A Brief History of South Dakota/Chapter 9
CHAPTER IX
A NOTABLE BOAT RACE
The information brought back by Lewis and Clark regarding the vast extent of the fur-bearing country through which they had traveled, caused great activity among the fur merchants of St. Louis, and they immediately organized for the purpose of trade with the Indian tribes upon the head waters of the Missouri River and in the Rocky Mountains. The most prominent of these traders were Pierre Chouteau and Manuel Lisa, the men of whom we learned in the story of the return of Big White. They were prompt in entering the country and claiming prior rights in its occupancy.
The great king of all the American fur trade was John Jacob Astor of New York city. When the reports of Lewis and Clark's successful trip came to Astor, he immediately determined to establish a great fur depot on the Pacific coast at the mouth of the Columbia River, and to dispatch two expeditions to that point, one to go by sea around South America, the other to go overland. The overland expedition was placed in charge of a famous fur merchant of that time, Walter Price Hunt of Jersey City.
Hunt began to recruit his men for the enterprise at Montreal, securing there many of the best-trained fur men from the Hudson Bay and Northwestern employment. He went on to Mackinaw, where he secured other trained wilderness rangers, and thence went to St. Louis, where he purposed to lay in his supplies and employ additional men. He reached St. Louis in the autumn of 1810. There he met with the most violent opposition from the St. Louis merchants, who were very jealous of Astor. They refused to sell Hunt any goods and used every means to prevent men from going upon his errand.
In this opposition no one was more active than the Spaniard, Manuel Lisa. It was important to Hunt to secure a guide and interpreter who was thoroughly familiar with the upper Missouri, and he found such a man in Pierre Dorion, Jr., son of the old guide to Lewis and Clark. Dorion was a half Sioux, born at Yankton and familiar with all of the Indians residing on the Missouri River. However, he was in the employment of Lisa, and that made it particularly hard for Hunt to secure his services. It was the policy of all of the fur merchants to keep their employés in debt to them, and Dorion was deeply indebted to Lisa for whisky he had purchased and consumed. Lisa was not slow to see that Hunt was tampering with his man, and he coaxed, scolded, and finally threatened Dorion's arrest for the whisky debt. This had the desired effect, and Dorion refused to accompany Hunt.
To keep his men away from the influence of the St. Louis merchants, Hunt moved his expedition some 400 miles up the Missouri late in the autumn, and there made a winter camp. Toward spring he returned to St. Louis to recruit more men, and again entered into negotiations with Dorion, who agreed to accompany him into the wilderness. Learning of this, Lisa got out a warrant for Dorion's arrest on the whisky debt, but Dorion escaped into the brush and, after traveling a long and circuitous route, joined Hunt far up the river. Hunt went with all haste to his camp, quickly made ready for the voyage, and finally, on the 27th of April, 1811, set off up the river in four boats, one of which was of large size and mounted two swivels and a howitzer. He was aware when he left St. Louis that Lisa was about ready to embark for the head waters of the Missouri, and he had every reason to believe that Lisa was now in close pursuit.
Hunt's party got along prosperously and reached the mouth of the Big Sioux River on the 15th of May. On the 23d they had reached the sharp bend in the Missouri between the site of Springfield and Bon Homme Island, when they were overtaken by a messenger from Lisa, who informed them that Lisa had passed their winter encampment nineteen days after they had left, and that he was then at the Omaha village opposite the mouth of the Big Sioux; that he had a large boat manned with twenty oarsmen, and that he had set out to overtake the Astorians at any cost. The messenger said that the Teton Sioux were hostile, being excited by the religious craze inspired by the teaching of the Shawnee Prophet, which had reached all of the tribes in the Mississippi and Missouri valleys, and that Lisa wished to join his expedition with the Astorians for mutual protection while passing through the hostile country. Hunt sent back word to Lisa that he would await Lisa's arrival at the Ponca village at the mouth of the Niobrara; but no sooner had the messenger disappeared downstream, than Hunt redoubled his energy to pass through the Sioux country in advance of Lisa, for he feared that Lisa would use his well-known influence with the Indians to excite hostilities against the Astorians. Hunt was in a state of terror, and it is hard to tell which he feared most, Lisa or the Indians he was pretty certain to meet in the Dakota country.
