It Is A Knobbed, Irregular Root,
And When Cooked Resembles The Ginseng.
At this place the party
met some of the Indians whom Captain Clark had treated for
slight diseases, when
They passed that way, the previous autumn.
They bad sounded the praises of the white men and their medicine,
and others were now waiting to be treated in the same manner.
The Indians were glad to pay for their treatment, and the white
men were not sorry to find this easy method of adding
to their stock of food, which was very scanty at this time.
The journal sagely adds, "We cautiously abstain from giving them
any but harmless medicines; and as we cannot possibly do harm,
our prescriptions, though unsanctioned by the faculty, may be useful,
and are entitled to some remuneration." Very famous and
accomplished doctors might say the same thing of their practice.
But the explorers did not meet with pleasant acquaintances only;
in the very next entry is recorded this disagreeable incident:
"Four miles beyond this house we came to another large one, containing
ten families, where we halted and made our dinner on two dogs and a small
quantity of roots, which we did not procure without much difficulty.
Whilst we were eating, an Indian standing by, looking with great
derision at our eating dogs, threw a poor half-starved puppy almost
into Captain Lewis' plate, laughing heartily at the humor of it.
Captain Lewis took up the animal and flung it with great force into
the fellow's face; and seizing his tomahawk, threatened to cut him
down if he dared to repeat such insolence. He immediately withdrew,
apparently much mortified, and we continued our repast of dog very quietly.
Here we met our old Chopunnish guide, with his family; and soon afterward
one of our horses, which had been separated from the rest in charge
of Twisted-hair, and had been in this neighborhood for several weeks,
was caught and restored to us."
Later in that day the party came to a Chopunnish house which was
one hundred and fifty-six feet long and fifteen feet wide.
Thirty families were living in this big house, each family
having its fire by itself burning on the earthen floor,
along through the middle of the great structure.
The journal says: -
"We arrived very hungry and weary, but could not purchase any provisions,
except a small quantity of the roots and bread of the cows.
They had, however, heard of our medical skill, and made many applications
for assistance, but we refused to do anything unless they gave us
either dogs or horses to eat. We soon had nearly fifty patients.
A chief brought his wife with an abscess on her back, and promised
to furnish us with a horse to-morrow if we would relieve her.
Captain Clark, therefore, opened the abscess, introduced a tent,
and dressed it with basilicon. We also prepared and distributed some doses
of flour of sulphur and cream of tartar, with directions for its use.
For these we obtained several dogs, but too poor for use,
and therefore postponed our medical operations till the morning.
In the mean time a number of Indians, besides the residents of the village,
gathered about us or camped in the woody bottom of the creek."
It will be recollected that when the expedition was in this region (on the
Kooskooskee), during the previous September, on their way westward, they left
their horses with Chief Twisted-hair, travelling overland from that point.
They were now looking for that chief, and the journal says:
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