baptism to some children, to give adults some ideas of our holy religion, and to establish a durable and advantageous peace between the two nations. Our savages have lived, during the last two years, in a terrible dread of this numerous and warlike nation; lately, also, two of our people had been massacred.
I embarked on the Missouri, the 29th of April, [1839] in a steamboat [the St. Peter's]. I met on board, to my great joy, two old friends: the one a French mathematician, Mr. Nicollet, a very learned and pious man; the other, Mr. [Chas. A.] Geyer, a German. These gentlemen are making a scientific excursion of 4,500 miles into the Indian countries. The waters of the river were low; the sand-banks and the sawyers very numerous and difficult to pass; the winds strong and contrary. Our progress was very slow. We had many an opportunity to make excursions in the woods and prairies, searching for new minerals, which abound in these wilds, and rare and curious plants, among which we made some beautiful discoveries. I thought of you, my good mother, when I found myself in those beautiful parterres. I imagined once for an instant, that you were there, with your children. I heard your exclamations: " Potten, gotten, kinderen! Wel, wel! * * * Dat zijn schoone bloemen! Wie zoude het konnen gelooven? * * * Maar ziet, maar ziet! Komt hier, moeder; hier heb ik eene schoone," (6) etc., etc. Indeed it was truly the most beautiful view one could fancy. When the bell called us back to the steamer, I quitted those little parks of wild flowers with much difficulty. I gathered a great number of plants which I preserved in my herbal. We passed over several spots where there were only onions, round, and about as large as the marbles children use for play, but excellent for eating. In another place we gathered a great quantity of asparagus,
(6) "Children, get some vases ! Well, well ! Those are pretty flowers ! Who would have thought it? Just look ! Here, Mother, here is a pretty one."