s inhabitants, the bears, which have
annoyed us very much of late, and were prowling about our camp all last
night. We found that the part of the island frequented by the bears
forms an almost impenetrable thicket of the broad-leaved willow. Into
this we forced our way in parties of three; but could see only one bear,
which instantly attacked Drewyer. Fortunately, as he was rushing on, the
hunter shot him through the heart within twenty paces and he fell, which
enabled Drewyer to get out of his way. We then followed him one hundred
yards, and found that the wound had been mortal.

"Not being able to discover any more of these animals, we returned
to camp. Here, in turning over some of the baggage, we caught a rat
somewhat larger than the common European rat, and of a lighter color;
the body and outer parts of the legs and head of a light lead color; the
inner side of the legs, as well as the belly, feet, and ears, white; the
ears are not covered with hair, and are much larger than those of the
common rat; the toes also are longer; the eyes are black and prominent,
the whiskers very long and full; the tail is rather longer than the
body, and covered with fine fur and hair of the same size with that on
the back, which is very close, short, and silky in its texture. This was
the first we had met, although its nests are very frequent in the cliffs
of rocks and hollow trees, where we also found large quantities of the
shells and seed of the prickly-pear."

The queer rat discovered by Lewis and Clark was then unknown to science.
It is now known in the Far West as the pack-rat. It lives in holes and
crevices of the rocks, and it subsists on the shells and seeds of the
prickly pear, which is usually abundant in the hunting grounds of the
little animal. The explorers were now constantly in full view of the
Rocky Mountain, on which, however, their present title had not then been
conferred. Under date of July 2, the journal says:--

"The mosquitoes are uncommonly troublesome. The wind was again high
from the southwest. These winds are in fact always the coldest and most
violent which we experience, and the hypothesis which we have formed
on that subject is, that the air, coming in contact with the Snowy
Mountains, immediately becomes chilled and condensed, and being thus
rendered heavier than the air below, it descends into the rarefied air
below, or into the vacuum formed by the constant action of the sun
on the open unsheltere