about three months of this, tension began to grow between Beltrami and the others. He eventually split from their expedition in August, when the group had reached Pembina, and instead set off with some Ojibwe Indian guides on his personal quest to find the source of the river. After only a week and a half, his guides abandoned him and he had to carry on alone, seeking help from others he encountered. At some point Beltrami collected two indigenous flutes, which he later sent back to Italy along with his collection of other Native American artifacts. One of these flutes is the oldest extant Native American flute, and is now in the collection of the Museo Civico di Scienze Naturali in Bergamo, Italy. On August 28, he found what he believed was the source of the Mississippi River, as well as the Red River of the North. He named the place Giulia after his departed friend, and named eight other nearby lakes after her children. He made the return trip downriver to Fort Saint Anthony and continued south to New Orleans, arriving in December. There he began writing an account of his travels thus far. By late January, it was completed, and it was published a few months later. By that time, Beltrami was on a voyage through Mexico where he collected Aztec objects, classified plants and animals, and observed the area's political system. Particularly because of his work with flora, he eventually was included in several scientific societies of France. He returned to New Orleans in 1825, but soon left to return to Philadelphia where many copies of his book were being stored. The Catholic church was also displeased, and condemned him and his work. By November, he was hobnobbing with elites at festivities surrounding the opening of New York's Erie Canal. Return to Europe After some trips to Haiti, Santo Domingo, and elsewhere, Beltrami made a return trip across the Atlantic in 1826, arriving in London in the late part of the year. He moved to Paris two years later, and joined several scientific societies through the early 1830s. In 1834, Beltrami moved to Heidelberg, Germany and befriended Josef Anton Mittermaier, a notable jurist of the time. A few years later he finally returned to his estate in Filottrano. He attempted to have his books published in Italy, but the church-led government denied his requests. In his final