A half-century of conflict. France and England in North America. Part ...

34 SEARCH FOR THE PACIFIC. [1743.have regarded his young friends with mingled affection,respect, and wonder, was grieved at the thoughtof losing them, but took comfort when they promisedto visithim again, provided that he would make hisabode near a certain river which they pointed out.To this he readily agreed, and then, with mutualregret, they parted.^ The Frenchmen repaired to thevillage of the Choke-Cherry Indians, who, like theBow Indians, were probably a band of Sioux. ^ Hardby their lodges, which stood near the Missouri, thebrothers buried a plate of lead graven with the royalarms, and raised a pile of stones in honor ofthe governorof Canada. They remained at this place tillApril; then, mounting their horses again, followedthe Missouri upward to the village of the Mandans,which they reached on the eighteenth of May.Afterspending a week here, they joined a party ofAssiniboins, journeyed with them towards Fort LaReine, and reached it on the second of July, — to the1 The only two tribes of this region who were a match for tlieSnakes were the Sioux and tlie Blackfeet. It is clear that the BowIndians could not have been Blackfeet, as in that case, after the warpartybroke up, they would have moved northward towards theirown country, instead of east-southeast into the country of theirenemies. Hence I incline to think the Bow Indians a band of Sioux,or Dakota, — a people then, as since, predominant in that country.The banks of the Missouri, in the part which La V^rendryewould have reached in following an east-southeast course, wereoccupied by numerous bands or sub-tribes of Sioux, such as theMinneconjou, Yankton, Oncpapa, Brule, and others, friends andrelatives of the Bow Indians, supposing these to have been Sioux.2 The Sioux, Cheyennes, and other prairie tribes use the smallastringent wild cherry for food. The squaws pound it, stones andall, and then dry it for winter use.