La Salle and the discovery of the great West - North Central ...

70 THE DISCOVERY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. [1673.the site of the destined city of St. Louis, and, afew days later, saw on their left the mouth of thestream to which the Iroquois had given the wellmeritedname of Ohio, or the "Beautiful River." 1Soon they began to see the marshy shores buried ina dense growth of the cane, with its tall straightstems and feathery light-green foliage. The sunglowed through thehazy air with a languid stiflingheat, and by day and night mosquitoes in myriadsleft them no peace. They floated slowly down thecurrent, crouched in the shade of the sails whichthey had spread as awnings, when suddenly theysaw Indians on the east bank. The surprise wasmutual, and each party was as much frightened asthe other. Marquette hastened to display the calumetwhich the Illinois had given him by way ofpassport; and the Indians, recognizing the pacificsymbol, replied with an invitation to land. Evidently,they were in communication with Europeans,for they were armed with guns, knives, and hatchets,wore garments of cloth, and carried their gunpowderin small bottles of thick glass. They feasted theFrenchmen with buffalo-meat, bear's oil, and whiteplums; and gave them a variety of doubtful inbears,on early French maps, the names of " Riviere des Osages,"and " Riviere des Emissourites," or " Oumessourits." On Marquette'smap, a tribe of this name is placed near its banks, justabove the Osages. Judging by the course of the Mississippi that itdischarged into the Gulf of Mexico, he conceived the hope of oneday reaching the South Sea by way of the Missouri.1 Called, on Marquette's map, " Ouabouskiaou." On some of theearliest maps, it is called "Ouabache " (Wabash).