Astoria (review) [pp. 59-68]

SOUTHERN LITERARY MESSENGER.
'We do not intend, of course, to proceed with our tra vellers throughout the vast series of adventure encoun tered in their pass c through the w ilderness. To the cu ricos in these particulars we recommend the book itself.
lNo details more intensely exciting are to be found in
any woilrk of travels within our knoiiwledge. At times
full of life and enjoying the whole luxury to be found
in the career of the hunter-at times suffering every
extremaity of' fatigue, hunger, thirst, anxiety, terror, and
despair-Mr. Hunt still persisted in his journey, and
finally brought it to a suIccessful termination. A bare
outline of the route pursued is all we can attempt.
Proceeding up the river, our party arrived, on the
twenty-e;cihth of April, at the mouth of the kN ebraska,
or Platte, the largest tributary of the Missouri, and
about six hundred miles above its junction with the
Mississippi. They now halted for two days, to sup ply themselves with oars and poles from the tough
wood of the ash, which is not to be found higher
up the river. Upon the second of May, two of the
hunters insisted upon abanidoning the expedition, and
returning to St. Louis. On the tenth, the party
reached the Omaha village, and encamped in its vi cinitv. This village is about eight hundred and thirty
miles above St. Louis, and on the west bank of the
stream. Three men here deserted, but their place
was luckily supplied by three others, who were pre vaailed upon, by liberal promises, to enlist. On the
fifteenth, Mi-. Hunt left Omaha, and proceeded. Not
long afterwvards, a caiioe was descried navigated by two
white men. They proved to be two adventurers who,
for some years past, had been hunting and trapping near
the head of the Missouri. Their names were Jones
and Carson. They were now on their way to St. Louis,
but readily abandoned their voyage, and turned their
faces again toward the Rocky Mountains. On the
tweinty-third Mr. Hunt received, by a special messenger', a letter from Mr. Manuel Lisa, the leading partner
of the Missouri Fur Coipany, and the gentleman who
rendered him so many disservices at St. Louis. He
had left that place, w-ith a large party, three weeks
after Mr. H., and, having heard rumors of hostile intentions on the part of the Sloux, a much dreaded tribe
of Inidians, made great exertions to overtake him, that
they mipht ass through the elaangerous part of the river
to,etler. Mr. I-., however, was justly suspi cious of
the Spaniard, and pushed on. At the village of the
Poucas, about a league south of the river CLuicourt, lie
s0topped only long einough to procure a supply of dried
buffalo mieat. On the morning of the twenty-fifth, it
was discovered that Jones and Carson had deserted.
They wierc pursued, but in vain. The next day three
w%iVie men were ohbserved, in two canoes, descending
the riveCr. They proeel to be three Kentuclky huntersEdward Robinsoni, John Hoback, and Jacob Rizner.
They also had paissed sev eral years in) the upper wilderness, one wece now on their way home, but willingly
tuirned back with the expedition. information denived
fr'on these ieccruitit indluceed Mr. Hunt to alter his route.
Hithet he h intended to follow the course pursued
by Messieuns Lew is and Claclee-ascending the -Missouri to it foiks, and thence, by land, across the
mocunta~ins. Uc was infornied, how ever, that, ini so
doing, hie w ould hiave to pass through the country of
tile Blackfeet, a savage tribe of Indians, exasperated,
against the whites, on account of the death of one of
their men by the hands of Captain Lewis. Robinson
advised a more southeily route. This would carry
them over the mountains about where the head waters
of the Platte and tl)e Ycliowstone take their rise, a
much more practicable pas thaiin that of Lewis and
Clarke. To this counsel Mr. Hunt agreed, and resolv ed to leave the Missouri at the village of the Arickaras,
at which they would arrive in a few days. On the first
of June, they reached "the great bend" of the river,
which here winds for about thirty miles round a circu lar peninsula, the necle of which is not above two thou sand yards across. On the morning of June the t}hird,
the party were overtaken by Lisa, much to their dis satisfaction. The moetin7 was, of course, far from
cordial, but an outward appearance of civility was
maintained for two days. On the third, a quarrel took
place, which was near terminating seriously. It was,
however, partially adjusted, and the rival parties coast ed along opposite sides of the river, in sight of each
other. On the twelfth of June, they reached the vil lage of the Acicleacas, between the forty-sixth and
forty-seven th parallels of north latitude, and about
fourteen hundred and thirty miles above the mouth of
the Missouri. In accomplisliing thus much of his jour ney, Mr. Hunt had not failed to meet with a crowd of
difficulties, at which we have not even hinted. He
was frequently in extreme peril from large bodies of
the Sioux, and, at one time, it was a mere accident
alone which prevented the massacre of the whole party.
At the Arickara village our adventurers were to
abandon their boats, and proceed westward across the
wilderness. Horses were to be purchased from the
Indians; who could not, however, furnish them in suffi cient numbers. In this dilemma, Lisa offered to pur chase the boats, now no longer of use, and to pay for
them in horses, to be obtained at a fort belonging to the
Missouri Fur Company, and situated at the Mandan
villages, about a hundred and fifty miles further up the
river. A bargain was made, and Messieurs Lisa and
Crooks went for the horses, returning with them in
about a fortnight. At the Arickara village, if we understand, Mr. Hunt engaged the services of one Edward
Rose. He enlisted as interl)reter when the expedition
should reach the country of the Upsarokas or Crow
Indiass, aniMig wlioiii be had fouiiierly resided. On
the eighteenth of July the party took up their line of
march. They were still insuf~clently provided with
horses. The cavalcade consisted of eighty-two, most
of them heavily laden with Indian goods, beaver
traps, ammunition, and provisions. Each of the partinets was niouetted. As they took leave of Acicara,
the veterans of Lisa's company, as well as Lisa himself, predicted the total destreucticin of our adlventurers
amid the unnumerable perils of the w ildereness.
To avoid the Blackfeet Indians, a ferocious and implacable tribe of whiclh we leave befoce spoken, the party
kcept a seutlh-ssestern direction. Tlhis route took them
across sonmc of the tcibiutaiy streams of the Missouri, and
through immnense prairies bouinded cinly by tlhe horizon.
Their progress was at first sleow, and, Mr. Crooks tfalling sice, it was necessary to neake a litter for him betsseen two lhoises. On the tsvcnty-tleird of the month,
they encamped on the b:unks of a little stream nicknamed Big River, where they cremained seseral diiys,
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