ches round the middle of the fore leg, and his claws
five on each foot, were four inches and three-eighths in length. This
animal differs from the common black bear in having his claws much
longer and more blunt; his tail shorter; his hair of a reddish or bay
brown, longer, finer, and more abundant; his liver, lungs, and heart
much larger even in proportion to his size, the heart, particularly,
being equal to that of a large ox; and his maw ten times larger. Besides
fish and flesh, he feeds on roots and every kind of wild fruit."

On May 8 the party discovered the largest and most important of the
northern tributaries of the Upper Missouri. The journal thus describes
the stream:--

"Its width at the entrance is one hundred and fifty yards; on going
three miles up, Captain Lewis found it to be of the same breadth and
sometimes more; it is deep, gentle, and has a large quantity of water;
its bed is principally of mud; the banks are abrupt, about twelve
feet in height, and formed of a dark, rich loam and blue clay; the
low grounds near it are wide and fertile, and possess a considerable
proportion of cottonwood and willow. It seems to be navigable for boats
and canoes; by this circumstance, joined to its course and quantity of
water, which indicates that it passes through a large extent of
country, we are led to presume that it may approach the Saskaskawan
(Saskatchewan) and afford a communication with that river. The water has
a peculiar whiteness, such as might be produced by a tablespoonful of
milk in a dish of tea, and this circumstance induced us to call it Milk
River."

Modern geography shows that the surmise of Captain Lewis was correct.
Some of the tributaries of Milk River (the Indian name of which
signifies "The River that Scolds at all Others") have their rise near
St. Mary's River, which is one of the tributaries of the Saskatchewan,
in British America.

The explorers were surprised to find the bed of a dry river, as deep and
as wide as the Missouri itself, about fifteen miles above Milk River.
Although it had every appearance of a water-course, it did not discharge
a drop of water. Their journal says:--

"It passes through a wide valley without timber; the surrounding country
consists of waving low hills, interspersed with some handsome level
plains; the banks are abrupt, and consist of a black or yellow clay,
or of a rich sandy loam; though they do not rise more than six or eight
feet above the bed, the