Conservative * 9
WE VIEW WITH ALARM.
There is no arguing concerning
tastes. The preference of a seem
ingly largo number of American
citizens leads them occasionally to
seek repose on the roadbed of railroad
lines. The ballast of a railroad
track would not strike one at first
sight as being the most comfortable
nor restful of couches , but there must
bo something in it , as a largo num
ber of such weary citizens are over
taken by railroad trains in their
slumbers and appear thereafter only
as . items in the newspapers and
gravestones in the churchyard. Since
ono cannot suppose that all of these
experiments end fatally , wo are bound
to believe that a much larger num
ber than ono would think are lodging
on the railroad tracks at all times.
It seems to us that it is a dangerous
habit and one which the country
press could well oppose with all the
eloquence at its command.
TEACHING CHILDREN.
It will be interesting to see what
the wise men can bring to pass in
the way of conclusions at their com
ing meeting in Lincoln. They are
going to discuss religious education ,
the university people and all the
churches together. Many of these
conventions come to no conclusion
at all. They meet and read alternate
essays and adjourn. Meantime there
are plenty of people , with children
to educate , who would be glad of
some suggestions as to what they
might reasonably be teaching them
in regard to religious matters. There
" < is a continual change of opinion as
to things like this. Twenty or tliirtv
years ago , children used to go to
Sunday school , recite a Golden Text
and sing "I want to bo an angel"
and ' ' There is a home eternal. ' ' At
home they were likely to be set to
memorizing portions of the Bible.
This was thought to be a religious
education. Nowadays people take a
somewhat more comprehensive view.
They have become aware that there
is much true religion outside the
systems , and that , it is possible to
disagree with some of the things
that used to bo taught and still not
bo an outlaw. As the children grow
up and begin to call for information
. about the history of the world and
the plan of things , and to ask about
statements their playmates and teach
ers make to them , it becomes neces
sary to decide what to tell them.
And here suggestions from wise per
sons would often bo welcome.
TO CURE A COLD IN ONE DAY.
Take Laxative Brome Quinine Tablets.
All druggists refund the money if it
fails to cure. E. W. Grove's signature
is on each box. 25o.
INCIDENTS OF WESTERN HISTORY.
n.
The First Red River Expedition.
Upon completion of the bargain for
the Louisiana territory , President Jef
ferson proceeded to take stock of his
new acquisition. Captains Lewis and
Olark were started up the Missouri in
1804 ; Pike explored the upper Missis
sippi in 1805 ; in the following year he
went up the Osage on his way to the
mountains , and dispatched a party
down stream from the Great Bend of
the Arkansas to trace that river to its
month ; and in the same year , 1806 , an
attempt was made to follow Red River
up to its headwaters.
There are many Red Rivers , and
there was much confusion among them
for a long time. A reader of the early
writers is sometimes puzzled by the
various mentions of unaccountable Red
Rivers which they make. Chief among
these was the stream which joins the
Mississippi between Natchez and Baton
Rouge , which was long supposed to be
an important watercourse. A hasty
guess by Alexander Hnmboldt , who
visited New Mexico in the earliest years
of the century , caused a supposed identi
fication of this river with one of the
many reddish streams that come down
from the Santa Fe country. It is in
reality a comparatively short stream ;
but this was not ascertained for a long
time. Major Long followed down from
its headwaters , in 1820 , a river which
he believed to be the Red , but which he
found , to his great mortification , when
he reached its month , was the Canadian ;
and the real source of Red River was a
mystery until 1852 , when Captains
Marcy and McOlellan located it on the
western line of Texas.
The following narrative of the first
effort in this direction is taken from Dr.
James' account of the Long expedition
of 1820. It has of course no connection
with that affair , which came fourteen
years after. The "Pawnee Piquas"
were a tribe , commonly called Pawnee
"Picts" ( tattooed ) or Towyashes , dwel
ling near the Comanohes on the upper
Canadian and having no connection
with the Pawnees of the Plains. The
Great Raft was an obstruction , forty
miles or more in length , composed , as
described , of driftwood , and so solid as
to have great trees growing upon its
surface. It persisted until quite re
cently.
Red River was explored at a very
early period by the French , but their
examinations appear to have extended
no further than to the country of the
Natohitoohes and the Cadoes ; and al
though subsequent examinations have a
little enlarged our acquaintance with
its upper branches , we are still unfortu
nately ignorant of the position of its
sources. Three years after the cession
of Louisiana to the United States , a
small party , known by the name of the
"Exploring Expedition of Red River , "
and consisting of Captain Sparks , Mr.
Freeman , Lieut. Humphrey and Dr.
Oustis , with seventeen private soldiers ,
two non-commissioned officers , and a
black servant , embarked from St.
Catherine's lauding , near Natchez , on
board several barges and small boats ,
with instructions to ascend Red River
to its sources. On the 3rd of May , 1806 ,
they entered Red River , expecting to be
able to ascend with their boats to the
country of the Pawnee Piqua Indians.
Here it was their intention to leave their
boats , and packing their provision on
horses which they should purchase of
the Pawnees , they were to "proceed to
the top of the mountains , " the distance
being , as they believed , about three
hundred miles.
On the 19th of May they arrived at
Natohitoches , distant from the Mississ
ippi 184 miles 266 perches , measured by
log-line and time. At this place they
delayed some days ; and having received
information that their progress would
be opposed by the Spaniards , they re
solved to increase the strength of their
party by retaining a detachment which
had been ordered by the secretary of
war to join them at Natchitoches , "for
the purpose of assisting the exploring
party to ascend the river to the upper
end of the Great Raft , and to continue
*
as far afterwards as might appear neces
sary to repel by force any opposition
they might meet with. " Accordingly ,
twenty men were selected from the
garrison at Natohitoches , and , under the
command of Lieutenant Dnforest ,
joined the exploring party. They wore
now thirty-seven in number aside from
the officers , and were furnished with a
supply of flour sufficient for nine
months' provision. On the 2nd of June
th'ey loft Natohitoches , and proceeded
toward their destination. The journal
of their tour by Mr. Freeman , which
has been obligingly put into our hands
by General D. Parker , is extremely cir
cumstantial , and embraces much valu
able information. We make use of it
without particular reference , whenever
we have occasion to speak of that part
of the Red river visited by the expedi
tion. On the 7th of June the party
were overtaken , near a small village of
Natchitoches and Paskagoulas , by an
Indian guide and interpreterwhom they
had hired at Natchitoches. He brought
a letter from Dr. Sibley , the Indian
agent , giving information that a de
tachment of Spanish troops were al
ready on their march from Nacog-
doohes , with a design to intercept the
exploring party. At the distance of one
hundred and two miles above Natchi-
toohes they left the bed of the river ,
turning out through one of those num
erous communications called Bayous ,
which connect the principal channel
