The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1858-07-06
Latest News by Mail.


y
Stone River, gives an interesting account o
the Country and of the Indian tribes on tn,
Upper Missouri River. The boat left st
Louis on the 18th of May, and on the 2ls
reached Nebraska city, &C place of such uni
versal attraction and unprecedented growth
since it was made the fitting out post u
Mayor and Russell, the great army contract
ors for transportation ). thousands of theil
oxen were seen grazing on the green rnea-
dow Just below. The town is built on tho
side of a picturesque bluff, at a bend in the
river, afiording commanding water view
o. many miles. The landing is good and
the general character of the houses, better
than one unaquainted with new Western
cities could imagine, some of them being
three and four story brick buildings.
Eighty-three miles. above Nebraska City
is Omaha, the capital of Nebraska, neat,
fourishing and beautiful place. The state
house Is q fine specimen Of architecture, and
said to be very substantially built.
Sioux city is the lastof the wonderful cities
on the Missouri river. II is only two years
old and has now population of more than
1000. There are two or three hotels and
several large store houses, besides the inde-
spensable banks and saw mills. The arrival
OF steamboat is quite an event, and the
shore was crowded with people anxious to
hear from below. The situation of the
town is favorable and general appearance of
the inhabitants such as to warrant its rapid
advancement in wealth and importance.
Between Sioux City and Fort Randall.
nothing of general Importance was seen
until we reached the first Yankton Village
few miles above Yermillion river. where
stretching for a half mile along a beautiful
sloping prairie, were the skin, conical shap-
ed wigwams Of the savage.
As we approached the shore, could for
the first time appreciate wild Indian life !;
the whole village was moving, and the very
hills seemed alive with warriors, squaws and
Papooses and dogs, making n wild and pie
turesque scenery, but rs we approached near
them all romance vanished at beholding them
poor, miserable, filthy, half clad, as thew
seemed to glory in their wildness and pow
erty. rF t...
Between Fort Randall ard Fort Pierre
the county is very barren, and in many
places hills steep and very high The Big
Bend is the most remarkable part of the
river; here the Missouri curves upon itself.
making distance of fifty miles BY water,
when il is only four across the country,
from point TO point. .-,..--
Near Fort Pierre is White River, a long,
tortuous, forky stream, rising from pcrpet-
ual streams near Fort Laramie, and running
through Les Mauvaises Terres, or Bad Lands
that great country, so interesting TO the
fossa rer6afff5 v,Cr.-----4I-----
specimens of which were collected by Alex
ander Culbertson, and by him presented TO
Drs. Morton and Lcidy, of Philadelphia,
who first gave an account of them.
The water is of white milky color, ow-
ing TO the vast amount of calcareous and
alluminous matter held in suspension, and
after standing, thick skum, like cream,
forms upon il, which being removed, it has
med milk. II differs from all other water
in this region in being very astringent. II
empties into the Missouri few miles above
Bijous Hills.
Wood is scarce between these two points.
About six miles above Fort Clarke, oil
the Nebraska shore, is an old deserted Man
dan village of about fifteen lodges, and a
short distance farther up, another encamp-
ment, the winter quarters of the Rees.
From Fort Clarke TO Fort Bcrthold the
third trading post it is only sixty miles,
and good river all the way.
Fort Berthold is exactly like Fort Clarke.
Here the Gros Ventres and the MandanS
have permanent village and dwell in dirt
lodges similar to the Aricarees. When we
approached the Fort a much larger number
aud superior looking set of Indians were
assembled on the bank to receive US than at
Fort Clarke. The Mandans, very bold,
warlike tribe, formerly lived lower down
the river in a separate village, but being
dccimated n few years since by small pox
and unable longer to fight their own bat
ties. they removed to Fort Berthold anC
ioined the Gros Ventres. There are now
/ one hundred lodges of GroS Ventres anC
forty-two of the Mandans and, like all W.
have seen, are very poor, dirty, degraded
desperate creatures, but more noble, hon
orable and virtuouS than the ReeS.
Some of the warriors are very bold, ath
letic men, and apparently well disposed to
wards the whites. The women are lighte
| complexioned and better looking than tn
| Rees. They pay some little attention &
agriculture and generally raise a small
! quantity of corn and beans Buffalo ar
usually very numerous here, ana a fev
DAYS before our return to the Fort, the In
dians killed 400 in one surround. Thei
village is built without ;he slightest regar
to regularity, and it is with difficulty tina
/ YOU can find your way out, walking owe
half the town. Between the hutS are seal
folds for drying buffalo meat and dreSSin
buffalo robes. At every door are ha
dozen or more Sneaking, snarling, starving
half wolf dogs, too poor to bite, but contin
ually growing at every rasser-hy, and rer
dering an evening promenade more adventt
rouS than agreeable.
Scattered irregularly around the fort 81
the scaffolds for the dead, they burying a
most entirely in this manner. The numbc
of fresh bodies, was greater than at either
the other forts, but no epidemic is pr
vailing among them at present. Our sta
at this place was short, and on leaving "
took on board sixteen Indians, CroS Ventr'
and MandanS. under the promise that the
would 90 TO Fort Benton and make peac
with the Blaokfeet. Among the numb,
was Nspolean Bonaparte, the bravest ma
4 in the whole country, and very gre
: friend OF the whites, wearing civilized dreS
! and showing rs much good feeling for h
: sprightly little SON as any gentleman coul
, From Fort Belknap to Fort Union, Il