By the morning of the 31st of May Hunt had arrived in the neighborhood of the Big Bend, when the whole party were almost scared out of their wits by the approach of a large body of Sioux, who came racing down the river bank as if to intercept their passage. They were under the lead of our old friend Black Buffalo. They informed the white men that they were at war with the Rees and Mandans, and would not permit ammunition and guns to be taken to their enemies. Hunt explained to them that he was not looking for trade on the Missouri, but was going to cross the mountains to the Pacific coast; this satisfied Black Buffalo, who allowed the white men to pass on. They, however, met several other bands of Sioux in the next day or two, and were kept in a constant state of alarm. Just as they rounded the Big Bend they met a party of Rees, who greeted them most cordially. After spending a night with the whites, the Rees set off hot foot for their home on Grand River, to inform their people of the approach of the boats.
At the very moment when the Rees disappeared up river, Manuel Lisa and his party were seen coming around the bend. This threw Hunt and his party into a new terror, but Manuel greeted them civilly and for two days continued to travel in their company, showing no disposition to pass them, though they feared that he would go on and excite the Rees against them.
On the 5th of June both parties were encamped on the site of the present city of Pierre. It was a wet, disagreeable day, and they had decided to lie over for rest until the weather cleared up. From the moment of Lisa's arrival Pierre Dorion had kept aloof and regarded him most sullenly. During this day in camp the wily Spaniard decided to make up with Dorion, and invited him on his boat. After regaling him with whisky Lisa asked him to quit the service of Hunt and return to him. This Pierre refused to do. Finding that Pierre could not be moved by soft words, Lisa called to his mind the old whisky debt and threatened to carry him off by force in payment of it. A violent quarrel occurred between him and Lisa, and he left the boat in great anger and went directly to the tent of Mr. Hunt and told him of Lisa's threat.
While Dorion was telling Hunt his story, Lisa entered the tent, pretending that he had come to borrow a towing line. High words followed between him and Dorion, and the half-breed struck him a hard blow. Lisa immediately rushed to his boat for a weapon; Dorion snatched up a pair of pistols belonging to Mr. Hunt and placed himself in battle array. The loud voices aroused the camp, and every one pressed up to know the cause. Lisa reappeared with a knife stuck in his girdle. Dorion's pistols gave him the advantage, and he kept up a most warlike attitude. A scene of uproar and hubbub ensued, which defies description; the men of each party sided with their employer, and every one seemed anxious for blood except Hunt, who used every effort to prevent a general mêlée. In the midst of the brawl Lisa called Hunt a bad name and in an instant Hunt's quiet spirit was inflamed. He wanted to fight Lisa and his whole company, and challenged the Spaniard to settle the matter on the spot with pistols. Lisa, nothing loath, went to his boat to arm himself for the duel.
Two eminent scientists, Bradbury and Brakenridge, who accompanied the expeditions, now returned from a search for specimens just in time to interfere and undoubtedly to prevent bloodshed. But while they did prevent a fight, they could not bring the two parties to a friendly understanding, and all intercourse between them ceased. They started on, keeping on opposite sides of the river, each party determined, if the other showed bad faith by attempting to go ahead to the Ree camp, to resort to arms to prevent it. Thus they skirted along until they were close to the Ree towns on Grand River. Lisa then sent Mr. Brakenridge over to the Astorians to arrange a joint meeting with the Rees with due ceremony. Hunt, still suspicious, refused to have anything to do in common with the Spaniard, but upon the representations of Mr. Brakenridge finally consented, and it was arranged that both parties should go to the village at the same time.
Here Hunt decided to leave the river and start across country to the Pacific by way of the Grand River route. To enable him to do this it was necessary to buy a large number of horses of the Rees. He told his purpose in the first council held, but the chief Left Hand said it would be impossible for them to supply so many horses as were needed. Here Gray Eyes, another chief, interrupted to say that the matter could be easily arranged, for if they had not enough horses to supply the requirements of the white men, they could easily steal more, and putting this honest expedient into practice they soon had all the horses Hunt needed. Hunt remained with the Rees until the 18th of July, when, being fully equipped, he set out for the Pacific. Going up Grand River, he crossed through the northern part of the Black Hills, being the first to explore that region, and after great hardship and suffering reached the mouth of the Columbia. Lisa, having traded out his wares to the Rees for furs, set out for St. Louis about the same time that Hunt departed.
A Sioux War Party