The Hail Was So Large, And Driven So Furiously
Against Them By The High Wind, That It Knocked Several Of
Them down:
one of them, particularly, was thrown on the ground three times, and most
of them were bleeding freely,
And complained of being much bruised.
Willow Run had risen six feet since the rain; and, as the plains
were so wet that they could not proceed, they passed the night
at their camp.
"At the White Bear camp, also," (says Lewis), "we had not been
insensible to the hailstorm, though less exposed. In the morning
there had been a heavy shower of rain, after which it became fair.
After assigning to the men their respective employments,
Captain Lewis took one of them, and went to see the large fountain
near the falls. . . . It is, perhaps, the largest in America,
and is situated in a pleasant level plain, about twenty-five yards
from the river, into which it falls over some steep, irregular rocks,
with a sudden ascent of about six feet in one part of its course.
The water boils up from among the rocks, and with such force near
the centre that the surface seems higher there than the earth on
the sides of the fountain, which is a handsome turf of fine green grass.
The water is extremely pure, cold, and pleasant to the taste,
not being impregnated with lime or any foreign substance.
It is perfectly transparent, and continues its bluish cast for half
a mile down the Missouri, notwithstanding the rapidity of the river.
After examining it for some time, Captain Lewis returned to the camp.
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