians spoke of the white bear as a ferocious animal. On approaching these two, Captain Lewis and the hunter fired, each wounding a bear. One escaped, the other turned upon Captain Lewis, followed him about eighty yards, and was brought down by the third shot from his gun. It weighed about 300 pounds. The Martha's river was de- scribed as being fifty yards wide, with water for fifteen yards. Captain Clark ascended the river for three miles and reported the width to vary but little from what it was at the mouth, that the banks were steep, but not deep. and that the bed was muddy.
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