[Clark] Set out this morning a little after day & proceeded on very well the men ply their oares & we decended with great velocity, only Came too once for the purpose of gathering pappows, our anxiety as also the wish of the party to proceed on as expeditiously as possible to [get to] the Illinois enduce us to continue on without halting to hunt. we Calculate on ariveing at the first Settlements on tomorrow evening which is 140 miles, and objecet of our party is to divide the distance into two days, this day to the Osarge River, and tomorrow to the Charriton a Small french Village— we arived at the Enterance of Osage River at dark and encamped on the Spot we had encamped on the 1st & 2d of June 1804 haveing Came 72 miles. a very singular disorder is takeing place amongst our party that of the Sore eyes. three of the party have their eyes inflamed and Sweled in Such a manner as to render them extreamly painfull, particularly when exposed to the light, the eye ball is much inflaimed and the lip appears burnt with the Sun, the cause of this complaint of the eye I can't [account?] for. from it's Sudden apearance I am willing to believe it may be owing to the reflection of the Sun on the water
The sore eyes didn't slow them up very much as they made seventy-two miles this day. The cause of the sore eyes has been ruled either infectious conjunctivitis or the pawpaws. Handling the fruit is known to cause dermatitis and handling the fruit and then rubbing ones eyes could have been the cause. But whatever, they're close to their end destination.
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