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 | | Monday November 23, 2009 2:46 AM |
 | | From the Journals of Lewis & Clark in 1804-1805 | |
LEWIS and CLARK First Meet a Salish Speaking Indian Tribe
from the journal of William Clark
SEPTEMBER 3rd TUESDAY 1805
the high mountains closed the Creek on each Side and obliged us to take on the Steep Sides of those Mountains, So Steep that the horses could Scur[ce]ly keep from Slipping down, Several sliped & Injured themselves verry much, with great dificuelty we made [blank space in MS.] miles
This day we passed over emence hils and Some of the worst roads that ever horses passed, our horses frequently fell Snow about 2 inches deep when it began to rain which termonated in a Sleet[storm]
SEPTEMBER 4th WEDNESDAY 1805
Groun[d] covered with Snow, we assended a mountain & took a Divideing ridge which we kept for Several Miles & fell on the head of a Creek which appeared to run the Course we wished to go, prosued our Course down the Creek to the forks about 5 miles where we met a part[y] of the Tushepau [Flathead] nation, of 33 Lodges about 80 men 400 Total and at least 500 horses, those people rec[e]ved us friendly, threw white robes over our Sholders & Smoked in the pipes of peace, we Encamped with them & found them friendly, The Chief harangued untill late at night, Smoked in our pipe and appeared Satisfied. I was the first white man who ever wer on the waters of this river.
SEPTEMBER 5th TUESDAY 1805
we assembled the Chiefs & warriers and Spoke to them (with much dificuel[t]y as what we Said had to pass through Several languages before it got into theirs, which is a gugling kind of language Spoken much thro the throught [throat] in the Course of the day I purchased 11 horses & exchanged 7 for which we gave a flew articles of merchandise, those people possess ellegant horses.
from the journal of Joseph Whitehouse
THURSDAY 5TH [AND 6TH] SEPT. 1805.
these Savages has the Strangest language of any we have ever Seen. they appear to us to have an Empediment in their Speech or a brogue or bur on their tongue but they are the likelyest and
honestst Savages we have ever yet Seen....we take these Savages to be the Welch Indians if their be any Such from the Language. So Capt. Lewis took down the names of everry thing in their Language, in order that it may be found out whether they are or whether they Sprang or origenated first from the welch or not.
In early September of 1805, Lewis and Clark are coming down from
the Continental Divide under extremely steep and rugged condition.
Here they have their first encounter with a Salish speaking
Native American tribe. They speculate that the language is Welch -
an ancient Celtic language of Western England. DeVoto writes that a
"belief that there was a tribe of Welsh Indians was the most
widespread and most durable myth in American history.
...It made its first printed appearance in 1583."
If nothing else it indicates how different the Salish language
sounded to Europeans used to the languages of the many
Plains Tribes they had so far encountered on their journey.
Note also that they are the first Eropeans in this country,
and that they are very favorably impressed by the Native
People.
They have come down one of the ridges of the Bitterroot mountains.
Probably they crossed by Lost Trail Pass.They are still west of the
Continental Divide but only a few miles to the south is Gibbon's Pass,
which crosses it to Big Hole Basin. There is disagreement as to
whether they are in Ross's Hole or Camp Creek.
NOTE - The spelling here is as it was written in Clark's Journal.
He could not spell very well.
selection quoted in The Journals of Lewis and Clark,
edited by Bernard DeVoto, Boston 1953
Last Updated
December 22, 2004
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