Vandalia Whig and Illinois intelligencer. [volume] (Vandalia, Ill.) 1832-183?, 1833-10-02
From the Troy Press.
LETTERS FROM BEYOND THE
A


Mr.. Balls third Letter to DR.. Brinsmade
FoRT VAN CoUvER, Jan. |, 1888.
My dear BrinSmade:
Would thatthiS anniversary OF our part
ing could bring meeting-that Nigh
again press your hand and wish you hap
piness. Or could know your presen
welfare, and the transactions of the pas
year, it would be .Ne5o Years treat in
deed. Have my friends been happy, o
has some dire catastrophe hefallen them!'
My first thoughts this morning were, tina
you had already exchanged the custom
ry New Years greetings; for with you
you are conscious the sun rises, in poln
OF time, more than three hours earlier
than with US on the Columbia river
When you yceive this, please wish all
happy New ear-aye, you may say gears
for me; ana since can know nothing oil
you and yours, permit me, on this day, to
say sc~Tething of myself
We apped at the place where last
wrote ! in the mountains, ill the Gath
of July, During which time a skirmish
took place between the whites and friend
iy Indians ,land party of the Black Feet
indians. Il lasted the most part OF the
day, the Bla ck Feet having fortified them
selves in some timber nigh creek. We
were about a,mile distant during the ac-
tion, Being pfonuttrd by uur immediate
Captain from joining. Hence took no
otherPart than to assist in taking care of
the wounded, and in guarding our own
camp. The result was that the whites
and their friends retreated at the approach
OF night; 7 of the whites were killed or
mortally wounded, and as many Indians
The enemy they supposed demolished.
there probably not being more than fifty
Of them. Ten scalps were then taken,
and thirty.two horses killed. The whole
appeared to me a needless and rash affray;
for the Black Feet wished to avoid the
engagement.
On the day ! mentioned twelve of our
party, (the rest choosing to return or 10
trap on the mountains started with about
forty trappers. This swellcd the number
Of our company TO about fifty, which rem
dered our travelling safe, even though we
were passing through what is considered
hostile country. We first proceeded 40
or so miles in southerly direction, across
the Lewis river, then southwest 800 miles
along the head waters Of creeks falling
into that river from the south. At this
point we came to streams running in an
opposite direction, and parted company
with the trappers. After this, we pursued
for general course N. W. say 400 miles,
part OF the time on, and part of the time
oh the Lewis river, until we finally reach
ed the Columbia, at Fort Walawala, nine
miles south Of its mouth. Here we left
our horses and took boat of the Hud-
sons Bay Company for this place, Fort
Van Couver,) where we arrived the last
OF October, having been much delayed by
living in company with trappers, and pur-
suing the same business ourselves.
We passed a great distance through
what is called the Snake country, the ma
tives OF which do not appear as well as
those we saw OF the mountains. The
Snake Indians hunt the Buffalo. The
animal, however, does not range below
the American Falls. They also live on
Salmon, which they dry. In this quar-
ter, and on the Columbia, they live on fish
principally. On the Walameth, (Mult-
nomah,) the Cainas and Wappatoo In
dams inhabit. They are divided into
many smaller tribes, and are not given to
warfare.
On the Lewis river, met with many
warm springs, coming out of bluffs ofsand
ffnpc rnCly. ipIoaJ -,
derable size, on applying thermometer,
its temperature was discovered to be 100
degs.
At Fort Van Couver, five of us took
an Indian canoe and went down the river
to Fort George, (Astoria) and the ocean.
You may well imagine felt some pecu-
liar emotions on reaching the termination
of my toilsome way, and in gazing ont
over the apparently boundess and shore
less waters of the immense Pacific. This
was about the middle ofNovember. Thus
it will be perceived we were six months
on our way, though under favorable cir
cumstances, the journey might have been
performed in three.
One immense prairie extends from the
mountains, with the exception of scatter
ing trees, of the pnus genus, (mostly on
the mountains0 to the Falls ofthe Colum
bia. Along the streams are willows, aud
often rank grass, but as you recede from
then, thin crop of grass and shrubbery
succeeds, and the soil generally becomes
barren. AT the falls commences scat
tering growth of oak, and at tide water,
a thick growth Of lofty trees of different
kinds; still the prevailing character of