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.
