relieved from pain, a gentle perspiration ensued, his fever
abated and in the morning he was quite recovered. One of the men caught
several dozen fish of two species: the first is about nine inches long,
of a white colour, round in shape; the mouth is beset both above and
below with a rim of fine sharp teeth, the eye moderately large, the
pupil dark, and the iris narrow, and of a yellowish brown colour: in
form and size it resembles the white chub of the Potomac, though its
head is proportionably smaller; they readily bite at meat or
grasshoppers; but the flesh though soft and of a fine white colour is
not highly flavoured. The second species is precisely of the form and
about the size of the fish known by the name of the hickory shad or old
wife, though it differs from it in having the outer edge of both the
upper and lower jaw set with a rim of teeth, and the tongue and palate
also are defended by long sharp teeth bending inwards, the eye is very
large, the iris wide and of a silvery colour; they do not inhabit muddy
water, and the flavour is much superior to that of the former species.
Of the first kind we had seen a few before we reached Maria's river; but
had found none of the last before we caught them in the Missouri above
its junction with that river. The white cat continues as high as Maria's
river, but they are scarce in this part of the river, nor have we caught
any of them since leaving the Mandans which weighed more than six
pounds.

Of other game they saw a great abundance even in their short march of
nine miles.

Wednesday 12. This morning captain Lewis left the bank of the river in
order to avoid the steep ravines which generally run from the shore to
the distance of one or two miles in the plain: having reached the opened
country he went for twelve miles in a course a little to the west of
southwest, when the sun becoming warm by nine o'clock, he returned to
the river in quest of water and to kill something for breakfast, there
being no water in the plain, and the buffaloe discovering them before
they came within gunshot took to flight. They reached the banks in a
handsome open low ground with cottonwood, after three miles walk. Here
they saw two large brown bears, and killed them both at the first fire,
a circumstance which has never before occurred since we have seen that
animal. Having made a meal of a part and hung the remainder on a tree
with a note for captain Clarke, they again ascended the bluf