During my visit at Fort Union I engaged to build a fort for M'Kenzie to store his goods in safety at the mouth of the Big Horn River, one of the branches of the Yellow Stone. Accordingly, I repaired to the place to select a good site and commence operations. On arriving at the spot, I found the boats close by, but as there was no secure quay at the junction of the streams, I selected a site about a mile below. There were fifty men, who had arrived with the boats, hired to assist me in erecting the fort. The stipulated dimensions were one hundred and twenty yards for each front, the building to be a solid square, with a block house at opposite corners. The fort was erected of hewn logs planted perpendicularly in the ground; the walls were eighteen feet high. As soon as the pickets were up, we built our houses inside, in order to be prepared for the approach of winter. When I had been engaged about six weeks upon its construction, four hundred lodges of Crows moved into our immediate vicinity, thus affording us plenty of company, and a sufficient force to protect us against the attacks of hostile tribes.
When we had completed our building we unloaded the boats, and commenced trading with the Indians. During the first year the company was very unsuccessful, sinking over seventeen thousand dollars in the undertaking. This, however, was principally attributable to the outlay upon the fort (the wages of the fifty men engaged in constructing it ran for twelve months), and to the number of presents which it is customary, on such occasions, to distribute among the Indians.
After the Crows had removed to the fort, they were repeatedly annoyed with attacks from different hostile tribes. I was engaged in two small encounters during the winter, in both of which we were completely victorious. The Crows were fully occupied in protecting their own horses, or levying contributions upon their neighbours.
During the winter we accumulated a large amount of peltry, which in the spring I sent down to Fort Union in five Mackinaw boats, built by ourselves for the purpose. I sent a sufficient number of men to take good care of the boats, and to return up stream with a fresh supply of goods. I then left the fort in charge of Winters, leaving him thirty men for a guard. I also
