it was feared that they had met with some accident.

Captain Clarke on setting out with five men on the 4th, went seven
miles on a course S. 25 degrees W. to a spring; thence he went S. 20
degrees W. for eight miles to the river where was an island, from which
he proceeded in a course N. 45 degrees W. and approached the river at
the distance of three, five, and thirteen miles, at which place they
encamped in an old Indian lodge made of sticks and bark. In crossing the
plains they observed several herds of buffaloe, some muledeer, antelopes
and wolves. The river is rapid and closely hemmed in by high bluffs,
crowded with bars of gravel, with little timber on the low grounds, and
none on the highlands. Near the camp this evening, a white bear attacked
one of the men, whose gun happening to be wet, would not go off; he
instantly made towards a tree, but was so closely pursued, that as he
ascended the tree he struck the bear with his foot. The bear not being
able to climb, waited till he should be forced to come down; and as the
rest of the party were separated from him by a perpendicular cliff of
rocks, which they could not descend, it was not in their power to give
him any assistance: fortunately however at last the bear became frighted
at their cries and firing, and released the man. In the afternoon it
rained, and during the night there fell both rain and snow, and in the
morning.

June 5, the hills to the S.E. were covered with snow, and the rain
continued. They proceeded on in a course N. 20 degrees W. near the river
several miles, till at the distance of eleven miles they reached a
ridge, from the top of which on the north side they could plainly
discern a mountain to the S. and W. at a great distance covered with
snow; a high ridge projecting from the mountains to the southeast
approaches the river on the southeast side, forming some cliffs of dark
hard stone. They also saw that the river ran for a great distance west
of south, with a rapid current, from which as well as its continuing of
the same width and depth, captain Clarke thought it useless to advance
any further, and therefore returned across the level plain in a
direction north 30 degrees east, and reached at the distance of twenty
miles the little river which is already mentioned as falling into the
north fork, and to which they gave the name of Tansy river, from the
great quantity of that herb growing on its banks. Here they dined, and
then proceeded on