Sun River sun. [volume] (Sun River, Mont.) 1884-1885, 1884-03-27
MONTANA EXPLORED
Lewis and Clarke Were Not'the
First White Men in the
Territory.
Rhetorical Research Reveals the Fact
that the lavenendrye Brothers
Discovered the Upper
Missouri Country.

General Brisbin has the following
bit of early Montana history in the
Pioneer Press of recent date:
"ln l743 two Frenchmen, the La
Nenc,lryc brothers, with Il party OF
ten countrymen, came from tho Lake
of the Woods in the north, to explore
the Rocky mountains, and fell in with
the Snake Indians on the Wind river,
in what is now Wyoming Territory.
La Vencndrye and his brother were
tho sons Of the Cheyalier Ecncndrye,
who was sent in 1871 by Chm,le dc
Beauharnois, then governor general
of Canada, to explore country about
Rainy lake, the head of thc.Siissnuri,
and, If possible, push on and ascend
the Shinidg or Rocky montains, heard
of for the first time in 172S. The
Fr,nchmen reached the great noun.
tains, assembled them, but could go no
further south than Wind river, on nc
count of great war raging between
the Snakes. Arricarees and SanssArca
On May 10, 1744, they returned to the
upper Missouri, and in tho Choke
Cherry country, on an eminencc, plan
ted n lcaden plate of arms OF France
and raised Il monument of stone,
which they called Beauharnois, end
then returned to the Lake of the
Woods, July 2, 1744 The explorations
of the Vcncndryc brothers in the
United States were much more extern
sive and important than they have
over been accredited with in history.
1t appears they started with fifty men
from Montreal in 1871, and in the an
tumn OF that year reached the Rainy
lake by the Nnntowagan river, now
called Pigeon river. AT the foot Rainy
lake fort was erected and called TT.
st. Pierre. The next ycart they crossed
the Lake Of the Woods and established
Fort st. Charlcz on its southwestern
bank. Five leagues from Lake Win
nipcg they established post Oh the
Assinaboinc. Here they met Il band
OF Indians, who called themselves AS
sinnboines, and said they were 4
branch Of the Dakotahs, and lived by
netting fish, which, for want Of fuel.
they cooked by warming water with
hot stones. 4 Jcsrlist account OF them
written over two hundred years ago,
says:
AS wood is very scarce and small
with them nature has taught them to
burn stone in the place Of it, and to
cover their wigwans with the skins Of
wild animals. Some Of them have
built mud cabins nearly in tho same
manner as swallows build their nests.
The above statement is made only
for the purpose Of correcting it, as it
has often been asserted and applied to
the Snakes, as well as the Assina-
BONES. The fact is it was not lack
of fuel which caused them to boil
thcir fish by putting hot stones in the
water, but Il lack of vessels that would
stand fire. Almost all the savage
tribes before their contract with the
whites, often cooked their fish OF
game by putting it into water-iisht
caskcts or troughs, and then put hot
stones into the water until it boiled.
As to wood being scarce and small
with them and nature having taught
them to burn stone in place Of Utmost
probably the error arose from war
parties of their hereditary cncmies,
the Chippcwas, watching at distance
and seeing the Assinaboine gather
something on the naked prairies which
looked likc stones, and making fire
with them; what they gathered must
have been buffalo chips which are
still sometimes used by the Aaaina
BONES for fuel, In the distance the
white cakcd droopings Of the buffalo
look very much like stone, and are Of
ten used by our soldiers for cooking
purposes. They make It hot fire and
are indeed Il very good substitute for